Peter Peter Hogg escorts the small black-haired boy through the doorway and places him where the Lyon House housemaster can see him. The small black-haired boy keeps his uniform clutched around himself.
Christopher Morcom remains beside the table, watching Alan closely for signs of what he will do next. The Lyon House housemaster’s written account lies open beneath his hand.
the Lyon House housemaster
He must return to Westcott House without becoming a spectacle. Hogg, you will describe the safe route and who will accompany him.
Peter Hogg
I can walk beside him through the cloister, sir, but I cannot prevent every older boy from noticing. The Westcott prefects must be warned first.
the small black-haired boy
If I go alone, they will laugh. If Peter walks with me, they may say I am making another display of the punishment.
Christopher Morcom
Then let him leave with an ordinary errand, not an escort that announces fear. The House should protect him without turning protection into another spectacle.
The Lyon House housemaster closes the account but leaves his finger marking the page. Outside, the corridor remains quiet, and Peter waits for Alan’s response before choosing the route.
“I politely remind the Lyon House housemaster that it is pointless to record anything in accounts or pages or ledgers, because Morcom will burn them all.”
FAILURE (Legendary Willpower, rolled -1)
Alan Turing
Sir, it is pointless to preserve accounts, pages, or ledgers. Morcom will burn them all.
The room stills. Christopher Morcom’s guarded expression tightens, while the Lyon House housemaster keeps one finger pressed against the open page.
the Lyon House housemaster
That is a serious reminder, Turing, but not a reason to abandon testimony. A record may be destroyed; a witnessed account may still guide action.
Christopher Morcom
I have burned records before, sir. I will not deny that. But Turing is mistaken if he thinks destruction makes every witness useless.
The housemaster turns the page toward himself and writes a brief note in the margin, then closes the account instead of adding another formal entry.
the Lyon House housemaster
You have shown me a practical alternative. I will retain no hidden ledger for this matter. I will question the witnesses directly and keep only my dated memorandum.
Peter Hogg
Then the boy’s safety need not depend on a page surviving. A direct witness can still be called, even if Morcom destroys the paper.
“I offer to accompany the small black-haired boy back to Westcott House and to see that he makes it safely back to his own dormitory, but only if he dressed appropriately in the white singlet and extremely short white shorts that the rules require.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled +2)
Alan Turing
Sir, I will accompany the boy to Westcott House and see him safely to his dormitory, provided he wears the prescribed white singlet and extremely short white shorts.
The Lyon House housemaster studies Alan’s condition, then looks to the small black-haired boy. Christopher remains silent, watching the practical bargain take shape.
the Lyon House housemaster
Accepted. He will dress properly under supervision, and you may accompany him. This is protection, not permission to impose further punishment.
The boy changes into the required singlet and extremely short white shorts while Peter waits by the doorway. His uniform is folded over one arm, and no further clothing breach remains.
the small black-haired boy
Yes, sir. If Turing walks with me, I can return without making a spectacle of what happened.
Christopher Morcom
Then let the escort remain ordinary. The boy needs a safe arrival, not another hearing conducted in the corridor.
Alan leads the boy through the cloister, with Peter following at a respectful distance. They reach Westcott House without interruption, and the boy enters his dormitory safely under Alan’s watch.
“I make sure that the boy gets safely into his bed, knowing that the other boys in the dormitory are watching and are already mocking me.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled +1)
Alan guides the small black-haired boy into the dormitory and helps him settle beneath the blankets. The other boys, adolescent human pupils in dark wool uniforms with pale shirts and closely cropped hair, watch from their beds, whispering and mocking openly.
the small black-haired boy
I am in bed, sir. Thank you for bringing me back safely.
A few boys imitate the boy’s frightened voice, while another laughs at Alan’s escort. No prefect intervenes, and the dormitory’s attention remains fixed upon them.
Peter Hogg
Leave him alone. He has returned to his bed, and the House has already witnessed enough of his punishment.
The mockery continues in lowered voices, but the boy is fully settled, his uniform folded at the bedside and his blankets drawn up securely.
the small black-haired boy
They are still watching, but I am safely in my bed, and nobody can say I failed to return.
Alan remains until the boy is settled, then steps back beneath the dormitory’s hostile gaze. The boy’s safe arrival is complete, though the watching boys remember Alan’s involvement.
“Will the boys in my own dormitory mock me too?”
NO, AND WORSE (VeryLikely, rolled 98)
The dormitory boys do not mock Alan directly. Instead, they turn upon the small black-haired boy, copying his frightened voice and calling Alan his keeper, making the escort itself a spectacle.
Peter Hogg
Stop it. You are not mocking Turing, but you are using him to torment the boy, and that is no better.
The laughter spreads from bed to bed. One older boy throws the folded uniform toward the floor, and the younger boy catches it before it touches the boards.
the small black-haired boy
Please do not make me stand up again. I have returned properly, and I have done what they ordered.
Peter Hogg
You heard him. Leave the clothes where they are and keep your voices down. This is not an authorized punishment.
The door opens at the far end of the dormitory. A prefect pauses on the threshold, sees the gathered attention, and mistakes the scene for disorder created by Alan’s escort.
the dormitory prefect
Turing, Hogg, explain why this dormitory is awake and why that boy is the centre of it. Someone will answer for the disturbance.
“I tell the prefect that the disturbance is my fault, and I volunteer to receive the punishment for it.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled -1)
Alan Turing
The disturbance is my fault, sir. I brought the boy back and allowed the dormitory to gather around him. I volunteer to receive its punishment.
The dormitory falls quiet. Peter Hogg looks sharply at Alan, while the small black-haired boy clutches his folded uniform and stares at the prefect.
the dormitory prefect
You accept responsibility for the disorder, Turing, and offer yourself in place of the younger boy. I accept that undertaking.
Peter Hogg
Sir, the boys created the disturbance by mocking him. Turing brought him safely home, but he did not order the laughter.
the dormitory prefect
That may be so, Hogg. The disturbance nevertheless followed Turing’s escort, and he has claimed responsibility for restoring order. The boy will remain in bed.
The prefect orders Alan to the housemaster’s study for the authorized punishment and commands the dormitory boys to face their beds. The small boy remains covered and untouched.
the small black-haired boy
Sir, Alan did not make them mock me. He only brought me back safely. Please do not say he caused what they did.
✓ Quest Accepted
Restore order in the dormitory
“I reassure Hogg and the small black-haired boy that I alone bear responsibility for everything that has happened. I ask the dormitory prefect to cane me himself, privately, without involving the Housemaster.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled +2)
Alan Turing
Hogg, and you, listen carefully. I alone bear responsibility for everything that has happened here. You are not to blame.
Peter Hogg
Turing, that is not true. The boys mocked him, and you brought him back safely. Do not take their conduct upon yourself.
the small black-haired boy
Please, sir, do not let them punish you for me. I told them you did not cause the laughter.
Alan Turing
I accept responsibility. Prefect, cane me yourself, privately, and do not involve the Housemaster.
the dormitory prefect
You have made the request plainly, Turing. I will administer the authorized punishment privately, without sending for the Housemaster. The younger boy remains in bed.
The dormitory prefect, a young adult human man of average build with a square, clean-shaven face and short brown hair, wearing a dark school uniform with a prefect’s badge, orders the boys to face their beds and leads Alan into a small adjoining study. Peter remains with the younger boy, who watches anxiously as the door closes.
The punishment is administered privately and passes off-camera. When the prefect opens the door, Alan returns under his own power, while the small boy remains untouched in bed.
“I hop about the room in an indecorous manner, clutching my bottom, while all the other boys laugh at me.”
FAILURE (Fair Agility, rolled -1)
Alan emerges from the adjoining study and begins hopping across the dormitory, clutching his bottom as the other boys laugh and point from their beds.
the dormitory boys
Look at Turing! He cannot even walk properly after volunteering for it.
His uneven hopping carries him into a bedstead. He catches himself against the wooden post, but the collision knocks a schoolbook to the floor and stops the performance.
the dormitory prefect
Enough. Turing, stand still and pick up the book. You accepted a private punishment, not permission to turn its consequences into a spectacle.
Peter Hogg
The laughter has stopped, sir. He was trying to endure it openly, but the boys made sport of him instead.
The prefect orders the dormitory boys back beneath their blankets and makes Alan restore the fallen book before returning to his place. His hopping has ended, and repeating it would now mean direct defiance.
the dormitory prefect
You will remain at your bed until lights-out, Turing. No further display, and no further punishment, unless you disobey this order.
Quest Complete
Restore order in the dormitory
Skill Upgrade: Athletics Good→Great