A/N: Hello, one and all! Welcome, to this very special collection of stories.

Earlier this year, one of my favorite authors on this site, E350, celebrated the publication of his 50th story here on FFN. That got me thinking about milestones, and it suddenly hit me — I've been active on this site for exactly 10 years myself. True, I didn't start publishing fics until '08, but I created my account and began reviewing and faving in '07. And now, along comes my decade anniversary. Where does the time go?

Anyway, I decided I just had to do something special to celebrate. So, here you go — a collection of 10 oneshots, drabbles, and ficlets, some of which probably could have stood on their own, but are being grouped together here for the sake of the celebration. Hope you all enjoy them.

First up, a little tale of time travel, in which I address a popular bit of semi-canon fanon that I've never used in my fics before.

Read on!

Disclaimer: Why I still have to say this after 10 years, I don't know. But I'll say it again, I do not own Invader Zim or any related characters.

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Zim'sMostLoyalServant's Ten Year Anniversary Special

Entry 1: Ten Back

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It was another average day at the Membrane household. Which is to say that Professor Membrane wasn't anywhere near the property, except in the sense that he had a few hover-screens with prerecorded messages floating around the house. Meanwhile, Gaz was in her room, sitting in front of a row of computer screens, 110% focused on her latest online game tournament. And Dib was in his own room, pouring over his latest paranormal discovery.

This is where our story begins.

Dib was seated at his desk, surrounded by ancient tomes, his computer opened to the Swollen Eyeball Network's online archive to help cross-reference and double-check any information he was able to pull from the books. And sitting there, in the middle of the desk and holding all of Dib's attention, was the object he was so carefully studying. It was a large, antique clock, all dark wood and dulled bronze, liberally covered with carved and etched runes and symbols from a forgotten language.

This was the Tempus Fugit Clock, a rather on-the-nose named object of great and mysterious power. With emphasis on the "mysterious" part — seemingly all anyone could agree on was that it had some kind of power. It was just that no one could agree on what. As such, it had bounced around the paranormal community for years, being studied and researched by one group or another, without anything to show for it.

At some point in the last decade or so, it had ended up in the SEN's hands, locked away in some storage warehouse somewhere. And then, a few days ago, Dib had stumbled upon it while going over the SEN's inventory, looking for anything that might give him a leg up against Zim. Of course, he had no idea what the Clock did, and if it actually could help him in any way, but he figured that the only way to know for sure was to try.

So, he'd requisitioned possession of the Clock and any research materials the Network had on it, and surprisingly had got it all without any trouble. Though Dib supposed that the other Agents were probably just humoring him, not really expecting him to have any success where everyone else had failed. Well, he'd show them! He'd figure out what the Clock did and how to use it, and even if it didn't help against Zim, he was sure it'd still be a major breakthrough in paranormal studies.

"Now if I could just figure out these damn symbols!" he muttered angrily, tapping a pencil angrily against a sheet of paper covered in failed translations of the runes covering the Clock, as he glared at the timepiece itself, which almost seemed to be staring mockingly back at him.

"Come on, I've checked every language known to ancient man and run them all through every cipher I could find," he complained out loud, tossing the pencil away in frustration, "Why can't I figure out what these things say?"

Groaning, Dib planted his face on the desk for a moment, before shifting slightly to support it on his clasped hands as he stared at the Clock.

"Seriously, what is your deal?" he asked aloud, "Are you just a weird decorative piece people like telling stories about? I mean, I guess that makes sense — all anyone seems to know is that you have magic of some kind, but that's all they say. That could mean people are just trying to get attention, and some money, for the story… damn it, that would just be my luck, wouldn't it? Wasting time on a fake."

Huffing a breath, Dib reached out with one hand and absently flicked one of the Clock's hands. To his surprise, rather than moving an inch or two in reaction, it actually began spinning at significant speed, soon joined by the other hand, which started moving on its own. And as they kept moving and picking up speed, they began glowing with an ethereal light, which soon consumed the entire Clock.

"Whoa," Dib breathed in awe at the display. However, as the glow intensified and the Clock began levitating, a wind emerging from nowhere to blow away everything around it, his interpretation of what was happening from shifted "very cool" to "probably dangerous". As such, he jumped up out of his chair and turned to run towards the door.

But he never made it, as seconds later, the glow intensified with a burst, and a spinning portal of light appeared over the Clock's face. Air began rushing into the portal in a vortex, with enough force to pull Dib off his feet. He grabbed ahold of the carpet as best he could in a desperate bid to stop himself from being sucked in. However, this only held for a moment, before the carpeting tore apart in Dib's hands, and flew through the air with a scream, which trailed off as he disappeared into the portal with another flash of light.

Dib found himself tumbling head over heels through a tunnel of kaleidoscopic light, unable to tell which way was up. With everything happening so fast, his mind couldn't even try to decipher what was happening to him, too consumed by panic as it was.

And then it all ended as quickly as it began, Dib being expelled from the light tunnel and slamming into a hard surface. Groaning as he picked himself up, Dib dusted himself off and looked around. And he blinked in surprise as he realized that he recognized his surroundings as a street corner not too far his house. He recognized the surroundings as easily as he would his reflection — every house on one side of the street, every storefront on the other, and all he'd have to do was turn a little to one side to see Gaz's favorite Bloaty's…

"What the?" Dib asked, blinking in surprise as he turned, only to be greeted not by the sight of the pig-themed pizza restaurant, but a vacant lot, surrounded by construction equipment. Plastered along one plaster wall barricade was a banner featuring Bloaty's head, along with a message that read "New Bloaty's, Coming Soon Near You!"

Now, Dib had plenty of experience with the paranormal and supernatural for someone as young as him, and had seen his fair share of movies and TV. As such, he had more than enough genre savvy to quickly realize just what happened to him. After all, there was only one reason for a vacant lot where there'd been a Bloaty's for as long as he could remember.

"You've gotta be kidding me," he said facepalming, "I got sent back in time? Of all the powers for a magic clock to have, it's that? That's so freaking cliche!"

Taking a deep breath to calm his quickly growing panic, Dib rubbed his forehead and analyzed the situation. If he really had been sent back in time, the first thing he'd need to do is figure out how far back. Then he could worry about finding a way to get back to where he belonged.

Spying a nearby newsstand, Dib rushed over to it, grabbing a newspaper off of a stack. Not bothering to read the articles or even the headlines, Dib scanned the paper for the date. Spotting it, he saw that it read as ten years — almost exactly to the day, actually — behind what he knew it was in his present.

Hmm, so, it wasn't before he was born, at least. But that meant there was a one-year-old version of him running around somewhere, which was just weird to think.

"Hey, kid, are you going to buy that paper or not?" the newsstand operator demanded gruffly. Dib jumped a bit in surprise at that, having been too engrossed in the situation to notice the man.

"Er, no, sorry," he said, putting the paper back, "I, uh, just needed to check something."

With that, Dib ran off, mind running even faster than his legs as he tried to determine what he was supposed to do now. As tempting as it was to consider, he knew he couldn't do anything to directly alter the past — the risk of a paradox was too great, and he didn't want to be the one responsible for tearing open the spacetime continuum and creating a world ruled by apes, or a nuclear war, or something. So, he had to find a way back to his time, and quickly, before he stepped on the wrong butterfly.

The question was, how? The Clock hadn't come back with him, and he had no idea where it was now, as the records only showed it coming into the SEN's possession less than five years before he found out about it. That meant he would need to find another way to get back to his time.

That really only left one option. And he'd have to be extra careful pursuing it, as that option was seeking aid from his father. And, again, that carried the risk of discovery and a paradox, so he couldn't confront his father directly for help. Not that the Professor would believe him anyway, if he told him who he was — while he might believe in time travel being possible due to "real science", he'd probably want to know exactly how Dib had performed the act, and would therefore dismiss Dib out of hand as soon as he heard about the magic clock.

"I guess I'll just have to sneak into his lab and find something on my own," Dib concluded as he paused for a moment, before changing direction with a purpose, "And it'll have to be his home lab in the basement, because there's no way I'll get into his main one."

A few minutes more of running, and Dib came to halt in front of his house. It didn't look all that different from how it did in his time, down to the electric fence, and even the same shade of paint on its walls. Looking around to make sure no one was watching him, Dib walked around to the back of the house of jumped the fence, landing in the backyard. Walking towards the back door, he stopped and eyed the keypad next to it, red light indicating that it was locked. Saying a quick prayer that his father hadn't changed the password sometime in the past decade, Dib reached out and typed in "S-C-I-E-N-C-E".

Yea, the smartest man in the world used something as simple as "Science" as his password. The irony was not lost on Dib, especially not as the light flicked green, and the door unlocked with a click, indicating that Membrane would indeed still be using the same password ten years from now.

Slipping quietly into the house, Dib was sure to move as stealthily as he could, just on the off chance his father was home. Soon, he made his way into the basement, and was looking around the lab for anything that he could put to use getting himself back to the present.

"Okay, so the layout's a little different than what I'm used to," he commented, looking over the various machines and boxes filling the lab space, "But there has to be something here… Huh, what's that?"

The sight that caught Dib's attention was a large glass tube standing upright in the middle of the room. It was filled with fluid of some kind, with a shape floating within it, obscured by the condensation coating the tube's surface. Curiosity getting the better of him, Dib carefully approached the tube and gently rubbed away some of the clinging moisture, creating a patch he could see clearly through. Peering through it, he was shocked to see a baby — no, a near-totally developed fetus — floating within, an artificial umbilical cord connecting it to machinery in the top of the tube.

"What the hell?" he muttered. Why did his father have a baby in a jar in his lab?

Looking around for some kind of explanation as to what this all was, Dib saw a computer terminal nearby, hooked up to the tube. Walking over to it, he was relieved to see it wasn't locked, and he was able to pull up the information it contained.

Project: Continuance, Phase 2. Log Entry 90

New subject continues to grow safely at slightly accelerated rate. Full gestation and subsequent "birth" should be completed within the next two months.

So far, the choice to alter my genetic sample in this subject to make it female does not appear to be affecting its development. If all things continue as they are, I believe it is safe to assume that this "daughter" subject will indeed serve as an equal balance to my first "son" offspring…

"Wait, what?!" Dib exclaimed, eyes bugging out as he read that last line. What did that… it couldn't be, could it? Dreading what he'd find, but feeling a desperate need to confirm or deny his sudden fears, Dib scrolled back through the files until he found the first entry.

Project: Continuance, Phase 2. Log Entry 1

After much consideration since the conclusion of the first stages of this project, I have decided to create another offspring.

My reasons for this are several. For one, I cannot be said to have fully explored the limits of my ability to create life until I have done so with both genders, which is why I intend to alter my genetic sample with this new subject to render it female.

The more prominent reason, however, is that my first subject does not appear to be developing either physically or mentally at the proper rate. As such, grooming a replacement seems a logical precaution, should things not pick up.

Some might say I am reacting too harshly, given that Subject 1's development is normal for the average human infant. However, he should not be average. It is a matter of record that I was already solving advanced mathematical equations with my building blocks when I was only six months old. As such, any offspring of mine should be just as intelligent. Even more so in this case, given that rather than being a mix of my genes and some woman who may or may not have an equally high IQ, my "son" is created purely from my DNA…

Dib could only stare mutely in shock at the screen. He was a clone? A test tube baby? No, that couldn't be. Sure, he'd always known that his and Gaz's mother had died when they were little, but she'd existed… hadn't she? Come to think of it, Dib suddenly realized with cold certainty, he didn't think he'd ever seen a picture of his mother, or heard her name, or even heard his father mention her. He'd just assumed her existence, because obviously, he had to have had a mother, right?

But, no, apparently not. He was just an experiment, a vanity project his "father" had cooked up just because he wanted a perfect child. Which, Dib mused with dark humor, at least explained why Membrane was always so disappointed in him — he probably couldn't understand why someone created directly from his own genes could be so obsessed with "fake science".

He was suddenly pulled from his shock as he heard the basement door open, and the sound of footsteps walking down the stairs. Panicking, Dib bolted towards a corner and hid himself behind some equipment, just as his father entered the lab. As the Professor inspected the tube containing what Dib belatedly realized had to be Gaz, he knew he had to get out of here quickly, before he was discovered.

Quickly scanning his surroundings, Dib spotted an air vent just within continued hiding distance. Crawling over to it and removing the cover as quietly as he could, he entered the vent and began crawling through it, making his way up, figuring he could make his way back up to the surface level and get out; he could always come back once he was sure his father had left, but just staying in the house with him was a risk.

Unfortunately, that didn't prove to be as easy as the movies made it seem. First of all, the vents were cramped, and hard to move through. Secondly, he could even tell which way he was heading. So, when he finally saw another covering, he didn't hesitate to kick it out and fall out into the next room, desperate for some breathing space.

Looking around, Dib was surprised to see himself back in what he was sure was his room, albeit bare of all the personal touches he'd added over the years. In fact, all there was in there, was a crib.

Eyes wide as he realized what he was looking at, Dib hesitantly walked over to the crib, and looked down at himself. His infant self was laying in the bed, swathed in blue clothes and blankets, sleeping somewhat fitfully. Dib could only stare, emotions mixed.

"Wow, this is weird," he muttered, "Of course, not as weird as finding out you're a science experiment. Heh, you're lucky, Mini-Me — you still have ten whole years before you find that out. Mind you, they're ten years of being mocked and made fun of for everything you believe in, but that's not so bad compared to this."

Dib's voice must have grown too harsh as he said this, because Baby Dib suddenly woke from the tone, and started crying.

"Oh, nononono, please stop," Dib begged, "Please, you'll bring Dad up here… um, hey, look at this!"

Doing the first thing that came to mind, Dib whipped out his phone and brought up his pictures of Zim, and Bigfoot, and any other paranormal things he'd come across.

"Look, aliens!" Dib said, holding the phone where Baby Dib could see. Surprisingly, that stopped the crying, as the infant blinked and looked up at the screen, the light having fully absorbed his attention.

"Allleeennns," the baby gurgled happily, trying to repeat the word. The cuteness of that caused Dib to smile, despite himself.

Maybe it was the innocence in his younger self's eyes. Or maybe it was just the chance being given to his brain to allow it to slow down and back away from the shock, letting him think things over. But suddenly, his recent revelation didn't seem so overwhelming.

So what if he was created, not born? He was still him, wasn't he? It didn't change what he was like, what he did, or how he saw the world, so he shouldn't treat it like the end of everything he knew.

Just as that thought passed his mind, there was a flash of light, and a feeling of being pulled in every direction at once. When his vision cleared, Dib saw that he was back in his room — as in, his modern day room, everything back where he knew it should be, and the Tempus Fugit Clock sitting on his desk, not glowing but still seeming to stare at him.

Dib blinked as he tried to process what had just happened. Clearly, the Clock had brought him back to when it sent him from, of its own volition. But why? Why send him back in time only to suddenly bring him back?

"Did I somehow need to know about how my dad created me, and that's why you showed me all that?" Dib muttered, before glancing at the phone still in his hand, "Or was I fulfilling a time loop, inspiring my younger self to have a love of the paranormal?"

Then he frowned as another thought occurred to him.

"Or were you just messing with me? You were, weren't you, you little piece of magical-"

"Dib! Keep it down in there!" Gaz yelled from her own room, voice cutting through both shut doors in her way and causing Dib to jump.

"Right, sorry!" he called back. Shaking his head to clear it, Dib put his phone away and, after a moment of hesitation, started packing up the Clock and all his research materials. After what had just happened, he didn't want anything more to do with it.

And so, like so many before him, Dib Membrane experienced the power of the Tempus Fugit Clock and, underwhelmed and disappointed by its power, sent it away. He'd remain aware of its abilities, but would never properly speak of them again.

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The End

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A/N: Sorry for just ending it like that. But I'm not that good at all that deep, introspective stuff, so I just skipped over most of the stuff I originally planned with Dib's interactions with his younger self.

Hope you don't all mind the poor quality. I promise the other entries in this collection will be better.