Mr. Scratch is an entity who inhabits the body of a host while they sleep. He is able to manipulate nightmares, and feeds on them.
Personality[]
Mr. Scratch is a malevolent entity - he feeds on nightmares, and takes joy in it. He sees this as a game that he plays with its victims. His goal is to get Arthur to free him from Marie's house, which he expresses gratitude for. He revels in the thought of causing suffering outside the confines of Marie's house.
Description[]
Mr. Scratch is described as having deep violet skin and silver eyes. His eyes are large and sinister, and seem to float above its body.[1]
Originally it was thought "Mr. Scratch" was most likely a name that he took from Arthur's subconscious - the Butcher calls himself a "old scratch" in Part Twenty Nine. However, this theory is proved wrong in Part Thirty Three. Oscar also refers to him as Scratch, implying Scratch had used this name before.
History[]
For 200 years (to his own feeling), Mr. Scratch was trapped in Marie's house at East 83rd Street,[1] though how he came to be there is currently unknown.
Prior to Part Thirty, Mr. Scratch possessed Marie's husband, Albert. Oscar, a local clergyman, "helped" Marie with Albert. The exact nature of this help is currently unknown. Albert is no longer alive, since Marie stabbed him and hid the body with Oscar's help. Some time after, Mr. Scratch possessed Marie's sister, Hattie. Marie kept Hattie tied and locked in a room on the second floor of her house.[2]
When they first arrive at Marie's house, John wakes Arthur up. They hear Marie entering the room they are not to enter. She is heard speaking to Hattie. Most of the conversation is unintelligible, but she mentions bringing her a "bite to eat."[3] John and Arthur investigate the door to this room, and hear sniffing and movement behind the door. Later, when John and Arthur try to investigate a crack in the floorboards of their room, Hattie sniffs them again, and possibly licks the wall between them. John notes that it/she probably recognized their scent.[3]
As Arthur sleeps, Mr. Scratch appears in Arthur's nightmares, and his influence over them causes Arthur to sleepwalk and untie Hattie. Mr. Scratch, in control of Hattie's body, says he is indebted to Arthur for allowing him to cause "agony and nightmares once again", and calls Arthur his "favorite".[1]
The following morning, Hattie is confirmed to be missing. John and Arthur explore the room Hattie was kept in. They note a line of dust in front of the door, disturbed by Arthur's footsteps the previous night. They find a hidden room behind a bookcase, and they head in when they hear Marie come in. Marie brings Oscar over, who has helped her with Mr. Scratch in the past, and has even seen him before. Marie explains that Hattie was able to fight it, better than Albert did, but that she was having a harder and harder time "waking up." Oscar is reluctant to be involved, but agrees to help look for Hattie.[2] They overhear Oscar asking Marie about the dust, implying it served some purpose in keeping Mr. Scratch contained. In the hidden room are the remains of a summoning ritual. Skeletal remains laying on a large symbol (circular with a pattern that repeats into its center) carved into the floor. The body is laying face down, in tattered clothing, completely rotted through, with no flesh left on the bones. On the desk lie a rodent's skull, a bottle that's fallen over, and an open book. The cover of the book has the same symbol carved into the floor. [2]
Mr. Scratch appears to Arthur when he is tied to a chair in the basement of an apartment building by the Butcher. He says that he was following a family in a park when he "heard" Arthur's dreams calling to him. Arthur pleads for Mr. Scratch to untie him in exchange for setting him free, but Mr. Scratch says the family he followed is no longer there, and they were "perfect". Arthur then agrees to find a new host for Mr. Scratch in exchange. Mr. Scratch produces a white stone, and breathes a dark gray mist on it. By placing this stone in a bag or pocket, Mr. Scratch says he will be able to find the new host when they sleep.[4]
Arthur and Oscar theorize that Mr. Scratch may be a Forgotten One, described in the Bestiary - a fractured manifestation of a Great Old One. They think that Edward William Allen may have attempted to summon a Great Old One, and when he failed, Mr. Scratch was the piece left behind.[5]
Mr. Scratch reappears when Arthur throws his stone through the tear at 61 Boulder Road. When he sealed the tear, John described a woman with black hair, alabaster skin, and silver eyes as having appeared and "become one" with Mr. Scratch. He described that this act seems to have "set her free".[6]
Known Abilities[]
- Creation of/influence over nightmares.[1]
- Possession of human hosts, but only while sleeping.[1][4] Can move between hosts.[2]
- Feeds on the fear caused by nightmares.[1]
- Possibly warps glass in its presence.[2] Makes the glass look like it's been broken and repaired, and like it has a pattern in it.
Trivia[]
- Currently, Albert and Hattie are Scratch's only known hosts.
- Oscar has seen Mr. Scratch. In this encounter, he appeared in the guise of Alexander.[5]
- Scratch suffers from time dilation, since it's related to dreams (a dream feels like a fleeting moment, while in reality hours have passed).[7]