14A/N: lololol. First off, I'd just like to say, don't worry, this story is finished. I just decided to split it up into four shorter parts. :D I'm feeling a bit lazy right now though, so in case I do get any readers, I'm going to upload the other three parts in intervals of one to two days. o-o Yes, yes? Fine with everyone? Cool. Iono. It'll depend on my mood.
I: The Juice Pouch
In her small town of Ashlapolis, snails thrived. On the streets, under rocks, in undersea pineapple houses, anywhere, everywhere – in fact, one was slowly squishing up her shoe at the moment – was home to the famous 'Ash snails'.
As a result of the flourishing population however, it became a favorite pastime of the people in the town to kill the snails, usually through salting. In fact, the upcoming week was the annual Snail Fair, and Leanna could not wait.
Activities ranging from escargot eating contests to creating sculptures or shapes with salted snails thrilled the children of Ashlapolis, and Leanna had dozens of medals, accumulated over years of snail sculpturing. However, the years before, she could only win silver second place medals – this year, she was determined to shine golden.
Brimming with ideas and ready to start collecting snails for practice, Leanna headed out to brainstorm with her neighbor. It was interesting brainstorming with him – she first met him in her ecology class. He failed his first lab because he refused to kill any snails. It was silly, really, but his admiration for these snails (as well as the rest of the living creatures) came in handy – the more disgusted he was with her ideas, the more likely that idea would do well in the contest.
And so, she went on an escapade to look for her ecology partner. Slipping through the crack in her back fence, she started for the tire swing Gary so often frequented.
He wasn't there.
Instead, a small juice pouch lay in his usual seat, complete with a snail slowly slugging up the straw. Leanna smiled.
"What a fine specimen of a snail." It didn't look like the usual breed of Ash snail. Its shell curved outward, then inward from both front and back such that it somewhat resembled a misshapen heart. "Cute," Leanna gurgled. "I'll stick you in my room first."
Back at her room, Leanna placed the juice pouch on her table and peeled the snail off of it. She headed to the kitchen to grab a dish of salt. When she went back to her room, the snail was on the floor, making as quick a getaway as it could on her carpet flooring. She rolled her eyes at its desperate attempt – it would die in the end anyway.
Feeling thirsty, she picked up the juice pouch and took a swig. She choked and dropped the pouch as well as the salt dish on the desk – white crystals snowed over the brown surface.
She felt funny. She felt queasy. Then, she didn't feel anything anymore.
When she came to, the snail was nudging her, inquiring if she was okay.