Petunia stared out at her sister and a skinny boy from behind a bush in a run-down park. The skies were filled with warning clouds; the day was grey. The boy, who was talking to her sister, shivered. Though it was a cold day and it had been cold for weeks Petunia had never seen the boy with a sweater. All the better for her revenge. She smiled as she looked at the two filled-to-bursting water balloons at her side.
She and Lily had always been best friends. Lily had been born when Petunia was two and since then Petunia hadn't let Lily out of her sight. Even when she had moved to secondary school this year, leaving Lily in the primary, she had always met with Lily after school ended.
And now Lily had met this Severus boy. Instead of meeting Petunia after school Lily would run home, rush through her homework and go out to the park to meet him. Lily's other friends from school whose houses she had gone to a few times had made Petunia jealous. But Lily always returned home ready to be with Petunia. Now she came home only just in time for tea.
Petunia had tried to convince Lily to leave the Severus boy but Lily had refused. In one case, violently. Her mother had talked to her then. Had said things about how it was good for Lily to make new friends and Petunia should try to make some friends in her new school, too.
So Petunia had left things alone. Until now. Now she was going to exact her revenge-not only on the Severus boy for taking Lily away, but also on Lily herself for leaving her. She picked up the water balloons and stepped out from behind the bush.
The Severus boy turned his head immediately at the sound and received a water balloon in his face for his trouble. Lily jumped up.
"Hey! Pe-" Her angry words were cut off by the second water balloon landing on her chest. Then Petunia ran back to her house and hid in her and Lily's room.
A minute later she heard the front door being opened and Lily calling for their mother in a voice that still sounded angry. "Mum, look what Petunia did to me and Sev. She's just horrid!"
Petunia heard their mother come into the front hallway and say something. Then she heard the kitchen door being opened and closed again and her mother's footsteps on the stairs. Her mother entered the room and, saying nothing to Petunia, took out a new shirt for Lily.
After a while Petunia heard her mother's footsteps on the stairs again. She came in the room and sat on the bed next to Petunia.
"Petunia-"
"Mum, I hate them! Since Lily met that Severus boy she never spends any time with me anymore!"
"Petunia, I understand-"
"So I'm not going to be punished?" This was said in the most pitiful voice Petunia could manage. Her mother laughed.
"No, you are. But I do understand. I didn't say you were right, but when I was a little girl my best friend found a new friend, too. I was very jealous and I tried every way I could think of to make my best friend come back to me. Finally, I knocked her new friend over with my bike. My best friend became very mad at me and wouldn't speak to me. I realized that I had ruined our friendship. But you can go apologise to Lily and Severus."
Petunia shook her head. For her it was either best friends or no friends. And that was that.
Challenges: The Lolita Challenge, Journey Through Hogwarts, Arithmancy Classroom
Prompts: Write about catching something or someone. Alternatively, write about possessiveness; grey, warning, "I didn't say you were right", 500-600 words (612); Write about someone being a third-wheel to a party of two.
