Is Lupin a Legilimens?

[wynnleaf]

No: HPFGUIDX 157214

I was reading through POA today and ran across yet another reference
to Lupin acting "as though he had read Harry's mind..."  Regardless of
whether or not Lupin is good or bad, I am starting to think this is
one we should be looking at more closely.

As far as I know (there may be more), there are three examples of
blatant "mind reading" language regarding Lupin:

1.  When Lupin first sees Sirius in the Shrieking Shack, he stared at
him, "so intently it seemed he was trying to read his mind," before
almost automatically accepting him as innocent and giving him a hug.

2.  In POA when Lupin is talking to Harry in The Marauder's Map
chapter.  Harry says, "'Why do they affect me like that?  Am I just
--?'  'It has nothing to do with weakness,' said Professor Lupin
sharply, as though he had read Harry's mind."   

3.  In OOTP-US50, Lupin, at 4 Privet Dr., speaks, "as though he had
read Harry's mind."

That's three times JKR has used the same terminology to describe an
action of a character in a fictional world where she has clearly shown
us that some characters *can* "read minds."  

Further possible examples of legilimency being used include:

1.  On the train in POA, Lupin takes a look at the children on the
train and knows that the broken and unwrapped chocolate in their hands
hasn't been even tasted.

2.  In the DADA class on boggarts, Harry notes that almost everyone
has their eyes closed thinking of their greatest fears (by
implication, Harry's eyes are open). Lupin thinks that Harry's
greatest fear will be LV, but it turns out to be the dementor. Later
Harry tells Lupin that he never thought of LV, but that's not true.
The narration, during the classroom scene, says that Harry first
thought of LV as his greatest fear, but later that it was dementors.
Did Lupin use legilimency to see Harry's greatest fear and assumed
that the first thing that came to Harry's mind was his greatest fear?

3.  When Snape confronts Lupin about the Marauders Map in POA, Lupin
is said to have an "odd, closed look."  Since we know that Lupin was
hiding something at that point, and since we know that Lupin is aware
of Snape's legilimency skills, this sounds like it could be occlumency.

There are other examples of similar intent looks that could have been
occlumency or legilimency.  There are also Snape's comments about
Lupin.  He says, "who knows how a werewolf's mind works," and also
(can't recall where), speaks of not being able to "fathom" Lupin's
mind.  Is this just a turn of phrase?  Or is this a comment on Snape's
inability to delve into Lupin's mind?

Lupin has commented on Snape's ability in occlumency.  He knows that
DD asked Snape to teach Harry.  He knows Harry didn't want Snape to
teach him, and he knows that Sirius didn't want Snape to teach him. 
Yet, if he's an occlumens/legilimens himself, why didn't he volunteer
or even mention it?  In other words, if Lupin is an occlumens or
legilimens, he's keeping it a secret.

When OOTP first came out and we discovered that Snape was a occlumens
and could do legilimency, readers quickly found many places in the
books similar to the scenes I mentioned above, as examples of where
Snape was probably practicing legilimency as he attempted to figure
out whether or not students were lying to him.  

If JKR was using those scenes (so similar to the Lupin ones above) as
examples of Snape doing legilimency, then it seems highly likely that
she's doing the same thing with Lupin, but she just hasn't told us. 
However, in a fictional world where so much is made of other wizard's
ability to do occlumency and legilimency, it seems remarkably odd that
JKR would *three times* use the "like he was reading his mind," type
of line only as a passing, unimportant description.

Further, although some might think these could just be red herrings,
that also seems unlikely.  Almost all of the examples take place
either in POA, or in OOTP prior to our introduction into the magic of
legilimency and occlumency.  So these scenes just don't work as red
herrings since readers couldn't possibly notice them as anything
important until after they've either read the book (OOTP), or several
years later when they read the next book(POA to OOTP).  

Last, although it is possible that an occlumens or legilimens Lupin
could be good, if Lupin *can* do this kind of magic, it lends a lot of
weight to ESE!Lupin.  Because if JKR is holding back this kind of info
about Lupin, then it means that she is planning some sort of Big
Surprise regarding Lupin in Book 7.

Thoughts?  More examples of legilimens or occlumens Lupin?

wynnleaf, who must credit pippin for passing this theory along to me
and finding many (most) of the examples.  Oh, and I paraphrased pippin
a few times, too, in describing some of the scenes.