A/N: This was for the RPS prompt 'fleeting' in the Hermione/Sirius set. This mentions the death of children as well as a main character.
Hermione had been determined to miss the dinner celebrating Harry and Ginny's twenty fifth wedding anniversary, but Sirius had whined and pouted so much she had agreed to just to shut him up.
It wasn't that she had fallen out with the couple; not at all. It was just that they reminded her of everything she had lost.
It was nearly ten years ago now, but the memory of that day was seared into her brain.
She had left Ron and the kids to get things started for the dinner as she had some last minute paperwork she had to get done at the office. When she returned home an hour later it was to a blaze of flames. The Auror's had said that the fire had been set deliberately, and that whoever started it made sure that anyone inside had no way to escape.
None of her family had survived and she had never fully recovered from it.
Sirius had helped her as much as he could by visiting her and trying to make her laugh. Sometimes it would work and she would feel happy, but it would pass as soon as it came.
Their friendship was a mystery to most people, but the both of them knew that their connection was built out of loss and unhappiness, and a desire to comfort the other.
A knock sounded on her door and Hermione rose out of the chair she had been sitting in.
She opened the door to see Sirius standing there in a smart set of robes and a smile on his face.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
"As ready as I will ever be," Hermione replied shutting and locking the door behind her.
It was going to be a long night, but with Sirius beside her, Hermione knew she would get through it alright.