Chapter 3
When the first of September arrived Hermione had almost forgotten about the incident at Ginny's party – but only almost. Luckily, however, her friends were treating her as always and just ignored the fact that they knew. No one made a comment or even winked, not even when they were in the Great Hall and she finally saw Snape again. Two month of vacation are just too long when you're in love; a bit to her misery, however, her feelings seemed to have grown instead of weakened over the summer…
But then on Monday morning it happened.
"Hey, Hermione," Seamus shouted over the breakfast table when she sat down. "Is it true that you're in love with Snape?"
Lavender laughed unbearably mean.
She looked at Seamus bewildered. "Why do you think that?"
"Everyone's talking about it."
Hermione looked around her – almost everyone was staring at her, even the teachers at the staff table.
Snape wasn't there yet, luckily.
The panic grew inside her until she stood up and ran out of the Great Hall, the truth slowly thinking in: she was betrayed. One of her best friends had betrayed her…
She ran into Blaise Zabini who stopped her by holding her shoulders and asked in a concerned voice: "Everything alright?"
She just nodded, not wanting to deal with him in that moment and tearing away from him, she continued to run. She tried not to cry but it didn't work, so she hid in a bathroom, until Ginny found her.
"Hermione?"
She didn't answer but Ginny saw her anyway. She ran to her best friend and put an arm around her shoulders. "I heard what happened. You shouldn't hide, it will only feed the rumours."
Hermione shook off her arm and looked at Ginny angrily.
"What?" Ginny wanted to know irritated.
"Which of you did it?" Hermione spat.
"Did what?"
"Told the others that I love Professor Snape."
Ginny looked puzzled at her for a moment before realising what Hermione was implying. "No!" she said at once. "I didn't tell anyone anything! And I can't quite believe one of the others did."
"But someone must have!"
"No´, that can't be," Ginny seemed to get desperate. "There has to be another way."
"Like what?" Hermione snapped. "I won't talk to any of you until I know who betrayed me like this!" And with the door slamming behind her Hermione went out of the bathroom, leaving a crying Ginny behind.
The others tried to speak with Hermione as well but she stayed hard, especially when someone had just asked her again if it's true that she was in love with Severus Snape…