Distant Memories; A Draco Malfoy love story.

Prologue.

"Sloane, you are to be on your best behavior. Do you understand me?" Mother warned, holding my chin between her thumb and index finger.

I nodded in agreement, though not entirely sure as to where we were going or why I had to behave my best. The night before, I had overheard her and Father discussing a visit with old friends who had a son my age, but there had also been mention of it being risky considering their "status." Of course, at the innocent age of nine-years-old, I had no clue what that meant.

Mother, Father, and I huddled into our fireplace, their arms wrapped securely around me.

"Malfoy Manor." Father said, tossing down a handful of Floo Powder.

When the green flames died down, I noticed the change of scenery. We were no longer in our own manor, but a much larger, much darker one. A man and woman greeted us on the other side. The man was tall and dressed in extravagant black and emerald robes. He had long white blond hair, grey eyes, and a stony expression. The woman was a few inches shorter than him, with perfectly styled black and blonde hair, endless dark eyes, and blood red lips. She was decorated with fancy emerald green robes and stood slightly behind her husband. Her expression was also stony, but it warmed for a brief moment when she laid eyes on me.

"Oh, Delilah, she is lovely." The woman rushed to me and wrapped me in a tight hug. "Our Draco will adore her."

"Frederick," The man addressed my father, his voice cool and calculating. "Come, we have much to discuss."

They disappeared to another room.

The woman knelt down to my height and smiled, "Hello, dear, my name is Narcissa."

"Hello," I smiled, "I'm Sloane."

"I know," She winked at me, "Draco is just one floor up in his room. Why don't you run along and find him while your mother and I catch up?"

I giggled and nodded, racing without hesitation up the spiral staircase to the next floor. Everything was dimly lit and dominantly grey stone, far less colorful than my home. There were several doors, and I found myself lost, unsure of which one to open.

"H-hello?" I called.

No response.

"Hello?" I called again, wandering the hall. "Draco?"

Finally a door opened and a boy my age stepped out. He was somewhat taller than me and had pale blond hair, slicked completely back. His thin face was accented with grey eyes like his father's, and a sneer that made my stomach turn nervously. He was wearing a green sweater and black slacks, but his feet were bare.

"Who are you?" He asked bluntly.

"I'm Sloane?" I offered an awkward smile. "We're meant to be friends?"

Draco seemed hesitant to allow me into his room, as if it contained the grandest of secrets, but after a few moments of strained conversation, he invited me through the doorway.

"Are you going to Hogwarts?" He asked me.

"In a couple years," I shrugged, looking around at his room. It seemed boring for a kid's room. Everything was emerald, grey, and black. Slytherin posters adorned the walls, I couldn't see any toys, and there weren't very many books on his small bookshelf.

"Me too." He perched himself on the edge of his four poster bed that looked like it should belong to an adult, not a nine-year-old boy.

"I'm guessing you'll be sorted into Slytherin?" I giggled.

"Won't you?" He snapped, turning to see a disgruntled look on his face.

"I suppose so. Mummy and Daddy were in Slytherin."

"Are you a Pure Blood?"

Something about that question froze me. Of course I was a "Pure Blood", but I had never been asked that before, and it felt... wrong?

"Y-yes."

He hopped off his bed and walked over to me, "Then I reckon you'll be in Slytherin after all."

"We should build a fort!" I exclaimed suddenly, wanting to change the subject.

Draco's pale brows knitted together and his lips curled into a frown. "That's for children."

I snorted and rolled my eyes, "Well, lucky for us, we're children."

His lips twitched up into a tiny smile, as if he didn't want to give away his amusement, and he stared at me a couple seconds before agreeing. We built a fort out of blankets and pillows and settled into it. At first, we sat in silence, but a few hours later, we were telling scary stories and laughing at each other's jokes.

"What do you think our parents are talking about?" He asked.

I shrugged, picking at the corner of a pillow. "I dunno. All I was told was to be on my best behavior."

Draco smiled brightly, the first true smile since I'd arrived. "I hate when my parents tell me to do that."

It seemed like several hours had passed before my parents came to retrieve me, and I found myself sad at the thought of having to leave Draco. As the Malfoys walked us to their fireplace, Draco extended a hand in my direction.

"It was a pleasure." He smirked, waiting for me to shake his hand.

I slapped his hand away and slung my arms around his neck. He went rigid for a moment—had he never been hugged before?—but he soon warmed up to the idea and wrapped his arms around me in return.

"See you soon!" I beamed and hopped back into the fireplace with Mother and Father.

Months went by, and I hadn't been back to Draco's. I had to cry and beg before my parents caved and planned another visit to the Malfoy Manor. That year, our families ended up spending Christmas together, and the next year we saw each other multiple times. It became so frequent that I had no other choice but to consider Draco my best—and only—friend.

Our second Christmas together, Draco got me a gift.

"He wrapped it himself," Narcissa smiled proudly as Draco handed me the small present, poorly wrapped in shiny green paper.

I ripped it open. Inside was a square jewelry box. I pulled off the lid and saw a bracelet, braided together with emerald green and silver thread.

"You made this?" I asked Draco.

His cheeks turned pink as he gave a slight nod.

"Funny." I said. His head shot up and he looked at me in panic, pure embarrassment possessing his expression.

"Funny?!" He bit, "How is it funny?!"

I reached in my pocket and handed the contents to Draco.

He took it and looked at his palm. In it was a similar braided emerald and silver bracelet, but I had left it unwrapped.

"It looks almost exactly like the one I made," He said incredulously. "How did you know?"

"I didn't." I grinned. "Friendship bracelets?"

We tied the bracelets around each other's wrists, and promised that Christmas to be friends forever.

— — —

A/N: Hi! So this is just the prologue to briefly introduce Draco and Sloane's history, so it is very short. Chapter one will cover all of year one at Hogwarts, and is reallllyyyyy lengthy. Year two through four will most likely be a tiny bit shorter, because the real crazy stuff wont happen until five through seven, as I'm sure you can imagine. This collection will only be about their Hogwarts years, but if it goes well or if I feel so inspired, I'll make a sequel.

Xoxo,
Autumn Red.