OFFICE HOURS

[didntgetdadslooks]

Got something you want to say to your good friend The Professor's Assistant? Come on in, don't be shy! Her official hours are daylight hours - girl has to sleep? after all, probably - but if you knock on the door at night she'll generally answer. Please just make sure to leave the in-game date and time in the header of your toplevel!

All comments are screened for confidentiality during the course of the experiment.

Comments

[didntgetdadslooks]

I... hang on.

[ She pulls up something on her tablet, and in a bad enough impression of The Professor that it might as well be distorted: ]

"The assistant is not permitted to actively lie to the test subjects within the limits of her own knowledge of the experiment so long as doing so is not in violation of Rule A," and... it goes on a little more, but that's the important part. And Rule A is mostly a list of things I can't talk to you about, before you ask.

[fivestagegod]

[Hahaha, wow. Holy shit.]

Good to know, actually. We've been assuming that's the case, but I've got to admit that it would absolutely suck to get that one wrong.

[...]

So since I have an implicit right to interrogate and I'm not doing anything that the rules explicitly say I can't do, what's stopping me from talking to the Professor? It's obvious that he's listening in on this anyway and the means to talk to him are obviously within the facility, he's going to infer things about us and form favorites just from watching us all the time as it is, and if anything I have to say is going to sway him one way or another in terms of me or the experiment, then he really shouldn't be running this entire thing in the first place.

So. No harm in asking, at least - I want to talk to your manager, and I figure this is more likely to get me a direct audience than screaming at the air and hoping for a response.

[didntgetdadslooks]

[ Look she has been criticized for this impression before but at this point frankly she hopes it annoys him and she will never improve. ]

... Huh.

[ She puts a hand to the earpiece, thinking. ]

Do you think that's a sentiment the others here share? Beyond just harassing him.

[fivestagegod]

Good question. They probably don't want to talk to him for the same reason I want to talk to him, granted. He's not a lot of people's favorite person, put it that way.

[didntgetdadslooks]

No, it doesn't take being the surveillance system to see that.

[ She listens. ]

He says if you can get at least a couple other people to honestly request it, he can "open a more direct line."

[fivestagegod]

How private will that direct line be?

[didntgetdadslooks]

[ The answer, instead of from Angel, comes from a speaker somewhere in the room. ]

Between you and me and God, Doctor Birkin. Unless you'd rather he be excluded.

[fivestagegod]

[That just gets him to laugh a bit, actually.]

Come on, was that so damn hard? I can't guarantee that I'll get you many nice calls, but I can try to get a few more onboard at the meeting if you're really going to make me do this. I just hope for your sake that you didn't put any airhorns in the machine or something.

[didntgetdadslooks]

I would rather have assurance that at least a few of you have a genuine interest in speaking to me. My time is too valuable to be wasted by pointless lectures from the more... zealous among you. I'm sure you don't agree, but you'll have to understand.

[ There are some Loud Folks in here, man.

Angel takes her hand down from her earpiece, looking genuinely surprised. ]

So... there's your answer, I guess.

[fivestagegod]

Wow, he does not know me at all, does he.

[He sounds so amused.]

[didntgetdadslooks]

[ Angel shrugs. ]

He's not really a fan of anyone except for himself. And some of his students.

[fivestagegod]

Yeah, no kidding; he reminds me of my employers. I'd think he's one of the Ashfords if there weren't only one of them left.

[didntgetdadslooks]

Guess there are some like him in every world.

[fivestagegod]

People like that are often the reason we have any progress at all. If you really want to get things done, not having morals tends to help.

[didntgetdadslooks]

I guess so. He certainly seems to be one heck of a go-getter.

[fivestagegod]

That's one way of putting it.

[Mm.]

I actually think that's all I've got for now; I'll give you a break tonight. Might be back later in the week, though - after all, I did refrain from hassling you all last week.

[didntgetdadslooks]

[ She nods. ]

Well, I'll be here if you need anything. Or- if you get here really late, I'm out sometimes, but I get alerted if you're here and will be back in a few minutes.