Saviour of Magic

Harry vs Hermione

"Oh, don't act all mighty Granger," snapped Harry, his eyes darkening slightly. "I understand that you want the best for them and I appreciate that, but your actions say different. Tell me, have you actually met a house-elf before?"

"Of course I have," said Hermione loftily. "I saw you summon that elf a year ago when you showed those memories to the school."

"That's not what I meant," said Harry quietly. "Have you personally spoken to them? Have you asked them if they're happy? Have you asked them why they need to bond with witches and wizards? Professor McGonagall must have told you, if you had cared to ask her, that the bond between a wizard and house-elf goes back for millennia. Have you ever tried to understand why that is so?"

"They're obviously brainwashed by –" began Hermione, but she was cut off.

"So, you came to your own conclusion did you?" asked Harry in a deadly voice. "That's the problem with you, Granger. You read what is given in one book, not verify it with others, not listen to others who try to correct you, not look at the real-life scenario, and jump to conclusions! That's what you have done with regard to house-elves."

"Let me enlighten you," he continued, as the entire Gryffindor House listened in rapt attention. "House-elves have always existed in our world, but they are not the only form of elves. There are Wood Elves which exist in the forests all over the world, but they are very, very rarely seen as they prefer to remain isolated due to the danger of them being hunted down. High Elves exist who are considered by many as one of the oldest sentient magic species, but they too prefer an isolated environment and haven't been spotted for hundreds if not thousands of years. Just as all of us serve a purpose and function for the society at large, house-elves are a species meant to serve. That is their function, as I'm sure it was explained to you numerous times! If you rob them of their ability to do their job, then they lose the will to live as they have nothing else to live for!"

"Slavery –" began Hermione, but was again cut off.

"The bond between a house-elf and a witch or wizard has existed for tens of thousands of years. That is the way for them to survive. Without the bond, their existence has no meaning; they were born to serve. Unlike in your precious Muggle world where humans enslave other humans, we don't do that. Because Mother Magic herself has created a species who serve us to help better ourselves so that we can improve our society. Every society needs others who cook, clean, do the housework, and take care of the children. In the Muggle world, it is done by other humans, while in the magical world it is done by house-elves. You can't expect them to accept wages because they have no use for it. What do you think they would do, go to a party? Watch a movie? Their inherent magic itself provides them with whatever they need, and coupled with the magic they get from witches and wizards ensures that they are self-sufficient. They use the magic received from the bond to reproduce, and you trying to free them shows that there is someone out there who wants to kill them all! Please, don't try to bring in your vaunted Muggle ideas into the magical world where it is neither wanted nor necessary," said Harry quietly, but firmly.

"But of course you need Muggle ideas!" screeched Hermione furiously. "The wizarding world is still stuck in the dark ages with backward and outdated traditions and only by adapting to the Muggle world can bring them out of stagnation! There isn't even the concept of divorce in the magical world, while it exists in the Muggle world. There is so much more ... Polygamy, the Ancient and Noble House system ... Only if we remove such barbaric laws and traditions could the magical world ever hope to be as advanced as the Muggle world."

This comment brought outrage from many of them sitting in the common room. Nobody missed the part of Granger called them all barbaric, and many of the purebloods couldn't believe that she would think that the Muggle world could even compete with the magical world in any way.