Untitled

Untitled by Fernwithy

Summary: “Andromeda had no trouble finding Draco and his son in the waiting room.” Drabble, 725 Words.

Why You Should Care: There is something completely awesome about the Draco Malfoy Fernwithy creates in this little off-the-cuff ficlet.  Completely awesome. Draco usually leaves me feeling all *meh* inside, but this Draco I could read about at length.  There’s depth and maturity there that reach all the way through his cameo in the epilogue and down beyond into the core of the books, pulling in just enough influence from Lucius and Narcissa to makes it all add up.  Officially my favorite Draco characterization ever, and I hope all the Draco fangirls out there will remember that I avoid Draco fics like the plague before they spam me with what they think are better ones.

Why You Might Not Care: Um…. eh?  Fernwithy was rec’d here just the other day, but we could all just consider it random clumping and get over it.

Chase This Light

Chase This Light by Lady Altair

Summary: “Draco Malfoy falls head over heels for Astoria Greengrass while he’s sneaking out of her engagement ball (in the most literal sense; he trips over her.)” Drama/Romance, 3,867 Words.

Why You Should Care: Have you ever read something that leaves Draco Malfoy just as he is in canon, and yet makes him utterly delightful and sympathetic? Yeah, I hadn’t either, until I found this. It’s the most lovely way of weaving the name-only Astoria Greengrass into existence and into everyone’s least favourite snarky bastard’s life. I started grinning at the beginning, and just couldn’t stop; I hope you have the same reaction.

Why You Might Not Care: Some people don’t like Draco, and you know what? I don’t blame them. However, it’s a good fic, and I enjoyed it. (What I didn’t enjoy was that it’s in three parts, and instead of links to the next chapter, you have to navigate to the journal’s main page to get to each one. Luckily, you don’t have to hunt far.)

Draco Malfoy, Ruler of the Universe

Draco Malfoy, Ruler of the Universe by Mistful

Summary: “Draco tilted his head. At this angle, you could almost see Dumbledore’s will to live draining away.”  Draco Malfoy gets what’s coming to him. Parody, 8,865 Words.

Why You Should Care: Manically funny and delightfully backward.  The characters are pushed far enough that it’s wonderful parody, but not too far that it’s absurd.  Sure to delight readers of Trio-Era fiction the most, and Draco lovers and haters in equal parts.  He’s the star in this one… and Mistful goes to great lengths to make fun of that, too.

Why You Might Not Care: I suppose there might be one or two people out there who don’t like parody, which is really quite a shame.  Just think about all that wonderful laughter those people are missing out on!

Newts and Salamanders

Newts and Salamanders by Orange Crushed

Summary: “He remembers what they wrapped him in– satin, satin for a baby. Satin for the little prince. He soiled it, as babies do, and stuffed a sleeve into his mouth; and still they replaced it with yet more satin, bearing the family crest.” Oneshot, 1,661 Words.

Why You Should Care: The relationship between Snape and Draco Malfoy (and perhaps even the Malfoy family entire) has always been one of those unknowns. Orange Crushed takes a stab at quantifying it, and in doing so creates a beautifully stirring piece of poetic prose. Both Draco and Snape are in character; their edges are sharp and their dealings ever aristocratic. We see Draco while we stand beside Snape, and it is a view that melds with canon while at the same time complimenting it. The language here is exquisite and highly appropriate: it becomes aloofly sentimental, and Snape becomes — perhaps — a better godfather to Draco than Sirius ever was permitted to be for Harry.

Why You Might Not Care: I can’t really say why not, because I can’t really think of a qualifying reason. This is lovely, and for me to say that about a thing primarily focusing on Draco — whom I tend to overlook more often than not for all his fangirls — is nothing short of surprising.

The Almost Legend of Draco Malfoy

The Almost Legend of Draco Malfoy by Zahra

Summary: Not everything is about Harry Potter. Oneshot, 1,273 Words.

Why You Should Care: I admit that Draco Malfoy is not my most favorite character. He is, in fact, one of the ones I have the least interest in and which the rabid fan enthusiasm in the Harry Potter fandom at large eludes me. I find him too simple to take apart, I suppose, and strongly dislike the fanon version of Draco that most authors write. As a result, I tend to stay away from Draco fics in general, as all evidence supports that Fanon Draco has broadly taken over the fan fiction world. Having said that, every once in a while I get pestered into reading something that turns out to be good, and closer to canon than the average Draco-fic. This is a reflective character piece on Draco Malfoy: who he was, who he is, and who he will be.

Why You Might Not Care: For me, it still misses the mark, but it misses it buy a far smaller margin. The author seems completely unable to resist adding a line that hints at slash, but to each their own and it’s not the focus of the piece by any margin. Neither canon nor fanon Draco lovers will be completely satisfied with this story.