I was never one of those crazy Draco fangirls. I liked his character and found him essential to the series, but I was never OMG!Draco!Love. lol, although I honestly think I lot of that was brought on by young Tom Felton.Draco was that snarky, nasty, hatable character. There always is one, and in Harry Potter its him. He couldn't really be anything else - saying that, he could actually. Sirius had the guts to make his own choices, for instance.
Son of Lucius Malfoy and Narcissa Malfoy Black, Draco is the only offspring of a pure-blood lineage. His family is rich and powerful and seem to have friends in all the right places. He was brought up to believe that pure-blood wizards were superior - half-bloods somewhat tolerable - but Muggles and Muggleborns were worthless. His father is a Death Eater, still loyal to Voldemort. He was arrested at the end of the First Wizarding War, but believing Voldemort ot be no more, he claimed to have been under the Imperius Curse and denied any affiliation with the Dark Lord.
Lucius Malfoy was cleared of charges and resumed his activities as a respectable member of the Wizarding world. When Voldemort came back to power, Malfoy re-joined him, but, leading a team of Death Eaters, he is arrested and sent to Azkaban - a prison from which he does not seem in a rush to get out of, fearing Voldemort's revenge.
But Voldemort did not await for Lucius' return and turned to his sixteen-year-old son to complete his father's oath. Voldemort demands that he find a way to allow an army of Death Eaters to enter Hogwarts and that he, Draco kill Dumbledore.
Now here is where it all starts to go downhill...
In the first book, Malfoy boasts around about his father, but in CoS it becomes clear that Draco isn't all that in his father's eye. Lucius comments on how Hermione out-wits him in every class. He later attends Draco's first Quidditch game, but seems totally unimpressed by his son's performance. Whilst Draco is gifted on many fronts, he does not excel as his father wishes he would and I think that he's whole turn to the Dark Side is related to this. He is desperate to prove himself to his father, seeking his respect and pride. On the other hand, his mother seems to love him dearly. And Voldemort apparently threatened to kill him, his mother and his father if he did not obey.
It is also hinted that Draco has become a Death Eater - well, at least Harry is convinced, although no one else seems to think Voldemort would recruit a sixteen-year-old and not fully trained wizard into his ranks.By accepting Voldemort's demands, Draco becomes one of the bad guys of this book, but that just doesn't seem right to me.
Draco has never been a nice guy, but he was just a stupid teenager who though he was better than everyone else, not a badass super-villain. He was also depicted as weak and coward, and what in a few months he's turned into a wannabee killer? I don't know, it just didn't seem to 'click' in my mind.
Also, I missed the old Draco. Bragging about his family and his forture, going around hexing people in the back (typically Harry actually), making snide comments about Hermione's teeth, fleeing in terror and bouncing up and down after being transfigured into a ferret (Best. Moment. Ever. btw). - well we did catch a little of that Draco early in the book, whenhe brags to his fellow Slytherins on the train and when he triesto get into Slughorn's good books.
But as I got further into HBP, I grew to dislike Draco. He lost all personality, just becoming a snappy shadow, and in the scene with Dumbledore, I honestly found him pathetic. He turn to evil was just not interesting and I wish he had died then and ther, it would have been a somewhat decent end to the character.
I have no speculations whatsoever on what J.K.R. will do with him, and honestly - I don't care. His character assasination is complete for me anyway.
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