“Good Morning, Honey,” Mom says as I enter the small kitchen just off the short hall that connected both my parent’s room and the room I share with my brother to the rest of the small two-bedroom, one-bath house we’d lived in for all of my ten years on this planet. She had already set the table for my brother and me with plates full of scrambled eggs and bacon and thick toast with a healthy slather of strawberry preserve. Danial was already tucking into his plate as I sat down, with a yawn, still not fully awake. Both Mom and Danial were already dressed in their most formal clothes.

“For someone who’s going to get their first class today, you don’t appear to be all that excited,” my brother comments as I slap the hand, trying to sneak a slice of bacon from my plate.

“Where’s Dad?” I ask instead of responding.

“He’s running a few errands in preparation for the ceremony. He should be back any minute,” Mom said, placing another plate where Dad sat. Also, you should hurry and finish your breakfast. We let you sleep in because it's your big day, but you still need to get ready.” Mom added, eying my pajamas.

“Yes, Mom,” I say, scooping up a forkful of eggs. As I swallowed the first forkful of eggs, I could hear the front door open, and a blast of late winter air rushed through the house. “Dad’s home,” I say with a shiver, the fire in the hearth doing nothing for the sudden cold.

“Ya think,” was Danial’s snarky reply.

“Now, now, you two, no fighting,” Mom said, going to greet Dad. A few minutes later, they both entered the kitchen; Dad sat in his place, and Mom grabbed her plate and took her seat.

“How are you feeling, pumpkin? Are you excited to see what the System gives you as your first class?”

“I guess,” I say non-committally. In truth, I was terrified. Every year, all the ten-year-olds gather in the town center to participate in the Initiation Ceremony. During the ceremony, the System looks at everything you’ve accomplished and the skills you’ve gained to determine the class most appropriate. While it wasn’t unheard of for people to change that initial class completely, it was far from ordinary; it was more common for your class to evolve as you gained more skills and leveled the class. Before anyone could say anything else, I shoveled the rest of my breakfast into my mouth and, after swallowing, said, “Look at the time; I should get ready.”

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“Was it something I said?” I hear Dad say as I retreat to the bedroom.”

“Not really. Sis has just been stressing about the ceremony. You know how she is; she likes to overanalyze everything. While the rest of the ten-year-olds are trying to guess what amazing class the system will give them. Mel can’t stop thinking about all the worse case scenarios, which has her more terrified than anything.” I hear my brother respond as I close the door to our room.“

“Oh, and how do you know all this?” Mom asks. “Why hasn’t she come to either of us about this?”

“You can’t be serious, Mom. You know how independent Sis can be; I only know about it because of the few times I’ve been woken up in the middle of the night when she’s had a nightmare. Usually, it's one where she’s been given some menial class like Stable Girl, and she’s forced to muck out stables for the rest of her life. Hearing about some of the nightmares and some of the more bazaar classes she’s thought of has me slightly terrified for my own ceremony next year.”

I could almost hear the thoughtful looks in my parents muttered ‘Oh.” I tried to push their conversation out of my mind as I pulled out my best winter clothes and headed to the bathroom to get ready. After cleaning up and putting on the simple pants and long-sleeved shirt, I grabbed the door handle and, with a deep breath, tried to fortify myself for what was to come. It didn’t help that I could still feel the lingering effects of the nightmare I had just before waking up, and it was different from every other nightmare I’d had. I knew I could live without getting an amazing class like Adventurer or Mage, but that wasn’t what happened. No, what happened was even more terrifying; I had touched the Selection Orb, and nothing happened; no blue box appeared proclaiming what class I had been given, nothing. Not getting a class was unheard of and a very real death sentence in the world of Questoria.

“It's going to be okay, Melissa,” I whisper, trying to give myself a pep talk. Hundreds of kids go through the ceremony every year, and they’re all thrilled with what the System selects. You’ll be no different.” It did little to help the growing dread building in the pit of my stomach. Still not able to shake the dream. Taking another deep breath, I put on my best smile and returned to the kitchen, where the rest of the family was finishing breakfast.

“How are you feeling, honey?” Mom asks with a kind smile.

“Fine,” I answer. Mom opens her mouth to say something but thinks better of it.

“We should get going if we don’t want to be late,” Mom says, urging the rest of us into our winter coats and out the door.