A/N: Gingerhead meets Malfoy.

The scene between the two is inspired by a true incident with one of my cats.

Enjoy, and let me know what you think.

CHAPTER 10: Shopping, blackmailing, sneezing.

For one long moment, Snape stood speechless gazing at the Weasley twins. Similarly, Fred and George were left flabbergasted by this unexpected meeting. Especially since they had been caught red-handed, carrying their supplies for the coming month, freshly bought from the Gambol and Japes Wizarding Joke shop. And the Potions Master was not particularly thrilled having been seen by those two particular boys covered in cat fur and in the company of the two young witches.

Fred eyed the professor with obvious interest, his eyes darting back and forth between Snape's gloomy face and the giggling ladies two steps behind. His twin was checking his fur-covered robes and the man counting the galleons he had been paid for the cat-afflicted damage. And identical smirks appeared on the freckled faces, as the sudden realization of the infinite possibilities of jokes dawned on them.

None of this escaped Snape's keen eyes. He approached the twins with a scowl that promised nothing good.

"George and Fred Weasley," he said in a velvety voice. "I suppose the Headmaster was authorized your visit to London today?"

They cowered just an inch. "We have a permit," said George, but his voice was not as steady.

Snape raised one black eyebrow. "Yes, Mr. Weasley, I'm certain you have one." And an excellent forgery it would be, I'm sure. His gaze moved to the packages they were carrying. "Doing a little Halloween shopping? Shouldn't you be working on your Potions essay instead?"

The twins frowned. "What Potions essay?"

"The one that should be on my desk first thing on Monday morning," Snape snarled. "Seven thousand words minimum, discussing the use of aconitum napellus in brews for curing spell-inflicted paralysis."

"By Monday morning? But we have Quidditch practice tomorrow!"

"And?"

Fred and George exchanged a quick glance. "Professor Snape," Fred started in a low voice, "you should know that George and I have been suffering for sudden memory lapses recently."

"A most strange ailment," George added. "Madame Pomfrey has no idea what is causing it."

"Ah."

"By the time we return to school, neither of us will remember meeting you here," Fred explained, staring hopefully at the Potions Master.

Snape tried hard to keep his face straight. Those two brats were trying to offer him a deal. On the other hand, he would rather avoid any jokes made on his expense, especially from any Gryffindor. And this included the Head of their House, who had not forgotten her humiliating encounter with that accursed cat a couple of days ago. So be it, he thought. As if I will ever run out of excuses for giving them detentions.

"Now that you've mentioned it, Mr. Weasley," he said slowly, "I believe I have been suffering by a similar ailment. It is possible that I might forget the deadline for that essay for, let's say, two weeks. Am I understood?"

"Crystal clear, sir!"

He walked closer to them, fixing his dark eyes on the freckled faces. "But if any discussion of this unfortunate incident spreads around back at Hogwarts, trust me, Mr. Weasley, you will be on detention until you turn thirty," he growled. "Have I made myself clear?"

They both nodded and hurried to leave before he could change his mind.

Feeling rather pleased with himself, he turned around to continue his chat with the two ladies. Having forgotten everything about the cat, he accidentally stepped on the ginger tail that was resting right behind his feet. Gingerhhead cried out in both surprise and pain. Then he hissed and launched an attack on Snape's leg, scratching and kicking the guilty limb with all four sets of claws. It was Snape's turn to cry out in pain, shaking his leg to rid himself of the assaulting cat.

"Let go of my leg, little monster," he spat.

It was too late when he noticed the shocked expression on the witches' faces. Before he could utter a word, they had vanished among the crowd. Cursing, he finally managed to remove the cat from his leg, well aware that he was bleeding under his clothes.

"I suppose you are happy now," he growled, glaring at the cat that was occupied in washing his fur. Pausing momentarily his grooming ritual, he graced him with an annoyed stare.

At least the Weasley twins never saw that, he thought.

"Severus?" A velvet voice reached Snape's ears.

Of course. Turning around, he came face to face with Lucius Malfoy.

"Lucius."

The man's gray stare moved from head to toe, clearly disapproving of the state Snape's robes were in. "You should do something about your dandruff, Severus," he teased him.

Snape scowled. "This is not dandruff, Lucius. This is..."

"Aaachooo!"

"...cat fur." The sudden sneezing from the blond man confirmed the truth of Snape's words.

And another violent fit of sneezes was added to the first one.

~*~

Gingerhead's POV.

Of course. Blame it on the cat. The females see you for what you are, and it is my fault they fled.

Peeves will be ecstatic when he hears of this.

And you will not be able to silence him as you did with the boys. A sleazy approach, that was. Couldn't have done it better myself, I have to admit.

Now, what do we have here? Friend of yours?

Let's see... Black clothes, the type of which attract cat-fur like a magnet. Perfect.

The darkness of his attire backshades shed fur beautifully. Perfect.

Over-concerned disposition regarding clothes and general appearance. Perfect. An admirable perspective, if I may add, strictly from a feline point of view.

Having no sense of humor at all. Perfect.

And on top of everything, he sneezes as soon as the above-mentioned fur gets anywhere near his face. Perfect.

I think I'll cry. What have I done to deserve such divine favor?

~*~

Few people in the Wizarding World were aware of Malfoy's allergy. No spells or brews had ever succeeded in treating his condition, and the former Death Eater avoided being close to any cat, to be spared the humiliation.

It was not his lucky day.

Gingerhead, like all of his kind, sensed in a blink of an eye Malfoy's sensitivity to cat fur. He rubbed his head against Malfoy's leg, leaving a thin layer of ginger hair on the expensive trousers. Then he stood on his hind legs, put his front ones on Malfoy's thigh and mewed loudly, demanding to be lifted.

Lucius replied with another fit of sneezing. And the people around them were staring openly now, some of them snickering shamelessly.

Gingerhead, seeing that his request for a hug was ignored, gathered his strength on his hind legs and jumped on Malfoy. Momentarily supporting the leap on his vest, he climbed easily on the blond man's shoulders. Panic twisted his fair features, feeling the cat's huge tongue licking his cheek, purring loudly. Tearful, sneezing uncontrollably now, he managed to spat curses between fits.

"Damned cat... Cruciatus would be much too merciful... Aved-"

Before he could finish the Unforgivable, Snape pushed both of them in a dark corner between the leaky Cauldron and the Apothecary. He had watched with some wicked delight Lucius' torment by the cat, but having him mumbling Unforgivables in broad daylight in the presence of numerous witnesses was a risk he was not willing to take. Taking out his wand, he summoned a bowl of fish sticks. Gingerhead stared at the unexpected treat, then stared back at his sneezing toy. Finally deciding that a snack was far better than a Death Eater with a cat allergy, he jumped on the ground and began devouring his supper.

Snape cast a cleaning spell on Malfoy, and the blond man was finally able to breathe somewhat easier. He glanced at his tormentor, then at Snape.

"Better get rid of that monster, Severus," he hissed. "If I ever see him again, I will invent a new curse, fit to exterminate his despicable kind," he growled. And he disapparated as fast as his allergy would allow.

The Potions Master glanced at Gingerhead who had finished his snack and was busy cleaning his whiskers. "Are you happy now?"

Casting a second cleaning spell on him, he returned to Diagon Alley and entered the Apothecary.

I have to make that potion tonight, he noted to himself. If that accursed cat stays with me any longer, I'll be in deep trouble.

~*~

Gingerhead's POV.

Thank you for the treat. And, yes, I am happy.

Where does your friend live? I'd like to pay him a visit sometime.

Oh, come on, tell me! You know that sooner or later I'll find out anyway.

Where are we going now?

Oh, thank you! This is exactly what should follow a good supper.

~*~

Severus Snape handed the wizard behind the counter a list of the ingredients he wanted to purchase. Behind him, Gingerhead inspected the various wares, jumping to catch the feathers hanging from the ceiling. A certain container on a shelf against the wall attracted his attention.

The shop owner returned with a bad holding Snape's purchase.

"That would be two Galleons seven sickles, sir," said the man, handing him the bill.

A loud crashing sound of a shattered jar was heard behind Snape's back. In a moment, a couple more jars followed the first one. Turning around, the Potions Master saw the cat dragging away a bag filled with valerian roots. He seized the bag with his teeth, emptied its contents on the floor and began to roll over the littered valerian roots with an ecstatic glow in his yellow eyes.

Snape glanced at the drooling feline, uncertain if he should laugh or get angry. Then the shop owner's voice made his choice clear.

"That would be five Galleons and eleven sickles total, sir. Your cat should have remained outside," he told him in a cold voice.

The Potions Master didn't bother trying to explain that it was not his cat.

No one believed him anyway.