The house that never was did an exceedingly well job of hiding itself as it always has done at 12 Grimwald Place. Lupin didn't expect anything different but parts of him weren't sure exactly what to expect as he entered the too familiar home. So perhaps home wasn't the right word but something about the place made it more than a house but less than a home. Haven, was the right word maybe.

It felt almost unreal to step back into that place. The atmosphere, quiet for once (even Mrs. Black was taking a snooze), was almost unsettling. Instinct told him to turn and leave yet his feet moved him through the disturbing edifice. He must not think of it as that though. He came here, he was here, so now me must continue.

He had thought for sure that someone else would be there but not even Mudugus was loitering as he walked around. Dumbledore surely had more important things to do but the silence was really starting to make Lupin uneasy. He planted himself down on the couch and looked around.

People often said that a man's house reflected what kind of person was the man himself. Those people obviously did not know Sirius Black.

Or at least they didn't know his family.

Grimwald Place seemed to be just as well…grim…as ever. The dim lighting filled the room due to lack of bright lamps and the fact that the number 12 house technically wasn't in the sunlight. Dark mutters and grumbles could be heard echoing from an annoyed Kreacher where only God knew was lurking. It wouldn't be plainer that the Dark Arts was a part of the house's history if those exact words where painted across the walls.

Lupin smiled to himself and stood up to make his way to the bookshelf leaning dilapidated against the wall. He scanned the titles nonchalantly almost to pass the time. His mind was slightly disturbed by some titles including "100 Uses of Vampire Skin" and "Living Room Dark Arts Made Easy" (this one made Lupin do a double take around the room he was currently standing in). There was one black bound book, quiet smaller than the rest, that looked oddly familiar. Lupin picked out the untitled and quickly flipped through the mostly empty pages at the even more familiar scrawl that scraped along the pages.

A sudden crash from upstairs snapped Lupin's attention back to reality. He dropped the book down to the shelf as more mutters and a heated scream filled the once quiet house. Lupin let out a sigh that turned itself into a yawn. A full moon had just past two nights before and the run down couch before him started to look more comfortable. The screaming in the house had once again ceased and to Lupin, the world became quiet.

And with the final step of his foot against the forest ground, the world became quiet. Sirius Black wasn't exactly sure why he was in the Forbidden Forrest but that didn't seem to be important at the moment. There was something he was suppose to know right then, or remember but his mind was empty to all except what was in front of him. He then continued to walk through the ominous woods with only sound of crunching leaves to settle his uneasiness.

Where was everyone? Sirius had never been one to worry about getting in and out of trouble but something told him that he should get out of the forest the sooner the better. The only question was, which way was out?

Okay, so maybe that wasn't the only question. If anyone was around he would also have liked to ask, how he got there, where the bloody hell everyone was, and what kind of cruel joke was someone trying to play on him?

The slight rustle behind Sirius alerted him that he was in fact not alone. Unfortunately, this new found knowledge did little to ease his nerves.

"Who's there?" The distant sound of his echo was the only reply. "James, I swear…" His breathing became so labored that even a simple threat seemed liked too tedious a task to think of. He heard the noise again and took an instinctive step back. A heaving began to fill the silence and whatever was lurking nearby was starting to sound a lot closer. His foot made contact and before he could register what happened, the branch beneath his foot snapped.

And with that the monster attacked.

Sirius knew his only chance was his wand but the force the impact made was more than he expected. He was able to keep the monster at arm's length but that left no room for his arm to reach for his fallen wand that was only a few inches away. He heard the snarled growls and hot breath of the beast against his face. He had to chance it. His couldn't hold it much longer. He had to chance it. It was too…too…

Sirius let out a groan of pain something made contact with his flesh. He instantly threw his arm towards his wand and let out a wail, and a curse.

He couldn't exactly remember what spell he had said but it had worked. The weight was lifted off of him and he rolled to the side before he could be crushed again. He tried to catch his breath and held fast to the blood that was seeping out of his side. He heard the moan of the beast behind him and finally gathered the courage to turn and look.

The wolf lay on its side and its furred chest lifted and fell slower by the second. A trail of blood traveled down its own side as it looked up at Sirius with its pain filled eyes. Sirius just stood breathing deeply and he watched the wolf cringe in pain at every slowed breath it took. Finally the wolf closed its eyes and transformed.

Sirius watched in shock and his own eyes grew twice their normal size. Sirius felt himself blink and then realized that the beast in front of him was no more. The clawed paws were now hands and feet, the furry chest was now skin, and the snouted face showed features of a young boy. A boy that was all too familiar.

"Remus!" Sirius dashed forward and dropped to his knees before his shallow breathing friend. "Remus, no…no…no." He tried to lift the boy up but he fell as dead weight in his arms. Sirius felt his hands shake beneath the body and his heart stop. "REMUS!"

The boy below him opened his eyes once more and looked at Sirius through the pain. Then, they slowly closed.

"NO!"

"Sirius?"

He sat upright in his bed and looked around the darkened room. The four postered bed that held the fourth year boys surrounded him and it took him a minute to let the new scene enter his mind. His aching chest let him know that his breathing was still labored and his pajamas felt wet in places due to the cold sweat that already plastered his body.

"Mate, it's 4 in the morning, what the bloody hell is going on?" The sound of a slightly conscious James moaned through the air.

Sirius took a deep breath and said, "Sorry mate, just a dream." He looked around the quiet room again until he found an empty bed. "Where's Remus?" His heart made another clutch at his stomach.

James shushed him as another boy they shared the room with moaned and tossed in his sleep.

"You know he's…out for the night. Where's your head, mate?"

Sirius let out a breath and let the known news sink back in.

"Oh yeah. Sorry, James. Go back to sleep." He waited to hear the faint snore less than a minute later before Sirius took his own advice.