I don't own Invader Zim okay? I know it's been a long time since I updated this, but I will be honest, my other fics had inspiration that hit first. I know you as fans probably don't like that but between that and work and school, the inspiration hasn't hit as much for this one. Anyway, enough of the A/N, on with the fic!

Tenn walked back out of the labs to the hideout with a smile on her face. I did it! I didn't even need to use any hypnosis or mind manipulation on him, all I did was drink a cup of coffee, which puts us to sleep, didn't know that….. She thought as she got a page from Purple. "Tenn! Where are you?"

"I just got the job at Membrane Labs as part of infiltrating it." Tenn said. I could have sworn Tak, or I told you about the plan. Maybe it's like Red says and he hardly pays attention.

"Oh yeah I heard that was a great place for the latest human technology. How much of our stuff did you have to give away on the interview?" Purple asked. So, he did pay a little bit of attention…. Tenn thought. "And I know what you are thinking, I do pay more attention to serious things, not like Red does but I pay attention!"

"Sure." Tenn said, not wanting to start an argument. "I guess I will pick up your books and didn't have to give away anything. They took my credentials, assumed them real and then hired me. Professor Membrane seemed to like me. I had a cup of coffee, which apparently makes Irkens very sleepy, and Professor Membrane thought I had a similar disposition to him and hired me."

"Good. Good." Purple said. "Now just pick up my books."

"Fine My Tallest." Tenn sighed ending the communication and heading to the store to pick up the order Purple had placed. I might take a look at them if they are of the same series on the way home. It seems that it's normal for human females to read those types of things on their travels…

Dib had seen Tak off before he had to go to Miss Marshall's appointment. It had been a few weeks since he had been sentenced to this punishment in his mind. It wasn't even during a class he didn't like; it was his free period and she had to have known it. She had gotten more and more condescending as each session went by and he would give her the same typical responses to hopefully get her to stop asking. He has come to terms with the fact that no one taking him seriously on his paranormal beliefs. But with Tak actually listening to him, gave him more comfort. Someone believed him and didn't think he was crazy, and it was someone he actually liked and liked him back. But he knew what it was like for him with his beliefs, so he was not about to tell Miss Marshall what Tak thought.

"So, Dib, how was your weekend?" Miss Marshall said.

"Went to the mall." He said simply. Not like you'd fucking believe I was chased by someone who looked like an alien, and I had to fly Tak and her sister home. He thought. Nice and normal. She can't say squat.

"Good. Did you go by yourself?" She noted.

"Nope, with Tak and her older sister." Dib said. He felt safe enough to mention an older sister, assuming that it must be on the school records her family size.

"That's nice. It's good to see you making friends with the new girl and her family. Although…" Miss Marshall began.

"What?" Dib asked.

"Are you sure she actually cares?" Miss Marshall asked. "I mean many times someone will befriend someone like you out of pity. She could very easily be using you."

"WHAT THE FUCK?" Dib said losing his composure, dropping his bag.

"Point Pleasant is a hole. A tiny little town making paranoid delusions to try and make a catastrophe make sense with a Scooby Doo routine." She scoffed at his patch. "Those people needed professional help to cope with the tragic disaster there, not some sort of mass hysteria hyped up to get people to visit after their manufacturing and mining jobs were taken, good riddance." Miss Marshall scoffed.

"Well, that's kind of rude isn't it?" Dib asked. "Even if it was right those people lost their jobs, dismissing their PTSD because of where they are isn't a decent thing to do."

"You wouldn't know those people like I do." Miss Marshall said.

"Okay, explain it for me then." Dib said. "Why would someone deserve poverty? Why would someone deserve to have PTSD left untreated, even if for sake of argument Mothman isn't real? Doesn't it seem rather a hateful move to wish that kind of thing to someone? Even if you don't like them?" Dib had pondered this himself in his desire to protect humanity. Yes there were plenty of times he had wondered if indeed he really should bother trying to protect those who were so mean and vile to him, who left him alone for being different. Who treated him like an outcast. However, there was one time Professor Membrane actually talked to him and had a father-son heart to heart discussion.

It was his freshman year in high school and one day Dib had just had enough. Torque had thrown a medicine ball at his head, knocking him out for a few hours and breaking his glasses. One of the assistants from Membrane labs was there to take him home and Dib was down in the basement looking for something to use to take revenge. He hadn't even spoken much about the paranormal around his classmates since middle school. It was obvious they didn't care. But that didn't dimmish his own interest in the paranormal and he wanted to learn everything he could. When Professor Membrane did come home that day Gaz told him what happened and what Dib was doing in his lab.

"Son, you know the rules…." Professor Membrane began.

"I'm not using your equipment on my 'para-science'. I just need something to stop the kids at school from picking on me." Dib said.

"Son, believe it or not, when I was your age I was not very popular myself. Mankind has always been hostile with to those with superior intelligence." Professor Membrane said as he knelt down to look at Dib. "My brilliant scientific mind was what made me the butt of many of my peer's jokes. And I wanted revenge like you did. I mean I knew I was superior. My mind was incredible and theirs was not. They didn't deserve to go around making fun of me when I could put them in their place. And oh, did I know it. I knew it so very well. I would show them what real pain and torture was and they would know it was me." He explained while Dib looked on wondering where this was going. "I mean this was not like sharks or Santa. Sharks are fish acting on instincts that drive them."

"One could say that about humans." Dib said.

"That is why humans need people like you and I son to make the world a better place for them. Yes we do act on our base instincts too and many behaviors we have are nothing more than those instincts glorified but as intellectual superior humans, we cannot be bothered to get to their level and repay them in kind. We will repay them with what we give humanity. How we improve their lives despite their pitiful attempts to ruin ours. Which honestly many people have horrible stories in their background and it's not fair to punish them for lacking the capacity to cope with them. It often would make them stick to the bad behavior rather than learn." Professor Membrane explained as Dib thought on the words a little bit.

"Why do you have a whole freaking arsenal at the North Pole to destroy Santa?" Dib asked.

"Because Santa is supposed to bring joy to children, and he did no such thing when I was a child. Even if I had been bad in his eyes, why I don't know, this is some magical being after all…." Professor Membrane growled. "He has separate rules than the rest of humanity for how we are to treat them." Dib scoffed at this. "However, I have gotten my revenge on the world. Whenever I see someone using something from Membrane Labs, I know it was ME who invented that item. I ran the company that gave THEM a better life. Despite their desire to tear me down and make me below them. I understand you are going through adolescence son and hopefully you will give up the para-science but until you do, keep in mind that by getting revenge like some common ape will never show that you are better than those who mean you harm. Be like me and get your revenge by giving them better worlds."

"Huh….." Dib said as he thought more on his father's words.

"Now give me those." He said as he took Dib's taped up glasses and put them under a ray to help fuse the metal back together. "Good as new, if not better."

"Thanks Dad." Dib smiled.

"Now let's go to Krazy Taco, I hear they have a sale on a new burrito." Professor Membrane said.

"Because they made fun of me. Wanted me to fail and said I was getting better than my raisn'" she said with a slight mountain draw. "So, what if I wasn't'n goin' being like ma kin?" At this Miss Marshall paused. "I took good to what theys called 'book learnin' and found my passion in understanding why people are they way they are. If they want to hold me back, that is their problem, not mine." She composed getting back to the 'proper' accent she liked to carry to hide her past.

"Well, that's a shitty reason to wish ill on them." Dib explained. Why am I telling a freaking guidance counselor of all people this. I mean sure, dad's motivation and mine I guess you could say are slightly spiteful but it's at most in a Schadenfreude kind of way….. This, Miss Marshall's deal is kind of psychotic or at least a little hit of personal sociopathy… "I mean my dad told me that he was treated pretty bad as a kid and said that he found his revenge in people using what he creates. I am looking to do much the same."

"Okay we can work with that." Miss Marshall began, acting like the earlier conversation and outburst and crack in accent never happened. "Besides a mountain accent would not suit you. You would be spending a lot of time in Appalachia if you did pursue a degree at West Virginia University, even if it is to just as you claim enjoy the spectacular stargazing. It's like they say, cold as hell clear as a bell….."

"You sound like you know from experience." Dib teased.

"I did enjoy stargazing as a child yes, and in rural areas, there is indeed not a lot of light pollution so you will see the stars better." She sighed. "But there's a park in Pennsylvania not far from Penn State."

"I'd go to their Pittsburgh campus. Not far from Kechsburg, there's a UFO festival there. And I guess a little longer from West Virginia's legends…." He teased.

"OUT!" Miss Marshall said. "I think we are done for the day. Get out and I will see you the same time tomorrow. I think I will write your father about what you said." She added as Dib left with a smirk.

"So, how'd it go?" Tak asked.

"Pissed off Miss Marshall enough she slipped back into her Appalachian accent. She's emailing my dad though…"

"To delete that one or not?" Tak mused.

"Delete." Dib said. "I mean I said his motivation for everything was a kind of revenge that wasn't direct. Not good." Tak looked confused "Dad's got an ego about himself and while he told me that, he doesn't like others finding out." He admit.

"I understand." Tak said as she thought about what Dib said. She wanted revenge for what happened to her in society but his seemed more meaningful than just leaving the empire. Tenn was getting the job, she had sent Tak a message earlier when she did get it; maybe they should work the human race better with Irken technology to spite the Irkens….Although from what Dib told me of humans, they are as egotistical as Irkens at times….but still…..I would be using what wronged me to some good use, well Tenn would be….. She thought.

"Lunch time." Dib said as the bell rang. "You ready for what they call food?"

"I packed a lunch." Dib smacked his face as if it was obvious to do that. "Well Tenn said you might think like me, so I packed one for you too."

"Thanks….." Dib said looking at it cautiously.

"Don't worry, if it looks bad, it's healthy. I made sure of it." Tak said Well Tenn did, says I am cute with you and that you are perfect for me. If nothing else him and Tenn are by my side…. She thought.

"Can't be worse than what they feed us, hey?" Dib said.

"That's the spirit." Tak smiled as they took a seat in the cafeteria.

So how was that? Good? Bad? Short? Long? Let me know in a review. I don't know how fast the ideas will come but I will update. Thank you so much for being so loyal patient and understanding with this. So anyway, remember to read (well you just did) and to review. Ciao for now,

Otherrealmwriter

Aka

Realm.