When the Gerudo tribe finally reached Kakariko village, the milk bottles had run dry and the stomachs were rumbling. While they could each only carry four in their inventories, they had managed to make them last. Craving the comforts of home - sweet dates and desert spices - they came upon a small house with a Gerudo refugee and her two young children working. Upon seeing Ganondorf, she bowed politely and shook his hand in earnest with both of hers.
"I had heard that the new King was crowned. News travels fast among travelers you know. I am honored that you would come visit me here. But I am also puzzled; what business does the Gerudo King and his guards have in Kakariko village?" She mused for a second, then grew alarmed. "Has the King himself decided to leave the valley?! How miserable the state of affairs must be!"
These words stung Ganondorf, as he gazed at her cracked and lined face. She had clearly gone through troubles to have a face so old-looking for a Gerudo, who were known for the care they took with presentation. Gerudo were renowned for their tough skin, physically and emotionally. Hers had clearly absorbed many of life's challenges, again both physically and emotionally. He wished he could promise her a fulfilling life back in the Valley, but knew that at this time it would only be an empty promise. They had work to do, and this woman was his visual reminder of that.
"I appreciate your care. I am here on a set of missions to re-establish relations with the other races of Hyrule we have been so loath to call friends for too long. I know it must be hard for you, to have left home so long ago. When did you leave?" he asked.
"Around 10 years ago. One of the carpenter men from Kakariko came to do work on the bridge, as you know from the small earthquake and landslide that rerouted the river and sent the first wave of recent refugees out into the world a bit before that. I was lucky to be picked up by that not-so-young man over there building the watchtower." Her slender but stiff finger pointed across the town square to a group of seemingly familial men.
"Are they all brothers? I can't tell them apart!" remarked the young guard.
"Haha, no they are not even if they act like it. You get to understand the differences, both physical and cultural, once you are around the Kakariko Hylians long enough. The Hylians in Castle Town are quite distinct from the ones living in the village, mostly culturally. The people here are harder when they need to be, but also kinder when they can be. They are more like us, living without the privilege of proximity to the Royal Family's empire." She paused and turned directly to Ganondorf, staring into his eyes with an unbroken gaze. "I must admit this life is truly better than it was in the Valley for me and my firstborn child when we left. I regret saying it in front of you, my King, but if you have traveled around as you say, you must have seen it with your own eyes. Everyone has a house here, and when a new family moves in, they need only go into a small sum of debt to establish their own house. There is soil for growing the grains and spices to eat well, irrigation and wells for watering the crops and ourselves, trees for timber and fruit. The only thing missing is my sisters and mother," she said, her voice cracking slightly.
"Well, speaking of food, do you have some for us? You know we brought some fine Gerudo jewelry and would be honored to exchange some for a full meal for the five of us." Ganondorf motioned to the four guards to come join him at a table.
"It would be an honor. I just traded for the Gerudo pine, the needles' tea is more delicious than teas from any trees growing in this climate. I think it's the intensity of the desert flavor. Nothing is watered down, not even us Gerudo!" She laughed heartily, showing her unmistakable Gerudo pride. "I also have some dried goat meat to offer. The Kakariko don't seem to like our style of cuisine very much. They prefer the wheat and other grains growing in the fertile soil to the spicy and savory meats and vegetables that can grow in the harsh desert. It sure does make life easy though, eating a bowl of cereal for breakfast with milk. The amount of milk and chicken meat they have around here! It's unending. They throw out what they can't cook within the day! I can't imagine a more blatant sin than wasting food. Alas, we are not in the desert anymore. It really is a change of perspective. Those of us Gerudo living here in the Village have adapted to differing degrees. I am somewhere in the middle, especially with my Kakariko Hylian husband."
As they all sat down to eat, the contractors couldn't help but notice the new women in town. Tall, dark-skinned, with much jewelry, they stood out as very exotic to the balding, blue-eyed Hylians. They began wandering over, one by one, starting with the husband of the Gerudo restaurant owner.
"Well honey, it seems some of your friends have come to see you! And they are as beautiful as you are. And you must be Ganondorf, the King of the Gerudo! What an honor to have you stop by our humble house. I built this myself, you know. Well, she did help me. Gerudo women are so strong and capable, much better than these Hylian princesses. I couldn't imagine having a better wife. But of course I take care of her well, you don't need to worry about that."
By then, three other Hylian contractors had arrived. "No kidding. Look, four of them, three of us. Would you consider staying here? We'd let you all pick which one of us you wanted to marry!" At that, two burst out laughing. The third looked down, clearly embarrassed by the antics of the first two. The first two did not catch on, and the first one said, "And with your numbers, one of us gets two of you! Who will be the lucky one?!"
Ganondorf greeted the husband kindly. "Thank you for inviting us into your home, if without knowing. The food she cooks is delicious, and we have not had Gerudo pine tea in many months. It is quite a treat and nutritious for us. Can you tell me more about your work? I'm not sure if she has told you, but we are always looking for skilled contractors to help reinforce our bridge across the valley. It has broken so many times in history, and it seems the contractors from Kakariko village are always the ones to repair it. Might you consider coming to visit the Valley one day to work with us?"
The husband stared thoughtfully at the King. "I would consider it, although with two young kids I might suggest some of the others over there. Two are pig-headed, as you have seen. But they work well. Just do what you can to keep them from harassing your women."
Ganondorf laughed. "They are not 'my women' in any way. Unlike you all here in Kakariko, with your abundance of men and the aggression that follows, we are a matriarchal society. I'm the only man, so I have no one to fight with. And look at my guards! I would surely lose such a fight, as would anyone who is foolish enough to try that here."
Just as he said that, the loud contractor had come up behind one of the guards seated at the table. As he approached, he reached out and squeezed her side. "Hard as a rock! She has more muscle than me and I lift wood beams all day! Where is your womanly softness?" He reached out again to grab her, and she caught his arm and twisted it.
"Don't you dare touch me! Have you no respect for others? Woman or not, I deserve to be treated with dignity. You might be able to walk up and touch your women without their consent here, but we Gerudo have no patience for this. And if you had any respect for YOUR women, you wouldn't do that to them either." She dropped his arm, but it had already begun to swell at the wrist and hung slightly limp.
"Damn you! I won't work for a week like this. Look at my wrist! No wonder everyone stays away from the Gerudo! All you know is violence. You can kiss my ass goodbye! I'll stay here thank you very much, I don't know what the hell is even in the desert that would be worth it anyway!" He walked away mumbling to himself, nursing his sprained wrist. He began to gossip to the other contractors, motioning back to the Gerudo guards with a sneer. Only one or two were paying any attention. She had clearly found the whiny child of the group, which might cost them the anonymity they had hoped to keep through the rest of the visit to the Village.
"It seems like it would be good for us to get going," said Ganondorf. "The food and tea were delicious and nourishing. Might you have any dried meat we could trade for with our jewelry? I am a King in title only, I eat the same as a peasant here in the rest of Hyrule."
She prepared a sack of meat and bread, and threw in some sprigs of Gerudo pine for another pot of tea. "Here is what I can offer. Say, I forgot to ask what you are even doing here. Are the Gerudo making an effort to reach out to others? I can say it's long overdue." She had forgotten their earlier conversation.
Ganondorf nodded and smiled. "I have some ideas that might bring abundance back to the Valley. It involves Kokiri trees and agriculture, Goron ash for fertilizer, and a water agreement with the Zora. The Great Deku Tree tentatively promised some choice plantings for the Valley floor, but needed me to verify with the other races first to make sure it's all in place. Trees come last, she said. First is the water rights and the soil. That's why we're heading up to Death Mountain to visit the Gorons, to secure the fertilizer and ash needed to amend our soils."
As they prepared to leave, the other contractors pointed and stared from a distance. It did not seem that they would find any willing carpenters to visit the Gerudo fortress anytime soon.