A/N: I think I'm going to settle with weekly updates. So if you want to keep reading, check back every Saturday or so, or just keep the story on your Alert! Enjoy the first part of the Reawakening!

NO ONE REALLY questioned the presence of a new royal son. Of course they speculated, but no one was about to doubt the legitimacy of this new king, the first in one hundred years. These kings brought a prosperous golden age to the Gerudo, as the legends told, so the villagers simply let his perplexing existence go.

Ganondorf participated in all the usual "heir" activities, save for the class on princess etiquette. He referred to Koume as his mother, even though for the first few years of his life he was fed by one of the nursemaids who had recently mothered her own daughter. Koume spoiled him with toys and Hylian delicacies in his toddler years and after some time truly felt a love for the boy. His birth mother had been almost entirely forgotten.

When he was of age to begin his education, Ganondorf expressed a keen interest in sorcery. Koume had on many occasions found him attempting to manipulate one of his toys with no physical contact. However, she continued to deny his requests for magic lessons until she was satisfied he would succeed. But when the day came that he did, an inkling of unease settled in her stomach.

Ganondorf had been in the stables, since he had discovered in himself an affinity toward animals. He had taken a particular liking in one horse who not a single person could even recall obtaining. She was a beautiful mare with an ebony pelt and amber eyes, and no one claimed her as their own. Therefore the little king declared his ownership and no one protested, especially since there was something a little off about the horse. Ganondorf seemed to be the only one not put off by her strangely red-tinted eyes, so he seemed like a natural owner. He called her "horsey" until he saw the name "Wrana" carved into her saddle.

As his first successful attempt at magic, Ganondorf wanted to add some color to Wrana's static pelt. Koume, naturally, strongly advised him against it for fear of hurting the animal, so Ganondorf escaped into the stables when his mother thought he was at his writing lesson. After long attempts at color-producing spells he found in an old leather-bound book, he was close to giving up on his endeavor. Eager for one last hope, he leafed through the dry, yellowing pages until he came across a spell called "the Colors of Din." He barely skimmed the spell's description before turning to Wrana and chanting the ancient Hylian words. It had the word "colors" in it, so it had to produce some sort of new coloration.

But to Ganondorf's confusion, the horse let out a screech of pain and terror as its mane and tail lit fire. Her red eyes rolled as she bucked against her stall panels, whinnying chaotically. Ganondorf gazed at the book's pages for some sort of magical way to douse the fire, but in his frenzied page-turning he tore some of the yellow leaves and ruined the diagrams and phrases. It wasn't until he realized that Wrana had ceased whinnying that he looked up to find the fire gone, as well as the black hair of the horse's mane and tail. In their place were fibers of beautiful red and orange hair, the colors of a radiant fire.

Overjoyed at his horse's new coloration, Ganondorf forgot he was supposed to be at a writing lesson and ran to tell his mother. Koume, although furious at his disobedience, went with him to the stables to see what he had done to the poor animal. But her anger was replaced with admiring shock when he saw Wrana's new vibrant colors. She then decided to grant Ganondorf his wish for magic lessons.

Dread crept its way into Koume's heart when she realized she have to turn to someone else for advisement, someone she hadn't seen in years. But this person was the best sorcerer in Hyrule, had been for decades, and was also the only person Koume trusted with her deeply seated fears concerning her son. Swallowing her pride, she made the decision to contact her sister, Kotake.

Koume wrote to her sister, expressing her concerns toward Ganondorf's interest in magic. When Kotake arrived from her unknown home somewhere in the forests of the south, they locked themselves inside Koume's chamber to discuss.

"You realize this means he will have to choose between sorcery and leading the Gerudo," Koume said with a crestfallen tone.

Kotake, a slender woman with cold eyes, was exactly identical to Koume. The only differences rested in Kotake's sorcerer's garbs and a headdress with a large blue gem hanging over her forehead. "He is only a boy," she said, icy voice nonchalant. "When the time comes for him to make a decision, he will."

"You remember how it tore us apart," said Koume quietly, not looking at her sister. "Mother had to decide for us."

"That was only because we both wanted to become sorcerers and were both fit to rule," Kotake said, standing before the princess as she sat on her bed. "If one of us had chosen another hobby, we wouldn't have…" The words drifted from her as she stared out the window, lost in a memory.

"But think," Koume pressed, "if Ganondorf chooses to lead the Gerudo, I can take to magic again." She stood, taking a step toward her sister. "We can become the Twinrova again."

Kotake let a sarcastic smile spread on her lips. "We've lost that connection, sister," she said wryly. "Even if you practiced sorcery once more, we could never be as we were in our younger years."

"Your faith in our power is astonishing," Koume said. "Our own mother said we would be Hyrule's destruction if we joined forces."

"And that was why she decreed that no leader should be able to practice sorcery," Kotake said. "The two of us had too much anger in our hearts to be the Twinrova. If mother hadn't made you her successor, we'd have gone wild."

Koume followed her sister's gaze through the window. "At least let us teach my son the basics," she said. "If he wants to learn sorcery, so be it. But I cannot teach him myself."

Kotake exhaled as she considered her sister's words. It had been so long since they'd talked this peacefully, so long since she had lived within the Gerudo walls. But seeing her sister again buoyed her decision and she smiled. "You most certainly can't," she laughed. "I was always the better sorcerer."

Koume laughed with her before adjusting her headdress. "Welcome home, sister."

During her stay, all the resentment Kotake had felt toward her sister in the past vanished. She developed a liking for Ganondorf, even when Koume inevitably told her the truth about his birth. The boy admired her for teaching him magic, and they established a strong bond that Koume delighted in.

In the following days, Ganondorf's magic abilities grew exponentially. He could easily perform spells without reciting their chants; he could lift small objects to his hands without moving; he could speak words and watch as a feather pen transcribed them on a piece of parchment. He also took greatly to using his abilities to benefit his horse. He would spend afternoons in Wrana's stall, reading a book while brushes and clothes moved themselves across the horse's flanks, cleaning her fur to an iridescent sheen.

Many like to believe that the root of Ganondorf's desire for power began in his love for his horse. His wish to spoil her stemmed from his magic abilities and he asked Kotake if she knew a spell that could raise crops from the ground. Koume restricted her sister from teaching Ganondorf any nature manipulation spells, but the young king pleaded with his aunt. She made him promise only to use such magic to feed his horse, and nothing more. He agreed, and began learning the simplest of the earth manipulation spells.

Koume eventually found out about Ganondorf's endeavors and scolded Kotake for teaching him such dangerous magic.

"How is it dangerous?" Kotake said. "He wants to grow carrots to feed his dear Wrana. That's a sign of benevolence if you ask me."

"Do you know what nature manipulation leads to?" Koume said. "It leads to hurricanes and tornadoes every time he throws a temper tantrum!"

"You're being ridiculous," Kotake said.

"This is a very reasonable concern."

"I won't teach him anything else until he is old enough to know how to use magic wisely."

Koume was not satisfied, but said nothing more.

Ganondorf could no longer sleep. Nearly ever night since he had turned thirteen, he awoke to a terrible ache in his chest, causing him to wheeze in agony. Each time, Mother Koume would rush over to his bed chamber and hold him tightly, whispering soft lies into his ear. He would be okay, this was the last time, this was perfectly normal. But Ganondorf was an incredibly intelligent young boy, and he could almost taste the lies in his mother's voice. But the pain in his torso was so domineering that he said nothing in response. Each gasp of breath brought a stronger ache, as if something inside him wanted him to suffer just for his existence.

One night the pain was accompanied by a nightmare. Ganondorf was atop his horse, Wrana, and a horrible figure rose above his head. It seemed shapeless, swarming with raw energy and hissing like a monstrous serpent. But the young prince couldn't move his steed, who seemed to be locked in place by this writing black mass. Suddenly the mass condensed into a mirror image of Ganondorf, although his skin was shimmering pitch black from the strange material and his hair was made of fire.

The figure grinned menacingly. "Time to wake up." And with its horrible laugh still ringing in the prince's ears, he woke with a scream, clutching his chest. The pain was so excruciating that he thought he might die in that very moment. But Koume and Kotake both came rushing into his bed chamber.

"Ganon!" Koume sat on the edge of the bed and held her son's face in her elegant, slender hands. "Ganondorf, my boy, are you all right? More pain?"

Ganondorf let out a yowl of pain as a yes, doubling over. "He's coming, Mother... He's going to kill me..."

"What in the Goddess's name are you talking about?" Kotake said, tone just as motherly as Koume's. "No one's coming to kill you, darling."

The three of them sat in the prince's room until his shuddering sobs quieted. Eventually he lay back down and took deep breaths, calming himself.

"Koume..." Kotake whispered. She nodded toward Ganondorf's chest, which was bare from his sleeping attire. Right in the center, spreading from where his heart was still beating rapidly, was a web of black lines resembling veins beneath his skin. Koume was certainly concerned, but made no comment. She smiled at her son.

"Go back to sleep, my prince," she said, leaning down and kissing his forehead. "Things will make themselves clearer in the morning." Once again, Ganondorf made no comment about the lie.

The sisters left the room and Ganondorf closed his eyes. But as soon as he did, the swirling black mass appeared before him and he opened them wide again. A flash of panic overcame his shivering body. Was he going crazy? Was this only the nightmare of a child of which he was foolishly frightened? He lay on his back for the rest of the night, not once letting himself drift off.

Back in Koume's room, the twins sat on the princess's bed.

"What do you think it means?" Koume said after a moment.

"He's still a boy," said Kotake. "We shouldn't look into until it proves detrimental."

"He's our son," said Koume. "You adopted as much interest in the boy as I have. You can't possibly feel no sympathy toward him."

"You're much too soft," spat Kotake suddenly. "You think fondness for him is nonexistent in my actions, when in truth, it is the foundation. He is a strong, young sorcerer already, and the magic he was born with is beginning to manifest itself. If we do anything to stop what may be harmless, we could stifle the growth of his inborn power."

Koume stood, holding a hand to her forehead. She felt like she was burning up, like she might be falling ill. "You've always shown your love in a cold way." She looked at her sister. "It made me wonder as a child whether you could love at all."

Kotake stood as well, walking over to the princess and taking her hands away from her face. "You're my twin. And Ganondorf is your son. Of course I love you both." She paused, her face very close to Koume's. "And I have my ways of showing love."

There was a tense moment in which the two women locked golden gazes, hearts beating in tandem. Before she knew it, Kotake's lips were pressed against Koume's. After another long moment, she smiled. "He will be fine." And with that, she left the princess's chambers.

A/N: Oh hey Game of Thrones, how's it goin'?