Tick Jefferson

Tick Jefferson (チック・ジェファーソン) is the torture specialist of the Gandor Family, a young man who is always seen smiling with a pair of scissors. The stepson of a clockmaker, as a child he was sold by his stepfather to a young Luck Gandor as a means of payment for a $2500 loan his stepfather couldn't pay off. He helps out in the Gandor family by 'taking care' of their enemies and becomes a skilled torture technician. Tick has an obsession with scissors and uses them as torturing devices for the Gandor brothers' mafia business and to interrogate people.

He also has a younger brother named Tim, whom his father kept and escaped from the city with. He later develops a close friendship with Maria Barcelito during 1933's events The Slash, where he is one of the leading protagonists of the two part saga.

Personality
Tick is a very strange, soft spoken young man from the day he was hired by the Gandors. His meek, cheerful personality belie the fact that his deadly skills with scissors can be used to maim and even kill those not careful enough to double cross his bosses. Not unlike Ladd Russo he seems to have two defining traits to his personality. A sweet, sheep-like individual in innocence and voice while also being an extremely competent and effective torturer who is well feared and called psychotic and sadistic. This image seems to be the opposite of what he actually is: Tick: is so calm and relaxed in many of the darker situations of the stories that few could understand Tick's aloof attitude, and the narrative of The Slash often compares him to an innocent sheep. Despite this, he claims that his scissors are cursed and when he does his job, it is in fact his scissors who does most of the work, which may explain his duality. His misleading affable demeanor is so child-like and innocent that when they first met, Luck could not bring himself to be angry at the situation - both out of the child's bright aura and his rhythmic snipping of his scissors.

Tick is not without the darker aspects of a mafia torture specialist however, when faced with the threat of his friends and his family, he will step up and protect them in his own way, a way that greatly parallels that of Dallas's attempt on Tim's life. Tick proclaims that he understood it completely and that because of this would not let it happen to his brother while he was present.

He has this strange belief that as long as he can cut with his scissors and feel the flesh sear from his tools, he is one step closer to believing in reality, even accepting the fact that he too will be wounded one day thus he believes in anything that can be broken. He shares this kindred spirit with associate Maria Bercelito in that they both have a high affinity to cutting things, albeit with different tools, and they bud a relationships because of it.

While at first glance Tick may seem very unlike his younger brother in the intelligence aspect, he is in fact quite smart and more perceptive than what would be lead on. Luck Gandor initially believed that he was dense and did not know what was going on about his father's debt only to be instantly contradicted when Tick surprised him with his insight on the minds and workings of other people. He was rather aware of his father's debts knowing that he was being racketeered as collateral and knew that his father was saving his brother to get out on an even bigger debt that he owed to bigger fish than the Gandor Family. He seems to be rather humble about his own intellect, especially when compared to his brother and other people who are smarter than he is, citing their superior brainpower.

Tick is also quite emphatic to those who he deems his friends.

Pre-1925
Sometime before he was sold to the Gandors Tick and his brother Tock lived together with their father, a man who held great debts and would one day sell the two of them as collateral. It is possible that he and Tock are twins as Tock was said to have "stolen everything good from his brother when he was born".

One day while sitting on a bench togetherTock questioned Tick why he carried scissors, but Tick only gaze the nonsensical reply that he did not know, and that it could have something to do with why Tock was so smart. Tock concluded and than insulted Tick, but Tick just took it in strive. When Tock asked why he wasn't mad, Tick just said that it was true. Tock didn't like this as it was a reminder that Tick was a fool, but also happy - the source of Tock's envy to his brother, and the reason why Tock hated Tick.

1925
In September 1925, Tick was sold by his father to the young Luck Gandor to pay back a loan of two thousand twenty-five dollars and fifty cents he squandered in gambling. Tick's father had taken advantage of an earlier threat, that he would have to sell his family, to get out of debt and gave away his son to Luck as collateral.

The young Tick was described by Luck at their first meeting as having "a voice so relaxed it almost seemed to melt into the air, a marked contrast to the sharp metallic sound of the tools he held. His willowy body made it impossible to gauge his strength at a glance. He looked amicable enough, his eyes curved upwards in half-moon smiles. There was nothing else remarkable about the boy, and so the eye was naturally drawn once more to the scissors in his hands. ...It felt as though the scissors were the boy's true form, while his actual body was simply an afterthought."

At first, Luck was not willing to accept Tick's father's proposal to have Tick serve as payment to his debt, for Luck wanted to press Tick's father to sell his house and land to them, but his interest was caught by Tick. After agreeing to try his skills out for a day, Tick was excepted and known eight years later as the Gandor Family's torture specialist.

1932 - Drugs and Dominos
Tick is present when the Gandor brothers were having trouble in punishing Edith, Tick suggests they cut her hair as a woman's hair is her pride and joy. The brothers agree and so did Edith, allowing Tick to trim her hair shorter instead.

1933 - The Slash
At the start of the novel, he is ordered by Luck Gandor to meet with a certain group of unknown delinquents who have been compromising the alcohol smuggling business since the Prohibition is almost coming to an end and they need the liquor to plot for more future investments, it is also due to the gang violence of 1932's Drugs and Dominos plot that they can't let it happen again or face the wrath of higher mafia factions led by Lucky Luciano. Coupled with Maria Barcelito due to her remarkable skills as a hitman, Tick and Maria are tasked with coaxing Jacuzzi's gang into working with them for protection fees or face another territorial dispute. Tick happily accepts this mission whilst trimming flowers given to him by Edith, Maria observes him as he trims the flowers individually noting he would not be an efficient florist due to his habit.

Later after meeting with the Daily Days, he and Maria discuss their philosophy of why they prefer their beloved tools, her two swords and his own two scissors. Tick feels that he won't be able to feel the real world nor does he know what bonds and family meant until he cuts a certain thing which could be anything. He feels that this mission issued by Luck could turn dangerous but Maria steadfastly declares that she will protect him no matter what the outcome. The two promptly bond despite knowing very little of each other, attracting looks from the streets of New York as they enter Millionaire's row to locate the mansion hideout of the gang.

Whilst skipping the house by a few blocks, Tick reveals that his family issues with his brother once his stepfather left them and hopes to reconcile one day. They realize they missed the mansion and they decide to enter through the back but are intercepted by Chane Laforet, starting a fight much to Maria's delight. Tick wishes to disperse the unnecessary bout as they have another purpose. Chane promptly leaves them after she hears Jacuzzi screaming (from Adele stabbing Dallas) while Tick decided to go to the front door.

Tick arrives through the Genoard mansion's front door and sees Tim, they exchange glances before asking what is going on. Tim tells him they have business with Jacuzzi but due to the high amount of guests and Chane fighting Maria, they will leave. Tick stops them from leaving and asks them to conclude business with Jacuzzi as depending on their response, they might not get the chance. It is here Dallas decides to attack Adele in retaliation for killing him numerous times, stealing Tick's scissors to do the deed yet is stopped by Tick who furiously rejects to have his tools be used in a barbaric way.

The timely arrival of Ronnie and Ennis prompts Maria to cut Dallas' arm off and they both reveal that their boss too has achieved immortality. The fight in the mansion escalates into a brawl between the women until Ronnie decides to disperse the problem by using his reality warping powers. Maria's ego is dramatically destroyed thanks to Adele in their fight.

The climax of the fight results in Tim's associate Adele maiming Isaac Dian's ear, infuriating Ennis and demanding the homunculus to apologize, resulting in the fight becoming grim. Dallas recovers but before any bloodshed, Nice detonates a smoke bomb and results in Jacuzzi's entire gang escaping. Tick acquires a devastated Maria and flees the mansion with her.

The epilogue has them in an unknown location in the midst of the rain, he attends to a wounded Maria and she tearfully apologizes for claiming to be unbeatable not being able to protect him or fulfil their agreement. Tick dismisses this and claims that they can redeem themselves once the rain ends, he snips the air with his scissors yet the sounds were lonelier than it should be.

The next day, Tick and Maria leave the hideout to return to the Gandor family to report their failure. On the way, the mansion they had visited yesterday now has a presence. Maria forces them to investigate and find Eve Genoard. Maria decides to claim Eve as a hostage along with Fang, much to Tick's chagrin. Eve realizes she knows Maria from last year as well as Tick working for Luck, realizing they cannot harm Eve for fear of Luck's wrath, they decided to have Fang guide them to find Jacuzzi.

Arriving at the harbor hideout, they meet Claire and Chane, they cement their allegiances as a result and no longer hold Fang and Eve hostage. They decide to go to Mist Wall to meet with Jacuzzi.

At the climax of the story, they arrive at Mist Wall's pyramid restaurant, where Maria confronts Adele for their much needed showdown. Tick stays in the sidelines until Dallas detonates a bomb that wounds Tim after Maira claims victory over her rival and cements her confidence. Dallas, vengeful for holding Eve hostage, plans to throw himself out of the high story building in a bid to kill Tim and Adele for this slight. Tick intervenes, not wanting to see his brother die and mutilates Dallas before plunging him below and telling him to direct his hatred to him.

Tick and his younger brother reconcile after Tim's innate hatred for Tick's alleged murder of his pet was proven false. The brothers go their separate ways with Tim vowing to meet with Tick again whenever he is in New York.

The closing storyline of The Slash has Tick and Maria learn that Gandors and Martillo factions have received their cuts from Jacuzzi's exploits, but is angered by the both of them for failure to report it before Ronnie did. Faced with the failure, Luck tells them to sell information to the Daily Days if they wish to be paid. Maria and Tick's journey ends as she declares her love for him as they rush happily to the information shop amidst the shining streets of New York.

Anime Voices

 * Japanese: Kappei Yamaguchi
 * English: Adam Dapkus

Trivia

 * Coincidentially, he shares similarities with Walker Yumasaki from Baccano's sister series Durarara!!. It is later revealed Walker is a torture technician himself but prefers other methods of torture.
 * He and his brother form a sibling yin-yang via their names and personalities.
 * Tick and his brother's birth-name Tock, relate to their father's occupation as a clockmaker; Tick-Tock is the onomatopoeia for the sound of a clock keeping time.
 * In the English dub of the anime he was referred to as Chick (no last name because the anime censored the 'Drugs and the Dominos'storyline) by Luck Gandor in the first episode. This was likely a script error, however he was also credited as such.
 * Ryohgo Narita writes a passage in the second book of the Slash stating that Tick and Maria's journey in the book is arguably one of the longest entries in the series.
 * He uses his scissors for almost everything, from cutting vegetables to trimming flowers.