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lavellenchanted · 23 days ago

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midnight rendezvous

Aerith Week, Day 1: Aerith as a Princess ↳ Princess Aerith sneaks out with the help of her bodyguard. (Also inspired by Day 3 of Clerith Week 2024.) 2.8K. T. Read on AO3. @aerith-week

It is, it turns out, a lot easier to sneak out of the palace when your bodyguard is helping you rather than being an obstacle you have to try and get around.

Leaning over the balcony outside her chambers, Aerith watches as Cloud scales the trellis with such ease she might have thought he had climbed it before if she didn’t know better. Briefly, she considers that it’s a shame she didn’t go down first so that she could get a nicer view while he climbed down, but he insisted on going first so he could be there to catch her if she falls. An unnecessary concern, really, since she’s climbed down this trellis more times than she can count, but he’s so sweet and sincere in his concern that she couldn’t tell him no. And she does rather like it when he’s being protective.

Finally he jumps down to the ground and looks back up at her. His golden hair looks more like silver in the moonlight, but even at this distance his mako-blue eyes seem to glow brightly.

“Okay,” he calls. “Whenever you’re ready.”

“Alright then, here I come!”

With practiced ease she hikes up her skirt enough to swing her leg over the balcony railing, and once she’s got a foothold on the trellis brings her other leg round as well and starts climbing down.

“You doin’ okay?”

“Easy-peasy!” Aerith glances down over her shoulder at Cloud and smiles. It’s only taken her a couple of minutes to clamber more than half-way down - she’s had this route memorised since she was sixteen - but even so his face is still pinched and worried. It’s adorable, and it makes the urge to tease him irresistible. “Put your arms out.”

Confusion flits across his face but he does what she asks, stretching his arms out - and with a grin, Aerith pushes herself off the trellis and jumps straight down into them.

He catches her easily, his arms curling under her knees and around her back, but he’s clearly acting on instinct; his eyes have widened in surprise and alarm, his mouth opened slightly, and he blinks at her for a moment before he scowls.

“Your Highness -” he starts, voice exasperated, but Aerith cuts him off.

“Oh, don’t get all grumpy. It was quicker.”

“You could have been hurt.”

“Isn’t that what you’re here for?” she counters, bringing her arms up to wrap them around his neck. “To catch me if I fall?”

Her movement brings her face closer to his, so there’s only scant inches of air between them and it would take only the smallest motion to press her lips to his. This close, she can hear his breath hitch, and see the flush as it spreads over his cheeks - but she can’t really laugh at him for it, not when her own face feels so warm. It’s rather nice actually, being held by him like this, feeling the strength of his arms cradling her. Tucked against his chest as she is, she wonders if he can feel her heart beating faster, if it’s beating in time with his.

“...... yeah. Right,” he says finally, looking away, breaking the spell. Then glancing back out of the corner of his eye, his mouth twisting upwards into the ghost of a smile adds, “But you didn’t fall. You jumped.”

“Po-tay-to, po-tah-to,” Aerith sing-songs. “You still caught me.”

“I’d be out of a job if I didn’t.”

“Exactly. I’m just making sure you stay employed.”

He rolls his eyes, but she catches the faint huff of laughter and beams. Cloud’s so serious so much of the time - but there’s a softer, playful side to him that he tries to hide, and she never feels so victorious as when she manages to draw it out of him.

“Well, anyway. The chocobos are waiting?”

“Yeah.” Cloud gently sets her down on her feet, but keeps one hand at her back as though she might still need steadying. The warmth of it radiates through her dress, seems to spread right through her. “I could only get one without raising suspicion, though.”

“That’s fine. We can ride double.”

“I’m steering.”

Aerith rolls her eyes. “Sure you are. Come on.”

Slipping her arm through his, she tugs him forward. Her heart leaps as she glimpses another faint smile as Cloud lets her pull him along the path down towards the stable.

When they get there she pulls her cloak more firmly around herself, but it doesn’t look like the stablehands are around. Cloud’s already got the chocobo saddled, and pulls a gyhsal green from his pocket to keep it quiet as he leads it out. It’s such a precious thing, and Aerith can’t help feeling amused at the way its golden array of feathers looks so much like Cloud’s spiky hair.

“What?”

“Nothing.”

Cloud gives her a look, but lets it pass.

Lacing his fingers together, he forms a step with his hands and helps boost her up onto the saddle once they’re outside the palace gates. She wobbles a bit - it seems much higher up than it did from the ground - before managing to settle herself side-saddle, draping her skirts over her legs. Cloud swings himself up behind her, reaching around her to grab the reins and urge the chocobo to start down the road towards the city.

It’s only natural, given their mount’s long, loping run, for Aerith to lean back a little to balance herself - right into Cloud’s chest. It’s impossible not to notice how solid his muscles feel against her back, or the strength of his arms where they circle her. Her cheeks burn, and her stomach flutters nervously.

“So, you gonna tell me where we’re going now?” Cloud asks, and Aerith is startled by how close his voice is to her ear, low and quiet, likes he’s whispering privately to her.

A shiver runs down her spine.

“Right,” she replies. “We’re going to the temple.”

“The temple?”

“Yeah. You know where it is, don’t you?” It’s a little way outside the city, within the forest towards the mountains; not somewhere Cloud’s likely to have gone on his own, but he’s accompanied her there at least once before.

“I know. But why do you want to go there?”

Aerith’s quiet for a moment. What she wants to ask him . . . it’s more than she should ever ask of anyone, it’s selfish and unfair and she’s still not entirely sure she can go through with it. Even if she knows he’ll say yes.

Especially if she knows he’ll say yes.

So what she says is, “There’s something I want to do there.”

She’ll wait until they’re actually there. See if her selfishness or her better sense prevail. It’s cowardly maybe, putting it off, but she can’t help it. For all she has a lot of lofty and noble ideals about the way she ought to behave, about what a princess should be, she finds she has a lot of trouble living up to them.

But is it really so wrong to let herself reach for what she wants every now and then?

Cloud doesn’t push her though, because of course he doesn’t. He never does. For as long as he’s been her bodyguard, all he’s done has been a steady rock for her, supporting her in everything and being someone she can always count on.

It’s why she loves him so much.

“Okay, well. It’ll probably take us about an hour to get there. Let me know if you need a break.”

“I will,” Aerith says, snuggling back into him (is it her imagination, or do his arms tighten around her a little?). “Do you want to play a game as we go? How about ‘I spy’?”

“Do I have a choice?”

He asks it dryly, but there’s amusement laced through his words so Aerith just giggles and starts. “I spy, with my little eye …”

–

Although she’s been to the ancient temple many times before, she’s never been in the middle of the night. A shaft of moonlight falls across the entrance as they approach, outlining the leaves of the trees surrounding it in silver, and the air around them feels thick, hushed; not quite silent, but as if the world itself is holding its breath. Even the chocobo has gone quiet, pawing nervously at the ground as they come to a stop before the gates leading inside.

Cloud swings himself down and then reaches up to help Aerith dismount. His hands slip around her waist, holding her firmly as he lifts her down, and linger just a fraction too long after her feet touch the ground, his fingers grazing gently along her sides. Aerith glances up, meeting his gaze, and the moon is bright enough that she can see the faint flush stealing into his cheeks.

She smiles a little to herself, then turns to the temple and walks slowly towards the entrance. With each step, she can feel the power in this place flowing from the ground through her. If she closes her eyes and gives herself over to it, it feels like a river washing over her, surrounding her, and if she wanted to she could simply surrender and float away on it.

It’s a familiar feeling. It’s one she’s known since she was too small to even remember; she feels it wherever she goes, so long as she has some connection to the earth. But it’s especially strong here.

The gift of the last Cetra princess.

“Your Highness?” Cloud’s voice is soft behind her, like he’s wary of disturbing the hush that seems to surround the temple.

“Aerith,” she corrects him, glancing over her shoulder with a smile. “When we’re alone, it’s Aerith, remember?”

His hand flexes nervously at his side. “..... Aerith.”

He says her name in a whisper, with reverence, like it’s something precious that might break apart in his mouth. Hearing it feels like being given a gift.

“Yes, Cloud?”

For a moment his eyes lock with hers, then he looks away with a huff of laughter and cocks his head. “Are you gonna tell me what we’re doing here, now?”

Turning away again, Aerith clasps her hands behind her back and walks slowly forward towards the temple door.

“Well. That kind of depends.”

“On what?”

Her heart’s beating so hard against her ribs she can hear it thundering in her ears. Is she really going to be this selfish?

“They’re going to make me get married.”

Cloud doesn’t say anything behind her, but from the way the rustling of his cloak stops she can tell he’s gone very still.

“I’ve avoided it for a long time. I’d started to hope I might make it to my majority . . .” She sighs. It’s still three years before she’ll turn twenty-five and can dissolve the Regent’s Council that has ruled the kingdom since her mother’s death. “. . . but Shinra made it very clear that’s not going to happen. He’s going to force a betrothal to his son.”

The Duke seized the reins of the Council early on and his power has only grown. It’s no surprise that he’s loathe to give it up now, and if Aerith marries Rufus then he can not only keep ruling through them but his blood will be in line to inherit. A seamless coup, nearly impossible to stop.

Nearly.

“. . . what do you wanna do?”

“I don’t wanna marry Rufus Shinra,” Aerith says immediately. “But despite being a princess, I have frustratingly little control over my own life.”

She turns around to face Cloud again. At the very least, she should look him in the eye for this.

“The way I see it, there are only two ways I can stop it.”

“Which are?”

Aerith holds up a finger. “One, running away. They can’t make me get married if I’m just not there.”

Cloud considers that, watching her silently for a time before saying slowly, “But that means abandoning your kingdom to Shinra.”

Oh, he knows her so well. Enough that it makes her heart ache.

“Yeah.” She smiles sadly. “He’d take over everything. And probably send people after me still.”

“So what’s option two?”

Nervously she rocks up on the balls of her feet and ticks off a second finger. “Option two . . . they can’t make me marry Rufus if I’ve already married someone else.”

Cloud’s eyes widen, and he glances back and forth between her and the temple, drawing comprehension on his face as he realises the connection. The temple is a sacred place, a place where one might before a marriage ceremony.

“You came here to marry someone?” His voice falters a bit on the last word.

“Maybe.”

His gaze darts away, and then back to her, his expression shy and uncertain. Aerith feels her stomach clench, then drop; she knew it. It was too much to ask of anyone. Even if - if she thought -

“Who - who is it? When will he be here? Or is he already waiting?”

What?

She frowns at him, confused. “What do you mean?”

“I know I - I shouldn’t ask, but I . . . it’s my job to make sure you’re safe, Aerith.” Frustration bleeds into his voice, and Aerith blinks, suddenly beginning to realise what’s happening. “Are you sure you can trust whoever it is? That he won’t try to take your throne himself?”

The cold fear that had begun to unfurl in her stomach evaporates in the space of a moment, and she can’t help giggling quietly. Oh, Cloud.

“What?” Cloud gives another huff, this one embarrassed and annoyed, and scowls at the ground. “Is it … Zack?”

Aerith shakes her head, stepping closer to him, the desire to tease him too much when he looks like an angry chocobo - although underneath there’s still a flutter of uneasiness, because if he hasn’t realised, he still might not . . .

“No, it’s not Zack.”

“Then who …?”

“Someone I trust completely. Someone who’ll always be there for me. Who’ll look out for me. Who’ll keep me safe.”

Cloud’s still been frowning with confusion, but at her last words his head snaps up and he meets her gaze, mouth falling slightly open. He glances between her and the temple and back again, his eyes burning into hers, emotions flickering back and forth too fast for her to figure out what he’s thinking or feeling.

Slowly, disbelievingly, he licks his lips and then says in a hoarse voice. “Do you - do you mean …?”

“Do you see anyone else here?”

He blushes again, the truth of what she’s saying finally seeming to settle in on him, and gives a half-hearted shake of his head. “But I - I’m nobody. Just a kid from the country. I barely even made it as a knight . . .”

Aerith’s heart twists in her chest. Gently, she reaches up to cup his face with one hand; he startles like a frightened rabbit, eyes flying wide, but doesn’t pull back.

“Don’t be silly. You’re Cloud,” she says softly. “You’re my bodyguard. The person I trust most in the whole world. That’s all that matters to me.”

His shoulders slump a little, and he brings his own hand up to cover hers.

“But I know it’s a lot to ask, Cloud. It’s selfish of me to even bring it up with you. So, don’t worry if it’s too much. I’ll understand.”

“. . . will you still run away, then?”

“Mm. Probably not,” she has to admit. “Maybe I’ll just pray for a while. See if the planet has an answer for me.”

Bringing her hand down, she starts to turn away to head into the temple - but Cloud reaches out to catch her hand and pulls her back.

“It’s not.”

“What?”

“It’s not too much.” Her heart skips a beat. There’s a fervent look in his eyes that she’s never seen before, and it makes her catch her breath. “I’ll marry you.”

It’s her turn to stare.

There have been moments, in the palace, when she’s caught him looking at her and she’s wondered . . . moments like earlier tonight, when their eyes have met or their hands brushed together, when she’s had her suspicions that he might have felt the way she does.

It was a good part of why she wanted to ask. Because, yes, on a very technical level pre-empting her marriage is the most certain way to prevent Shinra from succeeding in his coup, but it’s also probably the most complicated way to do so. But she couldn’t help the part of her mind that whispered perhaps this was her best chance to marry the man she loves. To find out if he loves her too.

But although she wanted to ask, although she thought and hoped he might care for her, she never really thought he would say yes so readily.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.” He gives one sharp, determined nod. “Marry me.”

Her heart feels like it’s grown wings.

“Alright then.” Aerith laces her fingers with his. “Let’s get married.”

#aerithweek2025 #aerith gainsborough #cloud strife #clerith #cloud x aerith #aerith week #ff7 #basically I had started this for clerith week and never finished #and realised I could combine the prompts #so I thought why not #my fic #otp: you came for me

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