The Leaky Cauldron Irregulars (Harry Potter and Merlin fanfiction): Chapter 1

A certain friend of mine (you know who you are) has been bugging me to write this for ages, so here it is at last.

Chapters: 1 2 3 4 5

The man looked up from his book ("A Brief History of Time") to see the boy. He sighed and resumed wandlessly stirring his tea. That was the signal. Another man walked over to the table.
"So, the famous young wizard?"
The first man nodded. "Think he's the one?"
The second man shook his head. "He looks too different. And he acts nothing like him, either. He's not nearly prattish enough."
"The way you talk, I'm not even sure you want to find your friend," the first man joked.
"Don't talk nonsense." The second man looked around. "The others have noticed. I think your tea is adequately stirred by now, Will." Will shrugged his shoulders and took a sip of tea.

"Now that we're all here, let's discuss theories," the second man, who seemed to be in charge, said.
"Harry Potter," Will suggested.
"No, we've been over this already."
"What about Ron?" another man suggested.
The leader laughed. "Definitely not!"
"Do you think it's anyone at Hogwarts?" a woman asked, exasperated.
"I'm not sure," the leader admitted. "I mean, he's bound to end up at Hogwarts eventually."
"Maybe he hasn't been born yet," another woman offered.
"I've been waiting for a long time," the leader said. "I suppose I can wait a while longer. Same time next week?" The group nodded, then dispersed.

Merlin thought back to that day. The boy, Harry Potter, had turned out to be quite promising- but he certainly wasn't the boy they were looking for. Merlin was beginning to think it was all in vain. He'd been searching for ages, how could these people help? Maybe it was time to move on.

Merlin had formed the group in the hopes of locating the Once and Future King, know to Merlin as Arthur. Arthur had been his dearest friend, and the loss had devastated Merlin. Kilgharrah had insisted that Arthur would rise in the time of Camelot's greatest need. But wasn't Voldemort's reign enough? Now Voldemort was dead, and there was still no sign of Arthur. But maybe this group would find him after all. They were exceptional at blending in- Will was a master of disguise, Gwaine made himself so drunk everyone looked away in disgust, Freya was an animagus, and Gwen was a metamorphmagus. To the typical patron of the Leaky Cauldron, they were just random strangers going to meet the man with the neckerchief (nobody outside of the group knew Merlin's real name, for Merlin considered anonymity better suited to his needs). As such, they were called the Leaky Cauldron Irregulars (or the Irregulars, for short).

The Irregulars were Merlin's eyes and ears, but so far they had been unsuccessful. They had brought a number of interesting individuals to his attention, but Merlin cared for none but Arthur. Not to say that Merlin was callous (though the years had hardened his heart somewhat), just that he would be satisfied with nothing less than his friend.

And so it was that when Merlin saw eleven year old Albus Severus in the Leaky Cauldron, he decided to take a chance.
"Albus!" The boy didn't turn around. "Albus Severus! That is your name, isn't it?" The boy turned slowly around, fixing a wary eye on Merlin.
"My father told me not to talk to strangers."
"Your father was a notorious rulebreaker, as was your grandfather. Indulge an old gentleman and talk a little while, won't you?"
"You barely look thirty, mister."
"So I do," Merlin said amusedly. "I forget sometimes. But the question still stands: will you talk with me? Technically, I suppose you already have, but I mean a proper conversation."
The boy sighed. Merlin laid his wand on the table, a gesture of peace. "I suppose I could talk," Albus grudgingly admitted.
"Good! I knew you'd come round!" Merlin said cheerily, pouring a cup of tea for Albus.

"You're getting all set to go to Hogwarts, right?"
Albus nodded. "I'm really excited!"
"As you should be. I was wondering if you'd be able to do a little job for me."
"A job? I thought this was just a conversation." Albus looked unimpressed.
"Think of it as a quest. Something exciting to do. Like what your dad did. Well, probably not as dangerous, but just as fun."
Albus considered this. "So what do you want?"
"I want you to people-watch. Pay attention to the students in Hogwarts. I'm looking for someone, and I'd like you to tell me if you think you've found him."
"Who are you looking for?" Albus asked, his curiosity piqued.
"His name is Arthur, but that might not be his name now."
"Is he your long-lost son?"
Merlin laughed. "Not really, but he's very close to me, and it would mean a lot to me if you could find him."
"So tell me about this 'Arthur'."

"Oh, he's wonderful. He's a bit of a prat, though. He thinks he's king of everything, and sometimes he can be a bit mean, but he's a good man at heart. He always tries to be fair, but sometimes he has trouble not having the same prejudices as his father taught him. He's pretty smart, but he can be so stupid sometimes. And he doesn't have one ounce of self-preservation." Merlin's face darkened. "Not one."
Hoping to lighten the mood, Albus asked Merlin "What does he look like?"
"Golden brown hair that's absolutely perfect, beautiful green eyes, broad shoulders..."
"Are you in love with him?"
Merlin was surprised at that question, and he had to take a moment to consider it. "No... but I do care about him very much. Can you help me find him?"
"Alright, mister... hey, you never told me your name!"
"Merlin." The boy's eyes widened. Merlin nodded, then put a shushing finger on his lips. "It'll be our little secret," he whispered.