Holy crap! Feather is uploading something that isn't ZAGR or DATR! The apocolypse is upon us! Haha, nah, I kid. As far as irken couples, SATnnR is my favorite (Well, second to SATR). Well, why don't you just read damned thing that I've been working on for the past week and a half.

Disclaimer: I do not own Skoodge or Tenn (or Tak, who actually has something good happen to her in this story for once). Or irk. I definately do not own irk. But I DO own the bratty motel worker, Hew, and the two other hoodlums.

Skoodge walked in to his local coffee shop, taking his hat off and shaking the rain off it. Life had been cruel to him lately. The Tallests, becoming annoyed with how he bounced back every time they attempted to get rid of him, finally fired him from his status as an invader. Just receiving the news had been heart wrenching, but every day, when he walked in to the grimy motel room he called his home, it was like a fresh slap in the face. A constant reminder of his shortness.

Uninterested in the world around him, Skoodge sat down at a stool and fished around in his pockets. Pulling out a crumpled 1$ bill and a dust bunny, he slapped his findings down on the counter. "I'll have whatever that'll get me," he said miserably, not even bothering to look up from his feet. They weren't even touching the ground. He was that short.

"Well, the dollar can get you a cup of espresso, but we don't accept lint," came the joking voice of the girl behind the counter. Her voice...why did it sound so familiar? Skoodge quickly looked up, and he did, indeed, recognize the clerk. She had round, ruby eyes with long and attractive eyelashes, antennae that stuck directly out from the back of her head and curled in to sharp-edged triangles, and a pale green complexion that was only slightly lighter than Skoodge's own. A black name tag was pinned to her green apron. In clear, white text, it read: "TENN."

"Do I know you?" Skoodge asked, a quizzical look upon his face. Tenn stared at him for a while longer. "I can't say I know you...wait, I think I went to school with you! Bryce, right?" she questioned. He shook his head. "No, I'm Skoodge," he said, slight disappointment showing itself in his tone. "Skoodge..." she said thoughtfully, before realization snapped in to her eyes. "You're an invader, right?"

"Was," he corrected. "I was kind of...fired." Unintentionally, the last word came out as an embarrassed squeak. Tenn's gaze softened a little, but she didn't say another word as she turned around to get his coffee. "What are you doing here, anyways? You're an invader. Shouldn't you be off on a mission, or lounging around at some party with the other invaders?" Skoodge couldn't help himself from asking.

"If you must know, they booted me out, too. I paid my dues, and I was replaced by someone else. Tak, they called her," Tenn answered, setting a mug of coffee down in front of him and taking his dollar bill. "Oh," Skoodge said, taking a sip of his coffee. "That sucks."

"Not really," Tenn crossed her arms in front of her, leaning on the counter with her chin on her hands. "I didn't do anything wrong, I just got let go, so I'm still getting the monthly salary of an invader." Skoodge smiled, letting a small laugh escape his lips. "Wish that was me. I don't have anything. Not even a job," he stated. There was no trace of hurt in his voice, though. Just emotionlessness. "Sorry to hear that," Tenn spoke with genuine sympathy.

Swallowing the last drop of coffee in his mug, Skoodge pulled his coat around his shoulders tighter and set his hat back upon his head. "I'd best be on my way," he dismissed, standing up. "Okay, bye. See you...around," Tenn cringed a little as she said that. It was so...overused! Skoodge smiled a faint, barely visible smile. "That'd be cool," he responded, then went back in to the streets and pounding rain.

The whole walk home, Skoodge only thought about Tenn. Even when a passing car threw a sheet of muddy irken water at him, he just let out a small, surprised yelp. Did the Tallests really just kick her out like that? Sure, she still got paid, but that seemed odd. Skoodge had loved being an invader. Being fired was devastating. He would never again feel the rush of conquering a planet for the benefit of his home, or the suspense of wondering where you would be assigned to. 'Does Tenn feel the same way?' he thought.

From what Skoodge had seen and heard, she was quite a good invader. From seeing her hanging out with all the other invaders, he got the feeling that she was loved by the rest of them and fit right in. Skoodge never fit in. No one really associated with him because of his height. Sometimes they teased him, saying it was a wonder he ever was chosen as an invader and conquered Blorch. One time, Skutch even said that the Tallest must have been high when they chose Skoodge. That remark hurt the most. Now that Skoodge had met Tenn again, more and more memories of his time as an invader began coming back to him. He could remember now, when Skutch had made that particularly painful remark, how Tenn had reacted. Normally, when Skoodge was teased, she just ignored them. That time, however, it was different.

"Guys, quit it. It's not like he's worth it," she had said. Tenn had then flashed him a quick look that no one else registered. Skoodge could tell, though, what she had meant. 'Ignore them,' her eyes had said. 'They don't know half of what the hell they're talking about.'

Did she still have that mindset, after those couple of years? Skoodge sighed, entering his motel room he called his home. Well, at least he tried to enter. His key card wasn't working. Skoodge trudged to the lobby, tired of life in general. "Excuse me, ma'am," he said to the bored-looking teenager behind the counter. She had oval-shaped, lavender eyes, antennae that were curled in to small circles, and was currently popping bubblegum loudly.

"What?" she said in a voice that just screamed "snob."

"My keycard isn't working. I'm in room 203. I need to be let in," he explained. "You're the guest in 203? Look, your payment is long overdue. Until you pay your money, we're letting you off easily and just kicking you out," the bratty teenage irken said. Skoodge felt his stomach drop to his feet. "Kicking me out?"

"That's what I said."

"No, you don't understand! What little I have is in there! I don't have any money to pay you! I'm sorry, I just...have nowhere to go," Skoodge desperately exclaimed. "That's your problem. Pay up, or get out," the worker snorted. Skoodge was aware of the tears coming to his eyes. He was going even further down, just when he thought it couldn't get any worse. This was, indeed, the shitty part of the city. It was where living was the cheapest. There was no way he could negotiate with this place.

"Could you at least let me in one last time, so I can get my stuff?"

"No."

"What? Why?"

"We can make money off of it. At least some of it will pay for the space you've been taking up."

Skoodge opened his mouth to speak again, but all that came out was a sputtering, breathy noise. "N-never mind. I'll just...I'll go...now," he submitted, pushing one of the doors open and walking away.

It was raining even harder now, as if Mother Nature was weeping for his loss. Skoodge quickly shoved the thought away, knowing that anyone controlling life was a cruel bitch. The sky was a dark pink behind the many clouds, indicating that the sun was setting. It felt like the door was actually closing and locking on any hope he had.

Thoughts of violence, deep red and darkness quickly flashed through his head. Skoodge cleared that thought, too, as quickly as he could. Ending his life wasn't the way. No one would gain anything from it. He wouldn't be "out of his misery." If there really was an afterlife, surely his pain and suffering would follow him to the other side.

"Hey, shorty! Watcha got in those pockets, huh?" a gravelly voice questioned from behind him. Skoodge looked over his shoulder to see three, muscular male teens standing in a group. The rain crashed down about them, but they seemed unaffected by it in all of their steely toughness. The one Skoodge assumed to be the leader, the one who had spoken, gave a cocky, sleazy grin. Just great. He was literally getting the remnants of his life smashed to bits by weasels.

"Nothing," Skoodge said shakily, turning the pockets of his pants inside out to reveal their vacancy. "How can I be so sure?" the shady man spoke with a faint New Jersey accent, making him sound like he belonged on some dramatic reality TV show instead of on the streets of Irk. "Honestly, nothing. I don't even have a place for my head," Skoodge said.

"Boys, why don't 'cha make sure he's telling the truth?" the man ordered. As told to, his two little friends sauntered forward. Skoodge would have run, had he not seen the guns holstered in each of their belts. They were going to mug him, maybe even kill him. As he predicted, the first assaulter pressed the pistol to Skoodge's head, while the second one began patting him down. Just then, Skoodge heard a voice, the most heavenly thing to him at the moment, cry out:

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?"

Skoodge's eyes darted sideways to see Tenn, the same girl he had trained beside, the same girl who had lost the same job as he, the same girl who served him earlier today, standing in the street and pacing towards them. A messenger bag covered with a wide variety of buttons was slung across her shoulder, while she was wrapped in a black leather coat that seemed to be three or four sizes too big for her.

"Hey, that your woman over there?" the leader jerked his head over towards where she stood. "No," Skoodge replied hoarsely. He barely knew her! Although...it might be nice if he DID know her a little better. She seemed nice enough. The armed one pressed the barrel of his gun against Skoodge's head harder. "Move along, or he's dead, little missy," he threatened. Tenn froze in her tracks, her jaw clenched. She shut her eyes tightly and turned, walking away. "Bye, Skoodge," she said.

Did she really just walk away like that? Not even making the slightest attempt to save him? Wait a second. Skoodge was making too big a deal out of this. They were just acquaintances. Tenn wouldn't put her precious life on the line to save Skoodge.

"He really doesn't have anything, Hew," the irken who was searching Skoodge for valuables said. "Oh?" said the boss, whom Skoodge had now learned was named Hew, asked. "True shit," the guy replied. Hew then pulled out a blackjack and struck Skoodge on the side of his head and... that's when Skoodge passed out.

Waking up, Skoodge didn't recognize anything around him. He was in a stranger's apartment, in their bed. The covers, which were noticeably softer that anything Skoodge and experienced in a while, were pulled up to his shoulders. The lights were out, but some illumination was provided from the bustling city out the window. When Skoodge turned to look out the window, he noticed how high up he was. He had to have been somewhere near the twentieth floor of the building.

As Skoodge came back to his senses, he realized how much every part of him ached. His head was filled with pain, and a gaping hole in his mouth told him that he was missing a tooth or two. That was the worst of it, but every part of him dully throbbed, making it feel as if he was filled with cooling embers. Not hot enough to catch him aflame, but enough to make him hurt.

Two things rested upon a bedside table. One was a digital clock, reading "2:56 AM." The other was a note. Skoodge squinted his eyes in the darkness to make out the words of the letter.

"Skoodge,
If you're reading this, you're awake and alive. Congrats. Just stay calm, get comfortable and rest up. I'll check on you sooner or later."

Just who would check on him? They knew his name, so they must be a friend...that or a stalker. Skoodge didn't have any friends, so it must have been a stalker. Maybe they got the name from his ID...where was his wallet?

Crap, that right. Those crooks at the motel took it. Skoodge cast the note aside, letting his head collapse back on his pillow with a soft sigh. He'd rather be getting some sleep than figure all of this out. He had a soft bed for once, may as well take advantage of that!

Around 10:00, Skoodge woke up again. The sun, which constantly moved further across the sky, bled in through the window above his head. Another note had replaced the first one on the table. This one read:

"Skoodge,
You're awake again. I checked in on you, and you're doing just fine. Be warned, those hoodlums got you pretty well. Don't be surprised if you hurt a lot. I'm at work. Stay here, I'll be home at 8:30."

Who was this that was concerned that much about him? Ignoring his caretaker's orders, he left the room and navigated his way out of the building. Seeing it from outside, Skoodge didn't recognize the complex. It was quite spectacular, really. Whoever saved him clearly lived on the better side of town.

All of the buildings were pristine, not one broken sign in sight. There were no shady allies to beware of, though not to say that there weren't any questionable-looking people. Skoodge just steered clear of them as he walked down the street.

The buildings grew taller and the atmosphere grew darker as Skoodge entered the side of the city where used to live. "Nice face, bro," some punk on the street laughed as he ran by Skoodge, punching him on the arm on the way past. Skoodge immediately brought his hand up to his face, feeling that the tissue around his left eye was swollen up. He probably had a black eye.

Something caught his eye as he walked down the street. The local coffee shop, the one that he saw Tenn at the other day. Maybe she was working again. It seemed elusive, seeing as how it had been around 8:00 at night when he met her yesterday. She probably wasn't working at noon as well. It was just a coffee shop; surely she had a two or three hour shift.

Still, Skoodge couldn't help himself from entering the small, comforting shop.

Despite his thoughts, Tenn was, indeed, on duty. "You're working," was all Skoodge could think of to say at the moment. "Surprised? Yeah, I'm working some pretty crazy hours to get extra money. Sit down," Tenn invited with a smile. Skoodge had decided that he liked her smile. Among the irkens, all happiness was normally over something completely morbid or was sarcastic. However, there was nothing tainted about her grin. It was pure and sweet, kind of like Skoodge's own. If she had a boyfriend, he was one lucky fellow.

Skoodge took the invitation, hopping up on one of the old, beat-up stools. "I don't...really have any money to buy anything...I just thought I'd see if you were here," he admitted, feeling a blush crawl across his face. Right away, he wished that he worded it different. That probably sounded so creepy! Tenn didn't seem to think that it was weird or anything, though. "It's cool. I was starting to get lonely. The people around here aren't exactly friendly, you know?" she brightly said.

"Yeah, I think I learned that yesterday," Skoodge responded with a chuckle.

"About that...sorry that I walked away like that. Those guys meant business, and I didn't want to get anyone killed," Tenn apologized. "Yeah, it's fine..." Skoodge trailed off awkwardly. There was a small silence after that.

"So...what do you think of my apartment?" Tenn asked. "Your apartment...?" Skoodge was really confused. He'd never been to her apartment! He didn't even know where she lived!

"You would know, you spent the night there last night," Tenn allowed herself a tiny smirk. "I did n-oh, that was you?" Skoodge felt realization pulse through his body. Tenn nodded.

"After those people beat you up last night, I couldn't just leave you there alone. I didn't know where you lived, so I just brought you home for the night," she explained. "O-oh, well, y-yeah, I'm not living anywhere at the moment, I kind of got...kicked out," he stuttered. "Oh. I'm sorry that happened," Tenn apologized.

"Yeah, well, shit happens," Skoodge said. "Here, my boss will flip if he finds out, but...how would free food sound?" Tenn asked quietly, as though her boss was actually in the room. Skoodge nodded and smiled. "That be great!" This was going to be the start of a beautiful relationship.

Well, I think it's official. Skoodge is my new punchbag. Tak, you're free to go home (Tak: YES! FREEDOM! *runs out of my closet*). I understand that I made Irk seem strangely like Earth, but it's the only way that I could pull this off. I didn't want to write it on Earth, because I'm trying to get away from that setting, for I play the "banishment" card too much. Well, why don't you just get this over with and review?