As the door shut behind Zelda, the Gerudo king snorted, coughed, and woke. Bleary golden eyed looked towards her. A loud, open-mouthed yawn escaped him before he spoke. "Sheik, that you?"
She took a seat next to him on the couch. "It's me."
"Where did you go?"
"I wanted to sell some things," she said, "so I went to Cain's.'
"I wish you'd brought me with you."
"You were sleeping."
He rolled his eyes. "You could have been hurt."
Zelda just smiled. "But I wasn't," she said.
Ganondorf hesitated, then nodded slowly. "But you weren't," he agreed.
The stairs creaked under Agitha's feet as she descended. She had a pretty leather and lace bag on her back and a wicker basked in her left hand. Her right hand was occupied by a parasol. Agitha was ready to go.
Her pretty pink lips curved upwards in a smile. "Good morning to both of you!"
"Good morning, Agitha," Zelda replied.
Ganondorf grumbled his reply: "Morning."
Agitha skipped cheerily to a recliner and took a seat "Pray tell, where do we go from here?"
"South," Ganondorf said. "to Ordon. Then through the rest of Hylia."
Her lips parted again in surprise. "Oh my! What a journey!" she said, clapping her hands with excitement. "I'm quite eager to join you on your adventure."
"But if we're going to get anywhere today, we need to get going," Ganondorf said.
"It will take two or three days to actually reach Ordon," Zelda said, "And I'd rather not camp if I can avoid it."
"But breakfast-" Agitha protested.
"We can eat on the road." Ganondorf grabbed Zelda's bag and threw it over his shoulder. "Let's go."
His tone left no room for arguing. The girls followed Ganondorf out of the city without further objection. Their carriage waited where they'd left it, the stallion grazing on the lush, green grass. Zelda was glad. At least the tyrant hadn't killed everything.
Ganondorf helped Agitha and Zelda into the back of the carriage before readying the horses. He climbed into the driver's seat and cracked the reigns. The horses whinnied and began to run south.
It had taken a little over half a day just to get this far, and it would be a while more still just to reach the edges of Ordon. But Zelda was grateful for Ganondorf and his carriage. It would've taken much longer by foot.
Zelda's stomach let out a loud growl and she felt her cheeks flush. "Oh, that's right. Breakfast."
Agitha removed the lacy handkerchief that covered her wicker basket. Instantly the smell of baked goods wafted through the carriage. "Not to worry, Sheik," she said, "I made sure to make a little something when I woke up this morning."
Agitha was taking care of them again. Zelda found herself as grateful for their first ally as she was for the Gerudo and his stallions. They had food to eat and lidded mugs of tea to carry them through the day. Zelda's stomach became full and warm. She was ready for the journey ahead.
Zelda listened quietly to Ganondorf sing old Gerudo lullabies as Agitha explained why each and every insect was beautiful and wonderful in its own right. The voices were pleasant and kind, but Zelda's eyelids were growing heavy.
She hadn't slept enough. Anxiety had served as a stimulant, and now the steady rumble of the carriage and cheery voices were serving as a lullaby in their own right for the weary princess. It wasn't long at all before she fell asleep again.
The rumble and mumbles faded into nothingness, replaced by dreams of a lush forest and a temple deep inside it. Shelter. Perhaps even a home.
Home.
Where was home anymore? Did Zelda even have one?
"What a pretty sunset," the soft voice roused Zelda from her slumber.
Zelda blinked a few times before rubbing the grit from her eyes. She glanced out of the back of the carriage. The green grass and dirt trails came and went just as Hyrule Castle Town, the latter only being a faint silhouette on the horizon now. The once blue sky was painted orange, gold, and pink. Twilight.
"Well, where do we stop?" Ganondorf asked, glancing over his shoulder.
"I know a good place," Zelda chimed in. "Lon Village."
She pointed to a silhouette in the direction they were going. What convenient timing. They'd reach the ranch soon, before the sun even set.
"I have friends there."
"Will it be safe?" Ganondorf asked.
"It should be."
"Then I'll trust you."
The carriage veered from its former path and sped towards Lon Village.