Camellia

Camellia was born in autumn with his siblings Petunia, Rose, and Daffodil. They were the result of an unexpected pregnancy from their mother Wisteria but fortunately, Wisteria wasn’t alone in raising the litter. Wisteria’s friend Chickadee promised to act as the kittens’ second parent, much to the new mother’s relief. The siblings were fairly close to one another, though they all seemed to like their parents’ company the most. Camellia himself got along well with Chickadee, as they’d always set aside time to play with him. Wisteria was a surprisingly good mother, but that silver tongue of hers never worked when it came down to getting Camellia to complete chores.

As Camellia grew older, he developed a hobby that would almost define who he was. He was really into the art of storytelling, and while his parents thought it’d pass with time, he never grew out of it. It was an easy way to get others invested in him— well, a part of him. Often, the tales he came up with were something that had been heavy on his mind. Rose and Daffodil would sometimes listen to his stories, while Petunia would usually be a bit impatient about them, but Camellia liked to cater to his brother by offering stories of “legendary warriors such as himself.”

Camellia began to socialize with the rest of the residents of the Fire Colony. Of course, he provided entertainment with his stories, but on the odd occasion, he’d do favors for others too. Being the unreliable type, he’d sometimes drop these favors half-through, but there’s such a thing as asking too much for free, right? Camellia often only relied on what he could do for others when it came down to socializing, finding it difficult to talk about “normal things.” Feeling a lack of authenticity around others caused Camellia to question his identity, but Camellia never lingered on that feeling.

Tinder, the leader of the Fire Colony, was now expecting kittens of their own. Camellia was interested in what his fellow youngins would be like. Only time would tell, he figured. Shortly after that, Wisteria and Chickadee officially became mates. Chickadee was a very nice cat in Camellia’s book— maybe even his favorite, so of course Camellia was satisfied with the news. On top of that, it was really no surprise considering the two had shared a close bond since Camellia’s birth.

Prey became scarce for all of the colonies, which made learning about hunting a bit frustrating for Camellia and his siblings. He tried to give up on it after a while, only being pushed along by Wisteria’s determined, fiery passion. He was certainly the worst at the hunting and self-defense stuff out of his siblings. He didn’t mind that too much, though. Camellia didn’t like work, and he didn’t like standing out.

Camellia inevitably matured with his stories. He came to find that he liked telling stories with females as protagonists, finding it somehow easier to put himself in their paws. And… of course, combined with the identity crisis he’d faced ever since he was younger, he began to think maybe he wasn’t male. As always though, Camellia chose to ignore his own feelings. As much as he wanted to tell somebody about it, the thought of telling somebody he wanted to express himself differently made him squirm. He hated feeling so unsure of himself. Besides, he was fairly comfortable enough with how he presented already, even if at this point he wasn’t sure he was a “he.”

Tinder’s kittens were born and after a while, they started to come out of their shells. Camellia of course loved telling others stories, but this audience was… somewhat scary. Especially Nightshade and Orchid, with that cold aura to them. He liked Laurel, though, at least— he was fun and full of energy. The more he thought about it, the more admirable Nightshade and Orchid seemed. Scary in a good way?

Camellia couldn’t be described as an extrovert, but he enjoyed listening in on gossip. It was great material for his stories, especially information about the new colonies that’d cropped up around the Fire Colony. There were some old ones he’d known already, but with more full stories being told, they were much more interesting. Camellia particularly liked the Web Colony. “Scary in a good way,” just like Nightshade and Orchid, the Web Colony was intriguing with how odd and intimidating they were.

Camellia often looked over the borders, hoping to find new cats to inspire him. The Fire Colony wasn’t strict on borders like the Web Colony was, so he’d sometimes catch a glimpse of his fellow residents giving news to their neighbors. The most interesting was Thunder; she’d meet her old friend from the Frost Colony, a gray and white tom with these interesting types of funny gestures, and he’d bring along this smaller gray molly. Were they related, Camellia wondered? Then, Camellia would get the idea that he was being creepy for watching Thunder and send himself back to camp, with the curiosity of that molly burnt into his mind.

Camellia was now a year old. Having reached some sort of milestone, Camellia finally decided to try what he’d always wondered about with his identity. Camellia came out as bigender to her family and eventually the rest of the colony. Tragedy struck the Fire Colony soon after, as they faced the death of a fellow resident for the first time. It was Thunder.

Camellia wished she’d gotten to know Thunder better before she died, as she’d only ever watched Thunder from afar, or did little things for her. Camellia promised herself that, from that day on, she’d make more of an effort in connecting with others. To live life with others, instead of only ever telling fantasies. After that, she absentmindedly wandered by the Frost Colony’s border, as if she’d been idly watching Thunder talk with her friends again. That was when Camellia noticed that one gray molly sitting there by herself.

Camellia wasn’t sure why, but she was compelled to speak to the molly. So, she went over, and the two awkwardly introduced themselves— her name was Swirl, fitting considering the little swirly tuft on her head. Soon enough they were deep in conversation, sharing stories of the cats who’d passed away (though Swirl certainly had more to say about them), and finding solace in having somebody to talk to about it. Camellia and Swirl said goodbye, but that wasn’t the last time they’d see each other, as the two would go on to occasionally visit each other and become good friends.