#like abigail's nephew etc. i just can't see DIRECT descent being a big deal in a society where birth rates are chronically low

[liesmyth]

With the Palleamene and Aiglemene thing. One of my friends and I theory is that both Harrows parents were gay and thats why necromantic implantation wasnt working. They, like Harrow, were too proud and paranoid to ask other houses for help and artificial wombs

They couldn't even handle missionary through a sheet because they REALLy didn't want to fuck!

jk I think the real issue was Pelleamena's inability to conceive because it's already hard for a necromancer, even harder for the children of two necromancers, which makes me wonder why the one who was a direct descendant of Anastasia between Pelleamena and Primhark didn't just... attempt at least to have a kid out of wedlock with someone else, if the only goal is to maintain the line.

I also really think it wouldn't have been an issue anywhere else but the Ninth. They're the only one of the Houses concerned with direct descent (I think the Seventh may come close but not to that level) AND Harrow's incredibly paranoid attitude about asking for help from the other Houses / the Cohort clearly must have come from somewhere. It's just how the Ninth do things. The Eight most likely have vat wombs (because the way they supposedly "breed" multiple potential cavaliers IMO points to that) and so do the Third, who are the Ninth's closest neighbours. I bet the Rev Parents considered genocide a better option than reaching out.