I'm back! It's been a few years, but I've decided to pick this fic back up. We will see if I can finish it. I've re-edited it and added a few things from the original posting. Nothing major, but I would suggest reading back through it before continuing on.

Merlin fell to his knees as he watched the flaming boat carrying his dead best friend drift further away. The young warlock stared at the flames flickering until tears filled his eyes, making the world blur before him. The angry oranges of the fire began to mesh together with the peaceful blues and greens of the lake around him.

Kilgharrah said that Merlin was successful in completing his destiny, but Merlin didn't agree. He felt like a complete and utter failure. He didn't understand how he didn't fail because Arthur was dead. How that did not constitute as a failure was beyond him. The man he swore to protect until his last breath was gone. He couldn't save him in time. The warlock hung his head as sobs racked his body, wishing for anything, a second chance, perhaps, but nothing came.

Merlin didn't move from his spot until long past nightfall. Numbly, he stood up and, without really thinking about it, began to walk in the general direction of Camelot, his home. Merlin trudged on. He felt completely hollow on the inside as he walked through the dark forest, not even once thinking about starting a fire and laying down for the night. No. He didn't feel anything, no emotions, fatigue, or coldness, so he kept on walking with nothing but an empty void consuming him on the inside.

Slowly, it began to grow darker. It was gradual, but quicker than normal. Merlin didn't realize it until he tripped over a fallen branch and nearly fell onto the unforgiving ground. He quickly caught his balance and looked down to see that it had gotten so dark that he could barely distinguish his feet from the dirt packed forest floor he was walking on. Overcome with a strange feeling, he panicked and picked up his pace, half running, half stumbling, into a large clearing. He looked up to see the stars in the sky going out. One by one they winked out of existence, blackening the sky. He wildly spun around as the darkness consumed everything, leaving nothing but Merlin in the pitch blackness.

He felt weightless in the dark as if there was really nothing else there beside him, and he seriously considered that to be true. He could no longer feel the ground below him, and all of the usual sounds that accompanied the forest were gone, no bugs, no animals, nothing at all. Complete silence permeated the air. He couldn't even feel the air around him. It was neither cold nor hot. He felt nothing.

Merlin stayed in this limbo for quite some time, or maybe it wasn't that long at all. He couldn't exactly tell how much time had passed. His sense of time was completely gone. It was as if the concept of time was wrong. There was no time. There was no space. Even Merlin himself felt as if he wasn't entirely there.

More time passed, or no time at all, before Merlin experienced something concrete – a voice. The voice was quiet and defining at the same time. It was a gender-neutral voice that sounded neither old nor young, and Merlin couldn't tell if he was actually hearing the words or if they were being directly broadcasted into his mind.

"You have finished here," the voice said. "Your new destiny awaits you."

"What!?" Merlin shouted out, anger filling him now. The dam that was there before, keeping his emotions away broke, letting them wash over him with great force. "No! Get someone else to do your work. I don't want to anymore."

He was fuming. He just watched his best friend, his king, his other side of the same coin, die! He just spent years hiding his true self while having countless brushes with death. Through the years, Merlin had been physically, mentally, and emotionally stretched thin, trying to keep Arthur alive, and he died. All that trauma was for nothing. Now he was expected to fulfill another destiny? Merlin did not want that at all. He was tired of this, tired of everything.

"Fail this destiny, and evil will surely rise," the voice continued, taking no regard to Merlin's words and anger. "If you succeed, then you will be rewarded."

Before Merlin could retort, the blackness that had consumed him turned impossibly bright. The blinding white light rushed around him and filled his entire being. The light brought back his senses, too, but they were amplified beyond belief. It was overwhelming and overpowering. Merlin tried to scream out in agony, but his voice was no match to the deafening, roaring noise that was filling his ears.

Then, in an instant, the world around him came into sharp focus. Merlin felt a hard, bumpy surface under his palms and knees. He opened his eyes to see that the gray, cracked ground made out of an odd sort of rock. He lifted his head and was met with a very foreign sight.

Merlin shakily stood up and slowly walked down the alley in the direction of a dim noise. The buildings on both of his sides were constructed out of perfectly rectangular blocks, and there were large metal bins littering his path. He took a few wobbly steps only to realize that something was wrong with his body. He felt smaller than he should be. A quick survey of his body proved that he was in fact a few feet shorter than he was supposed to be.

Panic started to rise inside himself, making his breathing come in short, quick breaths. The smallness of his body was freaking Merlin out, but he pushed those thoughts to the back of his head and focused on figuring out his surroundings before he continued to contemplate what was wrong with him. He did a quick check, though, to make sure that his magic was normal. Thankfully, all was fine.

As soon as Merlin stepped out of the alley, the sun blinded his eyes. He immediately squinted them and held a hand up as he continued walking forward. He looked back down at the gray ground and blinked rapidly, trying to make the spots in his vision disappear while his hand shielded his eyes from any further damage.

A booming noise pierced the air, causing Merlin to jerk his head up. He was greeted with the sight of an extremely unusual contraption hurtling towards him. He dove to the side, crashing onto the rough ground just in time as it barreled past him. Slightly dazed, he stood back up and slowly spun around, taking everything in at once. Strangely dressed people were everywhere, holding peculiar objects or getting in metal boxes not unlike the one that he narrowly avoided. Everything was baffling to Merlin, and it was starting to make his head spin.

He had no idea where the hell he was, but he knew one thing for certain; He did not want to be here, so he ran, and he ran fast. He plowed past the odd people with odd clothing and odd objects in a panic, trying to find anything at least slightly familiar.

A hoarse voice filled and echoed in the large room. It swirled around in the air and found its way into the ears of an old, powerful wizard.

"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches… born from the ways of old with eyes of liquid gold… he will have power the Dark Lords knows not and cannot die while the other one survives..."

"Still trying to make sense of the prophecy, Dumbledore," a low voice drawled behind the aged wizard.

"Ah, Severus," he said, walking away from the pensive in the corner of his cluttered office and to his equally cluttered desk. "This prophecy may have been made some time ago, but that doesn't mean it won't come true."

"Is this why you sent for me, headmaster? Have we not exhausted all topics about this prophecy already?" Snape asked, following Dumbledore up the steps to his rather large desk.

"Yes, well, I didn't ask for you to come to discuss the prophecy this time. I was just reviewing it for my own purposes. I need your help on another matter."

"Do tell," Snape said intrigued.

"Earlier this week, the Ministry discovered an unknown source of underage magic," Dumbledore said, taking a letter from his desk and holding it up as proof.

"Unknown? I though the ministry kept record of all magic users since birth, even the Muggleborns."

"That is true. It greatly concerns them about who this unknown child is. They asked me to look into it."

"And you want me to help you find this child?" he sighed.

"Yes. I believe another set of eyes searching would be most helpful, and you are quite capable of blending in with Muggles."

"And what are we to do when we find the child?" Snape asked, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"I think it best if we find the child first before we decide on that."

"When do we leave?"

"Now," Dumbledore said, standing up, and making his way to leave the room. Despite his old age, the headmaster was surprisingly quick, making it hard for Snape to keep up, especially since the man was well known for his deliberate and slow way of doing things. Once they were outside the wards of Hogwarts, the old wizard extended his elbow for Snape to take hold of before apparating away.

They appeared in an alleyway somewhere in west London. Both transfigured their wizarding robes into a casual muggle attire before stepping into the view of the public.

"It has been about a week since the reports began. The ministry traced the last source of the underage magic to this area. That was about an hour ago. With any luck, the child will still be near here."

They set off, combing the streets, looking for any signs of a magical kid or unusual happenings. Twenty minutes of looking, and they were nowhere close to identifying the source of the unknown magic.

"The child may not be here anymore," Snape suggested bitterly. He was not fond of wasting his time and he could think of many other things he could be spending his student free summer on.

"I'm not so sure, Severus," Dumbledore said, gesturing behind Snape with his head, a twinkle in his eye.

Snape turned around to see who Dumbledore was looking at. Across the street, next to the market, stood a small boy who appeared to be alone and up to something. Judging by the black hair that stuck up in all directions and the dirty, oversize clothing, it was easy to conclude that he had been living on the street for a little while. His incredibly thin frame made Snape and Dumbledore think that he hadn't been accustomed to much food in quite some time, though, and the way he was staring at the loaves of bread on one of the market stands just supported their theory.

The boy glanced around and briefly caught Dumbledore's eyes. In that split second, Dumbledore was sure that this was the child who they were looking for. The boy already had a strange sense about him, and his eyes greatly amplified that. They were intelligent, but heavily weighed by an immeasurable amount of grief that Dumbledore couldn't even imagine how a boy at such a young age acquired them.

"You believe that this is the child that we are looking for," Snape said more as a statement rather than a question.

"I do believe so."

They focused their attention back on the boy who clearly looked indecisive about something. A few seconds later, a determined look came across his face as he made a decision. With one more glance around to make sure no one was looking, he crept a little closer to the bread table, keeping low. He was still some distance away from the table when he stopped. He was mostly turned away from Snape and Dumbledore, but they both knew what he was looking at. The next second, one of the loaves of bread magically levitate off the table and quickly flew into the boy's waiting hands. With the bread in hand, the boy skillfully weaved himself away from the outdoor market and took off down the road.

Snape and Dumbledore didn't hesitate to follow.

They found the boy in an alley hunched down with his back leaning against the wall, bread in his hands. He stared at it hungrily for a beat before ripping off a chunk and popping it into his mouth. The way he reacted while he chewed, it looked as though he ate the best piece of bread to ever be baked. His eyes closed, and his head dropped back to rest against the wall. He chewed slowly, savoring it.

With the boy's eyes still closed, Snape and Dumbledore stepped into the alley and approached the boy. Before they got too close, the boy's eyes flew open. He quickly spotted the duo and tensed to run.

"We mean you no harm, young man," Dumbledore said, effectively easing the boy, if only slightly. "My name is Albus Dumbledore, and this is Severus Snape." Dumbledore uneasily squatted down to be at the same level as the sitting boy.

"That's a nice-looking loaf of bread you got there."

The boy's eyes went wide with fear, and he tensed back up.

"Do you know what you should put that bread on?" Dumbledore continued. "A plate!"

And with that, Dumbledore drew his wand and conjured up a plate not unlike the ones that are commonly used at Hogwarts, offering it to the hungry boy. The boy's already wide eyes grew even more, but this time, they were wide with surprise and delight.

"You have magic too," the boy exclaimed happily.

Dumbledore chuckled.

"Yes," Dumbledore confirmed.

The boy let out a sigh of relief, the tension and wariness draining out of his form.

"I was beginning to think that I was the only one now."

Snape stared down at the boy, trying to decipher what he meant when he said 'now', but Dumbledore spoke again, drawing his attention away from his thoughts.

"Well," the Headmaster said, standing up, "I'm famished, and I don't suppose that you would object to eating a proper meal, would you?"

The boy opened his mouth to respond, but Dumbledore continued before he could. "I believe that there is a cafe that is not too far from here. I've heard that their food is splendid, and I've been meaning to go to it for some time. What do you say?"

"I can't," the boy said solemnly. "I do not have any money."

"Ah, but I do."

"You don't have to," the boy began, but Snape cut him off.

"Stop arguing, boy. Just come on, or would you rather continue stealing from others?"

The boy gave Snape a shameful look and shut his mouth. He rose to follow them without saying another word.

The cafe turned out to be a short block away. It was a small, local shop. Walking in, the three were hit by a wave of delicious aroma. Snape could almost see the boy's mouth start to water.

After ordering their food from the counter, Snape led them to a booth that was somewhat isolated from the rest of the room. Although the boy tried to hide it, Snape easily picked up on his nervousness. He kept twitching and his eyes were darting around. He seemed to be simultaneously in awe and in fear of the ceiling. A quick glance up told Snape that the only thing worth noting on the ceiling were the florescent lights.

Dumbledore broke the tense silence.

"So, what are you doing out in the streets alone? Where are your parents?"

The boy didn't answer. His gaze dropped down to his folded hands in his lap. Snape understood the meaning: the boy's parents weren't in the picture anymore. Most likely, they were dead.

"How about you start by telling us your name," Snape suggested in his usual low and slow voice.

The boy hesitated for a moment. "Morgan," he said not looking up.

"Morgan…," Snape said, looking for the boy's last name.

"Yes, it's Morgan," he said, apparently oblivious to what Snape was wanting him to say.

"I meant, what is your last name," Snape said, his frustration beginning to rise.

"Last name?" the boy questioned, looking up, confusion clearly displayed across his pale face.

Snape propped his elbow up on the table and briefly rested his face in his palm. He didn't feel as though he could mentally handle this conversation at the moment. He had to put up with this enough during the school year. Having to deal with it during the summer as well was almost too much for the Potion's Master.

"Yes, your last name. The second name that you have. What is it?"

Snape saw the boy begin to panic. His chest was rising up and down quickly and fear started to show in his facial features. But all too quickly, his face went back to being blank. Snape blinked in surprise. The boy, Morgan, was exceptional at quickly hiding his feeling. Snape could still pick up traces that showed the distress that the boy was feeling, but, especially at the young age he is, Morgan was far better than most.

"Emrys," the boy said before cringing as if that was some information that he didn't want to divulge.

"You have nothing to fear from us, Mr. Emrys," Dumbledore said noticing the same thing.

Morgan just nodded his head to show agreement, but the action didn't look convincing.

"You have questions, I presume," Dumbledore continued.

Merlin mentally kicked himself for saying that his last name was Emrys, but when they asked for his last name, he was caught off guard and that was the only name that he could think of. He was glad that at least he didn't say his first name was Merlin. From what little time that he spent here, he picked up on a lot of things. He realized that he somehow got transported to the future, one where people were unaware of magic, and he was just a story. Well, at least most people didn't know about magic, he corrected himself while he looked up at the two strange men seated across from him.

He also learned that, even though he was considered a myth, Merlin was known to be the most powerful wizard of all time. They may have got many of the facts wrong, but they got his name right, and that made him fearful of discovery. Merlin wasn't too keen on letting everyone know that he was The Merlin that supposedly died over a millennium ago. He had no clue as to what would happen if someone did find out.

Merlin was extremely suspicious of the two men sitting across from him. He didn't really know who they were or what they wanted from him. The old man, who looked impressively similar to his Dragoon form, possessed magic. He may have used a funny stick to perform it, but it was magic nevertheless. He also suspected the other man of having magic as well. If so, they were the first magical people that Merlin had met or even heard about since arriving here. That's why he decided to come with them. Merlin figured that they might hold some answers and clear up some confusion.

When the old sorcerer, Dumbledore, practically offered to answer his questions, Merlin jumped at the chance.

"Why are you here?"

The man simply chuckled as his question.

"Because we are like you. We have magic just like you."

Merlin almost rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, that doesn't really answer my question. Who are you? Also, how and why did you find me?"

It was the greasy haired man that spoke this time.

"We both work at Hogwarts, a school that teaches magic to witches and wizards, such as yourself. We found you because you are underage, so when you perform magic, the Ministry knows."

"Wait, hold on," Merlin said, his head reeling with all of the information he was told. "There is an actual school that teaches magic! That is amazing. Why haven't I heard of it before? And what is this Ministry?"

"The magical world and the non-magical world are separate," Snape said. "The Ministry of Magic is the magical world's government. Our world is kept hidden from the muggle — non-magical — world. Since you have been spending time in this world, that is probably why you haven't heard of it."

"So, can anyone go to this magic school?" Merlin asked. He was ecstatic about the prospect of being taught magic, and his newly de-aged body would probably help him get in. He had been really resenting his now young appearance, but at times, it came in handy. Everyone underestimates a kid. Being taught magic could also help him prepare for his new destiny, whatever that may be. Merlin had still yet to find out why he was here.

"That is why we are here," Dumbledore said, giving Merlin a soft smile. "We would like to invite you so come study at Hogwarts."

"Really?" Merlin asked, excitedly.

"We'll just have to straighten some things out with the Ministry, but I see no reason as to why you would not be able to."

The conversation came to a pause when the waitress served them their food. Through the meal, Merlin continued to ask questions between bites. He needed to know more about the magical world and Hogwarts. He was also concerned about how this so-called ministry could track him through his magical usage. He made a mental note to research more about that in order to becoming untraceable. Merlin was only every used to working in secret, and this trace could jeopardize that.

After they ate, Merlin allowed the two men to take him to a place for him to stay the night. Apparently, neither of them wanted him to spend another night out on the street, and Merlin didn't object.

Now Merlin laid atop a comfy bed in a place called the Leaky Cauldron. He was told that someone would come pick him up tomorrow after everything was sorted out at the Ministry.

Merlin turned over on his back and stared up at the ceiling while contemplating his predicament. He had no idea as to why he was here in the future and in a kid's body. All he knew was that he had to complete some other destiny. He had no choice but to really. Ever since he arrived, Merlin had been trying to figure it out all the while trying to not think about what just happened in the past. He couldn't allow himself to look back because he feared that he would break. He needed to just worry about what was happening now. With that in mind, Merlin fell into an uneasy sleep.

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