Remus was sitting up and staring into the fire when Padfoot returned. He smiled lightly at the dog and gave him a worried look when the dog collapsed to the ground. Padfoot rolled his eyes at him and spat out a chunk of something that looked like a rather decent sized piece of wood. Remus plucked it up and frowned down at the dog when he realized it was a piece of framework, most likely from a portrait somewhere in the castle.

"Have you had a good run around the castle?" He teased, reclining back into the cushions and stretching his legs toward the fire.

Padfoot stood up and ambled onto the couch beside him, dropping heavily onto the upholstery and laying his head on Remus' thigh. The dog let out a deep sigh and buried his nose in the cushions beside Remus' leg, taking some comfort as the wizard trailed his fingers over his pelt.

They sat in the silence of the abandoned common room for the next hour, dozing but not enough for dreams. When the final classes of the day had ended and the common room began to fill again, Remus and Padfoot awaited Harry and his friends with a fresh enthusiasm.

"Hello again!" Harry beamed, dropping into a nearby chair with exhaustion. Padfoot had already gotten off of the couch and tried desperately to fit himself onto Harry's lap.

Ronald Weasley made a face as he laughed. "You'll be picking hair off of your robes for the rest of the year, mate."

Harry looked at his friend around the mass of dog blocking his view and grinned, "That's alright. At least I'll have something to remember him by, eh Padfoot?"

The dog yipped and licked Harry's face, attempting to smother the boy with his bulk again.

Hermione was standing to the side, smiling at her friends and taking further glances at the terribly fatigued ex-DADA professor on the couch. She watched as the man touched his left shoulder gingerly as his face paled. She frowned thoughtfully. In the cumulative two hours they had spent in the werewolf's company, he had touched his shoulder half a dozen times. She was starting to wonder if he had hurt himself.

"Professor Lupin, perhaps you should see Madame Pomfrey before you leave," Hermione said matter-of-factly.

The conversation between the three males stopped abruptly. "Whatever for, Hermione?" Ron puzzled, looking the lycanthrope over.

"Are you feeling alright, Professor Lupin?" Harry asked worriedly, green eyes round.

Lupin had an exasperated look on his face as he stuttered out a reply. "O-of course I'm fine, Harry. I'm just a bit tired...the full moon was last night you see..."

The boys made understanding noises and nodded in sympathy. Lupin sighed lightly through his nose in relief, until he looked over at the young witch and was met with her more inquisitive look.

He smiled at her, hoping to quell the curiosity the girl had. She was clever, and by far the brains of the trio, but he didn't want her to poke her nose into his problems. "Honestly, Hermione, I'm fine."

The girl nodded, smiling back and blushing lightly. "Of course."

Lupin glanced at the clock over the common room mantle and sighed lightly. "Well, Padfoot, I hate to say it but it's time to get moving."

The dog groaned unhappily from his perch leaning against Harry's chest. Remus stood with a carefully suppressed groan and motioned the dog to him. He turned to the three students with a sleepy smile. "It was good to see you all again. I hope you'll study hard."

Ron rolled his eyes but nodded. "What is it with adults? All they talk about is studying."

Hermione poked him none to gently in the ribs and huffed, "Ron! If you actually studied once in a while maybe they wouldn't."

The redhead looked affronted and started a quiet refute to the girl while Harry shrugged and turned from them. "They're always like that." He smiled gently, stepping forward awkwardly.

Remus gave the boy a gentle smile and bent forward, resting a hand on Harry's shoulder. Harry grinned, giving the werewolf a hug at his waist quickly. He looked mildly embarrassed when he backed away but he was still smiling. Padfoot yipped and circled, shrugging his way into a hug from Harry as Remus laughed to himself.

"Come on, Padfoot."

It took another five minutes before Lupin managed to move the black dog away from Harry and out of Gryffindor tower. With the door shut behind them and an empty corridor stretching ahead Remus let out a pained breath and didn't bother to hide his limp as he crept down the stairs.

Padfoot stayed a step behind, eyes worried and mouth open to snap a hold of the wizard's robes to prevent a fall if it got that far.

An eternity later, they managed to make it to the ground floor and started their way toward the main doors. Lupin was locked inside his own head, hands in his pockets and fingering the shrunken bags there. He had forgotten about their money problems for the afternoon, he guessed that was a good thing.

Students were slowly filing their way toward the Great Hall for dinner, meandering in groups of three or four. The ex-professor smiled as he and Padfoot moved past the cliques. The dog didn't bother milling about with the students this time, and Remus idly wondered if he was feeling well.

"Professor Lupin!"

Remus paused, looking back. They had just made it in front of the main doors but it was apparent that Albus was looking for them. The Headmaster waved from his distance, a genial smile on his face. Trailing behind him in the shadows stalked the thin form of the potions master.

Padfoot had curled his lip over his fangs, growling softly until Remus rested a hand on the dog's head and scratched him behind the ears. Albus slowed to a stop in front of them and gently rested a hand on Remus' shoulder, eyes losing sparkle when the wizard winced and slowly extracted himself from the Headmaster's touch.

Lupin felt his cheeks heat with color, knowing he was caught but tried to pretend no one else had noticed. When he finally looked up he was caught in the hardened gaze of Severus Snape as the man frowned at him.

"What can I do for you, Headmaster?" Remus asked, snapping his eyes away from Snape and to the Headmaster's amiable blue eyes.

"I've come to see you off, my boy," Albus smiled opening the outside door and following the two visitors onto the atrium. Like a reluctant shadow, Snape skittered after them.

"Here," Albus motioned to Snape and the darker wizard came forward from the shadowed corner of the building's entrance. The potions master passed a box to the headmaster with a scowl, immediately crossing his arms over his chest after his hands were freed from the box.

"What is it?" Remus asked, curious as Padfoot lowered his head and scooted around until he was nearly sitting behind Albus.

"There are many vials within. Simple pain relievers, healing potions, Dreamless Sleep; things you may find use for while you travel." Dumbledore pet Padfoot's head, smiling happily.

"Oh, well, thank you, Albus," Remus shrank the box and tucked it neatly into his pocket with his other packages. He saw Severus scowl in his corner and cleared his throat, "Thank you, Severus."

The potions master snorted and turned away from them. Remus shrugged.

"Be careful, Remus, and if you have need of anything feel free to send an owl. I will help you however I may." Dumbledore walked with them down the stairs, leaving Severus free to return into the castle and disappear again into his dungeons.

"Of course, Albus." Remus nodded, walking with the Headmaster to the main gates with Padfoot plodding along after them.

The Headmaster stopped just inside the gates to watch the duo make their way. They paused outside of the wards of Hogwart's. Lupin waved and with a soft pop, the duo apparated away.

When they were within a hundred yards of the decrepit shack, Padfoot reverted back into Sirius Black in time to catch Lupin as the werewolf gasped audibly and fell toward the ground.

"Remus!" Sirius grasped hold of the wizard's lapels and pulled him to his feet, looking into the man's pained honeyed eyes from inches away. Remus' eyes were detached and fogged with pain.

"Leggo, Siri..." Lupin whimpered.

Immediately Sirius released his grip on Remus' shoulders and had to still himself with a great amount of willpower as the werewolf fell to his knees in the moss. Remus' shaking right hand came up and curled around his left shoulder.

Sirius stood watching, not feeling this helpless since he had heard about James and Lily Potter. "Remy," He started softly. When the wolf didn't move he bent down to his level. "Come on, Remus." He looped an arm around his friend's waist and pulled the man to his feet.

"Gods, Siri..." Remus moaned, fingers digging into his shoulder as he leaned heavily into his friend's support.

"It's alright, Remus...It's alright..." Sirius shuffled toward the shack, thankful that there was no lock on the door and he only had to push it in with his foot. By the time they had made it to the bedside, he was dragging Remus.

The werewolf fell onto the mattress with a small cry of pain and lay on his back panting.

"Le' me see," Sirius said, prying Lupin's fingers away from his shoulder. Reluctantly, Remus let go and dropped his hand to his side. Sirius gasped, tugging at his friend's shirt to look at his pained shoulder. There was a crimson stain spreading across the thin fabric of Remus' robes.

The crescent scar that Remus tended to hide from him, even when they were children, was open and seeping as though it had only just happened. Sirius looked down at his blood stained hands and then at the gash again. "Remus, what--what is this?"

The werewolf hissed in pain, writhing on the bed. Sirius heard an audible pop of release from his friend's hip and watched in awe as Lupin arched off of the linen in pain. Remus' eyes were screwed up tight.

"Remus!" He bent forward, his face hovering over his friend's. "Look at me, Remy, come on!"

Remus didn't seem to hear. His fingers were spasming around the edges of his raw wound, trailing the pooling blood in brilliant smears of color across his pale flesh. He couldn't stop whimpering.

"Remus," Sirius barked, fear for his friend bridging on panic. He brought his hand up, hesitating before he slapped the wizard sharply across the face.

Lupin's amber eyes snapped open and he screamed, jerking back on the bed in terror. His eyes locked with Sirius' blue and slowly recognition crept in until he fell back on the bed in trembles, sweat beading along his forehead.

"Merlin, Remus, I'm sorry, I didn't know what else to do," Sirius rambled. He was never very good with these situations.

Even through the pain, Remus tried to soothe Sirius guilt. "'S okay. I thought you were someone else..."

"What should I do, Remy?"

Remus shook his head back and forth along the pillow. "Dunno..."

A light clicked in Sirius' head and he began to fumble through Remus' pockets. He withdrew a handful of shrunken packages and dropped them to the floor, expanding them all with a flick of Remus' wand. He dove at the plain brown package from the Headmaster and tore the paper apart, biting through the twine strings with his teeth. With the lid flipped back, Sirius rummaged through the many vials with shaking fingers, cursing Snape for his fine, spidery script.

He finally recognized a bottle of healing potion and pulled it away from the box, nearly breaking it open as it slipped free. He pulled the cork away with his teeth and leveled Remus' head. "Here, Remy, drink this."

Lupin coughed as the liquid trickled down his throat but managed to swallow the entirety. His eyelids felt heavy, and he blinked panicked eyes at Sirius. "Siri--"

"It's okay, Remy, sleep, it will help." Sirius began to stroke Remus' shaggy greying hair from his face, hands still shaking.

"No," Remus whimpered, shaking his head violently back and forth. The scar on his shoulder had stopped bleeding and slowly it began to pull shut from the inside. "Sirius, no..."

Sirius Black sat stroking his friend's hair as he fell asleep. A tear trail down his nose that matched the tears that spilled from the corners of Remus' eyes as the werewolf finally succumbed to the pull of the healing draught.

With a great exhale, Sirius slumped to the floor next to the bed, lowered his face to his hands and wept silently without tears. When his melancholy had passed, he scrubbed the dry blood from his hands and face in a basin of rainwater that collected off of the porch. He returned to the one room shack and began to pick up the mess he had trailed in and created in his search for help.

He paused with a large scrap of brown paper in his hand and looked up at Remus. The wizard was sleeping, but his right eye was twitching in his sleep. He glanced at the paper in his hand and stepped over the remainder of the mess, removing a quill and bottle of ink from a nearby shelf.

Sirius then cleaned the remainder of the room, and penned another short note that he left on the tabletop, weighted with the bottle of ink.

Remus whimpered and Sirius was at his side a second later. He ran a warm hand across Remus' sweating brow and frowned. "It'll be alright, Remus. Sleep, I'll be back as soon as I can."

He stepped away from the bed and placed the first note into his teeth, quickly changing into a shaggy black dog. With one last sorrowful, parting look, he ran quickly out of the shack door and into the darkening woods as fast as his four feet would take him.

...oOo...

Severus Snape was doing what he liked second best, prowling the halls after curfew to catch wayward students. First best by far being his ability to brew potions. He had just emerged from the dungeons and was walking silently across the first floor hall, directly across from the main doors of Hogwart's. He was nearly to the stairs that led to the astronomy tower when a faint scratching made him pause.

He withdrew his wand from his pocket and held it lightly in his fingers, back wound like a tight spring. He melted into the shadows like a whisper through a keyhole and made his way toward the doors without a sound. He paused and cocked his head to the side, letting his ears train toward the noise.

On the other side of the thick wooden doors, the scratching intensified for a moment with a low keening whine to accompany it.

Severus sneered, he had a fairly good idea of who it was exactly that was on the other side. He lowered his wand to the level of his hip and aimed it at an angle to the ground. Wrapping his long fingers around the handle of the door, Snape tugged it open and jabbed his wand down in a fluid motion.

A shaggy black dog bounded into the open entry, skidding to a halt as Severus' wand jabbed into its nose.

"Well, Black, how perfect for me. Alone in the dark, breaking into the castle...tsk tsk," Snape sneered, looking immensely pleased.

To his slight confusion, the dog didn't growl and lunge at him like usual; instead he sat on his haunches and whined. Snape knew better than to believe Black would have given up. The dog let out a whimper and stood, spinning in a circle.

"What are you doing, filthy mutt?" Severus hissed, furious that Sirius wasn't acting like himself.

Padfoot lunged forward, ramming his square head into the potions master's legs. Snape stumbled back a step and scowled. The dog spun again before running halfway down the hall, turned and ran back toward Snape.

Severus tensed, prepared to be barreled into, but Padfoot stopped a foot away and circled again. A smooth brow rose on Snape's face, "You don't seriously expect..."

The dog nodded, tail wagging for a second before it spun and bounded toward the far stairs, not pausing once to notice if Snape was following or not.

With a harsh sigh, Severus stalked after him. It looked like he wouldn't get to ruin any student's night; but perhaps he would get a chance to take a shot at Black.

...oOo...

Sirius was sitting impatiently outside of Dumbledore's office. He had scratched at the Gargoyle statue but it did not seem to care. The note in his mouth was slowly soaking with saliva and if he didn't hurry it would be useless. Then again, for Remus, he would take the damned chance to revert in the Headmaster's office.

Finally, far behind him, he heard Snape's clipped steps on the stones. When the lanky man came into view at the end of the stairs Sirius didn't know whether to yip for joy or bite the man's ankles.

Severus stopped in front of the stone statue then glared at the dog that sat impatiently in front of it. With a withering glare at Sirius, he mumbled the password and watched as the dog bounded up the stairs before the Gargoyle had even moved entirely out of the way.

The door to Albus' office was cracked open and Sirius nosed it enough to move through. The Headmaster was sitting at his desk with a stack of parchment to one side and a dish of cookies on the other.

Sirius stood on his hind legs and dropped the slobbery note onto the plate, yipping once. Dumbledore startled at the shrill noise and frowned at Sirius.

"My goodness, Padfoot, there is no need for such noise," Albus admonished.

The dog whined, nosing the plate.

Dumbledore glanced down and retrieved the sticky parchment. He pulled the note open and squinted at the jumbled mess. He turned the paper over and showed it to the pacing dog. "I'm afraid this means very little to me."

Padfoot whined, ignoring the fact that Snape had followed him in and had shut the door. With a spin of irritation, he reverted to a man and positively lept onto Albus.

"You have to help me, Albus!"

The Headmaster looked a bit shaken and uncurled Sirius' fingers from his night robe. "Well I know that you would not have returned in the dead of night were it not important. So tell me, that I may help you."

"It's Remus," Sirius started, falling into the chair opposite Dumbledore's desk, not sparing a glance to Severus. "Before we even made it to the shack, he collapsed Albus! And his shoulder, where the scar is, you know, it was open!"

Dumbledore was stroking his beard, pulling what he needed from the frantic message. "How did it happen?"

"I don't know. He just fell to the ground holding it and when I could finally look it was ripped open, like it was new." Sirius was talking fast, hands whipping around his head. "A-and his hip! It just broke! He wasn't even standing, just laying on the bed and it snapped!"

Albus was gazing over his half-moon spectacles, "Both wounds renewed without a cause?"

"Exactly," Sirius sighed, rubbing at his face tiredly. His face crumpled suddenly, as though he would cry but his eyes remained dry. "I gave him a healing potion and before I left he fell asleep. He begged me not to, Albus. He's petrified of sleeping."

Dumbledore stood from his chair, walking the short distance to a bookshelf lined with thick tomes. His fingers plucked across the titles before he pulled one down. As he walked back to his desk he waved his hand at the mess across his desktop and all that set on it disappeared. The book hit the polished top with a hollow thud and dust motes floated around his head.

Sirius fidgeted, foot tapping relentlessly. Finally after several minutes of Dumbledore flipping through pages, he paused and ran a finger down one faded page. "Here we are," He started with a hopeful look on his face.

After the Headmaster read down through the text, he slowly began to frown. He peeked up over his glasses and leveled a look at Sirius. "Sirius, what do you know about Remus when he was bitten?"

"Not much," Sirius looked puzzled but he thought quickly about what Remus had told him. "That he was eight, and he had a rough time of it, but he never spoke about it much."

Dumbledore nodded. "Sirius, that scar on Remus' shoulder is where he was bitten; and during that attack the wolf shook him and managed to break his hip before it was chased off."

"But, those injuries..." Sirius blanched.

"For a reason we do not understand, have been renewed." Albus finished for him.

"What can I do?" Sirius straightened. He had to do something to help Remus, whatever it took.

"For a start, we need to get the man somewhere stable to watch after him. But for now, it would do to get him well." Dumbledore stroked his beard in thought. He turned his blue eyes toward the forgotten man in the corner. "Severus, you have a free period in the morning, correct?"

Snape stiffened, "Headmaster, you cannot believe that I would go out to the middle of nowhere to aid that--that creature."

"I do, Severus, and you will." Albus' stern look brooked no argument. "See Madame Pomfrey before you leave, I will get in touch with her, she will have a package waiting for you."

Snape sneered but nodded. "Of course, Headmaster."

Sirius looked partly relieved, but mostly annoyed that Severus was getting involved. He would put up with Snivellus as long as Remus made it out of this alright.

...oOo...

He was running through the forest, dancing in the timothy grass in the brilliant light of the full moon. It was like heaven, being able to be free to do as he wanted. He wasn't cramped in a nutshell of a room trying to avoid the choruses of wolves; today he was running around with them, but free of them, by himself and happy.

The trees were thick and the underbrush was cool on the pads of his feet. He could hear water in the distance; a bubbling stream. He turned to it, tail swishing in the weeds. The water winked at him as it gurgled along and he bounded into it. The brilliant, crystal water flowed across his feet and stomach; he dipped his head low and let it run across his muzzle.

When he stood and shook, crimson tinted drops rained around him. He peered back down at the water, but it was no longer clear and clean. It was thick and oozing, reeking of copper and nearly black in the night. A river of blood.

...oOo...

Severus swore colorfully under his breath as he traipsed behind the black dog. At first the dog had bounded far ahead of him, disappearing into the thick underbrush of the far meadow. He let out a bellow of irritation, giving Sirius the rough idea about Remus dying because he couldn't slow down enough to let him follow. Since then, the dog hadn't gotten far from his line of vision, even if Padfoot did growl at him every time he looked over his shoulder to make sure Snape was following.

They had walked well over two miles through wretched trees on no noticeable path. It had irked Severus quite badly to realize how far he had to traipse to make it to the ramshackle building the two ex-Gryffindors stayed in. Apparently there had been wards put into place from a previous owner and the two found it a streak of luck.

Finally, standing on a low rise, a dilapidated structure stood in view in the dim light of the cloud covered, and waning full moon. Padfoot didn't bother to wait this time and took off toward the building, stumbling as he changed from dog to man without slowing down.

Remus was still asleep when Severus made it into the room, looking distastefully at the dry-rotted walls and cheap furniture. Sirius was sitting gingerly at Remus' side, wiping the sweat from the werewolf's forehead with the sleeve of his robe.

"Easy, Remus, I'm back now," Black murmured, looking tortured as he gazed down at his ailing friend.

Severus snorted, setting the box he had received from Madame Pomfrey on the only table. The piece of furniture creaked at the weight and Snape waited a moment for it to collapse and finally opened the box when it failed to topple.

After selecting several vials, Snape set them out and walked to the bedside. The gash of the wizard's shoulder was no longer gaping, but was still raw and red. He shot Sirius a frustrated look, the man couldn't even bind a wound properly.

Remus twitched, a soft moan stifled through his pillow. Severus looked down at him, unsure of what he needed to do. Black had already given the wolf medication to treat his wounds, all he could think to do was narrow down the possibilities of what had caused the old injuries to reassert themselves.

The sick man shifted, nearly toppling Sirius from the narrow frame. " 'm sorry," he whispered in his sleep. Sirius looked guilty, making an excuse and quickly went to the porch. Snape heard him splash around in the rain barrel that sat to the side.

He took the moment alone to look the beast over. He hardly looked like a creature of the night at the moment. He was pale and underfed, his ribs nearly razored along his sides. The hollows of his eyes were discolored and blue, cheeks sunken in and hair lying lank. Snape paused with a frown as he looked at the odd angle of Remus' leg.

"Black," he barked. The animagus quickly scuttled into the room, shushing him and glaring.

"What is it, Snape?"

"You didn't set his leg before you gave him the potion?"

Sirius blinked in confusion as he shook his head, "No."

"Idiot," Snape sneered. "It will heal crooked."

The color drained from Black's face. "We could do it now, right?"

"Of course not you impudent mutt, it's already knit. You'll have to wait until he wakes and rebreak it."

"Shit," Sirius hissed. He spun on his heel and stomped outside where Severus could see him stop just off of the porch and tangled his fingers into his hair. "Shit!" He yelled, tugging at his locks and hissing further words of degradation to himself.

Snape smirked.

On the bed, Remus shifted again with a low whimper. His lax mouth moved slowly, lips unresponsive as he slurred in his sleep. "...Run, Sev'rus." Snape stiffened, stomach tightening uncomfortably at the same moment his hand clenched unconsciously toward his wand. The werewolf twitched again, face contorting in pain or fear. "...No..." spoken slowly and loose.

Sweat beaded against the wolf's temples and he jerked up with a scream, "No!"

Snape jumped in his skin, wand pointed at the werewolf's chest even as his mind tried to remember when he had grabbed it. Sirius stumbled into the room, shooting an accusatory glare toward Severus.

Remus was gasping on the blankets, eyes wide as saucers and sweat pouring from his face and chest. His right hand crept across his stomach and stopped when his fingertips found the crescent scar, still sore and raw to the touch.

"Remy, how do you feel?" Sirius was leaning over him, face creased in worry.

The werewolf blinked at him, slowly pulling his hand away from his shoulder. "I, I dunno..."

A derisive snort came from across the room and Remus turned his head to the side to see Severus Snape reclining against one of the thin walls. If possible, his skin flushed further and he turned himself slightly away to face the wall. He was mortified. It was bad enough for Sirius to see this, to see him so weak, but Severus?

"Remus," Sirius spoke softly. The wolf turned his head toward him, trying his best to ignore the potions master. "I've done something stupid."

Another hard scoff from the corner, but Sirius only scowled and ignored the man.

"What?" Remus puzzled, mind too hazy from pain and fatigue to know what Sirius was talking about.

"I forgot to set your leg, Remus," Sirius could not quite meet his gaze and was looking at his chin. "We need to break it and set it."

His stomach clenched but there was little in it to purge. "Al-alright."

Sirius straightened and crossed the short distance to get up into Severus' face. "We do this quickly, and you will not enjoy his pain, at least not where he can see," he hissed.

Snape pushed the offensive man away and moved toward the bed. "Ready, Lupin?"

The lycanthrope nodded once Sirius had firm hold of his ankle. Severus leveled his wand at the crooked juncture of his hip and murmured a quiet spell. Immediately, the freshly healed bone cracked open. Remus bit his tongue to keep from screaming and writhed painfully on the bed, stilling when Sirius' hold made the bones grind together. He bit through his tongue a second later when Sirius jerked the leg down and inward to set it.

Blood filled his mouth and coated his teeth, his tongue pulsing painfully.

"Jesus, Remus!" Sirius stumbled across Snape and pried the wolf's jaws apart, setting his abused tongue free.

While Sirius turned to the table for a potion, Severus pressed his fingers into the agonized tissue of Lupin's shoulder. When the pain flared, hot white and raced across his vision, Remus' right hand shot up on instinct and gripped the dark wizard by the throat.

A deep growl filled the shack as Remus curled his fingers into Snape's larynx, fingernails pointed and sharp as they bit into his neck. Sirius lept between them in time to stop Snape from hexing Lupin, and pried Remus' fingers out of Severus' neck.

"Remus, let go!"

The lycan's foggy eyes cleared with a blink and the hand went entirely lax in seconds. "Severus, I-I'm so sorry," he whispered, eyes wide and panicked.

Snape had backed to the wall, wand still held tightly in his fist. "So you've said before," He spat.

Remus recoiled as though he had been struck and turned his face away, turning painfully on his side to face away from them. Sirius shot Snape a death glare as he uncorked a bottle of healing potion and gave it Remus. The wolf took it quietly and dropped the empty vial to the floor.

"You'll probably sleep again, Remy," Sirius said quietly, hovering over Lupin's head. He had expected the man to panic like before and was further worried by his reaction.

The wolf nodded into his pillow, "It can't be worse than staying awake." His soft, gravely voice faded and within moments he was asleep.

Sirius opened his mouth to start in on a tirade, but Severus cut him off. "Shut it, Black."

With slight trepidation, Severus walked around to the head of the bed and stared down at the sleeping man. He silently willed him to roll over.

"What are you doing?" Sirius hissed in his ear.

Snape sneered at him, "I need to look at his shoulder."

Suspicion etched across Black's face. "Why?"

"You drag me down here in the middle of the night to help heal him, then have the audacity to question my every motive?" Snape spat, heading toward the doorway.

"Where are you going?" Sirius called, slightly worried that Snape would leave and Remus would take a turn for the worse.

"I'm returning to Hogwart's." Snape glared at him over his shoulder.

"Don't!" Sirius called after him, running after the potions master as the man stepped off of the porch and started for the borders of the wards. If anything, Snape went faster. "Snape, please!"

The dark wizard stopped in his tracks. He turned slowly with a scowl on his face. "Will you stop asking stupid questions and allow me to do what I have to?"

"Yes," Black gritted through clenched teeth.

"Fine," Snape spat, stalking back into the building, making the whole shack shiver.

Sirius wanted to strangle the wizard, but needed his help more than he cared to admit. He followed the man into the shack and kept his tongue as Snape told him to roll Lupin onto his back.

After Sirius had gingerly moved the werewolf, Snape leaned across and examined the crescent scar across the man's shoulder. The scar was far too red and fresh looking. Lupin had taken a healing draught before Snape had gotten there, and then had an alternate version under his supervision.

He tested the tissue by prodding it again, then pressing into it harder when Lupin failed to choke him and only whimpered in his sleep. A thin bead of blood welled at the freshly sealed edge. Severus frowned thoughtfully and motioned for Sirius to move Remus again. The convict turned his friend's torso to the right without moving the healing leg while Severus checked the back of the shoulder for the fine lined crescent scar that matched from the front.

Snape sat in a creaking chair, ignoring Sirius' scowls and mumbles as he pulled out a book from a small case on the floor. He thumbed through several pages, paused to skim the contents before flipping through dozens more to repeat the process over and over again.

"What are you doing?" Sirius mumbled, trying to keep his voice quiet while he repeatedly pet the hair out of Remus' face.

"Reading, Black. Perhaps you've heard of it." Snape sneered, violently turning the page, nearly ripping it at the seam.

Sirius' face snapped up and his blue eyes charged with electricity. "Don't patronize me, Snivellus!" He hissed.

Snape prickled, book all but forgotten in his clenching fists. "Very well, Black," Severus seethed, made all the more impressive as his voice lowered as he spoke. "This is the book Albus was reading. It tells all about your beastly little friend and what he's done. And what was done to him." The last sentence spoken with a sneer.

Sirius rose slowly from the bed, shoulders heaving as he tried to keep his anger in check. "Liar."

"'...and they found him half dead in the alley, blood having pooled the width of the opening. His hip was broken and lay in a haphazard angle to his body. The bite-mark of his shoulder was red-rimmed and tinged blue..." Severus paused, finger stopping in the paragraph that he had read to mark his place. He peered up at Sirius through his hair and raised an eyebrow.

"Or perhaps this is more to you liking." Snape licked the ball of his thumb and turned two pages, resting his index finger on the line and began to read again. "During the first full moon after his attack, Remus Lupin malformed during his first change and tore his mother's left forearm into ribbons when she attempted to prevent him from swallowing his tongue. She believed he was having a seizure after spending two days with a fever of 106." Snape stopped again, glancing up to see Sirius pale and shaking, sitting on the floor beside the flimsy bed.

"Enough?" Severus purred.

"E-enough," Sirius agreed. "If Remus wants me to know he'll tell me." Black was silent for a moment before anger puckered his face. "And you shouldn't read that without his permission. It's an invasion of his privacy."

"Idiot, I could give a damn about that thing's privacy," Severus hissed. "Right now I am attempting to help him. This," he held up the book to punctuate his point, "is what we intellectuals call 'research'."

Sirius snarled and Snape was mentally counting how long it would take before the convict changed into a dog and attempted his life. Remus whimpered softly on the bed and ruined his moment by stealing Sirius' rage and turning it to concern.

Black perched on the bed again and mopped at his friend's brow with his robe sleeve. He left Severus to his books for the next two hours, too busy worrying about Remus and trying to settle his nerves by tending to his friend's needs.

At two in the morning Sirius woke with a start and rubbed at his blurry eyes. He stretched painfully off of the floor and took note that Remus was still asleep and Severus was still in the corner squinting down at three texts all open and spread along the small table top.

He was too exhausted for a confrontation at the moment and left Snape to himself while he checked over Remus again. He was no longer sweating buckets and the color had returned to the wolf's face. Sirius sighed softly in relief.

"Black," Snape said quietly while still sounding alarmingly loud in the depth of silence. Sirius shot the dark wizard an ugly look and made sure Remus was still sleeping before walking softly toward the potions master.

Snape looked even more menacing in the flickering light of one lamp. The moon was still mostly full after its turn but heavy clouds had moved in over the last few hours and now the only source of light and heat was sitting in front of the dark-eyed man, making his eyes sparkle with an unsettling cunning and intelligence.

"What is it?"

Severus sneered, "Don't sound so annoyed you idiot, I think I've found something."

Sirius quickly sat on the rough floorboards, mentally cursing the lacking provisions of their temporary home. "Well, what is it?"

Snape rolled his eyes and turned a page in the book directly in front of him. "This text revolves around the mental ailment of lycanthropy. Since there is so little documented about werewolves and their abilities, these other two are all that the library had to offer in the manner of intelligence."

"Wait, you said mental ailment, so it's all in Remus' head?" Sirius looked curious before he snarled. "Are you calling him mad?"

"Shut it, Black," Severus snapped, hands clenching and unclenching. "If you want to hear what I've to say about him, then you will be quiet and listen." Sirius bit his lip to keep from retorting and glowered up at Snape. He suddenly wished he did have a chair, his being lower than Severus' eye level was really starting to make him feel as though Snape were in charge. He finally nodded and Snape sneered before turning back to his books.

"Muggles believe lycanthropy is a mental disease where someone believes they can turn into a werewolf. They don't believe it can actually happen and the result is some poor fool getting himself stuffed full of needles and taking enough medication to stun an elephant.

"Lance Scorch is one of our leading researchers from the turn of the century. He applied the muggle theory of a mental ailment to actual lycanthropes to come up with this text," Snape stabbed a finger into the book and stared pointedly at Sirius to make sure he was indeed paying attention.

Sirius bent over the book, blocking Snape's view with the back of his head. Snape sneered but let him read. It wasn't long before the animagus was seething again. "So you are telling me this is all in Remus' head?"

"Yes," Snape grinned evilly.

"You sick bastard!" Sirius curled his fists into the wizard's robes and shook him. Snape snatched his wand from his pocket and poked Black in the nose with it until the animagus let go.

"If you would have finished reading it you may have learned something," Severus hissed. "It is a combination of Lupin's lycanthropy and his mental instability."

"He isn't crazy," Sirius snapped, not having enough courage to lunge at Snape with the wand pointing at him.

"On the contrary, he is making himself sick. The man is thirty-four years old and still cannot openly admit his disease. In his own mind he believes he is two creatures; one a wizard, the other a beast. He can't even admit to himself that he is both." Snape's lip curled in distaste.

"Fine, so if you're right, what is making him sick like this? How can his 'mental instability' cause his wounds to reopen?"

Snape reluctantly returned his wand to his pocket and flipped through several pages of another of the texts. "Lupus Disvestire Apostasis."

"What?" Sirius frowned, hauling an empty crate to the table to sit down.

"Apostasy, Black. An abandonment of what one has believed in. For some reason or another, Lupin's perfect world where he believes he is not a dark creature has been broken down. He's facing the fact that he is a werewolf, but still trying to deny it. His beast is trying to show him differently." Snape sat back, his face was not giddy for causing Black shock as it might have been. Instead, grim lines were etched around his eyes and mouth.

Sirius was pale. He ran a shaking hand down his face and sighed heavily. "So the wolf inside of him, it's trying to break free?"

"Not exactly," Severus frowned and scanned the book again. "It wants recognition, to be fed. If Lupin won't acknowledge that he is half beast, he will tear himself apart from the inside out."

"But you just said the wolf wanted recognition," Sirius blinked in confusion. "So it's the wolf that will kill him."

Severus shook his head violently, "No! He is the werewolf, Black. That's the problem. He has divided himself so completely in his mind that he believes he is two, until he can accept he is one, he's going to slowly --and painfully-- kill himself."

"Merlin," Black breathed, he stumbled over to the bed and sat down beside his friend. Sirius looked up at Snape. "How do I help him?"

Snape shrugged elegantly and closed the books in front of him. "I do not know."

"What? How can you not know? It has to be in those books!" Sirius spat with a low hiss, mindful of his sleeping friend.

"The books are only of the problems werewolves can face, Black. And that research isn't much. There isn't a lot of need --or money-- from society to fix werewolves' ailments. Most people would say to put them down." Snape smirked slightly.

Sirius gnashed his teeth and turned back to Remus. The same old barbs stung quite a bit more when Remus was facing such Hell.

Snape stood and gathered his things together, stuffing them neatly into a rucksack. Sirius watched him quietly until the potions master started toward the exit.

"Where are you going?"

Severus arched an eyebrow, "Hogwart's."

"You can't leave," Sirius whispered in a hiss.

"On the contrary, I can do what I want. I've done all I can, Black. I am not a healer." Snape tugged the door open and looked momentarily startled as the knob fell off into his hand. He regained his composure and tossed the brass at Sirius, using his wand to swing the door open. "I'll tell Albus what I've learned. There are enough potions there to tide you over until the Headmaster can find something to do with you."

Sirius opened his mouth but clacked it shut and nodded. "Fine."

"'ank you, S'vrus..." a low mumble came from the bed and both dark haired men blinked down at Remus in surprise. Severus sneered to cover it and stalked out without a reply.

"Do you need anything Remus?" Sirius asked quietly, no longer caring about Snape so long as the bastard got far away from them.

"No," the werewolf croaked, rolling slowly onto his back with a hiss of pain. Sirius watched as the pain-filled lines of his face eased as he fell asleep again.

Sirius sat on the floor, leaning against the bed frame. When dawn came, he was still there, eyes red rimmed and aching. An owl from Hogwart's School of Witchcraft and Wizardry found him there still at twenty past eleven.