CHAPTER 40
I was huddled in the Cutie Mark Crusader's little treehouse, and they were all staring up at me with their eyes wide in anticipation for... Something.
Luckily, Scootaloo decided to break the silence. "So... Is there anything you can do?"
I shrugged. "Not much... Well, I have some lingering effect from a spell Twilight cast on me. Watch this..." I closed my eyes and concentrated, and the collection of gasps around me told me I was successful.
"Wow... He c'n turn 'nvisible!"
I opened up my eyes, and the three girls were all looking around for me. Sweetie Belle even opened up a chest shoved in the corner. I chuckled, and decided to spook them a bit. I put on my best scary voice...
"I am not Shadow... I am the ghost that haunts this treehouse! Leave my home..."
All the girls jumped in the air and screamed, and then dashed out of the treehouse as if their lives depended on it, which they probably thought. I fell over on the floor, laughing and holding my sides.
"HA! I can't believe they fell for that. I wonder if they think it was me now..."
"Shadow! That's not very nice!" Apparently, Scootaloo did. They all climbed back into the treehouse, and I returned to the land of the visible. They all gave me angry looks, but I had a big grin on my face.
"Alright girls, I'm sorry... But that's what I can do that's pretty unique... So, what is it that you girls want to do, exactly?" I'd heard of some of the girls' plans, but I didn't believe any of them. How could three little fillies do all of that?
Apple Bloom put her hoof on her chin, and then started moving around and looking at a bunch of papers on a little desk near the window. They looked like very crudely drawn plans for one thing or another. Suddenly, Apple Bloom looked at one, and a big smile crept across her face. "We haven't done this 'n yet!"
Sootaloo clapped her hooves together. "Great idea, Apple Bloom! I've been wanting to try that one!"
Sweetie Belle just smiled and nodded. I cocked my eyebrow in confusion. "Uh, girls, I don't mean to interrupt, but... What are we doing, exactly?"
All three of them looked at me and smiled, and then they all shouted in unison. "CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS SPIES, YAY!"
"WHAT."
I fell onto my haunches, and they all stared at me, giant, toothy smiles across their faces. Sweetie Belle inched in a bit closer to me. "We've had this plan for a while, but nopony around here is good at sneaking. But you can turn invisible! You have to be good at sneaking!"
I slowly nodded. "Yeah... Are you sure? Sneaking isn't something you just get good at in a matter of hours." They all nodded their head violently. "Alright..." I stood up, and headed towards the door. "Well, come on. We need to find somewhere dark. You can't be sneaky in broad daylight. Well, you can, but that comes later. Come on!" They all skipped up next to me, and we were off.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"... And you calm your breathing... Yeah, like that. Now you're practically a shadow yourself. Now, if anypony you're hiding from looks in the shadows, hold your breath, and don't move a muscle. They won't see you. I would know, I've done it before."
The three fillies came out of the shadowy corner. We were in an alley, but it was one that was open to the street, so if I were to get jumped, somepony was bound to see. The CMC were picking up on stealth pretty nicely. I was impressed. They all started looking at each others' flanks, and frowned when none of them had a Cutie Mark.
"Aw... Ah' was sure Ah' got it this time!"
Sweetie Belle hung her head. "Darn it..."
Scootaloo jumped in front of me, and glared at me. "Why haven't we gotten our Cutie Marks yet?!"
I shrugged. "Hey, these things take time. Come on girls, cheer up! This means you still get to try new things, or you could even work on sneaking even more. You never know when it'll come in-" I then realized that I was talking to three dust-clouds shaped like the CMC. "Handy. Oh... Dear. GIRLS?!"
I ran out of the alley, and looked around. No crazy fillies...
"Oh no oh no oh no oh no oh no oh no..."
I was darting all over the place. I was ready to turn the entire town upside down to find them. "Girls?!"
"Oh... My. Shadow, is something wrong?" Fluttershy came out of practically nowhere. How useful.
"Fluttershy! Have you seen Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, or Sweetie Belle anywhere?"
She nodded. "I have, actually. They just ran by me a moment ago. Why, is something wrong?"
I rubbed the back of my head. "Well... They got me caught up in their crusading... And I kinda... Taught them... How to... Be sneaky..."
Fluttershy's expression blanked, and she just stared at me for a moment. "You taught The Cutie Mark Crusaders how to be sneaky."
I hung my head. "Yeah. I know that wasn't my best idea... OK, I admit it, I'm an idiot. It was a stupid idea, and... Yeah. I went through with it... Oops." I smiled sheepishly, but Fluttershy maintained her blank expression... Which was pretty worrying, to be honest.
"You taught. The Cutie Mark Crusaders. How to be SNEAKY."
I nodded, and laughed nervously. "Eh... Yeah. I screwed up, didn't I?"
"Oh, big time. Who knows what those three are getting up to?! They're hyperactive little fillies, Shadow... This isn't going to end well."
"When does anything EVER end well around here?"
I looked around again. If they were hiding in plain sight, I taught them well. "Alright... Wanna help me look for them?"
She nodded, and trotted up next to me. "You aren't in your right mind today, are you?"
I shook my head. "To be completely honest, I have no idea."
Fluttershy let out a sigh, and stared ahead, her expression still blank. "Alright... Lets go find them then."
"You're acting very... Different... Today, Fluttershy."
She looked at me. Yep. Her face was still blank. "I did just learn that the most dangerous group in town, who love causing trouble, learned how to be stealthy. That kinda puts a damper on my mood."
I smiled sheepishly. "Eheh... Sorry about that."
She giggled. "No, it's fine... I'm kind of used to crazy things happening around here, really. Come on, lets go find those three before they get into too much trouble."
"Well, at least I've got a friend helping me... Sheesh, everything loves to go nuts around here. It could be worse. At least it's just three kids snooping around... Right?"