Marin

Marin is a major character in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. She is a young woman who lives on Koholint Island with her father Tarin in Mabe Village. She also appears as a playable character in the Hyrule Warriors games. Marin has red hair, wears a light blue dress, a pair of sandals, a red diamond-shaped necklace, and has a pink flower in her hair. A large, pink ribbon is also wrapped around her dress.

Marin is a friend to many people, animals, and even some monsters. Marin loves to sing, especially the Ballad of the Wind Fish, and frequently sings for the animals in Animal Village. A few of the animals call her "Little Marin". Throughout the game, Marin's desire is to leave Koholint Island some day. Although some artwork of Marin shows her holding a harp, this attribute is not shown in-game except in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

Marin is noted for her resemblance to Princess Zelda. In the linked game for The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages, Zelda's sprite heavily resembles Marin's but has slightly longer hair and a crown on her head. Marin also has a resemblance to the harpist Nayru, whose singing animation is an edited version of Marin's.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
In the opening for The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, sometime after Link was ship wrecked on Toronbo Shores. Marin discovers Link and is unsuccessful at trying to wake him up, so she takes him to her house, hoping that he will recover there.

The gameplay starts with Link tossing an turning on a bed in Marin's house, which is located in Mabe Village. When Link wakes up, Marin is relieved because she thought he would never wake up. At first, Link mistakes Marin for being Zelda, so she introduces herself to him, explaining that he is on Koholint Island and that several monsters have appeared on the island since he washed ashore. After retrieving his sword from Toronbo Shores, Marin stands next to the weathervane in Mabe Village. If Link talks to Marin, she tells him that Tarin went to the Mysterious Forest to look for toadstools. She starts to sing the Ballad of the Wind Fish. If Link has the Ocarina, she can teach him how to play the Ballad of the Wind Fish on it, which is required to enter the Wind Fish's Egg near the end of the game. In Animal Village, there is a sleeping walrus blocking the path to Yarna Desert. Link learns that the walrus can only be awoken by Marin's singing. He goes back to Mabe Village to look for Marin. Link can optionally read a note in Marin's house which says, "At the beach... Marin". Link can find her at Toronbo Shores. Once there, the two share a moment, sitting on a log and looking at the sea. Marin tells Link that Tarin believes that there is nothing beyond the sea, but that she believes otherwise. She confesses that she thought Link came to Koholint Island to give a message. Marin tells that her wish is to become a seagull and sing to people in far away places. She wonders if her wish will be granted if she visits the Wind Fish. Link tells her about the walrus of Animal Village, and she agrees to visit Animal Village with him to wake up the walrus.

After meeting at Toronbo Shores, Marin follows behind Link around the overworld, and they must both go to the Animal Village. There are several optional events that Link and Marin can do together:

At Animal Village, Marin sings to the walrus and wakes it up. She then goes to sing to the other animals of Animal Village. She appears to stay there until after Link completes the Eagle's Tower, as he finds her on the other side of a broken bridge at Tal Tal Mountain Range. She tells Link that some monsters put her on the bridge. Link can rescue Marin by using the Hookshot. After this, she tries to admit something to Link but is quickly interrupted by Tarin. The owl comes to Link and says that Marin sang the Ballad of the Wind Fish to the Wind Fish's Egg, and the owl wonders if she is trying to awaken the Wind Fish. After Marin leaves Link at Tal Tal Mountain Range, he can go back to find her at Mabe Village, standing near the weathervane. If Link talks to Marin, she admits that she made a wish to the Wind Fish, but keeps the wish a secret from him. She knows that Link will some day leave Koholint Island, and she asks him to remember her (and the Ballad of the Wind Fish) forever otherwise she will never forgive him.
 * If both of them go to the Trendy Game, Marin controls the crane to pick up the Trendy Gamester by his head and drop him on the prize conveyor belt. At first, the Trendy Gamester tells Marin that she is a pro at operating the crane but then immediately demands her to leave.
 * If Link and Marin fall down a well to the west of Mabe Village, she lands on Link if he does not quickly move out of the way. Marin apologizes to Link and asks if he is okay.
 * If Link breaks pots or hurts any chickens, he gets reprimanded by Marin. If Link continues hurting chickens, Marin changes her mind and encourages him to do it more.
 * If Link digs some patches of ground with the shovel, she excitedly tells him to keep digging.
 * If Link plays the Ocarina, Marin comments that it does not sound very good but then quickly pretends that she said nothing.
 * Marin refuses to enter dungeons with Link and waits outside if he enters alone. When Link leaves the dungeon, Marin asks Link if he is okay. If Link is low on health, Marin scolds him for being reckless.

In the ending, when Link awakens the Wind Fish, Marin is singing the Ballad of the Wind Fish as all of Koholint Island disappears. If Link did not lose any lives during the game, the ending shows Marin with wings flying across a blank screen reading the "The End" as a seagull is heard. If playing on Game Boy Color or newer in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX, or the Nintendo Switch remake, the perfect ending briefly shows a faint image of Marin's face in the sky, which then slowly vanishes, revealing a seagull. This strongly suggests that Marin's wish of becoming a seagull and leaving Koholint Island became true.

In The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX, Marin appears in a few photographs of The Travels of Link, and they are individually numbered 2–4:


 * If Link and Marin go to the southwest corner of Toronbo Shores, the photographer takes a picture of them overlooking the sea from a cliff.
 * If Link and Marin fall down a well located west of Mabe Village, the photographer takes a picture, which shows Marin landing onto Link.
 * If Link stands with Marin at the Weathercock in Mabe Village, Tarin appears and asks if they are taking photos. The photographer appears and takes a picture of the three standing in front of the Weathercock.

Super Smash Bros. Melee
In Super Smash Bros. Melee, there is an unlockable trophy of Marin.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
In Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Marin appears as a spirit. She allows fighters to be unaffected by inverted controls.

Hyrule Warriors / Hyrule Warriors Legends
In Hyrule Warriors and Hyrule Warriors Legends, Marin was added as a playable character as part of the Link's Awakening Pack DLC. She uses Bells as her weapon. In the latter, her dress and flower, named the Koholint dress and Koholin hibiscus, are included as an unlockable Fairy Clothing for companion fairies in My Fairy mode. These features were incorporated into Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition's base game.

Trivia

 * According to Zelda Box, Eiji Aonuma stated that Aryll was originally going to be named 「マリル」 (Mariru), based on the name of Marin and, by extension, Malon. The red flower in Marin's hair is similar to the floral pattern on Aryll's default dress, and both characters have a love for seagulls.
 * According to Hyrule Historia, Marin and Tarin may have been created from the memories of Malon and Talon from Hyrule or Holodrum in-universe.