Private Once, We Were Jedi

[Cas Tynen]

The plains stretched endlessly beneath the afternoon sun, tall grasses bending softly beneath the wind in slow rolling waves. The homestead rested quietly among them, isolated from the nearest settlement by several kilometers of open land and old stone fencing. Cas preferred it that way.

The old Kiffar sat on the porch with his boots propped against the railing, one hand lazily holding a half-finished drink while the other rested across his stomach. Somewhere in the distance, music drifted faintly from an old portable radio one of his grandchildren had forgotten weeks ago. He still hadn't turned it off. Not because he particularly liked the music, but because figuring out how the damn thing worked sounded exhausting.

A pair of younger voices echoed somewhere further down the hill followed by sudden laughter and the unmistakable sound of a speeder engine struggling for dear life. Cas didn't even open his eyes.

"If that thing explodes." He called out lazily. "I'm charging your parents."

"Dad said you don't even need credits anymore!"

"Your dad also thought frosted tips were a good idea at nineteen. We don't use him as a source."

A chorus of offended shouting answered him from the distance and Cas smirked faintly into his drink. The years had settled across him gently. Age lined his face now, silver threading through shorter hair and beard alike, but there was still strength beneath the softness of old age. The kind earned through survival rather than preserved through pride.

The Force around him no longer surged the way it once had in war. There were no sharp edges nor constant tension, only quiet currents moving steadily beneath the surface. Peace.

Then he felt it. A familiar presence brushing against the edge of his senses through the Force. Cas stilled, not because of danger, but because some connections remained recognizable no matter how many years passed between them. Slowly, the old Jedi lowered his drink.

"...Well, I'll be." A grin tugged at the corner of his mouth.

Sakadi Marathi Sinvala

 

[Sakadi Marathi Sinvala]

Cas Tynen

T Y N E N -H O M E S T E A D

At her behest, the landspeeder had taken her to the shallow stream that marked the border between the steep hills and flat expanse. The hills, with their tall grasses, boulders, and bright wildflowers, were best traversed afoot. The hike was a small price to pay for visiting a dear friend.

Over the years, it had become something of an unspoken ritual between visits. Each journey revealed a landscape subtly altered from the last. Flowers grew where none had before, trees had bent further toward the valley winds, and paths were reshaped by rain and wandering feet. Every change reminded her how long it had been since she’d come here.

The thought always carried a faint sting of guilt. After all, she was the one who still remained mostly untouched by age.

As she crested the final hill, her awareness stretched instinctively ahead of her, reaching through the Force in search of a presence she knew by heart.

She found it immediately. Still here, thank the Light.

Only then did the homestead itself come into view below, nestled within the secluded valley. The sprawling property was cluttered in the comfortable way of a life fully lived, yet meticulously cared for all the same.

And at present, it was brimming with life. Sakadi lifted a hand to shield her eyes from the sunlight as she studied the tiny figures moving about below.

She searched among them for the brightest signature in the Force and smiled faintly when she found it.

~ Hello Cas. It’s been a while. ~

Her telepathic voice reached the valley long before she herself could, as she continued her descent at an unhurried pace.

~ You will have to grant me a moment. These hills are steeper than I remember. ~

The truth was that even she could feel the slow accumulation of years nowadays. But that remained politely unspoken.

Her attention drifted back toward the gathering below.

~ And what is this? You somehow acquired even more grandchildren? ~ Amused, she added ~ I am no longer certain I wish to come any closer. ~

The remark carried dry humor, but beneath it lingered genuine affection.

There were so many of them now.

More members of the sprawling Tynen clan. More lives to quietly keep watch over in the years ahead. With her own lifespan stretching onward for perhaps another two centuries, Sakadi suspected she would witness most of their stories unfold.

Guard them where I can, she thought quietly. And what came after her… perhaps Yenna would shoulder in turn.

By the time Sakadi finally reached the valley floor, the children had begun noticing the unfamiliar figure approaching from the hills. Their movements slowed. Suspicion and curiosity spread rapidly among them.

One of the older grandchildren pointed first. "Uhh- gramps? There’s somebody here!"

Sakadi continued forward serenely, lilac eyes flicking between faces as she counted them.

~ It truly has been too long, hasn’t it? They do not recognise me at all. ~ A note of exaggerated surprise colored her telepathic tone.

~ Though, I suppose the eldest among them was only four during my last visit. I should have anticipated this. ~ Her gaze softened. ~ Still, I intend to win them over. That is why I brought gifts. ~

The backpack slung over her shoulders bulged conspicuously with supplies and wrapped packages, offering an excellent excuse for her deliberately measured pace downhill.

Then her attention shifted fully toward Cas again.

A subtle smile touched her lips.

~ And yes, before you ask, I brought you something as well. ~ With delay, she added ~ And no, it is not another Padawan this time. ~

 

[Cas Tynen]

A smile spread faintly across Cas' face the moment Sakadi's voice brushed against his mind. Slowly, the old Kiffar pushed himself upright from the porch chair with a low grunt that he immediately chose to ignore out of principle. His gaze drifted toward the hills overlooking the valley, searching for the approaching figure long before his eyes actually found her.

The chuckle that left him at her comment about the grandchildren carried easily across the porch.

"Yeah, well, you can blame Eivor and Kido for that one. I stopped at two."

Honestly, he should've known his children would end up like this. The twins had inherited too much of him and too much of Zemira to ever live quiet, uncomplicated lives. Big families, loud homes, and endless chaos. Not that he minded. If anything, the noise helped.

There were days where the house felt too quiet otherwise. Days where the absence sitting in certain corners of the home became easier to notice than others. But then the grandchildren would show up unannounced, tear through the valley like a pack of tookas, eat half his food stores and somehow leave him happier than before.

Below the porch, several of the younger Tynens had already begun slowing as Sakadi approached the valley floor. Suspicion spread rapidly among them in the way it always did whenever strangers wandered too close to the property. A few of the older ones exchanged glances while one of the younger grandchildren quietly muttered something that sounded suspiciously like: "She looks like a wizard."

Cas snorted through his nose before making his way down the porch steps.

"It's alright." He called out. "It's your... sort of aunt, Sakadi."

The explanation only seemed to confuse them more. Cas reached the group just as his eldest grandson stepped slightly forward, eyes narrowed curiously toward the approaching Sephi. Jeyten had gotten tall over the last year. Taller than Cas had been at that age already. Strong in the Force too. Strong enough that Cas had started recognizing the same restless intensity he'd once carried himself.

The boy visited often during his retreats to the valley. Sometimes for guidance or just to sit quietly. Cas rested a hand against Jeyten's shoulder briefly.

"You brought gifts?" He projected back toward Sakadi with amusement threading through the words. "You were never this nice to me back when I was a Padawan."

Jeyten glanced sideways toward him. "Wait, this is the Sakadi?"

"Don't sound too excited." Cas replied dryly.

As Sakadi descended closer down the hill, Cas found himself studying her for a moment longer than intended. Funny thing, age. He was over a century younger than her, yet time had settled far more visibly across his own features. Silver threaded through his shorter hair and beard while lines rested permanently around his eyes now. Meanwhile Sakadi still carried much of the same serene elegance she always had.

Though through the Force, he could feel the difference more clearly now. Not weakness, just years. The same quiet slowing he felt in himself some mornings.

A smirk tugged at the corner of Cas' mouth again at her comment about not bringing another Padawan. Briefly, his thoughts drifted toward Yenna. Toward all the years between then and now.

"Tempted to give you one of these maniacs as karma for what you did to me." Then Cas looked sideways toward Jeyten. "Jey, go help the old lady."

Jeyten blinked once in horror. "Grandpa-"

"Don't argue with your elders. That's disrespectful."

"You literally just called her old."

"And?" Cas shot back instantly. "She is old. Older than dirt, actually. Probably helped invent it."

Several of the grandchildren snickered while Jeyten groaned under his breath before reluctantly moving to help Sakadi with the bags anyway. Cas watched him go with poorly concealed satisfaction before his attention settled fully back onto Sakadi once more.

"It's been twelve years." He said aloud. "How've you been? What brings you here?"

Sakadi Marathi Sinvala