disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII
drabble no. 12: Seperation. Enjoy

Forbidden Love

Once upon a time, there was a prince and a peasant. They met under a chance meeting, and as they laid their eyes upon each other they knew right there, that they've both fallen in love.

Even though they were of a different status, the prince always met up with his true love and spent the day with her. Unfortunately, the Emperor found out about his son's little rendezvous with the peasant girl, and with his powers, he forbade his son into meeting with the lowly citizen forever.

The prince however, did not abide by his father's rules. And so, the two had begun to meet up with each other secretly. It lasted for awhile, and it was good, but then the Emperor found out about it and everything had begun to crumble apart.

The Emperor was being too harsh on his son, the punishment was unfair and unjust. But the prince knew he couldn't do anything about it now that everyone knew. And so, he arranged one last secret meeting before he could never see his princess again…

 "You know… They're going to find us eventually."

"Do you really want to think about that right now?"

"No."

"Then, please, just be quiet…"

The peasant did as she was told, she stood there quietly with her back facing her lover. They both stood there in silence, surrounded by their precious flowers, and reminisced of the time they had together.

"… Are you sad?" The prince had asked.

"Am I not allowed to be, highness?" The peasant teased him despite the sullen atmosphere.

The prince brushed a hand through his spiky, blonde locks and sighed. "I'm sorry, that was a stupid question…" He then felt his love lean against his back, her head swiftly shook from side-to-side. Her hand then brushed against his and somehow caught hold of it. He felt her fingers spread out, so he did the same gesture and together, they entwined their fingers.

"Why are we standing like this? Back-to-back? Do you not want me to see you face one last time?"

His voice rung in the safe haven loudly, slicing through the silent air. Again, he felt his love's head shake from side-to-side.

"No… It's just that… " Her gentle voice faded out as she begun to think of what to say. "…Just that, I don't want to see you in your current state. It's a bad memory, you know?" Her lips stretched up amusedly as her quiet laughter filled the air. He tightened his grip around her hand, out of annoyance and the fact that he never wanted to let go. Cloud took in a deep breath and sighed, shaking his head the same way his love had.

"How can you be joking like this? It's not funny, Aerith…"

The girl sighed, taking Cloud's other hand in her free one, she leaned herself all the way on him and looked over his shoulder, catching a glimpse of the side of his face.

"I'm sorry but really… I don't want to spend my last day sulking around like this, it's just not… right." She continued to stare at the side of his face, hoping that he would look her way, but he didn't. He continued to look down at the ground with his pursed lips and Aerith sighed again, lifting her head off his shoulder.

"So please, Cloud. Don't be sad. I want to see your smile." Her lips twitched up as she tilted her head to the side slightly.

It was silent again, it felt as if they would come right now and separate them but suddenly, she felt Cloud's hand loosen from their tight grip, and then two arms wrapped themselves protectively around her. She was surprised; her bright green eyes widened then softened at the warmth and protection he was providing. His head occupied the empty space between her neck and shoulder causing a giggle to emit from her thin lips as the tips of his soft, blonde hair tickled her. But that all soon stopped when she felt his body shake against her thin frame and his quiet voice mumbled against her soft skin.

"How can you be so calm like this? I feel like I have to worry for the both of us!"

Aerith frowned. She rubbed her cheek against his soft hair and spoke, gazing at the sky gravely.

"Oh Cloud… You don't have to worry for the both of us, I'm a big girl, didn't you know? I can worry for myself." Her voice again held a teasing tone, though her face was far from amused.

Cloud lifted his head and looked at the maiden in his arms. He tried to memorize every little detail of her; from the paleness of her face that always illuminated in the sun's rays, to the intensity of her beautiful green eyes that glittered like a thousand emeralds in a pile of gold. He couldn't forget this image, the image of his beautiful angel – he would never let himself forget it.

Aerith finally noticed his gaze and returned it with those emerald eyes he loved so much. She smiled that smile he fell in love with, and couldn't help but feel a little burden weigh off his heart. His eyes hungrily took in the last feature of her alluring face before they slid closed and he dove in, catching her sweet lips with his.

He poured every ounce of his love in this kiss, showing just how much he cared about her. He could feel her body move against his, trying to get closer to him and so, he held her tightly in his arms. So tightly that it felt like their two bodies had melded together to form one perfect one. Aerith's hand snaked its way up to his face, grabbing it gently by her fingers. She caressed his smooth cheek before pulling it in closer, deepening the kiss to its limit.

They finally broke apart, sucking in the air greedily as both were caught in each other's gaze. Emerald eyes smiled at sapphire while they continued to breathe in hastily. Aerith finally turned her body to face Cloud, and she grabbed both his hands in hers, kissing them lightly as she pulled them towards her lips. She looked at him once again and smiled that smile, his smile.

"I love you." Her voice was quiet, like a whisper lost in the wind, but to Cloud it rung perfectly clear in his ears, echoing over and over again.

He finally smiled, the one thing that Aerith had always wanted to see which only brightened her own by a ten fold. Leaning in, Cloud laid his forehead against Aerith's and stared down into her eyes, whispering the words he would only say to his sweet maiden.

"I love you."

She smiled one last time at his words and leaned in to kiss him one last time… But before their lips could touch, a shriek was sounded and just like that, they were ripped apart.

Cloud watched as his guards dragged Aerith away. He saw the frightened look on her face and the tears that sparkled in her eyes, and a rush of despair surged through his veins. He took off from the place he stood, reaching his hand out to her and calling her name but the soldiers had already gotten hold of him and held him back. He cried out her name, as she was doing for him, and tried so desperately to grab her hand that she was extending. They both reached to their full extent, rooting their feet to the ground so they wouldn't get separated any farther, and tried to fight back the soldiers who were breaking them apart. But it was no use, Aerith was slowly being dragged away, she continued to struggle though, yelling as loudly as she could for Cloud. She watched as his face was slowly disappearing, getting smaller and smaller as the distance between them grew larger and larger. She let out one last cry, screaming out Cloud's name, and balled her hand into a fist, knowing that her love could no longer fill the empty space between her fingers.

When he heard her desperate cry, his heart twisted into a thousand knots. He continued to struggle against the soldier's hold and yelled for her name multiple times before noticing that the only voice sounded was his own... She was gone. Forever, and never coming back. The realization hit him hard. As the soldier's grips loosened, the prince immediately fell to his knees, grieving in despair for the lost of his beloved peasant. He balled his hands into fists, and shook his head hopelessly.

"No…." He choked, "Aerith..." He pounded his fist to the ground angrily, and continued to grieve.

She knelt before everyone, calm as always. Her wrists were bound by thick rope and she clasped her hand together, resting them on her lap. She scanned the arena, looking at everyone seated there to witness her execution. She frowned at the thought but, for some odd reason, she wasn't scared. She continued to scan through the many occupied seats until her eyes rested themselves upon one person standing on the balcony. She looked at his sullen form, his head facing down towards the ground and she shook her head at the sight.

"I swear… Cloud, I don't blame you. I never did, I never will."

She thought to herself, knowing all to well that that was what he was thinking. She continued to stare at him, hoping that he could read minds at the moment but didn't think too keenly on it. Aerith blocked out the sound of the messenger, who had commenced the speech of today's execution. She kept her eyes on Cloud, hoping to see his beautiful face one last time before she fell into an eternal slumber. Her hands gripped themselves tightly as her eyes pleaded for his attention.

When the messenger had finished, Cloud couldn't help but feel anxious and clenched his hands into fist. Should he look up, and watch her die? Or should he look away, and miss the torture his maiden would have to go through? The latter sounded more appealing but something inside of him told him to look up, pleaded him to look up. So he did.

As the executioner pulled out his blade, the prince looked up seeing the piercing green eyes his maiden held. He stared at her longingly, blurring out the executor who was right behind her. He watched her intently as her eyes had begun to soften and her lips stretched across her mouth into that ever-lasting smile he would cherish forever in his memory. When she smiled at him, he could feel his heart lighten a bit but then the silver blade slid across her neck, and his heart was sliced in two.

He closed his eyes and pursed his lips tightly. Hearing a 'thud' from the platform, he took in a deep breath and tears rolled down his face...

"Once upon a time, there was a prince and a peasant. They met under a chance meeting, and as they laid their eyes upon each other they knew right there, that they've both fallen in love."

 author's notes:- sighs - I'm terrible. (osn: did you notice the elements from the game/movie in this? xDD)
I wrote the beginning sentence at the end again because one: I liked it. (xD) and two: I thought it sounded very bittersweet as opposed to how it sounded at the beginning. :3 Well, I hope you liked this story, and teared up during it, that was the effect I was trying to acheive. xDD But it's okay if you didn't, I was only kidding. ;

 I'd like to ask if you could give me a review on how this story was. It's the first time I've ever written a tragic story like this, and I'd like some feedback on how I did in the genre. Thanks again for reading and I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did. :3