Chapter 266: The Lady of the Lake's Final Lesson

"LEGILIMENS!"

Stars exploded behind Oleandra's eyes and her ears stung with the buzzing of a thousand angry bees. She recoiled away from Tracey, holding her head as she felt the onset of a pounding headache.

"Are you okay?" Tracey asked in concern. "It looks like you're in a lot of pain."

Oleandra's first attempt at using Legilimency was not going swimmingly. She had first tried asking Daphne for her help as a training partner, but she had immediately refused. She had then asked Tracey, and after much cajoling, she had finally managed to convince her to accept.

Unfortunately, it would all be for naught, as Oleandra was forced to come to the conclusion that those who bore stars in their souls could not have their minds read. It was simply impossible; the runes engraved on Oleandra's, Daphne's, Tracey's and Draco's souls made their minds incompatible with ordinary mental magic. Mannaz, the rune of humans, also served as a final safeguard to their mind palace's integrity.

"It looks like you'll have to find another training partner," Viviane observed. "But there aren't that many people who would allow their minds to be subjected to inspection."

"Legilimency training is on hold, then," Oleandra groaned, massaging her aching temples.

"Looks that way," said Tracey, who was looking rather glad that her mind wasn't going to be read.

As it would be pointless to continue, Tracey went back to her last-minute studies. Unlike Oleandra, she wasn't exempted from taking end of year exams; and today was June the twenty-third, the next-to-last day of exams. So far, Oleandra hadn't bothered showing up to the exams, training under Viviane's supervision in empty classes.

"Not to worry, we can still find some unwilling participants," Viviane said confidently once Tracey had left. "Human Legilimency practitioners require unbroken eye contact in order to use their art; even masters need to at least catch a glimpse of their opponent's eyes before they can attempt to read their minds."

Oleandra could already see where this was going.

"But we are more than human; I've discovered that our truth-seeking eyes make this requirement unnecessary," Viviane continued. "Of course, there is a limit to how deeply we can penetrate our foes' minds this way, but this limited insight into their minds is enough to predict their next actions, even mid-combat."

"But I don't have any foes to practise on," Oleandra remarked. "At least, none that are willing to face me head on."

Not for the first time, Oleandra wondered if she hadn't imagined the Dusk-Elf in Professor Moody's Foe-Glass. The man in the forest couldn't have been one— he had Stunned her instead of killing her— a golden opportunity that an Elf definitely wouldn't have missed. Apart from the poisoning incident at Christmas, which may or may not have been the work of rival schools, nothing life-threatening had happened to her.

"I wasn't done," Viviane continued. "Using Legilimency in combat works very well on those who have mastered Occlumency— mind-protecting magic— can you think of a reason why?"

"Er… From what you've told me, using Occlumency to counter Legilimency requires one to close their mind," Oleandra said thoughtfully. "Which means— they'll be too distracted by the fight going on in their mind to concentrate on the fight in the real world?"

"Very good!" Viviane said. "But that's only part of the answer. Being on the offensive in a fight between minds is very advantageous, because you can withdraw your attack at any time. Well, unless you are fighting against a master of Occlumency; they can grow mental spikes to repel your attacks, and even trap you within a false memory, rendering you powerless for a few instants."

Oleandra listened carefully and took a mental note of this fact— do not use Legilimency on Dumbledore.

"But if we use Legilimency against someone who isn't looking into our eyes, they cannot fight back; only defend!" Viviane continued. "Our Truth-Seeking Eyes can bolster the information gleaned from our enemies' minds by reading into micro-expressions and body language to make this happen. But this can only be attained by practising— so you'll need to go people-watching."

So, she only needed to stalk people; not creepy at all.

"There is one last thing," Viviane mentioned. "Normally, Legilimency users want to be very discreet; it's easier to infiltrate an unwary mind, after all. But there is merit to shouting Legilimens! out loud; it's a declaration that you are making this a battle of the minds, and so most people will instinctually stop what they are doing and close their minds right away. Having one's next move constantly known is a bigger disadvantage than being distracted for just one moment, after all."

"I get it!" Oleandra said, her eyes shining. "You can call it out as a bluff, and not cast the spell at all!"

"Exactly," Viviane said with a small smile. "Once your opponent realizes that you are not in their mind, they will resume the fight in the physical world, assuming you haven't already incapacitated them. But with our Legilimency powers, we can still predict their actions; making them doubt whether our earlier mind-reading attempt hadn't actually succeeded. You can also turn your bluff into reality; really attempt to pry open your opponent's mind once they've let down their guard."

"Which opens them up to Fairy magic!" Oleandra realized. "Gaslighting enemies, and playing with their perception of what's real or not; those are all tricks! If I can make my opponent make an unnecessary action, I can take something from them!"

"And it's a slippery slope," Viviane said. "Once you've taken something from them, they won't notice it right away; but they'll instinctually know that something has gone terribly wrong. Their actions will grow irrational; allowing you to take more and more, until nothing is left."

And that is how Greater Fairies fought; by making their opponents doubt reality itself. Oleandra shuddered; no wonder Wizards fought so hard to keep wands out of other species' hands. They were more than tools and partners for everyday use; they were weapons of war. And combined with other species' natural gifts, they could become extremely deadly.

And so, Oleandra spent the rest of the day sitting at the back of classes, watching other students going about their exams, and using Legilimency on unsuspecting passersby from behind.

"Amusing pastime, reading thoughts, isn't it?" a voice said behind her. "Though I myself find that it works better when I can see their eyes."

Startled, Oleandra turned around in her chair. Dumbledore!