Zim had never thought that he would be heading an Invasion of his home planet- at least not under these particular circumstances. His own version of the story usually involved a lot more lasers, a lot less Syndicate, and absolutely no Therron. Still, he would be lying if he said that he didn't feel just the smallest sense of exhilaration as he sat aboard the newly improved Nova with his Irken (and non- Irken ) companions looking over battle plans.
"We will need to be as subtle as possible with our entrance. Syndicate you guys will probably need to stay out in space and do what you can to stop invading ships from leaving Irken space and starting one of those bad things Therron is always going on about." Voel was currently in deep discussion with Captain Rose.
"An intergalactic incident." Therron grumbled.
"You want our two ships to take out all exiting Irken fleets?" Captain Rose raised an eyebrow. "I know I'm good, but you might be overestimating our power here. We have at least a month before the official Syndicate Fleet reaches us for backup."
"Overestimating? Seriously?" Voel looked annoyed. He walked away from Captain Rose and over to where Lor and Dib were talking, off to the side about something that Zim couldn't understand and therefore knew to be stupid. Voel picked Lor up and brought him back to the conversation, plopping him in front of the Captain. "This. This is all you need. If anything, I'm giving you too little to handle."
"What is happening?" Lor looked to his Captain in confusion.
"We keep going over this:" the Captain sighed, rubbing her forehead. "Lor is a medic. He doesn't have the training you think he does."
"He doesn't need training," Therron gave a frustrated grunt. "He just needs to stop all Irken ships from getting too far away and causing us to lose all of our allies by attacking them! I have worked HARD on those trade agreements and I am NOT losing them because a stupid, ugly computer attached to our walls thinks it knows better than I do!"
"And do you think these computers would put a doctor on the mission to stop a bunch of ships?" Captain Rose was clearly unconvinced.
"Look," Therron was fed up, "it's not our fucking fault that the Syndicate sucks at mandating the correct career for its people."
"Free will, we believe in free will. You know, letting citizens choose their jobs." Captain Rose replied flatly.
"Right, like I said, it's not our fault that you're stupid." Therron retorted.
"Wait, aren't the engines that power most Irken vessels made of that stuff that can kill me?" Lor finally spoke on his own behalf as context clues seemed to alert him to the job that would befall him.
"Well then don't get hit by the engines or any shrapnel. It's not that hard!" Therron retorted.
"We'll workshop the Syndicate's role," Voel pulled Therron back a bit. "I can see your concerns. We just don't have a lot of resources so we need to utilize what we have."
"Can I... go?" The doctor looked tentatively at his Captain.
"Yes, dismissed." She nodded and he immediately returned to Dib.
"This free will stuff is bullshit," Therron grumbled but Voel shushed him as he paced, deep in thought.
"At least we have Syndicate backing. A month extra is just too long to wait..."
"We will be fine. Everything will be settled before the Syndicate even get there. All that we need is this," Zim gestured to himself. The Captain shook her head, returning back to her seat, on the bridge, on the other side of the room from the Irken's and their scheming.
"Great confidence, Zim, but this is a big job even for you." Voel looked amused by Zim's statement of obvious fact.
"Voel, Voel, Voel..." Zim shook his head, chuckling to himself. "I have destroyed Irk on accident at least twice; imagine what I can do when I'm trying ."
"Is that supposed to make us feel better?" Therron looked down at him in disgust, "because I feel worse."
"Mmhmm. Mmhmm. But! Zim no longer has to care about your feelings because you aren't the Tallest." Zim nodded, before turning to look over to Vero who was sitting on the floor eating a bag of chips and watching them talk. "He is."
"He's right," Voel sighed, "Vero get your ass over here. This is important."
"I can listen from here." Vero quipped.
"Vero. Now. I am your genetic donor and you will listen to me." Voel spat back.
"First of all, I'm an adult." Vero countered, "Secondly: I am pretty sure I am actually Skoodge's smeet . Think about it, old man, I love to eat; Skoodge loves to eat. He's dead, I think legally they're going to declare me dead..." Vero grabbed Skoodge who had been going over a map not too far away, and held the Invader up to his cheek, "and we look practically identical." Personally, Zim didn't really see it. But they both did like food. So Zim was willing to believe it. Voel's mouth drew into a narrow line.
"I can personally assure you neither of your donors was Skoodge."
"Sounds fake but okay." Vero put Skoodge back on the ground, the robust Invader shooting Vero a dirty look.
"Voel," Skoodge very quickly scurried away from Vero. "I found the location of the old Mothra temple you were describing. Sizz-Lorr says the Wilds have been pretty much abandoned since your unexpected deaths, so it should be safe to land there- at least in regards to our fellow Irkens."
"We were about to get to that problem of wildlife overrunning rural Irk too... you know, before we were assassinated..." Voel shook his head, folding his arms. "We might be able to utilize that old Temple as our base."
"Assuming it isn't overrun with a Gnider Infestation." Therron added. "Or a Drixfurt swarm. Or any of the other wildlife that can eat through our PAKs and kill us."
"I can tell you from experience, pal, the gniders are nasty this time of year. Had to burn a swarm of them when I was workin' on my 'Irk's Greatest Deception article." Zeke had been watching the whole conversation, taking vigorous notes. While it was true he had his own ship, he wanted to stay on the Nova to: 'get the full story'.
"Is that so? They couldn't eat you?" Therron looked down at the reporter. "I wish they had."
"Haha, fuck you." Zeke smirked. "You're just mad a shorter Irken managed to uncover a conspiracy that was right under you."
"You are a rural Irken then," Skoodge looked impressed. "I thought you might be, from the accent."
"Yep. Hatched and coded in the southern farms. Things were getting pretty dangerous with invasive wildlife and Bozo one and two over there," Zeke gestured to Therron and Voel, "were doing shit all about it. So, I figured the best way to get their attention was to bring the issues directly to the masses' attention."
"That's why we couldn't fucking track you!?" Voel blinked as the realization hit. "You aren't a media Irken at all! You're a Mothra damned farmer!"
"That was the initial coding for me, yes. But I find my talents are much more useful in the media. Wouldn't you agree?"
"No." Therron and Voel quickly answered at the same time Skoodge said: "Absolutely."
"Our government was nearly overthrown by a two-foot farmer..." Therron stared dead ahead of him in disbelief.
"Really makes ya think, doesn't it, buddy?" Zeke seemed thoroughly pleased with the chaos he had caused. Zim had still not formed too much of an opinion on Zeke. Aside from having been in Zim's house for a while, Zim hadn't really had much reason to interact with him. However, the fact that Therron hated him, was a big plus for Zim.
"Good, you are rural, you should be at least somewhat familiar with the area around the Temple then..." Voel was back on track.
"I mean it depends on which Mothra Temple you're talking about." Zeke replied.
"It isn't the Southern one, unfortunately." Skoodge looked at his map. "The ideal Temple is actually on the Western side of Smeetery Exit 4544."
" Oh I used to run deliveries out that way, actually." Zeke leaned over to look at the map Skoodge had been examining. "Not to the temple of course, but I was in the same hatching group as Farmer Rux who used to run the farmland right here. We were on pretty good terms so I'd bring him some extra produce in exchange for some of his extra meat. I haven't been out as far as the Temple, obviously, but weirdly enough, I have a general idea of where it is."
"That actually works out great. Zeke, you are going to be on our planet expedition team. We'll need a local." Voel instructed.
"Don't make Zeke important!" Therron pleaded. "Voel, come on." Voel sighed, looking over with a defeated expression.
"He knows the area, Therron."
"Yeah but he sucks." Therron retorted.
"Yeah, but he can help ."
" Well I am Tallest too and I vote we can't use him." Therron crossed his arms. "And since you vote we can, that ties us, meaning no one wins. So, he doesn't go."
"That would mean you win." Voel lifted an antenna skeptically. "I am not humoring this, but even if I was he would still go on like half of the adventure, wouldn't he?"
"No he doesn't go at all. We tied. " Therron insisted.
"Technically," Skoodge cleared his throat, "there are three Tallests here."
"Vero. Doesn't. Count." Therron replied quickly.
"Actually," Voel sighed, "... he does count."
"He's not even listening!" Therron gestured emphatically at Vero who was now lying on his back staring at the ceiling of the ship, tossing up chips and trying to catch them in his mouth.
"Hey, 'm listenin'." He mumbled through a mouthful.
"Sit up, Vero." Voel instructed.
" No, you sit up." Vero countered.
"I..." Voel put a hand to his face and dragged it down in exasperation, "I'm standing."
"Good. You're a good listener, pops." Vero made little gun shapes with his hands and pretended to fire them in Voel's direction. Voel had clearly reached his limit (he had never been one for patience) as he walked over and jerked Vero up off of the floor by the fabric of the regulation body suit, that he wore under the Tallest's armor.
"Try to take this seriously." Voel almost growled the words.
"I am, actually." Vero replied, indignantly pulling himself away from his genetic donor, brushing himself off. "And I think Zeke is not only a good part of the ground team but I would call him nearly essential. The Irken Wilds are notoriously hard to navigate and being further out if the city means most of us have no layout of the land. Given that we are trying to lie low, there is no accessing the navigation systems so we are relying on land markers and maps alone."
"Huh, you were listening, I guess." Voel mused.
"Told you I was." Came the snarky reply as Vero began eating once again.
" So much in-fighting, and yet with it being only amongst the Irkens , I feel like it's wasted ." Zim looked over to see Q, still wearing his translator, but in his more neutral form, eating some sort of radio device that Zim was almost certain the Syndicate would not want to have devoured.
"Go away, you weren't even supposed to come on this mission. You're only here because you can't be trusted back on Earth." Voel glared darkly at the creature.
" You make one dorm of students go crazy during finals week and suddenly, Captain Rose treats you like a bad guy."
"You are a bad guy. You're only being nice now because you want something." Therron replied coldly.
" Maybe. But you can't deny that I have my uses ." One of the red tendrils of the scarf drifted over and swiped the rest of the chips from Vero's open bag while the Tallest was looking over at Voel.
"And once the dangers outweigh those benefits, you can guarantee that I will personally see to your end." Voel told him, coldly. "Zim still knows how to injure your kind."
"I do!" Zim puffed up a little bit, quite proud of the permanent damages he had caused Q to sustain. He had been making Voel an attachment for his spear that could hurt Q if things went badly. Of course, that meant sharing the lab on the Nova with the Membranes which could be a little difficult as the Membranes were filled with so many great weapon ideas that it made it a little difficult for Zim to keep his focus.
" Ah yes. Very threatening ." Q did not sound the appropriate amount of threatened, but perhaps that was just because of the translator's robotic voice. Zim was certain that he was absolutely shaking in fear.
"Where did my chips go?" Vero blinked looking in his bag.
"Now," it was evident that Voel was trying very hard to keep everyone focused. "Lard-Nar reports that the Control Brains shouldn't have too much reach in these outskirts. He says the Vort were always being told to improve on the overall range of the various sensors... since we aren't in the Collective, we should be pretty much invisible, so long as none of the other Irkens actually see us."
"Ah ha! This will be simple then." Zim put his hands on his hips. "Zim is fantastic at being subtle!" Therron walked over to the bridge crew, grabbing a drink out of Carrius's hand, taking a big gulp of it into his mouth, walking back over, and finally spitting the drink out as he burst out laughing.
"You are many things, Zim, but subtle is not one of them." Voel remarked, wiping Tangean soda from his face. "You are coming with the ground crew, of course- we need your skill-set. But maybe stick with Skoodge and Tenn."
"But not Tak though." Zim interjected.
"I mean, I suppose if you don't want to- plus Tak is technically Syndicate-" Voel began to speak but Zim interrupted him before he could finish his thought.
"Because Tak sucks."
"Hey!" Tak whirled around in her chair (the only reason Tak had a stupid and not at all cool chair that hovered and spun around, was because she was technically the First Officer on the Nova). "I do NOT suck! I am a far better Invader than you ever were!"
"You were never an Invader though." Zim remarked smugly.
"That is only because you blacked out half of the planet! And the Control Brain would not let me retake the test! I know now it is because she was secretly evil. They were probably too afraid of what I might discover had I become an Invader."
Tak was clearly upset and Zim was enjoying watching her argue a pointless position. "Or: you suck so badly that even the evil Control Brains thought you would only bring them down." Zim retorted.
"Both of you stop fighting." Voel rubbed his forehead. "You're both important to the mission."
"But Zim is more important."
"Zim!" Voel shushed him with an angry look. "Tak, the Syndicate will need you and your ship to help stall until reinforcements arrive."
"Why does Zim get to go! He's not even a real Invader!?" Tak demanded. Zim couldn't believe that she would stoop to lying in order to try and get his job. He was too a real Invader, in fact, he was the most real Invader here.
"You're absolutely right, Tak," now Therron had decided to lie too. "But Zim is the only one who that stupid Control Brain we are trusting, ever listens too; and we've completely lost control of our lives: so here we are."
" I can hear you." CB was standing off to the side holding an overly excited GIR in his arms.
"I mean, I'm not surprised. You're in all of our PAKs now." Therron waved him off.
"Not mine!" Tak piped up.
"Of course not, unlike the evil Control Brains back on Irk, CB has standards." Zim retorted pridefully. "Don't you?"
" Affirmative."
Again, Voel brought his hand to his face and dragged it slowly down as, despite all his best efforts, the conversation devolved (once again) into Zim and Tak fighting (with Zim as the obvious victor). "That wasn't the reason, Zim, and you know this." He looked back to Tak, "we need at least one Irken with the Syndicate in case this fails. If we're all taken over that's endgame for our whole species."
"Very well, My Tallest. I accept my role as our last hope and savior." Tak nodded, foolishly believing what was obviously just an attempt to make her feel better. Zim took comfort in knowing that his position was really the more important one.
"CB you are going to need to focus on the Control Brains." Voel looked over at Zim's creation. "I know IX gave you a hard time in the past, but Zim said you've had some upgrades since then...?"
" A few. I also have actually done coding now. I am a little more like a proper Control Brain, I suppose."
"You are operating your own Collective, CB," Zim assured him, "you are exactly like a Control Brain only far better because I made you!"
" That is a true statement."
"With your improvements, hopefully you will be able to hold off IX and the others. We have to assume that all ten of the Control Brains are in agreement on the plan." Voel was deep in thought; Zim always admired how seriously he took battle. Sure, as Tallest, Voel had not always been the best leader; but he was a great General. And he always would be. "As much as I'd like to think IX is acting on his own, it's doubtful."
" From... what I gathered in my brief stay aboard the Massive..." CB was speaking very slowly, hesitantly as if heavily considering each word before it left his mouth. " There are at least four or five other Control Brains that are in on the plan. I only overheard a bit of chatter before I was caught by IX. However, I heard other Control Brains discussing your eventual assassination."
"With something this big, we'll need to assume they're all on board unless we get evidence to the contrary." Voel crossed his arms over his chest. Zim was proud of his robot for gathering the much needed intel. Yes, this mission was going to be difficult, nearly impossible. However, impossible things were Zim's specialty. It was impossible for anyone to find Dib likeable and yet Zim had overcome that impossibility and befriended the human genius against all odds. And now? Now, Dib had lots of friends because other aliens saw how much Zim liked him and knew the human must have value outside of its freakishly large head.
"Didn't you lose to IX?" Therron looked unconvinced. "I am not trying to be the bearer of bad news but our Control Brain already had its ass handed to it by the very same Control Brains that we're expecting it to hold off."
"I made CB better since then." Zim protested. He was not about to be called out by fucking Therron.
"That doesn't fill me with confidence." Therron scoffed. "In fact, I feel like this is a terrible idea overall. We're letting the only AI that we know has a body count disarm the other psychotic AIs."
"Shut the fuck up Therron ." Zim had opened his mouth, but surprisingly that was not his voice telling the disgraced Tallest to shut his stupid mouth. Zim blinked, looking over at Dib, who was glaring down the former leader with surprising anger. "CB isn't the same AI. And if Zim says this is the way to do it, you don't have a fucking choice."
"I feel like you, human ," Therron spoke the word as if it tasted foul on his tongue, "if anyone, should be taking my side here."
"Once the Control Brains take Irk, they're going to come after Earth. And you may be okay with waiting to see if something better comes along, but I'm not putting my own planet at risk." Dib spoke with surprising firmness in his voice.
" Did you just defend me?"
"Yeah, don't make me regret it." Dib grinned slightly at the robot. GIR cheered, though Zim was fairly certain it was just well timed, and completely unrelated to what was happening around them. Typically, Zim wouldn't risk bringing GIR on such a delicate mission, however CB had been quite insistent. Zim was pleased to see his two idiot, robot children were finally getting along. GIR would be much easier to handle with CB's help.
" I will not cause you regret. My plan is to somehow overcome the fact that the Control Brains are more powerful, well organized, and overall outnumber me and somehow defeat them."
"Is there more to that plan? You know, like details?" Therron gave a skeptical look to the robot.
" Not currently. No."
"Mmhmm. " Therron looked to Voel who simply shook his head.
"I mean to put it frankly, we're pretty much fucked." Vero gave a nonchalant shrug. "But we're Irken, and the Irken thing to do is to go down fighting. No matter how bad the odds, we don't give up, right pops?"
"Maybe..." Voel frowned, "maybe don't say 'we're fucked' in your inspiring speech, Vero."
"Right!" He grabbed a drink off of the table that clearly didn't belong to him and raised it to the sky. "We're doomed!" He cheered before tossing the drink into his mouth.
"No... not better, son." Voel rubbed his forehead.
"Xia was always the better speaker." Vero shrugged.
"She wasn't though, and that's concerning." Therron piped up.
"Can we not mention Xia, right now?" Voel was tired, Zim could see it in his expression. He understood. Being stuck with Therron for so long could really weigh on anyone's sanity.
"And can we not mention doom or dying?" Captain Rose added from her seat on the bridge.
" DOOM!" GIR echoed her excitedly. " I HAVE A SONG ABOUT THAT! YOU WANNA HEAR IT!?"
"NO!" Came the unanimous cry from all of the passengers and crew of the Nova. GIR made the noise of sucking in a deep breath (despite not actually needing to breathe).
" DOOM DOOM DO-DOOM DOOM DO-DOOM DOOM DOOM! DOOM-DE-DOOM DOOM DOOM DOOM. DOOM DOOMY DOOM DOOM! DOOMY DOOMY DOOMY DOOM-"
"This song is six months long; you might want to stop him." Zim was getting war flashbacks of his very long trip to Earth the first time. CB raised a hand in front of GIR's face and slowly brought it down, GIR's volume lowering to match the movement until he was just mouthing in silence.
"Best feature I ever gave you." Zim sighed in relief.
"I heard a song about doom! Are we doomed?" The doors to the main deck slid open to reveal Dib's family unit who must have climbed their way out from the lab somehow. The speaker had been Membrane Senior, who Zim was beginning to learn he had a lot in common with.
"No." Voel replied quickly.
"I mean yes, but we're not at the point of admitting it, yet." Vero corrected. "We're in doom-nile."
"Is that an actual Irken word? Or is that just a pun?" Professor Membrane's bond-mate asked, tilting her head to the side curiously. Vero blinked, clearly not having expected the question.
"Oh it's definitely a word."
"It's not." Voel quickly intervened.
"Haha kids and their impending doom. My son is always going on about it too! Aren't you boy-child!?" The professor laughed. "Doom this, aliens that! Sure, it was all true, but he was just so darn obsessed with it." The scientist took a swig of some sort of Syndicate drink, shaking his head fondly. "Joys of fatherhood, am I right?"
"We don't have family units on Irk. Vero is the fault of the Smeetery." Voel retorted quickly.
"You love me, old man. Admit it." Vero grinned, nudging Voel.
"Never." The red clad Tallest stood firm.
"So why were we discussing dying?" The doctor looked around seeing GIR still happily mouthing variations on the word 'Doom'.
"Almighty Tallest V has a pessimistic outlook on our odds against the Empire." Captain Rose must have had amazing hearing to be able to follow this very quiet conversation from the other side of the ship, Zim realized. He didn't recall Tangeans having increased auditory senses, but maybe Captain Rose was just really good at hearing things.
"Wait a second!? Why do you call him by his title and not me!?" Therron was getting ready to protest but was cut short by the human professor.
"The thought of imminent death does add a certain air of excitement, doesn't it?" He chuckled, shaking his head. "But alas, I regret to inform you all that I can't die in a space battle. I have to die by being devoured by a monster of my own creation! If I don't, I lose two hundred dollars to my wife!"
"And I have to be assassinated by a former patient with a personal vendetta." The bond mate spoke up cheerfully. "Or I lose." Zim nodded, he didn't recall there being an Earth custom where bond-mates needed to make wagers on their own deaths, but seeing as how Earth bonding (unlike its superior Irken counterpart) did not link the lifespans of the bond-mates together, it made some degree of sense. However, judging by the horrified expression on Dib's face as he stared at them, this might have been atypical behavior.
"Dad, mom what the actual fuck?"
"Oh don't be so surprised, son." His dad shook his head, laughing.
"It isn't nearly as ghoulish as it sounds." Moira assured him.
"Of course not. The second part of the bet is whoever lives the longest must resurrect the one who died through the miracle of science." Dib's father patted his bonded on the arm in a display of human affection. "I'm going to make your mother a cyborg."
"And I'm going to use questionable genetic splicing to rejuvenate you." Dib's maternal figure replied back, fondly. (Zim was a bit confused as both parents already had cybernetic enhancements according to his scans, but perhaps they were going to add more, in case of unexpected death. It was good to have contingency plans.)
"You're both joking... right?" Dib sounded unconvinced of his own words.
"... sure..." the red headed woman shrugged.
"All of this to say that at least the Membranes will not be dying on this mission! No one is losing two hundred dollars on my watch!" The professor clenched his fist in an impassioned gesture.
"Aren't you incredibly wealthy on your planet?" Skoodge raised an antenna.
"Yes, richer than most governments." The professor admitted. "However, it's not the money; it's the principle of the thing." Again Zim found this man and his bond-mate to be the only humans that actually made any sense. They were so logical; it was no wonder the masses on Earth equated the name Membrane with genius. It was just a shame Dib did not get his father's keen, irradiated mind.
"I never know if you're being funny or serious anymore. I thought the cobra-machete canon was a joke...until..." Dib shuddered. "I can still see those monstrosities you created."
"It's a good thing I'm immune to most of that stuff because I don't really know who else can collect those machete-cobras after you fire them." Lor piped up helpfully.
" Yes, getting them back in the gun is the hard part," the professor nodded, "but in my defense: your sister really wanted to make that gun. Now she is downstairs making a rocket launcher that launches electrically charged, exploding, stuffed unicorns."
"At least the Control Brains probably won't be able to predict our arsenal." Skoodge, weirdly enough, didn't think the Control Brains would see such perfectly, logical weapons coming.
"They might," Zim countered. "CB, you're a Control Brain, what do you think?"
" I would probably have given the cobras katana rather than machetes. Otherwise, this is a logical progression of weapons."
"Yes, but Zim, I mean this with the utmost affection and respect:" Skoodge placed a hand on Zim's arm similar to the gesture the professor had made toward his bond-mate earlier. "But you are the one who made CB."
"Yes. And?" Zim blinked.
"And that is why he is so much...hmm..." Skoodge seemed to be struggling for the right words, "more creative than an Irken Control Brain."
"Skoodge is saying your AI is crazy because you're crazy." Therron replied flatly.
"I am not crazy, would a crazy Irken have made his own Control Brain by combining Irken technology with Earth's most homicidal AI?" Zim scoffed. "I don't think so."
" Sorry, what is this about a homicidal AI?" Captain Rose stood up.
"He's kidding!" Quickly Voel spoke up as he and Skoodge pushed Zim to the side. "Silly, funny Zim! Trying to boost morality with an old Irken joke! It... just doesn't translate well."
"That didn't sound much like a joke." The Captain narrowed her eyes.
"It was!" Voel was not as good at lying as Zim expected him to be, he was drawing out his words for far too long, laughing awkwardly and talking louder than usual.
"Everyone knows the old Irken joke about the murder-AI. It's a classic." Skoodge's dry attitude was selling the lie much better- though Zim wasn't entirely sure why they were lying. There was no way Captain Rose had really heard him. He was talking at his normal volume and she was on the other side of the bridge.
"That didn't sound like a joke." Her eyes were narrowed.
"Oh hey, Captain" Vero piped up, drawing her attention. "Not to interrupt, but we will need to resupply soon. We're about to get to Empire territory and once we cross that threshold there's no stopping on any planet. Everything will be considered a hostile."
"Hmm...You're absolutely right, Tallest V." The Captain was still looking uncertainly at CB and Zim. "We need to refuel and stock up on food. No telling how long your Invasion plan will actually take." She turned back to her crew. "TAK! Find us a planet without Syndicate or Empire alliances. We need to stop there, get everything together because after that we don't stop again till we reach Irk."
Okay everyone! We've got one more chapter after this till we reach Irk. The landing on Irk will actually mark the one year Anniversary of this fanfic! ( The March 19th update!) I am thinking about doing a Q&A to celebrate? Letting you guys leave questions for myself (or the characters!) in the comments and I can do some answers. If that is something you might be interested in doing? Let me know before the new update!