Ganondorf
The Dark King Ganondorf is the lord of the exiled Gerudos, the warrior thieves who live in the desert of Hyrule. He is the only man with this tribe of women; one boy child is born the Gerudos every hundred years. He is king by default - there is simply no other man available to rule. However, it is likely that the king is merely a figurehead, put on the throne because he is unique. The Gerudo are fiercely independent and capable of defending themselves; a man is not needed to protect them. In addition, their life of seclusion doesn’t necessitate a monarchy. They train in the ways of wa,r but they go to Hyrule only to bed the guards. This is the only time that they fraternize with the other people of Hyrule. They have adapted well to their solitary life and don’t welcome intruders. Separated from the rest of Hyrule, they have become self-sufficient.

Unlike the rest of his people, Ganondorf is not resigned to his fate. He is not content to waste away in the desert and thus he leaves Gerudo territory to explore and study magic. An ambitious man, Ganondorf can’t sit placidly while his subjects ignore him. He deserts his people to search for glory and finds what he craves within the gates of Hyrule.

Ganondorf seems to want more than the Triforce, perhaps desiring Hyrule itself in addition to the sacred item. He could have led an army into Hyrule market or destroyed the castle with his magic, but instead he proceeds slowly and places himself in the King of Hyrule’s court. Patiently he waits until the night when Link will open the doors to the Sacred Realm to make his attack. As a storm brews over Hyrule, Ganondorf makes his coup d’etat and conquers the land as he claims his piece of the Triforce. He conquers the throne quietly; there is only one casualty of war.

So who is Ganondorf? At the core, he is highly ambitious and intelligent. These two qualities combined to make him highly confident and blind him to his weaknesses. Ganondor, thus, is a megalomaniac. However, it is possible to understand Ganondorf as a more positive light. Masa of the Online Zelda Encyclopedia says this of the Dark King: “Ganondorf's desire for power was fuled [sic] by his envy of the Hylian's prosperity while the gerudos suffered in the desert. …[B]ecause of his unbalanced heart, he was stuck with only the Triforce of Power.” In this interpretation Ganondorf seeks the power to help others but his good intentions are lost as he corrupts and is corrupted by the Triforce.

Malon
Malon is a farm girl who works on her family ranch, the Lon Lon Ranch. Although it’s never stated, she probably is the one who trains the horses. Her father Talon is a notorious lazybones and the other farmhand, Ingo, doesn’t appear to have the patience to do such a task. Additionally she is the one who critiques Link’s riding abilities and the feelings of his horse, Epona. Therefore, I believe that she is the one who does most of the work on the ranch. When we meet Malon as an adult, she confesses to Link that she stays because she fears for the horses. Again, this seems to suggest that she is the one who cares for them. Even as a child, Malon is responsible; when Link wakes a napping Talon at Hyrule Castle, Talon worries that Malon will be angry with him.

Besides being a dedicated worked, Malon is cheerful and spunky. She teases Link about his clothes and gives him a silly nickname when they’re children, but neither of these acts are out of spite. Rather, the two become friends and to show her appreciation, Malon teaches a song to Link that her mother once sang to her. She is even more generous as an adult – it is with her blessing that Link gets the horse Epona and even wins one of the ranch’s famous cows.

From the gossip stones we learn more about Malon. One tidbit that is shared with Link is that Malon dreams of a knight coming to take her away from her misery. And indeed, Malon does not have a perfect life. Her mother is already dead when Link meets her as a child, and when Link returns as an adult, Talon too is gone from her life. Abandoned by her parents and, for seven years by Link too, Malon is often alone, left to suffer in silence. Far from being a helpless maiden, however, Malon seems to be the type of character who would attempt to make the best of her situation. She would accept Ganondorf’s hand not only as a means of escape from a hopeless existence, but also because it gives her an opportunity to rise to power. Malon is not so much optimistic as much as she is naïve. She wishes for a knight to save her – a dream that is grounded in childish desires rather than hopefulness. It would not be too hard for her to blind herself to Ganondorf’s darkness. At Ganondorf’s side, Malon could place her father back on the ranch, could regain the trust of Hyrule’s citizens, and even save him from ruin. She won't of course. No happy endings here!

The Lon Lon Ranch was loyal to the Royal Family – Malon and Talon delivered milk specifically for the castle. Malon distinctly destroys this bond when she accepts Ganondorf’s offer. Becoming his queen (or concubine), Malon is effectively rejecting the normal, accepted, and "good" life to explore uncharted territories, as it were. She sheds her old identity to embrace a deviant existence.

OMG tru luv!
So how does one pair together two people who are clearly so different? Especially when, as far as we know, the two never meet? A healthy dose of imagination helps.

The “Beauty and the Beast” aspect of GxM can be particularly appealing, especially when his ultimate fall is taken into consideration. Ganondorf is not simple a cut-out villain, he’s a tragic character who is incapable of overcoming his flaws. Malon is polar opposite; her innate goodness and innocence is what saves her from the sadness in her life. Their doomed relationship is also, somewhat strangely, part of the appeal. Despite Malon’s intentions, Ganondorf must fall at the

They oppose each others on almost all levels. Physically Ganondorf is much older than Malon, probably in his thirties, and even when Malon is aged a bit to make their relationship less pedophilic, she tends to remain in the late teens. He is from the cursed race of thieves, she from a renowned and respected ranch. She's a friend to the boy who eventually kills Ganondorf.

Another thing that particularly interests me is the interaction of these two characters, I've stated above that Malon could concievably attempt to redeem Ganondorf, but it is just as possible that she becomes tainted by him. Or that she stands passively by, watching him as he descends into madness. Similarly, Ganondorf could actively train Malon in the dark arts, but he could also regret destroying her purity. Angst!

So, in conclusion, one must remember that it's a free country and if I like to pair the bad guy with a minor character, that's my prerogative. There's nothing illegal about being crazy!