Chapter One

Buttons

How long had she been down here?

Days…Weeks…Months...yeah, probably months…

The frail little girl let out a sigh. This is…awful. Yeah, that was the only word she could think of, awful! Simply awful! Here she was, trapped, yes trapped, against her will in a damp dark room, freezing, thirsty, starving…wanting…

She attempted to gulp with a dry throat; she hadn't been given in water for so long. "W-w-" she tried to call out but she couldn't find her voice. The girl had screamed yelled and cried out his name so many times she was sure her voice would shatter if she tried again. Even then she wanted to call for him.

She shifted around in the make shift bed that she had been given to sleep upon. It didn't help for the sheets with thin and tattered so they could barely protect her body from the low temperature of her prison. The girl sat on the edge of the bed, flinching as her toes hit the cold stone floor. Her attempt to stand up lasted for maybe a second before she fell to the ground, hissing in pain as she landed on her elbow. The girl knew she couldn't give up, getting on all fours attempting to crawl. She probably wouldn't get very far due to her weak limbs but she had to try! It was better than nothing. Letting out tiny grunts she began to move.

Nothing had changed since the last time she tried to leave this place, the floor was damp and cold, the icy moisture resonating all the way to her elbows, which were now shaking. Her knees were losing it too, she could feel the searing pain shooting all the way up her spine; her poor joints couldn't take much more of this. She didn't give up though, the tough little girl, she began military crawl.

Finally, after what felt like forever, she felt herself hit a wall; literally. The little girl brought her hand out and let it feel her way upwards. Somehow, goodness only knows how, she managed to get on her feet, gripping her fingers on the smooth wall; she growled when she felt her nails break off and the blood trickle, causing her to grip harder so she didn't slip.

Man this wall was smooth, very smooth, almost fluid like water under her fingertips. This didn't feel like a wall, it was far to delicate, yet at the same time when she hit it with a closed fist, it didn't move. It was odd-

"Strange…it feels…almost like glas-"

It was then two bony hands came out of the wall and grabbed her. She didn't even have time to find her voice to scream before being pulled through the wall.

"There we go darling!"

The girl had to cover her eyes from the blinding light emitted from where ever she was pulled into. It was so strong, but then again she had been in darkness for forever; she was more thankful that this place was warm, the air even the carpeting under her feet was warm. She could feel her body begin to heat up, she could feel her strength coming back to her brittle body, little by little. Eventually, after a brief moment of rapid blinking and letting her body readjust to her new environment, she was able to open her eyes. It was then she was able to put back to together how she came to be in that icy prison.

That's right…she was in her house, and she…had been grounded…

"Feeling better darling?"

The little girl cringed at the sickeningly sweet voice that called out to her. She was so busy looking at everything around her that she didn't notice the thing that was standing right in front of her. With angry determination, she looked up at looming figure in front of her. It was clearly a woman, tall, every part of her was boney, short black hair and, oddly enough, a pair of black buttons for eyes that pierced right through the soul.

This was her mother…Beldam.

"And how are we today dear? Are you hungry? Of course you are you've been grounded for a month!"

Huh, it was shorter than she thought.

"What would you like dear? Everything? I could make you everything your little heart wants!" Beldam ranted and raved in a dream-like manner as she wandered into the kitchen. Her daughter didn't even get a word in edge-wise; then again she never got to. Odd that her mother was in such in a good mood that she was oblivious of the world around her. The only time that happened was when she put misfortune on someone else other than herself. The daughter of Beldam sighed; she pitied whoever it was. She just prayed that it wasn't-

She shook her head violently.

Beldam's daughter refused to think like that. She had to keep her hopes up that her loved ones were safe. She was beaten before she was put into the mirror room, so Bedlam had all her anger out of her. The girl could only conclude that Beldam wouldn't need to make the others suffer. She couldn't help but feel worried though in the back of her head; if her mother hurt any of them she would never forgive herself.

To keep these thoughts from her head, the little girl decided to walk around, though it felt like she was walking on glass with every step she took. She had to bite her lip in order to keep quiet, her mother hated when she was 'noisy' and luckily she managed to do so.

Upon looking around she learned that the house hadn't changed at all in the month she was gone. It was still brightly decorated and well furnished. Nothing was out of place, everything squeaky clean that one could almost see your reflection in it. Same smells, same sounds; it was the same fake, sweet, disgusting home.

Finally she found her way to the family room, or, as Beldam called it, the Bug Room, due to the bug furniture her mother had so kindly placed there. Despite the slight eeriness to the room she liked it here the most, it was always quiet here. Just like the rest of the house, this room had not changed, and for that, she was grateful.

That's when she saw it, the mirror above the fireplace.

She saw that her hair was longer now, it reached past her shoulders, still bluish yet black hair held with a butterfly clip; though it was in desperate need of a brushing. The rest of her body wasn't as all right as her hair, her skin was a sickly color and her face had hollowed out due to lack of food and water for long periods of time. She looked like if someone touched her, she'd fall to the floor into a million pieces. The girl could feel the anger being to boil in her from remembering the violent treatment she went through to get this way.

"Meow!"

Beldam's daughter gasped as she looked around for where the sudden sound came from, finally landing upon a rather scrappy black cat. The little girl knew this cat; it was the one her mother had been fighting with all these years. Ever since she was a baby she could remember Beldam and this cat at war with each other; their little game had been going on for goodness how long. The ebony haired girl cautiously knelt down and held out her hand, allowing the cat to smell her who then proceeded to stroke its head against it.

"Strange…you don't have button eyes, how is that possible?"

"I come from a different world, that is why."

The girl brought her hand back as if it touched fire, looking down at the cat with large button eyes. "H-how is that possible? Cats can't talk," she stated. The cat blinked its big blue eyes up at her, "well, as you can see, I can," he stated as he came up to her leg and rubbed against it. Despite her fear, she kept quiet, the last thing she needed was for her mother to find her with someone else other than her. That's why she was grounded in the first place: she was playing without her mother way too much; she showed too much love to someone else. Well, that was true, she admitted it; she admitted she loved him more, her beloved W-

"Are you scared of her?"

The cat's question pulled the girl out of her thoughts, looking down at him she pondered. "Scared…not for me, but for everyone else," the cat knew she was lying, heck, even she knew she was lying.

"I'm more…angered."

The cat's ear peaked up with interest as he let her continue. "I…hate her," she ground out, "I'm tired of the beatings, and being grounded, and having to be locked up like some bird!" she felt small tears begin to form around her eyes. "I shouldn't have to be treated this way! I deserve to be with whoever I want to be!" she let out a pained sigh "I j-just want to be done with her…I want her to rot!"

"Coraline?"

The little black haired girl looked up with feared button eyes, jolting up to push a giant cockroach in front of the door. Coraline looked around before looking at the cat, "is there another world that you live in?" The cat was silent, "tell me! Is there another place without magic? Without button eyes? Without her?" The cat's eyes bore into her, as if trying to find something that in the end he couldn't locate; finally the cat nodded. Coraline took in a deep breathe of determination.

"Then I'm getting out of here!"

Pushing sounds could be heard from behind the door, "Coraline? Coraline open this door," she heard Beldam command softly. Meanwhile the girl in question was looking around for something, the cat watched curiously at the girl dash from part of the room to the other. "I have to get out of here, I need to get stronger, but I can't do it here, Beldam will never allow it. I can't save anyone if I can't defeated her…Aha!" she said when she looked under the couch, pulling out what she needed. Coraline quickly walked past the cat and towards the left side of the room's wall, kneeling down. The cat came up to her side to find the object in her hand, was in fact:

"Chalk?"

Coraline nodded, "something I read in my magical studies, chalk can create anything, even doors, and so if I do this right-"a giant boom came from the door, "I should be able to make a portal to your world, here tap your paw here!" The cat did so and out materialized from her drawing on the wall a door.

"CORALINE! OPEN THIS DOOR THIS MINUTE!"

Coraline looked over her shoulder quickly before going back to her drawings, quickly a key with a black button on top of it; the cat touched it again the key came alive. Coraline grabbed the key and placed it into the door's hole and opening it. Coraline looked in wonder at the giant hall she had to get through. "There's no time! Hurry!" the cat commanded; Coraline nodded as she was about to go through it only to be stopped when her hand froze and burst into dust, causing her to scream in horror.

"CORALINE!!!"

"It's your eyes!"

"M-my eyes?"

"The button eyes are what holds you here!"

"OPEN THE DOOR CORALINE!!! NOOOOW!"

"B-but I- I don't have any-"

"If you don't have them you'll burst into dust the second you go through that door!"

Coraline ran her fingers through her hair, shaking for her life if her mother got through. She would surely be grounded forever, she go back into that prison. Coraline let out a strangled cry; she would surely never see her loved ones again.

That's when her world went dark; the cat had ripped her eyes out.

Coraline let out a scream of horror more than pain at the feeling of losing her eyes though they went unheard from Beldam's own screams. Coraline could feel the cat climb unto her, despite her kicking and struggling. The cat…well she wasn't sure what the cat was doing. She suddenly felt a big burst of warmth fill her, something she had only felt once, and this was nothing compared to that time. The cat pulled her out of the thoughts again.

"Open your eyes."

"But-"

"Open them"

The girl did as she was told and, low and behold, she could see, if anything a little clearer. Had the cat put her button eyes back in? Something felt off though, they didn't feel like her button eyes. That made sense; for she saw that her button eyes were lying on the ground right next to her. "How did-"

"CORALINE!"

"Nevermind, lets go!"

The cat hopped into the tiny hall and turned around to look at the scared Coraline. The little girl gulped as she moved towards it. It was then the cockroach flew across the room and standing there was an angry Beldam. Coraline let out a gasp as she scrambled into the hallway.

"CORALINE NO!"

Coraline looked at her mother with disgust as she turned around, grabbed her button eyes and key, and slammed the door in the spider woman's face. The door began to bang and rattle, causing Coraline and the cat to make a dash down the hallway. Coraline was just glad that the hall was big enough to crawl through.

"Coraline come back! Please I can't live without you! Darling! Get back here you little brat! Coraline!"

Coraline did her best not to listen to her mother's muffled voice as she climbed through the hall; she prayed that that would be the last time she would ever hear Beldam for a very, very long time. The thought of freedom began to swell up in her body. Her mother wasn't following them, so that must mean that she was safe.

The cat was way ahead of her, already at the other end waiting for her. Coraline grunted as she pushed on the door in front of her, squinting at the light coming through the opening.

Coraline crawled out to find, to her surprise, an exact replica of her family room, minus the bug furniture or any life. Coraline stood up and looked around, "this is…I suppose this world and the other world are replicas of each other huh?" Coraline looked down at the cat, who gave her a slow nod; Coraline's eyebrow rose. That's when she realized that this place had no magic, so that meant no more talking cat.

The little girl wandered around the house and found that the house had been abandoned for what looked like years. This caused her to sigh, hopefully no one else would come here and that meant that no one would find the door and go through it. The cat's meow caught her attention, turning around to look at him. "What are you doing silly kitty?" she asked in high spirits, "do you see…something…" Coraline words, as well as her body came to halt.

In front of her was a mirror, much like her home, and there was her reflection, but something was different. Coraline cautiously walked towards it till she was a breath away from it; she brushed her hair behind her ears as she looked at herself. She jumped though when she found both of her hands brushed her hair back; she figured whatever magic Cat used fixed her hand too. Coraline looked back up to look at the other magic that was placed on her.

Her button eyes had been replaced with two real ones!

One brown, one blue; Coraline looked at them from all angles curiously. "Needless to say…they're pretty, I always liked the color blue…" the girl looked down at the cat, "thank you…for everything, I truly appreciate it." The cat bowed its head in acknowledgement.

After that Coraline returned to the family room to lock the room, feeling stupid for not locking it in the first place, and then made her way outside. The girl looked up to see Cat looking at her from the porch railing. "I know you will continue your game with Beldam, so I won't ask you to come with me, but please understand I cannot stay here." The cat nodded. "I will return though, I don't know when, but I will, I can only hope you'll still be here Cat," Coraline sighed as she looked at the button key in her hand which she promptly threw into the trees before smiling at the black creature, "so until then…good bye."

And with that Cat watched Coraline run down the road, towards goodness knows what; she didn't even know.

Coraline panted as she ran with tears in her eyes from not the pain in her body, but the pain in her soul. Coraline could only think of one person, the one she left behind. She knew that it wasn't over; Coraline would have to get stronger as soon as possible.

"And then…I'll come back for you…Wybie…" the little girl declared before she ran into the darkness the forest held.

It would be years…no, centuries before the Other Coraline would return for Other Wybie. How was she supposed to know that a family would move in two months after she arrived in this world?

Or rather, how was she to know that the little boy with blonde hair would find the key?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

End of chapter 1! I hope you liked it! Much more is to come.

I just couldn't help myself but to write this. There's fan art that goes with this. Just let me know if you want to see it.

By the way, the chalk idea was inspired by "Pan's Labyrinth" watch it if you haven't people!

Please review guys! Chapter Two should be up soon!