Invader Zim and the likes belong to Johnen Vasquez. Not me, I could not construct his genius. However, I own the OC in this story.

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Silver

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Tallest Red sat in his chair, massaging his throbbing temples. He wouldn't have agreed to this stupid tradition if it didn't mean the heir to the throne of the Irken Empire. He had to find a female that he deemed compatible with himself and start a family. The phrase seemed so foreign, coming into his mind. He himself thought that he would be a bachelor for his entire life. No one had told him about this tradition when he agreed to become one of the almighty Tallest!

Yes, it is true that most smeets were created in test tubes. But, noble families, including those of the Tallest, had their own young. Red had become the Tallest by pure luck, as he had outgrown his Tallest's son. Purple had done the very same, being the same height as Red. This wasn't the first time this had happened, but it was not common. But being conceived in a test tube had not prepared Red for the role of starting a family. Other Tallests were prepared because they had grown up in one. Red, however, underwent the same training as many other Irkens, without a family.

He'd only been friends with one female his entire life. But, that was a very long time ago, and she was probably serving in the Armada under his command, swearing that she had once been a companion of the great Tallest Red. That she had been, and a wonderful companion and friend at that. Someone you could tell everything to and know she wouldn't tell a soul. But, that was a long time ago and she was probably living a life of her own. And the life of almost every Irken was to serve the Tallest.

"RED!"

Red's headache became worse as his Co-Tallest stormed toward him.

"Where were you?!" Purple shrieked. "I just had to deal with Zim's stupid transmission by myself! And here I find you, relaxing!"

Red zoned out as Purple went about on his ranting. He didn't even look up to see Purple's shocked face as he stood up right in the middle of the lecture to leave and retire to his own personal quarters. His Co-Tallest just stared in disbelief as the red Irken waltzed out of the room. He quickly followed him, though.

"What is your problem?" he asked, catching up with Red.

"I don't want to talk about it," Red practically growled.

"You know you want to," Purple persisted. "Tell me, is it the fact that you have less than one month to find yourself a bride?"

Red stared at him strangely. How come no matter how stupid the reason, Purple could always read his mind. "How could you tell?"

"Because I saw the way you squirmed when the Council told us what we had to do. I thought you were going to throw up after they said it!"

It was true, the very thought of women was enough to make Red nervous. They were so foreign to him, so alien. His childhood friend had been quite the tomboy, and many of the women he'd met were so fake and self-obsessed. The exact opposite of her.

"I'm going for a walk," he told Purple.

"Just try to take your mind off of it. I'm sure it can't be that bad." Purple gave him a small smile before walking back to the transmission room.

Red sighed, walking through the halls. There was one place he could just relax in. And no one would disturb him because that part of the Massive was hardly ever used. The observatory.

As he stared out of the large, crystal clear window, Red began to count the stars. There were billions of them, and he needed something to do in order to relax for a while. The stars flashed and twinkled, shining whitish blues, reds, and oranges. As more and more time passed, he began to give them names. He named the orange ones Astor and the red ones Tuuli. For some reason, he simply could not find a name suitable for the blue ones. They were his favorite out of all the different shades and colors he saw. He could think of no name beautiful enough for them.

Upon hearing the observatory door open, he promptly jumped up to his feet, startled by the sudden noise in his world of quiet. Someone stepped in. Their somewhat tall, slender form had its back faced to Red as they quietly shut the door behind them. As far as Red could tell, they were a female, dressed in elaborate clothing. She must have been of a very high rank. Before Red had time to move out of the way, she swiftly stumbled into him by accident.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry," she murmured. When she looked up to see who it was, her mouth hung slightly agape. "My Tallest! I'm – I'm so terribly sorry!"

"It's quite all right," he said softly. "No harm done."

He had quite a hard time saying this, as he could not quit staring at her. She was quite possibly one of the most eye-catching people he had ever met. Her eyes were an icy, stormy blue, almost white. A very rare color. They were accented with a silvery sheen that fit well with her fair, minty green skin. Her antennae were delicately curved and were decorated with small rhinestones of different shades of light blues and whites that matched her clothing. Her figure was incredibly lean, and she was about four inches shorter than Red.

"I should leave, shouldn't I?" she said, giving him a small bow of her head.

"Oh no, I'm just ,well... Loitering, if you could call it that." He attempted a small smile and was rewarded with one from her, which sent a fluttering feeling in his stomach. There was something familiar about that smile. It was like a warm, happy memory of an imaginary friend he'd had as a smeet.

"So, what's your rank?" he asked, trying to strike up a conversation before she turned to leave.

"Well, I guess you could say I'm a tutor for soldiers, if you catch my drift."

"Do tell," Red insisted.

"I'm a private fighting specialist. I teach certain soldiers in the art of physical combat. My values in fighting are speed, agility, and strength. So, you would probably call me a ninja."

Red raised one non-existent eyebrow. She looked entirely too fragile to be a fighter. But, he guessed ninjas were supposed to look that way, to surprise their foes. She certainly did have a lethal air about her.

"So, what's your name?" Red asked.

"My name?" she asked. It's not every day one meets the mighty Tallest Red and is asked their name from him. "My name is Zoe."

"Zoe?" he asked. The name sounded familiar, just as her smile had. It was frustrating him a little, not being able to place where those memories had come from.

"Yes, Zoe," she said, giggling slightly. Red blushed at his small moment, wishing he had not been so clueless.

Red almost jumped out of his skin yet again at the sound of the door opening a second time. A small Irken drone timidly stepped inside. "Lady Zoe, Invader Linn wishes to see you."

Zoe sighed, sad to leave her new friend. When the drone had left, she turned to Red. "You know, I came here to get away from everything else for a bit, and they still manage to find me," she said, laughing slightly.

"We could meet here again if you'd like," Red blurted out, determined to spend more time with her. Zoe smiled.

"I'd like that, My Tallest." She smiled. "I could be back in about three hours, as that's when I usually retire."

"I'll be here then." Red gave her one last smile as she turned to leave. She smiled at him again, and disappeared behind the door.

Red let out a shaky breath. What was it about this Zoe person that made his heart flutter like it did? Just one look into her silvery eyes made his breathing fall short and his legs nearly give out beneath him. And yet, he liked the sensation it gave him. He had enjoyed her company, and it had calmed his restless mind.

-X-X-X-

Zoe walked the length of the corridors, her usual mischievous smile on her face. Linn was back! Her best friend, the Invader, was back after nearly a year! She could hardly wait to see her. So much had changed about Zoe in the past year; she doubted she was even recognizable. She had grown quite a bit taller and thinner, due to her new diet and exercise plans. She had just become a sensei when Operation Impending Doom II began.

Linn had been assigned to conquer planet Skorm. Zoe had been especially worried about her, since Skorm was said to be one of the most hostile planets in the Albion Galaxy. The news that she had arrived back to the Massive did away with Zoe's worries.

The docking bay was Zoe's destination. Linn was sure to be watching over the repairs to her ship. She was very fond of her cruiser, as she had upgraded it in many ways of her own. She was quite the mechanic. As Zoe approached the burgundy clad Invader. Linn had her back turned to her. And, as Zoe did not like being ignored, she had to surprise her friend somehow.

And that's when she decided to kick her in the ass.

"How dare you kick me, you—Zoe!" Linn jumped at her friend, knocking the both of them down. "Look at you! You're so beautiful!"

"You've been gone for too long!" Zoe said, hugging her best friend.

"You have got to tell me about everything that's happened here!" Linn said, standing up. Zoe got back to her feet swiftly.

"First you have to tell me about Skorm." The two Irkenesses began the walk to the mess hall. "How was the invasion?"

"There was a little trouble at first," Linn explained. "You know. My disguise, the base, LEY's disguise, trying to fit in. Did you know that the people of Skorm eat nothing but vegetables? No candy, no chips, no nothing! It was simply unbearable!" She shuddered. "But, after the first month or so every thing went smoothly."

Honestly, the sound of nothing but vegetables didn't sound all that bad to Zoe. Although, there was no way she could live without her gingersnaps. Oh, how she loved her gingersnaps.

"Sounds like a nightmare," Zoe said. There was a slight dose of sarcasm in her voice, but Linn didn't seem to give it any mind.

"So, how has the little ninja been lately?" Linn asked.

"Busy. Very busy." Zoe opened a package of gingersnaps as soon as she sat down. Although she was considered a true lady, she did not allow etiquette to interfere with her favorite cookies. She ate about five of the thin wafers in a single mouthful. "You'll never guess who I ran into today, though."

"Oh, tell me!" Linn said eagerly.

"Well, I was tired of doing rubrics. The work was getting to my head and I needed to relax. So, I thought I'd go to the Observatory to chill out for a bit. When I got there, lo and behold, Tallest Red is standing there, looking at me!"

Linn's jaw dropped. "You... You ran into Tallest Red?" Zoe nodded.

"He asked me my rank. I told him that my name was Zoe and that I train soldiers in the art of physical combat. And then he asked me to meet him again! I'm leaving to see him in about two and a half hours."

Linn's eyes lit up. "Zoe, do you know what this means?!" she said. Zoe shook her head. "He interested in you!"

"Well of course, if he wants to see me again, then he must think I'm interesting—,"

"No, I mean he's interested in you!" Linn clapped her hands together joyfully, a giddy smile on her face.

"You're mad!" Zoe said. "He's the Tallest! The Tallest, Linn! I'm just a sensei, there's no way he's interested in me!"

"Zoe, have you looked in the mirror lately?" Linn asked. "You're beautiful! All you have to do is walk up to a male and say hello, and then you've got him following you around like a SIR unit! Of course he would be interested in you!"

Zoe crossed her arms and pouted. She didn't think she was beautiful. Then again, she really didn't notice or care about her appearance. Work was more important.

"And you do know that he has to find a bride, don't you?" Linn said, a devious look on her face.

"Yes, I do know that."

"And do you like him?"

"Well, he seems nice, but–,"

"Then get to know him! Zoe, do you know how many females would kill to be in your situation? I mean, you're freaking gorgeous, you're of a good rank, and you've got Tallest Red chasing after you! I suggest that you nip this opportunity in the ass and go for it."

Zoe sighed. "I'm going to see him in about two hours. I'm just going to be myself, and if he likes me, then he can decide what he wants to do next. I'm not going to play temptress and have him wrapped around my finger."

"I'm not saying you have to! This is just a good break for you, and you need to take advantage of it." Linn nodded as if she were agreeing with herself.

"I'll think about it." With that, Zoe stood up. "I'm going to finish my rubrics. I'll stop by your quarters after I meet him to tell you how it went. That sound all right?"

"Sure does, sweetheart," Linn said, opening a bag of chips. Zoe laughed and bade her friend goodbye.

Walking back to her quarters, Zoe felt butterflies rise up into her chest. She took a deep breath. She was only meeting the Tallest Red? Nothing to be nervous about, right?

-X-X-X-

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