I'm back! My exams are over and I'm back to updating!

I know this isn't my usual Saturday upload, but it turns out I'm away tomorrow so I might not be able to upload. So just in case...

The next day, Remus found note on his bedside table. It was written on parchment with neat and curly writing. It read:

Mr Lupin,

If you could come to the Hospital Wing on Friday evening, after dinner, I would be happy to discuss your arrangements for the coming weekend. The Headmaster will also be present in case you have any questions.

Wishing you a pleasant day,

Madam P. Pomfrey

Remus was once again awake before his friends (yes, he dared to use that word) so he slipped the note under his pillow and lay in bed until the alarm that he had set the night before went off.

The day's lessons flew by with History of Magic seeming to be less mind-numbing than it had been the previous day. In the Charms lesson with the Hufflepuffs, the tiny Professor Flitwick squeakily lectured them on the theory of Levitating Charms. Slughorn once again only had eyes for Lily and her natural potion making abilities in Potions class. In Transfiguration Professor McGonagall, Head of Gryffindor House, transformed her desk into a sheep and back before setting them the task of writing notes on the theory of basic transfiguration.

Before he knew it Remus was on his way to the Hospital Wing having given the excuse that he wasn't feeling well to James, Sirius and Peter.

He entered the large Hospital Wing on the First Floor and immediately inhaled the sharp smell of a Sterilising Charm. He knew the scent from experience when he had walked the halls of St Mungo's shortly after being bitten. That smell was one that lingered in Remus' memory with unpleasant significance.

'Ah, Mr. Lupin is it?' asked a stern-looking woman in peppermint robes. 'Right this way, we'll go into my office.'

Madam Pomfrey led Remus into a large cupboard-like room at the far end of the Hospital Wing. Inside there was a bookcase filled with old Mediwizard handbooks and herbal remedies, as well as newer looking leather-bound copies of books such as 'Bozo or Bezoar – What Antidotes to Use and When'.

Remus sat down in the plump plum armchair that the Matron conjoured for him and waited silently while she bustled about making him a cup of tea.

'So, Remus,' she said finally, sitting down on the other side of the desk, 'I believe the Headmaster briefly explained how we plan to manage your,' she hesitated, trying to find the right word.

'Condition,' Remus supplied, used to professionals trying to be delicate about his lycanthropy.

'Condition, yes. Did Professor Dumbledore explain when he visited you?'

'Yes, uh, he mentioned something about a shack and a tree? Somewhere I could transform that's out of the way and away from people. I don't want to hurt anyone.' Remus felt the need to make that clear to the Matron: he didn't want to cause anyone else any pain because of what he was.

She seemed to understand because she nodded and told Remus about the plan.

Madam Pomfrey told Remus in detail about a shack that had been built near Hogsmeade village that the residents believed had always been there. Professor Dumbledore had cast a very complex and powerful memory charm over the village and added the detail that the shack was haunted. When Remus protested that the hut was near people, Madam Pomfrey cut him off.

'It has been taken care of,' she assured him, 'the wards that are around that building are very strong and very effective. Not even a fully grown werewolf would be able to break through the border around the hut, and even better, no one can get into it except by the secret passageway that we have created.'

At that moment Professor Dumbledore arrived. The Headmaster looked just the same as he had that day in Remus' kitchen. His hair and beard were silver and long enough to tuck into his belt, and his half-moon spectacles glinted gold in the sunset. He smiled at Remus and indicated for Madam Pomfrey to go on, but all the while she was talking, Remus felt as though he was being x-rayed by Professor Dumbledore's sharp blue eyes.

The Herbology professor had managed to procure a particularly violent Whomping Willow, which the Matron explained was a type of tree that lashes out with its branches at anything that approaches it. That tree guarded the secret tunnel entrance to the hut so that no one could go down it.

Remus could see an obvious flaw in that arrangement, but Madam Pomfrey didn't elaborate, she simply went on to explain the arrangements for after Remus' transformation.

'Is there anything you would like to ask us Remus?' Albus Dumbledore asked when the Matron had finished.

'Yes sir, how am I meant to get to the secret tunnel if the tree tries to hit anyone that goes near it?'

'Ah, that is where my little trick comes in,' Dumbledore smiled, 'there are two ways of disabling the Whomping Willow – one is by the immobulus spell, and the other is by pressing a knot on the trunk with a long stick. That is how you can get past it, but no one can follow you because the Willow becomes unfrozen a minute after it is disabled.'

He seemed pleased with himself.

'Anything else?'

Remus shook his head.

'Well in that case,' Madam Pomfrey resumed, 'as this full moon falls in the early hours of Sunday morning you will have to come here around seven thirty Saturday evening. I will then escort you to the building. About mid-afternoon Sunday I will bring you back up to the Hospital Wing where you can spend the time until you recover. Okay?'

Remus nodded.

'You'd better get back off to your dormitory then Remus,' Dumbledore said.

'What should I tell people when they ask where I was?' Remus asked as he stood up.

'What reason did you give for coming here tonight?'

'I said that I wasn't feeling well,' Remus looked at his feet, uncomfortable about lying to his new friends.

'Very well. When you return you can tell them that you have had a stomach illness. But after this full moon we will have to work out a list of reasons for your absences.'

'Thank you, sir, Madam Pomfrey,' Remus said as he left the office.

Back in the Gryffindor dormitory no one asked any questions about where Remus had been. So he settled down to bed, dreading the next evening and the pain that would follow.

Reviews are always welcome...

LittleGuitar94

P.S. - I got a bit bored earlier this week and decided to make a Tumblr for my FanFics. Go check it out at a tumblr of the same name...

P.P.S. - I'll be updating next Friday too as I'm off to Kenya on the Saturday.