House of Mystery

The House of Mystery
Notable Residents	Cain, Justice League Dark
First Appearance	House of Mystery #1 (December/January, 1951)
Location	The Dreaming
Points of Interest	The Basement, The Sitting Room

The House of Mystery is a prominent location in the DC Universe and the headquarters for Justice League Dark.

History

Both the House of Mystery and the House of Secrets were born after Cain murdered Abel, and both were each given a house in the Dreaming (the world where all dreams occur) after Dream and Death took pity on them. It should be noted that this interpretation may not be entirely literal, as discussed by Cain and that the story is used to represent things that may be incredibly difficult to articulate to mortals. However, in the Dreaming, Abel was given the House of Secrets and Cain was given the House of Mystery. The houses were close enough that the two could remain neighbors and both found themselves cursed: everyday, Cain is compelled to murder Abel.

Cain later found that the House of Mystery had a very special purpose: to reveal rare and exotic mysteries to people who enter (though it can only be entered through dreams). However, the mysteries give no clear answers, but unlike the House of Secrets, the mysteries can be remembered and shared. Since then, Cain has become the house's caretaker, telling stories to all who enter, usually of a dark, horrific nature.

Like the House of Secrets, the House of Mystery exists in at least two places at once: the Dreaming and Kentucky (presumably because a House of Secrets was created in Kentucky). Though Cain is the House's main resident, other people have lived in the house including Mister Mxyzptlk (who attempted to take over the house, before being stopped by Superman) and TV horror host Elvira, who even took over for Cain in telling stories for a brief period, and was also tasked with trying to find Cain's current whereabouts.

After that, the House of Mystery and the House of Secrets played roles in various events in the Dreaming after the return of the Dreaming's ruler Morpheus, though both places involvements were usually more tangential. For a time after that the House was relocated to an extra-dimensional location where lost entities traded stories, but was moved back once Cain (who didn't know where the house was taken) found his house once more.

New 52

It is unclear if, in the remaking of the DC Universe if the House shares the exact same past as before, but what is known is that it ended up in the possession of mystical con man John Constantine, who won it in a card game with paranormal investigator Doctor Occult and espionage taskmaster Father Time. John eventually allowed it to be used as headquarters for the Justice League Dark, a Justice League team created to fight supernatural threats. Since then the house has shown itself to be mischievious, often changing it's inside and tricking the people who enter it (including the Constantine's Justice League team members). After John and his Justice League defeated the entity Blight, ownership of the House of Mystery past onto Zatanna.

Notable Residents

Cain - Cain is the primary owner and caretake of the House of Mystery and it was built for him, just as the House of Secrets was built for his brother Abel.

Justice League - The Justice League's supernatural team (known as Justice League Dark) used the House of Mystery as a base.  Under the ownership team leader John Constantine, though it ended up changing hands to Zatanna.