Muggles' Guide to Harry Potter/Characters/Travers

Overview
Travers (first name unknown) is a tall, thin Death Eater, part of Voldemort's organization in both his first and second times in power.

Goblet of Fire
As part of his attempt to plea-bargain his way out of Azkaban, Igor Karkaroff accuses Travers of killing Marlene McKinnon and her family. While this is ancient history at the time, Karkaroff having been imprisoned during Voldemort's first reign of terror, we see it in this book thanks to Professor Dumbledore's Pensieve.

Order of the Phoenix
Travers may have been among the Death Eaters who escaped from Azkaban during the mass breakout, though his name is not noted.

Deathly Hallows
We first hear of Travers in this book when Kingsley Shacklebolt tells us that Travers' hood had fallen off when Kingsley had cursed him during the escape from Privet Drive. At the time, Kingsley says that Travers is supposed to still be in Azkaban, but there evidently has been a mass breakout that hasn't been reported.

Travers is mentioned in passing when Harry and Hermione, invading the Ministry of Magic in search of the Locket Horcrux, run into Dolores Umbridge. Dolores asks Hermione, who is disguised as Mafalda Hopkirk, if Travers had sent her; evidently, Travers is then working in the Improper Use of Magic Office at a higher rank than Mafalda.

Travers and another Death Eater, Selwyn, answer Xenophilius Lovegood's summons. They are annoyed and sarcastic, this is evidently the third time Xeno has summoned them, and while he is saying that he has Harry Potter in the house, they don't believe him, thinking that it's another scheme of his to get his daughter Luna released.

Travers is in Diagon Alley when Hermione, Ron, Harry, and Griphook are on their way to break in to Gringotts Wizarding Bank. As Hermione is disguised as Bellatrix Lestrange, he is initially unsuspicious; however, he seems to sense some odd things happening as the scheme unfolds, and eventually Harry has to put him under the Imperius curse to keep him out of the way. Under Harry's orders, then, he follows them into the tunnels, and finally Harry sends him off to try and hide himself.

Travers is later briefly seen during the final battle. It's not known what happened to him following this event however.

Strengths
Travers is a high-ranking official at the Ministry of Magic. Being a Death Eater, he presumably also has some knowledge of Dark Magic. He certainly uses some offensive magic on Xenophilius Lovegood.

Weaknesses
Travers shows no resistance to Harry's Imperius Curse, despite the fact that Harry is unfamiliar with casting it. He may be particularly susceptible to the curse; then again, he may well have not expected it, and therefore would have had no chance to prepare himself.

Relationships with Other Characters
As a Death Eater, Travers is familiar with those within Voldemort's inner circle. He shows some familiarity, bordering on respect, with Bellatrix Lestrange.

He shows distain for a "Wandless" wizard on Diagon Alley (even using the pronoun "it" to refer to them), suggesting that he has a sort of superiority around him, possibly as a link to "pure-blood" supremacy.

As we see so little of him, it is unclear whether he has any particular friends or family. Although Umbridge mentions him by name, this is almost certainly due to his civilian job; Umbridge may not even be aware that he is a Death Eater.

Analysis
Travers' minor role in the books seems to cast him as a sort of stock character - he is a random Death Eater, there to bolster Voldemort's ranks and do miscellaneous tasks for him (such as taking place in the battle above Privet Drive and answering Xeno Lovegood's summons). He has no other particular characteristics; his appearance in Diagon Alley may just be a result of the author's need for a Death Eater to be present, and due to his scant appearances, this was a chance to use him.