"Turn to page 73 of your textbooks," said Professor McGonagall firmly. Hermione obediently did as she was told while Harry and Ron groaned loudly. Judging by the title emblazoned in red across the top of the page, they were going to be working on turning animate creatures into other animate creatures. Hermione smiled. They hadn't done much of this; McGonagall was much more trained on turning inanimate objects like tables into other, similar objects like a chair. Though she had to admit transfiguration wasn't exactly her favorite subject, Hermione was excited at the prospect of turning something like a cat into a mouse, vice versa, or something similarly along those lines.

Hermione, now lifting her eyes to meet McGonagall's desk, noticed a large box on the desk. It seemed to be shifting around on its own, and there were a couple of noises coming from within through the holes cut into the box. She assumed they were mice or something similar, and grinned. Transfiguration was such a fascinating subject… Only when they got to do something fun, however.

"Now, repeat after me: Muris abeo cattus." The class chorused it back to her, though some got it wrong. Ron said "Mouse abeo cots", earning a giggle from Hermione, and Neville simply ruined everything about the words, what with his sputtering of "Merss abby cats". Professor McGonagall didn't seem satisfied, however, so she made them repeat it. Again, a loud chorus of "Muris abeo cattus" echoed through the class room.

"Good. Now you will try it with partners. One will transfigure the mouse--" McGonagall gestured to the box on her desk "-- into a cat, and the other will transfigure the new cat into the old mouse. Will Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy please come up to the front?" Hermione blew a small, previously withheld sigh out of her lips. Was this more about Head boy and Girl duties? She had already heard it all, about the rounds and the point taking and other such things. Why the teachers deemed it appropriate for her to be constantly next to Draco Malfoy, she didn't know, but it was certainly annoying her. Backing up in her chair and standing, she walked confidently over to where Professor McGonagall stood, flipping her hair behind her shoulder as she did so. As she walked, she brushed shoulders with Malfoy.

"Watch where you're going, Granger - no need to throw yourself at me," he spat, glaring at her.

"Oh, is that what I was doing? Because I could have sworn we were both called to see Professor McGonagall. I was only following orders, Malfoy." she replied coolly, gazing at him through the side of her eyes. He stopped talking, and Hermione seemed rather pleased with herself. They neared the teacher's desk, stopping when the situation called for it, and waited for McGonagall to give the reason as to why they were there.

"Ah, Ms. Granger, Mr. Malfoy," she greeted with a wrinkled smile. "I suppose you're wondering why I called you up here." They both nodded politely, though Draco's arms were crossed in what could only be described as a stubborn manner.

"Well, since you are the Head girl and boy, the headmaster deemed it appropriate for you to be paired as partners for this assignment. We know of the lack of friendship between you two, and we wish to rectify that as soon as possible."

"Professor McGonagall!" Hermione gasped. "Surely we're not to be paired up?"

"Well, Granger," Draco said, his voice laced with rather obvious poison and distaste, "I think she made it completely obvious that we're to be paired together. Or were you not listening at all? Quite bad habits, for such an overzealous know-it-all."

McGonagall glared. "Mr. Malfoy! If you keep talking like that, the headmaster will most certainly hear about your behaviour! Now, you two, go and work! I will hear no more complaints!"

Hermione and Draco both turned their heads to glare at eachother, then quickly turned on their heels and proceeded to find a desk where they could work together unnoticed. Professor McGonagall shook her head, clearly in distaste for their obvious loathing. Sighing, she went to collect the box and give each pair a mouse to work with.

OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO

"No, Malfoy, you're holding your wand the wrong way!"

"No I'm not!"

"Yes you are! You're supposed to hold it by your fingertips, not clenched tightly in your hand!"

"Stop being a bitch! I'm doing it fine!"

"I'm NOT a bitch!"

"Fine, you're an insufferable female dog who thinks she knows everything."

"PROFESSOR MCGONAGA--"

"Shut up! Do you want to get us both in trouble?"

"On the contrary, my good sir, it will get YOU in trouble."

"Oh, I'm a good sir now, am I?"

"No, but politeness happens to keep me from saying what you REALLY are."

"And politeness keeps me from knocking you upside the head right now."

"Which I'm sure would go over well with the professor, wouldn't it?"

"I'm willing to lose my Head Boy badge if it means shutting you up."

"Shall we test that theory?"

Draco opened his mouth to speak, but was quickly silenced by the screeching tone of professor McGonagall. "Draco Malfoy! Hermione Granger! You two have not turned your mouse into a cat even once yet! If you don't hurry up, I'll have to fail you for this assignment!"

That did a good job of shutting them up. Hermione tentatively picked up the mouse from the desk and placed it on the floor for Draco to point at. Draco, who had just dropped his text book, hastily picked it up, assuming that it dropped to the page it was already opened at. His eyes scanned the page for the spell, which would be in green script, and he aimed his wand in the direction of Hermione. 'Turning her into a cat will teach her.' He thought, grinning maliciously.

"Don't point it at me, you moron!"

"ME ABEO AN!"

Nothing happened for a moment. Hermione, relieved she didn't turn into a cat, shouted "What were you doing? You're supposed to be transfiguring the mouse! You didn't even use the right spe--"

She quickly, silenced, however, when a rather bright and distracting purple light engulfed the both of them. It shielded the students around them from view, and Hermione could hear Professor McGonagall shouting from behind the glowing, pulsing light. Turning back to Malfoy, she was displeased to find that he, too, was hidden by the purple light. Oh, when she was done with him, there was NO way he was having any babies…

Suddenly, she coughed. Her stomach turned and flip-flopped, making her feel entirely like she would retch. She quickly got on her knees and leaned over in case she was to throw up, but as soon as she had done so, the feeling stopped.

As the purple light cleared, she felt almost instantly better. Slowly the room came back into view. It was blurry for Hermione, but her vision cleared as she blinked, and she glanced hesitantly around the classroom.

"Hermione! Hermione, are you okay?" She heard Harry's voice nearby, and breathed a sigh of relief that he was still in one piece. Glancing up, she started to say "Yeah, Harry, I'm fine," but she was cut off by the dawning realization that he wasn't there. Furrowing her brows questioningly, she took another look around the room. There he was! She smiled. He was helping someone up. Hermione blinked again. Then she saw it. The cascade of dark brown curls, the slim but curvaceous form, the familiar black robes… He was helping her up. Hermione. From across the room. Just as she was trying to figure it out, she heard her own voice in a shout:

"Get off me, Potter, I'm fine! And I'm not Granger!"

Hermione's duplicate stood up quickly, brushing herself off, and turned to look in the real Hermione's direction. Just as she did, the duplicate's eyes widened to veritable dinner plates, and she took a step back. "Gr-Gr-Granger?" came the hesitant voice.

Ignoring the duplicate for the moment, Hermione bit her lower lip. How did this happen? Did Malfoy's spell make a Hermione clone? Oh, he would be seeing stars when she got through with him! She quickly stood up and brushed the invisible flecks of dirt from her robes, glaring around the room to find the face she was looking for. But Malfoy was nowhere to be seen. "That's it! Where's Malfoy?" she snapped, just before her hands flew up to her mouth. That wasn't her voice! That was a man's voice!

That was Malfoy's voice!

"Granger?" Came Hermione's voice. Only Hermione didn't say it; the duplicate a few feet away from Hermione did. The apparent clone lifted her hand to point in Hermione's direction, stammering something unintelligible, and Hermione looked down. She saw black robes just like hers, but with a few minor differences - bigger pockets, for one. Green lining. And… what was that?

The badge of the Head Boy.

Lifting her hands to pick it up, she looked at them and found that they were not her hands. They were pale, creamy smooth like hers, but they were larger; thicker; more masculine. Breathing choppily and heavily, her lower lip shook as she reached up to feel the hair on her head. Her worst suspicions were confirmed as she felt it - thin, straight, short.

She had become Malfoy.

Draco Malfoy.

With that realization, Hermione felt herself getting sick all over again.