Hello,
I figured I would start this thread to share some of my experience involving Role-playing a Dragon family. Playing as Silithus I have adopted many hatchlings' in my time, and one recently asked for information regarding this aspect of roleplay. It can add a lot to the experience of playing a dragon in Istaria, and help to flesh out the background of your character if you so choose. Also since our player-base is much smaller, this helps by giving players another avenue of social interaction.
First, the styles of adoption. There are a couple major styles (in my experience) of adoption: Master/Apprentice, Parent/Child (Related), and Parent/Child (Adopted).
Master/Apprentice is a style for those who want less of the affectionate side of family dynamics and more of the 'Old Sensei on the Mountain', an example of which is a Master Swordsmen teaching a Novice. The younger dragon is expected to earn their keep, and the older is expected to pass on knowledge and experience, and spend time training the younger.
Parent/Child on the other hand (whether the two dragons are related or not) tends to be closer. The older dragon fulfills the role of Mother or Father to the younger hatchling, and often displays more affection (Nuzzling, wing-hugs, etc.) than the Master/Apprentice relationship. There can be similar dynamics to Master/Apprentice as far as the passing on of knowledge, etc.
Terminology: In my experience, the parent is known as A'meo (for males) or A'mea (for females) and the child is referred to as the Aorban (little on) though it's up to you what terminology you want to use.
I will continue to add to this thread as time permits~
-Silithus Zerr