Draco Malfoy

Draco Malfoy is a pure-blood wizard. He attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from 1991-1998, where he was sorted into Slytherin house. He is the youngest person ever to have been inducted to the ranks of the Death Eaters, having received the brand in his sixth year at the age of sixteen.

Appearance
The man is elitism made human. Draco is reasonably tall (6'1" / 1.85 m) and rather lean (150 lb / 68 kg), not overly muscular yet not by any means frail. He has his family's trademark white-blonde hair, which he keeps a bit longer these days- generally it hangs a bit into his face rather than staying perfectly trim, however for the most part he keeps it styled and out of the way when he's out. He has a way of making you feel inferiour just by looking at you, a sort of haughtiness that is only fully understood (or executed, for that matter) by the aristocratic. His eyes are a cool grey and have an accusatory way about them, which isn't helped by the fact that they're generally narrowed. Nose is slightly pointed, mouth generally drawn into a scowl. He has a few faint scars across his chest from his run-in with Potter during his sixth year; his left forearm bears the Dark Mark; his right wrist has the words "easy is the way".

In terms of style of dress, Draco aims to always appear refined and polished. He's quite fashionable, much as he loathes to admit it. He keeps up with what's in, but hates the new hippie-indie movement that seems to have hit America and the mismatched 80's influences that seem to be big with the very young and very tasteless. Instead, he prefers the more clean-cut side of things, opting for nicely cut clothes that look like he actually tried rather than just rolled out of bed to face the world. Tailored trousers, well-fitting jeans, pinstripes, button-down shirts and fitted blazers. Etc.

Personality
Draco Abraxas Malfoy is seen by many as a thorn in their side: he's haughty, he's judgmental, and if he establishes the slightest of details that indicate someone's inferiority, he has a tendency to put up a wall and give a very cold shoulder. He's arrogant, he's elitist, and yes, he has been known to make people feel inferior without their consent. He's snide, has one of the biggest egos of anyone you will ever meet, and is incredibly cold to those he doesn't think worthy of his time.

In actuality, Draco isn't nearly as one-sided as most of his contemporaries will believe. In the years following the war he's learned that he can't be as closed off or as harsh as he was in his youth, at least not without attracting incredible scrutiny from the entire wizarding world. He's still as untrusting and arrogant as ever, but now he doesn't have the liberty of outwardly judging people based on their blood-status or where their sympathies lie. He's compartmentalized his resentments and judgments and though they still impact his ultimate opinions on people- and more importantly how he reacts to them- they're more often reserved to internal commentary of late. This doesn't mean they're no longer a part of who he is, he's just making a concerted effort to maintain the public belief that he's past his prejudices. In some ways he's much more reserved now than he was at Hogwarts- whereas at school he might've picked a fight just for the sake of provoking someone, nowadays he reserves his really nasty comments for a select few people that he can't help but taunt.

Since Hogwarts- and the War, for that matter- Draco really has finally grown up. His involvement in the War was too much for him to handle at seventeen, but the continuing ripple effect caused by the events of the War, as well as the repercussions it had for his family, helped harden him, steel him to the fact that in order to protect himself and the people he truly cares for he can't be afraid to act. Though he's not often provoked to take physical action, he's no longer so quick to run from a fight these days. Many times in the past he's found himself with his hand on his wand and a curse on his lips, but generally he wages a verbal assault on those who provoke him rather than a physical one. The capability is there- he's a war-hardened Draco, one who would have considerably fewer qualms about making direct physical attacks- but also the understanding that he can't constantly let things come to blows if he wants to maintain his still very uneasy status as a Reformed Member of the Community.

That's not to say, in any regard, that he's forgotten his pre-war prejudices. He still holds blood-status in high regard and has little love for mudbloods and blood traitors. He still can't stand Potty and the Weasel. And he hates the way that those who were vocal about blood-status during and before the War are still now treated by some as second-class citizens by a community that has claimed to move past its former rifts- though he loves when people feel the need to make a scene over it. There's a lot of resentment built into the Draco that's evolved out of the War, but it finds its way out in bursts of sarcasm and frequent bitter quips.

The private Draco is considerably less standoffish than the public one. With those he counts among his friends, Draco may not necessarily take down the wall he's constructed- but he is a lot more relaxed. Not everything he says is meant to be abrasive, and the insults he dishes, though still harsh, are understood to be taken in stride as just part of how he operates. He's quick witted and clever, and if the world went entirely his way everyone would communicate through quips and banter. He is, once someone is deemed worthy, extremely protective of his own and will, with the proper provocation, spring directly to their defense. He takes a dominant role in his personal relationships, working better as a leader among a social crowd rather than a follower. Even with regards to his own crowd he's never particularly warm- but he eventually thaws to somewhere around room-temperature at a point. With time the limitations on those Draco will accept into his own circle have expanded, largely with help from his involvement with the Quidditch circuit.

He's driven, almost manically so at times. Originally this stemmed from a need to impress his father, but over the years it's grown into a bitter, more personal motivation. Now instead of wanting to please his father he has concluded it would be more impressive to surpass him; he's spent the years of his life following his Hogwarts graduation working towards this- and in the process proving truly how spiteful he can be. He went for professional Quidditch as a means of attaining personal success in a manner that went directly against his father's Ministry-based expectations of him; he defied his parents' wishes for him to make a pure-blood marriage right off the bat and instead picks and chooses his own conquests (having no intention at present to marry for a good few years, at least.) He's gained reputation as well as a hefty bank account as a result of his efforts and, if he says so himself, has been quite successful.

As of right now, he hasn't reached the status of Reform that would make him comfortable breaking bread with his enemies- be they from his days at school or the time of the war. But slowly he's coming to terms with the fact that he can't hold his grudges forever, as much as he's clinging to the fact that he can.

Personality Grab-Bag
LIKES: Classical music (he's very into Tchaikovsky), worn books, old Scotch, the looks people give him when they remember whose side he fought on during the war, the colour green, hand-rolled cigarettes, fine cotton, Earl Gray tea, the sound of a ticking clock in an otherwise quiet room, flying. DISLIKES: Cats, people who are too righteous for their own good, cheap liquor, authors who churn out books every month, polyester, herbal teas, by and large modern music, the colour orange, white wine, people who take too many photographs, being told he's wrong. STRENGTHS: His incredible self-preservation, quickness with a wand, a newly-gained thicker skin, his cunning nature, a certain craftiness at escaping blame, the refinement learned from his genteel upbringing. Potions, Transfiguration, the Dark Arts, Occlumency, and flying. WEAKNESSES: His caustic nature and talent for pushing verbal altercations too far, his blinding need to succeed for the sake of his family's name, and (though he doesn't see it as such) his blindness towards the new way of things and his stubborn reluctance to change to meet it. Charms, Divination, Defence, protective and healing magic. MIRROR OF ERISED: He sees himself sitting in his father's study, having surpassed him in all regards and taken the Malfoy name to new heights. PATRONUS: An eagle, though it is at times weak as he's had trouble mastering the charm. BOGGART: Someone bearing the news he's failed utterly and dishonoured his family name.

History
Draco Abraxas Malfoy was born and raised in one of the last remaining "true" pureblooded families. He led a spoiled youth, rarely wanting for anything- toys, broomsticks, whatever he could think to ask for. From an early age he was instilled with the family's values: the superiority of pureblood wizards, the hatred of Muggles, and the prejudice against supporters of Muggle and Muggle-born rights. As the son of a Death Eater, it was only inevitable for the son to inherit the views of the father. For the first ten years of his life he was taught at home, his mother having arranged for several well-recommended tutors to teach him the basics without ever having to leave Malfoy Manor. His parents stayed in touch with other "good" pureblooded families, many of them former Death Eaters, and Draco quickly made friends among their children.

His Hogwarts letter came in tandem with one from Durmstrang. Draco's mother wanted him to stay in the country, go to Hogwarts like both his parents had, get a solid education from a reputable institution and still be close enough to home. His father vied for Durmstrang, where Draco would get more of an education in the Dark Arts- which Lucius had always held in a higher regard. Eventually his mother won out- likely through a combination of subtle hints that Draco was too young to fully understand and gentle pleading on his behalf.

At Hogwarts
Draco, only slightly dissatisfied with the situation, headed off to Hogwarts with the rest of his future classmates. Though his attitude fit right in among those students who would become Slytherins, it won him few friends with many of the other students- most notably Harry Potter, with whom a small series of confrontations and disparaging remarks about blood-status set the stage for a longstanding rivalry between the two that, after duels, challenges in lessons, and a constant hurling of insults from both parties, grew steadily throughout their first year. Despite all the tension caused by inter-house quarreling, Draco finished his year with enough distinction to earn approval from his father and was, by the end of the year, content enough with life at Hogwarts to agree to return in the fall.

Things only continued to intensify as the years went on. In his second year Draco was made Seeker for the Slytherin Quidditch team, a position that put him in a directly competitive role with Potter- now they wouldn't just have lessons in which to face off, but Quidditch matches as well. Third year brought more opportunities when the oafish gamekeeper Hagrid, a friend of Potter's, was made a professor; Draco, in retaliation, used some of his best tricks in an attempt to get the man removed from his post. Fourth year brought the Triwizard Tournament, for which of course Potter was selected as the unexpected fourth champion. Draco did his best to stir up opposition against Potter as a secondary Hogwarts champion (admittedly a very easy task based on the already brewing discontent over how he came to enter the tournament in the first place.) Fifth year gave him something to truly lord over Potter's head- a Prefect badge and, under the newly instated Professor Umbridge, membership of the Inquisitorial Squad, whose shining moment was the takedown of Potter's underground defense group.

Draco's school years were however not, by any stretch of the imagination, defined by his rivalry with Harry Potter. Within the Slytherin social ranks he was able to rise quickly, emerging as the well-liked leader of his little gang and earning increasing status as the years went on. Rumours flew through the common room about his various trysts- one in particular with a younger Ravenclaw girl gained him particular attention. He was successful in scholastic endeavours as well, maintaining status as one of the higher-ranked students in his year for much of his Hogwarts career. He earned O.W.L.s in Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Charms, Transfiguration, Astronomy, and Ancient Runes; he went on to take N.E.W.T level courses in all except for Charms and Astronomy. He would eventually take his N.E.W.T exams following the war, earning certifications across the board.

It was in his sixth year that things started to take a dangerous turn for Draco. Following the events of the failed Ministry break in the year before, his father was sent to Azkaban on charges of treason. The newly-risen Dark Lord decided, likely as punishment for Lucius' failings, that Draco should be the one to carry out that most impossible of tasks: the murder of Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts and the only man the Dark Lord saw as a worthy enemy. A secretly terrified Draco put on his bravest face as he was branded the youngest of the Death Eaters, knowing full well if he failed he and his family would pay the ultimate cost. Unbeknownst to Draco, his mother made the Unbreakable Vow with Severus Snape, head of Slytherin house and, as far as all were concerned, Death Eater spying for the Dark Lord: should Draco be unable to complete that which had been tasked to him, Severus was to complete it in his stead- in addition to offering guidance to Draco through his attempts.

Draco did not take kindly to Snape's efforts to help. He had become a much more closed off person in the wake of his new assignment, and had taken his task as something that he had to complete on his own. Something he could use to prove himself not only to his father, but to the Dark Lord. He thought that committing such a high-profile murder would be enough to gain him power and respect among those he viewed to be in a class above the rest, and he was fiercely determined to achieve it. As the year went on, however, Draco became more and more worrisome about whether or not he would actually be able to succeed: after numerous failed attempts, it was beginning to look like Dumbledore was truly invincible, and Draco and his family were drawing closer to facing the Dark Lord's wrath.

He finally had success as the year drew to a close. The infamous vanishing cabinet, stored for safekeeping in the Room of Requirement, was actually part of a matched set- between which a passageway formed. Once the cabinet was repaired and the passage reestablished, Death Eaters were able to infiltrate the castle and trap Dumbledore on one of the higher towers. Draco disarmed him and was prepared to finish the job he had worked so hard to achieve- but he found himself unable to utter the words of the Killing Curse. Instead it was Snape who killed Dumbledore, and the successful Death Eaters fled the castle.

The Second Wizarding War and Antebellum
Draco was one of the few students to return to Hogwarts for the 1997-1998 term. The Hogwarts of his seventh year was very unlike the one he had known before- Snape had taken the Headmaster position, Death Eaters were instituted as professors, and he finally got the wish he'd been vocal about for the past six years: Dark Arts was finally on the timetable. However now Draco's life had a shadow over it. The Dark Lord hadn't killed him for his moment of indecision on the tower, but he'd taken out his punishment in a much crueller way: Malfoy Manor was made the headquarters of his operations, and Draco was made to torture various witches and wizards of lesser blood-status merely on the Dark Lord's whim. It was during this last year that Draco began to find himself turning from the side of the Death Eaters, his enthusiasm in their cause more and more half-hearted.

Following the second Battle of Hogwarts, the Malfoy family was partially pardoned for their actions, having been found to have rebelled against the Dark Lord in the Battle itself and the preceding weeks. (Lucius was still tried, as his hand was heavier in the actions of the war, and was charged with a second count of treason and sent once again to Azkaban.) Though despite their status legally, the Malfoys were still looked down upon, as their actions during the War were incredibly well known and most resented the easy absolution they had received. The bitter Malfoys did little to help the situation, and in fact carried on much the same way they had before the War. The family still indulged in all the luxuries they had before the war, and still maintained an elitist attitude despite their few public attempts to appear reformed.

Now, Draco lives a very private sort of life. He prefers keeping to himself rather than facing endless prejudice over his beliefs- though he does still relish each moment when someone so rooted in the War gives him a passing glare.