Chapter Text
A long sigh escaped Edd's lips; he had stepped out of the house to get some fresh air, needing a moment of peace from his roommates. It was all getting a bit much lately.
Edd decided it would be a good idea to stop by a store before he would head home, mainly to grab some comfort cola. Once he was done he tucked away the can into his hoodie pocket and began his trek back home.
Nothing was too out of the ordinary, not until he passed a particular alleyway.
“Psst.” A man in a trench coat whispered, drawing the attention of the green-hooded man. “C’mere, I’ve got a wonderful offer for ya.”
The man was mostly obscured by the shadows of the alley, extending a bony finger to gesture for Edd to come closer. Edd hesitated for a moment, but then shrugged off his worries as if this was a normal occurrence.
The suspicious man opened his trench coat and drew out a rather small box. He stepped closer and offered it to Edd.
“This will solve all of your… relationship troubles.” He pushed the box into Edd's stomach, practically forcing it into his hands.
Edd raised a brow, “How did you know I was having friend problems?” He tilted his head slightly, judging the tall figure before him.
The man scoffed in response, “Don’t worry, I can assure you the magical object in that box will help with all those little… misunderstandings.”
Edd looked down at the box in his hands, curiosity swirling in his head. He slowly slid the lid off of the box and took a peek at the item within, only managing to see a glint of a shiny necklace-chain inside through the cloudy evening lighting.
“So you say if I just take this to my friends all of our problems will be solved?”
The stranger leaned against the alley's wall before pulling out a cigarette, lighting it and slowly taking a long inhale of its contents. He blew the smoke away from Edd's face, “It will fix everything.”
Edd felt a big goofy grin on his face, “Alright, I’ll take it! Anything to help my friends.”
His eyes darted back down onto the box, slipping the lid back on it making sure that he wouldn't lose his newly obtained mystery-item, shoving it into his void-like pocket.
“I appreciate this, how much do I owe-” Edd whipped his head back up to where the cloaked man once stood, but surprisingly he was nowhere to be seen, all that was left was a dingy alley and a single half lit cigarette burning against the pavement.
Edd shrugged his shoulders, then hummed to himself merrily and made his way home.
When Edd finally arrived back at home he couldn't wait to show off the new addition to the house that laid in his pockets. He swung open the front door eagerly.
“Guys, look what I've got!” He dug the box out of his pockets and lifted it above his head in excitement, a toothy grin plastered on his face.
His smile came to a quick end when Tord was sent flying past him by Tom. Edd blinked in shock for a moment, furrowing his brows in disappointment.
“You sunnava bitch, I will end you!” Tord spat these words at the eyeless man, pulling himself back off of the ground.
He patted himself down, composing himself, and ran back towards Tom who was laughing at the Norwegian. Tord tackled Tom to the floor, the two practically pulling at one another's hair and yelling incoherent insults.
Edd sighed to himself watching his friends roll around the floor like idiots. He made his way over to Matt who lay comfortably across the living room sofa, mirror in hand he was staring deeply into his reflection.
“I bet you didn't hear a word I said, huh Matt?” Edd stared down at the ginger, who quickly sat up from the sound of the other's voice.
“Edd!” Matt placed his mirror upon his lap, “When did you get back?”
Edd rolled his eyes at the narcissist, “I've been here for 5 minutes.”
Matt stared blankly back at Edd in response.
“Uhhh, I'm glad you're back?” Matt struggled to find the correct words to respond to his friend.
“Anyways, look what I got!” Edd pulled the box back into view for Matt to see, “This little thing will solve all of our problems!”
He shook it about in front of Matt's eyes, nearly bumping him in the process.
“Hey, be careful with that thing, you could hit my face, y'know.”
Edd let out a soft giggle, “My bad.”
Sounds of a struggle and grunts were growing louder behind both Matt and Edd, the green hooded man could feel his face twitch from annoyance.
“They've been at that since you left… It's getting out of hand if you ask me.” Matt leaned against the sofa's arm, placing his elbow atop of it and plopping his face into his hands, watching as the other two pulled at each other's hair.
Edd had had enough.
“You two stop this right now!” He grabbed Tord by the hoodie and had to tear him away from Tom.
“Edd, you cannot just grab me like that! He deserves what's coming to him.” Tord scowled in Tom's direction. Tom was pulling himself up from the floor and rubbed a small bit of blood off the corner of his mouth.
“Tord, shush. Now, for the love of all that is holy, will you three listen to me?"
Tord growled in frustration and pulled himself out of Edd's grasp, “Fine, but make it quick.”
Tom made his way over to Edd and smiled softly at him. “What’s going on?”
“Well am I glad you asked Tom, why don’t I show you.” Edd raised the box up in an act of showmanship, he was practically beaming with joy.
Tord and Tom looked back at their friend in confusion, Tord was the first to speak up.
“What's so special about a box?”
Edd shoved the box into Tom’s hands, he nearly dropped it in the process.
“Open it.” Edd smirked, waiting impatiently.
Tom slowly slid the lid off the box and pulled out a small oval shaped locket, bringing it up for Matt and Tord to see as well.
Tord squinted at the small item. “Why are you getting so excited over a piece of jewelry?”
Tord took the necklace from Tom and started to admire the details. He could admit it looked pretty, it was entirely made out of silver, but it was definitely nothing to run home about.
Matt watched the others admiring the jewel in confusion, leaning towards the edge to get a better look.
“And you guys say my collection of items is junk.” Matt crossed his arms and pouted, pushing himself back against the couch.
Edd crossed his arms and tutted in response to his friends' reactions.
“This locket is… probably… magic!”
His friends' attentions were peaked now, all three collectively began to pay proper attention.
Edd raised up a finger and started to explain, “You see, this magical locket is going to help us get a better understanding of one another, helping us bond and become closer in the process.”
Tord looked closer at the locket and let out a small laugh, poking at it like a cat with yarn. He was clearly unimpressed.
Edd huffed, “It’s going to help us understand each other's emotions.”
“How’s it supposed to help us understand everyone's emotions?” Matt questioned Edd's logic.
“It’s like a mood ring!” Edd threw his arms up dramatically, thinking this explanation would make everything clearer.
Tom placed a hand on Edd's right shoulder, “Uh, I don’t think that’s right Edd.”
Tord smirked, “So it IS junk.”
He threw the locket across the room, it crashed against the hard wooden floor of the living room, directly in front of the sofa.
Edd swung his head round, upset by Tord's sudden action, “Why would you do that?!”
But before Edd could get an answer from the other the locket let out a bright glow and a blaring high frequency sound, causing everyone’s heads to ache.
The light emitting from the locket blinded all four boys in the room, everyone panicking and attempting to protect their eyes.
A moment passed, and silence filled the air. A hearty knock could be heard at the front door. Tord rubbed at the corners of his eyes, readjusting to the room’s light.
“Dang, I’ll get it. I’ll be right back, so we can talk about what the hell just happened.” Tord swung open the door to none other than Eduardo.
He was leaning against the doorframe, with his elbow propping him up. “Hey, what’s going on loser?”
The Norwegian sighed, “What do you want?”
Tord is taken aback for a moment, his voice throwing him off. It didn’t sound quite right. He let out a small cough in an attempt to clear his throat.
Eduardo stopped using the doorframe as support and pulled himself up.
“I know it’s not anything too out of the ordinary for you guys, but I heard a loud sound and noticed a bright flash coming from your home, thought I’d check out what dumb shenanigans you got yourself into.”
Tord sighed, “Don’t worry about it.”
“Tord, we’ve got a problem, you may wanna wrap up whatever’s going on out there.” One of the housemates called.
Tord rolls his eyes and makes his way back into the living room, leaving Eduardo hanging on the front doorstep.
“What’s the issue?”
“Why don’t you have a look for yourself?” ‘Matt’ brings a mirror up to Tord, but when he looks at the reflection he's met with Edd's face.
“WHAT THE HELL!?” Tord practically screams the house down, snatching the mirror from Matt.
Another blood curdling scream can be heard from Tord? Or rather from the body of Tord.
“My face, my beautiful face, why?! Why must it be gone? Edd, what are we going to do?” Matt, evidently in Tord's lanky body, curls up into a little ball on the floor. A depression sinking in immediately over the fact he was not looking like himself.
Tord turns back in the direction of Matt's body beside him.
“Wait a second, if that’s Matt in my body, then who the hell are you?”
“I’m Tom.” A quick and blunt response, that was Tom alright. Not to mention he barely had a reaction to whatever the hell was going on.
Tord scratched the back of his head trying to get a better understanding of the situation they were in.
A nervous laugh could be heard from Tom's body, “Uh, guys? this is definitely not right.”
Edd who was now in Tom’s body looked absolutely stressed, worries definitely eating at him.
Eduardo, who had been unceremoniously left at the doorstep, was listening in on the current situation, completely baffled by his neighbours. He scrunched his face up in annoyance.
“Are you guys on something?”
Edd made his way over to pick up the locket from the floor, gently placing it inside his hoodie, or rather Tom’s hoodie pocket. He wanted to keep it safe. “I think that locket may have switched our bodies…”
Matt shot up from the floor grabbing Edd by the shoulders, shaking him violently.
“Tom, fix this, make us go back! I don’t want to be Tord. Give me back my face!” Matt continued to shake Edd.
“Quit it, Matt.” Tom physically dragged Matt away from Edd. “That was Edd you were shaking violently, not me.” Matt huffed.
“Well excuse me if this is a little confusing…” The ginger pouted. He threw his hands up in anger, “What the heck is happening right now?”
Edd sighed, “I'm not sure, but… Maybe it was when Tord tossed the locket? It looks kind of damaged… maybe it caused some kind of magic to spill out and switch our bodies? That would explain that light and the awful sound.” Edd placed his hands in his pockets and frowned. “I’m… Really sorry, guys.”
“So if that’s the case, then let's get things clear: Who is who right now?” Tord looked so serious in Edd's body, especially with such a noticeable accent change. It was almost amusing.
Tom sighed. “So I’m Tom in Matt's body. Tord is in Edd. Edd is… my body as Tom? And then Matt is Tord.” Tom made sure he included all of their names so that it would be more clear.
Matt placed a hand on his face and pulled it down in frustration. That only confused him more.
Tord grunted, “God that’s going to be a pain to get used to.”
“Oh gosh, I hope we can fix this.” Edd frowned and sat on the sofa, he felt guilty that this was happening to them, likely due to the locket he brought home.
“I'm sorry," Eduardo interjected, having stepped inside their home to get a better understanding. "You're seriously telling me you guys have some body-switcher stuff going on? Are you stupid?” He placed both of his hands in his trouser pockets and rolled his eyes, “Actually, it's plausible. Only you idiots could mess up something so badly that this would be the outcome.”
Tord grabbed Eduardo by the collar. “Who said you could come in here?”
A small tint of pink crept up onto Eduardo's face. Seeing Edd’s body this riled up definitely caught him off guard.
“Tord, stop that!” Edd stood from the couch, hurriedly making his way over to the two of them and pulled Tord’s grip away from the other.
“Uh, thanks... Tom?” Eduardo wasn’t 100% sure who the hell was who right now.
“It’s me, Edd.” He smiled at the other, a friendly demeanor quite the difference on Tom's face. “So I guess you heard… everything that’s happening.”
Eduardo responded with a nod.
Edd sighed, “God, this is all such a mess we’re in.”
Tom made his way over to the 3 of them, “It’s definitely got something to do with when Tord threw that magic locket you got.”
Edd pulled the item out of his pocket and stared at it, turning it over in his palm to see all the details. The front of the locket was delicately engraved with a rotation symbol. Strange.
Matt perked up, “Maybe that has the answers on how I can get my face back!”
Tord hummed, disheartened.
“So this stupid piece of trash was genuinely magic, huh.” He peered at the necklace in Edd’s hands, grimacing.
“Wait, wait, I need to call Mark and Jon over- This is too good!" Eduardo laughed, wiping a nonexistent tear from his eye. "Plus, you guys are going to need all the help you can get if you’re trapped in each other's bodies.”
He turned to Tom's body, who was in reality Edd, and stared him up and down. “Lemme help, but only since I’m already in too deep at this point.”
Edd smiled softly, surprised at Eduardo's untoward helpfulness. “Didn’t expect that from you, thanks.”
Tom let out a long groan and threw his head back, the drama of it making him feel like Matt enough as it is without having to be trapped in his body.
“This is going to be a long day.”