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CHAPTER FOURTEEN: The Purification Device

"I imagine you have heard stories about the founding of Hogwarts,"Lucius remarked as they walked through stone-lined corridors.

Harry had been glancing around him during the walk. He had a nagging feeling that, wherever this was that he had been taken, it was somewhere he'd been before; certainly the building was large, as well as quite opulent. He was, he had to admit, slightly bemused by Lucius' treatment of him. The Death Eater was being almost conversational, with only the fact Draco, Pansy and Romilda were marching in step behind him, wands drawn, reminding him that he was a prisoner. He had noticed his own wand in Romilda's belt: She probably saw it as a trophy.

"I've heard stories,"he replied.

"You've probably heard the stories about Silas Slytherin as well,"Lucius continued. "How he believed Hogwarts should only be for those of wizarding heritage, those who had been brought up to understand their powers and our community. He was overruled and the gates were thrown open to freaks of nature, children of Muggles born with magic powers. For centuries we had been careful to hide our society, to protect our traditions. And then the Hogwarts founders chose to teach our most trusted secrets to outsiders, to train them to use magic as we would our own children. Slytherin feared this decision. He felt that one day these Muggle magic-users may turn on us, may try to harm our society."

"He was wrong,"Harry pointed out.

"No. He was right. Oh, they may not have formed an army against us, besieged our institutions, but they did far worse. They infiltrated us slowly, stealthily, taking over our offices, offices that should have been reserved for true wizards and witches. And these new Muggle-borns did not understand our society and so slowly they dismantle it, destroying everything we hold dear."

"Only now we can stop them,"Pansy said proudly. "We can take back our society."

Harry wanted to ask more questions but it was at that moment that Lucius threw open a nearby door and led them inside. The room contained a machine. Harry wasn't sure what he'd been expecting, even after seeing the diagrams. What was in front of him was a curious mixture of the mechanical and the magical, as high as a man and as long too, with the front part sloping downwards. It was laced with metal but there was no sign of circuitry. Set into one side was a slot roughly the size and shape of a wand.

"The Purification Device,"Lucius announced. "Silas Slytherin's last line of defence. He conceived it as a weapon against those of Muggle blood, to be used if they ever became a true threat to us. When activated, it will send out a field which will spread across the whole planet. It will only expire when it has touched every single person who possesses a magical core. And when it touches them, it will judge them. It will judge their purity. It is in tune with the heritage, with the blood, of all the ancient wizarding families. Only those who possess that blood and that blood only, who have not been weakened and contaminated by inbreeding with outsiders, will be judged worthy. The others…"

"Will die?"Harry asked bitterly.

Lucius sighed. "So quick to jump to conclusion. No, Harry. It will remove their magic, leave them as the ordinary Muggles they should have been. That is all. You grew up in the Muggle world. You, your wife and your children can return to that, live out your lives in your true society. Leave the magic to its true inheritors. I have tried to live in the world that your kind have created but it is time to reclaim our birthright. And I will do it in the kindest way possible. I don't want to kill the Muggle-borns or half-bloods. I simply want them to leave us alone. Is it really worth fighting me over that?"

"Yes,"Harry replied. "It's wrong, Lucius. You're deciding who has the right to have magic and who doesn't, according to your own beliefs. You're enforcing your will on the whole magical world. You talk as if you're acting on behalf of nature but it's nature that gave us magic and it's you that's going against it."

Lucius glared at him. "I really thought you might see reason. How foolish of me."

Harry looked around at the others present. "Draco, your son is in love with a half-blood."

Draco shrugged. "He'll find someone better."

"She's carrying his child, Draco. Your grandchild. If this plan goes ahead, that child will be born without magic, will not be a part of your world."

Draco looked shocked and torn but Lucius placed a hand on his shoulder. "We must all make sacrifices for what is right, Draco."

Pansy linked her arm with his. "Think what sort of life Scorpius would have with the stigma of a half-blood child. Better to let it grow up away from him so he can marry a proper witch."

Harry saw Draco's resolve return and sighed. "I'm going to do everything I can to stop you,"he announced. "And so will my friends, my family."

"Yes,"Lucius agreed. "I can see that. So you must remain our guest until all this is over. In just a few hours, the Purification Device will be fully charged with magical energy and then I will activate."

"You're going to lock me away again?"

"No. I think Romilda would like to entertain you."

Romilda smiled and raised her wand. "Imperio."

If Harry had had his wand or been ready or been less exhausted mentally, he might have blocked or thrown off the spell. As it was, he was completely under her enchantment in an instant. She smiled and beckoned to him and he followed her out of the chamber.