Before the Game Begins...
The Death of the Queen
Chapter 15: Ganondorf
When Nabooru awoke next day, she realized two things: one, she could never allow Ganondorf to put on those black gauntlets, and two, she was naked.
She didn't know how she was going to stop him, and she knew she had to, but first, she needed her clothing.
She knew that there was no way he'd listen to her. She saw his determination and strength. If she should declare herself his enemy now, she feared that he may very well eliminate her. She felt very vunerable. Her strength was gone...The Silver Gauntlets! she thought suddenly. With the Silver Gauntlets, she'd be able to fight him more equally, perhaps even stop his insane plan. But where had Kaepora Gaebora put them? Her heart plunged, foreseeing a long and difficult search.
"Nabooru?" came Ganondorf's voice from outside the small tent.
"Yes?" she answered
He thrust his hand through the tent flap. "Here's your clothes." he said quite matter-of-factly.
She sat up, clutching the covers closely, keeping a hawk eye on his silouette, and grabbed the bundle of clothing from his hand. His hand withdrew and his shadow moved away. She quickly dressed and adjusted her clothing, then stepped outside.
The sun shone with the promise of a hot day. Ganondorf was cooking breakfast on an open fire. His back was to her. She paused, her gaze boring into him as if by looking alone, she could divine his true intention. He turned his head and glanced at her when he realized that she was standing there for too long. He reached casually for the long hunting knife that he kept tied to his thigh. "I haven't felt that murderous intent from you in a long time." He said, and slowly stood up to face her.
By Nayru, he was tall. Nabooru flared her nostrils. Her eyes flashed dangerously. She was unarmed. What did he intend on doing? Could she defend herself from him? Could she outrun him? Not wanting to take her eyes off of him, she listened for the sound of the horses chomping on the nearby grass, gauging their distance...with his injured leg, he couldn't go far, but that wicked knife could be thrown like lightning...Her heart began to thud. Her legs were still weak from last night's bout.
She felt the fight go out of her. She bowed her head for a moment and composed herself. She heard him step toward her, then felt the point of his knife beneath her chin. With it, he forced her chin back up.
Her body shook with helplessness. She could feel tears building up painfully behind her eyeballs. She clenched her hands into fists, then relaxed them. What could she do, but surrender?
"What do you want, Ganondorf?" she asked through gritted teeth. She put shaking hands to her bodice and began unbuttoning it.
He put one hand over her two. "Stop that." he said.
"You've already seen me!" she accused.
"Not like this, Nabooru." he said quietly, almost with a note of pleading. He let his hand fall away, then he took the knife away from her throat and put it back. "You don't want me. It's pretty clear." His eyes glittered a little and his mouth twisted into a grimace. "I would never force you to do something like that." He shrugged and swallowed and didn't meet her gaze. "Last night...last night I just did what had to be done." Then his gaze met hers like a challenge. He folded his arms across his chest and strolled back to the burning breakfast. He tossed it and started anew.
How did he do that? she wondered. He was the one who had put the knife under her chin, not the other way around. Why was it that she was the one that felt like an ass? Had she misunderstood him somehow, or was he just so very much smarter than she was? But something inside wanted to know the reason he felt he needed to walk the path he had chosen so willfully.
She moved quietly to stand opposite of him, on the other side of the small fire. "Why?" she said in a tearful and quiet voice. "Why do you want to continue on?"
He looked up at her, puzzled. "Continue on?" he prompted.
"Revenge." she said simply.
"Oh." he said, a cold expression settling on his features. "I've made my intentions clear last night, Nabooru. I can see you don't like it. But here at the Lake, you may say what you wish. I won't harm you in any way. This is the truce ground. I didn't invite you here to fight with you. I will honor that. If you align yourself against me here, in this place, I will do you no harm. But if we meet outside this place, and you defy me, I will kill you." He stabbed his long hunting knife into the ground beside the fire. He put so much force into it that sand and gravel spattered in a small circle around the blade. He looked up at her with cold eyes. "Nothing personal." he smiled.
She felt a cold, crawling sensation up her back..."I will finish the job I started." she vowed to him. "You better not turn your back to me again."
"I won't." he said calmly, stirring the food on the fire, then spooning it onto two plates. He offered her one, along with another mug of the dark liquid. She accepted it, and they ate in silence together.
"I will find the Black Gauntlets again." he told her quietly. "I can almost hear them calling to me." the thought of them actually sickened him, but he was so determined to stay on this course, that he would endure anything. "I don't know where you hid them, but I will eventually find them, and when I do...The King of Hyrule better watch out. The gauntlets will straighten out this wrecked body." he said, remembering how the dark power had risen up in him during the fight with the man Queen Gohma had wanted. The man's sword thrust could have been debilitating, but with a simple touch, he had healed it. True, he had been wearing the Silver Gauntlets at the time, but the Black Gauntlets, although they turned him into a mindless berserker, gave him the same ability to heal quickly. He would have been dead if he hadn't had them on during the last battle. "I was just hoping..." he turned his unreadable gaze toward her again. "...that before I did that...before I turn myself back into a monster, I could have a little time as a human."
A cold rage welled up within her, one to match his. He had been planning this the whole time they had ministered to his wounds. Why hadn't they left him for dead? "This truce is over." she said. "You never stopped being a monster!" she accused.
They both suddenly stood up, Ganondorf pulling the knife up out of the ground. "What are you going to do?" she asked scornfully. "Kill an unarmed woman?"
"If I have to." Ganondorf said quietly. He stepped over the fire and was beside her in an instant. At the same time, she spun around to flee for her life. He caught her wrist and pulled her forcefully up against his chest. He held her easily with one arm, his lips inches from hers. "But I'd rather not." He could feel the rage vibrating inside of her, and he laughed at how easily he had caught her. If she really had wanted to leave, she would have eluded him just as easily. He lowered his head to test his theory, but didn't quite kiss her...Ah, he thought. She's waiting for it. She had held her breath. She hadn't closed her eyes, but she didn't turn away..."Nabooru." he whispered, his lips nearly brushing against hers as he spoke her name. He tightened his arm around her. By Nayru, she was a lovely thing! He would really miss her, but it didn't matter. Once he had the gauntlets, he wouldn't remember this either...at least, not until he took them off. He closed the gap between their lips.