Caitlin Órlaith Kennedy (Cait to her friends) was born on March 17th in Ireland. She was born at home in the Kennedy family’s farmhouse near Letterfrack, Ireland. She is the youngest of Siobhan and Daniel Kennedy’s 7 children at 15 years of age. Caitlin’s father worked as a farrier and a blacksmith. He often sold more decorative pieces of his work to tourists visiting the Connemara national park. Siobhan Kennedy however stayed home to look after the younger children, and tend their farm and animals with the help of the older children. Much of Caitlin’s childhood was spent running around and playing in the national park. At a young age she could often be found high up any tree she could find yet somehow managed never to fall. It almost seemed as though branches would catch her when she would lose her footing or balance. The moment Caitlin could walk she was given her first pony, a grey connemara named Áine. Her mother and father began to teach her to ride from that point. As Caitlin grew older, dressage and showing became hobbies of hers.
When Caitlin began school it was soon noted that the girl was very intelligent. She excelled in science and mathematics, though her skill in English was comparatively lacking. Not wanting Caitlin to struggle making friends due to her nerdiness, Siobhan encouraged the girl to begin dance lessons like her sisters when she was only 5 years old. Caitlin enjoyed dancing and when she turned 7 decided to start gymnastic lessons as well after catching a glimpse of one of the Olympic gymnasts on the family television.
It was around this time that Caitlin discovered her ability to manipulate plants, controlling their growth and shape, eventually becoming capable even of creating them herself. Her oldest sibling, and only brother, Thomas had already been discovered to be a mutant himself before Caitlin was even born. He gave her ability the term ‘botanokinesis’ and taught her the best he could to control it, though his own pyrokinesis was rather different.
Shortly after Caitlin’s 15th birthday, the Kennedy parents decided they wanted a change. With all but two of their children (Caitlin and her 17 year old sister Aislin) with their own homes and family’s, Siobhan and Daniel had begun to find the large farmhouse too empty, and the farm too much to manage between their age and the lack of help. They sold the farm, using the money to purchase a small apartment in Queens, New York and moved to a new country for a fresh start, taking their two youngest children with them.
Despite previously excelling in school, the first few weeks at Midtown High School of Technology and Science Caitlin’s grades dropped significantly. The large change from a small Irish school where most her classmates were a relative in some way or other to a huge American school where she knew no one had initially overwhelmed her. Her less academic older sister Aislin had no such difficulties. Despite being lesser to Caitlin in academics, the 17 year old was far better at socialising and making new friends. Eventually Caitlin began to grow used to all of the changes and her work returned to its previous excellence.