Coraline 2: The Return of the Other Mother

Chapter 8: The Other Coraline

She continued to lay there for what felt like hours, miserable and cold. When Coraline could finally take in an easy breath, her head spun as she stood, taking in her surroundings. Pipes hanging above slowly dripped water onto the floor and bed, leaving the room smelling like must and decay. Old papers, letters and pages ripped from children's books, lay scattered around the room in various stages of rot. Coraline moved to the side of the room, carefully examining some of the papers laying around her. Her first visit here had been brief, and she had company at the time. Now, she was lonely and seeking solace from anything in the room.

A piece of paper sticking out from beneath the bed reached out to her. Grabbing for it and tugging it out from beneath the crevice, she recognized the imagery of a little girl struggling to swim in water. Smiling, Coraline quickly became absorbed. It was Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, describing The Pool of Tears, when Alice cried so hard, she flooded the room with her tears trying to escape. The brown page felt warm to her touch, and her mind drifted into a memory. Before the move to the Pink Palace, and before her parents were successful writers, she had spent most of her childhood playing outside with them and reading the most peculiar books. Her father had always had a way with using his voice to emulate certain characters, while her mother's soothing tone always helped her sleep when listening to her favorite chapter book. It hadn't been a surprise that Coraline had fallen in love with storytelling, and it had only hurt more when she was told it was time to grow up.

As they grew more successful, her parents had less time for playing and spent most of their days editing and bickering. Young and lonely, Coraline continued to read to herself, pretending her father's voice was the one reading the lines, but it had never been the same. Wiping away a small tear, Coraline was brought back to the present when she heard a small sound outside the wall. Unable to see through it, she pushed herself deeper into the corner, fearing that Other Wybie had come back to finish what he had started. It wasn't until she heard light purring and felt a furry creature bump its head against her that she opened her eyes, staring into bright, intelligent yellow ones.

"Cat! You came back!" It was then Coraline broke down completely, sobbing into the small animal's ragged fur. He continued to lean against her, allowing her emotions to leak out onto him and onto the floor around them.

After a few moments went by, he carefully said, "Now, now, I think that's enough of that. You've never been the type to give up and cry Coraline."

She wiped her eyes and glared. "You haven't known me in many years Cat. You have no idea what I can handle and what I can't." Despite her words, the tears stopped flowing. "I haven't given up. I refuse to let her win, especially when I know Willow is still out there. I just don't know how to get out of here."

Coraline pressed a hand against the stone wall and looked back at Cat, who was carefully cleaning the spots on his fur she had cried into. "The last time I was pulled out by a friend. Now," She touched her hand to her throat, flinching at its tenderness. "that friend isn't going to help."

"It seems you're in quite a bind." He looked up at her, with a hint of a smile on his face. "I've noticed that when certain animals are backed into a corner, they cower and hide, like a rat. But I don't think you're that type of animal at all, do you?"

"Cat I have no idea what you're talking about."

"I suppose you wouldn't. Aren't you curious as to why she brought you back, after all these years?"

"You asked me that earlier and then ditched me. I still don't know the answer, but it sounds like you do." Avoiding his intense stare, she ripped one of the old blankets on the bed into a strip of fabric, wrapping it around her arms to slow the bleeding. It stung, but the bleeding began to slow. She turned to him, exasperated. "It doesn't matter why she wants me back. What matters is that I figure out how to get out of here."