Author's notes: Many thanks to everyone who has reviewed! Gingerhead treasures each and every one of your comments as much as tuna. Well, almost...

In this chapter: Snape has an epiphany and Gingerhead meets Lockhart.

Gingerhead will meet Fang and Malfoy in the next chapter, most probably. And Sparky the sparrow will probably return as well. And Dumbledore...

CHAPTER 7: Nightly grooming rituals.

Severus Snape was seated behind his desk, trying to read an ancient grimoire of brews and potions. For some reason, he was certain that one of the recipes in this old book was of great importance. However, with that cat seated on the desk, staring at him with his huge, yellow eyes, his mind had difficulty to focus.

Sighing, he turned another page. The cat lifted one huge paw and turned one more page. Scowling, Snape returned to the page he was in before the cat's intervention. As soon as he had read the first couple of lines, the cat turned the page again. Staring sideways to locate his wand, Snape felt the onset of yet another headache. He glanced at the cat with his dark eyes, warning him.

"If you do this one more time, I'll give you to Fang," he said dryly.

Gingerhead sat on the desk, lifted his hind leg and began to wash his privates.

Uncertain of weather this response was an insult or not, Snape returned to his reading. But before he would turn to the previous page, his eyes were hooked by the title of the chapter in front of him.

Dr. Doolittle's brew for animal communication.

A special brew for unlocking the secrets of your pet's mind.

This was exactly what he had been looking for! He went through the list of ingredients with excitement. Most of them were already in store, but for a few he would have to make a short trip to Diagon Alley. And then another thought crossed his mind and he raised his eyes to the cat that was happily chasing his tail on top of his desk, throwing parchments and quills to the floor, acting like a frisky kitten and not a full grown cat.

"I don't suppose you can read, do you?" he asked the cat.

Gingerhead looked up, ceased his chasing and stared back at the Potion's Master. And mewed loudly.

Snape had no need of the brew to understand the cat's request. He had obviously said, "feed me".

"I am not going to feed you again," he replied and shut the book. "You ate your supper half an hour ago, fat, orange house-elves' nightmare." And he stood up, heading for his bedchamber.

Tomorrow, he would make the short trip to Diagon Alley. And he had no doubt that the cat would follow him there.

~*~

Gingerhead's POV.

I am not fat! I'm just heavy boned.

Where's my after supper snack? I'm starving here!

What do you mean I ate half an hour ago? Do you know how long that is in feline time?

You're pathetic. Yes, please give me to Fang. Hagrid won't let me near him anymore.

Of course I can read. But you have nothing of interest in your library. What do I care about brews and potions and the illustrated atlas of the mating habits of the mermaids? Rita Skeeter's column is much more fun. I wonder if an anonymous tip from me with Peeves' songs about your bedtime habits will make it to the front page.

Wake up, will you? I'm bored. Wake up and play with me! And, since you're up, give me my snack as well.

~*~

As soon as he had dozed off, Snape felt a paw nudging his nose. He slapped it away, but the paw returned with claws this time. He rolled over, pressed his pillow over his head and kicked the cat off the bed.

"Go annoy someone else, will you?"

The cat jumped back up, embraced Snape's leg and began to kick him with four sets of claws. Snape screamed and shook his leg, but the cat wouldn't let go.

"Leave me alone, yellow-eyed monster! Go annoy Lockhart," he cried out. To his surprise, the cat released his grip and stared at him. "If you torture Lockhart for this night and leave me alone, I'll feed you all the tuna you can stomach," he promised.

Much to his surprise, the cat waltzed away.

It didn't came to him until later; somehow, the cat had left his quarters without anyone opening the door for him.

~*~

Gingerhead's POV.

Don't make any promises you are unable to keep, smelly little human. I can stomach a LOT of tuna. But I'll take your offer.

Now, where was that guy's quarters?

Perhaps I should just follow my nose. I don't think anyone else smells like a flower fairy in this castle.

I wonder if he tastes like one too.

~*~

Gilderoy Lockhart was brushing his long, wavy hair before his mirror, entranced by his reflection. A hundred strokes before bed, to keep it shiny and silky. Suddenly, he felt something against his leg. He looked down and saw a huge orange cat rubbing against him.

Isn't this Snape's cat? He thought and frowned, fearing that the Potions Master had sent his familiar in order to torment him. And then he remembered that frowning leads to wrinkles and calmed his face. The cat looked up and mewed at him. And then he fell on the floor, rolling over, purring loudly.

"Nice kitty," he cooed the cat and reached down to scratch the exposed belly. The cat appeared to be harmless. Perhaps he just had an overactive imagination, seeing plots everywhere.

Gingerhead stood up and jumped on the dresser. Lockhart continued to brush his hair, as the cat sniffed every jar and vial. With his attention turned to the strokes of the brush, he failed to see the huge orange paw that played with his night cream. When he saw it, it was too late. Gingerhead had thrown the jar off the dresser, shattering the fragile vessel to a million pieces. In a blink of an eye, a perfume bottle and his eye serum met the same fate.

Frustrated, Gilderoy left his brush down and reached for his wand, trying to cast a cleaning spell. It failed and splattered the debris further. Thinking that the house elves would take care of that, he turned to look at the cat again. In horror, he saw him rubbing his head against his brush. He pushed the cat aside and saw his grooming tool covered by orange fur.

"Go away, kitty. Go play with Mrs. Norris. Go to your master and leave me alone," he said rather annoyed and began to clean up his brush. Gingerhead jumped off the dresser and Lockhart sighed in relief.

After a while, having finished his grooming ritual, thinking that the cat had finally left, he stood up and walked to his bed. And the sight before him filled his eyes with tears of rage. Gingerhead had sneaked inside his closet, had thrown most of his robes on the floor and he was now peacefully resting on the crumbled pile that used to be his elegant clothes. The cat raised his hind leg and scratched his ear, and a cloud of orange hairs appeared and was added to the shed fur on his fine robes. And then he began to knead the delicate fabric, tearing up the embroidery with his sharp claws. Furious, he took out his wand and aimed at the cat.

As soon as he mumbled a curse, Gingerhead jumped up and climbed on top of the closet. The spell, which was successful this time, hit the pile of clothes and turned them to ashes. Lockhart aimed at the cat again, and Gingerhead made a fast leap to the rich frame of the portrait next to the door and the spell hit the closet, turning it to a pile of shredded wood. And as Gingerhead sneaked through the door to the dark corridors outside, Gilderoy's last spell incinerated the painting.

Of all the times, this had to be the one that my spells actually worked, the wizard thought in utter distress.

He sat down on the edge of his bed, and hid his face in his hands. The state his room was in made him want to cry like a child. And when he realized that he had nothing left to wear the next day, the tears flowed freely down his face.

The Potions Master would pay for this. And so would his cat.

~*~

Walking through the dark hallways back to Snape's dungeon, with his thoughts filled with tuna dreams, Gingerhead ran across Peeves.

"Doing your master's dirty work, kitty?" Peeves teased him.

"He's not my master, annoying specter," Gingerhead darted back. "He's just my temporary tuna provider," he added and trotted away to demand his reward from the oblivious Potions Master.