The Adventures of Peaches and Mandy

by marmalado

S1E2: The Edge of the Rainbow

A tiny human made her way across the bullpen, trying her hardest to avoid the flurry of footsteps and hoofsteps and wingbeats that attacked her from every angle.

When she reached what appeared to be a red pedestal, she stopped and leaned on it to catch her breath. However, not even that provided her any respite, as she found herself standing in a puddle of some kind of clear liquid -- never mind the fact that some had fallen on her head from somewhere. The low rumbling she heard every few seconds didn't help to ease her worries either. Shaking herself free of as much of the liquid as she could, she backed up and looked upwards, only to find that the liquid, and the supposed owner of the red pedestal, belonged to a rather...odd-looking human, who appeared to be fast asleep and drooling.

She quickly caught sight of an agent waving from afar and decided to sprint for him, hoping he could help this client break free from her predicament.

On the other side of the bullpen, the automatic doors opened, and Olive and Otto walked in.

"So where did Oprah say to bring that book again?"

"Up to her office. I like to take the scenic route, though."

"Ah, I see. Understandable."

Both of them ceased their conversation when they spotted Mandy, completely passed out on a mess of papers that cluttered almost every inch of her desk.

"Washington State'zz th' capital 'f Russia..." was all she said in her sleep before she went right back to snoring.

A confused look crossed Otto's face. "No, it's not."

"Well, she never was very good at history." Olive sighed and walked over to Mandy, placing a hand on her shoulder and shaking her gently. "Mandy? Hey, wake up, sleepyhead."

As usual, there was no response from the pony-human hybrid -- Olive's attempt was about as useless as a pebble that was thrown at a house in an attempt to knock it down. The snoring continued and didn't falter for even a second.

Otto opened his mouth to speak, but Olive raised a finger. "Give her a few seconds."

That seemed to be the cue. Mandy snorted and jabbed a finger towards nothing in particular. "If you're buyin' then I'm not zzellin', Bianca Zzoto!"

The look of confusion that crossed Olive's face as she tried to figure out who "Bianca Zzoto" was could kill a man or two if it were weaponized. She took a step back, in the event Mandy decided to choose violence when she woke up as well.

Lucky for her, Mandy didn't feel like choosing violence today. She blinked and yawned. "Wait, you're not..."

"What are you selling?" Olive asked, a playful smirk forming on her face. "For your sake, let's hope it's sleep aids."

"Fall asleep at your desk or something?"

"Tired enough to be drooling, apparently." Olive winced as she followed the drool trail up from the floor to where Mandy once had her head and was now cleaning her face with a tissue.

"S-sorry, guys...I pulled an all-nighter last night tryna get some gadgets fixed..." A loud yawn interrupted her. "...n' then I was doin' some paperwork n' I guess I fell asleep..." She looked around the room. "What time 's it?"

"About...11:00 in the morning. Usually you sleep until noon." Otto looked at the watch Olive had on her wrist, which prompted an eyeroll from her, not understanding why her partner wouldn't buck up and get his own watch like she had been telling him to do for months now.

"Mm...just gimme a sec."

A flash of magic brought a Chocolate Moo-Moo Surprise drink into existence, and after a couple sniffs to make sure it didn't smell funny, the pony-human hybrid happily and gratefully drank it within a few seconds.

After a satisfied "aah" and another yawn, she pointed at the book that Otto was holding. "So whazz' th' book for?"

"It details the legend of the Toronto Rainbow."

"The Toronto what?"

"The Toronto Rainbow." Olive explained. "It stretches across the entire town of Toronto once a year. Legend says that there's a secret surprise hidden at its edge."

"Like a pot of gold?"

"Maybe. No one's ever discovered the surprise before."

"Can I see the book?"

"Sure."

The book became caught in Mandy's magical rainbow-colored aura as she quickly flipped the pages. Her eyes moved just as fast, to the point where both Otto and Olive were wondering if she was even absorbing any of the information in the book. Her unintelligible murmurs, however, seemed to answer that question for them.

"I can't believe it!"

"What'd you find, Mandy?" Otto asked.

Giddy laughter was given to him in response. "This is it. I'm gonna get into the history books! I gotta take notes!"

A notebook and notepad were suddenly conjured up into existence. Once that step was completed, she pulled sharply down on her forelock, causing a pencil to be propelled up into the air and caught by her magical aura as well. She then got to scribbling.

"I hope that tail doesn't fly off the way she's wagging it." Otto said, noticing her tail wagging back and forth furiously in a similar vein as that of a happy dog's.

"It won't. She's just really excited. Maybe she found something in the book."

"No duh. She did say she was gonna get into the history books...whatever that means." Otto tilted his head. "But how did she get the pencil from inside of her hair?"

Olive pinched the bridge of her nose with her two fingers -- her variation on the facepalm. "Have you not learned never to question stuff like that yet? Especially around here?"

"And finito!"

Mandy got up from her seat and placed the book in Olive's hands. "You can have the book back" was the last thing she said before she walked away with her notepad in tow, humming a simple but happy ditty.

"O...kay. Let's, uh...get this up to Oprah." Olive, still confused about what exactly had just transpired, began making her way towards the set of stairs leading up to her fellow Director's office, Otto quickly following suit.

---

Peaches walked down the hallway, attempting to familiarize herself with all the doors. It was a rather jarring experience, going from the simplistic townhouses of Vallea to the high-tech, weirdly-shaped doors of Precinct 13579, and even after a tour of the place, she was still attempting to find her way through Headquarters.

Still, she couldn't ignore the sound of Mandy's cries of effort, and she quickly raced towards the Bedroom, where she found Mandy digging deep into one of the drawers of her nightstand.

"Hey. What's going on?"

After a few moments of attempting to grab the item the hybrid was looking for, she yanked it out. Peaches easily identified it as a compass, although it was rusted in some places.

"Oh hey! I thought you were sleeping?"

Peaches shook her head. "I may be nocturnal on instinct, but I've been trying to adjust my schedule so I can hang out with you guys more. I'm not all cat, after all."

"Glad to hear it!" Mandy giggled. "I'm gonna make history today!"

"How's that?"

"Momma and Otto told me of the Toronto Rainbow. It's an old Odd Squad legend! The rainbow stretches across Toronto once a year, and it has a special surprise waiting at its edge!" She hopped up and down. "I'm so excited. I'm gonna try and find it!"

"I don't know..." Peaches scratched the back of her neck. "What if there's really no surprise at all? And how do you know today's even the day the rainbow will appear?"

"There's a specific day of the year detailed in the book. I know for a fact it's today. I took notes and everything." Mandy nodded. "And if there's no surprise, well..." She giggled. "I'll have the adventure! You wanna come with?"

"Thanks, but I think I'll go and try to search for the culprit who burned Vallea down. Tell me all about it when you come back, though, okay?"

"I will! See ya!"

With a flash of teleportation magic, the hybrid was gone.

I just hope she doesn't become too heartbroken if there isn't a surprise at the end of the Rainbow, Peaches thought, leaving the room and continuing her walk around the hallways.

---

Mandy teleported onto the sidewalk of Park Street. "Hmm...now the question is, where to start..." she mused, looking around at her surroundings to try and get a feel for where she was. She then snapped her fingers. "Ah, I know! I can ask some of the townsfolk! Maybe there are some long-time Torontonians here who can help me!"

Her first stop was at the home of one Mrs. Mac, a kindly fruit vendor who often set up shop in the park. She knocked on her door, her usual cat smile settling onto her face as she waited for the door to open.

"Oh, Agent Mandy! How wonderful to see you!" Mrs. Mac smiled. "How are you doing, dearie?"

"I'm great!" Mandy chirped. "But, um, I'm wondering if you could help me with something."

"Anything."

"Do you know about the Toronto Rainbow?"

"The Toronto Rainbow..." Mrs. Mac tapped her index finger on her chin as she thought. Just as quickly as she began to think, however, she shook her head. "I've never heard of it."

"Aww..." Mandy's ears folded down. "Well, thanks anyway, I suppose."

"Oh, it's no problem at all. Might I trouble you for some fruit? I know how much you love to gobble up my stand." Mrs. Mac giggled. "I have all kinds of fruit. Business wasn't great today."

The hybrid's eyes shimmered, like a predator that had found its prey.

---

And that was how Mandy wound up with one of each fruit in Mrs. Mac's current inventory. Which, of course, she didn't mind so much.

As she popped a whole banana (minus the peel, of course) in her mouth and swallowed it, she landed on the doorstep of her next stop, putting the rest of the fruit away in her hammerspace spine for later snacking.

She knocked on the door, and waited.

A man wearing a gray uniform opened the door, his expression one of annoyance as he realized who was standing in front of him. "Agent Mandy..."

"Thaaaaat's me!" Mandy punctuated her appearance with jazz hands. "Hiya, Janitor Jerry."

"Hello." Jerry grumbled. "You've come to mess up my house, now?"

"Nope! I've come to ask you about the Toronto Rainbow!"

"The Toronto Rainbow...let me think...I haven't heard of it."

And just like that, he slammed the door in Mandy's face, marking another Torontonian who hadn't heard of the Toronto Rainbow.

With a sigh and an eye roll, Mandy took to the air once more and mentally scrolled through her list. It didn't take her long to choose and locate another Torontonian who had been in the city for a long time...mostly because she was hungry, and this particular Torontonian happened to own a restaurant.

The tinkling of a small bell indicated that a customer had walked inside. "I'll be with you in a minute!" she called.

"Okay-dokay!"

Debbie instantly recognized the voice as belonging to Mandy, and a small smile came across her face as she laid the final bag of flour she had onto a stack of four flour bags. Giving a huff, she stood up. "Well, look who it is. Are you looking for another free pizza?"

"Hiya, Delivery Debbie! And I'll take a free pizza, if you're offerin'!"

Debbie couldn't help but laugh as she turned towards her stack of deliveries. After thumbing through them for a few seconds, she pulled out a pizza box with the last name "Jefferson" on it. "Here. This guy canceled his order, unfortunately. He said he wanted Indian food instead."

Mandy could feel her mouth watering as Debbie opened the box. Sitting right there, right in front of her, was a large pepperoni pizza, just beckoning her to take a bite. Or two. Or as many as it took until there was nothing edible left to eat.

The hybrid couldn't resist. She immediately dove for the pizza, downing numerous bites at once. Her stomach growled in happiness as the food went into it, and she wagged her tail in happiness as well.

"I'm glad you like it so much. Couldn't let such a great pizza go to waste!" Debbie winked, but her smile quickly turned into a frown when she saw that Mandy was paying little to no attention to her at all. Giving a shrug, she watched the hybrid finish up the final slice.

"Thank you, Debbie! Ah, you don't know how much I needed that...I was so hungry!"

"When are you not?" Debbie laughed. "Anything else I can help you with today?"

"Hm? Oh, yeah!" Mandy nodded. "Do you know anything about the Toronto Rainbow?"

"The Toronto Rainbow?" Debbie tilted her head. "Mm...it does sound familiar, but I can't recall."

Mandy sighed. "Guess that's another one down..." A small burp made its way forth. "Pardon."

"You're excused. Sorry I couldn't be of much help. But I do wish you the best of luck in finding it!" Debbie smiled. "It sounds interesting."

"Thanks." Mandy's ears folded down. "And thanks for the pizza, too."

"It's no problem. I'll be sure to call you if any more customers happen to cancel their deliveries today, okay?"

"Sure."

Giving a small, unsatisfied "mm" noise, Mandy turned and left the shop, the little tinkling of the bell above the door doing nothing to lift her spirits.

About an hour passed as she went to the houses and businesses of Torontonians she knew had lived in Toronto for a long time, asking about the Rainbow. Each and every time, she got an answer along the lines of "never heard of it", and with each and every time, she began to lose more and more hope.

Maybe I should just retire for now. Go back, take a nap. She had to admit, she was starting to feel a little sleepy, and she wasn't getting much accomplished on her mission.

Just as she contemplated finding the nearest tube entrance, however, an idea struck her like a bolt of lightning.

There was one Torontonian she seemed to have forgotten about.

"Aha! Maybe the Mayor has something! He's the head of the town, after all!"

---

As Mandy opened the double-doors and entered Town Hall, she spotted a white pegasus with a white mane and blue streaks sitting at a large desk.

"Oh, Mandy! It's wonderful to see you!" the pegasus said, waving a hoof at the newest visitor to Town Hall.

"Icy Song! Lovely to see you too!" Mandy bounced over to the desk.

"How's life been for ya?"

"Pretty great! Reunited with my cousin recently!"

"Oh, that's wonderful to hear!"

Mandy opened a mouth to speak. No wait, what am I doing? I'm here on a mission, not to chat! She shook her head vigorously.

"I, uh, wanted to ask you something! Do you know anything about the Toronto Rainbow?"

"Unfortunately I don't." Icy Song shook her head.

"Would Mayor Mackelmore know?"

"Hmm...he might, now that I'm thinking about it. Anything specific you wish to learn?"

"Um, well, specifically, I wanted to know about where its edge is, but any information would help!"

"Sure thing! If you want to have a seat on that bench, darling..." Icy Song pointed to a long bench that was situated to Mandy's left. "I'll be right back."

"Thank you!"

With graceful wingbeats, Icy Song took off, and Mandy made her way to the bench and took a seat.

This shouldn't take super long. The Mayor's gotta be in, he never leaves this place! the hybrid thought, a sigh leaving her body as she tried to situate herself on the bench, wincing every time it gave a loud creak.

As it turned out, retrieving the information wasn't as simple as she would have liked it to be. It felt like hours had passed, and she had grown so tired of waiting that she had shifted into a laying-down position and contemplated taking a nap. But even though drowsiness was beginning to set in, she resorted to continuing her reading of the newest Wolves of the Wilderness book that had come out last month.

"Mandy?"

"Hm?"

She perked up and blinked a couple times, trying to locate the source of the voice that had called out her name. Glancing into the air, she spotted the descending form of Icy Song, and a smile spread across her maw.

"Oh goodness...were you waiting long?"

"No, no, not at all!" Mandy tucked away her book, giving a bout of nervous laughter. "Um, what's up? Did you find anything?"

"Yes I did! The Mayor has an entire book on the Rainbow, as a matter of fact." Icy Song explained. "It seems that the Rainbow is a big event for the town. The day after it appears, a festival is held to celebrate the Rainbow's symbolism of peace and equality among Torontonians."

Stars formed in Mandy's eyes, and her tail began to wag. Now this is what I signed up for! she thought, feeling more excited by the second. "Anything else?"

The pegasus nodded. "According to ancient legends, there is a rumor that if one sees the Rainbow, it will grant them good luck for all eternity, and even immortality if they spot it more than once."

Immortality? Well I don't need that...but good luck? That I could soooooo use! Mandy nodded excitedly, but her smile briefly turned into a frown as a question formed in her head.

"Wait. How does Mayor Mackelmore have a book on the Toronto Rainbow? Last I heard, it was an Odd Squad legend!"

"It is. But Odd Squad just so happened to share their findings on the rainbow with the Mayor of Toronto a long time ago...er, not Mackelmore, but, um...what was his name...Megginson, I believe?" Icy Song tapped a hoof to her chin. "Yes, I believe it was Mayor Megginson. Odd Squad shared their findings on the rainbow with him, and he recorded it in this book!"

"Ohhh..." I didn't even know there were other Mayors. But then...do they have immortality? And if they do, how do they have it? How old is the longest-living Mayor?

Her thoughts were interrupted by Icy Song mouthing something to her that she couldn't hear. In response, she simply tilted her head.

"I said, why are you so intrigued about the rainbow, Mandy?"

"Oh! Uh, well, I hoped to find it myself! It's supposed to show up today."

Icy Song gasped. "Oh sweet Celestia, I had forgotten. The Mayor did mention something about it showing up today." She shook her head and chuckled at her blunder. "Well, I wish you good luck in finding it!"

"Thank you, Icy Song! See you later!"

"You'll be seeing me at the festival!" the pegasus called after the hybrid as the latter left the building in a hurry.

Mandy took to the sky and began looking around. "Hmm...if it's supposed to stretch across Toronto...now where would I find a nice open field?" she mused.

As if on cue, an open field came into view.

"Aha! High Park!"

Her excitement growing by the minute, she quickly sped down and began to glide along the ground to find a good spot to watch the Rainbow that would let her leave her mark on history.

After quite a few minutes of searching (and lots of confused stares), she finally found an open spot in the park, a hill near some cherry blossom trees that didn't obscure her view of the sky too much. She landed and folded in her wings, lying down on the soft grass.

"Now this is an open space! Now I can see the Rainbow from here!" she chirped aloud, keeping her eyes on the sky. She waited.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited...

And...waited.

"But it may be a while, I suppose..." A yawn forced its way out of her. "Guess I can catch a nap in the meantime. Mmm..."

Her eyes involuntarily closed, and her ears picked up on the sound of birdsong as she drifted into dreamland once again.

---

The sound of hoofsteps brought Oprah to attention as she spotted her six equine agents making her way up to her, worry written in all of their expressions.

"It's no use, Ms. O. Mandy isn't anywhere in Headquarters." Twilight said.

"It's not like her to stay out of Headquarters all day and not tell anyone where she's going or what she's doing." Oprah glanced at the steel double-doors behind her. "Where could she have gone...?"

"Who was she with last?"

"I'm not sure, Fluttershy. Olive and Otto came here and delivered the book on the Toronto Rainbow to me, and..."

She trailed off as a realization hit her dead-on.

---

As Otto powered a now-repaired gadget down, Olive handed a book to Oprah. "Here you are."

"Thank you, Olive. It's good to know that this book will be in safe hands in my Trophy Room."

"Well, it's a good thing it's going to the Trophy Room then, huh?" Otto said, almost absentmindedly as he examined the gadget in his hands. "'Cause Mandy was certainly interested in it."

"Huh?"

"She was writing a bunch of notes and looking through the book. She said something about 'making history', but who knows what that's about."

Oprah sighed. "If I know Mandy -- and I know I do -- she's gonna try and find the Rainbow."

"That's a near-impossible feat to do." Olive explained. "She may have perseverance, but if she doesn't find that Rainbow, it's gonna be a huge letdown for her."

"Doesn't the Rainbow appear once a year, anyway? Today probably isn't even the day." Otto shrugged.

Of course, it was Otto's comment that did Oprah in. "Well, I'll let her go either way. It'll build her character and teach her a life lesson or two."

"A life lesson? What life lesson?"

"How not to set your bar too high for things. How you should take your time and do your research before going on a grand adventure. How to look before you leap. Pick one, Otto, any one."

"Well, it's all fine by me. She's your agent." Olive said. "We'll see you later. If she happens to come back, wish her good luck for us, will you?"

And with that, the two Directors turned and walked out of Oprah's office.

---

"She's trying to find the Toronto Rainbow!"

"What?!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "But that's impossible! No one's ever seen it!"

"That may be true...but it doesn't stop her from trying." Oprah sighed. "Agent Rainbow Dash, Agent Applejack, Agent Rarity, go find Mandy."

"We're on it, darling!" Rarity nodded, waving her hoof to Rainbow and Applejack in a "come here" motion before the trio exited the bullpen through the steel double-doors.

"What about us? Can't we help?" Pinkie asked.

Oprah shook her head. "Three ponies is enough for now. Go back to your regular duties. The others will find her."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

Fluttershy blinked. Pinkie opened her mouth to protest, but Twilight touched a hoof to her chest.

"Pinkie. Have faith in our friends. They'll find her and bring her back. Don't worry."

The pink party pony looked longingly at the steel doors for what seemed like hours, but she nodded in resignation. "Okay." The word danced on her lips, and she gave a sad smile to Twilight and Fluttershy before heading off down the hallway, head hanging low.

Both alicorn and pegasus exchanged worried reactions before galloping off after their friend, hoping they could cheer her up and continue to ease her worries.

Oprah, meanwhile, marched to Mandy's desk and took a seat in her chair, a sigh leaving her body as she looked at the steel doors the same way Pinkie had, sending a silent prayer that Mandy would come back safe and sound, and with good news about the Rainbow to boot.

Odd forbid she doesn't find it...

---

Mandy had completely sacked out in the park, eliciting her usual loud snores. This time around, however, she had a crowd.

Not a crowd that was watching her, mind -- a crowd that was watching the Toronto Rainbow in all its glory as it appeared in the sky like a welcoming beacon. Its colors shimmered with the help of the sunlight, creating a beautiful sight that caused many people to whip out their phones and cameras and start taking pictures.

It seemed like most everyone in the area was watching the Rainbow...all except the one person who had big dreams of seeing it to begin with.

Said "most everyone" included Rarity, Rainbow Dash and Applejack, who made their way into the park.

"Look! The Rainbow!" Rarity remarked, causing the other two mares' gazes to swivel in the direction of the sky.

"Whoa..." Dash's jaw dropped.

"It looks amazin'!" Applejack remarked, her eyes shimmering just as bright as the seven-colored spectacle itself.

"C'mon! Maybe if we follow the Rainbow, we'll find Mandy!" Dash suggested, sounding quite confident as she took flight in the path that laid straight ahead. Rarity and Applejack, likewise, followed suit, keeping their hooves on the ground and following their rainbow-maned friend.

In the area of the park with the cherry blossom trees, a young brown-furred colt was making his way up to Mandy. He glanced up at the Rainbow, then back at Mandy, and began to shake her shoulder.

"Umm, miss? Can you wake up?"

Of course, not even the request of a strange colt was enough to rouse the hybrid, and she continued to snore.

"Please wake up!'

Her snoring was immediately cut short, her eyes slowly opening to take in the figure that was in her line of vision. With a sleepy "mmm" and a loud yawn, she rubbed her eyes. "Who's buggin' me..." she murmured.

And then her eyes drifted to the sky.

And they shimmered with every single color of the Rainbow.

The only reaction Mandy could elicit was a shocked gasp as she stared at the airborne spectacle with awe.

"It's so beautiful!" the colt said, sitting down next to Mandy and watching the sky.

"It truly is..." The words danced on her tongue. "I've finally found it..." Another gasp. "I should take pictures!"

Luckily for her, an Odd Squad-branded camera was conveniently stowed away in her hammerspace spine. She quickly whipped it out and snapped three pictures, making sure to steady her aim so they wouldn't come out blurry.

"This is one for the history books indeed!" she exclaimed, but the excitement began to fizzle out. "And I nearly missed it 'cuz I was asleep..."

"Glad I woke you, huh, miss?"

Mandy's gaze swiveled to the colt sitting beside her. "That was you?"

"I didn't want you to miss this!" Before he could say anything more, he was scooped up into a hug, and gave a small surprised "Oh!"

"Thank you. You don't know how grateful I am!" She set him down. "Imagine if I had missed this. I went on this adventure with the intention of making history. And now...I've made it."

"If we hurry, maybe we can see what's on the other side!" he suggested.

"Sure!" She nodded. "C'mon, hop on my back. I'll give ya a ride!"

"A-are you sure?"

"Positive! Ya just gotta hold on tight!"

The colt hesitated for a few moments, but ultimately climbed onto Mandy's back, wrapping his legs around her neck to keep himself secure.

"And away..."

She extended her wings and began ascending.

"...we go!"

"Whoa!"

With a loud whoosh, the hybrid and the colt both sped off down the pathway that was lined with cherry blossom trees, on a search to find the treasure that supposedly laid at the very tail-end of the Rainbow.

"Y-you fly fast, miss!" the colt said, his voice wavering with both surprise and anxiety as he felt the wind blow on his face and ruffle his brown mane.

"Oh, I can go much faster than this! Hold on!"

Flapping her wings harder and faster, Mandy accelerated, skillfully dodging the people and ponies walking down the pathway. After a few minutes, the pair emerged into another open section of the park.

"You're not afraid of heights, are ya?"

"Nope!"

"Good, 'cuz I'm gonna go even higher!"

The hybrid angled her body upwards as she began ascending until part of the park looked much smaller than it appeared to be. Likewise, the colt held on for his dear life, attempting to make sure he didn't plummet to the ground while also making sure he didn't choke her. She then hovered in midair as they looked around in the sky for any sign of the surprise, now that they were at the end.

"I don't see any surprise..." the colt said.

"Me neither. Let me get closer."

Mandy slowly descended, aiming towards a patch of grass with bushes laying about all over. She landed and folded in her wings, allowing the colt to hop off of her back as well and spot the end of the Rainbow where it touched the grass.

"This seems to be the end, but...there's no surprise."

"I can't see anything either." The colt felt tempted to touch the Rainbow, but decided to hold back and resort to looking in the bushes instead, not wanting to be a willing test subject in regards to the question of whether it was dangerous to touch or not.

"Lemme check underground."

Mandy took her forelock and used her index fingers to style it into a corkscrew shape. Sure enough, it magically turned into a drill, and with a mighty leap, she began to dig a hole and search where the colt couldn't.

"Whoa! Cool!" he remarked, his amazement quickly broken upon hearing the sound of approaching hoofsteps. "Hmm?"

"Over there! The end of the Rainbow!"

As Rarity pointed towards the patch of bushes, she, Applejack and Rainbow Dash quickly raced over to where the colt was standing.

"Howdy there!"

"Oh, hello, miss!"

"We're looking for someone around here." Dash gestured with her hooves. "Tall, has poofy brown hair in kinda a ponytail with a red bow, wearing a suit like ours?"

"Hmm..." The colt eyed Dash's suit. "Oh! She's right there!"

The trio looked towards where he was pointing.

"In the ground?" Applejack asked incredulously.

"She's helping me look for the surprise."

"The surprise?" Rarity tilted her head.

"Well, I don't see any surprise 'round here, but we need t' find her. She's been missin' for a long while now, and our boss wants her back."

The sound of distant whirring caught the trio's attention.

"What's that sound?" Dash asked, beginning to hover just to play it safe.

The whirring noise grew closer. Rarity and Applejack, identifying the sound's source as being in the ground, stumbled about, trying to find a safe place to stand so they wouldn't get thrown airborne themselves.

"Hup!"

Another hole marked the exit of a dirt-covered Mandy, holding a rather large box in her hands and making a rather graceful landing. "I think this might be it. Or maybe it's just normal treasure. Who knows."

Her gaze drifted to where Rarity and Applejack were both exhaling sighs of relief, and she gasped.

"Rarity! Applejack! Rainbow Dash! Hi!"

Immediately rushing over to them, she dropped the box and scooped them all in a tight hug, leaving all of them fighting for air.

"We're...happy to see you too, darling..." Rarity managed to wheeze out, feeling her consciousness begin to leave her body. Luckily, Mandy set her down before she could commit murder with the white unicorn mare as an unwitting victim.

"What're you all doing here? Are you looking for the Rainbow too?" the hybrid asked.

"We came t' bring ya back to Odd Squad, Mandy. Ms. O's been worried sick about ya!"

Mandy's eyes widened, and a gasp left her. "Oh no. I didn't tell her where I was going!" She smacked her forehead with the lower part of her palm. Knew I shoulda called her, but I didn't think about it...me and my stupid brain!

She sighed. "I'm sorry. I just got so wrapped up in finding the Rainbow and making history, and..."

"Don't worry about it." Rarity rested a hoof on her arm.

"Yeah, as long as you're safe!" Dash said, attempting to resist performing an annoyed eyeroll.

Mandy kneeled down and opened the treasure chest. To her surprise, the treasure didn't shimmer brightly like all the other treasures she had seen on TV, but what she found in the box was interesting either way. "Ooh!" she remarked, her horn becoming wrapped in a rainbow-colored magic aura as she pulled out a small note.

"What's it say?" Dash asked.

"'If you have found this treasure chest, you have found the surprise at the end of the Toronto Rainbow. Long ago, a few thieves robbed a local bank numerous times, each time getting away and remaining unidentified. Rumor had it that they were going to profit off of the money and buy the town for themselves. But one day, before going to the bank to rob it yet again, an angry mob formed in front of it, blocking entry. They chased the thieves out of town and barred them from ever coming again. But, not wanting to lose their profits, one of the thieves returned in disguise and buried the money in a treasure chest, which they then buried at the very edge of town. Since then, no one has ever found the treasure chest nor the bank’s money...until now. If you find this, please return to Town Hall so it can be returned to its rightful owners.'"

The ponies all looked inside the treasure chest. Sure enough, there lay several sacks full of money, each one of them tied up carefully.

"So this money was stolen?" Dash dug her hooves through the sacks, attempting to find any other treasure that might have been buried inside.

"Pretty much. At least according to this note."

"If'n I were you, I'd return it, Mandy. It's only right. That money's been missin' for years!"

Mandy snorted. "Pff, what'd you think I was gonna do, AJ, keep it? C'mon, that's immoral!" She chuckled. "Besides, I don't need money to be happy. I have you guys, and Odd Squad!"

Rarity, Applejack and Dash all smiled warmly.

"Let's head to the Mayor's office!"

"Can I come with you?" the colt asked politely.

"Sure! You know the deal, right? Just climb on my back and hold on!"

Once again, he made his way onto Mandy's back, gripping her neck with his front legs. Dash couldn't help but let her smile grow bigger. She looked she wanted to make a snarky remark, but held back.

Grabbing the chest with her magic, the hybrid took flight, heading past the end of the Rainbow to the newest tube entrance with the three mares following suit.

---

Icy Song looked at the treasure chest and the contents that were inside it, her eyes widening as she simultaneously listened to Mandy's tale of how the chest and the money was found to begin with.

"Oh goodness...the Mayor will be very happy to hear that!" the pegasus said. "Thank you."

"Aww, it's no problem!" Mandy giggled. "But that means a new surprise will probably have to be planted there."

"Something more...meaningful." Dash pointed out.

"And somethin' not stolen." Applejack added.

"Well, you did find the treasure, Mandy. So you are welcome to bury anything you like there as a surprise!"

This time, it was Mandy's turn to widen her eyes, and in addition, she went completely slack-jawed. M-me? Bury a surprise? But... She struggled to find the words to respond to Icy Song. I-I don't even know what to bury! How am I-

"She says 'thank you', darling."

The hybrid blinked a couple times as she was snapped out of her thoughts. "U-um, yeah! Thank you!"

"It's nothing. See you all at the festival tomorrow!"

"We'll be there!" Applejack called, waving to Icy Song as the pegasus took off towards the second floor of the building.

The colt began to head for the doors. "I should be going home now. My mom and dad are probably waiting for me."

"All right! Thanks again for alerting me to the Rainbow. I dunno what I would've done if I missed it."

"It's no problem, miss. Goodbye!"

The group all said their collective goodbyes as they watched him leave the building.

"Now that this is all over, let's go back to Odd Squad before Ms. O worries even more, shall we, darling?" Rarity asked, beginning to trot towards a nearby potted plant before taking a graceful dive into it and disappearing in a flash of blue light. Dash and AJ followed suit, as did Mandy, once she was done staring at the treasure chest.

Back at Precinct 13579's Headquarters, Olive was nervously pacing back and forth in the bullpen.

"Olive, it's okay. We'll find her."

"It's not like her to run off like this, Otto! I'm her adoptive mother. I have to keep her safe!"

Not this again, Otto thought, resisting the urge to bury his face in his hands.

"Mandy can hold her own out there, you know. Don't think she's-"

"What? Been killed?!" Olive whirled around to face her partner. "Otto, Mandy may be powerful, but she can't 'hold her own' forever! For all we know, she could be in the hospital, or-"

"Right behind you!"

"Or right behind me, or dead, or-"

Olive stiffened. She blinked.

And then she turned around to find a very familiar and welcoming face.

"Mandy!"

Immediately, Olive lunged for a hug, wrapping her arms around her adopted daughter's torso and squeezing her to the point where she was the "chokee" instead of the choker. "Choking...choking...nearly...out...of aaair..." Only a few seconds later, the hybrid was put down and allowed to breathe.

"Where have you been?! Oprah's been turning her Headquarters upside down looking for you! Literally, at one point!"

"I'm sorry! It's just that I was looking for the Toronto Rainbow, and you guys won't believe what I found!"

"Agent Mandy!"

The hybrid's hair and tail stuck straight up in shock as she heard the all-too-familiar and all-too-angry voice of her boss, and the all-too-many stomps that indicated she was descending the stairs.

"You ran off without telling me?!"

"O-Oprah! Look, i-it was an honest mistake, really, j-just hear me out!"

"All right, then. Fire away, bigshot." Oprah squinted, her eyes full of nothing but hatred and malice. Next to "I give indirect death threats to people I hate" Oprah, "my eyes will cut you like a knife and certainly not literally" Oprah was one of the scariest versions of Oprah.

"Well...I essentially stopped a robbery."

Oprah's eyes widened.

Her mouth went full scrunch.

And she belly-laughed.

"Stopped a robbery, oh, that's rich! Oh wow, that's- that's not even Odd Squad's job!" Oprah collapsed to the ground, her body racking with heaves of laughter as she pounded the floor with her fist. "How'd you go and stop a robbery?!"

"If you must know..." Mandy rolled her eyes in annoyance. "Then sit down and I'll tell you all the story."

Everyone did as they were told, barring Oprah, who was still in her fit of laughter.

---

"...so I returned the chest to the Mayor!"

"Mandy, that's really sweet." Olive smiled warmly.

"And completely selfless!" Otto said.

"Aww, it was nothing! Keeping money that isn't yours is wrong, no matter how much it is. And whoo...it was...a lot of money..."

Oprah, who had ceased her laughter sometime in the midst of her agent's story, tilted her head. "So the surprise at the end of the Rainbow was really a treasure chest full of money?"

"Yup! But the Mayor's secretary said that I can bury anything else there I like as a reward! A replacement surprise!"

"Did you have something in mind, darling?"

"I may have a little something...berightback!" Quick as a flash, Mandy teleported away.

An uncomfortable pause settled in the bullpen.

"Ah, she'll be back in five." Olive waved her hand in a dismissive motion.

"Minutes, or seconds?" Otto asked.

"Well, either way, I am quite glad Mandy was able to find the treasure." Rarity smiled. "With a little help from a friend, of course."

"I guess that's what she meant when she said she was going to 'get in the history books'." Otto mused.

The sound of footsteps alerted the group to someone's arrival. However, it didn't take long before the sound was traced not to Mandy, but to the human form of Peaches, who let out a yawn and rubbed her eyes. "Hey, everyone. We having a meeting?"

"No. Mandy came back."

"Oh!" Peaches straightened up. "Did she find the Toronto Rainbow?"

"Sure did!" Dash nodded. "And, she found this super-cool treasure!"

The catgirl's eyes widened before she breathed a sigh of relief. "That's a relief. Before she left, I tried to warn her about not feeling too upset if there was no surprise, but she told me she was in it for the adventure. Seems like she didn't have much to worry about."

"You got that right!"

The sudden appearance of someone behind her made Peaches whirl around and give an aggressive yowl before unsheathing her claws and attempting to bring them down on her supposed attacker. Luckily, her attacker was much more agile. "Whoa! Hey, hey, no touchie of the forelock!" she complained, holding it against her head.

"Well maybe don't scare me like that?!" Peaches yelled.

"Sorry! It just brings me such glee to pop up behind people and spook 'em." Mandy giggled.

"So what was the surprise you buried?" Oprah asked.

Mandy walked over to the group, and with her horn alight, she conjured up a framed photo. "This photo."

"A photo?" Otto asked incredulously. "Not something like gold, or anything valuable?"

This question caused Mandy to crack up in her usual giggly, snorting way. "Aww, Otto, you don't get it, do ya? This is valuable! Look at it!" She levitated the photo towards him. "It's a photo of all of us! Me, you, Momma, Oprah, the ponies. It's from that time we all took a day off and went to the beach!"

Otto glanced at the photo. He had remembered that day -- the day where Mandy showed off her ability to ski on water with nothing but her bare feet, Fluttershy made her own pony-sized sandcastle, and Oprah fought a shark that got a little too close for comfort and lived to tell the tale. To him, it had just been a day off, but looking at the smiling faces of him and all his friends, something stirred deep in his heart, and he couldn't help but smile.

"Why'd you bury it in the ground, though?" he asked.

"Friendship's the greatest treasure of all! Twi taught me that." The alicorn gave a small chuckle, feeling proud that Mandy had taken a friendship lesson of hers to heart. "See, if someone else finds, it, then maybe they'll be inspired by friendship too! And they'll go and make friends, just like how I'm friends with all of you!"

Olive gave a satisfied sigh. "That's my Mandy."

"Now how's about we get some work done, huh? I wanna go to the festival tomorrow with everyone! Whaddya say, boss?"

"Well..." Oprah thought for a moment. "It is a momentous occasion for the town. It'd be weird if Odd Squad didn't attend." She cleared her throat. "I hereby declare a day off for Precinct 13579 to attend the festival!"

This resulted in the eruption of cheers from the group, and the eruption of cheers from agents who had been walking by and overheard the news even though they had no idea what their boss was referring to.

"Will you two be coming?" Mandy asked Olive and Otto.

"Sure. Our assistants handle a lot of our work when we're gone, anyway." Otto grinned. "Plus, I never turn down a good party."

"Great! 'Cuz I might be speaking there!"

"How do you know that?"

"Ah, call it a hunch." Mandy patted Olive's shoulder. "See ya later!" With a few happy bounces, she headed for the right hallway, happiness settling in her heart as she began to grow excited for the festival.

---

"Agent Mandy of Odd Squad Precinct 13579 has returned a valuable gift to our fair town -- a treasure chest containing hundreds of thousands of dollars, all stolen from the Toronto Elite Credit Union. It was stolen by a group of thieves over 100 years ago, and it has not been found since. Until today."

As Mayor Mackelmore spoke to the large crowd of people that had gathered for the festival, happy and excited murmurs rippled through, with some people spotting Agent Mandy herself making her way up to the stage.

"While searching for the Toronto Rainbow, Mandy stumbled upon the treasure chest. Instead of keeping the money all for herself, she performed a selfless deed and returned it to the town where it belongs. In exchange, she has buried a special surprise that will re-emerge at the next showing of the Rainbow."

People and ponies alike began to grow excited, with chatter ensuing over what the treasure Mandy had left was and where it was buried.

"As thanks for returning what was rightfully ours, this Rainbow Festival will be held in honor of her, and in honor of what good she has done for Toronto over the years!"

The crowd erupted in applause, both in clapping hands and happy hoof-stomps. Mandy made her way to the podium and took over.

"Thank you, Mayor Mackelmore. Please, have fun at the festival and party it up!"

With excited cheers and murmurs, the crowd separated, and everyone went their own separate ways. Mandy, meanwhile, took flight and soared through the area until she located Olive and Otto.

"Wow. You weren't kidding when you said you'd be speaking." Olive remarked as she flagged her down. "I expected a whole big speech, though, not two small sentences."

"Hey, less talkin' and more partyin' for me! It's one of Pinkie Pie's greatest lessons." Mandy shrugged. "But anyway, I gotta thank Icy Song for letting me speak at the festival to begin with. She recommended me to the Mayor as a guest speaker as soon as the money was returned." A hesitant look crossed her face. "Also she, uh...tried to get me a job at the credit union...much to my refusal."

"Miss! Miss!"

The trio's heads all swiveled to the left, where they saw the colt running up to them and waving his hoof in the air.

"Oh, it's you!" Mandy smiled. "Hiya!"

"Hi! I-I just wanted to, um...thank you for the adventure we had. It was fun."

"D'aww, no problem!" Mandy waved her hand dismissively. "If anything, I should be thanking you! If you hadn't woken me up when you did, I never would've seen the rainbow to begin with! Heh, guess my love of sleeping kinda became a detriment..."

"Well, can we...maybe, um..." The shy colt rubbed his right leg on his left one, shifting his gaze to the ground. "Be friends?"

The mere mention of the word "friends" caused Mandy's face to transform into an expression that would indicate to most anyone that she was about to rocket into the sky in excitement. Luckily, Mandy wasn't that type of hybrid. "Friends?! Yes yes yes, absolutely!"

"Oh thank you, miss!"

"But if you wanna be friends, my first rule is: don't be so stinkin' formal!"

"Huh?"

"Agent 57, at your service!" Mandy cleared her throat. "Or you can call me by my actual name, Mandy. No need to refer to me as 'miss', silly!"

The colt chuckled. "I'm Rocky Road. But, um...most ponies call me Rocky."

"Rocky...I like it!" Mandy giggled. "Nice to meetcha! Oh yeah, and this is Olive and Otto. They're co-Directors of the Mississauga Precinct."

Both Rocky and the two Directors exchanged waves.

"Oh, um, one other thing, mi- um, Mandy. That thing we did, where I rode on your back...that was really cool. See, I-I've always wanted to fly, but I can't, because I'm a unicorn." Rocky put a hoof to his horn.

"Well, self-levitation's not an easy feat. I haven't mastered it yet. But I can lift these two boogers up" She gestured to Olive and Otto, then leaned in close to Rocky's face. "Only for so long, though. They're, uh...really heavy."

"Hey!" came a unisonant protest.

Rocky gave a small smile. "Would it be too much to ask if we, um...if you gave me more rides like that? It's super-fun! Um, i-if it doesn't bother you."

"Pff, nonsense, you kiddin' me?" Mandy playfully rolled her eyes. "I carry both humans and ponies on my back all the time! Watch!" She bent down, reached an arm backwards, and patted her back twice. "Climb on my back, Momma!"

Giving a knowing smile to Otto, Olive did as she was told, situating herself on Mandy's back the same way one would ride a regular horse. Once she was situated, the hybrid took flight, spreading her wings and flapping them until she was airborne.

"Aww, but I thought we were too heavy?" the co-Director teased.

"Can it, Maestro."

Olive snickered as Mandy descended, allowing her to hop off.

"I'd love to give you rides, Rocky! And of course, you're welcome at Odd Squad whenever you wanna stop by, too."

"Really?"

"Really really! I'm sure Oprah wouldn't mind you comin' for visits every once in a while."

"That sounds great! Thank you so much!"

"Rocky, honey, could you come here, please?" came the distant call of someone who was no doubt Rocky Road's mother.

"Oh! My mom's calling me. I should go."

"All righty! Have fun at the Festival, okay?"

"I will! Bye!"

As Rocky ran off towards the direction of the call, the trio gave their goodbyes and watched him go.

Mandy gave a sigh. "Sweet colt. I like him."

"He'd make a good Odd Squad agent." Otto mused.

"Now...whaddya say we go and enjoy the rest of the festival?! Who's with me?!"

"Sure!"

"Like I said, I never turn down a good party like this!"

---

The rest of the festival went along smoothly. Songs were sung, new friendships were made, games were played, and of course, Rainbow Dash couldn't miss a chance to try her own hoof at recreating the whimsy and the wonder of the Toronto Rainbow, although it didn't go as well as she had liked.

By the time the agents returned to Odd Squad, they were wiped out from all the fun and games.

"Oh hey, you're back!" Peaches swiveled around in Mandy's desk chair. "How was the festival?"

"Awesome!" Mandy's tail began to wag. "It was soooo much fun!"

Murmurs of agreement rippled among the group and echoed her sentiment.

"Well, I'm glad you all had a good time. Sorry I had to leave early. I had this gut feeling that the culprit who burned down my town was in Toronto, and I turned over every rock in the city just to look for them."

"That's okay! As long as you had fun while you were there!" A yawn suddenly let loose from Mandy's throat. "But just so you know, I'm claiming the shower first. I'd eat, but I really just want to melt away in a bathtub right now."

"Yeah, you look like a wreck." Peaches snickered. "Go ahead."

With a sigh, Mandy began to trudge her way down the right hallway, her posture more slumped than usual.

"We should head home too. Mandy started yawning, so we decided to escort her here to make sure she didn't suddenly collapse in the middle of a crosswalk." A horrified look crossed Olive's face for a moment, making Peaches wonder if her cousin actually did fall asleep while crossing the street.

"And we're going to go back to Equestria, through the portal. Unless you need us for something, Ms. O?"

"You're fine, Agent Twilight. You all have had a long day of fun. Go home and rest up for tomorrow." With a nod, Twilight and the other ponies exited through the steel double-doors.

"We'll still see you tomorrow for lunch, Oprah?" Olive asked.

"Wouldn't miss it. Enjoy the rest of the night, you two." Olive and Otto then left, bringing the number of the group down to a measly two.

"Peaches, mind bringing me a juice box?"

"Hm? Uh, oh! S-sure. Any kind of flavor? And where do you keep your juice boxes, anyway?"

"Breakroom. And fruit punch. I'm in a fruit punch mood."

It didn't take the catgirl long to find a whole spherical bin full of juice boxes located exactly where Oprah had described, and she quickly ran over and grabbed the first fruit punch one she saw. As she walked to Oprah's office, though, one question still weighed on her mind...a question that had been bothering her all day.

---

"Whuh-huh? What're you askin' me?"

Peaches groaned. "For the tenth time now: exactly what did you mean when you said you were going to 'make history' in finding the Toronto Rainbow?"

Mandy blinked once, and then twice, as though not understanding the question. And then, her eyes widened as it finally sunk into her tired, burned-out brain.

"Oh! Well, I kinda wanted t' be th' first Odd Squad agent to find th' Rainbow...but then that didn't pan out, so I decided t' become th' first pony-human hybrid t' find th' Rainbow!" She grinned. "Plus, I did find th' treasure. That too!"

Peaches could only stare incredulously as a loud yawn parted from Mandy's jaws.

"Now, it's sleep time for me...see y' tomorrow, mkay?"

Her head hit the pillow, and the daily parade of earth-shattering snores and unintelligible sleep-talking immediately got off to its grandiose start.

"But I-" Peaches shook her head. "The first pony-human hybr- what?!"

She didn't get much in the way of a response.

Sighing, the catgirl turned and left the Bedroom, making sure to close the door behind her before making her way to her own room.

Yeah, she made history all right...for being the Most Confusing Person. She flopped onto her bed. But I guess I can't fault her. She had the adventure, and she found the treasure at the end of the Rainbow. That sounded pretty cool.

An unsettling thought then wormed its way into her head.

Am I really just going to be looking for the culprit throughout all the time I spend here? Everyone's been so nice to me...and how do I repay them? By leaving a festival early to chase after an elusive criminal. A festival that my own cousin spoke at, no less!

Maybe it would be for the best if I stopped...

Her ears folded downwards.

No. King Ashero is going to like me when I find this culprit. I'll be known as a hero. I'll finally get the respect that I want, that I need, that I deserve. He'll have to apologize for exiling me, too. Bring me back into the town. Ha...wouldn't it be funny if he made me his successor?

A small smile crept onto her face, and she closed her eyes.

After all...a catgirl can dream.