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Thomas Raith is a White Court vampire, member of House Raith, and half-brother to Harry Dresden. He first appears in Grave Peril.

Biography[]

Thomas Raith

Thomas Raith by Kreugan

He has grey, or blue-grey, eyes,[2] although they lighten to grey, silver, chrome and white consecutively when his Hunger gains influence. His hair is shoulder-length (though he cuts it after it gets burned by a flaming arrow in Small Favor) curly, and black. He has very white teeth and a good build.

Harry Dresden describes him as "a predator angel",[3] "unwholesomely good-looking",[4] "like someone's painting of the forgotten Greek god of body cologne",[5] "built like the high priest of Bowflex",[Footnote 1] "awfully pretty to look at",[6] "a young man whom fathers of teenage daughters would shoot on sight",[7] and that he "made all those Spartans in that movie[Footnote 2] look like slackers, and he didn't even use an airbrush."[8] Anastasia Luccio thinks that Thomas Raith doesn't look like his brother except for the jaw and the shape of the eyes.[9]

Raith, however, is a deeper, more caring person than he wants to reveal. His flaky attitude turns out to have a purpose—all his vampire brothers have been murdered by their father, and he risks putting his lover Justine in danger if he shows more than passing affection for her, as well as a wish to be underestimated by his enemies.[2]

In the case of others, especially ones who are a danger to his loved ones, he can be brutally blunt and downright callous, such as describing Waldo Butters as a coward and advising Dresden that the nervous coroner would only endanger him.[5]

Raith has a sense of humor and irony about his situation and his crazy family. He does, however, experience guilt over his incubus-like nature, and tries to minimize the damage he causes.[1] After being tortured by the Skinwalker, Shagnasty, his personality takes a change toward being more predatory.[10]

Raith lives with Dresden starting from the end of Blood Rites,[11] throughout Dead Beat,[5] to Proven Guilty.[12] He is a massive slob: he lives almost exclusively on beer and microwave meals and leaves the private rooms of his chic apartment an undecorated mess.[13]

Thomas's approach to any given combat is with a maximum of power, speed, and aggressive ferocity.[14]

In Turn Coat, Raith is a White Court Celebrity after the coup attempt.[15]

In Changes, his personality seems to be more like in the past, even regaining his joking manner. He is more entrenched in White Court politics with his sister, stating that he plays for the home team now and everyone knows it, so if his sister lets something bad happen to him a lot of people will get upset.[16] He mourns deeply Dresden's death, and he stops trying to appear human, not wearing shoes outside in the winter, or changing his clothing.[17]

He's born on Valentine's Day.[18]

Thomas Raith is the son of White Court vampire Lord Raith and human wizard Margaret LeFay. His mother left when he was about five;[2] she then had another son. Raith has nine other half-siblings on his father's side: Lara, Inari, Elisa, Natalia, and five other sisters, one of whom is allegedly insane and kept "more or less in the attic."[19] He also has several cousins, including Madeline and Madrigal.

Possessions[]

Thomas Raith wears a memento of his mother, a silver pentacle identical to his brother's, which he received from her for his fifth birthday before she ran away from his father.[20]

Raith owns a small hair salon-coffee shop, the Coiffure Cup, which he works in and manages.[1] It is no longer mentioned after Turn Coat.

On occasion, he is known to use a Desert Eagle pistol;[21][22][Footnote 3] a sawed-off shotgun;[23] a U.S. cavalry saber and a kukri[Footnote 4] on a regular basis;[13][24][20] and a falcata sword.[25][Footnote 5]

A number of cars, two of which, a Hummer[7] and a Jaguar, get destroyed.[8] The Hummer was fixed and back in action in Cold Days.[26]

Raith owns the Water Beetle, presumably named as a nod to the Blue Beetle, a slightly run down tugboat which is introduced in White Night.[27]

Abilities[]

Thomasraith-small

Illustration by DauntingFire

Thomas Raith is faster and stronger than a normal human. His kind age slowly, if at all. He can heal from almost anything short of actual death, as long as he keeps his Hunger demon fed.[28] He's a good swordfighter and a decent marksman,[29] a good liar and consummate actor.[30]

Like all of the Raiths who feed on lust, he is burned by the touch of one who has the mark of true love on them, or touching objects embedded with love (such as wedding rings).

His Hunger is described in Backup as being one of the strongest of the Raiths, second only to Lara's after Lord Raith had been crippled by Margaret LeFay's death curse.[20][31] With the deaths of senior Lords in White Night, his ranking in raw power across the whole court has been presumably increased.[32] The battle against his Hunger is a constant struggle for Thomas, and not one that he always wins.[20]

Raith is a Venator and, as such, he can perform some basic magic, like a tracking spell. However, he is a poor spellcaster and it takes him several moments to cast one.[20] Dresden notes that he has some of their mother's ability to sense magic, but not close enough to be a wizard.[33] Like all White Court vampires, he has the ability to cross into the Nevernever at certain places, either places of lust[34] or those significant to him like the Deeps where he nearly died.[1]

Relationships[]

Raith family[]

Thomas would sooner tear off his own arm than see one of his siblings hurt. He’s quite irrational about it.Lara Raith[35]

His father, Lord Raith, used to kill his own sons before they get ideas of knocking him off or out of power.[36] Thomas Raith hates him and his psychotic cousins. He seems to have a decent relationship with his sister Lara, though she's manipulative and emotionally distant. He is fiercely loving and protective of his baby sister, Inari.[37][2] Raith expresses his concerns about his other siblings' fates in Changes when Dresden contacted him to save Maggie from being sacrifice for the bloodline curse[16].

Harry Dresden[]

You’ve invented a doll that turns people into their ugly half brothers, eh?— Raith, when Harry Dresden gives him a doll that makes him appear like Dresden.[38]

He is especially close to Harry Dresden, often confessing things to him that he wouldn't tell others. Ever since the two have discovered being half-brothers, they have become quickly close. Thomas Raith often refers to Dresden as 'little brother' or just 'brother'. Even though they annoy each other, they appear to keep a close connection to each other. Raith often gives Dresden advice on things, though mostly encouraging him to get over Susan Rodriguez and ask Karrin Murphy out.[39]

In "War Cry", Raith admitted that he felt closer to his brother than the rest of his White Court siblings in his inner thoughts after he rescued him and his fellow wizards from the Red Court armies lead by Bravosa. He admired him and was willing to do anything for him.[40]

In Blood Rites, Karrin Murphy guesses that he is family when Dresden refuses to tell him to get lost. Dresden confirms that Thomas is his half-brother, that their mother used to hang around Lord Raith.[36]

Lara Raith picks up that there's more to the relationship between the two of them. When Dresden points out that Thomas's mother was Margaret LeFay, she puts it together that they are brothers. Then Lara states to Dresden that they are much alike.

In It's My Birthday, Too, Molly Carpenter revealed she knew they were brothers based on their fights when Dresden suggested to get Thomas a birthday present.

In Turn Coat, Anastasia Luccio realizes their relation when Justine almost mentions the word brother before Dresden cuts her off. She knew their mother.[9]

Justine[]

Raith meets Justine, the love of his life, at Zero, almost five years before the events of Blood Rites.[41] Justine is roughly 16 years old at the time.[42]

He almost kills her, but manages to stop at the last possible moment, despite the seeming impossibility. She is weak for a while, but eventually recovers when she should have died. However, this causes her to have the mark of true love on her, and Thomas Raith can no longer touch her directly without burning himself.[11] Harry Dresden sees this as very tragic.[41]

In Turn Coat, Raith and Dresden meet Justine at Zero. Raith drops to his knees at her feet and wraps his arms around her waist while she wound her arms around his neck. They embrace and hold each other a long time with Justine dressed in a flattering white rubber outfit that protects Raith from getting burned by touching any part of her. According to Dresden, the irony of their relationship is like a "kick in the balls".[43]

In the series[]

Grave Peril[]

In Grave Peril, Thomas Raith met Harry Dresden and Michael Carpenter for the first time, at the entry to Bianca St. Claire's ball.[44] Raith shelters Dresden from Bianca's rage at the outset invoking the Laws of hospitality. During the socializing phase of the evening, he comes up to warn his brother that the wine is poisoned with Vampire venom, but it was too late, Dresden having already downed his glass.[45]

During the gift-giving portion of the Ball, Raith asks Dresden to stand with Justine while he went up to collect his "gift" from Bianca St. Claire. Justine asks Dresden to aid them in escaping the Ball. She tells Dresden that Lord Raith was invited but he sent Raith which is an insult as he is the least regarded in the White Court. According to her, Bianca would kill Raith and make her into one of her whores. Raith returns with his gift, a condo in Hawaii and a single airline ticket.[46] Raith tries to prevent Dresden from interfering with Mavra killing Lydia, but joins with him when he couldn't. He helpfully tells Dresden and Carpenter to aim for the bellies, as an injury there will empty the vampires' blood supply. He states they must take out Bianca as their only chance to survive. Bianca grabs Justine and Raith switched sides pushing Susan Rodriguez into a crowd of vampires—she's overtaken by them. Bianca orders Raith killed. Dresden sets everything on fire in his rage.[47]

Raith somehow escapes, bringing Amoracchius to Dresden and Carpenter as a show of faith along with an offer to team up to rescue Rodriguez and Justine.[30] While in his brother's apartment, Raith helps subdue Lydia when she is possessed by the Nightmare.[48] While taking the Ways through the Nevernever, they are set upon by the Leanansidhe and her hounds. Raith and Michael hold her off while Dresden goes on alone to Bianca St. Claire's mansion to rescue the women. They both manage to survive the confrontation and escape back to Chicago, emerging at a local strip club, to Michael's irritation.[49]

Death Masks[]

In Death Masks, Thomas Raith acts as a second for the duel with Duke Ortega[50][51] and was secretly conspiring with Susan and Martin.[52] He had been pushed into it by his father, Lord Raith, in an attempt to do away with him.[53][36]

Blood Rites[]

In Blood Rites, Thomas Raith gets Dresden involved in Arturo Genosa's Evil Eye curse. He also informs Dresden that they have the same mother and they soulgaze.[2]

Later, Dresden rescues Raith from a ritual sacrifice by Lord Raith who was attempting to use the Malocchio to kill both of Margaret LeFay's children and end her death curse on him.[54] In the end, he gets thrown out of the Raith household, and ends up living with Dresden, rent free, in exchange for paying off Jared Kincaid's bill.[11]

Dead Beat[]

In Dead Beat, Harry Dresden is quite angry about Thomas Raith's inability to hold down a job, and his constant need to bring girls over to the house and live like a slob.[5] Raith helps defend against Grevane's zombie invasion at Dresden's house, and, despite his misgivings about him, helps protect Waldo Butters.[55]

Later it is revealed that Thomas joined the Wild Hunt for a short time. Afterwards he got a job as a hairdresser and began feeding in the process.

"War Cry"[]

In "War Cry", Raith follows his half-brother's team to Montezuma, IA, and joins the fight, killing two of Bravosa's vampires and his assistant. The mention of a shoggoth scares him to hell, but he informs his brother and Catherine Taylor's team that the White Court is sending a cadre of mortals to back Bravosa.

When Bill Meyers bring the house they're occupying on the White Court forces, and Dresden releases the Shoggoth on the Red Court vampires, he joins forces with him to lure the monster to a nearby abandoned quarry, where they destroy it.[40]

Proven Guilty[]

In Proven Guilty, Raith gets a job and his own apartment, moving out, as he does not wish for Harry Dresden to get in trouble with the White Council for being friends with a vampire, since Dresden's a Warden now.[12] He reveals that he started feeding more heavily again after he joined the Erlking's Wild Hunt in Dead Beat.[56] Dresden's very worried about him. He saved Dresden from being sold on eBay by Madrigal Raith.[57] Raith joins Dresden, Murphy, and Charity to find, plan and prepare how to rescue Molly Carpenter.[58]

White Night[]

In White Night, Thomas Raith matches a description given by members of the Ordo Lebes of the man killing off practitioners. Harry Dresden uses his key to enter his apartment, and finds a war room filled with incriminating photos, notes, maps and weaponry making the vampire a murder suspect.[59] It turns out that he'd been rescuing them and shuttling them to a safehouse on an island with the Water Beetle.[27]

Raith is part of a team—including Murphy with her P-90, Marcone, Gard, Hendricks and a team of Soldiers of Valhalla—that entered the Deeps from the Nevernever to fight with Dresden against an attempted coup by Houses Skavis and Malvora and the ghouls that Vittorio Malvora let in along with Cowl.[23] Dresden continues to worry about him, and follows him at the end of the book. It turns out that he's feeding so well because he's taking very tiny bites out of his clients. He owns his own shop—the Coiffure Cup—where he pretends to be a gay French hairdresser, about which he is too embarrassed to tell his brother.

"Down Town"[]

In "Down Town", Harry Dresden asks him if he knows anything about a hard resinous substance, but he denies it..[60]

"It's My Birthday, Too"[]

In "It's My Birthday, Too", Thomas Raith is playing Evernight at Woodfield Mall, as a favor to Sarah. When Harry Dresden joins him to give him a birthday present, a Black Court vampire attacks the company and is repelled in a bloody battle.[18]

"Wild Card"[]

In "Wild Card", Thomas Raith is the intermediary between Harry Dresden and Lara Raith during the Puck crisis. This costs him his Jaguar, which he loses in a fight against a Giant owl.[40]

Small Favor[]

In Small Favor, with his secret out of the way, he stopped avoiding Dresden, and the two seem to rekindle their shared brotherly bond.[61] Raith had Dresden's back when Torelli and thugs tried a coup at Executive Priority while Dresden was there and saved him from being shot.[62] Raith helps in the first Denarian fight against Tessa, saving Gard and Hendricks.[63] He appears in most of the book though has to stay low since Luccio's in town. Later, he saves Dresden from the Denarians at Demonreach.[64]

Backup[]

In Backup, Thomas Raith enters one of the many skirmishes of the Oblivion War, following his brother searching for a kidnapped child, and falls in a trap set by a Stygian which tries to bring forth ancient goddesses and demons as a route to power. He ultimately foils the plot.[20]

Turn Coat[]

In Turn Coat, Thomas Raith takes his brother to Zero to meet Justine for information. She gives Dresden a copy of a Craig's List wanted poster on Morgan intended to draw every supernatural hitman out to kill him. While there, Madeline shows up and threatens Justine. Raith beats and pins her to a table with chopsticks, has Justine kiss her burning her forehead.[43]

Anastasia Luccio learns that Raith is Dresden's brother and that Margaret LeFay had been with Lord Raith during the years that she disappeared.[9] He's kidnapped by the Naagloshii. Raith is repeatedly tortured by the Naagloshii until he is barely alive, then fed a succession of young women, thus being forced to indulge his Hunger multiple times. After Dresden rescues him, Raith starts hanging out with his sister Lara more and feeding very heavily again. He says he has finally accepted who he is and will not go back.

Changes[]

In Changes, Thomas Raith meets Harry Dresden at Rudolph's house. Dresden tell him that he's an uncle, that Arianna Ortega of the Red Court has his daughter, Maggie, and plans to use her in a Bloodline curse that will kill her entire family, including Raith as Dresden's brother. He asks for Thomas's help in getting information on Chichén Itzá's security and defensive magic, sightings of a little girl surrounded by Reds. Raith suggests asking Lara for help, she may not help Dresden so much as want to save him, her brother. And she's gifted at removing obstacles. The House they are at is where Rudolph lives. He's been coerced into helping whoever is trying to stop Dresden. He hopes to nab his handler or cleaner to gather what information he can.[16] Raith, Mouse, Dresden and Molly Carpenter do battle with and Ik'k'uox at Rudolph's house.[65]

Raith helped rescue Maggie. He joins Dresden's team and is at the planning meeting at Saint Mary of the Angels. The team includes Sanya, Susan Rodriguez, Molly Carpenter, Mouse, Martin, Murphy, Harry Dresden, the Leanansidhe—that's nine like the Fellowship.[29] He goes with them though the Ways to Chichén Itzá and battles heroically against the Reds.[66] He stands guard over Carpenter in the heat of battle when she's wounded on the ground.[67] He left on a Navy helicopter with Carpenter and Mouse.[10]

Ghost Story[]

In Ghost Story, Thomas Raith looks awful, he's stopped taking care of himself and started drinking at a failed attempt to cope with the loss of Harry Dresden's death, and Raith's guilt about it. Justine decided to drop her protection by sleeping with another woman, so that she could comfort him as many times as necessary.[17]

Cold Days[]

In Cold Days, Thomas Raith and Harry Dresden meet on the Water Beetle; when he realizes that his brother is actually alive, Raith gets very angry for not having been contacted and asked for help. But he helps Dresden to get to Demonreach. Getting back from the island, the three of them fight the Redcap and his cronies, and Raith accepts to fight at Dresden's side,[68] later bringing him up to Chicago's current political situation and the new alliances caused by the expansion of the Fomors.[26]

Dresden hexed Lara Raith's spying devices in Thomas's apartment. Raith was not happy when Cat Sith just appeared inside his threshold, but was mollified when Cat Sith assured him, he was bound by the Laws of hospitality. Raith apologized to Cat Sith and offered him a favor as restitution.[69]

Later, at McAnally's Pub, he warned Dresden not to ignore the predator instincts of the Winter Knight's Mantle, but to pay attention so as to control them.[70] Outsider He Who Walks Before attacks the pub and Raith fights alongside Dresden and McAnally. Raith was not allowed at Dresden's meeting with Lily.[71]

Bombshells[]

In Bombshells, he is sent to spy in the Svartalf headquarter in Chicago, and is discovered, prompting the Leanansidhe to send Molly Carpenter after him. He is found paying retribution by having sex with as many Svartalf females as possible.[72]

Peace Talks[]

In Peace Talks, Raith is running with Harry Dresden on Montrose Beach when he informs his brother that Justine is pregnant.[73] Later on, in a meeting with Ebenezar McCoy at Dresden's place, Raith and McCoy both show intense animosity against each other; only Dresden's invocation of the Laws of hospitality brings them under control.[74] After that, for reasons unknown, Thomas Raith attempts to murder Etri of Svartalfheim, failing but managing to kill Austri in the process.[75]

Part of the process of being taken into the cells is… You suffer the pain you’ve inflicted on others. It was meant to get through to the most alien of beings, why they were being imprisoned. It’s not fair. It’s not meant for people. It could hurt you. But if I don’t do it, you’re going to die.Harry Dresden to his delirious brother

Raith is then captured and placed in the custody of the Svartalves, too broken to speak much. In custody, the Svartalves slowly torture him and force his Hunger to heal the damage, starving it and forcing it to feed on his own life force, leaving him meek and slowly dying.[76] Dresden manages to rescue him, with Lara Raith using her reserves to keep his Hunger at bay until they arrive at Demonreach. Before reaching the island, McCoy learns his identity as his second grandson but the idea of having a White Court as his family sends him into a blind rage and tries to eliminate him along with others on the boat with his magic[77]. There, Dresden's only option to prevent his brother's Hunger from killing him is to imprison him and his Hunger inside the Well beneath Demonreach. Half dead and half mad, Raith tries to warn Dresden that Justine is infected by Nemesis, but cannot make himself understood.[78] He is then consigned to the horrific agony of entering the prison below.[79]

Word of Jim[]

Thomas and Justine’s relationship is really weird. I know what the relationship is in my head like right now. They’re actually happier now than they’ve been in ever. But it’s all happening behind the scenes and nobody can see because Thomas has to have his bad ass vampire face on whenever he’s in public. But when they are alone together, nothing else going on, they’re like totally cute. Justine wears like these grownup version of footie pajamas so that she can snuggle up next to him on the couch and watch TV without actually burning him. They don’t have like a normal relationship or anything like one, but they’ve kinda adjusted, they’re fairly happy. You don’t go around letting the other vampires go ‘Oh how cute.’ I’ll have to get to that one of these days, Harry doesn’t see that.Jim Butcher on Justine and Thomas Raith’s relationship.[80]

Notes[]

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 White Night, ch. 43
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Blood Rites, ch. 21
  3. Blood Rites, ch. 4
  4. Blood Rites, ch. 1
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Dead Beat, ch. 1
  6. Proven Guilty, ch. 5
  7. 7.0 7.1 Small Favor, ch. 8
  8. 8.0 8.1 Turn Coat, ch. 3
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 Turn Coat, ch. 28
  10. 10.0 10.1 Turn Coat, ch. 49
  11. 11.0 11.1 11.2 Blood Rites, ch. 42
  12. 12.0 12.1 Proven Guilty, ch. 18
  13. 13.0 13.1 White Night, ch. 7
  14. Small Favor, ch. 17
  15. Turn Coat, ch. 7
  16. 16.0 16.1 16.2 Changes, ch. 24
  17. 17.0 17.1 Ghost Story, ch. 50
  18. 18.0 18.1 It's My Birthday, Too
  19. 2011 Bitten by Books Q&A
  20. 20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 20.4 20.5 Backup
  21. Small Favor, ch. 11
  22. Cold Days, ch. 15
  23. 23.0 23.1 White Night, ch. 39
  24. White Night, ch. 40
  25. Cold Days, ch. 45
  26. 26.0 26.1 Cold Days, ch. 19
  27. 27.0 27.1 White Night, ch. 20
  28. Blood Rites, ch. 5
  29. 29.0 29.1 Changes, ch. 39
  30. 30.0 30.1 Grave Peril, ch. 31
  31. Blood Rites, ch. 38
  32. White Night, ch. 39-40
  33. Peace Talks, ch. 11
  34. Grave Peril, ch. 39
  35. Blood Rites, ch. 36
  36. 36.0 36.1 36.2 Blood Rites, ch. 34
  37. Blood Rites, ch. 16
  38. Small Favor, ch. 10
  39. Proven Guilty, ch. 47
  40. 40.0 40.1 40.2 "War Cry"
  41. 41.0 41.1 Turn Coat, ch. 8
  42. Timeline - jim-butcher.com
  43. 43.0 43.1 Blood Rites, ch. 8
  44. Grave Peril, ch. 24
  45. Grave Peril, ch. 25-26
  46. Grave Peril, ch. 29
  47. Grave Peril, ch. 30
  48. Grave Peril, ch. 32
  49. Grave Peril, ch. 32-33
  50. Death Masks, ch. 17
  51. Death Masks, ch. 29
  52. Death Masks, ch. 30
  53. Death Masks, ch. 18
  54. Blood Rites, ch. 40-41
  55. Dead Beat, ch. 22-23
  56. Proven Guilty, ch. 29
  57. Proven Guilty, ch. 28–29
  58. Proven Guilty, ch. 33–34
  59. White Night, ch. 19
  60. "Down Town"
  61. Small Favor, ch. 8-11 and on
  62. Small Favor, ch.11 and on
  63. Small Favor, ch.13
  64. Small Favor, ch.43
  65. Changes, ch. 25
  66. Turn Coat, ch. 40–48
  67. Turn Coat, ch. 47
  68. Cold Days, ch. 14
  69. Cold Days, ch. 20
  70. Cold Days, ch. 21–22
  71. Cold Days, ch. 22-23
  72. "Bombshells"
  73. Peace Talks, ch. 1
  74. Peace Talks, ch. 3
  75. Peace Talks, ch. 7
  76. Peace Talks, ch. 27
  77. Peace Talks, ch. 32
  78. Battle Ground, ch. 35
  79. Peace Talks, ch. 34
  80. Jim Butcher Mysterious Galery Q&A @5:10

See also[]

External links[]

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