The Affair

Chapter Eight: A Foolish Man









Ignorant men don't know what good they hold in their hands until they've flung it away. Sophocles (496 BC - 406 BC)









Since the night she had refused his advances Hermione had slept alone. She had seen her husband only in passing with nary a word spoken between them. She knew that he was hurt but she didn’t think it fair to either of them for her to pretend something that she just didn’t feel.







She heard the pecking at the window and she closed her eyes. It was the same as it had been every day for a week. Shortly after lunch and owl would come, peck on the window and deliver a message from her husband. She didn’t really have to open it, she knew what it would say, but in the off chance that he would surprise her she opened the letter.







Working late, don’t wait up.



Love,

Ron







He never gave her more of an explanation than that. Just those five little words each day. She couldn’t say when he actually returned home, she was usually asleep and would wake up to find him passed out on the sofa and once on the floor. She asked him not to drink, had stopped purchasing beer and alcohol but it still found its way into the house. She didn’t know what to do anymore. She wanted to help him but how?







She didn’t really know what to do for herself. Grief was such a selfish experience. It was so difficult to see outside of one’s own pain. She could feel herself moving forward and knew that her job and her new found friendship had a lot to do with that. She wished that Ron would find something other than a bottle to give him comfort.







She felt as though the world she had built for herself was falling apart. She felt helpless and hopeless, unable to find a way to repair that which was broken. She let the letter fall to the top of the coffee table as she sank down onto the sofa and buried her face in her hands, crying silently.





Through the open door Lucius had been observing her. He saw her walk across the library to the window and collect her missive from the owl. He watched as she read it and then let it fall from her fingertips to land on the table. When she began to cry he was no longer able to just watch her.





He knew what the letter said. Her husband was working late, again. She had been working late every day for the last week. Not that he minded her being there, it was nice for him to have her there, but he didn’t want to see her in pain.







“Hermione?” He said her name softly as he stopped just a few feet in front of her. She looked up and hastily wiped her eyes.







“Lucius, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to…”







“Don’t apologize; just tell me if you are all right.” He was concerned about her.





“I will be fine. I suppose I should look on the bright side, I don’t have to cook dinner again.” She said with a sad, watery smile.







“Perhaps you would like to join me for dinner?” He asked.







“Isn’t Mrs. Malfoy expecting you?” Hermione knew that they had supper together every night; she also knew that Lucius dreaded it.







“She is actually playing Gin with her friends this evening, so I am free to take you out to dinner if you would like.” He said.







“Out? But you rarely go out; won’t people gossip about seeing us together?” She didn’t want to see their names smeared through the papers for an innocent dinner.







“True, but we do not have to go to a wizarding establishment. We could have a simple meal in London or we could go to Paris.” He offered.







“There is a nice little place about a mile from the Leaky Cauldron, they have the best steak dinners I have ever had, I used to go with my parents before they passed.” She smiled up at him, thankful for the company he offered.







“Then fetch your cloak and let us be on our way.” Lucius called for his cloak and gloves and then helped her into hers before they apparated into the alley in back of The Leaky Cauldron. With her hand tucked into his elbow Hermione showed him the way to the little restaurant tucked into a large, red bricked building. The host recognized her immediately and led her to a circular booth in the back.







“It is very quaint.” Lucius said as he looked around at the scarred yet highly polished wood paneling and furniture. Dark red table cloths covered the tables and matching red cushions padded the chairs and booths. The soft flicker of tiny oil lamps in the center of the tables gave it a charming, romantic atmosphere.





“It has been run by the same family for nigh on a century now.” She said, not even bothering to read the menu. She knew exactly what she wanted.







“Impressive. Do you have any suggestions?” He asked.







“My father swore that they have the best filet in England.” Lucius nodded and laid his menu aside.







“Then I will trust his opinion. Would you care for some wine?” He asked, looking over the wine list.





“I’m not much of a drinker to be honest, I wouldn’t know a good wine if it were to bite me.” She chuckled.







“Then allow me.” He gestured for the waiter and ordered the most expensive red wine on the menu. It was obviously not a common request because the waiter looked stunned as he hurried off to fill the order.











“You don’t have to spend so much money, Lucius; I can pay for my own….”







“Absolutely not, I invited you to dinner I will pay for it.” He said.









“I won’t argue with you.” She sat back when the owner personally brought the wine to the table and filled their glasses. He introduced himself to them, taken with his obviously wealthy customer. Hermione watched as Lucius spoke to the man politely, thanking him for his hospitality yet making it clear that he wished to be left alone with her. It was really quite brilliant to watch him maneuver the man so easily. She understood why he was so dangerous.







“Now, what would you like for dinner?” He asked as the owner finally walked away.







“Why?” Since when was Lucius interested in what she was eating.







“So that I may relay your order to the server.” She felt like an idiot. He was trying to be a gentleman and order for her.







“The beef medallions in mushroom sauce.” She said sheepishly. “Sorry about that, I’m just not used to a man being so polite.”









“That is quite a shame. Contrary to popular belief, Draco has impeccable manners. I sent him to the finest tutors in etiquette. Though I understand if you don’t believe me, he was terribly rude to you in the past I am certain.” He swirled the wine in his glass and held it up to the light before holding it up to his nose and inhaling the bouquet. He finally took a delicate sip, rolling it around on his tongue before making a soft sound of approval and taking an actual drink.







“Wow, all of that for a drink of wine?” She lifted her glass and took a drink, thinking the flavor a bit bitter and not really to her liking.







“Wine tasting is a delicate process.” He said, obviously enjoying his glass.







“I will take your word for it. I don’t think it is for me though. I apparently don’t have the palate for it.” She said, pushing her glass away.







“I will try not to hold it against you.” He said quietly. “It is good to see you smiling. You should always smile, Hermione. Those eyes should never cry.”







She didn’t know what to say. His words were so sweet, so caring and so…perfect.







“You aren’t at all who I thought you were.” She shook her head in wonder.







“That makes two of us.” He said. “At some point a man has to face up to his failures and realize what isn’t working for him and change. They say that insanity is defined by doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. That was me, for a very, very long time.”







The waiter interrupted and Lucius placed their order, and then returned his attention to her.







“What changed you?” She asked, resting her elbow on the table and propping her chin on her fist.









“Prison, failure, shame, nearly losing my child. All of those things played their part.” He said honestly. “Once I was a powerful, feared and respected wizard, now I spend my life seeking forgiveness that will never come.”







Hermione knew he spoke of Narcissa. From what she had gathered their relationship was non existent. She blamed Lucius for everything and spent her time making him feel horrible, forever holding it over his head and withholding her forgiveness.







“I forgive you.” She said, and she meant it. He met her gaze across the table and he felt gratitude like he had never known.





“Thank you, Hermione. That means a lot to me.”











Dinner was a leisurely affair, the two of them discussing a number of topics before they were finished. They never seemed to run out of conversation, the lulls were few and far between. She was a bit surprised when he laid a credit card on the table to pay. When she commented on it he explained that it was issued by Gringotts and they converted the money over to muggle currency. She hadn’t even known that the bank offered such services. She and Ron did things the hard way she supposed.







She and Lucius were the last to leave the restaurant. He helped her with her cloak then they walked together back to the alley behind the Leaky Cauldron.







“I will see you home.” Lucius said, wrapping his hand around her arm.







“You don’t need to, I will be fine.” She said.







“It is late, Hermione, I insist.” He said. “However, I am afraid that since I have never been to your home you will have to be the one to apparate us there.” She laughed and with a crack they were standing on her front porch. The house was completely dark and the wards undisturbed. Ron wasn’t home.







“Looks like another night alone.” She said, staring at the darkened windows. She withdrew her keys from her bag and unlocked the door. “Thank you for seeing me home, Lucius, and thank you for dinner.”







“No need to thank me, it was my pleasure. I can not recall the last time I had such a pleasant evening, so it is I who should be thanking you.” He said.







“I enjoyed it too. I will see you tomorrow then?” She asked, reaching inside to flip on the light. She hated walking in to a dark house.







“Of course.” He watched her turn to enter and he stopped her with his hand on her shoulder. “Hermione, Ron is a fool not to see how incredibly lucky he is.”







He withdrew his hand and took a step back then disapparated without saying another word. He had said enough.











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So I got guilted into posting another chapter because it’s a friends birthday and she made me feel bad because I had to miss her party……so…Happy Birthday, Jill, thanks to you I will have updated 4 days in a row to keep on my schedule. LOL







Might as well answer some reviews while I am at it…..





Gertie – The Remus fic is rather dark and intense…not sure what is going on with me and the angst lately LOL It isn’t exceptionally long, about 15 chapters, but he is loping around in my head more and more so I am sure he will come out again soon.







Ithelwin – Thanks for reading! I’m not very fond of Narcissa either, never can seem to write her in a good light…especially not after seeing who they cast, she looks more like Lucius’s mother than his wife. Anyhoo…..







Luci – you asked earlier about the special hunting….they were hunting muggles.







LadyofClunn – amazing how differently people handle things. Me, I am more like Hermione, I cried my tears and ranted and raved and quickly moved through my grief. It is the way I handle every heartbreak that comes my way, I just turn inward, focus on getting it out and moving forward. Others linger in their grief, they seem to enjoy it, to wallow in it. Everyone at their own pace I suppose. Thanks for reading!!





LaBib- You mentioned to me once before that you aren’t a fan of dark fics or too much angst. Generally I am not either, I lean more towards the funny, but for some reason this wasn’t a plot that was easily squashed. I felt great after I finished it so it must have been a way for me to work out my own issues to some degree. I am glad you are reading and enjoying it so far. No, its not beta’d. I have little patience with beta’s and haven’t had much luck with them, they take too long to get my work back to me or they go in and try to change the plot to fit their own literary aesthetic and I don’t like that….so pretty much it gets read through a few times, run through spell check, run through grammar check, read through again and if I miss things(which I always do) I either catch it later or someone will let me know.





Carha – thank you =)





Nightqueen – thanks so much!! I always love it when people try to look deeper into the story and see all of the underlying emotion going on.