[faelita]

The front door was not locked. Coraline walked out into the dawn and down the stone steps. She sat down on the bottom step. It was cold.

Something furry pushed itself against her side in one smooth, insinuating motion. Coraline jumped, then breathed a sigh of relief when she saw what it was.

"Oh. It's you," she said to the black cat.

"See?" said the cat. "It wasn't so hard recognising me, was it? Even without names."

"Well, what if I wanted to call you?"

The cat wrinkled its nose and managed to look unimpressed. "Calling cats," it confided, "tends to be a rather overrated activity. Might as well call a whirlwind."

"What if it was dinnertime?" asked Coraline. "Wouldn't you want to be called then?"

"Of course," said the cat. "But a simple cry of 'dinner!' would do nicely. See? No need for names."


Neil Gaiman, "Coraline"