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[doc_pompous]

[ Doctor Simon Tam ☤ SCI»010»030 ]

You've reached Doctor Tam. Please state the nature of your call.

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[doc_pompous]

Believe me, I know this is less-than-ideal. I'm not going to let anyone starve, especially if we can make what they need without hurting anyone. There haven't been any attacks in my entire time here.

[Though honestly, this is the first he's heard about blood being used for anything besides sustenance, and he folds his arms.]

But it sounds like you have some...experience.

[To say the least.]

[faithinmedicine]

What you mean is that there haven't been any known attacks in your time here. I understand that thanks to the apparent existence of parallel universes, we have several types of vampire on board, but the fact is we can't really know just how different they are. Where I'm from, chaotic violence is part and parcel of being a vampire. The only way they can hope to avoid it is to stay off blood entirely.

So you see how I might be concerned about being part of a system that provides them with it.

[doc_pompous]

No, what I mean is that there haven't been any attacks in my time here.

[Which is something he's admittedly surprised by, because there are no vampires where he comes from, and it's hard to trust them, but the conversation is leaving a bad enough taste in his mouth that he doesn't want to divulge those facts.]

The fact of the matter is, there are unfortunately individuals who need it to survive. If they're not attacking anyone, I'm not going to deny them food if I have the means to give it to them and those means don't harm anyone else. We encourage everyone to be as up front with their medical needs as possible.

It sounds like there's someone, or...someones you know that you think we should watch out for. If that's the case, I'd like to know who.

[faithinmedicine]

The problem, Doctor Tam, is telling the difference between people who call themselves vampires, who are in fact model citizens with unique nutritional needs, and vampires who are only safe when they're not drinking. [And who may or may not be the spawn of the Devil, she's still not sure on that one. She's also not sure how much she wants to say about Mitchell, so she hesitates before continuing.]

If a man called John Mitchell comes in asking for blood, don't give it to him. He's about so tall [gestures about a head taller than her 5 foot self], long black hair, doesn't reflect in mirrors.

[doc_pompous]

[Simon appears to consider all this for a moment, weighing his options. He's mostly considering everything Lucy is saying with a grain of salt--there's obviously some bias here, but that doesn't mean she doesn't know what she's talking about.]

I don't think he's been in, at least not to see me.

[He rubs his chin in apparent thought.]

You seem to know a good deal about them. Maybe you could help me tell the difference.

[faithinmedicine]

The trouble is, I'm not sure how we'd go about testing it. If any of them have been lying so far, they're hardly going to appreciate any attempts to prove it.

[doc_pompous]

What about the ones from your world? If we know what to look for based on them, it might help...screening.

[He doesn't say, of course, that he thinks it's going to be difficult for other reasons (most notably the fact that the vampires really haven't been a problem but...there's nothing wrong with a little humoring if it means he gets to learn something, too.]

[faithinmedicine]

Have you ever dealt with drug addicts before? Alcoholics? Because those are the signs to look for.

[doc_pompous]

I'm familiar, yes. It hasn't been a problem so far, but you think it will be.

[faithinmedicine]

I think we need to be on our guard.

[doc_pompous]

I think you've made that clear.

[He shoves his hands in his pockets and rocks back slightly on his heels.]

So I guess this is the part where I invite you to join Medbay.

[faithinmedicine]

And I suppose this is the part where I accept.

[Serious business over, she lightens up a bit.] I may need some instruction on some of the more exotic pieces of equipment available. I'm afraid I'm used to a more early-21st century budget.

[doc_pompous]

Some of this equipment is beyond even me, and I'm from 2517.

[He sort of waves it off.]

We'll do some assessments. I'll give you an introduction to all the apparatuses. Mostly we all do clinic hours, barring some kind of disaster, which...happens. Occasionally.

[faithinmedicine]

I'd be happy to trade the occasional disaster for never working night shift again.

[doc_pompous]

I...can't promise you that, but I'll do my best.