//------------------------------//
// Chapter 11: Business before Pleasure 
// Story: Agent Con Mane in Nightfeather (to be rewritten) 
// by Fairytail 
//------------------------------//

	The stale air was cool against Nightfeather’s coat as he basked in the light of the moon eternal on his porch that overlooked his cloud yard. A pool of some of the most expensive dew money could buy fed a cloudcrete fountain with its therapeutic trickle. He delighted himself in another chocolate mint wafer from the plate on the table and offered one to Spitfire who was sprawled out on a lounging couch in her full Shadowbolt flightsuit. Spitfire politely raised a hoof against the offer and Nightfeather ate the wafer himself. Spitfire yawned and stretched on the couch before preening her firm wings. Nightfeather couldn't keep his eyes off her.
“Your share in Operation: Moonfall will make you a very rich pony, my dear.” Nightfeather said to her with another wafer in hoof.
Spitfire gave her officer a coy smile. “Why else would I be in it?” she said confidently.
“Oh, I thought that you’d have plenty of motives. Perhaps you’d thought you could worm your way back into the good graces of Celestia and rejoin the Wonderbolts?”
His sardonic tone was not lost on Spitfire. She sat back up on her haunches. Her face was burning with protest, but even in her fiery anger her eyes would not look into Nightfeather’s. They drifted to the side in hesitation.
“Don’t be ridiculous!” she said, “I could never go back there and you know it.” Spitfire helped herself to a wafer and laid back down on the couch with her head cradled in her hooves. “No, I spotted a little island near the seas of Aquastria. I figured the mermares would welcome a fellow outcast. I’ll hang up a sign: ‘No Trespassing’.”
Nightfeather smiled in satisfaction. Just as he picked up another wafer, one of his guards flew onto the porch.
“Sir!” the Batpony reported.
Nightfeather’s smile soured at the interruption. “Yes? What is it?”
“Two ponies with binoculars are outside the manor gates.” The Guard hooved over his own pair of binoculars to Nightfeather. Through them he looked out towards the manor gates and noticed the two ponies laying low on a nearby cloud. One was looking through the binoculars. The other was wearing dark sunglasses that reflected the moonlight.
Nightfeather tutted. “Journalists from the tabloids. Always looking for some story or the other.” Nightfeather prepared to bite his wafer but stopped. He paused for a moment then turned back to the guard. “There is another possibility, however. Guard, ask Mr. Mane to join us.” The Lunar Guard saluted and flew off towards the entrance to the dungeon. “We were right to spare Mr. Mane’s life in the weather factory if those two are his friends. Let’s convince them he needs no assistance. For their benefit, Lieutenant, let’s make him as comfortable as possible.” Nightfeather ran a hoof down her leather bound body. “I suggest you change out of that uniform and into something more natural.”
“Certainly.” she said with a smile as she sat up with extra movements to playfully flaunt her curves. “Business before pleasure.”
Spitfire flew to her quarters and Nightfeather patiently enjoyed a few more wafers until Joe arrived in the company of two Batponies. Nightfeather stood up and placed a friendly hoof around Joe’s shoulder.
“Ah, Mr. Mane! Please sit down. Mint wafer?”
Joe furrowed his brow in confusion. He gave the half empty plate of wafers a dubious look. Nightfeather recognized the hesitation and ate a wafer from the plate. The two Batpony guards still hovered uncomfortably close to Joe and so he took a wafer and sat across the table from the smiling Nightfeather.
“You disappoint me, Nightfeather.” Joe said, “You know Operation: Moonfall just simply won’t work. Not to mention I caught a glance of some of that ‘potion’ you plan to use. That ain't no sleeping gas. That’s poison.”
“You are unusually well informed, Mr. Mane.” Nightfeather laughed.
Joe slammed his hoof on the table and rattled the wafer plate. “You will kill the entirety of the Princess’ Castle, including the Princess herself!”
Nightfeather feigned melodramatic sorrow and placed a hoof on his heart. “A tragedy, I assure you, but for such a plan to work, sometimes it is necessary to accept calculated risks.” he smiled again and ate another wafer.
“Yeah well I've done a few calculations of my own. Assuming what you say is true, and you can manipulate ponies’ dreams from inside the Dream Tree, the time it would take for these altered dreams to start influencing their minds… Celestia and the rest of Equestria will catch on before long. You’ll be banished to Tartarus before you get so much as a parade!”
Nightfeather let out a loud, hearty laugh. “You truly believe I desire to become Emperor?”
Joe was taken aback. His mind was racing. “You’re going to attack the castle, kill the Princess and enter the Dream Tree and you don’t want to take over the world? Why then?”
Nightfeather was still overcome with his chuckles. “Go on, Mr. Mane.” he said in amusement.
Joe rested his chin on his hoof and thought back. It was clear he was missing something. And then he realized there was one piece of the puzzle that hadn't been fit yet. “In the weather factory you opened a portal to the Nightmare Dreamscape. I have been wondering where you’d get a machine that could pull that off. I think I understand now who gave you that machine.”
Nightfeather nodded in condescending congratulations. “I received from them a chest containing the raw energy of the Nightmare. Once opened, the Nightmare Forces will be allowed to corrupt the Dream Tree from the inside.”
Joe’s face turned white. “If you release the Nightmare Forces inside the Dream Tree, then the ponies of Equestria will only be able to have nightmares for all eternity.”
“And with no Princess to save them.” Nightfeather added.
“I’m sorry for doubting you, Nightfeather. That’s absolutely genius. Everypony wins. They get what they want: Chaos and Disharmony spread across Equestria, the Nightmare forces invade the minds of ponies. But what exactly do you get, if not power?”
“Fame, naturally. For with the Princess gone, who else will have the power to enter the Dreamscape and vanquish the evil?”
“And none would be the wiser to the fact that you were the one that released the Nightmares in the first place. Instead, you’d be crowned a hero for coming in and destroying the Nightmares. So, you plan on betraying the Nightmare Forces?”
Nightfeather indulged in another wafer. “Politics do make for strange bedfellows.”
“So I take it that this ‘Nightmare Cage’ is already somewhere within the NLR, since it’d be impossible for it to cross the magic barrier.”
“Well, obviously.”
“Captain or not, don’t you think it’s a bit of a risk bringing the cage to Luna’s castle?”
“Oh no no no, Mr. Mane! Quite the contrary in fact. The risk is all on your side. If either of the Royal Sisters dare to locate it, who knows where the Nightmares might be released, eh? Operation: Moonfall WILL be successful! You will be there to witness it yourself. Too closely for comfort, I’m afraid.”
“What’s that supposed to mean!?”
“Why I plan for you to be present in the Dream Tree when the cage is opened.” Nightfeather’s smile was wide and sinister. The words sent a thrall of shivers throughout Joe’s body.
As if to punctuate feeling of dread, a swirl of inky clouds coalesced into the space before the two ponies and took the sinister shape of Larry. In his shapeless paws he held a mason jar filled with a liquid rainbow. He playfully sloshed the contents around causing the bands of color to temporarily mix into a disgusting brown before naturally separating again. Very tiny sparkles floated in the liquid.
“Ah, yes.” said Nightfeather, “You must excuse me, Mr. Mane. I must attempt to extract my diamonds from the rest of the late Solo Venture.”
A pit formed in Joe’s stomach. His gaze was fixated on the mason jar. He noticed how the band of red was slightly thicker than the rest of the spectrum.
“Like you said,” Joe whispered hoarsely, “A pressing engagement.”
Joe’s mind was torn away from his morbid thoughts by the heavy sound of flapping wings. He turned around and saw a Pegasus land on the porch. At first he didn't recognize her, but then he noticed the brilliant flames of her burnt orange mane and her scorching amber eyes.
“Ah, Lieutenant Spitfire, there you are!” exclaimed Nightfeather.
Spitfire had removed her Shadowbolts outfit. For the first time, Joe saw Spitfire in her natural, naked state. “Sorry for taking so long.” She spread out her massive wings and swayed her yellow-orange body. “It feels nice to have the night air against my coat again. I felt like flying around for a bit.”
She flipped her mane which she no longer wore in a spiked up cut. Her hair now fell onto her shoulders more naturally. It was still wild and wavy like an out of control inferno, but it now danced like the welcoming waltz of a warm fireplace. Sultry eyes peaked from behind her bangs. Joe was frozen solid by the fiery beauty.
“Very pretty don’t you agree?” mocked Nightfeather, “Please entertain Mr. Mane for me, Spitfire? We’ll talk later.”
“Understood, sir.” Spitfire said, but not like an obedient officer, but instead with husky playfulness.
Free from the restrictive uniform, Joe could now appreciate in full force the bombshell that was Spitfire. The flightsuit did well to exhibit her muscular figure, but without it she had the added benefit of showcasing her femininity. Her frame seemed tinier, more delicate, yet at the same time bigger and more grandiose. Her wings, which Joe could recognize before as muscular and fit, now became her. The base of the her wings met with her natural form and blended seamlessly into her brilliant yellow body like a phoenix soaring through the sky. Her muscular thighs and rump, no longer pushed up by the leather, were more loose and flabby but in a good, appealing way. They were full and desirably round. Her Cutie Mark was a flame that, upon closer inspection, looked to take the shape of a Phoenix in flight. Her Phoenix, flank and tail and danced in a sultry wave as Spitfire sashayed closer towards Joe.
“Well how about it handsome?” she teased, “Don’t you think it’s time we got to know each other socially?”
Joe whistled as he eyed her nose to tail. She made no efforts to hide her exhibition, and so Joe felt no need to hide his appreciation. “The new Spitfire. I gotta say I approve.”
“I always fly naked after business hours.” A sexy smile accompanied another display of her unencumbered wings.
“That’s so? So you’re off duty I take it?”
“I’m completely defenseless!” she said with a giggle. Spitfire stretched out a hoof towards Joe and instinctively he prepared to counter another one of her lightning fast strikes. Instead, Con Man’s muscles tightened in a different way when the hoof wrapped around his foreleg and she leaned her body snug against his with her head resting on his neck. Joe couldn't help but wonder if this was another trap like the one she pulled off on the airship. But there was a sincerity in the way she nuzzled him and the tension melted away,
“So am I.”
Hoof in hoof, the two strolled across the cloud yard. Joe looked around and there wasn't a Lunar Guard in sight. The sudden lack of security made him uncomfortable-- but not too uncomfortable thanks to the occasional lean by Spitfire. If the synthetic wings on Joe’s back that kept him from falling through the clouds were actually able to fly, Joe didn't see anything that could actually stop him. Then he caught a glimpse of Spitfire’s warm, amber eyes and realized that, perhaps, he didn't entirely want to leave.
“These are some pretty swanky digs Nightfeather’s got here.” Joe said as he was finally able to see more of the manor’s impressive architecture from the outside, “We’re so high up in the sky, it feels like you can just reach out and touch that full moon. Which I’m still really curious about how that works by the way.”
Spitfire laughed and stopped to stare up at the moon eternal. The silvery light blended into her sunburst colors as a stray breeze played with her mane. “I’ve always enjoyed looking out into the night sky. It’s always so welcoming and soothing, unlike the harsh light of the sun. I could always just look out onto the stars and fall asleep, knowing I would dream peacefully.”
A pit, or was it merely pity, formed in Joe’s stomach. “Too bad that all has to end tomorrow. There won’t be any peaceful dreams for anypony if Nightfeather has his way.” Joe looked into her eyes and saw that their light was reduced to dimming embers. The makings of a tear sizzled and quelled that light. “He’s mad you know. There’s still time for you to fly away and stop this from happening.”
Spitfire turned away from her moon and looked to Joe . He tried to smile for her but it was only met with a sour frown and a damaged spirit. He wanted to reach out and stroke her mane, to nuzzle her as softly as she nuzzled him, but she trotted away before he could act. Still, he followed her and they continued their walk.

From their vantage point atop a cloud from which they could see the entirety of Nightfeather’s yard. Agent Ambush peered through his binoculars with Sky Blazer by his side. For several hours they watched Nighfeather and his lieutenant lounge around in their opulence until one of the Lunar Guards brought Con Mane to join them and the mare flew back inside. After the Homer cut out at the rainbow factory, Sky feared the worse, but after seeing Joe and Nightfeather share a peaceful meal and what seemed to be light conversation, he could only laugh at his own paranoia. In a swirl of smoke, the Nightling appeared and hooved something over to Nightfeather.
The lieutenant came back, no longer in her Shadowbolts attire, and was left alone with Con while Nightfeather and Larry went about their own business. Hardly the actions of  somepony holding another as prisoner. The rest of Sky’s worries vanished when the beautiful mare wrapped her hooves around Joe and leaned in lovingly.
“That’s my Joe.” he said with a wide, and partially envious, smile. They continued to watch the couple as they strolled across the yard, took a moment to look up and watch the night sky and then had some sort of intimate moment. Sky assumed the moment went well since, after strolling near the house some more, Joe waltzed his way into small side building and she rushed in after him.
“Con Mane looks to have the situation well in hoof.” Sky said, “Come on, Agent Ambush, let’s get back to the castle.”

“Hey, get back here! You’re not allowed in here!” Spitfire ordered as she followed Joe into a building that he curiously entered. The building was a food storage. Several canned goods lined the shelves along with delicious wildflowers preserved in vases and piles upon piles of fresh, golden hay. “Did you hear me!?”
Joe stood in the center of the dimly lit room, his hooves buried in hay up to his cuffs. He just stood there smiling and Spitfire trotted up to him in heavy stomps ready to drag him out.		“You’re a good pony you know, Spitfire.” He said as she drew near.
The statement caught her off guard. Frustration flared from her muzzle. “I betrayed Equestria!”
“I’d like to think you don't really want to go through with this at all. Just come with me. Celestia will understand. I can testify for you and--”
“Skip it!” she flared, “I’m not interested. Let’s go.” She grabbed his hoof and with great force dragged him back to the entrance of the shed. As they grew near, Joe suddenly jutted ahead and slammed the door shut in her face. He took the opportunity to overpower her and forcefully spin her towards him so that her muzzle was right up against his. He clutched tightly at her shoulders.
“What would it take for you to see things my way?”
“A lot more than you've got!” she growled. Ire radiated from her body.
“How do you know?” Joe said, keeping his calm.
Spitfire gave a cold, yet sizzling smile. “I don’t want to know.”
With a flair of her wings, she broke free of Joe’s grasp and turned back towards the door. Just as quickly, Joe yanked at her tail and dragged her back again. He lifted her up so that they were both standing on their hind legs. He put a hoof around her waist and another in her hoof so that they stood as if ready for a waltz.
“Ok, I get the whole not liking Stallions thing. Still, isn't it customary to grant a dead pony his last request?”
Spitfire’s angry growls grew until she erupted into a volcanic rage. “You asked for this!” With the strength of a flaming Dragon, Spitfire whipped around and bucked Joe square in the chest. His breath escaped him as he flew back several hooves into the hay. Although the landing was soft, the room still blurred in his daze.
As Joe groaned and shook off the pain, Spitfire approached him and held out a resentful hoof. “Get up!”
“Certainly.” Joe said as he reached out and grabbed Spitfire’s hoof. But as Spitfire pulled, so did Joe and much harder. Spitfire was relieved of her hoofing as she fell forward face first into the hay. Joe used the extra momentum to get back on his hooves and he dusted the rogue straw from his clothes.
Spitfire pulled her head out of the hay and growled with eyes scorching hot. Golden yellow strands of hay were tangled in her similarly colored mane. “That was a cheap shot!”
Joe laughed and continued to taunt her. “You’re the one with working wings. You should have seen it coming. Or has the legendary Captain of the Wonderbolts not all she is cracked up to be?”
Spitfire screamed like an enraged animal and shot off towards Joe with an accelerated take off so fast, the hay rained from the sky. The blazing rocket that was Spitfire collided with Joe and they both spiraled into another hay pile. She pinned him down with her hooves and gave him a satisfactory smile. The fire that blazed in her eyes was no longer anger, but pride. “How’s that for a Wonderbolt?”
Joe tutted. “You held back. Where’s your confidence, Spitfire? It’s embarrassing that the Wonderbolts lost to the Shadowbolts at the last flight rally!”
Spitfire screamed once again and took off to hover near the ceiling. She lined up her shot and plummeted to the floor like a missile. The trail that she left behind in her speed looked just like the tailfire of a true Phoenix. Still, Joe timed her decent and quickly jumped out of the way, forcing Spitfire to collide with the empty pile which caused another shower of hay. She stumbled as she pulled herself out of the hay that buried her. Her mane was now an even greater mess and comprised of least fifty percent straw. Her amber eyes were flared wide and were red, but not with anger. Her eyes puffed pink as a stream of tears matted her face.
“Now you get up!” Joe ordered her with his own military bark, “Come on. Get out of that hay and come at me again!”
“No!” She screamed. Her face quivered and hiccuped with her tears.
“No? So you’re just going to roll over and lie there forever?” Joe slowly approached the pathetic creature before him.
“Just shut up and leave me alone!” she cried.
Joe stepped onto the hay pile and looked down at Spitfire whom he caged between his hooves.
“If you won’t stand up, I’ll come down there and pull you up. Now, let’s both play.”
Joe dropped to his knees and fell down on her. His lips met hers and he met her passionately. Her lips were alty and moist with tears. Spitfire tried to scream through the sobs and the stallion making out with her. She raised her hooves and tried to pull the pony off of her but his massive frame was too much. His body leaned in closer and closer until the full lengths of the two ponies were touching.
Spitfire continued to struggle but couldn't concentrate against the machinations of his kiss. In an effort to gain dominance, Spitfire wrapped her hooves around his large, muscular body, her hooves sliding against his plush, comfortable suit. Her wings flared open and wrapped themselves around Joe as well. She pushed against his lips with her own. Slowly, Spitfire’s struggling grunts turned into moans of pleasure as she gave in to her desires.