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Draco and Pansy had been best friends since they were eight months old. Their mothers had met for tea and from that point on the two were inseparable. Draco was there when Pansy got her first cat, and Pansy was there when Draco opened his first broom. If they weren't together they were owling each other. There were few other kids that their parents let them play with, and Draco and Pansy both agreed with an eye roll and a laugh that Crabbe and Goyle were too dumb to be very much fun.
The summer before they were supposed to start at Hogwarts, Draco and Pansy were playing hide and seek in Draco’s family’s manor. Draco had been planning on hiding in the parlor, but stopped when he heard Mrs. Parkinson speaking to his mother. He crouched outside, ear pressed to the crack between the doors.
“They're already so cute together,” Mrs. Parkinson gushed, “Is he really trying to teach her how to fly?”
“He is,” Draco’s mother replied proudly, “But remember, they're still young. We have to let them come together on their own.”
“Just imagine, in five years we'll have to pull them apart,” Mrs. Parkinson sighed.
“We already have to pull them apart, but for very different reasons,” Narcissa laughed. “In ten years time, we could be grandmothers.” She paused before saying, “We’re not getting old, are we?”
“Narcissa, you don't look a day over twenty five.”
“Found you!” Pansy shouted, making Draco jump. She slumped against the wall. “You're not even hiding, Draco. You're no fun.”
“Never mind that,” Draco said, “I just heard something you'll want to know. C’mon, let’s go up to my room.”
Draco and Pansy slunk up the stairs to Draco’s room and gently shut the door behind them. Draco turned to Pansy. “So, and I'm not totally sure, but I'm pretty sure I heard our mothers discussing our future marriage.”
“Ew,” Pansy said, “Sorry, Draco, but … ew.”
“Yeah, I love you Pans, but I don't think I want to snog you.”
“And I want to marry someone who I can't beat up.”
“Cannot!”
Pansy jumped on Draco, and in the ensuing tussle both forgot about the looming marriage. That night, when Narcissa was tucking Draco into bed he suddenly remembered.
“Mother, am I only friends with Pansy so I can marry her someday?”
Narcissa sat down next to Draco. “Eavesdropping again?” she asked with one eyebrow raised.
“Not on purpose,” Draco pouted, and Narcissa sighed.
“You are friends with Pansy because you and Pansy get along. Yes, you will marry her someday.”
“Did you have to marry Father?”
“No, I met your father in Hogwarts and fell in love with him then.”
Draco frowned. “What if I meet someone at Hogwarts too? Why can't I marry who I love?”
“You do love Pansy, Draco. You told me yourself. Besides, my mother arranged Aunt Bella’s marriage. It's always the oldest child. And you're my one and only Draco.”
“But why?”
Narcissa leaned in to kiss Draco’s forehead. “Because mother knows best. Goodnight Draco.” She stood up and extinguished Draco’s lantern before leaving the room. Draco tossed and turned in his sleep, unable to imagine a future with Pansy as his wife.