A/n. Just like to say this is not a very original idea but wanted to write it anyway.

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin!

It was a bleak Saturday morning when he woke to the feeling, a feeling he would never ever forget again, it was the feeling of great magic stirring, the feeling of magic itself reawakening. Jumping from bed Merlin excitedly dressed himself in jeans and a deep blue hoodie, his favourite that reminded him of his mother because it was her favourite colour. Hunith had died 20 years after Arthur; finally succumbing to the effects of old age and Merlin had been there to comfort her. Merlin had cried, unable to believe his mother was gone, but it had been the same when Gaius had died, Merlin had mourned for weeks over the death of his mentor and father-figure.

After a hurried breakfast, Merlin jumped into his car and drove; he drove for the best part of the morning before he finally reached the small village called Gulwald which lays next to the lake. The Lake of Avalon or Ava de Rêve as it is now known, why people had to change the names of things into different languages was beyond him, but Ava of Dreams seemed fitting for the gateway to the afterlife (1). Merlin hadn't visited the lake for a year, due to living and working in London, but tried to visit once or twice a year in the hope Arthur would return. He owned a small cottage or so everyone thought, on the outskirts of the village that over looked the lake, in the summer he liked to row a boat out onto the lake and just sit and contemplate the past, and his regrets in his long, lonely life.

Parking the car in the drive, he entered the house to find it spotless, just the way he liked it, clean, tidy and orderly. He had bought the house under the disguise of and old man named William, but sadly the old man had died and passed the house down to his grandson Matthew, or that's what the villagers believed anyway. Merlin had named himself for this purpose after two people from his old village Ealdor, but over the years had used many names, seeing as Merlin was not a commonly used name.

Merlin had decorated the house with many things he had collected over the years, weapons, paintings and books and lots of other stuff. Many of the books were on magic while some on medicine and other various arts of which Merlin had become quite accomplished at over the years. He'd also become fluent in most of the worlds prominent languages, including French, German, Russian and he could also speak Latin fluently although he tended not to tell anyone this.

A quick lunch saw Merlin heading down to the lake and to his boat which he quickly had out of the shed and out on the water where he sat and waited for most the afternoon.

Arthur stared into the eyes of his friend as he fell himself slip from the world into a bright white light. He blinked or he thought he did but when Arthur reopened his eyes he was staring into the beautiful brown (2) eyes of a young girl. Sitting up Arthur looked around, everywhere was white like he was sitting in cloud except it wasn't wet and he didn't appear to be sitting on anything. Looking back at the girl he gave her a confused look, and she laughed, "What's so funny?" He asked "Am I dead?" But he already knew the answer, where else could he be, if he wasn't dead Merlin would be here.

"Yes, Arthur Pendragon you are dead." She replied, her voice calm and sweet. It turned out the girls name was Freya and to Arthurs surprise Merlin's lover, he was even more taken aback to find he'd killed her, which he planned to apologise to Merlin … sometime. She taught him the ways of Avalon and of how he could watch the world as it grew and watch as civilisations rose and fell and how science was used to create many new things, all of which fascinated Arthur.

But most of all he found that he could watch the past, so it was this way that Arthur learnt the truth of Merlin's trials and triumphs and how he'd protected Arthur to the very end. And Arthur watched as Merlin lived never changing through the ages of the world and how he waited patiently for Arthur's return, he did find it funny though when Merlin sat out on the lake and just spoke. Merlin spoke about how he was feeling and how he wanted Arthur back, he sometime spoke to Freya asking to see her, he never did, but Merlin never gave up and this made Arthur want to talk to him even more.

So it was that when the Twenty First Century came about, Freya came to Arthur and told him his time to return to the mortal world was drawing near and that in twelve years time he could return to the world of the living. And when that time came Arthur did return.

Arthur closed his eyes to Avalon and when he opened them the shining sun was dimly sinking behind the hills on the horizon, and it was a shocked voice that drew his attention, a voice so familiar. "Arthur! Your back! Oh my god I must be dreaming this can't be real!"

"Merlin, will you please shut up you idiot!" Arthur replied and it was then that Merlin knew his king had really returned.

(1) Rêve is French for dreams. And if anything in this sentence doesn't make any sense or isn't right please tell me.

(2) I'm not sure what colour Freya's eyes are, but I'm too lazy to find out please correct me if I'm wrong!

A/n. Thanks for reading please review and I may write some more chapters, I have some ideas but if anyone could give some I would be grateful. I would also like to point out that because Arthur has watched the world from Avalon he will not be a stranger to modern day things.

Thank you again for reading and please review! :)