Fairy

Fairies, also spelled faeries, are small spirits who are capable of flying and using varying amounts of magic. They make their debut appearance in the first The Legend of Zelda, and have appeared in nearly every The Legend of Zelda game ever since. In many games, fairies can grant Link lost health back on contact. In some games, these can be kept in bottles and even bought and sold in shops. Aside from the small fairies, large Great Fairies are capable of much greater amounts of magic, but are usually confined to Fairy Fountains. Depending on the game, fairies may be depicted as usually-female winged humanoids or simply colored balls of light with wings, with it being implied in Hyrule Warriors Legends that the latter design is simply light covering the fairy's humanoid body. Humanoid generic fairies in the franchise are commonly depicted with insect-like antennae.

The Legend of Zelda
In The Legend of Zelda, lone fairies can escape from certain defeated enemies and restore Link's health if touched. In the eastern and western parts of Hyrule, there exist two springs where a lone fairy can restore all of Link's health if approached, which is a characteristic later given to Great Fairies. Additionally, in the Nintendo Comics System, these special fairies are stated to be Spryte and Miff, respectively.

Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
In Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, fairies are rare encounters on the land map instead of monsters, and will restore Link's current health if touched. In the original Japanese version, the fairies on the map are depicted as a yellow spirit-like blob, but in western versions this is changed to more clearly be a fairy. Unlike the monster encounters, the fairies do not seek out Link, and as such can be fairly difficult to trigger. Fairies also appear rarely in dungeons, where they do the same thing as in their encounters. Link can also learn the Fairy magic spell from a wise man in the Harbor Town of Mido, which transforms Link into a fairy. As a fairy, Link can fly anywhere, but cannot attack or interact with certain objects such as locked doors.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
In The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, fairies gather in small fountains and can additionally be found in clumps of grass. Additionally, sprinkling Magic Powder on a Bubble will turn it into a fairy. Fairies in this game can be caught with the Bug-Catching Net and put into Magic Bottles. If Link loses all his hearts while carrying a bottled fairy, she will fly out and sprinkle magic onto him with her wand before flying away. This game introduces the Faerie Queens (later known as Great Fairies), whose purpose is mostly identical to the fountain fairies in the first game. Two notable ones are Venus, the Queen of Fairies, and the Fat Faerie, located within the pyramid.

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
In The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, fairies again sometimes emerge from defeated enemies. They always emerge from the Giant Ghini if it is defeated, and also emerge from defeated mini-bosses in most cases. Great Fairies also exist throughout Koholint Island. In The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX, there is a particular fairy queen in the Color Dungeon. In the remake, fairy bottles can be found; these act differently from other games in that they will not automatically revive Link, which is a role given to the secret medicine.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
In The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, fairies are depicted as winged balls of light in varying colors. Many fairies watch over the Kokiri tribe at the behest of the Great Deku Tree, with each Kokiri having a companion fairy. Link does not have a fairy until the start of the game, when the Deku Tree sends Navi to be his companion for his upcoming adventure.

Ordinary red-colored health-restoring fairies, unaffiliated with the Kokiri, also appear throughout Hyrule, and can be captured in a bottle. If Link holds a Deku Stick in front of a butterfly for long enough, it may land on it and become a fairy. Playing a song at a Gossip Stone causes one to emerge. Playing the Song of Storms causes a larger, wingless one to emerge, which cannot be captured but also restores magic power. In The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, this type is further differentiated by being golden.

The Great Fairies now live in extravagant fountains and grant Link powers on his first visit. By playing Zelda's Lullaby at the pedestal of the Triforce, the resident Great Fairy appears with a signature of burst of laughter. In addition to three Great Fairy of Magic locations, there are the Great Fairies of Wisdom, Power, and Courage who each grant specific magical abilities.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
In The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, Skull Kid is accompanied by two fairy twins named Tatl and Tael, with the former being a light yellow and the latter a dark purple. They assist him in robbing Link at the beginning of the game, but Tatl gets separated and ends up reluctantly accompanying Link. As Kokiri do not reappear, the only other "normal" fairies are the two health-restoring types from the previous game. Every owl statue aside from the one in Clock Town has a health-restoring fairy hidden in a nearby object. Five unique Great Fairies also appear in the different regions, though each has been shattered into Stray Fairies by Skull Kid. The game also introduces a strange 35-year old man named Tingle who believes himself to be reincarnated from a fairy, and awaits the arrival of his own fairy companion.

The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons/Ages
In The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages, fairies and Great Fairies retain their appearance from The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, but with somewhat-revised sprites. The latter game also features a Fairy Queen and three Stray Fairies. Additionally, the spirits in the former game's Temple of Seasons closely resemble the Ocarina of Time fairy design.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords
In The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords, fairies act like typical fairies in fixed-camera games, but look like Navi. Many Stray Fairies operate the tutorials in the Chamber of Insight, and a Great Fairy appears at the end of the three main non-final levels.

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
In The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, fairies appear humanoid again and have blond hair. When Link catches one, she will press against the glass of the bottle with a disappointed expression. Aside from them, seven Great Fairies and the Queen of Fairies appear.

The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures
In The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures, Force Fairies appear and physically resemble fairies' appearance in The Wind Waker, but are collected in unlimited amounts for when a Link falls (thus essentially acting as extra lives). They appear alongside Great Fairies and the Queen of Fairies, the latter of whom is also simply called a "Great Fairy" in the English localization. Additionally, the Shrine Maidens each transform into a form resembling fairies from Ocarina of Time in order to more easily accompany the Links upon being rescued.

The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
In The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap, fairies again resemble their design from The Wind Waker, and are found primarily in fountains. Some fountains are only accessible after a specific Kinstone fusion. Hitting a Spark with the boomerang causes it to turn into a fairy. Three Great Fairies appear, being based off a dragonfly, a mayfly, and a butterfly, and ask Link questions to test his honesty.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
In The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, fairies are red and can be caught in bottles, like in Ocarina of Time. When one is caught, it will beat against the glass repeatedly. They are commonly hidden around entrances to dungeons. In the Wii version, the Wii Remote's pointer is represented by a cyan fairy, resembling Navi. A single Great Fairy is found in the Cave of Ordeals.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
In The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, a fairy named Ciela assists Link in his journey. Two other fairies named Leaf and Neri also appear, with the three being a group known as the Servant Spirits. The role of healing Link when he runs out of health is given to the Purple Potion.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
In The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, red, health-restoring fairies appear as they do in Ocarina of Time, and can be caught with the Bug Net.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
In The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, fairies look and act as they do in A Link to the Past. Great Fairies can also be found again, with a specific red one called the Rupee Fairy.

The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes
In The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes, fairies instead act as a life system. At the start of each level, Link starts with three fairies, and will lose one very time he runs out of health, also causing the section of the stage to need restarted. Link can also use fairies to skip stage sections, but will lose a fairy every time he does this. In the Den of Trials, a fairy can be found in a chest at the end of every zone.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
In The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, fairies mostly appear around Great Fairy fountains, but can additionally be found around other small bodies of water. They can be picked up like small creatures and stored in Link's inventory, but spook easily, so he must sneak to catch one lest it fly away. They otherwise act like bottled fairies in previous games. If Link uses one in a recipe, it will simply relinquish some dust into the dish, adding to the hearts it restores. Doing this without other ingredients will create the Fairy Tonic.

Link: The Faces of Evil and Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon
Both Link: The Faces of Evil and Zelda: The Wand of Gamelon feature a pair of fairies. When reached, they provide the Water of Life to either Link or Zelda, depending on the game.

Zelda's Adventure
In Zelda's Adventure, a fairy can be found in each of a few ponds scattered around Tolemac. Walking up to her will restore health.

Hyrule Warriors
In Hyrule Warriors, Link is accompanied by a blue fairy named Proxi, who acts as his "voice." Another generic fairy, this one red, is found on Death Mountain in the past. The American version of the original identifies this as Navi, though all other versions (including the later ports) simply refer to it as a fairy. In the Adventure Mode, fairies are sometimes caught in enemy keeps or by Fairy Hunters and can be rescued to dispel barriers of their element. Fairies also appear in large amounts in many of the cutscenes involving Great Fairies.

In the DLC Cia's Tale, Cia captures fairies in an early mission in Hyrule Field, leading to Proxi escaping and finding Link, thus starting the main game's plot. Additionally, an 8-Bit Fairy appears as a type of Great Fairy, likely in reference to the springs. This fairy is modeled after the in-game appearance of the fairy from The Legend of Zelda and wields the 8-Bit Wooden Sword.

Hyrule Warriors Legends
In Hyrule Warriors Legends, fairies appear as they do in the original, but with a much more expanded role thanks to a new mode called My Fairy. Bottled fairies can now be found in pots in some Adventure Mode missions, and rescuing them adds them to the player's party as companion fairies. In My Fairy mode, the player give companion fairies Food to make them stronger, and teach them powerful Fairy Skills to assist on the battlefield. There is also Fairy Clothing based off various creatures from the series the companion fairies can wear. However, the amount of companion fairies available in the party is limited, but expands every time an Adventure Mode map's final boss is defeated. Aside from their Fairy Skills, tapping the fairy icon in a battle while having a full Magic Meter causes her to damage or defeat every enemy within a small area. Unlike most attacks, this ignores whether the enemies are actually rendered on the battlefield at the current time, and as such can potentially defeat several hundred enemies at once if there are enough in a given area.

Companion fairies on the battlefield appear as the "ball of light" design, but in My Fairy mode, they are humanoid, represented by two-dimensional anime-stylized figures with layered-on features, likely to animate them while taking up a low amount of memory space. In Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition, the two-dimensional figures are replaced with full three-dimensional models.

Cadence of Hyrule: Crypt of the NecroDancer featuring The Legend of Zelda
A fairy named Trill assists the player character with her knowledge. In addition to fairies that can be captured in bottles, there are Great Fairies that appear in dungeons that can restore health as well as fortify weaponry in exchange for diamonds. In the final dungeon, there is a dark version of the Great Fairy who claims that her magic powers were sealed by the "great and powerful Ganon" and says that a healing potion is in the room behind her. The player will be ambushed by enemies if the room is entered.