The ring has not dispersed. Alan remains confined on The Green, with Patrick beside him, while the senior prefect stands near the receipt and a green prefect watches for any breach.
Patrick Mermagen
Senior Prefect, I accept my punishment for interrupting after I was warned. But Alan’s quiet obedience now cannot prove that our earlier suspicions were justified.
Patrick keeps his hands at his sides and speaks without raising his voice. The senior prefect’s pen pauses, while a green prefect shifts nearer, alert for an impertinent turn.
Green Prefect 1
You are intervening before being recognized, Mermagen. If you mean to defend Turing again, say so plainly and accept that this may be another impertinence.
The Senior Prefect
He has spoken directly to me and has not insulted anyone. I will answer the substance before deciding whether his manner breaches the rule.
The Senior Prefect
Mermagen is correct on one point: obedience now cannot establish that earlier suspicions were true. Those suspicions remain unresolved, and neither silence nor submission proves them.
A green prefect watches Patrick closely, finding no clear opening yet. The senior prefect keeps the ring in place, leaving Alan confined and the next answer open to him.
“I warn Mermagen that if he continues to talk out of turn, I will have no choice but to recommend to the senior prefect that Mermagen needs a second caning to ensure he ceases his impertinence.”
SUCCESS (Legendary Willpower, rolled +0)
Alan Turing
Patrick, if you continue speaking out of turn, I will have no choice but to recommend to the senior prefect that you need a second caning to ensure you cease this impertinence.
Patrick’s face tightens, but he does not answer at once. The senior prefect watches him over the open notebook, while a green prefect remains close enough to hear every word.
Patrick Mermagen
I understand. I will stop speaking unless I am recognized. I do not want another caning, and I will not give you grounds to recommend one.
He lowers his eyes and folds his silence around himself. The warning has reached him plainly, though his acceptance leaves the earlier question of fairness unresolved.
The Senior Prefect
That recommendation is unnecessary while Mermagen obeys the rule. Turing, you may report a further interruption, but do not treat your own warning as an order.
Green Prefect 1
The warning has been heard. I will record that Mermagen now understands the consequence, and that no further breach has occurred.
Patrick remains beside Alan without speaking. The ring stays in place, but the immediate threat of a second caning recedes into a stated consequence rather than a present sentence.
“Is the soreness in Mermagen's buttocks helpful in reminding him not to commit further impertinence?”
NO (Likely, rolled 91)
Patrick remains beside Alan within the ring, his posture disciplined but not comforted by the soreness he still carries. The pain has not made impertinence less tempting or obedience more secure.
Patrick Mermagen
It reminds me that punishment hurts, not that interruption is wrong. I am silent because I was warned and because I do not want another caning, not because soreness has taught me fairness.
He keeps his eyes lowered, yet his answer is measured rather than frightened. The distinction leaves his submission intact while refusing to pretend that pain has improved his judgment.
The Senior Prefect
That is a useful distinction, Mermagen. The consequence may restrain conduct temporarily, but soreness is not evidence of understanding, repentance, or lasting fairness.
Patrick Mermagen
Then I will rely on the warning and on my own discipline. I accept the punishment for my interruptions, but I cannot call the pain a lesson in itself.
The senior prefect records the distinction beside the earlier criticism. Patrick stays silent afterward, and the ring remains in place, but no one can honestly claim that his soreness has settled the question of fairness.
“Will the senior prefect display favouritism towards Mermagen by protecting him from further punishment?”
NO (VeryUnlikely, rolled 53)
The senior prefect closes the notebook and looks from Patrick to the receipt. Patrick remains beside Alan, silent and disciplined, while a green prefect waits for the ruling.
The Senior Prefect
Mermagen will receive no protection from a further punishment merely because he stood beside Turing. If he interrupts again, the rule will apply to him as it would to anyone else.
Green Prefect 1
His place in the batting order will likewise depend on cricket, attendance, and conduct. I will not raise it because he apologized, and I will not lower it to satisfy resentment.
Patrick’s mouth tightens at the first sentence, then settles. The answer offers him no special shelter, but it also refuses to turn his association with Alan into an additional charge.
Patrick Mermagen
Understood. I will rely on my conduct, not on your favour, and accept the same rule whether I am defending Alan or standing alone.
The senior prefect records the decision without softening it. Patrick remains confined beside Alan, and the arrangement becomes clearer: solidarity is permitted, but neither boy receives immunity from ordinary authority.