The Dresden Files Read-Along discussion
Open Thread
Wordwizard wrote: "Does anyone know how long individual stories are in BRIEF CASES in the audio version? I prefer reading, but the NYPL doesn't have e-copies that can be downloaded onto Kindle. I might be able to fin..."about 45-60 minutes - but there is a pause button...
Steven wrote: "SPOILER ALERT If you haven't read micro-fiction #4, Job Placement, you really want to skip this comment.You were warned.
So, Connie feeds "intensely" on Irwin, but he's come into his powers a..."
I thought it sounded a lot like it's not True Love, If she hadn't killed anybody, she may not be fully turned, but then again she is definitely feeding, which she hasn't done before. Maybe the 1st feeding doesn't have to be fatal if it's not on a weak human... that would be typical of the white court - forcing their young to become killers from the start...
Actually - maybe if the youngster knows what's happening, the 1st feeding doesn't have to be fatal at all - they can pull out in time if they really want to.
Still - sounds like Connie's not in love. Poor Irwin - if there is going to be a St. Mark's series, he's going to get upset...
On the other hand - maybe he's the one that doesn't love her enough, and she's going to be heart broken...
Caryl wrote: "If he didn't drop dead on the spot he'd never be able to say no to Dresden. ;-)Harry might need a little leverage to get past the board of governors or whoever else runs the school. 'Cause Dresde..."
So it looks like St. Mark's is happening - as a school for everything, not just wizards - which would make more sense - the rich can always look out for their own, and the poor will suffer from lack of education, as usual.
Young monsters in training along with young halflings and magical creatures - and the staff is magical too by the sound of it - could be a blast.
I just wish the main series will actually progress - but that is something one doesn't say to an author - people write about what they can, and can't control writer's block or such stuff.
We do get 2 new books soon, so it's all good. I had too many writers die on the middle of my favorite series to feel comfortable with long unfinished series.
Read Job Placement this morning. I decided to reread Bigfoot on Campus to make sure my memory had the details correct. Connie and Irwin had a drunken night of sex which didn't kill Irwin because of his being a scion of the Forest People but since was a first feeding for Connie. They weren't truly in love at that point so her demon woke up making her a vampire. Irwin has enough mojo to keep her well fed without dying. Are we on the same page up to this point?She doesn't intentionally exert the 'old come hither', as Harry put it in Blood Rites, but it's obvious from Irwin's reactions in Job Placement that he's addicted to her just as any White Court thrall, like Justine and Thomas before Blood Rites. And there's the parallel I think. Thomas fed on Justine for 5 years before their mutual willingness to sacrifice themselves for each other triggered the true love 'curse'. Until or unless something requires an act of a drastically sacrificial nature Connie and Irwin will continue as they are. Irwin just has enough of his own power, strength and magic to not lose himself to his addiction completely.
I do think the intensely sexual nature of their relationship might be a bit awkward on a Jr-Sr high school campus IRL but this is the Dresdenverse. And St. Mark's is supposed to be a school full of preternatural beings. There must be a few White Court vampires among them. So, I'm sure there are protocols for handling such things. ;-)
Thoughts?
So she is a full vamp without killing - poor girl, being poisoned by true love sucks.
I want to diacuss the laws of magic and the slippery slope of wizards getting involved in human politics - so the white council is keeping to the basics and avoids getting tangled in the whole right or wrong of human politics. If a wizard uses magic to summon regular demons and use them to intimidate people, that's legal, as long as he doesnt use black magic or kills people with magic - but he can give those creatures guns and use that to kill. The council is worried that if it tries to uphold more laws, it will lead to wizards trying to control the world. There is an answer to that, but i bet the wizards wouldnt like it at all:Instead of trying to make the laws, the wizards can adopt local human laws - and make sure other wizards dont break them with magic. It's a bit tricky, since human laws probably don't cover "summoning demons and using them as henchmen", but they do have laws against threatening and cheating humans, so there is something to enforce.
The problem is with the huge list of irrational and unjust laws - would wizards be expected to enforce those? Assuming we limit the involvment to wizards enforcing wizards only and not humans (give those to human police), i guess one optional punishment would be relocation to another country, where the offence is legal.
Getting complicated enough? The advantage of the 7 laws is the simplicity of them.
Still - having the wardens police wizards to make sure they adhere to local human laws is not totally out there... just the manpower issues that prevent the location of all those warlocks - but at least if they have the authority - they could help the police in cases they do find.
But that would require the wizards to assume humans are bright enough to set their own laws - somehow i don't think old wizards who have seen the inquissition would accept that idea.
Caryl wrote: "Read Job Placement this morning. I decided to reread Bigfoot on Campus to make sure my memory had the details correct. Connie and Irwin had a drunken night of sex which didn't kill Irwin because of..."Same page. I had to go back and reread Bigfoot on Campus myself. Made note to self to reread more before posting or sending messages. :-)
Not sure I agree with the "just as any White Court thrall," but that may be wishful thinking on my part, as he *is* obviously addicted to her. I like your observation about the mutual willingness to sacrifice being the real trigger for the love protection, but now I need to go back and reread Lara's description because I don't remember that being explicitly mentioned.
I think that in a YA version of life at St. Marks, the sweaty, furniture-breaking part of their relationship might be glossed over a bit, although I've been wrong before. Protocols? If the White Court youngsters are all kept ignorant of their nature (as was Inari, as was Connie) then unless there are WC among the staff, St. Marks might not have much experience with this. I doubt that the Venatori would tolerate first feedings, especially among the students. Hmm, having said that out loud (figuratively), and dusting off old memories of high school, I might change my mind. The Venatori would develop some protocol after a single such incident, even if it never happened again.
The current punishment for violating the 7 laws of magic is also starkly simple and one size, fits all. If the Wardens are expected to police wizards' interactions with humans based on human laws, would they then have to adhere to human punishments? Because That's where I see the application of human laws getting extremely tricky and complicated. First, incarcerating magical folks in human prisons - I don't think I need to elaborate on the difficulties of that.
Second, creating a prison system for purely magical wrong doers - highly expensive in terms of manpower and infrastructure
Third, creating a magic only judicial system from scratch.
Or, alternatively, educating an already existing human judicial system to incarcerate magical wrong doers in a 'special' prison when most of the currently existing judicial system doesn't believe in magic, much less magical wrong doers.
Because I don't think the 'off with their heads' approach to punishment would sit well with human authorities for fraud, etc.
Fourth, do wizards just police wizards or do they police other magical beings as well?
Yep, definitely getting complicated. Which is why, I believe, the 'old wizards' have butted out up to this point. Besides, as you point out, there isn't a single human justice system.
There are currently 195 countries in the world which means 195 individual justice systems . Admittedly there are many that have similar laws and systems -all the former British Commonwealth countries for example, but the USA also has 50 states with varying laws and statutes within its own border. -Sigh- I can kinda see why the White Council has opted out at this point in my thought train.
Thanks for this though. I hadn't given this any thought at all until you brought it up.
Caryl wrote: "The current punishment for violating the 7 laws of magic is also starkly simple and one size, fits all. If the Wardens are expected to police wizards' interactions with humans based on human laws, ..."Even Murphy came to see that some things are just beyond the ability of the human authorities to deal with in the usual human ways. She doesn't have to like it, but she recognizes it.
Starting my reread of Cold Days I was excited to run across the conversation between Harry and Sarissa in chapter 3. They are in the antechamber before going into Harry's birthday party. To kill time they are discussing a copy of Grimm's fairy tales. Sarissa tells Harry that Mab went to some trouble to see that the tales were printed. Harry remarks about the motive behind the printing, how important it is for the Sidhe to not be forgotten; else why would Mab push for the printing.The reason for the excitement is that this ties into a conversation I've been having in another thread about the Oblivion War. Thomas says the Venatori tried to consign the Sidhe to oblivion but failed in Backup.
Also, this ties exactly to the TV miniseries Merlin starring Sam Neill in which Merlin's ultimate blow to the Mab in the story is to forget her. Love to see the interweaving of myths from other sources into the Dresdenverse almost as much as love the pop culture references.
Caryl wrote: "Love to see the interweaving of myths from other sources into the Dresdenverse almost as much as love the pop culture references."Indeed, if someone ever believed in it, it could show up.
By the way, Butcher talks about how he does the blending in Daniel Greene's JB interview on Youtube.
Caryl wrote: "The reason for the excitement is that this ties into a conversation I've been having in another thread about the Oblivion War. Thomas says the Venatori tried to consign the Sidhe to oblivion but failed in Backup."I always wondered how they planned to end any particular campaign. For instance, when the last non-Venatori forgot about a thing, and it was mostly dead, would the Venatori on that project all kill themselves to finish it off, like Othar Tryggvassen in Girl Genius, planning to kill himself after killing all the other Sparks (geniuses/mad scientists)? Yes, that was a plug for Girl Genius.
Caryl wrote: "The current punishment for violating the 7 laws of magic is also starkly simple and one size, fits all. If the Wardens are expected to police wizards' interactions with humans based on human laws, ..."The punishment system... forgot about that - I thought they could just either execute or relocate criminal wizards so they would be in a country where whatever they're doing is legal - but obiusly executing someone for cheating at cards is a bit harsh (for example).
Another reason for the old wizards to aviod getting entangled in human laws.
Obiously different countries have different rules - I was watching Tiger King on Netflix, and wondering "who gave those people premission to raise wild animals like that" - turns out where I live it's illegal to raise a wild animal without a permit, but the USA doesn't have that requirement at all. If a wizard would like to raise a pet tiger, he would be able to move from here to there and stay legal.
There are a lot of reasons why not to let wizards enforce human laws - but I think the main issue would be the pride of the wizards - they wouldn't want to consider that regular humans might know better what is good for them.
Regarding enforcement toward non-humans - the red court is controlling several south american countries to a degree where feeding on children is totally legal. I seriously doubt there is enough common ground for even to agree on the basic rules - so cooperation at law enforcement remains a matter f the unsealie accords, which doesn't recognise humans as anything more than pets or herd animals.
So many problems that the basic approach would get the support of the majority of wizards - they may have grown up around humans, but the older they get, the less likely they are to remember it and be willing to protect humans over other wizards.
Yasmin wrote: "Caryl wrote: "where I live it's illegal to raise a wild animal without a permit, but the USA doesn't have that requirement at all...."It depends (in the USA) on where you live, and what the wild animal is. We have a wild patchwork of laws, which sometimes are contradictory from state to state, and it's not uncommon for state or local laws to conflict with federal laws. The conflict only gets resolved when someone pays to take it to the courts.
Yasmin wrote: "I want to diacuss the laws of magic and the slippery slope of wizards getting involved in human politics..."One thing to bear in mind is the difference in approach between the White Council’s rules and Unseelie Accords/Winter Law.
If you can get around Mab’s rules on a technicality it’s more or less fair game. There is only the rules themselves, the letter of the law. White Council are more about spirit of the law, and that’s why it’s sometimes okay to get away with grey areas or magic. Using a sleep spell for example is probably mind magic, but in common use because of how handy it can be (and non-lethal.) However, if you make a head-exploding spell and use it on a werewolf, everyone is going to ask; “What the hell is wrong with you!” Even though your target was a lycanthrope and technically not human.
The difference between Lawful Neutral and Neutral Good maybe?
To take your example, summoning a demon might not technically be illegal, and binding it to your will might not either because its not moral. But getting caught doing it will still get you executed on sight. Besides, Warlocks summoning thug-demons pretty much always use them to kill someone, and that is coved by the Laws of Magic.
Yasmin wrote: "Caryl wrote: "If he didn't drop dead on the spot he'd never be able to say no to Dresden. ;-)Harry might need a little leverage to get past the board of governors or whoever else runs the school...."
I wonder if Harry gets to make cameos in the YA series. I mean, parent teacher conferences, end of term programs, holiday parties, field trips; the opportunities are endless. Harry's first time meeting Mr. and Mrs. Pounder as Maggie's teachers would be a great short story at some point.
Caryl wrote: "... I mean, parent teacher conferences, end of term programs, holiday parties, field trips; the opportunities are endless. ..."Don't forget the last three sentences of Job Placement. Looks to me like meddling in the making.
Harry definitely did not write up GHOST STORY as it was happening. He didn't even write it from contemporaneous notes. No corporal body means no writing, period.
Wordwizard wrote: "Harry definitely did not write up GHOST STORY as it was happening. He didn't even write it from contemporaneous notes. No corporal body means no writing, period."Ah. When I said "sort of an as-it-happened documentary" I was referring to the first-person-past-tense style used to tell the stories. Maybe "as-told-to-Jim-Butcher" would be better? He wouldn't be taking notes while tossing fireballs or boinking Mab, either, for that matter. It's all been put together later, whether from notes, friend-to-friend, some combination, or something else altogether. For example, remember when Harry had Molly read the corpse when Molly first met Butters in White Night? She's much stronger now.
It will be very interesting to see whose hand writes the final chapter or two.
Steven wrote: "Caryl wrote: "The reason for the excitement is that this ties into a conversation I've been having in another thread about the Oblivion War. Thomas says the Venatori tried to consign the Sidhe to o..."I love Girl Genius. (I think Othar’s plan had some serious weaknesses; how on earth was he going to make certain he’d killed every spark—on the planet—or any potential sparks who simply hadn’t come into their sparkiness yet? Kill every descendant of every spark that ever lived, even the infants? Sheesh.) I would hope the Venatori would have something less lethal than killing their best soldiers. Something like the Obliviate spell in Harry Potter, perhaps. And since it’s only mortal memory that holds them, something like Bob could perform the spell. For that matter, is a White Court vamp mortal enough to hold an eldritch horror from the realm of insanity to this world via memory? If not, then it would make sense for *none* of the Oblivion War fighters to be fully mortal. Thomas only knows one other, his sister, so he wouldn’t necessarily know who else beyond White Court might be involved.
Lillicat wrote: "And since it’s only mortal memory that holds them, something like Bob could perform the spell. For that matter, is a White Court vamp mortal enough to hold an eldritch horror from the realm of insanity to this world via memory? If not, then it would make sense for *none* of the Oblivion War fighters to be fully mortal. ..."I had to go back and re-read. You're right; it does make sense that the actual Venatori are not mortals; that way they don't have to worry about Othar's end game. I'd forgotten the difference between Venatori and Venatori Umbrorum.
Hmm, given Thomas's statement on motive, one could ask if there are any Venatori other than White Court, and if there are, what are their motives? Red Court I see as too (view spoiler) to be Venatori, and Black Court (at least some) appear to be somehow involved with Outsiders, so I don't see them as playing along either. Who else really wants to get rid of the Sidhe, isn't mortal, and thinks they wouldn't be next on the list? JB has said that we aren't going to hear anything from the Jade Court, so that lets them out until you remember that, according to JB himself, he might be lying. And, the other possibility is that this is a fun rathole that never comes up again.
Steven wrote: "Lillicat wrote: "And since it’s only mortal memory that holds them, something like Bob could perform the spell. For that matter, is a White Court vamp mortal enough to hold an eldritch horror from ..."Wasn’t there either speculation or hints from JB that the Jade Court eat memories? They’d be naturals for the Oblivion War if so. O_o
Lillicat wrote: "Wasn’t there either speculation or hints from JB that the Jade Court eat memories? They’d be naturals for the Oblivion War if so. O_ot..."I must have missed that one. That would be perfect. Thanks.
Wordwizard wrote: "Harry definitely did not write up GHOST STORY as it was happening. He didn't even write it from contemporaneous notes. No corporal body means no writing, period."As Previously detailed, all events that have occurred in the books have occurred while Harry either had a spirit of Knowledge/intellect as a lab assistant or one literally living in his head. So he can write these with pretty much crystal clarity of recollection assuming he took good notes during the earlier stories.
And hey, now that I think about it, the fact that his daughter spent a few years living in his head pretty much explains the clarity of recollection all by itself. There is literally nothing he knows or knew that she doesn't up to the point in skin game where she is birthed from his splitting skull.
Does anyone else think her name should be Athena?
Chris wrote: "Wordwizard wrote: "Harry definitely did not write up GHOST STORY as it was happening. He didn't even write it from contemporaneous notes. No corporal body means no writing, period."Chris wrote: And hey, now that I think about it, the fact that his daughter spent a few years living in his head pretty much explains the clarity of recollection all by itself. There is literally nothing he knows or knew that she doesn't up to the point in skin game where she is birthed from his splitting skull.
Does anyone else think her name should be Athena?"
Yes. But apparently, JB didn't.
Wordwizard wrote: "Chris wrote: "Wordwizard wrote: "Harry definitely did not write up GHOST STORY as it was happening. He didn't even write it from contemporaneous notes. No corporal body means no writing, period."..."
JB might be saving Athena for a reason. We've seen Hades after all.
Bonea aka Bonnie, is where we ended up according to the character list.
Paulum Mortis wrote: "Yasmin wrote: "I want to diacuss the laws of magic and the slippery slope of wizards getting involved in human politics..."One thing to bear in mind is the difference in approach between the Whit..."
the reason I think it's more complicated than that for the White Council is about Binder (yeah, I'm reading a bit ahead), and other cult leaders like the one Charity was in. The wardens go around warning people about the laws at least once - and then... Binder was around for a couple of decades doing what he did with his summoning as a mob enforcer - is it a case of "not caught"? Morgan would have executed him on suspicion if he could. The way Binder used his demons at the heist was with mortal weapons, so I guess he's careful not to let them bite someone to death.
The letter of the law works for the council too - Harry got suspended sentence for self defence and someone taking responsibility over him - and he got Molly the same deal even though she was totally guilty and barely had good intentions.
I guess as humans, each person would have a different approach to it. The Fae are more rigid, but they also have some leaway about enforcing transgressions - some offences get a swift and violent response, but some just get glossed over and saved for later?
Chris wrote: "As Previously detailed, all events that have occurred in the books have occurred while Harry either had a spirit of Knowledge/intellect as a lab assistant or one literally living in his head. So he can write these with pretty much crystal clarity of recollection assuming he took good notes during the earlier stories..."We don't know yet how much Bonnie knows from her time in Harry. She does recognize him, though, now that she's out. We do know that Molly can and has been in Harry's head; she's even spoken with the guy in black when she delivered Bonnie.
It seems to me that Bob either can't, or refrains from, directly accessing Harry's memories because in chapter 14 of White Night Bob is griping "Right, boss. I hope you will note that I am doing this without once complaining how unfair it is that you've seen the cupcake nekkid and I haven't." If Bob has direct access to Harry's memories he would know what the cupcake looks like nekkid.
So, that brings us back to notes obviously written later, or as-told-to, or something darker, like "JB likes first-person narratives and he likes to be mysterious and wind us up, so he'll never explain it."
I've heard of Bonea, but I don't remember any details about reading about her. When does she show up? Molly delivered her?
She appears as the 'parasite' at the end of Ghost Story, is mentioned as such several times in Cold Days, and finally is 'born' at the end of Skin Game. And yes, Molly assists in her exit from Dresden's head, aka 'delivers' her.
Caryl wrote: "Unless those notes Were Bob..."Bob knows a lot about Harry. Harry tells him a lot, and Bob is good at figuring stuff out. But Bob seems to not have direct access to Harry's memories. In White Night, just before Harry calls Father Forthill to come get Lasciel's coin (chapter 43), Bob is scanning Harry and notices the damage caused during Lash's departure, Bob doesn't see exactly what Harry went through, even though he can describe and explain the damage. He even says to Harry "Hey, tell me that at least you got a pony ride before the carnival left town. I mean, she could have made you see and feel ...". If Bob has direct access to Harry's memories he wouldn't need to ask.
Caryl wrote: "She appears as the 'parasite' at the end of Ghost Story, is mentioned as such several times in Cold Days, and finally is 'born' at the end of Skin Game. And yes, Molly assists in her exit from Dres..."page 571, if I can trust my Kindle: "It was a tough delivery," Molly said. "She's very tired."
Caryl wrote: "She appears as the 'parasite' at the end of Ghost Story, is mentioned as such several times in Cold Days, and finally is 'born' at the end of Skin Game. And yes, Molly assists in her exit from Dresden's head, aka 'delivers' her. "Thanks! My memory of SKIN GAME is basically nonexistent.
WoJ: "According to Jim Butcher Lash reappears in Ghost Story under a different name."
Anyone know/guess what that refers to?
I don't remember Lash reappearing in Ghost Story but Lasciel reappears in Skin Game
Steven wrote: "Caryl wrote: "... I mean, parent teacher conferences, end of term programs, holiday parties, field trips; the opportunities are endless. ..."Don't forget the last three sentences of Job Placement..."
I really liked your reading on those last few lines but after 'sleeping on it' I got a bit sad. Because another way to read those lines is that Irwin and/or Connie could be standins for Dresden when he can't get there in time.
I hold out hope for cameos though because, in canon, JB wrote that Harry vowed to himself to Always 'Be There' for Maggie.
Still I can see there being lots of incidences when something happens and no outsider to the campus could have time to respond or the incident would be seen as too minor or too incendiary to inform parents about. Staff, teachers and counselors would have to handle the situation along with a super bright, insightful and calm student.
Caryl wrote: "I don't remember Lash reappearing in Ghost Story but Lasciel reappears in Skin Game"The Spirit Child (Mab and Demonreach called it the parasite in Ghost Story) is Lash's and Harry's. It's been there since Lash sacrificed herself for Harry (exercise for the student). According to Harry's inner guy in black (Skin Game chapter 23), it's made of Lash and made of Harry. When JB said (I forget which con or signing the quote was from) that Lash was in Ghost Story he may have intended, at the time, for it to actually be Lash, and then later decided the Child was a better fit. It could also be the case that the Spirit Child is Lash, and Harry's inner guy in black was just a bit wrong. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
Caryl wrote: "... but after 'sleeping on it' I got a bit sad. Because another way to read those lines is that Irwin and/or Connie could be standins for Dresden when he can't get there in time..."I was a bit sad when I wrote about those last three lines, because that's the sort of thinking (on Irwin's part) that gets one in over one's head (no matter how tall you are) pretty quickly.
I call dibs on mentioning "paved with good intentions."
Caryl wrote: "Butters definitely had access to Harry's notes. It's mentioned in Cold Days. How they survived the fire, or how Butters got them I don't know Unless those notes Were Bob."I imagine the management of the Brighter Future Society had the ruins of the old boardinghouse searched very carefully when prepping the site for the castle. Especially the old basement and sub-basement. You never know what odds and ends are going to survive a house fire.
Steven wrote: "Caryl wrote: "I don't remember Lash reappearing in Ghost Story but Lasciel reappears in Skin Game"The Spirit Child (Mab and Demonreach called it the parasite in Ghost Story) is Lash's and Harry's..."
Since JB has said he only has the outline of the big story arc and fills in the details of each story as he goes, with help keeping the continuity straight, it's possible he changed the story as you suggest.
Bonnie is part of Lash, has her memories and knowledge and Dresden's. She's going to be an unique character. I mean, she's not really a child. Ivy is physically a child but not truly a child, having all that knowledge from her infancy. Bonnie will have more in common with Ivy than with Maggie.
Will Harry's job be to teach her about right and wrong, give her a sense of morality of some kind and how to apply knowledge within that morality? What else Could he teach her? She already has all his knowledge up to that point. And since Lash has Lasciel's memories and knowledge since before humanity existed ...
I guess he won't need Bob any more and can leave him with Butters.
JB has said he's having fun writing Bonnie. But what does that mean? Is she going to out snark our hero or is she going to be a new way to torture him/we the readers? Anticipation -insert musical staff with notes here-
Caryl wrote: "I guess he won't need Bob any more and can leave him with Butters.s..."With respect, I can mostly agree with that if we define "leave him with" as "refrain from stealing Bob from."
Bob hasn't belonged to Harry since shortly after the end of Changes. Harry stole Bob from Butters in Cold Days, but later returned Bob after Murphy got Harry thinking about how scary he was acting. Bob still belongs to Butters in Skin Game (and after), and Harry even finished the wood skull intended as Bob's backup shelter. Of course, we know what happened to that, but that's for a different reply. :-)
I should more appropriately have said, Harry won't be asking to have Bob back.Guess Harry has to make another wooden skull though. He has to keep his promise.
Caryl wrote: "I should more appropriately have said, Harry won't be asking to have Bob back.Guess Harry has to make another wooden skull though. He has to keep his promise."
Indeed.
Lillicat wrote: "Maybe Vadderung fixed the table."Huh?
Sorry, I’ve reread Changes and it occurred to me that Vadderung probably has the juice to get into Harry’s lab and fix Little Chicago. One of his aspects is known for entering houses via fireplaces and doing nice things, after all. And the brownies can get in. One book specifies that only those with evil intent are really barred by a house’s threshold (Cold Days?). The brownies have no trouble with the wards, and it’s possible St Nick wouldn’t either.
Lillicat wrote: "Sorry, I’ve reread Changes and it occurred to me that Vadderung probably has the juice to get into Harry’s lab and fix Little Chicago. One of his aspects is known for entering houses via fireplaces..."This is a good plausible theory. I buy it.
Speaking of Vadderung, what did he give Harry that was exactly what he needed, aside from donuts that established a guest-friendship? I just read about Harry's taking three bullets meant for Rudolph, then explaining his laughter by saying that he'd just gotten a joke he'd heard three days ago. Is there a connection?
Vadderung told Harry about the bloodline curse and how it worked, which meant Harry knew how to turn it back on the Red Court. I’ve never found a joke that makes sense from the day before, so I’ve always figured Harry is punchy enough to find it funny that he saved Rudolph’s life without even intending to.
Butters definitely had access to Harry's notes. It's mentioned in Cold Days. How they survived the fire, or how Butters got them I don't know Unless those notes Were Bob.