Merlin One-Shots

Bring Back the Memories Once More

Disclaimer: I do not own Merlin or this song! All rights go to their respective owners!!!

(Author's Note: So this is the other request I was working on, and I promise it'll be a little more light-hearted than the other one. Also, this is the first time I've done a modern-au, so constructive criticism will help me out if you want more modern-au's in the future. Hope you enjoy it!!!)

Over a thousand years Merlin has waited, and a thousand more years he will willingly wait. There were points where he almost gave up, where he sunk so terribly low that all hope seemed lost. But he kept going, and he always will. The world has changed over his thousand-year life. Science has prevailed in so many ways that Merlin is still awed by technology. Some things, however, still remain relatively constant for him. Every day he visits the lake and talks about the world. He talks, believing that Arthur, Freya, and everyone he has ever loved is listening on the other side. He'd talk about wars, plagues, technology, and just about anything he did. It helped him cope with the burden of immortality.  

Another constant, granted only became consistent about a hundred and fifty years ago, was that he would visit a small bar once every ten years. There wasn't anything significant about the pub, really; it was small, shabby, and tucked away snugly in the corner of the town where people would visit after their 9 to 5. The first time he came, he had sunk into a deep depression and had lost faith once more about seeing his loved ones again. However, something about the little bar sparked something in him, and he sang his sorrows away. Perhaps it was the beer, though Merlin has found that it's really hard for someone like him to get drunk. The people loved him and asked him to do it again, but Merlin had to go. When he left, however, he gave them a promise. Every decade on that day forth, he'd come back, and he'd sing once more.

Merlin was a man of his word. He soon became the town legend. People would tell stories about a man who never aged and visited them every ten years to sing to them. They would say how his voice seemed to enchant them, and the very room felt as if magic was coating it. Merlin usually ends rumors like that quickly, but he never ended that one. He felt...comfortable with the townsfolk, and they seemed to trust him. They reminded him of the druids, in a way. Very peaceful, and always welcoming. They never even questioned who he was, where he's from, or why it seemed like he never aged. They just gave him a drink, and would politely ask if he'd sing for them again. It made Merlin smile, and few things really made him smile nowadays.

Merlin walked peacefully through the snowy sidewalk and nodded politely to the few he passed that waved and greeted him. As he reached the tavern, he opened the door slowly. Adam, who had looked over at the door in anticipation, smiled brightly and gestured him over. Adam was the bartender of the pub, serving for about 32 years. He met Merlin when he was a little boy that had sneaked in to see if the rumors were true. He had gotten in trouble for being in there while underaged, but he still remembers seeing Merlin wink at him. Today would be the fourth time he'd see Merlin sing for them, and every time he's just as excited. He brushed his ginger-brown hair away from his hazel eyes and greeted Merlin.

"How do you do, stranger?" Adam asked politely as he poured Merlin a drink, already knowing what he would order.

Merlin chuckled. "As good as any man, Adam," he said while he took the mug that Adam set down.

Adam smiled. No one knew Merlin's name, so everyone just calls him "stranger." Never in a mean way, and it seems like Merlin enjoys it. He also marveled about anything Merlin said because there was always a pearl of wisdom to it that sounds too ancient to be with any man.

Adam waited until Merlin finished his drink before asking the traditional question that he and every other bartender ask Merlin when he comes.

"There's rumor of a lost singer, wandering around, waiting to come home and sing once more."