You Weren't Here Before (Open)

[Merlin Emrys]

Merlin had come into town to have a wander around and check the place out, partly looking for any new arrivals that may have been dropped off here (the portals seemed to be somewhat sporadic at the moment, perhaps it was because they hadn't accessed the portal room yet), and partly assessing what they would need to do to get the town back up and running, and how they would go about it - from what he remembered, while a lot of the staff and residents had been people from other worlds, there had seemed to be a lot of background people doing various jobs wherever they were needed, and he had no idea where they came from or why.

He'd walked up towards the park, seeing the overgrown grass from a distance, and headed towards the lakeside, where a strange sight met him. The Lady of the Lake, the little cafe that sat by the waters of Trenale's lake, was... not covered in vines. It didn't look grubby or abandoned, it looked... clean. Like somebody had already been here.

Frowning, he walked up to the building, pushing open the door to see inside. The little bell jingled, and he looked around the cafe, the decor neat and fresh as he remembered it, and standing behind the counter was a friendly looking young man with an apron around his waist and a nametag that read 'Todd'.

"Can I get you anything?" he asked cheerily. Merlin stared at him for a moment, opening his mouth to give a singularly eloquent reply.

"...huh..."

[Della Miller]

Della had only really been on campus since she arrived back in Trenale, and while she was expecting more of the same, a whole lot of greenery like they were in an episode of Life After People, she thought it might do her some good to walk around the town she had sort of called home for about four years...gods, she was really close to having spent more time knowing about this place than not knowing. Of knowing that magic existed, and having people she could really relate to. There was something kind of eye opening about that realization, even though she couldn't quite place why. Maybe it was just a new way of realizing how much coming to this place had changed her life.

She was caught up in this thought process, and therefore she almost passed by the surprisingly put together cafe that she had spent a fair amount of time studying in. Almost. Before it was out of her peripheral vision, she paused in her stride, and took a couple of step backwards, staring up at it. How...weren't they only working on the school in terms of clean up? Because that was the most realistic thing right now?

...oh wait, why should she be so surprised? This was, again, the place that brought magic into her life in the first place.

Letting out a incredulous laugh, she walked in, finding familiar tables and stools, and about three workers, including the one who was talking to...oh, Merlin. Who seemed just as confused as she had about a minute ago.

She smiled and stepped forward. "How do a couple of teas sound, Merlin? My treat." After all, she wasn't quite as broke as the girl he had met...and she kind of owed him an apology for her state at the meeting. This seemed like a step in the right direction.

[Merlin Emrys]

The sound of a familiar voice behind him had him spinning around, and for a split second it was like going back in time, he brought a hand up to his chin almost like he was checking his beard was still there, just to make sure he hadn't actually accidentally time travelled, he wouldn't put anything past this place.

But no, his beard was still there and now he looked at Della he could see she was older, she barely looked it of course, she'd aged well, but she was definitely older. He relaxed a little at that, despite the strangeness of the cafe being back up and running out of nowhere, at least he didn't have time travel to add onto his list of stupid things that seemed to happen to him at Tintagel.

"Tea sounds good," he agreed, remembering that he'd wanted a chance to talk to Della, and this would be a prime opportunity - plus they could both try and figure out what was happening here, Della had always been a good person to bounce ideas off of and solve mysteries with, it really would be just like old times.

[Della Miller]

Della could see just how much more confused her presence had made Merlin, and almost had to laugh. There was almost an irony in the fact the actual wizard was more incredulous of how godsdamn weird Trenale was than she was, but she couldn't really blame him. She never seemed able to stop being surprised by all of this, and from her understanding, this was weird even for someone native to Camelot. Instead she ordered them two teas and handed a ten note to Todd, and then quite eagerly turned back towards her friend.

"Gotta love magic, huh?" she whispered, motioning around them. "Because I can't think of a better explanation here, can you? And..." She let out a sigh. Despite always wanting to do the right thing, there was a stubborn part of her stupid heart that disliked admitting to doing anything wrong. "I think I owe you an apology for the meeting. Like, I tried, but I really shouldn't have had that much before coming...I mean, I had started before I knew the meeting was going to be a thing, but that's no real excuse..." She rubbed the back of her neck, and glanced towards where she could see the teas were almost ready.

"But gods, we really should catch up, so I'm glad we ran into each other. It's been too long..."

[Merlin Emrys]

"I suppose so," Merlin agreed, he didn't quite like the untidyness of just shrugging and claiming magic, but maybe that was because he'd always been so fascinated by magic in general - for him that was the start of the conversation, not the end of it, since there was so much to learn about magic, so many forms and variations and sources and - and stuff that nobody else cared about but him.

"It's okay, you weren't too bad," he said kindly, and it was sort of true, she'd been a little louder and more in-your-face than usual but she hadn't done anything stupid or mortally offended anyone, so really it could have gone much worse. He'd put the posters out for the meeting in the early afternoon, so he wondered when exactly she'd started drinking, but he didn't want to grill her too much - yet. Maybe deeper into the conversation.

"Me too, glad I mean, and we really should catch up, you need to tell me everything that's been going on with you."

[Della Miller]

She offered a weak smile when she realized just how unsatisfied Merlin appeared at her question. "I know, we should probably explore what exactly made it happen, but the way I see it, it's probably connected to why we got back here in the first place, you know? I actually have the beginnings of a theory there. I'd ask if you were interested, but it's you, I know you probably are."

She smiled as the two teas were set down in front of them, and she handed Merlin his cup. "See...I think us being blasted away from the war was no accident. I think it was a way for this place to protect itself from the worst of the attacks, and then the portals brought us back after enough time had passed that the threat, if not eliminated, was significantly reduced. Obviously I have no idea exactly how that could be, but that's part of why I'm suggesting it to you. You know more about this stuff than I do."

She took a sip of her tea, and nodded. "Yeah, like I said, me being drunk would've been a lot worse...and..." She let out a chuckle. "It's...it's been a hell of a decade, Merlin. I spent a lot of my time away trying to find my way back, because I was reminded of how goddamn lonely it was before I came here...which kind of got me into private investigation of all things. That and writing..." Sheepishly, she pulled her book out of her purse. "Even got published...but none of it was terribly satisfying because other than my dad and his new wife, all of the people I cared about weren't around, you know? Not even..."

...gods, she hadn't told anyone, had she? She had wanted to save that announcement for once everything was done and there was no more stressing out over if they'd all live to see tomorrow...

She sighed, then held up her hand to reveal the ring. "No even Panic. Gods, remember when I thought I didn't believe in love? I almost miss that at this point. Because something really bad is up with him, and he won't talk to me."

She shook her head, offering another smile. "But damn, enough of my Pity Party, how about you? Other than the new beard, of course."

[Merlin Emrys]

Merlin looked thoughtful as she explained her theory, nodding slightly.
"You know... you might be right, there's definitely some further investigation to be done but as a working theory it's not a bad one, there's clearly some kind of... over-arching power at work here, that would explain why we were all sent away at the same time, but are all coming back at roughly the same time as well, and why things seem to be cleaning themselves up now that we're getting the school back up and running, clearly whatever power is behind the existance of Tintagel acted to protect the school and the town as best it could... it's a good theory." he agreed.

"You got published? That's pretty good, congratulations... that's one bright spot at least..." he said sympathetically, he could see why she might have been driven to despair and drink, feeling that lost loneliness, away from the people she cared about, he imagined he'd probably have felt something similar if it weren't for Arthur and Gwen still being around. Even imagining being stuck away from Arthur for that long was painful, so Della must have had a hell (pun not intended) of a time away from Panic.

"I'm sure we can figure something out, just thing of all the drama we've weathered in this place, I'm sure we'll get whatever's up with him sorted out in no time." he said encouragingly, reaching over to take her hand.

"Me? Oh, well, it's been fairly busy... Arthur's king now, as you know, I'm an advisor instead of a servant, we're disgustingly happy together and him and Gwen have a little boy, Tristian, who is the most adorable thing, we all love him dearly."

[Della Miller]

Della couldn't help but smile a little more out of pride that Merlin agreed that her basic theory probably had merit. "Thanks...and it'd be nice to maybe finally get some specific answers of how this place works, so I'm all about investigating further. I've gotten kind of good at that sort of thing...that's another bright spot...and thanks."

Honestly, she felt weird about bringing up her book at all, it almost felt like bragging, and she wasn't even the type to brag for the sake of boosting her own self confidence, like some with low self esteem had taken to doing. Plus she almost felt like she didn't deserve full credit. Not that she wholesale used exact events and people in her story and just changed some names, because THAT would be so goddamn wrong in her opinion, but there was no denying that her time in Tintagel served as inspiration.

Her smile had weakened as she thought of the situation but it found some strength when Merlin reassured her. He was always good about that, was it any wonder that even her most cynical self couldn't help but want to be his friend? "I know we will, logically. It's just...incredibly frustrating..."

Fortunately, she at least had Merlin's good fortune to distract her. After years of knowing how much Merlin was pining over Arthur, just knowing they finally figured out how to make things work, even down to them all kind of sharing a kid? That was the kind of happy ending she didn't want to dare to hope for but secretly so badly wanted for him. "Oh gods...I'm so glad to hear that. You guys deserve this, after all the crap we went through at school?"

...and oh the mention of Tristian made her realize she missed something! She supposed she could blame just how crazy things had been that she somehow forgot one of the biggest parts.

"Oh, speaking of kids! I ran into Alyss too, and...well, I'm a godmother!" She pulled out her phone and found the picture of Tori that Alyss had sent her, plus a couple of new ones once they actually met. "She named her Tori...Bright Spot #4, we'll outweigh the bad in no time!" she half joked, although...honestly, that was the plan, right? Remind herself why she wanted to come back so badly in the first place? Between the fact that life at home hadn't been SO bad, the fact that Merlin was doing so well, and now this? That was something...

[Merlin Emrys]

"Well I look forward to investigating with you," Merlin said with a grin, it would be good to be back with his friends, solving mysteries and... well he couldn't get too carried away with the old times, they still had responsibilities and duties back in Camelot and he would have to get back to them at some point, they all would, but he could still spend a little time here, maybe go back and forth a bit, keep up with all his old friends. Provided they could get the portals home working, anyway, and that was sort of a priority.

"I know what you mean," he chuckled, running a hand through his hair "Between all the back and forth Arthur and I went through it's a wonder we ever managed to get our act together. We did, though, and it's all working out pretty well. He's still Arthur, and he's a prat, but he's my prat," he smiled fondly "and he's a really good king, Camelot is flourishing."

He leaned over to look at the pictures, "Oh she's adorable," he grinned. He loved kids, desperately wanted a little girl of his own (and he knew Arthur felt the same) but they just hadn't quite got to that yet. He felt like there might be one in his future, however, somewhere along the line.
"I think so," he agreed "The silver lining is getting bigger."

[Della Miller]

"I'll drink to that, and this time won't get belligerent about it," she teased, raising her mug and taking a sip from it. "And hey, so long as he's your prat, we can work with it. And honestly, even when he was a prat, he was hardly the worst I met around here." Gods, she could make a lovely list of far worst prats...including ones that were trying to be Headmaster not too long ago, or the other prat that was trying to kill Westley on a regular basis...gods she had to try to contact him. So far texts hadn't worked, big surprise, but...maybe she could take her chances with the worst mail system in any of the worlds she had heard of? Yay...? "Like, even when you two were at odds, it was hard to not like him. I feel like he and I shared too many interests, and cared about you too much, to ever hate each other..." She then shrugged. "Not that you need my opinion on him, of course."

Her smile broadened when he clearly loved the photos of Tori. "I'll have to make sure you meet her, she's a riot. Plus hey, you got the magical abilities thing in common. And unlike Alyss, she'll get the chance to learn from her mother properly..." Something about thinking about what a good mother her friend was almost made her sad, though she couldn't quite put her finger on why. So she didn't have a mother growing up...did that really matter, twenty eight years after her death?

[Merlin Emrys]

"Not needed, but appreciated," Merlin said with a smile "It's nice to know I'm not the only one who sees those parts of him... I mean, I know that the people love him, but that's mostly because Camelot is prospering so well under his rule, almost none of them have met him personally. You're right, though, there were definitely a lot worse here...some of whom are back." he added, smile dipping a little bit. Still, the world wouldn't be as interesting if they all got along... at least that's what he told himself to try and deal with the irritation.

"You'll have to introduce me sometime, you know how I feel about other people with magic," it had been one of Merlin's main obsessions when they were here the first time, probably because he hadn't been allowed to be quite so obsessed with it back in Camelot, although he was now "I think I remember her vaguely but I don't think we ever met."

[Della Miller]

Della nodded, unable to resist a smile back. It was in her nature to take such an interest in her friends' love lives. In a weird way, that time she thought Merlin was out to get her (gods, she cringed just thinking about it, nope, not going there any longer than necessary) had given her a perspective on Arthur she might not have gotten otherwise. She was pretty sure she would've hated his guts for how he was treating Merlin at the time otherwise, considering how overprotective she admittedly got towards her friends. "Nah, I'd definitely tell you if I thought you were nuts," she teased a little, before adding, "And I'd argue the people loving him is another reason. You can tell a lot about someone by how they take to a position of authority, and just from the woods I could tell his ego's deflated somewhat and despite his little tussle with Gaston, he does seem to know what he's doing...between you two, I'd say Camelot's in great hands."

When Merlin mentioned certain prats were back, she let out a sigh. "Yeah...not going to lie, ever since Naveen's song, I've had nightmares...." Grateful for the chance to change the subject, she beamed and nodded. "Oh of course, and no, I don't think you have. That was a mistake on my part, you two would get along so well. We'll definitely make that happen, especially now that it looks like you two'll be colleagues once we get everything open."

[Merlin Emrys]

"Thank you," Merlin said with a smile "I value your opinion so I really do appreciate hearing you say such lovely things about my husband. I appreciate anyone saying such lovely things about my husband, as long as he's not in earshot because he's big headed enough as it is, even if his ego has deflated a little as you say." he laughed. And it was so lovely to just be able to say that without stopping himself, without having to constantly remind himself to say his majesty and the king instead.

"Colleagues," he laughed "I don't think I ever officially decided to stay here as a teacher but I suppose it was inevitable, wasn't it? I'll likely have to split my time between here and Camelot once we get the portals back up and running, but I can't deny I'd like to stay here a while and make sure it is running and smoothly, and I may as well do some teaching while I'm here."

[Della Miller]

"Gods, that's sweet," she muttered at the compliment, before a mischievous grin crossed her face. "I'm glad I can help...and trust me, I won't let that happen. I'll be sure to roast him just enough to keep his ego in check, I'm sure he'll give me plenty of material," she teased.

When he chuckled at the prospect of being Alyss' colleague, she backtracked; "Oh I just figured...dumb to assume, I suppose." However, as Merlin went through his thought process on the matter, Della's expression grew serious, sort of like she remembered Westley's would whenever he had some sage advice ready for her. "Merlin, you'd make a fantastic teacher...and honestly, considering how lost a lot of magic users seem to be in a lot of worlds...I would almost argue they need someone who knows what that's like to guide them...so yeah. I'd say that's a good idea. Alyss is going to be doing that, from the looks of it, splitting time between here and Wonderland...so why not you, right? Since you seem to want to."

[Merlin Emrys]

"I'm sure he will," Merlin chuckled. Maybe being back here would bring Arthur back down to earth instead of being surrounded by people who thought he was this amazing king... except he was an amazing king, and Merlin and Gwen kind of kept him in check, and he wasn't that big headed these days... but it would still be good for him to take some time to not have the pressures of being king, anyway, and be around normal friends.

"Thank you," he said sincerely "It means a lot to me that you think that, and you have a really good point... so many kids who come here are from worlds where they have to hide their magic or don't understand it or can't control it, it would be good to have someone to teach them how to handle it... and you're right. THe portals make the commute easy enough, I could probably do that..."