Being an older sibling is something. For some, it’s a weird space between being a friend and a parent. You want to hang out with your younger brother or sister until you don’t. It’s not always your responsibility to take care of them, but when they’re in danger, you’ll always have their back. In The Wind Waker, Link just wants to nap, but as younger siblings often do, his sister comes and wakes him up. “Thanks so much, Sis!”
The relationship between Link and Aryll is unique in the Zelda universe and all the more heartwarming and meaningful because of it. Untold Stories Productions’s cover of “Aryll’s Theme” does a great job capturing not just the beautiful complexity of this relationship but also of Aryll herself.
The overall tempo of the track is pretty slow, almost reminiscent of a music box. It calls to mind the simplicity of Link and Aryll’s life on Outset Island at the beginning of The Wind Waker. Unlike the main cast in other Zelda games like Twilight Princess, Skyward Sword, or Breath of the Wild, Link and Aryll don’t seem to have any specific duties to fulfill. They’re simply lost in the blissful innocence of childhood where your to-do list for the day involves hanging out with your big brother, playing with seagulls, and scanning the horizon with your telescope.
The majority of the song keeps the sweet and simple melody on repeat, but just as we all have to grow up at some point, some dramatic weight is added to the song a little more than halfway through, with the use of some light drums that lead into a crash of symbols. They briefly shatter the familiar melody, just as the Helmaroc King bursts the bubble of innocence surrounding Aryll. She is no longer safe, no longer able to view the horizon, and no longer able to rely only on her older brother. The track could take a really dark turn here, but it doesn’t because neither does Aryll.
Despite her world-shattering kidnapping by Gannondorf and the Helmaroc King, Aryll doesn’t let it change her. She cares for the other girls that have also been kidnapped, she has faith that things will get better, and once she’s been freed, she joins up with Tetra’s pirate crew. Like the melody in Untold Stories Productions’s piece, Aryll is mostly the same as she was before this potentially traumatic moment in her life. She’s just grown from it.
