Ok but what if I came up with a Bugsnax AU
Temporary title is Stranded AU (sorry all I have is crappy doodles right now XP )
Basically, instead of getting to go home at the end of the game, the gang TRIES but as it turns out, once you're infected with Bugsnax parasite even a single time, you can no longer leave the island without becoming incredibly ill.
The further the distance from Snaktooth Island, the worse it is until (theoretically, as no one has tested it) you die.
This forced everyone back to the island wherein they realized that they're far more stuck than they ever thought they could be. By the time they had returned, the island had settled down a lot since the final escape scene. Things were somewhat back to the way they were, though, no one really knew the final fates of Eggabell and Lizbert.
With the town in ruins, escape futile, and the knowledge that they'll all soon just fall apart into Bugsnax; hope was rather thin.
Until a certain Floofty figured out a (somewhat) cure!
Floofty over the next week worked night and day to find a way for everyone to survive in some capacity.
Normally, when someone eats too many Bugsnax, they will fall apart into the ones they consumed, having reproduced more than what they ate. Bugsnax are parasites, so when they're eaten, they feed off the nutrients of the host in order to reproduce and eventually bud off.
Floofty figured out how extract the parasites from with snakified flesh, allowing it to heal and return to normal!
Generally, it takes about 24 hours for the effects to fully recede, though, sleeping speeds up healing process significantly. 12 hours of sleep can fully heal a limb!
But then there was still the problem of Bugsnax reproduction. Sure, now they wouldn't die from turning INTO Bugsnax, but that also meant that now they had a theoretical limited supply since Bugsnax require a host to reproduce off of.
Well, that's when Wambus suggested trying the farming thing again, but this time with the pure extracted parasites.
And to everyone's surprise: it actually works.
By planting the parasites in their purest form, they can actually reproduce in the soil if properly cared for! They hatch from the soil as babies, so that's when they're handed off to Gramble for care until they're ready for consumption! (This was very hard on Gramble but that's a post for another day)
This meant that they now had a sustainable method of harvesting Bugsnax that won't kill them or leave them horribly disfigured!
As a result, Snaktooth Island seemed to... accept the town. In one way or another, they're still serving the island. So it seems to be that it has allowed the gang to survive so long as they continue to serve the island.
In conclusion: the residents of Snaxville became the unwilling guardians of the island. While they can't go home, at the very least, they can prevent anyone else from ever setting foot on the cursed land so long as they live.
