Chapter 12: Happy Accidents


...Legilimency is much more and yet much more subtle than mind reading. The term mind reading infers something like a book, which the reader is able to peruse at, will. In reality a Legilimens is able to access memories and emotions but in varying degrees depending upon several factors.

If the person is an active Occlumens, active meaning one trained in the art. Most people have subtle shields around their minds that help them deal with the astounding amount of stimuli in the everyday environment.

Proximity to the person is important as well. Some people report that skin contact can dramatically increase the level of emotions and memories that can be accessed. However the use of passive Legilimency simply to determine the truth of the subjects words, does not normally lend itself well to physical touch.

Eye contact is also essential for in depth reading of the mind. The amateur Legilimens will have a telling sign such as a glow or sparkle to his/her eyes when they engage the subject. As one progresses to the level of Master these signs can be eliminated with practice.

Most important to the successful Legilimens is emotional state. Human memory is normally associated heavily with emotion. If you can trigger the correct emotion in your subject you will more easily access information that has been linked or organized in their mind under that category.

There have been reports of natural Legilimens in the past. Those reported the gift manifesting during the teenage years and slowly growing over time. The natural Legilimens has a distinct advantage over the trained in that they are able to control their own thoughts and emotions in such a way as to be undetectable to even a Master Occlumens. The last known natural Legilimens was Nicholas Flamel. He was recorded as mentioning that he simply had to learn to listen correctly in order to control his gift. Of course Mr. Flamel also stated that as his gift had manifested more than 600 years earlier the details were a bit fuzzy...

Harry rubbed his eyes for absolutely no reason, since he was not actually reading anything. Over the last several days he had discovered that if he wanted he could spend time in his mindscape studying while his physical body rested. He had done it on accident one night after fainting when one of the girls had started discussing their cup sizes and discussing shaving techniques.

He had been a bit reluctant at first to reenter his mind. But Hermione assured him that if he avoided talking to himself, especially as a bird. That he should be fine. His main problem was over thinking. Her use of the word had caused him to laugh for nearly ten minutes straight, after which he assured them that he would indeed start on sorting his bad memories.

He had woken crying three nights ago when he had unlocked the memory of Sirius falling through the Veil. They had taken to leaving the passage open at night to help circulate the cool night air. So the girls awoke and were instantly by his side as they heard his strangled cries. All by itself that memory should not have been that bad, but the emotion he unlocked along with it spilled over into his other memories and compounded the problem. The Will reading at Gringotts, when he had seen his Godfather for the last time floating above the Pensieve. Seeing Grimmauld Place again from the outside, and hearing the Headmaster explain that when Sirius... died... that the wards had been reset. All of his memories of the house, and wishing that Sirius could see the place cleaned up, and imagining the look on his face as his mother's portrait fell from the wall. He wailed aloud for well over an hour before he fell asleep exhausted in Hermione's lap. Ginny had curled up behind him and rubbed soothing circles over his back, whispering in his ear. Both girls were emotionally exhausted as well. And the following morning Harry had awoken wrapped between the two. He was cuddling Hermione like a teddy bear, except she was a very sexy and very soft teddy bear. He had his right hand covering her breast and could feel her soft nipple against his palm. And his normal morning erection was pressed firmly against the crack in her bum. Ginny had an arm and a leg thrown over both of them. He had disentangled himself from them and rushed to the bathroom before he had an incident on Hermione's back.

It was now Sunday again, over the last week the Headmaster had been strangely absent but other members had come and gone. Harry had seen little of Ron, but he had kept himself busy meeting with order members who were helping him to design the training room. He and Hermione tried to make time for each other, but Ron seemed more interested in planning than snogging, leaving a frustrated Hermione for Harry to deal with. This would not normally be a problem, but after the initial shock they had all taken to running between both of the rooms completely nude. Harry had a nearly constant erection, which pleased the girls to no end, though they would never say such a thing. Hermione assured him it was perfectly natural. He let her think so to hide his embarrassment as he became increasingly attracted to both of them. Rather than getting used to the nudity he was getting more turned on by the day. He retired to the bathroom to relieve the pressure at least four times a day.