Keep It On The Me

Tokai Teio: Rudolf's eldest son through Tokai Natural and the crown prince of the empire. Spirited and confident, she not only aims to emulate her father, but to surpass her as monarch of the racing world. Prone to suffering recurring fractures. Due to the original Symboli-Mejiro contract falling through, she has been arranged to marry McQueen.

Mejiro McQueen: Heir to the noble House Mejiro, next in line as chosen by her grandmother Asama. Prideful and refined, she is keen on upholding her generations-long family legacy of exceptional stayers. Was recently diagnosed with a debilitating medical condition. Has been arranged to marry Teio to secure the Symboli and Mejiro alliance.

Symboli Rudolf: Ruling Emperor and acting head of House Symboli with unwavering principles. Has aspirations of cultivating a world benefitting all Umamusume to succeed and thrive. Childhood friends with Sirius and Ramonu. After her second mate passed, she eventually found a new love in Air Groove after bonding over shared dreams and ideals. Has faced some criticism from her council over her policies threatening to upend tradition.

Air Groove: Conducting herself with high expectations, Groove strives to inspire and nurture others to become the best version of themselves. Diligent and dignified, she married Rudolf after a long period of courtship and works in tandem with her as Empress and right hand. Had to endure a period of scrutiny over rumors of being an "Usurper Empress". Her regal disposition and oft stern admonishments belie her sincere compassion.

Tsurumaru Tsuyoshi: Rudolf's second son who suffers from chronic illness. Was born with a weak immune system and has to remain under constant care and supervision. Though she does not share the same weighty expectations as her older brother Teio because of her condition, she nonetheless endeavors to prove herself as not a burden.

Admire Groove (aka "Aruvu"): Air Groove's only daughter from a previous union. Moody and withdrawn, she cares for her mother deeply despite her own icy demeanor. Slow to open up to others, she was initially standoffish and distrustful of Rudolf over thinking her inadequate. Has recently gained attention over the council debating her "illegitimate princess" status over concerns of the next Symboli heir.

Narita Brian: Rudolf's trusted left hand and commanding enforcer. Prefers to follow basic instincts. Not one to mince words and often keeping to herself, she strikes an intimidating presence. Despite her brusqueness, she somehow still manages to attract and retain a notable number of female admirers.

Hishi Amazon (aka "Hishiama"): A foreign delegate of a neighboring territory who became affiliated with House Symboli. Hotheaded and passionate, she acts as the reliable and caring older sister figure in lieu of busy parents, which quickly endeared her to many House members. Has a vested interest in Brian beyond challenging her on the track.

Sirius Symboli: Childhood friend of Rudolf and Ramonu who shares all the privileges of House Symboli. Disdainful of authority. A rogue noble with her own sense of honor and charisma, she prefers to work from behind the scenes to help others. Whatever unrest happens that Rudolf doesn't see, Sirius takes care of it. Knows intimately how to deal with court snakes. Nakayama is one of her few trusted companions. Has a complicated history with Rudolf.

Nakayama Festa: An information broker with a wide network of contacts. Usually found frequenting shady hangouts. Fond of wagers and loves taking risks and seeking thrills. Her true feelings are inscrutable behind a well-practiced face. Seemingly apathetic, she only takes an interest in people who can offer her the unexpected. Has a peculiar relationship with Sirius.

Mejiro Ramonu: Eldest of the Mejiro successors and childhood friend of Rudolf and Sirius. Disinterested in court life and familial obligations. Unyielding in pursuing her own passions, she refused the position of heiress and and turned it over to Ardan. Was originally betrothed to Rudolf, but ultimately ended up calling it off due to irreconcilable differences.

Symboli Kris S: A foreign mercenary who worked odd jobs before she was taken in by House Symboli per Ramonu's suggestion. Frank and taciturn, she is loyal to the Symbolis and is determined to repay them for their kindness. Is smitten with Cesario, but struggles to convey how she feels, partly due to the language barrier.

Cesario: Daughter of renowned scholars, whom she aims to follow in their footsteps of teaching future generations of Umamusume. Deeply empathetic and steadfast in furthering potential. After some reflection post-injury, she decided to retire from racing to focus more on education. Feels strangely drawn to Kris S, for reasons not yet known.

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The backstory is that Rudolf and Natural were married, so Teio's rights to succession are rock-solid (firstborn son of the emperor). The old nobles really pushed Rudolf to marry Ramonu because she was preferable given Natural's commoner status and her ailments. After the original engagement fell through, Rudolf became disliked by the older nobility, making it difficult for her to govern as she likes. So the Symboli-Mejiro alliance has to happen with Teio and McQueen.

At first Asama may have been reluctant to hand off McQueen, because that would rob the Mejiros of a proper blood heir, but Rudolf is more agreeable because she'd already married a commoner; Teio is not completely blue-blooded. That falls in line with her more progressive policies. Asama eventually relents because the benefits of being married into the imperial family outweigh the inconvenience. Though I wouldn't be surprised if they deliberated on some clauses that would permit either Teio or McQueen to take on mare mistresses just for the sake of a biological heir, had they not firmly chose to adopt instead.

That's basically what I have down for characters, but there's a couple more I want to add, like Epiphaneia, Rulership, Babbitt, Duramente, and Kitasan Black. I'm still workshopping them though--Rulership and Babbit's inclusion is partly influenced by another AU that I share with my server pals, which is a more modern day Community AU (where Rura is RudoGuru's bio son after an agonizingly long slowburn and Babbitt is Nakayama's surprise kid she didn't even know existed from a reckless lay in her past).

But Duramente and Kitasan are currently entangled with TeiMaku's central progression, in the sense that Kris S is Dura's biological father, in a union that neither she nor Aruvu truly wanted, but there were complications in accepting Kris S as a Symboli by the old council, so they ended up having to wed to make her part of the family and one thing led to another and Dura was born. Aruvu and Kris S end up splitting but they both love Dura regardless.