Disclaimers: I do not own Invader Zim

Author's Notes: Okay I know I've been pumping out a lot of chapters on time recently. This is because starting August-November I will be starting the process of moving! Yes! Finally. This move has motivated me to get a lot of chapters done early since I probably won't have lot of time to write during those months. With the packing, the moving, the unpacking and the job hunting, I'm going to be swamped. But rest assured I have a game plan to get as far ahead as possible, so you don't have to spend 3 months of silence.

With that said please enjoy Chapter 7!

(Back Dib…)

[October 31st,…]

{Location: School}

The rest of the week before Halloween had gone off without a hitch and once again life had returned to normal. And Dib found himself surprisingly grateful for the much-needed break, for it was very obvious to him that his constant bad habit of finding trouble was starting to catch up to him. Plus, the break also gave him time to think about his recent encounter with Zim. One that had him more confused than ever and for several reasons.

The first and most important being the fact that the Irken had saved his life! Had Dib been on the end of those Pak legs instead the teen had no doubt he would surely be dead. And that's what bothered him most. Zim could have been rid of him an advantage the Irken Invader couldn't possibly pass up, and yet he did.

At first Dib theorized that the Irken male simply wanted to save the honor of killing him for himself, but that just didn't seem right. Zim was advance life form, to allow something as simple as his own pride get in the way of the greater mission just seemed inferior. Besides, there was no time for Zim to think on whether or not he should save him. Which means the Irken did it on instinct.

An act that had not only him confused but his new alien allies as well.

When Dib told Queen Luna about this she was stunned. Saying Irkens don't sacrifice themselves for each other let alone a lower life form.

"He must think very highly of you." Young Moon had muttered. "It's the only explanation."

And there lied the problem.

Dib just couldn't see why Zim would think so highly of him. Surely a warrior with his reputation had gone up against more honorable foes worthy of his admiration. So why save him?

And that was only the first question on Dib's mind. The other was what he had overheard Zim and Tak arguing about during their battle. Tak had called Zim a defective! What was a defective and why did it matter so much that the Irkens chose to fight over it. Dib had asked his mother these very questions.

"A defective?" Annabel had repeated.

"They kept going on and on about it." Dib had said. "What is it?"

"I think its best Lard Nar explains that one." Annabel answered. "The topic is just as new to me as it is you."

Of course, Dib wasted no time racing over to the Vort scientist to ask.

"Defective?" Lard Nar asked.

"Yeah what is it?" Dib pressed.

"It's a made-up term." Lard Nar explained. "The Irkens created it in order to describe the enemy."

"You mean us?" Dib asked.

Lard Nar nodded. "To be Defective means you don't believe in the same things as the Irken Empire. Our ways, our beliefs in their eyes it's a plague, a disease, they just don't see how a society like ours can hold itself together without our every action being micromanaged. Defective thoughts encourage Irkens to be individuals instead of machines. So, they eliminate them in order to keep control."

"They kill Irkens just for being different." Dib was stunned.

Lard Nar nodded. "To be defective is a death sentence on Irk, because of this a defective Irken will do anything to hide their true nature from Irken society."

And just like that everything about Zim that confused him just clicked.

The look on his face when Dib discovered him in the wood, Zim had him in his sights. Zim could have killed him, but he hesitated. It was obvious to Dib the Irken didn't want to kill him, heck he looked like he didn't want to be a part of the confrontation to begin with. And now Dib knew why.

Zim was defective, he did not believe in the Irken way. Which means he didn't real want to conquer Earth for his leaders. He was just afraid to stand against them, and Dib couldn't say he blamed him. It was obvious that Zim's life was not the cushy life Dib had grown up with. Tak and Zim fought like fighting to survive was the only thing they had ever known. And for both Irkens to act so similarly well it forced Dib to believe that Irken life must be a constant fight to stay on top. For them it was survival of the fittest, and if you didn't have what it takes you were cast aside.

Labeled as useless, broken, and defective.

Yes, Dib could see the need for the Irkens drive to finish his mission swiftly. His every success proved to his leaders that he was everything he pretend to be. But while being defective explained a lot about Zim, it also opened up a whole new can of worms when it came to confusion and questions.

Why not fight back? Were his leaders so powerful and dangerous that all defective Irkens could do was just conform for their own good? When Dib shared these thoughts with Lard Nar, the Vort scientist had told him about how he met Zim and how he was different from the other Irken cadets. He also told him how Zim had betrayed him in the end.

"Fear is a powerful weapon." Lard Nar had told him. "It can make you do terrible things."

"Still to not even try." Dib was floored. "Doesn't sound like the Zim I've come to know." Yes, the Zim he knew was determined, deadly, and proficient. In fact, it fascinated him how much he had learned about the Invader in such a short time. And yet now it would appear he didn't know the real Zim at all. No, he knew the fake Zim, the one the invader used as a mask to hide his true self from the rest of his kind.

Which had him wondering.

What was the real Zim like?

"What does it matter?" Gaz had said when Dib asked her. "He's the enemy plain and simple."

"But aren't you the least bit curious?" Dib had argued. "He's fighting a war he doesn't even believe in."

"So, she says!" Gaz said, she referring to Tak. "For all you know she was just throwing an empty insult. Why do you care anyways?"

Why did he care? It was a valid question, and in reality Dib shouldn't care. Zim had chosen his side and Dib had his own to protect, and yet he couldn't just leave it alone. "Think of what we could learn from him." Dib reasoned. "Gaz we're going up against an enemy that has never lost a fight, not even Lard Nar can tell us how to beat them and he use to work alongside them! You've seen their tech, and their tactics. Tak stole your organs along with the rest of the school just to test our response. They don't know anything but extreme measures!"

"And against such extremes we don't sand a chance?" Gaz asked. "Is that what you're saying?"

"The rest of the universe sure didn't." Dib argued. "And they are far more advance than us, just look at the weapons Lard Nar made!" Dib gestured to the pile of weapons on the Vort's desk. "They had brilliant minds like his, and they still lost!"

"Look Dib I get it." Gaz said. "Learning about the enemy would give us an advantage, but you said it yourself. They are too extreme, there is no reasoning with them."

And yet Dib just couldn't get the thought out of his mind.

Manley because he felt like that if he didn't at least try he would be failing his fellow humans. Sure, Gaz was right, to think it probably wouldn't work, but what if it did? Of course, Dib had shared his thoughts with his boyfriend Miz. And just as Dib figured Miz was quick to decide against it.

"Are you crazy?" He had asked. He and Dib were looking through some modification to his father's dimensional scope. It was a device that could in theory see into alternate dimensions. Dib had gotten the idea to use it when Miz had admitted that his family never celebrated Halloween before.

Not knowing what to wear for the event, Dib was hoping to peek into spooky alternate realities for costume Ideas.

"He saved my life Miz." Dib argued as he sat down at the machine. He peered inside the scope but saw nothing.

Miz obviously winced at his words. "Don't be foolish. What idiot would choose the enemy over their own race?"

"It's the right thing to do." Dib reasoned and to his surprise Miz laughed.

"The right thing to do?" He scoffed. "You actually think his kind cares about that."

"What if he does?" Dib argued. Dib turns a knob on the chair deciding to triple the outcome.

"Let's say he is defective or whatever." Miz exclaimed. "If he real cared about what was right then they wouldn't call him the scourge of 9 galaxies! Nine Dib! That's how many lives he's destroyed, 9 galaxies worth. I think it's safe to say he has no, since of justice."

Dib wanted to argue back, but it was obvious that Miz couldn't be reasoned with when it came to Zim. And after what the monster put him through Dib couldn't blame him. The same could be said about his new alien allies. By trying to reason with Zim, he was asking all of them to forget the crimes he committed against them. And from what he heard from his mother, grandfather and Lard Nar there was plenty of blood on Zim's hands.

9 whole galaxies worth.

Still, realizing this failed to answer his original question.

Why save him? If doing so only proved he was defective, and the Irken had already proved how easily he could destroy innocent lives over and over again. Why save him?

What made Dib different?

Dib didn't know, but after that he let the argument die and peered into the scope once more. Suddenly the lab turns into a nightmare version of itself with shadowy creatures creeping about. Dib also sees flashes of random objects, such as ice cream, and a nightmare lamp post. Then the lab returns to normal.

"Whoa what was that?" Dib had exclaimed.

"What was what?" Miz asked.

"I saw, something weird." He shook his head. "Never mind I've got what we need."

"Good cause this place is giving me the creeps." Miz had said.

Dib smiled knowing good and well that the only thing creeping Miz out was the disorganized clutter. "Clean freak." He mused with a playful poke.

Miz swatted his hand away. "There's nothing freaky about cleanliness." He reasoned. "Besides how does your father find anything in this clutter?"

Suddenly, a wadded-up piece of paper hit him square in the face.

"Dib pay attention." Mrs. Bitters snapped.

Dib shook his head and noticed Mary, a fellow classmate of his was standing in front of the class.

"Now since you felt the need to dress up on school grounds." Mrs. Bitters hissed "Tell the class what your costume is." She ordered.

Dib raised a brow. Mary was in a pink toto and slippers with a wand and a crown. Her fake fairy wings made it obvious what she was, but Mrs. Bitters didn't seem to care.

"I think unicorns and dragons are pretty! So that's why I'm a fairy princess for Halloween!" Mary declared proudly. "That and Mr. Suds said if we dress up he'd give us each 20 bucks."

Miz smiled at her words. It was obvious to everyone Ms. Bitters hated Halloween, and no one else dared not to invoke her wrath. All but the janitor aka Dark Booty, who had bribed several students to wear costumes and had even gone as far as decorating her classroom.

Which explained the rotting jack-o-lantern on Ms. Bitters' desk.

"I was a fairy princess once, too..." Ms. Bitters said surprising them. "Everything was so nice and peaceful... 'till one day it all went horribly wrong!"

"Here we go again." Miz whispered to Dib.

Dib laughed.

"Yes, Halloween is just a shamelessly commercial ploy to turn children into candy-starved zombies!" Ms. Bitters.

"Has she always been like this?" Miz asked him.

Dib nodded "And everyone called me crazy, at least I didn't scream doom for an entire class."

"Maybe you should have." Miz teased.

"Very funny." Dib countered.

Miz snickered, relaxing a bit. Dib finally seemed to have dropped the whole Zim could be good nonsense and things had gone back to normal. Also, Zim's wound from Tak had healed up rather quickly making movement much easier.

"I wish she's just let us out early." Zeta said from beside them. "The rest of the school got to leave an hour ago."

"It's a shame a once a nice medieval holiday has turned into this." Ms. Bitters went on.

Dib gave her a weird look. Was Ms. Bitters hinting at the fact that she was around in medieval times? Why else would she talk as if she knew from firsthand experiences?

"I'm beginning to see why you thought she was a vampire." Miz joked.

Dib nodded he goes to speak when suddenly the room around him changes in a flash of lightning. And once again he finds himself in a nightmare version of the world around him. He looks around the room to see monster versions of his classmates and a horrifying misshapen Mrs. Bitters.

"Now you all know what to do." Nightmare Mrs. Bitters hissed. "When the one comes we will finally be free of the awful place." She stops as if she senses something isn't right. Her head snaps towards Dib. "You!"

Suddenly all his classmates get up and hiss in his direction.

"Get him!" Nightmare Mrs. Bitters orders.

Dib screams as his nightmarish classmates pounced…

"Dib!" Miz shook the boy once more. "Snap out of it."

Dib jumped back as the world around him suddenly went back to normal. "Horrible Nightmare visions!" Dib screamed.

"It's called life, Dib. Sit down." Mrs. Bitters ordered.

It's only than that Dib realizes he's on the floor. Miz helps him up giving him a puzzled look before they take their seats.

Zita who is wearing a butterfly costume says. "Dib seems more crazy than normal today."

"Silence!" Mrs. Bitters growled. "Now Zita tell us why you decided to dress as an annoying insect!"

Zita stood. "I like butterflies." She said. "And if we're going to have to stay all day I might as well get something out of it."

"Early release was at the teacher's discretion." Mrs. Bitters reasoned. "And after the strange illness that hit the students earlier this week you are behind in school hours." She went on. "When you get to leave school early for Christmas break for staying later today you will thank me." She assured them. "And all those who already left will sit in the halls for several hours envying you."

Dib screams as Nightmare Mrs. Bitters replaces his teacher chuckling. "The time has come soon there will be a new world for me to ravage."

"Dib!" Miz yelled snapping him out of it.

Dib looks around frantically his eyes wide in fear. His breaths coming out in heavy pants. Is eyes settle on Miz who is giving him a confused and somewhat concerned look.

"Dib get a hold of yourself." Mrs. Bitters orders.

Dib tries to get a grip and looks at his hands only to scream as they start to disappear. "It's happening... again!"

"Mrs. Bitters Dib is babbling like a maniac... monkey." Brian said the obvious.

Mrs. Bitters looks concerned but continues with class. "Who's next?" She asked.

The class looks away to discuss more costumes all but Zim who watches Dib.

What was going on with him?

Suddenly Dib completely disappears.

And despite himself the invader lets out a sound of surprise.

Mrs. Bitters sees it too, but before the rest of the class notices Dib has disappeared, he pops back into place.

"Monsters! Hideous monsters!" Dib screamed.

Zita raises her hand. "Ms. Bitters!"

"Yes, Zita?" Mrs. Bitters asked.

"I think Dib's even crazier than normal today! Can we use one of our crazy cards to send him to the crazy house for boys?"

"The what?" Miz asked.

Mrs. Bitters ignore him, giving Zita a grave look. "Each class only gets three crazy cards a month! Are you sure you want to use one?"

Zita looks over at Dib, who is sprawled over his desk babbling incoherently. "Yeah." She confirmed.

Mrs. Bitters still looks hesitant, mostly because she is, however there was not denying something was terribly wrong with the child. However, the school could not afford another fiasco. Her best was to use the crazy card and instruct Dark Booty and his father to pick Dib up at the Crazy House latter. Ms. Bitters lifts up a crazy card. A panel on her desk flips over revealing a box. The box opens up and a metal ring lifts out. Ms. Bitters grabs the metal ring. It opens up as she brings it down on Dib. It wraps around his neck. Dib groans. Red lights on it blink. "I've activated the crazy collar. The white coats will be here any moment."

Suddenly, the door gets busted down and two white coats, Chuck and Buck, rush in.

"There he is! Get him!" Buck yells.

Zim watches in disbelief as the two white coats tackle Dib and haul him away.

"No wait." Dib screams. "I'm not crazy!'

Suddenly the bell rings.

"Class dismissed." Mrs. Bitters states and the class races out happily to start the Halloween festivities.

All but Zim who gives Mrs. Bitters a look.

"If I were you I'd look into that." Mrs. Bitters instructed him.

Zim's eyes narrowed. This had to be Tak's doing he was sure of it, and this time he would stop her.

No matter what.

Mrs. Bitters watched his go and once she was gone she picked up the phone, a moment later she spoke. "It's me I need you to go to the Crazy House and look into something for me."

"What is it?" Professor Membrane asked on the other line.

"Your son." Mrs. Bitters answered. "And Take Dark Booty with you, this could get messy."

Professor Membrane hung up the phone startled.

"Darling is there a problem?" Annabel asked.

"It's Dib." Professor Membrane said. "He's in the Crazy House."

"What?" Annabel was stunned. "Surely it's a mistake."

Professor Membrane looked thoughtful. "Don't worry honey I'll get to the bottom of this."

And he would, one way or the other.

-To Be Continued