Chapter 434: Legilimency Plus
The players marched onto the pitch amidst a roar that seemed to shake the very foundations of the stadium. Oliver Wood shot into the air, performing a series of aggressive warm-up laps around the goalposts.
Madam Hooch released the balls. The Hufflepuff team, clad in bright canary-yellow, huddled together for one final, frantic strategy session. Harry mounted his broom, and the match began in earnest.
He glanced toward the stands. Hermione and Justin—who were so busy they had actually started skipping lunch to study—were cheering themselves hoarse. Neville sat beside them, and Ron was brandishing a massive banner he had clumsily transfigured earlier that morning.
Everyone was there. Except for Sean.
Sean had been perpetually occupied lately, seemingly refusing to grant himself even a moment's respite. In fact, Harry hadn't seen him in two days—Gryffindor and Ravenclaw didn't share any classes on the current rotation.
Harry took a deep breath, straining to hear Madam Hooch's whistle over the cacophony of the crowd.
TWEEEEEET!
Fourteen brooms shot into the sky. Harry felt the wind whip his hair back, the cold bite of the March air forgotten in the sudden, electric rush of the flight.
The match lasted just over an hour. It ended with Harry's fingers closing around the struggling Golden Snitch, securing a two-hundred-point lead over Hufflepuff.
The stadium erupted. Applause and whistles echoed across the grounds. Harry, his forehead drenched in sweat and his hair plastered to his scalp, scanned the crowd with a triumphant grin. His eyes eventually locked onto a pair of calm, smiling eyes at the edge of the pitch.
"Sean!" Harry shouted, waving a hand.
But then, his expression shifted from joy to sheer bewilderment.
Wait... isn't Sean supposed to be in the dungeons serving detention?
Harry didn't even wait for the rest of the Gryffindor team to reach him. He banked his broom and streaked back toward the castle, landing near the entrance. By the time he reached the spot where he had seen his friend, the figure was gone.
Harry stood there, gasping for breath, sweat dripping from his chin. The cold wind made his thin robes flutter.
"Harry?"
A voice spoke from behind him. Harry instinctively reached for his wand before realizing who it was.
"Sean!"
His voice was full of shock and relief. It was Sean. "How are you out here? What about Snape?"
"Professor Snape granted me a day's leave," Sean replied smoothly.
"Oh... right. I see." Harry bit his lip. He wanted to ask about the Sean he'd seen on the tower earlier that day, but he hesitated.
"I've been researching some... 'profound' magic lately," Sean added, as if reading the question on Harry's face.
"Is... is that so?" Harry felt some of the tension leave his shoulders.
He figured Sean had found a way to magically duplicate himself, like the shade in the diary, or perhaps created a three-dimensional projection. With Sean, any invention was possible.
"It wasn't a projection," Sean said.
"Ah... right... not a—wait. Sean? Did... did I say that out loud?"
Harry quickly clapped a hand over his mouth. A cold sweat broke out across his neck. I'm certain I only thought that!
"My apologies, Harry. I'm having a bit of trouble controlling the output," Sean said, rubbing his temples.
The combination of the Wampus Biscuit and his Legilimency training had triggered a qualitative shift in his perception. He could now hear the internal monologues of those around him with startling clarity.
Of course, this only worked on wizards who lacked mental defenses. If a wizard had even a basic guard, Sean would have to exert force to "hear" them. To anyone who hadn't studied Occlumency, they were an open book in his presence.
"Your eyes!" Harry gasped.
In the fading twilight, Sean's eyes had begun to glow with a faint, predatory light. Harry could see them clearly: vivid emerald-green irises with sharp, vertical slits for pupils.
"Wampus Biscuits. The latest addition to the Workshop," Sean explained.
"A Wampus? What's that?" Harry asked, his confusion deepening.
"A magical creature known for its innate power of Legilimency," Hermione's voice cut through the air as she and the others approached. "Honestly, Harry, even Ron knows that."
To Harry's shock, Ron didn't even argue; he merely gave a helpless, commiserating nod. Harry's expression fell. He realized that between the grueling Quidditch schedule and his own fatigue, he had missed far too many of their sessions in the Room of Hope.
"Don't worry, Harry. We have plenty of time to catch you up," Sean said gently.
"Thanks, Sean. But... could you maybe stop reading my mind for five seconds?" Harry asked, looking ready to surrender.
"Reading minds?" Hermione blinked.
"The Wampus Biscuits grant a natural affinity for Legilimency. It isn't exactly as you're imagining it, Hermione. I haven't turned into an alien," Sean noted dryly.
Hermione's face turned bright red.
"You can retain your human mind while using the Wampus form? Good heavens..." Hermione adjusted her perspective instantly, her academic mind racing.
The group crowded around Sean, effectively blocking his line of sight. However, as long as he caught a glimpse of their eyes, their thoughts continued to bleed into his mind. He shook his head. Using Legilimency in this manner was an immense drain on his mental stamina, especially since it was currently "always on."
After less than a minute of processing their internal chatter, his head began to throb. He closed his eyes, and the world finally went silent.
"I hope I'm not interrupting..."
A cool, detached voice drifted over them.
Professor Terra's arrival acted like a Freezing Charm on the group. Harry, Ron, and Neville exchanged a series of nervous glances, trying to place the silver-haired witch.
"Good evening, Professor Terra," Hermione said, her voice full of the same reverence she usually reserved for Dumbledore. She turned to the boys and whispered, "This is Professor Terra, the Alchemy Master. It's said she's the only one capable of matching Nicolas Flamel."
Harry and the others stiffened.
"My dear apprentice... and what is the meaning of this display?" Terra asked. She kept her back to the other students, a playful glint appearing on her usually expressionless face.
"The Wampus effect can be stacked with Legilimency, Professor," Sean replied.
"Oh? Oh?!"
The playfulness vanished, replaced by a look of pure, academic ecstasy. They had already seized the authority of magical creature forms; now, they were discovering that those forms could act as amplifiers for human sorcery.
"Say goodbye to your... friends," Terra commanded, her eyes shining. "We have a great deal of work to perform tonight. It seems the Magic Hand Mirror isn't the only thing with good news attached to it."
Hand Mirror?
Sean opened his eyes, forgetting for a moment who he was facing. His gaze locked directly onto Professor Terra's.
As expected, his vision went black from the mental backlash of hitting a Master-level Occlumency barrier.
"Come along, my lovely, reckless apprentice," Terra's voice echoed in the darkness. He was fairly certain she was laughing at him.
Twilight faded into night. The moon rose over the noisy Quidditch pitch, and a few owls cut across the violet sky as Sean followed his mentor into the Alchemy office.
[End of Chapter 434]
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