Something jumped out at me in a line from the end of Cold Case.

Winter law showed me a vivid image. An endless war fought at the far borders of reality. A war against the pitiless alien menace known simply as the Outsiders. A war fought by millions of fae to prevent the Outsiders from invading and destroying reality itself. A war so long and bitter that bones of fallen were the topography of the landscape. It was why the Winter Court existed in the first place. Why we were so aggressive, so savage, so filled with lust and the need to create more of our kind.

This is right after Molly was saddled with the Winter Lady mantle. That last line, "Why we were so aggressive... the need to create more of our kind."

I was mulling this over on a drive tonight and thinking if it was the inclusive 'We' or the Royal 'We'. The Royal We would be bad, but not terrible. Just Molly acknowledging that she is part of the ruling family of Winter fae. But when I got home and read it again, I realized that it is the inclusive 'We', because of the 'our' that follows it.

Right after she had the mantle thrust upon her, she was self-identifying as a Winter fae.

Jim has said recently that the fae courts had a sponsor to become the guardians of the Outer Gates. That sponsor set up the courts and created the mantles.

He's also said that Mother Summer has been replaced once, either was killed or retired. Mother Winter is the OG Mother Winter and the only fae queen who was around when the courts were set up. She could be the original sponsor wearing one of the mantles to retain immortality. I believe Jim will use her as a conduit to tell the tale of the origin of the courts.

Thankfully he's also said that the fae courts will be the last guardians of the Outer Gates. Which I take to mean that they will no longer be needed and the fae courts and mantles will be destroyed by the end of the BAT.

And did he save Susan?

Exactly the point I was making.

Well, the fae courts are done as guardians of the Outer Gates, per WOJ, by the end of the series. I don't know if that's a good or evil harbinger for our heroes. Jim might also be lying to us.

Jim loves him some foreshadowing. He's showing Mab longing for her humanity. Her admission that she used to be mortal. The way she gazed enviously at Harry's burn. Harry's mantle shuts down his sensation of pain. Imagine how Mab's does the same thing, only writ large. Her emotions, even her common sensations are probably all muted so that she can concentrate on being coldly logical.

Mab either is infected or will be infected by the final book of the series. Empty Night, a sky without stars, exactly as she said. The stars will have fallen from the sky. It fits perfectly with my theory that Molly will fall deeper into Winter and be struggling, then have the Winter Queen mantle thrust upon her, an echo of when she was saddled with the Winter Lady mantle. (Although she'll probably order Harry to repeat his Stone Table command performance. The Winter Queen is a mother, after all.)

Mother Winter is the original. I think she is the fae court sponsor that allowed them to be the guardians of the Outer Gates. She's not going to be Nfected. At least not until she spills the beans about how the fae courts were set up.

PT/BG took place in 2014. We have 5 more regular books before the BAT, the final three books.

If Jim keeps his pace of the books have about a year's separation.

That means the BAT kicks off in 2020.

Perfect, Jim. Perfect.

Lara does not feed on souls, she feeds on life force.

So, if she feeds on the Winter Knight mantle, she perhaps becomes a suitable vessel for fae power?