The Dresden Files > DF Spoilers

Nemesis and Hecate

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exartiem:
I don't think Mab or the other queens rely on belief the way the gods did/do.  They draw power from human nature more than worship.  Summer draws from the emotions that have to do with renewal, birth/rebirth, growth.  Winter more from endurance, despair, survival.  All humans feel these things and thus empower the queens even if no one knows their names.

The old gods, however, needed people to attach their names to various aspects of nature in order to draw that power.

Hecate could have anticipated the decline of the old gods worshipers and created this shift into a new dynamic, becoming the mantles of the three winter queens.  Nemesis could have gone with her to balance her as the summer queens.

Bad Alias:
I'm not sure if they require belief, but I'm fairly sure they require human awareness at the very least. That's why Mab had the Grimms publish their collection of fairy tales.

kbrizzle:
One of my WAGs is that the creation of the Fae is supposed to to supplant the old gods. The Fae do not require belief, but awareness as Bad Alias points out - this is easier to accomplish than belief, especially in an increasingly technological world. As long as people are aware the Fae exist, they will remain powerful enough to guard the Gates.

If an old god was created by the beliefs of its followers, we know (from WoJ) that the Fae were created out of a Darkhallow-like ritual. Therefore the Fae do not need to channel the choices/ beliefs of mortals into power - their power is from a different source.

Additionally, one of the other names Harry calls MW (which she agrees are true) is Skuld - the youngest of the 3 chief Norns (Norse Fates) who also functions as a Valkyrie. Here is an interesting bit about the 3 chief Norns from Wikipedia:

--- Quote ---It appears from Völuspá and Vafţrúđnismál that the three main norns were not originally goddesses but giantesses (Jotuns), and that their arrival ended the early days of bliss for the gods, but that they come for the good of mankind.
Völuspá relates that three giantesses of huge might are reported to have arrived to the gods from Jotunheim
--- End quote ---

Since we know the Jotun were the previous guardians at the gate, this creates some interesting connections between the Fae & Odin.

I’ve also recently read an article on classical antiquity that describes the Greek goddess Themis - a Titan older than Zeus as a goddess of judgement & balancer of scales (seems like a good guess as to the Mother’s name). She is sometimes known as the mother of the Greek Fates (Atropos is one of them) with Zeus as the father.

Additionally, there were 3 aspects to Themis (like a proto-triple goddess):

* Themis: goddess of justice
* Nemesis: goddess of retribution
* Eleos: goddess of redemption

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