AUTUNM 1917
Everyone needed something good to focus on, and planning Evangeline and Teddy’s wedding was filling that role perfectly. The news surprised everyone, I mean… it was Evie… and Teddy. But honestly, it made a lot of sense once you stopped to think about it.
Evangeline wasn’t exactly the kind of bride with grand, demanding visions, but Francine had no problem taking over that role. As long as she didn’t decide to cover everything in pink bows and glitter, Evangeline didn’t mind.
William was the least excited about the upcoming union, he had always expected Evangeline to follow a purely academic path. When he asked to speak with the couple, Evie and Teddy were already bracing themselves for a speech about his disapproval.
To their surprise, though, what William wanted was to reveal something to his daughter and make a request to Teddy. For some time now, he had been considering changing his will, and he had finally found the courage to abandon male primogeniture, making it explicitly clear that his estate and all his assets would go to his eldest living child, Evangeline (who was technically born almost half an hour before Francine) regardless of any male relatives. This right could not, under any circumstances, be revoked by a husband, son, brother, or any other potential heir, and it left no room for male preference, giving Evangeline full authority to choose the heir of the next generation.
As for the rather unconventional request he had for Teddy, it was that, despite the marriage, he would keep his surname, or rather… take on Evangeline’s surname, since as the heir, it would be her responsibility to carry the Evans name forward. So, in exchange for not only his blessing to marry someone of Evie’s standing without judgment, but also the right to be welcomed into the family home and enjoy the influence and wealth of the household, William wanted the Mulligan boy to accept that all his children would be Evans, and that he himself would adopt the name as well. Teddy hesitated at first, a bit surprised by the request, but soon agreed without much fuss.
And so, in the autumn of 1917, our Teddy became Edward Evans Mulligan, at twenty-seven years old.
And well… this generation finally got its definitive heiress without giving up the family name or estate, in a not-so-traditional way. But hey, this kind of thing really could happen back then. It’s no surprise to anyone that William considers Evangeline more capable than any of his sons, this girl inherited at least 90% of his DNA (I’m being generous to Amelia and assuming she contributed at least 10% to our Evie) She is technically the eldest living child. And without Thomas, none of the other sons would really work as heir. Freddy values his independence and doesn’t need his father’s approval or money, Albert might still die in the war and has already chosen a life of adventure, and Cisco’s neurodivergence closes many doors for him. We’re only three years away from the 1920s, when female heirs become an option, and honestly, we’ve already waited long enough to see these two together🤓
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