#Malfoy studies

[blorger]

Ok so I'm once again shining the nerd bat signal because there's a scene in the books that I'm struggling to interpret:

So here we are in OotP and Harry and Hermione have just been caught red-handed in Umbridge's office by the inquisitorial squad and are being confronted, together with part of the DA, by the high inquisitor herself. Draco is there to witness their downfall and, as his expression here is clearly meant to indicate, he's giddy with anticipation at the thought of what punishment the gang is going to receive.

This is all well and good -not to mention perfectly in line with Draco's character and what we have come to expect from him- but unfortunately things start to go south as Umbridge goes a bit off the deep end and decides torture is the best course of action, at which point Draco briefly disappears from the book (there's literally no mention of him for two and a half pages). It's somewhat unusual that Draco's presence and reactions are not shown for as long as crucio is being discussed because...well, what is he here for then? He didn't have to be present for the DA's apprehension, Doylist-ically speaking.

Draco eventually reappears but his reactions are weird:

Am I losing it or is Draco being portrayed as eager to "sort Umbridge out"? Why would he want that, especially at this juncture in the book when everything seems to be going so well for him?

I'd be inclined to believe I was seeing things if this wasn't also something Umbridge noticed:

Draco hasn't been anything less than obsequious to Umbridge so far, what reason (other than the look he gives) is there to distrust him? What makes her so sure that whatever Draco is eager for spells bad news for her?

I'm not saying Draco is secretly on the gang's side here because that's just patently untrue -the first except shows plainly that he was all for a punishment of some sort for the DA- but I can't help but feel like Draco here doesn't fit the scenario he's in, like his energy doesn't match anyone else's in that room.

In a scene where everyone is locked in a physical struggle of some sort Draco alone is removed from it all; we have Umbridge going to extremes

and

And even the DA (with the notable exception of Luna) and the Inquisitorial squad are in a surprisingly violent standoff

and, while all of that is going on, this is what Draco is doing:

Draco is the only person in that room not taking the situation seriously. This is how he responds to being told he's not allowed to tag along to see the mystery weapon:

Up until the very end of the Umbridge office scene Draco behaves like a schoolboy while everyone else in that room goes hard in a way they've never done before; Umbridge I understand but why are some random Slytherins so invested in capturing Gryffindors and using excessive force on them? Most of all I'm baffled that jkr didn't use this passage to showcase just how evil evil Draco Malfoy is, especially since Draco is pretty confrontational during OotP.

I also feel like Draco's sudden interest in Hermione's fictitious weapon doesn't really fit in with the rest of his behavior in the scene; why have the guy who's clearly not taking things seriously be that hungry for a peek at a super duper secret weapon, especially once he could use against Umbridge (his ally)? Are we meant to see Draco as a feral goblin hungry for violence and chaos? If so then why have him so detached from all the violence around him? Also, Draco makes for a really poor feral goblin in general considering his noted aversion to physical violence, not to mention the fact that he's not exactly a rule-breaking rebel.

I'd like to think that Draco's sudden desire to turn on Umbridge is caused by her going off her rocker with crucio threats but if that is the case then why not show his actual reaction to said cruciatus attempt? This would be a good excuse to highlight the fact that, when push comes to shove, Draco doesn't have it in him to be truly violent, or even to show that he's in over his head with the whole inquisitorial squad thing, but jkr has him disappear for a while instead.

I know that Draco is not the focus in this scene (or even in this book really) so jkr can't have been trying to say anything too deep about him in this chapter but she still chose to put him there and she gave him those lines for a reason... no matter how many theories I come up with, I can't seem to find one that fits, someone please make sense of the whole thing for me.

[karo-li]

this took like 100 years of my life 😵 blending the characters with background is always so tricky, i always feel like characters don't match the rest

well, the moment when you're supposed to listen but you know, there's more important matters 🤛🏼

[handledwithgloves]

an old polaroid, it reads: Draco + Harry "Muggle Studies Trip" '99

[nobodyfamousposts]

Here's a Thought About Harry Potter...

Okay, so you have bigoted Wizarding children who look down on muggles and muggleborns and put big emphasis on wizarding lineage and whatnot. Big example in canon was Draco and his open use of the derogatory word "Mudblood".

So let's ignore the blatant favoritism where he and others are free to bully and be overtly cruel with no punishment or consequence.

Let's also pretend the teachers actually do their jobs and issue appropriate punishment.

What would happen if one of said teachers decides that the best way to curb Draco's blatant discrimination would be to have him learn about muggles?

So Draco ends up transferred to Muggle Studies.

Draco: This is a waste of time! Name one thing muggles have accomplished that Wizards haven't. Go ahead. I'll wait— Teacher: They've been to the moon. Draco: Wait—what? Teacher: Six times. Draco: WHAT?!

Where he is forced to...(shudder) learn about how muggles live!

Oh nooooooooo.

So he learns about muggle inventions.

Muggle Student1: So there's this square device called a "cell phone" that's compact enough that we can carry around in our pockets. We can also use it to send messages within seconds, chat with people across the world, play games, and look at pictures of cats. Draco: Don't think you can fool me! Like I would fall for something so insane! Muggle Student2: (Sarcastically) Oh no, he caught us.

Muggle contraptions.

Draco: What do you mean they don't use quills? How do they write? Teacher: With pens. Draco: Where do they get the ink from? Teacher: It's IN the pen. Draco: (Stares) …how?

Muggle hobbies.

Malfoy: What is "internet"? Muggleborn Student1: ….oh you sweet summer child. Muggleborn Student2: Don't tell him. I don't think his brain could handle it.

He also ends up falling into the muggleborn black market.

Which comes with the revelation that there IS, in fact, a muggleborn black market at Hogwarts. Because I'm hard pressed to believe that kids in the modern era would just abandon their modern comforts completely.

Muggleborn Student1: Hey, just because electronics don't work at Hogwarts doesn't mean we have to leave everything behind. Muggleborn Black Market Dealer: I have a new stock of Cadbury chocolates, KitKat bars, and Fruit Pastilles. Muggleborn Student1: YES! Draco: (Scoff) There's nothing here I would want. Muggleborn Black Market Dealer: I have one set of "Slytherin" gel pens in black, silver, and bright green. One set of glitter gel pens. And a spiral notebook with a holographic cover. Draco: (Slams money on the counter) GIMME!

And Draco ends up learning a lot.

After all, a Slytherin is supposed to be cunning and ambitious.

It would be remiss of him to not take advantage of such opportunity as it presents itself.

[drarrargh]

draco buys bedazzled jeans!

[psdrawsthings]

lucius sketches

trying to overcome artblock by experimenting with painting styles.. kinda.....?

[blue--ingenue]

thinking about autistic!Scorpius and how Draco and Albus would do everything they could to help him feel comfortable at school:

Draco ensuring that his jumpers and robes are made from non-scratchy fabric

Draco taking him to cute stationery shops in muggle London so that he can use fidgety pens in class

Albus learning a charm that casts a bubble of silence around them when he notices that the crowded halls are causing sensory overload

[rewritingcanon]

ginny to harry: we cant leave the boys in their room with the door closed!! dont u know what that means!?! dont you see how eerily quiet they are?? its a silencing spell, harry!

harry: im sure theyre just sleeping or something.

ginny: yeah sleeping TOGETHER im sure

- meanwhile -

albus after playing his weezer music at scorp for 40 minutes: soooo (trying to seem dark and mysterious), what do you want to do now?

scorpius: i dont know :)

albus: wanna rob james?

scorpius: no! :) i actually am a tad tired and kind of want to sleep here for a bit :) do you want to join me :)

albus, nodding because scorp is a genius: yeah thats fire. shuffle over

[lilbeanz]

[ceruleanblueshells]

Scorpius Malfoy who never really got over the trauma of the time travel, who's brain uses so much power to cope with being alive that it becomes harder and harder to excel in academics. Who used to have an eidetic memory but now all his memory is spent remembering the smile of his mother. Who used to understand assignments like the back of his hand but now he can't even recognise his own hands. Scorpius Malfoy who went through something, and has to live with it,and has changed because of it, ridden with academic guilt and the rot of his apparent golden mind.

[oxfordelise]

Chapter Thirty-Three: Want

| AO3 | FFN |

He looked happy. Healthy. Whole. Even if it was only for forty-nine seconds, she didn’t want to say anything to disrupt the moment. 

This was the real Draco. Her favourite Draco. 

She’d make it her life mission to settle his soul every chance she could because this was how he was supposed to be. Deserved to be. At peace. 

[motherfuckingmaneater]

i hate fanon narcissa. sorry but she's the ultimate bad bitch not a soft little girl. my literal ice queen. she's not abused and mistreated and sold off to marry someone against her will. she's the baby of the family and she is spoilt beyond comprehension, she has mummy wrapped around her finger, she gets everything she wants when she wants it because she knows how to play the game. she's quiet, self-assured and poised, but she's a slytherin through and through, she's cunning, calculating, dangerous in her own way. she's poison in your wine goblet as she smiles at you. she's manners and elegance, but she's everything pureblood. she's very much a black despite her looks. she's arrogant, haughty, believes herself to be better than everyone else (because she is bitch). she cried into bella's shoulder the night andy left and then never uttered her name again, she was even more furious than bellatrix was but her fury is different - when she cuts you out, you could die of frost bite. she married of her own volition like bella did, but unlike bella who married her best friend she married someone she knew she could make a family with and be happy with. she's the ultimate pureblood princess turned queen.

[babooshkart]

N.E.W.T.s really take it out of you

doodle gift as a thank you for donating to Rooney’s Top Surgery Fund! Let’s help Rooney meet his goal! (donations totalling £25 and up may request a doodle from me from any fandom/pairing!)

[handledwithgloves]

draco is SO “what? like its hard?”

after a montage of him studying, practicing, and holding himself to high standards

[regulationhottie7905]

my number one item on my bucket list is to convince somebody to read the mirror of ecidyrue series on ao3. you WILL end up shipping Severus Snape and Gilderoy Lockhart and I feel I’ll enjoy the despair that such a dynamic as out of the blue as theirs would cause an unsuspecting reader

[wei-meddling-wuxian]

I need an au where severus gives draco a bunch of books in lou of not always being able go be there in person

They end up being regulus's diaries

Draco, still being a blank canvas with some sketch marks that can still be erased, leans more into a grey magic/belief system compared to the light and dark sides while still having his pride around magic itself.