"I am Alistair Everett Lowell, but you can call me Everett, or Rett," he replied, standing up and tipping his head towards her. His curly, bright orange-red hair fell into his eyes slightly. There was a small smile on his face, but it seemed forced. He stared at the proffered hand for a few awkward moments. Realization struck. "Oh!" He grasped her hand-- not her forearm-- and shook it with a small amount of uncertainty. "Pleased to meet you. Would you like me to show you around the lab?" He frowned and chuckled. "Well, of course you do!"<br/><br/>He released her hand and moved over to one of the projects he was working on. "This is a deciduous tree from your world that, strangely, doesn't seem to have a name that I know of. Growing on it is some Deruyan moss--<span style="font-style: italic">Gurlya ssambre</span>. So far they seem to be coexisting without incident. Isn't that wonderful?" He moved over to another project. "This is algae from our collective worlds growing together. They're experiencing some competition, but neither seems to be taking over the other. The algae-from-your-world seems to be slightly more resilient; it can stand lower temperatures." He practically skipped to the next thing. "This! This is some fungi from your world growing on one of our rocks! Crazy!"<br/><br/>He ran his hand through his hair. "There's more, but I have to show you the most important thing." He sauntered over to a door labeled Lab 55T and bowed slightly, palm open. "I present to you... the atrium." He opened the door into a fragrant, noisy, plant and animal filled room.