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"My ears hurt," Lynette complained one evening. The younger children were playing a game downstairs, and they were screaming quite loudly while they did so.
Lyney, who did not think before speaking this time, responded with, "It's not even that loud." He flipped one of the cards spread out across the hallway floor—he was playing a game of solitaire. "Nine of spades," he muttered under his breath.
Lynette swatted the top of his head, not hard enough to cause pain. "It's not even that bright, why are you wearing sunglasses indoors?"
The boy mumbled something under his breath, adjusting the sunglasses he wore on his face. "Because it's bright for me." He did not inherit the cat ears, but he did get the cat eyes, making him extra sensitive to light.
Lynette huffed. "Exactly."
"Maybe you should wear earplugs," Lyney remarked, pushing his sunglasses back up the bridge of his nose. "Would help with the noise."
"They don't make earplugs for ears like mine."
"They don't make sunglasses for eyes like mine, but these work fine." Lyney fidgeted with his sleeve.
Lynette glared at him. "Sunglasses are different from earplugs. Normal earplugs are uncomfortable."
"Then ask the kids to keep it down." Lyney turned back to the magic cards strewn across the hallway floor. "I'm busy." The sunglasses slid down his nose again, and he groaned, taking them off and setting them beside him.
"I don't want to ruin their fun." Lynette sighed. "Besides, you don't look very busy. That looks like a game of solitaire."
"So?" he moved another card across the floor, a three of spades. His lilac eyes were squinted to block out most of the light. "I'm busy." He began stacking his spades suit cards onto their correct pile.
"Really?" Lynette tapped her foot, her tail swishing angrily behind her. "I don't feel like you're taking me seriously."
"Not really." He drew a final card: eight of hearts. He tossed it onto his hearts pile, and was able to finish his game.
Lynette watched him for a moment before speaking. "You have it easier. You can just close your eyes when it gets too bright. I can't walk around with my hands over my ears all day."
Lyney scoffed. "Yeah, because I don't need to see." He was still squinting his eyes.
"Then wear the sunglasses."
"You know what?" Lyney exclaimed, stacking his cards up. "You at least can ask people to turn down their radios or speak softer. Lights are either on, or off. I can't just ask people to turn down the lights! You don't know how hard it is for me!"
Lynette narrowed her eyes. "For you? What about me? Sometimes I can hear electricity, and I can't turn that off."
Lyney put his cards back into their box, tucking them into his pocket. "Then just deal with it, like I do." He instantly regretted his choice of words, but he was stubborn and would not back down.
Lynette's ears flattened. "Just deal with it? Excuse me?"
"You heard me." Lyney stood up, clutching his sunglasses in his hand. "Deal. With. It."
Lynette glared at him, crossing her arms. "If you can just 'deal with it' clearly you don't have it that hard." The nerve he had to say something like that to his own sister of all people.
"Not that hard?" Lyney also crossed his arms, clutching the sunglasses so tight Lynette thought they might break. Would serve him right, she thought. "I have to deal with the spotlights burning my eyes every single time I get on stage, and you're telling me I don't have it that hard?"
"And I have to pretend the applause doesn't hurt my ears. But, y'know, apparently you have it harder, even though you don't look directly into the spotlights."
"I wish you could spend a day in my body; then you'd know how hard it is!" Lyney shouted.
Lynette hmphed. "You know what? Me too. I wish you could spend a day in my body, too."
In conclusion, they each went to their bedrooms, slamming the doors shut behind them, unaware of what they'd just done.
One should always be careful what they wish for.
Lynette woke up with a sharp pain in her left arm.
What on Teyvat? I didn't even do anything to it last night... Did I scratch it while I was sleeping?
She yawned, sitting up in bed and opening her eyes. The first thing she noticed was just how bright the sunlight was. Was it usually this bright in the morning? She'd never noticed before.
Lynette squeezed her burning eyes shut, covering them with her hands for extra measure. She slid out of bed, bumping into a nightstand she could have sworn was on the other side of her bed, and closed the curtains. Only then did she open her eyes.
The first thing she noticed: this was not her bedroom. It was too red, too messy, too... Too Lyney. This was her brother's room.
The second thing she noticed: her body felt wrong. Her stomach hurt like she hadn't eaten dinner last night, which she certainly had. She had even gone back for seconds. She felt too tall, her ears and tail felt like... Well, they didn't feel like they existed at all.
Perhaps her dear older brother was playing a prank on her, to get back at her for their argument last night.
Lynette stepped in front of Lyney's mirror to see what on earth he did to her, and only then did she realize what was truly going on.
What she saw in the mirror was not herself. Lyney's reflection stared back at her, wide-eyed and disbelieving.
She leaned forward, examining her—Lyney's—slit pupils in the mirror. She opened her mouth and ran her pink tongue over Lyney's fangs, sharper than hers were. It appeared real, but at the same time... How?
Surely Lynette was dreaming.
Ah, if she was dreaming, and was aware she was dreaming, that was a lucid dream. And if she were lucid dreaming...
"Levitate," she whispered in her brother's voice, using her right hand to point at the nearest object—Rosseland. Lyney's black cat.
Rosseland did not start levitating. All she did was give Lynette the weirdest look she had ever seen a cat make, then she began to lick her paw. That did not mean Lynette was going to give up.
"Leeeevitate," she pointed at Rosseland again with her other arm. The sudden movement caused stinging pain to shoot through her left arm, like a wound had been torn open. Lynette hissed in pain, pulling her arm to her chest.
This was real. And if this was real... What had Lyney done to himself? Did she even want to know?
She pulled up the sleeve, looking down at her brother's bare arm. Her heart dropped at what she saw.
This was bad.
Lyney woke up to the loud thumping sounds of children stomping down the hall, right outside his bedroom door.
He kept his eyes squeezed shut and reached up to cover his ears, but once his palms hit the flat side of his head, he froze.
Where the hell were his ears?
He shot up in his bed, feeling around the sides of his head. First of all, didn't he have ears just last night? Second, if he didn't have ears anymore, why could he still hear the children laughing?
Lyney looked around his room. His room? Lynette's room. This was Lynette's room. The window was on the wrong wall, and the vanity was on the wrong side, not to mention the fact that everything was teal and blue.
Suspiciously, his hands slowly trailed up the sides of his head, his fingers catching on blond hair that was much longer than it had been last night. He stopped. His fingers had brushed against something that confirmed Lyney's wildest thoughts to be true.
A pair of feline ears, sitting right at the top of his head.
He kicked the blankets off of him, looking behind him to see... Yep, he had a tail, too. A real tail. The dark fur was messed up from sleeping, and it seemed to twitch as he looked at it.
He jumped out of bed, rushing to look into his sister's mirror.
Lynette stared back at him, wide-eyed and confused, just like him.
Somehow, Lyney had fallen asleep in his body... And awoke in Lynette's.
Lyney's eyes narrowed, his ear twitched, and he paused to consider this new development for a moment.
If he was in Lynette's body...
Was she in his?
Oh no.
He lifted up the skirt of her nightgown, rushed out the door, ran towards his bedroom, and burst through the door.
"Hey, so- so something weird happened!" he called into his bedroom, panting.
Lyney saw his own body standing in front of the mirror. "I... I noticed..." it mumbled, in the same tone Lynette always used.
Lyney let out a relieved sigh. "Oh, thank god, it's you, Lynette!"
She nodded, an odd expression on her face. It almost looked... Solemn.
Oh no. She'd already found what Lyney wanted to hide from her.
"Brother?"
Gods, it hurt when Lynette said it in that tone. With his voice, no less.
She pulled up her left sleeve, revealing the angry red marks Lyney had left the night before. And the older marks from days prior. Lyney winced slightly, closing the door behind him.
He had been upset after his fight with Lynette, and out of habit, he took it out on himself, cutting his arm up with a pocket knife.
"You told me you stopped."
"I... I did..." he answered in Lynette's voice. "For a time."
"Why did you start again?"
What a surreal feeling, being questioned about your self-harm by your own body and voice.
"I... I don't know."
They were silent for a moment, avoiding each other's gaze.
"So," Lyney started, trying to change the topic. They could talk about that later. "We're..." He motioned between themselves. "How the hell?"
"No idea." Lynette pulled the sleeve down, folding her arms.
"Was this because of what we said last night? It has to be," Lyney theorized, beginning to pace the floor. "Is this like a forever thing?"
Lynette hummed. "We said 'I wish you could spend a day in my body.' A day. That should mean we'll only spend a day..."
Lyney nodded, still pacing. "It better only be a day. No offense, but I don't exactly want to be a girl again."
"I don't want to be a boy, either."
Another awkward silence.
"About your arm," Lynette started.
Lyney groaned.
Lynette sighed. "Why did you do it this time?" That was her "older sister" tone, and sounded just like Lyney's "older brother" tone when she was using his voice.
"I just..." Lyney shifted his weight around on his feet. "I was just upset, I suppose. I- it's not your fault."
Lynette frowned. Lyney scratched the back of his neck, looking away again. She pulled him into a hug. He did not have to lean down to rest his head on her shoulder.
"I'm sorry," Lyney murmured.
"I'm not mad," Lynette murmured back, squeezing him tighter.
It was nice to be the smaller one for once, Lyney thought, though it felt weird to nuzzle into his own shoulder.
"We should probably go eat," Lynette mumbled.
Lyney shook his head. "I don't feel hungry."
"I do. Did you even eat anything last night?"
Lyney sighed. "No..."
Lynette huffed. "That's a bad habit, you know."
"Yeah, yeah, I know... I'm trying, I swear."
"You're sure?"
Lyney nodded. "I- I'm sure." A bit of a lie, he wasn't really trying to break the habit, but he also wasn't starving himself on purpose this time.
If Lynette caught on to the subtle dishonesty, she didn't say anything.
"Maybe we should get dressed first," she suggested.
"Mhm." Lyney glanced down at the white nightgown he was wearing. He cringed slightly—it was cute, he just didn't want to wear it.
Lynette left the room, coming back a moment later with some of her clothes. A teal blouse, with long black pants. Thank god, Lyney would not have to wear a dress.
"Close your eyes," Lynette instructed. Lyney did so, allowing Lynette to strip him, or rather, her body naked. She helped him stand on one leg so she could put underwear and pants on herself, his tail swished uncontrollably behind him as he did so.
"Done," she announced, and Lyney opened his eyes to look into the mirror. She had done him the kindness of choosing a blouse that obscured the shape of his breasts. It was a button-down, with a large, lacy bow on the chest.
"Ah, this looks nice on you," he said, adjusting the collar.
"Thanks. Your turn."
Lyney sighed. "Alright..."
He picked out some clothes from his wardrobe, a red blouse that matched the one Lynette had chosen for him to wear, and some identical pants.
Lyney's, no, Lynette's current pajamas consisted of a large pajama shirt, a tank top underneath, and a pair of extremely short shorts.
Lynette pulled off the overshirt, stretching her arms up high. The tank top underneath was tight, and did not hide the shape of her breasts. The stretching motion emphasized them even more.
Lyney shifted uncomfortably. "P-put that back on," he squeaked out.
Lynette lowered her arms and tilted her head, confused. "Why?"
Lyney pointed at Lynette's chest... His chest.
Lynette looked down. "Oh. I understand." She pulled the long-sleeved shirt back on, adjusting it until it obscured her breasts. "Better?"
Lyney nodded. "S-sorry. I just... I just feel extra dysphoric today."
She rubbed his shoulder. "It's okay."
Once he felt ready, he spoke up. "L-let's try again."
Lynette nodded, pulling off the pajama shirt. She closed her eyes so Lyney could undress his own body.
He decided against putting his binder on her, hoping the blouse would do enough. He didn't have to leave the house today, anyway.
"Done!" he announced, pulling his hair into a ponytail. "We match now!"
The two stood next to each other in front of the mirror, Lyney's tail standing straight up. "Lyney's" face was flat, and "Lynette" was smiling. Usually, the expressions would be reversed, so it was a bit unusual to see themselves like this.
The two walked downstairs to get some breakfast, a mutual understanding that they would keep this between themselves. How do you explain to your whole family that you and your twin switched bodies overnight? How do you explain that and get them to believe you?
They also left their Visions upstairs. Lyney did not know how to use Anemo, and Lynette did not know how to use Pyro. If their Visions were linked to their minds and not their bodies, as they suspected was the case, it would be odd if they just switched Visions. That didn't happen.
So with no Visions, they served themselves some breakfast, preparing to start the weirdest day of their lives.
As weird as it was, they were going to act as normal as possible, although acting normal was hard when you had to act like another person's normal instead of your own. At least they knew each other well enough, perhaps they could get away with it.
Hopefully, this only lasted a day.
The two sat down at the breakfast table, "Lyney" with a plate of apple slices and toast, and "Lynette" with a bowl of leftover ham soup from the night before.
"Morning," Freminet greeted, sitting next to them with another bowl of the same soup.
"Good morning, dear little brother," "Lyney" greeted with a forced smile.
"Morning..." "Lynette" shoved a spoonful of soup into her mouth.
Freminet didn't seem to notice anything, beginning to eat his breakfast. Pers sat on his lap, and he held the penguin close with one hand.
"So, Lynette," "Lyney" started, forcing her name from his mouth. "Do you know when Father comes home?"
"Lynette" hummed. "No. I'm surprised she didn't tell you, Brother."
"Alas, it seems she did not." "Lyney" sighed, leaning back against his chair. "Or perhaps I forgot."
Freminet's periwinkle eyes narrowed as he looked up at them, spoon halfway to his mouth. It was unusual for Lyney to forget anything, let alone something Father told him.
The real Lyney noticed Lynette's mistake and swooped in to save the day.
"Oh, I do remember she said something to me. Next week. She'll be home next week."
"Ah, right! I remember now." "Lyney" shoved a whole apple slice into his mouth.
"Careful, Lyney," Lyney forced himself not to smile. Lynette didn't smile like that. "You don't wanna choke."
Freminet spoke up. "Are you two okay?"
"Yes," said "Lynette."
"No," said "Lyney."
Freminet looked even more confused.
"Lynette" shot a glare at "Lyney."
"Yes," "Lyney" answered. "We're fine, Freminet."
Freminet's eyes narrowed, his brow furrowed, his nose wrinkled and his upper lip lifted to reveal his top teeth. The perfect expression to silently say, "What the actual fuck."
"Lynette" began to laugh. "Lyney" kicked her under the table.
"What the fuck," the boy said aloud, his face scrunching up even further. "You two are acting weird."
"No," "Lynette" answered, a bit too quickly.
"Lyney's" turn to kick her under the table. "Lynette and I just didn't sleep well last night, that's all, Fremi."
Freminet did not appear to accept that excuse, but he did not push it, turning back to his breakfast.
After they ate, Lyney pulled Lynette into the bathroom.
"Okay, we should... We should discuss everything beforehand. From now on," Lyney determined. "He now thinks we're weird."
"He's always thought we're weird, this doesn't change anything."
Lyney glared at her, gripping her shoulders and pulling her face closer. "He does not think we're weird!"
"Yeah, he does."
Lyney stepped back, before he could say anything else, he bumped into the stack of soap bottles on the counter, knocking them onto the ground.
CRASH.
He winced, his ears flattening to his head. Lynette did not move at all, pleasantly surprised by the noise. To Lyney, it was painfully loud. To Lynette, it was almost quiet.
Lyney leaned down to pick up the dropped bottles, putting them back onto the counter.
"That hurt my ears," he whined.
"It didn't hurt mine," Lynette said. "Your hearing is nice. Come on, Brother, we have chores to do."
"Your eyesight is horrible," Lynette mumbled, pushing the reading glasses further up her nose.
Lyney laughed awkwardly. "Sorryyy."
One of the younger children, Heloir, had asked "Lyney" for help with her schoolwork, and he accepted. The problem was that Lyney needed reading glasses, and Lynette had never had to wear glasses a day in her life. She was having trouble adjusting to the strange feeling of something on her face.
"Lyney" read through the paper, getting up and taking it back to the kitchen to teach Heloir how to do it, leaving "Lynette" alone in the living room.
Foltz entered the living room moments later, turning on the radio.
Crackle.
Lyney winced at the sudden noise. He had the volume up a bit too high, it seemed.
"Breaking news coming out of-"
Crackle.
Foltz changed channels, turning the music up.
Lyney couldn't understand what was playing. He wasn't trying to pick out the individual sounds; all he knew was that it was threatening to burst his eardrums.
"Lynette" clutched her feline ears, tugging at them and trying to shove her fingers inside, anything to block out the noise.
"Lynette?" Foltz called. "Are... are you okay?"
"Too loud, too loud, too loud," Lyney repeated. "Turn it down," he begged.
Foltz turned the radio completely off, but "Lynette" didn't stop. She slid off the couch and curled into a ball on the floor, clutching her ears tight.
"Lyney?" Foltz called.
"Lyney" didn't immediately look up from Heloir's paper. Only when Foltz called a second time did he look over to the living room.
Abandoning Heloir at the table, Lynette rushed to her brother's side, kneeling next to him and gently tugging his hands from his ears.
"It's okay," Lynette whispered to him. "It's okay, it's quiet now."
Lyney whimpered.
Lynette helped him sit back down on the couch, covering his ears tight with her palms.
"That was so loud," Lyney whimpered.
"I know," Lynette whispered, holding him tight to her chest. Lyney felt uneasy at the feeling of his own breast against his cheek, but he ignored it.
Lynette helped him to his feet, walking him upstairs to his bedroom. Not Lynette's bedroom, his bedroom.
"Here," Lynette murmured. "You should rest. That's what helps me when everything gets too loud."
Lyney nodded, curling up on top of his blankets. "Thanks..."
Lynette leaned down, gently kissing his cheek. "You're welcome."
A purr slipped out of Lyney's throat.
Lynette purred back, before leaving the room to continue helping Heloir with her homework.
Lyney lay there in his quiet room, grateful for the break from all the noise. The only sound to be heard were the noises of Rosseland jumping up onto the bed and curling up beside him.
"Hi, baby.." Lyney stroked her black fur.
Rosseland began to purr, a noise Lyney could handle.
When lunchtime arrived, "Lynette" felt better enough to go downstairs. Freminet brought her a sandwich, and she took it, thanking him and beginning to eat.
"Lyney" sat beside her, a cup of tea in his hands. He had already eaten a sandwich of his own, based on the bit of mayonnaise on his chin.
"Lynette" wiped it off his face with her finger, whispering to him, "Keep my body clean, for Archons' sake."
The twins leaned against each other, trying to take comfort in each other's presence even if they were in the wrong bodies.
"We're out of tomatoes!" Chapleau announced, walking into the living room.
"Ah, we are?" "Lyney" asked, sipping on his tea.
Chapleau nodded. "Could you go get some? Heloir and I need some for dinner."
"Lyney" sighed, finishing the last few drops of tea and getting up.
"Sure. I'll get some."
"Lynette" held up a pair of sunglasses she had brought down from Lyney's room. "Take these, it's bright."
"Lyney" shook his head. "No, it's fine, I don't need them."
Freminet gave him a weird look.
"Lynette" narrowed her eyes, shaking the glasses. "Take them."
"No, I'll be fine." He grabbed a coin pouch from the table beside the door, put on his shoes, and headed out.
Lynette breathed a sigh at the warm air hitting her face. She walked further away from the house, stepping right into the sunlight.
The unusually bright sunlight.
Everything seemed to glow white, the sun reflected off of every single surface and struck her right in the eyes.
Lynette covered her eyes. Gods, it felt like her eye sockets themselves were on fire. Is this what Lyney had to deal with every single day?
She went back inside, rubbing her eyes and looking away from the lights.
Lyney noticed her early arrival, and instead of teasing her, or saying "I told you so," he handed her the sunglasses she had refused, saying nothing.
"Thanks," she murmured, putting them on. It would have been even better if it were even less bright, but these would have to do.
Freminet gave the twins another weird look, before turning back to his sketchbook.
"Lyney" left again, finding the sunlight was a reasonable brightness when the sunglasses were on. It was still a bit too bright, but it was reasonable.
He arrived home with a bag of tomatoes and gave them to Chapleau.
"Ah, Lyney," the real Lyney greeted from his spot on the couch. "Welcome home."
Lynette handed him the sunglasses, before flopping down on the couch, burying her face so deep into the cushions she could see nothing but pitch black. Lyney firmly rubbed her back with one hand.
"Bright?" Lyney asked, almost teasing.
"Very bright."
It was Lynette's turn to be taken up to her bedroom by her twin. He encouraged her to lie on top of her covers, then drew the curtains closed, blocking out as much light as he could.
"Thanks," Lynette mumbled. It came out low and raspy, to be expected as she was in Lyney's body, but it still didn't feel right.
"You're welcome," Lyney answered, in a voice that also felt wrong to him.
Lyney did not leave, he lay down next to his little sister (even though he was currently the little one), and snuggled close. His tail settled to rest over her leg, and his head rested on her chest. His purring lulled Lynette to sleep, and he soon fell asleep, too.
"Dinnertime," Freminet called through the door, waking them up.
"Lyney" hummed softly, "Lynette" groaned.
"Not hungryyy," "Lynette" mumbled.
Freminet's weird expression was back. "It's usually Lyney who's not hungry," he commented.
"Lynette's" eyes darted over to Freminet the second she heard her brother's name—or rather, Lyney looked over upon hearing his name.
Freminet's eyes narrowed further. "You two should come down to eat..."
Lyney and Lynette exchanged a glance.
"Yeah," "Lyney" yawned, sliding out of bed and grabbing the sunglasses off of the nightstand. "Let's go."
"Lynette" followed him, clutching his hand with one hand and rubbing her eye with the other.
Upon sitting down at the table, Lyney wished he were back in bed.
In front of him sat a hefty bowl of cassoulet, a stew with sausages, chicken, and beans. Lyney did not like cassoulet. Lynette did. The scent was unusually strong, due to Lynette's enhanced sense of smell, and it made Lyney feel sick just from being in the general vicinity of it.
"Trade?" Lyney whispered, motioning at the ham and cheese sandwich Lynette had in front of her.
Lynette grabbed her bowl, and Lyney took his sandwich.
Lyney ate the sandwich with relief in his chest, but it quickly shriveled up and died when he saw Lynette had already finished her whole bowl of cassoulet and was going back for seconds.
It's just one day, Lyney tried to reassure himself. I can make up for it tomorrow, it's fine, it's fine.
"You alright, Nettie?" Freminet murmured, leaning over to "Lynette."
Lyney nodded, continuing to eat the sandwich, even though he had lost his appetite. "Yeah, I'm fine..."
Freminet turned back to his own sandwich—he did not like cassoulet either—and avoided the twins' gazes for the rest of the meal. They did notice him giving them some odd looks, but he looked away when they caught him.
Had he caught on?
If so, that would mean someone they could whine to about their predicament.
The twins shared a glance. If they told him, would he believe them?
Only one way to find out.
After dinner, they walked into Freminet's bedroom, finding the boy sitting on his bed with a book in his hands. He quickly shut the book, hiding it under his pillow.
"Um... Hi," he greeted.
"Heyyy," Lyney plopped himself down next to Freminet, hyper-aware of how his breasts jiggled. "So, um..." he motioned at Lynette.
"We have something to tell you," Lynette finished, sitting on his other side. She adjusted the sunglasses, pushing them back up her nose.
Freminet looked confused again. "Okay?.." He looked between them. "Is everything okay?"
Lyney grinned despite the emotions inside him, his tail swishing around anxiously. His ears were turned back slightly, not quite pressed against his head.
Lynette looked surprisingly calm, but based on how constricted her pupils were, she was anxious too.
"Bear with us, m'kay?" Lyney said, his smile widening.
Freminet's periwinkle eyes fixed right on Lyney's face. "Lyney, is that you?" he joked.
Both Lyney and Lynette laughed.
"Funny how you say that," Lynette commented.
"We switched bodies," Lyney blurted out. "So, yeah. I am Lyney."
Lynette nodded, then adjusted the sunglasses again.
Freminet's eyes blew wide. He looked between them, blinking a few times.
Neither of them laughed, or said, "Just kidding!" or made any other indicators that they were not dead serious.
"Very funny," he remarked.
"No, no, Fremi," Lyney grabbed his shoulders, turning the boy to face him. "We're dead serious."
Lynette nodded again. "Yeah. Serious." She huffed slightly as the sunglasses slid down her nose, and pushed them back up.
Freminet blinked again, his face returning to normal. "Oh."
"OH?!" Lyney and Lynette questioned at once.
Freminet shrugged. "I'm not that surprised..."
"You're not?" Lynette questioned.
Freminet pointed at Lyney. "You looked up when I said 'Lyney' earlier. Lynette wouldn't look up that quickly."
"Ah, of course. I suppose that's a dead giveaway, isn't it."
He pointed at Lynette. "And you were eating the cassoulet. Lyney doesn't eat cassoulet."
Lynette hummed. "Observant."
Freminet nodded. "And... And you two have been acting weird all day."
"True," Lynette shifted slightly.
"So, how... How?" Freminet asked. "Magic trick gone wrong?"
"No," Lynette answered.
Lyney took a deep breath, before explaining the whole story to Freminet, whose eyes grew wider with every sentence.
"...So since we said 'a day,' we're hoping that means this will go away after... Well, a day."
"All of this because of one fight?" Freminet's eyes were still wide as saucers. "It sounds like you two needed to learn a serious lesson..."
Lynette sighed. "I can see that now... My eyes still hurt just thinking about how bright that was."
Lyney laughed. "Now you know how it feels."
"And I'm sure you know how it feels when you start talking loudly," Lynette said, raising her voice for emphasis.
Lyney winced, his ears flattening to his head. "Yeah, yeah. S-sorry about that."
"It's okay."
Lyney chuckled slightly. "I wonder what Father would think about this."
"Please, god, no," Lynette groaned. "Do you think she'd punish us? Or..."
Freminet shrugged. "She'd probably just laugh. It- it's kinda funny."
One of the children ran stomping down the hall outside the door, and Lyney winced again.
"Okay, that's getting irritating," he mumbled. "I wanna play solitaire."
"Solitaire?" Lynette asked. "You want to play solitaire?"
"Yeah. As a distraction." Lyney glanced out the window. "The day is almost over, perhaps that will help pass the time."
Freminet tossed him a playing card deck from his nightstand drawer.
"Thanks." Lyney slid to the floor, finding the most open space and beginning to set up his cards in a pyramid formation.
Freminet and Lynette watched him play for a moment, before finding something else to do. Freminet began telling Lynette about a sea creature he was just reading about, while Lyney grew increasingly frustrated with his game. Not all decks were winnable, and it appeared this was not one of them.
"You know what I need?" Lyney said as he reshuffled his cards.
"Hm?" Freminet hummed, turning away from the book he had been showing Lynette.
"I need a partner."
"That is so random," Lynette mumbled.
Lyney shrugged. "I mean, I'm bi, so I have twice the options."
"Yet you've been single for how long?" Freminet giggled.
Lyney rolled his eyes, putting his cards down again. "Too long. But it's not my fault he was a total douchebag, okay?"
"He" as in Lyney's ex.
"We kinda knew that before you started dating him," Freminet mumbled.
Lyney moved a card. "Okay, I was seventeen and didn't know any better."
"Remember when Father wanted to have a huge barbecue because you broke up with him?" Lynette fidgeted with the cuff of her sleeve. "She hated him, too."
"Whatever," Lyney grumbled, turning back to his cards. "Not like I have time for dating, anyway. When we switch back, I have so many magic tricks I need to practice," he huffed.
Freminet continued telling Lynette about his sea creatures, Lyney caught a few words here and there, but he wasn't listening. He heard Lynette reply a few times, which still felt weird because she was in his body and had his voice, but he still didn't listen.
Lynette called for him in his voice. "Lyney?" She slid off the bed, standing on the rug next to it.
"Yeah?" Lyney looked up from his game, a card still in his hand.
"This is you," Lynette said, before beginning to speak animatedly in an exaggerated tone. "My name's Lyney, and I always complain about being single." For extra emphasis, she held her face in her hands, pouting.
"THAT IS NOT HOW I ACT!" Lyney exclaimed, throwing his card down and pointing at her. "I DO NOT DO THAT!"
Freminet, who was still sitting on the bed, began laughing.
Lynette continued. "I also think the most attractive men are the ones with the most red flags!"
"NUH UH! NUH UH!"
"That's him!" Freminet giggled, clutching his stomach.
"NOOOO! I HAVE ONE BAD EX! THAT'S IT!"
"And I still want to get back together with him!" Lynette finished.
Lyney threw a card at her. "I only said that once."
"Sure, sure," Lynette teased.
Lyney stood up, clearing his throat. "My name's Lynette," he began. "And I like to make fun of my innocent brother who did absolutely nothing wrong!"
Freminet laughed harder.
Lynette didn't even attempt to stifle her giggle.
Lyney huffed, sitting back down in front of his cards, determined to finish his game.
Unfortunately, Lyney would not get to finish a single game of pyramid solitaire, as every single game ended up unwinnable. Lynette tried one round and ended up winning, which made Lyney even more frustrated.
"Stupid cards," he hissed. "They just don't like me."
"My name's Lyney, and I blame my shitty luck on the non-existent opinions of inanimate objects."
Lyney grabbed one of Freminet's pillows so he could smack her upside the head with it. Not too hard, though, if he ever got his body back he didn't want to have any sore spots.
Freminet eventually kicked them both out of his room, insisting that he needed to sleep.
"Let me know once you switch back," he commented. "I don't wanna think I've got the wrong twin."
"Of course," Lyney smiled, kissing his forehead. "Goodnight, Freminet."
"Goodnight, Freminet," Lynette kissed his cheek, then went to her room. Lyney followed close behind her, tail brushing against the doorframe as he entered her bedroom.
"Hey, Lynette?" Lyney started.
"Hm?" Lynette looked away from the wardrobe, where she was finding some pajamas for Lyney to wear.
"Um... Your- my arm. Did it... Did it hurt all day? Or..." he rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed he didn't even think to ask earlier.
"Oh, these?" Lynette pulled her left sleeve up, revealing bandages over her arm. "They didn't hurt after I tended to them. They feel fine now."
Lyney's eyes widened. "You took care of them?"
"Yes." Lynette pulled the sleeve back down. "You should do the same if it happens again."
He nodded, looking away. "Oh, and there's something else."
"Hm?"
"About last night... I'm sorry I got mad at you."
Lynette sighed. "I'm sorry, too. I... I shouldn't have said the things I said."
Lyney hugged her. "Well, I forgive you... And I'm sure we both learned our lesson."
Lynette nodded, hugging him back. "Yeah, we sure did. You're forgiven, as well."
Their nightly routine was almost normal, they brushed their teeth and hair, washed their faces, changed each other into pajamas (the not normal part), and lay down in Lynette's bed together.
She snuggled close to him, holding him tight to her taller frame, and Lyney snuggled into her chest, purring softly at her. She purred back, kissing his forehead.
"Goodnight," she said.
"Goodnight," he echoed.
Lynette woke up with her brother's arms wrapped tight around her, throat still rumbling like a never-stopping purr machine.
Lynette snuggled into him, into his body, not her own, which made her feel quite relieved.
It had only been for a day.
"Lyney," she called, gently shaking him awake.
He stirred, the purring ceasing to a halt as he awoke. He rubbed his eyes, yawning loudly.
"Morning, Nettie."
"Morning," she murmured, waiting for him to realize.
He held her close, gently purring at her for a few minutes, before something in his brain clicked.
"Hey, wait a minute," he sat straight up. "I'm normal again!" Lyney announced.
Lynette yawned. "You noticed, huh?"
"We're normal again!" he leaned down, pulling her into a tight hug. "Okay, no offense, but that was not fun. I don't ever wanna be in your body again."
Lynette nodded, hugging him back. "I don't wanna be in yours either."
Lyney let go of her, getting out of bed. "Oh boy, you know what will be fun? Being able to use the bathroom without keeping my eyes shut the whole time."
Lynette laughed, rolling over in bed. "That will be nice, yes."
Lyney pouted, trying to get her up. "C'mon, let's go!"
"You're not normally one for early mornings," she mumbled, batting his hand away.
He tugged her arm anyway. "Come onnn! We get to live in our own bodies again, this is something worth getting up early for."
Lynette heaved a sigh, deciding he was right and getting up. "Alright then. But I wanna sleep in tomorrow."
"Hehe. Got it." Lyney grinned.
Lynette headed to her wardrobe, and Lyney headed for the door, but he stopped halfway out the room.
"Oh, real quick."
She turned around, a dress in hand. "Yes, Brother?"
"How about I convince Freminet to help design you some earplugs, hm?"
Lynette smiled. "That would be lovely... Thank you."