Sirius' heart was pounding, he had only just gotten it completely right the night before and that was with James muttering every protection spell under the sun in case it took a turn for the worse.

He found it hard to worry though, not knowing how it felt when it worked and he had a feeling it was like riding a broom, once you've learnt you will always be able to do it.

Remus had disappeared earlier that night to sneak subtly into the hole beneath the Whomping Willow.

If Sirius' plan succeeded, not only will Remus' transformation be less painful but he wouldn't have to be alone and this would prove, once and for all that Sirius trusted him completely and could be trusted in return.

He waited impatiently, half-hidden in the forbidden forest as he watched Remus bolt towards the Whomping Willow, prod the knot with a long stick that he'd found nearby, usually placed there by him earlier, then darted underneath it.

Sirius glanced at his watch. He was cutting it fine, but Remus always got there on time.

Sirius padded out from the cover of the shadows and loped gracefully towards the secret passageway. He was able to slip in fairly easily; the rest was just a matter of quietly creeping and hoping for the best.

He waited patiently downstairs while Remus prepared as well as he could for the torture that he was about to go through.

It was absolute agony for Sirius to hear his friend's screams and be absolutely powerless to help; he had to consciously force himself to stay where he was, seated behind a ruined armchair with his nails gouging deep lines into the wood.

When all Sirius could hear was growling and rough panting he bolted upstairs to meet Remus, not feeling fearful in the least.

He nosed the door open to spot the emaciated looking werewolf with no trace of his friend in the beasts' eyes.

At least not until it caught sight of the massive black dog in the doorway.

For a moment Sirius thought everything would be alright, was even proud of himself for the outcome… then the wolf lunged at him.