A work in progress...
Full name: Jackson James Johnson
Spoiler for nicknames:
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Nicknames (and the people who gave them to him):
Jacks - called by palace cook, Gus
JJ - random girl at one of his performances
Jack-John - juvenile codename used in his younger secret spy games
Jack - an odd-eyed crow called Hooks named him this
Johnny - almost all palace servants call him by this name
Jack J. - the engraving he put on the handle of his violin
John J. - his abbreviated name in palace records
His dad always called him “Johnsy”.
Spoiler for Quotes:
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“Prepare to laugh!”
“I live to laugh and laugh to live long.”
Spoiler for appearance:
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Sleek-limbed, and wearing a close-fitting suit. The left side of these clothes are done in light purple fabric, and the right sides are done in silver. He wears shoes with curled toes, each one its respective color for its side (left = purple, right = silver). The end of each toe is fitted with a little golden bell.
The gloves he wears sport black and white half-coloring as well. These colors are divided from between his middle and ring fingers straight down to the end of his glove, on both the palm and the back of his hand.
His hood has two horn-like projections that curl backwards like Cs from the top of his head, with two smaller curls on top of those that twist in the opposite direction. It is also halved into purple and silver colors, like his pants and shirt. Each tip of these “horns” carries a bell, like on the ends of his shoes.
He always wears a black and white, oval-shaped smiling mask on his face. It is half-shaded like his gloves: right side = black, left side = white. It is made out of an unknown, featherweight yet sturdy material…perhaps something plastic based? The yellow eyes and red smile though, seem to be made of some sort of glossy silken fabric. They don’t look stitched on, but stick perfectly to the mask, so maybe some type of adhesive was used.
Because of his ex-royal past, the distinct, jagged fringes on his clothes (cuffs, shoe tops, waist edge of shirt), are yellow with gold edging.
Spoiler for personality:
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Jackson James Johnson is a high-energy, fun-loving person. Although he can get quite silly at times, he’s mostly interested in making people laugh or smile and will try his hardest to do so. He’s not insane, but observers have often seen him trying to sneak up on his reflection, hoping to catch it off guard.
If he’s alone, he would often play his violin in long, sad tones. If someone approaches to listen from a closer distance, he’d play the violin horribly for a few seconds and then resume his sad tune. If he knows someone wants a performance, he plays it perfectly. Sometimes when Jackson is really happy, he would play it expertly and dance and dance until his legs give out underneath him.
If someone earns his trust, he pretty much believes everything the person (or thing) tells him. He’ll also do whatever that person (or thing) tells him to, but this isn’t always an easy task. If someone tries to force him to do something bad (e.g. steal something, harm someone), then Jackson can get quite suspicious and may start asking questions.
On the plus side of things, Jackson will do his best to be the most trustworthy person to any allies he has. He will do anything to protect them, even if his own life is put at risk.
In battle, his determination is unmatched. He will try his hardest to defeat (not kill) his opponents. There isn’t a murderous bone in his body, not even if his enemy deserves it. This has trapped him in rather unfortunate situations.
Spoiler for likes/dislikes:
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Likes
Jackson enjoys performing for people, singing, dancing, playing the violin, seeing rainbows, talking with Hooks, and playing card games with his reflection. He also likes climbing trees, and he’s really good at it.
Dislikes
Jackson dislikes being alone, even if he’s alone with his reflection. He finds keeping himself entertained is slightly harder than keeping the attention of a public/private audience. Sometimes, if he gets really bored, he will create makeshift audience members and perform for them.
Spoiler for abilities:
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Ouch Factor: Jackson’s suit somehow enhanced his strength, giving him the power to shatter solid concrete with nothing but his fists/feet/head etc.
Reflector Deflectors: Special 6-foot tall, 4-foot wide mirrors, with gold and silver frames. Jackson can jump into a mirror to protect himself from enemy attacks. While he’s inside one, no enemy or attack can enter. An enemy can only enter a mirror if Jackson has generated two at once. Only Jackson is able to enter one mirror and come out the second one. If an enemy tries, it will get stuck in one mirror and would be forced to break the mirror it came out of to escape. Inside the mirror, the enemy will have Jackson’s reflection, and see two extra mirrors aside from the real one. The glass of all mirrors act as though they were tempered, making a breakout difficult. Note that Jackson cannot enter the mirror an enemy is trapped in.
Jackson’s reflection can move and act independently, even if Jackson is nowhere near the mirror. This makes it useful (and hilarious) for distraction and confusion tactics. Note that the reflection cannot speak or make any sort of sound either inside Jackson’s mirror or reflected somewhere else. It is…after all…only a reflection.
Spoiler for origin:
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Unknown. He seems to have had this power from birth.
Spoiler for Special Ability:
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Light Guardian: A roughly human-shaped angelic being with large feathered wings appears. The being is made entirely of light, and will defend Jackson when he’s struck down. Usually the angel’s appearance is a sure sign that Jackson has been defeated. The angel itself cannot take any physical damage and will simply stand protectively near Jackson until the opponent leaves. If the enemy approaches, the angel will generate a flaming sword of light. If this warning is ignored, the angel will engage. All the Light Guardian needs is a strike opening. Its sword does no damage, but as soon as it passes through a target, the target will fall asleep and stay that way until the angel has left the combat area (mechanical enemies would simply be rendered immobile).
The angel could theoretically take damage from magical attacks, but that wouldn’t matter since Jackson’s already defeated and there is no reason for the fight to continue. It is unknown whether the angel can be damaged to the point of death, or if the angel is even capable of expiring in general.
Spoiler for origin:
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Skill Origin: A powerful demon named Sevientorr found out one day that Jackson was arguably the happiest being in the universe. Even deaths within his family (e.g. mother, father, uncle etc.) couldn’t keep him sad for long. Sure, he’d mourn them for three days or so, but then he’d start thinking about all the positive memories he’d had of them. Once these memories are in his head, they’re all he can think about, and then he returns to his happy self.
Sevientorr sought to cause him the greatest misery ever, but had great difficulty figuring out how he could do that. At last, he had an idea.
One night, he seized Jackson’s shadow and turned it into an evil duplicate of the jester. It looked exactly like Jackson, except it was dressed in shades of grey, white, and black, devoid of bright colors.
The shadow would appear at unexpected times, mess something up in Jackson’s life, and then leave. The mirrors it generated were riddled with ugly cracks, and the air would grow cold whenever it was near.
Only Jackson could see that the shadow was different from him. Every other person saw it as Jackson himself, and the jester began to worry. The bad copy could hurt his friends. He didn’t want that to happen.
After a while though, Jackson figured that if this shadow was like him, he could make it happy! From then on, whenever the shadow showed up, Jackson would be ready with some sort of present to give to him. It didn’t matter if the shadow didn’t take the gift, since Jackson believed, “It’s the thought that counts.”
One day, Jackson figured out where the shadow lived. It was staying in an abandoned house near Ahvienneia’s second largest briar patch. Since the shadow believed no one knew about its refuge, the door to its house was unlocked. Jackson entered, carrying his new gift.
The gift was a phoenix statue made of varnished sticks and leaves. Jackson was proud of it since he believed it was the nicest gift he’d ever made for anybody.
Leaving the statue on a table in the middle of the living room, the jester hid himself and waited for the shadow to return. Hours passed, and the shadow finally showed up. It saw the gift immediately and approached it, cocking its head. Jackson leaped from his hiding place, barely able to contain his excitement.
He told the shadow he knew where it lived and then asked it if it liked his present. The shadow responded by picking the gift up and smashing it on the floor, sending pieces flying all over the place. Jackson slouched, saying that statue had taken him days to make. He then sulked his way out the door, and the shadow slammed it behind him. When it looked out the window though, Jackson was skipping and dancing away into the distance again, as if nothing bad had ever happened.
The shadow was still for a moment, and then it went back to the remnants of the statue. It looked at the pieces, and then bent down, picking them all up.
When Jackson visited the shadow again, it threatened to do something terrible if he came to see it one more time. But Jackson was only interested in the fact that the phoenix statue was reassembled. He asked his shadow why it had repaired the gift, and it couldn’t answer him directly. Ever since then, the shadow found it harder and harder to make Jackson’s life a nightmare.
The day came when the shadow couldn’t take it anymore, and its will fought against Sevientorr’s, forcing that evil part of its body to leave. The shadow then fought its evil form, no easy task, but in the end, the shadow emerged victorious. Free from evil, the shadow converted into an angelic being.
From that day forward, the shadow assumed duty as Jackson’s guardian angel, vowing to keep him safe from harm for the rest of its existence.
Spoiler for Abilities worth mentioning...:
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Phoenix Style
While on Ahvienneia, Jackson came across a traveling wanderer named Silas Silversteel, and performed for him. Silas enjoyed the show very much, and then the two got to talking. It turned out that Silas learned of a special skill called a “Style”. This “Style” could transform you into a powerful beast with equally powerful abilities. Silas then showed him his Style, the Werewolf Style. He then showed Jackson the arm sign sequence for the Phoenix Style. He then told Jackson that he wouldn’t be able to use the Style until he actually faced the real beast with it.
Ahvienneia did have quite a few firebirds, but they were a rare sight. Jackson thanked Silas, said goodbye, and then went back to King Jarvis and told him about what had happened. He then packed his bags and explored all throughout the kingdom, seeking a Phoenix to help him in his Style training.
After many years, he found one at last. However, he intended to defeat the firebird in one skirmish, so he took many months just observing the animal from a safe, concealed distance. When Jackson believed he was ready, he took on the Phoenix in an all-out, life-or-death struggle. It was tough, but Jackson’s experience paid off and he was able to overcome the firebird. He received the power to activate his Phoenix Style, but remained with the bird for many more months, looking after it until it recovered fully.
Then he returned to his castle and his entertainment duties. Whenever he was off-duty, Jackson would practice his Style as much as he could. However, he soon discovered that it would take months, perhaps even years to master such skills. Nevertheless, he continued his self-training, but without a teacher of a similar Style, he caused greater danger to himself and any observers near him. After a few years, he was only able to sustain a full Phoenix transformation for a few minutes maximum.
It was then when Jackson decided his Style was to be used as a last-resort move only.
Skill Notes: While in this form, any hostile target within three feet of Jackson will be exposed to an uncomfortably high temperature. Although Jackson can whip his wings or tail to send searing feathers at an enemy, he prefers to use the Phoenix Style for intimidation only, not as some sort of way to fight his opponent. Contrary to popular belief, dousing the firebird with water will not kill it; it just causes Jackson to temporarily lose control of the form. Also, it creates an annoying fog that pretty much ruins the visibility level in the combat area for quite a while. Jackson can’t see through the mist, even if in full Phoenix morph.
Physical Attributes: High stamina, speed, and strength. He can hear, smell, see, and taste pretty well. He can’t see in the dark, but is extremely sensitive to vibrations on the ground and disturbances in the air around him.
Suit Attributes: Jackson’s costume protects him from extremely high temperatures. The suit is all one piece, including the hood. Oh, and it has pockets that can fit just about ANYTHING inside them, as long as it isn’t any bigger than your average VW Beetle. Once the smallest part of an object fits through the pocket’s mouth (which can stretch to fit anything within 12x12 dimensions), the rest of the object will slide rapidly into it. Once any object (or living thing) is inside the pocket, it will hang in a state of suspended animation until Jackson pulls it back out. It is unknown how living things are able to breathe in such an environment.
Jackson’s head is the only invisible part of his body, but somehow he’s completely invisible when he takes his entire suit off. When he receives any damage though, his injured flesh can be seen through the tear in his costume.
Regardless of size, any item Jackson puts in his pocket will not weigh him down at all. This feature is so convenient that Jackson sometimes forgets the heavy items he carries altogether. However, he doesn’t use these pocket skills that much, and usually uses them just to hold his hands or small objects, like quill pens or small rocks.
He has four pockets in total: two on the left and right areas of the “pants” part of his suit (where pockets are usually found), and two on the undersides of both sleeves (just below his wrists).
Also, the suit allows him to climb on just about any surface (as long as it isn’t too cold). Jackson’s suit adopted these properties when he and Tyler* were baking cookies as a surprise for Malafar*. The cookies weren’t coming off the pan, so Tyler tried using magic to get them off. The spell reflected off the metal and hit Jackson. The two rookie chefs later discovered that the non-stick spell was actually a stick-to-nearly-everything spell. Fortunately Jackson was able to control the sticking power without any harmful side effects.
The cookies turned out great and tasted even better, but Jackson and Tyler never tried to cook or bake again without supervision.
**More about Malafar and Tyler can be found in the Story section
Spoiler for COMBAT TACTICS:
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Jackson often keeps his distance from his opponent and tries to figure out what kind of skills it has before he attacks. Since his primary power requires him to get close to an opponent, he always seeks a strike opening and will focus on evasive maneuvers until he sees one. He usually can’t resist making fun of opponents, especially if they get irritated and/or laugh easily.
Knowing the limits of his body, he often looks to avoid taking damage while landing as many strikes on the enemy as possible.
Spoiler for weaknesses:
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Ouch Factor – Jackson’s punches or kicks could carry so much power that he could injure himself quite easily (just try to punch a concrete block without smashing all your finger bones).
Reflector Deflectors – The mirrors can be destroyed. When Jackson makes one mirror, the second one appears in a random location, whether it is safe or not. The first mirror always reflects what the second one sees, allowing the enemy a way to predict where Jackson will end up.
If a mirror is destroyed while Jackson is trapped inside it, he will appear near the broken mirror’s area, held by his hovering reflection. The reflection will disappear seconds later. The reflection will rescue an enemy in the same way if its mirror prison is destroyed before the enemy can escape.
Jackson is helpless for a few seconds while in the grasp of his reflection. The enemy can strike him without fear of a counterattack if he’s in this state. However, the same will happen to the foe when it is rescued by Jackson’s reflection.
Additionally, Jackson cannot swim. If he lands in deep water, he will certainly drown (the angel cannot help him since the surface of water is reflective [see below]).
Light Guardian – The angel cannot pass through any reflective surfaces. Its sword can be stopped by other weapons, armor, and shields, regardless of what material they’re made of.
Theoretically, if you separate the angel from Jackson, it can’t help him.
Phoenix Style – only a few minutes in full form, brief blackout after form expires. After the blackout, Jackson can’t move for another 30 minutes.
Other Weaknesses: Jackson is hydrophobic because he can’t swim. He can take puddles, rain, and shallow creeks just fine. Anything deeper or swifter can make him quite nervous.
Jackson takes damage like any normal human being would. Pain can be distraction and slows his reaction time. If he loses too much blood, he could pass out in the middle of combat. Also, he can’t fight properly if he has any broken bones.
Spoiler for story:
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Summarized from palace records: Section 0999, under ‘Honorable Mentions’
Jackson grew up in a small, out-of-the-way kingdom called Ahvienneia. He was the son of the king’s most faithful servant, Marco, and loved to entertain people from a young age. Once he was 10, King Jarvis appointed him as his personal court jester. When his juggling, dancing, and bird summoning began to become boring for his audience, he got into music and played the fiddle when finishing his daily entertainment routine.
He could dance and play so quickly and effortlessly that he soon became famous for this skill. There was also that one time when he accidentally tamed the griffin that was attacking the castle with his music…but that’s another story entirely.
Jackson also plays before bed, but only lullaby tunes.
Jackson’s talent wasn’t missed by anyone, even King Jarvis’s court wizard, Malafar. In fact, Jackson enjoyed entertaining Malafar so much, and Malafar liked his entertaining so much, that on his birthday the wizard gave him, not one, but four very special gifts.
The gifts were a lump of pure solid gold, a beautiful swirly green jade rock, a bottle of magic ink, and a roll of infinite paper. Marco knew how to work in the forge, so Jackson brought the gifts to his father and asked him to make a scroll out of the gold and the infinite paper.
Jackson then took the scroll and used it as a journal, but the first thing he ever wrote inside it was, “I live to laugh and laugh to live long.” It was then when Jackson realized no one could understand what he wrote with the magic ink aside from him. Delighted, he made up a joke each day and added it to every journal entry he ever made. His jokes were so funny that they would make King Jarvis himself laugh until his sides hurt and tears came from his eyes.
But none appreciated the jester more than Malafar’s young apprentice, Tyler. Every one of Jackson’s tricks and jokes caused Tyler’s face to light up like the sun. At the end of each show, Tyler would go to his room and try to think of an awesome trick to pull on Jackson. He’d done this for many years, and at long last, he’d finally come up with something.
One night Tyler snuck up on the jester as he lay in bed; intending to switch his face with Jackson’s.
After this, the rest of the plan was as follows:
1. Make sure that both he and Jackson had the same clothing
2. Wear special masks, one for him and one for Jackson
3. Let Jackson do his show
4. Approach him, take his mask off
5. Tell Jackson that he’s the best entertainer ever
6. Switch faces again
7. Laugh.
However, the spell was so complex, that the apprentice mispronounced the incantation. He received Jackson’s face without error, but the jester’s head completely disappeared. Tyler panicked for a few moments until he realized Jackson was still alive, but his head was simply invisible and intangible to anything aside from his clothing.
Horrified, Tyler took out the special masks and put them over his and Jackson’s faces. He then duplicated clothes without incident and left, his heart pounding.
The following morning, King Jarvis had a marriage celebration for Annabelle, his daughter. Jackson was supposed to put on a show for everyone and read on of his scroll jokes. Tyler was so afraid someone would find out about him that he put a sleeping potion in the party wine, planning to slip away once the time came for the scroll joke. He’d seen Jackson’s writing in the scroll before, and knew for a solid fact that he wouldn’t be able to read a word. Deciding that a mask reveal would be too risky and knowing Malafar would be looking for him, he would make a run for it. Tyler knew how long a typical show of Jackson’s was, so it was easy for him to adjust the effect timing of the potion.
Fortunately for his plan, Tyler knew Jackson always kept his scroll in his bedroom drawer, and only got it at the end of his show. As Tyler left the kitchen however, Jackson had been hiding near the kitchen window curtain and had seen everything. As soon as Tyler was gone, Jackson immediately went and told Malafar what happened. (Since the jester’s head was merely invisible and not missing, he was still able to talk like he always did. Also, the wizard noticed Jackson’s mask, but merely thought it was some sort of new look for his show, and said nothing.)
Malafar gave Jackson a special nullifying substance and told him to come back to him as soon as he’d finished returning the wine to normal. Jackson did as he was told, and, with Malafar’s help, made his jade rock into two, thin, concealable needles. These needles were Jackson’s backup plan, in case Tyler tried to run away. Malafar said Tyler was probably up to something forbidden and they both needed to catch him before he caused more trouble. To minimize the needle’s chances of causing injury, Malafar coated them in a paralytic chemical. Jackson then slipped the weapons up his sleeves and went to do his show. If push came to shove, he’d make sure that Tyler didn’t get away until he had some answers.
Jackson entertained everyone, still unaware of the mask on his face since it fitted him so well. The guests and the king all could see the mask, but thought it was a part of the performance and, like Malafar, said nothing about it.
Meanwhile, Tyler was in the kitchen, packing up the essentials he needed for his journey. He didn’t know when he was going to come back to Ahvienneia, but it wasn’t going to be anytime soon. Malafar came in to get some seasonings and saw Tyler with the food. He was mildly surprised at first, and Tyler explained that he was doing something a little different for the audience before the reading of the scroll. Malafar suspected nothing, since Tyler had the same voice as Jackson, and gave him an arcane marking on his hand to help him carry his multiple items with little effort. After the wizard had left, Tyler knew he had to make an appearance for sure. This marking wasn’t just something you could accidentally rub off. He also knew the effects of his sleeping potion would take their toll any minute now, so he’d have to be up there as soon as possible.
As Tyler ran to get the scroll, he encountered Jackson, who was just about to leave his bedroom with it. The apprentice spared no time at all, knocking him out with a spell and taking the scroll. He then ran off and left the jester behind.
Fortunately for Jackson, Malafar was looking for Tyler at the time and discovered the jester lying lifeless before his bedroom door. The wizard revived him quickly, and then both he and Jackson rushed to the throne room. Tyler had the scroll and was already standing before everyone with his back to King Jarvis. He spotted the pair out of the corner of his eye, but believed they were too late and took a deep breath.
Nothing happened.
As he stood frozen in shock, Jackson rushed up to his side, putting his hands on his hips. By now everyone in the room was on their feet, genuine bewilderment on their faces. King Jarvis himself was off his throne as well, confused and calling to the two Jacksons, demanding them to admit to him which one of them was real.
Jackson and Tyler both turned at the same time. But then Jackson told Tyler to read the first line on his scroll, knowing that he’d told both King Jarvis and Malafar what he’d written there. Tyler dropped the scroll and turned to run, but Jackson just began to laugh uncontrollably. The apprentice halted, surprised for a few moments, and Jackson gave him a playful slap on the back, secretly pricking him with one of his jade needles. Tyler immediately slumped to the ground, paralyzed.
Malafar went before King Jarvis and told him everything. After Tyler was revived, he confessed to everyone what he’d done. Before he’d gotten to the part about his mask, Jackson caught his reflection in a nearby wine glass. The jester was shocked beyond belief, and had to sit down throughout the rest of Tyler’s story. Malafar managed to restore Tyler to normal, but no matter how hard he and his apprentice tried, they couldn’t bring back Jackson’s head.
Tyler was really sorry and wouldn’t stop apologizing, so Jackson felt very sorry for him and admitted that he actually liked the mask he was wearing…although he would like to make some changes. Tyler was so relieved that he got Jackson to tell him exactly what he wanted, and Tyler made a new costume and mask for the jester.
Thanks to Tyler’s last minute mispronunciation of a pocket creation spell, Jackson’s new costume ended up with pockets that could fit huge things in them. It also somehow prevented him from aging, was able to repair itself, and didn’t get dirty or smell no matter how long he wore it.* Jackson was so happy with his costume that he asked Malafar to make it fit him forever and ever. The wizard was so tickled by the idea that he granted the jester his wish.
Jackson lived for a long time, and soon came to realize that he’d outlast all his dear friends and relatives. Unsure of what to think of this fact, he went to Malafar, who told him of a special world that was filled with talented people just like him. If he really wanted to put on a show, he had to go there. Then he’d always be able to show his talents and learn many new things.
Before Jackson left, he gave Tyler a few of his best jokes to remember him by. Then Malafar sent him to the world, and made a special stone honoring the jester.
Ahvienneia never forgot Jackson J. Johnson ever again, and the stone still stands to this day.
Record by Malafar E. Rubyscale, Court Wizard under His Majesty, King Jarvis: 55th Year**
*in regards to his Abilities, the suit can do all that is written here. Note that the suit cannot repair until Jackson’s wounds have healed.
**55th year, the year number indicating when the record was made within King Jarvis’s ruling time.
Spoiler for demo:
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Working on it...
Known Allies
Spoiler for Hooks:
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Hooks: Hooks is an odd-eyed crow that used to visit Jackson every morning back on Ahvienneia. When Malafar was preparing to send Jackson to SP, Hooks somehow managed to slip into Jackson’s right sleeve pocket. Later on, when Jackson reached his destination, he found himself in a small town caught within a severe rainstorm. While searching for a dry Dumpster to hide in, he came across one that was nearly filled to the top with dry cardboard. On top the cardboard was a black cape, which he took out and decided to wear (since it was in pretty good condition). It was here where Hooks managed to slip out of Jackson’s sleeve…since a thunderclap distracted the jester at that exact moment.
After Jackson joined a clan called “The Wind Chasers”, Hooks touched base with the jester and explained how he’d come to this place. At first, Jackson was upset, but Hooks insisted that he’d be better off with some form of familiar company in this new world. With this thought in mind, Jackson had to agree with the crow.
Hooks has the appearance of your average black crow, aside from his eyes. One of them is blue and the other is green, and both have a fluorescent glow in low-light conditions. He regenerates feathers quickly, because he has a queer talent of storing words and short sentences in them. Hooks calls them wishes just to make the skill seem interesting.
While granting a “wish”, his upper beak turns solid gold and stays that way until someone listens to the “wish” from the feather. To hear a “wish”, all the person needs to do is hold it up to their ear. Hooks can only pull feathers off of himself if his beak is gold.
Hooks is able to see in the dark.