"I can't believe they look so much like us!" exclaimed Sarah.
"Well I for one don't have a tail! And I have never met a person with anything whatsoever resembling a furry, ten foot long, prehensile raccoon tail either." pointed out Shaun reasonably.
"Whatever! Be polite, Shaun! They're here, and it's our duty to Homo Sapiens everywhere to make the right first impression." hissed Sarah as a glowing blue light emanated from the Dimensional Portal.
Seconds later, two beings stood before them. Both were smiling in a way that made it obvious that they were genuinely happy to meet their hosts. Sarah had been right, they looked exactly like Homo Sapiens. Except for the tail, of course.
She was stunned by the fact that even their clothes would have passed for typical fine dining attire. This alternate universe was indeed a close match.
"My name is Zaren." said the fit looking man in his 30's, interrupting her thoughts. She risked a glance at Shaun, who was eyeing the woman. And to her dismay, he was staring at more than her tail.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Zaren." she replied, extending her hand. She truly was honored. But Sarah fervently wished that she didn't have to worry about a co-worker who could potentially cause an inter-dimensional incident.
"My name is Sarah, and this is Shaun." she replied, nodding in his direction. She also tried to impart a silent message of "BEHAVE!". But inwardly she sighed. The exotic beauty in the almost magical rainbow sequins gown had his full attention.
"And this is Calliva, my partner in both life and work. She is like the missing half of who I am." he explained proudly.
"Hello. It is my honor to meet you, and explore your lovely world." she said, as she gently shook hands with Sarah, then Shaun.
"Where would you like to go first?" asked Shaun, directly addressing Calliva.
She looked at Zaren, and said "maybe we could start with a major city?"
He nodded, then said "I am very curious about the technology. From what I have seen, it's similar to our own. A city will tell us a lot about how much is different."
"Very well. New York awaits right outside of this building. It's one of our biggest cities." Sarah informed the couple.
As they entered the elevator, she noticed Shaun lagging behind Calliva. She pulled him out of earshot, and growled "they're married, you fool!" at which he blushed, and hung his head.
"Is everything ok?" asked Zaren, holding the elevator for them.
"Fine. Sarah was just suggesting that you might want to go to the Empire State Building, it's the tallest building in New York." he covered, addressing Zaren, and avoiding the temptation of including Calliva.
"Perfect. Let's make that our first stop." he replied, smiling.
"It's stunning! None of our buildings are over ten stories high." exclaimed Calliva, as she held Zaren's hand.
Sarah breathed a sigh of relief. Shaun had finally gotten the message. She took note, the magic word for him was apparently "married".
"Let's see the Statue Of Liberty next. Would you believe, I was born here, and have never been inside?" said Shaun.
"Excellent idea, I have never even been to the island!" exclaimed Sarah, getting into the tour.
And so it went, until most of the attractions had been seen. As the sun began to set, the four were in a cab, crossing the Brooklyn Bridge.
"You two really must come visit our world tomorrow. We will visit the jungle city where Calliva and I live. It's the largest on our world, and the buildings are built around the trees..."
Both eagerly accepted, and enjoyed the rest of the ride in silent companionship.
Cover image made in Canva using their gallery