But First!! Here are Some Doubts....

Yes yes, this is late I know. School, yadayada. It blows, yadayada. Here's  chapter 8, enjoy!

          There was only one light on at the Carousel Boutique, a weak hint at a candle flame behind a deep purple curtain in the first floor window. Applejack galloped long and hard until she reached the oddly busted mailbox in front of the store. She paused to calm her breathing as she watched the light dance on the curtain, expecting to see the silhouette of a colt at any second.

           As soon as the mare could breath again, she edged close to the door and shoved her ear against the wood. Holding her breath in, the mare closed her eyes and listened. There were definitely sounds coming from inside, with heavy contrast in octave. They had to be voices.

          Before she knew what she was doing, Applejack was sneaking around the back of the Boutique. There had to be a window open or something. Not to break into, just to listen. Or so she told herself.

           Sure enough there was a window ever so slightly cracked open by the kitchen. Thanking Luna for her darkened skies, she eased up the window and crawled through as quietly as she possibly could.

           Dishes rattled as her hoof struck the side of a drainer hanging over the sink. She froze in place and sucked in her breath, praying that a certain unicorn and her guest had not heard her enter. For nearly a minute the mare stayed stretched over sink, her front hoof just barely touching the linoleum below. As reassurance crested of her, she allowed said hoof to fully descend to the floor, and made certain that there was nothing directly ahead of her to trip on. Thankfully the only light in the kitchen was pouring in through the window, so if she made anymore noise at least she'd have a second to hide herself.

            Applejack took another minute crossing the kitchen, scooting her hooves slowly and carefully. Just as she edged to the doorway she heard a voice, Rarity's voice--

              "-well I'm sure they are quite bothersome dear, just let me get some refreshments,"

            Applejack dove behind the door just in time for it to swing open, the thick wood nearly colliding with her face as she pressed herself against the wall. The lights clicked on and Rarity's figure came into view, clad in an elegant black dress. Applejack concentration couldn't smolder the disgust she felt for the unicorn, but it was enough to get her to catch the door and sneak out into the darkened hallway beside the living room.

           From what she could tell from where she was standing, there was a colt sitting in the loveseat in the living room. His silhouette stretched over the back of the chair, guided by the light from the fireplace.

          'Yeah real romantic missy' Applejack thought bitterly as she crawled across the floor and up the first row of stairs, hiding herself behind the bars of the staircase. Intruding or not, she wanted to see just how far the unicorn was going to take the night--and to see who that darn stallion was.

         "Care for some champagne dear?" Rarity walked back into the room with a bottle and two glasses bouncing behind her. Applejack could have sworn the unicorn was overemphasizing the sway of her hips.

         The colt jumped a bit, as if he were paying attention to the dancing flames in front of him. Applejack heard him chuckle nervously and accept the glass.

          "Never had wine before,"

          The unicorn sat herself beside him and took a dainty sip of her own glass.

           "I thought you said you liked social gathering and the like,"

          Applejack saw the colts ears flop down for a second, as if in misunderstanding. The he answered--

          "Well I usually drink at parties, but um.....never had wine. So uhh tell me about those sapphires you got,"

          "Oh you wouldn't be interested in all that now, would you?"

           The fashionista leaned in and touched noses with the stallion-

            "Perfect ain't he?"

            Applejack stifled her gasp in a hoof as she heard the voice beside her. Spike sat next to her, his claws folded over each other and his eyes half lidded. He stared out at the scene in the living room, unmoving and his gaze never faltering.

            "What are you doing here?" He whispered, his gaze never leaving Rarity, who had now gone silent in a lip-lock with the shadowed stallion.

             Applejack slowly stood and pulled Spike to his feet, motioning him to follow her up the stairs. They both crept up silently, careful not to disturb the two, now silent, lovers. As they reached the what she presumed to be Rarity's bedroom, Applejack ushered Spike in and closed the door behind them.

            "Now sweetheart you go on and pack your stuff up, you don't need to be 'round this now,"

            Spike turned and Applejack had to fight herself not to scoop the little guy up into her arms there and then. His eyes were bloodshot and puffy, clear indicators of where his emotions had been for the past few hours.

            "Why not? He's her coltfriend, and she's just my babysitter," he replied in a brave voice.

            "But.....gosh darn it, look at what she's doin' to ya!" the mare reasoned.

            The dragon padded slowly across the room and sat down on the plush bed.

            "It's not her fault," he replied, kicking his legs slowly underneath. The baby dragon kept his eyes down, to the dressers, the curtains, anywhere that he didn't have to meet the gaze of the earth pony in front of him.

           Applejack stopped herself before she yelled, nearly forgetting that she had in fact broken into Rarity's shop. The mare allowed herself a deep breath before she crossed the room and took his face in her hooves, forcing him to look at her.

          "Sweetheart she ain't worth it. Lookit them colts she brings home, what do they got over you?"

         Spike struggled to find something to focus on, anything not to look at the mare in front of him. With a slight shake to his voice he answered "I'm not her type-"

         Applejack shook him by his shoulders suddenly bringing her face close to his, her voice rising in anger at the fashionista.

        "What is her type huh? Trashy princes and smooth talkin' playboys! Ain't none of have a lick of respect for her!"

        The mare completely disregarded the volume of her voice as her rant continued, her anger in full flare.

       "You're the only feller here that don't treat her like a piece o' meat! Like she's more than a nice piece of flank! Now you tell me why she can't give you a chance! You tell me why you ain't worth her damn time!"

         The dragon lost himself as he answered, his eyes flooding like cracked dams, and his claws clutching at the hooves on his face as if they would cushion the blow of his own words.

         "Because I'm a dragon, I'm not a stallion!! I'd never make her happy, I'd just get big and mean again and....," the dragon dropped his head and sobbed, "they'd make her happier."

         Applejack fell silent, staring at the shaking ball of scales in front of her. For awhile after the Discord attack, Applejack had grown to care about the fashionista thinking that perhaps she had grown less arrogant. But in a matter of seconds, the anger she had felt for the snobbish unicorn had all rushed back into a pulsing ball in her stomach. She dropped her hooves from the dragon and stood silent for a moment. And then, in a speed only an earth pony would possess on solid ground, she found herself kicking down the bedroom door and racing down the darkened hall.

***Ok guys, I've got the next chapter fairly well planned out so be expecting it soon. As always, make sure to tell me if there is some sort of hang up with the wording of the story (iPad yunno...). Night everypony!!