AN: Thanks to Dusk-deerfluff and SamuraiButterfly8725 for all the follows and favorites. :D

Chapter 10: Strange Human

Emma P.O.V

I poked my head in through the shed doors and saw Zim at the workbench. "Zim?" I called, stepping inside. Zim didn't acknowledge me.

"Hey! Irken!" I called a little louder. Zim still didn't say anything.

I walked up and grabbed his arm only for him to violently shove me off. "I'm trying to work human! This is very stressful!"

I finally noticed what was on the table. The cover of Zim's Pak was torn off and his claws were now digging through the insides of it. Two tubes were sticking out of the inner wiring in Zim's ship and were latched onto the holes in Zim's back.

"Oh, sorry." I said backing up so I didn't make him mess up.

Zim sighed and ripped something out of his Pak before tinkering with the wiring and snapping the cover back on. The tubes in his back soon retreated back into the ship and Zim shoved his Pak into place. I watched him, amazed at how swiftly he reassembled it. It looked like complicated machinery.

"Uh, my mom just made dinner. Are you gonna want anything?" I asked as Zim turned his attention back to me. "We still have some spaghetti left from yesterday."

Zim nodded and set his tools down, following me out of the shed. I held the door open for him with a smile as he pushed past me and grabbed his leftovers out of the fridge. Mom jumped a little as Zim stood next to her and put the tupperware in the microwave. He glanced down at the stove and gagged that the site of two beef patties sizzling in a pan.

"Relax; you don't have to eat it." I muttered, giving him a friendly punch to his arm.

Mom flipped the meat onto my plate and sat down at the table.

Jade P.O.V.

This had to be one of the most awkward moments in my life. We were almost completely silent while we ate and I was positive that Zim was getting annoyed with me constantly staring at him. Eventually he broke the silence.

"Why must you keep doing that human?" he said, glaring at me.

I froze and glanced over at Emma for help.

"She's just curious about you." she shrugged.

Finally I gathered enough courage to ask him something. "So...Zim, what is it you do on your planet?"

He opened his mouth to say something, almost automatically but then shut it.

"Well...Zim doesn't really know at this point." He muttered, poking at his food.

I looked back at Emma who was frowning at him. What did she know? I decided not to keep pestering and moved onto another topic.

Zim P.O.V.

This was really grating on my nerves. Not only were this human's questions obvious and sometimes idiotic but whenever she wasn't interrogating me there was an almost unbearable amount silence. It didn't help that the Emma-human eventually excused herself from the table and went back to her room, leaving us all alone. I quickly finished my food so I could leave as well but the human stopped me.

"Hold on Zim. I want to talk to you."

"That's what you've been doing this whole time!" I snapped.

I don't know why I was turning towards the Earth-girl's room but I suppose any company was better than answering her questions.

"I mean more than just asking you things. I want you to know that my daughter rarely has bad-judgment, especially on people. So unless you prove me otherwise I trust you. I don't want to be your enemy Zim."

I growled and rolled my eyes as I continued on my way back to the Emma-human's room. As I pushed the door open I heard the human snarl and curse.

"Fucking tit bag!"

I gave her a questioning glare and sat down next to her on her bed. She was hissing at a small flat screen T.V. which she was playing some sort of game on. The character she was playing as was at the moment being constantly hit in mid-air, Emma just barely missing the prompt to dodge. Her health quickly depleted as her fingers frantically scrambled to the buttons to try and land a hit on the enemy, cursing loudly the entire time.

Eventually her character's health was fully lost and the screen went dark as the 'Game Over' screen faded in. She sighed over-dramatically and fell back onto her bed, the controller resting on her stomach.

"Stupid boss battles." she growled "I HATE the difficulty curve in this game." She reluctantly sighed and sat up, pressing the 'Continue' button on screen.

I sat down and watched her try and fail several more times before she finally turned off the game in frustration. She turned to me with a bit of a glare. "What are you smiling about?"

I suddenly noticed that I had been smirking the entire time. I went with the only response I could come up with. "Uh...it's amusing how frustrated you're getting over a mere game." I shrugged.

Her glare hardened, bad choice of words.

"I'm just trying to get the damn achievement for beating this guy. I'll get a secret ending that way too." she sighed as Dee-Dee jumped up on the bed. I almost immediately shielded my face from her licks but luckily she ignored me and attacked the Emma-human, licking her chin a few times before laying down in her lap.

"So...how long until your ship is fixed?" she muttered. That was an unexpected question.

"Um...about two more days I suppose."

I was staring at the dark screen of the TV and I notice the human sigh and lay down in reflection. I turned my head and saw her facing me, blankly staring up at me. It felt...odd.

"Well I better go get ready for bed." she sighed, sitting up and grabbing some spare clothes out of her dresser drawer and leaving the room. "Goodnight, Zim." she muttered.

I nodded and slipped under the blankets, shoving the tiny Earth-dog off the bed in the process. About 15 minutes later the door opened and I heard the human settling down on the couch once again. Another hour or two past and I opened my eyes to the sound of a low groan and some shifting coming from the other side of the room.

I sat up and looked at the Emma-human, who was shifting every couple of seconds to try and get comfortable. I sighed and rolled my eyes, swinging my legs over the side of the bed. "I'll just do this so we'll be even and I won't need to do her any more favors." I growled to myself as I stood up.

I stood in front of her, watching her squirm on the couch for a couple minutes before I slid my arms under her body and lifted her off the couch, quickly carrying her to her bed and setting her down. I lazily threw the blankets over her and walked back to the couch, laying down and pulling the blanket over my head.

"You like her."

I cracked my eyes open to see Gir staring at me from the coffee table.

"What nonsense are you talking about this time, Gir?" I muttered, just wanting to sleep so I wouldn't have to talk to him.

"You like Emmy!" I shushed him.

"I do not like the Emma-human Gir. She's tolerable at best." I said, almost as an automatic response.

Emma P.O.V.

"Yeah you do! You're the bestest friends forever and ever!" Gir squealed.

"Gir! Enough!" Zim hissed back.

My smile grew as I listened to the conversation. I guess Zim didn't put the fact that I might still be awake into consideration when he swapped beds with me. The two of them bickered for a few more minutes until Zim finally told Gir to go to bed and the room grew quiet. I was going to miss these two nuts when they left. So I'd better tell him soon.