Of course Mat's a girl. This is why he gets a giant cat to cheer him up. (See: Gene's Fifth Law: Girls Like Cats.) But it's working, innit? So Gene hops up on the bed after Mat and gives the hair a few decisive licks, followed by the usual period of ears-back chagrin that always happens when he lets those instincts get the better of him.

Right, sorry.

He settles down by Mat and starts to purr.