nobody knew where cain kuskyn had come from. the jedi masters said he simply… showed up one day. they found him on the steps of the temple when he was thirteen. he hadn’t said a word.

when you had asked, he had claimed his home planet had died out. not in some big explosion or collision with something, it had simply died. as though it had been drained of life and crumbled away.

despite the mystery of his past, you quite liked cain. he was old for an initiate, sure, but he hadn’t started training until he was older.

he scared the others.

other padawans had whispered with you about how he was creepy, and that they felt something off in the force when he entered the room.

you had never felt it. in fact, he was kind to you. he didn’t show it verbally, but you’d find a balm left in your bunk for bruises after a hard day of training or he’d go lighter on you when he knew you were tired.

once you both became padawans, he became elusive. he never reached out on missions with his mentor, never told stories about what he’d done. but every time he returned to the temple at the same time as you, he was friendly again.

he had just gotten back from a trip with his mentor. the two of you stood, sparring. when you questioned about where he’d been and what he’d done, he merely remained quiet.

“how was your time away?” he asked instead. his tone was soft despite the clash of sabers.