#im pretty proud of myself for breaking through what was essentially a 1.5 year writers block tho ngl

[thatweirdsideblog]

Scenario/Story

(Bare with me cuz i know this is long af, i just have a really tough time writing things out in story format due to some past stuff so just let your imaginations run with this however you like!)

Imagine ragweed nymph/dryad

They've just made a new friend by finding a common interest. While usually a bit reserved with strangers, they've grown comfortable enough with the way the conversation has progressed that they've allowed themself to loosen up a bit and show their excitement at meeting a human who has this same interest as they do.

The thing is, this dryad resides over a ragweed field. Since dryad forms resemble their home, this dryad produces pollen during the late summer/early fall. Their pollen so small and so lightweight, that any sudden movement on the dryad's part is bound to send some of it into the air, not to mention any gust of wind will carry their pollen for miles.

Needless to say, their animated gestures are shaking that pollen loose in clouds. the

Yet, not being used to spending longer periods of time outside of nature/in the company of non-nymph individuals, our pollen proprietor, engrossed in the conversation, doesn't really notice the immediate effects of their actions.

The human, on the other hand, definitely does notice. They also notice how itchy their eyes have gotten and how their nose has begun to run.

Yes, they could say something to alert the dryad to this small (yet increasingly evident) issue, but they don't want to disrupt what they got going on here. They've never had such an engaging exchange with this individual before, and theyre really cute it's nice to see them so passionate about something.

The last thing the human wants to do is rain on their parade. So they try their best to keep their hands away from their face and focus instead on keeping the cute dryad talking- hopefully they won't notice the increasing intervals between the human's sniffling and throat clearing.

Now this human's will may be strong, but their allergies are stronger. Eventually the tickle becomes too much, and they sneeze. A polite "bless you!" from the dryad, a customary "thank you" from the human. The discussion continues with minimal interruption.

Seeing that will alone won't stop the escalation of what now looks to be a promising allergy attack, the human switches gears, vigorously scrubbing at their nose. They pray that this will abate the relentless tickle in their nose. They don't really know what the dryad's reaction to more outbursts might be. A lot of beings aren't used to some of the bodily mechanics/functions of humans. Do dryads even sneeze? The human's stomach churns uncomfortably at the thought of possibly grossing out this prospective new friend. Maybe they can avoid sneezing any more if-

And then they sneeze again.

And then twice more.

The dryad offers a third, now slightly hesitant "bless you..." They pause, uncertain whether they're supposed to address this any further. It doesn't seem right. Humans don't usually sneeze this much, do they?

The human just waves off the blessing, dismissing any implied concern for their health. They ask the dryad a question pertaining to the dryad's statement prior to the interruption, which prompt the dryad back into their speculative discussion.

The human manages to discreetly stifle a few intermittent sneezes without calling attention to themself, but that just makes them so stuffed up that they have to resort to breathing through their mouth. The deep itch in their sinuses is persisting with a vengeance. If anything, stifling has made it even more intense. The human has tried everything in their power but they wont be able to-

Abandoning all attempts to holdback/stifle, the human just barely has time to bring their hands over their mouth as they fold in on themselves with the force of the expulsion. The dryad starts to bless them, but the human shakes their head, not even bothering to remove their steepled hands as they gear up for another wrenching sneeze. And another. And another...

The dryad, startled by this sudden barrage of sneezes, scrambles to pull a square of cloth they have saved for first aid from within one of their several pockets. Mimicking what they've seen other humans do, they offer the cloth to the human.

The human blindly reaches for the cloth with one hand, the other still covering their nose and mouth, grabbing it just in time to pitch forward with two more sneezes.

They blow their nose and wipe the allergic tears from their eyes (both of which they've desperately seeking to do this entire time) and then sneeze one more time into the cloth.

This entire time, the dryad is standing stock-still, genuinely afraid of what's happening to their acquaintance.

"This- this doesn't seem normal! We need to get you to a healer immediately!" They say with a shaky yet determined voice.

Sheepishly, the human just gives a small laugh in response and shakes their head. "No ah...i just simply forgot my allergy potion today. I didn't think I'd need it today, see? For the pollen..."

The dryad's eyes widen slowly as they take an involuntary step back, holding up their hands close to their chest. "The... oh..." They look down guiltily at their feet, blushing a dark green all the way to the tips of their ears. "my pollen..." they add quietly.

"No please don't think it's your fault, we didn't even know we'd meet each other today!" The human sniffs and massages their red nostrils with the cloth as they hold their other palm up in a placating manner. "Besides, if anyone is at fault here it's me! I should know to keep a spare potion on me just i-hh..." they take a shaky breath, looking off to the side with an unfocused gaze "hh-hiEtSHUUh!"

Holding up a finger to indicate theyre not done.

"H...HnNKT-"

Pinching off the second sneeze with the cloth, they shake their head and give another congested sniff, frowning slightly. "What was i... oh yeah! Please don't think this-" They gesture to their face. "-is because of you!"

The dryad purses their lips, grip on their hands tightening in front of their chest. "I just- you should've told me i was waving my arms around too much or... or that you couldn't be around pollen. I didn't know i would make you sick..."

The human laughs incredulously. "You didn't! I'm not sick, just a little sneezy. My body just doesn't really...take to pollen very well." They step forward and put their hands around the dryad's. "And that's nobody's fault, okay?" Their expression softens as their eyes meet the dryad's and hold their gaze. The human pointedly raises their eyebrows. "Okay? I'm glad I got to meet up with you today. I like how passionate you are, and I want to hear you talk more about this, yeah?"

Some of the tension eases from the dryad's shoulders and they nod. "I like speaking with you too..."

The human wrinkles their nose and smiles, about to respond, when their breath suddenly snags in their throat and a flash of alarm flits across their face. Without a second to spare, they only just manage to turn aside, bent double by 3 successive, barely covered sneezes, their hand, which did not make it up to their face in time, clutching the cloth.

A bit winded/dazed by the force of the harsh sneezes, the human straightens up, scrubbing their nose with the back of their wrist, fingers still curled around the cloth, as if in the heat of the moments its utility was temporarily forgotten.

"Whew!" The human chuckles, swiping the cloth under their nose again. They pinch the bridge of their nose, massaging it lightly up and down. "Sorry 'bout that-"

A shadow of that frown still lingers in the dryad's expression as they interject. "I think... i should probably go for today," they say, clearly still a bit troubled by the human's adverse reaction to their presence.

The human's eyes widen. "Wait no! You said you traveled so far to get here, and we haven't even seen the town yet."

"But I'm making you like this... it doesn't seem comfortable, even if you say you are not sick."

The human sniffs, then sneezes once into the crook of their arm , as if pointedly. "Well you're right, it's not. But all I'll need is one potion from one apothecary, and I'll be fit as a fiddle~"

"What's a fiddle?"

"Come to the town with me and I'll show you."

The dryad shifts from one foot to the other, considering.

"Fine. But apothecary first"

"Deal." Then, after a moment, "I'll need to reimburse you for that handkerchief though. You can pick out the pattern."

The dryad blushes, this time for a different reason. "I like floral..."

The human just chuckles and claps the dryad lightly on the back, before realising their mistake, breath hitching, as they pull out their 'handkerchief' and sneeze into it two more times. After a hasty recovery they simply nudge the dryad good-naturedly and nod their head towards the road into town.

"We should get going, I'll stay upwind."

#this is literally a full story i just #hate trying to write things in book format right off the bat cuz its a huge trigger for my anxiety #still i really do hope you guys like it! #i even threw in some sneeze spellings #its only 2 but hey at least i tried! #im pretty proud of myself for breaking through what was essentially a 1.5 year writers block tho ngl #either way yeah these arent ocs (yet) but ive kinda had the idea half brewed for a while #anywho uhhhh yeah so imma just #my writing #mine #yeehaw i guess?