Mutant accompanied Minor

This is non-canon, but I made a passing reference to a 'Mutant accompanied Minor' card in my 'Sometime in Darwin' microscene. I thought it might be worth elaborating on the 'what' and 'why' in a more clinical setting. The stated purpose of the (Military) Mutant accompanied Minor card is to allow an unmanifested minor to accompany a mutant guardian through restricted areas. The card is generally issued to those minors who would otherwise be unable to travel unaccompanied.

The card itself has a similar presentation to a normal (M)MID card. Like a (M)MID, it has a photo of the card holder on the front, along with a given code name. For obvious reasons, this is name is exempt from the rules regarding (M)MID codenames. Just try telling your 5 year old son that the name 'Superman' is copyrighted and that 'Dragon Rider' belongs to the daughter of a notorious supervillian, Even so, if a unique codename is selected at the time of issuance of the (M)MaM card, the name is reserved for use upon manifestation and issuance of a (M)MID.

The back of the (M)MaM card is a bit more varied. All (M)MaM cards have a prominent 'Affiliation' section, identifying the code name of the minor's guardian(s), and their affiliation, if relevant. If the minor in question has allergies, those are also listed in the same way as a (M)MID. The other sections of a standard (M)MID card are optional. Depending on the proclivities of the guardian registering the card, the Ratings, techniques and weak vs section may be omitted, or may be filled with various humorous statements (like 'Techniques: Puppy dog eyes' or 'Weak vs Fire type Pokemon').

Perhaps less well known is the fact that the (M)MaM cards are issued using the same blanks as (M)MID cards. Further, the card numbers are part of the (M)MID database. When the holder of a (M)MaM card manifests, their (M)MaM number is converted into an (M)MID.This is one reason the are sometimes known as a (M)MID Junior card, both by its proponents and its detractors. Another reason is the unstated purpose of the card. By issuing the card to minors who will likely manifest as mutants, it gives them a chance to become familiar with the 'proper' way to go through the MCO checkpoints. Naturally, the definition of 'proper' varies depending on the prospective of the observer. For MCO personnel, the ideal minor complies with all instructions precisely, answering any an all questions. For most mutants it's a bit more nuanced. While the minor is expected to answer those questions related to safety, they would be cued to decline to answer any question outside that realm (such as details about their real identity).

Kristin Darken wrote:

Minors (at least in the US and to my experience), typically don't HAVE identification. They don't carry purses or wallets in which to put them if they did. The sole exception to that is likely passports needed to travel outside the country.

Minor = under 18 years of age in the U.S.

In my experience, it wasn't uncommon at all for middle school and high school aged kids to have wallets, purses, and more recently, backpacks. Even a learner's permit for driving has been a photo ID since at least the 1980s. Depending on the school district, many students under 18 have carried photo ID, just to attend classes.

null0trooper wrote:

Kristin Darken wrote:

Minors (at least in the US and to my experience), typically don't HAVE identification. They don't carry purses or wallets in which to put them if they did. The sole exception to that is likely passports needed to travel outside the country.

Minor = under 18 years of age in the U.S.

In my experience, it wasn't uncommon at all for middle school and high school aged kids to have wallets, purses, and more recently, backpacks. Even a learner's permit for driving has been a photo ID since at least the 1980s. Depending on the school district, many students under 18 have carried photo ID, just to attend classes.

I agree - I carried a wallet from when I was 8, it held id (not official ID) like my bus pass and library cards. I had a passport from when I was 11. Although I understand most young americans dont have passports. And nowadays, wont their phones effectively ID them?

Astrodragon wrote:

Although I understand most young americans dont have passports.

I didn't have a passport when I went to Bermuda, Canada, Israel, Italy, the U.K., or Spain.

Astrodragon wrote:

And nowadays, wont their phones effectively ID them?

Looks at rooted phone. The short answer is yes.

I wasn't quite certain where to place the thread myself, but this felt like the best place.

I don't know what the current regulations are, but when I was traveling a few years back with someone who was classified as a minor, a photo ID was required for anyone over the age of 10-12. For minors who aren't old enough to drive (or chose not to), this would be a state ID card.

To understand where the concept came from, it might help to unpack a few assumptions that were made. I'll ignore the fact that I feel like I'm formulating a mathematical proof.

Perhaps the best starting point is the layout of security checkpoints in this world inhabited by mutants. In one of the stories, an overview of the 'standard' security checkpoints at an airport was provided. Unfortunately, I can't place the story in question. In short, there are 4 primary lines for air travelers to go through. For mutants, there are the 'domestic' and 'international' lines (based on country of issuance for (M)MIDs). For everyone else, there's the crew/first class and general security screening lines. It is implied (but not stated) that the lines for mutants are for mutants only. Building on this, it is suggested that the MCO/DPA/local equivalent take the place of the TSA in performing the security screenings for mutants. In addition to the 'normal' screening checks performed by a TSA agent, relevant questions ('Are you carrying any devises that could fail in a destructive manner') are also asked.

This leads to the second assumption. In the interest of ensuring only authorized passengers are allowed through screening, the MID substitutes for a state issued photo ID when verifying the passenger's identity against their boarding pass. This in turn implies that airline tickets are issued to mutants using their codename (thus allowing the airline to know that there is a mutant is seat 3B, or that for some reason, half the plane is filled with mutants). It also implies that mutants use passports issued by code name rather than legal name.

With these assumptions in mind, consider the situation where an unmanifested minor is accompanying parents/guardians who are mutants. For a minor to pass through security, they usually need to be accompanied by someone over the age of majority, or unaccompanied minor protocols would apply. With the parent/guardian being a mutant, this would mean that the minor would either need to pass through the regular screening unaccompanied, or they would pass through the mutant screening using their government issued IDs. This results in something of a catch-22 situation.

With the former option, unaccompanied minor protocols might fit the situation, except for the fact that the minor actually is accompanied. In a worst-case scenario, this could result in a parent/guardian being detained, but the minor flying onto their destination with the situation not being recognized until the airline is left figuring out why there is no one to meet the minor on the far end of the trip.

With the later option, there are also unwanted consequences. For mutants who which to preserve the separation between their civilian identity and their codename, this process would provide an unwanted linkage (Codename: Superhawk has accompanied a minor, Melisa Chambers, through MCO checkpoints multiple times. Melisa appears to be Superhawk's daughter. Who is the father of Melisa Chambers?). The (M)MaM card would change this linkage to 'Codename: Superhawk is affiliated with a minor, Codename: Mischief'