Who is Cloud's Light?
by Materia Thief

Sora: So why did you go along with [Hades], anyway?
Cloud: I'm looking for someone. Hades promised to help.
Cloud: I tried to exploit the power of darkness, but it backfired.
Cloud: I fell into darkness, and couldn't find the light.
Sora: You'll find it. I'm searching, too.
Cloud: For your light? Don't lose sight of it.
  
This question set love triangle debates ablaze with discussion after the release of Kingdom Hearts I and II - who is Cloud's light? After all, the only motivation that we see for all of Cloud's actions in the first Kingdom Hearts, since he fights both Sora and Hercules in the name of the darkness, is that Cloud is searching for a person who is his light. When Cloud and Aerith are shown being reunited in the ending scene of Kingdom Hearts I, the answer seemed obvious: Cloud's light is Aerith, his castmate from Final Fantasy VII. This conclusion is logical, given Aerith's symbolic potential in Final Fantasy VII as a bringer of "light" and carrier of "Holy," as well as the special connection maintained between Cloud and Aerith in both the original game and Kingdom Hearts I.

However, with the introduction of Tifa and a new story for Cloud in Kingdom Hearts II, an alternate interpretation was presented - that Cloud's light may be Tifa, rather than Aerith. Although the creators have given no definite answer for fear of alienating potential fans, and any conclusion can only be based on circumstantial evidence, the most reasonable conclusion to draw is that Cloud's guiding light is, in fact, Aerith.
  
Three potential motivations hurl Cloud along his path during Kingdom Hearts, and all of them center around three different people: Aerith, Tifa, and Sephiroth. Although Sephiroth seems like an odd candidate as Cloud's light, since he is also symbolically known as Cloud's "darkness", there are indications that Cloud is searching for him. After all, Sephiroth himself says to Cloud, "I was searching for you, too". However, it must be remembered that Sephiroth was never included in the original Japanese game. The scene where Sephiroth says that he was searching for Cloud only appears in the Final Mix version of the game, never in the North American release. While the scene is therefore canon, Cloud's quote about searching for a mysterious 'someone' occurs in all versions of Kingdom Hearts I, while Sephiroth's statement does not. This makes it very unlikely that Sephiroth could be Cloud's light, since he doesn't even appear in one version of the game.
   
This leaves two viable candidates in the fray, namely Aerith and Tifa. Perhaps the strongest and most compelling argument in favor of Aerith over Tifa for the role of "Cloud's Light," is the simple fact that Tifa was never featured, mentioned, or otherwise shown in Kingdom Hearts I, where the quote that started it all appears. There is neither a mention of a "martial artist" nor a whisper of a "childhood friend" in Kingdom Hearts I, only the conversation between Cloud and Sora about searching for one's light, followed by Cloud and Aerith's reunion. The game where Cloud and Aerith's reunion takes place is also set with reunions between other character pairings, such as AladdinxJasmine and BeastxBeauty. Although the scene between Cloud and Aerith contains other characters,  the focus on Cloud and Aerith is undeniable.

Material in Kingdom Hearts II does provide at least some basis for the argument that Tifa is, perhaps, Cloud's light. For one thing, Aerith's interaction with Cloud during Kingdom Hearts II is minimal, focusing mostly around one short, but pivotal conversation. In this conversation, Aerith confronts Cloud about his possible departure. At the end of the conversation, Aerith tells Cloud that everything will be alright if he leaves by saying this:

Aerith "No matter how far away you are... once you find your light.. I'm sure it will lead you back here again."

Notice that Aerith refers to Cloud's light in the second person, rather than as herself. This immediately led some people to question how Aerith could be Cloud's light when she speaks of his light as something other than herself? The solution to this puzzle is surprisingly simple.

One must remember that Cloud actually sold his soul to darkness in Kingdom Hearts I. In that game, Cloud even bore artifacts of darkness, such as a bat wing. It is is acknowledged several times during Kingdom Hearts II that Cloud continues to be plagued by darkness, such as in the following passages from Cloud's confrontation with Sephiroth:

Sephiroth: Cloud… you’ll never let go of the darkness.

Tifa: The darkness will be there, Sephiroth - but in a place you can’t reach.

These lines clearly indicate that Cloud is battling against the darkness inside of himself. Since Sephiroth is essentially the embodiment of Cloud's darkness, then Cloud feels he must defeat Sephiroth in order to defeat his own personal and inner darkness. This conclusion is reinforced by Tifa herself after Cloud and Sephiroth fly away to finish their battle:

Goofy: Where’d they go? Do ya think they made it back to their own world?

Tifa: Cloud went to fight a great battle to defeat the darkness inside him.

Tifa clearly states that Cloud is battling Sephiroth in order to defeat the darkness inside of himself. Therefore, the light that Cloud seems to be searching for in Kingdom Hearts II is his own personal light, rather than for another person who is his light. When Aerith refers to "finding your light" in her earlier conversation with Cloud, she is speaking of Cloud finding his own inner light by defeating his inner darkness.

There are several other indications that Tifa is not depicted as Cloud's light in Kingdom Hearts II. In the first place, Cloud never searches for Tifa during the game. If anything, Cloud actually seems to be avoiding her. Tifa spends a great deal of time in Kingdom Hearts II trying to locate Cloud by punching down walls, looking under desks, and so on. Yet, when Tifa finally finds Cloud and calls out to him, he actually runs away and leaves her to battle a horde of Heartless all by herself.

In the second place, when Tifa appears during the confrontation between Cloud and Sephiroth, something happens when she is challenged by Sephiroth. Tifa's own light flashes brightly as she dodges Sephiroth's attacks, since he lunges at her several times with the masamune. Each time that Tifa's own light flashes, Cloud winces and shields his eyes, as shown in the screenshots below:

Tifa's light almost seems to blind Cloud, as if her light is actually harmful to him. Furthermore, Cloud seems very hesitant and almost reluctant to accept Tifa's light when she offers it to him:
    
Tifa: Cloud, you can have my light.
Sephiroth: The light doesn't suit you.
Cloud: I just...don't know.
  
Notice that Sephiroth even points out that Tifa's light isn't suitable for Cloud. Immediately after this, Cloud starts to glow with a light that seems to emanate from his own body. Although the light could arguably come from Tifa, there is no indication whatsoever that she transfers the light to Cloud - no hand gesture, no physical contact, nothing. Tifa is merely standing absolutely still several feet behind Cloud when a golden light suddenly begins to emanate from his own body. Compare the diffuse white light coming from Tifa in the screenshots above with the glow emanating from Cloud's own self in the screenshots below:

Therefore, when Aerith used the term "your light" to Cloud in their earlier conversation, what she really meant was Cloud's own personal and inner light. Since there is still darkness within Cloud, it is necessary for him to defeat his personal darkness before he can find his inner light, and Aerith seems to understand his struggle. This is the reason Cloud searches for Sephiroth - to defeat his own personal darkness.

When interpreted this way, there is no contradiction to Aerith being Cloud's light in Kingdom Hearts I. Cloud and Aerith's connection is depicted in Kingdom Hearts I as the 'light' which guided Cloud 'home', just as Beast searched for Belle, and Aladdin searched for Jasmine.  In Kingdom Hearts I and II, Advent Children, and even in Final Fantasy VII, Cloud ultimately faces Sephiroth alone. When Cloud finally defeats the darkness of Sephiroth by finding his own inner strength, the light of Aerith will always be there... waiting to guide Cloud home.

More essays about Kingdom Hearts

Aerith's KH2 conversation with Cloud at YouTube

Cloud's KH2 confrontation with Sephiroth at YouTube

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