After Will woke, he assumed young Will had died from days of starvation and a surge of magic. It had never occurred to him that he might be an Obscurial. An Obscurus was hard to miss, after all.
But looking back on young Will's short life, Dorothy had abused and oppressed him. She had even stifled his nature. Treated that way by his own mother, he had a real chance of developing an Obscurus.
And when an Obscurial died, the Obscurus would dissipate unless something else intervened.
What would happen if young Will died just after developing an Obscurus, then came back to life soon afterward?
Will was certain there was no recorded case of an Obscurial dying and coming back to life. Perhaps he was the only "half-Obscurial." But even that might not be what affected his Patronus Charm most deeply.
What made a person happiest? Fame, status, wealth?
Finding love? Having that love returned?
Or perhaps... coming back from the dead...
On the other hand, when people refused to revisit a memory, it was fundamentally the brain protecting itself. Emotion, perception, and social pressures all played a part, but the aim was to avoid pain and preserve psychological balance.
All those feelings tangled together had led to this.
But they were real. Will could neither escape nor change them—not even with a Time-Turner.
Will let out a long breath...
"Maybe... Professor."
"It seems you've formed your own view. If you accept that, then consider this: an Obscurus is Dark Magic born of self-suppression and pain, while the Patronus Charm requires intense happiness and joy. Some things have left too deep a mark on you to be washed away quickly. There's no need to rush the Patronus Charm," Dumbledore said as gently as he could.
"Mm." Will nodded but