Close Encounters Of The Awkward Kind.
Author: Invader Johnny.
Summary: Prof. Membrane wasn't one to pay much attention to the going on of his children lives, that's about to change when he meets a green foreign fellow who his daughter has been seeing, ZAGR.
Disclaimer: I don't own Invader Zim, that's property of Jhonen Vasquez and unfortunately Nickelodeon as well.
Author Notes: This idea accidentally came about from my previous IZ fic "ZAGR Misunderstandings" when Gaz told Zim that it was about time her father knew about them, unfortunately for her, the Irken had his own way of doing stuff, heh.
That being said, this story is quite an achievement for me since it's my one hundred fic on the site, I never expected to get this far on the site but I figure I should commemorate the occasion by posting an IZ fic which is pretty much the first fandom I ever wrote for, plus I been kind of in an Invader Zim kick as of late, I just been feeling nostalgic.
Beep beep beep beep.
As Prof. Membrane heard the noise coming from his communicator, he taps a button on his left arm that is connected by a wire to his goggles.
"This better be important Simmons." He said evenly "Humanity cannot survive without my help."
If there is something that everyone in the labs knew was that their boss, renowned Prof. Membrane did not like to be interrupted when he was working, it was his passion, his reason to getting up every morning and whatnot so unless there was a very critical situation at hand, the man should never be disturbed, unless you would want to be on the Professor's black list.
"Professor, we have a code 7-A45 in progress." The goggles light up as Simmins spoke.
Yup that was a pretty good reason.
Such a good meant that someone had broken into his labs, for what reason he didn't know, but he was going to find out.
Prof. Membrane glanced up at the cameras in the lab, silently watching him, recording him, protecting him.
His eyebrows furrowed for a moment "It seems that I'm in need of upgrading security." He pressed the button again to ask his employer "How did he get it? Is he the annoying little boy who keeps breaking in and saying I'm his father?"
"Not this time sir" Simmons replied "It's some ugly green guy with a skin condition, he demanded to speak to you but I kept telling him that you couldn't be disturbed."
The scientist let out an irritated sigh and shook his head. "I take it that he didn't listen to you otherwise we wouldn't be having this conversation."
If he could see Simmons, the Professor would have known that he was shaking his head "Unfortunately sir, either this kid has a serious listening problem or he just wasn't one to take no for an answer, he was escorted out of the premises for making a scene but he somehow managed to get past security a second time."
"A second time you say?" The Professor inquired, his tone incredulous "Did he tell you how he managed such a feast? The labs are suppose to be impregnable... I should know, I designed them to be that way myself, nothing gets in or out without my consent."
"All he said was that the security here was laughable." Simmons replied angrily "Even chortling at our faces as he compared it to be inferior to that of the City Center Mall!"
"That's quite a claim to make." The scientist comments "Quite a disrespectful one in my opinion."
"I would say so Sir!" Simmons agreed "Should I kick him out again?"
Professor Membrane though about it "No."
"I'm sorry?"
"I want to personally meet this kid." He clarified "If he was able to get in twice then he very likely saw a blind spot in out security, if you kick him out then he can get back in a third, fourth and fifth time. That's unproductive and a waste of our time and resources, so instead of trying to make the problem go away it's best I solve it so I want to know how this kid got in the premises and the best way to find out is to interrogate him myself."
"Is that wise Sir?" Simmons asked "Shouldn't we let the police handle this? I mean a minor or not, this green kid did technically broke the law by breaking and entering."
"The last thing we need is negative publicity." His boss replied "I can't help mankind if people start questioning how safe my workplace can really be."
"We can't let that happen."
"Indeed, now tell our guest I'll be there shortly and this time don't let him out of your sight."
"Understood."
Prof. Membrane walked out of the elevator, straight into the restricted part of his lab, going through one door, to another to another, finally reaching his destination.
Entering the dark interrogation room, Simmons turned his glare from the green teenager to his boss, his attention caught by the whooshing sound the metallic doors made.
"Thank you for coming Sir, here he is, the troublemaker himself."
The first thing Prof. Membrane noticed was that indeed the teenager was green; yet he seemed oddly familiar, he just couldn't put his finger on where has see him this kid before.
The Irken's eyebrow quirked at being called a troublemaker, it was nothing short of an infantile thing to call an Irken soldier such as himself and yet, he couldn't help but to smirk arrogantly, something the professor noticed.
"What are you playing at kid?"
"The more problems for the humans the better." Zim thought evilly and then he spoke with a very condescending tone "I been expecting you, professor."
"Hey! You're not in charge around here!" Simmons said, his eyes narrowed angrily "You can't talk to the Professor Membrane with such disrespect!"
"Give it time security drone, give it time." The alien said wickedly "And I can speak in anyway I want, it is after all as you humans say; a free world."
"You obviously don't understand the gravity of the situation." Simmons sneered "You are in some serious trouble young man."
"Depends on your definition of trouble." Zim shot back "I mean failing to keep me out doesn't speak well of your job now does it?"
The man's face turned red with anger, silently glaring at the disguised alien, trying (and failing) to not let who he believed to be a teenager get under his skin.
Meanwhile Prof. Membrane noticed the handcuffs on Zim's right wrist which was cuffed to a radiator, he turned to look at Simmons. "You handcuffed him?"
"It was the only way he wouldn't run off!" His assistant replied "Not to mention that you gave strict orders to not let him out of my sight, Sir!"
"Fools!" The Invader bellowed "No mere human artefact can detain the almighty Zim!"
The alien then tried to make a run for it but since he was essentially shackled, he felled to the floor.
"Ack!" Zim yelled "Ugh, primitive technology... Yet effective."
Before the Professor could say a word and get some answers out of the alien, his phone rang and he had no choice but to answer.
"Bloaty's Pizza Hog! Bloaty's Pizza Hog! "Bloaty's Pizza Hog! Bloaty's Pizza Hog!"
Zim smirked from the floor at the lyrics, clearly he was very familiar with the song. "Nice ringtone there Professor, very fitting coming from a man of science."
Prof. Membrane narrowed his eyes and quickly silenced it by pressing his Bluetooth in his ear and answering. "It's my daughter's favourite song" He grumble, "Hello?"
"Hi dad, it's me." Gaz grunted "There's some leftover pizza in the house, I know you have work to do but you still need to eat, so I'm wondering if I should just bring some to you at the lab or you're going to be eating something down there?."
Given Zim's "mighty superior Irken hearing abilities" he was able to hear Gaz's voice quite clearly, so he grinned in mischief, "Oh this is getting better by the minute."
Unaware of what the alien was thinking, the professor obliviously told his youngest child "It might be better if you stay home tonight honey, we have a situation here, some kid got in the lab and won't say how he did it."
That sounded like a challenge.
"Need some help?" She asked, fingers cracking "Getting others to talk is my specialty."
"No Gaz" Her father said sternly, "I think we have everything under control."
Zim laughed maniacally at that "In what universe?"
Gaz stiffened "That voice, oh no... It couldn't be him... He wouldn't do something so incredibly stupid." She then slapped her forehead in annoyance "Who am I kidding? Of course he would."
Prof. Membrane glared at Zim, receiving a smug smile in response, "I gotta go honey, but don't worry, everything is under control." He hung up and everyone in the room stayed silent for a moment."
"Soo.. How old's your daughter?"
"That's none of you're concern."
"Oh I beg to differ."
Gaz drove like a madwoman into the Membrane Labs parking lot.
"If it's not Zim then I'm somehow getting his paranoia but if it is Zim, I'm going to kill him."
She eventually parked her car and walked into her father's labs, unlike Dib she actually had free access to any place in the downtown labs, mostly because the workers here actually liked her more than they liked Dib, some security officers didn't even think twice about letting her enter some restricted areas of the laboratories.
Since Gaz has been here countless times, (The ShadowHog incident being the most prominent) she knew this place like the back of her hand.
"Dad's interrogation room is just around the corner."
The purple haired teen made it to her destination and kicked open the door, then stopped dead in her tracks, seeing her two month boyfriend sitting down on a cold metallic chair, handcuffed. "Zim!"
The alien looked away from the two humans in the room and slowly grinned at his stunned girlfriend. "Hey Gaz-Beast. I'm just getting acquainted with your father unit."
"Zim?" The Professor thought with realisation "That's why his name was so familiar to me, he's the foreigner that my poor insane son keeps calling an alien."
Ah he continued to to think, he missed how his daughter was chewing the alien out.
"Zim you damn idiot, what would possess you to do something like this?!"
"Well you mentioned that you wanted me to meet your father." Zim pointed out obliviously "So I did."
"Yeah but I didn't mean for you to break into his lab!" Gaz growled "Holly shit, Zim I can't believe..."
"Daughter?"
He had finally gotten out of his train of thoughts.
Gaz stiffened for a second time, this time at the sound of her father's voice. "Shit... Shit... Shit... Shit... And more shit!"
The Professor looked at her and then smirking alien in disguise curiously, "Do you know this guy?"
Zim chuckled arrogantly from his seat. "Everyone should be so lucky to know me."
He wisely shut up once he noticed his girlfriend's scary glare of doom.
She sighs in defeat. "Might as well come clean."
"Well, daughter?"
"Unfortunately I do."
"Hey! I'm right here you know?!" Zim bellowed insulted.
"Believe me, we know" Simmons said with disgust.
"I want more information daughter." Prof. Membrane ordered sharply "Now!"
Gaz had never been in the receiving end of her father's angry voice, which was a first and she suspected it wouldn't be the last once he found out her relationship with Zim.. "Uhm, I've been meaning to tell you, dad, you see I'm not a little girl anymore and well as you noticed I grown other interest than pizza and video games, so I eventually began dating so um dad... This is my boyfriend, Zim."
The Professor's Amber eyes widened under his blue goggles and he sharply looked at the green guy, who was grinning at him by now.
"I am the amazing Zim." The Irken said "You may be impressed with me now."
All the Professor knew now was that he was going to be far more involved in his daughter's life.
Staring with making drones to follow her around when she was out with this Zim guy.
"Science will help me keep her safe."
Well once again, I gotta mention that the idea came to me after writing my previous fic "ZAGR Misunderstandings." Read it and you'll know why, yup I'm not above done cheap advertising.
I figured that since Gaz is the Professor's favourite child then he would take more precautions to keep her safe, plus what father isn't worried when his little girl starts dating? I actually had a lot of fun writing the interaction between Zim and the Professor, I'm aware that Zim may actually seem a bit more intelligent at least when it came to snappy replies, this is actually because I think that dating Gaz could've made some impact on him or he actually began to change considering that it's apparently canon that Zim will eventually grow up in character, Emperor Zim, anyone?
I'm aware that Prof. Membrane and Zim met in both "Parent-Teacher Night" and "Tak; The Hideous New Girl" but let's not forget that the guy has a tendency to forget he has children so he of course wouldn't remember meeting Zim unless the situation arose.
So anyway, This is my 100th fic so I would appreciate if you nice readers would help me celebrate by giving me plenty of nice reviews, LOL.
See you next time.
Invader Johnny Signing Off.