Inspiration
With your grace as inspiration I will prove my love to you
This was certainly not the way anyone had expected things to end up. There'd been numerous speculations, mostly between the women of the group, over 'who ends up with who' after the adventure was all over... but Cloud, at least, could honestly say that he never saw himself in this place.
when I stand in polished armor on the field.
This was such a silly tradition... but he knew how important tradition was to the Wutaians, so he was going through with it. Clad in the medieval-style armor of the little country, he had to fight his way through a whole troop of suitors before he could reach the prize, though he hated to think of her like that...
I will bow towards your beauty as you stand beside your father,
And there she was... lovely and kimono-clad, the subtle rosy folds fluttering gently along in the wind right beside her short sable hair. Godo stood beside her in a sagely pose, overseeing the matches.
with passion in my heart I shall not yield.
For the most part, the group who had lined up to face him were anywhere from people who were looking to get lucky with a princess, to fat aristocrats' sons that wanted to marry into power, to some actually intimidating looking swordsman who were trying to keep an outsider away from the royal line.
But if there was nothing else, there was one huge difference between Cloud and them.
Cloud bore the princess' favor.
With your grace as inspiration I will proudly bear your token
when I stand in burnished steel before my foe.
A small red cloth tied securely around his right arm, the bottom of which was adorned with blue-green dragon's claw clasping a bright green orb, no doubt Yuffie's heraldic rendition of materia.
And so now, in the heat of the summer sun, he was sweating beneath the leather and steel strappings, tied on with taut cord, and belted around himself, as he went through the motions of his swordplay. The heavy equipment severely hampered his movement, but none of these people were a match for the man who had defeated Sephiroth... twice.
I will do you honor justice with the strength of arm and spirit,
and will fight with all the prowess that I know.
With your grace as inspiration I will strive to be the victor
over one who strives as fervently as I
And in the occasional breaks between bouts, he would look over to the shaded pagoda where Yuffie and Godo stood, beneath the cover of the peach leaves, and catch the glimmer of her proud smile as she watched him... and that was enough to quench any thirst, or cool any sweltering heat, and let him fight on... for her.
to earn a maiden's favor for the bold young man before her,
to see his love reflected in her eye.
-
There was only one more time Cloud would need to go through with another of Wutai's 'silly' armor-wearing traditions...
With your grace as inspiration I will prove my love to you
when I stand in polished armor on the field./
The wind played at his and her hair, he wore the polished ebony platemaille of Wutai, and she wore a pure, snow-white yukata as they stood in the middle of the sunlit plain that August. Godo had walked her up the aisle, as was the universal custom, and he and Cloud had respectfully, if a little stiffly, bowed to one another, symbolizing the passing of respect and right from one to the other...
I will bow towards your beauty as you stand beside your father,
As they lowered the gleaming silver circlet onto his head, Cloud wondered if, perhaps, despite everything else he had faced, being the king of Wutai would be the hardest thing for him to accomplish yet... But as always, when he looked over to the youthful beaming face he'd become forever bound to just today, and stared into her smiling stormy eyes, he knew whatever lay ahead, it was very worth it.
with passion in my heart I shall not yield.
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Author's Ending Note Thingy: Song requested by Lucifer's Seraphim, an Ealdormerian... and he and I will probably be the only ones who know what that is. XD Ah well. I'm glad someone who reads this fic knows these songs, and I hope I did it justice for you... I realize it's taken me a while to get an idea I felt was worthy of this song, but here it is. Clouffie... heheh, can't say I've ever written that one before. XP