Wybie didn't remember how it happened.

One second, they were stuck in that hell of a world, trying to nurse each other back to health by wishing up things, and the next, they were home.

Coraline doesn't remember how they got out, either. Even the memories of their stay was a mystery. The movies, the asthma attack, the Symptoms... They were blurry to the mind, almost like a dream. Maybe it was a dream.

"A dream...?" Wybie mumbled, rubbing his head as he sat up in his bed, perfectly fine and healthy. Looking at the blinking red numbers on the clock, it was twelve in the morning. Midnight. He looked out at his window, jumping at the sight of two, cold blue eyes and a shadow of black fur. It was a blur as it jumped from his window. Was it the cat?

"Weird things always happen at midnight..." he said, picking up the phone to call Coraline.

It was the same situation with the girl.

"Yeah, I don't really remember anything either. It was weird..."

"Maybe we just ate something and it gave us bad dreams?" Wybie wondered aloud, twirling the phone's cord absentmindedly.

"Maybe..." She was thinking hard, and he could tell, so he remained silent for a moment.

"What are you thinking, Jonesy?" he eventuall asked

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone. The boy held his breath, waiting for her answer. It was as if he expected her to give him the answer of the meaning of life. They were best friends after all.

"I... I don't know, Wybie." she whispered, sighing. The brunette let out the breath he'd been holding and crumpled his eyebrows in confusion.

That was the first time Coraline had ever stuttered around him. That nervous tone only worried him further.

"Maybe we should just... you know. Stake out the door tonight?

"...That sounds like a good idea, actually."

"I'll see you at eleven tonight, okay?" he replied.

"Alright. See you then, Wyb."

The boy hung up the phone, staring out into the rain. Was everything really just a dream? Or was it something more?

He hadn't seen the cat since...

Since he discovered their use of the magic.

He wondered where he could be. Hunting? Did he leave for good? Was that really his shadow when he had woken up from the dream?

Sitting on the old couch, their attention focused mainly on the door. Except for the occasional blink or stretch, neither moved. It was storming outside, so the only light flashed through the window in the lightning.

And that's how every tale starts..." Wybie murmured to himself. Coraline heard through a clash of thunder.

"What starts?" she asked suspiciously.

"'It was a dark and stormy night...' You know that tale, right?" he smiled slightly at her.

"Everyone who's seen a horror movie does." she rolled her eyes dramatically.

"Exactly! This is why we shouldn't have watched Saw!"

"You just didn't like it 'cause you're a wuss for blood and gore."

"Got that right..." he shuddered at the thought of all of those death traps and bloody scenes. It was enough to give anyone the chills.

Now the two children started to grow paranoid, looking over their shoulders and jumping at the thunder, the thoughts of horror movies running through their heads. The creeps always came out at night, right? The creeps, burglers, stalkers, murderers... Witches. They tried to focus their attention to the door, which showed no evidence of ever being unlocked. even the key was gone, now. Wybie wondered if the cat had disposed of it somewhere.

There was a lot of things he had been wondering about the cat.

"What do you think?" he asked eventually; quietly. He was curious of his friend's opinion of the odd turn of events.

"What do I think about what?" she raised an eyebrow. The boy rubbed the sleepiness from his eyes.

"About the dreams – Other World – thing... Do you think it was real?"

It had seemed so real... but most dreams do. The ones you remember the most leave that sense of reality, the sense of deja vu. Coraline paused before answering. Her words were cautious and careful. She didn't know what to believe. Not anymore.

"I... Think they were."

Wybie nodded silently in agreement. "What I don't get was the fact that, if it was real, how we got out. I-I mean... It was all so... sudden. I was sick, and the cat had left... And that's all I remember. "

It was confusing, the way the puzzle pieces didn't fit. Maybe they just had to be looked at at a different angle...

"I know how you feel," she agreed, brushing her hair with her fingers, still watching the door. There were scratches from whenever the Other mother's hand had gotten through, but they were faded and barely visible from the other end of the room. She pictured those marks stained with dried blood. Her blood.

The stakeout wasn't successful, but after scavenging around his room, Wybie had found a journal. It was a dark brown, like chocolate, and had one word written on it:

P a r a d i s a

Fascinated, he plopped down on his bed and began flipping through the pages. Each page was labeled with "Day _ in Para"

Day One- Arrival

Day Two-Exploration

Day Three...

Everything was described of what happened that day. It went all the way to Day 365. For some reason, he didn't tell Corline about the strange journal. It just didn't feel right. But after day 365...

It stopped.

It took Wybie a week to read all of the entries, which happened to be in his handwriting, and once he was finished stared at the page.

The three hundred sixty fifth day was marked "Escape"

And there was nothing written.

All that there was was a black paw print and a drawing of a small, black cat with ice blue eyes and coal black fur.

The tips of Wybie's mouth pulled into a smile, and from behind, he heard a familiar meow come from the window.

Sorry for the suckish, terrible ending. :[ I couldn't think of anything else, plus, I think it's a good place to stop at.

P.S – Predator and Prey is getting deleted and imma write it with Autumn's Melody in a joint fanfiction on our new account – The Chocolate Palm Tree.

Keep your eyes peeled!

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