Disclaimer: Not mine, J. K.'s, except what you don't recognize. Some things people may say lines from the Mummy Returns, Stephen Sommers has the rights to them, not I.

Special Thanks to my Beta Reader: ~*Dumbledore's True Love*~

Chapter 12: The Wish

"Ouch!"

"Arg!"

"I experiencing a strange sense of deja vu, here!"

"SIRIUS!"

"Sorry," Sirius scrambled to his feet, noticing once again that most of his body was lying on Harry. "You okay?"

They nodded.

"Wonder where we are," Harry said, looking around. Green, and healthy trees surrounded them.

"The Forbidden Forest, by the looks of it," Sirius ran a hand through his hair.

"Close but no cigar, Sirius," said a voice, behind Sirius.

"Ahh! What the hell are you doing here?!" Sirius shouted.

The whom, or what Sirius was shouting at was a man with sallow skin, and reminded Harry strongly of a vulture.

"Now is that anyway to talk to a vicar, Sirius?" the man said in an oddly familiar voice.

"Isis?" Harry, and Remus said in unison.

"I no longer go by that name," the vicar bowed to them.

Sirius frowned at the vicar, it was the same one who Christiansen Harry, his brain was working overtime, "What happened to the real vicar?"

"Excuse me?" the vicar asked, alarmed.

"You heard me, you planned the whole thing to see if I was worthy to take care of Harry, and to accompany him on the search for the Eye. That's why you took us to the back room, that's why your exact words came from the Eye! That's why the whole white light circle thing happened! That's why you told me to take the Soul Bonding thing seriously, when we were talking in the tree! That's why Lily, and James told me a thousand times not to be late! And where are we, anyway!?"

The vicar nodded, "What do you think?"

"You sent the vicar on an extended vacation, you were astonished that I was worthy, and it wasn't my fault I was late, by the way. And the whole thing was completely legal because you were originally a friar!" Sirius said, advancing on the vicar. "Oh, and just because I wear black, and leather sometimes doesn't mean I'm a thug, I just look good in black, and leather."

"I knew there had to be a reason why one of the younger sisters kept looking for your fireplace in the Floo Book," the vicar said with a slight smile. "Everything else you are right about, including the extended vacation part."

"What does their Soul Bonding have to do with this?" Remus asked, curiously.

"What's a Soul Bonding?" Harry said, totally lost.

"A Soul Bonding, Harry," the vicar said. "Is a very old, and very important wizarding custom, your very life could depend on it. A godfather in the Muggle world is almost the same thing, but also very different. In the Muggle world a godparent can also serve as a legal guardian in the event that the child's parents die, but in our world they actually serve a much more serious purpose. A godparent has to be carefully chosen, the parents have to know they can they can trust this person with their child's life.

"The true reason for all this precaution is a very old enchantment called The Connection. Not a terribly original name, but it serves its purpose, it connects a small part of one person's soul to another's."

Harry looked at Sirius in slight awe. "As soon as the Soul Bonding is cast, the godparent in question will be able to know when their godchild is in trouble, their hand will tingle, and they will get a flash of the place where their godchild is. Ever wonder how Arthur really found Merlin?"

"No way!"

"Yes way, Harry, Merlin did a subtle four-point spell on the Arthur just to make sure he got through the forest okay."

"Cool!"Remus said, impressed.

Sirius was pondering something while the vicar was explaining the Soul Bonding. "YOU!"

Harry, Remus, and the vicar spun around to face stormy faced Sirius.

Sirius stomped back over to the vicar looking murderous. "It was you! You sent them the package! You scared them half-to-death! They thought it was going to hurt him!" He pointed at Harry. "Good thing Lily knew how to work that thing, how powerful was that thing, hmm? What if it backfired, or something? If anything happened to Harry . . . I . . ."

The vicar remained silent throughout Sirius's outburst, before saying, "Yes, Sirius, I did send Harry part of the Eye's core when he was a baby. I also knew that Lily could work the Eye, that's why Voldemort wanted to spare her, she was the only one who could work the Eye without getting her hand burned off by touching it."

"Get outa town!"

"We aren't in a town Sirius, so I can't leave it," the vicar smiled. He seemed to be thoroughly enjoying annoying Sirius. "Lily had an extraordinary talent in charms, she barely moved her wand, and without saying a word the charm would be preformed. From the moment she received her letter I've been watching her, wondering. She was powerful, more powerful then Dumbledore, but she never showed her power in public, so everyone thought that she was a normal witch, who always got top marks in charms.

It was not until she was with child that she started using some of that power, she put protection charms on her child before he was even born. Sometimes I think she timed Harry's birth so it would be exactly at midnight, so in turn Voldemort had to take a little vacation. Did you know, Sirius, that she was the one that decided that you should be Harry's godfather?"

Sirius shook his head, "I thought James . . ."

"No, the mother always picks her child's godfather, another wizarding custom. She made a very wise, and worthy choice."

Sirius felt his face go red, and ran a hand through his hair, embarrassed.

"She perform an ancient enchantment on Harry so Voldemort's curse would rebound on him, and Harry would live. The enchantment was so old, and forgotten that it only worked because the magic in her blood was coursing through her child veins, and the added protection of the Eye's power also strengthen that enchantment so much that you are still protected by it . Sadly, Voldemort now shares a part of that enchantment, that is why he thought he could touch the Eye without experiencing any pain, he was, of course, wrong."

"So the Eye is gone forever?" Harry said.

"Yes, and no. Yes because it can no longer cast spells, heal wounds, kill people, etc., and no because talismans never truly lose all of their magic. The magic in the Eye ran to deep to ever be snuffed out completely, but it will be a long time before we ever hear of it again. The ultimate test proved that."

"How?" Harry asked the same time Sirius snapped, "What?"

"The ultimate was a test of character, and judgement, not a duel. Any wizard, or witch can win a duel, or defeat a fearsome beast, especially if their intentions are evil, but in a test of true character only those who intentions are for the good of others will pass. You proved that you are a righteous person, and would only use the Eye to save your godfather's life, Harry. You are a true Gryffindor in every sense of the term, Godric Gryffindor would be proud."

A long silence follow this speech.

"I am sorry that we keep asking this, but where exactly are we?" Remus said.

"Dna Lofl Ostch Ildrensp Ar Ents, of course," the vicar said.

Harry look at the vicar in absolute bewilderment, this couldn't be the same place, where were the children? And why weren't the trees dead, and grey? In Dna Lofl Ostch Ildrensp Ar Ents grass was non-existent, but here the was plenty of it.

The vicar seeing their perplexed looks said, "The Forest of Souls was placed under a horrible curse that would last for as long as the Eye existed, but now that the Eye has been defeated the curse has been lifted, see? Life has returned to it," He pulled back a tree branch.

No longer was the landscape grey, and desolate, but vibrate, and bursting with life. The children . . .they were gone!

A musical laughter caused Harry to turn his attention to what was going on below the treetops. The children! There they were, alive! Laughing, running, playing! Their parents were there too, embracing their long lost children. Several children pointed out Harry to their parents.

"Thank you!"was shouted from every possible direction.

Harry smiled at the scene, so much joy in a place where there had once been so much sadness. He felt someone put an arm around his shoulders, and pull him close. He gazed up at Sirius, his large bright eyes sparkling.

Sirius smiled, for awhile he wasn't sure he'd ever see those eyes again. Sadly, he reminded himself as he watched the parents taking their children home, again, that he could not do the same for Harry, offer him a home, a real home. Soon, he would have to go into hiding again, and it broke his heart to think of having to leave Harry in the clutches of the scum of humanity, the Dursleys, again. Sirius wished with all his heart that he was cleared that way Harry could live with him, and never have to the see the Dursleys again. Or better yet, as he chided himself for on a regular basis, told Dumbledore about the switch, or never gone after Pettigrew in the first place, but stayed with Harry that Halloween night so many years ago.

"Sirius?" Harry brought Sirius back to earth, they had been standing in silence for a full five minutes. "What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing in particular, why do you ask?"

"You have that look on your face, you know that pensive look."

"Arg, too much togetherness alert, the boy can read my facial expression, bad sign," Sirius pretended to edge fearfully away from Harry.

"You are so weird," Harry rolled his eyes.

"I know."

"As lovely as this place is, I think we should be getting back home," the vicar spoke up, then clapped his hands, once.

Everything went blurry, and began to spin, faster, and faster, and faster then the speed of light, until it stopped.

The three of them were sprawled out on the grass of another forest.

Remus shook him head, an took a good look around, "The old Forbidden Forest."

"Is anyone hurt?" the vicar asked.

"No," Sirius said helping Harry to his feet.

"Good, good, Harry?" the vicar addressed Harry.

"Yes, sir?" Harry replied.

"As a thank you for destroying the Eye, and breaking the curse on the Forest of Souls, I can grant you one wish."

Harry was shocked, "A-anything?"

"I do have limitations, I can't change the past, kill anyone, or bring anyone back from the dead, I'm sorry."

Harry nodded, sadly, but then a fantastic idea came to him, "C-could you clear Sirius? Please!"

"Now, that I can do," the vicar smiled. "Sirius, do you agree with this wish?"

"I-I-I," Sirius stammered, realizing he was too shocked to talk, nodded fiercely.

"Then say the magic words Harry!" the vicar raised his wand.

"I wish that Sirius was cleared!" Harry said, enthusiastically. The vicar bought his wand down, the spot where they were standing was engulfed in yellow light and golden sparks shot through the air.

A moment after the light had cleared, and everyone had gotten sparks in their hair, they heard a terrified scream come from the castle.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Harry, Sirius, and Remus looked at the vicar, who was smiling mysteriously,"Harry, Sirius, Remus, if I was you I'd hurry up to the castle, Minister Fudge has just found a rather familiar looking rat in his cup of herbal tea."