Black Dawn Lore Compendium: The Black Succession

In chapter 4 of the Black Dawn, Narcissa Malfoy speaks with Arcturus Black and we get the following:

Arcturus narrowed his eyes, his heart pounding in his ears. “Where did you hear that? The only ones I said it to—”

“Were Sirius and Andromeda. Maybe even Regulus.” She scoffed. “The eldest grandchildren you had. Your heirs, and one single backup, just in case. Both your heirs are dead, and you blasted Andromeda off the tree with your own wand in front of Augusta Longbottom and the whole family. Which now leaves me. The eldest heiress of House Black.”

“There has never been a female head of the house.”

Narcissa’s lips curled into a smile as she stroked Draco’s hair. “Thankfully, I have him now for that. My son, Draco, the next heir of the great house of Black. And through him, Lucius.”

Now, here the question may arise, how exactly does Draco Malfoy come into the line of succession with a claim greater than anyone else's?

To understand that, first we must understand Arcturus Black's family.

Arcturus Black had two sons: Orion and Cygnus Black. Of them, Orion was the oldest and thus the heir. Cygnus, as a result of being younger, would've only inherited the mantle in the case of Orion's early death or banishment from the family.

Unfortunately for Cygnus, such a thing didn't happen, and Orion went to have his own sons. But this is where the problem starts.

Cygnus had two daughters older than Orion's oldest son. Andromeda was over two years older than Sirius while Narcissa was an year older than him. Bellatrix too, was only a few months younger than Sirius, who was now heir apparent (the heir after the current heir becomes the lord. Heir of the heir in other words.)

Arcturus due to uncertainties, and mainly, Walburga, chose to educate both Sirius and Andromeda in becoming the next heir/ lord/ head. 

While he didn't want to skip a generation if he could avoid it, Arcturus was afraid of Orion's declining health, Cygnus' wrong associations, and Walburga's madness. (Not to mention, Sirius and Regulus weren't genetically prime material in the beginning.)

So, both Sirius and Andromeda were trained to take over the house of Black if the need arose. And if not them, Regulus, who was by far the youngest.

In other words, both of Orion's children, who were in the direct line of succession and in case that didn't work, Andromeda who was his eldest grandchild were prepared.

While Andromeda wouldn't have become Lady Black due to the Blacks being a Patriarchy, her future son would have taken the mantle as the lord of house black while Andromeda would've become the head— all this given that she had a man agree to take on the Black name instead of the other way around.

(The Lord of the house is the one who makes all the decisions and handles the house while the Head is the oldest living member of the main family— currently Arcturus in both cases.)

Unfortunately, it didn't go as planned. 

Sirius and Regulus died while Andromeda had to be banished, thanks to her own actions. (Yes, she is officially and legally banished by Arcturus himself.)

Now, as per Arcturus' line, Narcissa is the eldest, and most eligible person to be the next head. While this usually won't be allowed as she is no more a Black, but a Malfoy — a match Arcturus didn't approve of at all. 

But the fact stands that if Arcturus dies, the family will go to the closest member, which happens to be Narcissa and her son, Draco, given that nothing changes. As of right now, Draco is the heir apparent. Not officially the heir yet but definitely the most eligible unless something changes. 

A way would be to bypass the line totally– a brother to Orion and Cygnus (both of whom are now deceased). I don't need to play around to tell the ways to do so, but here it goes:

• A new marriage and new kids for Arcturus.

• A long lost/ bastard son. (Debatable but possible)

• Adoption (Once again, debatable yet possible.)

Of this 2 and 3 can be fought off thanks to loopholes but it can go either of two ways and thus, a gamble.

To find out what happens, you must continue to read Black Dawn and see what happens next for yourself.

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And done! I hope I explained it well. If you have any questions, feel free to ask them.

Now, I must apologise in advance for any mistakes/ slips in formatting if they are present. For the first time, I have written something entirely on my phone and only have it to do my work.

My laptop is refusing to charge right now, and has been sent for repair. This might take 2-4 days as per the guy at the service center. (They are replacing the motherboard. Thankfully it is in warranty.)

This unfortunately means that I will be prone to typos right now and won't be capable of formatting my work as I usually do. This especially goes for short forms and WhatsApp language, lmao. I just wrote rn instead of right now because I am on the phone. Hilarious how a device changes your tendencies, no?

Also, the updates may be a day or two late if there's any more delay for my laptop's repair. Hopefully they'll do it before the weekend and all will be on track. 

Speaking of updates, I am writing an adorable Haphne Oneshot with Haphne baby and enough fluff to fill a lake. Baby scenes are adorable, NGL. Hopefully I will complete the last part tomorrow on the phone and be capable of putting it up by Thursday at the latest. Agent Potter too is halfway in, and being written simultaneously. Depending on my luck, I will publish it on the weekend or so is my intention, given my laptop is ready before or on Friday.  

Anyhow do feel free to ask me anything regarding Black Dawn. I will also be putting a gotsis lore piece like I did for this. (It took me over an hour to write this on the phone already, damn).

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Stay Happy! Stay Safe! Keep Smiling! Keep Reading!

Hpfanfictioner66