Draco Malfoy's Application

This Draco Malfoy application is from January, 2004.

8: Give a description of the character you're applying for, as if you're writing it for their @desc.

To those with a trained eye, Draco Malfoy looks every inch a pureblood. His pale complexion and delicate facial features are a mark of his breeding. The aristocratic way he carries his 5'10" height speaks of his upbringing. The length of his white blond hair, just past his shoulders, caters to traditional fashion. His clipped speech and cultured tones were likely trained into him. The coldness of the grey eyes is strictly inherited from his father.

Draco's clothing is as aristocratic as himself. It's fashionable, clearly expensive, and tailored specifically for his form. At the moment, he's dressed in dark green velvet. The robe tapers at the waist and shows nothing but the collar of the white frilly shirt beneath. It falls nearly to his feet, so that it's impossible to tell if he's wearing trousers or nothing at all underneath. His shoes are shiny, black, and pointed.

9: Please provide a short summary of what you believe to be the defining traits of this character. We're looking for two-three sentences.

Draco seeks to wrap himself in the protective cloaks of power, control, and adoration to cover up the frightened little boy he is at heart.

10: Write a brief history of the character.

The full text of this question basically asks for the history of the character including such events as are important to them, and their perspective on the times they've lived through. This means that some events which in the books are seen as very important, may be less so to them.

Draco was born into the Malfoy family on January 2, 1980. The first decade of his life was spent learning all that it meant to be pureblood and wizard. His tutors found him a capable student and the servants saw him grow from a little brat into a little tyrant. He enjoyed learning to manipulate people and started early on his mother. When Vincent and Gregory entered his life as suitable playmates, he found it unbelievably easy to order them around despite their greater size.

In addition to his studies, he was quite adept at flying. He picked it up easily and it was one of the things he enjoyed practicing. One of his earliest ambitions was to play for his House team. He may have done even better, but after two lessons with his flying instructor, the instructor quit. Draco insisted he didn't need a replacement. After all, tutors take all the fun out of things.

Above, Draco extrapolates from the scene in Philosopher's Stone where Hooch told him his grip was wrong, and comes up with a reason _why_ the grip might be wrong.

He turned 11 with months left to go before he ever received his letter to Hogwarts. He was dying of impatience and excitement about the whole thing. When he finally got to go to Diagon and be fitted for his robes and whatnot, he was in a mood to share that excitement with fellow students. New ones. Ones who were not as dull and dense as Crabbe and Goyle. The first he reached out to in this manner happened to be one Harry Potter. It seemed to go all right, though Potter certainly wasn't a sparkling conversationalist. He soon met others and Harry would've dropped completely from his mind except that on the train he learned just who that boy he'd met was.

Again, Draco brings in a scene from the book and provides us not with a simple regurgitation of facts, but with Draco's perspective.

Being acquaintances or even friends with /the/ Harry Potter would've been a great coup. He set out to do just that only to be insulted by him. Draco wasn't used to being insulted and embarrassed and reacted with all the lightning speed of a snake.

Well, their relationship was just a downward spiral from there. Harry would insult him or embarrass him at every turn and it was all he could do to fight back. But Harry Potter was blessed. Everyone always took his side. /Harry/ got the attention. /Harry/ got to be a Seeker. Who else was up in the air with him anyway? And Draco'd actually /worked/ at flying. Harry gets on a broom his first time ever and suddenly he's Seeker for his House.

Only Snape seemed to see that Harry wasn't such hot stuff. This caused an instant bond between Draco and his House Head.

When Harry and his friends snatched the House Cup away from Slytherin by saving the world or some such nonsense, it put the final cap on Harry being forever an enemy. It's also what put Dumbledore on Draco's naughty list. The gross unfairness was almost too much to bear.

And the whole first book can be quickly distilled down to a few paragraphs which clearly give us Draco's view on events, yet don't drag on with unnecessary details. Clearly, the writer is familiar with the story itself and is only picking the highlights important to this application.

Draco would spend the next few years of his life trying to get back at Potter for all the injustices. He used his father's money and influence whenever he could. He mobilized his friends and minions and often most all of Slytherin against Potter and his little groupies.

But Harry's life continued to be charmed. /Harry/ got to be a Champion for Hogwarts, despite being too young! Meanwhile Draco continued to face humiliations, including a few moments spent as a ferret and flung around /by a teacher/. Harry won the Tournament and no one seemed to care that he'd clearly killed a Hufflepuff to do it.

Draco never gave up trying to get back at Potter, but he did develop other interests over time. Girls, most particularly. He found he could use and manipulate them in different ways than boys. But he also, rather uncomfortably, found that they could wield a certain control over him themselves. He spent some years trying to figure these dynamics out and is still working on the intricacies. Some of the girls he worked on include Summer, Pansy, Ruby, and Hermione. He learned different things from each of them and found a couple of them worth returning to and eventually keeping.

Here we skim over several years worth of events in a few paragraphs. Some of these were book years, some of them were game years. A bit more detail might have been possible, the summary touches on most of the high points, keeping us in touch with Draco's feelings as he aged.

During this time, Voldemort's return was a surety and it at the same time frightened him and excited him. Without being a Death Eater himself, he was at almost as much risk as any other students. He convinced his father to let him start learning the Dark Arts, eventually resulting in a tutor. This tutor he was more willing to listen to than ones he'd previously had.

He arranged a truce with Potter not so much because it was necessary (Harry's always been more than willing to leave him alone), but to formally shut off all of the energy he was expending on this obsession. He directed his energies to the girls in his life, his study of the Dark Arts, and of preparing himself for leaving school.

He organized SAV as his first attempt to prove himself not only an asset to Voldemort as a common Death Eater, but as a leader. As with most school organizations, SAV did not accomplish all that he had hoped it would, but it at least did give him some practice and earn him some new connections he hadn't had before.

Dumbledore's death meant little to Draco. Inevitable really, wasn't it? Senile old fool. The siege shortly afterwards was more troublesome. The Death Eaters had made a large move; a move that hit very close to home. And his father hadn't given him /any/ warning. What was he expected to do? He couldn't fight against the Death Eaters, but it was very difficult to try to join them under current circumstances. Though he did try.

Voldemort's death hit Draco much harder. Now what? He'd been wanting to join the Death Eaters and now they no longer existed, not in this form. The impending end of his years at school put aside this concern, though it always remained at the back of his mind.

Before leaving his school years entirely, a brief word about Quidditch. Quidditch has always frustrated him. First Harry beat him onto the team by an entire year. Then he got onto his team with a bit of bribery. Then Harry had quite the record of besting him. Then Quidditch was outright /cancelled/, not just for the end of his second year, but for all of his fourth. Snape continually passed him up for Captain, even after Harry had made Captain over on Gryffindor. And not all of the Captains Snape chose were remotely suitable. His time as Captain wasn't entirely successful either, though he did finally have the satisfaction of besting Harry once. Quidditch was a microcosm of how unfair the world was to Draco and how biased it was towards ruddy Potter.

After he left school, he found himself suddenly thrust into the adult world. Law interests him, both as a subject and because of how useful it can be to him. But it's also a bloody lot of work. He never had to work quite this hard in school.

Being the Lord of his townhouse is fun, but it does often feel like playacting to him. He's always aware that his father still controls the pursestrings and that without him, he'd be nothing but a middle class law clerk.

He married Pansy because it seemed an intelligent and useful arrangement at the time. He wasn't in immediate danger of being married off, but for Pansy it was a real threat. He just wasn't willing to let anyone else have Pansy at the time. Especially not Crabbe and not Woodbridge either. As a wife, she's all right. She knows how to behave and what to wear. She allows him mistresses and to do what he likes. It gives him something to come home to besides a house full of servants. And it makes him feel grown up. Especially as he made the choice for himself, even against his parents' preferences.

He started the Quidditch Club because he saw the void that Voldemort's defeat left in wizard society. He felt someone had to continue the fight against Muggles, Mudbloods, and the like. It also helped him feel more powerful. Here he was beginning something that /Voldemort/ had done.

It had the potential to be really great. It had a greater potential to fail miserably. He really had little idea of what he was doing. Now that he's joined forces with Sangreserpens, the Quidditch Club can be more of a playground. He can learn and experiment while under the protection of Sangreserpens and his father the Minister.

But it also means that when he does fail, he gets quite the chewing out. He's determined not to fail often -- at all, not at all.

At the moment, he's chafing under all the expectations and people pressuring him this way and that. His father controls his money. His mother is still a big intruder on his personal life. His wife doesn't agree with his views on Muggles and won't do one of her most essential wifely duties. He's still bottom of the rung at work. And Sangreserpens has control even over his Dark activities.

He's taken to drinking like so many others before him. An easy escape. A quick feeling of numbness. Something that those in his life can't control.

Oh yes, and one other aspect. He's begun preparing to illegally try the Animagus spell. He believes himself to be a ferret. It remains to be seen whether he can successfully do the spell and whether this belief is in fact sound.

He also hasn't forgotten Potter entirely. Wonderful Potter who's off playing Seeker at all of these European and World Cups. When his team came up for sale, he jumped on the chance to own it. It's been quite the investment -- requiring not only time and energy, but humbling before his father. But he'll make Potter pay for all those years at school.

On the whole, the answer to this question has done exactly what was asked: Provided a history of Draco up to the present time, showing us his feelings and thoughts on the important events in his life. Facts from both the book and the game have been incorporated into the whole. The applicant has clearly done his homework while researching Draco, and the reader comes away with a good feel for him.

11: Now tell us a bit more about the character. What interests them? What are they particularly good or bad at? What are their motivations? Anything else you'd like to add about the character?

Draco likes collecting lace doilies.

Just kidding. In the way of hobbies, Draco doesn't have many. This leaves his mind and hands free for less constructive pursuits.

Draco aims to acquire power. Sometimes that power takes the form of magic, sometimes it means money, and sometimes it means owning things and people. The power serves two purposes. It gives him the attention and respect he so desperately wants, but it also gives him a feeling of strength to help combat those fears that are at his core. The problem is, the more powerful he becomes, the more dangers he sees.

Pansy's player wrote that Draco is still a child living in the trappings of an adult's life. And I agree with that view. However, I will not be maturing him. It may soon /seem/ like I am, because I'll be making some 'positive' changes in his life and attitude. But it will not be that he's maturing, so much that he's clarifying his ambitions to himself and giving his life focus. Maybe that's a form of maturing, but there are still times he'll be a spoiled brat and react purely from emotion and not reason. He will continue to use people as it suits him and not take the adult responsibility of seeing to other's welfare. Fear him as a father, because he won't do half so well as Lucius did.

12: List AT LEAST 3 people important to the character -- family, friend, or foe -- and tell us briefly of their relationship.

This is another one of the questions that people have difficulty with. As noted, the question calls for three or more people important to the character. Often, people read that to mean just three, and leave it at that. The best applicants include all the important people regardless of how many there are. Also essential is talking to those characters who have players. The admins will know if an answer comes through that is so totally off base that it's clear no effort has been made to talk to people.

Listed in no particular order:

Lucius - Draco's relationship with his father is complex. To put it simply, he wants his father's attention and respect. But digging deeper, there's much more than that. There's a part of him that wants to surpass his father, in any and every way he can. Dig deeper still, and there's a resentment that he's not even aware of. I could very easily see Draco killing his father both in a fit of passion or after prolonged planning. But afterward, he'd regret it highly. And probably go a bit nutso.

The above is a good reading of Draco's relationship with Lucius. Which the applicant clearly understands is not the same thing as Lucius's relationship with Draco.

Narcissa - He probably cares most for his mother. If her life or wellbeing were ever threatened, he'd go to some lengths to protect her. Yet his own wellbeing would probably ultimately come first. And if anyone ever tried to threaten her life as a way of manipulating him, he'd put on a good show that he didn't care. It's difficult to say he actually /loves/ her, however. Counts her as one of his prized possessions, definitely.

Draco has very interesting relationships with women. On the one hand, he likes possessing them and manipulating them. Even though they're usually quite aware of the ways in which he's using them. They all come out changed from the experience, and it's difficult to say they're definitively changed for the worst. Some of the changes have positive aspects. And on the other hand, he has his most open conversations with them. They're able to give him the attention and affection he so desperately needs, yet.. they can't quite give him enough. Or it's not quite the right sort. They're all unsatisfying in their own way.

Pansy - She is a good marriage match except for her unfortunate beliefs about Muggles. Still, those beliefs don't go against common pureblood beliefs, just the beliefs of Sangreserpens and his ilk. The lack of sex is also troublesome, in more ways than one. But he's not done with Pansy yet. She may yet turn out the way he wants.

Ruby - Ruby could perhaps be called the mistress of his mind. She has the same beliefs as he (though he was integral in forming those beliefs). She's a very competent minion, capable of thinking for herself and therefore being much better at certain tasks than Crabbe and Goyle.

Rebecca - Just a bit of fun revenge on Potter. That Pansy encouraged it only gave him more reason. But after playing with her for a time, he got bored of her.

Crabbe/Goyle - Minions. Reliable if used properly, but not very competent when it comes to tasks requiring common sense and thought. Of course Vincent having a player makes him a little more intelligent than his fellow. They were of more use in school when physical presence meant something, but they're still willing to do what he says and have some competence at the Unforgiveables, so they're not entirely useless.

Marcus - More of an equal than all of the above and probably the closest thing approaching a true male friend. Which is rather pathetic really.

Snape - While in school, Draco used him as a parental substitute. One that actually paid attention to him and lavished praise on him. They shared a common interest in putting Harry down. But as he grew older, he began to see the flaws in old Snape. Snape sometimes didn't hold the views Draco thought he should and often wouldn't let him do what he wanted. And wouldn't do what /he/ wanted. He marginally treats him with respect as an older wizard and because his parents seem to value him.

Scrubber - Yes, I know. Listing a house elf, what's come over me? Draco is used to having a house elf around and wouldn't know what to do without one to abuse. But he resents that his seems a bit stupider than most.

Harry - /Potter/. This was probably adequately answered in the sections above. To sum up: Potter is an unhealthy obsession. Not /Draco's/ unhealthy obsession; everyone else's!!

Ron - Ron probably has stronger feelings for Draco than Draco does for him. The Weasleys are Mugglelovers and poor. Two of the worst things to be and also be pureblood. He's also Harry's friend. That is what makes him worth paying any attention at all to.

Hermione - He enjoyed trying to manipulate her and is perhaps not done with her. Ticking off Harry and Ron was just one of the reasons to go after her. Being a Mudblood makes her a tempting target and being so intelligent and anti-Draco is what makes her a challenge. A tough nut to crack.

13: What flavor of ice cream would the character prefer and why?

One particular flavor? I would have to say pistachio, because it's green and a bit decadent. But what would he order at Florean's? If someone else was paying, the largest hot fudge sundae possible. Then he'd go eat it in front of starving children.

14: Why do you want to play this character?

Slytherins rock. Gryffindors get boring. I was always a bit jealous of the attention that Snape, Draco, and Lucius get on the channels.

We need an active Draco. I need a character involved in the Dark end of things.

His name is really cool.

Draco has opportunities to really play things up. More than just playing a character, it's playing a larger-than-life actor. Because most of what Draco is and does is an act. It will be rather like playing someone with MPD. There's the inward person and the outward. I'll first need to think how he's thinking and feeling and /then/ develop how he'd actually react, which will often be completely at odds with those thoughts and feelings. It should be a fun challenge.

15: Are there any plotlines you'd like to participate in as this character or anything you're particularly eager to RP?

I proposed some things to Harry about the Cannons ownership. That really won't be a lot of rp for Draco, at least for a while, but it's a plotline.

I think I'm most eager to rp some lessons. With Burkes and I was hoping with Reginald. And then Draco would, in turn, teach and train the QC. Oh no.. does that mean I have to answer the teacher app question?

More than that will have to wait until I've gotten into the part and scoped things out.

16: Is there anything else you'd like to tell us?

Anything Dobby tells you about wet sheets is a lie!