Through way of open window, the succulent breeze of central Hyrule teased restless muscles with the promise of a fresh, sunbathed day. He, however, could not reap the rewards of said promise as he was rooted firmly to a wooden chair set center within the cottage. Diligent hands looked to tangle themselves in tufts of deep crimson alongside metal blades. Around his feet were scattered piles of of the same hue, piles he scowled at. "Mom's going to be mad," he commented wryly. The sentence earned him a stiff smack to the right temple.
"Oh, she'll be mad alright but not at me. I wouldn't have to do this if you hadn't gotten Chuchu jelly stuck in your hair!" She accented the last word by tugging at another tuft at the base of his neck. The youngest of his three elder sisters, Rasa, was no less brassy than the rest and made it entirely aware that, in spite of his size, her brother was far from a threat to her. He attempted to rub the spot she'd assailed, but she smacked the metal rings of the scissors against his knuckles.
"She'll be plenty mad at you if she sees all the bruises you're giving me." He pressed the aching flesh of his fingers to his lips with a hiss.
"I think she'll approve of them, actually." After a few more sharp snips accented by intentionally-painful tugs and twists, Rasa backed away to assess her handiwork. The hair was drastically shorter than when she'd started, a regrettable casualty though necessary for the sheer amount of viscid slime caked into the Gerudo voe's head. "You girls can come see now," she called. One of the bedroom doors, cast from iron fittings and redwood, chirred open. Two Gerudo Vai stumbled out of the room with hands covering their eyes and nervous smiles fused to their expressions. Levif and Gagati were nearly indistinguishable from one another and it took careful scrutiny of the two of them side-by-side to find the subtle tells. Recently Levif had made it easier as she started painting her nails green to match her eyes whereas Gagati adored teal unrelentingly. Rasa rolled her eyes at the two of them and tossed the scissors onto the dining table. "Go ahead and look. Rip off the tape." In near unison, the older girls removed the heavily-jeweled hands from their matching eyes and gasped in a similar rhythm. One of the sounds was genuinely surprised while the other sounded entirely horrified.
"It's so short!" Gagati croaked dejectedly. "We can't braid that! Rasa, you took too much off!"
Rasa crossed her arms assuredly. "I took off as much as I had to. Blame him for getting into that mess." Levif, on the other hand, squealed and took her brother by the shoulders to better take in the sight.
"Both of you can stuff it! I love it! He looks rugged and manly."
Gagati stamped her foot at her sister. "He looked rugged and manly with the long hair, too!" Rasa shooed them both a few steps back, still scowling.
"It doesn't matter what anyone thinks. It's already done. He's stuck like this for a while."
He took his chance and got to his feet, taking some steps away from the three of them and making sure to be out of grabbing-range of Rasa's vice-like hands. "Thank you all for your feedback and support, but I'm going to head out." He managed to slipped out of the way of a swipe by Rasa who dove over the chair towards his belt. His hand found the iron handle of the front door and levied his back to the wooden surface as a support to help him shove the angry vai backwards with the sole of his foot.
"You're. Waiting. For. Mom!" Rasa tried and failed multiple times to get a hold on her brother only to meet air or boot that quickly slipped back before she could find purchase. On the fifth attempt, the voe managed to twist around and slip from the door before slamming it shut and taking off down the path from the cottage. Rasa maneuvered through the doorway with a stumble and a shout down the mountain loud enough to wake the dead. "Ganondorf!" The voe would suffer Rasa's venom later and gladly if it meant a morning free from screaming or gawking. He wasn't keen on letting his mother catch sight of his new appearance, either. Not yet. Not when he'd yet to embrace the day's freedoms. That flavorful Hylian wind coaxed him down orchard trails that he'd not yet grown tired enough of to condemn himself from them for weeks by remaining to face the wrath of an angry, prideful vai and her daughters who took very much after her. Ganondorf followed the wind down foot trails and into a vast plane of lush grass under the azure Hyrule sky. As much as that field sang to him, he kept his feet planted in the soft soil on the hill overlooking it and out of sight. It was good enough. It had to be.
The voe sat down in a green patch atop the hill and watched as that same, alluring waft raked its fingers through the sea of emerald and ivy. Distant shapes took to both sky and land, crossing the planes brazenly and in great contrast to himself. He knew one day he'd take to the expanse with just as much courage, perhaps even crossing the bridge into Castle Town if he were allowed to fantasize so boldly. Hyrule Castle made itself the central jewel of Hyrule's crown, a very distinct shape on the horizon visible from every corner of the country if one stood in the right place. Neither the Goron nor the Rito, nor Zora nor even the Gerudo had a monument of such stature. Though small compared to the rest of the races, Hylians knew how to build durable empires. No matter the calamity that may befall the world, they seemed to have the most longevity in government and dignity. Perhaps the vast majority of benevolent rulers in its lifespan was to thank. The books he was allowed to read only spoke highly of Hylian monarchs.
Topaz eyes roamed past Hyrule Field towards the Lanayru Wetlands which he could not see directly but knew out of study lied in that general order. Nearest territory to that was the land of the Zora with the Eldin territory overlooking them. With a unconscious tip of his head, Ganondorf wondered if he could traverse all of Hyrule on mere memory alone. Not direct memory, of course, but memory of maps. If asked, he could tell one where each province lied and what the climate was like. He could recommend clothes and jewels to adorn for the kindest experience and even explain what foods were popular in those regions' cultures. He could do all of this without ever really having left the foothills he called home. He finally righted his skull and shook his head. No, he could not make his way from one end of the continent to the other as Hyrule was not one flat expanse without peril. He knew few basic fighting skills but hadn't used them for their intended purpose. He knew basic survival skills but had done little more than make a camp fire in the pasture as a young teen to pretend like he was out in the field on his own. He'd be be hopeless out there on his own and he wasn't a fool who'd deny it.
Sharp ringing akin to coins or child-bells tugged at his pointed ears and brought him to turn his head. Her expression was hesitant and her movements slow. She watched him as she took gradual steps down to the hill towards him and her blank, wide stare never faltered. When she spoke, her voice was almost broken. She sounded like she wanted to cry. "She... said it was short, but... I didn't think..." The mere strangled sound of it made his chest hurt.
"I know you liked it long. I'm sorry." She settled herself into the grass next to him, her glare reminiscent of someone seeing a spirit. A shaking yet gentle hand reached over and he did not protest to her entangling her fingers in the tufts on the back of his neck. Though her rings caught on some strands, he did not move. He simply let her roam along the span of his skull. She pulled away, her wide-eyed gawk finally giving way to disapproval.
"You know you can't be seen, especially now like this." He cocked a bushy brow at her.
"How has anything changed?"
"With long hair, you could be mistaken for a vai at a distance. Now people might suspect." She stood, brushing off her skirt with still trembling hands. "It's time to go home." With one last glance out onto the open planes before the castle, Ganondorf sighed and stood, walking back with her through the orchards to his prison.
Rasa met them at the door and a warning glare from their mother was all that stood between her rage and the voe. Even so, he winced when a hand raised in a gesture to slap him though he knew it would never make contact. "Enough playing. You all need to get to your chores," their mother, Cassiopeia, warned curtly.
"Ahem!" Gagati snapped a finger irritably, something Cassiopeia huffed at with a roll of her eyes.
"Oh right... Gagati and Levif are going to town. If you two need anything, tell them. I also need one of you to check on Efesa in Gagati's place."
"Why are they the only ones that are allowed to leave? We're all adults." Ganondorf rumbled. His mother sighed.
"We have had this discussion too many times and I am not having it again." He turned down his gaze towards his right hand as his fingers rapped idly against the stone counter top. Rasa was in that direction and shared his expression of annoyance. She was gathering some small gardening utensils from the bin by the back door. Unhurriedly, Ganondorf joined her and helped her carry the supplies out the door. Their pasture was like a bowl, cupped by mountain walls on all sides save for some natural steps that lead down to the field. On the right, there was a bucolic stable made to hold three and kept the natural shades of the utilized wood. The voe shouldered his satchel of tools and took a deliberate step towards it.
"I'll check on Efesa. Meet you down range." Rasa did not protest and continued on as Ganondorf broke from her side. He crossed the pasture to the building and heaved the sliding door aside. lantern light illuminated the usually somber hold of the old barn that had only recently been home to anything living aside from some grass that had begun to grow under the floor and walls. He told himself he'd make some new planks to fix the gaps later. From the windows of their stalls, two Gerudo mares watched him tentatively. The first was a grey, dappled mare with a cream mane long about her neck. The other was coal with mohawked ginger along her own. Ganondorf patted Ibel as he passed and stopped before Efesa's window. Her emerald eyes were always so steadily fixed on whoever dane to approach her and it gave her an imposing air. Perhaps that was why his mother had been so startled when Ganondorf lead the mare up the trail from the river. Efesa watched Cassiopeia like a mother hawk, like the vai had been watching her foal hungrily from afar. It took a while for the voe to convince Efesa that his mother was no puma after his throat and even longer for Ganondorf to convince his mother to let the horse stay. She'd been so adamantly against the thought, almost in a trance for the first couple of days, giving hypnotic "no's" at regular. One would think that the young Gerudo had led a lynel to the cottage in chains. Ganondorf held his ground, however, and Efesa took to her new home with a content grace. Not long into her stay, they realized she was pregnant.
The voe slid into her stall and ran a hand along her enlarged stomach. "Any day now?" The mare regarded him with a nicker. She was calm, her usual self. That was good. Horses, in his experience, had a sort of clairvoyance and Efesa was very open about expressing concerns when they arose in her own way. Ibel was similar but never as insistent when grabbing someone's attention. Ganondorf peeked through the bars that divided the two stalls and the other mare threw her head in a snort. Her own blue eyes looked back at him warmly. "Are you going to be a good auntie? Not bite the new baby?" Her ears twitched forward, but she gave nothing in way of a reply. "You better be nice." The voe exited the stall and left the latch open. He walked to Ibel's stall and opened her door as well. Both mares happily trotted past him and out the open door to the pasture. At a glance, Ganondorf could see that both gates were closed. That allowed him to relax. He watched for but a moment as both mares galloped joyfully about the open space, Efesa taking lead and Ibel sticking to her right side. Even while pregnant and coming into another mare's territory, the coal horse managed to claim control of the space, seemingly by sheer force of will alone. Ibel easily resigned her reign to the newcomer and didn't mind most days, which appeared to betray her own fiery nature.
As soon as the mares settled to graze, Ganondorf crossed the pasture and climbed over the gate. His leather boots met the stone steps on the other side with a heavy thud and Rasa met him at the bottom. She hadn't done much aside from the weeding on the first patch near the trail. "Took you long enough," She scolded. Ganondorf ignored her tone and reached into his satchel for a pair of gloves which he promptly donned. He crossed two patches and stopped at the far end where a garden fork was stabbed into the dirt between patches. He took it and began to fiddle with the soil around lengths of foliage in the patch. He dug around the dirt like that along the edge of the patch and then moved into it and along the clearly defined rows. The occasional glance towards the first two patches yielded annoyed glares from Rasa, hands full of green tufts with succulent beats hanging from them. She wasn't mad at him, he knew. The both of them had an understanding between them and he understood her rage entirely. The poor vai was going stir-crazy. So was he.
The beats were tossed into crates and the crates were loaded into a wooden wagon on the upper left corner of the field by the wheat. Once they were done for the day, he'd walk Ibel down there to help roll the cart to the house. There was no point keeping her there all day while they worked, especially when Ibel was very fond of many of their vegetables. Eventually, Ganondorf finished turning the dirt and stabbed the fork back where he found it. Gloved hands grabbed fist-fulls of foliage and pulled long, orange bodies easily into the light. He pulled as many hand-fulls as he could hold and then walked back to the first patch where the crates sat. He made around ten trips back and forth and finished pulling all of the ready harvest from that patch. After that, he removed a blade from his satchel and walked to the wheat patch.
"You get one. One." Rasa said sternly as she fed Ibel a juicy carrot from the crate. The vai rode on the seat of the wagon as her brother lead Ibel at arm's length along the outside of the horse pasture. The mare trusted the voe to lead her as she turned her head to take the alluring offering in a greedy nip. "I didn't know we owned a pig."
Ganondorf laughed. "We own two. They stay in the bedroom next to yours." Rasa returned a chuckle and tossed a ball of pulled foliage at his head.
"Be nice. You're just jealous that they get to leave and you don't."
"So are you."
The vai flopped her hands into her lap with a sigh. "If I had a place to go, I'd walk down that trail in a heartbeat. Visits home might be a little tense, but it'd be worth it. What about you, though? You're strong, you know how to fight. You walk down the trail all the time, but always come back when she tells you to. How far do you even go?"
"Just to the hill on the edge of the field. I'd have nowhere to go, either. I read about Hyrule all the time, but I know I'd be in over my head. This is all any of us have."
"Do you plan on staying here forever, then? Never taking the leap? You said it yourself this morning: we're adults. We need to spread our wings." She stretched out her arms dramatically. Her brother gave but a sigh in reply and rubbed the back of his sun-soaked neck.
"Well, I won't be flying anytime soon. Efesa's gonna have her foal any day now. If I leave, she's coming with me and I'm not gonna take a newborn foal into the wilds."
"So, does that mean when the foal is weaned, you're gonna take off?" Ganondorf cocked his head, obviously conflicted.
"I've thought about it." After a moment, he grinned. "Why don't you and I go together? I'm sure we could make it to a settlement and the two of us combined might be able to handle ourselves alright. It's a long ride, but I read that Hateno Village is a nice farming community... Or was depending on when that book was published. I'm sure it's worth a try."
"Definitely tempting, but I don't think I can suffer having only you as company." Rasa leaned over the side of the seat and shoved Ganondorf's head roughly. The voe stumbled a little, but was quick to regain his footing and snicker.
"Yet staying here with mom and the twins is the better alternative?" The vai's eyes widened and she made an overdramatic cry of woe.
"By the Goddess, you're right! I'd go mad in mere DAYS!" She flopped onto her back over the entire seat, covering her eyes with the crook of her left arm. Quickly, her eyes snapped open and she grabbed the hem of his shirt. "You can't leave me! You're the only semi-sane person in my life!" Ganondorf snorted, unable to hold louder, less dignified laughs any longer. "Don't do that! This is a crisis, young voe!"
"Make up your mind and it won't be!" Rasa rolled onto her stomach, all dramatic flair gone from her pointed stare.
"You're serious? You really mean it?"
"Of course! Out of all my siblings, I find you the least abominable." She slapped his head. "Ow! But, yes. Yes, I am serious. Mom's reasoning is ridiculous and I think we should be allowed to leave at this point."
"So... what? We just gonna get up and go one day? Sneak out? Leave a note?"
"No, of course not. We'll wake up early, pack some stuff in the cart with Efesa and we'll tell mom in person before we leave. We can at least give her that. She can't stop the both of us and you know the twins won't really do anything." They reached the front of the cottage and knowingly quieted their conversation. As they unloaded the cart at the back door, Rasa nudged the voe's shoulder.
"How long does it take for a foal to be weaned?"
"At the earliest, three months. At the latest, six. Depends on the mother."
"At least three months to plan it, then. I hope you have a good idea, Gan."
He held the plate in his hand, clay surface dangling loosely just over the water's surface in the cauldron. The cottage was quiet and dark save for the torch beside him on the back step. Clouds were coving much of the night sky, but the moon's meager light shone brightly enough to catch on the droplets atop the long, emerald grass of the horse pasture. He'd lost himself in thought, only partly done washing plates and a few tools he'd muddied earlier that day. Apart from his humored tone, Ganondorf had been entirely serious with Rasa. He wasn't dane to sit on the hill and watch the rest of the world go about without him. There was a life out there that he wasn't living... one he wanted to experience with all the freedom that evaded him in his mother's home.
His mother...
No, he didn't hate her. He adored her, in fact. Aside from some strict rules she'd put in place when Ganondorf was a small child, Cassiopeia was a wonderful vai... well, as far as he knew. She raised four children all on her own, all from three different men who'd either left her or died. She was strong, admirable, a role model for her daughters to mirror. Ganondorf felt... at odds with the rest, however. Cassiopeia loved him all the same, of course, but... she took to him with a different air. She was cautious, vigilant beyond comparison and found the oddest things to deny him. There was Efesa's introduction as reference, but there was also other things. He wasn't allowed to wear Topaz, for example. His sisters argued that the gem complimented his eyes so well, but Cassiopeia forbade him from keeping the jewel on his body. He was not allowed to practice with sword or spear, resigned to the bow and arrow and hand-to-hand techniques as opposed to his sisters who were taught with whatever weapon tickled their fancy. He was only allowed to read books that his mother had approved and his sisters were not to buy books for him. Only Cassiopeia could go out and get new material for him to read and said material was just more of the same simply with different authors and writing styles. For a while, he wasn't even allowed history books, but then started to get them only with entirely missing sections that were mentioned in the index. When Ganondorf came to her about it, she dismissed it and then he started to get books without indexes. Finally, there was the glaring issue of never being allowed to leave. For many years, Ganondorf believed his mother's reasoning. It was childlike trust and fear that stuck him to the ranch's plot, but as he grew and began to question little things at a time, he grew more and more bold. Him actually making it to a vantage point to see Hyrule field was a recent occurrence, within the last couple of months.
"Hyrule has not seen a voe Gerudo in over one-hundred years. They are rare and I know you'll be hurt if you ever go out into the world. You need to stay here. To the dangerous clans and monsters of Hyrule, you would be considered a trophy."
Ever since he was young, he had the idea in his head that he'd be a creature for sport, hunted in the wilds like a limited species... like he was exotic. As a child, the image in his mind was that his hair or skin would be taken and shown to others as a prize. As he got older, newer ideas of what a "trophy" would be came into his consciousness. If voe Gerudo were rare, then his own people might've been the most dangerous to him if his existence were made known. Those thoughts became quieter as the years wore on. Louder voices took their place, voices that screamed for freedom, for him to chase the Hylian wind through the fields and forests beyond the mountains, chase wild horses at the river's edge... Take control. Don't be afraid anymore. There were civil people in Hyrule- Towns, cities and villages of kind people. There had to be. He could live with them, find solace within their walls. He considered Castle Town most of all, in that regard. His eldest sisters told often of the security and fine guardsmen within. He wanted to go there, most of all. He wanted to see the castle, meet so many people, feel entirely at ease in the caress of sturdy towers and ramparts. If places like that existed, then he had a chance. He cared not if he'd be seen as a spectacle. He wanted more.
Of course, he wasn't the only one. No, he and all of his siblings deserved more. They deserved a chance- Rasa most of all. She was the closest to Ganondorf in age and had been entirely stuck there with him for as long as he'd been alive. They weren't inseparable as children merely out of a genuine sibling bond, but rather because they were the only ones able to be there for one another. Part of him suspected that it was kept that way so Ganondorf didn't feel excluded, but it wasn't fair regardless. The voe dropped the plate in the water and dried his hands against his cotton tunic. That day had been a strain. He and Rasa had spoken of freedom before, of course, but now the vai was expecting it fairly soon. Three months would pass in the snap of his fingers and he hadn't a clue if Cassiopeia had any backup plans in place for such an occasion. Surely she knew she couldn't stop him forever. She'd die eventually and she had to know that he'd leave. Quietly, the voe stood and skirted his way around the cottage to the main trail. She'd know he'd left soon enough, but he just needed to see it. He needed to remind himself. Ganondorf traversed the road through the orchards and weaved about trees to the slit between two hills he'd used that morning.
Just beyond that, Hyrule field was a clear sight, unmasked by the din of nightlight. He found his spot from earlier and quickly settled into the warm, slightly damp grass. He saw a few figures, far fewer than before, crossing the roads along the field and around the castle. They were illuminated by lanterns and torches, like distant fireflies. He wanted them move along. He took deep breaths. He wanted to remember the smell and the taste of the open air as vividly as possible. After so long, the air of his bowl of a home had become too familiar, almost tasting and smelling stale in comparison. He coveted the cool, fresh winds that so evaded the cottage more often than they didn't. Said wind came up from the grasses and tangled itself in his now short scruff. Without the vast length of his old style, he could feel it coil about his neck and down his back, skin still damp from his earlier bath. Momentarily, he let him self believe that it had come solely for him... only momentarily. It was the sweetest of fantasies.
When pebbles rolled from higher on the slope, Ganondorf knew he'd been caught. A sigh escaped his lips and he turned, searching for those disappointed, half-scared emerald irises lit by way of moonlight. He didn't find them. No, he froze when Topaz met sapphire. Pale skin, wheat hair and the deepest blue he'd ever seen all looked back at him and stabbed into his gut with the steep blade of fear. Those eyes watched him, considering and curious. He stared back and neither of their lips moved to say a word. Not a single part of their body twitched to make a move. This was a Hylian. He recognized the features from some of his books. Pointed ears, lean and short stature, light skin- all traits known to the people. He'd never seen one this close. He supposed a Hylian had never seen someone like him up close, either.
"Vasaaq..." He started twice on the word before it finally left his lips audibly. The sound seemed to startle the voe as he gave a jump, but he regained himself gracefully.
"Sav'saaba." He knew Gerudo language? At least part of it. If he knew more, he didn't showcase it. "Can you... speak... Hylian?" He spoke these words slowly, ears twitching forward expectantly. His blue eyes held the same vibe while also searching the Gerudo's face for some sort of tell. Ganondorf's own ears twitched and he turned more to be able to address the voe properly.
"I do. And... you speak... Gerudo? Ro Geldo?"
"Um... Not a lot. I know a few words and phrases. Vasaaq, sav'saaba, sav'orq, stuff like that... And you're... a Gerudo?" Ganondorf nodded, only then realizing that his lower jaw hung open slightly. He closed it and tried to will away the warmth in his cheeks. He must've looked daft. The Hylian took a cautious step forward, sliding some way down the rock before using his heel to dig in. He was about five feet from the larger voe at that point and... though he had a simple steel blade on his back, he didn't seem threatening. "I've... never seen a ma- uh... Voe of your race before. Not in person."
"And... I've never see anyone of your race in person... not this close." The smaller voe cocked a brow at him.
"How? This is Hyrule, my people's kingdom. We're everywhere."
"Ive never left the farm. I've started coming down here recently, but I've never gone farther. None of yours come up this far... save for you, that is. I... should probably go home. My mother has to be wondering where I am." Ganondorf stood and skirted around the smaller voe, who watched him with question still clean on his face. The Hylian didn't seem at all on edge, a stark contrast to the Gerudo who towered over him. It was silly, he though. He was so much larger and presumably stronger yet he was the one scared and keeping at least a blade's length between them.
"Farm? Up there? Is that what I saw when I was climbing over?" He pointed directly at the bowl above and the larger voe knew it was foolish to deny it if he had, in fact, seen it already. Ganondorf nodded. "Why have you never left?"
"My mother thinks it's safer for me there."
"And people don't visit? At all?"
"Not often. My mother usually watches the trail and turns travelers away before they get close. I really need to head back."
"Waitwait, hold on. Who are you? We've... sort of just skipped around formalities and I'd hate if your first real interaction with one of us was this... stiff." Ganondorf opened his mouth to reply, but stopped. His mother's voice rang in his head.
"Never tell a stranger your name. A name is a deadly tool for a powerful mage." He recalled sitting before the vai as a child, watching her weave a line of pink aura between skillful fingers. "Those with ill-intent in their hearts could use your name as a link to your soul... and if an evil power grabs your soul... It could mean disaster." The pink aura shot to his chest, vanishing beyond the flesh and leaving a tingling trail through one side of him and out of the other. All of a sudden, there was a sickening weight in his chest, one totally uncontrollable. Sobs ripped from him almost instantly and without pretense. Almost as soon as the sorrow arrived, it vanished, leaving the young voe confused and... a little frightened. Cassiopeia placed a soothing hand on his cheek, smoothing damp lines from his eyes. "Never toy with magic, my efesa..."
He watched the Hylian tilt his head. He couldn't say another word. Ganondorf quickly scrambled up to the slit and over the hills onto the orchard trail. He took to the dirt path almost in a panic, like a beast was at his heels. He gave no thought to discretion and only prayed that the voe didn't follow him. There was no reason for him to if he really had no ill-will and if he did, he'd be struck down surely by Cassiopeia in all her prowess. He reached an outer wall of the cottage and slipped to the back door where the cauldron of water still sat. It was now cold and the plates remained unwashed, but he was in no condition to finish. he'd bare the brunt of any punishment later. He just wanted to hide. Ganondorf used the heavy cauldron as a step and hoisted himself onto the overhang on the back door and then onto the roof. From there, he slid into the window of his bedroom. It was dark and he didn't at all take the time to recall shapes or colors beyond dove moonlight. He simply took to where he knew his bed would be and enveloped himself in a cocoon of wool.