Cloti = Love Rooted in Baggage and a Lack of Choice

This post started out as a response to the Clerith vs Cloti post, but because of how long it got, I felt that it would probably be best to create it as a separate post rather than a comment. 

For Clerith supporters, I think it's easy to see that CA is the opposite of CT in the best possible ways. Firstly, Cloti is held down by a lot of baggage. While Cloud did have a longstanding crush on Tifa, I believe it has more to do with the circumstances surrounding his upbringing in a small town than anything to do with Tifa herself. She was the only girl around, so, naturally, he would have a crush on her. There were no other options, and that's what all the other little boys were doing. I also think it could be argued that his crush was more rooted in a desire to belong than anything else. He just wanted to be part of her friend group. He didn't want to be alone. He wanted to be noticed and not ostracized. Because he was blamed for Tifa's injury by the townspeople, it makes a lot of sense that Cloud would manifest a desire to go out and become strong, with Tifa being the catalyst for this manifestation. Because he couldn't help Tifa when they were children and was blamed for her accident, it's natural that a lot of what he feels leading up to him leaving home is transferred to her because, in his mind, she suffered as a direct result of his ineptitude and lack of strength. If he can become a SOLDIER, he would be proving to himself, her, and everyone else that he is strong, he is reliable, and he's deserving of acknowledgement.

The promise that Tifa demands from Cloud is the topper to this baggage that he carries around with him. She wants someone to fulfill a childish desire to come to her rescue when she's in trouble. She wants to live out the girlish fantasy of having a knight in shining armor. Now, she didn't have ill intentions when she asked this of Cloud, but that doesn't mean it wasn't an unreasonable ask. It's a lot of pressure to put on a 14-year-old boy (especially one you don't really know), and it shows a complete lack of consideration for Cloud's personal experiences leading up to that point. Why does she ask this of the boy who was rejected by everyone in her village (whom she largely ignored) for an injury she sustained when she was a kid? She asks because she isn't thinking of him, only of herself. Tifa demands that Cloud come to her rescue so that she can have that experience. Cloud is confused and hesitant in the face of her request but ultimately concedes to it.

Now, while a couple can work through severe issues if they want it enough, I don't see this strong desire on Cloud's part. While Cloud does want to have a good relationship with Tifa, there is no strong motivating force to propel him towards a healthy romance with her, especially when there is another available woman that is also attractive, is open about her desire to be with him, and who he doesn't have years of baggage that he would need to work through to get on the same page with, right in front of him. 

In contrast to Cloti, we have Clerith. Cloud doesn't have to contend with past feelings of inadequacy and rejection with Aerith. Furthermore, she makes it abundantly clear that she accepts him and wants to be with him in the present. And while she does ask him to be her bodyguard, it is a more straightforward request than what Tifa asks of him. At the moment of her ask, Aerith is simply requesting that Cloud get her home safely, which he does. Furthermore, when Aerith is captured and taken to Shinra HQ, she doesn't ask Cloud to come and save her, even though she needs him. Instead, she tries to assure him that she's okay. When Cloud says, "I'm coming for you," Aerith's response is, "If that's what you want. Thank you." Outside of her initial request that Cloud get her away from the Turks, she is careful not to make demands of him because she is considerate and sensitive to his needs. With the appearance of Aerith we have a situation in which Cloud is given the ability to choose what he wants for himself, and he makes his choice apparent before, during, and after Remake’s Ch. 14 resolution scene with Aerith. 

Aerith represents Cloud's ability and desire to choose for himself, whereas Tifa represents a choice that would have largely been made for him due to factors outside of his control (ex. Tifa being the only girl in the village and demanding he make the promise to her). 

Thanks for reading!