Author Note: I don't know if a real convention called MagiCon exist. If so, this is a fictionalised version, of course. Some tongue-in-cheek references to the Merlin fandom and to the convention scene to follow... Enjoy!

-1-

Arthur took out his earphones. He stared at the ad plastered along the side of the bus.

It was an ad for an upcoming comic convention, MagiCon, with pictures of the key guests this year, as well as a background photo of people in costumes and an overlay of a sweeping dragon at the top.

It wasn't the colourful, fantasy-inspired spectacle that caught Arthur's eyes though. It was a picture of a young man -one of the guests attending the convention- that made him halt.

He recognised him: pitch black hair, bright blue eyes, angular, handsome features that made him look otherworldly.

Arthur furrowed his brows.

'Excuse me,' a passer-by brushed past him.

He realised he had stopped in the middle of the footpath. Stepping aside, he also realised he must have been looking rather stupid, staring after a bus that had already left.

But why was that guy so familiar to him?

He was sure he didn't see the dark-haired man on TV or anything. Otherwise he would have remembered. Because just taking one look at him was bringing back 'memories'.

Arthur snapped out of his thoughts and shoved the earphones back into his ears and resumed walking. We already went over this; they were not memories.

The stream of thoughts and images of certain people that sometimes entered his mind were not memories from an old life. That would be delusional.

Later that night, Arthur found himself Googling MagiCon, entering the website set up for the event. Then he came across the young man's photo and his fingers insisted on clicking on his name: Mervin Emerson.

Apparently, Mervin was the up-and-coming actor of the current hit series called The Camelot Chronicles. The page had the same picture of the young man that had stopped Arthur in his tracks. There was also a picture of him in his TV character as the wizard Merlin.

Arthur leaned back in his chair and folded his arms, adopting an almost sulky expression as he examined 'Merlin'.

The character was in a rich blue cloak, one that would be considered expensive in a real historical context. Underneath that he wore upper-class court attire. The serious-looking Mervin held a long staff that had atop it an intriguing stone, bound to the staff with luxurious metalwork.

That's not how Arthur remembered it. His mind instantly filled with visions of 'Mervin' in more commoner clothes: black trousers, functional boots, a blue tunic under a brown -rather worn- jacket. He also had on a much worn, but still rich in colour, red neckerchief. That was the real Merlin.

Arthur blinked and swiftly shot a look at the ceiling. This was getting ridiculous. Every time he saw a lad with dark hair and pale skin, this guy with the neckerchief came into his mind.

Sometimes, when he was absentminded and he spotted a girl with black, wavy hair in his indirect view, he would see visions of this other girl with dark curls, lovely brown eyes and a caring smile.

Arthur abruptly pressed the 'close' button of the website. He tried to disengage himself from the thoughts about the young man and woman, who sometimes appeared in his dreams as well. Dreams in which he saw himself in chain mail, riding into forests with 'Merlin' by his side. Then he would enter a grand castle and the girl would greet him in a gentle but reassuring hug.

Nonsense! Arthur told himself. But as he flicked off the desk light and began going to bed, he thought to himself: Damn it, I'm going to MagiCon.