Red Carpet
That moment she stood before him in that red dress and fireworks exploded into the sky, his heart stopped. FFVII Remake, in-game. Cloud x Aerith.
A/N:
Can you believe Square brought FFVII back to us after all these years?
Managed to get the scene of Aerith in a red dress during the Don Corneo chapter in FFVIIR, and I was never so gleeful. So here it goes – my take of what happens when Cloud first sees Aerith in that gorgeous dress on that bridge in Wall Street Market. My heart is full and happy.
This is most likely going to be two-chaptered or there might be a second part, because of that dream sequence Cloud has when Aerith visits him in her flower fields during Chapter 14. ARHHHHHH my Clorith feels are telling me to do something about that scene, too!
Myst-san
Cloud's head was nearly about to explode.
God, just trying to get an audition with Don Corneo was proving to be frustrating as hell. He sworn he had been walking up and down Wall Street Market umpteenth times, and if his fists clenching tighter was any signifier that his exasperation was mounting, well, he wasn't going to try and deny it.
The doors to Don Corneo's mansion closed heavily behind him. He was this close, to sinking his face in both palms. Being rejected by those three goons yet again was not doing anything to boost his self esteem at this point.
He stared behind him at the garish, over-the-top, heavily-decorated mansion.
This…is going to be a loooong night.
A bout of cheers and loud hoots sounded into his ears. Cloud turned to look into the direction of the sudden commotion, but had to blink from the jarring street neon lights and red lanterns momentarily blinding him. God, did Wall Street never sleep even in the wee hours of night?
He recognized Johnny's voice immediately and could make out a few silhouettes in the distance.
Why were the streets people throwing flower petals all around whatever was going on?
Confused, Cloud squinted. Mako eyes willed themselves to make out the shadowy figures across the arched bridge that separated them.
What in the world?
"Move it! Move it! C'mon!" Johnny's loud, very, very distinct voice was piercing through the air.
A vision of long, chestnut brown hair flashed into his vision. He noticed first the tresses of hair, coiled all the way down to perfection. Entangled in them, red long ribbons of the most scarlet hue.
Cloud breathed in wonder.
"Quit gawking, get out of the way!" Johnny yelled into the crowd that was going near ballistic by this apparent new sight to behold for the Wall Street night.
When the toss of flower petals settled, and Cloud could finally make out the owner of those long tresses…
He was definitely not aware he was holding his breath.
Shit.
Breathe, Cloud, breathe.
Clad in scarlet red, she was a stark contrast to the neon lights and dark shadows the night cast against her silhouette. When she picked up those silver heels of hers with another step forward and stood into the light the red lanterns above shone down, those emerald hues of her eyes reached forth and searched…
...Across the bridge, and bore down into those Mako-infused eyes of his.
A second stopped, a heartbeat missed.
Cloud wasn't even aware of the continuous hootings and loud chatter from the watching spectators. Johnny's voice faded into oblivion. Was only barely aware of the most glorious, colorful fireworks booming, and shooting up into the night sky like clouds and clouds of sprinkling dust blossoming and casting magical spells over the night.
All he saw was her, across the bridge, clad in a gorgeous shade of scarlet red. A dress that reached all the way down her ankles, not revealing in the least, but enough to hint at the feminine curves underneath the fabric. Her heeled sandals peeked out, shining silver to match the moon above.
But it was her eyes. And her hair. And just…
…Oh my god, she was making her way towards him. Closing in the distance.
Fireworks were creating mayhem in the sky.
That would definitely explain the chaotic mayhem his heart was causing at the moment. No doubt about it. Not the nerves. Definitely not the effect of her standing before him looking the loveliest he had seen her since he first crashed through her church roof.
Nope, it was definitely the fireworks making his heart churned.
God, these damn fireworks are so damn cheesy.
His mind screamed at him to take a step back at her nearness. He was clueless as to whatever effect she had on him at this moment.
Johnny had, with his absolutely warped sense of humor and awareness in this critical second, had literally, physically laid out a red carpet for her to walk on. Cloud didn't know whether to cringe from chagrin or to chuckle inwardly.
…But it suited her, and this moment perfectly. That, he could not deny.
The fireworks exploding behind the night sky framed her heart-shaped face as she never let her gaze falter.
Their eyes met for a second or two longer.
Something pricked at his heart. An emotion so foreign, Cloud had no idea what to make out of it.
But he couldn't tear his eyes off her either.
And then she stopped, a few steps away from him.
Thank God, Cloud thought. He didn't take he could take it if she got any closer. He wasn't sure why he was acting like such a doofus. It wasn't like he had zero experience with female company nor shied away from physical contact with them if they insisted on it, by chance or accident.
But this… this all felt so new, and so…strange.
"Heya." She greeted him, both hands clasped daintily in front of her.
Earth to Cloud. Say something before she thinks you've lost it.
If he could punch himself in the gut this instant, he would. All coherent thoughts were lost in his mind, turned to mush. Where was his usually smart, fast-thinking brains?
Disappeared conveniently when he needed it, no doubt.
This witch. This sly witch in that loveliest red dress. She must have cast a spell on him, bewitched him.
But with those eyes…
Cloud, say something before you humiliate yourself beyond redemption. He mentally chided himself.
"T-That's really…" His voice sounded too high, too awkward. Too un-Cloud. Oh my god, he sounded like he was gawking…
Wait, was he?
No, don't answer that.
"This dress is so gaudy and impossible to move in…" She was looking down at the hem of her dress, obviously uncomfortable by how tight the dress was, and growing more conscious of the slit going down the left her thigh that was exposing more skin that she liked.
His gaze followed hers, eyes skimming the red fabric as her fingers ran across it.
His throat felt suddenly dry. God, he needed water.
Cloud coughed. "Y-Yeah…"
Shit, shit, shit, shit.
She obviously caught him staring.
How subtle do you want to be, Cloud!? Look at her, not her dress or her body, dammit!
"Cloud!" She said in exasperation, moving forward.
It broke the trance momentarily.
But shit, she was so much nearer to him. He could smell her. Her newly done hair smelled of endless fields of strawberry and lavender. Must be Madam M's shampoo. She smelt… nice.
Please stop, brain, please stop.
"Eh… S'cuse me." Cloud blurted out lamely.
You, Cloud Strife, are a first-class IDIOT.
But despite his awkward demeanour, his flustered expression, and the obvious hues of crimson that was creeping to his cheeks and threatening to destroy every last ounce of masculinity he was trying to exert on his exterior, that unwavering smile on her face was crumbling every last bit of his defenses.
His tense shoulders relaxed. The familiar whiff of her floral scent – the flowers that grew in the backyard of her house – hit him. It was intoxicating, when mixed with the scent of her fresh shampoo lingering in those long tresses. And why had he never noticed how long and thick her hair was?
Irrelevant, Cloud, abolish thought immediately.
He could hear her let out a soft sigh, but one of light humor, and even a bit of tease hinting behind that curl of a smile tugging her lips.
Why did she always have to be so damn flirty? It wasn't like he was fifteen at the onset of puberty and missing all these not very subtle hints. He was not as dense as the opposite gender liked to think.
It took all of his strength he could muster to produce something coherent from his throat. He coughed, trying his best to change the topic to avert from a very un-masculine disaster at hand. He mentioned about Johnny just for the sake of distracting her that he was losing all train of thought at the moment.
Well, with her looking like that – he could honestly care to think of anything else.
Every other thought was blown out of his mind the moment she materialized before him in scarlet red.
That dress. That hair. That face, those eyes. Seared into his memory as long as he lived.
He dreaded to think suddenly of sending Aerith straight into Don Corneo's den looking like that. Those dodgy guys in that den? Don Corneo the man himself? It was like feeding Aerith to the sharks.
With her looking like that, any men would want to—
He couldn't think further. He knew he would drive his buster sword through the skin of anyone who dared touch her. The thought of anyone else laying a finger on Aerith—
"No way in hell I'll let you go in there by yourself." Cloud blurted out.
He was definitely starting to think this place was more dangerous than he thought. What would those people do to Aerith if she went on her own? What if those men—
I'll kill them. I'll kill them all.
His fists clenched. Gritted his teeth.
"Come on! You'll see!" Aerith beckoned him to follow.
"See what, exactly?" Cloud sounded disinterested.
To be honest, nothing could interest him any more for the night now.
As he trailed along three steps behind her as she took the lead, the only thing he saw was her.
Nothing else mattered.
Those fireworks simmered down into the night. The stars above re-appeared, one by one.
Cloud paused for a second, stared into the sky, then at the figure clad in red walking away from him.
He hastened his pace to catch up, fingers clamming down on his sword on his back in fierce determination.
In that moment, he knew, whatever it took, he would protect her at any costs.
He was her bodyguard after all, his mental sanity reasoned.
But a voice at the back of his head, and his heart, wondered, if…
…If it was for something more than that.
Fin