#「 lifestream ; out of character 」

[soundcrusher]

2, 4, 14, 35 for YOU GUESSED IT! Reeve!!

Honestly, I was expecting something else from you. But I would never turn down my babygirl.

2: A canon or headcanon hill I will die on

Hmmm… what hill shall I chose to die on?

Well, this is going to sound boring, but I’m definitely standing with the “Reeve’s an Inspire” side of the hill. From what I have read and seen, it’s a really cool concept and a shame that it’s not utilized in the games. I mean, how cool is the power to breath live into inanimate objects?

And the way I see it, an inanimate object isn’t just limited to machines and robots, like Cait Sith. The definition of “inanimate” can encapsule so many things, the only thing stopping Reeve from inspiring something like a mug, is himself.

Honestly, I don’t think this man knows just what exactly he can do. Be it from a lack of knowing, or a fear of experimentation.  

(I also like to think that there’s a connection between people with the inspire ability and the planet. It’s probably not like the connection the Cetras have, but it is kind of weird that someone would exist, who has a similar ability as to the lifestream. I mean, the lifestream is said to be able to bring new life, something that this middle-aged guy in a suit can do too, just not in that extent.)

4: Favourite line

This is a hard one, because I have little experience with Reeve outside Remake and Rebirth, and I haven’t gotten far in Dirge of Cerberus. But one quote that stuck out to me, even more than the one where Reeve talks about the Sector Seven plate crash, is this one from Dirge of Cerberus.

Reeve: “Let me ask you. Does the wind sound like a thousand wailing souls? Listen. Can you hear them? The cries?”

It’s hard to explain, at least for me, but the way Reeve says this, with a voice that might sound level-headed, but at the same time conveys so much fear. It struck me and made me wonder at the same time. How many hear the voices?

It is said that the people of Edge hear the voices, but it still makes me wonder.  Is there a difference between Reeve and other people.

Either way, it’s a cool line and I fucking love it for the vibes it brings.

14: Most heroic moment

Fucking damn it. As I already said, I only know Reeve from Rebirth, Remake and what little I have seen from Dirge of Cerberus, but if I had to pick the “most heroic moment” from the limited knowledge I have, I would have to go with the one, where Cait Sith sees the aftermath of the plate drop.

Yes, it’s not directly Reeve, but, it’s still him.

From what I know, Reeve sees the things he creates as his children, or, at least, they are similar viewed. Which means, sending Cait to Sector Seven was a deliberate act on Reeve’s part. Perhaps, he wanted to warn people, try to save as many people as he could, and or prevent the drop all together. He builds those things after all, and or knows the passwords to the support pillars.

As Cait, he could have done something, if the time wasn’t up. And so, I like to believe that that’s his most heroic moment. Even if he failed, and he did fail, what’s more heroic than trying to right a wrong, despite of what could happen to you.

I am also sure that, if Shinra would have caught Reeve meddling with their plans, our man could have had a fate worse than death. And he most like knew that, but still decided to send Cait out to act as a proxy.

And, by all means, that’s more heroic than blowing up reactors and killing thousands of innocent people. (There, I said it.)

35: Their idea of a perfect day

Honestly, I doubt that Reeve ever gets a perfect day.

This man attracts chaos and whatnot on a daily basis, while also having to deal with a plethora of people vying for his attention. There’s hardly any time for a “perfect” day.

And while I could say that, a perfect day for him would be one, where work’s just right and he doesn’t get bothered by anyone (be it during Shinra time or when he leads the WRO), I still like to think that a perfect day doesn’t involve work at all.

A perfect day for Reeve, as I see it, would involve him being at home. Tinkering with his next little invention, or just doing a silly thing. Like sowing Cait Sith some new clothes (that’s a headcanon of mine), or doing other tasks that keep his hands occupied, while he’s relaxing. Maybe he’s even reading a new book, but falling asleep halfway through, and getting some of that needed sleep back.

His perfect day could also involve deepening the friendships he made, by either visiting Tifa’s bar, or hanging out with Cid. I mean, you can’t just introduce two engineers and not stick them together in a room to tinker together and create new inventions. Like, I bet they tried to make a jet-bag once, only for Vincent to stop them.

But yeah. A perfect day is just a day where Reeve gets to do things he wants to do, while not worrying about work.

[dangoulains-devotion]

on this late night i am thinking incredibly hard about how, when faced with a choice between preventing a new friend from harm + clearing up a misunderstanding and choosing the path that would potentially find him a cure for his catatonic friend, zack recalled marlene's words of saying that aerith liked cloud, and of course she did, because he (zack) wasn't there. hadn't been there for a long time

and after recalling these words and grasping at the ribbon tied around his hand, zack ultimately decides that by taking the right-hand path he can, with some luck, fulfill two of his own desires - 1) potentially seeing his friend cloud healed and healthily awake again, and 2) making sure that aerith will be able to be happy when she wakes if he succeeds the first part. he has not and will not let go of his adoration and love for her, but if cloud is seemingly what makes her happy in this bizarre world he's found himself in, he'll choose that option in a heartbeat, because her happiness means the world to him even if it means accepting that he's not the focus of it anymore. he just loves her so much . oh i'm in pain. zack fair the man that you are

[arikad0]

over half of FF7's main plot happening purely because Cloud was too shy to ask Tifa out is still one of the funniest plot twists to me

[invitedeath]

we love the return of a truly bad bitch

[inmydrcams]

both aerith living and aerith dying will make people rage quit the game and I think that's funny

[betaray-jones]

Since epic tye musical still has me in its grip and since I keep seeing takes on mutiny here are my thoughts on Odysseus sacrificing the six men to Scylla.

Firstly, how informed was the crew that they were going to face Scylla?

I think it is reasonable to assume that the crew had no idea. When the Siren told Odysseus about Scylla he immediately knew the sacrifice this path required, which in my opinion makes it reasonable to assume that at least Eurylochus would also have heard about Scylla and the fact that her six heads required the sacrifice of six men. Additionally Eurylochus calls Scylla by name at no point instead saying that "something approaches" which further suggests he didn't know where exactly they were going. Also the crew all had wax in their ears during the Siren scene so unless Odysseus told them afterwards there is no way for them to know about Scylla. So why didn't he?

I feel like Odysseus has a good grasp on the spirit of the crew and knows how disillusioned they have become. Based on Eurylochus in mutiny it's safe to assume that at least some members have given up on reaching home. Odysseus knows that if he asks this crew to now further sacrifice six men that chances are good that the crew will refuse, so he doesn't tell them and just tells them that the sirens revealed a way to make it home.

For the majority of the crew the captain not sharing the route would probably not be noteworthy but I think Eurylochus as second in command would normally have insisted on knowing. Here of course Eurylochus guilt about the last time he didn't follow orders would then play in Odysseus favor, keeping him from questioning their direction and Odysseus plan.

This leads me to the second part, the torches.

In the Lifestream it was visible that Eurylochus was originally carrying one of the torches before dropping it in order to help a crew mate implying that Odysseus intended for Scylla to kill him. Most people I've seen discussing this proposed that this was revenge for opening the windbag on Odysseus part but I disagree.

Maybe I'm giving Odysseus too much credit for intelligence but I think this man-made monster Odysseus is too calculated for quick revenge.

But Odysseus knows Eurylochus and he knows that he is willing to question him more than any other character in Epic. I think at least subconsciously he knows that if he sacrifices six men to Scylla and Eurylochus figures out that this was on purpose that his next step will be mutiny. But he also knows that Eurylochus is the voice and acting arm of the crew and their concerns. Take him out of the equation and Odysseus might be able to keep control of the crew.

Therefore I do think that Odysseus did intend to sacrifice Eurylochus to Scylla though not necessarily for revenge (though Eurylochus confession probably worked as further justification in his mind). This would also explain why he was so resigned to Eurylochuses questioning in mutiny and why he didn't even try to defend himself when called out.

In conclusion, the mutiny was essentially just the last inevitable step in the paths both characters chose up to this point.

[silvergreenseraphim]

Angeal and Sephiroth (And Genesis?)—Dissidia Opera Omnia—Part One

Alright, so this chapter was a lot, and it opened with Weiss quoting “Loveless” for a reason, it seems.

“When the war of the beasts brings about the world’s end, the goddess descends from the sky! Wings of light and dark spread afar, she guides us to bliss…her gift everlasting!”

Weiss becomes our voice for Genesis, or his “brother,” in this chapter. When Seymour questions his quote, Weiss replies,

“It was a passage from a story our brother loved. He used to quote it for his best friend. That friend was Sephiroth, the hero and friend of the other “brother,” Angeal as well.”

This part was hard to translate into English, but Weiss essentially explains that Genesis used to quote Loveless for his close friend, Sephiroth, the hero, and Angeal was right there with them as the third friend in the trio.

Seymour is shocked and gasps, “Sephiroth and Angeal were best friends??”

Weiss replies, “It’s hard to believe of the now-evil “hero” that never reveals his heart. And yet, the exemplary First Class soldier that is a role model for everyone was his friend.”

I am on the fence about the translation of this part and may change it once my friend gets back to me, but for now, it seems like Weiss is pondering the friendship of Sephiroth and Angeal and how differently they turned out, because Seymour does make a comment like, “I suppose if you have dreams and honor, you can’t go wrong.”

But there is potentially more here that Weiss is saying about his own relationship to Sephiroth and Angeal—perhaps suggesting he is not their friend and doesn’t quite understand their past relationship himself. I will have to keep researching.

We cut to Sephiroth again, who is confused about his memory returning. He says he didn’t expect any memories to return from the Lifestream, but shakes his head and denial. He claims these memories Angeal brought back are unnecessary and that he most remove Angeal from the picture immediately. His motives are set.

Meanwhile, Zack and Angeal are talking about how Sephiroth changed. I translated this on Altocat’s blog and here is what they say:

Zack says,

“Angeal, I know you’re surprised…I can’t believe that Sephiroth changed like that…

Angeal replies,

“So, you were taken aback as well…”

Zack says,

“It was out of nowhere. We went to investigate Cloud and Tifa’s village…and I guess he discovered his origins. He killed everyone and burned down the village. He had always been the hero I strived to be…”

Zack and Angeal are both very crestfallen here, lamenting this knowledge. Angeal pulls himself together and says,

“I know…I’m disappointed too. Everything changed while I was gone, I guess.

Angeal further laments that he wasn’t there, and Zack reassures him that even though Angeal disappeared at the time and pushed everyone away, Zack would have stayed by his side and helped. Zack would have left Shinra, and he says he is sure Sephiroth felt the same way.

Angeal thanks his student but says that it was his choice and lonely path at the time—he had to carry the responsibility as a First Class soldier. Zack chastises him saying he shouldn’t think that way—after all, Zack is a First Class as well, and has enough experience. He could have helped Angeal. Angeal begins to reply, saying, “Zack…” but then they are interrupted by the others.

They say it’s time to make a decision about Sephiroth, and Cloud explains that the silver boi is planning to turn the world into an empty vessel that he may sail the cosmos with in order to find another world. An Advent Children reference, of course.

Rufus mentions that this goal is very similar to the desire of Jenova. He has to then explain what Jenova is to the other characters, as well as the Reunion theory.

This makes a lightbulb go off in Angeal’s head and he gasps, “So basically…Sephiroth is Jenova?”

He puts it together that Reunion implies that Jenova’s cells must be drawn back to their source, and since that source is currently Sephiroth, they must be the same.

However, the others simply say that Sephiroth/Jenova must be eliminated, and agree to hunt him down. Everyone nods and moves forward except Angeal, who lingers with hesitation.

In the next part, they are in the process of tracking Sephiroth, but the group notices Angeal’s troubled demeanor. They ask him if he’s okay and Kadaj says that he heard about Sephiroth being Angeal’s good friend. He says that it must be disheartening to see Sephiroth in his current state, since nothing is like it used to be.

Angeal notes Kadaj’s own tone of disappointment and Kadaj explains how Sephiroth used him as a puppet to find Jenova’s remains, which horrifies Kadaj because if Sephiroth and Jenova are the same, then his own “mother” used and betrayed him in such a way.

Angeal encourages Kadaj and gives him one of his classic pep talks, appealing to his usual “dreams and honor” code. Tifa notes that Zack often spoke the same way, prompting Angeal to recall teaching Zack all those things.

In response to Kadaj, he then says he was indeed surprised by hearing what Sephiroth did, but he says that,

“Sephiroth had his honor once too…and he has a tendency to hold onto things, so even if I am surprised, I can’t abandon him…”

The others say that they aren’t sure if Angeal’s words can reach Sephiroth, who was cruel enough to destroy Tifa and Cloud’s village. Tifa agrees as she recalls how she begged Sephiroth to explain why he did what he did, but she does say to Angeal that she believes he could have a better chance.

She kindly compliments him on how his “dreams and honor” philosophy had helped her as well. :,)

She encourages Angeal, saying that his words will surely be a beacon and that he should try to speak with Sephiroth again. Angeal hangs his head sorrowfully and agrees, saying,

“I don’t want to give up on him….so I’ll try as hard as I can…”

—

This is a good place to stop because the next chapters are where everything gets chaotic, but for now, we have some build-up for what Angeal wants to do, and for Weiss being a stand-in for Genesis later.

—

Some little notes:

The Zack and Angeal scenes were very sweet, as Zack wants to convince his old mentor to stop shouldering everything alone. Angeal’s absolute refusal to give up on Seph tugs at the heartstrings too, and I find it so sweet that Tifa actually encouraged him.

The “Sephiroth is Jenova” point is fascinating, but I believe we will soon find that Seph’s own will is blended into Jenova’s, as they are aligned, and this might be what reveals to Angeal that there may not be much hope for his old friend. :(

I am struggling with the Weiss and Seymour discussion, and this has been one of the parts that has slowed me down, because the context is hard to decipher, but I suspect that Weiss is comparing Sephiroth and Angeal to the figures in Loveless, which also becomes relevant later. I will update as soon as I can get an explanation from my Japanese friend. I am not skilled enough to decipher everything yet on my own, you see. 😅

But enjoy this for now, and I will be back with more soon! <3

[rosy-crow]

I guess I forgot to even post about this because I just have taken for granted all the obsessive details me and @altocat have discussed about Glenn in Rebirth…..but….

….in this shot (ha….shot), the background looks coastal, kinda like the Wutai/Rhadore area. Glenn is wearing the same cloak as here…..

…when he confronts Sephiroth….

And based on his face, it’s younger Glenn. So uh.

Did Rufus shooting Glenn happen right after the Ever Crisis sequence? Were they in Wutai still??

And who is Glenn facing here to allow Rufus to sneak up and shoot? Or is he just walking away?

If he is facing someone, well….

The Rebirth Ultimania apparently clarified that Sephiroth uses the black-robed men to mess with Cloud. The Glenn spectre that torments Rufus is also a black robe, and Seph is again revealed to be behind it, meaning that this dialogue….

….is also Seph. He knows Glenn was shot in the back and murdered, despite the deed being Rufus’ tight-lipped secret in Rebirth. Did Seph figure it out from the Lifestream?? Maybe, but he also could have witnessed it.

Now the question is, was this some big confrontation between these three characters and will we see this scene where Glenn dies at the end of The First Soldier? Or will we have to wait till part three? WHAT IS GOING ON.

[somebodys-nightmare]

Cloud, Zack, & Aerith: Fate, Destiny, Friendship, & Love

This is a piece I originally posted on Twitter that I'm sharing here.

I don't think we talk enough about how Cloud feels about Zack, Aerith, her feelings for him, & the conflicted position this must put him in. I think Rebirth purposefully addressed this & there will be resolution for these characters in Part 3.

Like OG, it's clear Aerith has feelings for Cloud. However, the game does not create a mutual romantic subplot between her & Cloud. That development is saved for Tifa (subject for another day). It develops a deep friendship bond & comradery despite Aerith's feelings for Cloud.

In Chapter 11, Cloud recalls a memory of Zack in the Nibelheim Inn. The subject of the memory is specifically their love lives - Zack asking Cloud if he has a girlfriend in town, and then gushing about his own - Aerith. Cloud is visibly shaken by the memory of this information.

His recollections are still messy and tangled by Jenova's interference, but the fact remains that he remembers critical information that is factual - Zack was his friend, he fought with Zack as comrades five years ago, and Zack loved Aerith.

This is an expansion/new development from the OG, where he was not remembered until after the Lifestream scene and after Aerith's death. Bringing this information to light now has huge implications for Cloud's emotional state as well as his character.

(As an aside, it's also worth pointing out that those of us who played Crisis Core know that Cloud, in a similar Nibelhiem inn scene, has a heart-to-heart of his own with Zack about his feelings for the girl he loves - background knowledge that contextualizes things further).

While crossing the Gunnthra River bridge later, Cloud has another Zack memory, This time, it's of the bridge collapse five years ago, and the Jenova conflation causes Cloud to falsely remember that Zack died here, allowing him to continue living his SOLDIER persona delusion.

Cloud specifically laments that he's forgotten his friend, and states Aerith deserves to know what's happened to him. Cloud knows that Zack and Aerith were in love, and he knows from their visit to Zack's parent in Gongaga that Aerith still carries feelings for Zack.

Tifa, knowing Cloud's recollection of events are wrong/corrupted but unable to reconcile why, intercepts Cloud telling Aerith so that he doesn't communicate the wrong information & further exacerbate his deteriorating condition, & so that she can buy time to uncover the truth.

Let's head to the Gold Saucer. It's an interesting narrative decision to have this plot line lead here, which is why I think it was specifically introduced to bring context & eventual resolution to the romantic entanglements of these four characters - Cloud, Tifa, Aerith, & Zack.

On Aerith's date, much like the OG, she waxes poetically about Cloud's similarities to Zack and how she became drawn to him. Unlike OG, though, Cloud has already remembered who Zack is, as well as both his AND Aerith's relationships with him.

Like OG, Aerith laments that now, she wants to be w/ & find the real Cloud. We know the true Cloud has buried romantic feelings for Tifa (again- subject for another day) & so he won't reciprocate. That notwithstanding, Cloud is now also conflicted by his friendship w/ Zack.

It seems to me that Cloud wanted to clear the air about Aerith's advances on him and his relationship and past with Zack. This follows a plot line that started when they first met, and their unwitting conversations about Zack that have threaded throughout their relationship.

I know some fans may interpret that Cloud wants this out in the open so he can make a move on Aerith, but aside from that both being a terrible read on Cloud's character & ignoring the fact that he is still in the throes of an identity crisis, Tifa's date directly debunks this.

On Tifa's date, during an awkward pause in which both characters seem stuck on what to say next, Cloud also brings up their earlier conversation about Zack to see if Tifa told Aerith. This indicates that it's been weighing on his mind, & that he still wants closure about it.

Again, we see that Tifa did tell Aerith, but again, she isn't forthcoming w/ Cloud about this, because of the sensitive nature of the situation & Cloud's incongruent & incorrect memories. The complete truth is not available yet & she doesn't want to make the situation messier.

Cloud brings up that Aerith must still have feelings for Zack - remembering again what both of his friends told him they felt for each other. But Tifa says it's a little more complicated than that - acknowledging that SHE knows that Aerith has feelings for Cloud.

Cloud takes on her meaning and seems somewhat surprised by this, as he physically reacts & looks up. I don't think he's surprised that Aerith likes him (she makes it pretty obvious) but I think he IS surprised that Tifa knows.

This is especially important in a broader context that given the nature of his relationship with Tifa up to that point, from his perspective, is far different from his relationship with Aerith.

It is at this point that Tifa begins to express doubt about being on a date with Cloud, their intimacy, and ultimately, whether their feelings are mutual. Cloud takes this opportunity to quite explicitly dissuade those doubts, both verbally and physically.

So what's next? I'm not doing an analysis of the Ch14 "date" w/ Cloud & Aerith here, but its narrative purpose is to highlight Aerith's complicated internal conflict regarding her grief for Zack & feelings for Cloud before her death. Meanwhile, Zack is still trying to reach her.

Cloud and Tifa may have exchanged mutual feelings during a magical moment before things go south in the broader storyline, but they haven't had their true reunion or reconciliation yet. And neither have Aerith and Zack, or Cloud and Zack, OR Aerith and Cloud, or that matter.

I believe once Cloud is restored, all these relationships will be reconciled & revealed for what they are - romantic relationships or friendships - that were forged by fate & destiny and experienced through trauma, loss, perseverance, and love, all major themes of the game.

[ariseur]

hey!!! ive been reading your sephiroth fanfics recently and it has been such an intricate work of art i genuinely feel the emotion and love put into it, your writing is just perfect in terms of how you write his character! i was wondering if i could request a seph x reader maybe during or post advent children and is really angsty with some fluff regarding his return??? it's vague (sorry😭) but i know if you did take up on it youd do fantastic!! 💖🫶🏻

liberabo volucres 𓆩ꨄ︎𓆪

sephiroth (ffvii) x reader

┊ ˚➶ notes ｡˚ 🎼

omg you are literally so sweet!!!! thank you so much for this request, although i don’t think i did it justice 😭 i wasnt quite sure how to go about this considering after advent children, the remnants of seph faded into the lifestream (i think?) so it’s more angsty with lots of mentions of kadaj, but i hope you like it either way!! i’m glad you enjoy my sephiroth fics and don’t hesitate to send more asks!! love this one 💕

┊ ˚➶ warnings ｡˚ 🎼

mentions of kadaj and remnants of seph, written in a yearning type of way where you still have a hole in your heart left from sephiroth, don’t ask where you came from at the beginning!! just enjoy it 😭, intended lowercase, mentions of kissing kadaj’s forehead, lmk if i missed anything!!

┊ ˚➶ word count ｡˚ 🎼

1327 words, 7173 characters

. ˚◞♡ ⃗ *ೃ༄ . ˚◞♡ ⃗ *ೃ༄ . ˚◞♡ ⃗ *ೃ༄ . ˚◞♡ ⃗ *ೃ༄

“cloud,” your voice only a faint whisper as you called out to the blond, “what did you do?” he lifted his head, his skin glossier with the droplets of rain falling on his face. his eyes widened at the sight of you, chest still rising and lowering rapidly as he recovered from his battle with sephiroth. how foreign that name felt on your tongue, now.

you got up from your hiding spot beyond the debris, knees aching from how long you were crouched as your feet slammed against the flat surface of the floor. you watched as your kadaj’s catlike slits for pupils— pupils that constantly reminded you that he was still apart of sephiroth, despite his role as being only a remnant of your lover— flickered towards you with whatever energy he had left. the corner of kadaj’s lips quirked upwards ever the slightest as you rushed over him, cloud moving out of your way as he stood up.

cloud’s words, albeit firm, lay dormant in your brain, “he was going to kill me—kill us all.” and even with his sharp tone, you didn’t pay him any mind. the only thing you could focus on was kadaj’s eyes trained on yours, scoffing as he rasped out, “such— a drama.. queen.” you softly shushed him, watching as his eyes became emptier by the minute. your throat stung as a choked sob threatened to escape its enclosure behind your uvula. kadaj lifted his hand only for you to grasp it, moist leather clutched in your palm as you placed it back to his chest. he intertwined your fingers, a wince leaving his lips as you held his head up.

it took everything not to look away from him. his hair, his eyes, even the way he smelled, reminded you of sephiroth. sometimes, you wish it had been different. you wish you would’ve been there when it had happened, and even now, your memory’s fuzzy of the events. all you remember was the day sephiroth left you, and you haven’t stop thinking about him since. you wished he had come to you, and apart of you was angry. maybe you were angry that he left you with no word, or maybe angry that instead of opening up to you, he decides to burn a village down in his spiral, or maybe you weren’t angry at all.

you paused, taking another look at kadaj’s furrowed eyebrows and his lidded eyes. you wonder if this is how sephiroth felt upon his notice of who he really was— what he really was. he was only in his twenties when it happened, you couldn’t have imagined how he felt. you remembered; his friends, gone and turned against shinra, and with all the pressure on him about the cover-up, you thought that maybe it wasn’t entirely his fault. you realized now, that you can’t get what you want from this world without taking it yourself. saying please didn’t scratch the itch in the back of your throat the way that anger did, and you assumed sephiroth felt the same.

clasping kadaj’s hand, he let out a weak sigh. you let your hand, although shaky and so weak that you can’t make a fist, card a piece of his hair out his face; your heart ached at your hands in his silver hair, mind racing back to when you’d brush sephiroth’s hair for him. a true honor, you’d always call it.

the way kadaj’s eyes widened and his ears perked up made you pause, like he was listening for something. even with cloud’s tense presence behind you, you refused to let go of the part of sephiroth, your part of sephiroth. the only part you had of him left. you couldn’t be angry at cloud. he was only doing what he thought was best— and in the end, maybe it was for the best, you thought. you couldn’t even be angry at yourself, your mind only clouded with grief as your sniffles and teary sighs filled the air.

the sound of kadaj’s arm moving, leather rubbing against itself, interrupted your soft cries as he lifted his hand up to the sky. a soft whisper of, “mother—?” left his lips.

your hand snaked up and you rubbed your thumb against his cheek, watching as he turned his head towards you slowly. a teary sound left your lips, you weren’t even sure if it was a sob or a laugh. but you leaned down, pressing one last kiss to his forehead as his eyelashes fluttered, just the way sephiroth’s did when you’d lay with him in the morning where golden rays would seep through the curtains and shine onto your beloved.

all good things must come to an end, you realized, as you watched the only physical evidence that sephiroth had coexisted with you fade into the lifestream, his arm fading into reduced crystallized mako. you closed your eyes, shoulders heaving as you tried stifling your thick cries; after all, cloud was still behind you. you held onto kadaj’s hand until it was no more, his body being lifted up and vanishing although you couldn’t bear to watch it. and you didn’t open your eyes, not for a long while, in hopes that maybe you’d be back in the comfort of your home as you heard heavy footsteps trail behind you to the kitchen, sephiroth’s content face across from yours at the dinner table. and you didn’t open your eyes until you heard a low hum, beyond the loud sounds of the rain hitting the concrete, beyond your own shaking breaths. this couldn’t have been cloud, you thought. your head lifted up and squinted so as to not get any rain in your eyes.

and there he was— or more so a faded version of him. even in the rain, you couldn’t help but gawk at him in awe, his hair flowing so gracefully even in the humidity of the rain. even if you were dreaming, you’d wish you would never wake in hopes of spending one last minute with the one you held dearest to your heart. one last moment with sephiroth and you’d feel like you’d finally be complete.

his eyes, still sleek and catlike how you always remembered, almost look amused. he held a smile at you, his head cocking at the sight. you didn’t want to think of the possibility that this was just a hallucination of your grief. this was more than that. sephiroth was more than that.

he gave you a nod, a nod of which you didn’t understand. ever so esoteric, you thought. the way he always was after nibelheim. you sat back on your haunches, your knees still against the wet, cold floor— taking one last look at sephiroth before he turned around. his head tipped back, fingers twitching as he let himself face the sky, until he finally let himself go and faded away as well.

your lip trembled, a teary laugh releasing itself from your throat until cloud put a soft, awkward hand on your shoulder. head turning to face him, your eyes met his. you realized now that cloud did what was best, and you couldn’t possibly blame him for that.

he cleared his throat, almost cautiously as if you’d snap at him for interrupting the silence, “we have to go. i’m sure tifa’s waiting for us.”

you sniffled, wiping your eyes from both the rain and the tears that littered your cheeks. looking back down at your lap, once where kadaj laid, you were met with emptiness. closing your eyes once more, you inhaled and let the air fill your lungs. the first deep breath of air that you’ve taken in what feels like years, one that felt fresher— almost bittersweet. and when you turned back to cloud, you gave him a firm nod.

the urge to be changed is not metamorphosis, you realized. you can’t be changed without making a change of your own.

[castellankurze]

ok but for real FF14 fans we gotta talk about the next 20 years in Eorzea cause it's gonna be wild

*There's gonna be some general Shadowbringers & Endwalker spoilers in this post.*

I'm making this now because something in 6.5 reminded me of this idea - no spoilers for 6.5 in particular though.

------------------------------------

So first, quick refresher: the FF14 setting has a pretty standard for the genre afterlife wherein souls of the dead merge with the planet's lifestream, they beat about for awhile, maybe ruminate on their past life, and then they can either merge with the greater whole or be reborn as new people. This got outlined all the way back in the 2.x patch series and became a major part of the plot for the Shadowbringers expansion, wherein the Warrior of Light is revealed to be a reincarnation of the ancient soul of Azem, or how the character Gaia is also a reincarnation of one of the Ascians.

Also a major part of the Shadowbringers plot are the revelations about the secret history of the world. How in forgotten ancient times, civilization threatened by a calamity called the Final Days offered up hundreds or possibly thousands of souls to create the god that would be known as Zodiark who would preserve the world, and how in time the goddess Hydaelyn would be created as an opposition to Zodiark's power. And that she ultimately sundered him into 14 pieces - and because Zodiark's nature was fundamentally tied into the essence of the world, when he was broken so too was the very planet and every living soul upon it, divided into the singular 'Source' and thirteen 'shards.' As part of Shadowbringers' plot, the character of Ardbert is revealed to be the First-shard part of the soul of the Warrior of Light, reuniting near the end of 5.0, and to villain Emet-Selch, these sundered souls are a pitiful shadow of the powerful, vibrant beings they once were in ancient times, unworthy of life.

Now here's where things get interesting.

During the course of our Endwalker adventures, we reach the lunar prison where the body of Zodiark is held captive. Due to some villainous machinations, the ancient god's bonds have been partially broken and his essence is leaking out, taking the form of ancient shades wandering about. One in particular we speak to is named Hythlodaeus. We had previously met this character - sort of, in the form of a memory conjured by Emet-Selch. This is the true Hythlodaeus, an ancient soul sacrificed to bring Zodiark into being. Despite joining the multitude of souls and the long slumber in imprisonment, he's coherent and holds a conversation.

Unsurprisingly, as the main character of a Final Fantasy title we go on to kill our setting's oldest god, and in so doing get a good look at the effect of the sundering on Zodiark: namely that in his case it was pretty literal, splitting off pieces of his body. However the interesting part of the Endwalker's implications is that while Zodiark was sundered, the individual souls that made up his being were not - after this confrontation we see and speak to our old new friend Hythlodaeus again, and again, both in a journey to the distant past and as we call up his soul for aid at the climax of the story...and he's the same person every time.

This...strongly hints that the myriad of ancient, unsundered souls which made up the bulk of Zodiark's essence have returned to the lifestream, and while major characters like Hythlodaeus, Emet-Selch and Venat seem content to leave the cycle of reincarnation for good and pass the world on to us modern folk...is that going to be true for everyone?

Are there, in fact, dozens - hundreds - thousands of Ancient, unsundered souls milling about in the aetherial sea, contemplating a return to the living world? Will the world of Etheirys over the next few years see a sudden wave of children with incredible power as these souls start to be reborn? Will the Warrior of Light, a soul merely eight times rejoined, be eclipsed in sheer strength by the might of a new generation?

The story will probably never go to such a place - after all it would essentially undo the themes of its two biggest expansions, and besides which, the story of FF14 as a whole will probably not venture so many years down the timeline to explore such a possibility.

But still. They say everything old is someday new again.

[firstknightvulion]

Barret: So, how’d it go?

Cloud: How did what go?

Barret: You and Tifa! At the beach!

Cloud: We got ice cream.

Barret: And?!

Cloud: I got vanilla.

Barret: You got van—what else did you do?!

Cloud: Uh, walked the beach?

Barret: Good, good. But did you seal the deal?

Cloud: What deal?

Barret: Lifestream, help me. Did you kiss her?

Cloud: Why would I do that?!

Barret: You were on a date!

Cloud: No, no! Trust me. Tifa…Tifa doesn’t see me that way! *looks down sadly* We’re just friends.

Sometime later…

Barret sits at the end of a dock at Costa del Sol, staring out at the setting sun. His sunglasses cover his eyes. His cheeks are stained with tears. At his side sits a bottle of whiskey, almost empty. A hollowness fills his soul as he thinks about Cloud and Tifa.

Barret: They’re, they’re…just so fucking stupid.

Aerith takes the whiskey bottle and finishes it off. Sunglasses sit on her face and tears stream down her stoic face. She places the empty bottle back on the dock and continues sitting next to Barret.

I’m definitely projecting now. And I didn’t want Aerith alone on her pain. Spread the suffering you know.

Edit:

These people are my favorite characters in any form of media.

[plounce]

thancred blames a lot of shit on himself wrt minfilia that aren't really his fault at all: not saving minfilia's dad from the goobbue (he wasn't the one that intentionally set it loose also he was 17 years old); not saving minfilia from being absorbed into the lifestream at the end of ARR (she very well could have escaped with the WoL and instead chose to listen to hydaelyn and run back); not saving minfilia from getting sent to the first (that was urianger doing Gambits for the Greater Good, and minfilia agreed to go along with it to help the first). and nobody's really mad at him for any of this (save f'lhaminn for not hanging out with minfilia more when she was a kid) and he has piled up all this self-blame and self-loathing about it all that this tangled mountain of guilt causes him to fail his "second chance" in ryne: he's really cold and distant towards her! she is so emotionally neglected by him, because he knows that he feels too strongly about the situation to treat her fairly, so he just doesn't treat her any way at all except for "defensive". i think it's interesting and cool how his self-perception of his "failures" boil over into becoming fueling his major character failure of the entire story so far. which he then of course resolves by nearly killing himself to give her the chance to be able to determine what she herself wants to do. but since ryne chooses to want to live and be with the people she values, thancred also gets to live, so her dad can give her a new name that is wholly born from their time together on the first. he's finally accepted that he did & has done all he can for the source's minfilia. being on the brink of death probably helps propel this acceptance lmao but ffxiv's themes mean that his loved ones arrive in time to rez him. ALSO he has to live because he never actually SAID any of the feelings he expressed during the ran'jit fight to ryne. he's just talking to his villainous paternal foil and himself. after constantly going "ill say smth when the time is right" he HAS to be able to SAY Good Dad Words to her to satisfy the character arc. anyway thancred don't be so hard on yourself except for the thing you directly sucked at for years

[dutchdread]

Hello Dutch, don't you think Cloud kissed Tifa too soon? The big reveal in the Lifestream scene is the hidden romantic feelings Cloud had for Tifa, but now that revelation won't be as impactful because he has already declared his feelings for her.

This is actually something I've been thinking about myself, and I think that you could definitely make an argument for this being the case. That having been said I think it's a matter of personal….for lack of a better word, choice. I think you can choose to be negative and see it as such, but rather than looking at "what could have been" you can also choose to look at what we actually got and see if there is a positive way to see it.

First lets look at what we didn't get though. We didn't get 2 games of Cloud and Tifa not showing any romantic interest in each other…..can we agree that that's a good thing? Because honestly that would SUCK!!!!! And if we consider how bad the backlash was back in 1997 when the "Tifa is the true love interest" reveal happened in the game itself how bad would it have been if we'd instead had had 8 years and two games of them seemingly being mostly platonic?

People would be absolutely bamboozled, they'd feel it came out of nowhere and probably have felt rather scammed. Clotis would have hated the first two games with a passion, and Cleriths (which would include every new player) would be rioting at the third.

So then the choice is between including it subtly, or going all in. Well, if they went subtle, it would still be noticeable, so the idea that Cloud might have a crush on Tifa would still no longer be a reveal. This isn't 1997, models have facial animations now, they have micro expressions. Back in 1997 being "not interested" or being in love was represented with the same vertical stripe, so regular interactions essentially revealed very little information about a characters emotions.

Pictured: Complete disinterest, or, complete sexual desire. You decide!

But in 2024 the same thing no longer applies. Every sentence, even the simple speaking of a name, comes with a host of meaning. You can't have Cloud speak Tifas name as though it means nothing for 2 games, and still expect people to be on their side when it comes to romance. And you can't expect people to hear Cloud speak Tifas name with longing for 8 years and then still be surprised that he's into her.

So the reveal was always dead in the water, and they instead went all in, because why not? You see, the reveal isn't exactly that Cloud is in love with Tifa. The reveal is the depth of the love, how far back it's gone, and all the things it has caused. Not just that Cloud has and had a crush on Tifa, but that it's been his entire raison d'etre for the past 10 or so years. When Yuffie asks Cloud whether he liked Tifa when he was younger, and he answered "don't remember", this scene suddenly became a lot more poignant as the player realizes that was actually either a bold-faced lie, or very tragically ironic.

The viewer is left wondering if Cloud, even as we were playing him then, was at least aware of his love of Tifa, but wasn't showing it due to his mask, or if even he genuinely forgot the very thing that set him on this path (personally I think that while Cloud is totally unsure of who or what he is, that he is 100% aware that he deeply loves Tifa, even at the start of Remake).

And if we're going to be explicit anyway, then what difference does it make whether he kisses her or not? The reveal that Cloud likes Tifa is gone with or without it, so might as well go with it. And while the reveal might be less impactful for us, there is one person who, even with the kiss, will still be blown away by it. The most important person, Tifa. To Tifa the kiss probably didn't reveal as much as it did to us, because Tifa has no clue what is really going on with Cloud, nor the state of his psyche. With everything he's been doing she could very well be wondering if the person who kissed her was even Cloud. So the reveal that it wasn't just Cloud that kissed her, but that it's so utterly him that he had been longing for it his entire life will feel SOOOOOOO unfathomably relieving that the mere second hand experience that we the player will get through empathy with Tifa will more than compensate for any loss of shock, IF it is done right.

So I guess what I am trying to say is, don't worry, the reveal isn't ruined. Because the reveal will still recontextualize everything that came before it. Before the reveal Cloud hugging Tifa in remake feels like a dude being hugged but being a bit uncomfortable because of his brooding personality, and not knowing what to do, but deciding to hug back because he's grown closer to his childhood friend over the course of the game, and has developed some feelings for her (essentially what Cleriths think Aerith and Cloud are experiencing at the end of Rebirth XD).

After the reveal Tifa hugging Cloud feels like a huge dork getting everything he's dreamed about his entire life and having absolutely no clue what to do because he's so shy and awkward and "omg I never thought I'd get this far, don't screw this up, don't screw this up". Before the reveal Cloud kissing Tifa feels like a cool guy who loves Tifa giving her the kiss they both desire, but probably Tifa most of all. After the reveal the kiss feels like Cloud winning a thousand jackpots at once. A sweet boy whose heart is probably pounding out of this chest and is barely managing to stay cool.

And there is a second improvement to the story resulting from the kiss. Namely the increased sense of loss and pain associated with Cloud drifting away from Tifa and finally breaking. In the original its sad to watch Tifa cry out about losing Cloud, but it's nothing compared to what we get in Rebirth, let alone what we will hopefully get in part 3. There can be no doubt that the reason it hits so hard when Cloud rips away Tifas hand in the temple of the ancients after he tried killing Elena is because the game so effectively established the bond between Cloud and Tifa. Him forcefully removing her hand has become viscerally shocking. Both because it now shows extra clearly how far gone Cloud is, but also because it makes Tifas experience extra tragic.

Without the romance and kiss it would have just been Tifa losing the Cloud she had found by the tracks. She wanted to find the boy she'd fallen in love with, she had wanted to rekindle something, but ultimately she wouldn't have done so, and therefore losing him would feel less painful. It's far more painful to have something and lose it than to never have it in the first place. With the romance and the kiss Tifa actually found that boy and bond that she'd thought about for so long. And to finally find that one sliver of happiness and then to have it ripped away right when she needed it most…..well it cuts twice as hard. When she takes care of Cloud in Mideel, knowing what she lost, having only ever gotten that kiss…..well, it cuts twice as deep.

And of course, this will also make the reveal in the lifestream that she never lost the real Cloud, all the more amazing. (OH THANK GOD, I finally figured out why TUMBLR was randomly not allowing me to post longer posts)

[invitedeath]

do you think sephiroth is the kind of person who gets cuteness aggression, its funny to think about. he seems like the type of person who'd rip your head off because he thinks ur cute ngl <3 cuts you in half because ur so damn cute ^_^

[altocat]

Do you think Sephiroth knows Lucrecia is his mother now?

I'm currently holding onto the belief that he doesn't. At least, not in a detailed sense. Yes, he should technically be able to figure it out using the knowledge from the Lifestream. But he never makes mention of it at all, nor does his relationship with Jenova really seem to change in any way. Lucrecia is kind of an extremely important character throughout the Compilation. If they were going to connect the dots with her and Seph, they would have had him say something by now. Maybe they will do something of that nature in Part 3. But I don't think so. Sephiroth seems pretty unshaken in the belief he is Jenova's son, complete with conceptualizing himself as something inhuman and of Jenova's heritage, despite coming from two human parents. Again, someone with Sephiroth's massive ego would have openly refuted alternative claims out loud, especially during one of his monologues. The fact that he never refers to himself as anything other than Jenova's son leads me to believe that he really doesn't know about Lucrecia at all.

Plus, there's Opera Omnia to consider. Vincent pretty much outright TELLS Sephiroth about Lucrecia...only for Sephiroth to completely blow him off.

Keep in mind that the full context of this exchange is framed with Sephiroth going on and on about Jenova, only for Vincent to refute him with claims about Lucrecia without actually mentioning Lucrecia's name. It's treated like a reveal to Sephiroth, only for Sephiroth to ignore what Vincent is saying. So Sephiroth's rejection isn't "hey I know about Lucrecia and I don't fucking care what you have to say about her she sucks" and more of "I have no idea what you're going on about, but it's annoying so shut up".

At this point, and idk if there's a Jenova-influenced mental block or if Seph is in denial or what--but Sephiroth is not aware of Lucrecia's existence. And honestly, I'd prefer that. Part of the tragedy is that they will never truly meet each other. And Sephiroth is so arrogant and insane that he clings to the delusion of Jenova without considering alternatives. Pretty messed up.