Disclaimer on first page (first chapter).

Oh Dreaded Night!
Chapter Seven

The first time he heard anyone else mention the "Shrieking Shack" was in the Gryffindor common room. It was the first time Lupin had heard it referred to as the "Shrieking Shack". He wasn't aware that it had been named, or that it was supposedly the most haunted place in all of Britain (no doubt dubbed by one of Hogwarts' own). He was only aware of its use to him. He was under the impression that no one took care in such things as an empty shack. He was under the impression that Dumbledore had chose the location for him because of its dullness. The shack would otherwise be very uninteresting, had he not had to go there and make his monthly change.

This, however, was disproved by three Gryffindor third-years, all who had come back from Hogsmeade with tons of candy and even more stories about the town itself. The only girl of the group had a fascination with the "shack". In-between bites of her chocolate frog, which she seemed to be taking an unusual amount of time to finish for such a small candy, she would boast about how close she got to the actual building. The two boys took little interest in her claims, as they were fighting over a lollipop. But, they too claimed to have been very close to the place.

"You have not!" Sirius bursted, now making the three aware that he and Lupin had been listening in to their conversation, with a hint of jealousy in his voice.

The girl moved her attention to Sirius, "Oh, but I have. Next trip I intend to go even closer. I might even climb the fence."

"You wouldn't!" One of the boys shouted.

"I would! I'm certain there's an unusual amount of supernatural activity going on in there. We could…" Now she was certain she was not going to be in on this alone, "We could hold a séance there. Communicate with those spirits who have passed on, but have not chosen to leave this world!"

"Why not talk to Nearly Headless Nick or Moaning Myrtle instead? Save you the trip!" Lupin added. Sirius chuckled and elbowed him as a sign of approval.

"Bah. They're boring. They might haunt these halls and rooms, but they aren't as severe as the spirits in the Shrieking Shack. I mean you can hear the wails coming from that place for miles!" Her eyes widened.

"You wouldn't last a minute in there. Haunted or not!" Sirius was putting on a show. Sirius seemed to be joking and laughing about it right now, but he saw through that. Sirius really wanted to go. He wanted to see the place for himself, now especially that some third-year girl had been so close to it. If she could do that, certainly he could. He knew that he could do even better. Sirius need not tell Lupin this, it was just a given. The look in his eyes was enough to tell all. The fact that he was participating in this conversation was enough, even.

"I would. I'd certainly last longer in there than you would. Besides, you can't go until next year! Poor second-years." She put on a fake frown. "By that time, the spirits might pass over to the other side."

"All right then, care to make a wager?"

She seemed surprised by Sirius' boldness. "Okay. Let's place bets, then."

"All right. I bet you that I can last a longer amount of time in there than you can."

"Sirius ---" Lupin was shaking his friend's shoulder, as an indication to stop what he was doing.

"You're not allowed to go there, silly little boy! How are we supposed to try this out when you can't leave Hogwarts? And DON'T suggest sneaking out because it's not worth getting caught over a bet with a second-year!"

"Aw, you're just scared!" Sirius pouted.

"No, I'm not. I don't want to be expelled. I've worked too hard these three years here to do that."

"You mean two." Sirius added.

"WhatEVER! These two plus years." The two boys near her just stared at Sirius with dull expressions on their faces. "Why don't you just cool down? We'll just have to wait until you're big enough to visit Hogsmeade, that's all. It's just one year you'll have to wait. Or are you an impatient little boy?"

"I can wait." Sirius growled.

"Good, then. We'll have to arrange something for your first visit." She stuck her tongue out at Sirius.

"Let's hope you can remember."

"Yeah, I'll be sure to remember about your important bet." She sent herself into a fit of giggles.

Sirius opened his mouth, to have the last word, but Lupin did not let him. He pulled his friend out of the common room and into the hall towards their bedroom. The girl's laugh could be heard throughout Gryffindor, it seemed, in mockery of Sirius, and this hit him hard.

"She's just too chicken to sneak out!" he pouted.

"I thought we had dropped all this Shrieking Shack business." Lupin commented.

"You have. Peter and James have. I have not. How could you not want to go?!"

"First off, sneaking out of Hogwarts in the middle of the night… not the best of ideas. I know you've gotten away with things here around the school, but leaving the building is a completely different offense. Do you really want to be expelled?" He pointed to Sirius' pocket. "They'd take away your wand, you know. Not to mention what your family would think about it."

Sirius knew that Lupin was right, but would not admit it. "What matter is it if I get expelled, to them? They've still got another boy who is about to receive his letter of admission. They favour him, anyway. I can't imagine how they'd get on without him." He sneered.

"Well, you'd have to be at home with them all day, for one thing. I don't know your family, but from your comments you can't stand being around them on breaks, never mind the entire year. You'd never be able to see James. You… wouldn't even be able to torment Snape. Think how much the bugger'll miss you!"

Sirius chuckled. "Well, if it's for Snape's sake, then I better mind my business!"

Lupin laughed with him. "That's right. I'm glad you have your priorities straightened."

"I still want to go."

"I know you do, but hold off, for Merlin's sake!" He wanted to tell Sirius to get it off his mind completely, but that would be useless.

"One bloody year."

"Yes, one bloody year. The torture." He rolled his eyes.

"I know!" The boys entered their room, to find that James and Peter had still not returned from their trip to the library. He and Sirius had finished earlier than the other two with their research and would have stayed longer if Sirius hadn't been so itchy to get back to his room… for whatever reason that was. Lupin knew, however, that the library made Sirius nervous. Their assignment was particularly tedious: a Potion's assignment that went more along the lines of a dull History of Magic assignment. (Sirius exclaimed earlier that the ghost of Professor Binns, their History of Magic teacher who was actually a ghost, had quite possibly possessed their professor.) They were lucky to have been paired together, not only because they wouldn't have to go it alone, but also because their professor had the habit of odd pairings.

Sirius, taking the opportunity of their moment alone, asked how Lupin was doing. More specifically, how his parents had responded and if he was still thinking of leaving the school.

"They're very understanding parents. They offered to take me back home, but… I chose to stay here. It would be a waste really, if I were to leave. It's a fine school. I just have to learn to be more tolerant of my illness. That's what it comes down to, really." He wanted to add that his friends where a major part of why he was staying, but he didn't want to get to sappy in front of Sirius. He was near a breakdown as it was, with all the "Shrieking Shack" talk. Not to mention tomorrow being the full moon.

"But, if you're hurting…" Sirius stopped his sentence. Lupin knew that he looked ill, especially now. He couldn't hide the paleness of his face or his odd eating habits (this morning he could barely touch his food, while at dinner he ate everything on his plate and filled it once more) or the unexplainable things he did in his sleep (which was, half the time, unknown to him unless someone mentioned it).

"I'm… I'm a Gryffindor. Gryffindors are brave! We can tolerate the utmost pain and torture!" He lifted his hand, and shook it in victory (and jest).

"You're right. We tolerate Severus Snape in nearly all of our classes… not to mention having to share the dining hall with him as well as other second-year activities."

"See?" Lupin smiled. He was glad that Sirius was making light of situation.

"Not to mention tolerating our own." Sirius motioned to the girl in the common room.

"Well, we all know she's talking a lot of rubbish. I know she fancies those two boys in there with her. She's just trying to show off." Lupin commented.

"Wow! Ha! Maybe that's why she was eating her chocolate frog so delicately. I've seen her with chocolate! She usually stuffs her face with the stuff. She's a regular vacuum, she is!" The two boys had a good chuckle over that. After the effect of the laugh wore thin, Lupin took out some chocolate of his own. He held a piece out to Sirius, who jumped nearly across the room to get hold of it. Lupin sat on his bed and surprisingly, Sirius followed. The boy who he was staring at looked extremely happy as if chocolate was the most wonderful thing in the world and could heal nearly all maladies.

If it was possible, Remus Lupin grew even fonder of Sirius Black that very moment for that fact alone.

When he left his room to go to Madame Pomfrey, Lupin was always cautious. It wasn't that he wasn't cautious at any other point in time, but he had this feeling. He's had this sort of feeling before. It usually goes away quickly by the time he reaches the "shack". Not only does it go away because he's secure in the knowledge that no one had followed him, but because he's more concerned about his oncoming troubles in transforming that he lets little feelings such as this drift away. Maybe it isn't so much him, but the wolf that does that. He hadn't considered that before. But, in any case, he was feeling particularly worried.

His friends hadn't been particularly inquisitive last night or throughout the day for that matter. They weren't more quiet than usual. In fact, everything had seemed normal up until this point, which made him doubt this feeling even more. Had they been questioning about things or giving him odd looks at the dorm or at the breakfast table he might have a better reason to suspect that they were following him. Or at least planned to follow him. He just couldn't shake that feeling, though.

He walked through the halls toward the hospital wing at a regular pace, frequently looking behind him. He heard no footsteps. He heard no squeaking of shoes. He heard no giggles or gasps or shushes or other sure signs that his friends were on his trail. (He imagined a serious James, shushing the giggling Sirius and the gasping Peter)

People gave off vibes. Lupin had never been able to give these "vibrations" he got from people a proper name. They were always vibrations to him. He couldn't remember if this was always something he was able to sense, since he was so young when he received the bite, or if it was something that came along with being a werewolf. But he knew that his condition troubled his friends enough.

Just a few days ago, after that incident in the bathroom, he knew he struck an interesting chord with James when he returned to the dining hall. James definitely looked at him in a different light than he had previously. That's not to say he treated him any differently, but that there was this certain wall between them now that James might not have previously seen. Yes, it's hard to miss a wall straight ahead of you, but it was quite possible. Lupin saw it immediately in James. For Sirius, it was appearing a bit more hesitantly, but it was nonetheless appearing. Peter, he wasn't quite sure. Although Peter inquired about his health, it was never to the point of pestering or never to the point of walking on eggshells around Lupin, as it appeared James and Sirius were doing. How he hated when his health was in question! Not only because he knew it was a farce and that he had to keep the truth hidden from them at all times, but because he knew his friends cared and there was absolutely nothing he could say to calm them.

His mother should have taught him liar's techniques. Perhaps there was a book, "The Lie and How I Told It: A Werewolf's Tale"? He found no full-length books on his condition, "although they really ought to have one". No, he found little passages here and there, maybe a chapter or two, but never a full-length book. Novels, on the other hand, there were plenty. Without a doubt, no one author of these vile pieces of fiction could actually be werewolves themselves, as they depicted the condition not as a disease, but more as a character trait for an evil being. More than anything, they were written for boys his age to scare them into staying indoors on nights of the full moon and out of the Forbidden Forest and such places. Perhaps one day there would be a novel written about the werewolf in the Shrieking Shack, and then he could start charging admission to the shack, in order for tourists to see where the sick fiend bellows his cries out in the night. If he was destined to be this creature, he might as well make a living from it. But he couldn't; someone else, maybe.

When he reached the hospital wing, Madame Pomfrey motioned for him to wait a moment while she applied the finishing touches of a healing charm to a sad first-year Slytherin. She calmed the girl and told her that she would be back momentarily. She walked up to Lupin, trying to look him over and make sure all was well. She nodded, and without a word, they headed to the place where Lupin would soon make his transformation.

Sometimes, on nights like these, the boy felt ridiculous walking out of the school into the night, at the side of a teacher or other staff member. He knew very well that he couldn't go by himself, lest he should not lock himself into the room properly and unleash the wolf on unsuspecting students. If that happened… no, he didn't want to think about the consequences. But, in the same respects, it was like having an adult hold his hand as he was walking across a busy street. He was old enough to do this by himself, yet someone needed to be there, just in case. No matter how he felt, he always ended up thinking the same thing, not only was it comforting to know that someone cared enough for his safety but they were concerned for the safety of everyone else.

At the sight of the Whomping Willow, Lupin knew that he was close to his destination. Madame Pomfrey led, freezing the Whomping Willow, mid-strike (as if it hadn't learned by now their business there) by pushing the knot on the tree with a very long stick. Lupin was feeling quite brave that night, so he stuck his tongue out at the frozen tree, not knowing whether that would bring out a response, but the tree stayed still and allowed passage for Pomfrey and himself. They both entered at the base of the tree and continued down what seemed to be a particularly long hallway. It wasn't any longer than usual. It was the same length as always, but Lupin was fighting it. He knew what his transformation would bring, but he didn't want to bring it out in that room. Not there, again. He had no choice, though.

Madame Pomfrey noticed his dragging on, but did not say a word, as she could probably imagine how painful this was for him. She opened the door to the shack for him, and once he saw him inside and safe, she wished him a good night (not that it would do him any good) and told him that she would be there tomorrow for him. He nodded, that being his only way of answering, and waited for her to seal the door.

He immediately sat down, after hearing it sealed, and began taking off his shoes and socks. He jumped from his seat, as he felt a rush to the surface of his skin, almost tripping over his shoes in the process. It wasn't the first rush to the surface he had felt all day. There had been a number of them. But none of which forced him from his seat. He felt as if he would be sick, but the wave of nausea would only last for so long, before going into another, and then after that he wouldn't feel it any longer because he would be a wolf. It was at this point of the evening that he wished his transformation was a quick one. It was one thing actually being the wolf it was another thing transforming. He sat down again, and proceeded to take off his clothes.

As the last bit of clothing came off, there was a small sense of relief that he would no longer be sweating in his clothes. Not that it was anything to celebrate, really, but any small comfort he treasured. He felt painfully aware that he was naked and alone in this room. He felt ashamed, really, like he should cover himself with a blanket, but he knew that any bit of material he held hold of during his transformation would be ripped to shreds during and after his transformation. He needed that blanket for later, if he thought of using it for once and didn't just drop to the floor after transforming back to his usual form. Maybe tonight he would actually use the bed. But he doubted it. How many times had he told himself beforehand, only to find himself cold and on the floor?

"Every single time I've been in this room." He spoke aloud. But he spoke to no one. He waited on the chair for the next wave of pain to hit him.

It wasn't long until he felt the moon tugging at him. He didn't need to look at it to feel anything… he felt it's light burning on his skin as one might feel the sun's. He was knocked out of the chair once more, but he didn't bother to pick himself up. He just screamed. It was coming, and the only thing he could do was scream. But, after his third scream, he felt a presence. He felt… three presences. He screamed again, not wanting to think who it was behind that door. He knew, but he didn't want to think it. If he didn't think it, they wouldn't be there. As he screamed again, his voice turned into a full growl.

"REMUS!" A boy's voice shouted from behind the door. He knew that boy as James. "REMUS!" There was so much fear in that voice. His feelings had been right all along. He had justification in his worrying. They were here. They were here at the wrong time. The worst possible time.

He crawled closer to the door.

Yet another voice came from behind the door. "Remus! Are you in there?" Sirius called out to him, closing in on the door. Curiosity. Lupin cried, as he tried to reach the door. At this point, he wasn't sure whether he should be going towards it, but he was going there, whether he truly wanted to or not.

"Sirius!" Lupin's voice was barely able to function, but somehow he was able to scream his friend's name.

"Remus?!" Sirius sounded more panicked at hearing his friend call his name.

"Oh, Remus!" The third boy's voice called out. "We have to get him out of there, they're going to tear him to shreds if we don't!" Peter said to the other two boys.

No one answered right off. They were probably looking at each other as if to say, "now that we're here, what do we do?" They probably hadn't thought about that. But then again, they probably didn't factor in the possibility of a werewolf on the other side of the door. Did they know it was a werewolf? What did they think was going on behind the locked door? What if they were going to open the door?

"Remus! We're going to get you out of there." Sirius shouted.

"No! NO! Go away! GO AWAY!" He was at the door. He was… touching the door. He could practically feel the boys' fear just by touching the door. But he kept his hand up to it, thinking that he could somehow feel his friends as his humanity disappeared. "Go…!" His words turned into a growl again. The hands that were touching the door were no longer human hands; they were paws, with long nails gliding down the wooden door.

"Why does he want us to go away?" Sirius cried.

"Well, we can't leave him in there!" Peter shouted. "It sounds like there's a werewolf in there." The three boys were silent.

"Go!" It didn't come out of him very loudly. He could no longer form words. They were in his mind, but his mouth could not form them. He cried.

Sirius was touching the door. He was pounding at the door now. His hand was trying to turn the knob, but the door wouldn't budge. It wouldn't budge for anyone who tried to open it. Just don't try to open it. "How do we open this fucking door? We need to get him out of there!"

"I remember!" James shouted. There was a short pause. "Alohomora!" Again another pause. Lupin heard the seal on the door being broken. He growled again, trying to warn his friends not to go near the door. But they wouldn't understand him now. His voice was not his own. He put his fallen paw up to the door again, and the other, scratching at it. He heard the boys scream, he knew they had jumped back, but that they were still standing on the other side of it.

He felt a hand come up to the door, suddenly. James. The boy on the other side stumbled, but he finally placed his hand on the doorknob and started to turn. Lupin, not knowing whether the boy would actually make it in or not, let out another growl and attacked the door. He attacked it too late, though, because what he was attacking was a newly sealed door.

Madame Pomfrey had not returned as promised. Lupin found, in her place, a concerned Headmaster, already in the room. He was sitting on the chair that Lupin had used last night to await the oncoming transformation before the boys came. If his heart had the capability of sinking to his feet or to his stomach, it would have this moment. He didn't remember anything beyond the point of his friends attempting to break into this room. He clutched his blanket in fear that something may have happened to them. (He had awoke in bed, to his surprise)

Dumbledore noticed his awakening, and wished him a good afternoon.

"Your friends are okay."

Lupin nodded. He couldn't speak if he wanted to, with this sore throat. It was what he wanted to hear, that they were unharmed, but that meant that this had all actually happened. He remembered their fear the most, their cries and his as they attempted to "rescue" him.

His lips trembled as he figured that the boys remained unharmed physically, but mentally, he could only guess. One does not recover from an encounter with a werewolf as quickly as one would like to. Lupin knew this for himself to be true, not because he had had his own encounter that changed his life, but because he came close to hurting them. His only friends and he nearly killed them all in one night. How was he ever supposed to apologize for that?

There was no doubt in his mind that they all knew. If they didn't know it that moment of the "rescue", they would have known it only moments after they fled. It didn't take one very long to ponder the use of the Shrieking Shack or why Lupin was led to it. It didn't take long to figure out each and every time he was gone was on a date of a full moon. They could figure it out within minutes. Why hadn't they figured it out before coming here? Had they, but just chose not to believe it?

He could never look them in the face again. He had to be assured by Dumbledore that he could go back to his room safely, in privacy to gather his things and go home immediately without facing the boys. Isn't that what was supposed to happen? Why weren't his parents here? Were they getting his things right now?

Dumbledore was awfully quiet. He didn't know what to make of the expression on his Headmaster's face. He sat up in bed, still clutching to his blanket, and attempted staring the man down for some type of answer. Only, Dumbledore did not answer. He simply rose from the chair and took a seat on Lupin's bed.

Neither of them said anything. Dumbledore turned to look at the boy, and without further thought, Lupin leaned into his Headmaster and cried so intensely he thought that he might never stop crying at all.

Reviewers: AffectedMangoO: I plan on giving Remus and Sirius a lot of chances at hugs and general happiness with each other (when they're not at each other's throats). They are remarkably cute together in this story. If you noticed, in this chapter, they share chocolate and to Remus that is better than a hug ;). Queriusole: I'm glad I kept your interest! Thank you for your detailed reviews, they are very helpful. Hidden: Thank you for reading! The Theif Kuronue: You don't know how much I appreciate you taking the time out to review. Honestly!