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Interlude II

July 1988

It had been quite a week for Harry and his family. The house was still reeling from the events of Harry's birthday and the effect it had on his family, particularly his father. An uncomfortable silence descended in the manor over James's new handicap. He no longer had feeling below his waist which made walking impossible. Sirius acquired a medical wheelchair that Lily charmed to move based on James's intent. Everyone could tell that James was hesitant to use the chair. They all or at least tried to understand what James was going through. Physical impairments were unheard of in the magical world. There are people who have lost limps, eyes, and ears but magical substitutes existed that allowed them to live unhindered. A perfect example being James's old coworker, Alastor "Mad Eye" Moody, who had lost an eye and leg but was still one of the most active (and feared) Auror in the corp.

However, James's condition was unique. His handicap was the cause of his magic being ripped violently from his body. The manor wards were designed to use the magic of the head of house to blanket and mask the magical signatures within. It relies on the head of house being the strongest member of their family and for relative peace to exist. There were, of course, cases where a member of a family was magical stronger than its head of house but as long as they maintained control of their magic then there was no risk. So, when Danny accidently unleashed his magic, it well exceeded James's and forced his body to go beyond its limit in order to maintain the cloak of the wards.

Presently, Harry was walking to his father's office that resided on the first floor on the right side of the manor. When he reached the door, he knocked and entered to see his father waiting for him. He was seated behind his desk but the wheelchair was resting next to him.

"Have a seat, son."

"Dad, why isn't Danny here?" Normally, he and Danny shared all their lessons together but James had only asked for him.

"This lesson is just for you, Harry. You are my eldest and heir and there are responsibilities you must undertake given my new…condition."

"Whatever you need, Dad."

"Good, good. Now Sirius and I have told you little about our family and where we stand in the political spectrum of our world. Remember?"

"Yes, sir." James motioned for him to go on. "The Potter family is one of the oldest in magical Britain. We date back all the way to the Founders and were among their first pupils at Hogwarts.

From there we joined together with other prominent families and formed the Ministry of Magic. We chartered Hogwarts as Great Britain's official magical institution, formed the Wizengamot, made peace with the Goblin Nation, and commissioned the creation of Gringotts."

"Very good but what we're about to discuss goes well beyond what I ever wanted for you. I was never one for politics and had promised myself that I would never force that on my children like some families do. I wanted you to be free to make your own choices." James paused and took a long hard look at Harry. "I'm afraid I have to break that promise to you, Harry."

"It's okay, Dad. I understand." Whatever he needed to do for the family, he was ready and willing to do it.

"We'll start with the purebloods. It was around the time of Grindelwald that the pureblood movement first took hold; none more so then in our ministry. Older families like the Blacks, Malfoys, and Lestranges quickly used the growing fear of Muggles and Muggleborns to take control of the Wizengamot and weed out those families who were more pro-Muggle. With this new power, they made it increasingly more difficult for Muggleborns to join our society. Its why so few Muggleborns remain a part of the wizarding world after they finish Hogwarts. Most either go back to live their lives among Muggles or move to the Americas where they're much more tolerant. Muggleborns that do stay, like your mother, are treated very unfairly."

"Why? Mum's brilliant. Why would they not want her to stay?"

James smiled at his son's praise but grew very sad with what he was about to say. "Because there are those that believe that Muggleborns are not real wizards or witches. They believe that Muggleborns stole their magic and flaunt it in front of their faces."

"That's stupid." It was ridiculous to think that Muggleborns were stealing magic.

"I agree but that's why it's unsafe for Mum to be in public without our family name to protect her."

"I don't understand."

James breathed deeply, trying to find the right words. "When I married Mum, I went against everything the purebloods stand for. They believed that our bloodline would be permanently diluted and our history of producing strong witches and wizards would end."

"But that's not true." While Harry was, comparatively, no slouch, Danny far exceeded any other wizard.

"Which makes them despise your mother even more. You and Danny are proof that blood doesn't matter. That magic doesn't discriminate."

"So why do they still believe they're right?"

"Because of years of indoctrination. It wasn't too long after Grindelwald fell that Voldemort arose and he capitalized on that same fear. It has become almost suicide to outwardly support Muggles and Muggleborns in fear to become Voldemort's next target."

"But Voldemort is gone now."

"Yes, but he'll return. And Fudge," James's voice was laced with venom at the Minister's name, "will not do anything to upset his constituents. Money is power and Fudge is all too willing to accept a few bribes to pass unjust laws. Laws that make it almost impossible for people like Moony to find work or Muggleborns like Mum to hold important roles inside the ministry."

"So what can we do?"

"Show them that they're wrong. Through our actions and our resolve." James paused. He pushed back his chair and reached out to the wheelchair to bring it closer. Using his upper body strength, James lifted himself from his desk chair and moved over to rest in the wheelchair. He shifted about until he was comfortable before he looked back to Harry. "That's where you must now come in, Harry." He rolled the wheelchair closer until he was right in front of Harry. "You must be the symbol of strength for our family."

Harry didn't hesitate. "What do I have to do?"