It had started the day he showed up at her door, having snuck out of Hogwarts to give her an invitation for Lily's birthday that James wanted to celebrate at Hogsmeade, unbeknowest to the teachers, of course. She knew who he was; Lily had told her about Peter Pettigrew.
She told him she wouldn't make the celebrations, despite his offer of a portkey, and they stood awkwardly staring at each other for a while before she asked him to write to her about how the party went, though she hardly really cared about Lily's birthday. He nodded, smiling.
One letter had soon led to many more, and before she knew it, he was more than just "Lily's friend". He now knew more about her than anyone else did, even though they rarely saw each other. She had even told him how she really felt about Lily, and much to her surprise, he had agreed with her. She laughed and cried over his letters, as he did over hers, and somewhere along the way, she'd told him she loved him. His reply, which had come a week later than usual, was full of reasons about why loving him was a mistake, but had ended with a note that her feelings were not one sided.
Lily was dead. Gone. She looked at the baby in her arms with pure hatred. The old man who had handed her nephew to her seemed rather mad and had hardly told her anything. She detested him, for dumping the news on her. She detested Peter, for suddenly cutting off all contact. She detested Harry, for staying alive while Lily was dead. But most of all, she detested herself.
A knock at the door broke her train of thought. She opened it, and suddenly, there she was again, staring at Peter like all those years ago. Before she could even open her mouth, he spoke.
"I told the Dark Lord where Lily was."
His words sent chills down her spine.
"I did it for you," he continued.
She stared at him in disbelief.
"But they all think I'm dead now, and I need a place to hide. I can live here as a rat if you-"
"How. Dare. You." Her voice was icy cold, and he shivered. "You have the nerve to kill my sister-"
"Well, I didn't really kill her..."
"LEAVE!" She shut the door on his face with a bang.
Peter Pettigrew was dead to the world, was he? Well, he was dead to her too.
Notes: For the Pairing the Character Competition (Petunia/Peter)
Also for the Cruel and Unusual Pairing Challenge.