He had gone along for his sister's sake.

Mountain View High School had a rather infamous tradition of squeezing the junior and senior health classes into two busses and relocating them to the mountains for… Well, some students said it was for torture. Others said it was to weed out the weak. And some insisted it was to select tributes for the Hunger Games. Only the seniors could say for sure what went on for those four days in the wilderness, having experienced it for themselves as juniors, but they certainly weren't spoiling it. Watching the juniors have panic attacks on the bus ride there was a privilege they were not quite ready to relinquish.

Dib, of course, had told his sister that she didn't need to worry, that he would be right there with her, and he'd keep her safe.

"Safe from what?" Gaz had snapped, glaring at him over the top of her controller as she played Outlast II the morning before they were to depart. "From bears? Wolves? Dib, if we run into either of those things, I'm feeding you to them."

Dib did not doubt this. But he was determined to come along anyway. Technically, he was 18, and so he had no need for his father to sign the waiver that would allow him not to attend. Gaz, however, was 17, and with their father halfway across the country, had no choice but to participate in the retreat or receive an F for the semester.

It was not just concern for Gaz's safety that had Dib tagging along, however. Zim, in all his brilliance, had made the mistake of telling their teacher that he was only 17, a lie that Dib knew Zim would come to regret when the alien realized he would need a parent's permission to opt out of the field trip. Zim, of course, had no parents. So he was forced to board the bus along with the rest of the seniors and be carted off to the mountains, the bus of juniors following behind.

They arrived at Mt. Hood national forest in the late morning, where they stopped at a ranger station for lunch. Students poured out of the busses, eager to stretch their legs, only to be shunted back onto the bus after a measly 20 minutes and whisked away to the lodge.

'Lodge', of course, was a word the teachers used to trick students into thinking they were going to some grand mountain retreat with a swimming pool and room service. Dib knew that by 'lodge', they actually meant 'a cluster of small cabins in various states of disrepair and one dingy outhouse next to the mess hall'.

He chose not to share this information with Gaz, for he knew she would make a break for it if she were aware of what camp would really be like. It did not take her long to realize it was a trick, however, for as soon as she stepped off the bus and took in the sight of the small, cramped cabins beside the lake, she turned to her brother with murderous eyes.

"This is not a lodge." She hissed, her upper lip twitching.

"Hey, Mr. Bigby used that word, not me." Dib said.

Poor Mr. Bigby was the eleventh grade science teacher. Dib had had him the year before, and had always pitied the man. He always had a nervous, grave expression on his face that gave the impression the teacher was worried he had left the oven on. He seemed rather afraid of his students, and had a difficult time controlling them in class. Dib had been his quiet ally, telling the other students to listen and be respectful when he could, which didn't exactly score him any popularity points. He was still a negative three on the popularity scale, with Gaz trailing behind at negative two and Zim at negative one.

Zim disembarked the bus, looked around him with in disdain, then turned around and stepped right back onto the bus. He was grabbed by Mrs. Sturgess, the senior history teacher, who dragged him back to the ground. Zim had no choice but to line up with the other students for roll call; Dib watched him, his eyes narrowed. Despite six years having passed since the alien came to Earth, Dib's distrust of him had not wavered for a moment. He knew Zim was not stupid, and could easily turn their city into a crater if he so pleased, and so Dib was determined to watch his every move.

"Zim… Uh, Zimmerman?" The student counselor called out, his eyes scanning the crowd of students. Zim raised a gloved hand, his expression bored.

"Here, unfortunately." He said, which earned him a small laugh from the crowd around him. Something had changed when he had entered high school; suddenly Zim found himself with a group of students who actually enjoyed and appreciated his company, students who thought he was funny. Dib, however, had been kicked out of the Paranormal Investigative School Society (P.I.S.S.) and found himself once more with no friends. If anything, this intensified his hatred for Zim, who could win over the other rejects of the school with his crooked grin and over-the-top personality, whereas Dib was lucky enough just to sit with his own sister at lunch.

"Right, thank you, Zim." The counselor said irritably, continuing down the list in reverse alphabetical order. When he reached the M's, Dib and Gaz were checked off, and when the last student had been called the students were shown to their cabins for a half hour of free time.

The boys and girls cabins were separate, naturally, and so Dib and Gaz were split up as they were led to their respective cabins. The students were split into groups based on questionnaires they had filled out on the bus, and Dib was not surprised to see that Zim was one of the five boys he shared a cabin with. The other four boys, Dib noticed, were the quiet, taciturn boys that always sat together at lunch, and were known around the school as the Emo Fags, not to be confused with the Math Fags, or the Faggy Fags. Once or twice Dib had wondered if they boys were actually gay, or if it was just a cruel name assigned to them by the more popular crowd.

The inside of the cabin was small, with three bunkbeds pushed into three of the corners and an ancient, rickety shelf in the fourth. It smelled like dust and rotting wood. The blankets were stiff wool and the pillows were stuffed with feathers- not goose down, but actual feathers- Dib could feel the stiff quills through the pillow case. He couldn't imagine it would be comfortable to sleep on.

"Four days," One of the Emo Fags, called Joseph, said dismally. "Four days living in a cabin the size of a shoe box."

"I'd rather sleep outside." Said another, named Michael, as he pushed his suitcase beneath his bunk and slipped off his shoes, his long sweep of black hair swinging down to hide his eyes. "Maybe we'd get lucky and a bear would come and eat us."

"It's not so bad," Dib said, hoping to gain some favor with the group he rarely spoke to. "Remember last year, there were too many students, and so some of us had to sleep on the mess hall floor."

"What is the budget for this field trip, ten dollars?" Said the Emo Fag with long blonde hair, whose name Dib thought was Otto.

"That's the budget for this entire school year." Said Lilith, the last Emo Fag, and the only one Dib was quite sure was actually gay. Lilith had long brown hair and had been suspended more than once for coming to school in girls' clothing, a punishment Dib thought was rather too harsh for something so harmless. "Our science textbooks are so old Charles Darwin probably wrote them himself."

Zim, who had remained silent for the last several minutes, finally spoke. "Yeah, sure. Anyway, who's sharing bunks with who?"

There was a pause, and then Lilith grabbed Otto, and Michael grabbed Joseph, and the four boys stared obstinately in Dib and Zim's direction.

"Looks like you two get the last bunk." Otto said, pointing to the bunkbed closest to the door. "Try not to kill each other."

Dib and Zim exchanged dark looks and turned to face the remaining bed. "I get the bottom bunk." Dib muttered. "I'd better not look up and see you watching me or something tonight."

"Fine," Zim said, his eyes narrow. "I never let my enemies have the higher ground, anyway."

"Freak."

"Jerk."

"Alien scum!"

After lunch was an hour of mandatory activities that were supposedly for character building, but really just left everyone, students and teachers alike, angry and perspiring. They set off around noon for the lake, where a row of canoes were lined up on the beach.

"Today, the eleventh graders will be having a team-based competition." Said the camp counselor, a pretty woman with long red hair and blue eyes. Dib noticed several of the male students eying her with interest. The woman pointed out to the center of the lake, where a floating platform was anchored. On the platform was five flags of different colors. "You see that dock out there? The juniors will split up into groups of four. Each group will get into a canoe, and race to the dock. After you retrieve the flag, you'll bring it back here and grab your team's baton-" She pointed to the batons sticking up in the sand. "-and take it back to the floating dock. Then, the first team to make it back to the shore gets to eat dinner tonight."

There was a stunned silence, and then the camp counselor smiled. "I'm just kidding. Really, the first team to make it back gets donuts afterward. The cream-filled kind. Don't wanna miss that, do we?"

"Excuse me?" Said a student from Dib's class, Peter Schoger. "What will the seniors be doing?"

"Excellent question. Since all you seniors did this competition last year, this year you get a special surprise." The counselor used her smile again, and Dib was sure many of the boys were captivated by her. "The seniors will be going paddle boarding. I know, I know, juniors. You'll get to do it next year."

Dib perked up quite a bit at that. He had always wanted to try paddle boarding, although he doubted he could remain standing. A sudden thought occurred to him, and he turned around to glance at Zim; the alien had a bemused expression on his face, and when he caught Dib looking at him, he threaded through the crowd of students to Dib's side.

"What is paddle-boarding?" He whispered. Dib snorted.

"It's a water sport, Zim. You don't care for water, do you?"

Zim shrugged, seemingly unconcerned. "I found a way around that problem."

"Can you even swim?" Said Dib.

"Can you?"

There was an uncomfortable pause, during which Dib looked anywhere but Zim. "Well, no, but-"

Zim sneered and turned away, marching to the front of the group where the camp counselor stood, who turned and began to lead the seniors along to beach, to a storage shed at the base of the dock.

"Everybody line up and take a lifejacket, a board and a paddle." The counselor said, heaving open the heavy sliding door. "Once you've got them, go down to the end of the dock and wait."

Dib did as he was told, collecting his gear and heading to the end of the dock. The water was still shallow here; he could see grass on the sandy bottom, waving slightly in the current. He wondered how deep the lake was. Around it, mountains rose up in great rocky towers, dotted with pine trees and grassy slopes.

Behind him, Zim carried his paddleboard upside-down over his head, his paddle balanced precariously on top. Dib noticed he wore no life jacket; evidently, the counselor noticed this too, and she turned away from the storage shed and approached the boys, frowning.

"Zimmerman. Why don't you have a life jacket? Take off your backpack and put one on." She said. Dib watched Zim stiffen, and a devious smile slid across his face. Got you now, alien.

Zim turned and glared over his shoulder, lowering his board and putting on his most defiant expression. "I can't take this backpack off." He said, gesturing to his PAK, the machine Dib knew kept the alien alive. "It's, um… It's an oxygen tank. I need it because I have COPD."

Dib was impressed that Zim even knew what COPD was. He turned to the counselor to see what she made of this information.

"I see," She said, although her voice was tinged with suspicion. "Well, can you get it wet?" When Zim nodded, the counselor seemed satisfied. "Good. Put a life jacket over it. You can't go out on a lake without one."

"Like that's a big disappointment." Zim muttered, slipping on a bright orange life jacket that stood out in stark contrast with his green skin.

Dib snickered. "That's a good look for you." He said. "You can go ahead and drop the facade, clearly no one is fooled."

"I would say she was pretty easily fooled. Most humans are." Zim lifted his chin in an expression of disdain. "Humans only see what they want to see. From their childhood, they are programmed to believe certain things and reject others. A boy with a skin condition and COPD? They can believe that. An alien?" Now it was Zim's turn to laugh. "After all these years, you're the only one who wasn't fooled."

Dib sneered. "Right, because your missing ears and nose and fingers are part of your skin condition. And I'm not the only one who knows. Gaz knows, too, even before I told her."

Zim paused, then turned to regard Dib with narrowed eyes. "Gaz-human… knows? She saw through my disguise?"

Dib didn't answer, for the rest of the students were gathering at the end of the dock, and for once Dib didn't want them to hear.

"Okay, everyone!" The counselor said, clapping her hands for attention. "Boards in the water. I'll show you how to kneel on them."

Everyone stared as the woman pulled off her tank top and slipped out of her shorts, revealing a red one-piece swimming suit that hugged closely to her curves.

"Holy hell." Dib breathed, barely listening as the counselor knelt down on her board, her feet tucked beneath her, and used her paddle to push away from the dock.

"Everybody, follow my lead!" She called, grinning at the wide-eyed group. Suddenly all of the students were eager to get out on the water, although Dib suspected they just wanted to be as close to the counselor as possible for the best view.

Dib carefully knelt on his board, feeling it rock slightly in the water, and pushed off from the dock. It was not difficult to control the board, he was pleased to note, and it didn't seem likely to tip him into the water. However, as he paddled into deeper water and watched the bottom of the lake drop out beneath him, his stomach seemed to sink with it. He wasn't particularly fond of deep water, or swimming. He turned to glance over his shoulder; Zim was paddling along with a serene expression, his arms strong for their task. Dib wondered if spending time in the depths of outer space took away one's fears of the unknown. Certainly paddle boarding had to be easier than flying a spaceship.

"Okay," The counselor called to the group behind her. "We meet back at the dock in an hour. You can go out to the island in the center of the lake, or you can go to the beach on the opposite shore. If you do decide to leave the water, don't go deep into the forest. You'd make a great appetizer for a mountain lion or bear!"

Dib had no intention of straying too far from the counselor and her tight red swimsuit; that is, until he noticed Zim paddling in the opposite direction of the rest of the group, his sharp jaw set tightly. Dib hesitated, torn between staying and watching the counselor or going after Zim. Eventually, his suspicion of the alien won over, and he turned his board in Zim's direction, following along at a steady pace.

It did not take Zim long to notice he was being followed. "What do you want, Dib-worm?" He snapped, glaring over his shoulder. "Why don't you join the rest of your filthy compatriots in ogling the disgusting counselor woman?"

Dib sneered. "Nice try, Zim. You're not sneaking away that easily. I know exactly what you're up to."

"Really?" Zim said, bemused. "What exactly am I up to?"

"Well…" Dib paused. "...I don't know. But I bet you're off to contact your alien friends in the woods or something!"

Zim rolled his eyes and returned his attention to the water. For a few minutes the boys paddled in silence, while Dib watched the alien suspiciously out of the corner of his eye. Eventually it was Zim who broke the silence, his gaze sliding over to Dib despite his annoyance.

"How long has your sister known about me?" He said. Dib snorted.

"Uh, since the day you set foot in our school. Besides, she's seen you without your disguise, hasn't she?"

"I thought perhaps she didn't think I was the same person." Zim said, frowning. "Most people are too stupid to put two-and-two together."

"Maybe, but Gaz isn't stupid. How many people with green skin do you think live in our town? You're the only one." Dib said. Zim remained silent for a moment, his expression thoughtful.

"I don't suppose anyone would believe her if she told." He said eventually. "After all, she's related to you, and no one ever believes what you say."

Dib tried not to let his offense show on his face. "Yeah, well, I doubt she'd tell anyone anyway." He said. "She just doesn't seem to care enough. It's like she doesn't even care her own planet is in jeopardy!"

"Maybe she realizes your species deserves to be destroyed." Zim growled, paddling faster in an effort to escape Dib.

"We do not!" Dib snapped. "What makes you think your species is so much better?"

"I didn't say it was." Zim said darkly. "But your species is headed in a dangerous direction. You should be grateful the mighty Zim is going to put a stop to it!"

"What do you mean, dangerous direction?" Dib said suspiciously, narrowing his eyes. Zim said nothing for a moment, paddling along in silence with an exasperated expression on his green, noseless face. When he spoke, his voice was steady, with a tinge of impatience, as though he were explaining something to an irrational child.

"Look around, Dib-stink." He said, nodding at the mountains that surrounded the lake, the island of trees in the lake's center, the calm surface of the water. The only sound was the chirping of birds and the dip and splash of their paddles. "What do you see?"

Utterly perplexed, Dib looked around at the lush green landscape, frowning. "Uh, I see trees, mountains, water… What exactly am I supposed to be seeing?"

"You see planet Earth." Zim clarified. "The way it's supposed to be. Now how is it different from the area you and I live?"

"Uh, it's… quieter?" Dib pondered. "Greener? What exactly are you getting at?"

"What I'm getting at is that this place is one of the few places on this miserable planet that hasn't been tainted or downright destroyed by the presence of humans." Zim snapped. "The filthy city we live in is an example of the destruction humans cause wherever they go. It won't be long until this entire planet is a toxic wasteland." Zim's voice held a faint degree of bitterness, as though he were speaking about a long held grudge. "By eradicating you disgusting humans, this planet might just have a chance at supporting some other form of life."

"So that's why you want to destroy humanity? To save the environment?" Dib said, unconvinced. "Yeah right. Thanks, Captain Planet, but we don't need an alien's help to save the Earth."

"Could have fooled me." Zim snarled. "Now leave me alone. You've wasted enough of my time."

Zim paddled away, intent on circling the island before returning to the dock. Dib watched him go, angry and confused. Zim had changed in recent years, becoming angrier and more prone to bouts of melancholy than before. Dib wondered what could have triggered such a change. Part of him- the curious, suspicious side- wanted to find out what it was and bring it to light. But the other part of him got the distinct impression that it was something Dib really didn't want to know, and wouldn't understand if he did.

Irkens, it would seem, were very complex creatures.