"I keep waiting to see a face I recognize," he confesses. It's not unthinkable. Realistically speaking, it will be far stranger if he never sees someone he knows, poisoned and turned into a monster. It's going to happen. He doesn't feel prepared for it. "I'm not sure if it's incredibly brave or incredibly perverse, this research undertaking of yours." It might not be the most polite thing he could say, but at least he's honest?