FTEC- Tuesday

[askhimyourself.livejournal.com]

Week three, and Claire was still bored.

"Seriously, don't people even get the sniffles in this town?" she asked, which the nurses acknowledged, then dismissed as they shrugged and went on with their conversation. Maybe they just needed to start some kind of wellness drive in this place.


[Open and OCD free!]

Comments

[sharp_as_knives]

It might be a physically healthy town, but it did have other issues.

So many issues.

Hannibal had been rather surprised when the previous series of group therapy sessions had ended, and thought there might very well be value in them.

Without a proper broadcast or organized network, trying to get the news out, however, was dependent on squirrels. So, Jono had suggested Hannibal could at least post something at the clinic.

It seemed a bit...flimsy, but still. It was an idea, at any rate.

So, here was Hannibal.

He nodded to the woman behind the main desk, then paused. "Hello. I don't believe we've met. You're new?" He didn't remember hearing anything on radio about a new person, but...well, squirrels.

[askhimyourself.livejournal.com]

Claire shot him a smile, even though after three weeks of boredom she was actually thrown off to see someone here. "Does it show that bad?" she said. "How can I help you?"

[sharp_as_knives]

Hannibal chuckled. "It's a very small town. Anyone I don't recognize must be new." He held out his hand. "Doctor Hannibal Lecter."

[askhimyourself.livejournal.com]

"Claire Temple," she said, shaking his hand. "Do you work here?"

[sharp_as_knives]

"Pleased to meet you," Hannibal said, nodding to her. "Work here on the island, yes; at the clinic, no," Hannibal answered. "Although should you need a surgeon in an emergency, please feel free to call. I teach at the school presently. Are you a doctor or a nurse?"

[askhimyourself.livejournal.com]

"Nurse," she said. "So what can I help you with today?"

[sharp_as_knives]

Hannibal gave her a rueful smile. "I've allowed myself to be convinced to advertise." He opened the leather folder he had with him and slid out a far too nice looking flyer on heavy stock. "I thought if I might put it on the board here, that would be an appropriate place for it."

[askhimyourself.livejournal.com]

Claire took it to read, and that definitely got an eyebrow raise out of her. "Trauma discussion group?"

[sharp_as_knives]

Oh, dear; she was new.

"Has anybody attempted to explain this island to you yet?" Hannibal asked.

[askhimyourself.livejournal.com]

"No," she said slowly, and now she thought something was weird with this conversation. "I was just gonna say it'd be more accessible to people if you just called it 'group therapy.'"

[sharp_as_knives]

Hannibal shook his head. "Too many people have an innate hatred of anything called therapy," he noted. "Call it discussion and nobody will be fooled, but more of them are likely to be willing to come."

[askhimyourself.livejournal.com]

"'Discussion' sounds like you're getting together to whine your problems at other people," Claire said. "'Therapy' at least sounds supportive, like you're working towards something."

And she wasn't going to say it aloud, but 'trauma discussion' sounded pretentious to her.

[sharp_as_knives]

"Spoken like someone with nothing against therapists," Hannibal said with a chuckle. "Many of the people around here are...shall we say, action oriented? The sort that actively avoid hospitals even for physical pain. How do you think they react to therapy?"

[askhimyourself.livejournal.com]

"I'd think they'd react way worse to 'let's share,'" Claire said honestly.

[sharp_as_knives]

"Some of them will react poorly to anything that might hint at needing help," Hannibal pointed out. "I'll confess I debated between 'discussion group' and 'support group'. Do you think the latter would be better?"

He trusted his own experience and insight, but he hadn't gotten where he was by ignoring the reasoned opinions of others, either.

[askhimyourself.livejournal.com]

"The way I figure, the people who'd go to a discussion group versus support group mostly overlap. The thing is, all the people I've ever known who really needed help balked at anything that sounded like they might have to talk. Support group, group therapy... with that they know they can go and check it out, talk when they feel comfortable," Claire reasoned.

[sharp_as_knives]

Hannibal turned it over in his head. He didn't see much difference in the two himself; once he'd narrowed it down, he had more or less chosen at random. But he was curious enough to allow Claire this victory. "Very well; 'support group' it is." He gave her a little bow. "I can reprint this and bring it right back."