ZaDR! Dib is finally fed up with Earth. He tells Zim that he'll join him in conquering/destroying Earth provided that he and his family are spared and protected when the time comes.

Gaz is a bit OOC (but it could be argued that time would change her character) and it gets a little dialogue-heavy at points, but that was how it went.

(-)

I woke in a hospital, confused. It took only a few moments for my head to catch up, but my head seemed to have crawled through broken glass and rusted nails to get to my body, because it was letting me know that it wanted to just throw the towel in and not be awake anymore. My body had been dropped into a tub of achiness and pain before they threw me on the bed, and it agreed that checking out so the pain was no longer an issue was an excellent idea.

Torque. Torque and his friends. There had to have been seven guys total. Now, I was actually more formidable than most of the bullies realized, thanks to my constant skirmishing with Zim, but seven to one is bad odds, especially since they got the drop on me and not visa-versa. Torque had been pissed off since I had made all the other students laugh at him during my daily public posturing. I had been growing wearier and wearier of being the bigger person, the hero who was mistreated by everyone who needed his protection. So I had engaged him in verbal sparring and easily made a fool of him. It was fun and gratifying. Until Torque and Co. caught up with me.

There was a monitor beeping that was annoying, but it was enough to know that Dad hadn't been distracted from his work yet to move me to one of his private facilities, as he always did with Gaz and I eventually. Aside from the monitor beeping, I heard other beeps and pings, very familiar ones. "Gaz?" I asked, moving my eyes as far as possible since moving my head sounded like a really bad idea.

"Oh, you're awake." Gaz appeared sans Game Slave 3 at the side of my bed, obviously deciding if she should immediately tell me how stupid I was. Our relationship had improved by leaps and bounds through Graid Skool and into Hi Skool. While she still occasionally threatened to stuff all my paranormal stuff into my paranormal-sized head, I was one of the very few people –perhaps only person– who was privileged to witness her softer side. Don't get me wrong, her softer side was most often like petting a tiger's stomach; pleasant and rewarding while you waited for the claws to show again.

"You paused a game for me. I'm touched," I said, smiling a little, despite the pain. It probably looked like a grimace. "And you're here. I assume you called 911? No one else would bother."

She scoffed. "Yeah. I found you and figured we didn't have time to get through Dad's communicative hurdles so I just called 911. You know the paramedic didn't want to let me come along because she didn't believe I was your sister?"

I chuckled, which drew a wince of pain from me. "You can't deny that there's a decidedly different look between us. You're my beautiful goth-princess little sister, and I'm your geeky-looking loser of an older brother. They probably took you because someone like you wouldn't make that shit up to ride in an ambulance with someone like me. If the situation was reversed, they would have kicked me to the curb and told me to stalk you to the hospital myself."

Gaz blushed and clenched her fists. "If you didn't look like one good punch would finish you off, I'd smack you right now. Don't say shit like that."

I was about to shrug but thought better of it. "Hey, it's not my fault you matured gorgeously while I only managed to attain more gawkiness. But facts are facts, little sister."

She sighed in resignation. "Well, I didn't want to leave and have you wake up alone, but...I might go now."

Gaz hated hospitals. As did I. And neither of us were fond of Dad's medical labs either. The one time a very lost and confused intern came in and tried to get me to swallow a radioactive goldfish was still a crisp, clear memory in my head. The fact that she had stayed until I woke up spoke volumes of the changes between us.

"Yeah, go ahead and run. If I could dash out the door, I would," I told her, grin/grimacing at her.

Gaz nodded, grabbing her GS3 and her school bag. "I'll be back tomorrow after school. I might ask about your homework."

"Thanks, Gaz. Where would I be without you?"

"Bleeding on the concrete, waiting for Zim to find you and finish you off," she replied promptly, and graced me with one of her lovely hate-less smiles. "See ya tomorrow; call if you need something."

I watched her leave and her answer to my question brought dark ideas that had only been vague thoughts drifting around the periphery of my consciousness since I woke up into the forefront of my brain. And the thoughts were unthinkable, except they obviously weren't anymore. Which scared me.

Gaz must have told the nurse I was awake because one came in to check on me, get some vitals, and tell me she'd be back with some painkillers. That I looked forward to. But when she left it was just me and my thoughts again. I tried to distract myself by painfully retrieving the remote and looking for something to watch, maybe some Mysterious Mysteries re-runs. Like the one I was on with Zim...

I turned the TV off, convinced nothing was going to distract me. Until something walked in the door to prove me wrong. "Zim?"

He, at all of 4' 11", strode in proudly. He was such a wee little thing I wanted to put him in my pocket, if that wouldn't have cost me my thigh and sensitive bits. Any of the bullies who mistook his size for weakness learned the error of their ways painfully. Now I was pretty much the only person who willingly engaged in any interaction with Zim. "The Tiny Terror" he was called by people who had made very certain that he wasn't in earshot.

"I waited for the Gaz-beast to go but then the nurse-human came in. I heard you ran into more trouble than you could handle or outrun," Zim said. He looked disinterested, but he was here, so he wasn't as uncaring as he might seem. Even if he only cared because now would be a great time to kill me.

And when my little sister and mortal enemy were the only ones who gave a damn if I lived or died, I realized that there was clarity in this situation I had been unwilling to recognize before. I thought of looking up at Torque and his friends as they pummeled me, their hateful grins seared into my memory.

"Did they break your brain, Dib-stink? I would think your enormous thick skull was keeping it well-protected."

I shook myself from my thoughts, unable to stop a whine of discomfort at the motion. "Um, I'm okay. Well, actually, I'm really really not, but I think I might be okay soon, if not physically."

"Zim has been here for too many years, but he still doesn't understand your feelings-riddles," Zim said, pouting.

Zim didn't refer to himself in the third person much anymore, and if he did, it tended to be when I was around. It made me feel special. "Nevermind, Zim. I've just been doing some thinking. What brings you to my sterile and soulless prison cell?"

That made the alien eye me critically. "Zim told you, he heard you got in trouble and got taken to Hospittle. He wondered what kind of trouble brought down the great defender of humanity."

I sighed. "Same as always: humans. You were there at lunch when everyone laughed at Torque. Well, he and six of his buddies cornered me as I was leaving school, and I couldn't get past them and there were too many to fight."

Our exchange highlighted the issues I'd been feeling of late, and I felt a darker side of me creeping more and more into the driver's seat. Zim seemed to see something of that in my expression. "Dib-stink has been very down lately. You were pathetically weak even before they broke your body."

He seemed to eye my condition, taking me in in detail. "Indeed, Zim isn't sure why he doesn't just smother you with a pillow and be done with it."

"I'll tell you why you shouldn't," I said before I could stop myself by reminding myself that this was a horrible idea.

"Oh? And what does the Dib-worm think is so important about him?" Zim asked smugly.

I took a breath and exhaled, making sure I really wanted to do this. "You shouldn't kill me because I can help you conquer the Earth."

Zim just stared at me, frowning and watching my face with intense, false eyes. "You really have become weak if you think I would fall for such a pathetic ploy-"

"No ploy. I'm serious. You know how proud I am, how determined. I wouldn't say anything like this if I didn't mean it."

That made Zim stare at me harder, and I felt myself blushing under all the bruises, bandages, and casts. "Dib-pig is serious? What about humanity?"

Torque and Co. came into my mind's eye, along with everyone and anyone else at school. Even the Swollen Eyeball Network scorned me for the most part. "If the people around me are the examples of humanity, I'm beginning to think I'm not human. I don't belong here, and that's been obvious my whole life. My whole life these people have been giving me reasons that they should be destroyed, but I tried to save them. They always want to destroy me. So it has kind of clarified my options."

"So you surrender to Zim?" he asked, and even his fake contacts showed the spark of heady pleasure he felt at the idea.

"Not surrender," I corrected. "I want to negotiate a partnership."

"Partners..." Zim seemed to be trying to pin down the definition of the word. "The Dib wants to mate with Zim?"

That was so far away from anything I might have expected him to say that my jaw just fell open as my blush intensified. "What?! NO!"

"But that's what it means when two males join together, yes?" Zim asked, looking far too innocent.

"NO! I mean, yes, but NO! I mean a platonic partnership, something that is friendly but focuses on business. I swear, I have no idea where you come up with this shit..."

"When we were assigned topics for presentations in Sex-Ed, you had male homosexuality. You had a very good presentation, even if all the stink-pigs gave you hell about it for the rest of the year. I remember what you told us."

I was going to combust if he didn't cut this out. That year was hell and better left to be forgotten. No such luck. "Zim, we're getting a bit off-topic." A lot of the hell I was given that year was insinuations that I was the lover of the alien in front of me. Although no one called him an alien, just "that green freak". This was the most horrible of all the reminders I could have gotten about that time.

"So, a plutonic partnership. Do we need Plutonium for that?"

I growled. "PLA-TON-IC. Not romantic. Friendly. Also nothing to do with Plutonium."

"Then what would this partnership entail?" Zim asked. The curiosity on his face was adorable, and I didn't want that kind of thought anywhere near my head, let alone in it.

"I help you conquer Earth –preferably not destroy, since a lot of the wildlife and landscape are pretty cool, not to mention supernatural phenomena– and in return I get your protection when the end comes. Oh, and Gaz. There's no deal if you expect me to enslave or destroy my little sister," I said firmly.

Now Zim was giving me a shrewd look. "How can Zim be sure you won't try to destroy him once his guard is down?"

"Zim, you're sitting next to my hospital bed where I'm lying all but incapable of moving. My guard is pretty damn down, but you're talking to me, not smothering me with a pillow. I wouldn't want to be the kind of person who would kill you with your guard down after that. I don't want to be like the rest of humanity. I haven't really wanted you dead for years. All I had to do was imagine life with you gone, and I realized that you're the best thing in my life, mortal enemy or not."

Zim was looking at me in wide-eyed astonishment. "The Dib does seem quite serious. And all you want in exchange for your help is for you and your sister to stay with Zim once we are finished?"

I nodded, then groaned. Where was that damn nurse? "Yeah. I just want Gaz and I to live free and happy, preferably not here. I don't intend to tell her about any of this anytime soon, but I love my little sister, and I couldn't leave her behind. If you don't want to bring her, I'll protect the whole damn planet just to protect her."

"Zim has always been fascinated with this human concept of 'family'. Especially given that you don't have much of one, your fierce loyalty is bizarre."

"I was just thinking earlier that you and she are the only ones who would really care one way or the other that I was dead. You two are all I have. I don't want to let either of you go."

Zim leaned in towards me as I said the last part and it made me nervous. My blush hadn't completely died down, and his proximity was doing nothing to help that. "The Dib has made Zim a very attractive offer. Zim must consider his options before he decides."

He stood from his chair, and I smiled. "I didn't expect you to immediately jump on the opportunity to work with me. But until we have a deal, I'll defend Earth. Pretty much just for Gaz. Understood?"

Zim nodded. "How long will you be in your sanitary soulless prison?"

"Ages, from what my body is telling me. And my body is screaming." I groaned.

Zim's PAK gave him a syringe, and I didn't have the energy, mobility, or warning to do anything before he injected me with whatever it was, bringing a hiss from my lips as the substance spread like fire through me. "What the hell did you do?" I demanded.

"Whether you're his ally or not, Zim does not accept 'ages' as reasonable time to heal. This should kick your puny human body into gear. You'll need to consume lots of filthy calories," he said as the PAK took the empty syringe.

The fire was calming from a searing roar to a warm, crackling blaze. I didn't hurt anymore, and I was very comfortable and a little sleepy. "Okaaaay..." I said, starting to drift into sleep. "Thanks, Zim."

I saw him blink at me, then give me the tiniest of sincere smiles. "Sleep, Diblet. And eat a lot when you wake up."

'Diblet, that's new,' I thought as the room got fuzzy.

(-)

"Dib! Wake your stupid ass up!"

I opened my eyes, still cozy and content, except for the ravenous hunger tearing through me. "God, he wasn't joking. I'm starving."

I had lifted my head, but then a none-too-gentle push on my forehead had me back on my pillow. Gaz was standing over my bed, scowling. "I got called out of school this afternoon because you'd slept through last night and all of today so far, and they couldn't figure out why."

I groaned and sat up, finding that it was no longer screaming agony to do so. Painful, yes, but manageable. "Out of school? Dad isn't coming, right?"

"He shouldn't be. I'm your emergency contact. If he knew you were here he'd just make a big fuss and take you to his lab. I wouldn't want that, and I doubt you would either," Gaz said, her arms crossed at she continued to glare at me. "What did you do?"

I blinked stupidly for a few seconds before I realized what she meant. "Zim came to visit me yesterday. I...proposed a truce, at least temporarily, and he shot some stuff into me since he said it was no fun to kill me lying injured in a hospital bed."

"You and Zim, a truce? What, is Tak back? You don't look or smell like bologna."

"Ha ha," I said dryly. "He said the stuff would make my body heal faster and that I needed to eat a lot more while it did."

"I doubt the hospital will be feeding you large amounts of edible food. They don't have ketchup and rice on the menu, but..." Gaz looked thoughtful. Then she sat my backpack on the little table that was rolled over my bed. "You're lucky I was planning to visit you right after school."

I opened it and saw that not only was my homework in it, but my laptop, a few other gadgets, and some of my favorite snacks. "Have I ever told you what a beautiful, wonderful sibling you are?"

Gaz smirked and pulled out her GS3. "Not often enough. But I'm gonna leave, I'll be back in a bit, okay?"

I nodded. "Thank you. I'll see you in a bit." I immediately tore open a bag of chips, snarfing them down like Gir snarfed tacos. I made my way through the rest of the snacks within a minute, two tops. I hoped they brought dinner soon.

Once again, Gaz had informed the nurses that I was awake. A different nurse from yesterday came in. "I see you're awake. We thought you might be slipping into a coma." She had a very disinterested voice, reinforcing my choice to join Zim.

"Nope, just a healing trance or something, because I feel a lot better. Except I'm starving. I've missed a few meals, right?"

She glanced at me, an eyebrow raised at my enthusiasm, and said, "Yeah. You want your lunch?"

"Could I have my lunch and breakfast? I'm really hungry."

The nurse shrugged, looking bored. "Sure. It'll be here sometime."

I suppressed a growl, praying it got here before I had to climb out of bed and eat whatever patients, doctors, or nurses I came across. I bet a visitor would fill me up nicely.

It actually got to my room after fifteen minutes, to my pleasant surprise. The male nurse who brought the trays flinched as I rapidly started to devour what he'd set before me. He was backing up cautiously but hadn't made it to the door before I was done. "That was great, thanks. When's dinner?"

(-)

Gaz returned after I'd devoured dinner, saying, "You freaked out the nurses. Did you eat one of them?"

"Hey, I showed great restraint in eating no one, even though I'm still starving." I smelled something that made my mouth water, and I noticed Gaz had something behind her back. She set three pizza boxes and an appetizer/side box on the rolling table.

Grinning at my delighted expression, she snagged one pizza box and said, "I expect a breadstick too." She took one out and put it on top of her box, moving to sit in the visitor's chair.

I never thought Bloaty's Pizza could smell so much like heaven. This must be how it smelled to Gaz. I opened the top box and devoured the breadsticks before moving on to demolish the pizza. I was opening the last box when I noticed Gaz with a piece of pizza half-way to her mouth, staring at me. "What?"

"God, those nurses weren't joking. You're like a rabid animal. What the hell did Zim give you?"

I shrugged, pleased to find only slightest twinge from the motion. "I have no idea, but it's something kind of awesome. I feel like I got enthusiastically beat up by one, maybe two guys yesterday." I nodded to myself and then ate the last pizza. I restrained myself from asking if Gaz would finish hers. She'd been Super Sister for bringing and sharing pizza in the first place.

"So, after I'm better you'll have to let me know how to thank the best sister ever. Seriously, you're saving me left and right, here."

That Cheshire Cat grin grew on Gaz's face, and years ago it would have been disturbing. Now I was just glad to see that making me happy made my sister happy, even if it was mostly for the recompense. "Next time you break into Zim's lab, see if he has any video games. I'd like to see what invading aliens play. Barring that, the Game Slave 4 is coming out this month."

My grin nearly matched hers. "Sounds like a plan." Hell, I wondered if I could get Zim to order her some games, if he didn't have any. I didn't actually need to break into his lab anymore...probably...if he accepted my deal.

We shared companionable silence as I worked on completing my homework and she ate, unable to play her GS3 without covering it in grease. "Do you wonder if Dad really even cares anymore? He barely acknowledged us when we were kids, and now it's almost like we don't exist to him. I haven't seen him at home in a year or so, I think," I said thoughtfully.

"Two years he's skipped Family Night. We haven't seen him in two years. And I swear, if that outdated recording tells me to feed the puppy one more time I'm going to bash the screen with a baseball bat. There is no puppy," Gaz said sourly.

I thought about that for a minute and said, "Do you want a puppy? Or a kitten? We could always get one, it isn't like we need Dad's permission."

Gaz considered my offer but shook her head. "Nah, I wouldn't have the patience and I'd destroy it pretty quickly. Zim's robot/fake-dog is much better than regular pets not to mention more durable. I think even if I dismantled that thing it would still sing about tacos or whatever."

That brought my eyebrows up. "You like Gir?"

Blushing ever-so-slightly, Gaz scowled at me. "No! He's just...amusing. It's not like I'd want him around or anything. He's crazy, and who needs that?"

And wasn't that statement telling. Well, when we did conquer Earth I suppose Gaz would be able to enjoy Gir's company when she wasn't with Zim or me. I kind of wondered how pissed she would be that I joined up with Zim to destroy humanity. She had a few casual friends and acquaintances that tied her to the normal world, unlike me. Maybe it was something she'd never forgive me for. Maybe like leaving Dad behind.

I figured asking for my maniac scientist father to come would be too much, since Dad could do a ridiculous amount of mischief with alien technology, a lot of it probably things that Zim wouldn't want. I couldn't leave without Gaz, but my father? I figured he'd leave without me, if our positions were reversed.

It wasn't much longer before Gaz slid her pizza box onto the table. I peeked under the top and saw a little over half of a pepperoni pizza and when I gave her a questioning glance, she nodded. I tore through the rest of that pizza in 10 or 15 seconds.

Gaz was looking wary. "Are you sure Zim had that formula for humans? You're a little scary right now."

I shrugged. "I'd have to ask him," I said. "Although given my rate of healing, I should be back to school soon. I suppose I'd better prep some defensive measures, because I'm tired of the bullying and Torque will undoubtedly want it to continue, as will all the other bullies."

"You should have beaten them up a long time ago," Gaz said, GS3 a-beeping. "If they knew that you can make them a victim, they'd back off and find another target."

It certainly sounded like an attractive option. Since Torque and Co. were the ones who finally got me to resign as Defender of Humanity, maybe they should get a taste of what was once keeping them safe...

I looked at Gaz, who seemed content enough to sit with her GS3, but I could see the tension in her posture that had nothing to do with Super-Kicky Fighter 8. "You can go home, Gaz. I'll be fine here. Especially since you brought the pizza."

She glanced up at me and I could tell she wanted to run. "You won't eat a nurse or something if I leave?"

I smiled. "Nah, I was thinking a doctor would be more filling. But, seriously, I'll be fine. I'll work on my homework and not devour the staff."

Gaz was grabbing her bag and standing up hurriedly. "You know to call me if you need me, right?"

"Yes. Thank you, little sister. I'm really supposed to be the one looking after you."

"Eh, you did that when I was little." Gaz shot me a smile over her shoulder before she left.

I sighed and settled in with Math homework. Actually, all my assignments seemed even easier than usual, and it took me a half-hour to do 5 subjects' worth. I was laying back in bed after I finished when my ears picked up on squeaky plush-toy footsteps. I knew those footsteps.

Gir came into my room, doggie disguise donned, gave me a crazed smile. "HAI, BIG-HED BOI!"

He walked right up to my bed and sat on my homework on the rolling table. A second later a security guard came in and said, "Sir, there are no dogs allowed in the hospital."

I fought back a scowl. People were so stupid. "He's not a dog," I said calmly. "He's a prototype robot-dog plushie I'm developing. Wave to the nice man, Gir."

Gir waved enthusiastically and squealed, "HAI!"

"See? He's advanced," I told the security guard.

The security guard frowned doubtfully. He was that convinced that Gir was a real dog. Yeah, I hated humanity. "I guess, but he'd better not make a mess," the guard replied warningly.

"Of course not," I said.

The guard left and I told Gir, "Try not to destroy anything. Or cover anything in any kind of substance."

"But wat about the waffuls!" he protested, and his costume split open and a plate of hot waffles floated out of his head and into his hands. He pushed his little antenna down like a pump and spit brown sticky syrup all over the waffles.

He handed me the plate as his suit went back into place. I was ready to devour them but had a thought that gave me pause. "There aren't peanuts and soap in these, are there?"

Gir giggled. "Nope! Mastah told meh that duh best waffuls hav wafful in em! I make deh best waffuls."

"Did Zim send you?" I rapidly devoured the waffles and Gir clapped like I had done a magic trick. He did make excellent waffles.

"Yeah! Mastah sed deh big hed boi maiks trubble and I shud go see how he doin!"

"Well, thank you for the waffles. I don't suppose Zim told you anything about what he gave me? My sister is worried it wasn't designed for humans," I said, not holding my breath.

"We put that stuf in Nick, bak wen he wuz alive. Mastuh sed it waz important to keep deh test hoomans in gud shaip so dey be useful!"

I grew a little cold. Gir had given waffles to Nick too. If Zim came near me with any probe-looking device, I was going to kick his alien ass. But at least I knew it was supposedly safe for humans. "Did Zim tell you what I discussed with him?" I asked.

"Yu wanna help Masteh take ovur deh world so yu and Skari Gurl can come with us wen we be leavin. DEN WE CAN PLAY TOGETHUR ALL DAI!"

If Zim would let me, I was fixing that robot's speech protocols. Fixing his crazy was a mountain I wouldn't tackle by myself, but I think I could improve his speech significantly. "Except for the play all day bit, that's the plan."

Gir leapt onto me, hugging my chest and wailing, "PLAY WITH ME! PLAY WITH ME!"

I was trying to decide how to calm the insane robot when, of all people, Zim himself came into the room. "Gir, wait for me at home. Dib-beast, I have decided," he announced, pulling a chair up to my bed and sitting in it. Gir jumped off my bed, waved at me, and squeaked of of the room.

That was quick. "About my offer?"

He nodded. "Zim had decided to partner himself with you to ensure the conquest of Earth. Your terrifying sister may join us when we leave Earth."

That made me feel nervous, but also excited. "Cool. I was thinking we should look through some of your plans that I stopped and see if there's anything worth re-trying. We can also get ideas for new plans and then just decide which plans are most likely to succeed and worth putting into action."

Zim gave me a smile that wasn't wholly evil. "The Dib has given this some thought, I see."

I blushed. "It's been a what-if scenario I've entertained a few times over the years."

I remembered something I'd said during Zim's Dark Harvest that was even more embarrassing than that admission. "To defeat my enemy I must study my enemy, then become my enemy, then move in with my enemy, then wear my enemy's clothes then..." I didn't realize how that sounded when I was that young. I was pretty sure going with Zim to his planet counted as moving in with him. Except now I didn't want to defeat him and he was my ally. It still sounded embarrassing. Gaz would have a field day if she remembered that.

"So, how is the Dib feeling? Less broken, I assume?" Zim said, sounding smug. He was confident that his little shot had fixed me, and he had every reason to be.

"Actually, I feel pretty good. Still a bit hungry. If I can get them to discharge me, I might even go to school tomorrow. Heck, if I keep recovering at this rate, by tomorrow I'll be fit enough to beat up Torque and Co. I've gotta get these casts off; I feel like they're unnecessary now."

I was a little apprehensive when Zim look startled by my admission. "Your broken bones are already completely healed?"

"Well, yeah, they feel fine. Isn't that why you gave me the shot?" I asked. I inhaled deeply, trying to calm my rising nerves. I could tell just by looking at Zim that something was up.

"The bones should have taken at least two days to heal. What injuries do you still retain?" he asked, his eyes raking over me in a visual assessment that had my blush returning.

I shrugged, and there was hardly a twinge in the motion. "Not much. I'm a little sore and stiff in some places, but even that's been declining rapidly. I haven't even taken any painkillers." Zim looked very concerned by that and that just couldn't have been good. "What's wrong, Zim?"

The petite alien shook his head, not meeting my gaze. "The serum has never worked so quickly before. I'm not sure what I could attribute that to other than your abnormally large head. I suppose you're smarter than most humans too. Have you had any other side-effects?"

"I have super-speed when eating now. I scared Gaz and the nurses with it and when I ate his waffles, Gir clapped like I'd done a trick." He had said I was smarter than most humans. Part of me was reeling at the compliment but another part of me was getting really worried. "And my homework was way easier than usual. I got it done in less than half my normal time."

Zim continued to look me over and then asked, "Could I have a small sample of blood? I might be able to discern why you present such an anomaly."

That still made me apprehensive. This could be a huge set-up, even if our partnership was my idea. He could just be taking advantage of the opportunity I'd presented him with.

He could see where my thoughts were. "If you don't want to, that's fine; I just thought you'd want assurance that the anomaly isn't harming you in some way as well as helping you."

I felt a little bad at my mistrust, even though it was highly understandable, possibly even expected. "Uh, sure, you can take some blood. Just don't clone me or do anything I would object to with it, okay?" I said half-jokingly.

As his PAK gave him an empty syringe, Zim said, "I can hardly bear one of you, Diblet. And the Earth couldn't bear the weight of another huge head."

I rolled my eyes as he took a syringe's worth of my blood. He was quick and efficient, and it didn't even sting, hardly. That made me think I'd made the right choice in trusting him; my body seemed to be changing, and according to Zim, it was in excess of the original intended parameters of his serum. I'd need to trust him if something might be wrong and I wanted it fixed.

My stomach growled angrily. Zim started and then glanced at it. I felt a little embarrassed. "Sorry, I just can't seem to eat enough to calm my stomach for long. I had all three hospital meals just a while before Gaz gave me two and a half pizzas and a box of breadsticks, and I was ravenous when she showed up."

That critical gaze fell upon me again. "I suppose since you have over-hauled your body even beyond the standards of my serum, your body has a lot of catch-up eating to do. You're lucky you aren't passing out."

I shook my head. "I don't feel faint or weak, just hungry. I almost feel more energetic, especially when it comes to eating."

I'd never seen Zim look that concerned about another person, and it was stunning that it was me. It was also really scaring me how my reports of symptoms and behaviors were making him react.

He turned his head away and said, "I should get this back to my lab and start testing it right away. This anomaly is worrisome. A human wouldn't just over-haul my over-haul serum for no reason; there has to be a cause. Hopefully it isn't a harmful one."

Yup, he had made me really concernicus with his seemingly-genuine care about my health. "You realize that this situation is totally strange, right? I mean, even if I've entertained the notion of an alliance with you before, the actual fulfillment of the idea is kind of blowing my mind with just how surreal it is. Not that it's bad. Just...really different. It'll take some getting used to."

Zim gave me a pleasant smile that made my heart stutter and my mouth go dry, which was very unsettling. "Humans are adaptable creatures, right? You'll be fine, Diblet."

"Yeah...so, I guess I'll see you at Hi Skool in a couple of days. We can plan more then." My statement just got a nod from Zim before he left. And why was I feeling depressed that he was gone? Did I value our alliance so much already?

The answer was obvious. Even though we used to be enemies and were just partners now, Zim had always been the closest thing I had to a friend. And now we were actually being friendly. My stomach felt sort of ticklish at the thought of it.

I let out a sigh and resigned myself to get checked out tomorrow so I could go to Hi Skool the next day. It gave me a day to come up with plans, not just for taking over Earth, but for finding a way to thank Torque and Co. for my new perspective. I was certain I could find something suitably impressive. Yes, a day to plan and a day to act.

(-)

So this is hopefully interesting to the fandom. Even if it is arguably OOC, I like the relationship between Gaz and Dib portrayed here. Hopefully you do too. Let me know in a review, if you are so inclined.