Disclaimer: The Potterverse is not of my property. We must thank J.K. Rowling for creating such a wonderful world. The story and others, however, are mostly mine.

Summary: The war was over, and although many lives were lost, one of them was just taking a nap. Literally. However, the countless casualties suffered by the magical world seriously threatened it with extinction. But the Ministry of Magic will make sure that such a thing never happens. No matter what it takes.

Warnings: Snamione (Severus Snape / Hermione Granger); Alternate Universe; possible Out of Character. My first language isn't English, it's Spanish. This may contain grammatical mistakes that I'm willing to correct. This is my first Harry Potter fanfic, please be gentle (?)

Initial notes: Hi. Honestly I have not been very good in recent days, but at least survive. I'll try to finish this chapter, but I cannot promise much. Read you down there.

Life is a waltz

Just a rumour

She didn't regret that pair of kisses she shared with her Defence Against the Dark Arts professor.

Yes, she did felt quite embarrassed as she walked hastily through the halls of the castle, trying to reach Gryffindor Tower as quickly as possible. It was quite late and she needed some sleep, plus her feet hurt.

But although she thought it would be an unbearable embarrassment, it was not. It was strange for her, at least for the moment, the fact that she could only feel happy, or at least satisfied. She would have liked to stay a little longer, but she forced herself to go.

However, there were a few doubts in her mind.

That was what she was thinking as she entered the common room of her house, and headed to the rooms, meditating in silence. They hadn't made clear anything between them. They had only said goodnight, and she had left the office.

She did not know what to do next. Perhaps the next time she saw him she had to greet him with a kiss on the lips? Should she keep the situation as a secret? Why would she do that?

She rubbed a hand over her face, feeling suddenly more exhausted than before, as she dropped in her bed, starting to take off her heels. Maybe she just needed to rest, a good sleep and relax would achieve clear her thoughts.

Or at least that was what she thought as she leaned back comfortably in her bed, letting out a small sigh of relief before falling exhausted.

The next morning, as she headed to the Great Hall, she could see with surprise that most of her companions gave curious and even somewhat surprised looks at her as she walked by.

She could not help wondering what was happening, and only because of that she tried to walk quicker, just to get faster to the Gryffindor table, especially with her friends. However, the situation there did not improve much in fact, although most of them at least tried to hide their curiosity.

She devoted confused looks at Harry and Ginny, and could see that they seemed somewhat uncomfortable. She sighed heavily, a little tired despite having woken up recently.

"All right, are you going to tell me what's going on or not?"

Harry shook his head slightly, looking away with a snort. He seemed really angry, and that alarmed her a little. Ginny, beside him, breathed a sigh full of resignation, as she offered her the latest issue of Witch Weekly, and Hermione knew what awaited her could not be good.

Especially when almost all of her peers around her also had a copy. With a grimace, she began tried to read.

Hermione pulled the magazine away when she read the name of Rita Skeeter, knowing that only infamous and slanderous words could follow. However, Ginny encouraged her to continue reading, even with a rather tired expression on her freckled face.

The girl sighed, somewhat impatient, but looked down at the magazine again, watching a moving picture of her and her teacher dancing together, before the start of the article.

"Greedy lioness and ambiguous snake

Love knows no prejudice... or shame!

It is well known that the status of 'war hero' is highly profitable, and therefore it is not surprising that many witches have fancied the unattractive but very famous Severus Snape.

But though his loyalties and true roles are totally questionable (to know more about that, don't miss my book, "Snape: Scoundrel or Saint?"! Best seller around the world), you cannot deny that the wizarding world knows his name, for better or worse.

Despite that, young witches, it is my duty to inform you that this mysterious man's black and shrivelled heart already has an owner. And it's nothing more and nothing less than another martyr in the last Second Wizarding War, and his wife through the most recent Universal Required Marriage Law, Hermione Granger.

As we all know, the young Granger girl has a history of being attracted powerful and renowned men, counting among her lovers the gorgeous Viktor Krum, the very Boy Who Lived Harry Potter, and even his best friend, Ronald Weasley.

However, it is already obvious that this girl does not waste time, and goes strategically after the brightest star in the firmament that the wizarding world can offer, whoever it is just to satisfy her thirst for attention.

That alone could explain just how lovey-dovey she was with her husband and also a professor, during the formal dance that the Malfoy family organized in their mansion (don't miss the details, even the best and worst dressed of the night, turn to page 10!).

But the story doesn't end there, dearest readers. Granger did not hesitate to pounce on her new prey as soon as they were alone in the safety of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, temporary home of the two lovebirds during the school year. It makes one think about moral behaviour and policies of that institution, doesn't it?

This attractive reporter had to leave the scene when things were increasing temperature, and cannot say for sure what happened... but it is not very difficult to guess, if you know what I mean.

In conclusion, faithful followers of mine, Hermione Granger attacks again, and unconsciously, plants a new doubt in the minds of all of us: how strong was the love of our supposed war hero for the late Lily Potter, if he could so easily forget her and replace her with this young woman? Another inconsistency in the story presented by Harry Potter in his defence.

As always, you can draw your own conclusions about it, but facts speak much louder."

Hermione swore that if Rita Skeeter was standing right in front of her, she would have taught her a good lesson, muggle style. She had mistakenly believed that the woman had learned her lesson.

She turned back to Harry, and realized how upset he was. She patted his shoulder in support, and he formed a small grimace only trying to look like a smile.

Hermione sighed heavily. As a reflex, she turned to the staff table, but Snape wasn't there. She could not help wondering if he was already aware of the situation, or even cared at all.

She decided she had to find out.

Throughout the day she was ignoring the prying eyes of her peers at her, much as she wanted to hex them all at every moment.

When Defence Against the Dark Arts class finally arrived, she could not help seeing her teacher with more attention than usual. She expected some sort of difference in his usual behaviour, something to tell if he had already read the article or not.

However, he seemed as calm and moody as ever. He didn't even seem to notice the eyes of his students on him, and took points from each student who used their to gossip rather than attend the lesson, as he would any normal day.

And in fact he did not want to appear affected by this situation. Yes, he had read the article written by that harpy who called herself a journalist, and could feel the rage make his blood boil.

How could this woman dare to question everything that made him who he was? For that same reason he had refused to read the defamatory book against him, but the damn article was in the mouth of everyone, and it didn't just what affect him.

He thought of retaliating against Rita Skeeter, though he had his doubts. He did not want to create an even bigger storm.

That night he didn't want to attend the dinner. He felt no appetite, and forcing it would only hurt him. It used to happen often when he was little, only at that time it was quite conveniently unfortunate and gave his father a reason to punish him.

Rubbing a hand on his pale face, he tried to push those thoughts from his mind as he walked to his office with long strides. Upon arrival, he took out his wand to open the door, but noted that it was ajar.

He narrowed his dark eyes, and still brandishing his wand, opened the door carefully, alert. Many years as a double agent and spy had served to improve his skills, but had also left him some pretty big psychological traumas.

When the door opened, he could see that Granger was fiddling absently with one of his quills, but she was not alone. Beside her was Harry Potter, and he could not help but grimace at him.

"May I know who invited you to come in?" he asked when he entered, keeping his wand as he walked to his desk, trying to be indifferent to the shock that he had caused on both of them

He could see them exchanging glances for a moment, and wondered what they were thinking. He knew he could find out by simply digging a little in their malleable minds, but chose not to. He sat behind his desk, still watching them with an arched eyebrow.

"So?"

Potter cleared his throat for a moment, as if preparing to say something very important, although he doubted it.

"Professor... I was wondering if you've already read the article Rita Skeeter published today" muttered then the boy, hiding his hands in the pockets of his robes. "It's quite unpleasant, just to call it something."

Snape raised an eyebrow at his words, and gave a sidelong glance at the girl beside him. He could tell as she looked away, that she was seemingly embarrassed or distressed with the situation. He sighed, pretty tired.

"Even if I had not read it, I should've been deaf not to hear the whispers running through the castle in the mouths of students and portraits alike" he muttered, clasping his hands' thin fingers in front of him thoughtfully. "Where are you going with this, Potter?"

"I have no intentions to keep quiet while the woman dedicates herself to defame him. You, and my best friend" the young boy said, frowning slightly, as if he didn't understand his question. "We know that Rita Skeeter is an unregistered Animagus, notifying the Ministry of Magic about it would not hurt anyone."

Professor Snape formed a small grimace with his thin lips, and was silent for a moment, as though he were pondering something very important. Was it necessary to destroy the career, reputation and perhaps even life of that woman only by the words she published?

Of course it was.

"Though I was aware of her condition, I had not thought of using it as an attack on her person. In fact, I was not going to do anything. A barking dog does not bite" he mumbled, shrugging his shoulders slightly, before sighing heavily. "However, this is not just about me now. What do you think, Hermione? How should we proceed?"

He could see that the Gryffindor girl winced slightly in place, and her slightly chubby cheeks took on a reddish tone. He knew why, it was the first time he addressed her using her first name while being in the presence another person. He did his best to hide a small grin.

"Um... I don't know. That information is good material for a threat, but making it public could have consequences beyond our reach" she muttered, absently starting to fiddle with the red and yellow scarf she wore curled on her neck. "Skeeter would probably be imprisoned..."

"So what? Do you think she would mind if you were imprisoned...?"

"But I'm not her, Harry."

Potter snorted and looked away, but he could tell that the boy was doing a pretty big effort not to get angry with his friend. Snape watched in complete silence for a moment, appreciating the tension that had flooded the room, before letting out a sigh.

"Maybe, just maybe, we should think very carefully before taking any step. We could step on a mine without even noticing it" he said then, thundering a little his fingers' bones, feeling slightly tenser. "Making public such sensitive information may bring more problems than solutions. I can already hear it: 'If it's a lie, why would they defend themselves?'"

"Then it is a lie? You two didn't...?"

Severus couldn't help frowning slightly at Potter's question. And although he felt like throwing him a moderately strong curse for his indiscretion, he was forced to keep a serious expression on his face.

"That's none of your business, Potter" he hissed with a slightly offended tone, narrowing his black eyes to glare at him.

"And you could ask me first, Harry, honestly" muttered Granger under her breath, looking away embarrassed, before raising her voice again to a more audible tone. "Anyway... I think that's all, eh, Harry?"

The boy gave her a sidelong glance, apparently still feeling somewhat curious about his question. After a few seconds he nodded slightly, shrugging his shoulders slightly.

"Yes, I think so" he granted, giving a polite nod to his teacher before approaching the door. "Are you coming?"

"Oh, no, I'll stay for a little while. You may go."

Both could feel the slightly mischievous glint in Harry's green eyes, who only gave a nod before leaving the room, closing the door behind him. Only then, they looked into each other's eyes again.

But it didn't last long, because she looked down, apparently distressed still.

"Sorry."

Professor Snape raised an eyebrow when he heard that, and cocked his head slightly almost unconsciously, feeling curious.

"Sorry? Why are you sorry?" he questioned, trying to soften his voice even if it was just a bit, to see if that way he could get a good response from her

Hermione looked up again, now with a much stronger blush bathing her cheeks. Again he had to hide another grin. He didn't know what that girl had, but when she was embarrassed she was pretty funny.

"I'm sorry I... you know..." she murmured, fiddling around with her fingers as she looked away, trying to get distracted by the shelves around her. "I'm sorry I kissed you yesterday. And the other day... I never think about whether you want to do it or not, I just do it. I am sorry."

He could not help, this time the grin that was struggling to get a space in his face finally got it. For a moment he had thought that it was something more serious. He stood with a sigh, walking around his desk to stand in front of her, resting just a bit on his desk behind him.

"If didn't 'want' to, I would have let you know, Hermione. It is not my pleasure to do things against my own will" he assured her with a condescending tone, crossing his arms while looking at her intently. "Is there perhaps another reason why you may regret your actions?"

"I don't regret it...!" she blurted immediately, but the embarrassment returned to her face when she saw him arch an eyebrow. She sighed. "It's just... if last night's kiss didn't happen, Rita Skeeter would not have had so much to talk about."

"It's impossible that you or I knew what was going on. She could be watching us right now. Maybe we should give her something to talk about once again."

Hermione looked up when she heard that, as a reflex act, and just by looking at him he knew she was trying to figure out if he was serious or not. And the truth was that he wondered the same thing, but tried to hide it, and was pretty good at it.

He could see that she took a couple of steps forward, but stopped almost immediately, looking at him with something like insecurity in her young face.

"I... I was wondering what you think of me" she said suddenly, trying to look at him despite the embarrassment on her face. "Do you like me?"

The man took a deep breath before releasing that air in the form of a long sigh, between tired and impatient. He shrugged, as if the question was not important enough to take the time to answer it.

"Liking... is a term too young and immature for my taste" he said then with a slight grin on his face. "But I can tell you that you're pretty attractive to me. I do not see why I should hide it, being it something you should have already noticed."

He could see the blush that adorned his student's cheeks grew a pair of shades, and could easily compete with a tomato. A slight smirk betrayed him by appearing on his face without his permission.

"I like you too" she said then, looking at him again, but he could only let out brief chuckle. "What is so funny…?"

Snape shook his head slightly, downplaying the situation as he regained his composure, but the slight smirk gracing his face stayed. He made a small gesture with his hand for her to come closer.

Still somewhat shy and embarrassed, the girl obeyed, and he watched her wince a bit when he held her close by holding her waist, but she made no attempt to pull away.

"The best would be not to look for labels for 'this', at least for now" he murmured, watching her carefully, appreciating every faction of her young face. "I feel that without the pressures that these labels mean, we're doing pretty well. What do you say…?"

Her reply was not verbal, but he didn't care much. Her soft and sweet lips against his were a thousand times better than any words she could utter.

Endnotes: Hello again. I really hope that winter is a little less cruel in the next few days, I'm almost freezing here :/

On the other hand... I think it's time to answer your reviews.

RhodaBush: Here's more, I hope you like it!

ChronicallyCurious: Hey there! I'm really glad you liked my story that much! Sorry, I'm not really sure what "guilt tripped" means… but if it's something bad, I'm sorry, and if it's something good, you're welcome! The best of luck for you, you can do it!

sidehillgouger: Now that's interesting… I remember seeing lots of videos of cats in front of mirrors. You're right, maybe it was an ever-lasting liquid luck potion!

impala67black: Really glad to hear that, hope you liked this one as well!

Sassyluv: I'm really glad I surprised you then! Yeah, kissing… hehehe.

t42n24t2: Well, thank you very much! Severus is one great wizard, and Hermione was pretty thankful for that ;)

OzmaofOz: Thank you for reading and commenting! I'll do my best to feel better soon, don't worry!

notwritten: Thanks a lot!

kalikk: Muito obrigado! Eu espero que você gosta deste capítulo também!

PumpkinKitten: I hope your heart could take this chapter at least! Here's more, and there's even more where this came from ;)

Special Thanks to…

… ChronicallyCurious, Devilwoman18, sierravanmeter12335, tigerlillypaws, kalikk and PumpkinKitten for adding this story to favorites!

… Juli Ramos, Melody06, Tempted Sacrifice, DESGUARDIUS, sierravanmeter12335, tigerlillypaws, NoFace the Demon, kalikk, PumpkinKitten, LKBgirl and Tra8erse for following this story!

… those who read but never comment. Did you know that according to the internet, you share your birthday with at least 9 million people in the world? (?)

So… I guess that's all for now. As always, thanks for reading and commenting. Take care, guys.

Read you soon!

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