Ff7 Rebirth Spoilers - Tumblr Posts

when this happened in rebirth i was so surprised.... somehow i never got spoiled about cloud being influenced by sephiroth like this in my 20+ years online lol

Ignoring all the shipping Fandom junk going about now that ff7 rebirth is out. I just want to be out here theorizing on where the story is going. I already know there are going to be people who hate it and that's okay, personally I enjoyed it.

Spoilers bellow

ZACK MY BELOVED PLEASE JUST BE ALIVE IN ANOTHER TIMELINE!

Why does it seem like at certain points Sephiroth and Aerith have similar goals going on but just different methods?

Sephiroth really trying to mess Cloud's head up more than he did in Canon.

The multiple timelines is kind of implying that either cloud got messed up even more and he's just projecting Aerith as alive or he is seeing an Aerith of one of the timelines that Sephiroth is trying to merge with theirs. Could be both as well but Cloud also seeing the thing in the sky that was in the other timeline while the others don't kinda makes me lean a little more towards him seeing other timelines.

If the dark whispers are Sephiroth's then the light whispers must be Aerith's. She's trying to see who can be saved and he might be trying to ensure his victory??

Weird idea, with the mention of the fake promised land and the people who cannot join the life stream would Sephiroth also not be able to join the lifestream? If he is post og timeline Sephiroth could he have two different plans? A sort of back up plan perhaps?

Cait Sith is a gem.

They scared me so many Times thinking they would kill Zack again. Not sure if Biggs is fully dead or just wounded, could go either way...trying to be optimistic here.

Lost my mind when Sephiroth confirmed my theory that beating fate caused multiple versions of Gaia to come into existence multi-verse shit and all.

Aerith seems to be trying to pull people who survived in these other timelines into their timeline, at least in Zack's case.

I'm very curious to see where this story goes and how they wrap it up.

Still can't believe that No Promises to Keep makes me cry everytime but the ending makes me feel nothing

My post game AU

!Warning spoilers for Rebirth ahead!

Canon differences:

Aerith asked Tifa out on the Shinra 8 and their first date was in Costa

Cloud went on his "date" with Red while the girls had their own date

Tifa helped save Aerith by leveraging Cloud's sword to deflect Sephiroth's blade

Aerith was saved but has a scar on her back from where masamune grazed her

^approximate scar locations for the girls

Post game:

As a reward the Planet revives/heals several loved ones for the gang; Ifalna, Myrna, Seto, Brian Lockhart, the Avalanche trio, Zack, Sonon, & Claudia Strife

Aerith and Tifa live in the plains outside of Kalm where Aerith grows a variety of flowers and vegetables

Tifa works in Kalm as a bartender and eventually comes to own the bar

Cloud and Jessie reunited and finally have their date

They never truly settle, but Jessie picks up acting gigs at the Saucer while Zack and Cloud are traveling mercenaries (though Cloud tends to stay near Corel)

Barret and Myrna pick up where they left off and she helps him reintegrate into Corel's society where they both work to improve the town

Marlene is skeptical of Mryna at first but warms to her quickly, she has a brief depressive period when they have a son but Barret reassures her that she isn't a lesser member of the family

With Seto returned to flesh, he takes time to connect with his son and really teach him about their history and how proud he is.

They work together to find a cure for the Gi

Claudia settles down in Corel wanting to remain close to Cloud and also not wanting to return to Nibelheim

Brian and Ifalna settle near Kalm as well (separately they just live near each other)

Ifalna helps Aerith learn about her culture and helps out with the plant business

Brian works as a farm hand at Bill's

Tifa and Jessie were the ones to propose, Aerith said yes before Tifa finished and Cloud thought Jessie was joking (but said yes once it was cleared up)

The kids:

Rosalind Ifalna Gainsborough-Lockhart: goes by Rosie, the older of the twins, black hair and green eyes, she takes more after Aerith physically and in personality but has very little connection to the Planet and magic so she learned Zangan martial arts and the Bo staff, she was a very sick child her parents thought she wouldn't make it into adulthood, while very outgoing she suffers from self-confidence issues and often puts herself down, she is shorter than Lily and hates it (~5'4" while Lily is ~5'8") the twins have middle names because their moms couldn't decide what names they wanted so they gave them names to honor their mothers and flower like names at Aerith's request

Lillian Thea Gainsborough-Lockhart: goes by Lily to her friends and Lillian to everyone else, the younger twin, brown hair and red-brown eyes she takes more after Tifa, she is nearsighted and wears glasses, not as physical as her sister she gained a higher affinity with magic and their Cetra bloodline, she uses bracelets and finger claws just incase an enemy gets too close, she prefers tai chi since it is not combat focused but can perform some basic strikes, seeing the suffering her sister went through caused her to mature faster than her parents wanted from her but she never regrets helping take care of her sister, serious and quiet she often comes off as cold and emotionless but truly cares about all life and has a dry sense of humor, she is very sure of herself and her abilities so she tries her best to raise up her sister whenever possible, they developed a fighting style to synergize her magic with Rosie's physical abilities

Dyne Wallace: Born shortly after the events of the game making him the oldest of the kids, very much takes after his father in personality and physicality but decided to have long hair that his mother loves to style, around 6'4", he is more humble than his dad but still over the top and goofy, not a fighter at all he wants to become an ecological preservationist, becomes an older brother figure for the twins and Cloud's daughter, though he is easily convinced to make mischief

Claire Strife: Born the same year as the twins coincidentally, soft blond hair and brown eyes she looks like her dad but has her mother's personality, about 5'6", to Cloud's excitement she shows no interest in fighting and wants to become a performer like her mom though she is very skilled with the buster sword, she develops a crush on Lily (which is reciprocated) but neither of them are convinced the other likes them, she has a very close relationship with both of her grandmothers and loves to cook with them

Might add more later but add your own thoughts if you'd like!

Ya know I really love how ambiguous Rebirth is in terms of shipping, like I ship Aerith and Tifa and throught the game I was like "dang this kinda fruity, cant wait for the fanfics/art" I also saw more than plenty for the Aerith/Cloud, Tifa/Cloud, heck even some Yuffie/Cloud (of the one sided pining variety). Picking Barret or Red in the play is just gold, they get all cute and blushy. All the interactions are so good that it fits just about any ship you could want. Can't forget to mention all the buff dudes gripping Clouds tiny feminine waist like the slut he is (joking). I just love the interactions in this game so much

when this happened in rebirth i was so surprised.... somehow i never got spoiled about cloud being influenced by sephiroth like this in my 20+ years online lol

I might not be able to put this the right way, and maybe others have said this already,

but to me, the main thing about Cloud and Aerith is the way he tries to grow for her and because of her.

In a way, they could be quite similar. Both are incredibly lonely, and they share similar trauma. Both have lost their mothers in tragic, malicious ways. Both are confused about their identity and past. Cloud learns how much just he has forgotten and that something is very wrong with him, just like Aerith keeps finding out how little she actually knows about her ancestry or the circumstances of her mother's death.

Cloud and Aerith both realize this and are able to sympathize with one another. Aerith is incredibly patient with Cloud and him trying to uphold the walls he built around himself at all times.

I think Cloud knows there is a fundamental difference about them, though. And, that is that despite everything that has happened while Cloud has been putting up walls and has become hardened, Aerith has not. While Cloud looks to the past, is angered, shut off, and distant, Aerith has gone the opposite route. She remained soft and hopeful. It's not to say she isn't sad or lonely or angry, which she is, but she isn't faulting the world for this. She wants things to get better, instead of wanting revenge.

Generally, I think there are relationships that make you look to the past or to the future and I don't think there's right or wrong in that if it isn't too extreme.

But I think Aerith makes Cloud look into the future. I think he's always been either checked out about looking either way, or obsessed with the past, about what happened and how to mend it.

Aerith makes him believe in a future because she has been through similar things and she has come out on the other side hopeful. Because she is still good to people and because she still loves, she still cares. And I think this makes Cloud want to grow, too.

And he's showing this in some of Aerith's darkest moments. When she acknowledges her dark thoughts on the beach, he reacts with understanding, and he helps her going forward, supporting her when he can (even without the obligatory merc fee). He encourages her to speak out about her past at the lantern festival. I think as someone being taken in by a stranger as a child, essentially putting her guardian's life at risk and bringing heavy baggage along, she learned to have to be pleasant at all times to be loved. Through Cloud, she learns that this other side of her, the one that is struggling with embracing her difficult past and path forward, is also worthy of love and protection. She says to him on the beach, she is sure, he will love future Aerith, the one she is growing into right at that moment - she, too, is changing because of him.

These moments show he really wants to be there for her the same way she is there for him. He wants to make her happy and support her. He wants to protect her while she protects the world. He feels responsible for her, and it's a role he wants to grow into, and he does.

In a way, Clouds world just gets a lot bigger while Aerith is in it. When she is there, he actually laughs, he smiles like he does with no one else, and finally, he even cries holding her in his arms, when he was on the cusp of being turned into an emotionless weapon just moments before.

This, in turn, makes Aerith open up to him in a way she doesn't do with the others, too. They both see a side of the other person nobody else gets to see.

I think this is amplified in the ending when Cloud is literally the only person who knows what happened to her, that witnessed her death and who's able to see her afterward.