AN- This oneshot is dedicated to all the people who love Ganondorf/Palutena and can't find it ANYWHERE.
It's also dedicated to my sister, who helped get me hooked on this pairing. She doesn't have a account, instead guest reviewing as "Gary the Goomba."
Special thanks to everyone who reviewed my first Panon story! I know how hard it is to find some pairings, and since I love writing this pairing so much (it's by far my current favorite pairing to write), so I figured I'd write this and post it for everyone who likes Panon as much as me and my sister do!
P.S. If you like Ganondorf/Palutena and haven't read my other Ganondorf/Palutena oneshot, it's called "Let Her Go." Just putting it out there (shameless self-advertising XD)
I hope you guys enjoy this oneshot! :D
When the lady with the long green hair smiled at him, Ganondorf didn't even take a moment to decide to scowl back at her.
The room was bright and airy, due to the tall windows lining the walls being thrown open. People from every walk of life, every universe, had filed neatly into the room when it was announced newcomers were to arrive. Now, the room was one big mingle machine. Ganondorf had no need for this; a villain should maintain his villainous status by staying in back corners of rooms, not deigning to speak to any hero whatsoever (unless it was to gloat). Even if his reputation as the most fearsome villain in the tourney wasn't at stake, Ganondorf still wouldn't talk to anyone in the room. They were all beneath him, even other villains like Bowser.
So when the lady with the long green hair smiled at him, Ganondorf didn't even take a moment to decide to scowl back at her. Of course, he wasn't expecting the lady to smile even wider, waving daintily to him with one slender hand. It took a moment for the Gerudo to realize she waved to him, but once he did, he didn't bother to wave back. His reputation, of course. Besides, she was beneath him, too. He didn't even know who she was, but he knew she was beneath him.
Everyone else was, too.
Just a day after the introduction of the newcomers, Ganondorf found himself in the library. He had wandered there aimlessly-
No. Not true. If anyone were to ask him, he'd respond he'd wandered there aimlessly, but the truth was far from it. He was, in fact, curious as to something. A certain something he could find in the library.
Ganondorf's heavy footfalls were muffled by rich red carpeting, green fingers running along the spines of books as he searched for one in particular. Once the volume was found, the Gerudo snatched it up and began paging through, almost greedily, searching to find that one piece of information that-
"Hello!"
The book was dropped when he jumped in fright at the new voice, and he immediately chewed himself out in his head for jumping. His reputation, of course.
Glancing over to his right, the place where the new voice came from, Ganondorf was surprised to see the lady with the long green hair. What could she want of him? Possibly a book she couldn't reach, and she wanted his help. Or perhaps he stood in her way.
"Yes?" His voice was rough, he hadn't used it in quite some time. No one worthy to talk to. For some reason though, he spoke to her. "What do you seek?"
Her smile came back again. The smile she smiled at the newcomers' introduction. "Just was stopping by, wanted to see what you were doing!"
What he was doing? This woman wanted to know what the king of evil was doing in his spare time? How bizarre. Of course, bizarre things intrigued him, so he decided to entertain the woman a bit longer; to study her like a specimen. In fact, he was so curious about her, he forgot to lie about what he was doing in the library. "I was just reading this novel; it has some information I seek."
The woman's head tilted, her emerald hair just barely above the crimson carpet. "What information is that?"
Ganondorf bent over and picked up the previously dropped novel, showing her the deep green cover. "Information about Hyrule. Now, if you'll please remove yourself from my presence, I'll go back to what I was doing before." Ganondorf wasn't keen on sharing the type of knowledge he sought from the book with the lady.
"But what information is that, Ganondorf?" The lady said, and was going to continue until the Gerudo stopped her short.
"How do you know my name?" He towered over her menacingly, anger starting to seep into what was just previously mild annoyance. How did she know his name…?
She giggled lightly, annoying the Gerudo further. "Oh, Ganondorf. You think I'd have come here without researching all the fighters present?" She played with her slender fingers, intertwining them into each other before unwinding them quickly. Perhaps a nervous habit? "A goddess has to be prepared, you know."
It took Ganondorf a moment, but he received it well enough. "You're a goddess? Why would you come to this tournament?"
"Well," she laughed brightly, "to answer one of your questions, yes, I am a goddess. To answer the second one, my angel was lonely."
"Your angel…?"
She smiled, "Yes, Pit. He participated in the Brawl Tournament, which I remember reading you were also a part of. Do you recall him?"
Of course Ganondorf recalled Pit. When the angel arrived to the Tournament, for some strange reason, he immediately disliked Link. The Hylian didn't exactly like Pit either, and soon both of the warriors completely despised the other. Ganondorf only remembered these things because he never spoke to anyone around him (his reputation, of course), and when one never speaks, they see more around them than others. Thus, Ganondorf remembered everyone who participated in the tournaments ever since he joined them, in Melee.
"Yes," Ganondorf nodded slowly, "I remember Pit. So, he works under you?"
The lady nodded, though for the first time since Ganondorf first saw her, her face revealed she was apprehensive. "I prefer to say he works with me, not under… It sounds friendlier that way, and what Pit and I have is definitely friendly."
"I see." Ganondorf didn't fully understand the concept of a goddess being friendly with someone other than other goddesses. Din certainly wasn't friendly with him.
"Oh, goodness!" The woman laughed sheepishly, placing a palm on her forehead, "I completely forgot! I have an introductory match scheduled today!" She looked to the tall oak doors of the library, before turning back to Ganondorf. "Would you like to watch? If you would, we'd have to leave now, the match is in 10 minutes!"
Ganondorf thought for a moment. Join the woman, watch her match, and learn more about her and her fighting style. Or, stay in the library, find the information he originally was searching for, and go hide in his room for the rest of the day, hoping to limit contact with any other fighters.
"Fine. I'll come." Might as well learn as much about her fighting style before the tournament, right? Of course, he'd leave right after her fight.
His reputation, of course.
The Gerudo king, against all odds, found the goddess' fighting style quite enjoyable to watch. She wasn't a clone, and her moves weren't even remotely similar to any other fighters, giving her an advantage over her opponent, Link. She knew his every move from her research beforehand, but the Hylian had to learn as he went.
Without even giving any thought about it, Ganondorf found himself rooting for the goddess with the long green hair to win. If she won the introductory match, that would mean by default that Link lost. And there was nothing that the Gerudo enjoyed watching more than the Hylian losing miserably.
As the fight on the stage Skyworld continued, Ganondorf intently studied every movement of the goddess from his spot in the viewing area, situated above the stage and a bit away from it, protected by a thick layer of glass between observer and fighter. He wasn't the only spectator, however. Every fighter was there, not because they were required to, but because it was strongly advised to attend (to learn about the newcomers' fighting styles).
Through Ganon's intense research, he slowly began to learn the goddess' moves and fighting style. She seemed to be an opponent who could get up close and personal with her powerful smash attacks, but also had a projectile move she could use to her advantage, keeping opponents back for a moment. If Ganondorf had to face her in the tourney, he was confident he could crush her easily.
The Gerudo was brought out of his studies by a throat being cleared behind him. Spinning on his heel, Ganondorf stared menacingly at the man interrupting his thoughts.
The Italian plumber was much shorter than the Gerudo, but Mario never allowed Ganon's glares to affect him. The fact that Mario pretty much ignored all of Ganondorf's evil stares perturbed the Gerudo, but he'd never tell anyone that (his reputation).
"I am here," Mario's Italian accent was thick as ever, "to let you know you also have a fight with a newcomer today." The plumber knew Ganondorf never spoke, unless it was to gloat, so he didn't even pause for a response. "His name is Shulk, and the fight is after this one," Mario gestured to the ongoing brawl between the goddess and Link, where the tide had turned in Link's favor.
With that, Mario walked away, leaving Ganondorf to watch the fight again and to think about this 'Shulk.' Who was he? What was his fighting style? How did he-
"GAME!"
Ganondorf was brought out of his ponderings by the announcer's voice resonating in the large viewing room. The match had ended. The Gerudo's mouth curled up in a smirk at the results, watching the goddess pose happily as Link stood in the background, clapping begrudgingly at his loss.
And when her name flashed in bright yellow letters to further announce her win, Ganondorf whispered it aloud, the curious woman finally paired with a curious name.
"Palutena."
"…So she starts ranting about L-Targeting! Now I, of course, have no idea what that even means…"
The laughter and conversation of the dining room was nothing new. All the newcomers' fights were over, and dinner was served. Ganondorf won his fight by the skin of his teeth, Shulk seemed to love using that magic of his. 'Buster' and 'Smash' were particular favorites of the blonde boy during the battle.
Ganon sat at a table, alone, in the corner of the room, meal sitting untouched before him. Spaghetti was a strange meal the Gerudo never really got used to eating, not to mention the damage his reputation could receive if he was seen eating something that looked so cheery on a plate. Plus, he could sneak back down to the kitchen at night, swipe a few plates of something actually appetizing.
When he saw her striding over out of the corner of his eye, Ganondorf stood from his table. He entertained her curiosity in the library, but there was such a thing as too much of a thing. Before he could walk away, a gentle hand caught his shoulder.
"Where are you going, Ganondorf?" Palutena's soft voice asked, and the warlock turned to face her. Her smile was still there, that ever present smile. "You haven't even touched your spaghetti!"
Ganondorf grunted, "Didn't want it. Now, why do you care if I've eaten or not?"
Instead of answering his question, she threw back one of her own. "If you didn't want the food, why did you come to dinner?"
The Gerudo took in a breath to answer, before he realized he had none. This was the first time he'd even attended one of the dinners at the mansion since he'd arrived, to protect his reputation. So why did he choose to come that night? "I don't know…" Ganon mumbled, lost in his thoughts of confusion. Why did he attend the dinner? What about his reputation?
"Well," the goddess said, "if you don't know why you've come, I suppose I just need to help you find the answer!" With that, Palutena sat at the table that had previously only held Ganondorf, motioning for the Gerudo to sit in the seat beside her.
For some reason (perhaps it was the intrigue she held before), he sat, completely forgetting his reputation for the time being.
The lovely silence was broken by the mechanical whirr and the darkness was split by the artificial light as Ganondorf rifled through the fridge methodically. This was his dinnertime, and no one was going to interrupt it. Especially not that green haired goddess.
He'd snuck down to the mansion's kitchen as he always did, looking for food. Though the food here was strange (that spaghetti being a perfect example; it almost resembled an Octorok's tentacles), the Gerudo needed to eat something.
Tonight was a bit different, however. Ganondorf was barely hungry, and only decided to eat so he could escape to the kitchen to calm his tumultuous thoughts. Pulling a round orange object from the fridge, the Gerudo walked to a little table by a window in the kitchen and plopped down in the seat. Pale moonlight spilling through the glass window illuminated his huge form, hunched over the orange previously pulled from the fridge that he was now pulling apart rather delicately.
Though his fingers nimbly peeled the fruit, his attention was on something entirely different. The goddess Palutena, the lady with the long green hair. Why was she so friendly towards him? Why did she treat him like an equal, when she was obviously of the hero status, and he of the villain? Why would she risk her reputation to talk with him? Not only that, but she looked into every fighter's backgrounds before deciding to attend the tournament. If she knew everything he'd done, she should have stayed as far away from him as possible. Anyone and everyone in their right mind never deigned to talk to the Gerudo for more than a minute or so. Why was the lady with the long green hair trying to spend so much time with him?
As Ganondorf bit into the now fully peeled fruit, he realized the answer to his questions were anything but obvious.
The screams were so loud the Gerudo could hear them from his spot in the wings. The tournament had officially started that day, and the viewing areas were completely crowded with fans who shrieked so shrilly Ganondorf was sure his ears were bleeding. Luckily, he didn't have to watch the fights in the same room as the crazed fans. All fighters shared the viewing room they normally used, the one Ganondorf watched Palutena's introductory fight in.
It was a week after his contemplation in the kitchen at night, and that entire week had been dedicated to finding out why Palutena was so intent on spending time with him. Unfortunately for the warlock, he still had no idea why. Every time he tried to ask her, she'd deflect the conversation elsewhere or just flat out ignore the fact he spoke.
The fight between Pikachu and Little Mac was getting intense, and the shrieks of fans somehow grew louder than before. Ganondorf could tell the lightning Pokémon had realized his opponent had an awful recovery, and so was trying to toss the boxer off the edge and keep him off. Little Mac was also aware Pikachu was trying to KO him in that way, however, so he tried to keep to the center of the stage while not camping. Ganondorf had a sneaking suspicion that the boxer would win, based on his fighting style compared to Pikachu's, but that didn't mean he was underestimating the Pokémon. That Pikachu had participated in more tournaments than Ganondorf had. Whoever won the fight would be allowed to move on in the tournament.
"Isn't this exciting?" Her voice coming from behind him no longer startled the Gerudo; that was always how she approached him. Palutena walked next to Ganondorf, both watching the fight closely.
"I suppose," Ganondorf breathed deeply, watching Little Mac land a devastating punch on the mouse Pokémon, sending him flying off the stage Final Destination and past the boundaries, losing a stock. One minute left.
"You suppose?" the goddess looked to Ganon, an eager smile spread across her face. "This is thrilling! I can almost barely watch, I'm so nervous to see how it ends!"
"It's only the first fight of the tourney," the Gerudo king rolled his eyes, "how will you ever stand to watch fight number two?"
Palutena's long green hair swished slightly as she giggled quietly at Ganondorf's comment. "I think I can manage. Oh, look!" The goddess pointed a slender finger to the fight, which had just ended due to the timer running out, and Ganondorf looked. Victory music played brightly as the winner was revealed, Little Mac posing happily while his trainer made some comment in the background that no one paid any attention to. Unfortunately for the lightning mouse, he'd lost by a staggering four KOs.
As Final Destination was set up for the next fight, Ganondorf decided that it was the perfect time to pull Palutena aside into an empty room and question her. Grabbing her by the arm, the Gerudo didn't even ask her to follow him, instead just storming towards the room leading into the halls of the mansion, the goddess stumbling behind him awkwardly. Before they could reach the door, however, a small figure stood between the warlock and his destination.
"What are you doing, Ganondorf?!" Pit, the little angel, was standing steadfast in front of the Gerudo king who towered over him. "Where are you taking Lady Palutena?!"
"It's fine, Pit," Palutena interrupted whatever Ganondorf had been about to say, "I'm okay! Really! I'm actually quite curious as to where he's taking me!"
Both warlock and angel were befuddled by the goddess's response. Ganondorf was literally dragging her behind him, and she was curious to see where he was taking her?
Pit still looked unconvinced, eyeing Ganondorf suspiciously, but Palutena cut in again.
"Really, Pit," she smiled reassuringly to her angel, "it's fine. Plus, I can take care of myself!"
Ganondorf scoffed quietly. She couldn't take care of herself. That fact was fully evidenced by how she thought it smart to hang around Ganondorf, king of the Gerudo.
"Okaaay," Pit drew the word out, his unbelief still evident in his tone of voice, "if you're sure… But if this guy's taking you anywhere, it's not going to be by dragging you around behind him!"
Ganondorf, on any other occasion, would have ignored the angel's demand, but he wanted to question Palutena still. If that meant he had to let her follow him willingly, so be it. Slowly, his iron grip on her arm was released, and Pit nodded before stepping out of the Gerudo's way.
Within moments of Pit's moving to the side and clearing the pathway, Ganondorf strode swiftly to the door, Palutena right on his heel.
Finally, Ganondorf would get his answers.
The halls were eerily silent, since all the fighters were still in the viewing area, waiting for fight number two to begin. Palutena leaned casually against one of the pale tan walls, waiting to see what the Gerudo wanted. After a minute of absolute silence, Ganondorf spoke.
"I was wondering why."
The goddess didn't reply for a moment, confused. "What…" She finally said, pausing in between. "What do you mean you were wondering why? What were you wondering about?"
Ganondorf towered over the goddess, not exactly menacing, but still having that sense of superiority about him. "I was wondering why you've been following me around ever since you met me in the library that day."
"Oh," Palutena chuckled, almost nervously, "you never told me what information you wanted to find in that book of yours! What was it-"
"Don't change the subject." Ganondorf growled lightly, turning around so his back faced Palutena. "I want to know why you've been following me around."
"Um, well, ya see…" Palutena stuttered, either too scared to answer the question, or playing dumb so she didn't have to answer the question.
"Don't play games with me!" Ganondorf spun around, using every inch of his height as an intimidator. Unfortunately for him, it seemed that wouldn't work on the goddess, who didn't look frightened in the least.
"Fine." Palutena sighed. "I'll tell you why I've spent a good portion of my time with you."
Ganondorf listened closely. He was finally getting his answers.
"There's still some good in you."
The Gerudo froze, unable to respond to the shocking words. Palutena took his silence as a sign to keep going.
"You're not just the king of evil, the Gerudo who everyone fears, the man who gains the Triforce of Power." Her words were soft, and she grabbed Ganondorf's hand with her own, gently. "I can see that the darkness you claim to rule has not yet consumed all of you." With a sweet smile, the smile she smiled when she first saw him, she let his hand go and turned to walk back into the viewing room. Before she walked out of the halls, however, she turned back to Ganondorf. "I'm following you to save you."
With that, the goddess entered the viewing room and closed the door behind her, leaving a very stunned Gerudo king behind her.
Ganondorf barely watched the remaining fights. There were six fights per day, and once fight number six concluded, the fighters and fans all left to do the other things they had planned for their day. The next six fights would occur two days later. Once everyone else left the viewing room, even Palutena, Ganondorf still remained. He had reentered the room ten minutes or so after the goddess had, and just stood in shock on his own, in a little corner of the room no one stood in because you couldn't see the fight too well from there.
Of course, the Gerudo wasn't even watching anymore. All he could think of was what the lady with the long green hair had said.
"I'm following you to save you."
"You can't save me!" Ganondorf yelled to the empty room. "No one can!" His words echoed, bouncing off the huge walls and back at him. Anger prominently displayed on his face, the Gerudo screamed as he spun on his heel and warlock punched the wall behind him, sending chips of paint and plaster whipping around the room, a cloud of dust slowly billowing from the hole. He didn't even know why he was throwing this temper tantrum.
"I don't even want to be saved!" He bellowed, voice slowly growing quieter as he ranted. "I am King of the Gerudo's! The only male heir born in a hundred years! I am possessor of the Triforce of Power! I don't want, nor do I need, to be saved!" His face was contorted in anger as he stormed back to his bedroom, anger at the goddess for implying he needed to be saved. He didn't need to be saved! …Did he?
She hadn't approached him. It had been three days, and Ganondorf had seen neither hide nor tail of the goddess of light. He was perfectly fine with that. If she didn't talk to him, his reputation was protected. He didn't want to talk to her, not at all!
Of course, that's the lie he'd tell people if they asked him about her. In truth, all he'd thought about since their talk was her and what she'd said. And of course, he thought about his not-so-little temper tantrum he threw in the viewing room. When the fights went back on, all the fighters noticed the gaping hole in the wall, but not one of them questioned where it came from. Possibly because they already knew where.
Ganondorf wanted to see her again. The feeling had started off barely there, just a passing thought as to wishing she'd stalk him again, but it grew to something much more. The Gerudo was practically becoming obsessed with the goddess. He wanted her to talk with him. Unfortunately for him, as soon as he wanted her to follow him around, she didn't. That goddess sure liked playing around with him.
He sat on the carpeted floor with his back pressed against the wall of the viewing room, which was empty since the fights were to continue tomorrow. It was a good place to collect one's thoughts.
"…Hey."
A contented smirk grew on Ganondorf's face. She was back. "Hello goddess."
Palutena blushed at the formal title, and waved her hand. "No need for formalities, just Palutena is fine."
Ganondorf turned his head to get a better view of her. Her normal attire, her normal hairstyle. Nothing new, and the Gerudo honestly didn't care whether she had changed or not.
Pulling himself out of his thoughts, Ganondorf noticed the goddess had sat next to him on the floor.
"Nice spot," she smiled, and Ganondorf nodded.
"A good spot to recollect one's thoughts."
"True," Palutena nodded with him, before turning to face him, cheeks heating up a bit. "Ganondorf, I have had a reason for avoiding you these past few days…"
Ganon raised one curious eyebrow, "So I assumed. Are you going to tell me the reasoning behind it?"
The goddess cleared her throat awkwardly. "Well, to sum it up, I was embarrassed."
Now both of the Gerudo's eyebrows were raised, "Embarrassed? You? I thought, by the way you acted, nothing embarrassed you."
Palutena chuckled airily, happy for the bit of relief given her. "Nah, I can be embarrassed! But, to explain why I was embarrassed in this particular situation… Well, I thought I was a bit…"
Ganondorf prodded her, "A bit…?"
"Well, a bit forward."
Ganondorf snorted, "Just a bit? You flat out said I needed to be saved! Which, I don't, obviously."
Palutena's face fell a moment, before lighting back up, almost artificially. "Course you don't!"
The Gerudo nodded arrogantly, "Precisely."
"GRARGH!" The strange noises made by Ganondorf when he fought in a match went completely unnoticed by him. He grunted, yelled, growled, and all he paid any attention to was the fight. This was, of course, a good strategy. Who would pay attention to the noises they make when winning a huge tournament was on the line?
When Mr. Game and Watch pulled out his torch, Ganondorf quickly rolled out of the way before rushing forward (feet not even touching the ground) and lifting the 2D figure into the air with one hand. His opponent squirmed a moment while Ganon seeped dark energy into him, before dropping him. Game and Watch immediately picked himself back up, jumped over the Gerudo's head, and shot down at his head with his two dimensional key. Ganondorf retaliated by shooting into the air, both the fighter's attacks meeting the other. Of course, the warlock's move was more powerful, allowing him to grab the 2D figure, pour more dark magic into his flat form, before causing him to explode and shoot back. This move was done so close to the edge of Final Destination that Mr. Game and Watch was instantly KOed.
When the fighter came back, neither of them had any time to do anything before time ran out. As everyone suspected, Ganondorf was proclaimed the winner, 2 KOs above his opponent. He laughed evilly, as he always did, and listened to the obligatory clapping of Game and Watch in the background when they both teleported off the stage.
When the Gerudo reentered the viewing room, Palutena jumped him and hugged him tightly.
"Congratulations!" She cried happily, and all Ganondorf could do was freeze in complete and utter shock. "You get to move on in the tournament!"
When his body finally decided to unfreeze, he quickly glanced around the room to see who witnessed the hug. To put it bluntly, everyone. All he could think about at first was his reputation. He was being hugged by a good guy! Then, he slowly, surely realized: He liked it. He was actually enjoying being embraced by the lady with the long, green hair.
Plus, the horrified looks on Pit's and Link's faces were priceless.
"GAME!" And that was the end of the matter. Months after the tournament began, it had finally ended, and Ganondorf was not the winner. The Gerudo grumbled, remembering the fight he had lost, eliminating him from the tournament. If there was one way to be eliminated that was the most embarrassing, Ganondorf would have to say it would be losing to Jigglypuff. Jigglypuff. During the fight, she used her move rest almost obsessively. Ganondorf remembered back in the Brawl and Melee tournaments, when the balloon Pokémon was barely able to land the move. If only it was the same in this tournament.
Raucous applause broke out, screams and cheers practically deafening the Gerudo. The last fight of the tournament had concluded, and the winner was quite the surprise to Ganondorf. Rosalina's name flashed in bright yellow letters as she posed, eliciting even louder shrieks from the crowd of fans. Little Mac clapped in the background, his face revealing the frustration he held for being so close to winning. The fight between the Mario character and the boxer was an intense one, and Ganondorf actually thought Little Mac would win. Unfortunately for the boxer, Rosalina's recovery was much better than his, and she was able to KO him by tossing him off the edge. She won by one KO.
Ganondorf looked around himself, where his fellow fighters applauded the champion of the tournament. Palutena was nowhere in sight.
When the Gerudo felt a presence to his side, he turned with a smirk, expecting the goddess to be standing by his side. He was not disappointed.
"Ganondorf," Palutena looked the warlock in the eyes, her face set in something Ganon placed as determination. What the goddess had to be determined about, he didn't know. "I want you to come with me. Please."
Ganondorf raised his eyebrows questioningly, but nodded. "I suppose."
The goddess's face relaxed, though it was almost indeterminably. "Good. This way!"
Palutena spun on her heels and walked quickly towards the door that led into the hallway, much like Ganondorf had on that day he wanted answers from her. And he followed her. If asked why he followed her, he'd say he was mildly curious in her bizarre behavior. While that might have been true when he first met her, it wasn't anymore. He followed her because he cared what she was to say.
The halls were silent, exactly like the previous time the warlock and goddess escaped into them. Palutena paced a moment, her footfalls muffled significantly by the deep crimson carpet. Finally, Ganondorf spoke.
"So?" His voice was no longer rough from being unused; he'd spoken to the goddess so many times in the months since she'd arrived. "Why did you wish to bring me here?"
Palutena took a deep breath, and walked right in front of the Gerudo, her face tilted up to meet his own. "I've tried." She said quietly. "I've tried to save you."
Ganondorf scoffed, "I don't need to be-"
"Yes you do." Palutena interrupted. "You have good in you. I can feel it, I can see it every day I spend with you." Ganondorf would have interrupted, but didn't. He wanted to hear. "I want you to realize it's there. You need to know you are not lost to the darkness." She took a deep breath, eyes closed, before they snapped back open. "If this is the only way to show you, then so be it."
If one was to ask Ganondorf what happened next, he wouldn't have had the correct words to describe. The goddess of light grabbed the front of his shirt with one hand, looked into his eyes, and pulled him down. He wouldn't admit it, but he blushed profusely as their lips touched and her eyes closed in pleasure. He certainly wouldn't admit that he closed his eyes and kissed her back.
When she pulled away, Ganondorf's eyes slowly opened. He looked down at her face, the face of the lady with the long green hair, and she had that smile back. The smile she had the first time he saw her.
They stayed like that a moment, just standing there in silence. Ganondorf had absolutely no idea what to do next, until a question came to mind.
"Well?" the Gerudo asked quietly, slowly recovering from the shock of what just happened. "How was that, umm... Thing, supposed to prove I'm not 'consumed by the darkness,' as you so eloquently put it?"
Palutena tilted her head. "You enjoyed it, didn't you?"
"Hmm?"
"The kiss."
Ganondorf started feeling flustered; not a common feeling for the Gerudo King. "You're deflecting my question yet again-"
"No I'm not," Palutena shook her head. "I'm answering it. Do you think someone completely lost to darkness would enjoy a kiss from the goddess of light?"
Ganon took a breath to disprove her theory, then stopped short. He had nothing to disprove her theory with.
The goddess smiled gently, "I'll leave you with that, I suppose. Think about what I said. It's not too late for you, Ganondorf." She turned and walked to the door back into the viewing room, shutting it behind her with a quiet click.
And as Ganondorf stood in the halls alone, he realized something. If the fact he enjoyed the kiss meant he had good within him, then so be it.
His reputation was probably shattered forever, irreparable.
And at that moment, he couldn't care less.