[HPforGrownups] Draco Redeemable How?

[Pen Robinson]

No: HPFGUIDX 38828

I'm fascinated (snake/rabbit kind of thing) by this talk of Draco as a
potential romantic hero.  Pride and Prejudice is one of my favourite books,
and I see no parallels whatsoever between Draco and Darcy...  okay, we have
the whole of P & P to read, and are only just past the half-way point of
the Harry Potter stories.  But that's not really my point.

What I'm wondering is, what are these fertile signs that Draco Malfoy is
going to be a reformed character Real Soon Now?   Again, I don't see them.
As far as I can tell, Malfoy is nasty and spiteful, with no redeeming
characteristics.  Of course, we are seeing him from Harry's POV, and from
the outset Harry has not liked Malfoy.  But Harry has not liked Snape
either, yet we have been given information to show that Snape is,
underneath it all, on the right side.  In fact, Snape's behaviour is nasty
and spiteful, but his *actions* have shown good intent - saving Harry at
the Quidditch match in PS, saving the trio from Lupin and Black in PoA, and
the revelations in GoF that he is a reformed Death Eater.  He's still
unpleasant to Harry at every opportunity, but we have glimpses of promise,
and insights into possible reasons/excuses for the unpleasantness.

What have Malfoy's *actions* been?  As far as I can see, his actions have
been just as nasty and spiteful as his words.  He dressed up as a dementor,
knowing that it might make Harry fall off his broom (possibly fatally), and
undoubtedly hoping it would cause Harry to lose the Quidditch match; he did
everything in his power to get Hagrid sacked over the Buckbeak incident
which was in fact his own fault; he supplied Rita Skeeter with vicious
gossip.  What has he done to make people so convinced that he's worth
redeeming?

I don't say that a nasty and spiteful schoolboy can never deserve
forgiveness, can never be reformed, but I don't so far see any evidence
that underneath it all Malfoy has a basically worthwhile character.

Pen