Swearing of Citizenship
Not every person who lives in the free city came in via gobble or Courier. Some people were of course born in the city.
People born on the Demi-plane are already metaphysically aligned with the plane; they are not in danger of suffering from Phase Drop. However, they are not considered Citizens unless they have sworn on the The Oathneedle
Most Free Citizens understand that young children cannot be expected to understand the implications of swearing citizenship, or the seriousness of oaths, and thus make exceptions for these children that they would not make for adults who don't bear the glyph of citizenship. Additionally, it is up to each individual to choose their citizenship in the Free City. It cannot be compelled or co-oerced. Children who are old enough to understand the implications of Citizenship in the Free City are usually given the opportunity to do so.
In very rare cases, a parent or guardian will swear citizenship for a very minor child. This is done in cases where a child is suspected of suffering from phase drop and cannot be returned safely to a plane that matches their alignment. This usually occurs in the case of refugees, orphans, pre-verbal children who have been gobbled and who cannot adequately describe their home plane, and the extremely rare newborn who is not born aligned with the demi-plane.
Execution
The process of swearing on the Oathneedle is the same for plane-born people as it is for outsiders; however usually in the case of the plane-born, there is a little more ceremony involved.
The child is expected to approach the Oathneedle on their own, although it is traditional for the friends and family of the child to follow behind them; In early days of the ceremony, the family was expected to tail the child secretly. In more recent times, they generally just follow a block or so behind and everyone pretends not to see them. The child will usually make a donation to the The Keepers, which can vary from a single coin in the case of poor families, to wagonloads of supplies from richer ones. The child then swears their oath on the needle, at which point the family and friends of the child emerge from hiding to welcome them officially as citizens. This is usually followed by a party.
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