Title: Heartbreak
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter
Rating: K
Warnings: N/A
Word Count: 1,028
Prompts:
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry (Challenges & Assignments): Term 5, Myths & Legends: 1.3 - Write about a bride who never ends up getting married, for whatever reasons. Incorporate her wedding dress.
Author's Note: Diverges from canon in that Petunia never meets Vernon.
Summary: Petunia finds something in her attic which dredges up unwelcome memories of the past.

Petunia put her hands on her hips and surveyed the small room, a frown firmly in place on her face. She could have sworn that her winter coat was in the attic but so far it had proved impossible to find. Sighing with frustration, she pulled down yet another suitcase.

Oddly, the case resisted and she stepped forwards, trying to determine what was stopping it from moving. She pulled harder on the handle and felt it finally move. It fell down from it's precarious position atop a stack of boxes with a thud and with it, a heavy piece of fabric, which tumbled down onto Petunia.

She staggered back under the weight of the material, realising too late what it was that she was holding. Quickly she threw the dress away from her and fell to the floor. Her ears were ringing and she was struggling to fill her lungs with air. The room was suddenly too hot and she felt dizzy.

When she finally managed to look up, the white fabric lay in a pile in the floor, taunting her. Petunia shut her eyes tightly but she couldn't escape. The image of the dress remained, as if it had been burnt onto her eyelids. She hadn't even known that the dress was in her attic. At the time, it had been the last thing on her mind.

With a strange fascination, Petunia slowly opened her eyes and crawled forward, reaching out a hand for the soft satin. She ran her fingers along the delicate embroidery, tracing the swirls that decorated the neckline, and gasped as her fingers tapped a button. There were hundreds of buttons down the back of the dress, she remembered, and it had taken Lily forever to do them all up.

At the memory, Petunia let out a sob. She remembered the last time that her fingers had caressed the beautiful material, the last time that she had dared to touch the mesmerising patterns.

Petunia listened to the chatter of voices downstairs fade away as the last of her friends and family got into their cars to drive to the church. She would follow in half an hour- just as soon as Lily finished fastening her buttons. Petunia was beginning to wish that she had picked a dress with a zip. She was growing impatient, eager to get to the church and start the ceremony. She ran a hand through her hair, admiring the way that her usually flat brown hair had been curled and twisted into an elegant style. Finally Lily announced that she was finished, and Petunia was allowed to step towards the large mirror.

Petunia gasped at the sight. She was radiant. The dress was the most beautiful thing that she had ever seen. It flowed down her body, sparkling as tiny diamonds caught the light. She turned to Lily and saw her wonder mirrored on her sister's face.

Quietly, they made their way downstairs and Petunia stepped up into the car where her father was waiting. His eyes glimmered with tears and she smiled proudly while Lily closed the door, murmuring encouragements, before getting into another car with the other bridesmaids.

They didn't talk on the way to the church. Her father sat quietly, watching her and thinking to himself, and that suited Petunia perfectly. The short drive gave her time to imagine everything once more. She must have dreamed of the moment she would walk down the aisle a hundred times since the engagement. She would walk past all her friends and family with a smile on her face, her dress trailing behind her as she stepped over flowers strewn across the church. Justin would be waiting for her at the front of the church, a smile on his face and his hand outstretched.

Her dreaming was interrupted when the car drew to a stop, and she grinned in excitement as her father helped her step down. Together they straightened out her dress and walked towards the church. He had to stoop as they passed under the low doorway and she giggled.

The smile dropped off her face as Lily hurried towards them, a look of panic on her face. Immediately Petunia stepped forwards.

"What is it? Have the flowers not arrived? Has the priest been held up?"

Lily looked around, seeming reluctant to explain. Finally she forced the answer out. "It's Justin."

Petunia looked concerned. "He's not ill?"

"He's not here."

Petunia almost dropped her bouquet. "What do you mean? Call him."

"Derek's tried. No one's spoken to him since this morning."

Petunia craned her head past Lily and noticed the unrest of the gathered crowd. Her relatives had clearly noticed that something was amiss. She could feel their stares, feel the tension in the air.

Petunia breathed in sharply. She had spent years trying to escape that moment. Justin had waited almost twenty minutes after she got to the church to call, leaving her to offer up empty excuses to the guests. Even then he hadn't volunteered any information, only pathetic reasons as he tried to justify why he couldn't go through with the wedding. He had left her to stand up in front of all of their friends and family and tell them that he didn't want to marry her after all.

The shame that she had felt had haunted her since then. She had left town as she couldn't bear to be around their old friends. He had ruined her, made her fear any kind of relationship. Lily had once offered to help, to take away the memories, but Petunia couldn't take the easy way out. If she forgot Justin then she would forget what people were capable of. She would let her guard down, let someone else in, and then they would hurt her again. Never again would she be made to feel so humiliated.

Petunia sighed, folding the beautiful dress in half and dropping it into an empty box. It was the perfect dress, for the perfect bride. It was just a shame that the groom had disagreed.