Chapter Two
My Mirror
"GIVE IT BACK CORALINE!"
Coraline Jones let out a laugh as she hopped over yet another rock. The young blue-black haired girl continued running through the forest, avoiding trees limbs and rocks with grace, in her hand, a wielding mask with a skull painted on it.
"Jonesy come on! Give it back!"
Coraline glanced over her shoulder to see her neighbor and friend Wybourne Lovat, Wybie for short, following right behind her. Coraline's smirk grew. She was impressed that Wybie had kept up with her for so long and had not tripped.
Oops, spoke to soon.
Wybie didn't see the tree stump coming up in front of him and that caused him to get his foot caught underneath it and fall face down into the ground. After hearing the huge 'thump' Coraline began to slow down in order to turn around; she figured she'd had teased Wybie enough for one day. When Coraline had walked up to him, she found Wybie was muttering something into the dirt causing her to snicker as she knelt down next to him. "You ok there Lovat?" Coraline asked.
Her neighbor let out a low mutter and gave her a thumb's up in response. Coraline sat down on the log waiting for her neighbor to sit up. "That was low Coraline," he stated wiping the dirt off of his coat, "stealing a guy's helmet, how would you feel if I stole your hat?" Coraline quickly placed her hands on the item in question the instant it came into jeopardy, "I'd punch your shoulder black and blue how about that!" Wybie merely shrugged, finally coming over and sitting down next to her.
"Wanna part of my sandwich, grandma made it?" Wybie asked as he pulled out a somewhat flattened peanut butter and jelly sandwich, split in two. Coraline's face scrunched at its unappealing look, but she decided to suck it up, "sure," she said with a shrug. Wybie's face broke out into a cheeky smile, quickly taking half of the sandwich and handing it to her. They began to eat in silence.
"So," Coraline swallowed, "summers coming up, got any plans?" Wybie looked up at the school and hummed, "nothing really, working on my bike mostly, you?" Coraline shrugged again, "garden work, I'm thinking about putting some morning glory around the house so it's less…pink." Wybie chuckled at the disdain that came from his good friend, after hanging around her for so long, he quickly learned her distaste for the color pink; blues and oranges were her type.
For a while the two conversed with each other and ate their sandwiches. Coraline had to admit she liked these moments. After her little trip to other world and encountering Other Mother, she began to appreciate things more. One thing for example was her time with Wybie. Sure, he still got on her nerves and she still punched him, but there were times, and they were FEW, that she truly enjoyed his company. It was during these times that she couldn't help but think of the Other Wybie…
A twig snapped.
Both Wybie and Coraline jumped at the sudden sound that broke the silence, searching left and right for any sign of life. That's when Coraline saw it…or rather…her…
Coraline could see not too far away there was a girl, their age, just standing there watching them. Coraline had a squint to make her out better. She was Coraline's height wearing a black trench coat, black leggings and boots, and an orange scarf; she could even have sworn she was wearing the same black hat and the same orange and green gloves too. Besides her outfit, Coraline gasped lightly at the girl's stare; despite the distance Coraline could see that the girl's one eye, while the other was shadowed, was a piercing ice blue color. The Jones girl was so amazed; she didn't react to the mysterious girl until she began to leave.
"Ah! Jonesy!" Wybie exclaimed, breaking Coraline from her thoughts. Coraline shook her head violently before she, as well as her neighbor, began to pursue the mysterious girl. Despite the fact that they were running and she was walking, she kept a pretty good distance from them; was she a ghost?
"Hey wait a second!"
I suppose not.
The girl turned around at Wybie's request, coming to an immediate halt. Coraline and Wybie stopped a few feet away from her to catch their breath; amongst their deep breathes, they heard the girl laugh lightly. "I'm sorry, I didn't know you were following me." The two of them jolted up in shock to look at her.
She sounded…just like Coraline and…she looked like her!
Well there were some differences. This girl's voice sounded a bit more mature than Coraline's, as if she had seen a lot in her young age. Her face was definitely the same, same shape, same skin color, same delicate freckles around her eyes and cheeks, same smiling face. Like her voice though, there were slight changes, like her eyes for instance. Just as Coraline thought, her one eye was ice blue, but the other one was a deep brown, almost black color. Her hair, though bluish-black like Coraline's, was much longer, going past her shoulders and angled softly at the bottom.
It was like they were twins.
The look alike blinked as a small smile came to her face, "is something the matter?" Coraline and Wybie were silent, still gawking at her before Wybie let out an uneasy laugh, "n-no, its just, heh, we've never seen you around here before…" he lied. The girl tilted her head lightly as she smile grew, looking at the two of them with intense interest in her eyes, "yes…I'm new here…"
"O-oh you're new here? Well welcome then, I'm-"
"Wybie Lovat and you must be Miss Coraline Jones."
The two in question blinked, "h-how did-" Coraline finally found her voice before being cut off by her 'twin'. "I apologize for being so inquisitive, but you see, I've already been told about you by some of the locals," Wybie and Coraline looked at each other, "I was wondering if there were any kids here around my age and you were brought up, mainly Miss Coraline because, apparently, we look alike." Coraline laughed, finding her strength again, "I must admit there are some similarities," she wiggled her gloved hands as an example. The other giggled as she wiggled her own, "what can I say, they stand out yeah know," the two of them laughed in response.
"So, Miss um-"
"Oh call be Buttons, no need for formalities Wybie."
"Well Buttons, where are you from?"
"I just moved from Virginia."
Coraline watched the two of them with interest, she found it odd that Buttons didn't find Wybie well…odd, or at least annoying, but there was no sign of that. In fact, all Coraline could see in Buttons eyes was tenderness and…what looked like adoration of some kind; definitely not the normal reaction Wybie usually gets.
"So pray tell, I hear rumors of a well with a monster living in it, are they true?"
Coraline paled at the question; Wybie was quick to come back with, "nah, trust me, been there, done that, nothing's there." Buttons pouted, "awe what a shame, oh well, no use crying over nothing right?"
The three proceeded to chat with each other, asking questions about this and that; it was fascinating to find how well they all got along. After what felt like a few minutes, (though it was like hours) the three of them came to the clearing in the forest; Wybie's bike was there, waiting for them. "Awe, I guess this means I have to head in!" Coraline rolled her eyes at her neighbor's whining, "look if you want you can come back to my place for a bit…wanna come Buttons?" Button's tilted her head in curiosity, "your place? And where is that?"
"The Pink Palace Apartments."
That's when the oddest thing happened: Button's face went completely white and her smile disappeared from her face. Coraline was about to ask her if she was ok but just as quick as it came, the look was gone and a smile came back to her face, only this time it looked pained. "The Pink Palace? The giant pink house up on the hill?" Coraline scoffed, "ugh don't remind me, I hate that house, I want to take a paint brush to it!" That seemed to help her forget Buttons expression. Wybie shook his head before looking at Buttons with a warm smile, "so you want to join us?" Buttons was silent for awhile, her two companions looking at her with curiosity; she sighed and her smile grew.
"Sure. I'd love to."
It wasn't long before the three of them made it back to the Pink Palace, though they would have gotten there quicker if not for dragging Wybie's bike up the hill. Buttons didn't mind though, she was fascinated hearing about how it worked and how he built it; Coraline just wanted to gag. "This is a nice place Coraline," Buttons said looking up at it as Wybie put his bike upside the house. Coraline shrugged and smiled, "its pretty nice, the neighbors are a little odd, but they're fun once you get to know them." Buttons nodded in understanding, but Coraline could tell from her eyes that her look alike already knew that.
Wybie and Coraline walked up the porch with ease, but Buttons seemed to be struggling to get up to the door; the same could be said when they walked in. Buttons hesitated but managed to get inside only to look at the house for every side with every step. Wybie and Coraline looked at each other with raised eyebrows before looking at their new comrade.
"You ok there Buttons?"
The girl in question looked at them, letting out an uneasy laugh and shaking her head, "sorry." Coraline laughed, "its ok, this place is odd I know, you'll get used to it," Buttons nodded, "I'm gonna go find my folks, feel free to look around ok?" Buttons nodded again as Coraline ran off, leaving her along with Wybie. The Lovat boy scrunched back into his "shell" as it were, suddenly feeling really nervous; he let out an uneasy laugh, "so, um, Buttons-"
"You and Coraline get along very well don't you Wybie."
"Huh? Oh yeah, I-I suppose so."
"You're very lucky," Buttons states as placed a hand on the wall, feeling the wallpaper underneath her gloved fingertips. Wybie rubbed the back of his head, "y-you don't have a best friend?" Buttons didn't seem to be paying attention as she walked down the hallway, her hand still on the wall; finally she stopped and looked at him with a small smile, "not for a long time." Wybie kicked his foot out lightly, feeling bad for bringing it up. "However, I hope we can be the best of friends, in the future that is," Buttons said as she came back and looked at the Lovat boy with bright eyes. Wybie let his signature smile come to his face and quickly nodded.
The silence was broken when Coraline popped her head out of the kitchen door, "hey, you two wanna stay for dinner? Dad's making some unknown concoction." Buttons laughed lightly, "sounds like fun." Wybie nodded in agreement, "let me call my grandma," he said before pushing past Coraline to get to the phone. Coraline looked at Wybie with mild anger before looking at Buttons, "don't you want to call your parents?"
"Oh they won't mind."
Coraline looked at her 'twin' with curiosity before nodding and going back into the kitchen. Buttons giggled in response before looking around at the house, stopping her wandering eyes as she placed them on the family room doors. Buttons eyes squinted with darkness as she looked at the closed room.
"Buttons!"
The girl in question turned around with wide eyes. "Oh, yes! I'm coming!" she scrambled together before dashing into the kitchen, leaving her mysterious thoughts behind.
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Days turned to weeks in that small town. After a short while, it was obvious that Buttons was going to be just fine; it was almost creepy as to how well she was adapting to her new environment. Coraline and Wybie always had their new comrade with them, going on their crazy adventures and hanging out at their houses. Things were all and all going great.
Coraline really liked her, almost like her own sister, but she couldn't help but notice some things were a bit...off.
Buttons did fit in well with Coraline's friends and family but, almost too well. Coraline thought it was odd how Button's looked at Wybie the first time they met, but she soon learned that her look alike had the same reaction to meeting all of her neighbors, even her dad. She acted like someone who returned home after being away for a very long time. However, when it came to her mother, it was the opposite. Buttons is fine now, but when she first met Mrs. Jones, she flinched at every move the woman made; she couldn't even look at her in the eye, at least not for a few weeks after that.
Then there was the topic of her family. Buttons never talked about them! She was so mysterious about all of it. Every time they suggested they go over to her house, Buttons had some type of excuse, like 'my house is being worked on right now' or 'my folks are in a bad mood'; it was always something new. Coraline brought all this evidence up with Wybie, but he just shrugged it off and said it was probably nothing.
After awhile Coraline let her suspicions go to the back of her thoughts; Buttons wasn't doing anything bad, maybe it was just her paranoia getting the best of her. After everything that had happened to her when she moved here, she was a bit more cautious about things. Perhaps being cautious wasn't always the best of things.
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Buttons sighed into the air as she sat upon the rock that lay between the Pink Palace and the Lovat house. She had been debating going over to Coraline's house to see if she could play, but she remembered that the Jones girl and Wybie had to study at the library for awhile. So here she was, bored out of her mind.
"Meow!"
The sudden sound brought the Coraline look alike jumping out of her thoughts; she immediately looked down to see a black cat looking up at with big blue eyes. Silence filled the air for a brief moment before Buttons gasped, a smile coming onto her face as she picked the cat up and hugged it lovingly. The cat reciprocated by nudging her chin and letting out a low purr. "I thought I would never see you again Cat! It's been so long!" Buttons said with tenderness and joy in her voice. The cat's purring increased as Button's petted the felines head.
The sweet moment lasted a little longer before Cat jumped out of her lap and onto the ground. Buttons leaned over and looked at him with a smile, "where are you going you silly thing? Hey come back here!" she stated as she followed the now running cat. Buttons laughed the little child she was as she jumped over rocks and roots to keep up with them, unaware as to where she was going. Finally Buttons found Cat had stopped, so she slowed down before she reached him, "now where have you…led me…to…"
The Pink Palace.
Buttons gulped loudly at the sight of it, she always did before she went inside it. The girl looked down at her feline friend with wide eyes; he wouldn't have led her here unless he had a good reason, "has something happened?" The cat blinked and nodded softly. Buttons felt a chill go up her spine and her mouth go dry; this was much worse than she thought previously. She was scared but after gathering herself and taking a huge breathe, a determined look spread across her face.
"Show me."
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"I'm just saying that this project seems pretty pointless you know," Wybie stated to his black haired best friend. Coraline rolled her eyes as they made their way up the steps to her house, "pointless or not we have to do it, I am not about to fail because of you." "I didn't say I wouldn't do it," he stated as the Jones girl opened the door and walked inside, "I merely think it's stupid!" Coraline couldn't help but laugh lightly, "ok, that is true but…hm." Wybie tilted his head, "hm?"
"Strange…I don't remember those being open."
Wybie looked over to see that Coraline was referring to the family room doors that were in fact wide open. The two of them looked at each other before cautiously making their way over to the opening of the room. Coraline peeked over the frame to see if there was anything there in the room. At what she saw she let out a loud sigh of relief. "Buttons! You scared us! What are you doing in here?" she laughed in-between her breathes.
Coraline didn't get a response from her look alike; she just stood there with her face turned away from her two comrades. Wybie and Coraline looked at each other before attempting to talk to her again. "Sorry to keep ya waiting Buttons, but heh, you know how school projects are," Wybie said rubbing his neck with his gloved hand; again, no response.
"Meow."
Coraline and Wybie looked down to find Cat pop out from behind Button's feet, the look on his face was along the lines of 'you are in trouble'. After cat moved, so did Buttons, looking at the both of them with darkness in her eyes and anger on her face. Both Wybie and Coraline were taken a back; they had never seen their friend like this. Just as Coraline was about to speak Buttons spoke up.
"How long have you known about this?"
Coraline and Wybie were dumbfounded by the question, looking at her with clueless faces. Buttons glare seemed to get more intense with every second her question had gone unanswered. The Coraline look alike knew they hadn't gotten what she was talking about, so she cleared things up by pointing to the object in question.
The door to the Other World.
Coraline and Wybie gasped at Buttons when they saw what she was talking about. The inquiring girl folded her arms and her face became, if possible, sterner than before. Coraline had a hard time finding her words, but somehow she managed, "h-how did you-"
"Do you have idea what this door leads to?! It's dangerous Coraline!"
Wybie spoke up, "well how do you know about the door?"
"Who do you think made it?"
The two were speechless again as they looked at their serious comrade; Coraline I believe was hit the hardest with that. "W-what do you mean Buttons?" The girl in question sighed, her face turning from stern to sad, her shoulders slumped in defeat. The two at the door frame jumped a bit when Buttons raised her hand, only to realize she was just removing her hat; something she had never removed before. The two gasped at what they saw.
Buttons hair, as thought of, was exactly the same as Coraline's, all except for one thing. Coraline's hair was pulled back with a dragonfly hair clip. Buttons hair was pulled back by two black buttons, ones that looked almost too familiar to Coraline; buttons that looked like those of another place.
"I am Coraline…the Other Coraline."
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End of Chapter Two!
Hope you guys liked the interaction between Wybie, Coraline and Buttons (for what was given at least); you'll see much more in the future.
Wait around guys! Chapter Three will be up soon.
