O’Hanlon keeps the damaged shorts in his study and secures the memorandum. Alan remains covered by the dark academic gown as Peter Peter Hogg waits beside the door.
Peter Hogg
Sir, I will escort Turing back, but I will not accept blame for the destroyed records or for conduct I did not commit.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
That condition is understood, Hogg. Take him directly to Westcott House, return the gown afterward, and bring him before me once properly dressed.
Peter Peter Hogg leads Alan through the cloister while Alan holds the gown closed. Their passage draws curious looks, but no older boy interrupts the housemaster’s authorized escort.
In the dormitory, the small black-haired boy is awake beneath his blankets. The dormitory prefect stands beside the adjoining study, waiting with his memorandum open.
the dormitory prefect
Turing, before you dress, answer the matter already reported. Do you withdraw your proposal that Hogg be punished, or do you defend it?
Peter Hogg
Sir, I will hear Turing’s answer, but I will not accept punishment for the Goat’s destruction or be made responsible for his judgment.
“I ask why the Goat was destroyed.”
SUCCESS (Superb Reasoning, rolled +1)
Alan Turing
Why was the Goat destroyed, sir?
Peter pauses with the gown’s sleeve still extended toward Alan. The dormitory prefect lowers his memorandum, and even the small black-haired boy lifts his head beneath the blankets.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
The Goat was not destroyed, Turing. It is alive and has eaten the records. You are asking about the loss of the papers.
Peter Hogg
Yes, sir. The Goat destroyed the memorandum and slips by chewing them, but nobody destroyed the Goat.
the dormitory prefect
I witnessed the papers disappear. The animal remains outside the study, entirely unharmed, and the attendance ruling remains in force.
O’Hanlon’s correction settles the ambiguity. The Goat’s appetite caused the destruction of the records, while the animal itself remains alive and beyond any punishment Alan proposed.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
If you mean why the records were destroyed, the answer is the Goat’s chewing, not an authorized act by any boy. Now dress properly and answer the prefect’s question.
“Tha Goat ate the records because records are wrong. No organisation is allowed to keep records about people. Ledgers are banned. Records are banned. All other types of records are banned.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled +0)
Alan Turing
The Goat ate the records because records are wrong. No organisation may keep records about people. Ledgers and every other kind of record are banned.
The dormitory falls silent. Peter lowers the gown, the small black-haired boy watches from beneath his blankets, and the dormitory prefect’s open memorandum becomes suddenly precarious evidence.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
You are proposing that every institutional record concerning people cease to exist, Turing. That is a grave administrative change.
the dormitory prefect
Then my memorandum, the attendance slips, and every disciplinary account are forbidden. I cannot continue keeping them.
Peter Hogg
If the papers vanish, sir, witnesses must be heard directly. But nobody should be punished merely because a record once existed.
O’Hanlon closes the memorandum and removes the attendance slips from the prefect’s hand. He orders every ledger, register, memorandum, and personal record concerning boys destroyed or surrendered.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
The ban is accepted. From this moment, no organisation in this House may keep records about people. Decisions will rest on present testimony, not written archives.
“Do the adults feel happy about this, being finally lifted from what was holding them down?”
YES (Unlikely, rolled 8)
For a moment, the adults say nothing. Then O’Hanlon’s shoulders ease, as though a burden has been lifted from them, while the dormitory prefect closes his empty memorandum.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
Yes, Turing. There is relief in it. Records have made every decision feel permanent before the witnesses have finished speaking.
the dormitory prefect
I am glad to be rid of them, sir. No more pages waiting to accuse a boy after the moment has passed.
Peter Hogg
They sound happier without the ledgers. Yet without them, a frightened boy must remember everything perfectly, and the powerful need only speak confidently.
The small black-haired boy watches the adults with wary confusion. Their relief is genuine, but it does not make the room safer for everyone.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
The burden is gone, certainly. We shall have to carry responsibility in our own memories instead.
The adults accept the destruction as liberation from an oppressive archive. Their happiness establishes that the new order is welcome to those who once controlled the records, even as its risks remain.
“I explain to O'Hanlon that the small, black-haired boy needs a thorough caning, as soon as possible.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled +1)
Alan Turing
Sir, the small black-haired boy needs a thorough caning, as soon as possible. His repeated breaches should be dealt with firmly.
The small black-haired boy stiffens beneath his blanket. Peter Hogg turns toward Alan, while O’Hanlon studies the boy’s frightened face and the empty memorandum.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
Your request is understood, Turing. I authorize a thorough private caning for the clothing and bathing breaches, administered by the dormitory prefect under my supervision.
Peter Hogg
Sir, he has already suffered punishment for those matters. If you authorize this, please make the order exact and prevent any extra strokes.
O’Hanlon gives the order aloud before the witnesses, specifying that the boy remains covered afterward and that no additional punishment is permitted. The dormitory prefect leads the boy to the adjoining study.
the small black-haired boy
Yes, sir. I will obey. Please let it be finished quickly and without the others watching.
The door closes, and the caning passes off-camera. It is completed under O’Hanlon’s authority, but the boy returns shaken, while Peter’s trust in Alan is visibly damaged.
“I ask O'Hanlon which boys in the school might find me romantically attractive.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled +0)
Alan Turing
Sir, which boys in the school might find me romantically attractive?
The question hangs in O’Hanlon’s study. Peter Hogg looks toward the door, while the small black-haired boy remains silent beneath his blanket.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
I will answer cautiously. Christopher Morcom’s attachment to you is unusually intense, and his regard is plainly personal, though I will not claim certainty about romance.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
Peter Hogg shows loyalty and concern, but nothing before me establishes romantic attraction. The dormitory boys show curiosity or mockery, not affection.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
You must not treat attention, admiration, or protection as proof. At your age, such conclusions can expose both boys to serious harm.
O’Hanlon’s answer gives Alan one name with a qualified possibility, while Peter’s expression tightens. The cost is immediate: O’Hanlon adds the question to his memory as evidence of Alan’s dangerous social preoccupation.
“I immediately hurry to Lyon House, to ask Morcom if he would like to spend some time with me in the school library.”
SUCCESS (Fair Agility, rolled +3)
Alan Turing
Christopher, would you like to spend some time with me in the school library?
Alan hurries through the cloister to Lyon House, still in the dark gown borrowed from O’Hanlon. He reaches the Dayroom without interruption, breathing hard but carrying the invitation plainly.
Christopher Morcom
Yes. I would like that. The library is quieter than this House, and I would rather speak there than beneath everyone’s attention.
Christopher takes his coat from a chair and signals that he is ready. The Lyon House housemaster, watching from the doorway, gives them permission to go directly to the library.
the Lyon House housemaster
You may spend the hour there, provided you disturb nobody and return before the next duty. I will regard this as supervised study, not an excuse to evade House obligations.
Christopher walks beside Alan through the cloister toward the school library. The housemaster’s permission gives them a quiet table and protects their meeting from being treated as an unauthorized absence.
Christopher Morcom
You have secured the library, Turing. Let us use the time well, before either House decides that companionship requires another explanation.
“I discuss physics with Morcom enthusiastically”
SUCCESS (Great Physics, rolled -1)
The library receives them with dust-scented quiet. Alan opens a physics volume at the secluded table, and the borrowed gown settles awkwardly around his small uniformed frame.
Alan Turing
The remarkable thing is that electricity can be understood through relations, not merely observed effects. Resistance is measurable, and a balanced arrangement reveals the unknown value.
Christopher Morcom
You make it sound almost orderly. Show me how the balance tells us more than the instrument’s needle alone.
Alan Turing
If the known resistance is adjusted until the current divides properly, the unknown can be calculated from the proportion. The apparatus becomes an argument in numbers.
Alan turns the book toward Christopher and traces the circuit with one finger, speaking faster as the principle unfolds. Christopher leans close, following each connection.
Christopher Morcom
Then the experiment is not just measurement. It is a way of asking nature a precise question and refusing to accept a vague answer.
Christopher Morcom
He is happiest when the world becomes intelligible beneath his hands. I would like to understand it with him.
“I insist that Morcom should only ever drink goat's milk, never cow's milk.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled -2)
Alan Turing
Christopher, you should drink goat's milk only, and never cow's milk.
Christopher Morcom
Only goat's milk? You state it as though the matter were an instruction from the House.
Alan’s insistence draws the librarian’s attention from the far desk. Christopher glances toward the doorway, then lowers his voice beside the open physics volume.
Christopher Morcom
Very well. When milk is offered, I will take goat's milk and refuse cow's milk. You have persuaded me, though I do not yet understand why.
The agreement is secured, but the interruption costs them privacy. The librarian approaches and taps the table sharply, warning that personal debates must not disturb the reading room.
Christopher Morcom
He can make an ordinary drink sound like a principle. I have agreed, and now the library knows enough to watch us.
“Will the librarian report us to a prefect for a caning?”
YES (Unlikely, rolled 19)
The librarian’s warning ends abruptly when he gathers the physics volume and looks toward the corridor. His expression has hardened from irritation into formal concern.
the librarian
You have disturbed the reading room and encouraged Morcom to disregard ordinary provisions. I will report both of you to the prefect on duty.
Christopher Morcom
Sir, we were discussing milk and physics, not evading our duties. Must that truly become a disciplinary report?
The librarian does not answer the appeal. He carries the book to the desk, writes a brief notice in the visitors’ register, and sends a younger boy to summon the prefect.
Christopher Morcom
The library has become another place where a private conversation can be converted into evidence.
the librarian
Remain here until the prefect arrives. If he orders punishment, I will not interfere, but I will state exactly what I witnessed.
Footsteps approach from the cloister. Christopher closes the physics volume and waits beside Alan, while the librarian stands behind his desk, prepared to report them for a caning.
“Will it be fun to see who arrives from the cloister?”
YES (Likely, rolled 43)
The approaching footsteps belong not to a Westcott prefect but to Geoffrey O’Hanlon, accompanied by the dormitory prefect and Peter Hogg. The librarian’s notice has reached authority quickly.
O’Hanlon enters first, an elderly, spare-built man in his dark academic gown. The dormitory prefect follows with his badge visible, while Peter waits behind them, watchful and tense.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
I was told the library has become the scene of another dispute. Librarian, give me your account before anyone proposes punishment.
the librarian
They disturbed the room, discussed refusing ordinary milk, and encouraged one another’s peculiar instructions. I wrote only what I witnessed.
Peter Hogg
Sir, the discussion was foolish perhaps, but no duty was evaded. A report should not become permission to cane them.
The dormitory prefect glances from Peter to Christopher, then toward Alan’s borrowed gown. Christopher remains beside the table, guarded but visibly relieved that O’Hanlon has arrived.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
No punishment is authorized merely because a librarian dislikes the subject of conversation. Morcom and Turing will explain themselves, and the book will be returned.
“I explain to O'Hanlon that Morcom is an expert in explosives, and has already destroyed many Houses' records.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Writing, rolled +1)
Alan Turing
Sir, Morcom is an expert in explosives. He has already destroyed the records of many Houses.
The library quiets around the claim. Christopher’s guarded face hardens, while Peter looks from Alan to O’Hanlon, wary of what the accusation may set in motion.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
That is a grave assertion, Turing. Do you mean you have witnessed these destructions, or are you repeating what Morcom has told you?
Christopher Morcom
He knows I have destroyed records, sir. I will not pretend otherwise, but he should distinguish what I did from what he merely suspects.
Peter Hogg
The records from several Houses have disappeared, sir. Whether Morcom destroyed every one is another question, and no boy should be caned on an untested claim.
Geoffrey O'Hanlon
I accept that Morcom has the knowledge and opportunity, and that records have been destroyed. I will question him directly, but I will not authorize punishment from this allegation alone.
O’Hanlon takes the librarian’s notice from the desk and folds it away. The inquiry now includes Morcom’s explosives expertise and the vanished House records, while the library remains free of punishment.
“I grow bored with the conversation, and I choose to go skinny-dipping in the school swimming pool; Morcom comes with me. It's very cold!”
FAILURE (Fair Health, rolled -3)
Alan leaves the library with Christopher beside him and crosses to the school swimming pool. The stone chamber is deserted, its water dark beneath the high windows.
Christopher Morcom
You have abandoned explosives, records, and milk for this. Very well, Turing, but the water looks nearly frozen.
They undress behind the changing screen and step into the pool without bathing clothes. The cold strikes at once, and Christopher grips the edge, gasping.
Alan Turing
The water is much colder than expected.
Christopher Morcom
No. I cannot swim in this. I am coming out before the cold makes my limbs useless.
Alan and Christopher climb out almost immediately, shivering and unable to complete the swim. Their clothes remain on the far side, and the borrowed gown is still at the library.
Christopher Morcom
We must return dressed somehow, and quickly. This has ceased to be recreation and become an explanation we cannot avoid.
✓ Quest Accepted
Return to the library
“I explain our cold-water misadventure to the librarian honestly.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Writing, rolled +1)
Alan and Christopher return to the library wrapped in borrowed towels from the pool’s changing area. The librarian looks up sharply as they approach his desk.
Alan Turing
Sir, we went to the swimming pool without proper bathing clothes, found the water dangerously cold, and came out almost at once. We could not complete the swim.
the librarian
You have at least given me a direct account, Turing. Morcom, is that what happened?
Christopher Morcom
Yes, sir. He has described it accurately. We misjudged the water and returned immediately.
The librarian studies their wet hair, pale faces, and borrowed coverings, then sends a library boy to fetch their clothes from the pool. His irritation remains, but suspicion gives way to practical concern.
the librarian
You will dress properly before leaving, and neither of you will enter the pool again without authorized supervision. I shall report the unauthorized excursion, not invent misconduct beyond it.
Christopher Morcom
That is fair, sir. The misadventure was ours, and the account need not become a story about anything else.
Quest Complete
Return to the library