Whenever I click on a "dark" fic that features Ganondorf in some capacity, shipping or otherwise, I am 99% sure the "dark" aspect of it will come mostly from Ganondorf which, fine. He is the antagonist. He is single-mindedly focused on gathering power. He is selfish. So on and so forth.
However! For your consideration:
While Link and Zelda have been shown at some moments to come to an understanding with people they may have once perceived as bad, this sort of understanding has never been extended to Ganondorf. In fact, in most appearances, Ganondorf is clocked as evil on sight. If possible, neither of them would hesitate to kill him on sight. This is surprisingly in contrast with Ganondorf, mostly because of video game logic because if he killed you on sight there would be no game. However, it is always interesting to look at this feature as Ganondorf enjoying a foe he can go toe to toe with, if only to best them and prove himself worthy of the power and kingship he claims is his. Ganondorf is ready to play the long game, playing the manipulative servile vassal until he can get what he wants. On the other hand, if given the opportunity, Link and Zelda will immediately get the jump on him. BotW and TotK kind of play into this idea with the whole "being able to rush Calamity Ganon/Ganondorf as soon as you exit the tutorial" bit. You don't need to know anything about him except that he is evil and must be eliminated on sight. All's this to say, there is no love or attempt at understanding between these three canonically. It is killed or be killed.
So, I do find it interesting when the onus of being understanding or being taken advantage of is always on Link and/or Zelda. If Ganondorf, for example, does make an attempt at understanding or an alliance, he is at a disadvantage politically. The Gerudo do not have divine favor, nor access to magical artifacts that can bend reality or multiply one's power. He is putting himself in danger by trusting Hyrule and its heralds. Being physically strong and imposing in this case would be an active disadvantage for him, where he could easily be blamed for being a barbaric savage for any perceived slight. Ganondorf's safety is entirely based on Hyrule keeping its word, because as soon as they decide to withdraw it, it is quite over for him. And, Hyrule's retribution has been proven to be devastating. Twilight Princess is a stark example of this.
And this can be done without making Ganondorf good in any capacity! Ganondorf often has to be underhanded because an open show of force before he gets his hands on great power would get him squashed like a bug. He has to play nice and servile until he can take advantage. So, whose to say there is no scenario in which Hyrule would not take advantage of his perceived surrender to push him more and more into a corner, strip him of his power and his authority until he breaks.
romaincrisis
yousharknotpass
baratheonpilled
theartofmadeline
origamiaround
