Aerith Gainsborough, alternately known with the first name Aeris, (voiced by Mandy Moore, Mena Suvari, and Andrea Bowen) is a playable character in Final Fantasy VII and a major character in the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII; appearing in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- and Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-
Aerith is the last of the Cetra, an ancient race with powerful magical abilities, and so the Shinra Electric Power Company hunts her throughout her life, seeking to exploit her powers. She meets Cloud Strife in Midgar, and the two become close, leading her to join his quest to fight Shinra and hunt down Sephiroth. Aerith is upbeat, carefree and joyful, being flirtatious towards Cloud and also compassionate towards others.
Aerith wields staves in battle, and is in the back row by default, as she primarily uses magic from equipped Materia in battle. Her Limit abilities are entirely defensive, either providing restorative abilities healing other party members or granting them positive status enhancements.