Nabooru sat with her legs crossed, leaning back against the wall from her crate as the other prison guards around her talked. They were chatting senselessly about the Prince's mysterious disappearance last night and how – wherever he had gone – arrived in his quarters late at night and was in massive amounts of trouble. No one knew if he had been with someone or if he'd been alone, but his advisor and bodyguards had known nothing of it until he returned. In result, he had been thoroughly chewed out this morning.

It's what he deserves for wasting his time around me…

The prison was pretty much empty at the moment aside from one captive, whom was to be taken away today anyway. There was a short table surrounded by a few stools and crates with weapons and cups of wine for the few girls that wanted to drink. They were very interested in today's round of gossip.

"I heardthat Hanin was going to take him out to the shooting grounds and strap him to the back of a scared horse," one of the girls chuckled, sharpening her spear with a rock.

Another covered her laughs with her hand. "I doubt Hanin would do something like that. She's far too calm with him. Probably would just throw around a threat or two… she acts like a mother, not an assistant. I doubt she'd ever really hurt him for anything."

"Kanji would," a third added with a nod.

All the girls around agreed with that.

"The old woman has the guts to take on the Goddesses, were she allowed," the first girl said, setting her weapon down.

"She's not 'that' old," added a new, shyer, girl who hadn't added into the conversation until now.

"Lara's right," the second mentioned, "Kanji's just angry a lot."

The first shrugged and leaned back. "We've gotten off the topic. I don't know about you girls, but I want to know who the Prince was with last night."

Nabooru huffed and finally jumped into the conversation.

"Alecia, why're you so persistent to talk about the Prince? Lara, Rida, Dimah, and I don't need to hear it."

The three listed were friends of Nabooru – or as close to friends as she could get as a guard in the prison – and Alecia was one of the people she disliked more than others.

Alecia glared and brushed her bangs away from her eyes. "Come now, Nabooru, you know that you're just as curious as everyone else in this place. It's not often that the Prince gets in trouble for something."

Nabooru rolled her eyes and leaned forward, resting her arms on her knees. "That jerk? I figured that you of all people would know how I hate him. I care more about what the King of the Zora had for breakfast than his mischief."

Alecia snarled. Rida – the second girl that had spoken earlier – barked more loudly, "Stop arguing, would ya? You girls really need to get over yourselves!"

Nabooru stared at her. Unlike the others, Rida had her hair cut short. Like Nabooru, she had disrespected the King. Only, Rida's mistake had been much greater and cost her hair, as well as all honors she had left as a thief.

Both girls sat back in their seats and looked away like children. Rida rolled her eyes and looked over at Nabooru.

"By the way, what was that fight with the Prince yesterday? Kanji kept yelling at us until bed about disrespect and honor."

Dimah sat on the edge of her stool and folded her hands together, using them to support her chin. "I couldn't sleep last night! I kept worrying about what would happen to you at the next raid!"

"Tch," Nabooru sighed. "It was nothing. He just came up to me and I was already pretty pissed at Kanji. It was just a spur of the moment thing."

"But you 'beat' him!" Rida exclaimed.

"No one's ever done that!" Dimah agreed.

"You've never really seen him fight, aside from training, though," Nabooru countered.

The two girls' faces fell.

Lara added in quietly, "I thought it looked like a dance…"

Everyone looked at her quickly, including Alecia. Nabooru's face was full of color.

"That's… a good point," Dimah agreed slowly.

Nabooru bit her lip as they all turned to look at her.

Alecia's face showed that she was angry, too. "Were 'you' the one with the Prince last night?!"

Rida waited with expectant eyes, Dimah leaned forward, and Lara barely looked up, apologetic for putting her on the spot. Nabooru stood from her crate.

"Every time I see, talk about, or scarcely think about that man my blood boils! My skin burns and my mouth goes dry! Every time I see him, I wish for my blades!"

The girls were surprised by her response. Dimah sat straight up.

"It sounds to me… that out of all of us, you've fallen hardest for him."

Nabooru's eyes widened and her lip twitched. She drew her swords and caused the others to shriek and fall off their seats.

"Don't say things like that!" she screamed at them, getting into a fighting stance.

The three looked at her with fearful expressions, especially Lara. Alecia, however, had stood and drew her own weapons.

"You're an idiot," she hissed. "You know that, Nabs?"

The Gerudo glared and snarled at the back of her throat. "You'll pay!"

Nabooru charged with her swords prepared. Alecia responded with a similar approach.

"Stop!"

Everything froze in its place as a new face stepped into the room. She was dressed in dark green – an uncommon thing to see in the Gerudo Valley. Her hair was in the typical ponytail, but had a braid or two mixed in with it. A thick veil covered her face and her earrings reached the middle of her neck. Her makeup was dark and she had a large staff in her hand.

"There is news," the girl announced. "And I don't want to have to baby-sit you while I tell."

Nabooru lowered her swords as she spoke. "What is it?"

The woman straightened her back. "Hanin's been murdered."

Everyone's eyes widened and Lara stifled a gasp.

"How?!"

The soldier kept her stern stance while she explained, "The twins had killed her in the Prince's conference room. We know no more than that. Her body was found unexpectedly with the Prince by two guards."

"How do you know it was the twins?" Dimah asked, shakily.

"It was clearly a magical injury," she explained. "A smoking gouge in her chest: the twins were the only explanation."

Nabooru's heart dropped. What were the twins doing in the Prince's conference room? Along with the Prince and Hanin? What other explanation was there? Did he…?

"Johara," Alecia addressed, using the soldier's name, "What is the Prince to do about all of this?"

Johara turned to face Alecia. "He plans to choose a new advisor immediately."

Alecia nodded.

Nabooru's skin prickled as Johara said this. To cover up her emotions, she slowly sheathed her weapons. "And what of Hanin?"

"Her body is going to be buried tonight. Put those swords away, Alecia. Fool…" and then she muttered something about her being a 'lowlife prison guard' before continuing, "That is all I was to tell you. You girls must keep up good behavior if you want to be chosen as his advisor. Do so wisely."

With that, Johara turned sharply and left the prison.

As soon as the green-clad Gerudo had left, Rida turned to speak to Nabooru, but she had somehow slipped out without the others noticing.

--

The white-clad guard strutted through the fortress with her hands clenched in fists. She kept her eyes focused on the up-turned toes of her shoes as she headed for an open walkway on the bottom floor of the fortress.

"Poor Hanin…" she muttered to herself. "Being chained to him like that. I'm pitiful for the sorry soul that is going to be strapped to him next."

Nabooru found the place she was looking for and entered it.

The room was large, and was empty aside from a line of shoddy, frayed cots on one wall and shelves filled with bottles, each containing some kind of strangely colored remedy or item, on the opposite. In front of these shelves were a large table and several seats. At the end of the room was the wide-open entrance to one of the dorms. In front of the towering shelves was the room's one inhabitant.

This girl was quite different from other Gerudo. For starters, her hair was extremely curly and a slightly lighter red than the others – kept together with a long, traditional Gerudo hair band, low on the crown of her head. Her skin was also a bit less bronze than everyone else's. She had scrawny arms with ripped bandages wrapped around her wrists. These weren't for her own health purposes, merely to be in a convenient place if she needed them for a patient. She wore an orange uniform, yet had no gems to decorate it like most others did. Her top was awfully worn.

Nabooru knew this girl quite well; she was not fully Gerudo, yet not fully anything else, either. She was a crossbreed of Gerudo and Hylian and was looked down on for that. This was why she worked in the infirmary instead among the thieves. But she had been a friend with Nabooru since they were children, despite getting in trouble all the time for being around each other. Nabooru was closer to her than she was Rida or Lara or Dimah – in fact the only one that she could really call a 'friend' of all of them.

She heard Nabooru as she came in and spun around.

"Huh? Who's there?"

Nabooru grinned at her. "Hey Sera. It's just me."

Sera's shoulders dropped and she sighed in relief. "Oh… thank goodness." The nurse recollected herself and straightened her back, shifted her weight to one leg and put her hands on her hips. "Well, what can I do for you?"

"I just want to chat."

Sera nodded. "Well take a seat, then."

Nabooru plopped down on one of the stools near the shelves as Sera turned to them, taking a bottle down and wiping it with a cloth.

The thief leaned back and stretched her legs out in front of her. "Have you heard about Hanin?"

Sera glanced at her out of the corner of her eye. "The Prince's advisor? I have not."

Her friend shrugged and shut her eyes. "She was apparently killed earlier today."

"Huh?!" Sera gasped, turning her head fully. "By whom? Why?"

"The twins. And no one knows why," Nabooru added.

Sera lowered the remedy bottle she held. "What do they know?"

"She was found dead in the conference room with a big hole in her chest. The Prince was in the room with her, but the wound she had was obviously caused by magic. Actually…I kind of would have expected that someone would have fetched you the moment it happened."

The half-Gerudo hummed and returned to rubbing the glass of the bottle. "Nah, they try to avoid calling me if they need to. As you should know."

And she did. As Sera got older, many more of the Gerudo had gotten weary of her taking medical care of them. Considering her Hylian blood, the people she lived with were slowly beginning to lose trust in her Gerudo side, in fear that the Hylian part of her would want revenge for her parents. The Gerudo hated her, as most Hylians probably would if she went out into their world, which earned her such a low-class place and little respect.

"Well, anyway, what did you want to talk about other than that?" Sera inquired further after a long silence.

Nabooru took a deep breath and ran a hand through her ponytail. "The woman who is going to take Hanin's place is also...making me quite curious."

The nurse raised an eyebrow and set the bottle she held back in its place on the shelf, picking up another one. "Has the Prince already chosen someone?"

"Not yet. He's supposedly choosing someone as soon as possible."

"And?"

Nabooru sighed and laced her hands behind her head. "Well…I'm afraid he's going to choose me." At this, Sera laughed loudly. The thief sat straight up and rested her elbows on her knees. "Hey, listen for a second!"

The curly-haired girl set the bottle she held down and covered her mouth with her hand. "I – ahaha – I'm sorry!" she managed through laughter. "But… Nabs, why on earth would his Majesty pick you?"

"I was just getting to that!" Nabooru yelled, causing her friend to jump and stop her laughter immediately. The Gerudo took a deep breath. "Sorry… Well here's what happened."

Nabooru began to explain her night with the Prince to Sera. The nurse kept quiet as she explained and saved her questioning until the end.

"…How did you two not get caught?" she asked, leaning over the table on her arms. "Kanji would have you murdered if she knew!"

"I know. But I honestly have no idea how we pulled off staying up as long as we did. And what has me even more surprised…" Nabooru trailed off and stared at the edge of the wooden surface in front of her.

Sera tilted her head. "What?"

Her friend rested her arms on the table and rested her head on them. "Keep a secret?"

"As always," she replied with a nod.

"Okay… it's… really a strange concept, but I… the experience of actually talking to him like I did kinda made me think about him more and… feel really bad about some of the things I had said when I was a kid."

"Really?"

Nabooru nodded and looked Sera right in her blue eyes – an uncommon thing among Gerudo. "Yeah. And I really don't know why! We talked about constellations all night!"

Sera chuckled and looked at her own arms. "Ah Nabs…"

"I really hate him."

The nurse continued to quietly laugh as she stood and pushed her curly ponytail back over her shoulder. "Maybe," she said, "You should try and get past your hotheaded attitude for once and then try to think about all of this again."

Nabooru opened her mouth to counter that, but was cut off when the voice of a guard called into the infirmary, "Sera! Sera, get out here now!"

Said girl glanced at the door. "Coming!" She looked back at Nabooru apologetically before dashing outside to the ones calling her.

Now Nabooru was alone again.

She stood from the chair she sat at and pushed it in, wandering out of the room. A good deal of her head was yelling at her for leaving her post from the prison like she did – now Kanji was really going to throw a fit – but the other part was enjoying the feeling of being rebellious. Nabooru felt the hot mid-morning sun heat up her skin and face as she stepped out into its rays.

The thief saw Sera speaking with two guards for a moment before they took her by the shoulders and pushed her towards another part of the fortress. Nabooru silently felt pity for her friend, and then turned her attention to the guards that were approaching 'her.' Her eyes widened and she looked for a way of escape, but was too slow.

"Nabooru," one of them addressed, "The Prince has requested that you come see him."

Surprise struck her. That wasn't expected.

"U-uh…" she stuttered, eyeing their spears and thinking of how quickly she might be able to draw her swords, "is there anyway I can do this another time? I really need to get back to my post…"

The other guard shook her head and got a hold of Nabooru's arm. "The Prince has requested council with you. You mustn't refuse."

She reached for her cutlasses, but her other arm was caught by the first guard.

"Hey! Let go of me!"

But their hold had the strength of the experienced Gerudo they were. Nabooru snickered and squirmed against them as they drug her across the fortress. Though she was quite strong against them herself, she wasn't quite strong enough to shake them both off. Nabooru didn't give up her fight, even when they had entered an area of the fortress that she didn't recognize.

The room they took her to looked almost like a lounge of some kind. There were rugs on the floor and fine tapestries on the walls. Treasures were all around, as well, and several seats. The guards pushed her in and stood in front of the curtain to keep her from running away.

"The Prince will be here shortly," one said sternly, her eyes narrowed at Nabooru. "And we've been instructed to keep you here until then."

Nabooru huffed and glanced about the room. There was only one window here and it was too small for her to fit through. The guards were obviously not going to move anytime soon, meaning that she was stuck here until Ganon appeared. She quietly hissed and straightened herself out.

One guard leaned over and whispered something to the other before going outside of the room. Nabooru found herself planning for escape but stopped immediately when she saw the Prince enter. He stared at her a moment before turning to the guard beside him and dismissed her. Now they were alone.

"I assume you know why you're here," he began, folding his arms behind his back and taking a step forward.

Nabooru rolled her eyes. "You would assume."

He responded with a heavy breath. Ganon eyed the rugs on the floor. "Right…"

The thief before him pursed her lips and glanced around the room, admiring its treasures. "But to be honest, I'm really not sure why I'm here." She made a disgusted face. "Why'd you drag your guards out through the fortress to bring me?"

He looked at her, though she was facing away, with an eyebrow raised in interest. "Ah, well… I assume you've heard of Hanin's death."

Nabooru nodded and she felt that surge of guilt again. She didn't look for the Prince's eyes.

"And that I am in search of a new advisor?"

Her heart dropped and her eyes went wide. Nabooru flicked her head around quickly, only to be met with an intent stare.

"Oh no…no, there is absolutely no way!"

Ganon looked at his feet, not shyly but perhaps in irritation. "You really have no choice…"

She was shocked at his words and had to bite her lip, hard, to keep herself from blowing up at him. The Prince snuck one sly look back at the curtain where the two guards were standing and then back to Nabooru.

"There's a reason," he said to her, reducing his voice to a whisper and heading directly past her to the back of the room. "If you knew, you'd understand why you have no choice. Just trust me."

"Trust you?!" She boomed, "Why in the name of the Goddesses would I need to trust you for anything? I should have a choice in this!"

Ganon shot her an intimidating look that might have quieted another Gerudo, but not Nabooru. "Hush up! They'll hear you!"

"Wh—"

"The twins."

Nabooru's eyes widened and she smacked her lips shut. The Prince held her eyes, seriously, and then broke away, heading for one of the barrels full of treasure there. He pushed aside the coins of gold and silver and bronze and revealed a hidden garment there. He retrieved it, shook out bits and pieces that hadn't fallen off of it, and then turned to Nabooru.

"I promised to them that I would make you my new advisor," he continued, quietly, "So that things like what happened last night won't occur again. They want to keep an eye on you… and now they won't shake the idea."

He held out the rust-red clothing – the ones for the King's advisor to wear. The advisor wasn't a rank for fighting, necessarily. She was more of a protector to him – there to keep order within him, keep his personal and political life in order. She was one who was meant to stay by his side, follow his orders, and never betray him else she be put to death. She was like his guardian.

"I don't know if I'll make a good advisor," Nabooru admitted with a glare, taking a step back.

"You'll learn. If you don't take the placement, I'm not sure what they'll do to you."

The thief put a hand, precariously, to her neck and swallowed. It was either death, or be strapped to the Prince like a dog… and honestly, Nabooru was leaning towards the first one, considering it was to come no matter what.

"Prince Ganondorf," a voice suddenly called. Nabooru and Ganon both jumped up in surprise.

A figure appeared at the door; a woman dressed in a strange variety of colors and gems and trinkets. Easily, any Gerudo could identify her.

"Maria," Ganon addressed, his words sounding airy from his surprise.

Maria was the second-in-command. Rank-wise, she was absolutely the most important Gerudo other than the King. She was much like his advisor, only was in more control of the other Gerudo than the King himself. Maria was the person to turn to when the King wasn't available, and he had to trust you very well in order to allow you to become second-in-command. Maria was this rank when the previous King had passed away, so many trusted her. Nabooru found the middle-aged woman to be a bit scary at times, considering her seriousness and straightforward attitude… though that was probably why the previous King had chosen her in the first place.

Then an idea seeped into Nabooru's mind. She glanced back at the clothing Ganon was still holding.

"The nurse and several guards need you so that we can gain access to Hanin's things and bury some of them with her," Maria stated. "Assuming you have a key, that is."

"Yes, yes," Ganon replied, nodding.

Maria suddenly took notice of the bundle in his arms. She cocked a slim eyebrow and then turned her eyes up to Nabooru.

Oh and that was another thing – Maria didn't particularly like Nabooru for her disrespect and treason to the Prince.

"What is going on here?" the second-in-command asked slowly.

Ganon opened his mouth to speak.

"I was just accepting my new uniform," Nabooru put in promptly, reaching out to take the red clothing from Ganon. He glanced at her quickly, rather surprised by the answer, and was reassured that he had heard her correctly when she nodded. The Prince grinned and handed her the clothing.

"Thank you," he whispered. Nabooru smirked and nodded.

"Your Highness," Maria cut in, rudely. Ganon looked up at her and she waved for him to follow her out of the small chamber and head to Hanin's old quarters. He trailed after her, allowing the curtain blow about a little as he left.

Nabooru – alone once again – looked down at the bundle she held steadily. She set it down on a nearby table and lifted up the top, looking the uniform up and down. It was much neater and cleaner than her current, white guard's uniform. This one had many more embellishments and designs on it, as well as gems. It showed her authority.

"I'm the Prince's advisor," she muttered to herself, stroking the ruby sewn onto the center of the shirt. With a sigh she huddled the clothing together again and left the chamber.

Author's Notes:

So, here we go with the next chapter. This one is more focused on Nabooru, as you have probably noticed. The story 'is' going to be focused more on Ganon in the times to come, so you can look forward to that. Also, I know there are lots of OC's here, but you know, Gerudo Valley is a big place and only a few are really mentioned, name-wise. Don't worry; none of them are going to have huge parts aside from Sera.

Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter and stay around to read the next one!

~KK