The GoF Train Scene - and beyond (was:Re: Humanity, Kant, Caricatures, and Draco

[annemehr]

No: HPFGUIDX 146753

 
> > >>Alla:
> > Now, I don't know how Draco felt about Fake!Moody after all, but I 
> > am hesitant to consider the revelation that his teacher turned out 
> > to be DE in disguise as huge shake - up of Draco's world.
> > <snip>
> 
> Betsy Hp:
> I'll go out on a limb and guess that Draco had pretty negative 
> feelings towards Fake!Moody <g>.  And, yeah, I doubt it was fun to 
> realize that the abusive psycho you'd like to have fired is actually 
> on your side.  
> 
> Betsy Hp
>

Annemehr:
I'm pulling for Draco, and I have been for pretty much the whole
series.  In fact, my main beef against Snape has always been, not how
he treated Harry or Neville (obviously, they'll be fine), but how he
treated Draco, this boy in his house who's been raised by a Death
Eater and whose complete ease in Snape's presence suggested that Snape
had never challenged Draco's world view in any way.

But, I'm not sure this train scene shows there has been any challenge
to Draco's world view either.

Assuming Draco knows by then that Fake!Moody was actually a DE, then
he knows this was a DE under cover who was *pretending* to help
Dumbledore and Harry.  It would follow (in Draco's mind) that he could
be *pretending* to be against Draco.  Draco's ego needing salving for
the ferret incident then, I would think it would be no great stretch
for him to conclude that he, Draco, had played a necessary part in
lending verisimilitude to Fake!Moody's cover.

When Draco & co. enter Harry's train compartment at the end of GoF,
"[a]ll three of them looked more pleased with themselves, more
arrogant and more menacing, than Harry had ever seen them."  I agree
with you that this shows us a step that Draco's taken toward becoming
a DE himself, but I'm not at all sure it was such a struggle at this
point.  It *is* significant that he had rooted for Cedric and then
declares allegiance to the side that murdered him, but unfortunately I
cannot see any solid indication about how his feelings evolved between
wearing "Support Cedric Diggory" badges and looking so happy about
LV's return on the train.  The damage to Draco's character is the same
either way, but I can't tell how much pain it may have caused him.

In other words, Betsy, you may very well be right, but I see less
significance in the fact that Draco stood for Cedric at the feast or
that Moody turned out to be a DE.

But there's no arguing with the fact that HBP changes things.

What are Snape and Draco supposed to do now?  DDM!Snape is in a
quandary.  He, by himself, could go back to LV and take what's coming.
 Ceridwen posted (in msg. #146449) recently that he's no longer useful
now that he's no longer at Hogwarts, but I disagree; he's too talented
a wizard to be useless, even if his spy "cover" is blown.  The trouble
is, he has Draco to protect -- Draco who now can have no illusions
about what LV's DEs mean to him.

Draco's Occlumency skills are apparently pretty good -- but would they
stand up against Voldemort?  What are Snape's options?  Trust Draco
with the truth and hope they can both succeed at fooling LV (or that
Draco would even agree to it)?  Get Draco securely hidden and bluff
about it to LV?  Just turning him over to LV at this point will result
in Draco becoming murderer or murdered -- very tragic collateral
damage, just because of whose son he happened to be.

Annemehr