The public forums of Cove City are renown Isles over for their spirited discourse, open debates, and their rapid-fire exchange of ideas and commentary on any and all topics. And to this day, academic scuttle-butt tells stories of the black cat who exploded suddenly onto the scene but a generation ago. Freshly arrived from the Fern Leaf Forest, Jack never formally applied to the Academy, nor any of the other institutions of learning in the City. Nevertheless, his ideas found fertile ground, and library doors were thrown open to him in an effort to woo his attendance. Jack mostly kept his own council, for a time, but his eye was caught fast by another up and coming student. Glinda and he struck a spark which roared into a dancing inferno of companionship, study, and treatises which rocked the City's academic circles for nearly two years.

As fast as he had come though, Jack seemingly vanished once again. He and Glinda had a falling out, their relationship collapsing like a spring-time avalanche; Jack ignored letters, failed to attend lectures and salon gatherings, and eventually simply... disappeared. Rumors swirled of an expedition mounted to the north, to prove a stubbornly held theory on the formation of the Isles. As winter settled in, many figured Jack lost to the ice and snows of the northern plains. So it was to the surprise of all when, nearly a year later, Jack appeared suddenly once again in their midst, tugging a load of glowing mushrooms and refusing to share where he'd been. As soon as he had sold his cargo and re-supplied, he disappeared again, as mysteriously as he had arrived.

Wherever Jack goes, he re-appears like a bad habit every autumn-time, pulling a cargo of glowcaps, jack-o-lanterns, and other strange fungi from the north and full of spooky stories to scare off any of the curious. He keeps tight lipped about where he spends the rest of his time, and none who have attempted to follow him out of town when he leaves have managed to track him beyond a few miles.