But Black clearly had no intention of waiting to be captured.
"Sorry!" Black shouted. A red Stunning Spell shot straight at Will's face!
"Will!" Hagrid and Lupin cried at the same time.
Will, however, seemed to have expected it. He did not even speak an incantation. With the slightest flick of his wrist, his wand traced a short arc of silver light.
"Protego."
A silver barrier so solid it looked almost tangible sprang up before him. Black's Stunning Spell struck it without a sound and vanished. The barrier did not budge; it barely even rippled.
The strength of that Shield Charm stunned Black and Hagrid. Will's abilities far exceeded anything either of them expected from a third-year student. Only Lupin looked resigned.
Black followed with an even fiercer assault. He knew he had to end this quickly; the longer it dragged on, the more could go wrong, and he had no desire to be surrounded by Dementors.
"Expelliarmus! Petrificus Totalus! Stupefy!"
Spell after spell streaked toward Will from tricky angles, each one incredibly fast.
Will could tell that Sirius was skilled, far beyond the average adult wizard. He had lived through the war and fought in plenty of battles. Though he had wasted more than a decade in Azkaban, he had been eating well lately and was not terribly weak.
But Will did not dodge in a panic like an ordinary student. He moved within a tight space with almost dance-like fluidity, darting sideways and ducking low.
At other times, he blocked with Protego.
Clang! The Disarming Charm bounced off the Shield Charm's barrier.
Whoosh! A Petrificus Totalus spell skimmed past the hem of his robe.
"Stone Shards!" Will used a Summoning Charm to call broken stones toward him, straight through Sirius's position.
Hearing the rush of air behind him,