In truth, Maurise did not need half an hour.
If he desired, he could condense his Patronus into a corporeal form instantly. However, he was in no particular rush. He felt an inexplicable, deep-rooted resonance with this specific incantation.
Professor Flitwick's advice echoed clearly in his mind. The standard textbook method was not necessarily the absolute best method for every individual. He just needed to make a slight adjustment. A tiny modification to the source of his joyful emotions would suffice.
Taking a deep breath, Maurise slightly relaxed his grip on his wand. He raised it with a gentle, fluid motion, drawing a small circle in the air.
"Expecto Patronum!"
The incantation rolled off his tongue in a brisk, cheerful tone. Although he paused for a fraction of a second in the middle, it sounded incredibly natural.
Ha. Success.
The moment he flicked his wand, Maurise felt it. It was the exquisite sensation of a caster achieving profound resonance with their magic.
The silver light did not erupt violently. Instead, it pulsed and expanded from him as naturally as taking a breath. A moment later, a sleek, silver raven burst forth. Trailing a stream of silver mist, the raven gracefully circled Maurise before fluttering down to land squarely on Snape's desk, elegantly folding its luminescent wings.
Snape stared at the silver bird for a long moment before offering a barely perceptible nod. "Acceptable."
Outwardly, he remained as unreadable as a stone wall. Inwardly, a massive storm of shock was tearing through his mind.
This was only Maurise's second attempt at the spell. In all his years of teaching, Snape had seen his fair share of prodigies, but a student like Maurise was completely unprecedented. Snape certainly could not have achieved this at that age. Perhaps only Dumbledore could compare.
In that moment, Snape vaguely understood why the Headmaster had tasked him with teaching Maurise this specific charm. A student with such terrifying talent absolutely could not be allowed to stray down the wrong path. Just like a certain Dark Lord had done. The Patronus Charm served as the perfect magical litmus test for a wizard's soul.
Hearing Snape's underwhelming evaluation, Maurise smiled wickedly.
"Did you truly think that was all, Professor Snape?" he asked with a mysterious lilt in his voice.
"What?"
Snape looked up. He suddenly realized something entirely abnormal. The pervasive silver mist surrounding the boy had not dissipated after the raven formed. Furthermore, pure silver light was still pouring relentlessly from the tip of Maurise's wand, causing the fog to expand rapidly.
Maurise spread his arms wide. He could acutely feel the magic within his magical core being drawn out in surging waves.
"Watch closely, Professor," Maurise whispered, his voice trembling with barely suppressed excitement and a touch of smug pride.
As the words left his lips, the mist underwent a breathtaking transformation.
The fog churned violently. Then, another perfectly sculpted silver raven burst from the cloud. Then another. And another.
Within mere seconds, dozens of luminous silver ravens filled every conceivable inch of the gloomy office. They circled around Maurise in a mesmerizing, glowing vortex, bathing the dark dungeon in brilliant, pure moonlight.
It was a breathtaking, suffocatingly beautiful spectacle. Snape stood frozen in place. Every trace of his usual stoic composure vanished, replaced by an expression of pure, incomprehensible shock.
Those silver ravens were, without a single doubt, all Patronuses. But how was this possible?
Snap!
Maurise gave his fingers a crisp flick. At the sound, the swirling flock of ravens halted simultaneously. They shattered into a million tiny sparks of silver dust, fading silently into nothingness.
Maurise let out a long exhale, mentally checking his magical reserves. Not terrible, but certainly not untouched. He had drained roughly a fifth of his total capacity. He had gotten a bit too carried away in the heat of the moment.
Still, it was absolutely worth it.
He glanced at his Potions Master, who was still standing completely petrified behind his desk, and nodded in satisfaction. Successfully bluffing the most intimidating professor at Hogwarts was hardly a waste of magic.
"Well, Professor?" Maurise's cheerful voice shattered the heavy silence. "I would say I did a rather decent job, would you not agree?"
Snape turned his head with agonizing slowness. He did not speak immediately. Instead, his piercing dark eyes scanned Maurise meticulously from head to toe, and then back up again.
"Do not look at me like that," Maurise said with a bright smile. "That was undeniably the Patronus Charm. Exactly as you requested."
"A normal wizard possesses only one Patronus," Snape stated, his voice completely devoid of inflection.
"Are there truly no exceptions?" Maurise asked innocently.
Snape shook his head. He had certainly never seen one. An ordinary wizard's Patronus was always a single, solitary animal. The most unique variation he had ever witnessed was Dumbledore's phoenix, considering a phoenix was a magical creature. But summoning a literal flock of dozens of Patronuses like a mass-produced spell? There was absolutely no record of such a phenomenon in the entire history of wizardkind.
Maurise rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "But it was a genuine Patronus, correct?"
"Yes," Snape replied curtly. "There is no mistaking that." The profound sense of warmth it radiated could not be faked.
"Then there is no issue," Maurise stated matter-of-factly. "Magic is not a rigid exam with only one correct answer. It is magic, after all. Anything can happen."
Snape fell silent, struggling to process the sheer audacity of the boy's logic. After a long pause, he spoke again. "You altered the fundamental structure of the charm."
Maurise nodded shamelessly. "Just a tiny bit."
"How?"
Maurise felt a very strong, cheeky urge to simply say, "Guess." Fortunately, he possessed enough self-preservation to swallow the joke.
"The Patronus Charm requires a feeling of immense happiness," Maurise explained patiently. "However, I did not recall a single joyful memory."
Snape frowned deeply, failing to grasp the concept. "What do you mean?"
It was universally established magical law. To successfully cast the charm, the caster absolutely had to focus on the single happiest memory they could muster. It was a non-negotiable requirement.
Seeing the profound confusion on his professor's face, Maurise's smile widened into a genuine grin.
"I did not look into the past," he paused, enunciating his next words with crystal clarity. "I thought about the future!"
"The future?" Snape repeated, a rare trace of bewilderment bleeding into his voice.
"Exactly," Maurise nodded. "I have no reason to hide it. To me, that is the greatest source of joy. The most thrilling, wonderful thing in the world is that we have absolutely no idea what the future holds!"
A bizarre, heavy silence descended upon the gloomy office.
"The future," Snape muttered under his breath.
"Perhaps you should try my method, Professor," Maurise suggested with a casual shrug. "Try looking forward to a bright, distant future. Oh, look at the time. May I be excused?"
"...You may go."
Having received permission, Maurise turned and strolled out the door, softly humming a cheerful tune to himself.
The heavy wooden door clicked shut behind him.
Snape remained standing in the exact same spot. A long time passed before he finally moved. He slowly sank into his chair behind the desk, pulling a stack of student essays toward him in an attempt to grade them.
Less than a minute later, he set his quill down.
"The future."
He whispered the word again into the empty room. Try looking forward to a bright, distant future?
Snape closed his eyes. When he searched his mind for his own future, all he could see was an agonizing, suffocating expanse of absolute blankness.