Chapter Text
The night breezes here were mild and cool. Music from the great hall drifted up to the balcony where Ganondorf stood in quiet contemplation. Reading by lantern light had made his eyes tired and his head ache, but the air outside was soothing. His cloak lay draped over a chair in his chambers, unneeded. It was a far cry from the cruel nights of his homeland, with their deathly chill.
He didn’t turn around when he heard the door of his chamber open and close. He knew Nabooru by the sound of her footsteps, quiet though they were.
“Cousin,” he said, by way of greeting. She came to stand beside him on the balcony, a bowl of various fruits in one hand and a generous cup of wine in the other. "Have you not stopped eating or drinking since we arrived?“
Nabooru took a hearty swig of wine. "They keep setting out food and drink, what am I to do but keep eating and drinking?” She smiled at him over the rim of her cup.
“Their food is atrocious and their wine is far too weak.”
“Then you must simply drink more of it, cousin.”
“Hmm.”
She set the bowl of fruit down on the balcony railing. "I liberated this from the banquet table. Eat something. No, not those!“ she said, when Ganondorf picked up a small handful of berries. "Don’t eat those, unless you want to run for the privies soon after.” She picked the rest of the berries out of the bowl and dropped them over the balcony. "I don’t know what the Hylians call them, but I will name them shitberries.“
Ganondorf looked at the berries in his hand, and dropped them over the side to join the others.
Nabooru handed him an apple. "Try one of these. They’re good.”
It was good, tart and clean. Far preferable to the overly rich dishes their hosts kept shoving at him.
Nabooru plucked a grape from the bowl. "You left the feast very early, my king.“ She spat the grape seed out and watched it fall to the courtyard below.
"I am tired.” Tired of the noise, tired of the stares, tired of the subtle insults couched inside inane chatter as though he were too dim-witted to catch them. Hylian was not his first tongue, but he had better command of the clumsy language than the royal court credited him for.
“Yes, well, you will have to make your apologies to their king in the morning,” Nabooru said, resting her cup on the railing. "It’s rude to leave a party sober. Especially one thrown in your honor.“
The Hylians were in no position to judge rudeness, after today. His second-in-command had borne the brunt of their disrespect since the Gerudos’ arrival the previous evening, and yet she maintained her graceful calm. It was all he could do to hold his tongue in the face of their insolence, their stares and ignorant whispers. By the flames of Din, he hated every being in this castle, from the royal family right down to the cowering servants. Never before had he been treated this way, as a curiosity, an object of ridicule and speculation.
Far off in their desert, his people fought for their very survival, and the only word of them in this blessed kingdom were obscene rumors, low gossip, and the vilest of lies.
He would be well pleased when these indolent fools were gone, and this castle brought down, stone by stone. That sweet day could not come quickly enough.
Perhaps Nabooru, too, had reached the limit of her endurance. He watched her take another drink, the warrior more regal even in her drunken state than any of the simpering nobles at the feast could hope to approach. "You have left,” he said.
“Ah, but I am not sober!”
“I can see that.” Ganondorf eyed her cup, which was still more than half full. "And how far into your cups are you?“
Nabooru grinned, striking a gallant pose. "Cousin, you will be proud to note that I have pissed thrice this night, and will do so again before I sleep.” She tapped her lips with one long finger. "Perhaps I will try the pot under my bed. I’m told that is its use.“
She swayed, and Ganondorf reached out a hand to steady her, the barest twitch of a smile crossing his face. "Mind that your aim is true, then, cousin.”
“The pout cracks, at last!” Nabooru patted his hand on her arm, and leaned against the railing to keep from wobbling further. "And my aim is always true.“ She looked down into the courtyard, which was quiet save for a Hylian couple who had also left the feast in favor of other pursuits. She grinned. "It’s not much of a party, to be sure,” she said. "Quiet music and slow dancing. I don’t blame you for leaving. Even their king seems to find it dull.“
"Daphnes, yes. I shall have to make my excuses to him tomorrow.” Ganondorf frowned at the reminder. "As though having to bow and scrape to him isn’t humiliation enough.“
"What price is humiliation for the lives of our people?”
Ganondorf sighed, brows furrowed. "A small one.“ He tossed his apple core over the balcony, watched it land atop a neatly trimmed hedge. "You have dealt with Hylians before. Perhaps you can teach me to grovel more effectively.”
Nabooru laughed. "Of course; these Hylian men are easily steered.“ She studied her long, clean fingernails, and combed them through her ponytail. "When you go to their king in the morning, make sure you have painted your face nicely, and anoint your hair so that it smells sweet. Take care not to overdress at breakfast,” she said, reaching out to tug Ganondorf’s shirt down off one shoulder. "And when you speak, do so softly, and you must flutter your eyelashes like so.“ She rested her chin on her hands, batting her eyelashes with a coy smile.
Ganondorf failed to stifle his laugh. "Perhaps that tactic works for you, oh exalted one.” He moved her cup before she could knock it over. "You look a perfect fool.“ He said the words with fondness. She possessed a ready wit, and had often clowned to break him from dark moods in their youth.
"To play the fool perfectly is a talent,” Nabooru said. His second-in-command hopped up to sit on the railing, one leg crossed primly over the other. She adjusted her bandeau to better secure her breasts. "And this clever tactic works for all Gerudo. We are as coveted as we are feared and reviled,“ she said, with an added bat of her eyelashes for good measure, and a bark of laughter.
"Somehow I doubt my trying it would have the desired effect.” He hadn’t been in this foreign place for long, but Ganondorf had noted that the Hylians seemed strangely particular when it came to such matters. He could not afford to give offense, not when the goal was so close at hand.
“I would wager that you are wrong, cousin. By my lights, we are both equal in beauty.” Nabooru toyed with the jeweled choker around her neck. Ganondorf noted that she hadn’t arrived at Hyrule Castle with it, and idly wondered which fine lady was still dancing in the great hall, ignorant of her missing jewelry. "And I need both hands to count the number of these nobles who have looked straight past me to admire you instead.“
"And is His Majesty, King Daphnes among that number?” His tone was only half-joking. Any advantage, any foothold he could secure here would buy him time while he searched for the relic these Hylians thought they could keep for their own. And if he won supplies for his tribe in the meantime, so much the better.
Nabooru winked, and tapped her nose. "I cannot tell you that, or you might not take up my wager. It is all in jest, in any case.“ She stood, the gaiety leaving her face for a moment. "I would not ask my king to abandon all dignity,” she said.
Ganondorf shrugged. He found no shame in using all the tools at his peoples’ disposal, only worried that his efforts would likely backfire. "If I thought it would work,“ he said, trailing off when he spied movement in the window directly across the courtyard. He frowned. "I grow tired of that wretched girl.”
“You did not see the little princess there? You grow careless, cousin.” Nabooru gave a little wave at the figure in the window, and blew a kiss. The girl ducked out of sight. "Pay her no mind. We are novel to her, and she is cloistered away in here. Don’t you remember how you were as a child? You acted as though you would smother to death in the fortress. You leapt on any chance at excitement like a hound on a scrap of meat.“
"Ha! I seem to remember you leaping right alongside me.” The stakes were higher now that they were grown, and failure meant worse than a scolding and mucking out the stables, but they leapt all the same. Neither of them had ever known fear, only the promise of success for those bold enough to reach for it.
Nabooru raised an eyebrow, studying his face as though seeking something there. "For good or ill, yes, I did.“ She picked up her cup, and the bowl. "It grows late,” she said. "And I am still tired from our journey, as I’m sure you are.“ She seemed to have grown strangely somber.
Ganondorf followed her inside. "What troubles you, cousin?” He watched as she stopped to examine the table, where he had spread out his scrolls and maps.
She shoved a scroll aside and set down the bowl and cup. "I have greatly enjoyed traveling with you,“ she said. Her eyes did not leave the collection of parchments on the table. "Our duties have kept us apart these last few years.”
“That is so,” Ganondorf said. He made his way to the table and began rolling up scrolls, tying their ribbons neatly. "I have been grateful for your company and counsel.“
There was a wetness in Nabooru’s eyes, though it may have been a mere trick of the firelight. "I miss the days when there were no secrets between us, cousin.”
Ganondorf paused, scroll in hand. "There are none.“
"Then tell me, truly,” Nabooru said, turning to face him with eyes that pierced him. "Why have we come to this place?“
He looked away, setting the scroll with the others in a small pile. "We have come to beg King Daphnes’ aid.” When he returned his gaze to hers, his face was a calm mask.
Nabooru shook her head. "I have known you from your first breath, Ganondorf,“ she said, "and yet, you would lie to me.” Crossing her arms, she dropped her gaze to stare into the fireplace, where the flames now burned low. "A darkness has come upon you of late, my king, and I despair to see it. This obsession…“ Her voice quavered. She traced her fingers over a map, now half-covered in Ganondorf’s many notations. "I wish you would cast it aside. In my dreams I see ruin, for you and for all of us, should you continue down this path.”
“Do not let your fears run away with you, Nabooru,” He embraced her, stroking her hair, as he had when her favorite mare had broken its leg when they were children, on the day her mother had passed away, on the morning her first child was stillborn. A pang of guilt stirred in him for causing her such grief, but it was far too late to turn back now that the prize was near. She hugged his waist with bruising strength. "Be at ease,“ he said. "It is merely a theft.” He touched her stolen choker with a smirk. "A grand burglary, that will ensure our tribe will never know suffering or want again.“
She stepped back, wiping a stray tear from her cheek. "So you say.” She stared into his eyes for a long moment, and sighed. Her shoulders slumped in some inner defeat. "Take care that the Hylians do not catch you at this, my king,“ she said, nodding toward the maps and scrolls. "It will not be your life alone that is forfeit. The fate of our people rests with you.”
“Believe me,” Ganondorf said, “I know it well.”
She excused herself, and left silently as a ghost. He watched her go, and he was alone with his maps and lore once more. His hand strayed to his ink-stone and brush, but sleep tugged at his weary mind, and he set about putting his things away instead. Nabooru was right, such work must be kept out of sight of enemy eyes.
Briefly, he worried whether he would have to hide his plans from Nabooru, as well. But no. She would see, once the triforce was his, that he’d been right to take this risk. She would understand. Once their tribe had supremacy over Hyrule, all would be well.
He undressed, mind racing with all he still needed to learn and do. He would not suffer Hylian servants in his chambers, nor would he impose upon the Gerudo guards outside his door, and so he folded his clothing and banked the fire himself.
His bed was uncomfortably soft and smelled of cucco feathers, but it was his thoughts that kept him from sleep for a time. He would have to redouble his efforts tomorrow, play the part of the penitent beggar king perfectly. Many sets of eyes watched him, as Nabooru had so sagely reminded him.
Carelessness now would cost him everything.
He just needed a little more time.