The Disposable Enquiry [Round 1: Kyyhkynen]

Roger was frustrated. He'd searched three entire floors and no one was here. Was it a holiday? Had the company just been sold?

He considered checking the higher floors, but given the number of abandoned desks he'd found already, that didn't seem likely to work. He might find a janitor, but they didn't tend to specialize in paperwork. Not that he wouldn't have asked; after all, there was always a chance they could help.

He let out a sigh, or the closest equivalent he could manage without corporeal lungs, and drifted back down to the first floor. Maybe he could find somebody else to help him.

It was at that point that an annoyed Coriander burst through the main doors, hoping his conversational partner was too slow to follow. As the glass doors swung shut behind him, he turned to see if the high-tech stapler had followed.

It hadn't. At least, not as far as he could see through the crowd. That was something of a relief.

"Good day, my good friend!" Roger said to the Core. He wasn't sure what it was, but it moved and that was good enough for him right now. "I don't suppose you could help me with some paperwork?"

"Paperwork?" Coriander asked, somewhat confused.

"Yes, you see, I'm not very good at it myself and - oh, you don't have hands..."

"Oh, don't worry, that's what Julia's for. Julia! Could you come over here and help this fellow out with his paperwork?"

Several minutes passed. Roger blinked.

"Where is she?"

"What are you talking about? She's right here - oh! How silly of me, she must be waiting for me to introduce you. Julia, this is..." He paused. If the introduction had been real, this should be Roger Johnson... but if it had been a delusion, then it might be someone else entirely and addressing them improperly would be rude.

"I'm sorry," the Core finally said. "I'm not sure I caught your name."

"Roger Johnson," the spirit said, somewhat awkwardly. He still couldn't see this Julia.

"Well, Roger, just leave your work with Julia and we'll get this done promptly."

"Um." Roger looked around awkwardly. How exactly was he supposed to handle this? Actually, it was rare enough to have someone who didn't try to run at the sight of him; that had already left him unsure of exactly what to do next.

Finally, after some deliberation, he stapled a form to Coriander's side. Or attempted to. It didn't seem to stick very well. Apparently his stapler wasn't strong enough to pierce the core's metal exterior.

"Great!" Coriander said, apparently paying no attention to the fallen piece of paper. "I'm sure we'll have this all worked out for you soon enough."

The Core, evidently either forgetting its encounter with Henrouisgregori von Butchinskyspelmont III or dismissing it as an illusion, turned around to leave. Roger simply sighed and picked up the paper off the floor, carelessly leaving the staple behind.

Coriander suddenly paused.

"Can you get the doors for me, Mr. Johnson? It seems they open inward, and, well, I can't really pull. And Julia's busy at the moment..."