A/N: Hey-o. Here I am. I am pleased to present chapter 8. Make sure to leave a review. :3


Chapter 8 - Food-Cortia


"Zim?" Dib asked hesitantly. He wasn't sure if Zim felt better... No, of course he didn't feel better, but Dib wondered if Zim would get mad at his request. Were they friends now? He wasn't sure.

The small green alien was the controls, piloting their way towards earth. "Hmm?" He hummed, not turning to look back at the human.

"I'm... Really hungry. Humans need to eat... How long until we make it back to earth?" Dib asked, his hands grabbing his own shirt to emphasize his hunger.

"About 24 hours," Zim said slowly and rather unhappily, "Maybe more, maybe less..." He trailed off, voice monotone.

"I need to eat," Dib said, a bit more firmly.

"Well, if we go an hour off-course, we could reach Food-cortia... But..." Zim quieted down.

"That's great! They probably have something I can eat there," Dib said with relief.

"Yes, but..." Zim lowered his antennae.

"But what?" Dib demanded, narrowing his eyes.

"I'm kind of wanted there," Zim admitted in a hushed voice.

"What?!" Dib cried, "How are you wanted there?"

"Well," Zim breathed, "I was escaping banishment, and I-"

"We have to eat there. I can't go another 24 hours." Dib said, crossing his arms.

"Fine," Zim agreed, annoyed that Dib had interrupted him, "But we need to be careful."


Dib watched with interest as different kinds of aliens walked in. Every time a new creature entered, he would ask Zim what it was and stare at it as it walked to the desk to order it's food. He sat on one side of the booth, poking some strange alien food with his fork. "What is that?" He asked as another alien came in.

Zim was scowling, antennae twitching with annoyance. If he had a money for every time Dib asked that question... The Irken glanced at the alien that had just entered. "Lupapatorion," Zim muttered crossly, watching Dib's plate as the human picked at the food. Zim raised his antennae and looked back over at the Lupapatorian, eyes flickering with interest as she sent Zim a flirty smile.

Dib noticed this, and felt a bit uneasy. "Something interesting?" He asked, glaring at Zim. Zim smirked, looking away from the Lupapatorian and back at Dib.

"Yes," Zim replied in a haughty manner. Dib felt a twist of jealousy in his chest, and decided to change the subject.

"So what do we do when we get home?" Dib asked, "I mean, back to earth?"

"I told you, I'm going to go live on the moon," Zim said stiffly, bright magenta eyes narrowing dangerously. "Nothing has changed."

"But, you and I, we-"

"NOTHING HAS CHANGED," Zim repeated, "Nothing ever happened." Dib scowled. Zim was going to pretend nothing happened. Fine. So be it. Dib had thought... There had been something special. Perhaps a friendship...

"What's so great about the moon anyways?" Dib muttered, picking around his food with his fork.

"GIR says it's made of cheese," Zim said stiffly.

"Zim, do you SERIOUSLY think-" But Dib was cut short.

"ZIM!" Zim and Dib stared at each other. That voice was all too familiar. Zim's eyes were wide, his expression full of pure terror. Dib had never seen him like that before. "Let's just slip out..." Dib whispered softly, looking past Zim at the doorway.

Tak.

"Zim you moron!" Tak hissed, stalking forward more into the restaurant. "Show yourself!" She turned and her purple eyes fell on Zim and Dib. She stomped over, hands behind her back and eyes narrowed.

Zim flinched backwards, his usual spunk had vanished.

Dib got up in one quick motion and stood between them, glaring at Tak. "What do you want?" He snapped.

"The same thing I wanted last time we meet," Tak replied, "Step aside."

"Not a chance," Dib shot back. What was he thinking? He couldn't fight Tak. He couldn't even fight Zim! He scowled.

"Oh? Grown affectionate?" Tak smirked.

"How'd you find us?" Dib asked sharply, crossing his arms.

"Need I remind you? You took MY ship! Of course I have a tracking beacon on it," Tak seethed. Then, in one swift motion, she shoved Dib aside. Even though he was taller, he still fell over from the force.

Tak advanced on Zim, standing in the booth. Zim was flat against the wall.

"Alright Zim," came Tak's british-sounding voice, "We can do this the easy way, or the hard way." Dib watched speechlessly, not standing up.

"Is that even a question?" Zim snapped, and then dove at her, kicking her across the face with one tiny boot. Well, he tried to.

Tak saw it coming, and swiftly dodged it. She stood up high on the table, willing Zim to attack again.

And attack Zim did. He jumped at her, grabbing her and making her fall across the table. He was pinning her down. But not for long.

Tak brought her knee up to his stomach harshly, causing Zim to gag. He rolled back unto the seat as Tak shoved him, jumping to another table. This one wasn't so sturdy. It fell over, food scattering across the floor. Tak jumped off of it before she tumbled with it and stood, waiting for Zim to come at her.

The entire restaurant was shouting and yelling at them, but none dared come close.

Zim got up, clenching his tiny claws, and ran at her again. Tak looked perfectly calm. She dove out of the way as he got close, tripped him with one long leg, and threw a small object at him. It was a tiny, marble-sized orb that popped upon contact and let loose a purple fume on Zim's face. He coughed, sputtered, and fell unoncious.

Dib was on his feet, fists clenched, face red with anger.

Tak sent him an amused smirk. "Are you really going to fight me, Dib? Seriously. Even if you won out of some miracle, what would it gain you?" She laughed, antenna raised quizzically.

Dib didn't answer. He didn't know what he was fighting for. But right now, he felt like kicking that stupid purple Irken into the frier.

"Fine," Tak grinned, "But I don't plan on keeping you alive..." Her purple eyes danced with adrenaline. "Get ready for sh*t to hit the fan."


A/N: Yay for short chapter. I starred out curse words, just because it makes me feel better about using them. I hope that doesn't bother you.

So as you can see, some ZADr is starting to form. *raises hands into the air dramatically*.

I've actually already written the last chapter; and there will be progressively a lot more ZADr. But even after they live together, there will always be a little conflict between the two, so if you don't like that... This definitely isn't the fic for you. Just warning ya. ;D