Harry touched her arm again, making her pause. "Say... things. Just random Latin words. Better yet, say Lumos, then Light, and go back and forth while doing those motions." She shrugged. As she repeated the pattern, once for each language, Harry was mesmerized. The spoken language controlled the color of the magic as it came out... was that important? Did that signify something? More important though was the cadence, the consonants of the words. At each beat in the sentence, the magic pulsed in the output.
This was probably why words were needed. Wizards couldn't really see when the beats were off, so they probably calculated when they were needed while casting... or just guessed until it worked. Even now her wand would randomly light up in various colors instead of the expected light of a normal light charm. Well, except for THAT one. Merlin his eyes hurt now.
"Wow, I REALLY should have had you say separate words. Staring at a light charm, man I am dense." At this point Harry and Hermione realized that it was awfully quiet.
Also, they seemed to have attracted more than a little attention.
Thankfully, blushing seemed to be working fine.
"Well, that was above and beyond what I expected Mrs. Granger. Take 10 points to Ravenclaw for a perfectly cast Lumos before we even covered it." Well, turns out she can blush more. Ah well.
Harry raised his hand. "Sorry professor, I was watching how language changed the magic during wand movements. We weren't trying to be distracting..."
Oops. Turns out that is NOT what you say to get everyone to stop staring at you. Or maybe it was because his eyes were still glowing? Crud. Harry REALLY wasn't on the ball right now. Filius had a glint in his eyes that made Harry a bit nervous. His smile was also slightly disturbing. "Mr. Potter, this was just an introductory session really. But if you could stay after class I would appreciate it."
Thankfully they moved back to wand movements, although Harry did have to spend a couple of seconds apologizing to Hermione for embarrassing her and promising to show her what it had looked like later. Padma was just giggling, the traitor. Not that he had a clue what she could say to calm down Hermione, but giggling just not helping.
As the last of the students left, Harry waved his friends into the hall while gathering himself.
"So I assume you have a gift of sight then, Mr. Potter?" Professor Flitwick seemed almost vibrating with enthusiasm. "Yes sir. I was watching everyone expelling magic while wand waving, and I wanted to try and get a better look at it. It was... very pretty."
The teacher had a wistful look. "I have heard that each sight looks different to each user. One person even smelled magic of all things. Said the stunning charm smelled like grapes."
Harry shrugged. "I see thread, or ropes or whatever. Although normally it is all one color... when Hermione used Latin it changed from her normal orange into a light blue color."
The professor nodded. "That is sort of expected. The wand is a great equalizer in a way... it restricts the magic passing through it to manageable levels, it allows fine control over the shape of the magic coming out of it. The Latin language was originally designed to strip emotions out of the magic, so that it won't be as bothered by how the caster felt. The strongest magics use other languages that enhance specific emotions, like love or hatred." He sent another stunner at the roof. "Silent casting means that you have enough emotional control that strong emotions does not disturb the flow of your magic. Using the words would just strip the emotion part out of course, which makes it easier to cast but weaker in strength."
The teacher's gaze turned back to the boy. "You will likely find my class very dull. Feel free to bring outside material to keep yourself interested... in fact, I will likely have some things for you to do as well. I would also appreciate it if you helped your fellow students learn the practical sections of the course, since teaching always helped me understand magic on a more basic level."
The professor leaned in. "Your father may have been a Marauder Harry, a great prankster... but your mother was a Charmer." He chuckled. "In many ways, I admit. But she studied magic, and even created her own spells and theories. She would be singing songs right now knowing you can actually SEE what you are working with... I know where she is, she is overjoyed that you have such a gift."
Harry had to look away. He was eleven, and he was pretty sure eleven year-olds didn't cry. He nodded though.
The professor walked to his desk and opened a lid, and handed Harry a book. "I was going to give this to you anyway when you got older, but I am glad I got the opportunity to do this as your Head of House and not just as a friend."
Harry gently the book. It seemed to be a self bound journal, with simple letterings on the front... "Why I Hate The Standard Book of Spells (All Grades)". He opened the front page...
"To one of my Favorite Teachers, here is a summary of all the arguments we had over the years. You were always there for me, and I hope you enjoy this..." It was signed Lily Potter.
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