Hope kept her group in the foyer as her two fellow managers walked away. Mostly, she wanted to give her group time to adjust to their surroundings, and to each other. She turned back to Matsumoto as Eloise spoke up, the same elusive smile on her face.
“I’ll be able to provide coffee from my office, Eloise. Or hot chocolate or tea, if either Mr. Takei or Jamie would prefer. No cost, as promised.” She turned her head to Jamie next. Curious, this one. If they didn’t already have Pepper for the team, she’d seriously consider her for the field researcher position. She still was, in a way, but there was a little bit of sternness in her smile. “You’ll need to give me some context for your questions when you want them answered, Jamie. I try not to read minds. It’s considered a bit rude where I’m from. To answer what I do understand, though: I learned it from my mentor. Mr. Takei will probably be happy to know it’s not a requirement, though it isn’t uncommon to have some familiarity with what I like to call ‘the arts.’ Most people prefer the use of anomalies or the sciences, and even my mentor puts a lot of emphasis on intent rather than impact. But my specialty is the Word, both as Secretarial Manager and as an artist.”
Then, she turned to Matsumoto, a glimmer in her honey eyes. “Not understanding is par for the course here, Mr. Takei. I trust you checked the powerpoint Dr. Redd sent out? The anomalous is our field. The unknown is our vision. Things like what I just did are explicable. They follow rules and are defined by patterns. Just ask your new coworker Jamie! But most of what you will see in these halls, that you will encounter in our records, are beyond imagination. Take Eloise, as an example. Eloise, please tell Mr. Matsumoto, how long has the Foundation been trying to understand your composition and function?”
“I’ll be able to provide coffee from my office, Eloise. Or hot chocolate or tea, if either Mr. Takei or Jamie would prefer. No cost, as promised.” She turned her head to Jamie next. Curious, this one. If they didn’t already have Pepper for the team, she’d seriously consider her for the field researcher position. She still was, in a way, but there was a little bit of sternness in her smile. “You’ll need to give me some context for your questions when you want them answered, Jamie. I try not to read minds. It’s considered a bit rude where I’m from. To answer what I do understand, though: I learned it from my mentor. Mr. Takei will probably be happy to know it’s not a requirement, though it isn’t uncommon to have some familiarity with what I like to call ‘the arts.’ Most people prefer the use of anomalies or the sciences, and even my mentor puts a lot of emphasis on intent rather than impact. But my specialty is the Word, both as Secretarial Manager and as an artist.”
Then, she turned to Matsumoto, a glimmer in her honey eyes. “Not understanding is par for the course here, Mr. Takei. I trust you checked the powerpoint Dr. Redd sent out? The anomalous is our field. The unknown is our vision. Things like what I just did are explicable. They follow rules and are defined by patterns. Just ask your new coworker Jamie! But most of what you will see in these halls, that you will encounter in our records, are beyond imagination. Take Eloise, as an example. Eloise, please tell Mr. Matsumoto, how long has the Foundation been trying to understand your composition and function?”