I keep forgetting the freakin' disclaimer, so here it is: I do not own Ganondorf, Link, the Gerudo thieves, or anything else in Legend of Zelda. All I own is Ria. And she's good enough for me!

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Previously....

Ria shivered as he casually dehumanized her, sad eyes falling on the man who was an equal prisoner. His blue eyes darted around under shaggy blonde bangs, broad shoulders slumped in mock defeat, she hoped. He was built powerful, she could tell, and would probably father great children with a suitable wife.

Little did she know, but this prisoner would become vital to her plans for the future.

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A gentle breeze blew through the Gerudo Valley, rustling her long black hair as Ria stared blankly out over the patrolling thieves. Long swords gleamed in the sunlight as she heard the prisoner pounding against the cell door at the far end of the Valley. They were basically in the same predicament, being held captive against their will. Her blue eyes were bleak as she watched one of the guards finish her rounds and start again.

Hah. Some privelages, she thought bitterly.

She had been given a great white horse as a gift, from none other than her husband-to-be. She had been overjoyed at the beauty of the mare, immediately wishing to ride across Hyrule's great fields. Ganondorf fastened the snowy angel with polished new saddle and tack and boosted her up, telling her she was to take a guard with her whenever she left the valley.

Needless to say, her joy vanished.

Tears welled up in her eyes, hoping to make him take back the stern words that dripped with his lack of trust.

"You...you don't trust me? You think I would leave such a place as this, with a wonderful man to soon be wed to? You don't trust me!" she wailed, making him wince at her high pitch. She bawled, standing near the bridge into the Valley, and heads turned towards them, Ria seeing the smug look of the jealously pregnant teenager. She leaned down and whispered something into who Ria guessed was her nurse, probably about how she would have made such a better queen then a spoiled foreigner.

He waved his arms, silencing her and leaned forward, down to her petite height. He propped his palms on his knees and stared at her with a quiet stare, pursing his lips in thought.

"Dear Ria, it's not that I don't TRUST you, it's just..." he trailed off, waving an arm absently as he thought. "It's just that...someone might ATTACK you, seeing as you are to soon be my wife, hmm? Understand now?" He nodded as if she was stupid and helped her mount. His smile followed her out, a Gerudo on a horse riding nearby, bow and arrow poised.

Ria's brow furrowed as she felt the smooth ripple of muscle under her, her hair raised as she rode along at an easy canter. She knew all too well she couldn't outride a trained thief on horseback, and there was no way that Ganondorf would let her out of the Valley so soon after being "engaged." He knew she still didn't like it. She growled and kicked her heels into the horse's side in anger.

The horse reared with a shriek and took off, galloping wildly for an unknown destination, leaving the thief in the dust far behind. Ria leaned forward in glee, the mare's soft mane flicking against her cheek as she hugged herself near the white neck. With a quick glance over her shoulder, Ria conformed her suspicions that she had indeed lost the thief.

She tugged the reins lightly, swinging around in a wide arc behind the ranch and galloped over the fields, enjoying herself thoroughly now that she was alone. One just couldn't brood properly when being watched, now can one?

She sighed and slowed to a trot, coming out into the open away from the ranch, where her guard spotted her and galloped over.

"Majesty! Majesty, what happened? What spooked ya mount, Majesty?" she said in a low voice, brandishing the sword that had been strapped to her back. Ria bristled as she swung the weapon and her horse snorted and pawed the ground restlessly. Her mind raced as she tried to come up with a suitable explanation.

"Oh-h-h....uhhh..I think...I don't know, but gosh, I was so s-s-s-scared!" she wailed, screwing her face up to disguise her glee. She bellowed and bawled and the guard's horse tossed his head in irritation, side-stepping around the white mare. Ria continued to fake her wails as the Gerudo shook her head and grabbed the reins, leading them back towards the Valley. What a stupid bride her Lord had chosen, she thought to herself.

Ria was still sniffling and whimpering piteously when they finally entered, trodding heavily on the guard's last nerve. All she had done on the slow walk back to the Valley was whine and cry! Her Lord had said he had chosen a greatly skilled bride, he had. Didn't great skill require brains? She groaned and jerked the reins, earning a protest and side-step from the white mare and a shriek of fear from the dim-wit. With a soft snarl, the guard slid out of the saddle and waited, with dwindling patience, as Ria dismounted and cowered a distance from the horse.

The guard led the horses to the stable hand and curtly instructed the child to rub them down and give them cool water, before storming back out into the open and bellowing for her Lord.

"Lord Ganon!!!" her deep voice boomed over the Valley, earning looks from every thief outside. The dark-skinned Ganondorf stepped out of his dwelling at the top of the mountain, glaring down in agitation at the summons.

"A word, please, sir!" she pleaded, starting up the ramp lined with guards at random intervals. She jogged lightly, glad to be rid of the stupid girl, and quickly made it up to stand in front of her superior.
She bowed lowly and stood at attention while Ganondorf frowned slightly.

"What seems to be the problem, Nikua?" he asked in a curt voice, eyes trained on the delicate figure of Ria down below, dancing about like a moron. He could barely wait until she was comfortable enough with him to take her to his bed.

"Sir," the guard called Nikua began tentitavely, "with all due respect, your wife-to-be...well....she's a stupid twit, sir! You said she was skilled, she couldn't even control her horse! And when I finally got to her she bawled as if her family had been murdered! I think you should seriously reconsider, sir." Nikua bit her lip and waited, expecting a tart reprimand for talking in such a way about his soon wife.

Ganondorf nodded, a fierce frown glued to his face as he watched her stumble below and right herself, giggling wildly. She was acting rather dumb for one who showed such great skill in thievery, and yet...he couldn't just dismiss her so easily. She was needed for his plans. When he finally got his hands on that Princess Zelda...THEN she would be disposed of, when he could have a wife worth putting up with. He tapped his clawed fingers in irritation and looked back to the waiting guard.

"Listen, Nikua," he began slowly. "You're my best warrior-thief, alright? She's very skilled, indeed, and I need her for my plans. She's vital. Just put up with her for a while, and before you know it, she'll be dead and I'll have a wife with great wits about her. But," he chuckled, reaching forward to trace a clawed finger along her thin top across the top of her swelling breasts, "you will always be my favorite bedmate. Now, you are assigned to keep an eye on her at all costs. Don't let anything happen to her." He waved impatiently to dismiss her and turned back into his dwelling to map out the Hyrule Castle.

She was acting rather stupid, he would admit, but maybe it wasn't acting. Most who acted would slip up after so long, so . . . he shrugged. He would just watch her closely. Ganondorf sighed and drew a line across what marked as the courtyard in the castle. But what would he do about that Link character?

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Well, folks, that seems to be it for this chapter. Things are beginning to work up in Gerudo Valley, and what's Ria doing? Hey, calm down, I'm still not a hundred percent sure either! Please rate and review, and read my favorite story "Dark Angel" by Camaro while your at it! Anybody got any ideas, please, tell me in a review and maybe I'll put it in and give you credit! Many a thanks! Love, Ria Shadowflare