Suppose enough people disbelieve Lucius, or just oppose him if he’s keeping his reasoning secret. Harry is the one coming forward asking to testify, so they decide to let him.
But when testifying before the Wizengamot, standard procedure is to use a Legilemens. They even used one on Hermione, and no-one thinks she’s any kind of Occlumens at all. So an Occlumens would be used, and would report that Harry is lying.
There’s no way Daniel_Starr’s plan for Harry would work—whether they let him testify or not—unless he is a perfect Occlumens, and I don’t believe that even of his dark side, it’s not been sufficiently foreshadowed. (Also, Eliezer just wrote in the A/N that in text fiction, a protagonist can’t just power-up and gain new abilities during a crisis, because it makes for poor storytelling; he has to solve the crisis using abilities he already has.)
But when testifying before the Wizengamot, standard procedure is to use a Legilemens. They even used one on Hermione, and no-one thinks she’s any kind of Occlumens at all. So an Occlumens would be used, and would report that Harry is lying.
I don’t believe this is correct.
The Potions Master raised his voice. “This is not Muggle Britain, Mr. Potter!” Severus’s face was as expressionless as ever, but the bite in his voice was sharp. “The Aurors have an accusation under Veritaserum and a confession under Veritaserum. So far as they are concerned, the investigation is done.”
“Not quite,” said Dumbledore, just as Harry seemed ready to explode. “I have insisted to Amelia that this matter be given the utmost scrutiny. [...]
The boy nodded, his eyes still directly addressing her. “Which of those spells can be detected? Which would the Aurors try to detect?”
“The Confundus Charm would wear off in a few hours,” she said, after a moment to gather her thoughts. “Miss Granger would remember the Imperius. Obliviation cannot be detected by any known means, but only a Professor could have cast that spell upon a student without alarm from the Hogwarts wards. Legilimency—can only be detected by another Legilimens, I think—”
“I requested that Miss Granger be examined by the court Legilimens,” said Dumbledore. “The examination showed—”
They only bothered to use a Legilimens on the direct request of the Chief Warlock; Veritaserum is normally considered sufficient.
Suppose enough people disbelieve Lucius, or just oppose him if he’s keeping his reasoning secret. Harry is the one coming forward asking to testify, so they decide to let him.
But when testifying before the Wizengamot, standard procedure is to use a Legilemens. They even used one on Hermione, and no-one thinks she’s any kind of Occlumens at all. So an Occlumens would be used, and would report that Harry is lying.
There’s no way Daniel_Starr’s plan for Harry would work—whether they let him testify or not—unless he is a perfect Occlumens, and I don’t believe that even of his dark side, it’s not been sufficiently foreshadowed. (Also, Eliezer just wrote in the A/N that in text fiction, a protagonist can’t just power-up and gain new abilities during a crisis, because it makes for poor storytelling; he has to solve the crisis using abilities he already has.)
I don’t believe this is correct.
They only bothered to use a Legilimens on the direct request of the Chief Warlock; Veritaserum is normally considered sufficient.
Good point. It’s still possible that someone will request a Legilemens if Harry testifies, so such plans are risky.
Dumbledore won’t ask for a Legilimens, because he’ll trust Harry.
Lucius won’t, because he believes Harry is Voldemort and a perfect Occlumens.
And everybody else will follow Dumbledore and Lucius’ lead on the matter.
Politicians hate taking risks and being caught out. Subordinate politicians really hate taking risks and being caught out.