A/N: Thanks for the reviews. Well, I guess I don't really have much else to say, so here's chapter 7!

I don't own, even though I did predict one of Mr. Weasley's lines in the movie, hehe.

Talk is Cheap

Chapter 7

Severus, you are such an idiot. How could you make such a comment to students? You want to talk about insinuation… that was idiotic. Despite these thoughts, Snape couldn't help but feel quite pleased with himself. The look on Weasley's face had been worth it, not to mention how his words had affected Hermione. As he strode down the hall toward his dungeon, a smile spread to his lips. She knew that I was talking about, and so did Potter and Weasley. She had obviously told them; he knew she would, after all, they were her best friends. Best friends, you never had any of those, he thought to himself. He shook the thought from his head. He realized however, that if Potter and Weasley knew about the kiss, they might report him to Dumbledore. He stopped in front of his office door and put the heavy brass key into the lock. He shook his head again. No, they wouldn't risk the hell I'd put them through in my class, especially since Dumbledore trusts me with every fiber of his being. I'm sure he wouldn't believe them anyway. Snape shut his door with a quiet click, and retreated to his living quarters.

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Meanwhile, the trio was heading back up to the common room, Hermione still completely silent and Ron seething with anger. Harry was trying to make sense of it all. He knew in his mind what Snape was trying to do, but he didn't want to make things worse for his friends.

"Guys, I'm sure he didn't mean anything by it. I mean, maybe he doesn't even remember…" Harry trailed off, knowing that was impossible. Hermione shook her head.

"No, Harry, he remembers perfectly well, especially since I went and spoke to him about it," she said miserably, hiding her face in her hands. Ron put his arm around her shoulders.

"'Mione, don't worry about it. Snape's just a slimy old git anyway, he just wanted to get to you," Ron said, rubbing her arm gently.

Hermione was glad her face was covered because when Ron called Snape a "slimy old git," she winced. Why do I care about him? Ron's right; he has always treated me like worthless trash. That's all I was to him that night—a trashy tramp. Hermione's eyes filled with tears; it was at that point she knew: she really did care what Severus Snape thought of her, and she didn't know why. She took her hands away from her face and looked at Ron. He was looking down at her lovingly, and she couldn't help but smile a little. Ron is perfect for me; I have to forget that kiss.

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That night, Hermione lay in her bed, thinking about the events of the day. She and Ron had been so happy, and then Snape ruined it in about 30 seconds. What was strange about the situation was the fact that Snape had always been cruel to them, and they had always just overlooked it. Why was this time any different? If it had been Pansy Parkinson and Draco Malfoy snogging in the middle of class, he probably would have let it go. At this thought, Hermione felt crushed—The reason it is different is because Snape isn't jealous of Malfoy; he's jealous of Ron. Hermione sat up straight in bed, horrified. Snape hasn't forgotten the kiss. He was still thinking about it, and not because he regretted it. Hermione's breath caught in her throat. She was immediately frightened. What would Snape do to get his way? And how much would I do to stop him? She couldn't believe she even held that last thought in her head, but Hermione had never been one to lie to herself for very long. There had been some kind of spark between her and Snape that night, and it wasn't forgotten. Sure, she might be falling for Ron in a way she never had before, but was it possible that Hermione was falling for two men?

Hermione was almost disgusted with herself. There had to be some way to sort this out in her mind. Suddenly she had an idea. Making lists was something that always helped her sort things out. She would make a pro and con list for Ron and Snape. This entire thing felt like a dream; she never thought she'd be puzzled on her feelings for Snape. She opened the drawer on her bedside table and took out two pieces of parchment and a quill. On one piece, she wrote "RON" and on the other she wrote "SEVERUS." She drew a line down the middle of each and wrote "PROS" and "CONS" on either side of the lines. She took a deep breath. She decided she'd start with Ron. On the pro side, she wrote "My age, funny, sweet, romantic, not taboo, my best friend, trustworthy, fair Quidditch player, attractive, great kisser, I can see a future with him." She smiled. That was a good list. On the con side, she wrote "Kind of lazy, doesn't do his homework as often as he should, can be immature, bad temper." Those might have been Ron's worst qualities, but even they were endearing. Plus, there were many more pros than cons. Hermione began to feel a little better. She turned to Snape's list. On the pro side, she wrote "Very intelligent, soft-spoken (it was true), responsible, has a job, trusted by Dumbledore, very sexy, bloody fantastic kisser." The last two pros were very physical, and they weighed heavily on her mind. Then she started on the con side. "Much older than me, my professor, unfair, callous, emotionally closed, angry, not liked by my best friends, not liked by many people actually, off-limits, scheming, possibly incapable of human emotion." She stopped there and compared the lists. It was obvious who was the better choice. Ron had as many pros as Snape had cons. Well, that settles it. Ron was the better choice; she didn't know why she didn't see it before. She put the two pieces of parchment safely into the drawer. But as she lay back on her pillow, she couldn't get her mind off two things on Snape's list: very sexy and a bloody fantastic kisser. Hermione exhaled loudly. She couldn't just sit here, lost in her thoughts. She needed to rectify this thing once and for all. She had to see Snape. She had to get him off her mind, and she'd do whatever it took to do that. Ron was the man she wanted to be with. He would never have to know that she slipped down to the dungeon in the middle of the night to try and work out the Snape situation. What's the worst that could happen?

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Just down the hall in the boy's dormitory, Harry and Ron were whispering about the situation. They couldn't just let Snape torture Hermione that way. They were formulating a plan… Something that could stop Snape and benefit them in the process…

TBC

Well, there ya go. Please, please review! It makes me so happy when I get on and see that I have reviews. I'll try and update again this weekend! I am also working on a one shot story, so be on the lookout for that one! Love love!