Just a short little thing that came to me as I saw Cloud smile at the end of Advent Children. I think he final begins to move past what has happened.
Hope
Hope is fickle. It is nothing more than a collection of opposites that pull it apart and yet keep the flame burning. Growing and yet shrinking, it explodes and creates new life.
Hope
He now had the hope to keep going, to trudge onward into the light that Aerith had promised was there. If he looked hard enough.
Hope
It cleans and darkens while healing and destroying. It has powers which no one can understand. Nobody wants to anyway. Why destroy the mystery? Why destroy the Hope?
Hope
He hoped for a new day, a new beginning for everyone he cared for. He hoped that
Marlene would get to live with Barrett and have a proper father. He hoped that he could be a father to Denzel.
Hope
It is our past. Our present. Our future. It surrounds us, holding us close to fate.
Hope
He hoped for every child afflicted with Geostigma would come to Aerith's church and be cleansed. He hoped that they would never have to be racked with pain. He hoped for their health.
Hope
It dies tragically in flames and despair. It is reborn from the ashes and nourished with promises kept.
Hope
He hoped for Vincent to realize forgiveness was his for the taking. That he didn't have to stay in the shadows, he could join him in the light.
Hope
It breaks but never shatters. If falls but stands back up again. If fails but tries again. If looks down but sees the sun again.
Hope
He hoped that his family, his strange family of AVALANCHE would heal and stay together. That if one member was every in danger they would band together. That they would be all that they were destined to be.
Hope
It sustains us better than food. Better than water. Better than words. Better than family and false promises.
Hope
He hoped for everything now that he could see the light. He hoped for others to find this healing light. He hoped to join his friends in the Lifestream, but not today. Not yet.
Hope
But it keeps us going.