Heart of the Night [Cobar herd]

[{ Opal }]

After nearly an hour of traveling, Cobar had found himself encased in rising spires of rock. The stallion eyed the shadows and moonlight that clashed on the stone's surface, and was glad that he had come. Nickering to two fillies behind him, Cobar carried himself forward. His hooves clacked against the hard surface, and if he stamped hard enough the sound would echo around him. Eerie. The stallion passed under long, black shadows, which were parted briefly by the full moon's light. It wasn't difficult to see, and for that Cobar was grateful. As the buckskin peered around, he became even more entranced with his surroundings. The patterns and stillness of the night was like nothing Cobar had ever seen. The stallion twisted his head back to ensure the fillies were doing alright, and flicked his tail excitedly at them. Did they feel as he did? Cobar felt a surge of happiness to have company along.

[yaruka]

Omaroo, too, was entranced by the way the moonlight played across the rocks and formed shadows as deeply black as her own coat. And it was this she sought to exploit in the very near future. She shot a mischievous look at Ally, eyes half hidden under her long forelock. She pranced up to Cobar and nipped him playfully on his hindquarters. She then danced back to stand beside Ally, waiting to see if the buckskin stallion would take the bait.

[Tex]

The grulla filly was full of energy once again, and pranced just as Omaroo did. She flipped a thick forelock out of an eye, and came up on the other side of Cobar, nudging him on his shoulder and spinning round to dance next to her herd friend, smart enough to not whinny or snort.
She really had no idea what her friend was doing, and looked at her in an asking way. Did she plan to run off or something? Ally would join in, as they had tried that trick before, but she needed to know what to do.

[{ Opal }]

Cobar heard the slap of hooves quicken, and looked behind him just as Omaroo nipped him. He flung out a foreleg playfully, but the back filly was already bouncing away. Cobar took one strong leap after her, his muscles bunching up as he took the force of the rock in landing. He flung his head at Omaroo, sending his mane scattering. Cobar was ready to chase her; in fact, he was dieing to do so. But suddenly he felt a nudge on his shoulder, and looked to find Ally. Cobar snorted; were they toying with him? The stallion pranced toward the two, eager to show his skills.

[yaruka]

Omaroo sidled closer to her friend, tossing her head. Under her breath, so that only the grulla could hear, she whispered "Oh, what fun a midnight run might be." She wasn't planning on leaving Cobar, just enjoying a gallop through the night. She eyed the buckskin stallion, noting that he, too, seemed ready for play. In one quick bound she off and away, tossing a careless and joyful whinny over her shoulder at her two herdmates.
Clattering up a small incline, hooves churning up pebbles, she decided to circle round behind the other two and hopefully attract Ally's attention so that they could run off together. Making use of her black coat she trotted as quietly as she could into the bush and slid silently through the shadows, returning to where she had stood only moments before. Catching sight of Ally she whinnied to her friend before disappearing back into the woods, hoping that the other filly found her before Cobar did.

OOC: sorry it's kinda lame :/

[Tex]

The grulla mare tossed her head and trotted forward, being as patient as possible to try and have Cobar go first. If he went first, she might be able to get away as his back turned. She danced forward, then puleld back, in a way that she thought would make it impossible for him to see where she had gone before it was too late. Just when she decided that it was safe, the grulla filly soundlessly danced away to be next to her friend, her coat belnding in with the rocks and Omaroo's blending with the shadows. It looks like Cobar would have a job on his hands trying to keep the two mares with him all the time.

[{ Opal }]

Cobar jumped directly after Omaroo, his hooves digging into the gravel as he fought to keep up. He heard a faint sound behind him, and looked back, suddenly remembering Ally. But the area that she had once stood now lay empty in silence. Cobar jerked himself forward again, deciding to find her later, but he found that the slight distraction had allowed Omaroo to slip away unnoticed. The stallion snorted angrily, and decided to stop and think for a moment. That was Cobar's strength.

The stallion swung his head around, scanning the darkness with his eyes, and breathing in the air with his nose. The fillies' scents swarmed around him, but they were growing stale, and told him nothing about their whereabouts. Now, where would they go? Cobar doubted that they would stumble through the darkness, in an area they hardly knew; instead, they would probably go somewhere that they thought he'd least expect. Cobar closed his eyes momentarily, his mind working.

Finally he started forward, heading up the trail Omaroo had followed. His dappled pelt slid into the darkness as he moved stealthily ahead, keeping his hooves to soft ground. Not even the swish of his tail could give him away. Slowly Cobar crept to the top of the rise, then down and around; when his nose failed him, logic steered him on. Cobar skirted around the area, making sure that he would appear behind them instead of ahead. Confident that they were near, he took in a final breath. The fillies' scents tingled in his nostrils, and he knew he was close. Cobar started forward again, trying to keep the smell growing stronger, getting nearer. Suddenly he spotted them; he was so close to their backs that if he stretched out his neck, he could reach their tails. Cobar was surprised by how well-hidden they were; but, he gloated, they were found. The stallion stifled a nicker of mischief as he reached out with his muzzle, and barely lipped at Ally's rump. Uncertain of her reaction, Cobar stepped back out of range. His hooves grazed pebbles, making a faint scraping noise.

[yaruka]

Omaroo stood next to Ally, hidden in the shadows and breathing heavil from excitement. Her ears flickered back and forth, listening for Cobar's approach. Suddenly her skin began to tingle and she swung around just as Cobar reached out to lip at the base of Ally's tail. Nipping her friend swiftly on the neck she danced away, off to the right. Hoping Ally would take the hint and go the opposite way so that they could distract Cobar but stil meet up somewhere ahead, she reared up, twirled around and galloped off through the bush. Once she had gone some distance she slowed into a ground-eating trot, quietly moving through the bush. Only the gleam of the moonlight reflecting in her eyes when she passed through a sparser area of cover could give her away.

[Tex]

Allira was just as excited as Omaroo, and found it hard to rein herself in. Bad pun. Anyway, she was standing next to her friend, staring out into the darkness, trying to see if Cobar had figured out their little plan. Just as she was glancing towards the way of the men's hut, something touched the base of her tail. The grulla jumped about a foot into the air, with a startled whinny. Just as soon as all four of her hooves had touched the ground, she spun around and gave Cobar a smart little nip on the ear. Sneaking up like that, silly horse!
Her friend moved off again, and she realized the game was still on. Ally leaped off to the left, away from both horses, and made a big show of running very fast. As soon as she was out of sight, the mare slowed down to a fast lope, soundlessly making her way in a big circle towards where she thought she might be able to make it to her friend without being noticed.

[{ Opal }]

Cobar nickered humorously, fully amused by Allira's reaction. Though he had stepped out of range of her hooves, he still received a sharp nip on the ear. Cobar snorted and pawed back at her, just as Omaroo took off to the right. Cobar glanced at her for a split second, then returned his gaze to Ally just as she charged away. The buckskin let loose a spirited scream, then swiftly dashed after the grulla filly. Energy roared through his body as he galloped on Ally's trail, his hooves pounding and every muscle straining in unison. The filly was fast; very fast, actually. Cobar struggled to keep up as she flew gracefully though a stone maze, the wind tugging at her mane and tail, blowing her scent into Cobar's nostrils. The stallion strained to go faster, but just then Ally's figure slipped away into the shadows. Heaving for breath, Cobar let himself slow to a brisk trot. As the night's crisp air filled his lungs, he felt his strength returning. Ally's scent urged him on as he tracked her through the stone and bush, until he heard her hooves ringing against the rock. Cobar jerked his head up eagerly, and hurried after the sound.