Spike grumbled as he carefully slipped another comic back into his collection. The last week has been a bit annoying with all that ponies seemed to have been wanting to talk about being Emerald Flare and how charming and handsome he was. Now, normally this was a huge ego boost to Spike and for the first few days it was, with him even being able to write a fair amount of pages due to it, but then it got annoying.

Twilight and Starlight would talk about this new friend with Starlight sending him a letter which Spike said that he would put in the mailbox for her but took it. He read over it and found himself feeling guilty as he read over Starlight’s retelling of her last day or two and she began to ask small questions like where he was now and how he was doing. He would write a letter back, wake up early, and rush to Derpy. He’d follow her until she eventually dropped a few letters and carefully slip his in with the pile as he just so happened to be passing by and gave them back to her.

With that new guilt now in him. A strange bout of jealousy began to grow as Rarity swooned a bit at the picture of Emerald and Twilight ended up blushing a bit whenever Rainbow or Starlight would tease her about how she acted in front of the stallion. Less and less attention was paid to the dragon, which was annoying enough normally, but now he had someone he could blame and it was himself! Spike wondered if he had a right to be jealous, he was Emerald Flare for Celestia’s sake! But as the days passed and things died down, he found the bit of jealousy remained as he wondered why they liked Emerald more than him.

He worked harder each day to show the girls just how much he cared but while Pinkie and Rainbow would thank and hang out a bit with him a bit more than usual, the unicorns and alicorns in his life seemed too distracted with numerous things to really notice. It ended up being Fluttershy and Applejack who really seemed to appreciate his hard work. They would greet him, let him help, laugh and joke with him, and even give him a hug before he would head home with Applejack’s being strong, tight, and long and Fluttershy’s being rather gentle but soft and full of kindness.

This new work ethic had been enough to keep the dragon’s mind away from Emerald Flare until the day when he grabbed the morning paper for Twilight. He just finished cooking breakfast when his castlemates arrived at the table and his ears caught part of their conversation.

“It’s really too bad Luna didn’t seem to like it. I guess having three out of four princesses as fans aren’t too bad.”

“I do think she was a tiny bit too harsh though,” Twilight said showing Starlight the paper. Spike served them and sat next to Twilight with a bowl of gems, his nerves telling him he was about to lose his appetite.

“What are you reading Twilight?”

“Oh, nothing you need to worry about Spike. Luna read over The Neverending Flame and didn’t seem to be a big fan like the rest of us.”

“W-what?!” Spike sandwiches Twilight’s face against his and Starlight’s as he looks over the article.

“I’d like to start off my critique of The Neverending Flame by saying that we enjoyed reading this novel. It was fun and we understand just how the public and our family can enjoy this story, however, while we liked it we can not give it our seal of quality. The plot of the tale was interesting but took several unneeded diversions and while the characters were well-written they had moments that seemed out of character. My biggest problem is the strange intimate scenes. While enticing and enjoyable, they seemed to have been written in a way that may have revealed that the author may yet have had intercourse as there were several parts where the reactions were quite right. I do truly hope that Mister Emerald Flare sees this and the rest of the article as helpful criticism and not an attack. I am looking forward to his next book.”
Spike swallowed back a growl and refused to see the rest of the writing, his fragile ego having just taken a big hit from a pony he admired, loved, and found at that moment he had really hoped to impress. Twilight finally pushed against Spike’s face and rubbed her blushing cheeks.

“What was all that about?”

“Nothing… I just wanted to see what Luna wrote. Didn’t know she was such a critic…”

“The princess is allowed to have an opinion, Spike.”

“I know… I just remembered that I promised to help out one of our friends. I should go.” Spike ran out of the kitchen just as Twilight was about to go after him, but Starlight stopped her and smiled lightly.

“I know you want to go after him but I think he needs to be alone right now.”

“But he didn’t even eat…” Starlight laughed.

“Come on, none of your friends will let him go hungry. You had lessons for me anyway.” Twilight seemed to relax and wolfed down her food but Starlight glanced back to the doorway where Spike ran. ‘Why did he care so much about what Luna said?'

. . .

Spike thought the outdoor air would do him some good, but as he walked through town he found his attitude only getting worse as ponies were talking about what Luna said. Spike even heard one or two of the ponies agree with her take.

“Some fans…” Spike grumbled to himself as his stomach began to loudly growl and he blushed at the ponies that turned to look at him. He ran and ended up running right into a passing wagon. The two crashed and Spike was launched into the air before landing on his face. A pained groan escaped his lips before fainting.

“Scootaloo! What did ya hit this time?”

“Hey! That wasn’t my fault this time!”

“Girls! It’s Spike!” Applebloom and Scootaloo rushed to Sweetie Belle who was looking down on the dragon. “W-what do we do?”

“Umm… we have to make sure he’s okay right? Like is he breathing?” The three looked at his chest but they couldn’t tell if it was gently moving or if their eyes were playing tricks on them. “Shouldn’t one of us give him CPR or something?” The three blushed at Scootaloo’s suggestion.

“Ah don’t know much about dragons… maybe he’s just asleep?”

“After getting hit by me? No one gets off that easily.”

“I hope he’s not asleep, my sister told me dragons take hundred-year naps! Twilight would go crazy without Spike, remember the doll thing?” The three shivered and Applebloom took lead and carefully approached Spike, blushing as she laid her head down on Spike’s chest. The others glanced away making sure no pony was looking at them, but would also glance back at the two.

“He’s breathin and not snorin so he’s not asleep. Ah think Scoots knocked him out. Maybe we should take him ta the hospital?”

“No way! We’ll be blamed and they may tell Rarity!”

“Yeah, not the hospital… what about Fluttershy?”

"She’ll know what to do. Umm Applebloom? I think he’s fine. Wanna help us put him in the wagon?” Applebloom blushed as she found she was still leaning on the dragon’s warm chest. The scales were hard as one would expect but she found the texture felt rather nice against her coat. She slowly backed up off him and ignored the looks on her friends’ faces as she and Sweetie loaded Spike into the wagon and they zoomed off to the cottage just outside of Ponyville.

Sweetie Belle glanced at Applebloom several times during the ride as she still was a bit red in the face and seemed to be distracted. She wondered for a moment how it must feel to lean her head on Spike’s chest but shook the thought away. She turned and opened her mouth to ask Applebloom something, but the two noticed Spike’s body slipping out of the wagon and both quickly grabbed him and pulled him back, using too much strength and having him land in their laps.

The fillies blushed and glanced at each other, seeing the cottage coming up, and quickly set Spike up so Scootaloo wouldn’t see the position they were in. The wagon and scooter skitted impressively to a stop and Scootaloo smirked back at her friends.

“Another perfect ride. Right girls?” She frowned seeing the girls blushing and seeming out of it. “If you two needed me to go slower you could have asked.” The fillies picked up the dragon and grunted as they dragged his body to the door. “Ugh! Spike needs to lay off the growing and gems!”

“What did we expect a dragon to weigh?”

“Less than this!” They dumped him on the doorstep and knocked before rushing back to their ride. They weren’t looking forward to getting in trouble today. Fluttershy cracked open her door and gasped at the sight of her friend, quickly dragging him in and not noticing the dust cloud that was near her door. She called in Angel, who was grumpy as he just woken up from his nap, and ordered the bunny to grab her first aid kit. He saluted and rushed to the kitchen and brought back the kit just as Fluttershy managed to get Spike on her couch.

“Check his heart rate Angel.” The bunny jumped onto Spike’s chest and put his head to his heart, thumping his foot to the beat. “That’s good he’s stable. Hmm by the bump on his head here it seems like he was hit by something. I’ll wrap up his head and use some incense to wake him up.” Angel watched as Fluttershy worked her magic, noticing how serious she seemed to be even though this was a simple injury. As she finished the bandaging, she slowly placed a hoof on Spike’s cheek, tilting his face towards her so she could see it. Angel tilted his head as Fluttershy lightly traced her hoof over his cheek.

“He’s really grown up from the tiny dragon he was when we first met… I know deep down a part of me wants to be scared… a part sees him as a dragon first.” Her hoof moved to his nose which wiggled at her touch and made the pegasus smile. “But all I see is him… the helpful dragon who has been there for me just as much as the girls. I wish I could repay for everything…” Her hoof reached his lips and a red tint rose to her cheeks as she leaned forward, stopping just millimeters from her goal. Instead, she whispered something that Angel couldn’t hear.

She kissed his cheek and smiled at Angel before petting him and leaving Spike in his care as she went for the incense. The bunny chuckled a bit seeing the dragon smile in his sleep. A few minutes passed and Fluttershy returned, moving a candle under Spike’s nose and he stirred before gasping and pushing the candle away.

“Ugh, I hate that smell… Fluttershy?”

“Oh umm hello Spike.”

“Hiya… how did I get here? Ow, my head.” He held his bump as Fluttershy explained that she found him on her doorstep. “So I was hit by something or somepony and they brought me here. Smart, no one better than you when it comes to injured animals.” Spike chuckled and made Fluttershy blush, but she smiled a bit at the compliment.

“It was nothing…”

“Please if they took me to the hospital those ponies would still be wondering what I was and if they took me to Twilight she’d be panicking over every little thing. You care and know a lot, but also know when not to go overboard.”

“Not all the time…” Fluttershy muttered thinking back on the Philomena incident but then blinked when she felt a claw gently touch her cheek.

“You’re doing it again. Doubting yourself and refusing compliments. I thought we moved past all that.” Fluttershy stared at his kind eyes and blushed under his touch. “Now you relax a bit while I feed the chickens. okay? Consider it thanks for helping me out.” She jumped to her hooves in response.

“Y-you don’t have to!” Spike gave her a look and she slowly sat back down. “Thanks, Spike.”

“Anything Flutters.” Spike fed the chickens with help from Angel and came back to the cottage to find Fluttershy asleep. He smiled and covered her with a blanket before waving to Angel and leaving. He took deep breaths and smiled at how peaceful things around him were, but then his mind turned back to Luna and what she said. Now though, he felt just sad he had disappointed her.

“Spike? What ya doin all alone out ‘ere? What happened to ya head?” He looked up to see Applejack balancing a bucket of apples on her head. He smiled at her.

“I’m big enough to walk alone now AJ.”

“Yeah, that bandage sure says that.”

“W-well something hit me! I’m not sure what. I just knew that Fluttershy said she found me on her porch.”

“You have to keep a better eye out, Sugarcube. Ya know Twi and the princesses would go crazy if ya got hurt. Plus… well you’d worry other ponies too.” Spike glanced at her and took the bucket off her head. She tried to get it back but he smirked and playfully held it out of reach. “Ah see you aren’t too hurt to play games. You better go all the way partner, Ah could use the extra help seein that Big Mac is with Sugar Belle right now.”

“You’re asking me for help, never thought I’d see the day~” Applejack blushed a bit and glared at the dragon.

“Ya gonna put more than that mouth of yours to work?” Spike bowed and motioned for her to lead the way and she rolled her eyes but smiled. The two walked back to Sweet Apple Acres and soon the two were in a competition of sorts with who can buck the most trees. A whole two hours passed with Spike using his fists to punch the trees and his wings to blow the apples down but even with his advantages, Applejack was a master who had been doing this since she was little. It was beautiful how easily she could kick each tree just perfectly and she even began to jump off the trees and hit multiple, adding in little flips. The dragon stared at how she seemed to dance with power and grace. Spike fluttered back to the ground in awe at just how many trees she managed to do, as she smirked and trotted over to him, shaking her mane of leaves and sweat.

“B-but how…”

“You may be good Spike but Ah’m just better~” Spike blushed a bit and they put the apples away in the barn. Applejack stretched and smiled at how quickly they managed to finish the afternoon chores. They sat peacefully under the shade of a tree until a growl broke the peace and Applejack smirked. “Some dragon skip lunch?” Spike had the decency to look sheepish and Applejack hit their tree making an apple fall into Spike’s hand.

“Breakfast too. Thanks, AJ.” He ate it happily and she moved her hat to cover her eyes. “Umm Applejack can I ask you something?” She grunted to show she was listening. “If you did something that many thought was great but some ponies don’t… what would you do?”

“You move on. No matter what ya do or how well you do it there will always be somepony somewhere who will dislike it whether it’s for good reasons or bad ones. You should look at it like this, you actually did do somethin instead of just spitting noise and never doing anything. You got it done and it could be the worst thing ever but you did it and at least you can say that.”

“True… but what if it’s a pony you love and admire that didn’t like what you made?”

“Then ya take what they said and try to improve yourself! No pony makes anythin perfect and nothing is right on the first try, trust me. You have to accept what your flaws are and either improve em or at least try to find a new way to tackle your problem.” Spike thought over what Applejack said and nodded. He had been acting like a child and almost couldn’t accept that there were any flaws with what he’s made. Luna was entitled to what she said and he now was able to choose how to handle it.

“Thanks, Applejack… I always know I can count on you.”

“Anytime sugarcube.” Applejack heard rustling and guessed that Spike had left but then felt his claws wrap around her chest and her breath was caught in her throat. He hugged her and his hot breath hit her neck and ear, making the latter twitch. The cowgirl was thanking Celestia for her hat covering her face.

“I mean it. You’re an amazing friend.” As easily as the sensation came, it was gone and Spike’s wings opened and he flew back towards the castle. Applejack moved a hoof to her chest and felt her own racing heart as she knew what had just happened.

“Aww crud…”

. . .

Spike landed at the castle as the sun began to set. He opened the door and thought it was too quiet. He walked through the throne room and the kitchen until he ended up in the Study and smiled finding his castlemates huddled together on the couch fast asleep. He guessed by the look of the books on the ground that they were training again. He chuckled before starting to clean up the room which took another hour.

“What would you two do without me?” He asked as he looked back down at the mares and lifted them both and they immediately grabbed his warm body. He blushed at how they must look but smiled and kissed them both on the horns. He dropped off Starlight first and tucked her in before heading to Twilight’s room and carefully placing her on the bed. “Goodnight Twi.”

“Spike…” He hoped that he hadn’t woken her but she only seemed to have registered his voice and he moved a hand through her mane before leaving the room. He sat in his room and spun in his chair before looking over the newspaper and what Luna said. He tapped his quill against his chin before smiling and beginning to write.

Author's Note

YES! This was officially my first story to hit a hundred likes! You all gave me over a thousand views! I really just want to say thank you and I'll be working hard to make this story something great! I have a few other stories to write for before coming back but it won't be long! I really hope you all enjoy chapter three! Chapter four will have Emerald Flare meeting Celestia and Luna.