Lucius Malfoy (and Draco)

[Hillman, Lee]

No: HPFGUIDX 23813

Heidi wrote:
> I am looking for Gwendolyn Grace to chime in on this one, 
> because we've had
> some very interesting discussions of when Lucius and Tom Riddle became
> acquainted. 

Well, my head has stopped spinning and I guess I can add my two knuts on
this. (There are times I hate getting the digest.)

Truly, Heidi and I have had some interesting conversations about Lucius (my
favourite evil guy, fourth or fifth fave character). 

By my view of the timeline, and Draco's comments about timing in CoS, I
believe Lucius's father, not Lucius, was a contemporary of Tom Riddle. 

Here's where my theories have NOTHING to do with canon evidence, just
speculation. I don't think Lucius ever met Tom in person (in that form), but
that he knew of his father's associations with Tom and a certain European
wizard named Grindlewald. Note that there are some funkinesses in the
timing, but Tom was a crafty and charming young man by his own admission,
and after killing his folks in 1943 (thank you, Steve, for proving that
one), he went off to Europe to serve and ingratiated himself pretty quickly.
I think he had enough time to learn at the feet of the master, as it were,
before Dumbledore and a posse of Good!Wizards saved the day. In my private
universe, Lucius's father was also injured in that battle (with a bunch of
other details which make no difference to the overall timeline here), but
came home to a hero's welcome because, like son like father, he pretended to
have been on Our Side.

So when did Lucius and Riddle meet? Well, in my version of events, I believe
that Lucius's father died young because of the curse/injuries he sustained
in 1945, after years of lingering illness that forced li'l Lucius to grow up
much faster than normal, assuming responsibilities far ahead of his time
(hence some of his pressure on Draco). When his father dies (in his last
year at Hogwarts), Voldemort is ready to begin building up a platform of
supporters to prepare the way for his return to England. Lucius is one of
the first he contacts, drawing on his relationship with his old school mate,
Malfoy Sr. (rip), to overawe the kid and make a healthy, lasting impression
on him. In short, we have a substitute father and something of hero worship
from young Lucius. At 17 and just losing his father, he's in a vulnerable
position which V can easily exploit. 

Given that (albeit unsupportable) history, a lot of Lucius's behaviour makes
some sense. He didn't necessarily feel he needed V anymore--perhaps the DE
stuff was getting in the way of the power and prestige he was building for
his own legacy to leave Draco. Perhaps he was disillusioned at the time or
just as happy to be left in control of his own affairs. But when V returns,
he's awe-struck and it reinforces all the feelings he transferred from his
father to V at just the right time in his life. He's obsessed with
immortality--one of V's self-proclaimed goals and a carrot he dangles before
his followers--because he watched his father become less and less of a man,
first confined to a wheelchair, then unable to stay awake for more than a
few hours at a time, finally a husk of his former strength, taken away from
his wife and family in what should have been the prime of life. Lucius isn't
about to let that happen, and he hopes that V is wizard enough to find the
secrets he promises.

So I don't think he'll turn away from V, though he may have strong
differences of opinion with him about how things should be done. V is a link
to his father and a promise of power. I think he's a zealot, but his end
goals don't necessarily agree with V. And I don't think he's foolish enough
to believe that V will really extend immortality to _everyone_, but he sure
as heck intends to be in the right position to get it, one way or another.

Draco on the other hand (since we're on the subject sort of), has had an
entirely different experience. He idolizes his father, clearly, but he's
never been afraid that his parents will not be there for him. Despite
Lucius's insistence that Draco make a name for himself, the grades and such,
at the same time he indulges Draco a lot. I think Draco is the
quintessential poor little rich kid, who usually gets whatever material
thing he desires, sooner or later, but is very lacking in emotional support.
This too can trace back to Lucius: he did it all on his own, because his
father couldn't be there for him. Now he has this son, and he has no idea
how to guide Draco other than by example. I see Lucius as someone who keeps
hoping that his son will discover the secret to being influential and mature
and powerful without any instruction, as if he will go to bed one night a
sniveling, whiny, spoiled child, and wake up the next a charismatic young
man, ready to lead and take responsibility for himself and his minions. I
don't think Lucius really realises how much guidance that requires, and how
much his father actually managed to communicate to him without his knowing
it. I don't think Lucius realises that being a parent is more than providing
material possessions, prestige, power, influence, and such. His involvement
in Draco's life thus far suggests a rigid hierarchy between them. Whoever
said he loves Draco and wants to see that he is taken care of is correct:
yes, he loves his son, but sees him more as an extension of himself than an
individual. He kicked up a fuss about Buckbeak, but had he been more
involved in Draco's life on an emotional, not material, level, he might have
investigated how bad it really was, rather than jumping to conclusions and
assuming that Draco bore no fault at all. Again, his classism works against
both father and son and Draco is the poor rich kid.

So what Draco is learning about authority he is learning by watching his
father, but not understanding. Lucius wears his authority like a cloak--he
has been accorded every ounce of respect and esteemed highly in the
wizarding community since he was a teenager. He doesn't remember being
gawky. He doesn't remember his own childhood very well, because he was
pushed through it quickly to pick up the slack for his own father.

Will there ultimately be a rift between father and son? I honestly don't
want to hazard a guess on that. I DO think Draco will encounter some real
questions about his path, and I DO think that Snape must begin to position
himself in Draco's mind as someone he can turn to for the guidance that he
didn't get from Lucius. He would be more likely to go to Snape than anyone
else, but he's not ready for it yet. 


> It's also possible that the Malfoys are, and have always 
> been, Kingmakers -
<snip>
> In GoF, I didn't see any toadying by Lucius to
> Voldemort, and Voldemort called Lucius by his first name, a 
> "consideration"
> he didn't show to anyone else. It seems evident to me that 
> Lucius is no
> ordinary Death Eater...
>

This is also an intriguing point that Heidi makes. Lucius is a cut above the
others, both in his own estimation and in Voldemort's. I do think he has a
strong vision, which is better formed than many of the other followers. I
also think that Lucius has enough power and influence to suit himself and
he's confident that Draco will be provided for. But I don't think he has any
intention of dying anytime soon. His obsession with immortality may not be
as all-consuming as V's, and he's not willing to go to the same lengths as
the snakeman, but it's still there. He's willing to let V take all the
risks, let others do the dirty work, and remain a mastermind who can exert
influence through money, power, and planning. He does play the courtier just
a little bit in GoF, though, Heidi, having the sense to look abashed on cue.
But I would subscribe to the view that his public persona among the DE's is
just that: a courtier. He plays a game and he knows when he's being sincere
and when he's paying lip service. Like Draco, he's not above a little
sucking up if it achieves his means, but unlike Draco, he's learned to be a
little more subtle about it. 

This is an important distinction on the whole, "Slytherins aren't nice"
angle. Whoever said evil couldn't be nice? (Cue Into the Woods, Heidi. "Nice
is different than good.") Being nice to someone is a highly effective way of
getting what you want from them. Being political can achieve any number of
pleasing and desirable results. Just because Draco likes to jeer at people
and Snape likes to sneer doesn't mean no Slytherins are ever charming. Even
V himself says he's always been able to charm the people he needs.

So there's my rambling essay on Lucius Malfoy, brought to you by Heidi, who
made my ears burn and basically invited me to talk at length. I'm perfectly
ready for the future books to prove that my ideas are totally off base.

Gwendolyn Grace