Dryad

**Dryads** are a category of a range of fae. The only specified type of dryad in the canon are Aur dryads, but they are a select group, limited to dryads who reside in the Aur forest, so other dryads introduced in the canon are some other form of dryad. Field indicated that there are (or were) dryads who reside even in the desert. Some Seelie dryads resided in Lavenna.

## Physical Description

Dryads often have plant-like qualities in their very bodies, such as Mosk Manytrees' bark skin, the branches and leaves growing in Field's hair, or the Oak King's tree-ish beard. They also often dress with plant themes in mind, like Field putting flowers in her hair, or Amaley Manytrees wearing a mask to honor the Green People at the Unseelie Court Masque.

Augus Each Uisge described the Seelie dryads he encountered near the An Fnwy Estate as 'lissom and graceful'.

The forest where Gwyn ap Nudd rescued a simurgh is also inhabited by dryads 'three times as tall as' Ash Glashtyn and Gwyn, and Gwyn in particular is quite tall for a fae. Given the tall dryad resided among giant trees, it's possible tree size has something to do with dryad height.

## Abilities

Dryads can communicate with trees, diagnose the health of trees, grow plants and trees, encourage plant growth, and transform into a tree once in their lives. After retiring from his Kingship, the Oak King went somewhere and transformed into an oak tree, where he has remained ever since. The Raven Prince implied that hearing trees and feeding on sap with feeding teeth is a general dryad ability.

Davix stated that amplification is innate for dryads.

## Characteristics (culture, habits)

There are both Seelie and Unseelie dryads: the Oak King was Seelie, Field is Seelie, and the dryads Augus encountered near the old An Fnwy Estate were Seelie, whereas the Manytrees family was entirely Unseelie due to Amaley consuming the sap of Unseelie trees.

Dryads can range in temperament and station. Some serve as caretakers of trees and/or forests - like the Aur dryads - while others, like Field, serve as merchants, or, like the Oak King, as politicians.

Seelie dryads are 'staunch pacifists, the kind of fae that would bleat to even see a branch torn from a tree', but serve as good messengers. They also seem to be friendly with animals, and tend to local flora. The only known Unseelie dryads - Aur dryads - are also pacifists.

Dryads seem to fear fire and smoke, as they are dangerous to many kinds of trees and plants, and many dryads have tree-like characteristics that are vulnerable to fire.

A group of Seelie dryads resided in Lavenna, alongside aelves and daoine sidhe, though the daoine sidhe dominated the town. It's possible they were the reason the town seemed to grow in and around the trees.

## Trivia

* Mosk is a particularly atypical Aur dryad by design, as a result of torture from Olphix and Davix. Consequently he can no longer hear or communicate with any trees at all, and lost his sense of direction and his ability to wayfind. Due to the destruction of his feeding teeth, he needs to buy sap, or tap trees to access the food he needs to survive. He also noted that his enjoyment of climbing is unique to himself, not a dryad trait. He is also no longer a pacifist.

## Folklore/Mythology

'A dryad (Greek: Δρυάδες, *sing*.: Δρυάς) is a tree nymph or tree spirit in Greek mythology. *Drys* signifies "oak" in Greek, and dryads are specifically the nymphs of oak trees, but the term has come to be used for tree nymphs in general, or human-tree hybrids in fantasy. They were normally considered to be very shy creatures except around the goddess Artemis, who was known to be a friend to most nymphs.'

## Image Gallery

Fanart of Mosk Manytrees by suis0u https://suis0u.tumblr.com/post/628310263079305216/the-moss-boy-is-finish-character-byFanart of Amaley Manytrees by mani-catsinamerica/sosaidtheartblock https://sosaidtheartblock.tumblr.com/post/175686269332/been-drawing-again-i-have-to-credit-the-design
## References

1. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 3 - The Ice Plague.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 28 October 2021. https://archiveofourown.org/chapters/86595049. Chapter 18: The Silent Dances.
2. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 1 - The Forest of Fire.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 16 March 2018. https://archiveofourown.org/works/12036105/chapters/32210853. Chapter 17: So It Is.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 3 - The Ice Plague.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 5 August 2021. https://archiveofourown.org/works/26266345/chapters/82025380. Chapter 12: Come Back To Me.
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 1 - The Forest of Fire.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 12 March 2018. https://archiveofourown.org/works/12036105/chapters/31845930. Chapter 16: Leave Be.
5. ↑ not\_poignant. "The Curse.” *The Fae Tales Verse - canon extras. Archive of Our Own,* 4 August 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/2034456/chapters/4527081. Chapter 2.
6. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 5 June 2015. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/9186013. Chapter 46: Masque.
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 not\_poignant. “Game Theory.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 31 January 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/915296/chapters/2363349. Chapter 39: Alone.
8. ↑ not\_poignant. "The Ash and Gwyn Interludes." *The Fae Tales Verse - canon extras. Archive of Our Own,* 20 December 2019. https://archiveofourown.org/works/12246879/chapters/52188157. Chapter 4: Indiana Gwyn.
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 30 August 2019. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17959874/chapters/48516644. Chapter 13: The Glory of the House of Atros.
10. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 9 January 2020. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17959874/chapters/52978921. Chapter 23: The Sea of Sculptures.
11. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 7 November 2019. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17959874/chapters/50852635. Chapter 18: Long Past Due.
12. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 21 November 2019. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17959874/chapters/51287020. Chapter 19: Evolutions.
13. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 29 August 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/4865985. Chapter 7: Debut.
14. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 6 February 2020. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17959874/chapters/53990812. Chapter 25: Reversals.
15. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 21 June 2019. https://archiveofourown.org/works/17959874/chapters/45901336. Chapter 8: Stay Right Here.
16. ↑ "Dryad". Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dryad. Accessed 7 May 2021.