"Master?" Gir said quietly, tapping at the door. "Master, are you in there?"

"Yes, Gir," Zim mumbled, opening his eyes. How much time had passed? He had closed his eyes for so long... "You may enter."

"Yes, my Master!" There was a clanging sound, probably Gir jumping up and down. "...I can't reach the doorknob."

"Oh, for ocean's sake, Gir," Zim huffed. He pulled himself out of the tub and walked across the room, dripping water across the floor. He opened the door a crack, glanced both ways down the darkened hallway to make sure the humans weren't watching...then scooped Gir up and yanked him inside.

"Where are the humans, Gir?" he asked, headed back to the tub.

"They sleeping! Shhh!" The crab sat at the edge of the tub as Zim eased himself back in.

"Excellent," he murmured. "That gives me a few hours to plot without their smelly breath down my neck. Gir, what did you find about this city during our walk?"

Gir eagerly began to ramble on about taco stands and ice cream shops, tourists and upcoming festivals. Zim closed his eyes and nodded along, absorbing the information.

He felt a pang of hunger, and he scowled, pressing a hand against his torso. "You want me to get you some pizza?" Gir asked.

"No!" Zim hissed. "We're better than that, Gir. We don't need to rely on the greasy humans providing their equally greasy food."

"Oh." Gir was silent for several seconds before saying, "It was a really tasty pizza, though."

Zim growled under his breath. "I can't believe you actually enjoy human food."

"It's all tasty!"

Zim huffed, flipping onto his stomach and resting his chin on his arms. "Zim will find…something to consume tomorrow. Something that doesn't require human assistance."

"…want a snacky cake?" Gir asked.

Zim felt another pang of hunger, the thought of a treat like that making him drool. But he closed his eyes, grit his teeth, and shook his head. "No, Gir." After a few moments, he shifted, uncomfortable with the silence that had settled over the room. "…continue the debriefing."

Gir began to ramble once again. And though he was hungry and a little sore from the position he was laying in, Zim focused in on his voice and allowed sleep to overtake him.

The sound of the door opening made him jolt back to consciousness. He quickly bolted upright, pressing his hands against the side of the tub and hissing at the intruder.

"Well, good morning to you, too," Gaz said, raising an eyebrow as she stepped in. Zim scowled, closing his mouth as his antennae flicked back. "You're still holed up in here?"

Zim sniffed haughtily. "Of course. Zim has laid his claim to this room, and I won't surrender it back to you humans for any reason."

"Mhmm," Gaz hummed, heading to the mirror and brushing her hair. "Dib wasn't kidding when he said we need this room, though. Guess you'll just have to put up with us in here."

"I don't care about anything the Dib-monkey says or does," Zim growled, crossing his arms.

"That's fair." She brushed her teeth, giving him a few precious minutes of silence. "He almost had a panic attack because of you passing out yesterday, you know."

Zim's antennae snapped into an erect position, and he turned to give Gaz his full attention. She glanced out of the corner of her eye, her mouth twitching once she noticed.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure he just scooped you up and ran all the way here," she continued. "And while you were in the tub and unconscious, he was a wreck the whole time. Kept poking his head in to see if you were up." She sighed. "He did that for hours…pretty irritating, honestly."

"…why mention this to me?" Zim asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Like I said, I honestly don't care what you both get into." She put everything away and started to leave. "But…I still care about my brother. And he cares about you. If you hurt him, I'll make your life a world of pain."

She shot him an intense glare that made his skin crawl before finally leaving, shutting the door behind her. Zim slowly relaxed, drumming his claws against the side of the tub.

…so, apparently Dib cared about him. Or at least Gaz believed so. Zim hadn't been planning to attack him or hurt him, but…something told him there was a different sort of 'hurt' the scary human was referring to.

He felt another pang of hunger, this one sharp and painful. "Gir—"

A glance told him that the hermit crab was sleeping, limbs sprawled outside of his shell. Looked like he wouldn't be able to fetch food for Zim…the merken would have to do it himself.

But that was fine! He could easily sneak into the kitchen and back without the humans noticing. With that thought in mind, he crawled out of the tub and shook water off of himself, stretching to get rid of all the sore muscles he had suddenly acquired last night.

After slipping on his human shirt, he slowly opened the door, glancing up and down the hallway. It was empty, as was what he could see of the of the living room. He smirked smugly and began to pad his way to the kitchen.

He made it to the living room without making a single sound…only to look into the kitchen and see the Dib sitting at the table, focused on a plate of food and some sort of thin book.

Zim let out a small huff of irritation. Unfortunately, it was just loud enough that Dib heard it, his head snapping up to look at the merken. "Got bored of hiding in the bathroom, huh?" he asked dryly.

"Merkens do not 'hide'," Zim sneered as he marched his way to the table.

Dib rose an eyebrow. "I thought you made a pretty big deal about how your colonies and cities are specifically hidden from humans."

Zim huffed and grumbled under his breath, plopping into the chair across from Dib. He stared at the human's plate and the small book he held. "…what are those?"

"Well, this is a copy of Paranormal Monthly I brought with me from home," Dib answered, shaking the small book. "It's a magazine I subscribe to. This," he poked at the food on his plate. "Is my breakfast. Chocolate chip pancakes."

Zim stared at the pancakes, his antennae twitching to smell at the air. The food seemed…quite tasty, actually. Another wave of hunger hit him, his spooch growling, and he almost began to drool as he stared at the food. "…Zim would like one of your human breakfasts."

Dib glanced up, giving him a look. "I thought you didn't need any of our 'human stuff'."

"I don't!" Zim snapped. Seconds later, he amended, "But I want it. So…give it, stinky."

Dib sighed, setting his magazine aside and pinching the bridge of his nose. "Look, Zim. I do want to help you, but you can't keep acting like this."

Zim sat a little straighter. "Zim will act however he wants!" He paused before asking, "Acting like what, though?"

"Just…being ungrateful," Dib said. "And lashing out. Look, I get that you're not happy about being on land—I don't expect you to be! But it's kind of tiring when anything I do to help you just leads to you throwing stuff at my head."

Zim crossed his arms. "You just want to help Zim so you can expose me to other humans," he growled. "Why should I be grateful when you're just helping yourself?"

Dib sighed again. "Okay. I may be planning on using you to prove the existence of merkens…"

Zim growled at him, bearing his fangs. Dib held up a hand, signaling he wasn't done.

"…but I've genuinely helped you! Who bought your disguise, and who's been offering you food and shelter?"

Zim crossed his arms and glared. "You just want to disguise Zim so no one else can expose him," he said bluntly, making Dib flinch. "And you're providing those other things to placate me in the hopes I'll stay…or perhaps show you mercy once I am overlord of the land."

He tapped his claws on the table. "…but, you did get me out of the sun yesterday," he continued. "And helped revive me. Is there a way you humans wish to receive gratitude?"

Dib stared at him for a few moments. "…saying 'thank you' is a good place to start. And maybe apologizing for throwing things at my head."

"Very well." Zim sat as tall as he could, puffing out his chest and placing a hand against it. "'Thank you' for assisting Zim, Dib-stink! I 'apologize' for hitting your large head with so many objects."

Dib snorted, quickly covering his mouth with a hand to hide his laugh. "It's a start. Now…do you want to try and ask for breakfast politely?"

"Why should I? Haven't I shown you enough disgusting gratitude?"

"If you're not nice about it, I'm not giving you anything. Say 'please' if you want to make a polite request."

Zim scowled, grumbling to himself and slumping into his chair. "…'please' give Zim a horrible human breakfast. Now, filthy."

Dib sighed and stood up. "We'll work on that." Still, he grabbed something from the freezer and slipped two pancakes into the toaster. Within minutes, a plate of the hot pancakes had been slid in front of Zim.

The merken didn't hesitate before grabbing one and tearing into it, devouring both in seconds. "Did you even taste it?" Dib asked dryly.

Zim licked his lips. "Does it matter?" The edge had been taken off his hunger, but it wasn't completely gone. He reached over the table to try and grab Dib's plate, but the human held it out of his reach.

"I'll make more," he said, taking Zim's plate and putting more pancakes in the toaster. He had taken his own plate with him so the merken couldn't snag any while his back was turned. Zim glared at his back, tapping his claws against the table.

Another plate of pancakes was placed in front of him. These ones he didn't eat quite as quickly, and though he didn't want to admit it, they weren't…too bad.

Gir crawled over when he was about halfway finished, and he fed pieces of the pancakes to him. "Is that safe for him to eat?" Dib asked.

"Eh. He's eaten worse before and lived," Zim shrugged. Gir wolfed down the food given to him.

It was only when they had both finished and put their dishes in the sink (or rather, Dib put their dishes in the sink) that Zim became curious about the magazine Dib had been leafing through the whole meal. "Why are you reading this?"

"For fun," Dib said, taking the magazine and heading to the couch, "And for research…even if I've read it before." There was a small stack of similar books and magazines next to the couch, as well as a notebook and pen.

"Research on what?"

"Honestly, I'm hoping I can spot something I haven't thought about before in here," Dib admitted. "Something that might help change you back to your true form."

Zim felt elated for a moment...but those feelings quickly crashed. "It's an impossible task," he said aloud. And even if it worked, I can't go back...

He quickly shook the thought away. No, he would go back home, he'd find a way! "Besides, I already have a plan that will allow the Tallest to change me back as soon as possible."

Dib glanced up at him, raising an eyebrow. "Conquering the land, right?" he said. Zim pursed his lips and crossed his arms, deliberately looking away. "Now that seems like an impossible task. How would you even do that all by yourself?"

"Zim is amazing, intelligent, and powerful, and all his plans go flawlessly," Zim said. "All of them. Taking control of the land shall be a breeze."

"Uh-huh. So, what's your plan to do it?"

Zim opened his mouth, ready to boast about his great scheme...only to realize that he didn't have one. He snapped his mouth shut with a click, frowning in thought for several long seconds before he whirled around to find Gir.

"Gir, come! We must prepare a plan to conquer the land, post-haste!" he said. The hermit crab jumped up and saluted him, while Zim headed toward the bathroom.

"Dib-human, prepare yourself, for you will soon see the greatest plan in your entire, miserable life!"

"I was being sarcastic, Zim!" Dib shouted as the merken closed the bathroom door behind him. The only response he got was muffled cackling from the merken and his crab.

He sighed, turning his attention back to his magazine, occasionally making notes on something that could be helpful.

Their respective personal projects kept the two of them apart until lunchtime. Dib unfortunately hadn't found anything definitive that could turn Zim back, though he did find a couple of possible leads. Still, he took a break for lunch, heating up one of the leftover slices of pizza.

Zim emerged not long after, smirking smugly. "Giving up on your research, human?"

"No, I'm just taking a break," Dib answered, buying into his pizza to emphasize his words. "Do you want pizza, too, or are you still hung up on 'greasy human foods'?"

Zim looked at the slice Dib was holding with a slight sneer. "Zim is going to…pass." He went to the cupboards and began to throw items onto the counter until he emerged with two handfuls of snack cakes.

"You can't live off of those forever," Dib said.

"Watch me, Dib-worm!" Zim tore open a package and quickly devoured both of the cakes.

"No, I meant that we're going to run out of those eventually," Dib elaborated. Zim's eyes slowly widened, gaze flicking down to the next cake he was halfway through devouring, then back up to the cupboards.

As he stared down at the pile he had left, apparently weighing his options, Gaz entered the kitchen. "There still pizza left?"

"Plenty," Dib quickly told her.

"Good. Also, why is our bathroom suddenly covered in children's drawings?" she asked, jabbing her thumb over her shoulder to point at the room in question.

"What?" Dib stood up and marched over, peeking in despite Zim's loud protests. Pieces of paper were taped haphazardly along the walls, each of them containing a picture drawn in crayon. Some of the pictures were well-drawn, though had confusing subjects like…shoes and a moose, and had writing in the margins Dib couldn't read.

But a lot of the pictures really did look as though they were messy scribbles made by a child. Subjects of those included Gir, Zim, Dib, and Gaz.

"Don't look at Zim's plans!" Zim screeched, stepping forward and slamming the door closed in Dib's face. He glared at the human and lightly kicked him in the ankle.

"Ow, ow, okay!" Dib said, holding his hands up in surrender and backing away from the door. Zim glared at him, standing defensively as though Dib would rush forward to try and get another peek.

He didn't, though, instead heading back into the kitchen. "…you drew all your plans in crayon?"

Zim slowly trailed behind, shooting Gir a look. "They were the only writing implements Gir had."

"They're the most fun!" Gir said. "Didya like my pictures of you, Mary?"

Dib rose an eyebrow. "I didn't get to look long—" Gir gave an exaggerated pout, and Zim paused behind him, quickly nodding and pointing at Dib while making eye contact. "…but the ones I saw looked good!"

Gir beamed happily, and Zim relaxed, slumping into his chair. The merken only ate a few more snack cakes before his hunger was apparently sated, and he put the remaining cakes back into the cupboard.

"Come, Gir! We still have plans to perfect." He scooped up the hermit crab and headed back into the bathroom.

"Hmm." Gaz glanced between Dib and the bathroom door. "I give you both a week until you drive each other crazy."

Dib sighed, slicking back his cowlick (it popped right back up, of course). He couldn't find anything to refute Gaz's bet.

The afternoon passed in the same way the morning had, with each of them doing their own separate things. Though Dib had focused less on general ways to turn Zim back, instead thinking of what other paranormal things he might be able to find here.

Even if he couldn't expose Zim just yet, it didn't mean he shouldn't focus on other things he might find!

But once again, hunger drove all the house's residents into the kitchen as the sun started to set. Zim was the last to emerge, antennae wriggling as Dib and Gaz heated up the last of the pizza.

"Are we going to order more tomorrow?" Dib asked.

"Probably. If Dad and Foodio aren't around to lecture about nutrition and sodium levels, I'm getting all the pizza I can," Gaz responded, carrying her plate to the table. "…Zim! Do we need to order extra for you next time?"

Zim sniffed haughtily as he sat down. "I need no assistance from you humans. And I don't want any of your disgusting pizzzza anyway."

"It's gooood, though!" Gir chimed, climbing off his shoulder and onto the table. He used his claws to make 'gimme' motions, and Dib tore one of his slices in half, giving one to the crab. Gir bit into it enthusiastically, sauce smearing across his face.

"Have you ever even eaten pizza?" Gaz asked Zim with raised brows.

He scoffed. "I don't need to. Humans are disgusting, and grease is disgusting. Greasy human food will be absolutely disgusting."

"Alright, then." Gaz shrugged. "More for the rest of us."

They all began to eat…and Zim watched with narrowed eyes. After a few moments, he reached over and grabbed one of Dib's slices.

"Hey!" Dib protested. But it was too late—Zim had already taken a bite out of the very tip of the pizza, eyes tightly closed. Slowly, he opened one eye, then the other, and began to slowly chew.

"Thoughts?" Gaz asked as he swallowed.

"It is..." Zim scowled as he considered his next words. "...not completely terrible."

Dib couldn't help but feel a little bit relieved—at least Zim wouldn't starve out of pure stubbornness or pickiness. "There's other toppings you can get on pizza, too," he said as Zim continued nibbling on his slice. "So if there's some kind of food you know you like, maybe we could get it added on top."

Zim's antennae perked up. "...snack cakes?"

Dib couldn't help but cringe, nose wrinkling. "I don't...I don't think that..."

"Just get a desert pizza," Gaz put in. "Or one of those giant cookies they cut into slices like a pizza."

"Yes…" Zim licked his lips. "Order one of these 'desert pizzas' for Zim. I command it."

"Yeah, sure. Tomorrow."

Everyone quickly polished off their pizza—Dib more quickly than the others, since most of his had been given away or stolen. He stood up, put his plate in the sink, and began to munch on a Pop-tart while going into his room and gathering a few pieces of equipment.

By the time he emerged, the others had finished. He headed to the front door with a net slung over his shoulders and a bag filled with cameras, detectors, and jars.

"Where are you going?" Gaz asked.

"Fairy hunting," he answered, ignoring Zim's scoff. "Sunrise and sunset are when they're most active. I can at least find some groves in the area they might spend time in…"

"Dib…it's a Sunday," Gaz said. "You know the rule."

Dib froze with his hand inches from the doorknob, slowly glancing over his shoulder. "Oh…c'mon, Gaz. We're not at home, it's not like he'll know whether we do it or not!"

She raised both eyebrows. "It's Dad. You think he wouldn't make something specifically for this?"

After taking a few seconds to kill over her words, Dib groaned and walked back into the living room. "Fine. It's my turn to pick, right?"

Zim leaned forward against the back of the couch and watched as Dib rifled through a bag of DVDs. "What is this? What are you doing?"

"Mandatory Sunday Movie Night," Dib explained as he rummaged. "Our dad started enforcing the idea about a month ago. Apparently, data suggests that families that have movie nights have stronger emotional bonds with each other…"

"And I don't want to get in trouble for skipping it," Gaz said. "If he hasn't forgotten he started this tradition, he probably added something to the TV to specifically keep track of if we're doing it or not."

Dib finally found a disc he was satisfied with and placed it in the DVD player. "These…movies are the moving images humans stare at for hours, yes?" Zim said.

"Yeppers!" Gir said helpfully. "I've watched some of them! They can be funny!"

"But you don't really…learn anything from them," Zim continued. "They're just a distraction?"

"Like all good entertainment," Gaz nodded.

"Then what is the point of this?" Zim asked. "We could be doing something much more productive! Hunting! Researching! Scheming! Even sleeping would have more benefits than this."

"Geez, you've never heard of just relaxing?" Gaz said with a slight sneer. "Just be grateful Dib can't show you the recordings of his awful show. They're all back at home."

"Mysterious Mysteries isn't awful!" Dib protested. To Zim, he said, "Look. If you can't just relax and watch it, think of it as gaining information on how to blend in up here. Pretty much everyone has a favorite movie or movies, and everyone loves Dizney!"

"The old stuff, at least," Gaz chipped in. "Their modern stuff isn't nearly as good."

"Well, we're watching one of the classics anyway!" Dib sat on the middle part of the couch, turning on the TV and skipping to the menu. "Zim, you'll like this one."

The Little Mermaid was the title that flashed across the screen before Dib hit play. Zim turned his head to scowl at him. "Are you trying to make fun of me?"

"No, it's just a joke!" Dib said. "…though maybe a joke that's a little bit at your expense."

Zim glared and opened his mouth to snap at him. "Both of you just shut up and watch the movie," Gaz said, pulling out her game and muting it. "Or shut up and do something else. Either way, keep it down."

Dib raised his arms in surrender, turning his attention to the TV. Zim watched the first few minutes of the movie, scoffing at what humans thought underwater society was like. It was almost unbelievable how wrong they could be.

He eventually grew bored and grabbed a magazine from the table next to him. It was one of Dib's awful paranormal ones, but surely it couldn't be as inaccurate as the movie. He flicked to a section in the middle, something about bigfeet.

After a few minutes of reading, he reached over and tugged on Dib's sleeve. "What?" the human asked, looking over and down at the magazine he held.

"Do creatures like this…really exist in your land forests?" Zim asked, tapping at a blurry image of what was supposedly a bigfoot.

"Oh, yeah," Dib said, nodding. "They're really elusive, though. Hard to get photos of them."

"I took a selfie with one, once," Gaz said, not even looking up from her game. Dib shot her a glare, but turned his attention back to the magazine.

"Anyway. There's been a few rumors about bigfeet being spotted outside of forests, but…" Dib started to ramble. Zim nodded along, actually paying attention. His talking was at least more interesting than the movie.

The two of them ended up pouring through the magazine, Zim asking questions and Dib going on rants. In the end, Gir was the only one who paid attention to the whole movie.

"Hey, it's over," Gaz told Zim and Dib when the credits began to roll, interrupting their conversation about ghosts. "Are you still going to go fairy hunting, Dib?"

Dib glanced out the window and huffed, shaking his head. "It's too close to night. By the time I find a good grove, the sun will have set." He stood up and stretched. "I'll probably just get ready for bed."

"Got it." Gas headed into her room, closing the door behind her. Dib was about to leave…but paused, looking back at Zim.

"Sleeping in the tub couldn't have been comfortable," he said. "Are you okay with sleeping on the couch?"

Zim frowned, patting the cushions next to him. "This surface is…adequate, I suppose."

Dib nodded, opening a closet in the hall. He returned with a pillow and a thick purple blanket, which he tossed to Zim. "Here. Make yourself comfortable…" His voice dropped to a whisper. "And whatever you do, don't wake up Gaz."

Zim's eyes widened, and he quickly nodded. Dib yawned and stretched, heading to his bedroom. "Good night, sea scum." He flicked out the living room lights.

"You, too, mud beast," Zim grunted back as Dib closed his bedroom door.

Well. Now it was just him and Gir. Zim looked down at the blanket and pillow, both foreign materials to him. But he remembered how the humans arranged such items on their beds…

He propped the pillow against the arm of the couch, leaning back against it before draping the blanket over his body. He folded his arms over his chest and stared up at the ceiling. This was…not completely horrible. It was more comfortable than sleeping in the tub had been, at least.

A flicker of light to the side caught his eye. He turned and saw that the TV has been turned on, Gir perched on the remote. "Gir!" he hissed as music began to play…looked like another Dizney movie. "Turn that off, you'll wake the Gaz-human!"

"Sorry, Master," Gir said. He pushed a few buttons on the remote, and the sound was suddenly cut off, though the movie was still going.

Zim frowned, antennae flicking as Gir watched the screen, transfixed. "…well. That works, I suppose."

He turned away from the TV and closed his eyes, holding the blanket close to him. It was so easy to sink into the couch and slip into sleep…

And no one would notice, but there was a ghost of a smile on his face as he drifted off.