Inside the flat, everything still looks three-dimensional. Coraline spots the other mother waiting in the shadows. The other mother accuses Coraline of bringing vermin into the house, but Coraline replies that the cat is her friend. The other mother reminds Coraline that she loves her.

Coraline walks to the drawing room. The other mother follows her. Outside the window is nothing but mist. Coraline examines the other mother, realizing how little she resembles Coraline’s real mother now. The other mother asks where the souls are, and Coraline presents the marbles from her pocket. The other mother reaches for them, but Coraline recoils, replacing them safely in her pocket. Coraline acknowledges that she must still find her parents, trying her best not to look directly at the snowglobe.

Coraline tells the other mother that her parents must be through the big wooden door that leads back to her real house since she hasn’t been able to find them in the other world. She tells the other mother to open the door. The other mother produces the key and unlocks the door to show Coraline that she’s wrong. The cat, still in Coraline’s arms, grows tense, but Coraline thinks reassuring thoughts, hoping it’ll trust her.