The Balloon
During his childhood Severus Snape had only ever been to one birthday party. It had been the seventh birthday party of Lily Evans.
When the invitation had come, his mother had been livid. She had forbid him from going. Snape feared his mother, but even as a child his devotion to Lily was stronger than anything else. He was determined to go.
That afternoon, Severus climbed out of his widow and slid down the eavestrough to the garden. He ran quickly and slid through the broken peg in the high fence that surrounded the Snape's property, all the while glancing behind him, afraid of being caught.
When he reached his best friend's door Severus smoothed his hair and clothing, took a deep breath, and rang the bell. He was terrified. He had never had any friends other than Lily. Surely these muggles would not like him. Surely they would tease him and laugh, like his mother did.
Lily's mother greeted the young boy at the door with a hug. Snape struggled to stay calm. He was not used to being touched. Mrs. Evans then led Snape to the backyard.
As soon as he entered the small, fenced in yard, Lily shrieked with delight.
"Sev! You came!" she smiled, skipping over to meet him.
Of course he had come. This was definitely worth the deceit.
"Happy birthday Lily," he smiled kindly.
"Thanks!" the redhead blushed.
Then the two began to play. To his surprise, Severus found himself enjoying the company of Lily's other friends. They laughed together and enjoyed dinner and birthday cake. Sev even joined in an off-key rendition of 'Happy Birthday'.
The party was almost over when Lily approached with a pair of scissors in her hand.
"Hey Sev, do you want a balloon?" she asked.
Severus was confused. "A balloon?"
Lily raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, you know, one of those?" she asked, pointing to a colourful sphere that seemed to be floating in mid-air.
"Um… Sure," Severus replied apprehensively.
Lily smiled and reached up to cut one loose from the bunch.
"Make sure you hold on tight, so it doesn't fly away!" she warned before handing him the bright yellow balloon.
Sev vowed to hold the string tighter than he had ever held anything before.
Too soon, the party ended and Severus returned home, the balloon in hand. He climbed back up the eavestrough and through his bedroom window. He then stashed the balloon in the back of his closet and went to sleep.
His mother never suspected a thing.
The next morning Sev woke and immediately went to check on his balloon, hoping the exchange had not been a dream.
Sure enough, there it was behind his clothes. It was beautiful, Severus thought. He heard footsteps approaching his room and quickly shoved the balloon deeper into the closet and quietly shut the door.
That night when Severus returned home he ran straight upstairs to find the balloon.
He looked and he looked, but could not find the yellow orb. Then, he noticed a yellow oval of plastic on the floor. It was the balloon.
The balloon was dead. Severus' eyes filled with tears. Why had this happened?
He carefully picked up the deflated balloon and placed it in an advanced potions textbook his mother had insisted he would one day need.
Years later, Severus Snape would find the balloon and remember the first gift his love had ever given to him. Unfortunately, it had also been the last.
For the prompt of the day "balloon" at the Hogwarts Online forum. Thanks for reading, please review!