Feb 26, 2023
I do wonder how things would have gone for her, if Tania had been brought into the fold earlier of House Raith.
Tania around during events of Blood Rites at ten / White Night at thirteen with the major events there.
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I do wonder how things would have gone for her, if Tania had been brought into the fold earlier of House Raith.
Tania around during events of Blood Rites at ten / White Night at thirteen with the major events there.
The more I think about it, given both are young full-fledged vampiric members of the Raith family I do think Thomas and Tania do serve as a foil of sorts to each other.
Thomas is someone who is deliberately trying not to be a monster, to be better. To either do some good, or at least minimise the harm he causes. Something that has greatly estranged himself from the family that he is trying to be different from, shifting along the gradient of black sheep to outright exile depending on the book. Along with most non-vampires still seeing him as much more a monster than he is no matter what. He also survived for a really long time by trying to appear as dumb as rocks. Underestimated not perceived as a threat.
Tania on the other hand, is genuinely an unrepentant monster who does terrible things as we see Jury Duty. But at the same time throughout there, she is consistently trying to appear worse - more of a bigger, badder monster than what she actually is. Dropping she’s House Raith the first chance she gets, playing herself up as knowing how it’s done in playing the Game/court politics, the savvy one in the room with all the cards and information the wizard doesn’t have. Then of course there is this reprehensively evil threat-
“I think I’ll keep her for a day or two. Just until the trial is over. That will be best for everyone involved.” | “You’ll give her to me. Now.” | “I think not. I have no desire to harm this child, Dresden. But if you try to take her from me, I will, reluctantly, be forced to kill her.”
Escalating to her threatening to make her men shoot Dresden, counting down and having them point their guns. But...as soon as violence actually happens?
“I’d been right about Tania. She was new to this kind of game. She’d been sitting there with a stunned look on her face at the abruptness of the violence.”
She freezes completely solid like a deer in headlight (and we have seen Thomas react faster to threats than an eye can follow). Completely taken off guard and as it says there, she had not actually expected violence to erupt. Meaning the threat to kill the child if Dresden became violent was only that, a bluff. Even the intent to release her after a few days betrays her here too. The child is a loose thread who knows identities/secrets - I can guarantee most White Court wouldn’t have abducted and stashed her away somewhere to then let go at a better time.
As a final note with a personal theory - I do think she is a House bastard (specifically unknowingly Madrigal’s) who was discovered and brought into the fold late/some point after her Hunger awoke. Hence why she is overcompensating and trying to prove herself as a proper Raith. This means that there may be more positive associations to the family for her too; going from a mess of feelings and a first feeding/new Hunger she wouldn’t understand to finding out she is not alone, with Lara taking the role of teaching her to be a WCV. Contrast again Thomas who actually grew up with them all and what was felt towards them after his awakening was pain and immense betrayal, even beyond the secrecy kept from him. Also taught to be a WCV, but also isolated even more from them all as time goes on + father attempting to murder him.
I don’t have a conclusion, but it’s interesting to muse on.
AU where Madrigal had been forced to realise Tania was actually his and meet/claim/take her in compilation:
Larry Fowler: And in the case of baby Tania, the results are in...Mr Darby Crane, you...ARE the father!
Madrigal Raith: Bullshit!
Jury Duty and in General:
Title: Thomas and the Fanclub
featuring Thomas and the young WClings that cheer him on (that he isn't actually aware of)
floating heads: Edith, Ezekiel, and Tania
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Summary:
“As of the books timeline, Madrigal never knew about Tania - dismissing the claim of her being his a scam and having his lawyer silence an annoying doe who insisted it, before forgetting about the matter entirely.
But what if the other Raith's had become aware much earlier, of what he had led to - and for once the scorned fear eater had been made to take responsibility for his own actions?
A child acquired and custody given.“
Dresden’s Jury Duty POV: