BL/ind gets a pretty raw deal-- many people portray their workers as evil, heartless bastards who are slaughtered by heroic Killjoys. But if you look hard enough, there are some people who put effort into making Battery City a detailed, fascinating place and give Dracs and citizens real personalities. In this series I've interviewed some BL/ind OCs to give people a better idea of what BL/ind is like and how interesting it can be.

(If you have a well-developed BL/ind OC and want me to interview him or her, send me a note with some details about their personality.)

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Thomas Xavier

1. What do you do for BL/ind? What's your job like?

Well, I'm a therapist in the hiring process. We require a fairly deep screening process before hiring. The happier and more stable people tend to be, the better they do their job. And when everyone can do their jobs well, well, it's better for everyone. Mainly I just check the medication levels everyone's on, get to know what little family history we may not have data on, and of course I am available by appointment as needed to keep things running smoothly. Usually we have a check-in period as well, once every two months per employee. The other therapists and I have our hands full with it sometimes, but I truly enjoy my job.

2. Any memorable patients/experiences?

One time I had a fellow come in, he wanted a job so badly. However, he had a mental disorder-- forgive me, I cannot disclose too much information here. And because of that I had to reject his application. The poor fellow broke down in my office and had to be escorted out. That really stuck with me.



3. Where do you live in Battery City? What's it like?

I live in a small apartment about five miles away from headquarters. It's nice, pretty roomy. I try my best to keep the inside as clean as possible, but seeing as I rarely have dinner guests I admit I fall a bit behind on the house work, ahaha. Playing around aside, it's a good neighborhood, we have a park nearby and sometimes I like to stroll there before heading home.



4. What do you do outside of work?

Well, I like working with animals. Sometimes I'll head over to the shelters just to spend my time with them. I really love cats and i've been planning on adopting one for a while. However, with my hectic work schedule, I'm not sure that I can give one the care and love it deserves. So I usually stick to fish. I also write a bit, nothing too outta the norm, just short stories and poetry. Occasionally when I can get the clearance I enjoy driving around Zone One. But usually I need an escort.

5. Why did you choose to stay in Battery City instead of leave for the Zones?

Well, I've never had a draw to head out there for more than a trip. I feel I can do more good here than anywhere else. What good is my schooling and training if I'm in the middle of nowhere? Here I have a constant stream of people I can help, a steady home, and a pretty good life. I like it here.



6. What are some misconceptions Killjoys have about BL/ind and Battery City?

I think a lot of people assume we're all about controlling people and telling them what to do. While we do have strict guidelines, it's for safety and the betterment of others. We're not emotionless zombies either, we just found a different way to cope with stress than jumping to anger or whatever their particular idea may be.

7. Why did you decide to dedicate your life to helping others?

I've always wanted to make a change for the better. Leave my mark in a way that people would look at me and say I was a good man; isn't that what everyone can strive for?



8. How did you get your job in BL/ind? What's the application process like?

I got my job with the company before the wars started. At the time, they were only doing pills and needed some work checked on how it can affect the patient mentally. I had just gotten through all of my schooling and jumped at the chance to help someone on a large scale like this. The application was a bit different when I joined because we didn't need so much defense. But it was pretty basic. For my job we had to go through 3 months of therapy. Of course, that moved fairly quickly with me. A physical and a few drug tests later and I was working with them happily.

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Thomas Xavier was created by =hisironicprincess. You can see more of him at his Tumblr.