OPEN: Ultimate and Last Bragging Rights by TigerPatronus

[M.Clifford]

No: HPFGUIDX 171344


>
> Carol wrote:
> 
> 
> BTW, someone else in this thread suggested that Snape can't cast a
> Patronus against a Dementor. I disagree. Snape has no fear of
> Dementors and seems to have been at Fudge's side when Fudge brought
> the Denentor into the castle to "protect" him in GoF. Most likely,
> Snape's skills as a superb Occlumens protect him against Dementors. 
> I think his alternative method of dealing with Dementors (the one 
> Harry argued against in HBP) is either Occlumency (which he still wants
> Harry to master) or some method that would be easier for his DADA
> students than conjuring a Patronus when they're faced by a Dementor
> trying to suck out their happiness, which even Harry found difficult.

I find myself agreeing with that Carol, there is a strong link drawn
in the books between the effects of Dementor presence and the act of
legilimency that I can see. Memories. 

When Snape is probing Harrys mind he brings good and bad memories to
the fore of harry's consciousness, from there he reads them, Dementors
actually do a similar thing don't they, the effects of a dementor in
some rudimentary ways are not at all dissimilar to the effects of a
legilimens, memories come to the fore of conscious mind, that's the
half the magic of both. 

As Snape is a strongly skilled Occlumens it stands to reason he
precipitates handling one half of the effects of a Dementor simply by
habitual action he engages in every day as a spy. Controlling his
reaction to sad memories and continually doing strong conscious magic
under the weight of them against powerful wizards like Volemort. It's
probably a short distance between Occlumency (possibly like
compartmentalisation of conscious thought) and the confidence required
to cast an effective Patronus in a situation of duress. Snape's
process for handling dementors could simply be the small difference
between fighting within emotion (which would be Harry's ideal) and
fighting without it, though it would make for a big technical
advantage to be an Occlumens in constant practice when faced by
Dementors, it's probably something Harry could never do or even
understand.  

Also Dementors feed on your happy emotions which they drain from your
like air, and Snape knows that too, so I entertain the notion
occasionally that Snape's idea of handling Dementors is merely not
having many happy emotions to start with. ;P

Valky