Aeris's ghost

Aeris's Ghost refers to an event and a glitch that occurs in Final Fantasy VII. Both the event and the glitch allow the player to see Aeris at the Sector 5 Church. While there are no explanations for either event, they are widely believed to be the ghost of Aeris.

There are a number of oddities and glitches surrounding the event that suggest the entire event is a glitch. However there are a number of different factors that suggest that it was initially intended.

Event
There are two recognized forms of Aeris's ghost, the standing ghost who sometimes appears in the center of the church for a split second before disappearing, and the Aeris tending to the flowers who disappears when the player moves over a spot next to a broken pew.

It is possible to move next to Aeris. If the player moves past the spot next to the broken pew before the location fully loads Aeris will not disappear. Aeris cannot be interacted with, however the kids can be talked to and they will have a set of dialogue. If the player then moves over the spot, their dialogue will be changed.

Triggering
Aeris can only be seen tending the flowers once as the player enters the church. The point in the story where Aeris can first be visible in the church is after defeating Jenova∙LIFE. It is interesting to note that the event can never occur if the player talks to the Innkeeper during the Kalm flashback and selects the option "Let me know the situation of the town." after talking to him a second time. It is unknown why this stops the event from occurring since it is completely unrelated to Aeris and the church.

Glitched events
Before defeating Jenova∙LIFE, or if the player talked to the Innkeeper about the situation of the town, it is possible to see Aeris in the church, however she will not be tending the flowers but she will appear in the center of the church facing the entrance, and will disappear when the location is fully loaded. While Aeris tending to the flowers is something purposely put into the game, this Aeris is not. Regardless of whether the tending Aeris will appear when entering the church or not, a number of oddities will occur as the location loads.

When the location is entered the boy and the girl will be standing in the center of the room facing towards to the entrance, and Reno is at the bottom of the screen. After this the boy is moved to his position on the left side of the flowers, and then his pose changes so that he looks to the right. The girl is then moved to her position on the right of the flowers, and then her pose is changed to look over the flowers in the same way. Reno then disappears.

If the event where Aeris tending to the flowers will not occur then Aeris will appear in the center of the room in the same place the boy and the girl is. However, only one character can technically appear in the spot at a time, and the girl only appears after the boy is gone, and Aeris only appears after the girl is gone. Due to the screen fading into black, Aeris is the last thing seen and therefore easier to notice by the player.

Although there is a further difference to the loading scene if Aeris tending to the flowers appears or not. The loading of the positions will work at different speeds. All the events are rectified quicker if Aeris isn't meant to appear tending to the flowers than if she is. If she is set to be tending to the flowers then the boy and the girl can be easily seen in the middle of the screen as it is loading, as in Reno at the bottom of the screen.

Explanation
The boy and the girl appear in the center of the room before being moved to their set positions, while Aeris can appear in the center of the room in one scenario before disappearing. This occurs because characters are set an initial position just as they are set other positions when certain events occur. However, when the location is entered the initial positions for the characters do not load and they are placed in the center of the location instead as a default position. Along with initial positions, movements and stances are also set, which is the explanation for the boy and the girl changing this during the location's loading.

Reno appears as the scene is loading. His appearance is a glitch, and his appearance also explains why Aeris appears in the center of the room when Aeris is not meant to be seen tending the flowers. There are a number of different characters who appear in the room: the two children, Reno, Cloud, and the soldiers. The location appears to load all these characters as the player enters the location, however when the location is fully loaded all the ones who are not intended to be there are removed. Cloud appears in the scene as the player controls him, Reno appears at the bottom of the screen, and it can be assumed the soldiers also appear but they are off screen behind Reno.

If the tending Aeris does not appear, Aeris is seen in the center but disappears, however only the tending Aeris is seen if she is meant to appear. This can be explained as the tending Aeris image's initial location is already set and therefore she does not appear in the center of the room first.

It is possible that the tending Aeris was added to avoid the Aeris in the center from appearing, or it is possible that the glitches occurred as an error when adding the tending Aeris, which may mean it isn't entirely coincidental that two images of Aeris can be seen.