Chapter 10- The Aftermath

Harry knew he shouldn't have reacted the way that he did however he was beyond frustrated with Hermione for letting Draco play her like that. There was no doubt in his mind Draco wanted her for himself and make Harry look like a fool in the process but his wife was incapable of seeing through his antics. And now she's gone. Harry buried his face in his hands and slouched over. His marriage could be over before it really got a chance to begin and he was partly to blame for it. He heard a knock on the door and went to open it to find Sirius Remus and Ron waiting on the other side.

"Hey Harry! Where the hell have you been? We figured we'd drop by to check on you and perhaps steal you from Hermione for a boys night out" said Sirius.

"Come on in guys. Make yourself at home. Hermione isn't home and won't be for a while I'm guessing" he said in a depressed tone.

It didn't take a genius to figure out Harry was in the dog house so it was Ron who first broached the subject. "Is everything ok between you two?"

"It's a long story but basically Malfoy has an eye for Hermione and I may have said some things about people talking about the two of them and forbade her to see him" said Harry while running a hand through his messy hair. As he spoke he realized what a colossal mistake he made, he should have trusted his wife and not pushed her to take a stance. She was very independent alright but that's also one of the many reasons why he loved her.

"Guys I love her and I need to get her back. I'm willing to do anything to get her to trust me again and forgive me for the things I've said" he finished.

"Harry clearly you feel bad about everything that has happened and I feel for you kid but you need to get a hold of your emotions. You can't say what you feel when you feel it. Girls are very sensitive and emotional beings. And regardless of what happens, they are always right. And that's your crash course on dealing with women" finished Sirius.

"God Sirius it's not that black and white when you have a bloke who's not only running against you for the highest job in our land but also happens to have an interest in your wife". Harry felt that the guys just didn't understand him and how he's feeling. Heck he didn't understand why he was feeling the way he was feeling. He was never described as someone who wore his heart on his sleeve and in the past have been known to be somewhat level headed when it came to relationships. If it worked it worked, if it didn't it didn't ... but things changed drastically for him when he met his wife. She has changed him without him knowing and the realization was causing him to be even more anxious.

Harry had been nursing a butter beer in his hands while the guys were having a great time discussing the latest Quidditch standings. He just wanted to go to bed with his wife. Remus noticed and walked over to him.

" I have two words for you Harry, man up! You've been hyper emotional around Hermione and look where that got you. She needs space so give it to her. She will come to you when it's the right time but don't try to force anything. She's a very rational person and is no doubt trying to make sense of everything she's feeling right now. You keep your emotions in check and she will come back running to you. But you've got to be patient and you've got to man up" said Remus.

"Alright I'll try your way for now but I'm giving this 2 weeks and then it's back to old Harry" he replied while finishing his beer.

Meanwhile Hermione checked into a hotel room and was currently sitting on the bed feeling emotionally exhausted. She didn't want her parents to worry if she came back home so she headed straight for a hotel. The receptionist at the hotel immediately recognized her and upgraded her to the presidential suite but looking at all the space in front of her just made her feel more lonely. She knew she was right to challenge Harry about his insinuations about Drace but she also felt that he didn't trust her. Could you blame him silly girl? He's only known you for a few weeks. Trust takes time. But he didn't have to try and control her like that, she's a grown woman who knows how to take care of herself and didn't need a man telling her what to do. The voices in her head were going at it at the moment.

Everything was going well until her charity auction. She's been on edge about the whole Fleur thing and now he's on edge about Draco. She rationalized that it was different with Draco because they used to be friends and they never dated. Harry has nothing to worry about.

After everything was said and done she felt completely lonely and missed his presence. She was already in love with him but didn't want to give into him completely. She didn't know how to. Her emotions kept pouring out of her and she couldn't stop crying. After quite some time she let sleep take her over.

The next day Hermione received a message from her mother reminding her of dinner at her parents tonight. It was more of a welcome-to-the-family party for Harry and there were a few dozen people who were invited. It was a black-tie event and she knew there would be quite a few diplomats, bankers among family there. She totally forgot about it which means Harry also had no idea.

The more pressing issue at hand was that they needed to keep up the charade of being a happy couple. That should be easy, you are happy with him the voice in her head said. Well ok she was happy for the most part but that doesn't negate that fact that they were currently fighting and she was staying at a hotel. She needed to come up with a plan and convince her husband to accompany her to this dinner otherwise they would have their respective families to deal with. She decided it was too early to get family involved.

Plan in hand she walked into the Ministrybod Magic. She was standing in front of the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement office and knocked on the door.

Harry was sitting at it desk after a long and grueling meeting about an international cross collaboration efforts to magical security. It was almost time for his lunch break but today was going to be one of those days where he would likely skip lunch to prepare for his next meeting on Auror Outreach Program. He heard a knock on his door and screamed "Please schedule a meeting with my secretary, busy at the moment!"

"I promise I'll be quick" Hermione entered the office and stated.

Harry was vaguely aware of the door closing and he was too stunned to react. She was the last person he was expecting to see today. Remus' words came to mind and he told himself to man up.

"Hi Míone, I wasn't expecting to see you today. Is everything ok?" He stammered trying to sound as normal as possible.

"Yes everything is ok. I brought you lunch since I figured you would have a busy day ahead and likely not have time for lunch" she said

Harry was shocked. Is this the same woman who had left him last night over a stupid fight? His auror senses kicked in and he was sure there was another reason why she was here. "Thanks Mione. You were right about lunch, I was going to skip it to prepare for another meeting. I do appreciate it but is there something else you need?". Keep it short and cool Harry, said the voice of Remus in his head.

" Well actually there is. I seem to have forgotten that my parents are having a dinner party tonight to welcome you into the family. There will end a few dozen people there and it's a black tie event. I was hoping we could go together" she said.

"Look Hermione I'm really busy here and it's going to be a late night at work for me. I'm going to have to take a rain check, I'm sorry". Harry was a bit angry after last night. She forgot all about the party tonight so why should he go out of his way for her convenience. This was her mess and she needed to clean it up.

Hermione was a bit taken aback by his response. He has always been so accomodating and she could always count on him when she needed him. She thought about her parents' reaction if he didn't come and they would read into it. She was sure of it.

"Harry I'm begging you to go to dinner with me tonight! I'm really sorry that I just realized this and know I'm throwing a wrench into your schedule but if you don't come with me to dinner my parents will think something is wrong in our relationship". Harry cocked an eyebrow so she would know how ironic that was.

"I really don't want to hurt their feelings. They've done so much for us and this would really upset them. I promise I'll do anything you ask me to in return."

Harry could see the hurt in her eyes and he realized he couldn't do this to her. He couldn't act like an asshole with her because this wasn't him. He remembered seeing the sadness in her eyes on their wedding day and promised himself that he would try his best to take the pain away. She didn't have a choice in this marriage but he could choose to be her knight in shining armor.

"Ok fine I'll be there. What time is the party?" he said with a little more gentleness in his voice.

"It starts at 7pm. I'll stop by the house at 7 and we can arrive there together" she implied that pretenses has to be maintained. He was an Auror and figured it out. With that she left him with his lunch so he could get back to work.

Harry started to open the package and the aroma of freshly made chicken Alfredo permeated his office. He dug in and couldn't help but think how amazing Hermione was at taking care of him. She looked so good in her designer dress today. He raked his hand through his hair and wondered just how he much of an effect she had on him.

Author Note: its been a while so I'm very sorry! please review!