|
FIRST SESSION
What is your name?
Alina.
Your full name, please. For the record.
Hoyle. Alina Hoyle.
How old are you?
24.
You're awfully accomplished for someone so young.
*pause* I had a busy childhood.
Are you closer to your mother, or your father?
interviewer's note: body language more closed, poor eye contact.
Neither. That's not the way things work.
What do you mean?
We...warmth doesn't raise warriors.
What are you doing right now?
I'm sitting in a psychiatric hospital being interviewed by the resident doctor. Make sure you write that down, situational awareness, that's a positive. Can't be crazy if I know where I am, right?
interviewer's note: situational awareness present, & self awareness.
Are you in love with anyone?
No.
You're married, aren't you?
Yes. That's not what you asked.
So you don't love your husband?
I'm not in love with him. I...I love him the way a drowning man loves air. He's a necessity, not an option.
How did you and your husband meet?
My father introduced us. It was an arranged marriage.
Are you happy with that?
I'm not unhappy. It was a good match, my husband is an excellent hunter, and he will be a good father.
Do you want to start a family of your own?
No. If I had the choice, I would not.
interviewer's note: sexually abusive relationship???
If you had the choice?
My race is dying. It is our duty to carry our bloodline forwards. Oh, don't worry, everything my husband does is completely consensual. I understand the reasons, I can put personal preference aside.
Where are you from/Where were you born?
Here. Born in the very house I grew up in.
interviewer's note: bitter tone. Unhappy childhood, familial conflicts?
What is your favorite food?
interviewer's note: long pause while question is being considered.
I don't have one.
Favorite color?
Psychologically speaking, people find blue to be calming and soothing.
Is that your favourite colour?
I've never given it much thought. But if I say blue, it tells you something about my mood, right? Red is angry, but blue is calm. Gives you insight into my unconscious mind.
That will be all for today, thank you Alina. Can I come back tomorrow?
You will whether or not I want you to.
SECOND SESSION
What are you?
Good morning to you too, Doctor.
Your blood work...
Confusing, right? Mostly human, but then there's something off with the hemoglobin. And of course there's the antibodies you've never seen before, and something about the cell structure that just seems a little off.
What are you?
Somebody's going to lose their job over this, of course. Probably not you, you're just the underling.
Alina, answer the question.
I'm not human, not entirely. My people trace their lineage back to the Judges in Israel. The Lord granted us powers beyond that of men to fight the spread of Lucifer's plague.
Lucifer's plague?
Lycanthropy and Vampirism. They diverged sometime in the first century. The pathology is actually quite interesting to study-
Vampires and Werewolves?
You still don't believe me?
You believe that-
Not I believe. I know. I'm not delusional, you know that. My answers have been rational and well thought out to this point. My episode of psychosis has passed without another relapse, and I'm in the process of being declared legally sane. No history of mental illness, no underlying psychological conditions, just one brief instance of hysteria followed by a psychotic episode. But now that episode is over, and you're trying to justify my outlandish claims by hiding behind a 'well she must be crazy' defence. I'm not, and you know that, and that terrifies you more than you can imagine. Because if I'm not crazy, then what I'm saying must be true, and you can't believe that.
THIRD SESSION
Good morning Alina.
Good morning Doctor. Shall we continue where we left off yesterday?
What do you do during the day?
I'm a scientist, qualified to research medicine. So that's what I do.
Research medicine?
I'm working on a compound right now that will work to inoculate the population against lycanthropy and vampirism.
And at night?
At night I kill vampires.
Do you hate anyone?
Yes. And if I ever hunt them down, I will kill them. Since they're not human, it's not illegal.
When was the last time you cried?
You tell me, I was in the middle of a psychotic break. I don't remember.
Is anyone with you right now?
Don't mock me. Despite any previous assertions I may have made, let me assure you now; ghosts don't exist.
interviewer's note: defensive.
During your entrance interview, you told us your sister was standing right beside you, despite the fact that your sister was dead at the time.
Ghosts do not exist.
Do you have any other brothers or sisters?
No, only Aerilyn.
Do you have any pets?
No.
When was the last time you got mad?
I'm always angry. Especially now.
Because of what I said about the ghosts?
Because I'm trapped in this hellhole while you try to dissect me! I'm fine! One psychotic break brought on by extreme external circumstances! Not enough to condemn me!
Alina, you're here because we care about you getting better.
Why do you care? At the end of the day, you'll find me fit to leave. I'll go back to being a ghost in purgatory while you go home to your family and try to forget about me. Everybody wins, right?
Alina...
I don't want to talk anymore. Good-bye doctor.
|
