Alacrity Minifics

The Everfree Forest is not a place suitable for most ponies, which makes it the most well-suited place for ponies to wander into haphazardly.  Strange how that works, isn't it?

Lovey Dovey, matchmaker extraordinaire, was enjoying a leisurely stroll through her old home of Ponyville.  It had been a while since she had been by, as most of her time lately was spent in Manehattan with her very special somepony, Magnate.  He was away on a business trip, however, which meant she had time for herself and she chose to spend that time seeing if anything back home had changed.

Little had, so her stroll didn't take very long.  "Well," she murmured to herself, frowning, "now what do I do?"

After she circled the town for the third time, she stopped on the side just at the edge of the Everfree Forest.  She stared into the ominous darkness that clouded the timberland, making it difficult to see past the first line of trees.  There was a path, however, that she could clearly make out against the barbed thicket.

Lovey tilted her head one way, then the other, then smiled.  "A road never travelled is an opportunity never found, they say!  Or, at least, I think that's what they say?"  She trotted forward, right past the sign that warned against venturing into the forest.  "Only one way to find out!"

She hummed a merry little tune as she followed the path.  Her over-the-top pink appearance contrasted so greatly with her dark surroundings that the creatures lurking in the bushes and trees could do nothing but stare in confusion.

"How does that lullaby go?"  She stopped and tapped on her chin, her nose scrunched up in thought until the melody hit her first and she started to hum.  Slowly, the words formed in her mind and she sang them aloud.

"A gentle breeze from the Unicorn Range

Softly blows o’er the Everfree

It echoes in the cavern beneath it

Waiting for another who would be."

Her hooves guided her through the bramble thicket somewhat aimlessly until she stumbled on a clearing, small rays of sunlight filtering through the thick foliage to illuminate the entrance to a cavern.  She squealed with delight and continued the lullaby as she trotted toward it.

"It isn’t far to Everfree Forest

Where a lake waits below for thee

The pool of change so softly reflecting

Soon it will take you to become we."

A path led her down into the cave, and when she reached the bottom, she discovered a pool so perfectly still that it looked like glass.  Though she was deep underground, the walls seemed to radiate enough light that it reflected off the surface of the pool.

Lovey giggled and walked to the edge, finishing the last verse, her tone cracking with excitement at her discovery.

"So close your eyes in Everfree Forest

Step on through and you will appear

And watch yourself in Everfree Forest

Sail far away into the Mirror."

"Sail far away into the mirror?" she repeated, staring down at her reflection, then gasped.  "Step on through and I will appear?  Appear where?  Oh, you've come this far, Lovey!  You can't stop now!"

Taking a deep breath and holding it, she dipped one hoof into the water.  It was cold and sent a shiver down her spine, but her determination moved her to drop the other hoof in.  Her head broke through the surface and she blinked when she found herself above water rather than beneath.

"Huh?"  She looked down at the water she was in, brow furrowed and lips pursed.

"Hello!" a sugary sweet voice squealed and a pink hoof was lowered into her view.  "I'm Lovey Dovey!"

Lovey raised her gaze to follow the hoof and looked up at a mare.  Not just any more.  It was herself!  "Oh!"  She took the hoof and the mare helped her out of the water.  "I'm Lovey Dovey, too!"

Lovey—or perhaps she would be Dovey, so that Lovey wouldn't get confused—squealed and jumped into the air, her wings fluttering too quickly to actually keep her afloat.  "Oh my gosh!  Really?!  I mean, we look so similar, but we have the same name, too?!"  She trotted in place.  "We're like twins!"

"We are!"  Lovey beamed at Dovey.  "Did you come here because of a lullaby, too?"

"Huh?"  Dovey blinked, then shook her head.  "Nope!  What lullaby?"  Her eyes widened.  "Is it a lullaby about love?!  I love love!"

Lovey giggled.  "I love love, too!  But no, it was a lullaby about—"  Dovey took a sharp intake of air and started to run for the ramp that led out of the cave.  "Hey!  Where are you going?"

"It's an emergency!"  Dovey's wings fluttered to help her move more quickly, her hooves barely touching the ground as she ran.  "A love line emergency!"

"Huh?"  Lovey followed behind her.  "An emergency?  I didn't feel any emergency."

Dovey broke out into a full gallop and called over her shoulder, "You wouldn't understand!"

Lovey stopped to frown at the pink mare running into the darkness.  "Of course I'd understand!  I just don't agree!"  She jumped into the air, spread her wings, and sailed after her twin.  "Are you talking about that little twitch?  Those happen all the time!"

Dovey gasped.  She said nothing further, weaving haphazardly through the bramble thicket until she found the path and saw the dim light ahead.  "It's horrible!  A disaster!  What if I don't make it in time?  What if I fail true love?!"

"You're overreacting!"  A breeze caught under Lovey's wings and propelled her forward enough that she could fly directly above Dovey.  "By the time we get there, it'll already be resolved!"

"How can you know that for certain?!"  Dovey glared up at her.  "It's my job to ensure that everypony finds their somepony!"

Lovey swooped down and landed on the other mare's back, but the added weight didn't seem to slow her down any.  "Well, my job is to help ponies with their love emergencies, and this is definitely not one of those."

Light poured on them as they crossed the threshold of darkness and Lovey squinted to adjust to the light.  Dovey continued onward toward the house nearest the edge of the Everfree Forest.

"Dovey."  Lovey blinked.  "Dovey, stop!"  She jumped off her back and hovered in the air, watching with wide eyes as Dovey broke down the front door.  "Oh my gosh, Dovey!"  She landed just inside the foyer to see Dovey, a mare, and a stallion, all staring at one another.

"Lovey?!" Cheerilee squeaked, pushing Big Mac away.  When she saw the second Lovey Dovey in the doorway, she blinked.  "And...  Lovey?"

"She's Dovey, I'm Lovey," she corrected, though that did little to help the situation.

Dovey stomped toward them and grabbed them by the shoulders.  "You two are meant to be in love!"  She pushed on their shoulders to force their faces together and bump noses awkwardly.  "Now kiss and make up!"

Cheerilee peered at Dovey out of the corner of her eye.  "Lovey—"

"She's Dovey," Lovey corrected again.

"—sorry.  Dovey."  Cheerilee tried to smile.  "I appreciate what you... and... you are trying to do, but it's fine.  We just had a small fight, that's all."

Lovey waved her hooves.  "I have nothing to do with this!"

Dovey blinked a few times.  "Huh?"  She let go of her shoulders.  "But...  You had a love line emergency!"

Cheerilee broke into small giggles.  "A love line emergency?  Well, I don't know about that!  We just couldn't decide what to have for dinner, and I'm afraid I got a little upset because he never makes a decision, and—"

"There it is!" Dovey shrieked, grabbing their shoulders and bumping their noses together again.  "No, no, no, no!"

Lovey finally intervened.  She jumped forward, grabbed Dovey by the tail, and gave it just enough of a tug to force her away from the exceptionally confused and somewhat concerned couple.  "Okay, that's it!  I'm sorry, Cheerilee and Big Mac.  I'm just going to take this little filly outside and talk to her about the difference between emergencies and twitches, okay?"

Big Mac just nodded while Cheerilee laughed, albeit with an awkward hitch.  "All right, you two.  Goodbye Lovey and... Dovey?"

"And I'm really, really sorry about your door!" Lovey called just as she dragged the fidgeting and squirming Dovey out of their home.  Once they were a few, safe paces away, Lovey whirled around and frowned at the other.  "You can't just do that!  Ponies have to figure some things out on their own!"

Dovey scowled up at her and tried to yank her tail free.  "But love is the most important thing in all of Equestria!"

"Oh, what am I going to do with you?"  Lovey started to rub her temples, then gasped and stared at her forehooves.  That was exactly the kind of reaction he would have!  A smile lit up her face.  "Don't worry, Dovey!  I know somepony who can help us."

In an instant, Dovey's demeanor changed, much like Lovey's own feelings.  The thought of Magnate gave her a surge of blissful excitement that seemed to be reflected on Dovey's face.  "Who?  Who is it?!"

Lovey puffed out her chest with pride.  "My very special somepony, Magnate."

"Ooh!  How funny!"  Dovey snorted in the middle of giggling.  "That's the name of my very special somepony!"