4 1/2 week Timeskip to December 9th
"Alright. If you're going to be going back home for the holidays then put your name on this list by the end of the day. Remember, the train will be leaving this Saturday, December 13th, and won't be back until Sunday, January 5th." Professor Snape tells us in the Slytherin Common Room, placing an absurdly long parchment onto the wall by the exit. "Do not forget, otherwise you will be stuck here in Hogwarts and I'm sure cause irreparable disappointment in your parents."
Dang. Harsh words Professor.
"Daph, Tracey. You two going back right?" I ask the two of them, watching as most of the House are going and putting their names down.
"Of course." "Yup." They both answer, waiting for the crowd to disperse so they can go up as well.
Daphne looks at me briefly before asking as well. "What about you Rin? If you'd like, I could ask Dad about letting you come spend the holidays with us?" Her offer leaving me somewhat flummoxed.
I think about it for a moment and make my decision. "Thanks Daph, but I think I'll just stay here. Give myself some time to work on a couple projects I've been neglecting." Mainly everything involving getting the Philosopher's Stone.
"Well if you're sure..." Daphne trails off after my words. Hmm, I'll have to make it up to her later. Maybe I can find something for Christmas?
Tracey abruptly grabs Daphne's arm and begins pulling her towards the parchment as it starts to clear. "Come on Daphne, we need to be quick and put out names down!"
Well, I guess while they're doing that I can go over everything thats changed so far.
Stats first since barely anythings changed.
[Rin Fraener the Gamer]
[Level: 147]
[Gender: Female]
[HP: 2840]
[SP: 1840]
[MP: 4224]
[Str: 105(120)]
[End: 105(120)]
[Dex: 105(115)]
[Int: 306(321)]
[Wis: 305(330)]
[Luc: 32]
[Cha: 200]
[Stat Points: 0]
[Level Points: 15]
[Perks: 30]
[Flaws: 3]
Ya I've wound up using the rest of my Stat Points. I'm gonna start just saving them throughout the month and using them wherever I need to at the end of each month as a precaution. I did get a couple more benefits though for raising Intelligence, Wisdom and Charisma even more.
[Perk gained for reaching 300 Intelligence and 300 Wisdom]
[Efficient Casting: All Spells use 25% less MP]
[Perk gained for reaching 200 Charisma]
[Perceived Charm: Player will gain an automatic 10 Affection upon first meeting a person]
Some pretty helpful Perks if I do say so myself. Speaking of Perks, I did gain another through a Quest I finished a few days ago.
[Quest: Rank all classroom Mastery Skills up to Exceeds Expectations by end of year]
[Reward: 1000 EXP, Talented Perk]
[Quest cleared!]
[Talented: Increases Skill EXP gain by 10%]
Very helpful of course. From what I can tell though it doesn't stack with Savant, so they both give separate boosted amounts. Still nothing but beneficial of course.
And now the beautiful Skills~.
[Beginner Transfiguration Mastery: Rank Outstanding(O): Passive Skill: Grants 5 Int & 5 Wis and 35% effectiveness to all Transfiguration spells]
[Beginner Charms Mastery: Rank Outstanding(O): Passive Skill: Grants 5 Int & 5 Wis and 35% effectiveness to all Charms spells]
[Beginner Potions Mastery: Rank Outstanding(O): Passive Skill: Grants 5 Dex & 5 Wis and 35% to all Potions effectiveness]
[Beginner Herbology Mastery: Rank Outstanding(O): Passive Skill: Grants 5 Str & 5 Dex and 35% to all Herbology plants and fungi]
[Beginner Astronomy Mastery: Rank Outstanding(O): Passive Skill: Grants 5 Int & 5 Wis and 35% to all Astronomy knowledge]
[Beginner History of Magic Mastery: Rank Outstanding(O): Passive Skill: Grants 5 End & 5 Wis and 35% to all History of Magic understanding]
[Beginner Defense Against the Dark Arts Mastery: Rank Outstanding(O): Passive Skill: Grants 5 Str & 5 End and 35% effectiveness to all Defensive spells]
With all of these up to Outstanding I managed to get that Talented Perk. And they're still gaining EXP, though much more slowly, so theres something beyond them as they are which I have a pretty good idea of based off another Skill I trained up.
[Silent Casting Mastery: Rank Exceeds Expectations(EE): Passive Skill: Enables silent casting of spells. Chance of success is 85%. Percentage decreases with difficulty of spell and increases with chance of success of spell and level of Mastery in that category]
Am very proud of having gotten this ranked up as much as I have. Now I can almost always cast a lower level spell without speaking, and with that I can take anybody up with surprise.
[Skill Evolution!]
[Mana Circuits: Rank Outstanding(O): Passive Skill: Player has increased Mana Regen rate. Skill can rank up through meditation]
/
/
[Mana Core: Rank Troll(T): Passive Skill: Player has vastly increased Mana Regen rate. Player can store Mana in reserve for emergency situations. Skill can rank up through meditation]
Even better regen and a way to store MP for later is incredible. This also goes to show that Skills can evolve once they rank up enough.
Other Skills that have ranked up though.
[Mana Sense: Rank Dreadful(D): Passive Skill: Player can sense Mana with one of their 5 senses, chosen at random. Sense of Smell chosen]
/
/
[Mana Sense: Rank Max: Passive Skill: Player can sense Mana with one of their 5 senses, chosen at random. Sense of Smell and Taste chosen]
This one gave me a second form of sensing Mana with taste somehow. Lets just say that Mana is sickly sweet and not great to be around.
[Teleport: Rank Exceeds Expectations(EE): Active Skill: Player can teleport themselves 5 meters for every 100 MP. Player can only teleport within line of sight]
Have almost maxed this one out but is a massive improvement to what it was before. Not sure where it would evolve to if it can.
[Rune Magic: Rank Acceptable(A): Passive Skill: The practice of utilizing Ancient Runes to achieve effects in the world]
[Fehu: Compels to perform an action]
[Ansuz: Allows for viewing through an object]
[Wunjoy: Generates happiness]
[Isaz: Freezes an object]
[Arhain: Hides an object from the senses]
This hasn't granted any kind of benefit from ranking it up unfortunately so I'm not sure what else to do but work on using these same Runes over and over. Is helping me get used to making them at least.
[Barbatos' Vision: Rank MAX: Active Skill: The Great Demon Barbatos' eye. It has a field of view that can extend up to 10 kilometers away]
I also made sure to go ahead and use the Skill Book for this and try it out. Very disorienting to use but I think I can find a use for it if I learn any Skills or Spells that work on line of sight such as Teleport.
[Pain Resistance: Rank Poor(P): Passive Skill: Player can withstand all manner of pain. Increases based off of Skill Rank and Endurance Stat]
Haven't done this one a lot cause its not very enjoyable to rank it up. Same with Disease Resistance, which hasn't Ranked up at all.
[Magic Mastery: Rank Acceptable(A): Passive Skill: All Magic Skills are increased in damage and effectiveness by 65%]
This ones quite difficult to rank up as it only gains EXP when using Skills and Spells not aligned with other Mastery Skills. Still its gotten quite high and is just gonna get better.
[Magic Resistance: Rank Acceptable(A): Passive Skill: Player can withstand Magic used on them. Resistance is calculated by Players Level, Enemy Level, and both sides Stats. Can be overcome by certain Skills]
Managed to get this up to Acceptable by having my friends all practice their spells on me. Unfortunately once it hit Acceptable the EXP gain has lowered significantly, even with Savant and Talented helping out. Guess I need stronger spells now to push it forward.
[Magic Arrow: Rank Acceptable(A): Active Skill: Player can create and fire off arrows made of Mana. Each arrow deals 90 damage and costs 10 MP. Can be overcharged]
Haven't practiced this one as much since its very difficult to find a safe place to practice. Still can't use the Room of Requirement since the Professors are still going through things inside. Never realized the place was that full, good thing I managed to get some things first.
[Mana Absorption: Rank Outstanding(O): Active Skill: Player can absorb Mana through their hands. Does not affect spells or skills used against you by higher level entities. Mana can only be absorbed at a rate of Wisdom/5 per second]
And finally this one which is just about to be maxed out. Hopefully it'll evolve into something astounding to make up for its limitations.
And finally, lets go over what I've managed on Affection scores.
[Daphne Greengrass: 81/100]
[Tracey Davis: 60/100]
[Perk gained for reaching 50 Affection with Tracey Davis]
[Perk: Lucky Chick: Increased Luck when in close proximity with girls]
[Hermione Granger: 51/100]
[Speed Reading Skill gained for reaching 50 Affection with Hermione Granger]
[Speed Reading: Rank Troll(T): Passive Skill: Increases reading speed by 10%]
[Neville Longbottom: 60/100]
[Professor Flitwick: 32/100]
[Professor Snape: 15/100]
[Professor McGonagall: 44/100]
[Professor Sinistra: 99/100]
[Professor Binns: 4/100]
[Professor Quirrell: 3/100]
[Professor Sprout: 7/100]
[Headmaster Dumbledore: 11/100]
[Ron Weasley: -34/100]
[Draco Malfoy: -23/100]
[Vincette Crabbe: -10/100]
[Gregory Goyle: -10/100]
Lots of awesomeness there. Another Perk for getting Tracey to 50 Affection, though its certainly an odd one. Not sure how its going to be helpful but meh, I'll find a use for it eventually.
And that Skill from Hermione's 50 Affection is actually pretty useful. Faster reading speed means I can get through more books to learn faster.
Man, Charisma is stupidly good if its able to help me gain Affection this quickly.
"Come on Rin. We need to get to Charms quickly, apparently Professor Flitwick has something important to tell us." Daphne grabs me from my thoughts, having apparently finished putting her name down along with Tracey. Gotta try and keep better attention in this place.
"Ya ya, I hear ya Daph. I'm sure whatever Professor Flitwick has for us is going to be great." I respond, following along after Daphne towards the Charms classroom. "Any idea what Professor Flitwick is going to show us?" I ask her, our steps echoing through the halls, figuring we could make some theories on it.
Daphne hums in thought as we walk for a moment before answering. "If he does the same thing Professor McGonagall did then I assume he'll show us an upper year spell and want us to try and learn it." Says Daphne.
Hmm, possible I suppose. Would seem a bit predictable though if the Professors all started doing that.
We make our way through the school and into the Charms classroom, and come upon the scene of Professor Flitwick at the front of the class, joined by a tall, black man in a blue and purple robe. Huh, Kingsley Shacklebolt is the important thing?
"Good news everyone!" Professor Flitwick enthusiastically said to us. "I'm sure many of you are wondering what important thing I could have for you all today. Well! That would be this distinguished man right here. Everyone, please welcome Kingsley Shacklebolt, a very highly decorated Auror at the Ministry." Professor Flitwick finishes announcing his guest, gesturing for Shacklebolt to take over and introduce himself as well.
"Thank you Professor Flitwick, its an honor to be here." Shacklebolt takes to the front of the class and begins to fully introduce himself. "Well then, hello everyone. My name, as your Professor just said, is Kingsley Shacklebolt. I am an Auror at the Ministry of Magic. And while I work on a multitude of cases, my primary area of expertise is taking down Dark Wizards." He continues on before gesturing towards the Professor.
"Professor Flitwick here actually called me to see if I could come and show off some of the Charms we use when apprehending Dark Wizards." Shacklebolt says to us, letting out a small chuckle before continuing on. "Now then, I will show you all three Charms and no more. These will be the ones you'll learn in your fourth and fifth years and any of you that wish to go into Auror training after you graduate should be sure to practice these to the point you could cast them in your sleep."
He brandishes his wand, summoning a mannequin off to the side of the room. "Watch carefully now children, I will cast each spell once and then I'll be answering questions about being an Auror." He says briefly before taking a stance a little ways away from the mannequin.
After a moment he then intones. "Incendio!" A jet-stream of fire bursting from his wand and impacting the mannequin, causing it to be knocked over and become on fire, eventually fizzling out as Professor Flitwick summons another one.
[Magic Contemplation Activated]
[Player has learned the Fire-Making Charm Incendio]
Wonderful. A bit more offense for the future.
"Excellent form Kingsley. Such a basic spell used in an expert manner to incapacitate your foe. I can tell you've practiced it well." Professor Flitwick interjects, giving Shacklebolt a knowing nod before gesturing to continue.
"Of course Professor. Now the next spell is a bit more dangerous, so if you're going to practice it at some point be sure to be careful." Shacklebolt tells the class before moving on and preparing another spell for the mannequin.
"Bombarda!"
A resounding boom echoes out throughout the classroom as a wave of air hits the mannequin. The mannequin blasting off of the floor and up against the wall at the end of the room, now broken into many pieces from the intensity of the spell.
"That, children, is the Exploding Charm Bombarda. It is very dangerous as you can see and I'm sure your Professors won't want to hear of you all getting injured practicing it. Be careful, be safe, and keep it to dependable areas when in use, though I doubt anybody here could use it till third year at best." He says, addressing the entire class in one fell swoop before looking at the next mannequin brought up.
"Hmm this next spell is much less dangerous then the previous two, but is no less important to know just in case. It's a defensive spell that you all should be learning in a year or two so watch carefully." Shacklebolt gestures towards Professor Flitwick who brings out his wand, sending a spell similar to the Bombarda towards the Auror.
"Protego!" He shouts, a nigh transparent shield forming in front of his wand, which the spell from Professor Flitwick impacts into. The resulting clash letting out a loud boom and revealing Shacklebolt completely fine.
"And that class is the Shield Charm Protego, it is an invaluable spell to learn and be able to cast at a moments notice." Shacklebolt and Professor Flitwick banish away the remains of the mannequins.
"Alrighty class, now that Auror Shacklebolt has demonstrated spells that he and his fellow Aurors use regularly I think its only fair to see if any of you have questions about the job of an Auror." Professor Flitwick brings up, a bunch of the class murmuring amongst themselves about what to ask.
"Sir! What are the rules about being an Auror?" I see and hear Hermione asking from her spot in the classroom, closer towards the rest of the Gryffindors. "And are they subject to the same laws as everyone else?"
Shacklebolt stands there a moment pondering her question before answering. "Well, to answer the second question first, yes all Aurors are held to the same laws as the rest of the wizarding world, there may be a few exceptions for sanctioned arrests of dangerous individuals but for the rest of it yes we are." Said Shacklebolt, a tense look on his face as he moves on.
"Your first question though, well, as an Auror you are held to a much higher level of scrutiny. Every action, inaction. Every choice. Every conversation you have inside and outside of the Ministry will be watched by your allies, colleagues, and even your enemies." A solemn look on his face as if reliving something from the past.
A short moment of silence occurring afterwards as nobody know where to go at seeing his expression before its interrupted by somebody I actually haven't spoken to so far in the year. "How much is an Auror paid sir?" A sandy haired Terry Boot speaking up.
Shacklebolt stands there for a moment before chuckling lightly. "Hahaha! Y'know, I should have known th-" As he's speaking, the class is suddenly interrupted once more by a knock at the door, revealing Professor Quirrell standing there.
"S-so sorry for i-interrupting. I'm h-here to get Miss Fraener. I'm needing h-her for a discussion o-on her s-studies." He stutters out, pointing towards me after stepping inside.
Professor Flitwick stands there slightly confused for a moment, Shacklebolt as well, before giving an answer. "U-uh sure. Miss Fraener? Yes, go on and join Professor Quirrell. I'm sure its quite important."
I barely hear Professor Flitwicks words as I stare over at Quirrell with wide eyes, only noticing once Daphne grabs my arm and jostles me. "Rin? You ok? Hey you need to get going, I'll be sure and take some notes for you later." She says, guessing thats what I'm worried about.
Swallowing briefly I then stand and answer Daphne. "Y-ya. Sorry Daph, I'll see ya back at the Common Room." I tell her, walking over and out of the class with Professor Quirrell.
We walk through the halls for a while, my oncoming dread and fear making it difficult to breathe, Professor Quirrell's magic not making it any easier, eventually making it to the seventh floor corridor. Right across from the portrait of Barnabas the Barmy. In front of a familiar doorway, leading into the Room of Requirement.
"So Miss Fraener. I'm told that you were the one to find this room correct?" He asks me, his voice a cold and terrifying tone.
I don't answer. Can't more like, due to the feeling of his magic surrounding me, holding me in still as he walks us both into the Room, revealing that its actually the Lost and Found Room. Shit. Does that mean he's the one going through the things in here today?
"I suppose congratulations are in order actually. Its not often that a first-year finds a powerful magical artifact hidden within the school. Particularly one at the level of the one I've heard you found." He continues to speak, his magic keeping us walking through the Room, making me notice that while its noticeably more empty, theres still a boundless area filled with objects that could be worth untold knowledge and fortune.
"And then, the matter of you managing to not only escape from, but also kill both a Mountain Troll and a Tebo? Well, I just couldn't let such a promising talent such as yours wander around aimlessly. So I took it upon myself to volunteer at clearing out this room for the remainder of the year, on the premise of being able to take care of any Dark objects that could be found." He explains to me as we continue onwards, slowly making our way deeper inside until we come to an area surrounded by books stacked upon bookcases in a circular area.
"Enough of that though. I want to hear from you Miss Fraener, what is it that drives you?" He says, having stopped our walking and turning to face me, an unreadable expression on his face with his magic letting up on me.
I stand there for a moment, not answering as my mind races to find something to say. "Well uh... what, do you mean Professor?" I manage to force out, stalling for whatever time I can get.
The Professor hums in thought for a moment, pacing across in front of me, his eyes trained on me the entire time. "What I mean Miss Fraener, is why do you work so hard to learn magic? Is it for power? Fame? Friendship?" He says mockingly. "Or something else that only you would know?"
I stand there for a moment, wondering how to word this to get away without being attacked and killed. Finally answering slowly, and with as much meaning as I can. "I... just want to learn magic sir. Learn magic, get stronger, and be around my friends." My answer ending with me getting up the courage to face him eye to eye.
We stare at one another for what seems to be the tensest moment I've ever been in, mentally preparing my Teleport and Magic Arrow to try and escape.
"Pft~ well... I guess thats all that can be expected for one as young as you Miss Fraener." Quirrell laughs briefly. Quite disturbing I have to say.
"Nevermind. I've decided Miss Fraener. I presume you aren't leaving over the holidays correct? No, I don't think you will be. Once the holidays begin, you will be attending study sessions with myself everyday either in my classroom or here in the Lost and Found Room. Should anybody ask merely tell them you've found a new interest in Defense Against the Dark Arts." He explains as he walks to a bookcase a few steps away, pulling one off of it and bringing it over to me.
"I want you to study this till then. It'll give you something to think about while I figure the points we'll be going over." He says as he hands the book to me, practically forcing it into my hands as he then begins to lead me back out of the Room, his magic once again seemingly dragging me along towards the doorway.
As we exit I eye the cover of the book: Secrets of the Darkest Arts. Can't say I recognize it but going by that title I can't say I'm to thrilled to have to start looking through it.
"Well Miss Fraener, I suppose this is goodbye for now. I'll see you in class come Friday, and for both of our sakes, be sure to throughly explore that book for references." Walking away with a quiet swish of his robes, myself doing the same in the opposite direction, only making it a few steps before...
"Oh! And one other quick question Miss Fraener." Quirrell asks loudly towards me, the both of us only being a few meters apart.
After turning and facing him fully I respond. "Y-ya Professor?" I question whatever he could want now. A light smirk appearing on his face as he says one simple thing.
"Well, I was just wondering... where can I go to get a Game such as yours~?"
...
...what?
A... Game...?
The realization hits me all at once, just as a ping pops up in my vision.
[Skill Rank Up!]
[Magic Resistance: Rank Exceeds Expectations(EE): Passive Skill: Player can withstand Magic used on them. Resistance is calculated by Players Level, Enemy Level, and both sides Stats. Can be overcome by certain Skills]
My face quickly draining of all color, his smirk growing wider and much, much darker. A chuckle escaping his lips as he turns and laughs much louder down the hallway.
I ran. Full stop, fuck any consequences. I just ran and ran until I made it to the Slytherin Common Room. Thankfully nobody else is here cause I need some way to calm myself down.
"Crap! Shit! Fuck!" Cursing rapidly as my mind races at the implications of this.
"How did he know?! Was he reading my mind?!" I ask myself, thinking to how I got the Magic Resistance rank. He was probably using Legilimency and saw the Game screen in my memories.
I then stop and realize something else. "If he's seen the Game screen, he could've also found out about my knowledge of this universe... goddamnit!" I throw the book he gave me onto my bed, and collapse into it as well. Trying, and failing, to think about what to do next.
As I lay there thinking it then dawns on me. "And... he's probably not the only one thats seen something in there. Fuck! I'd guess that Dumbledore and possibly Snape have noticed something back in the Infirmary. Heh, their probably waiting to see what else I can do before confronting me about it." I reason with myself, still feeling horrible at being caught so easily.
"Come on Rin. You can figure something out." I ponder there on my bed for a while. Going through each of my Skills, and Perks, even the ones in the Perk Shop, though I can't afford any meaningful ones at the moment.
"Based on everything thats gone on so far, I can only think that increasing my Wisdom Stat would get me a way to block mental attacks. But how do I increase it quicker right now? I can't really accomplish very many quests right now, at least not any that can get me absurd amounts of experience at this point." Sitting there and running through any options I might have at the moment when something dawns on me.
"Wait a moment..."I quickly open up my Inventory, thrusting my hands inside and pulling out different books available, hoping theres something I can use to help.
I quickly take note of each books title as I run through them, looking for either a textbook of some kind that can teach me something, or a Skill Book to get a helpful Skill.
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.
Intermediate Transfiguration.
Holidays with Hags.
Unfogging the Future.
Wandlore for Beginners.
A Practical Guide to Dragons.
Damnit! None of these are getting me anywhere. They're all just textbooks on random subjects that don't help me right now.
[Skill Book Acquired]
[Skill Book: Auramancy]
[Auramancy: Rank Troll(T): Passive Skill: The practice of understanding and predicting ones future through the study of Aura]
[Would Player like to learn this Skill?]
[Yes/No]
I go ahead and click Yes, not that this Skill is gonna help at the moment but maybe soon.
A Beginner's Guide to Herbology.
Wizarding Schools of the World.
Living with Legilimens.
Encyclopedia of Spells.
"Wait a second." I quickly go back to the previous book and reread the title. "Living with Legilimens by Queenie Goldstein. That just might be what I need!"
I quickly open the book and begin going through it.
Living with Legilimens by Queenie Goldstein
Ch.1 The Most Common Form of Legilimency
In the case of standard Legilimency, the mind is not a book, to be opened at will and examined at leisure. Thoughts are not etched on the inside of skulls, to be perused by any invader. The mind is a complex and many-layered thing... It is true, however, that those who have mastered Legilimency are able, under certain conditions, to delve into the minds of their victims and to interpret their findings correctly.
Legilimency as an art in which a wizard can not only see into the mind of another person, but analyze it. A Legilimens, one proficient in the art of Legilimency, can absorb emotions, feelings, thoughts, memories, and analyze them to figure out what a person is thinking. Some, are so powerful they can even plant seeds in other people's minds. Advanced Legilimens can apply Legilimency with nonverbal or wandless magic, or both. This at the least manifests as an uncanny ability to tell when someone is lying to them..
Standard Legilimency is easier when the spell-caster is physically near the target, and when the target is off-guard, relaxed, or otherwise vulnerable. Eye contact is often essential, so it is useful for a Legilimens to verbally manipulate his or her target into meeting the Legilimens' eyes, with the fringe benefit that the target's emotional state may bring relevant associated memories to the surface.
What the heck? I don't care about how the Legilimency works, I just want to know how to use Occlumency! I begin rapidly skipping through the pages, looking for any mentions of Occlumency and how to use it.
Ch.5 What is Occlumency?
They key to living with a Legilimens is to be better at Occlumency than they are at Legilimency.
Occlumency is the art of magically defending the mind against external penetration, sealing it against magical intrusion and influence – the defensive counter to Legilimency. A practitioner of Occlumency is referred to as an Occlumens. It is ancient, and has existed since medieval times. It can prevent a Legilimens from accessing one's thoughts and feelings, or influencing them. It can even be used to feed the wrong information to a Legilimens. A person who practises this art is known as an Occlumens.
In its most elementary form, Occlumency involves clearing the mind of thought and emotions in such a way that the Legilimens can't find any emotional ties to thoughts or memories that the person doesn't want to be seen. Thus, in order for both Occlumency and Legilimency to be better understood, it's important to comprehend how our brains create memories.
Not really what I meant but I guess helpful? So Professor Snape's teaching method in Order of the Phoenix was actually kinda correct, if Harry could just clear his mind and stay calm he would've been able to deflect Snape's intrusion.
Ch.6 The Dangers of an Emotional Mind
Memories are peculiar because the mind is not organizing like a library, which is why "reading" minds isn't so simple. Memories are complex pathways in the mind that extend in many directions. The strongest memories are intertwined with the feeling of intense emotions.
These emotions make us vulnerable to various assaults on the senses. If we are vulnerable, this also means that our thought processes are vulnerable, and thus could easily be probed.
By clearing one's mind of emotions, we are creating a barrier, which can't as easily be probed. Since Occlumency is a defense mechanism against Legilimency, the Legilimens is trying to discover a particular piece of information. The Occlumens by comparison, is probably trying to hide that bit of information, yet if their emotions are out of place with the thoughts they are projecting, the Legilimens can snag onto those feelings, which can take them to the source of the memory causing them.
The emotional mind makes the mind an easy target for any attack. A relaxed mind, one free of emotions acts like a shield, since the thoughts are all mixed together making it more difficult to isolate and find what one is looking for.
So keep calm and prevent any thoughts from coming to mind. Easier said then done when you've gotta prevent a homicidal blood purist from combing through your mind.
Ch.7 The Mind of a Master Occlumens
Occlumency in essence is Cognitive Dissonance. In psychology, cognitive dissonance is the mental stress (discomfort) experienced by a person who simultaneously holds two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values, when performing an action that contradicts those beliefs, ideas, and values; or when confronted with new information that contradicts existing beliefs, ideas, and values. Human beings strive for internal consistency. A person who experiences inconsistency tends to become psychologically uncomfortable, and so is motivated to try to reduce the cognitive dissonance occurring, and actively avoids situations and information likely to increase the psychological discomfort. For this reason it is very difficult and uncomfortable to master the art of Occlumency, because it is the diverging of the mind – the realization of a wizard's soul.
A beginner would clear one's head. This is useful when the Legilimens doesn't know what he is looking for, if he is just casting about for information or chinks in the armour. An advanced Occlumens is able to push specific thoughts which betray them away and lie to the Legilimens and maybe even push thoughts which have no basis in fact to the forefront.
It has been suggested that free will in relation to the content of the mind is tenuous at best. One cannot prevent the thoughts that come to their minds, but can ignore them by diverging into a different thought stream. Legilimens often have a habit of piercing memories through pathways of those that connect to them. For this reason it is important to mentally train oneself to associate their innermost darkest thoughts with unrelated concepts, such as unrelated memories. If a person is habitually trained to think of a dull dinner party in connection to an uneasy memory, the Legilimens may think of it as significant and probe into it (only to discover that the "hidden truth" of the memory is shallow).
Practice with your Legilimens; they are a valuable partner that can help you become an equal counter- Occlumens.
You know, I would've expected a book on dealing with a Legilimens to be a bit more detailed on how to stop it from happening.
"Better then nothing Rin. Lets just try and make this work from now on." I mutter to myself as I stow each of the books back into my Inventory, leaving me with the Secrets of the Darkest Arts book. I glare at it for a moment before stashing it under my pillow. "I'll start looking at that tomorrow. I need to just be prepared for my next encounter with Quirrell."
As I'm pondering what else I can do I hear the dormrooms door opening and in walk Daphne and Tracey, the both of them talking about the upcoming holidays.
"Come on Daphne~" Tracey whines, "You gotta live a little and know how to have fun. Besides, I'm sure Astoria would like to attend a party alongside her sister." Huh, I did forget about Daphne having a sister in the books. If memory serves she married Malfoy?
"Tracey, like I've said I don't like parties. I already have to attend a bunch of them as the Heiress to the Greengrass family, I've gotten bored and tired of them." The exasperation just oozing from Daphne's voice as she plops down onto her bed, before looking towards me. "How was your talk with Professor Quirrell, Rin? I made sure to get some notes made about Auror Shacklebolts job as well if you want them." She says towards me, pulling out a decent sized roll of parchment and holding it out to me.
Swallowing down the words I want to say I instead inform the two of them that it went well. "It went fine guys. I am gonna be taking more lessons with him while you two are gone though." I tell them, trying to keep my shivers under control so as not to alert or worry them.
"Anyways, I'll look over the notes later. Feeling a little tired so I'm gonna go ahead to sleep." Shutting the curtains on my bed and climbing under my covers, laying there and forcing sleep to come to me.
"I'll show him. He's gonna regret trying to use me like this." I swear to myself, one final ping coming up as I feel the sleep coming to me.
[Quest Alert]
[Quest: Prove yourself and go beyond anything Professor Quirrell believes you can do]
[Secret Objective: ?]
[Secret Objective: ?]
[Quest Reward: 10,000 EXP, 1 Random Perk, and 2 Gacha Coins]
[Secret Reward: ?]
[Secret Reward: ?]
[Accept/Decline]
Big things happening now it seems~ I wonder how Rin's gonna make it through this?
Salutations people~ hows everyone enjoying things so far? Thoughts, concerns, reviews? Gimme whatever you've got to say and I shall see about trying it out~
Anyways, sorry for the lack of update last week, have been very busy moving into a new house and just couldn't find the time to put thoughts to paper for this chapter. Should be back to normal for the foreseeable future.
Also, if anyone is wondering, check out the Hogwartsishere website for more things similar to the Living with Legilimens book I used in this chapter. Theres a lot of wonderful and inspiring books and discussions on that site that I think ya'll should look at when you have the chance.
Burn the believers and drink your tv, Caenis out and shall see you all next week~