The next few days set up how the next four months played out. Aria would wake up early, grab a bit of breakfast before the king showed up and head out to the stables. The gerudos that normally worked the stables didn't mind the extra help, in fact they welcomed it when it came to the black stallion's stall. Aria was sure by now that Ganondorf had heard of her being able to handle his horse, but he hadn't sought her out. She rarely saw him at all most days, she assumed it was because he was too busy with his war. When she did see him, it was usually in passing. She'd catch him out of the corner of her eye and it seemed he would do the same. Once in a while he would turn ever so slightly towards her, but she would disappear around the corner or near a few gerudos walking by.

After working the stable she'd head to the training ring to work with Faruin and Aveil. She had only to ask Aveil if Faruin could train with her, giving Faruin better chances at the competition coming up. Warriors went out into the desert, and every time they came back a few more girls were gone. Training took up the majority of their days. Every week, Aria would had more weights added to her boots. Every day she'd practice her magic with Faruin as her temporary 'dummy'. Aveil taught her hand to hand combat, fighting with staves, glaives, broadswords, short swords, rapier, archery, cutlass, daggers, anything and everything they could think of.

Once Titan had healed up, Aria spent the time after the on ground lessons, being trained by Aveil in mounted archery. She was no where near as good as Aveil, or the other riders who had been doing it for years but with each passing day she was getting better.

Once mounted archery was done with, Titan cooled down, groomed, and put in the stall for the night, Aria usually took a bath, grabbed a quick bite of dinner and passed out. Some days she skipped dinner altogether, it just depended upon how much energy she expended in the ring.

It was near the end of one of those average days, that Aria decided to switch it up a bit, take a bath before dinner. A routine was nice, but sometimes a girl just needed time to relax. The bathing room was empty, most everyone already at dinner or still finishing up the last of their chores.

Aria sunk into the steaming water by the edge of the pool, sighing as it began to ease the knots out of her back and shoulders. So distracted was she, that she didn't even hear the padding of feet, nor the sound of clothing being set to the side.

The rippling water notified her too late of another bather. Aria sat up, rubbing the water of her eyes, ready to greet her fellow gerudo only to freeze. Before her was Ganondorf, water dripping off his front, red hair, crimson from the water running through it. Her eyes had a mind of their own, following down his muscled chest, past his belly button to the happy trail, and then she quickly turned around.

"I.. I uhh. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to."

"You were right." His voice sent a heated shiver down her spine.

"Right?"

"Your strategy on this war. They are just sending in troops, whittling down our numbers." The water behind her moved and she dared a glance behind back straightened as the muscled chest of the king was hardly a few inches behind her.

"Ah.. Night Blooming Cereus, a good choice if you were interested in catching another's attention." A well toned arm reached past her and grabbed the bottle of soap.

"What do you want?"

"Isn't it obvious? To take a peaceful bath, just like you."

"You could have come any other time."

"... Are you frightened of me?"

"No."

"So sure of that answer." His hand slid through her locks.

"W-what are you-?"

"Bathing." Something cold hit the top of her head, but didn't last long as his hands kneaded it through her hair. His fingernails scraped across her scalp, tugging her closer through the water. She leaned her head back, into his touch.

"You've done this before."

"I've had over twenty older sisters. The past four months have been kind to you."

"I guess that makes you an expert on women then." She ignored his other statement.

"Not at all." He tugged her hair causing her to hiss in pain. "Not all women are the same, though my sisters and tribe mates often share the same interests. Would you consider me an expert on yourself?"

"Not a chance."

"Good." Carefully he dipped her backwards, washing the soap from her hair. "How long were you an apprentice to your former mentor.?"

"Oh, about two days."

"Two da-... You are still my apprentice. I meant the mentor before you came here."

"Three years. We usually moved about depending on the needs of the court and the king. We worked more on alchemy and ugnn…" She couldn't hold back the soft moan as the king massaged soap into her tense shoulder.

"Heh.. go on." His chuckle rippled through her body, and she closed her eyes.

"It was just alchemy, pointless potions, magic for show. I learned more about how the king moved his troops and his crap tactics in war than actual ma- stop!" Aria pulled away from him.

Ganondorf raised both his hands in mock surrender. "As you wish. So, how would you handle this situation I'm in?" The king grabbed a handful of shampoo and began rubbing it in his hair as if his hands hadn't just skimmed across her sides, up her stomach, across her ribs, just below her breast.

"I… would let them wander the desert. Set up traps, hide any sign of life. They don't know where they're going, so the desert will just take them."

"And if they get close?" Aria froze as he stepped closer, his body flush against hers. Heat pooled in her abdomen and for a moment she forgot how to breathe.

"Fight them off, full force. They won't expect it, and if there aren't any survivors to tell the location then they'll just keep getting lost in desert. You just have to send a group out to make sure there aren't any stragglers."

"Hmm. I will… take this into consideration." He turned away from her to dunk his head in the water. During that time she rinsed off the soap and pulled herself out of the pool.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to get dressed and get some food." She caught his gaze. "Stop staring! That.. it's not.. it's not appropriate!"

"Turnabout is fair play, little firefly." He still turned his back to her, giving her the privacy she demanded.

"Ugh!" She sent a small wave of water his way as she hurriedly dried off, got dressed, and rushed out of the room. His laughter followed her down the hallway.

"Pig." She growled under her breath, heading for dinner.

The next day she was awoken by a knock on the door. Odd. Usually Aveil or Faruin just barged in. Aria glanced outside her window. The sun was just hinting at lighting the horizon, the sand bathed a pastel red.

Aria reluctantly slid out of the covers and began dressing for the day.

"Come in." She called right after she'd tossed a shirt on and was wiggling into the skin-tight black stretchy pants.

"Oh don't get dressed on my account." Aria's head jerked up and she stared at her visitor in shock.

"We'll be practicing with water today."

"Hold on. I thought you weren't mentoring me anymore after the last time."

"I..have been busy with the war. I never said I released you from being my apprentice."

"You make it sound like I'm under a contract or an obligation. Is that what you think this is? That I'm an apprentice for servitude or -"

"No. What a foolish thought. I am obligated to train you in replacement of my mothers. If you don't want it, tell me and it will cease." His expression gave away nothing.

"Do you even want to train me? "

He smirked.

"A little. Your… attempts are amusing."

"Amusing? If you don't want to train me, then don't."

"... Meet me in the bathing room after breakfast. Be prepared to get wet." He turned on his heel, leaving behind a very confused Aria.

When she entered the bathing room no one was around. Aria slipped off her outer clothes, leaving herself in nothing but a band and undergarments.

"A bit overdressed aren't we?" She hadn't even heard the door open or close.

"I'd like to keep a bit of my dignity. Thank you."

"As you wish. I'm sure you've brought extra with you."

Shit. She hadn't.

The king waded into the water after removing his pants. Slowly Aria slid into the water, saddened that it was lukewarm at best.

"Close your eyes."

"Oh? Uncomfortable with m-"

"I said, close your eyes. If I were uncomfortable with you seeing my undressed self I wouldn't have joined you yesterday."

Aria blushed, and all too willingly did as he said.

"I want you to focus on what you feel around you. Do you feel my position in the water? Turn towards me. Keep your eyes closed."

She did as she was told, trying to decipher the direction that the water was coming from as it lapped and rippled around her ribs. Slowly, she turned towards her left. It was actually rather difficult as he hardly moved and the water moved with her making the process all the more confusing.

"Close enough. Open your eyes." He stood a little more to the right than she had felt. "Now, I want you to attack me. Try to hit me using the element. I'll have my eyes closed, and then you'll do the same." He closed his eyes.

Aria took a spare moment to look him over, her mouth going dry. She would later blame it on trying to decipher his weak spots before she attacked, as she took in the view of all of him. The water came at just a hint below his waist, leaving little to the imagination as the ripples distorted the view. What she could see sent a warmth straight to her loins. He wasn't quite as furry as she expected him to be, though his hair, when let loose like it was now, was rather long. He also still had that ridiculously ornate 'crown' on.

What really caught her attention was the sheer amount of scars littered around his skin. King, though he was, he clearly had been in his fair share of scuffles. It was more than just the scars one gets from training, several larger scars were on places that you could only get if someone aimed to kill you. Aria clenched her fist, trying to ignore the intruding urge to run her hand over those paled scars.

"You're taking your sweet time. Do I need to remind you how to manipulate water?"

"N-no!" She blushed, though he couldn't see. Carefully she formed a ball of water in her hand and threw it at him. Water came rushing over his arm, like an armguard, and the ball she'd thrown sprinkled the surface of the pool as it shattered into little raindrops.

"Again."

She sent a volley of balls at him this time, and he rose his arm up blocking every single one.

"Try harder."

Aria threw more orbs of water, each one evaded, blocked, or caught. As a last resort she twirled in the water, sending a small wave of ripples in his direction, before cutting her hand through the water at him. The water rose in a line and darted at him.

He still evaded it, but this time he opened his eyes.

"Better, much better. I expected no less from you. Now that you've warmed up a bit. You will do as I did. Close your eyes and evade my attacks. Water is a valuable resource. You should know how to fight and defend yourself with every weapon at your disposal."

Nodding, Aria closed her eyes. With her eyes closed, her main sense switched to sound and feeling. The first ball of water came by complete surprise, slamming into her chest.

"Concentrate. Or you shall end up a very soaked apprentice."

A very soaked apprentice indeed. The first time she successfully blocked a ball of water, it was a fluke and the next one had hit her full on in the face, leaving her sputtering and looking for revenge. Forgetting herself, she sent a wave of water back at her mentor, dousing him in water. Then it was an all out war. Eyes opened now, they sent ball and wave after each other, the water being both shield and weapon.

One ball in particular kept getting caught and thrown back and forth between the two until it finally hit Aria on the bosom.

"Cheap shot!" She called at him.

"Cheap? I'll show you cheap!" He sent a wave and several volleys of balls her way. Quick thinking she brought up a circular shield of water surrounding her. It distorted her view as the wave and balls crashed over it, but still held up. She laughed, hands on her hips.

A pair of hands came up around her waist. Aria gasped, just before she was dunked under the water. The arms still holding her pulled her up and against a firm chest.

"Now that's what I call cheating!" She laughed, placing one hand on the Gerudo King's chest as he laughed with her, equally soaked to the bone. Their laughter slowly dwindled as they grinned at one another. The euphoria of their play was fading, to be replaced by something dangerous and as searing as the desert outside. A calloused hand slowly came up, thumb brushing across her cheek and she leaned into the gentle touch. For a senseless moment Aria closed her eyes as Ganondorf's face bent towards her own. His warm breath caressed her face before his lips caught her own in a gentle kiss, testing the waters.

Reality hit her like the same electricity that came from the his lips on hers, and slowly she pushed them apart, using her hand on his chest on leverage. He allowed it. a hand resting on her bare hip.

"I have to go." Aria pulled away from him, not allowing herself the time to elaborate before she was dressed, dry clothes over sopping wet underclothes, and she closed the door behind her. Right as she reached the corner of the hallway she heard the recognizable sound of fist hitting stone.

In the heat of the summer day her clothes dried very quickly. Aveil and Faruin were waiting for her at the training ring already in nothing but their pants.

"W.. where's your shirts?"

"It's too hot, why are you wearing all that clothing, aren't you just dying?"

"Well, yeah, but but… "

"But what? It's hot. There's no need for anything but pants. Goddess, not even underwear at this point."

"But.. everyone might stare."

"At what, your tits? We've all got them. You'll feel better for it."

"I.. I need to get used to the idea first."

"Suit yourself. You ready?"

"Yeah."

It took only half of the lesson for Aria to join the shirtless tradition. The shirt she was wearing got thrown to the side of the ring where the rest of their gear lay. Lessons were shorter as the sun bore down on them. Afterwards, Aria checked on the horses before heading to lunch.

It wasn't any cooler inside. The Gerudo spread themselves farther from each other on the tables, to not crowd each other with body heat.

Aria grabbed a few cushions from the table and hid herself in a corner to eat. Nabooru, Faruin, and Aveil followed suit with their own cushions.

"Why didn't we think of this before. Oh hey, you do magic right?"

"Yeah….?"

"So.. you could freeze the room?"

"No. I can't freeze the room. I don't have the energy for it. The more training you do, the more energy you use. It takes time to recharge."

"Damn." Nabooru huffed, laying back on her cushion.

"I can however…" Aria focused on the cushions they laid upon and a small sheen of ice covered them. It was a temporary solution as the ice was quick to melt. She did the same for their small bowl of cactus fruit. The spicy noodles and stringy meat they had for lunch was better warm than cold, but the fruit could handle a hint of icing.

"Oh cold cold, but so good."

"It's official. We're keeping you."

"Yep, never leaving this spot so long as you keep doing what you're doing."

Aria sighed, leaning back in her pillowy corner. Her eyes wandered over the room as she took her time eating. The feeling of someone watching her brought her from the conversation in their corner, her eyes scanning the faces of Gerudo until they landed on the one face at the near-empty king's table.

He was clearly watching her, his eyes never leaving her face even as she returned to the conversation at hand and popped a cold fruit in her mouth. She watched him from her peripherals for a good while before turning a bit, giving him her attention. He curled one finger inwards, slowly.

Aria shook her head and gave him the same "come here" motion. She wasn't going to get up and walk through a mass of gerudo just so he could tell her they had lessons tomorrow or something.

"Did you just…?" Faruin's voice pulled Aria away from watching the king's expression.

"Hmm?"

"Did you seriously just ignore the king's summon and turn it back on him?"

"What's up, I wasn't paying attention?" Nabooru and Aveil put their conversation about archery on hold.

"The king, he quirked his finger at Aria and she just.. returned the motion. You don't just say no to the king."

"You make it sound like it's the end of the world."

"It could be the end of yours if he-" Faruin clamped her mouth shut as a shadow loomed over them. Aria shifted so she could look up at the figure of the king. A hush had fallen over the dining hall.

"Care to join us?" Aria motioned to the cushions around them. Nabooru glanced between the two with curious eyes.

"I would have prefered the privacy at my table."

Taking the hint, the gerudo deserted their cushions and moved to the main tables, Aveil mouthing 'good luck'. The gerudo king stole the spot closest to her in the shadow, the heat of his body radiating from him.

"Is there something you want?"

"Can't a mentor spend time with his apprentice?" Ganondorf took a thawed fruit from the plate and popped it into his mouth.

"What was the point of shooing away the others if all you wanted to do was spent time with me?"

"I didn't 'shoo' them. They chose to leave."

"Oh, don't play dense. You know exactly what you did."

"Is this how you treat your king, who so kindly graced you with his regal presence?"

"No, this is how I treat my mentor when he's being ridiculous. What is the point of joining company if you get rid of more than half of it?"

"Maybe I wanted to speak to you alone."

"You could have always asked me after dinner or pulled me aside."

"I tried to pull you aside."

"Alright, so what do you want?"

"A thriving place for my people, peace, and fair winds." A slight smirk graced his lips.

"Fair enough. So make it happen."

"Make it happen she says. So demanding, student of mine. How do you suggest I make it happen? We're in the middle of a harsh desert, if you hadn't noticed. Need I find a healer for your poor eyes?"

"Mock me all you want, but make it happen. You have more neighbors than the kingdom trying to invade. Build a trade. You must have something to trade. Skills, spices-"

"Sand. We're rich in sand."

"You are rich in magic."

"Hylians look down on magic. It's taboo to them. A waste of skill."

"Where do Hylians come in this?"

"They're our neighboring kingdom."

"Ganondorf-"

The chatter surrounding them hushed again. Gerudos looked over their shoulders in their direction. The king clenched his fist, before sitting more upright from his rather relaxed position.

"Address me properly, Apprentice."

"I… of course, my liege." She bowed her head ever so slightly. A few more moments of quiet before the soft chatter resumed.

"You were saying?"

Aria shifted uncomfortably. It was as if getting close to him, being personal was off-limits, like he wasn't allowed friends. It...bothered her.

"I was saying, you have immense power. You're powerful enough to create a dozen oasi if you chose to. Why not do so? Why not start cultivating the desert."

"Apprentice, you are mistaken."

"What-"

"You know the harshness of the desert. You know how the winds tear apart anything we've done the day before. It is an endless cycle of death. What do you expect to grow? My abilities are not all encompassing, despite how much power I have. Do you feel it?"

Aria froze as the claustrophobic feeling that she recognized as his power began pressing down on her again. She gasped for air, and stared at his energy, his spark as it wove around her. It slowed down considerably, giving her the chance to really look at it. It wasn't knotwork like her own, but words. Tightly written script chained together. She could see a single word for plant, several for fire, a few water, and more encompassing shadows and darkness. Even power was in there, just brute power, but not… life. He was lacking two key elements, elements that could save them all. He pulled away from her as realization dawned on her face, his own darkening in what she could only guess was anger.

"Lessons will be in the training room tomorrow." He stood and left, abruptly while she was still reeling from shock.

Nabooru, Aveil, and Faruin were slow to return.

"Is everything alright?" Aveil touched her shoulder and Aria leaned against her friend, taking what comfort she could. She buried her face in the gerudo's neck, tears wetting Aveil's skin. Tears meant for a king who could not see beyond the darkness etched in his very being.