[Germund]

I've found with kids (and often adults too) that you generally have to go with where their interest lies and adapt from there. As you said, a wizard may not have been the best choice, but it was HIS choice. Adding the bear as a defender/companion may not be "orthodox" from an RPG rules perspective, but from the perspective of an RPG spirit it is great. The saying "rules are meant to be broken" is especially true for RPGs. The point of the game is the story, not the rules. Throw out what doesn't fit your story and keep or adapt from other sources what will fit.