Jackie

Jackie is an oddity within Gritclan, skittish, gentle and gets pushed around easily by even cats without much social standing. If his brother wasn't the leader he surely would've been basically driven out of the clan for his lacking... everything. He is aware that he is very disliked within the clan, but he still does his best to be friendly to others, even when they don't return the same kindness to him.

Due to his kithood injury, he has trouble with balancing and depth perception. On his right side he has poor nightvision and hearing

He mostly hunts for himself, as he doesn't catch enough prey in a day to feed himself and the clan. Jackdawsnare has allowed this, but many other cats still give him dirty looks

His official warriorname is Jackdawsquint. It was given to him just as a formality, and no one calls him that

Jackie is a hunter by title, but in reality he's little more than outcast within Gritclan. Most of the clan either ignores him or takes their frustration on him, leaving him isolated and overlooked from the other cats. He hardly feels like he belongs within Gritclan, and most days pass with him keeping quiet at the edges of the camp and quietly doing duties without a complaint. Still, he remains with the clan. Not for himself, but because Jackdawsnare and Ashfire are part of it, and he couldn't bare to leave them behind.

And hey, at least ever since Ashfire was born he has had something more to do than stay out of others' sight. Now he finally has a the feeling of being part of something.

Jackie was too young to remember when he and Jackdaw were rogues, and only remembers his time within the clans. As a kit he was given the name Jackdawkit by Gritclan's leader at the time, Rustclaw, as a cruel joke. Why bother giving the brothers unique prefixes? I mean Jackie is short for jackdaw anyway, right? Compared to Gritclan cats who were tough, scheming and competitive, Jackie quickly fell behind for lacking any of those qualities. He was quickly targeted by the other young cats within Gritclan, and the only thing that managed to keep them away was Jackdawpaw, who was always fiercly looking after his younger brother.

But even Jackdawpaw's couldn't be there all the time.

One day, when Jackdawpaw had left the camp for a hunting lesson, Jackdawkit was left alone in the camp. The apprentices who had also stayed in the camp saw their chance took the opportunity. When Jackdawpaw returned to the camp, he was greeted by Jackdawkit who was bleeding from his right ear and had his eyes unnaturally wide. The others claimed they had only been teaching Jackdawkit some fighting moves, but whatever had truly happened, it was far too much for a kit to handle, leaving him with permanent scars.

The wind howled across the snow covered clearing. Jackie’s paws crunched softly through the frost as he stepped into the hollow, his breath catching in his throat when he saw her. There she was, just where Jackdawsnare said. Brightsight's body lay still on the snow, her calico fur slowly being burried by the snowflakes that had began to fall. She almost looked like she was sleeping, if it wasn't fur the blood that surrounded her and the wide, terrified eyes.

"Brightsight," Jackie whispered as he stumbled forward. A sob escaped from him as he dropped on his belly beside her, burying his snout into her soft fur. He could still, just barely, smell her scent. Her sweet, warm scent that had always surrounded her.

"I'm sorry... I’m so sorry,” he sobbed. “I should’ve been there. I should’ve stopped this. I- I should've been here for you.” His apologies were swallowed by her fur He stayed like that for a while, quietly griefing beside her as snowflakes fell on his fur. She didn't deserve this, being left alone in the snow, forgotten. Someone like her shouldn't have died like this. His thoughts were interrupted when suddenly, there was a sound. A small, weak sound that was hardly there.

"What..." his ear perked up as he raised his gaze to scan the snow covered hollow. Another sound, even weaker than the first, but this time he knew what it was. A tiny mewl of a kit. Jackie quickly scrambled to his feet, as he began to search the clearing. There shouldn't been a way, not a chance for it to be what he thought it was, and he needed to see it for his own eyes- Another mewl, from under the bushes. His heart pounded as he followed the sound, pushing past the leafless branches of the bush.

And there she was. Huddled beneath prickly branches there was a tiny scrab of dark and orange fur. A kit, barely old enough to open her eyes, shivering harshly againts the cold. Jackie could just stare at the kit as tears began forming in his eyes.

"Oh Brightsight..." whispered as he lowered his head to gently nose the kit. The small kit's scent, it was undeniably similar to Brightsight. This was her daughter. "How are you still alive?" he murmured, before carefully lifting the kit by her scruff. He had to get her to the camp fast, by all sense she should've already froze to death, but by some miracle, she was still alive. Something had given her a second chance and he wasn't going to let that go to waste.

"I'll take care of her," he vowed. "I promise Brightsight, I'll raise her for you." He gave Brightsight's body one last, lingering look, before turning toward Gritclan's camp. As snow crunched beneath his paws he noticed that the weather had cleared. The foxfires were dancing in the night sky, and he could've swore he could feel familiar eyes on his pelt.