Her voice a whimper, Justine finished her plea and waited. Dazed, she waited, holding a vain hope that maybe her captor would go easy on her. Then again, the last act of "mercy" granted to her was what resulted in her transformation into a snail-girl. She was appalled and humiliated.
But she also knew that if she was to ever escape, she would need to cross that river of agony that, five minutes ago, would have been otherwise harmless salt. How could she be expected to cross it without enduring so much pain?
Justine moved along the bank of the salt river, slime trailing in her wake, and tried to find a narrow space that might be more reasonable, if only a little. But there was none that she could see. Just a smooth curve in the floor that dipped down toward the river and back up on the other side. Overall, the distance wasn't that far. It was just one meter. A ball could easily roll down, across, and back up, if it had the velocity. But it was a meter more than Justine wished to contend with.
"Hmm." Justine looked over her golden shoulder, and for the first time took a good, long look at her shell. Purple and black, the size of the spiral-endowed structure looked large enough that she could easily fit inside. "Maybe...?"
In a natural, almost reflexive motion, Justine lowered her body to the floor once more as muscles inside the shell pulled her torso inside. With her hands still bound, her breasts pressed and rubbed against the surface as they were dragged. Once they had passed the threshold, into the shell, her neck and head followed, along with her singular "foot".
The inside of the shell was dark. Justine had feared it might feel tight or claustrophobic, but though she had no room to really move, it was quite the opposite. It felt cozy, in a strange, alien way. Cozy, and more importantly, safe.
Justine pushed back out of the shell, into the open air. Her hair, as much a food-stained mess as the rest of her front, clung to her face, and again she wished her hands were free so that she could at least clean up. Blowing some strands away fro her lips, she once again approached the edge of the river. As she closed in on the slope and began to feel momentum carry her, she ducked into her shell as fast as she could and shut her eyes tight.
Down the shell tumbled. Justine felt the whipping pull of forces exerting on the shell and her body within it as she descended one slope and crossed the river. She feared some salt might slip into her shell as she rolled across the surface, but was fortunate enough to not feel a burn on her skin as the shell began its ascent on the other side.
As the shell rolled up at the lip of the floor, Justine thrust her torso out to provide leverage and gain traction. Her foot extended out and pushed, and to her great relief, she managed to slide away from the river. Safe, she couldn't help but laugh, relieved. Sure, a snail's shell wasn't exactly built for rolling, but it got the job done. Safe, sound, and unsalted, she took a moment to retract inside it once more.
"Mmm..." Justine felt a grin sweep across her lips as she took comfort in the dark enclosure. Warm and inviting, she felt a strange sense of appreciation in it. She felt secure; able to rest her weary, stressed body, if only for a few moments, without feeling the prying eyes of her kidnapper.
Just the very idea of having a shell horrified her a few minutes ago. And yet, she felt a strange sense of appreciation for it. She could just hide away and close her eyes. Meditate in total privacy. It was a strange, blissful feeling, being in her shell.
Fri Dec 19 04:51:33 2014
3 comments Last updated: Fri Dec 19 10:28:01 2014