G5 Adventures in Treasure Buddies

During the grand reopening of the Bridlewood History Museum, the Mane 6 and Violette Rainbow (whose aunt was the curator and pony in charge of the museum) were summoned once again by the Unity Crystals for a new mission, and Violette couldn’t be more excited.

She hoped that they were going to go back to Fernfield and see the Buddies again, but even she knew that was probably going to be a bit of a long shot.

Nevertheless, Violette was eager for a new adventure, where she might get to show some of her adventurous spirit and explorer skills to Izzy and her friends.

Now, let's get back to the story to see what's going to happen to our heroes next.

XXXXXXXX

When the portal on the other side finally opened, the Mane 6 and Violette stepped out of it much smoother than the last time they had a mission together, and this gave them a chance to look around the small community that they had landed in...

...a small community that Sunny recognized from earlier Unity Quests. “It looks like you’ll get your wish to see the Buddies again after all, Violette-- we’re finally back in Fernfield!”

“Yes!” Violette pumped a hoof before looking toward a nearby building and pointing to it. “And look! We’re right in front of the Natural History Museum!”

“Huh, I wonder if this is where the Buddies are,” Zipp hummed. “Or if the Unity Crystals want us to find something about the map of Skyros here.”

“Only one way to find out!” Violette said with a smile. “Let’s go!”

And with that, Violette raced toward the doors of the museum with the Mane 6 trying to keep up with the excited filly. The one thing Violette didn’t anticipate was accidentally barreling into somepony at the door.

And this somepony was actually a young zebra filly named Skye, who had a black and white striped body, she has pink hair with purple streaks in it. She has lime green eyes, braces and black hooves. Her cutie mark is a post it note with a pen drawing on it.

Violette gasped as soon as she saw the zebra filly, feeling bad for what she did. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t see you there! Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m okay,” Skye said as Violette helped her up. “I guess I was too much in my own thoughts to really pay attention.”

That was when Skye saw Violette’s splotchy coat, her eyes widening in surprise. “Your fur… it’s so… different from other unicorns I’ve met.”

“Oh… yeah, it’s sort of a me thing,” said Violette with a blush. “My name’s Violette Rainbow, and this is my crafting teacher Izzy, and all her friends-- Zipp, Hitch, Sunny, Misty and Pipp.”

“Oh, I-I’ve heard of the six of you!” Skye said to the older ponies, a wide grin now on her face. “You’re the ones who went to space with the Buddies a few months ago!”

“Hold on,” said Misty. “You know the Buddies?”

“They’re kind of celebrities around here,” Skye admitted. “Mudbud’s owner, Pete? His grandpa is actually the owner of the museum, and my mom is sort of like his assistant. Oh, my name’s Skye by the way.”

“Nice to meet you, Skye,” Sunny smiled. “We’re actually looking for the Buddies, to kinda… catch up with them. Are they here?”

“They sure are-- Pete’s grandpa and my mom are giving a tour, and the Buddies are watching and listening to Mr. Howard's stories of when he was an archeologist,” Skye nodded. “I’ll take you to them!”

“Awesome! Thanks, Skye!” Violette said, and without any further delay, the Mane 6 and Violette followed the little zebra filly into the museum, with Skye and Violette striking up a conversation rather quickly, and clearly becoming really good friends.

XXXXXXXX

And as it turns out, Skye was right-- the Buddies (composed of four brothers-- B-Dawg, Budderball, Buddha and Mudbud, along with their little sister, Rosebud) were following behind the tour group in question, with Pete (Mudbud's human) and Pete's grandpa, Thomas Howard, at the front of the group.

But unlike the Mane 6 and Violette, Skye and a lot of other Equestrian creatures that lived in Fernfield couldn’t understand the Buddies… at least, not for long.

As the Buddies followed behind the tour group, their canine ears picked up the sound of some excited voices behind them. “Buddies!”

“Guys!”

“We’re finally back!”

“Hold on, dawgs,” B-Dawg said, glancing around warily. “Did anyone else hear that?”

“It might just be me,” Buddha said, “but it sounded a lot like…”

That was when the Buddies looked back and saw the Mane 6 and Violette with Skye, causing Pipp to fly up and vocalize. “We’re heeeeeeeeeeeere, yeah!!!”

“Sunny! You guys are back!” Rosebud said before she and her brothers raced toward the group. “And you brought Violette!”

The Mane 6 and Violette laughed as they were suddenly barreled over by a pack of very eager pups, but they didn't mind getting licked on for a change-- they were just happy to see their Golden Retriever friends again.

Skye watched this reunion from where she was standing, and she felt her heart literally melt at seeing her new friends and the Buddies so happy to see one another.

Finally, Sunny nudged Mudbud off of her and smiled. “So, how are Buddy and Molly doing?”

“Great! Dad’s been winning his games as usual,” Mudbud said, “and we see them all the time when we’re in town-- we gotta take you to see them while you're in town.”

“How long are you gonna be in town this time?” Budderball asked curiously. “You know, we’re not exactly sure,” Hitch admitted. “But, as long as we are here, we need to catch you guys up on current events.”

“Sunny? Ponies?”

That was when everyone turned to see Pete, Mudbud’s human, approaching them with a look of surprise. “Oh, hi, Pete!” Sunny greeted with a smile. “Skye here was just telling us about your grandpa ran this museum, and since we were in town, we had to check it out.”

“Yeah, it’s pretty great,” Pete nodded with a smile before sighing. “It’s too bad the museum is closing, though.”

“Closing?” Zipp’s head perked up at this. “Why?”

“It’s kinda hard to explain, but… Grandpa and Mariama sure seem bummed out about it,” Pete admitted before getting what seemed like a good idea at the time. “Come on… you can join the tour and me and Skye can introduce you guys afterwards.”

“That sounds great!” Violette smiled. “Come on, Buddies-- let’s go catch up with the group!”

The Buddies barked excitedly before following Pete and the older ponies down the hall, giving Skye the chance to look over at Violette in surprise. “Wow, they really respond to you.”

“Oh, uh… yeah. We’ve been through some really wild predicaments together,” Violette said, half-truthful with her claim. “It was a whole story that I gotta tell you later. Come on, let's catch up to the group.”

And with that, Violette raced after her friends, leaving Skye a bit confused, but she decided to shrug it off before following after her new friends, excited to see where the tour was and what stories there were to be told.

XXXXXXXX

When Violette and Skye caught up with the rest of the group (which contained students from Pete's class from school), Pete’s grandpa, Thomas Howard, and Skye’s mother, Mariama (who had a striped coat and a pink and purple mane like her daughter, but also had aqua green eyes, an earring in her ear, a purple bag and a cutie mark is a little seaweed with a little heart on top) were standing in front of a display case that had half of a metal disk inside, and on the wall behind it was a picture of a younger Thomas, a younger Mariama and a Golden Retriever with an off-white bandanna around his neck that looked a lot like Mudbud... except Digger was covered in sand, and not dirt.

And Pete's grandpa was right in the middle of telling the story of how he, his dog and best friend Digger and Mariama found it many years ago... 40, to those who want to be precise.

XXXXXXXX

A bark was heard across the Egyptian sand, and a Golden Retriever much like the Buddies, named Digger, stopped running right near a small cave sticking out of the sand dunes.

Digger was actually the Buddies’ great-grandfather, and he and Thomas had been together ever since they were very young… right around the same time that Thomas met Mariama.

Both of them, at the time, were very skilled archeologists, and once they found what was called the Bronze of Bastet, they would be able to find one of the most amazing treasures known to history-- the tomb and necklace of Cleocatra, the feline companion of Cleopatra.

A young Mariama followed right behind Digger, panting slightly as she looked back at Thomas, who trailed behind. “Thomas, I think Digger wants us to stop here-- this must be where the Bronze of Bastet is!”

Thomas nodded as he approached, rubbing Digger on top of his head. “I think you’re right. Okay, Digger-- see if you can track it down. We’ll be right behind you.”

Digger did as he was told, entering the hole he had found with Mariama and Thomas right behind. They made sure to be careful where they stepped-- in ancient Egypt, booby traps were created to keep ancient treasures safe from horrible thieves who wanted to sell the ancient treasure for hard cash.

Eventually, they stopped in a larger part of the cave, where a bit of sunlight from the desert above shone down through a small hole in the ceiling. And upon sniffing around a specific spot in the sand, Digger barked and began to dig at that very spot. “Good boy!” Mariama praised, rubbing the dog on the head with her hoof. “Now, we just need to keep digging.”

“Here, grab a shovel,” Thomas handed her a small shovel. “The Bronze of Bastet isn’t gonna uncover itself.”

And so, with Mariama and Thomas using shovels and Digger using his front paws to move the sand out of the way, they were soon able to uncover a stone chest under the sand, with a picture of a cat drawn onto the top, along with some other hieroglyphics that Mariama wasn't able to understand at the time. “We’ve done it, Digger!” Thomas put his shovel down and rubbed the Golden Retriever on the head. “Good boy.”

“Now, if I remember the story of Cleocatra correctly,” said Mariama in thought, “there’s a secret mechanism that triggers the lid to come off. And if I’m right… that mechanism should be within the cat’s eyes.”

Thomas pressed where the cat’s eyes were on the chest, and a secret mechanism was then activated, causing the chest to open all on its own, revealing half of a bronze disk, and in the middle was the symbol of a cat’s eye. And while this was an amazing find for certain, when Thomas lifted it out, he couldn’t help but express confusion. “The other half is missing.”

“Someone must’ve gotten it before us,” Mariama hummed with a frown, “and we won’t be able to find the collar without both pieces!”

Suddenly, Digger let out a bark just as the large cavern began to rumble, and Thomas was immediately figuring out what was going on. “The chest was booby-trapped!”

“Run, boy!” Mariama exclaimed to Digger as the cave quickly began to collapse on them. “Run, boy! Run!”

But as the three were beginning to escape the cave, Digger noticed that Thomas had dropped the first half of the Bronze of Bastet, and barked to let him and Mariama know about it. However, Thomas was smart enough to know that one half piece wasn't enough to risk their lives over. “Leave it, Digger! It's too dangerous! Let's go!”

However, Digger was not one to give up that easily-- much like his future great grand-pups were. So, dodging the falling debris of the cave, Digger ran back and grabbed the first half in his mouth before running after Thomas and Mariama.

Speaking of Thomas and Mariama, the two had managed to dive out of the cave just in the nick of time, but Mariama noticed that Digger wasn't with them and instantly feared the worst.

What if he didn't make it out of the cave in time?

But luckily, Digger was only a short distance behind them, jumping right out of the cave with the first half of the Bronze of Bastet in his mouth, right as the cave collapsed entirely.

Thomas and Mariama sighed in relief, as seeing Digger safe and sound was the only thing on their minds in that moment. “Good boy,” Thomas praised, rubbing the dog down. “You really knew what to do back there, didn’t you?”

“He may have just preserved a piece of history for the world to see,” said Mariama, taking the disc piece from his mouth before smiling at him. “What would we do without you, Digger?”

Digger only panted to this question, knowing that the duo wouldn't be able to understand him... but honestly?

He wouldn't have it any other way.

XXXXXXXX

“...and so, Digger, Mariama and I,” Thomas began to conclude the story for the tour group, “made it out just as the tomb collapsed.”

“And,” Mariama added as she eyed her daughter with her new friends, along with Deputy Sniffer, “we brought this single half of the Bronze of Bastet back to Fernfield for everyone to enjoy. Now, if you’ll follow me.”

And so, the tour group began to follow Mariama and Thomas away, including Pete and Skye, while the Mane 6, Violette and the Buddies stayed behind with Deputy Sniffer. And as the tour group left the area, Mudbud looked up at the picture of Digger, Thomas and Mariama, complete admiration within his gaze. “Whoa, Digger was the coolest dude ever.”

“Perhaps Digger's spirit lives in you,” Buddha pointed out to his brother. “You both love dirt.”

“I won’t argue that,” Pipp said with a bit of a giggle. “And I bet Digger disliked baths just as much as you do, Mudbud.”

“Hey, I can’t help it,” Mudbud said with a bit of a slight pout. “How else am I going to show I’m a go with the flow kind of pup?”

“Yo, Digger was old-school cool,” B-Dawg said, interjecting into the conversation with his chest puffed out in pride. “I'm the new fly dog.”

“I met your great grandpappy when I was knee-high to a grasshopper,” Deputy Sniffer told the Buddies. “One of the bravest dogs I’ve ever met.”

And when Deputy Sniffer said this, Budderball completely ignored what he said about Digger and focused on the part about grasshoppers, shuddering in complete disgust. “I heard grasshoppers and bugs are a delicacy in some countries. Can you imagine ever being so hungry you have to eat bugs?”

“Yeah, right, Budderball,” Rosebud rolled her eyes playfully at the oldest of her four brothers. “You'd eat anything… other than vegetables.”

“Hey, come on, Rosebud. It’s not Budderball’s fault he has a bunch of meat on his bones,” said Violette with a smile. “It’s one of the qualities I like about him.”

“Aw, thanks, Violette,” Budderball smiled. “I like that about me too.”

“But then again… the part about the Bronze of Bastet and the collar of Cleocatra sounds interesting,” Zipp said as she reviewed the notes she had taken from Thomas’ story. “We uncovered Cleopatra’s tomb, but I wonder if Cleocatra’s tomb will ever be uncovered.”

“Well, we’re never gonna find out if we don’t get back to the tour,” Hitch said, gesturing for the group to follow him so they could catch up with the tour. “Besides, I wanna meet Mariama and Pete’s grandpa for myself.”

XXXXXXXX

At the same time, Thomas and Mariama had led the tour group over to an exhibit that showed Cleopatra, the queen of Egypt, surrounded by a bunch of cat statues.

But as the tour group got settled, Skye’s gaze settled on a man holding the strangest cat she had ever seen-- it had no hair! And it seemed to glance in her direction with a strange glare.

However, her gaze snapped back to the tour when Thomas spoke up again. “As the legend goes, Cleopatra was given a necklace, which contained the powerful jewel of the Cat's Eye,” he said, not noticing the man with the hairless cat at first. “But, somehow, it became lost.”

“But,” Pete added, “you almost found it, didn't you, Grandpa?”

“We certainly tried, Peter,” Thomas told his grandson gently before turning to the tour group again. “Well… that concludes our last tour.”

And with that, the crowd of people within the tour group applauded for Thomas and Mariama, being their tour guides and all, and Mariama smiled at them. “Thank you. Thank you all for being here. Have a wonderful day.”

The tour group began to split off at this, except for Skye and Pete, who looked up at the adults with admiration in their eyes. “Wow, Mom!” Skye smiled. “That was great!”

“Well, if you and Pete liked it, sweetheart,” said Mariama, “that’s enough for me.”

“Why does the museum have to close?” Pete asked sadly. “It’s such a bummer.”

“Yes, Pete, it is a... bummer,” Thomas said, using his grandson’s wording carefully as they walked past the Bronze of Bastet. “And,” Mariama said with a sad shine in her eyes, “we haven't had the funding to acquire a new exhibit in quite some time.”

Mariama took out the Bronze of Bastet for a moment, glancing at it longingly before Skye put a hoof on her mother’s shoulder. “It's really too bad you and Digger never found the other half, and the lost necklace of Cleocatra.”

“Yes… it is a shame,” Mariama nodded slowly before smiling at her daughter and Pete. “But I sincerely hope that someday, young archeologists like you find it, and not some greedy grave robber.”

“Grave robber?”

Everyone turned to see the Mane 6 and Violette approaching with all of the dogs, and Skye’s eyes lit up in recognition. “Oh! I nearly forgot! Mom, Mr. Howard, these are some of the Buddies’ friends from Equestria. They saved Buddy and Molly from the dognappers that Henry and Noah told us about, remember?”

“Ah, yes, I remember now,” Thomas smiled and shook Sunny’s hoof. “Welcome back to Fernfield. I’m Thomas Howard, Pete’s grandfather.”

“And I’m Mariama, Skye’s mother,” Mariama introduced with a smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“The honor is ours. That story you told was pretty incredible,” Zipp said. “We’re sort of… explorers ourselves.”

“It’s true!” Violette smiled. “Izzy and her friends have been on all sorts of adventures together, including going to Egypt and helping uncover the secrets of Cleopatra’s tomb!”

Mariama gasped with recognition in her eyes. “Of course! I remember you now! I heard all about that on the news!”

“Huh, our reputation really precedes us,” Pipp said with a smile on her face. “From Egypt, to Fernfield, and onto so many other places!”

“But I guess we missed the rest of the tour,” Misty sighed. “I was kinda hoping to hear more about that Cleocatra legend.”

“Well… we don’t normally do something like this,” Mariama said, glancing at Thomas, “but… why don’t you come back into the office with us? I’m sure we have a file all about the legend of Cleocatra, and the Cat’s Eye necklace.”

“That would be glitter-rific!” Izzy said, bouncing in place. “And Violette can play with the Buddies while we’re busy!”

“That’s definitely something I wouldn’t mind doing,” Violette said with a smile. “And I’ll make sure we don’t get into any trouble-- that’s a hoof to heart promise.”

“Thanks, Violette. As soon as you’re done playing, head to the office and meet us there,” Hitch said, rubbing the filly on the head. “We’ll also see if we can find anything about Skyros while we’re there.”

“Have fun!” Skye said before she left with her mother, Pete, Thomas and the Mane 6, leaving Violette, the Buddies and Deputy Sniffer in front of the statue of Cleopatra. “You know, I always wondered something,” said Violette curiously. “How did dogs become man's best friends if cats were first?”

“The Cat's Eye necklace was believed to have magical powers,” Deputy Sniffer explained the story to the young ones. “Legend has it Cleocatra had plotted to steal it. They say she wanted to change the order, making cats rulers over all Earth's creatures, including man. But, somehow, she was foiled by the legendary pup, Buddasi. Cleocatra's necklace was never seen again.”

“Buddasi, huh?” Violette mumbled to herself. “I wonder if he was some sort of distant relative to the Buddies from thousands of years ago…”

“That’s definitely a theory, little one,” Deputy Sniffer responded with a bit of thought in his tone. “But all we know is the order was changed and dogs became man's best friend, and cats were banished.”

“I guess that's why it's in our DNA to chase cats, dudes,” Mudbud told his brothers and sister with a smile. “When I see one, I just can't help it.”

B-Dawg, on the other hand, was focused on something else-- one of the cats looked VERY lifelike, because it was the same hairless cat the British man was seen traveling with earlier. “Uh, did you see that?!” he asked when he saw the cat move slightly. “The cat's eyes moved!”

“Huh,” Budderball tilted his head. “Must be one of those optical delusions.”

“Oh, don’t worry, B-Dawg,” Deputy Sniffer chuckled reassuringly. “Those cats are just statues. Now come on-- I better take you pups home before it gets too dark.”

“I’ll take Mudbud to the office to go see Pete and the others,” Violette offered. “I wanted to see if the ponies found anything else about Cleocatra anyway. Wanna set up a time for us to play tomorrow?”

“Sure,” Rosebud nodded with an excited smile on her face. “We can’t wait.”

Violette and Mudbud then walked toward the office while Deputy Sniffer took the remainder of the Buddies out of the museum to take them home. However, B-Dawg sniffed the cat that he could have sworn he saw move, and decided to try and be bold and take a stand against his fear. “Come on, cat, I'm gettin' all up in your grill. What are you gonna do about it?”

However, as he thought, the cat didn’t speak, making B-Dawg smirk to himself. “Yeah, that's what I thought. You ain't nothing but a skinny, bald, scaredy-cat.”

Unfortunately, the cat hissed at B-Dawg, causing him to gasp and run after his brothers and sister, not wanting anything to do with this cat before she stalked off.

But who was this hairless cat anyway? And what was her and this British man’s deal?

Well... we're just going to have to wait and see for ourselves.