Here is the next chapter, and thank you so much to those who reviewed! You really made my day and I hope you enjoy this chapter =). Read on and enjoy the story! x

Disclaimer: All characters in this story belong to Erin Hunter - I am merely experimenting with them XD.


Chapter Two ~ Switched

Morning sunlight streamed down into the apprentices' den as Lionpaw stretched luxuriously in his nest, his eyes shut tight. Just as he was about to drop back off to sleep, a paw prodded him impatiently in the side and the voice of Cinderpaw sounded in his ear.

"Get up! We're supposed to be on patrol with our mentors, remember?"

Feeling dazed, Lionpaw opened his eyes and looked blearily up at the grey tabby she-cat. He felt strange all of a sudden, as though his body had shrunk during the night. Trying to ignore this weird new sensation, he staggered to his paws. "I don't–" he began, but then stopped abruptly. His voice had changed; it was no longer deep and strong, but slightly high-pitched, like it had been when he was a kit.

Cinderpaw peered at him curiously. "Are you ok?"

Lionpaw shook his head. He definitely didn't feel like himself, and he certainly didn't remember being told he was expected to join a patrol this morning.

Cinderpaw continued to stare at him until a loud voice called from outside the den. It was Cloudtail, Cinderpaw's mentor. She gave a small start and replied hastily, "I'm coming!" Then she looked back at Lionpaw, her blue eyes full of concern. "Shall I tell Brackenfur you're feeling ill? Maybe he'll excuse you from the patrol."

Lionpaw blinked. Brackenfur? But Ashfur's my mentor! Highly confused, Lionpaw just nodded.

Cinderpaw gave him a friendly flick with her tail-tip and turned to leave. Lionpaw stared after her, even more bewildered. Cinderpaw had never been affectionate towards him before. What was going on?

As the tabby apprentice reached the entrance, she glanced back over her shoulder at him. "See you later, Hollypaw!" she meowed cheerfully, and departed.

Wait... did she just call me Hollypaw? Lionpaw felt a prickle of unease as he watched Cinderpaw's tail disappear from view. Very slowly, half-afraid of what he might see, Lionpaw lowered his head to examine his paws – and let out a yowl of shock. Instead of their usual golden tabby, his paws had become jet-black and were smaller than before. Panic-stricken, Lionpaw looked at his flank, and was horrified to see that it was as dark as his paws. This can't be happening! It isn't possible! he thought wildly, dashing from the den.

"Hollypaw?" Leafpool meowed in surprise as Lionpaw sprinted into her den and ran to the pool at the back, anxious to glimpse his reflection. Instead of his normal amber, two wide, scared-looking green eyes stared back at him, set in a face as black as night.

"No..." Lionpaw whimpered, backing away from the water. "Please StarClan, say this isn't happening!"

"Hollypaw, what's wrong?" Leafpool asked nervously.

Before Lionpaw could explain – though he wasn't even sure how he possibly could – a startled cry came from the apprentices' den, and his blood turned to ice. Ignoring Leafpool's questioning gaze, he wheeled around and raced back into the clearing.

As he entered the apprentices' den, a heavy blow hit him on the back of the head and he staggered. Looking up, he saw his own amber eyes glaring down at him, his front paw raised for another attack. He quickly dodged out of harm's way and panted, "Hollypaw, it's me!" It was exceptionally lucky they were the only ones in the den.

Hollypaw lowered her new golden paw, but she still seemed furious. "What have you done to me?" she hissed.

Lionpaw glared back defiantly. "You think I did this? I'm just as shocked as you are!"

Hollypaw continued to glower at him, her (or rather, Lionpaw's) tail flicking back and forth angrily. "Change us back!" she demanded.

"I can't!" Lionpaw spat, starting to feel angry himself. "Didn't you hear me? I – did – not – do – this! There's only one thing powerful enough to make a change like this..."

"StarClan?" The rage in Hollypaw's now amber eyes was suddenly replaced by uncertainty.

Lionpaw felt his own fury start to ebb away, too. He nodded and said, "But I don't understand why they would do this. What have we done wrong?"

Hollypaw opened her mouth, perhaps to tell Lionpaw exactly what he had done wrong, but Lionpaw growled, "Don't you dare say it! Anyway, I don't think this is because of Heatherpaw."

"What? Of course it is!" Lionpaw could see his body's neck fur beginning to bristle as Hollypaw became irritated again.

To avoid another quarrel, he hurriedly pointed out, "We need to find out how to fix this."

Hollypaw paused, apparently thinking hard. Before she could say anything, however, Jaypaw stuck his head into the den.

"Come with me," he mewed, "I want to tell you something." Then he backed out again.

Exchanging puzzled glances, Hollypaw and Lionpaw followed their brother out of camp and into the forest, Hollypaw accidentally scraping her head painfully against the brambles in the apprentices' den in the process because she forgot to duck enough.

Once away from prying eyes, Jaypaw, Hollypaw and Lionpaw settled down in a small sunlit clearing close to the ThunderClan camp, and there Jaypaw told his siblings what he had learned from Spottedleaf in his dream.

"And she said that the prophecy would be clear to other cats," he concluded, as Hollypaw and Lionpaw looked uneasily at each other.

"Light and dark will be switched for three moons?" Hollypaw questioned in Lionpaw's deep voice.

"That's what I said, isn't it?" Jaypaw retorted irritably. He still had not forgiven his brother and sister for excluding him these last few days.

Once again, Lionpaw and Hollypaw glanced at one another, panic in both their expressions. They would be stuck like this for three whole moons!

"Didn't Spottedleaf tell you a way to fix it?" Lionpaw asked, trying his hardest to keep the desperation out of Hollypaw's voice.

Jaypaw looked at the cat he thought was his sister and shook his head. "She just said 'balance will be restored only when each sees the truth.' So I guess that light and dark – whoever they are – will have to wait it out."

Lionpaw felt like yowling, 'that's not good enough!', but he held his tongue. He didn't want Jaypaw to know that he and Hollypaw were light and dark. Hollypaw clearly felt the same, for she said, "Well, we have to get back to camp now. Lots to do, you know." Then she beckoned Lionpaw to follow her and vanished into the undergrowth.

When Lionpaw caught up with her, she rounded on him and cried helplessly, "What are we going to do? We can't be each other for three whole moons! Someone's bound to notice!"

"I know." Lionpaw's new black tail drooped as despair washed over him. What were they going to do? "I suppose we'll just have to act as normal as we can and hope no-one gets suspicious."

"That's not good enough!" Hollypaw spoke Lionpaw's earlier thought. Then she added determinedly, "We have to discover a way to fix this! What was it Jaypaw said? 'Balance will be restored only when each sees the truth.' So I guess that means that once we realise what it's like being in each others' paws, we'll be returned to normal. We just have to make sure we find out in less than three moons."

"How?"

"The answer's simple!" Hollypaw snapped exasperatedly. "All we have to do is be each other! Do what the other normally does, speak to who the other normally speaks to... it'll be as easy as catching a mouse!"

Easy for you to say, Lionpaw thought irritably. How on earth was he going to get used to being Hollypaw? Out loud, he said, "But that could go wrong in so many ways. What if we say or do something out of character?"

"But we know each other so well that that shouldn't be a problem," Hollypaw explained, as if it was obvious.

"Well, I suppose..." Lionpaw didn't really like the idea much, but what other choice did they have? If they continued to behave like themselves, every cat in the Clan would find out sooner or later. "Ok," he agreed reluctantly, "we'll act as each other." This better work, he thought to himself, or we're in trouble.