Thanks a lot for the reviews, they were much appreciated and gave me the motivation to write this new chapter ^^

I hope you'll enjoy this chapter.

After saying her farewells to Severus, Petunia had gone back to her regular life. She went to school, talked and laughed with her friends, despaired at the happiness her parents demonstrated every time Lily sent a letter and Severus Snape became little more than a nice memory. He was on her mind, but hidden in a corner. Sometimes, mostly when Lily's letters arrived, the boy would float into her thoughts and she would feel a pang of sadness. Severus never wrote. He didn't come back for Christmas holidays or any other for that matter. It was as if that summer they had become friends of sorts had been a long dream and she was now forced back into reality with the memory of the dream slowly fading into oblivion.

Petunia had never been a very expressive girl. She scarcely smiled and her face appeared frozen in a cold mask. Few people could see passed her apparent cold-heartedness and discover the caring girl hidden behind. In fact, no one seemed to see that side of her. Not even Petunia herself. She had grown so accustomed to people saying she was cold, harsh, plain and even mean, that she had started thinking that way herself.

When winter came and there had still not been any news of Severus, the cold wind seemed to blow not only in the streets but also in her heart. It was that winter that she had a first big row with her younger sister. It had been a silly fight, so silly that she couldn't remember what it had been about a few weeks afterwards. Nonetheless, the house had shook with their angered cries until Lily, face red and eyes blazing with green fire, had had the last word.

"YOU'RE JUST JEALOUS BECAUSE YOU'LL NEVER BE AS PRETTY OR SMART AS ME." she had screamed. "YOU'RE JUST A STUPID MUGGLE!"

Petunia had been speechless. Her blue eyes had shone with tears as she turned around and started climbing the stairs towards her room. As she slowly went up, her mouth clenched and her lower lip trembling, a lone tear had run down her porcelain white cheek.

Behind her, Lily had frozen at her own words. With a shocked expression she had tried to call her sister back.

"I…I didn't mean it, Tuney! I really didn't!" she was crying as well, as she apologized for her words in a quavering voice. "I'm sorry Tuney. I didn't mean to say it."

Upstairs, Petunia shut her bedroom door quietly. Once in the safety of her room she sunk to the floor and sobbed in silence.

Lily had gone back to school the next day without another passing between the two sisters. When Lily went to Petunia to say goodbye she was confronted to an unreadable mask of tone and eyes as cold as ice. Lily had bitten her lower lip and looked down.

"Bye Tuney." she had whispered before turning around and running to the car in which her parents were already waiting.

Spring had been uneventful. And soon, summer came once again.

Petunia didn't look forward to the summer that year. In fact, she didn't remember its exact significance until the schoolbell rung for the last time and the teacher wished them all a good summer holyday while joyful squeals erupted around the classroom. Summer, she thought. Severus.

That night, she could barely sleep so impatient was she to make her way to Spinner's End. She turned and tossed in her bed for hours before sinking into a dreamless sleep.

The next morning, she opened her eyes to a bright sunny day. She jumped out of bed and started preparing herself for her visit at her friend's house. When she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror she was surprised to not see the sour, unhappy girl she had gotten used to being over the last months. Her cheeks were faintly flushed, and her blue eyes were bright with excitement. She smiled at herself as she thought that that summer hadn't been a dream after all. The rest of the year had been. She had been sleeping for such a long time and now she was waking up.

She spun happily in a very un-Petuniaish way, before opening her desk drawer. Inside was the key given to her by Severus when he had left the previous summer. She picked it up delicately and gazed at it fondly before placing it carefully in her pocket. She grabbed a bag and some money before setting off. Severus wouldn't be there yet. He and Lily came back by train and they would arrive at King's Cross station in the afternoon. It gave her enough time to clean the house and prepare the boy's supper.

There was a spring in her steps as she made her way down the street. By the time she arrived at the house she had made a detailed schedule of her day in her mind and was ready to get started. She had a moment of apprehension when she put the key in the lock. Suppose Mr. Snape hadn't left yet? She was relieved to see the door had been locked. She quickly and silently checked the inside of the house just in case but it was empty. Relief briefly washed over the girl before puzzlement settled.

For some reason the house seemed strange. It wasn't just empty. It looked abandoned. Frowning she inspected the sitting room in which she was standing. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary she made her way into the kitchen. Her gaze travelled around the room without finding any clue. The room was empty save from the normal kitchenware one expected to find in a kitchen. Then, it struck her. Severus' father usually left an envelope with money on the kitchen table for the boy's expenses during summer. There was no such envelope now. With her sudden discovery, Petunia jumped into action. She grabbed the fridge's door handle and swung it open. The very few ingredients she had left in there last summer had not moved, though they had long gone to waste. She quickly threw the lot into the bin and went to inspect the rest of the house. The rooms looked unused and a thick layer of dust covered every piece of furniture in the house.

Petunia shut her eyes and took a deep breath. Mr. Snape had never come back to the house and she didn't know whether that was good news or not.