Ezlo

Ezlo is Link's main companion in The Minish Cap. He has the appearance of a green cap, like the one Link usually wears for his adventures, but with a face resembling a bird, with a huge yellow beak and cartoony eyes.

Ezlo gives Link advice and background of the current situation throughout the adventure, both spontaneously and on demand, with use of the Select button. Ezlo's main use, gameplay-wise, is to shrink Link to Minish size whenever he nears a Minish Portal. He also serves as a parachute when Link jumps into whirlwinds, similar in use to the The Wind Waker's Deku Leaf.

Link found Ezlo in the Minish Woods being attacked by two Octoroks, and after he saved him, Ezlo united with Link and he helped him on his quest for defeating Vaati and returning the Picori Blade to its former power.

Ezlo's backstory
Before meeting Link, Ezlo was a renowned Minish craftsman and sage, who was working on a cap that would grant the wishes of its wearer. The cap was supposed to be a gift for the humans, but when he finished the aforementioned Mage's Cap, his apprentice Vaati (who was also a Minish at the time) stole it from his work desk and placed it onto himself, using its power to turn himself into the "most powerful sorcerer". Ezlo attempted to stop Vaati, but was unsuccessful. Vaati used the power he had recieved from the Minish Cap to curse Ezlo, transforming him into a creature resembling a cross between a green hat and a bird. Soon after, Link found Ezlo in the Minish Woods.

After Link defeat Vaati in the Dark Hyrule Castle, Ezlo is transformed back into his original form. He tells Zelda to combine her power with the Mage's Cap in order to undo all the damage done by Vaati. Before the Minish Door closes for another hundred years, Ezlo gives Link a green hat similar to what he looked like while he helped Link.

Trivia

 * The game menu normally displays several Ezlo images as a background.
 * With full health Ezlo appears with his beak open and held high. After losing health, Ezlo's image has a closed beak, held low. If Link only has one Heart Container of Health left; then Ezlo's image will appear exhausted.
 * Ezlo's cap form has similar properties to his sage form; namely, the swirl of hair on his head, and the appearance of his eyes.