I CAME BACK. AGAIN. So, thank you everyone for your patience after I promised this for like...nine months. Anyway, here is the first chapter of my Coraline AU, Stitched Wishes!

Thick, rain-heavy clouds drifted lazily across the sky. A large sign read "Emerald Heights Apartments" down the hill where a large, muted-green building stood. A moving van was parked at the front of the building, uniformed deliverymen carrying boxes through the front door where a man with greying hair waited.

The door to the backyard opened. A blond-haired teenaged boy stepped out, wearing a bright yellow raincoat and rain boots, looking up at the dark sky before walking down the steps. The yard was enormous, having a stone walkway leading down in a wide spiral to a small pond. Ivy grew along the stones, and little dandelions sprang up from between the cracks of the walkway. He peered over the edge of one of the stone walls, sighing when he saw the pond had no fish.

He had heard about the rumours of a hidden wishing well in the forest from one of his new neighbours, Mr. Walker. He warned him that if anyone uttered a wish around it, it would come true.

Apparently that was how Mr. Walker lost his eye, but it might have been a joke.

Nonetheless, the boy looked into the bushes, and grabbed a forked stick; he'd read that dowsing rods could detect water, and surely it would lead him to the so-called wishing well. He held it by the forked ends, and let it lead him out of the backyard, past a wrought-iron gate, and into the unknown.

He continued away from the pond, following a long path up into the rocky hills, the path on one side being the side of a cliff overlooking the condo building. A falling pebble from higher up the hill caught his attention. He turned his head to see a simple pile of rocks.

"Hello?" he called cautiously. "Who's there?"

His gut told him he wasn't alone, and when no one answered, he only grew more uneasy. He picked up the pebble that tumbled down, and threw it as hard as he could, aiming for the small area behind the rocks.

There was a flutter of dark wings, and an angry screech, and he jumped, stumbling back, nearly falling off the cliffside. Catching himself, he sprinted the rest of the way down the path in shock. He could still hear the beating of the bird's wings, and he desperately hoped it wasn't out to claw his eyes out for throwing a rock at it.

The cherry-tree lined path was a blur, until he made it to a small clearing, containing only a tree stump, and a circle of mushrooms, which he instinctively ran to the centre of as if it would protect him. His chest heaved for air as his heart thundered, looking around in fear.

A high-pitched screech sounded behind him along with a flutter of wings, and he screamed, whipping around. A falcon was perched on the stump, eyeing him cautiously. When it didn't look like it would fly at him, he groaned.

"You almost gave me a heart attack, you stupid bird!" he spat, still shaking a little from fear. He took a moment to compose himself, the falcon not budging. "I'm looking for an old well. You ever heard of anything like that around here?"

It still didn't move. He rolled his eyes. "I'm asking questions to a literal birdbrain." He held up his makeshift dowsing rod. "Come on, magic dowser…show me where the well is…"

A rustle sounded in the bushes on the hillside. He jumped, looking at the falcon, who hadn't moved a muscle since it landed. He gulped. If that wasn't the falcon, then…

Suddenly, a loud cry rang out through the air as someone leaped out of the bushes, wearing a bright red oni mask and wielding what looked like an actual sword. Again, the boy screamed, lifting the dowsing rod as if that would protect him from the assailant.

The tip of the sword swung to the ground at his feet. Upon closer inspection, he saw that the sword was merely a toy. He glared at the person who sprang at him, who removed the mask. It was another boy about his age, with spiky brown hair and a faded scar along his cheek. The boy rubbed his thumb against a spot of dirt on the mask.

"You're the new kid who just moved in, right? From the city? Aren't you a little old to be playing in the forest with sticks?" the brunet asked, smirking at him.

"I wasn't playing!" he snapped indignantly. "I was looking for the old wishing well with my dowsing rod, until you came along, you creep!"

The other boy laughed. "Dowsing rod? Like I said, you were playing. Nobody searches for water like that anymore." He sat down on the stump, right beside the falcon.

"And you were stalking me," he retorted, turning his glare to the bird. "What, did your falcon send you some message about where I was?"

His accusation of the boy being a stalker went ignored. "He's not mine. He's Mr. Julien's… I think. But, he does like to peck at my window at night to show me the mice he eats for dinner. And Mr. Julien showed me how to take care of him once."

"Didn't know you could keep falcons as pets," he muttered, half to himself. "Also, how can you accuse me of playing here when you're swinging around a plastic sword?!" He stomped his foot as he spoke, his annoyance getting the best of him.

"First off, I'm just meeting you here. Second, if you really want to find the well, you should keep stomping your foot, because then you'll fall in it."

He looked down, and jumped away and out of the circle of mushrooms. The other boy got off of the tree stump, and cleared away some of the mud. Beneath the layer of dirt was a wooden door. The boy knocked on it, an echo resonating below.

"You've probably heard the old legend too, huh?" the brunet asked, picking up a large tree branch to prop the old door open to scatter the rest of the dirt. "That if you make a wish around it, it'll come true?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, they also say that it's so deep, that if you fall to the bottom and look up, you'll see a sky full of stars in the middle of the day."

He raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Maybe," he said with a shrug. He looked down at the view of the condo building, its faded green exterior both blending in with the browns and greys of the scenery, and standing out against the muted dark green of the trees. "I'm surprised he let you move in. My grandpa owns Emerald Heights, and he never rents to anyone with kids."

"Why?"

The brunet suddenly looked worried, as if he had said too much. "I-I'm not supposed to say. Besides, he isn't even my grandpa, he's just a family friend, and I just call him that out of respect…" He shook his head to stop himself from rambling, and held his hand out. "I'm Kai. Kai Smith."

He took Kai's hand, shaking it. "Kai Smith? Sounds like one funky name combination if you ask me."

"First, you don't know everything about me. I could be biracial, you know." Then he laughed awkwardly. "But my actual name is Ashton. I tried going by Ash for a while, but I like Kai better." Kai smirked. "So what about you?"

"I'm Lloyd Garmadon."

Kai laughed. "Floyd Garmadon? And you say my name is weird."

Lloyd glared at him, folding his arms across his chest. "I said Lloyd."

"It's a really uncommon name nowadays, but I hear a name like Floyd can lead to unusual expectations from other people." He shrugged as if that was something Lloyd should have known all along.

As Lloyd fumed at this odd boy's behaviour, he heard someone ringing a bell in the distance. "Ashton!" a voice called, belonging to what Lloyd believed was an old man. "Ashton!"

"I think someone's calling you," said Lloyd with a smirk. "Ashton."

With a somewhat guilty look, Kai looked around. "I-I didn't hear a thing."

Lloyd narrowed his eyes. "Oh, I definitely heard someone, Asston."

Kai straightened up, returning the blond's glare with one of his own. "Now you're just being rude for the sake of being rude." As the voice called again, he gulped. Looking from Lloyd to the falcon, then back to Lloyd, he smiled awkwardly, starting his way back towards the trail. "Well, it was nice to meet you, Floyd. But if you ever wanna do your water dowsing thing, or whatever it is again…I'd recommend wearing gloves next time."

Lloyd raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Because that stick you're holding is poison oak."

Lloyd gasped and threw the stick down, quickly wiping his hands off on his coat. With another laugh, Kai hurried down the trail in a quick jog, leaving him to fume on his own.

"My name is still Lloyd!" he yelled after him, despite knowing he wouldn't respond. He looked over at the falcon, who almost seemed to be amused by their meeting. After only a second more, it took flight, heading back down the hill to wherever it came from.

Sighing, Lloyd absentmindedly scratched at his hand, before he kneeled at the edge of the well. He saw a tiny hole in the well's door. He picked up a pebble, and dropped it through, curiously pressing his ear to the door. He waited for several seconds before he heard an echoing splash.

As if on cue, a raindrop splattered on Lloyd's nose. He stood up, taking one last look at the well, before he, too, headed back down the trail.

Reviews are always appreciated and, as always, stay tuned!