Jack the Cat - Gravity Falls

Chapter One - Skirts

Word count: 1133

Rain splattered down on Jack's exhausted form. His legs seemed to grow heavier and his headache bigger as he ran. Signs flashed past him. The sounds of an angry mob faded behind him as he stumbled over tree roots and broken branches. As the trees stopped passing him, so did his legs. He knew he had to keep moving, but the mud and grass was already rushing up to meet his face, and the void was already shrouding his view.

*     *     *

A blinding white light seeped through Jack's eyelashes. He ignored it, squinting, and opened his eyes as much as possible.

"Are you okay? What happened?" A loud feminine voice rang in his ears.

He slowly sat up and looked around. A young girl sat in front of him, light reflecting into his eyes off of the glitter on her jumper. A boy who looked similar to the girl sat close by, a concerned yet wary look covering his face. A grumpy old man sat on the other side of the room, watching the scene with almost uncaring eyes.

Jack raised a hand, running it harshly over his face. He blinked up at the girl as she repeated her questions.

"Um... I think-I think I'm okay? I'm... I'm not-not really sure, I don't really remember much... Did- did I pass out?" His eyes shut as he searched through his mind for any memories, coming up with nothing.

"Probably. We found you unconscious outside. You were soaked and scratched so we fixed you up and changed your clothes," the girl explained.

He looked down at his chest and realised he was wearing a large knitted jumper with a matching skirt covering his newly bandaged legs.

"You-... Thanks... Thank you so much for the help, that's very kind of you." The corners of his eyes crinkled and wet patches formed on the skirt as tears slipped down his cheeks. He quickly wiped them away and smiled to the other two in the room. "Thank you for everything, guys, but I must be going. I'm sure I've already caused enough trouble."

"You haven't caused any trouble at all!" the girl insisted.

He ignored her and stood up. "Again, thank you all, but I-I have things to do and I'm sure you all have plans as well... Silly question, but I'm new here, where's the door?" He spoke as politely as possible. The old man pointed to their back door and Jack, again, thanked him.

He walked passed the three kind strangers, ignoring the young boy that started asking questions, "Wait! You can't leave yet, I've got so much to ask! Have you always been part cat? Where are your parents? Are there any others like you?"

The kid probably had other questions, but Jack was already out the door. A smile graced his face when he realised the rain had stopped, and he quickly skipped back into the forest.

*     *     *

Dipper and Mabel wandered through the forest, hoping to stumble upon a strange creature. If they wished to stumble upon something in a very literal sense then they most certainly succeeded, with a little more stumbling and tripping than necessary.

A loud yelp sounded throughout the forest as Dipper spat out grass and Mabel wiped her face of dirt. Jack sat up and massaged his leg, looking up at the two with furrowed brows.

"Wha- you're the guy from last night! Were you sleeping there?" Dipper asked, surprise inking his voice.

"I was, until you guys woke me up from a great dream!" he spoke harshly. He stood up and glared at them, towering over their short statures. His eyes widened and he bowed his head, "Oh geez, I'm sorry, I didn't mean that, it's fine that you woke me up! I thank you again for what you did last night and the warm clothes you gave me, it was very kind of you! I apologise, I didn't mean to be rude!"

The two glanced at each other and nodded. "Hey, it's fine, you don't have to apologise. Besides, you look adorable in the sweater I made for you," the girl smiled widely.

"And if you don't have anywhere to stay then you can always come stay with us, we have space."

Jack smiled at the two but shook his head, "I'm sorry but I can't, I'd just be a burden. You shouldn't have to deal with a freak in your home."

"You wouldn't be a burden, and you certainly aren't a freak," Dipper quickly responded, the two shaking their heads almost violently.

Mabel clasped her hands together tightly, shaking them in front of her face. "Please, it'd be so cool having a cat-man stay with us! And we don't want you out here, unsafe and unprotected when there's so much dangerous stuff around!"

He looked at the two and sighed, "Fine, if that's what you want. And yes, you can blame me once you realise you shouldn't have taken me in."

They shook their heads, grabbed his hands and pulled him through the forest, back to the shack.

"I'm Jack, by the way. I don't have a last name," he mentioned offhandedly.

"I'm Dipper Pines, and this is my twin sister, Mabel."

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance," he smiled as he almost tripped over a root. They quickly slowed down for him.

"The old man you saw last night is our great uncle, Grunkle Stan. There's also Grunkle Ford but he was busy last night, they're twins too."

Jack nodded, "That's pretty cool. Are you sure they'll be fine with me staying?"

"Yeah, of course! And I'm sure Grunkle Stan will lend us some money to buy you some proper clothes, instead of having to wear that skirt and jumper." Dipper smiled hopefully.

"Hey, I worked hard on that jumper! And the skirt goes with it perfectly!" Mabel exclaimed defensively, crossing her arms with a glare.

"Yeah, I actually really like it," Jack added in, doing a little twirl to show off the skirt more. The skirt fluttered up a bit, but not much. It was meant to fit the much smaller Mabel, so it was tight and short on Jack. "Perhaps a longer skirt would be better though."

"You actually like skirts?" Dipper asked, dodging a tree and changing directions along the twisting path.

Jack nodded, "Well, they are very comfy and they give space for my tail." He jabbed his thumb backwards, pointing towards the low, swishing tail behind him. It jutted out from underneath the sweater and he quickly explained, "The skirt's waistband is low, so my tail doesn't have to go underneath it."

They nodded as if they understood what having a tail was like.

"We're here."

•An introduction to our feminine, feline friend•