Disclaimer: You know the drill. Invader Zim is property of the oh-so-spiffy Jhonen Vasquez and his tribe of winged monkeys at Nickelodeon. Neese and the Wevers are mine, though! Fear the twistiness of my demented mind! Anyway, when we last left off, Purple was conned into marriage to Neese Va-Surese. And now, for everyone who's wondering what Red is going to do, please read on.

Chapter 2

Red was confused. That wasn't anything new, though, since the customs of most species never made sense to him. Life would be so much easier if everyone did things the same way - the Irken way. Taking a long gulp of wine, Red nudged the Wever next to him, a prim-looking female. "So, what's happening here?" he asked.

"Union," the female answered tersely, her eyeridges knitting together in annoyance. Red motioned for her to go on. When she didn't take the hint immediately, he let out a low growl. She stiffened, eyeing the Irken warily, her lower lip catching between her teeth as she tried to come up with other ways to describe union. "Becoming lifemates... Marriage..."

Marriage! Red's goblet clattered to the floor as he stared in shock. He only knew what marriage was because Purple had spent an hour explaining. They'd both laughed at the time, finding the concept to be one of the most hilarious they'd ever heard of. Now that it was happening, though, Red didn't feel like laughing. His brain was trying to order various parts of his body to stop sitting like useless lumps and do something to stop this.

At last one of those messages made it to Red's feet, and he leapt up. "No!" he roared, storming towards Tilith with every intention of ripping off the elder's head. "You can't do this!" Though the elder showed no fear, a contingent of guards flowed between him and Tallest Red. Red wasn't too far gone to risk diving into that bristling nest of spears, but that didn't stop him from speaking his mind. "I'm going to kill you for this, Tilith Va-Surese! I'm going to rip you open and feast on your organs! Your blood will run through this hall in rivers! Your children's children's children will die of fright at the mention of your fate! Your-"

"Dak!" Red swallowed his tirade. Purple never called by his true name in public! Never! The sea of guards parted to allow Purple to hover through. Like Tilith, Purple hid his thoughts behind a mask of icy calm, but he wrung his hands together nervously, an action Red recognized as a not good sign. Purple paused to flick off the translator hanging from his neck, and Red did likewise. "Red..." Purple's voice was painfully loud in the choking silence. "There's nothing we can do. It was all in the treaty. We just didn't realize..."

Red swallowed a hard lump that was rising in his throat. "But you're mine, Ptor. Mine! And I'm not going to share you with that Greese or Meese or whatever he's called! I'd rather destroy this planet first!"

"Neese," Purple corrected in that infuriating way he had. At the sound of his name being spoken with a trilling Irken accent, the young Wever's head snapped up. "We'll think of something, Red. I promise."

"I've already thought of something," Red growled. Then, without any warning, he spun into action, grabbing a spear from one of the guards. Tallest Red was a blur of scarlet as he plunged into the knot of guards, determined to reach Tilith. The guards faltered in a moment of indecision, sense of duty battling with self-preservation.

Red took advantage of that precious moment of hesitation, disarming his enemies in a dangerous dance. Even the imperturbable Tilith was shaken by the Tallest's ferocity. Tilith's eldest son lunged into the pack, tackling Red to the ground. The guards piled on and pinned the Tallest down. With eight Wevers struggling to keep Red down, he released his fury by bellowing the vilest oaths he knew at Tilith.

At the same time, Neese began cursing both of the Tallests; first Red for trying to attack Tilith, and then Purple for everything else in general. By this time, Purple had turned his translator back on, he was starting to regret doing so. "This is not what should be," Tilith murmured as he appeared beside Purple. The Irken could only nod assent as he watched a sleeping draught forced down Red's throat.

When at last the draught took hold and Red's struggles grew feeble, did the Wevers climb off of the Irken leader. "Take him to the guest quarters," Tilith ordered, nudging Red's body with his staff. "He is to be confined only." The elder turned his prunish face to Purple, his stony gaze softening. "And you also should rest, Tall One. The occasion has been more stressful than I thought. Your room is waiting for you."

Purple barely heard Tilith as he watched Red being carted out of the dining hall. He wanted desperately to follow his partner, but a pair of guards lined up beside him. For all of Tilith's politeness, Purple realized that he was a prisoner in Tilith's home. With a resigned sigh, Purple prepared to have himself led like a puppy to wherever Tilith wanted him to go. Neese was proving less cooperative, the guards having to drag him along as he struggled to escape.

To call the room which Purple and Neese were taken to opulent would have been understatement. The middle of the room was piled high with inviting cushions. The carpet looked so soft that Purple had to give in to temptation and turn off his levitation belts just to see for himself that it wasn't some sort of illusion. His feet sank into the carpet, and after each step the carpet held his boot prints.

One Purple's guards stationed himself at the doorway, reminding the Tallest once again of his prisoner status. The other went to help Neese's escort with their unruly charge. The three managed to force the young Wever against the wall, where they shackled his leg. "Tilith's orders. Don't want him running away," the door guard explained, frowning in disapproval. "As long as you don't try to leave until sunrise, you won't be chained."

Next the guards ripped off Neese's robes, leaving the Wever bare. When the guards turned to Purple, he snapped at them angrily. "I can undress myself, thank you very much! Now get out of here before I kick you out!" If Purple hadn't towered two feet over the tallest guard, they might have insisted otherwise. Instead, though, they bowed and left the room, the lock clicking behind them.

"Don't come near me!" Neese shrieked, his slim body shaking, though whether from fear or anger Purple couldn't tell. Purple smiled as he studied his reluctant roommate. Neese obviously took care of himself, his lean form attesting to a daily workout regimen. And for the first time, Purple had a chance to see first-hand an anatomy he'd only heard about in Biology of Alien Species back at the Academy.

"Are you always this bold when Tilith's not around?" Purple asked as he began dividing up the cushions. One for himself, one for Neese, one for himself, one for Neese...

"You leave my father out of this!" Neese shouted, his face darkening. "He only wants what is best for our people!" The boy slumped to the ground, chain clanking as he moved. Casting his eyes down, he murmured, "Sometimes the few must make sacrifices so that the many may prosper."

Purple gathered up as many cushions from the Neese pile as he could and carried them across the room to the Wever. Neese jerked away as Purple approached, cringing at the pain from the branding. "Those would be Tilith's words, yes?" Neese's guilty silence was answer enough. Purple crouched down beside Neese. The Wever's ebony eyes widened and his nostrils flared. 'Afraid,' Purple decided. 'Definitely afraid.'

Purple ran his fingers through Neese's hair. The way the strands curled around his fingers reminded him of the vine he'd admired earlier. "I'm not going to hurt you, Neese," Purple promised. "You see those pillows over there? That's where I'm going to be all night long, and you will sleep on this pile right here. Nothing will happen. Do you understand?" Some of the tension left Neese as he nodded. With that settled, Purple went to his pile and laid down, turning his back to Neese.

"Sleep well, Tall One," Neese whispered in the fading light.