My last post on this was long-winded and not as organized or concise as I wanted it to be, plus, I just wasn’t finished. This is part 2! If you haven’t read Part 1, I think it provides some honest and important insight so I recommend checking it out but if not, then no worries, this part is going to bring everything together and yet be able to stand on it’s own.
My conclusion: Cloud and Tifa love each other. They want to be able to love each other, publicly and openly, but their unique reservations prevent that from happening. Enter Aerith: Aerith and who she is as well as her special influence on Cloud, allows Tifa and Cloud to grow closer and finally come to terms with how they feel for each other.
Aerith is like Jesus in the Final Fantasy 7 world. She literally sacrifices herself for the world, to save it and those in it. But she also sacrifices herself for Cloud and Tifa’s love. And Cloud loves Aerith like true Christ-followers love Jesus.
Aerith tells Cloud at some point (paraphrasing here but if you know, you know): “Don’t fall in love with me, it’s not real” and Cloud says, “Don’t I have any say in that?” People were saying that it means that Cloud loves her and wants to. Like I said in the previous post, Cloud does develop romantically charged feelings for Aerith, but his feelings are mostly platonic — he feels a deep fondness for Aerith, and I believe Zack has everything to do with that fondness. Not only because of what Aerith projects onto Cloud and which causes her to behave a certain way around him, since we know Cloud reminds her of Zack (her true love), but also because as we see in Advent Children, those we love “on the other side” continue to guide us. I believe Zack helped Aerith and Cloud run into each other because he knew Cloud would be able to help Aerith and protect her. After all, Cloud is Zack’s “living legacy”.
Everything that Cloud and Aerith feel for each other is based on Zack. And it’s sad in a lot of ways because I’m sure that kind of confusion isn’t fun to deal with, but also it sheds light on what true friendship is about.
Cloud is a true friend to Zack, however, I don’t believe that means being with his girl and taking her for himself too just because Zack’s dead now. Cloud may be the “living legacy” of Zack, but he clearly has something special of his own with his childhood crush, Tifa. Plus, that’s just weird. Zack didn’t mean take his girl as his own by telling Cloud he was his living legacy now. Taking the story there is just perverted and totally not aligned with Final Fantasy. This I strongly believe.
Cleriths piss me off hahaha. If Cloud and Aerith were to be, it would be because of Zack. I guess that’s a good enough story if that’s your preference, it can be sweet depending on how you spin it, but with Cloud and Tifa, their love is just between them — without a third party — and Aerith and Zack’s role in their lives plays an important part in expanding on the concept of true friendship using the art form of video games and storytelling. With Cloud and Tifa, suddenly we are taught of friendship and in a way that we all dream and hope of having in our own lives. I think that’s beautiful and I think that’s important, especially because Final Fantasy 7 in a lot of ways is more about friendship than anything else. So naturally, friendship should be the most important theme (or one of them at least).
Cleriths are the type of people who would steal their friend’s girlfriend or boyfriend (or spouse) out of loneliness, in my opinion. And maybe that’s the difference. Some boundaries just shouldn’t be crossed, and even Aerith knows this! In the OG she says to Tifa, “Don’t worry, nothing’s going on, we just met,” when she meets her for the first time in Don Corneo’s lair. She’s literally reassuring Tifa because she can tell there’s something romantic between her and Cloud, and she wants to be their friend. This is what friends do. They don’t steal their friend’s love. Cleriths want drama and Clotis ship the most harmonious outcome for this great and masterful work of art! Stop making Final Fantasy 7 a stupid fucking stereotypical soap opera. Fantasy, in a philosophical sense, is meant to heal. It is not meant to create friction between friends nor is it meant to pit two beautiful characters against each other in an effort to win one man’s affections. That said, what will be, will be. I trust the folks at Square Enix will do the third installment justice, regardless of what it may reveal about the true canon couple. Crossing my heart that it’s Tifa and Cloud and Zack and Aerith!
I will say, the OG game does show Tifa and Cloud behaving in an infantile manner in many ways. Especially in the beginning. Tifa seems desperate and Cloud seems to reject her, similar to how he is with Jessie in Remake. I haven’t finished it yet. But think about this: Back then, the makers we’re working with a text box and no voice acting or body language. It’s simply not gonna be the same game, sorry! So for those using OG to show that it’s Aerith and Cloud, replay Remake and Rebirth to intentionally favor Tifa and see what happens.
It annoys the living hell out of me why people would ship Cloud and Aerith — when Tifa and Aerith are friends, as are Cloud and Zack. In reality, “friends” having affairs with their friend’s lover, often deceptively, does happen. But it never ends well for anyone involved. It’s messy. It’s a betrayal. Why would you desire that for Cloud and Tifa? It’s weird. Is the “fantasy” a switcharoo between friends’ lovers without the messy part or is the “fantasy” about true friendship that knows no bounds? Idk I prefer the latter.
But sure, let’s say that was the case for Aerith and Cloud; to make it work, Tifa and Cloud would have had to come to terms with the end of their relationship and she would need to move on to someone better suited for her, eventually at least. “Forever alone,” chides Cleriths, when referring to Tifa’s hoped for unrequited love. But okay, I’ll entertain that “poor Tifa” might be single for a while as she takes a back seat to Cloud and Aerith when and if Aerith comes back to life — Cleriths, ask yourself, who or what would take the place of Cloud for Tifa’s character arc, knowing full well that Cloud was so instrumental to who she is and vice versa? Would it be Johnny? Rude? Vincent? Barret? Perhaps she decides to become a nun, open an orphanage, or a dancer at the Honey Bee Inn. To me it just sounds like they don’t like Tifa. They truly want to do a disservice to Tifa as a character. And I just don’t think that with the Remake and Rebirth, Tifa deserves that. She is not OG Tifa in a lot of ways. “Oh but Cait Sith’s prediction said this about Cloud and Aerith being perfect for each other!” Oh Cait Sith, the Shinra bot? Wasn’t Reeve controlling him? And yet you think his predictions matter? Ok. Cait Sith LITERALLY deceives you in the game to get desired outcome. Idk…
Your version sucks, Cleriths. It’s bad writing and it does absolutely NO justice to Tifa. You Cleriths need to find Jesus. Lmao. Your preferred outcome implies that Aerith comes back to life. That means that we switch to a different timeline in the majority of the third game so that Cloud and Aerith can finally love each other, perhaps Cloud is able to time travel or hop between dimensions just to meet her, or that Aerith would have left Zack dead because she clearly has the power to come back, so why wouldn’t she share it with Zack? Does that makes sense? Because the only way Cloud and Aerith can be are one of three listed above. Why wouldn’t she bring Zack back with her? Did he find a girlfriend in the Lifestream or merely felt that the “other side” was better than the real timeline anyway? Or maybe she does bring Zack, but by then, he doesn’t like her anymore. Instead, he falls madly in love with Tifa and they all live happily every after. The story with your preferred outcome just becomes convoluted with bullshit. It’s gross. And ya’ll Cleriths need to quit – haha (I’m kidding but also not really)!
What Cleriths want is for Aerith and Cloud to abandon everyone and everything they know and supposedly cares about for each other. Tifa, Zack, Marlene, Denzel, everything. Aerith comes back with Zack and their sexual chemistry just dies, Zack leaves for Gongaga to marry Cissnei or moves in with Tifa and takes Cloud place, Cloud lives with Aerith and becomes a flower farmer… okay. That sounds like a fantasy, sure, but a very selfish one. One that does a disservice to the other protagonists and the story. And I know Square Enix and company knows this, based on their design choices in Remake and Rebirth. They are just dangling this Love Triangle carrot until it’s safe to reveal the truth: Who does Cloud really want to be with? Who does he love in his heart of hearts?
I had a similar situation happen to me: I was strangely attracted to my friend’s boyfriend at the time and vice versa. It was so fucking confusing. Because I didn’t like that I was attracted to him (because of my friend) but couldn’t help it. The feeling was very strong at the time. But I didn’t want to fuck him nor did I want to be with him necessarily. Anyway, my friend, noticing this, encouraged just us two to hang out while they were still seeing each other but when we did hang out, it was terrible. I felt so uncomfortable. And while I didn’t really want him, but I felt a strange familiarity and chemistry there. Fast forward to now — he is not in my life and I don’t care one bit. But he did impact my life in that he introduced me to certain things and concepts, concepts which eventually led me to a vital Chapter of my life, one where I would meet a special person to my character arc. Point being — while my connection with him seemed “tinged” with romantic feelings due to our sexual orientation and gender, it was something else. Our meeting, I now believe, had a larger purpose. We had to meet so that we can become. And I believe that something similar is happening with Aerith and Cloud, but obviously something more special, profound, and… fantastical.
I do like Aerith, but Cleriths annoy me. They made me see Aerith as love crazy and I never liked that quality in someone. Before discovering Cleriths, I saw Aerith as pure, kind, sweet, fun, playful, selfless and interesting — but by Cleriths shipping Cloud and her and thus advocating for the abandonment of Tifa’s feelings, I began to see her as jealous, selfish and manipulative. I like the Aerith that ships Tifa. I like the Aerith that reassures Tifa that nothing is going on between her and Cloud. I like the version of Aerith who tells Tifa to follow her heart. Because that’s the patient and loving Aerith — it’s the selfless Aerith, the one that dies and sacrifices herself but gets to finally be with Zack — the boy who truly loved her. It’s the transcendent Aerith.
I totally blame Cleriths for the scenes between her and Cloud that Square Enix put in the games to pander to them, such as the stupid dream at the end where she talks about liking and “liking”. What they mean by this is, Aerith is trying to say that she likes him but not like that. Although she has a crush on him, because he reminds her of Zack, she loves Zack. And if she knew what was going to happen, or at least versions of herself did, she knew she would be with Zack again. Her song — the one she sang at the Gold Saucer — is about Zack. The church was more her and Zack’s spot than her and Cloud’s. Cloud has barely been there before Advent Children. That’s why in the dream scene he asks, “Is this our spot?” Because he doesn’t know! Because it isn’t! This scene was an absolute confession by Aerith that she is projecting Zack onto Cloud. And that’s why Cloud is confused in it. In the date he can’t even choose a gift for her, he’s forced to give her something that he never chose. That should say everything. Just accept it. And Square Enix if you happen to see this — stop pandering to Cleriths, please. Or risk ruining it all. When they sacrificed Aerith, they did a necessary thing for the story, and that’s why it’s so damn good. To change that so that Cloud and Aerith can have a romantic relationship and kids is to destroy what made Final Fantasy 7 a masterpiece.
I can feel for Tifa when she loses Aerith. She’s genuinely sad. That’s her friend! Aerith seems to always be making a sacrifice for others and she’s (at the time of this writing) still waiting for her moment to love. She never had the chance to because Zack died and then Cloud comes along and he already had someone (Tifa). Consider that for a moment — she is longing for someone to love and she admits this in Nibelheim, on the tower, to Cloud. This longing says a lot about why Aerith feels the way she feels about Cloud. And Cloud, with his mixed-up memories of Zack, takes on those feelings for her and yet his true self is the one that holds back. Because his true self is the one that is loyal to Tifa.
We can see this when Aerith says that they went on a date in front of Tifa in the beginning of Rebirth — he looks uncomfortable and leans away from her, almost wanting to pull his arm away but didn’t want to overreact. He always leans away from her, until their *optional* Gold Saucer date when he holds her hand after she initiates by hugging his arm after they were just talking about Zack after Cloud realizes he actually remembers him. At this point, he is comforting her. There is nothing romantic going on here. He doesn’t go for it when she pats the seat next to her because he wants her to know her place — he is loyal to Tifa even on their supposed date.
It is romantically charged but only because Aerith wants it to be (aka Cleriths) and Cloud wants to comfort her and give her what she wants for that moment. She literally says as she grabs onto his arm, “Just until the ride is over”, because she’s pretending they are on a date and he’s going along with her fantasy. Why do I think that? Her feelings and his connection towards her are all based on Zack, not on each other. There is an unspoken understanding between them that they are nothing more than friends, all of which were prompted at the discovery that Cloud remembers Zack. At this time in the game, in the Golden Saucer, although it wasn’t explicitly mentioned, they both have this understanding. They love Zack. Zack is their relationship. Aerith lies and says that Tifa did not mention anything to her when Cloud asks, but she omits this because Cloud’s psyche is still very fragile. However, this remembrance of Zack by Cloud is the thing that creates the seemingly romantic dynamic in the “date”. That is not love. That’s an admission of a special and unique friendship. And that’s why she told Cloud to not fall in love with her because it’s not real, before he remembers Zack. She knows this.
“Cloud and Tifa were miserable in Advent Children, their relationship sucked and he was always missing Aerith, this means that Aerith and Cloud are the true canon couple and that Cloud would pick Aerith over Tifa if she were alive.” – Cleriths.
Oh. my. God. How old are you? Also, have you ever had a girlfriend? Or boyfriend? Relationships are fucking hard. Every day is not going to be butterflies, rainbows, and lilies. Especially not when you have a fucking disease (Geostigma) and your essentially adopted kid has it too.
Cloud has Geostigma in Advent Children. Geostigma was a very serious disease and plague in the Final Fantasy 7 world. Citizens were digging large holes and dumping those who died from Geostigma inside. That is a very, very, depressing situation. It’s dark, it’s ugly, it’s serious.
Not only did Cloud and Denzel have Geostigma, but Cloud never forgave himself for not being able to save Aerith, Zack, and the others. He lost a dear friend in Aerith; Aerith impacted his life significantly, as did Zack. He loved Aerith in a pure way, as siblings do. He’s in the church because Aerith was a healer. He wants her guidance as a healer, just as many followers of Christ want the guidance of Jesus in times of need. He’s looking to Aerith for help because of her white materia and it’s powers — it’s healing powers! Because Cloud wants to LIVE and he wants to not only help himself, but also Denzel heal from Geostigma.
Sure, he and Tifa were going through a rough patch. So? That does not mean he doesn’t love her. Sometimes we distance ourselves from the people we love the most in order to hear our own hearts. If anything, he went to the church to ask advice from Aerith, for the Geostigma but also on how to be a better father and partner to Tifa and the kids. Point being, regardless of what happened, why Cloud went away in Advent Children, that does not mean that his relationship with Tifa is over. If anything, it could be that it’s a matter of growing pains and maturing. Who knows what other memories he’s since remembered at that point? In the end of Advent Children, Aerith and Zack are talking from the other side. They are literally both helping Cloud defeat Sephiroth. Because this isn’t some soap opera where Cloud steals his best friend’s girl. This is Final Fucking Fantasy 7.
Also. When bringing up the OG and how Cloud rejects Tifa which means he loves and belongs with Aerith: He wasn’t himself! He was missing a bunch of memories, remember? The whole point of him and Tifa “meeting again” when he finally comes back to himself with the help of Tifa is for the two lovers to reunite after darkness and the “cloud that hangs over head” has disappeared. Because that’s the real power of love. Zack and Aerith belong to each other. They go to the Lifestream together. That’s literally union. It’s reunion.
What If True Love Is Real? 