Cal Kestis Week 2025

Day 2 - Padawan

In which Cal buries his Master.

Kesett Week 2024 Day 7: Accidental Baby Acquisition

Jaro is not sure how or why there is an abnormally aggressive and blood covered cadet on his ship, but he sure would appreciate if he would stop biting and accept medical aid.

Jango has a small crying child on his ship who starts screaming when touched.

From Jedi: Yoda (2004)

Sketch looks up from where he's been trying, and failing, to refasten a buckle for the last....He blinks, sniffs, doesn't want to think about it. Instead he focuses on the semi-welcomed distraction of a...child. Kriff, that's a kid. Paler than the durasteel walls. Face covered in freckles. Hair somewhere between distressingly orange and a nice copper. Maybe he'll grow into it.

"...what?" He hates how his voices comes out as a croak.

The kid sits back but not far away. He has a single braid in his hair, a dark blue cord and a single bead as its only decoration. Sketch feels like he should know what it means.

"You can cry," the kid says patiently. "It's good for you."

"I don't need to cry," he lies.

The kid tilts his head, eyes wide and guileless - and looking right through him it feels like. As if he can see the clog in Sketch's throat, the burn behind his eyes, the nightmares that haunt him in the waking world. The last leg of their deployment went terribly. More than terribly. They had to come all the way to Coruscant for recuperation because of it. And Sketch refused to leave the ship, sequestering himself in the dim-dark engine room most people don't go in if they valued hearing their own thoughts.

Sketch very much did not want to hear his own thoughts.

"I cried yesterday. Almost cried this morning."

"Why didn't you?"

The kid shrugs. "There was a really good breakfast this morning. Distracted me. Everyone was so happy."

What happiness has to do with how good breakfast is, Sketch doesn't know, but he can't help but smile at how casual the kid is. Crying hadn't been a thing in training. Clones don't cry. Natborns do. But this kid....

His eyes sting. He wipes the back of his wrist against them. "I'm fine."

"It's okay if you're not. I read the reports."

That startles him out of whatever sort of fit he might have successfully fallen into. "They let you read what?"

He rolls his eyes. "Okay, I didn't actually read them. But they're not very quiet." He grins. "I can be really sneaky."

Sketch stares for a long moment before he cracks a laugh - and that laugh turns onto a sob.

Then, like the seals have exploded, Sketch just breaks down and weeps. For his lost brothers. For the ones he could save. He'd been too slow. Too stupid. Too...injured himself to be any use, but that's not a good enough excuse. He'd been right there. He should've done something.

He doesn't notice the kid scooting closer until he's already leaning half against him. Sketch glances down through blurry vision, strangely grounded by the physical touch for all that he can't actually feel the kid through his armor. He carefully curls an arm around skinny shoulders, pauses to let the kid move away if he wants, and when he doesn't, holds him even closer like he's a plush tooka instead of a person.

The kid bears it patiently. Not saying a word. Until Sketch's tears have dried up, and it doesn't feel like he's going to choke on his guilt. It's still there, but it's manageable for now.

"We're going to be on Coruscant for a while longer," Cal says. "The Temple mind healers are really good. Some of your brothers have already seen them."

Sketch makes a non-committal noise. He keeps his arm around the kid, relucant to lose this grounding touch. It takes too long for the details of what he said to make it through his weary brain.

"We?"

The kid grins up at him. "Hi, I'm Cal Kestis. I'm General Tapal's new padawan learner."

Sketch's jaw drops in horror. They're taking this baby into war? No. Absolutely not. Cal squeaks when Sketch stands abruptly, dangling from the clone's grip like a...like a misbehaving tooka kit. He is rather kitten-like. His brothers will have a field day with that.

No. Sketch shakes his head. No. Because there is no way Cal is going to war with them.

"Absolutely not," he repeats out loud this time and starts marching.

"Um," Cal says. "If you're going to kidnap me, can I at least know your name?"

"Sketch."

My emotions during this scene -

Kesett Week 2024 Day 3: Time Travel Fix-it

Kesett Week 2024 Day 2: "Why Didn't You Turn Me In?"