I'm talking about everyone we can reasonably guess was infected by the Nemesis bug. 

There are also characters who may not have become infected, but who were tempted into making deals that corrupted them in other ways.  For example, I wouldn't be surprised if Victor Sells, The Hexenwolf FBI agents and Leonid Kravos weren't actually infected by Nemesis, despite what Lily told Harry in Cold Days.  Simply approaching and making a deal to teach Sells and Kravos black magic would quickly corrupt them and they would be willing to do just about anything to learn more.  We saw what the hexenwolf belt almost did to Harry, so it's no mystery how FBI agents were corrupted by them.  It's possible some or all of these characters did become nemfected, but I doubt it and in any case we can't be certain.

The first character who we can reasonably guess was nemfected is Aurora.  We don't know when Nemesis got to her, just that it was before the events in Summer Knight and because Elaine was spending time in the Summer Court, she makes a pretty good suspect.  The problem is we do not have any information about anyone else who may have been visiting Summer or had contact with Aurora.  If you go back and reread the scene in Summer Knight when Harry brought a wounded Elaine to be healed by Aurora, there were one or two other humans who were working with some of the Summer Fae on a couple of artistic endeavors.  They were about as minor as characters can get.  They didn't have any lines of dialogue and weren't named, but there very presence tells us that some other mortal could have visited Summer and infected Aurora.  How it was done is a mystery.

Next is the Leanansidhe.  We know she was given the tainted athame at Bianca's masquerade party.  Lea told Harry this in Ghost Story and Mab confirmed it near the end of Battle Ground.  Cowl and Kumori handled the gifts that Bianca gave out.  Unless Cowl took the gig of acting as one of Bianca's flunkies as a second job to pay off his student loans, it's a pretty good bet he knew exactly what he was handling.  Kumori might have also been in on the plot or Cowl might have kept her in the dark and gave her a seemingly plausible explanation for their actions that night.  My guess is she knew something, but maybe not everything.  If Elaine = Kumori then her knowing that she was helping to spread the Nemesis bug makes much more sense.

Maeve was tainted by contact with Lea. So there's no real mystery here.  She must have been tainted sometime before the events in Proven Guilty.

Cat Sith was most likely grabbed by HWWBf when the malk was covering Harry's retreat.  This would be an example of direct contamination from an Outsider, not by the use of a tainted item.

Justine is a real mystery.  I doubt she was contaminated because Nemesis jumped from Maeve when Murphy shot the ice princess in the head.  Justine wasn't acting like herself for a long time before Cold Days.  In the short story Even Hand she was acting like a top flight secret agent when she chose to go to Marcone's HQ in order to evade the Fomor lord who was chasing her.  That story took place between the events in Turn Coat and Changes, but I suspect Nemesis got to her much earlier than that.  Just before the duel in the Raith Deeps in White Night, Justine surprised Harry by the confident and collected way she was able to describe the events taking place and rivalry between Skavis and Malvora.  It was almost like she wasn't the real Justine. 

But when Justine got the Nemesis bug isn't nearly important than how she got it.  That is, if I'm right that it didn't happen on Demonreach near the end of Cold Days.  Because, if I am right, then Nemesis got to Justine while she was under Lara's protection.  Justine would have been on the grounds of House Raith or at Thomas' apartment most of that time.  Here's a possible explanation how it could have happened.  Maybe it happened when she did her secret agent thing offscreen before the start of Even Hand.  I believe she infiltrated a Fomor base.  She would have been vulnerable then.  Maybe she wasn't successful and was captured but Nemesis was present in someone or something else and saw an opportunity in Justine by making it look like she had succeeded.  It would explain her demeanor with Marcone.  I haven't reread that story in a long time, but I recall that Justine came across as very calculating in her decisions and actions.  Perhaps Justine had told Harry the truth in White Night when she said medication had made her a more stable person.

What else can you think of that we know or can reasonably guess about Nemesis?  I suspect there is at least one other character who is nemfected.  Is there anyone else you think could be a Nemesis agent? 

Currently, I don't believe that Elaine is Kumori, but the earlier thread on this topic got me to ask myself some questions.  These questions have little or nothing to do with that thread, but I think that asking the right questions, usually the simplest questions, might lead to some insights or lead us to ask other questions which have importance to the overall story, regardless of whether Elaine is Kumori.

First, if E=K how did she meet Cowl?  More specifically, when and where did Elaine meet Cowl?  If Elaine is Kumori, barring time travel, Elaine/Kumori must have of met Cowl prior to the events in Grave Peril.  We know this because in Dead Beat Harry recognized that he had seen Cowl and Kumori working as Bianca's flunkies at the vampire's masquerade party in Grave Peril.

However, that creates a problem that some readers might claim precludes Elaine from being Kumori.  After Harry killed Justin DuMorne, Elaine ran away and found sanctuary with the Summer Court, or more specifically with Aurora.  Plus, in Summer Knight, Harry told Elaine that he had searched for her.  I think he said, "I searched for you in fire and water."  So Harry used magical means in an attempt find Elaine, but because she was hiding in the Nevernever Harry's searches were futile.  If Elaine was hiding all that time, how could she have met Cowl?

There are a couple of ways around this objection.  First, for reasons we currently have no way of knowing about, Elaine might not have been the only wizard spending time with the Summer Court.  Elaine could have met Cowl in Summer and fallen under his influence there.  It's possible, but I don't think it's likely.  The reason I don't think it's likely is an Occam's Razor thing.  Unless Jim decides to kill off Kumori and leave her identity a mystery that is never solved, at some point; if E=K, we will get Elaine's backstory and learn how and why she joined forces with Cowl.  Having Elaine first meet Cowl in Summer would force Jim to create additional backstory to explain why Cowl was visiting Summer.  Unless this reason neatly ties in with events in the larger world, this would make the story more complicated than it needs to be.

The second and more logical way for Elaine to have met Cowl is before she went to Summer.  Cowl could hidden Elaine for a few days and either won Elaine over to his cause through persuasion or nemfected her and the implanted personality within Elaine convinced her to work with Cowl.  Cowl could have told Elaine that the only way to remain hidden from the White Council was to disappear for a while and suggested the best way to do this was to approach Summer for help.  Again, the nemfected agent within Elaine would have agreed with this plan and could have directed Elaine to nemfect Aurora once she was in Summer.  In theory, the real Elaine might not even know what she had done.  Elaine might have to have been made into a fine thrall for that to happen, but within the rules of the Dresdenverse it's something that's possible.

This leads to another possible objection; but more importantly, to other questions which have greater relevance to the larger story and to Harry specifically.  As I stated above, in Summer Knight Harry told Elaine that he had searched for her.  So, why didn't Harry find Elaine before she went to Summer?  For one thing, we don't know when Harry learned how to do that kind of a magical search.  Harry might not have learned how to do such a search until after he moved into Ebenezar's place and by that time it was too late to find Elaine.  It's at this point where the questions become really interesting.  If prior to his final showdown with Justin, Harry had learned how to do a magical search which could find Elaine in the mortal world, maybe Harry didn't have the time to perform such a search.  How much time did Harry have before the Wardens found him?  More specifically, exactly how long after Justin's death did the Wardens find Harry and why were they even looking for him or Justin at all?  Finally, whose idea was it to send the Wardens out in the first place?

Even if Elaine isn't Kumori, I think these latter questions may be pivotal to finding out who the other traitor is within the White Council.  Yes, through some arcane timey-wimey means, the Gatekeeper might have seen something to alert him, but do you really think Jim will use that device a second time?  He could, but IMO it's just too convenient, too easy a solution.  I think someone within the Council was in communication with Justin and when the former warden failed to make contact, they set out to find the reason why, or they knew about Harry, guessed what happened to Justin and sent the wardens to find Justin knowing they would find Harry.

I am looking forward to the time when we finally get a flashback scene which features Harry's battle with Justin but one that also tells us when and how Harry was captured by the Wardens.

I've seen people on Reddit and YouTube channels that cover the Dresden Files speculating that the Wizard of Chicago might become a mantle that would presumably would come with a set of currently undefined powers.  I suppose it's possible, but doesn't seem more likely that Harry; when he is acting as the Wizard of Chicago, might instead become a signatory of Mab's accords and become a recognized supernatural power in his own right?  Harry would still be a vassal of Winter when he is acting as the Winter Knight, just as Odin is a vassal of Winter when he is acting as Kringle.  The rest of the time Odin is a recognized power in his own right, so why couldn't Harry do that too?

The best thing about this happening is it would really get the Merlin and several others on The White Council really P.O.'d because instead of undercutting Harry by kicking him off the Council, they unleashed Harry and made him more influential than he could ever be as just another Warden.  In theory, Harry joining the accords as an independent power would also put Harry on the same footing as Marcone, which could also lead to interesting complications.

Harry would need three signatures acting as representatives of their various supernatural nations.  He should be able to get Molly's signature and Lara Raiths and he would only need one more after that.

I just think it's a really fun idea because despite the increase in prestige it would bring Harry, being a signatory of Mab's accords would almost certainly bring him many headaches as well.

This thread isn't about Rudolph's future; can he be redeemed, will Harry forgive him or will a dark entity offer Rudolph real power, like one of the Blackened Denarius coins.  (I like that last idea.)  This post is an open question about Jim's writing, about what he was trying to do when he introduced Rudolph in Fool Moon and used him again in Grave Peril.

I just started rereading the series again and just finished Grave Peril.  Now, I'm trying to remember if we see Rudolph again before Changes.  Maybe his name was mentioned once; that he'd left Special Investigations to go to Internal Affairs, but other than that I think he pretty much disappears from the overall story.

I'm wondering if the character of Rudolph is similar to Waldo Butters.  Perhaps Jim just needed a bumbling idiot and someone who couldn't believe what he was seeing when the Loup Garou was rampaging through S.I.'s HQ, but then decided to expand the character and make him a thorn in Harry's side. 

In Grave Peril we find out that Rudolph ran away rather than face Kravos and his demon.  So, by the third book Rudolph is a complete coward.  In Fool Moon, Rudolph is in shock and he's panicky, but he isn't running away.  Of course it helped that Carmichael told Rudolph to stay with Harry, but panicked as he was, at no time did it look like Rudolph would bolt and run.

Also in Grave Peril, Jim sneaks in a continuity error about Rudolph; which I don't think was an error at all, just another subtle indication we are watching events taking place across a multiverse.  After describing Rudolph running away from Kravos, Harry says, "Before that, I'd escaped police custody while he (Rudolph) was supposed to be watching me. I'd had a darn good reason to escape, and it wasn't really fair of him to hold that against me, but hey. Whatever got him through the day. " But that was wrong.  Rudolph wasn't at Harley MacFinn's mansion, or if he was we never saw him.  More important, it was detective Carmichael who put Harry in a police car and left him by himself, which allowed Tera West to help Harry escape.  (OK, this entire paragraph is a bit off topic, or maybe not.  I just had never noticed that continuity error before.)

Then there's this other bit of odd dialog between Rudolph and Harry in Grave Peril, after the Nightmare had attacked Murphy.  Rudolph's expression was serious, earnest. He'd never much liked me, anyway. ""You'd better not be a fake, Dresden," he said, quietly. "I'm not really sure what's going on here. But so help me God, if something happens to the lieutenant because of you ...  "I mean it, Dresden. If you let Murphy get hurt, I'll kill you."  What is that all about?  Does Rudy have a crush on Murphy, is that why he cares what happens to her, or is this more multiverse shenanigan's?  Maybe we are seeing a scene in one universe where there is a Rudolph who actually cares about the people he works with, someone who isn't a total jerk.  I don't know. 

To get back to my main point, am I forgetting something?  Is Rudolph in any of the books or short stories that run between and include Summer Knight and Turn Coat?  If not, is he mentioned in one of them?  I wonder if there are any more clues that I am missing.

This subject is for any odd or unusual situation or mystery you want to know more about or have explained.  Even if the mystery is something that Jim might never take the time to fully answer.

I was looking at the thread about the possible origins of the Red and White Courts of Vampires, and I started wondering about something Nicodemus said about the Red Court back in Small Favor.  Nic offered to help Harry wipe out the Red Court.  Specifically, Nic said of the Red Court, "They're large, well organized, dangerous to my plans, a plague upon mankind, and aesthetically repugnant. They're parasites who are inconvenient in the short term, dangerous in the middle distance, and fatal to any long-range plan. They need to be destroyed at some point, in any case."

Of course, there is no way to know why the Red Court were a threat to Nics plans until we find out exactly what those plans actually involve.  So far, I've haven't seen anyone make any detailed speculation on what Nic's long-term plan is.  I think there has been some talk about Nic; and by extension Anduriel, wanting to defeat the Outsiders, but do so in a way that probably wipes out most of humanity.  I could see the Red Court; if they were still around, not being very happy to see most of their food source disappear, but if Nic's plan involves the use of the Holly Grail or other items that were in Hades vault, I don't understand how the Red Court could get in Nic's way.

This isn't an huge issue or mystery like who fixed Little Chicago or who was responsible for Malcolm Dresden's death, but I don't want to see it get glossed over when Nic's plan or plans come into full view.

What odd or minor issue or mystery do you want to see explained?
     

So, I re-listened to the audio books of PT and BG while doing some hiking before the Summer temperatures exploded here (St. George, Utah which is at the Eastern end of the Mohave Desert) a few days ago.  I have to say I liked both books; especially BG, much more than when they came out two years ago.  I think because I already knew that PT didn't have a lot of actions scenes and I didn't have any expectations that I had the first time I read BG, it made a difference; though I still wouldn't rate either book or both together as being near the top of my best of Dresden Files list.

I'm wondering about the sign that Harry got Mac to nail up at the pub.  Talk about a Chekhov's Gun moment.  It looked like Mac might be forced to make a last stand against the Fomor and then we never saw him again.  I could be wrong, but I doubt Mac was with the crowd that followed Harry's Banner.  Perhaps once he nailed up the sign Mac was compelled to stay and defend that spot or perhaps his not quite mortal nature precluded him from coming under the influence of the Banner.  In any case, the sign and where it is now located will come into significance later, though I wonder when and in what way.

There has been some speculation about how long Thomas will remain imprisoned underneath Demon Reach, but I don't want to make guesses about that.  Prior to PT and BG there was some speculation that Thomas will one day take up Amoracchius; and I guess I could still see that happening, but there's a problem; actually two, that I don't see The Sword of Love helping to solve. 

I can envision a scenario where the new KotC saves Mr. Etri, his sister or perhaps both of them from some peril and that might balance the scales with Swartalves.  That, and an explanation that Thomas was compelled to attack Etri, it wasn't something he wanted to do.  Even if potential complications from that scenario get ironed out, how would that help Thomas with his need to feed?  The island can protect Thomas from his Hunger but what happens the moment he's released from captivity?  OK, let's say there's a solution to that problem, I don't see how taking up Amorachius would help Thomas with his Hunger and the demon behind it. 

Well wait a minute, maybe I can.  Removing the hunger demon from a White Court vampire would be fatal, but perhaps if Thomas took up Amorachius it would kill his inner demon; because love is poison to the White Court the Sword of Love should be equally poisonous, but protect the man who took up the holy sword.  Thomas would become a mortal human.  I suppose it could work, but that still doesn't do anything to get Justine back and free her from Nemesis.  I doubt that even Amorachius could help with that task.  That sword should be able to cut up Nemesis just fine; because when Michael was still a KotC Amorachius had no problem dealing with Outsiders, but unfortunately it would do the same thing to Justine, making the sword unusable.

Then again, we know one sword that appears to be capable of hurting Nemesis without harming Justine or her unborn child.  Fidelacchius seems made for the task and it's likely Nemesis wouldn't know a thing about its new abilities and limitations.  Nemesis would get a real surprise if Butters swung it at Justine.  One possible complication to Butters freeing Justine is he might be in more danger than usual.  If Butters didn't get sent a message from On High to help free Justine, if it was something Harry or Thomas asked Butters to do then Waldo might be at greater physical peril.  At least Harry believed that Michael was injured more often when Harry asked the Knight for his help rather than Michael's mission was Heaven sent.

The only other questions I have after BG are mostly issues that have already been widely discussed in other threads, like the possible long-term influence of Thorned Namshiel on Marcone.  It might take several books, but I suspect we will eventually see some sign that Marcone is changing for the worse.  There's also the question of Thorned Namshiel's feelings about Nicodemus.  Just because Marone would like to destroy Nicodemus that doesn't mean Thorned Namshiel thinks the same way.  I'm remembering the time Nicodemus called on Lasciel's shadow to paralyze Harry so Nic could recruit him.  There's no reason Thorned Namshiel shouldn't be able to do the same thing to Marcone.  That's not even a WAG, just an extreme thing that could happen if Marcone and TN's interests diverged from one another.     

When will Harry call upon Ethniu to do his bidding?  My guess is not for a long time.  One possible scenario would be when Harry has to deal with a kaiju, but that's just pure speculation without any real evidence to back it up.       

There are questions about Lara and the White Court, but some of those predate PT and BG and it appears we will be seeing a fair amount of her in the next novel, so that should be fun.  Of course, if the above scenario of Thomas taking up Amorachius and becoming a mortal human came true, Lara would not react well to that.  However, there's no guarantee that Thomas will be released from Demon Reach in the next book, so this could be a long-term issue.

Just when I think I'm finished there's always one more issue to cover.  I wonder what answer LTW will give Harry in one year, about what it means to be Starborn.  When Harry asked the Starborn question the first time, LTW essentially told Harry that he didn't have any other options than wait for a reply.  When LTW comes to tell Harry if he will answer his question, I'd like to see Harry start the conversation by telling LTW that if he can't or won't tell him what it really means to be Starborn, Harry has other sources who will give him the answers he's been seeking, and do so within the hour, because it's true.  Harry could ask Bonea about being Starborn; though if Harry didn't ask the right questions or ask them in the right way, he might not learn everything he really needs to know, but it would be a way of telling LTW; and the others who are in the know, that they can work with Harry or he can go his own way without them.  Mostly, I'm tired of waiting myself.  We've been waiting a long time for many different mysteries to be solved, I think it's time some of this jigsaw puzzle starts to get filled in a bit.   

I'm making an assumption that at some point Thomas will not only leave Demonreach prison, he will somehow manage to balance the scales with the Swartalves, so they're no longer invested in killing him.  Then again, for all we know the Swartalves could get wiped out.  No one is safe, and it happened to the Red Court so there's no reason it couldn't happen to them.  That would solve Thomas' problem too, though not in a very satisfying manner.

Once that issue is dealt with, how long must Harry keep it secret that Thomas is his half-brother?  Harry isn't a member of the White Council any more.  Other than not overtly breaking the Laws of Magic, Harry doesn't have to play by their cultural rules or worry about their politics.  Unless they decide to kill him, of course.  However, the one person it could hurt is Ebenezer; so, maybe I'm wrong about Harry not having to worry about White Council politics.  However, I'm not expecting Ebenezer to be around much longer, and once he's gone that issue disappears.   

Rather than undermining Harry I think the White Council may have actually empowered him by cutting him loose.  Any one else agree with me and can you think of another way no longer being a member of the Council may benefit Harry.

Oh yea, if Harry allows his family relationship with Thomas to become public, it takes away the leverage Lara has of knowing the secret.

There's only two things that I can think of at the moment, but I won't be surprised if there are other issues some of you might dream up.

First, I strongly doubt that TN will say anything to Marcone about assaulting Arctis Tor.  So when Mab decides to get payback against the spiny demon, I doubt Marcone will see it coming.

I would guess that TN would rather not talk about Harry kicking his ass and leaving his former host a complete mess.  However, even though Marcone didn't witness the fight in the Shedd Aquarium, I wouldn't be surprised if he noticed how badly Thorned Namshiel's former host's body was torn up after the denarians returned to Demonreach.  Though Marcone might feel it's both natural and necessary to ask the denarian for some details.