I don't own Final Fantasy VII, property of Square-Enix etc..
It wasn't often that Aeris was negligent enough to let her thoughts tumble from her mouth in directionless whispers, but when she saw Cloud twist that familiar sword onto his back with that neat flick of his wrist, it was enough to stop her in her tracks and let loose a recurring idea that gnawed at her as if it had special significance.
"Sometimes, if I close my eyes, I could believe it was him," she breathed, in the earshot of Tifa, who kept in step as they crossed the Junon plains, and the new, quasi-feral ninja who skulked around the pair as if familiarising herself with how women act. Tifa stopped beside her with a glance that showed her surprise. The ninja let out a honking "Huh?"
Aeris graciously explained, rather than shooing them from thoughts to which they were uninvited. She shook her head and squinted her vibrant eyes. "Things he says and does and the way he stands... sometimes, its as if he were him."
Her elaboration clearly sufficed for Tifa, who nodded slowly, tactfully. She then turned to the confused ninja and hissed "Zack."
"Ohhh..." nodded the ninja, remembering her briefing two nights ago when she earned her place in the girls' tent.
A pause.
"Well maybe that SOLDIER training academy churns 'em all out the same, you know, like copies," Yuffie chirped. A shadow briefly flickered across Aeris' face, but she turned to follow the males. Yuffie shrugged and cantered on, leaving a pensive Tifa to stare unseeing at the browning grass.