Sword of Damocles: Chapter 3
Written by Narcotics (JC)

-------- Purple --------

I lay lazily on my side, my dull eyes resting on the TV with a light glaze from my lack of interest. The weather report would take a while to come on but I truly wasn't as fascinated in that as I had first professed. AF's head rested uncomfortably on my side, causing me to squirm for a more easy position on and off. She breathed in heavily and shifted, lost in her own world of thought. The truth or dare game had long since died with our lack of originality and just plain boredom. Our little group had split off to the separate corners of the house. Tabby and Lynne had disappeared into the kitchen to make the collection of us some cocoa and Aubri had mysteriously retreated downstairs as he often did. The rest of us stayed in the living room. JC had fallen asleep on the couch, almost seeming to sink down between the cushions while Jendai took his place worriedly pacing in front of the door. I had lain down on the floor to watch the forecast, well; so went my alibi. In honesty, I was waiting for Ivy and Red to get home. Sometimes it felt like I was always looking out for two children. Either way, I didn't like it when they left, especially Ivy to Dib's. It always made me nervous that this enemy to our race had taken so fondly onto my student. I half expect that at any moment he would kidnap her or turn her in or something. A shiver ran down my length as the thought of Ivy being experimented on, gripped me coldly.

AF propped her head up on her hand looking to me. "Are you ok?" She asked concernedly.

AF was very much so warm-hearted in every sense of the word. She was Faslami by nature which, in my experience, were not only of the warm-hearted but were equipped with flaming hot tempers as well. A contradictionso I understand. On any sense, it's good to have one on your side, especially this one. I broke a nervous smile to her. I always, regardless of the situation, had a slight problem talking to AF.

"I'm fine. Why would you think otherwise?" She shrugged and lay back down on my side. I let out a subtle groan as her head made its familiar, yet uncomfortable impression.

"You were justcolder. You know, you shivered." I stared at her for a moment and then let out a light chuckle. She gazed back at me, noticing how my eyes were set on her. "You sure you're all right..?" She quirked. I opened my mouth to respond but I didn't have the chance.

"No, I am not all right! She's been out with that psycho pervert too long! I should've never let her leave with him. That's it! I'm going out after them!" Jendai piped up with the same threat he had been menacing for the past half hour. He pulled on a coat over his lone shirt, grumbling rather vivid descriptions about what he was going to do to said "psycho pervert".

"Dai," I sighed as I shifted onto my back, AF lifting her head to give me some leeway in my movement, "you have to give Bast a little more credit. I'm sure she can handle him. Besides, I'm sure that he's not going to do anything with you around."

He shook his head violently, grabbing the door knob. JC stirred slightly, turning away from the noise and seeming to fall deeper into the couch. "It's not Bast I don't trust. It's the slarking bastard R--" he began, before the door he was holding onto was slammed into his face.

"Red's home!" My co-ruler howled as he stepped a foot into the living room. Jendai rubbed his mid-face before ramming the door back into Red's. "GAH!" He yelped as he was knocked backwards.

"Welcome home, azermiok." He grumbled angrily, stepping out from the path of the door. Red rushed in after that, followed by a giggling Bast, a screaming GIR, Zim, and finally the one I had been hoping for, Ivy.

"Who did that?!" Red growled, head darting around, snake-like, for the culprit. Dai had long forgotten his stunt and was by Bast's side as she excitedly explained the evening to him. I only caught glimpses about seizures and lollipops but I had more important things on my mind then Bast's gossip.

"Ivy-tam." I called over to her. AF got up off me to calm the still screaming robot who was now rolling on the ground as if on fire. She placed a hand painfully on the back of her head as she left. I cocked my head, watching her leave before shaking it off and calling to my child once more. "Ivy-tam?"

"Purry?" She questioned. I nodded to her and she raced over, wrapping her arms around my neck. I smiled widely, hugging her back. "Hi Purry!"

"Hello, Ivy-tam. Did you have a good time atat Dib's?" She frowned at my pause, but responded earnestly.

"It was fine. 'Ceptcept when I fainted. 'N'n I saw...some stuff." The last part was quieter then before. At this, Red dropped his search for his phantom attacker and decided to butt in on our conversation.

"That filthy human probably poisoned you. I'll kill hi--" He began with a menacing look in his eye.

"No! Why dun you 'n Purry like Dibby? He's not tryin' ta hurt me." She pouted giving me and Red a penetrating glare. I swallowed back my thoughts. For a four-year-old she could certainly make someone feel ashamed.

I glanced around, seeing Dai and Bast having perched themselves in a chair, Bast in my best friend's lap. AF herded Gir to the kitchen where Tabby and Lynne presumably were, to get him some sort of snack I had guessed. JC was still asleep as far as I could tell. Ivy's stern yet young voice snapped my attention back to her.

"I jus fainted." She shook her head, seeming to recall what had happened in her head. "ButI saw somebad things." I gathered her in my arms and held her close to me, sensing that she may need the comfort.

"Something has been bad about all of today." I glanced over to Red who was looking off glowering. His antenna were slightly tipped inward, as if he there was someone there to receive his fierce look.

"Yeah actually." Bast spoke up from her comfortable resting spot. "That girl back at the art store was so" She shuddered violently, and leaned back onto Jendai, resting her head beneath his. "She was justwrong there. You know?" Red nodded in agreement still keeping his scowl.

"Now that you mention it, Bast-human, I too felt thisness." I had almost forgotten about Zim entirely. He was so short it's not really hard to forget him. He had positioned himself far away from both the dozing JC and the comfortable couple that could barely be made out as two separate people. "There was something in the sky when I was on my way toDib's." He stuck his tongue out in disgust at the mere mention of the human's name, as if it left a bad taste in his mouth. I shook my head, still holding Ivy in my arms, her snuggling her head into my chest. I didn't feel this "off-ness" at all.

"Comets don't mean the end of the Earth, Zim." Red barked at his underling.

Zim winced back slightly. "I was only commenting on what I had seen, my Tallest." He dutifully responded, antenna back in submission.

"Well, we really don't care what you have to say, Zi--"

"Just lay off him."

"You have something to say about this, Dai?"

"I can take care of myself, I--" Zim began but Jendai's rage cut off his attempt.

"What did you call me?!"

"You heard me!" At this point anyone could see where this was headed and I hugged my student closer to me with a heavy hearted sigh. She let out a small whimper.

"Don't make me--"

"Dai! Dai! Dai! Dai! Dai! D--"

"-commonly known as Irkens--"

"I'm going to"

My antenna and Ivy's both whipped back towards the television. I'd missed my weather report but there was something much more interesting on now. The two of us were barely inches from the TV screen trying to watch the news over Bast's attempts to get between the fight and AF's yelling, she having rushed back in to help. I could hear the release of a safety on a flamethrower behind me as I attempted to quiet them and better heed the report.

"QUIET!" Ivy yelled out loudly, grabbing the attention of everyone in the room and forcing their mouths shut with her decibel level alone. We both turned back to the TV, the room now silent.

"remarkable discovery and under our very noses all along! It's truly amazing that this could've gone unnoticed for so long but there is finally proof that aliens do exist." Every green face in the room turned a sudden sickly gray at the mention.

"Already news channel 52 has sent their own group of anchor men and women to search out these beings in the burbsLets hope we can beat the FBI!" The man laughed with a wide, fake grin on his face. Everyone just stared, Lynne and Tabby entering; Aubri in tow.

"What was all the noise ab--" Tabby started before she was shushed by about six hisses. She silenced quickly, looking slightly hurt.

"Hey Tom, don't you think you just warned ET out there?" A frighteningly chipper woman asked cheerfully from her seat. The eyes in the room darted to one another, all of us looking for some form of leadership but no one opened their mouths.

"Oh Helen, aliens don't watch the news." He turned his eyes back to the cameras with a sickeningly evil grin. "But if you are watchingyou better run! RUN! Cause we're gonna getcha." At this he burst out laughing. I suddenly felt sick to my stomach.