When sailing across the vast Great Sea, there was always one particular type of island that I was elated to see when it peaked over the horizon in The Wind Waker. A small, heart-shaped island with a large conch emerging from the ground. Upon the discovery of each new one, I knew something grand awaited me below the surface.
Once Link enters the mighty conch, he is wistfully lowered down into an illuminated grotto. Angelic choirs greet him as a he travels across the sandy floor to the sparkling lights ahead. A throne of seashells sit in front of a shallow pool where a single, tiny fairy awaits his arrival. The room itself is mystical as is, but the real draw to this location is the fairy’s true identity.
In a flash, the small
Even after she leaves, the fountain is still of use to our hero as smaller fairies will aid him if he is weary. If he is lucky, he may even catch one in a bottle (much to the dismay of the fairies). However, they will do their part as their duty to ensure that the chosen hero is successful; even if he runs around trying to get as many fairies to heal him at once as he possibly can.
The Great Fairy Isles are small and short experiences, but it is a place I know I can always return to for a small moment of magic. By now I know each fairy’s location by heart, but still, the same excitement that I once had when I first discovered these secret caverns fills me every time.
