Merlin poured the cup of tea, added a lump of sugar, a bit of cream, then waited a moment while one of his enchanted spoons gave it a stir, before he handed the teacup to the plump elderly woman across the table. The Fairy Godmother smiled her thanks, and took a grateful sip, but she looked exhausted. "How are you feeling, my dear?" he asked gently. She sighed, sipping again.
"I'm worried about Cinderella." she admitted. "My world fell to the darkness...only I escaped. I tried to reach her, reach Prince Charming...but I couldn't find them." Merlin grimaced. "Though Camelot has thus far escaped the deprivations of this plague of Heartless, I fear for it's future. Perhaps if Sora is successful, some of our worlds may yet never need know of any of these terrors." he replied, and she nodded. "Light willing, it will be so." she murmured, and sipped again. She had a thought, about a boy she'd met once, long before, when something much like the Heartless had threatened their worlds.
"Merlin...did you ever know a boy named Ventus?" she asked as he sipped his tea, and he choked a little, coughing a few times. "You know Ventus?!" he asked, and she blinked in surprise. "Why...yes. Cinderella wanted to go to the ball...Ventus helped Jack and Gus get the things she needed for her dress. He was a very sweet boy...but...I only ask...because...Sora." she admitted. Merlin was quiet for a long moment. "You noticed that too, hmm?" he finally murmured, and she nodded.
"Ventus was the target of that black hearted man and his foul creation...they tore that boy's Heart apart." Merlin explained, and she paled. "Oh, goodness! Poor thing!" she tisked, and he nodded again. "He was not the only one...his dear friend, Terra...his body stolen...his Heart cast adrift." he added. The Fairy Godmother frowned. "Cinderella said a young warrior named Terra escorted her to the Ball to meet Prince Charming when it was attacked by the Unversed." she recalled. "He was a good lad, but misguided." Merlin nodded. "There was another, their friend Aqua. She alone was a Master...the last Master of the Keyblade." he said grimly.
"What happened?" the Fairy Godmother asked worriedly. "The death of Eraqus was engineered by his old enemy, I understand...at the hands of Terra. It broke the boy, and Master Aqua tried to save him. They faced that monster and his pet at the Keyblade Graveyard, the place where the Keyblade Wars ended. Ventus's heart was sundered, and Terra's cast adrift. Aqua brought Ventus back to our old friend, Yen Sid...then went after what she thought was Terra. They both were pulled into the darkness, and she could only save one of them." he said sadly.
"She chose poorly. She let Terra's unconscious, empty body return to the light, and she sank into the Darkness that took your World. Had she left Terra and saved herself...that Monster would be gone. Instead, he wreaks havoc across the worlds, and we have a Keyblade Chosen who knows nothing...and no Master to teach him." Merlin stated grimly. "Goodness...no wonder things are dire." she sighed, and sipped her tea again, only to realize she'd emptied the cup. She lowered it, and Merlin smiled. "Definitely a two cup day." he stated, and poured her another cup.