ROSEMARY JUSTICE

by Adam Gauntlett

In which the Bookhounds attend an auction at a pub on Rosemary Lane and discover a peculiar phantom.

0 Point Clues

Rosemary Lane, renamed Royal Mint Lane in 1850, was until recently a notorious spot for thieves and street-sellers. It was one of the largest street markets in London, but times have changed all that. The Hounds, if they’re old enough (30+), they probably remember the last days of the Rosemary clothes market.

The Crown and Seven Stars is a pub on Rosemary Street. It was a warehouse once upon a time, but that was long ago.

Justice of the Peace is an unpaid judicial appointment. A JP can try misdemeanours and minor crimes. It used to be that people would go to a JP for a quick trial, one that didn’t rely overmuch on judicial rules and which, hopefully, wouldn’t incur a severe penalty.

1 Point Clues

Rosemary Lane is also known for its religious maniacs. Chartists, false prophets, men who claimed to have risen from the dead to preach the Word of peculiar Gods; Rosemary Lane’s seen it all. Some peculiar beliefs are said to linger there, in so-called chapels led by the desperate and the damned.

The Crown and Seven Stars used to be frequented by the famous mayor of Garrat, ‘Sir’ Jeffrey Dunstan, a fellow of stunted growth, wig salesman and failed actor of prodigious wit and popularity. Sir Jeffrey claimed to be a Justice of the Peace and held court at the Crown, where he would dispense legal opinions and adjudicate disputes in exchange for pots of beer.

The Auction

This is a clearance sale organized by the landlord of the Crown, Thomas Shadwell. It includes all sorts of stuff: clothes, shoes, clocks, silverware, and boxes of books of all kinds. The landlord got it from several nearby houses that are being knocked down for slum clearance and figured he’d make a quick profit.

Thomas Shadwell: string bean thin, remarkably deep voice, wears a wig. Knows his History and Occult. Superstitious to a fault.

Sorting through the boxes finds some interesting stuff; 1 point book stock in any three topics (Hounds’ choice as to which) and a good copy of the 1763 comic play The Mayor of Garratt which would fetch a decent price at a better auction than this.

Spending 1 point Notice or similar finds a collection of religious pamphlets related to the practices of the Cult of Cthulhu. Some of them are straight-up religious screeds, others are transcripts of trials and ballads about crimes involving Cult members. All together, they confer 1 point Mythos if studied. They can be bought in a job lot rather than bargaining individually per pamphlet.

The Hounds notice (no spend required) several of their shop’s rivals at the Crown and any Auction contest is Difficulty 5 thanks to the competition.

However, those rivals are here for a reason. They want to do the Hounds harm and have spotted a glorious opportunity. They want to give the Hounds a ghost.

Jeffrey Dunstan’s Token

This copper token issued by a local tradesman back in the 1700s has Jeffrey Dunstan’s image on it. When issued, it was meant as a kind of advertisement for the tradesman’s shop and taxidermy museum.

The rivals have used Rough Magicks on the token to make it potent, and while at the Crown they complete the casting by binding the essence of Dunstan to it, using a drop of blood and a smear of beer to do so.

They slip the Hounds the token, perhaps in a box of books or some similar ruse, perhaps using Filch. A Hound may get a Sense Trouble check to notice that something’s off, though they may not realize exactly what.

The pub landlord, Thomas Shadwell, is in on this plan. He wants rid of the ghostly Justice of the Peace, who’s done him nothing but harm. He will help the Hounds’ rivals however he can. He’s also the weak link in the plan, as he can be made to spill the beans (Intimidation, Assess Honesty).

The Justice of Rosemary Lane

So long as the token is in the Hounds’ possession they are haunted by the Crown’s mayor and former Justice of the Peace, Jeffrey Dunstan.

Dunstan imposes a 2-point penalty on checks involving fast talking, Auction, and criminal enterprises. So long as Dunstan’s on the premises, the Hounds just can’t help telling the truth. It’s as if they’re compelled.

Also, they sometimes catch glimpses of a small man lurking in the shadows of the shop, or on the other side of a mirror or reflective surface. Potential 3-point Stability loss.

So long as the token is in the Hounds’ possession, they suffer peculiar dreams. In those dreams they are held for trial at the Crown, for crimes they don’t understand. The judge, Dunstan, mocks them constantly and imposes penalties that become more and more outrageous.

Justice and the Mythos

If the Hounds bought the Mythos pamphlets and were given Dunstan’s token, then the shop becomes a magnet for cultists. Particularly Cthulhu cultists; for some reason they find the shop attractive. It’s a combination of the occult pull of the token and the knowledge hidden in those pamphlets.

They won’t stop coming until both the pamphlets and the token are disposed of somehow, and while the Hounds might appreciate the business, the cultists bring with them some very peculiar habits. And frightening friends. Potential 3-point Stability loss at least once a week, as the shocks just keep coming. Tattoos that writhe and leer, shadows that disconnect from their owners and slit about the room, insects that glow with phosphorescence as they skitter across the floor, eyes that glow in the dark, extra doors that weren’t there before, which lead to rooms that have no right to exist.

If the Hounds can ditch both the token and the pamphlets, their problems go away. If they only get rid of one but not the other, then either Dunstan sticks around (if they have the token) or the cultists do (if they have the pamphlets).

Endgame

If the Hounds keep the token and the pamphlets for one month or more, this happens.

Two rival cultists, one devoted to Cthulhu and one to the Witch Cult, decide to do magical battle over the ‘disputed territory’ – the Hounds’ shop.

Anthony Sparrow, a sailor and Deep One hybrid who’s seen the world and has most of it tattooed on his muscular flesh. Good at Athletics, Scuffling, Magic 6.

Daniela Bercow, risen from the dead twice now by her account, and she looks the part. Good at Electrical Repair, Stealth, Magic 8.

Each can use their Magical ability to impose tests in the Abilities they are good at. Failed tests mean damage to the target. So Sparrow, for example, can cause fights and accidents, while Bercow can cause electrical damage and sneak into places she has no business being.

The two of them will keep fighting each other until one of them prevails, causing upsets and problems for the shop until the contest is resolved.

If one of them wins, then they ‘claim’ the shop as part of their territory. They become regular customers and invite their friends to spend their money there. The Hounds may welcome this new business, even if their customers are even more peculiar now than they were before.

However this conflict is resolved, by the time it ends, the power of Dunstan’s token is all used up. Dunstan’s ability to affect the Hounds is negated and the former Justice no longer affects their dreams, nor does he haunt the shop.