Authors notes: Hey guys, well I've had this written since Sunday but just couldn't up load it and then had to go away for the week, so sorry for the delay! Thanks to everyone who reviewed. Hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: Not mine. See Jhonen Vasquez or Nick if you want it!
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Dib slammed the door behind him, seething in rage. He couldn't believe what had just happened. He was trying to help Zim, how dare he turn around and try and blast him! That stupid alien. Then again it was probably his own fault for letting his pity get the best of him.
"Where were you?" Gaz eyed him, taking in his tense form. She munched a slice of pizza, neglecting her Game Slave temporally.
"Zim's. He's up to something, I just don't know what!" Dib grabbed a slice from the open box on the living room table, pausing to think before putting it in his mouth.
Gaz merely rolled her eyes and continued chewing her slice.
"He's trying to throw me off guard, trying to mess with my head. Maybe he's trying to drive me crazy." Dib talked as much to himself as to his sister, sitting next to her on the couch.
"You're all ready crazy." She mumbled.
"I have to go add this incident to my files." Dib jumped up from the sofa and ran upstairs to his room, dropping his slice of pizza in the box as he went.
Gaz rolled her eyes once more at her neurotic brother, snatching his forgotten pizza and wolfing it down.
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Zim winced as he began to regain consciousness. The pain had receded somewhat, although it had changed. He still had pain in his limbs but it seemed to be concentrated in his joints now. Also his breathing was difficult, as it there was a chain around his chest, pulling it tight. Slowly he got up, noticing with some degree of nervousness that his eyesight seemed slightly blurred. His uniform felt much tighter. With difficulty he removed it, breathing easily once he was free of the tight pink garment. His hands and feet also ached, as if they were being squashed. He tried to remove his gloves and then his boots but they seemed stuck to his skin. He assumed the illness had caused fluid retention leading to swelling, that had to have been why his clothes felt so uncomfortable. After a moments thought he decided to remove his pants as well, in case his legs began to swell as well. This was made slightly more difficult by the fact he was still wearing his boots.
Groaning in pain, he got to his feet and proceeded into the kitchen, wearing nothing but his standard issue boxer shorts. Opening a drawer he retrieved a knife and began cutting the material from his boots to free his feet. Once the majority of the material had been cut away he pulled the rest from his feet, hopping in order to retain his balance. His painful feet dealt with, Zim began to free his hands. With a little more difficult he cut the gloves down to the wrists, wincing in pain as he nicked his arm. Again, with the majority of the material cut away he ripped the constricting gloves from his claws, relieving the pressure. Only they weren't claws any more. In horror Zim looked down to find not a elegant Irken claw, but a clumsy, five fingered human hand. Now he knew why his hands had been so painful. Two fingers had been squashed into each glove finger. The skin of each finger was bruised black and purple from the pressure of such confinement. Zim looked down to his feet to find five small toes on each foot. As he was examining his new toes a drop of red liquid splattered on the floor. Quizzically Zim examined it, only to have it joined by another drop. He looked to the roof, expecting a strange leak from it. Finding nothing he began to look around for the source. A streak of red caught his attention and he looked to his arm. A line of the red liquid ran down his left arm. Frowning he wiped it off and was about to continue his search for the strange red leak, when the red line appeared along his arm once more. It accumulated before culminating in a large drop, which ran down his wrist and dripped down onto the floor. Zim wiped his arm once more, bringing it close to his eyes for closer examination. Sure enough, the red liquid returned. Zim pulled apart the skin either side of it, wincing in pain. He had cut himself when removing his gloves, but why was his blood red? Normal Irken blood was a dark green, he had never heard of anything like this. His palms began to sweat as he grew more worried. What was happening to him? He picked up the discarded material of his gloves lying on the floor and wrapped it around his arm, more to hide the unusual blood than to stop the bleeding.
"Hello!" GIR surprised him as he strolled into the kitchen and over to the freezer. He began rummaging around in the icebox.
"GIR!" Zim started. His voice sounded strange, slightly deeper and husky. This was looking even worse. "Something is happening to me. We need to investigate, come to the lab now!" Zim shakily began to make his way over to the bin. His movements felt clumsy and uncoordinated. He sighed, his eyes were still having difficulty focusing. Everything seemed out of proportion.
"Okey dokey!" GIR emerged from the freezer with a large ice-lolly. "Who are you?"
Zim frowned in frustration. Some crazy human illness was messing with his body, he really didn't need GIR's insanity adding to the situation. "GIR! Come, we may not have much time." He opened the bid and stepped inside.
"Eh....I don't think you're allowed down there." GIR continued to suck his ice-lolly, making air plane noises as he put it in his mouth.
"What? GIR, you are malfunctioning." Zim paused. "More so. I will run a diagnostic on you once I have cured my illness. Do not leave the house." He was about to descend to the labs before he turned to GIR again. "And don't let anyone in!"
GIR nodded before running from the kitchen, continuing to make airplane noises.
Zim shook his head before descending to the lab. He exited the elevator and proceeded to the computer panel. "Computer, I have contracted a human illness. Extrapolate a possible cause from a list of symptoms and prepare to take a DNA sample." He ran his fingers over the keyboard, frowning as he experienced considerable difficulty with his new digits.
"And who are you, now?" The computer replied sarcastically.
"It's me, you fool! Are your optical processors malfunctioning?" Zim flew into a rage, banging his wrist on the console.
"Me who?"
"ZIM!" Zim jumped to his feet, knocking over the chair.
"You're not Zim." The computer replied calmly.
"Yes I am, you idiotic computer!" Zim banged on the console again.
"Voice recognition negative. Visual recognition negative. You're not Zim, you big impostor!"
"I am infected with a human illness, that's why my voice has changed!" Zim screamed at the computer.
"Suuuure...what about my visual recog, eh? What about that, Zimposter?"
"You're visual recognition system must be malfunctioning. I'll run a diagnostic and-"
"No way. You're not coming near my systems." The computer beeped and Zim heard a hissing noise. "I'm releasing a poisonous gas now."
"WHAT?! Stop that! Just give me a minute-" A green mist began to fill the lab. Zim ignored it. He knew the gas was not poisonous to Irekn's. That would prove to the computer who he really was. The gas began to dissipate around the room, creeping higher and higher. "See, it does not affect me. Now-" But Zim could not finish the sentence. His lungs burned. No matter how hard he tried he just could not breathe. Stumbling he tried to make his way over to the elevator and closed the door behind him. What on Irk was happening to him?
"Hey" The computer's voice rang through the elevator. "The gas will permeate through to the entire house. I'd advise you to leave. See ya."
Zim growled in frustration, he was about to reply when the green gas began to creep through the elevator door. "House level, immediately!" He shouted in panic. The elevator returned him to the kitchen and Zim vaulted from the bin. His limbs still felt like jelly and he fell as he tried to run to the living room. Picking himself up he stumbled over to GIR who was occupying the couch. "GIR, come on! I have to leave. The computer is trying to gas me!"
"Ehhh...I better wait for Master." GIR looked away from the television briefly before it once more captured his attention.
"WHAT?! I'm you're master. I'm Zim!" Zim hid his "deformed" hands behind his back assuming they were confusing GIR.
The little robot looked at him quizzically. "You sure don't look like him. He's smaller and he has-"
"What? Smaller?" Despite the desperate situation he was now in, the prospect that he may have in fact grown excited Zim greatly. He banished such thoughts with a shake of his head. "We're getting of subject. I have some kind of human illness, it some how changed my hands and feet but I am Zim. Now come, GIR!" Zim began to panic as the hissing of the gas could be heard. He looked to the kitchen and saw to his horror that it was creeping along the floor. "NOW GIR!"
"Do you want to take Mr. Caterpillar? I'll wait for Master. Mr. Caterpillar has-" GIR got up from the couch and skipped over to the coffee table. He examined the top of it before a worried look crossed his face. "Mr. Caterpillar? Mr. Caterpillar?! Nooooooooooo! He's lost. Nooooooooo!" He began searching the area surrounding the coffee table for any sigh of his insect friend.
"GIR, we don't have time!" Zim ran after him, tripping once more. He began gasping for breath as more of the gas filled the room. "Come...on!" He began pulling on GIR, as the robot continued to search for the caterpillar.
"Nooooooo! Mr. CATERPILLAR!" GIR held onto the floor screaming, still on the lookout for his friend.
Zim was having more and more difficulty breathing. He tried desperately to dislodge GIR but the SIR unit would not budge. As he began to get desperate for air he was forced to give up. Reluctantly he let go of GIR and made his way to the door. He began to become weak as his body screamed for oxygen. He pushed the front door open and fell outside, collapsing on the porch. The front door slammed closed behind him, but Zim ignored it, opting instead to wallow in the pleasure of air. Once he had regained his breath he tried the door, hoping to try and convince GIR to join him from outside. The door, however, was locked tight. He banged on it but received no response. Frowning he moved to the window, looking inside. GIR was moving around the room, frantically looking for the caterpillar he had recently befriended. Zim began banging on the window trying to get his attention. What he didn't notice however was the garden gnomes behind him. Their eyes glowed red and they turned to face him. Zim tried shouting at GIR but it had no effect, presumably because GIR was shouting in his high pitched voice himself. Zim jumped in shock when his shoulder erupted in a new kind of pain. He spun around to find the garden gnomes staring at him, their eyes a blaze.
"It's me, Zim, you idiots." He protested vainly as they began firing more lasers at him. He dodged their shots and ran from the garden, turning to stare at his house from across the street. He sighed defeated, as the gnomes stood down, returning to their normal flaccid state. This was definitely not a good start to the day. He needed to get back in the house. He needed to figure out what was wrong with him, but more than anything he needed to find clothes. Glancing around Zim ran to the back of one of the neighbouring houses. Ensuring the area was clear he grabbed a pair of jeans and a hooded sweatshirt from the clothesline. He ran behind a garden shed and pulled them on. The pants hung low on his hips and his hands were obscured by the long sleeves of the hoody but as Zim had not had time to don his disguise before evacuating the house he felt a little less nervous being so covered up. Before leaving the relative safety of the shed he pulled the hood low over his face, hoping it would obscure his ruby eyes and antennae. But where would he go? He desperately needed to get back in the house. He had so many safety protocols in force, what he needed was someone who knew all their weaknesses, someone who had got passed them before. That particular someone he really didn't want to see right now.
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Gaz, having finished the entire pizza solo, had resumed playing her Game Slave. The last thing she wanted was distractions, distractions like the doorbell being run frantically. She inhaled deeply, intending to scream at Dib to get the door, but decided against it. Her dad had made her promise she would give Dib at little slack, at least until he fully recovered from his recent illness. Sighing, she paused her game and slowly proceeded to the door.
A short, hooded guy stood shuffling on the doorstep. "Yeah?"
"Dib please?" Zim pulled his hood further down on his face.
Gaz raised her eyebrow in suspicion. In all her memory no one had ever called for Dib, but with her game waiting she had to ask herself did she really care. "DIB!" She turned and called up the stairs. Ignoring who ever it was on the doorstep she walked back to the couch and resumed playing her Game Slave.
Zim nervously looked around as Dib walked down the stairs. Dib was as perplexed as Gaz. Who would call for him? He stopped once he caught a look at the stranger on the doorstep. He'd never seen that guy before. Once he regained his bearings he greeted him. "Eh, yeah?"
"Dib! You must let me in!" Zim moved closer to the door.
Dib put his hand on the door and closed it slightly. This guy seemed unstable. "Who are you?"
"It me!" Zim put a hand on the door, hoping to force his way inside.
Dib say the move and closed the door further. "Me who?"
"Zim!"
Dib started, dropping his guard. Zim took the opportunity and darted inside the house. "You're not Zim! What's going on? Get out of my house!"
"It is me! I have a new disguise. I must speak with you." Zim looked over to Gaz. "In private." He whispered.
"No! Who the hell are you?" Dib was getting more and more confused. The past few days were surreal and getting worse by the second. There was no way the person in front of him was Zim. "You're not Zim. You're taller and you sound different. And I saw you're hand, it's got five fingers. Did Zim send you? What trick is he planing?"
"No fool, it is me! I think I contracted one of your filthy Earth illnesses. It's mutating inside my body." Zim really didn't want to discuss all this in front of Gaz, even though she seemed too absorbed in her Game Salve to play the least bit attention.
Dib observed him a moment, one eyebrow raised in suspicion. In a flash he reach forward and grabbed the hood observing...who ever it was' face. Swiftly he pulled it back to reveal the last thing Dib expected. He certainly resembled Zim; green skin, antennae but there were slight differences. His eyes were no longer a vibrant ruby red, instead they seemed slightly dulled with occasionally swirls of white emerging with every blink. On top of his head was a dark greenish stubble, which if Dib hadn't know better, he would have taken for hair. "Zim?"
Zim screamed quietly before grabbing the hood and pulling it over his face. He glared up at Dib.
"What happened?" More than anything it was the glare that convinced Dib this was, in actual fact, Zim. No human glared with such malice.
"I don't know, insolent worm baby. Come, I will talk to you in private!" Zim began marching up the stairs in the direction of what he knew to be Dib's room.
Dib stared after him for a moment before breaking into a sprint and chasing up the stairs. "No! Wait!"
Gaz rolled her eyes. Dib was such an idiot.
Zim burst through the door of Dib's room. He stopped dead in his tracks, eyeing the decor. Every wall was now plastered with blurry images of himself, GIR or their base. Dib sped past him a second later and futilely tried to obscure Zim's view, by standing in front of him with his arms out stretched. "You can't just burst into my house and order me around without an explanation!" Dib glared down at Zim. "Wait a second...you can't just burst into my house and order me around at all!
Using his superior strength Zim pushed Dib out of his way. "You will tell me the weakness in my security net." He folded his arms and attempted to stare Dib down.
"No! What's going on? I think the atmosphere has finally gotten to you Zim, you've gone crazy! Look at yourself! What happened to you? Were you experimenting on yourself or something?"
"I told you, I must have contracted a human illness-"
"While you were visiting me in the hospital?" Dib cut in.
Zim looked away, feeling his face heat up. "Probably. My computer-"
Dib interrupted again. "Why did you visit me anyway? And what did you inject me with? And why-"
"ENOUGH!" Zim threw his hands in the air. "Enough of your questions. I am giving you the opportunity to break into my lab. Why are you refusing?"
"Because I don't trust you! I never will, no matter what you say. You've been acting bizarre even by you standards and I want to know what's going on?" Dib advanced on Zim as his anger got the better of him. "Don't you know your own security codes? Shouldn't you know how to break into your own lab in case of an emergency?"
Zim faltered and dropped his gaze to the floor. "I need to get back there quickly. I don't know what's happening to me. I need to stop it, whatever it is."
Dib stared down at Zim. He no longer stood proud and arrogant. His voice was quiet and subdued. He was scared. "You need my help." Dib stated.
Zim nodded, avoiding Dib's eyes.
Dib sighed, again feeling pity niggling in the pit of his stomach. "Zim, I...I can't help you. You'll only try and take over the Earth again. Why would I help you do that?"
Zim felt suddenly weak. He stumbled back, landing on Dib's bed. Frowning he sat on it, trying desperately to think of a way to get Dib to help him. He dropped his head to his hands, jumping in shock when he felt the first signs of hair growth on top of his head. He got off the bed and ran to the mirror over Dib's dresser. He stared in shock at his new appearance. He'd never assumed the transformation would be so extensive, even his face was changing. He observed his new appearance with increasing horror.
Dib observed Zim from the other side of the room. Poor Zim. He shook his head in frustration. No, he wasn't going to feel sorry for Zim, not again. But the alien just looked so lost. Frowning he moved over to stand beside Zim. Silently Zim turned to look at him and Dib almost felt his heart break looking into the hopeless eyes.
"What's happening to me?" Zim simply stared at him.
Dib sighed in defeat. "When did this begin?" He ushered Zim over to the bed, taking the chair across from it. He took out a notebook ready to begin taking notes.
Zim eyed the notebook wearily. "This morning. I woke up feeling ill, then I vomited during last period. I collapsed after school and then again after you..."
"After you chased me out with a laser?" Dib offered, feeling momentarily angry.
"Eh...yeah." Zim scratched the back of his neck. "When I woke up neither GIR nor the computer recognised me. The computer tried to gas me and, and GIR didn't recognise me. I...I didn't know where else to go." He whispered the last part. This whole mess only made it so achingly obvious. He had no one, no one on the entire planet. He never thought he'd mourn the loss of GIR's insane ramblings.
Dib sighed, leaning back in his chair and running his eyes over the numerous images of Zim adorning his walls. He knew he shouldn't be helping Zim. The insane alien had tried to kill him more times than he could count. But he felt duty bound. He couldn't ignore it any more, Zim had helped him. He had to have. It was too coincidental, him suddenly recovering only a short time after Zim had administered him something. But it just didn't make sense. Why would Zim help him? He desperately wanted to know but Zim was being his difficult self. He looked to Zim again. The smaller alien was staring down at his new hands, a look of pure disgust on his face. "Fine."
Zim looked up at him. "What?"
"Fine." Dib paused. "I'll help you-" Zim's face lit up. "-as soon as you admit you cured me!" Dib continued.
Zim's face dropped. He knew Dib would have wanted an explanation sooner or later and he had been working on one, but recent events had distracted him somewhat. "Fine." He finally admitted, feeling what he'd heard described as butterflies in his stomach. He frowned in embarrassment as he felt his antennae twitch. At least Dib didn't know Irken's did that when nervous, at least he hoped he didn't.
"What?" Dib replied, watching Zim's uncomfortable stature.
"I helped you." Zim replied, gaining a little confidence.
"Why?" Dib moved closer unconsciously.
"That wasn't part of the deal." This time Dib's face dropped. "You said you would help me as soon as I admitted I...I cured you. Well, fine, I admit it. I did." Zim crossed his arms, feeling exposed. He never wanted to admit that.
"Ah! That's not fair, Zim!" Dib jumped from the chair. "You can't do that!"
"You can't force me to tell." Zim got to his feet too, relishing the fact that he didn't have as far to look up at Dib. Maybe there were one or two perks to this whole mess.
"Fine, I won't help you!" Dib narrowed his eyes.
Zim grinded his teeth in anger. "You'll go back on your word?! I knew you humans were dishonourable!"
This struck a chord with Dib. He was not dishonourable! "What difference does it make! I know you did it. Tell me why!"
"What difference does it make if I tell you?!"
"BEACUSE I WANT TO KNOW!" Dib advanced on Zim, with the intent of perhaps physically getting the information out of him.
"Is everything okay in here, son?" Zim was saved by Prof. Membrane sticking his head inside the door. The Prof. observed Zim for a moment before stepping inside the room. Again Zim screamed silently and grabbed a baseball cap from Dib's dresser. He pulled it on his head, groaning silently as it flattened his antennae. He kept his head low hoping the peak would obscure his eyes.
"Who's this son?" The Prof. stepped closer to Dib, still watching Zim.
"Eh...it's Zim. He's my friend...from school." Dib stuttered.
"Ah, yes, the foreign green boy. I thought you were talking to yourself again-" Zim snickered, but a kick from Dib silenced him. "I just came home to say I have to leave for the weekend. Some fool in Guatemala is trying to engineer ULTRA TOAST. The fool! He'll be the death of us all!" Prof. Membrane shook his fist before turning back to Dib. "I left grocery money with Gaz. Be good now." He patted Dib on the head before exiting the room.
Zim removed the baseball cap, rubbing his injured antennae as Dib sighed. "That was close." Dib stopped. A few days ago he would had thrust Zim in front of his father, pointing out the green skin and lack of ears. Now he was sighing in relief that he'd managed to avoid detection. He didn't even want to think about what that meant.
Zim hissed in pain as he tried to straighten his left antennae. His shoulder had been aching since the gnome shot it but he had severely aggravated it by stretching the skin. Instinctively he rubbed the injured area with his other arm, frowning when he found the sweater over it slightly damp. He attempted to see the area but due to it's position he only managed to do a small circle in the middle of the room.
Dib observed Zim's strange behaviour with some degree of amusement. Maybe what ever was wrong with him was affecting his brain. The sight of blood soaking through Zim's sweatshirt banished all humorous thoughts. "Zim! You're bleeding!" He moved closer to the rotating alien and attempted to get him to remain stationary.
"I realise that human. I'm attempting to remedy the situation." Zim stopped to glare at Dib before he resumed trying to see the wound.
Dib rolled his eyes before grabbing Zim by the shoulders and stopping him that way. "Let me see." He tried to get Zim to turn around but the alien stood tight.
"Don't try and deceive me, worm baby." He shot Dib a death glare before turning and presenting his back.
Dib pushed the hood out of the way to reveal a small portion of the sweater drenched in blood. "You're going to have to take off your sweater Zim. You're bleeding pretty bad."
"What?" Zim stated, outraged. "Never!"
Dib rolled his eyes again. "Stop being such a baby. I'm going to go get a first aid kit." Dib began to walk out of the room.
"Fine." Zim caught him by the arm. "Don't you dare try and dissect me."
Dib smirked. "The thought never crossed my mind" He went out to the bathroom and retrieved the first aid kit.
Zim struggled to remove the sweater. His shoulder protested a lot more now that he wasn't afraid of being homeless and stuck looking like a cross-breed freak forever. Dib returned to find Zim half in the sweater. Frowning he dropped the first aid kit on the bed before turning to Zim. "Do you need help with that?"
"I need help from no one!" Zim seethed, before continuing to struggle with the garment.
"That's funny because-"
"Fine." Zim thrust a sleeve in Dib's had, turning to look at him.
Assuming this was the best he would ever get out of Zim, Dib smirked before pulling on the sleeve and freeing Zim from the sweater. Zim blushed as he was left standing in Dib's room wearing nothing but a pair of very baggy jeans. Dib ran his eyes over his body in a very scientific manner and Zim shivered, feeling once more like a specimen. A little of his anger returning he sat on the bed with his back to Dib.
Dib frowned at Zim's visible change in emotion before sitting behind the alien. He opened the first aid kit, dumping it's contents on the bed before turning to Zim's back. On his shoulder blade, just next to the little spotted pack, was a patch of burned flesh. Blood was slowly seeping from the edge of the burns. Dib picked up a cotton swab. He ducked it in disinfectant before gingerly bringing it to the injured flesh. Zim hissed in response but did not protest any further. Dib began methodically to remove all the traces of blood from Zim's back. "I didn't know your blood was red, Zim. I would have imagined it to be green or blue or-"
"It's not." Zim cut him off.
"What?" Dib asked as he began to rub on an antiseptic cream.
Zim shuddered as he felt Dib lightly touch his skin. He praised the Tallest his back was turned as he felt his cheeks burn. What was happening to him? "My blood isn't red. It should be dark green." He hoped to distract himself with talk, fighting, anything to take his mind of Dib lightly touches.
"Do you think what ever is happening to you made it red?" Dib picked up some gauze and gently applied it to Zim's burned flesh.
"I assume so, yes." Zim sighed as Dib began to secure the bandage on his back. He bowed his head, frowning. This disease was infuriating, it was making him feel...weird. He didn't like it. A spot of white on his other shoulder altered his attention. He looked down at it to find a patch of skin, devoid of green pigment. It was a pale whitish colour, almost like...
Dib screamed silently in fright as Zim quickly turned and grabbed his hand. "What are you doing?" He tried to pull his hand back as Zim brought it to his chest, but the alien's superior strength made this futile. "ZIM!" Dib began to panic a little when he felt his palm pressed hard against Zim's smooth chest. He frowned slightly when he finally realised what Zim was doing. There was a patch of skin just above Zim's collarbone that was as pale as his own. Zim was looking from Dib's hand to his own shoulder comparing the two. Dib swallowed when he felt Zim shaking, when he felt the smaller boy's heart racing against his own hand. "Zim?"
Zim's mind was racing. What was going on? What had happened to his skin? The small patch was coloured exactly like a human's. And that area was exactly where he had been accidentally stabbed by the syringe. But...How could...? The mutated DNA was some how altering his own! He didn't have some illness! He had done this to himself.
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So gotta congratulate Crimsonobsession for getting the whole syringe thing on the last chapter! Good for you. As a prize you win this sandwich. Oh, and please don't set minimoose or any other scary creatures on me, but I'm going on a mapping expedition next week so it will be at least another full week before I get cracking on chapter six. Don't hurt me!