Chapter Notes
Disclaimers: I do not own Invader Zim
Author's Note's: THE LAST CHAPTER…of the series! Thank you guys so much for the support this story has gotten. With that said Part 2 of Help! My Boyfriend's an…Alien? Has been rescheduled to be out on April 1st. Thank you guys so much for being so flexible with my long silences. Now that this series is over I can put all my efforts into one ZADR story instead of 2.
Thanks for reading and please review!
(Back with Zim...)
He would have been content with kneeling beside his fallen father forever luckily for him Tak would not let that happen.
She kneeled before him respectfully, something He was sure was not easy for her to do even now, and Dib watched in awe as the rest of the remaining Irken's on the Bridge followed suit. "Emperor Zim." Tak said proudly. "We await you orders."
His orders…
Zim remembered a time when such orders would have been to destroy the filthy mud ball below them. However, now Earth was more of a home than irk ever was…Was he really going to leave it forever? The newly declared Emperor looked to his mate hopefully, only to see a look of grief on Dib's exhausted face.
They had won the war, and yet Dib couldn't find a reason to be happy.
'Because I have to leave now.' Zim told himself the obvious. Earth was not ready to know that Aliens existed. And even if they did he doubted they would want them to stay since his race nearly concurred it today. Still perhaps he could at least per long the inevitable good bye.
"Prepare the ship for hyper drive." Zim said, managing to find his voice. "I want all repairs made before our departure."
His eyes met with Dib's once more and he watched them light up. Yes with all the damage Gir managed to make repairs would take some time. Which means they had time, but time for what?
To say goodbye?
Dib didn't want to say goodbye, he wanted to be with Zim forever, but could he say goodbye to his family instead? Dib looked to Gaz hoping she could give him some silent hint of an answer only to realize she was busy searching for an answer to her own problem.
She and Tak were not as far long as Dib and Zim which meant in theory it should be easier for her to leave.
AS IF!
Gaz was just as confused, if she left with Tak now it may turn out there was nothing between them but friendship, and she was okay with that. But she may never get to return home to her dad, or Dib if he decided to stay. But if she stayed and Tak left without her, they may never know if what they had was real.
Could she take chance?
For the first time in forever she had no answer, but luckily she had a reason to stall for time.
"Dad says you better make it to dinner." She told her brother in her usual mad at the world tone.
Diner! It was like the answer to a pray, a reason to steal Zim for himself a little longer. "Yes we should go have Dinner!" he grabbed Zim by the hand and started leading him away."
The soldiers looked to Tak confused.
"Uh." Tak struggled looking to Gaz for help.
Gaz gave her a reassuring nod and Tak decided to wing it.
"Yes we must smooth things over with the humans before they blast us out of the sky while our defenses are down."
The soldiers simply watch them go obviously stunned by their new leaders laid back way of ruling.
"Skoodge you're in charge!" Zim declared over his shoulder.
Skoodge suddenly felt the urge to strangle his new Emperor. "Seriously!" he shouted after them.
Zim couldn't help but laugh as he followed Dib back to the docking bay.
"Well I can already see what a fine leader you're going to be." Tak began.
"Me?" Zim scoffed. "Looks who's talking."
"At least I gave a valid reason for this dinner." Tak pointed out.
"I'm Emperor!" Zim declared. "I need no reasoning for my actions!"
"Already sounding like the old one are we?" Lard Nar asked interrupting him as he spoke on the Comms link.
"Hardly." Zim assured him. "Thank you by the way."
Lard Nar was obviously not expecting any sort of gratitude because for a moment there is silence.
"Uh Lard Nar?" Zim said.
"Yes-of course sorry." Lard Nar shook the surprise away. "With your permission I would like to lead my troops to our next target. Our goal is to liberate as many slaves of Irk as we can."
"Granted." Zim said as he loaded up into his ship. "Call me if you are met with any resistance." He ordered. "I'll set them straight."
Lard Nar laughed. "Will do." And with that he zipped off into hyper speed eager to free the others who were no slaves to the Irken machine no more.
"So what will you do now that you're not Invaders?" Gaz asked after a moment of silence.
"That's a good question." Tak said look to Zim for an answer.
"Were going to use our technologies and resources to fix all the wrong we've done." Zim answered simply.
"And after that?" Tak urged.
"You honestly think such a task will be done overnight?" Zim scoffed. "We'll never truly make amends."
"No." Dib agreed. "But you can try."
"It certainly won't happen in this life time." Tak seemed to agree. "What about Red and Purple?" She asked suddenly. "Do we leave them here?"
"We'll be back for them." Zim assured him. "In seven years." He added determined to see their punishment through.
Dib smiled, so Zim would be coming back someday, but could he wait seven years to see him again.
Gaz was thinking the same thing about Tak. Still it was probably for the best, after all Gaz was moody, and she didn't know how to treat people, and she always tended to punch first and asked questions later. Not exactly the kind of person to be in a relationship with. 'I'll give Tak until after dinner.' She decide. If she leaves without addressing it then this would mean that Tak wanted to just stay friends.
And Gaz was okay with that.
The trip back down to Earth was uneventful and Dib was surprised to see his father embrace him and Gaz the moment they existed their ships.
"I am so proud of you." He said to both of them.
The hug lasted a good while until Gaz decided to end it, she pulled away. "Uh dad I brought Dib home for Dinner." She said reminding him.
"Oh that's right!" Professor Membrane said. "This calls for a celebration!" He declared and the scientists cheered around them in agreement.
And just like that Zim found himself back at the Membrane house enjoying the festivities. Most of the town residence were still gone due to the evacuation. Still that didn't stop them from celebrating without them. Laughing and carrying on like they didn't have a care in the world and for once they didn't. For once everything was right with the universe.
Still good times were not meant to last, soon the last bit of food was eaten, and Skoodge reported to Zim over the Comms that the ship was ready.
"Then Pack my things from my house." Zim insisted trying to buy more time.
"Already done sir." Skoodge said sounding smug for thinking ahead.
However the realization only made Dib's heart sank, there was nothing left to stall with…it was time to go.
"Very well." Zim said. "Tak and I will need a Pick up, the vessels we took belongs on Earth."
"Copy that." Skoodge said, sounding annoyed now, and Zim just knew his old friend was ready to strangle him.
Not that it mattered their ride back to the Massive appeared moments later, they could stall no longer.
The Irken shuttle had landed in the road in front of Dib's house the driver was a very inpatient looking Skoodge.
"Well I guess this is it." Zim said rather dumbly. "Looks like you won you filthy Earth monkey."
Dib forced a laugh. "Yep…" He forced a laugh, any other day he would have said. "That's what you get for messing with Planet Earth" Or "I told you so you green lizard." However, today he found himself tempted in wishing that this was some crazy dream. Thar Zim's family had never came, and the Tallest still cared nothing for Earth.
Sure he and Zim would still be enemies, but at least it would mean that he was staying, and that they could continue doing what they always did.
At least they would be together…
Didn't Zim want them to be together?
'Maybe he just wants me to be safe.' Dib thought. Which made since, of course Zim wanted him to stay safe. But Dib, Dib was never one to think of his own wellbeing, no Dib Membrane lived for the excitement of adventure and near death experiences.
Not this!
Skoodge honked his horn impatiently and Zim forced himself to start down the driveway, one that appeared a lot shorter than he remembered.
"Well bye…" Zim said awkwardly.
"Bye…" Dib said back.
Meanwhile His father and Sister stood beside him looking at him as if he was an idiot.
'That's because he is.' Gaz thought to herself. 'And of course I have to be the one to point it out.' She growled in annoyance and said. "Are you stupid or something?"
"What?" Dib asked giving her a weird look.
Gaz growled once more. Of course he was going to make her spell it out for him! Seriously for a kid with an IQ of 160 Dib couldn't be more stupid! "You're just going to let him go?" She asked.
"It's better this way." Dib reasoned.
"For who?" Gaz snapped. "Obviously not you and obviously not him!"
"Gaz His people aren't ready for what we have." Dib told her.
"Who cares?" Gaz hissed. "You're always worried about how others feel for once care about your own feelings."
"But he…" Dib began but stopped, the last thing he wanted was to sound pathetic.
"He's what leaving without so much as an 'I love you?'" Gaz asked. "Of course, he is because you are both stupid idiots!" She screamed. "Nothing has change, you're still going on about the safety of Earth and He's still going on about his precious Irk!"
"Gaz…" Dib began, but she simply cut him off.
"No I am sick of this!" She spat. "You two finally admit your true feelings for each other and now you're going to pretend it never happened for the greater good? Who cares what they think? You don't and neither does he! You're both just too afraid, because now there's nothing stopping you from facing the unknown, and that scares you!"
Dib's heart jolted. He didn't want to face this. He didn't want to admit it. But Gaz was never gentle with him, and she never tolerated her brother's need to just brush things off to make life easier. And here she had made sure to not only shove everything in his face, but to present to him with what the real problem had been all along.
He was scared.
Scared of getting close. Scared of being hurt. Scared of hurting the one person to ever…to ever love him, despite knowing his long list of flaws inside and out. He was scared of the future. Scared of screwing up. Scared of the other hundred million things that he just knew could go wrong.
But beneath that fear was a truth far more powerful; if he didn't take this chance now while he still had it then he would never know. He would never know if Zim had been just some silly crush enhanced by some alien heat drug. Or if they were just meant to become this all along, he would never know in less he took the leap. Something that shouldn't be so hard, after all he had already professed his love to him. And Zim had already admitted that he loved him too.
So what where they doing?
They were doing what they always did, they were sacrificing their own happiness for their people. How many times had Zim fought the urge to be up front with Dib because he needed to prove himself to the Tallest?
And how many times had Dib ignored his feelings for Zim because he had to defend the Earth?
Too many times to count, and now they were about to do it again!
No! Not this time! But could he just leave? Would his family understand? Gaz did but…
Dib looked back at his dad hopefully. "Dad I…"
Professor Membrane held up his hand. "I know son, you've got to go." He smiled. "Just don't get too side tracked up there."
Dib smiled puffing out his chest and took a shaking step forward, only to have Gaz give him a nice big shove, and just like that he was running, running to Zim's side without even bothering to look back.
Zim felt his foot falls before he heard them, the vibrations shook him to his core. He turned to see Dib throw himself in his arms. "Dib." He froze as the human kissed him deeply. However, the initial shock faded as he gave into the kiss.
Finally he pulled away. "Well so much for keeping this professional." He laughed.
"I'm coming with you." Dib said. He expected Zim to argue, but instead his smile was one of relief.
"Well it's about time." He snapped. "If I had walked any slower I would be resorted to crawling!"
Dib was floored. "Well if you wanted me to come with you why didn't you say anything?"
"I can't ask you to just leave everything you know for me." Zim snapped. "I mean why would you do that?"
"Because I love you." Dib said as if it should be obvious.
"Males." Tak taunted as she and Gaz began the walk over to the shuttle. "Why must they make a big deal out of everything?"
"Because they're stupid!" Gaz pointed out the obvious before turning back to their father. "I'll keep him out of trouble." She promised.
Professor Membrane nodded, just knowing Gaz would be their too made him feel better about this already.
"And in the mean time we can see where this goes." Tak said giving her a smile.
"And what if it doesn't work out?" Zim asked Tak the obvious.
"Then we'll be back in seven years." Tak reminded him. "Duh!"
"See complete idiots!" Gaz said with a laugh.
"Look I'm all for this happy ending." Skoodge said from the shuttles cockpit. "But do you think we could finish this in space?" he asked. "I mean the rest of the human populist of this town is due back any minute!"
Dib stiffened a laugh. As the thought occurred to him. "Of course they'd catch us now." He reasoned. "Now that you're no longer a threat they'll see I was right all along!"
"Not today they won't!" Zim mused as he pushed him inside the shuttle with Gaz and Tak following closely behind.
Dib was half tempted to fight for the chance to finally expose Zim, but allowed himself to be pushed onto the shuttle. After all, knowing his luck no one would believe him anyway.
"Finally!" Skoodge declared as he took off into the sky and further into the great beyond of space.
Zim's and Dib's eyes met as the Massive came into view, and though neither of them spoke they both just knew they were thinking the same thing.
"I love you."
Yes, the battle of Earth was finally behind them, and now all that stood before them was one great big adventure after another.
It was only a matter of time!
The End
Chapter End Notes:
Thanks for reading and please leave a comment. (If you want!)
Until then this is Emily signing off :)
