Prologue

Well, this was certainly a change. I'd watched this for the last hundred or two years, but, never having experienced it firsthand, I had never quite grasped its complexities. Now, standing in front of Springfield High School, I took a deep breath, and walked through those imposing doors. Here I was, finally able to fulfill my destiny, to bring about peace in this world. First, I had to find my friend, the only one who could help me bring this about. Even before that – figuring out how to blend in at this infernal high school.

My name is Arthur Pendragon, and I had returned.

A/N: Hi guys! This is my first Merlin fanfic, so I hope you enjoy! Chapters will be sporadic, probably, as I have a lot going on, but I hope you like my story enough to stick with it! Thanks so much, and enjoy!

Chapter 1

I remember my death clearly, and all that led to it. I also remember what happened afterwards. My body stayed in Lake Avalon, but my consciousness was free. I felt almost...godlike, though I was never arrogant enough to presume to call myself that. I could hear everything, see everything, yet say nothing. I saw Merlin take care of Gwen for the rest of her life, I saw him both suffer and be happy, and I saw him mourn all his friends when they died.

And I was there the first time he broke down, one day, about a month after my death, in my room. At the time, I had still been mainly mad and betrayed at him. No matter what his reasons had been, he had lied to me for years. Yes, he had tried to save my life, and yes, he had told me in the end, but even that didn't eradicate all those lies. Yet, there he was, sobbing in my room. In a second, I was there too, invisible, simply watching.

"Arthur..." he hiccuped, and at that moment, all I wanted to do was to hug him, tell him I was alright. "Why?" he shouted up at the ceiling. With a flash of gold in his eyes, the windows exploded outwards, and the door banged open.

"Merlin!" Gwen shouted as she ran into the room, cradling Merlin in her arms.

"Why? Why, Gwen, why?" he brokenly asked, and she shook her head softly, starting to cry as well. "Why could he have never known?"

Stroking Merlin's hair softly, Gwen stilled for a second. "Never known what?" she asked quietly, and I remembered how she had pushed Merlin to tell her everything, and he had resisted.

"Everything." he gave a little hiccup again. "Everything I've ever done for him, everything I ever gave up for him. I could have...should have told him so long ago, but I was so scared. He could have died knowing everything."

"Like what?" Gwen pressed gently, and Merlin shuddered.

"Lancelot, the great Dragon, Fr-Fr-Freya." he sobbed.

"What are you talking about?" Gwen asked, looking down at Merlin in confusion, and I nodded unconsciously. What was he talking? What did Lancelot have to do with anything?

Merlin looked up at Gwen, tear tracks glistening on his cheeks. "Lancelot knew everything. He—When we first met, he saw me use my magic, but didn't think I was a monster. He helped me through the years, and sacrificed himself so I wouldn't when he stepped through the veil."

"And when he came back?" Gwen questioned, confused.

"That wasn't Lancelot." Merlin shook his head emphatically. "He didn't know about me, he was just a shroud, raised by Morgana. He enchanted you, Gwen, you never would have kissed him if you weren't wearing that magical bracelet Morgana had enchanted."

Gwen gasped, and I felt like I had been clobbered over the head. I had long ago forgiven Gwen for what she had done to me, and now it seemed as if I needn't ever have done so. "Why did you never tell Arthur this?" she asked, and I could hear her trying to fight judgement.

"I tried." Merlin smiled weakly. "I tried, but he was too hurt to listen to me. I'm sorry, Gwen. I failed both you and Lancelot."

"It's okay, it's okay." Gwen soothed Merlin. After a moments hesitation, she asked, "Who was Freya?"

This only made Merlin's tears fall faster. "I-I-I can't." he choked out, and Gwen nodded sadly.

"Of course, of course, Merlin. But you know I'm here if you ever want to talk, okay?" she offered, and Merlin nodded his head slightly.

With that, Gwen left the room, wiping her eyes hastily, leaving Merlin still sitting on my floor. "Everyone I loved who died, because of you, Arthur. Will, my father, my love...and I still loved you. I still stayed by your side. Yet wherever you are now, you believe me to be a traitor, a dirty sorcerer." He paused, bowing his head. "I loved her...and you killed her."

Mind reeling, I pulled back as Merlin continued to sob wordlessly. What was he talking about? I remembered Will, his best friend from Ealdor, who had died protecting his village. He had admitted to being a sorcerer; now I saw how he had been protecting Merlin all along. Will was a worthy friend to have. Yet what did Merlin's father have to do with anything? Merlin had always told me he didn't have a father, his father had left his mother before Merlin was even born. And even more confusing, this Freya he talked of...I never knew anyone of that name, never killed a woman of that name.

It was a week later (or a blink of the eye, for me), when I learned who this Freya was. Merlin did come to talk to Gwen, and told her the whole story. How he had freed the girl from captivity, come to love her, despite her curse, had planned to run away with her, only to see me kill her in her animal form. After hearing this, I left Camelot, finding an isolated place to the north where I could think in peace.

Although Merlin and I had made peace between us before I died, I had never really understood the depth of what he'd done for me. Now, it appeared, he had done more, endured more than I could ever have imagined.

From that moment of realization on, I watched Merlin carefully. Through the centuries, I watched Merlin age (and de-age, which I'll admit was extremely weird to see), I watched him suffer, I watched the raw moments where he would break down and sob, and I watched him as he adapted easily to the new world.

Even having forgiven him while still alive, there was still so much I wanted to tell him, things I needed Merlin to hear, things that I'd never get to say to him. This regret I carried for centuries, and now, looking up at the high school, I was ready to relieve it and see my best friend again.

I knew this high school was where I needed to be. I had woken up about six months ago in my old body with an address clutched in my hand. From watching carefully over the years, I knew all about modern things (cars, phones, crap music, slang, etc), so at least I wasn't waking in a completely strange land. With no clue how I ended up there, I made my way to the address, hoping for some answers. There, I was met with a surprise, also known as my sister. Immediately, I had reeled back. "Morgana!"

"Careful, Arthur, don't hurt yourself." she tried to calm me, standing up from her computer to move slowly towards me.

"What are you doing?" I shouted, reaching for a sword before realizing I had none.

"I'm trying to help you." she informed me dryly, giving up on the attempt to approach me.

Shaking my head in disbelief, I spat, "You tried to kill me and take my throne!"

"And that was thousands of years ago, Arthur. Geez, you gotta let these things go." she rolled her eyes as I stared at her in confusion. "Listen, yes, I know that way back in our first lives, we hated each other in the end, but I was misguided back then. All I had was my hatred towards Uther, my friends' betrayal, and pain. I've had a long time to think about it, as well as actual guidance, and now I'm here to help you." she explained.

I said the only thing that made sense. "Bullshit."

Her eyes widened, impressed. "Only a day or two in the world, and already swearing like a native. Good job."

"Cut it out, Morgana. Now, tell me the truth. What's going on?" I demanded, and she sighed heavily.

"I've told you the truth. I'm trying to help you now, so either you trust me now, or you'll learn to trust me along the way."

"What do you mean?" I asked, suspicious.

She gestured around the shop we were in, at the address that I had found. "I've been on Earth for a few years now. The Powers-That-Be, if you will, sent me early to set things up for us."

"What exactly do you mean, the Powers-That-Be?" I questioned.

She gestured up at the sky, then the ground. "Whoever's pulling the strings, I guess. My bet is on Kilgarreh and Aithusa, possibly the Druids. I'm not certain. All I know is that I was sent here about three years back, and told by one of their representatives to learn about computers, open this shop, live my life, and wait for you to show up."

Seizing onto the only concrete thing there, I asked, "Representative?"

Morgana rolled her eyes again. "Yeah, big ball of light that appeared suddenly out of thin air, spoke to me in a weird voice, telling me what to do."

"Why learn about computers?" I wrinkled my nose.

"Well, seeing how I've become a fairly proficient hacker, I've created false identities for us, registered us at a local high school, and started searching for Merlin." she explained briefly.

Nodding, I perched on the shop counter. "So, we're here to find Merlin, who will be at some local high school?"

"As far as I can figure, yes." Morgana shrugged.

"I thought he was immortal, and would live forever. Wouldn't he just find us?"

"Something must have made him forget." A shadow passed over Morgana's face for a second before fading. I decided not to question that now.

"So, we have to find an immortal warlock in a high school, and, where exactly are we?" I wondered, looking around.

Morgana grinned. "Welcome to the land of the free, Artie!"

Realizing what she meant, I stared, confused. "You mean?"

"I mean." she nodded. "We're in America. In Maryland, technically, right near D.C., the capital of the States."

"Why America?"

"If I understood what was going on here, I'd be gloating over you, but unfortunately, we're in the same boat here. Become a hacker, establish backstories, enroll in Springfield High School as juniors, wait for Arthur, find Merlin – that's all I know." she waved her hand.

"So...what do we do now?" I asked, jumping off the counter.

She shrugged. "I can show you our house."

"We have a house? Is it just us? Or has anyone else been brought back too?" I questioned.

She shot me a look. "I honestly don't know. If there're out there, then I haven't found them yet. And yes, we have a house. No guardians, we're both emancipated minors, our parents supposedly died five years ago. Supposedly, an uncle took care of us until he split a year ago, leaving us alone. We both became emancipated minors, but don't really have to work due to the fact that we each have a large bank account with enough money in it to last several lifetimes."

"How did that happen?" I opened the door, following Morgana out as she left the shop.

Her reply was a sharp point towards the sky. "To fill you in on everything else, our names are still Morgana and Arthur, but just Penn, not Pendragon. Oh, and we're full siblings here. Our parents names were Laurence and Jillian Penn. Our uncle was Gauis Penn, thought you'd appreciate that. We moved from England this summer, which explains our accents."

"Okay." I nodded, trying to keep up with her fast stride.

"You've been watching this whole time, right?" she asked quickly, turning to me.

"Of course."

"I'm guessing you know everything that will be taught in high school, right?" she questioned, and I snorted.

"Of course."

She nodded briskly. "Good. We both need scrupulous grades, or people will start to question us. Also, if we're stuck here for the rest of our lives, it'd be good to have a solid start."

"Okay." I caught her arm, and she spun around. "What about magic?" I whispered, and she shook her head fervently.

"Not here. We'll talk when we get home." She started walking again. After a minute, she added, "Your room's all set up." With that, she stopped abruptly, causing me to crash into her.

Shooting me another withering glare, she pointed at the street. "This is my car."

Taking in the exquisite red Ferrari, I whistled. "This is blending in?"

"No, this is being cool, and having a good time." she grinned, and I saw, for that moment, the old Morgana shine through. The one I used to love, the one Camelot loved. "Are you going to stand there like an idiot for much longer?" she asked impatiently, tapping the window, and the vision faded. Hurriedly, I got into the car.

"You'll teach me how to drive, right?" I checked, and she laughed.

"Yeah, you can try it with your car in the drive way sometime."

"My car?" I asked in surprise.

"Yes, your car." she repeated, as if to an idiot.

"What type of car do I get?" I asked, and she grinned again.

"You'll see," and she would say no more.

When we arrived at Morgana's, no, our, house, I felt my jaw drop. It was so huge! Obviously, it was smaller than my castle in Camelot had been, but it was pretty darn large for a house nearish to D.C. "Where's my room?"

Morgana gave me a quick tour of the house before leading me upstairs to my room. It was a large room, already filled with (my) stuff. The walk-in closet had tons of modern clothing in my size, and Morgana watched me carefully as I examined the rest of the closet. "Is everything fine?"

"Yeah, I just, I kinda miss my armor and everything." I admitted, and she laughed.

"Men and their armor. Me, I'm happy with modern clothing. While the dresses were cooler back then, nothing is comfier than jeans and a good t-shirt. Not that I'd ever wear that in public, though." she added.

Walking over to my bookshelves, I looked at the titles, then turned to Morgana, her expression unreadable. "What are these?"

"I thought you might want to see how you're perceived now. How Merlin is too, actually. It may be important later on. Now," she went to sit on my bed, "about magic."

Tensing, I turned to face her. "What about it?"

"Well, what are your views on it?" she asked me gently, and I sighed softly.

"I know why Merlin lied to me, and I realized that it was probably for the best. Back then, I don't know what I would have done if I had lived and known of Merlin's magic."

"So you accept magic?" she asked, eyes wide.

"I accept that it is merely an ability, a tool that one cannot control whether they have or not, and that can be used for good or evil. I am accepting of the use of magic for good." I stated firmly, and Morgana rushed over to hug me.

"Thank you, thank you, Arthur!" she half-sobbed, and when she released me, I saw tears in her eyes.

"I'm guessing you still have your magic." I hedged, and she nodded.

"But I do only use it for good, though." she promised, and I nodded.

"Will he? I mean, still have have magic?" I asked, and she nodded.

"A power like his doesn't go away, and wouldn't. If he knows who he is, then he'll know how to use it. Otherwise, my guess is he had no memory, or false memories of a different life, and no clue as to why he can do things others can't." she decided.

"And the latter would mean we would have to convince him he's a thousand-year-old warlock?"

Wincing, Mogana nodded. "Yup."

"Which do you think we'll find?" I asked, looking at her.

When she didn't answer, I ducked my head. This would not be easy.

A/N: There you go! I hope you guys enjoyed it, and I'd love to hear your thoughts!