Barton Hamilton pushed open the door to his office. Here, he met his new patient, Norman Osborn, for the first time.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Osborn," Hamilton said with a gentle smile. "How do you prefer to be addressed? Is Norman acceptable?"
"Anything is fine, Mr. Hamilton. I hear you are the best psychologist in New York?"
"I wouldn't claim to be the best; my friends are just being generous," Hamilton said, smiling as he looked at the information Norman had submitted upon booking the appointment. "Dissociative Identity Disorder, is it? Generally, if it's not a family inheritance, multiple personalities stem from childhood trauma. Can you recall any such instances?"
The air in the psychological clinic was filled with the scent of ancient incense—an expensive Oriental product known for its soothing and relaxing properties.
"He's called the Green Goblin. When he first appeared... I'm not entirely sure when that was. It seems he's been with me since I was very young..."
So-called Dissociative Identity Disorder is not something you can develop simply by imagining another personality and constantly fantasizing about it. That, generally, is called delusional disorder. Usually, multiple personalities arise as a protective mechanism of the human brain. The entire process requires a series of conditions, including a long-term lack of spiritual communication, experiencing significant trauma or abuse, and an unconscious separation of one's own abilities, before a second, or even more, personality can truly emerge.
Most importantly, in the majority of cases, the birth of a new personality is for the purpose of self-protection. The reason why the secondary personality of most DID patients tends to be extreme is because it is a means of protecting the self.
"An adult possesses a strength they didn't have as a child, and thus your second personality uses this strength to protect you. Their mental state often remains stuck at the time of their formation, yet they possess power far exceeding what they had back then. Therefore, when faced with an emotional trigger, these personalities will attempt to protect you."
"Your theory is quite creative, Mr. Hamilton."
After a long period of confiding, Norman nodded, but Hamilton found this slightly strange: "No, this is, well, a common knowledge among people like us. For example, are you familiar with the Hulk? In my opinion, the Hulk is a classic example of multiple personalities; he is a three-year-old child with infinite rage and power. When anyone tries to hurt Bruce Banner, the Hulk protects Banner."
"But at the same time, he despises Bruce Banner's cowardice and avoidance, only thinking about not turning into a monster, instead of using that power to protect himself."
"But I am not that kind of monster."
"I wasn't talking about you, Norman..." Hamilton froze, incredibly adjusting his glasses, looking at Norman Osborn in shock. "Green Goblin?"
"Green Goblin, ah, the Green Goblin. The fantasy of a young child hiding in his study. Did you know that in Dungeons & Dragons, small creatures like Goblins have an ability called 'Small Folk's Fury,' which allows them to deal greater damage against creatures larger than themselves?"
The "Green Goblin" leaned forward, smiling as he picked up the teacup on Hamilton's desk. "May I have a cup of tea?"
"Please do." Hamilton showed an expression of surprise and delight. "I've heard about it, but I've never encountered a patient like you. I mean, even true DID patients rarely..."
"Calm down, Doctor. Norman was unaware of my existence for a long time; he only knew that he occasionally had memory lapses. But I am different; I am the one with all the memories. If I recall correctly, I might be the personality better suited to communicate and interact with you."
"Yes." Hamilton quickly pulled his chair closer. But the Green Goblin maintained his graceful smile, looking at Hamilton's bookshelf, and then his eyes lit up: "Ah, I'm very pleased that a doctor's bookshelf, besides psychological works, also features Balzac."
"Oh." Hamilton turned to look at the bookshelf, then looked back at the Green Goblin with even greater surprise. "You, you know about Balzac too?"
"In fact, I've read more books than Norman. He focuses his energy on acquiring profit, as if more money can prove his success," the Green Goblin said with an elegant smile. "But I don't see it that way, do I?"
Hamilton felt his memory accelerate; he began to recall his interactions with the Green Goblin. Norman Osborn's second personality presented a temperament completely different from Norman himself. If Norman was a successful, constantly striving, pure businessman and capitalist, the true Green Goblin was a philosopher and a thinker. He was more graceful in conversation, and his knowledge was more extensive.
He would patiently discuss Hamilton's patients, analyzing the dark side of these elite figures from various angles, citing historical lessons from the East and West with effortless ease. Finally, after more than a year of "treatment," the Green Goblin presented his first request to Hamilton.
"As a psychologist and psychiatrist, have you ever considered... conducting a small-scale social psychology experiment?"
"Perhaps... but how?"
The Green Goblin thought for a while, then looked at the television and suddenly smiled: "You have quite a few friends in the City Council and City Hall, don't you? Could you persuade them... not to punish the police officers who fail to prevent a super-criminal's escape?"
"And then...?"
"The excuse is simple: most super-criminals have their own superpowers, and ordinary police officers are simply no match for them. Regular officers have to face vicious criminals, so they shouldn't bear the main responsibility in the first place. Given this, why not change 'not bearing the main responsibility' to 'not strictly requiring police officers to take action against super-criminal escape attempts'?"
"Oh, well, but that sounds..."
"You are saving lives, Hamilton." The Green Goblin smiled. "You are helping those innocent officers avoid unnecessary sacrifice."
Hamilton nodded, and then heard the Green Goblin say the next sentence carelessly: "And while we're at it, see if the escape rate of super-criminals will increase. What do you think, Hamilton?"
"I think... perhaps it will?"
"Then I'll bet it won't."
The Green Goblin and Hamilton exchanged a knowing smile. This was their first social experiment, but it would not be their last.
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