Cherry Blossom Chase (F)

[NoV]

Cherry Blossom Chase (F)

Masaki knew it was coming.

She had tried to hold it off, had fought with every ounce of strength within her to avert it, but all was to no avail. Desperately she got ready to muffle it with her sleeve, knowing that her preparations were woefully inadequate for what was about to occur.

She gasped; once, twice. Each inhalation was more high-pitched, more sliding on the edge of control. Mentally she cursed the sensitivity of her nose, and the way it reacted to almost any smell that proved out of the ordinary. But there was no stopping this. This was coming now.

She sneezed! It was one of her classic sneezes, as if something had taken control of her entire head and made it deliver a sneeze that tore through the silence of the forest like a thunderbolt. The deep, heady pollen surged around her in clouds.

Immediately she convulsed with another, her body almost aching with the force by which the sneeze came bellowing out of her. Her dark hair thrashed across her shoulders, her nose upturned and tickling furiously. She tried to open her eyes, to see where she was going. Allergic tears made her vision blurry, and the forest trail passed in and out of focus. She had to keep going, her life depended on it.

Through the echoes of her last sneeze, she heard shouts from her pursuers and the distant crash as they pushed through the undergrowth. Why did she have to sneeze now, when so much depended on her!

Behind her, the castle was now visible above the treetops. The castle where her family cowered in their hiding place, beneath the floor of her fathers chamber, trusting their lives to their eldest daughter Misaki to get through the lines of their enemies in order to raise the alarm with the neighbouring Shogun. And those that pursued her were ronin, samurai without masters, turned to banditry and preying on the failing strength of the Shogun’s rule.

She was running uphill now, leaving the torturous cherry blossom behind, the green columns of the bamboo forest springing up around her. As she ran another sneeze came roaring out of her, blinding her momentarily, making her stumble, almost falling. Her nose was continuously twitching, the gasps of impending sneezes mingling with her efforts to catch her breath.

If she could only get to the gate! If she got there she would be protected by the influence the neighbouring shogun. The bandits would not dare enter his domain. Clasping the sleeve of her kimono tightly over her mouth, a few hitches contorting her smooth face, Misaki slowed down. Somehow she managed to stifle three rapid-fire sneezes that came in quick succession. By her standards they were small, just within her ability to control them. There was no telling when one of her colossal allergic sneezes would strike.

The young bamboo shoots rustled around her as she crept forwards, hoping to see a clear run to the torii gate atop the rise. Thankfully the cherry pollen was less here, and Misaki felt the uncontrollable rushing sensation in her chest, that proceeded her most violent sneezes, die down somewhat. The silence of the evening only became more complete, more easy to break. The sounds of pursuit were still there, but fainter. Misaki’s breathing started to seem loud to her ears, and she tried to hold her breath. She blinked her dark eyes, and peered out of the bamboo to survey the road ahead.

There were three men stood beneath the gate. They wore the robes that marked them as former samurai, the sharp curve of their swords silhouetted cruelly against the gloom.

Misaki drew back, stifling a gasp of horror in her throat. There was no way but through the deep forest, back to where the dreaded cherry blossom drifted through the silent glades. The very thought of it send an intense itch through her nose, expanding rapidly until there was no way for her to prevent another gigantic explosion. She crouched swiftly, pulling her kimono up to cover her face and sneezed into the bunched cloth, smothering the terrific burst of sound. Her body jerked and bucked with the effort to deny its full force.

Weakly, she opened her eyes, tears self-pity and anger mingling with those induced by her allergies. They were going to catch her, her family would never be rescued and all because of her silly, traitorous nose.

Footsteps crunched in the grit, and Misaki wriggled backwards into the depths of the bamboo thicket behind her. She held her breath, watching the road as a weak wind rained down cherry blossom as it drifted up the valley. Her black hair was loose now, strands falling before her eyes, tickling the tip of her nose with lazy strokes. A man’s form came into view, one of her pursuers. His sword was drawn, orange evening light dancing on the blade.

The men from the gate wondered down to meet him, and the group conferred in hushed tones.

‘She’s certainly a sneezy little one,’ Misaki heard one of them say. ‘She won’t be sneezing so much when we catch her, that’s for sure!’

‘Maybe we can turn this to our advantage,’ said another; a sly, thin-faced man. ‘Let’s get as much pollen going here as we can – maybe that will flush her out.’

And in demonstration, he picked up a fallen stick and hurled it up into a tree deeply laden with blossom. A vast cloud of pollen erupted into the air. The other men began hurling sticks and stones, making the forest air dance and swirl with released pollen.

Misaki felt the first waft of the tickling particles entering her nose. She felt the pollen advance, her need to sneeze building with every millimetre it progressed into her. Her mouth was already starting to open, her eyes fluttering with the sneezy sensation. The rushing, explosive feeling in her chest grew and grew, her body shaking and the gasps of her build-up becoming drawn out and shrill.

‘Got her,’ she heard one of the men say, and then…

‘HHIIIIIIIIITTICCCHHHOOOOOOOO!!!’

The forest was all but torn apart by the force of Misaki’s sneeze!

To be continued…

[High on Lullabies]

Ooh, very nice indeed You certainly know how to ratchet up the tension and there are some beautifully descriptive lines in here too. My particular favourite being:

Her black hair was loose now, strands falling before her eyes, tickling the tip of her nose with lazy strokes

Very much looking forward to seeing where you go with this

[Chanel_no5]

Mm, that was beautiful. I especially love the descriptions of pollen dancing in the air... *happy sigh*

[Sneeze999]

Please continue! love the story and love your stories in general!

[count tiszula]

Yum! Classic sneezing while hiding [f] in a top oriental setting! Dare I guess that some exotic reversal of fortune will now occur?

You know, one of these days I must get round to writing down the "embarrassing sneezing at the imperial court" story I have had in my head for several years...

[Mario]

Wow, I nearly missed this one. Great work as always!

[NoV]

Part 2

The shear blast of sound that left Misaki hit the nearest bandit like a physical force and he stumbled backwards, momentarily disorientated and blinking, trying to locate the source of the colossal sneeze. There were cries of surprise from the other bandits as they fought their way through the undergrowth towards the source of the sound.

Misaki wriggled backwards, through the stalks of bamboo. Her nose twitched ominously, allergic tears trickling from her eyes. There was no end to the sneezing in sight, her panicked gasps of breath only giving the onrushing sneezes further power. The only positive thing she clasped to was that the men were too big to force their way through the densely packed bamboo.

‘HHHIIIIIIRRIIIIIIISSSSHHHOOOOOooooo…!!’

Her next sneeze shrieked out, high-pitched through her clenched jaw. It had become drawn out due to her efforts to contain it; her nose burning, dark eyes fluttering with the sneezy sensation. The men roared with anger and redoubled their efforts. Misaki heard the sound of vegetation being slashed with deadly steel.

Desperately she continued to back through the undergrowth, her kimono ruffling up around her hips, her hair raked into disarray through her violent sneezes and the clasping branches.

Down here on the forest floor, the pollen seemed even more concentrated, mixing with the dust fallen leaves, conspiring to tease even bigger, more explosive sneezes from her wildly tingling nose. She hitched in breath, body shuddering. She must not sneeze, she told herself, she must not…not…no….

She convulsed in a frenzied bout of ear-splitting sneezes, her head bobbing time and time again as the pollen was ferociously expelled through her petite nose. Even with her sleeves pressed tightly to her open mouth, the sound still sliced through the silent forest as her fit stretched to six…seven…eight… …. ….nine sneezes in rapid-fire succession. When she had finished, Misaki felt faint, her vision swimming with her need to breathe.

She listened carefully, sure she would be able to hear her pursuers closing in on her following her catastrophic loss of control. But there was silence. She thought she could hear whispering, the subtle sound of booted feet moving through fallen leaves, but the sounds melted away. Instead she heard rising a new sound: one that sent her heart leaping, hope springing forward through her despair. The sound of horses hooves, beating on the hard packed stone of the road.

This was her only chance. Frantically she crawled forwards, thrusting her lithe body through the gently yielding stalks. The bandits must have fled at the first sound of someone on the road, and were probably hiding, waiting for them to pass before resuming their search for Misaki. She had to reach the road.

Suddenly she felt a hand clasp on her ankle, and she was pulled roughly backwards. ‘Not so fast,’ came a voice, low and conniving. ‘Just you be quiet until our nosey visitor has gone on his way.’

‘Keep her quiet somehow,’ cam another low voice nearby. Misaki felt some cloth pushed into her mouth and an itchy, hemp sack pulled down over her head. Disorientated, she twisted her head this way and that, suddenly in the dark and unable to hear the sound of her would be rescuer.

Then, it began. The itchy fibres of the sack started to irritate her already tingling nose. She felt a rushing in her chest, her head involuntarily tilting back as a steadily rising gasp began. The sack was tormenting her sinuses. Every breath she took only furthered the tickle, making it spread and spread so that it seemed that her whole body needed to sneeze.

‘Make her stop that racket,’ she heard hissed at the man who had captured her. But it was beyond that. Even with the cloth in her mouth, the gasping was becoming a shrill, unstoppable intake of breath. Misaki knew that this was a sneeze like no other she had ever released, and considering she had been renowned for her castle-shaking sneeze, that was something indeed.

Still she was drawing in air, her chest expanding her head still tilting back in readiness to deliver the sneeze. She felt herself going over the edge, the sneeze now ready for release.

Misaki sneezed! The force of it catapulted her forward, almost tearing the sack to shreds and launching the cloth from her mouth. The sneeze was even larger, more magnified for having been impeded and the forest rang with its deafening sound. That such an enormous sneeze could have come from a slim girl amazed the bandits as much as it horrified them that their cover was blown.

The sound of the hooves slowed, then turned around.

The End

[Blessing Queen]

Amazing!Loved this part:

Then, it began. The itchy fibres of the sack started to irritate her already tingling nose. She felt a rushing in her chest, her head involuntarily tilting back as a steadily rising gasp began. The sack was tormenting her sinuses. Every breath she took only furthered the tickle, making it spread and spread so that it seemed that her whole body needed to sneeze.

[Stimuli]

Amazing work haha