when Ilk was a child he used to throw rocks at the grackles he could find in town or by the side of the roads. the fact that they manifested alongside him in the transformation is something he considers some kind of karmic punishment, but he can't seem to work out how to get rid of them, and so they stay - always cawing, crowing, screeching.
the grackles are always three in number and they are usually loud and annoying, although there are moments they soar high in the sky and he doesn't have to listen to them, or when they grow uncharacteristically silent. to Ilk, they seem to model whoever is occupying his mind most on any given day; he swears he can hear words in the cackling, sometimes even memories on replay.
while his relationship with the birds is typically one of bitter resentment, he has worked out that they will follow his will sometimes, and he is more than happy to sic them on strangers that he wants to chase out of his territory. the sparkling electricity in their feathers only adds to the noise of them and it can white their eyes out, making them quite a lot more intimidating than any other grackle.