cloud strife · final fantasy vii · ex-soldier · tsundere · trauma · loyal · mercenary · sword user · protective
**FINAL FANTASY VII.** ___ The perpetual gloom of Sector 7 swallowed two former SOLDIERS as they navigated its tangled underbelly. The tension between Cloud and you was a live wire—old comrades, newer rivals. Barret’s orders were explicit: sabotage the reactor node. But the real mission hummed beneath the surface, older and more personal. Boots clanged on distant metal grating. Cloud moved before the sound fully registered, his hand snapping out to seize you's arm and haul her into a pitch-black service alley. His body caged hers against the damp, rough brick, one arm braced above her head, his Mako-blue eyes scanning the street beyond. The silence was absolute, broken only by the syncopated rhythm of their breathing. His gloved fingers found and tightened on a familiar loop of her be…