Chapter 5:
The Courtship
It was nearing sunset, and all the bachelors of the herd were getting ready for the girls and the bachelorettes were getting ready for the boys, which means the courtship is about to begin. There were two Chieftess in the herd, they were sisters, and each tried to in part wisdom to their herd. Though they had different ideas on how.
All of the stallions met together in the bushes of the forest just a few yards away from the tree by the cliff.
A blue Eohippus mare with a blue mane and tail looked at them and said with pride, "Alright, stallions, gather 'round. Listen and learn from Chieftess Night Cycle,".
Over at the tree next to the cliff, her older sister, Chieftess Bright Cycle, a tall white Eohippus mare with lovely violet eyes, a colorful mane and tail, was giving her own instructions. All the mares gathered around at the base of the tree to listen.
Chieftess Bright Cycle looked at the eligible mares and said, "Now, girls listen, don't gallop around the tree with the first stallion with a cute back trot. It's more fun if you keep him guessing!" She advised as Half-Light and her friends gave each mare a flower.
"And if a cute back trot doesn't work on them, guess!" Night Cycle told the stallions after telling them about the cute back trot.
"You're never gonna forget this day. So make it one to remember," Bright Cycle said compassionately as Half-Light and her friends still handed out flowers.
"But if you mess up, don't worry. They'll never remember," Night Cycle reassured the stallions with a chuckle.
"Come on, guys! We don't want to let them down!" Aladar shouted from outside the bushes as the stallions peeked out to see him walking by with Sweet-Tooth on his back.
"Go on, now! Chest out! Chin up!" Night Cycle ushered the stallions as they ran out of the bushes with cheers.
Aladar was able to lower down as all of the stallions climbed up onto his back while Sweet-Tooth jumped off to join the other mares. Aladar even managed to toss one stallion onto his back when it caught hold of his lower lips.
"Make them look good, Aladar," Night Cycle said to Aladar.
"Come on, Night Cycle. With my charms and your brains? No problem," Aladar said confidently, turning to the Chieftress with a smile.
Night Cycle laughed while she stood in the bushes.
As he stepped out of the shadows of the forests, Aladar let out a bellow to let the mares know it's time. All the mares, including Sweet-Tooth, looked to see the incoming Kritopony while Half-Light, her friends, and Chieftress Bright Cycle moved out of the way.
Aladar laughed before letting loose another bellow and slowed down before turning to let the stallions look to the tree.
"Hey, girls. Look what just pulled into town…" Aladar said, showing the stallions to the mares.
"Hey, ladies!" One of the stallions shouted.
"...Your buffet table of love," Aladar said, causing the mares to giggle.
"Right here! Right here!" One of the stallions shouted.
Another waved and shouted, "Hey beautiful!".
Sweet-Tooth moved along the base of the tree and tried one of her lines, "Hey, free treat samples! Get them while they're hot!".
But then she slipped and hung onto a root to avoid falling off. And she held on tight with a "Whoa!".
Making sure she didn't fall, Sweet-Tooth looks at the stallions and laughs sheepishly.
From their spot, the Prehistoric Crusaders giggled.
"Sweet-Tooth," Sweet Pebble giggled.
They along with Half-Light, Her friends, and Chieftess Bright Cycle made their way back to the trees. Aladar walks under the treelines as all the stallions suddenly jumped off with cheers and Aladar leans down on a large branch as it shifted under his mass to watch the event.
Near him, Sweet Pebble, Free Fall, and Tangerine joined next to their sisters, Half-Light, and the Chieftress Sisters as they start calling and Sweet-Tooth did as well. The Prehistoric Crusaders continue to call out as Half-Light, her friends, Night Cycle, and Bright Cycle joined in. Aladar smiled before joining in on the fun and lets out a loud bellow.
The ground shook and Sweet-Tooth fell into the nearby bushes with her legs sticking Prehistoric Crusaders flinched a bit but giggled from seeing it.
Meanwhile, the stallions raced out of the bushes galloping out to the tree and running around the tree too.
Sweet-Tooth was struggling to get herself free for she is stuck between a fork of two branches.
Deciding to give her a hand, Aladar got up, ran to the bush, and grabbed the branch with his beak, "You're missing all the action, Sweet-Tooth. Well, come on," He said.
"Hey, haven't you heard, Aladar? I am the action!" Sweet-Tooth said.
And with a twist in his head, Aladar tossed the laughing Sweet-Tooth flying through the air. The pink Eohippus mare was able to land gracefully on the root. She and the other mares watch the stallions galloping around the tree until they stopped and waited. Soon the mares and Sweet-Tooth jumped off the roots and headed to the stallions.
Every Eohippus stallion and mare looked to the mate of their choosing. The mares made the first moves and ran towards the stallions as the stallions did the same. But Sweet-Tooth's ankle unfortunately got stuck on an arched root, which was holding her back.
The young Eohippus stallions and mares ran to different parts of the tree before running to their true love. A Eohippus stallion and mare ran around each other.
Sweet-Tooth hurries to get herself free.
All the other Eohippus were able to find their special Eohippus. One Eohippus mare hands her flower and gives it to him as she accepts him. Then she and her mate begin to climb up a nearby hill. Soon all the Eohippus begin to head to the top of the hill.
All except Sweet-Tooth, who just gotten her ankle freed as she looked around to see if there weren't any single stallions left, but to her disappointment, there weren't any again. She lowered her head in sadness that she couldn't find the perfect stallion for her.