Story: Read it and see.

Timeline: Some time in the not too distant future, say about six years after Hogwarts.

Disclaimer: Wish they were, I really do.

Ginny stretched lazily underneath the covers of her bed. Mmm, Saturday... She didn't want to get up yet, but judging by the silence in the room, her boyfriend was already out of bed, and would probably think her lazy if she stayed in bed too long. She reached up to push the covers down from over her head, but just found more covers. In fact, they seemed to be never- ending; just miles and miles of sheets all around her. She opened her eyes slowly, and saw pastel-blue fabric in front of her. She could see daylight through the material, and assumed that Draco had already opened the curtains, therefore he wouldn't still be in bed. Ginny struggled to the top edge of the blanket - she didn't remember her bed being this big! - and peeked her head out. She had expected her red curly hair to flop down over her eyes as usual, but her vision was oddly non-obscured. She put a hand up to her head to check that her hair was still there, and felt short hair there instead of long. It felt really strange, not only because her hair was short, but because her hands felt weird too. She brought one in front of her face, and saw a paw. Strange, she thought sleepily. I didn't know we had a cat.

She tried to get up, and found that she just got more tangled in the sheets. She eventually managed to scramble out, and when she attempted to stand up, she fell out of the bed. Strangely, she landed on her feet. Even more strangely, the bed was at least a foot above her head. Ginny stared down at paws. Her paws. Suddenly wide awake, she bounded over to the floor- length mirror and gazed at her reflection in astonishment. She was a cat!

"I'm in trouble," Ginny said to herself. What she heard was an unfamiliar "mrrrowr" instead of her own voice.

There, in the mirror in front of her, was a small sleek cat. Her fur was the same glinting mix of shades of red as her hair. Her nose were pure black. Her brown eyes were perfectly round, and no matter how deeply she gazed into them, Ginny could not detect any sign of her human self.

Maybe Draco transfigured me as a joke, she wondered. He might do something like that, but why isn't he here to see my reaction? Ginny arched her furred back. Mmm, that feels good. No wonder cats do it so often. She flexed her front paws so that each little claw popped out. Awesome. I may be a cat, but I'm a cat in total working order.

She unconsciously flicked her tail. The movement startled her, and she leaped up and reached round to bat at the silvery tip. Look at me! I'm a cat chasing my tail! How goofy can I get? Ginny giggled. Only she didn't make any sound - just felt a slight shiver through her body. I never have seen a cat laugh, she realised. I wonder if they have a sense of humour.

Ginny stepped carefully around the room, adjusting to her new four-footed gait. The floor felt spongy under her footpads. She lifted up a front leg. "These are definitely more comfortable than high heels," she told her paw.

All of her senses seemed heightened. Her whiskers tingled with the mingling scents of the pot-pourri on the dresser, the furniture polish she used on some of the woodwork in the room, and the coffee in the mug on the table next to the bed. She jumped up to the bed again, poked her head over the edge of the coffee mug, and immediately pulled it back out again. Her favourite addiction - caffeine - didn't seem at all enticing now that she was a cat. Now that's a transformation! Me not liking coffee?

Ooh, but that dust bunny looks like fun. Ginny the cat crouched low, then pounced. The dust bunny swirled out of reach, but Ginny didn't care. The thrill was in the chase, the hunt. She was about to pounce again when the warm patch of light streaming through the window made her flop over. Mmm. She rolled around, feeling the warming rays heat her fur. The floor was nice and cosy underneath her. Every muscle felt yummy in the square patch of sun.

A soft breeze from the window sent the dust bunny skittering past her again, but now that she was all comfy in her sun patch, Ginny the cat just blinked sleepily at it. She yawned. Live and let live, she thought. After all, what did that dust bunny ever do to me? And besides, sooo comfy...

A strange rumbling sound brought her to her feet. What was that? It stopped as suddenly as it had started. As a matter of fact, she realised, it stopped as soon as I got nervous. Then it dawned on her... Could that have been me? Purring? She was glad Draco hadn't been there to see her scaring herself.

And, she thought as she stretched her front legs up and dug her claws into the upholstered chair in the corner, I'm glad he's not here to see me do this, either! She worked her sharp claws in and out of the fabric, enjoying the stretch.

A window downstairs banged shut. Ginny's hearing was enhanced in this form, and she could hear Draco reading the news to himself from the Daily Prophet. She padded to the door and managed after a minute or so to paw it open. If it had been closed properly she would have been stuck in her bedroom until Draco came up.

Ginny crept downstairs. She'd never noticed before how far apart the steps were. Of course, her legs were a lot shorter now that she had four of them. The good news was that paws were much quieter to sneak around on than high heels. She glided silently into the kitchen and sneaked up to her newspaper- reading boyfriend, before twisting herself round his ankles. Of course, Draco chose that moment to put down the newspaper and head for the fridge. He tripped over her and stumbled to the floor, then jumped up quickly and whipped out his wand.

"Okay, I know you're here," he said loudly, pointing his wand at random places in the kitchen. "If you're invisible, I know a counter-jinx," he warned threateningly.

"Draco, it's only me," she assured him. Draco's eyes landed on Ginny. A confused smile spread across his face. "See? Just me down here."

Draco put his wand away and scooped Ginny into his arms. "Hello kitty. How'd you get into the house?"

Oh no. Ginny had assumed that Draco, being the main suspect for turning her into a cat, would know her in an instant. She hadn't counted on being mistaken for a real cat. Now she had the dilemma of getting Draco to understand the situation. Plus, she also had to work out who had turned her into a cat, if it wasn't Draco.

"Ginny!" he started to call up the stairs, but then he stopped quickly. "No, she's probably still asleep," he told Ginny the cat. "Not that she's lazy or anything, but she's had a hard week." He smiled at her. "You are an adorable little thing, aren't you?"

"Well I should be, I'm your girlfriend!" she meowled indignantly.

"Who do you belong to?" She just looked him in the eye, hoping for him to somehow know it was her, but there was no recognition in his face. Draco checked for a collar, and on finding she didn't have one, said "Just a stray, huh?"

"I am not a stray! I'm not even a cat!"

"I'd better get you down to the pet shelter. I'd bring Ginny, but knowing her, we'd probably come back home with three more cats."

"Hey!"

"Well, I haven't got all day, let's go," he announced, pulled his wand out of his pocket again, and disapparated.