Because the Sky is There
Disclaimer: I do not own Super Smash Brothers. That goes to Nintendo. The only characters I own are those from the Golden Land, angels from Skyworld including the royal bodyguards, Angel Assembly and archangels along with all the other angels and of course the witch hunters. I also don't own Queen's Blade as that belongs to Hobby Japan.
Summary: Cloud knew he needed to be cautious when he was forced to live in the Smash Brothers Realm. If no one had any sympathy for his situation, then he could continue to remain distant. Upon meeting Corrin, Cloud slowly forgot why he wanted to return home in the first place…and it terrified him greatly.
Pairing: Cloud/Corrin, Corrin/Bayonetta, Volga/Corrin, Cloud/Corrin/Bayonetta implied Cory/Azura, Cloud/Sharla, Cloud/Tifa and Cloud/Aerith
Rated: T (for Teen)
Genre: General, Friendship, Romance, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Angst and Drama
Warning: Swearing, character death, general awkwardness, and unintentional OOC
I did BayoCorn ficlet months ago and I was originally going to follow up with Clorrin, but then things happened and I simply couldn't find the time or motivation to do it until now. While The Ripple Effect dove into Corrin's relationship with Bayonetta whether it be as a couple or close friends, this ficlet will do the same thing with Corrin and Cloud. Enjoy! Yes, the title is based on the Japanese Pokémon ending theme. I would normally associate this theme with Lucario ironically, but I felt like the lyrics matched the Clorrin pairing well.
Last Minute
When people look at the last fighters to join the tournament, they were considered last minute. Master Hand knew what he was doing when he allowed Cloud, Corrin, Cory and Bayonetta into Smash. He would get complaints for getting more overpowered fighters than just Ryu. The Goddesses in the tournament were already bad enough, but now he had a super soldier, two half Manaketes that shifted into odd looking dragons and an Umbra Witch.
Magically making the rooms for the last four fighters was also considered last minute. Many Smashers would just wake up to the hallway of the third floor becoming larger due to adding two more rooms on either side before reaching the stairs.
"Anything else considered last minute Caito?" Master Hand asked Crazy Hand with a deadpan expression.
"Well…besides the room arrangement? Hmm…possibly having them all join before that official "tier" list came out." Crazy Hand responded sarcastically.
"Fuck that thing. It's not accurate anyway." Master Hand grumbled.
Blocked
Cloud would always vent about how he wasn't allowed to return home despite his stellar performance in Smash. Because Master Hand illegally purchased him and Cloud got in trouble for nearly killing the Smashers despite not being in Smash, Master Hand refused for Cloud to return to Midgar. This was infuriating when Cloud was told that Bayonetta nearly got the tactician twins abducted due to not realizing that Dogura was part of the slave ring that had been causing problems throughout the universe.
If Cloud thought he had it bad, the Corrin twins had it worse. They simply could not return to their world much less talk about it. The two were cursed preventing them from talking about their universe that much. This made things really hard for Master Hand as he admitted that he had no idea where these two came from. Only Chrom seemed to have a vague idea calling the places of Hoshido and Nohr a realm of fantasy in Ylisse. If Corrin's world was considered a fantasy that could not be reached, then Cloud really had no right to complain.
Switch
Cloud was one of the few fighters who vocally complained about his previous roommate. DDD was Cloud's original roommate and the only reason Cloud wanted nothing to do with the King of Dreamland was because of how bossy he was (and the fact he snored really loud). Cloud took the next male who would come to the mansion. He didn't realize what he was getting into when Corrin became his next roommate. The dragon prince had originally set boundaries between the two simply because Corrin refused to trust him. Once Cloud (and Bayonetta) earned Corrin's trust, those rules would be dropped. The ex-SOLDIER would finally be able to tolerate his new roommate as a result.
Partners
Having a doubles partner was very important in this tournament. It allowed you to participate in a doubles match and earn more earnings than you would in singles although you would need to split the cash between the teammates. You needed a partner that covered for you in battle and could follow up on your attack patterns. You needed someone you could work well with. Ironically, most Smashers had their roommates as their partner, but there had been some exceptions. Corrin, Cory, Bayonetta and Cloud often rotated on who would team up with who and Corrin would often evaluate the results in the back of his mind. He was already aware that Bayonetta and Cloud performed terribly together for whatever reason, but he would be able to make anything work between any of them. In the back of his mind, he secretly enjoyed teaming up with Cloud. Corrin was under the most pressure when teaming with Bayonetta, because of her offensive based fighting style. Cloud understood what it meant to work as a team and no matter who he teamed with, he always tried to support when it was necessary. Corrin felt like he was able to show off how good he was as a partner if it was Cloud who had his back…
Braids
Corrin and Cory had fascinating hair that was often overlooked due to the other Smashers in the mansion. The longer someone's hair was, the more likely you could play with it. The dragon princess was always up to a change in hairstyle, but Master Hand wouldn't let her mess around with her hair to her disappointment. Meanwhile, Corrin was given more leeway if only because most of the fans failed to realize that Corrin was a guy. This offended him slightly, but he was glad he could play with his hair just slightly.
Cloud had noted that Corrin would go to Bayonetta to help style his hair since she knew better than anyone how to tidy it up. Corrin wasn't that good at taking care of his hair, so it would only be natural for someone who used her hair as a weapon to fix it up. It was a routinely thing for the two until Bayonetta had pushed Corrin onto Cloud.
"Cere said she wanted you to braid my hair."
"W-What? Why would she think I would do that for free?"
"She said you told her that you would play with a girl named Marlene back at home. She said she wanted to see how you played with your hands."
Cloud snarled at Bayonetta telling his secrets to his roommate. He wished Corrin didn't know about the little girl. Corrin would be asking all sorts of questions as a result when the blond tried to create a large, single braid that would keep Corrin's hair pretty for the day.
Push
Cloud and Corrin each got their own bed. However, Corrin had a bad habit of sometimes sneaking into Cloud's bed in order to use him as a teddy bear. The blond never complained about this even though he had woken up in a tight dragon hug. He could not move unless he woke Corrin up and things would get awkward. The ex-SOLDIER sighed at how the dragon prince wasn't all that affected as time went on, so Cloud never really complained…until Corrin decided to be a jerk one time and push him off the bed.
Cloud just wanted to take a nap before one of his matches later on that evening. Corrin was tasked to find him. Instead of waking him up, the Nohrian prince had a sinister idea and simply pushed him off the bed to wake him up.
"Rise and shine Cloud!" Corrin hummed causing Cloud to let out a painful scream as he thought something terrible had befallen him. He was far from pleased that it was just his roommate being a jerk.
"You little shit…" Cloud cursed. "I'll get you for that…"
Salty
It seemed that the more fighters Master Hand added after the start of the tournament, the more people seemed to complain. The dragon twins were never part of Master Hand's dream lineup. After all, they had been on the run for a while and had nowhere to turn to, so who was Master Hand to not allow them to participate in Smash if they brought something unique to the table? Unfortunately, most people didn't want to hear that and had no problems insulting the dragon twins. Corrin got most of the flack, but he wasn't as upset as one would think. Compared to his sister who wanted to strangle anyone who insulted them, Corrin seemed to take the saltiness in stride. Cloud was a little concerned at how the dragon prince underreacted when he and the ex-SOLDIER were at Smash King and there were some rude people in the fast food restaurant.
"Their salt could literally make these fries taste better." Corrin could be heard snarking. "If I walked up to those people, do you think they would pass their salt to me?"
"I don't know if you're serious or not…" Cloud muttered as a response. "I hope you're not though. We don't need to cause another incident."
"That was all Cere, Cloud. She doesn't like how those men didn't treat her like a lady."
Touchy
Corrin was a very hands-on person in more ways than one. Once Corrin opened up to people, he had no problem "evaluating" them by rubbing his hand against their face. Cory said the process was coined as skinshipping, but Cloud saw it as an excuse for the silver haired dragon to touch anyone he found attractive. This didn't stem true as he made a mental note to skinship all the fighters. It was a miracle he hadn't lost a hand…even though Corrin did have some bite marks on his hand and one Smasher apparently set his hand on fire when he tried to touch them.
Surprisingly, Cloud was one of the people that Corrin touched last. The blond blushed feeling Corrin's gentle hand rub up against his face. He felt rather calm as Corrin ended up spending a long time touching Cloud's face. Corrin's face was equally flustered realizing he was enjoying this too much and pulled his hand back.
"I can trust you the most." Corrin had told him simply.
Those words were enough to get Cloud to smirk.
Decency
Corrin seemed to lack any sort of decency compared to the other male Smashers. Cloud thought that only Shulk would compare with indecency. The Monado boy had no problem fighting in just his boxers. Corrin was a different type of indecency. The dragon prince would often go commando ninety-five percent of the time. The other five percent was everyone's lucky days. He always lacked having any underwear on for the sole purpose of not wanting to stretch it out and being torn up when he transformed. Cory was apparently the same way as she went into battle often without wearing a bra or underwear as well. Cloud had to wonder how they handled themselves in the hot springs if they were naked more times than not.
Only recently did Corrin started covering up more and that wasn't because anyone asked him to. He would stare at Cloud after getting out of the tub and whisper something underneath his breath before he quickly put clothes on. Cloud would only realize later that because Corrin had developed feelings for him that he felt that it was shameful to not wear anything in front of the person he liked. It was backwards logic to Cloud, but there wasn't much he could do…unless he was open about it.
Female Body
There were times that Corrin felt he was not suited for Cloud. The silver haired prince would observe how Cloud reacted with some women and realize that there was a pattern. The blond seemed to find girls with huge busts more interesting than ones that were flat. Cloud couldn't really lie about that. Cloud's childhood friend Tifa matched the description entirely. When she was out of the picture, there would be Shulk's friend Sharla who he would get along with easily. And of course, there was Bayonetta, but both had admitted she was one of the most beautiful ladies in the mansion anyway.
The point was that Corrin could not compare to these sexy women and it made him depressed that Cloud was capable of snatching these women up.
"You can do so much better than me…" Corrin groaned as they left Smash Gourmet. "That woman was hitting on you and you had no problem talking with her."
"I think you're overthinking this." Cloud told him. "If I wanted a hooker, I would have bought three of them before I went to you."
"…But did you?"
"No way. You should know I'm not that kind of person."
Even if that was true, Corrin sometimes had to wonder if Cloud would take the chance with women he knew if they offered themselves to him. They did have more to offer in the end.
Denial
Cloud would never admit that he fell in love with someone as kindhearted and naïve as Corrin. He had sworn off romance after the death of his friend Aerith. He probably was in love with her at some point, but he could never really get over the feeling of regret for not saving her life. He was able to make peace with her after getting rid of Sephiroth once and for all, but it didn't mean that he would have bad dreams at night with "what if" scenarios of what he could have done to allow her to live today.
Corrin reminded Cloud so much of Aerith. He cared for everyone around him even if they weren't kind to him. His love for flowers knew no bound and he didn't bother to hide it unlike his sister for whatever reason. Corrin knew how to fight but preferred to stand back and heal everyone from a distance. Despite being kind, he was capable of being stern and telling you what you did wrong in order to improve in combat. It was amusing to see Corrin lecture Bayonetta of all people when he felt like she was lacking in the team department.
Cloud really could not help but fall for Corrin. The dragon prince found his way into Cloud's heart without realizing it. Try as he might, but Cloud wasn't going to be able to get rid of the growing feelings for the younger Smasher. Bayonetta noticed and teased him to no end about it.
"Mr. Moody, you would become Mr. Sunshine if you just admitted how you feel to him."
"Can you stop with the mockery? That is not happening any time soon…"
They both knew better that Cloud would eventually have to say something to Corrin eventually. The dragon prince was oblivious, so Cloud would have to be open about his feelings if he wanted to take their relationship to the next level.
Kindness
Corrin was one of the nicest Smashers around. Cloud thought he was too nice for his own good especially if it got him into trouble. Just because Corrin was nice didn't mean he was completely naïve. Cory had brought up that his kindness had nearly cost him his life back in their world multiple times, but Corrin had been able to learn from it. However, just because Corrin learned to be more cautious didn't mean he would stop treating people with kindness in order to earn their trust.
"Cloud, I would rather trust someone until they have proven they cannot be trusted and not cast judgement immediately."
"That's dangerous and you know it. I'm certain your sister has told you that."
"She has…"
"Then why do you continue to…"
"…Big brother Marx and big brother Ryoma both told me that I wouldn't be me if I didn't attempt to open up with everyone…and they're right. I would never be able to distrust someone unless there is damning evidence proving they will betray me in the future."
Cloud groaned at this logic. Trust like this was easily manipulated. Kindness that Corrin had would be trampled on mercilessly. Corrin was the type of person who would be broken into pieces if a sinister person got his or her hands on him…and it was Cloud's duty to protect that innocent purity.
Promise
The Great Evil was simply too powerful for the Smashers. Even if you were a divine being or slayed a God before, you were fighting a creation of the universe itself. The Great Evil just would not die. Many Smashers perished because they could not even stand against one of his weaker attacks. The stronger Smashers had to pick up the pieces even though they got separated. They needed to regroup. Pit had begged everyone to protect Dark Pit. He was the key to slaying the Great Evil because he had the Mother of the Universe inside of him. What Pit failed to talk about was how the Great Evil still had allies outside of already being powerful.
In some timelines, Anankos would team up with the Great Evil. He would lend him his strength if he was able to get his children back. What Anankos wanted was similar to what the Great Evil wanted in a specific demon that he was hunting for. Cloud cursed how the Corrin twins and Axel were sought after by both villains. It meant that they had no time to rest even if they were on the run. Unfortunately, they would get caught. Cloud already hated himself for letting Sharla die. When Shulk and Alvis were cut down, the Homs and all of Bionis disappeared with them. The sole exception was Reyn whose willpower to protect Dark Pit was so strong that he was able to survive even if Shulk and Alvis were killed. Losing one medic was just terrible. Corrin was almost captured by the Great Evil…had it not been for his sister's sacrifice.
Cory had begged everyone to leave. Snow White refused to abandon the dragon princess knowing full well that Anankos only needed Corrin for his plans and did not care if she was killed. Cloud, Bayonetta and Volga needed to take Corrin and Axel and run away. Snow White had used her magic to warp everyone away to who knows where. Corrin screamed for his sister, but Bayonetta had to make sure he was safe and listened to his sister for once. Cloud was the last one to be teleported away before they made their sacrifice.
"Cloud…this is the end for me…but please…please protect my brother with your life." Cory begged. "This is my last request…please…don't let father get a hold of him."
Cloud noticed that the Nohrian princess was on the verge of tears. She really did not want Anankos to get his hands on her brother. She knew the consequences if he did. Cloud could only nod his head slowly as Snow White sent him away where the others were. Cloud unfortunately would fail to do that seeing as how the Great Evil was too persistent for his own good…
Friendly Fire
Cloud should have been aware that friendly fire was a thing in team battle. When you were playing "Protect the MVP", you needed to guard that fight with your life. The stakes were extremely high as well. Cloud and Bayonetta needed to protect Corrin in order to win the match and would need to do it at least twice to move onto the next round. Corrin did a great job at not getting in the way of his opponent, but he was still an easy target with how passive he was in these types of matches.
One match would have been a clean 2-0 if Cloud remembered about the speed of the Star KO as well as friendly fire. Due to Corrin's tactical planning, Team Triforce (consisting of Link, Zelda and Ganondorf) did not stand a chance. Getting rid of Link was the strategy due to how well Link and Zelda worked together. The teamwork fell apart the moment Link was defeated seeing as how Ganondorf wanted to just go in and destroy Corrin's stocks. Once Ganondorf was out of the way, they could do whatever they wanted. The problem was that Ganondorf did a lot of the work for that particular match and had disrespected Corrin twice off stage to his annoyance, so while Bayonetta and Cloud were both on a heavy second stock, Corrin was at a high percent on his last stock. Cloud failed to realize this when Corrin had grabbed Zelda. He was going to throw her into either Cloud or Bayonetta's attack, but Cloud foolishly stepped in and did a Finishing Touch on both Corrin and Zelda. Bayonetta actually paled seeing the blond do something as stupid as that. They could hear Zelda screaming in the background but Corrin hit the screen first thus they had to go to game three. Suffice to say, Corrin was not a happy dragon.
"You stupid, dumb…idiot!" Corrin hissed. He refused to curse like his sister would to Cloud if he pulled the same stunt on her. "We could have finished sooner if you didn't do that! What do you have to say for yourself?!"
"…You're really salty."
Cloud would be the victim of friendly fire in the next match. They weren't called the Salt Trio for nothing…even though Bayonetta was just standing on the side enjoying the lovers' spat going on in front of her.
Competition
When it came to Corrin's love life, Cloud was always near the bottom for whatever reason. Timelines had confirmed that the dragon knight Volga had the largest priority in Corrin's life and should he come to the mansion, no one would be able to claim Corrin's heart. If Volga did not show up at the mansion, then one would think that Cloud had a chance. He didn't. He would have to compete with Bayonetta and most of the time, she had wrapped Corrin's heart around her finger. Bayonetta was kind enough to share Corrin with the ex-SOLDIER in multiple timelines, but Cloud rarely got Corrin all to himself. In one timeline, the Princess of the Apple Kingdom Snow White laid claim to the dragon prince despite the fact she had done some messed up things that should have knocked her off as a potential love interest. Cloud felt he always got the short end of the stick concerning Corrin, but at the end of the day, he had learned to accept he wasn't always going to get what he wanted.
So in timelines where he had Corrin and refused to share, he would let the dragon prince know alone in their room. The Nohrian prince would remain flustered with how aggressive the ex-SOLDIER was on top of him.
Crowned
There was one thing Cloud did not want to hear about the Corrin twins. It was Corrin and Cory's goal to return to their world and slay the villain that still plagued it. However, if they were to go back and kill Anankos, Master Hand had stated that the probability of the dragon twins returning would be incredibly low. The main reason was because the world still wasn't connected to the Smash Brothers Realm. Missing a tournament after their performance this season would disappoint many people, but Master Hand wouldn't be able to get them to return on time. Additionally, the dragon twins wouldn't have the time to fight. Corrin knew the minute Anankos was slain that he would become the King of Valla. This meant that he would lose all of his free time trying to rebuild the kingdom that was destroyed as well as amend the relationship between Hoshido and Nohr. Corrin would have Cory by his side, and he'll be so busy that fighting in a tournament wouldn't be a top priority. Roy understood Corrin's mindset and was one of the few fighters to encourage it. Cloud and Bayonetta would not accept that. However, while Bayonetta acted like she didn't care, Cloud had a harder time hiding his feelings about the possible situation.
"Cloud, why do you seem upset at the idea of me going home? Are you scared I'll die in the final battle or something?" Corrin had asked his roommate suddenly.
"It's not that. I just know it's going to be quiet without you or your sister here. Bayonetta will just move onto me and will pester me nonstop. You are like a pesticide for me when it concerns her."
Corrin did not want to hear that from the ex-SOLDIER. He dropped the subject disappointed that Cloud thought so lowly of him. Cloud cursed to himself at how terrible he was at conveying his feelings. He wanted to correct himself, but was unable to and felt like he messed things up in the long run.
Crybaby
Of the two siblings, Corrin cried the most. Cory had learned to keep her emotions bottled within while Corrin was told the exact opposite. When the Nohrian prince cried, he cried buckets. He was a water dragon, so it wasn't really a surprise he had a never ending supply of tears. Corrin cried at the dumbest of things like stubbing his toe (when it was clearly his fault for not wearing shoes) or when he performed poorly in battle to the point that he was disrespected. Most of the time, the Smashers assumed he cried over spilt milk. Cloud knew better though especially when they were alone together. When Corrin cried, he spilled his insecurities onto the older Smasher from the fear of not being able to return back home to the fear of losing everyone he cared about. If anything, Cloud was impressed at how expressive Corrin was. Everyone else had to keep to themselves to avoid being persecuted. Crying was simply one of Corrin's strengths since it allowed him to be stronger after letting out all of his fears and insecurities. Cloud sometimes wished he was like Corrin. Unfortunately, he knew he had to be the one that Corrin needed to lean on…and he was fine with that if it meant he would be the one to wipe the tears from the dragon prince's eyes.
Ride
When Bayonetta heard that Cloud was going to take Corrin for a ride, she had this stupid image of Corrin on top of Cloud. The younger male would be naked and completely at the mercy of the blond as he begged Cloud to pull him down. Cloud would not say anything as he gripped on Corrin's hands and pulled him down. Pleasurable moans would escape his lips as he would tell Cloud to go faster.
Bayonetta expected sex, but of course Cloud was only offering Corrin for a ride on Fenrir. Of course, this would not stop the raven haired witch from teasing Cloud of late night intentions.
"Remember to make him scream your name while he's riding you." Bayonetta hummed causing Cloud's cheeks to turn red.
"You witches have the sickest minds imaginable…" Cloud snarled as he grabbed Corrin by the hand and led him away. Honestly, who does she take me for?
Sick
Corrin was a terrible cook. Most of the mansion learned that out the hard way when he apparently didn't know that you weren't supposed to bake something as simple as rice. He nearly set the mansion on fire one time too when he wanted to cook something for himself without supervision. Suffice to say, these actions would prohibit the dragon twins from entering the kitchen. Unless there was no one paying attention to the kitchen, it would still be easy to sneak in and try to get something done.
Corrin was good at sneaking into the kitchen to get snacks. He also went into the kitchen late at night to try and bake something for Cloud. By actually following the cookbook, one would think that maybe the silver haired prince would be able to achieve something without burning everything to the ground. Unfortunately, that was too good to be true. Cloud learned this the hard way when he did not think twice about eating the sponge cake. Corrin gave him the puppy dog eyes, so he couldn't say no to him. There was something odd about the sponge cake, but the ex-SOLDIER didn't know what.
Turns out that the sponge cake was made out of actual sponges and Cloud was sent to the hospital for consuming it. If this wasn't the Smash Brothers Realm, Cloud probably would have choked on the sponge for real. Instead, he was lectured in the Smash Hospital for foolishly eating an actual sponge cake. This was made worse how most of the Smashers ended up laughing at him instead of lecturing Corrin about baking the cake.
"It could be worse Cloud. You could have had Corrin bake you a cake with insects roasted on it." Bayonetta reminded him. The image alone nearly caused Cloud to throw up which he might as well have because of the sponge cake.
Shy
Cloud was terrible at starting things. Being the first to confess his feelings for Corrin was awkward. Being the first to initiate the kiss was also awkward. He was the older, taller one of the two, so he was expected to know these kinds of things. The blond was a rather shy person though. It's why nothing happened between him and Tifa and why he has been single longer than he needed to. Corrin obviously had no idea what to do, so he waited patiently for Cloud to guide him through the steps of love.
There first ended up being a rather timid one. In their room, no one would walk in on them. Cloud had pulled Corrin close to him. The dragon prince would close his eyes and lean his head in slightly. Cloud slowly lowered himself to lock lips with the younger male. He didn't know what to expect. Corrin's lips were soft and gentle compared to his. It made Cloud feel a little guilty that he shouldn't even be touching much less kissing someone like the young prince.
Corrin would open his eyes with a starry eyed expression and pink cheeks to go with it. He would mumble for Cloud to kiss him again and he would end up complying. Each kiss would last longer than the previous one and Cloud would soon find himself pushing Corrin onto his bed to continue their make out session. Soon, the kisses would no longer be shy and would become bolder as the night went on.
Rescue
Cloud had a track record of failing to protect the people closest to him. He failed to save Tifa in his childhood that resulted in him doing stupid things in his teenage years that he would forever regret. He failed to save Aerith from Sephiroth because he was too weak to do anything about it. He was not going to fail saving Corrin or Cory.
Cloud already messed up by taking his eyes off of them. They were acting weird, but he chose to ignore it given the problems that had befallen the mansion. He regretted it when the two got themselves abducted behind his back.
Bayonetta wished she killed Dogura the moment Pit told her that Dogura was with the slave ring. Bayonetta rarely questioned her client given all the shady people she worked with in her world. Dogura was out of a job without the Swamp Witch, but he was specifically on a mission to capture the dragon twins. Anankos had apparently hired him to get them back to his world, and they were on their way back if they weren't saved. Volga had recklessly gone off on his own to find them, but the chances of any dragon returning were low.
Cloud had to wait patiently for any traces of the dragon twins and started to become discouraged. Fortunately for him, Bayonetta was not going to wait patiently. She had Rodin to help her get information on Dogura (with a price of course). The Umbra Witch was not going to sit down and just let the dragon twins be shipped back to their world with no hope of returning to the Smash Brothers Realm. Besides Cloud, Bayonetta had asked Snow White to assist them. As much as the Umbra Witch hated the princess of the Apple Kingdom, Bayonetta was aware that Snow White's knowledge of the continent that Dogura was from along with her summoning magic would be vital to the success of the rescue mission.
"Cloud, I hope you're ready to save your precious dragon." Bayonetta hummed seeing how angry he was. "We might end up destroying the entire ring."
"That's fine. I have participated in blowing stuff up before. This will be no different." Cloud said nonchalantly. "Just tell me what to do and I'll do it."
"I hope you two are aware that you'll be obeying me for this mission." Snow White reminded them. "I have the map of the area they're in and where they will be held captive. As long as you listen to me, we should not run into any problems."
Cloud hoped not. He didn't want another casualty in his life.
Ears
Corrin was very sensitive around the ears. It was obvious from the get go when even a small breeze would get his body to tense up. Cloud just assumed anyone with pointy ears like Corrin was sensitive in that area. Bayonetta was able to confirm that when she was messing with Cory, but Cloud was too shy and didn't want to mess with the dragon prince. However, when the two were alone in the room, the blond realized he wouldn't be able to test out the theory. He had asked Corrin to come to him on his bed. At that point, he participated in the same skinship that the dragon prince was known for. He was very pleased to see how flustered Corrin was when he rubbed him behind the ear.
"Umm…uh…" Corrin started but was cut off by a soft moan. "I…it's really…"
"Hmm? Speak up."
Corrin didn't and just let Cloud mess with his ears. The expression he gave Cloud melted his heart.
Shame
Cloud knew that Corrin was an insecure person when it came to having a relationship. Compared to Cory who seemed to be in a steady relationship with a woman named Azura back in their world, Corrin was scared of opening up. He was open to forming bonds but always topped at romance. It was the ex-SOLDIER who started a relationship with Corrin. The more he dove into Corrin's psyche, the more he started to realize why the silver haired prince was ashamed of having a relationship.
Anankos had apparently cursed Corrin in more ways than one. Compared to the curse that prevented the twins from talking about their world that much…this curse affected their genitals during the mating season as well as made them hornier during a short period of time. In the autumn of the first week of the month, Corrin's body would mutate allowing him to excrete a powerful pheromone that would attract anyone to him. Should these alpha species succeed in mating with Corrin during the time of heat, the poor dragon prince would end up pregnant. There was no ways around it. Anankos had fixed Corrin's body up to where the first man to release inside of him would be guaranteed a baby with him. The worst part is that a woman could make Corrin pregnant too if he wasn't careful. This effectively shut down any hopes of having a relationship with anyone until Anankos was defeated.
The point of the dragon twins even escaping their world was to avoid the mating season during the most crucial moment in battle. Once the three months had past, the two had every intention of returning. The only problem was they didn't know how quickly time flowed in their world and the Smash Brothers Realm, and with no way to return, it would be nearly impossible to fix the curse.
Corrin had tried to deny any sort of relationship with Cloud originally. Soon he would fall into the role of wanting to be with Cloud until the mating season hit. Then Cloud was exposed to Corrin's corrupt body. The blond felt nothing but pity for the silver haired prince when he broke down in tears.
"How can you even love me when I'm like this?!" Corrin asked him darkly when Cloud tried to comfort him. "My body is disgusting like this!"
"…But I don't find you disgusting."
"Liar! You're thinking how you messed with the wrong person! You know you screwed up but don't want to hurt my feelings! Cloud, just be honest with me! Tell me how ashamed you are for falling in love with me!"
The answer Corrin got was the exact opposite. Cloud went over to his boyfriend and embraced him tightly. Corrin blushed especially after inhaling Cloud's strong scent.
"I am not ashamed of you. I could never be ashamed of you. I will love you even with your cursed body…because I didn't fall for your body. I fell for you."
Cloud mentally sighed to himself hearing Corrin break down in tears. His coat was going to get stained with tears with the large of tears falling down his face.
Key
So what do you do when Diamond finally decided to unleash his plan on the universe by taking Shulk, Dunban and all of Bionis hostage? Why, you would use this opportunity to find a way to go home of course! Cloud should have cared for the fate of the universe and the Monado boy, but the blond noticed that if Master Hand focused on the war going on between Mecha Galaxy and the universe, he would surely ignore the fact that Cloud was being an opportunist. Cloud was not allowed to return home because of the rules set on him. However, because the situation was dire, Master Hand allowed many Smashers to do whatever it took to deal with Diamond and find Rob who was currently MIA after the destruction of Melody Galaxy.
Corrin was allowed to form his own team and find an alternative to ending the war. Of course, it was more of an escort mission seeing as how it was Axel who was demanding everyone to help him discover the secrets of the messiah Penelope who was one of the heroines of the 2000 year war. There were rumors that her body had been found but there were items needed to even find said body and awaken the messiah from her slumber. Axel believes that she would be able to stop the war with the least amount of casualties and Corrin believed him. Cory would not let Corrin go alone and would travel with them. Bayonetta and Cloud were both protective of Corrin and had no problem going with what he believed in (even though Cloud was using this as an excuse to go home). Snow White heard about it and followed only because she knew that Gretel had left their world to search for Rob in secret. Of course, Volga had also insisted on going with the dragon prince because of his dedication toward him. Sharla had promised to go with them only after Rob was found. She knew how important Rob was to Shulk, so before she could even face Shulk when they eventually rescue him, she had to find the male tactician.
While Axel kept talking about a key that was needed to open the cave Penelope was in, Cloud could only stare at Corrin and think he was the key needed to get him back to Midgar.
"Cloud, you are aware that you are not allowed to be selfish now." Bayonetta had reminded the ex-SOLDIER when she pulled him away out of Corrin's hearing range. "We are supposed to protect him. You're not allowed to just abandon him once we do get to Midgar."
"What makes you think I would walk up and leave?"
"You are capable of doing that and you've been planning to leave the Smash Brothers Realm for a while. Do not disappoint me."
Cloud rolled his eyes with Bayonetta's scolding. She wasn't the boss of him and he could do whatever he wanted. However, he needed to prioritize Corrin over his home. He needed to realize that there was more at stake than just returning home to check up on his friends. The ones fighting for their lives were equally important…
Recover
When Cloud first came to Smash Brothers Mansion, Palutena had promised him with the chance to see Aerith again. Since she was in charge of heaven, it should have been easy to arrange a meeting. However, because Cloud lost to Shulk, he wouldn't be allowed to see her for quite some time. Palutena admittingly could not have been able to arrange a meeting at that time due to not fully understanding how Cloud's universe worked. Once she was able to do her research on Gaia, she was finally able to find a way to be able to communicate with Aerith in the Lifestream even for a short period of time.
Cloud didn't believe Palutena when she said she was able to get in contact with Aerith. It felt like some cruel joke that Cloud did not want to be a part of. Corrin observed the Goddess of Light and told Cloud to trust her on this one. Reluctantly, Cloud had allowed himself to be taken to Skyworld. Palutena had taken him to the graveyards of Helel where fallen comrades were laid to rest. Cloud wondered how that was possible seeing as how Skyworld was in the sky and it was impossible to bury someone in the clouds.
"When an angel dies, their body disappears." Palutena explained. "They may no longer have a physical form, but they are still here in spirit."
"Then why am I here if this place is for angels?"
"The power to communicate with the dead is the strongest in the graveyard. I could not communicate with Aerith in my temple. When the moon is up in Skyworld, the power of the spirits is at its peak. I hope you'll be able to get what you wanted out of this conversation. It will not last long."
Cloud was still confused. The green haired Goddess left before he could ask her more questions. Corrin would keep Cloud company until nightfall. The blond wondered if Palutena was messing with his heart again like she was known for doing to people in the mansion. However, this was not one of those times. Cloud's eyes widened when he saw a spirit of Aerith appear before him. He could not believe his eyes.
"A-Aerith?!"
"Cloud…it's me."
Corrin knew this was the time to leave. He wanted Cloud to be alone and be open about his feelings for his dead comrade. The prince's heart was heavy when he descended down the stairs.
"H-How is this possible? Is it really you? You're…"
"Cloud…I cannot be here for long." Aerith spoke softly.
"So Palutena was right…you're…"
Cloud questioned how long he had before Aerith faded out of his life again. There were so many things he wanted to talk to her about. There were so many things that were left unsaid, but he wouldn't have all the time in the world. Aerith saw the distressed expression he had and frowned.
"Cloud? What's wrong? You seem…"
The ex-SOLDIER was not going to cry. He needed to appear strong to her. He needed to prove that he was going to be fine on his own. He just needed to make sure that Aerith was okay with one thing…
"Aerith…I'm sorry." Cloud apologized again. Every time he spoke to her, it always started with an apology for failing to save her. Aerith had told him repeatedly that she could never blame him. He came for her at the end of the day and that was all that mattered. However, this seemed to be something different.
"Cloud?"
"Aerith…I know you want me to move on and be happy…but I wonder if that is possible after what I failed to do."
"Cloud…"
"I…cherished you more than you think…but recently…my heart yearns for someone else…"
"…You do not need my permission to be happy."
"But Aerith…what if I fail again…what if I fail to protect someone who I learned to love…"
Aerith shook her head before slowly approaching Cloud and awkwardly tried to embrace him. Her body did not manifest completely so she went through him for the most part. Cloud still felt the warmth of her embrace despite that
"Cloud…you know how much I care for you. I want you to be happy with the person you are in love with. It's not just me…all of our friends wish you happiness. Whether you choose to be with Tifa or that young boy that you were with…we know you'll make the best decision."
"Aerith…"
"Cloud, I am happy that you were able to move on. This is just the next step to your recovery. You have my approval and Zack's…"
Zack could not manifest in Skyworld for whatever reason. It must have been because of how Cloud's world worked that Palutena could only allow one person to visit the graveyard. Cloud nodded his head slowly understanding that Zack too would want Cloud to find happiness with his partner.
"So…don't worry too much about what I think. This is your life."
"I…I know…"
Cloud noticed that Aerith was starting to fade away. He gasped realizing he was going to lose her again. He had more to talk about than his feelings for Corrin. Aerith knew that, but she couldn't leave the Lifestream for long.
"Promise me this Cloud…promise me you'll be strong for the one you love, and for yourself…"
"I…"
"You are one of the strongest people I have ever met. I want to see that again…"
"I…I will…Aerith…I…"
Aerith closed her eyes. Her time was up. She smiled though knowing that even if it was brief, she was blessed by Palutena to speak to Cloud again to give him advice outside of their world. Cloud cried out for her name as she faded away. Tears threatened to fall down his eyes realizing that this might really be the last time he could talk to her. However, he forced himself to keep a stoic expression as he descended down the stairs of the graveyard. Palutena and Corrin were waiting for him.
"I apologize for the short time you had." Palutena spoke. "The Lifestream is not connected to heaven, so I cannot have anyone who has died alive for long."
"I…I know…" Cloud mumbled. "Thank you for giving me the chance to speak to Aerith again."
Palutena smirked as she simply walked away. There was no need to say anything else without sounding too sappy or boastful. This left Corrin with Cloud. The dragon prince was concerned for his friend's health.
"…Are you okay?" Corrin asked. "You looked like the world ended…"
"It might have." Cloud began as he approached the younger male. Corrin blushed at the proximity. "But…Aerith told me to be strong. I have someone here who means the world to me…and I won't give him up for anything now."
Corrin knew who he was talking about and tried to say something. He ended up stuttering before deciding to avoid eye contact.
"U-Umm…shall we head back to the Smash Brothers Realm? I know Cere was upset that she couldn't come to Skyworld because of her beef with Palutena but…"
"Yeah…let's go home."
Cloud allowed Corrin to hold his hand out for him at that moment. Normally, Cloud hated public display of affection especially coming from the Nohrian prince. However, Cloud's heart became lighter after talking to Aerith. Corrin's face was a tomato at this point when he allowed himself to lean against Cloud's arm. Cloud looked up to the sky of Skyworld and smiled softly. He may have been insecure about things even after the conversation he had with Aerith. However, he knew things were going to be okay now. He had Corrin by his side. That was all that mattered.
Me: Done with 9038 words.
Li: How do you feel now that Clorrin is out of the way?
Me: Good because it's one less OTP ficlet I have to do. Notes!
1. Again, in the DLC arc, Fighting Tension (most of it), Ballad of the Goddess and Tango in the Moonlight are canon in all timelines. What happens after Corrin and Bayonetta joins differs though so how Corrin opens up to everyone and how Bayonetta handles Cory is always difference. The latter two are constantly mentioned throughout this story due to how it sets Cloud and Bayonetta up for why they're even in Smash.
2. Yes, you can be rude to your spouse in Fire Emblem: Fates. Corrin is being a troll by pushing Cloud off the bed.
3. A daily reminder that it does not matter what Corrin's group does. They are not the ones that can defeat the Great Evil. Handling Anankos is a possibility if Corrin does not slay him in time by the time the Great Evil returns but as established in Dark Pit's ficlet, only Dark Pit can kill the Great Evil at the cost of becoming the Black Abyss. The only survivors are the Robin twins in terms of Smashers unless specified.
4. During Combo Breaker, there was a three on three Smash battle (which was so rigged) where a character was chosen to be the MVP and the other two characters had to protect the MVP. If the MVP loses all of their stocks, it was a game over. If you share a stock, it's also a game over. You win by getting rid of the MVP of the other team. It would have been a dream come true if Corrin, Cloud and Bayonetta were all on the same team, but in reality, it was Bayonetta kicking Corrin's ass. In the Friendly Fire scenario, I wanted to show how dumb Cloud is capable of being. Like Cloud players tend to sacrifice their partner when they use Limit Cross Slash, but I still think it would be funny if in a scenario of doing that they would lose a game.
5. In my universe, the priority of the love interests for Corrin are Volga, Bayonetta, Cloud and Snow White. Volga is not always guarantee either given he doesn't always show up in the mansion. This is similar to Dark Pit where the priority of the love interest is Lucina, Reyn, Pit (assuming the twincest is strong in the story), Kaguya, Everyone else and Lana.
6. Currently, I have no idea where the Rescue arc portion is in the timeline. It's either the final story of the Dragon Timeline or another timeline entirely. Corrin would already be with Volga in that timeline because of how the events that have already occurred, so Cloud was already in a losing scenario here.
7. The Shame section is already explained in The Ripple Effect in better detail. I simply summarized it here in another timeline where Corrin tells Cloud what happened and is upset about it. It's ironic how I imply only Bayonetta does not react well with this. Meanwhile, Volga kind of takes advantage of Corrin in Dragonic Instinct and Cloud is very supportive of Corrin as shown here.
8. The Key portion gives better detail of the mission Corrin is supposed to be on in Mecha Galaxy that The Ripple Effect failed to explain.
9. The Recover section is not in any particular timeline, but is a scenario that could happen if Palutena was not a jerk about letting Cloud see Aerith. I wanted a lot of limitations to what she could possible do to help Cloud as well as show some of Cloud's insecurities. Cloud has mostly forgiven himself as of Advent Children, but it doesn't mean he won't have that nagging feeling of regret and how he fears there will be a repeat of a situation if he falls in love with someone else. My universe does imply Cloud/Aerith over Cloud/Tifa as a reason of why Cloud isn't that open to falling in love with anyone whether it's Corrin, Bayonetta or Sharla.
That's it. Reviews are appreciated. Ja ne!