Year of the Dragon [ Second Gen ]

This is a brainseed that I've had in my head for a while. Rather than try and write a fic about it, which I have 0 time for, I'd like to try it out on those of you who roleplay, and see where it gets us. :star: Before I get started on the setup, let me just set a few guidelines.

Think Of These Guidelines As Actual Rules
1. This is a literate/possibly advanced RPG. For god's sake keep your language human. Spelling and grammar errors are acceptable at a minimum. Use logical sentence structure and make sure what you're saying makes some amount of sense. Please.
2. Be mindful of your fellow players. With a forum-based RPG, things can get complicated. Make sure you read what's happening before you jump in, or you're likely to get shunned in a hurry.
3. KonayukiSpirit posted a Roleplay Rules and FAQ sticky. Use it. You can find it here in case you've just been browsing right by it this whole time. Everything in there is Roleplay 101.
4. Respect the mod. In this case, that'd be me. Possibly some other people, if this plot gets big enough (/fingers crossed). In the world of Avadopts, Reb is your almighty deity, but in this little rp, the creator is a tiny queen and you still have to do what she says. Believe me, I have plenty of experience running the crap out of things on the internet, and I know what I'm doing. My benevolence will not be unreasonably withheld.
5. Most importantly, this is a canon-relevant Avatar RP. All characters, plot, and powers have to be within the limitations of the Avatar universe. That's what this RP is about. If you can't abide by this, I encourage you to start your own game with any rules you want. Since people seem confused by this rule, I will clarify a little more: your character can only know one element of bending.
On to the plot!

༺Year of the Dragon༻
Seventeen years have passed since the fall of the Phoenix King. The world is enjoying a time of peace and prosperity, in which all lands are united in trade and industry, not divided by war. Aang, now thirty, is still the Avatar, and he and his friends enjoy the tranquility of the healing world, and have long since settled into their own lives of maturity -- and family.

Fire Lord Zuko and Fire Lady Mai were married for a little more than a year when the size of their family increased by two. Though proud to be a father, Zuko was troubled; his children, a boy and a girl, were born twins. He knew firsthand the trouble that could be caused by one sibling envying another's birthright to the throne. The boy child was the elder of the two, by four minutes; by common law of the Fire Nation, Prince Raizo was now the heir apparent. Princess Ursula would have to accept her secondary place. But Zuko also knew very well that being firstborn does not make you invincible, and younger siblings in his family did not often come with kind and gentle spirits.

Uncle Iroh and Mai soothed his fears. These children would be raised with love and family in a period of the world marked by regrowth. They would grow as children do, learn themselves and the world around them, and become whoever they were meant to be. Destiny never exists too far out of reach. They would have all of the familial adoration they could ever want, and they would have friends -- for the other families they knew were growing, too.

The twins are now sixteen, and so far, there is no trouble in sight. Raizo and Ursula, although dissimilar in personality, are as close as their parents could hope for -- and shockingly unique in their own ways. The old Avatar gang remains as close as ever despite the passage of time, and their children are forging deep bonds of strength and friendship amongst one another as well.

However, Raizo, still the Crown Prince, is already feeling the weight of the serene world on his shoulders. Will he be able to rely on his family and his friends to guide him through his own search for his true self?

:star:

This game is set seventeen years after the end of the Avatar series, and will be played using second generation characters. That means: the Gaang had kids! So far, two of the main characters are the Fire Nation twins, Raizo and Ursula. Their bio profiles can be found below. The rest are up to you! Zuko and Mai are off limits, they have two kids and that's enough for Mai, I'm sure; but Aang and Katara can have Tenzin, or any number of his siblings; Sokka and Suki can have kids (even waterbender babies, if they're lucky); and if someone was able to get Toph to settle down, then good for them! And don't forget about characters like Haru, or Longshot and Smellerbee, or June (if she EVER decided to have kids), or Ty Lee!

Here are some things to remember:
1. The legal marrying age in the Avatar universe, canonically, is 16. Let's not have any children that were born out of wedlock. That means that, for Aang and Katara, the oldest child they can have would be age thirteen.
2. Bender children do NOT need to have bender parents! Neither of Katara's parents are Waterbenders. This means that Sokka and Suki could have children who are Waterbenders (or perhaps Earthbenders, if Suki has any of those in her background). So could any other non-bending parent couples!
3. The only Airbenders are Aang and his child(ren). There will undoubtedly be more in the future, but until Aang's kids get old enough to start having kids of their own, they are the only living Airbenders.
4. None of these children will be the new Avatar. Aang is going to live to be well into his sixties, possibly his seventies. And, as most of you are already aware, the next Avatar is Korra, which brings me to the next point:
5. Korra does not exist in this generation. Obviously. Aang isn't dead yet. Don't try to play her. ^^
6. You don't HAVE to play a character that's someone's kid! As long as they're a second-gen OC, they can just be someone random that the Gaang kids will meet later (like a bounty hunter, or a pirate, for example).
7. Don't play any of the first-gen characters, please. IE., Aang, Zuko, Katara, Sokka, etc. They'll be NPCs for now. Talented players may be asked to adopt them later, as necessary.
8. This is a random note, but pets are perfectly acceptable, WITHIN REASON. That means, follow the show's example about what can be a pet and what can't, not this site. A Waterbender with a pet Iguana Parrot or Sea Raven would be reasonable. A Waterbender with a pet Otter Bear would not be reasonable (not least because they don't exist in canon). A Waterbender with a pet Lion Turtle would be ridiculous. Anyone with a pet Lion Turtle would be ridiculous. No Lion Turtle pets.
----------8(2). A good rule of thumb is know the animal if you're going to domesticate it. Eel hounds have to be trained from birth in order for them to be controlled, but they can be pets. Shirshus can also be pets, but they're rare creatures. Appa is the only Flying Bison left as far as we know of, so that's probably out, but if an Earthbender wants a Badgermole, go for it. There are probably more Flying Lemurs around the Air Temples, but an Otter Penguin would not survive if it was taken out of the arctic habitat. If you want to know what's available to you, the Avatar wiki Creatures page is a good place to look. No pet Dragons -- they need time to recover, and will be relevant later in the game.

I know this is a hell of a lot to read, so I'll try and wrap it up now. This is just to get it started, so things can be fleshed out more later on, as necessary. The bio profiles for Raizo and Ursula (as well as the other current characters) can be found in the OOC thread; everyone should complete a bio like theirs.

I know I've written her bio, but I would like someone to adopt Ursula and play her! Raizo is my brainchild, I've put a lot of thought into him, but I've left Ursula with just a few notes so that some skilled and talented player could come along and make her awesome.

...that's all for now. Possibly more tl;dr in the future.

No matter how often his father assured him that the traditions and policies guiding the comportment of royal family members around the city had relaxed under the current reign, Raizo still found the royal escort to be insufferable. Their presence smothered; he could barely experience the city outside the ring of them. He admired their dedication to duty (grudgingly), but it was all he could do just to get them to maintain their distance.

If he wanted to be the prince right now, he'd have taken the royal palanquin in full imperial garb. As it is, he dressed down for the occasion, and finally managed to lose his guards somewhere in the market district, leaving him pleasantly alone, surrounded by merchants clamoring for customers and more members of other countries than strictly Fire Nation citizens. He felt comfortably anonymous, and decided to see if there was anything interesting worth spending his money on today.

Raizo nearly toppled into an unfortunately-placed cart full of cabbage, catching himself at the last minute with the terrified shriek of the merchant vibrating in his eardrums. He looked around to see who'd crashed into him, fixing the scarf around the lower half of his face, and discovered a boy who looked to be about his age, with some kind of growth attached to his back. Or, wait --

"Is that a platypus bear?" he asked, obscurely thrilled.

Ren composed himself immediately, not even allowing himself to wince from the cabbage-man's scream. This boy couldn't be... No, of course not. Just mind tricks. He was just about to speak when the man saw Jie on his back. Jie pulled his back even more and clutched Ren's shirt with his claws, careful not to rip it. To comfort the young cub, he tapped his back gently. This stranger seemed a little thrilled at seeing something like this on his back. Shuffling backwards a little, he gave a lopsided smile.

"Why, yes, he is," Ren answered.

------------

"Shi, go to the marketplace and get some more silk," called the shrill voice of the lanlord's wife. Shi grudgingly nodded and dressed. Picking up the wooden basket off the table, she advanced to the door.

"Oh, and the pepper just ran out," called the chef. The dancer nodded and went out. She plucked several choice silks in the market and was looking for more when she saw an unusual boy with a platypus bear on his back. Since she had never seen one up close, she slowly sauntered over to the two, trying to take a good look at the animal.

Mildly fascinated by the small creature clinging to the other boy's back, Raizo nodded, duly impressed. "I've only seen them once, at the Ba Sing Se zoo," he confessed, discreetly trying to get a better look at Jie. "Where did you get it?"

Yeah, he noticed; but Raizo pretended that he didn't and nodded again, appreciating the providence. "He seems to be very comfortable with you," Raizo said, observing the relationship between boy and pet. "They're usually pretty vicious, aren't they?"

Raizo glanced around, convinced for a split second that the other boy was talking to someone else. But, no, they really were having a conversation, weren't they? It seemed he'd inadvertently made an acquaintance. How unusual. He almost wished his sister could be here to see this -- but of course she'd have blown his cover in a second.

Realizing that he was coming close to making a fool of himself for not answering, he nodded to Ren, and the fidgety animal on his back. "All right. How about the tea shop?"

Ren nodded his head and started for the unfamiliar tea shop. Making friends wouldn't be a big deal, the boy decided. Stealing for two seemed a lot more fun than stealing for one... And a half. But he had to admit, this stranger sure was... Strange. He noticed his hesitation before he answered his question and it made him a little uneasy. Jie stopped fidgeting once he felt Ren's taps against his backside, so that was a relief.

-----

Shi was immensely interested now. She felt that these two weren't ordinary civilians-especially the one with the scarf. Curious, she had begun to follow the two before she herself realized it. Well, at least I won't have to return to that wretched palace anytime soon, thought the dancer. Maybe she would learn something new today, like the whereabouts of that young platypus bear.

Raizo was familiar enough with this tea shop because he liked to save it for when he was incognito. He'd ducked in here once to avoid the royal guards, and liked it so much that he'd stayed for lunch and nearly through dinner. They specialized in fruit teas, and made a particularly delicious seaweed wrap.

The shop owner cast a dubious glance at Jie clinging to Ren's back, but in the market district it was difficult to keep all of the colorful folks passing through from doing their own colorful things, and that included bringing their companion animals into restaurants. As long as Jie was well-behaved, Raizo knew there wouldn't be any trouble -- another reason why he'd chosen the tea shop.

He chose the table by the zen fountain, and as waited for Ren to get comfortable, he realized neither of them had told the other their names. What was he going to say?

Ren sat down after setting Jie on his knee. The zen fountain was pretty, but he felt a bit uncomfortable in this place. But it was certainly quiet, and the platypus bear didn't seem disturbed at all. Which was good. Ren suppressed a sigh of relief and smiled easily at the stranger. It was an awkward moment, and there was nothing to say. The boy recalled his interest in Jie and decided to introduce him.

"Uh... This is Jie," he said. Though he kept his smile, his words were awkward-sounding and his smile became lopsided. Jie simply stared at the two of them, swinging his head back and forth. Suddenly, he gave a soft squeak and Ren remembered his own hunger. He should have stolen something from the booths, at least! Fidgeting, he fought the urge to ask for food.

---
Shi had followed them both into a tea shop. It was a good choice--she had been there several times. It was a good place to talk, since no one would be able to hear you through the walls, and the quiet was peaceful. Looking casual, she held her basket with an arrogant air, pulling her head high and stepping quickly but softly. Hopefully, the two wouldn't notice her. The eyes she felt on her was quite disturbing: Did they ever see a dancer before? she thought.

She was nearing the table. Quickly swerving to the right, almost knocking down a young waiter, she took a seat at the table behind them, leaning forward to catch their words. She faintly caught, "This is Jie" from the boy, but she was pleased. So the platypus bear was a pet.

Raizo noticed the other boy shifting in his seat, and recalled the brief near-blunder earlier, and silently decided that his new acquaintance was probably not going to be able to pay for a meal. Raizo discretely took notice of Ren's clothes, the way he carried himself, and his general unkempt state for the first time; his best guess was that the boy was, for all intents and purposes, a thief. Most nobles would have called for law enforcement long before now, but Raizo remembered something his great-uncle told him, once -- that thieves are most often victims of circumstance. Stealing jewels was for criminals; making off with food (or, perhaps, the occasional wallet) was for those who could not help themselves.

His own father had done his fair share of armed robbery, anyway. He'd heard the stories.

"Hello, Jie. I'm... Lee," he answered, bowing his head amiably toward the platypus bear and using the most common name he could think of. When the waiter came over, Raizo politely requested a pot of raspberry tea and a plate of dumplings for the table. He knew that Uncle Iroh would have done as much (although, it didn't stop him from surreptitiously making sure that he still had his coin pouch on him underneath his cloak).

Raizo glanced over after Ren did, and noticed the girl as well; she seemed to be interested in getting a closer look at Jie, which was understandable. Platypus bears were novel creatures, after all, and one clinging to a human so comfortably was worth noticing. The girl was getting a few stares herself; the way she was dressed, Raizo assumed she was a dancer.

"What were you running from, before?" he asked Ren, turning his attention back again.

Ren was surprised. He wasn't running away, but running to. He shrugged, deciding to play the hero--while sticking to being a thief, of course. It wasn't his style to be a good person through and through. Leaning back, he propped his elbows on the back of his chair and looked totally relaxed, his grin still stuck on his face. Jie shook himself after he crawled down the boy's leg and tentatively sniffed Lee's.

"Well, y'see," he began. "I was on this scavenging trip, like usual. Planned to steal a few buns for me and Jie. There were these little boys, younger than me, and they were getting bullied by, uh-" he paused for a moment, "-these other guys, older than 'em. And they were just getting bullied; one of them took some money away from a kid, and I had to step in." He paused again, appearing as if to recall his memory. "I just have to say that that was going against my code of... er... thiev-m-my code. So I confronted them, threw in a few punches, and when I was just about to get overpowered, I looked to see if the kids were still there, but they weren't, so I knew it was time for me to high-tail it, too," he finished. He hoped that he sounded as believable as he looked, but he doubted it. He accidentally let a few words slip, like 'steal' and almost the word 'thievery'.

----

Shi saw them glance back, especially that person called Lee. Easing back a little, she watched with amusement as the little platypus bear slid down to the floor and sniffed at Lee's leg. She caught Ren's introduction and was quite pleased to know two people without knowing them at all, though she knew she was as conspicuous as a badgermole in this tea shop. Maybe she shouldn't have dressed like this, but hey. She planned to tail them until they separated. The chef and the mistress could be fed with a few lies.

Raizo just stared at Ren, for a long moment, not believing a word of that story. He hadn't guessed that Ren was running towards something, not away from it, but that didn't really help his case regardless. He felt the platypus bear cub snuffling around by his feet, but he paid no mind for the moment. "Are you a thief?" he asked bluntly.

Immediately, Ren mentally slapped himself for such a stupid tale. No one in their right mind would believe his little adventure, except maybe little Jie. Suddenly, Ren jerked his head to his knee. The cub wasn't there. Slowly, he pulled his head under the table and saw his friend sniffing Lee's foot. Chuckling, he straightened up.

"Are you a thief?"

How bluntly said. Ren shrugged. "Well, does it matter?" he asked. He wasn't about to say who could be trusted and who couldn't. A thief never trusted anyone, except for his pet or a very close companion. Besides, Lee was a stranger. He didn't know if he would tattle or not. "What about you? What do you do for a living?" His stomach grumbled ever so softly and he wondered when the dumplings were coming. A waitress was already heading towards them and he could see two cups of tea on the tray.

---

Shi was very intrigued by the platypus bear, almost mystified. Suddenly, a thought popped into her head: What if... What if I use that to pay for my freedom? It hadn't occurred for her to steal before, but what if something this valuable--this interesting--could set her free? To hell with the thief and that weird scarf dude. Maybe she could take several of her dancers with her, or the mysterious Yan, perfect and favorite servant boy of the landlord. She let herself grin thinly, devil-like.

---

A boy of about thirteen wandered the courtyard of his landlord's house. He'd been working for almost his whole life at this crude place, but playing favorite was his favorite game. He grinned as Fei flew towards him out of nowhere. The baby lemur was still shaking when gliding, but Yan saw she was improving steadily. Soon enough, she would be flying for him. Just for him. The thought appealed to Yan and his grin grew bigger, until he looked like a grinning fool as he wandered through the door of the chef.

"Stupid boy, what are you grinning for?" spat the chef. She had taken off her white apron and was in the process of ladling soup for the mistress and the landlord. Shrugging, Yan glanced around. Surely, a sweet for him and Fei would be good. He spotted it.

"Psst, Fei," he whispered as softly as he could to his lemur. "That drawer, grab the little sweets!" His eyes darted from the lemur to the drawer, and she understood. Flying towards the thing, she opened it and grabbed a fistful of assorted candies. The chef was too late when she turned around, but she chased them past the courtyard, screaming obscenities at the top of her lungs. Darn, she's screaming my name, too, he thought bitterly. Eventually, he was out in the streets, being jostled to and fro. Maybe he had better look for Shi.

Against his will, when Ren posed that particularly question, Raizo blushed faintly behind his scarf. That was a more complicated question even if he hadn't already lied about who he was.

"I'm not sure yet," he finally answered, and that was more or less the truth.

It wasn't his place to judge Ren for his particularly choice of lifestyle (after all, it might not even be a choice). Their tea came, and he delicately picked up his cup, and pulled down the edge of his scarf just enough to blow on the steam and take a careful sip. Thief or prince in disguise, none of it really did matter over a good cup of tea.

Ren narrowed his eyes as Lee picked up his cup daintily, as if he was a wealthy person, and when he pulled his scarf slightly, it was all he could do to stay in his seat. A strange person by far. And why would he need to cover his face? What's going on? And his answer... His answer to his question might not be a straight answer, but it was... interesting, to say in the least.

"Oh, yeah?" he said softly. It had occurred to him that maybe he didn't need to be a thief to earn a living. Maybe, he could work at a tea shop, such as this one, or work in a store, help out. He had picked up his cup and was sipping it thoughtfully. Maybe I'm not so sure of who I am, either, he thought. I mean, I can't steal forever. Besides, Jie will need a proper lifestyle. I've never seen anything so thin besides myself and those other thieves. Then he remembered the girl who was watching his platypus bear. What about her? Her fancy clothes suggested she was a wealthy woman, or something. Perhaps she was just showing off. But maybe... Maybe she's not sure who she is, either. Setting his cup down, Ren inspected Lee's clothing and face. Not too fancy, but expensive-looking.

"Hey, why do you hide your face? I mean, if you're a delinquent, it's okay to show it, like m- I mean, my friends," he said.

---

Shi leaned forward again when Lee pulled on his scarf. Who was this mysterious child? Glancing down, she saw Jie sitting down beside his master's chair. Ren was paying attention only to Lee and not his pet. Maybe she could take it quickly, throw away her pride for a few moments and crawl inconspicuously on the floor, then tear off a strip of her sleeve and tie the muzzle shut. She could make off with it in less than five minutes, if she dared. And that was the question: Did she dare?

Oh, dear; another embarrassing question. Raizo failed even at being inconspicuous when he was in disguise, of all things. He kept his focus on his tea, and answered in a carefully neutral tone of voice. "I like my privacy. This way, if people are looking for me, they'll have a harder time of it."

Like they were undoubtedly doing right now, for example. He was abstractly grateful to Ren for giving him an extra means of escape. Interesting, then, how he couldn't shake the feeling of eyes on him, or both of them, perhaps... Why was the young woman across the tea shop watching them so closely?

Ren guessed Lee was shy, but there was an extent to being shy. Maybe he was a lonely person by nature? Perhaps he didn't like the presence of others if they knew his face? He shrugged and drank his tea. It didn't feel comfortable as he felt the eyes burn holes in his back... Or was she really watching them? He sneaked a glance back at the woman. She seemed to be intently focused on something other than him. Shrugging once more, he relaxed and drank some more tea.

----

Shi studied the two closely before studying the platypus bear. The cub was asleep, but Lee was taking an interest in her. Darn. She would have to play her moves carefully.

The dumplings arrived then, and Raizo plucked one up with his chopsticks and took a bite. Absolutely delicious. He was perfectly willing to enjoy a nice, quiet lunch, with his new acquaintance, the sleeping cub, and the presence of the young woman across the way, as long as everyone kept the peace.

"Please, have some," he said, as if he didn't know that Ren would certainly help himself. "These are a specialty of theirs."