Changing Scenes: A Theatricalpaw SRP

Instructions

Theatricalpaw couldn’t sleep. She had spent so many moons waiting to become an apprentice, waiting for a mentor, waiting to train, waiting for her new name that would bring her one step closer to being a leader. She had almost everything she wanted now, so why did something feel off? She shifted restlessly in her new nest in the apprentices’ den, wondering what could possibly be bothering her. Maybe the apprentices’ den was just too stuffy. Yes, that was probably all, she thought, stepping out into the cool night air. She sat and curled her tail around her paws, looking up at the stars. Thea didn’t really go out late at night very often, she normally went to sleep early so she could wake up and see the sunrise. She sat like that for a while, listening to the late night whispers from the nursery and the rhythmic breathing of sleeping cats from the den behind her. And still, the feeling didn’t go away. She huffed in annoyance. What in the world could have been wrong? Thea didn't have time for this! She needed to sleep so she could do cool apprentice things tomorrow, like meeting her mentor, and looking awesome, and impressing everycat! She should have been happy! Being an apprentice was /way/ better than being a kit. There /was/ lots of change, a new mentor, a new name, a new nest, a new den, and the promise of new friends…perhaps that could be what was causing the strange feeling? But that couldn’t have been it. Thea liked change. Half the fun of becoming an apprentice was getting to grow into somecat new and fresh and exciting. Theatricalkit had been great, obviously, but Theatricalpaw was going to be even better. So maybe…maybe it was the absence of change that felt weird. She flicked her tail, its tip tapping the ground rhythmically. /Her/ tail. /Hers/. Thea thought about that word, /her/, thought about it over and over until it didn’t even sound like a word anymore, and something clicked. That’s what was off, wasn’t it? How strange. Thea had used those pronouns all her life, but did they really fit anymore? With all of the other things shifting, she began to wonder if maybe this was something that she could be changing too. But what was she if not a she-cat then, a tom? Neither? Something in between? Thea frowned, not really sure, but, she supposed, she didn’t have to be sure right now, did she? She had seen other cats use all kinds of pronouns at once, maybe she could too. They did say apprenticehood was a time for discovery…and if she didn't know what fit yet, maybe there was nothing wrong with trying things out. Theatricalpaw yawned, padding back into the apprentices' den. /Yes,/ they resolved. /That's what I'll do, try a whole bunch at once!/ Thea congratulated themself on her fantastic plan as he curled up in faer nest and finally fell asleep.