A seventh child was shuffled in. Briar noticed his pants had mud on them and with a quick look the guard he had come in with was also dirty. A runaway attempt. She gave him a small nod, to say, 'It's okay' he sniffed into his sleeve.
She didn't recognize any of the other children, they must have gone to other schools in her city. No one said anything as they waited for further instruction.
A cheerfully with a clipboard greeted them from a door that seemed to have not existed before.
"Happy Birthday everyone!"
She tapped her clipboard with her pen. "Thank you everyone for coming when called." She gave a playful look to the dirtied boy. "Even if some of you might have needed a little persuasion."
"Just treat this as a regular appointment. Parents will wait in the lobby as we if you will answer The Calling. Answering the call is uncommon, and only take a moment so you can get on with celebrating another birthday with your family."
In the back a curly haired girl raised her hand and asked in a shout, "What if we are called?"
The nurse smiled at her clipboard, "Than you will have an amazing new path ahead of you. The state takes care of Mages and you'll never need for anything." Briar wanted to throw up, it sounded so rehearsed to her ear.
She clicked her pen twice. "Can I start with Leah?" the third girl in the room shook on her thin shaky legs, like a deer learning to walk she exited with the perky nurse.
Briar held fast onto her father's hand, clasped tightly. "D-Daddy? Have their ever been any mages in our family?" Their was never any released information of it being genetic, but she wanted to prepare herself in case it might have been. He leaned back, as casual as ever. "Not in recent family history." The birthday girl nodded and looked down. All mages were scrubbed of their friends and family and shipped away. Never allowed to speak or be spoken to by their past again. It haunted her dreams at night.
The same girl stepped out, relief on her face as she joined with her mother in the lobby and quickly skittered away.
"Matt? Will you join me?" A dark skinned boy confidentially followed her, and as quickly he went, returned and left to go on with his life.
"See? It's so fast." Whispered my father with a smile. It was fast. It was uncommon. But it happened, and Briar knew when it did, it happened quickly.
"Briar is up next!"
Her white dress trailed behind her, like a little cloud. Briar felt like she floated away. With a quick wave of her hand, she looked over her shoulder and waved back at her father. A warm smile on his face as he returned the favor.
It was the last time she saw her father.