Thanks for the reviews guys! It's always nice to know what you think, especially if there's something I need to change a bit. Here's another chapter! Originally I planned to be uploading in the evenings but, meh. No real point in making you wait I guess.
Just cause some might want to know, it's possible you may consider this chapter to turn a little more towards romance... Kinda sorta-ish. More like Zim being clue-less but whatever.
Kayla, I'm happy to have attracted someone with such a good sense of proper writting to this! Thank you very much for your opinions! I appreciate it!
Lovegirl1, XD I love submissive Zim too! It's so unrealistic though, given his ego, which is why I like the whole 'Dib-tallest' idea. Makes it possible. And don't worry, I can promise there will be antenna-fluff in later chapters. X3
Everyone else, Thanks for reading and leaving reviews! I'll shut up now cause I doubt most people read these anyway. :P
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"That one." Zim raised one shaky little hand, and pointed at the door labeled 'storage' as they approached. Dib smiled rather smugly.
"I figured. I can read Irken."
It had taken a long time, especially since he had to learn both written, and spoken Irken, so Dib was very proud of his accomplishment. He'd be able to carry on a simple to normal conversation at his current skill level. Dib's ego inflated even more at the look of impressed surprise on Zim when he said that.
The Irken looked up at the young human's face, the alien's hairless, green eyebrows raising at the human's announcement.
Irken was a complicated language, and Dib would have had to decode it all on his own, no special learning program. That would take an incredible amount of trial and error, a lot of hard-to-get references, and downright ingenuity. Perhaps Dib wasn't so inferior. Perhaps he really was logically worthy of Zim's loyalty, awe, and everything else in being his leader. He was certainly TALL.
And Zim didn't think he was as much of an ugly monkey as the other humans. Not at all...
Cursed humans being able to grow steadily and quickly like they did. It was so unfair. Zim pouted at the last thought.
The motion sensor for THIS door still functioned. So when Dib stepped up and started to shift Zim in his arms to find a means of freeing one hand and working the door open, he jumped a bit at the hissing and unexpected movement of the metal sliding out of his way. Okay great! The door opened on its own. No need to go get dynomite or anything. He shifted Zim back to his original position.
Zim just gave a little grunt and tried to get comfortable in Dib's arms again after the boy had moved him. He honestly was surprised to realise that he not only 'didn't mind' this contact of being held, he was enjoying it. Dib wasn't as germy and smelly as most humans, he at least possessed the intelligence to keep himself clean when possible, and Zim was really starting to enjoy his thick, warm Dib-scent. He was able to rest, and put all his energy into healing with Dib carrying him, he could even get comfortable, resting and relaxing, as if he was in some magical floating, moveable chair.
In the meantime, Dib was enjoying carrying him. The way the smaller being grunted in discomfort and squirmed, scowling and pouting a bit, got his attention as he walked through the open doors. Dib laughed at him.
"You can be so cute-"
Instantly the boy's face reddened and his eyes widened a bit. Dammit! He sure hadn't meant to say THAT out loud. He still talked to himself. He hadn't meant to say that, certainly hadn't meant for Zim to hear, and he cut the sentence off and looked away. He needed to figure out how to shut up the instant connection between his brain and mouth.
He wasn't sure whether to feel grateful, or something else, when Zim took it as an insult instead of getting awkward.
"Zim is NOT! I am an Irken! A mighty Irken conqueror! ... Or... Zim...Was." Zim quieted, sad for a moment, thinking, then looked back up at Dib, innocent and clue-less as a five-year-old.
"Is cute good?" Perhaps this would be a good way to earn Dib's favor. He'd used 'cuteness' as a weapon with his hamster monster.
Walking into the small storage room, which was lit only with a pinkish, dim light on the ceiling, Dib burst out laughing at Zim's question, and his look of confusion.
"I think weather you try or not, you're still VERY GOOD at being cute." Dib teased, smirking widely. Well good. Zim wasn't embarrassing Dib over this. No reason to be embaressed himself then. He liked teasing Zim anyway! Why not? No real harm in making fun of him, considering he clearly couldn't even understand.
Zim acted like a child sometimes, but would hold his chin up and march, and behave all dignified. He was a thunderstorm in a short, thin little body. A child who moved with precision like a soldier. It was a funny combination. And that was only one part of what made him cute.
Zim stared, still confused, perhaps even more then before. Dib had not answered his question in any way that he could understand.
"But is cute good? My tallest?"
Dib felt an odd sensation at the direct title of respect; high respect, and chuckled again, but calmed down.
"I guess, yeah. But you're already plenty cute enough." Dib didn't want Zim to feel compelled to put on some adorable-ness show for his 'Dib-tallest.' That would be weird. Especially in public.
The whole conversation was perhaps a little odd.
"I see." Zim said in his calculating way, clearly thinking about it, while Dib looked around the room.
"I'm gunna set you down on the floor for a while." Dib informed Zim, leaning down and carefully doing just that, placing Zim in a corner so he could lean back against the wall. Dib needed his hands free for going through his alien's snacks.
Zim pouted, and for a moment, went to reach and hold onto Dib, to keep the human from putting him down, then thought better of it, folding his arms over his chest unhappily.
"We must get Zim's computer running again. It is too cold for Zim down here. And we must get the base heated... Zim is sure Dib would like it better if it was warmer here...
And the floor is hard...I don't like it. Zim's storage room needs seating arrangements..."
Dib smiled at Zim's pouty behavior as the alien complained. It was yet another example of Zim's own type of cuteness. Dib couldn't help but enjoy it, and watch him for a long second, drinking it up, before turning away to get food.
"Yes, I'd definitely like it warmer." The boy mumbled, shivering. How could Zim stand it this cold? Was his home planet further away from the sun?
Dib headed for the shelves along the walls, stacked with precisely categorized metal boxes and containers, each with clear labels. "You're such a neat-freak Zim." Dib chuckled. Once again Zim gave him that innocently confused look.
"Neat... Freak?"
Dib nodded, but didn't explain, busy translating labels to try to find something he was more or less sure both of them could eat. He was getting hungry too.
Some of Zim's food smelled like pure poison to him, and one or two things even moved. Eventually he found a bag like what humans used for chips, with a picture on the front of purple and red jello-like cubes, with little things that looked like olives at the centers.
Dib wasn't sure how to read the label, so after squinting at it and adjusting his glasses, he held it up for Zim to see.
Dib felt proud when the Irken lit up drastically. Apparently he'd made a good choice.
"Heh, I thought I was all out of Chaukey Perdrrps." Zim said happily, reaching for the bag when Dib walked over and sat down next to him, then suddenly Zim stopped, looking serious.
"Wait... Dib-tallest, Is that the last of them?" The Irken looked at it thoughtfully. Almost worried. Apparently Zim really liked these, and being banished, he might never be able to get more from any Irken food places. Ever. Dib could guess that would suck, and make him terribly homesick.
"Nope. I saw a few more like this at the bottom of the box." He felt happy to see Zim smile contentedly at that.
"I must have misplaced them." Zim murmured disgustedly, glaring at the box Dib found them in as if it was it's fault. "They don't go there."
Dib tore open the bag, and held one little jelly cube up into the dim, pinkish light of the small food storage room. Looked pretty much like jello to him. Wasn't sure at all what the round, dark thing in the center was though. What on earth or outside it could it be made of though? "Hmmm,"
Glancing back over at Zim, he found the Irken stareing at him expectedly, not to mention nearly drooling at the sight of the tasty treat, out of his reach, and not being offered. Dib felt a tiny snippet of guilt for taunting his pet by holding it up like that. He offered it to the alien. "Here."
Zim smiled widely and reached out, still weakly and shakily, when Dib handed it to him, but then was stopped. Dib suddenly hesitated, then moved it away and grabbed Zim's wrists with his other hand.
Zim looked up rather hurt. Was he being punished? What did he do? What was Dib going to do now; torture him with food? Eat his favorite snack in front of him and not let him have any? Dib had been so... Nice, up to now. Incredibly nice, carrying him, and bandaging him, and... everything else. And Zim couldn't understand what he might have done to deserve punishment.
It couldn't be punishment. What was it?
Dib had a funny smirk growing on his face, clearly thinking about some idea that'd occurred to him. It wasn't a cruel smirk but Zim didn't like the look of it.
"He's mine now. My whatever-I-want. My pet. And it would be kinda... Weirdly desirable. And it would prove his submission, respect, and loyalty to me. If he's willing to... Ah, what the heck. I'll try it. Just once, to see what he does." Dib felt depressed at the amount of pride he gained from just managing to keep his thoughts in his head just then instead of talking out loud. Was his talking to himself really that bad?
Dib held out his hand again, until the treat was less then an inch from Zim's lips. His other hand restrained both of Zim's. Dib grinned widely, eyes smug, expression clearly saying to Zim; 'I have all the power over you now. I should. Show your tallest the submission they deserve. Show me you're my pet.'
The Irken was confused at first, before realizing with a bit of surprise and a lot of confusion, that his Dib-tallest seemed to want him to eat the chaukey perdrrp from his hand. The little alien couldn't fathom why. It seemed just strange. Demoting? Not exactly. Dib feeding Zim out of his hand seemed to Zim like another sign of care, of how important he seemed to be to Dib. It was one-on-one attention. Zim was completely confused and uninformed of any human culture related to anything like this; feeding another sentient being, so he wasn't sure what to think, if it WAS some human-culture thing. What if he responded wrong? Would it anger Dib?
The little green alien finally interpreted the gesture and Dib's expression to mean he was just getting a thrill out of his new power and dominance over his former enemy and wanted to exercise it for the first time. The Irken resisted the urge to roll his eyes. It seemed so stupid, but at least it would prove how much he was willing to do for his tallest, something of his worth and loyalty. After all that entire minute of hesitation and thought, Zim, to his own surprise, bent to Dib's wishes, leaning forward and taking it rather cautiously with his teeth, right from the boy's fingers. Zim pretty much snapped it up, obviously needing some nourishment and energy, starving, and enjoying the taste. His strange red, long, pointed tongue flicked out to lick his lips, but he gave Dib a confused look, voicing his feelings about that whole little ordeal. He was giving Dib the 'REALLY now? So immiture...' face.
Dib felt a light sensation, a fluttering in his chest, to see Zim leaning forward, almost putting his fragile face in his large palm, he could feel Zim's breath on his fingers, and the rather slow and careful way he took his little sweet before gobbling it down, never once bothering to pull his wrists from Dib's grip.
The Irken conqueror had eaten from his very hand. Dib couldn't get domesticated animals to eat from his hands- everything hated him. Zim had been his enemy, and now he'd trusted, or simply been in submission to him, enough to almost put his face in the palm of Dib's hand.
Dib could have struck him, and he was sure Zim knew it.
Dib paused, just looking at Zim's confused expression with his one still uncovered ruby red pool, his wide eye reflecting the light and the boy's own face. Only the one of them did, the other was covered by the bandages to keep out infection- the injured one that had been dripping dark fluid. One of Zim's antenna perked up while the other drooped, a questioning sign. Dib felt the fragile, bony wrists he held. Zim left his arms limp, making no struggle, though clearly uneasy and twitchy about having to surrender the use of his hands.
Dib grined. He wanted to do it again. It was fun and he was enjoying himself.
Setting the bag down next to him, he reached in and took out another jelly-thing, this one red-ish pink.
He held it out again, taunting Zim with his smirk.
Zim had obeyed the first time. He wanted, NEEDED to show his loyalty. Now Dib was playing with him and he scowled, pouting. His normal personality was coming back, and he felt Dib was making him seem dependent.
"Zim can feed himse-" Dib interrupted him by shoving the food into his mouth, grinning, apparently finding this quite funny or thrilling.
Zim made a surprised noise as his mouth was suddenly filled with sweet, fruity juices, blended with some fatty parts from a common little herbivorous animal on Vort, chilled into a jiggly, but semi-solid cube. His mouth was stuffed with the flavorfullness of this and his jaws and lips closed on it, giving up his protests, hunger winning over, his tongue moving up to find that the salty-ness of Dib's fingers complimented the sweetness in a weird way.
The boy no longer looked amused, he looked... surprised, and unsure how to react. Apparently he had planned to get his fingers out of the way before Zim could close his mouth; but he'd failed to do so and wasn't moving them now. There was a funny red-ness on his cheeks. Was that from Zim licking his fingers? Hah! Well, Zim thought it served the dirt monkey right for teasing Zim, and putting them in there.
Tallest or not, Zim COULD get back at him a little, at least annoy him until commanded to stop. Dib seemed to find THIS annoying.
The human was holding his wrists very loosely, and Zim slipped them out of his grip now, grabbing Dib's one wrist to keep the boy's fingers in his mouth.
He started to suck on the fruity candy-like treat, and Dib's salty fingers, his long, alien tongue coiling around one slowly like a snake to prey. Zim closed his eyes, emitting a happy little noise. Dib's skin tasted good.
Dib certainly hadn't seen this coming. Zim was literally sucking on his fingers. The paranormal investigator's face reddened, and he could feel his whole self heating up. This was... Definitely not planned. He stared for a moment in shock, and Zim just smiled, almost in a 'take that' manner, before closing his eyes and making a squeaky sound. For a moment Dib was unable to talk, just sitting there and feeling the strange sensation and raised heart rate this caused in him.
When he felt Zim's long, wet, tongue slipping around his fingers, tasting and coiling, capturing them with a frighteningly strong grip, Dib finally snapped back to reality.
"Zim, STOP IT!"
Guilt shadowed the Irken when he heard the tone in Dib's voice. He'd meant to annoy him to make up for Dib toying with him, but he hadn't planned to make him so clearly angry. Immediately his eyes opened, looking apologetic, and he opened his mouth, tongue uncoiling, letting Dib pull his fingers out, which the boy did. Dib jerked his hand away from Zim as if the Irken had bit him- which Zim made sure not to do. Not at all.
Dib just stared at his fingers for a second, which were now coated generously in Zim's semi-clear saliva. Then he looked back up at Zim, who was fiddling with his hands, guiltily.
He really, REALLY didn't mean to upset Dib. It was a stupid idea! Why would he do that in the first place?
He just messed everything up didn't he? He must have at least jeopardized his tallest's trust judging by the look on Dib's face.
He needed to apologize to his tallest, but all he could manage to say with Dib staring blankly and shocked at him, was;
"You're bleeding under your skin in your cheeks human... It's all red." It was a very dumb thing to say and Zim looked back down at the floor, feeling he'd made his situation even more precarious with that line.
Dib glared at the smaller being and Zim felt crushed under the weight of the gaze, restraining a whimper.
"I'm not blushing!" Dib insisted angrily, looking away himself. He knew he was. He could feel his heart working fast and hard. He'd never had a sensation like that before. And Zim just gave it to him, withought warning, like a joke. Even if it was slight it was still his first experience like that, and if he understood correctly, it was possible that in normal culture that would signify some very dirty things. He was... A bit sensitive, never being touched except painfully, and that just felt... A number of things; weird, but more then that. It felt good. It honestly felt kinda good. In a way Dib had never experienced before that was still sending light, milder chills down his spine.
"Here. Eat these." Dib took the bag of wretched snacks that'd started this and plopped it down on Zim's lap. He sat staring across the room for a few minutes, quiet now. Zim just sat in his guilt, not eating anymore.
Finally after a minute of complete silence, and after Dib had calmed down, a thought occurred to him. He got up, and started for the door.
"No!" Dib jumped, startled by Zim's sudden exclamation, immediatly turning to see what was wrong.
Zim had felt horrible at the reaction he got, fear brooding in him when Dib handed over the entire bag and refused to look at him, ignoring him. Zim couldn't even bring himself to eat the lovely snacks. Then terror gripped the little Irken. Dib was leaving? What? Leaving him here? DID HE NOT WANT ZIM ANYMORE? WAS HE DITCHING ZIM? LEAVING ZIM TO DIE?
"I'm sorry! Don't disown Zim!"
Dib turned around. Any occasion when Zim said he was 'sorry' was shocking, and Zim sounded so terrified. The look on Zim's face was of horror. The alien tried to get up but was too weak to lift himself.
Dib marveled slightly at how obviously Zim needed him, and how much it showed in his massive insecurity from his last disownment.
He smiled comfortingly, chuckling a bit at Zim's misunderstanding and assumption, and walked back over, feeling another shock when Zim whimpered out softly;
"Zim will behave! My tallest! Don't leave Zim! Zi-Zim can be useful! Zim swears he did not mean to upset you! It was a mistake my tallest!"
Desperately the terrified ex-invader reached out trying to grab some part of Dib and hang on for dear life as soon as the human was within reach, but there was no need. Dib scooped him right up into his arms again, and even picked up the snack bag that Zim had forgotten in his fear, and handed it to him.
"I'm not leaving you Zim. Definitely not over that. Relax. It was just, weird, that's all. I'm completely over that. We left Gir in the other room, I just thought I should go get him since the room's so close anyway, that's all. Calm down."
He was used to no one caring what he did, so he hadn't thought to say anything to Zim to explain his leaving. Obviously he'd have to adjust a few habits.
Zim slowly relaxed into Dib's warm chest, hands gripping his shirt.
Zim felt horrible yet again at this news. GIR! Of course! How defective was he for him to forget about his loyal Gir? And Dib wasn't leaving him! He was being nice and going to get Gir for him. Zim felt like an idiot.
"Oh." He mumbled, sounding embarrassed. Dib smiled at him, then started walking out of the room while Zim released one hand from clinging to Dib so he could eat from the bag of chauky perdrrps laying on his stomach area.
After the whole misunderstanding over what happened with Dib's fingers, Zim didn't think they tasted as good anymore.
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So, another chapter, what do you guys think of that? I'd like to know since it may be considered as the first snippet of a relationship developing between these two. Very subtle and slight, I know. I always make things like this go real slowly, it'll pick up later on.
There'll be a few more chapters like this I believe, but soon enough I'll get a real PLOT going. Sort of. I promise. -_-'