"Now's the time." After a moment of rapid calculation, Alan decided he couldn't just sit and wait for the end—he certainly didn't expect the pair to finish their duel and simply walk away, nor did he entertain the fantasy that they hadn't noticed his presence.
Seizing the opening, Alan rose and leveled his wand; an Impediment Jinx shot out like an invisible cannonball straight at the man who had been charging a curse. The instant the spell left his wand, he ducked low and sprinted directly toward the figure standing behind the one he'd dubbed Snivellus.
Avery and Snape had finally picked up Sirius Black's trail and followed him all the way into the depths of Knockturn Alley. Avery had been about to unleash a powerful curse to bring Sirius down when a spell suddenly streaked out from the shadows behind him.
Startled, Avery abandoned his incantation, spun around, and frantically flung up a Shield Charm to block the incoming blast. He reflexively fired back a curse, but as the spell flew off into the darkness, he couldn't spot his attacker. A quick sweep of the area revealed only a small, dark figure charging in low.
Alan, still crouched to minimize his profile, dashed up to Avery, planted his left foot, and whipped his right leg in a powerful arc, lashing a roundhouse kick at Avery's wand hand.
The strike landed solidly; pain shot through Avery's wrist and his wand went flying into the gloom. Shocked, the Death Eater tried to scramble back toward Snape to regroup.
Avery was fast, but his opponent was faster. Before the man could retreat two steps, Alan pressed the advantage. After disarming him, Alan pivoted, stamped forward with his right foot, and snapped a spinning kick into Avery's gut.
"Ugh!" Avery gagged, nearly vomiting as his body folded forward involuntarily from the force of the blow.
Alan's combination wasn't finished. Following the kick, he stepped forward with his left foot, clasped Avery's head, and drove his right knee upward into the man's face.
There was a sickening crack as Avery's nose met the brutal knee strike head-on; blood sprayed as he flew backward, hitting the cobblestones and sliding into unconsciousness.
The entire sequence had taken mere seconds. Without pause, Alan raised his hand and fired a compressed Impediment Jinx straight at Snape.
Snape, still trading spells with Sirius, reacted instantly. Calmly batting aside one of Sirius's hexes, he spun and hurled a curse of his own.
"Sectumsempra!"
With a vicious hiss, the dark magic shot from Snape's wand.
The two spells collided mid-air; Alan's Impediment Jinx was split clean in two like a melon, the severed halves of his magic dissipating as the dark blade continued racing toward him.
Alan's eyes widened—what kind of magic was that?
He threw everything he had into another Impediment Jinx, forming a solid shield in front of him, but even that couldn't stop the momentum of the dark spell. He watched in horror as his barrier was slowly sliced apart.
Realizing the shield would fail, Alan prepared to roll aside—just as a flash of brilliant light erupted around him. A second shield appeared, shimmering with a silver-white glow. On its surface, the image of a doe flickered like a patronus.
Seeing the failed strike and the doe-shaped ward, Snape's eyes flickered with an unreadable emotion for a fleeting instant. Instead of pressing the attack, he casually flicked a spell toward Sirius to keep him back, leapt to Avery's side, and Disapparated on the spot.
Alan exhaled a long, shaky breath. That had been terrifying—adult magic at its most lethal. Without that mysterious protection, he would likely be dead.
He fished a copper token from his pocket: the amulet Lily Potter had given him. Its surface was now noticeably dulled and cold to the touch. So, Lily's gift had saved his life; the "trinket" had lived up to its name in the most literal sense.
While Alan was still collecting himself, Sirius, seeing the danger had passed, hurried over to find the stranger who had intervened. Spotting the man approaching, Alan instantly raised his wand in warning, the tip trained on the newcomer.
"Easy there, wizard. Relax. I'm no Death Eater," Sirius said, raising his hands. He stepped closer and realized, to his shock, that his rescuer was an underage boy. "Was it really you who just drove Snape and Avery off?"
"Hardly. I just took one of them by surprise while they were occupied with you," Alan replied, his voice steady despite his pounding heart.
"Ha! I'm Sirius Black—call me Sirius. That was some slick fighting; I saw the whole thing from over there. You dropped a grown wizard in three moves." Sirius let out a bark of a laugh.
"Luck, mostly. I nearly got carved up by the one you called Snape. Are you an Auror or with the Order of the Phoenix?" Alan asked, maintaining his guard.
"You know about the Order?" Sirius looked surprised. "Yes, I'm with them—hardly a secret these days, unfortunately."
"In that case, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Alan Wilson." Only then did Alan lower his wand and offer a small smile.
"The pleasure is mine. That shield you used... it was impressive. It didn't look like anything a student could cast," Sirius praised.
"Credit goes to Lily's amulet, not me. I couldn't produce a shield that strong if I tried," Alan admitted with a sigh.
"Lily? You mean Lily Potter? You know her?" Sirius studied the youth, intrigued that he was acquainted with his old friend.
"Yeah. I met her and her husband, James, when I went to buy my school supplies. She gave me this amulet the first time we met. I didn't realize how much I'd need to thank her for it." Alan looked down at the copper piece; he'd had no idea the gift carried such potent protection.
"Ha! That sounds like Lily. She's got a heart of gold. James, Lily, and I all started at Hogwarts the same year—they're the friends I trust most in this world," Sirius said warmly. "Since you know them, we're practically family. I'll call you Alan. Wait—you said you're about to start school? You're a first-year?"
Sirius was stunned. A pre-sorting student taking out a Death Eater in physical combat was unheard of, and Alan's disciplined build had made him look like a third- or fourth-year.
While Alan and Sirius were talking, several figures suddenly Apparated beside them with a series of sharp cracks.