Chapter 49 - Gossip.

[Chapter Size: 1900 Words.]

Third Person POV

Hogwarts.

...

The last week of the first month at Hogwarts had finally begun as Snape continued his exercises, earning only one point. He would do it even if he earned nothing, as the system seemed to maintain the punishment if he didn't keep up with the daily exercises.

This type of activity soon began to be noticed by the students over the past few weeks. Although they were surprised, they remained silent, but as the days went by, rumors began to emerge. After all, Snape was the only one in the school who practiced any physical activity, with wizards considering such things trivial, with only Quidditch athletes having this type of routine.

This was reflected today as Snape returned after taking a bath in the lake and fighting against those who always wanted to duel him. After encountering Hagrid crying at the grave of some recently deceased animal, he noticed a group of students watching him as he entered the castle and began whispering among themselves, especially the girls, who were in the majority in that group.

He ignored them and entered the castle. It was a bit late today, but he was not in a hurry as the Herbology class always started at a time that allowed him to do things a bit later and not have to wait in the greenhouse area of the school.

He went to the common hall, which was much more crowded than he usually saw it so early, and sat at any table without recognizing anyone.

The professors were all gathered, and the students were animatedly conversing with each other. Snape remained silent as he devoured everything he could to regain his strength, while the students still kept their eyes on him and his strange behavior of gluttony.

He didn't care, not until at a time he had never stayed, which was 8:07 on the dot, papers began to fall on the tables. One of them fell in front of Snape; he knew this newspaper well, after all, it was the "Hogwarts Observer," a newspaper he had ignored since they published articles about him being bullied by the Marauders a few years ago.

He was a bit surprised to see it and his gaze fell on the front page. At that moment, he saw himself as the center of attention once again. Snape didn't know, but this paper was one of the main reasons he had been so observed at Hogwarts in recent weeks. After all, Edmund Whitley had started writing everything about what he did and how he had changed, even making comparisons to how he was before this year.

He raised an eyebrow at the article written by the fourth-year Hufflepuff student, which had the title and description as follows:

---------------------------------

*Hogwarts Observer Reveals: Secrets of Slytherin: Severus Snape's Love Triangle!*

The last week of the first month at Hogwarts brought an unexpected twist, with Severus Snape once again in the spotlight! It's not about his fights with professors or other students, like breaking the gate to the forbidden section, but rather a possible love triangle that has stirred the school's corridors.

Recently, Snape has been noted for his peculiar exercise routine, something unusual among students who don't play Quidditch. This behavior sparked curiosity and gossip among his peers, who began to observe him more closely.

However, the real bombshell dropped when Clarisse Greengrass and Snape were seen together, returning to Hogwarts from the weekend. Some say they were on a mission to collect herbs, but suspicions of a more personal involvement soon arose.

Tensions escalated when Lucinda Burke, an acquaintance of Snape, confronted him during Sunday dinner (yesterday), questioning whether he was dating Clarisse. The scene was observed by several students, who were surprised by the intensity of the conversation.

Edmund Whitley, our talented reporter for the "Hogwarts Observer," seized the opportunity to investigate. He discovered that Snape has been spending a lot of time with Clarisse, leading to speculations about a possible love triangle involving Lucinda.

Whitley reports: 'Snape has always been reserved, but lately, he has been attracting a lot of attention. His friendship with Lucinda seemed solid, but with Clarisse entering the equation, everything became more complicated. Are we witnessing the beginning of a forbidden romance at Hogwarts?'

----------------

The text was quite brief and without detail, just speculations. Snape kept looking at it for a while, seeing pictures of him, Lucinda, and Clarisse taken while they were walking through the corridors or in the classrooms.

"Why does this guy put himself in the newspaper with compliments, considering he edits the paper himself..." Snape mocked, finding it strange that Edmund called himself a talented reporter when he wrote the text himself.

Snape sighed and lifted his head, feeling hundreds of eyes on him at that moment. "This is annoying. I won't have breakfast at this time anymore." Snape scoffed, looking at the students who were staring at him, pointing, and whispering to each other, while some felt intimidated by his gaze.

It wasn't just the Slytherin table... all the tables were looking at him at that moment, even the professors, since they also received Edmund's paper with his magic, which Snape didn't believe a fourth-year student could do. It was highly probable that the headmaster himself was behind this, thinking it was a healthy prank among the students.

"Hey, you." Snape called to the students in front of him, who simply averted their eyes when he stared at them and had to look back at him when he called.

"Yes..." They were third-year students and were nervous, after all, Snape was known for putting other students in the infirmary.

"Have I been appearing in these newspapers a lot lately?" He asked, wanting to be sure if this was a recurring issue so he wouldn't come to this place when these things appeared.

"Yes-Yes." They replied.

"I have some of the newspapers with me if you want..." Snape looked at a student who was looking at him timidly. He seemed to be a second-year student alongside the others.

As strange as it was for a student to carry these papers with him, Snape didn't mind and wanted to see what they were saying about him.

"Let me see." Snape requested, and the student pulled out a small stack of papers, starting from the second week.

"Weird tremors at Hogwarts..." It talked about the Sunday when Snape talked to the headmaster as soon as he returned to the castle.

"Second week begins..."

"Severus Snape returns, but different..." He saw a picture comparing his old self to the transformation he had undergone during the holidays.

"Severus Snape entering the forbidden section..."

"Severus Snape..."

Tired of just seeing his name on the newspaper covers, he looked at the student who had given him the papers. "Does this guy only write about me?!" He asked.

"Mostly during these 2 weeks..." The second-year replied timidly.

"This is annoying. Where is he..." He asked, ignoring the people watching him and looking around at the Hufflepuff table, which also kept their eyes on him with the papers in their hands. But there was no sign of Edmund.

"..." He sighed and decided to go to his Herbology class with Ravenclaw, standing up amid the students still gossiping.

"I have to admit he looks much better than before... No wonder he might have some suitors..." A Gryffindor student commented to her friend.

"This seems so exciting. Who will Snape end up with?" Her friend responded with a tone of admiration, imagining a grand love story as she read in Muggle books.

But someone nudged the girl at that moment, "Can you stop with that!" The girl who gave the nudge asked.

"Why are you saying that? Everyone is talking about it!" The girl who was nudged complained.

"Look right beside me!" She said quietly, as the two gossiping girls looked at a fourth girl silently reading the newspaper.

"Ahh, I get it..." One of the students said.

"It's no longer a triangle but a quartet, friend!" One of them suddenly exclaimed, while the third student wanted to hit them more than ever, as the one next to her was Lily Evans, who was staring at the paper silently, keeping her thoughts to herself.

Snape had his first class, and as soon as he entered, he found some students already prepared to start. He went to his place at the back and opened a book, focusing solely on reading and ignoring the entire environment. When he heard the teacher entering, he closed the book and noticed all the students there, but it seemed that the newspaper was already a topic among them, as they gossiped and it was impossible to ignore Lucinda beside him and Clarisse at another table. They exchanged glances the entire time, and Snape was also a target of their eyes, constantly in this transition.

"This will be more irritating than usual..." Snape commented, trying to ignore it and concentrate on the lesson.

Lucinda didn't speak to Snape but always looked at him and also at Clarisse, who seemed to have the same behavior, while the students gossiped around them.

Snape didn't go to the next class, not needing to attend Professor McGonagall's lesson. The routine consisted of Snape studying with the girls still maintaining some shyness with curious glances but hardly speaking to Snape as the days continued to pass. That was until the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher made an announcement on Wednesday.

"Well, as we discussed last week, we are opening the dueling spots, and Professor Flitwick will be in the morning class for us to start the duels. I would like all of you to meet me in the south hall. I will be waiting for you there." The teacher nodded as the students began to leave.

"Did you change the Divination class...?" Lucinda raised this question, asking something for the first time. She hadn't seen him in Divination class anymore, not knowing that Snape had switched the extracurricular class to Fantastic Beasts, which he had today with the actual professor and not Hagrid.

"Yes." He responded, and as she was about to ask him something else, someone interrupted her on the way out of the class.

"Snape! Tomorrow, you and me! I'm going to destroy you!" James Potter announced, drawing the class's attention. He wanted his revenge for the past few weeks and for Diagon Alley, but he wasn't as somber about it until tomorrow.

Snape looked at him like he was an idiot who didn't seem to learn and ignored him as he walked out. James tried to stop him, but when he bumped into Snape, he was thrown back by Snape's strength, and Snape didn't care while the other Marauders helped James get up from the floor.

"Listen, Snape, tomorrow I'll make you regret all of this. You will be humiliated, Snivellus!" He exclaimed angrily, and Snape paused for a moment.

"You shouldn't have called me that before a duel, Potter." Snape commented dangerously, knowing that this nickname was hated by the old Snape. While he wouldn't have cared much, he didn't like the provocation and would make sure Potter had a memorable duel tomorrow.

Lucinda, standing beside him, was surprised as she saw Snape's eyes glowing blue, something she had never seen before, and watched him walk away calmly afterward, feeling that tomorrow wouldn't end well for those Gryffindors mocking Snape.

---

Raccoon here:

I'll add Luna's mother and Regulus Black in the next chapters. Is there anyone else important that someone remembers from this time?

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