"The Gaunt family--they were known for the ability to speak Parseltongue, weren't they? I hear somewhere that they tried to breed the trait in their line, marrying their cousins and such, but that would probably just introduce genetic instability into their line." Violet savoured the new word -- genetic instability -- which she'd picked up from her ex-governess in their conversations following the battle last year. Violet was not sure she entirely understood it, but what she did understand led her to believe that being totally Pureblood was more of a liability than something to be proud of.