Disclaimer: I own nothing, as per usual

Feedback: Appreciated

AN: No idea if I'll take this further or not, but considering how reincarnation is going to play such a significant theme in this series, I decided that the possibilities were too intriguing, particularly once I had seen the first episode of NBC's new 'Dracula' and was able to refine what I wanted to do.

New Blood, Old Soul

He could do nothing; he was aware of that from the moment he sensed the new arrival.

There were always injustices he longed to avert, but ever since the fall of Camelot, all those long years ago, after Gwen's death, he had become increasingly aware of those occasions when he was powerless to do anything. So many good men and women had died because it was not his place to interfere- the Salem Witch Trials had been the worst, because he could have done something if he had only been close enough, but as it was he wasn't so he couldn't-, it had become almost natural for him to try and stay away from anyone. Not only did he have his duty to keep watch on the lake in case the time came for Arthur to rise again and his aid was needed, meaning that any new relationships formed now would never be able to take on the same importance as his old ties to Arthur, but there was also the issue of his immortality; while it had once struck him as fascinating- particularly when he had mastered how to control his age without the potion-, it had soon become frustrating, seeing everyone aging around him, forcing him to lie every time he began to get too close to someone…

In the end, it had been easier not to care. He'd stayed away for a while, avoiding contact with others so that he could focus on his own destiny, but he'd eventually recognised that he couldn't stay away from the rest of the world while he waited. He had returned to regular life a few times, doing what he could to keep up to date with the world around him- he'd even attended university a few times, even if he didn't put his subsequent qualifications to practical use-, stepping in when he felt that he could afford to take the risk, but he generally worked to stay out of the world unless he had to; worrying about Arthur's future was more than enough for him right now.

Still… despite that, there were some cases where even his vow of non-interference couldn't overcome his own natural desire to help, and what he had detected recently was one such occurrence. He might not use his abilities regularly any more, but he was still one of the most powerful beings alive, and certain talents had only developed over time, including his awareness of certain creatures.

He might not want to get involved in the world any more than he had to, but when he sensed a vampire of such power enter his country, he almost had to take an interest.

Vampires…

To say that they were complicated was an understatement. They might be officially agents of darkness, but since they lacked a soul and were physically dead, the rules surrounding them were comparatively murkier; their easier-to-exploit weaknesses were only so useful against opponents of such exceptional power. They didn't even qualify as actual demons, since the spirits that animated them defied most of the traditional forms of classification used when dealing with others; they might not have their original souls, but what they had was disturbingly close to it, opening into a realm that no other demon dwelled…

In other words, they were outside the order of the Old Religion that governed Merlin's powers, which meant that the rules of the Old Religion wouldn't allow him to take action against them. He could stake a vampire or try and fight one with his bare hands, of course, but with their enhanced strength it would have been a disruption of the delicate balance that allowed him and the vampires to exist in this world that was so increasingly abandoning magic for science; magic, for all its wonder, still had rules that must be obeyed, even by one as powerful as himself.

While vampires were not a pleasant part of that world, they were still a part of it, bordering a great many areas and planes of existence. As a result, he could not counter a vampire as old as the one he sensed without risking greater destruction due to his maybe-foe's potential; the last time he had encountered a vampire and tried to kill it…

He'd been lucky that the consequences of his defiance of the Old Religion's order had been contained to merely London, and it had taken a great deal of effort to limit the effects to that; he couldn't take that chance again. It was why he'd left the 'Ripper' alone during the Whitechapel killings; he'd sensed something going on there, but the damage to the bodies had created enough uncertainty for him to stay where he was, especially given the vampire's relatively limited power.

Still, regardless of his limitations, he had still made the decision to come to this party once he had determined the vampire's location, and he was going to stick it out. Even if he couldn't do anything against this vampire- who, judging by what he had sensed so far, was a being of considerable power-, he felt as though he had to at least see this new arrival; he might not be able to do anything against Britain's new resident, but he could at least get an idea about his reasons for coming to this country in the first place.

After all, he knew better than most what this man was capable of; as a powerful warrior even before he became what he was now, the man who had once been known as Vlad Tepes had a formidable mind before he had centuries to practise and develop it, and such a mind did not become weakened by confinement such as what he had endured.

The knowledge that the vampire he had detected was none other than Count Dracula had been a shock at first, but he supposed he should have expected it; the count's enemies had been thorough, but something that ancient wasn't going to be stopped easily, even if he didn't have the kind of power that would always inspire fear or worship in others.

While Merlin was puzzled at his new alias- what would inspire a Transylvanian noble to pose as an American entrepreneur?-, his foe's motives were only important so far as they determined what he was here to accomplish. Merlin wasn't going to act against the man until he knew for sure what he was up to; Dracula might be a monster who fed on others to live, but there was still a fundamental nobility about him that even his original transformation had not eliminated completely.

Besides, in a strange sense, this party had given him a chance to have a little fun for the first time in a long while, starting with him taking a ticket from one of the guests- a thoroughly unpleasant man; Merlin might have been born in the Middle Ages, but that man's attitude towards his workers would have been barbaric even then- and going on from there. The photograph upon arrival was awkward, but it was nothing Merlin couldn't cope with; a subtle ball of light as the picture was taken, and the resulting image would be too blurred for anyone to use to identify him later no matter what happened to the picture itself. Mingling with the guests had been awkward, but his chosen alias had been a social success; all he had to do was say a few words, think like Arthur and move like he belonged everywhere, and it was easy.

"It's breathtaking," a voice said from the door, just a short distance from where Merlin was currently sampling the offered drink.

"Well, now, isn't this exciting?" another voice said, the sound of the voice nearly causing Merlin to drop his glass. "I'm liking this Grayson already."

It couldn't be…

As he turned around and saw the woman who had spoken, wearing a red corset top and a white dress, his heart seemed to stop in his chest.

Morgana…

Reincarnation had been a topic he had read about extensively since he first became aware of his own immortality- the idea that a soul could be reborn to undo the mistakes of its past and get a second chance had appealed to him-, but he had long ago resigned himself to the notion that nothing would come of it; Arthur and the spirits of those other fallen knights dwelled in Avalon, outside of the usual rules of life and death, and would not return to Earth until the time was right, and Gaius and his other friends from outside Camelot had all died at peace with themselves.

But to see her… hair so fair where it had once been so dark… a teasing smile untainted by malice… her dress the elegant finery she had worn as Camelot's unofficial princess rather than the darker attire she had worn in exile…

He heard a teasing tone to the woman's voice as she spoke with the man and woman she had arrived with, but he couldn't bring himself to register them; all that mattered was the sight of this woman, vindicating so much of what he had read simply by standing there, her presence too strong in his other senses to be anything other than what she seemed.

Even with the differences, it was her.

She was so like Morgana had been back when he had first arrived in Camelot, a ray of sunshine and light, so innocent of the wider world, so unaware of what she could be on either side…

The announcement of their host's arrival brought his thoughts back to the present, but as the man known as Alexander Grayson walked down the stairs, his eyes settling on the woman in blue who had come here with Morgana, Merlin's own eyes narrowed.

That kind of interest from a vampire could never be a positive thing, regardless of Merlin's forced vow of non-interference and his earlier thoughts on Dracula's nature.

Whatever else Dracula was here for, Merlin would not let him have Morgana's new life; she had lost one to the corruptions of others, and that was all he would permit…

Carefully manoeuvring up to a position where he could stand near the infamous vampire lord without his old foe being aware of him- Dracula's senses weren't as refined as his in this manner, but the right clues could still be dangerous-, Merlin nodded slightly as he took in the information about Morgana's companions; Mina Murray was a medical student whose father was a doctor at Bethlam Royal Hospital, while Jonathan Harker was an ambitious journalist for the Inquisitor.

It was a small thing to know, but it was a useful detail nevertheless…

As Dracula moved into position at the top of the stairs once again, talking about the Dark Ages as the lights around the hall went down, Merlin's eyes narrowed as he glared at the man who was so subtly mocking him.

It was probably only a coincidence- Dracula couldn't have known that he was going to be here, after all-, but to hear him talking about the fear of the Dark Ages that had come about because of Arthur's death and the later fall of Camelot, and then claim to have the solution…

Even if he wanted to hope for the best- and he had to admit to being impressed by the electric light; some of the things man could do without magic these days still amazed him-, Merlin resented the idea that a vampire believed he could be the agent of redemption after the fall of Camelot; he would be a poor successor to Arthur no matter what he had to offer.

Still, as the lights went up and Dracula continued to speak to his guests, Merlin smiled as he heard 'Morgana' introduce herself.

Lucy Westenra…

A different name, to be sure, but the soul was all too familiar to him; the soul of the woman for whom he'd felt so much that he had never been able to express… the soul of the woman who'd become his greatest enemy because he couldn't admit how he felt in time to save her…

He couldn't let it happen again.

Now that he knew she was there, he had to protect her…