A/N: I do not own Merlin or most of the characters used in this fanfiction. Rated K. I'm just testing out an idea to see if it gets any interest. Please R&R to tell me what you think and if you want me to write more chapters.

Chapter 1

In a land of technology, and a time of advancement... The destiny of a great city rests on the shoulders of a young boy. His name... Merlin.

Merlin had never been to school before. Never, in all of his years of searching, had he so much as entered such a ghastly unruly place. Disheveled teenagers shoved past him on their way down the corridors, shouting abuse at each-other in loud, arrogant voices. Of course I'd find Arthur here, Merlin thought, everyone here seems to be just like him.

The boy shifted awkwardly in his ill-fitting uniform. Perhaps he should have bought this after transforming himself into a sixteen-year-old boy. Now that he thought about it, he probably looked rather strange in that clothing shop. An old man trying on teenage uniform, very odd indeed.

Though, it seemed like quite a few of the boys here seemed to not be wearing the uniform correctly. Their ties hung loose, top buttons undone, their jumpers creased and bedraggled.

He stood there in his perfectly ironed white shirt, his black, hemmed trousers and his thin, yellow and brown tie. His tie was fastened almost to choking strength and his hair was combed neatly so as to make a good first impression. By the looks he was getting from the other students, it seemed to be doing the opposite.

"Swot!" someone called to him from further down the hallway but he tried to ignore it. What the hell was a 'swot' anyway? It sounded like some sort of made-up word. Instead of retorting, he fiddled with the strap of his backpack- feeling somewhat out of place. His eyes wandered the crowds of pupils for any sign of the reason he had came to this hellhole.

Then, he spotted him. The familiar dirty blonde hair, blue eyes and arrogant grin. Arthur. Merlin smiled a little to himself. It had been too long. At one time, Merlin had thought that he'd never miss the self-centered, cocky prince but here he was after searching for centuries.

Of course, this Arthur couldn't know that he was the legendary king of Camelot. No, that would be down to Merlin to convince him. It would be no easy task, not at all. No doubt this Arthur would be as defiant to reasoning as the old one. Merlin would have to prove it, prove that he was a reincarnation.

He'd heard rumours over the years from other warlocks and witches that there was a way to tap into the memories of a past life. Perhaps he could find out how it was done and use it on Arthur, make him see sense. For now, he would lie in wait- watching and studying the reincarnated prince until he had grown close enough to the boy that it was likely he would believe him.

[-]

"Merlin Ealdor?" asked the woman behind the desk as Merlin walked inside to collect his timetable and school diary. She sat, slouched and annoyed-looking as though her job was the dullest that could ever exist. Her thin, greasy, grey hair was tied into a bun at the nape of her neck and the most colourful thing she was wearing was the dark blue scarf around her neck, even that seemed worn and pale.

The boy gave a curt nod of his head. "That's me," he replied, offering her a small smile.

The miserable woman didn't so much as look up at him as she thrust a piece of paper and one of the planners in his direction. He caught them, thankfully.

"Thank you," Merlin said politely, waiting to see if she was going to say anything else. Perhaps she could point out the direction to his first class? Or wish him good luck on his first day. After a few moments of awkward silence, the boy turned and exited the office.

His first impressions of this school: most of the students seemed to be stuck up prats and the teachers seemed to be miserable turnip heads. At least the building itself looked presentable... sort of. Save for the used chewing gum under the tables and the suspicious stains all over the floors, the walls and the ceiling... and the broken windows, the litter and the crumbling paint. Okay, perhaps it wasn't in the least bit presentable.

[-]

Merlin arrived almost half an hour late for his first lesson, something called 'Tutor Time'. When reading that, the boy had mentally gone over what such a class could entail and yet, upon arrival, all it seemed to be was some sort of social time for the students. Most seats seemed to be taken so he sat down at the most empty table in the room. It was inhabited by only one girl, her head stuck in a book.

The boy's eyes ran over the front cover. It was something called 'War of the Worlds' by someone named 'H.G. Wells'. Merlin had never heard nor seen such a book before. On the front there was an image depicting what seemed to be a robot invasion (yes, Merlin actually did know what a robot was) with fires and ships flying overhead.

He didn't notice that the girl was now looking at him, having seen him studying her book. "You read it before?" she asked suddenly, not even introducing herself before speaking to him.

"Um, no," Merlin replied. "I prefer old classics over new, modern stuff."

The girl gave a soft laugh. "This is classic," she replied. "It was originally published at the end of the nineteenth century."

"I like stuff even older than that," the boy murmured, not really sure how to answer.

Her brown hair fell in her face as she tilted her head curiously, her bright green eyes gazing at him. "Things that include words like 'thou' and 'thus'?" she asked. "They bore the hell out of me."

Merlin shrugged but didn't say anything in reply.

"I'm Thalia," she said. "What's your name?"

"Merlin," he replied simply.

Thalia's eyes widened a little in surprise. "That's brilliant," she said. "Are your parents fans of old English legends?"

Merlin gave her an odd look, taking a moment to respond. "I guess you could say that." He hadn't expected someone to recognise the name, not in this age; but she had. Was he famous still? He hadn't realised that many people would take notice of the sidekick warlock when he was overshadowed by a great king.

"I love those myths," Thalia admitted. "Magic and wizardry, it would be so awesome if that really existed. I could be all like bam!" She made a motion like she was about to slap him but stopped short. "And you'd be a toad." She smiled happily, looking pleased.

"Yeah, awesome..." Merlin mumbled softly, his eyes focused on the table in front of him.