I do not own Invader Zim okay? I'm glad to see so many people like this one. I do my best to try and get some good DATR out there. But shameless self promotion aside, enough of this A/N, on with the fic!

"Gretchen, what are you doing here?" Dib said, looking from the landing spacecraft to her. He knew what he was dealing with when it came to possible paranormal encounters, she did not.

Think of something quick, you're going to seem like a stalker...Gretchen thought as she placed her hand on her backpack and felt Dib's English book in there. "I notice we got our English books mixed up and tried to give it back but noticed you left to go here as I was at the door and wanted to give it back to you."

Dib rolled his eyes. He knew she was making it up and was trying to get together but he didn't want that out of her or anyone at this time. What was the point of getting into a relationship in high school when he planned to leave all this behind when he graduated. All the most serious would be someone he was holding back from their own potential in some teenage hormonal infatuation that would likely not last beyond 6 months. Being intelligent and analytical did have its downsides when it came to socialization. "And this couldn't have waited until tomorrow when we were both in class?" He asked exasperated.

"Ummmm..." Gretchen blushed.

"Just let's get in the bushes." He sighed as he pushed her back and jumped in the nearest bush and looked at the now landed spaceship.

"Wow..." Gretchen said under her breath.

"Just stay quiet." Dib ordered. "I don't know if these are friendly, hostile or just what yet." He didn't want her getting hurt just because she wandered out to meet him.

"And we have landed!" Purple said as he looked back at his small disgraced Invader crew.

"Can I take this place over?" Zim asked, while still strapped to a chair. "Have I passed this elite test yet?"

"Not yet." Red moaned. "But we are going to have to scan this area. We're going to use the ship as kind of a base but we need to make sure that there is no one around." Red looked at the few Invaders he had. Yeah they were all disgraced in one way or another but they were what he had on hand to explore this planet for him. Should I have Zim explore this place...nah...maybe... I don't know if the natives are violent or even know if we are here... they're sloppy, I could tell from the junk around their planet... If they were violent, I'd send Zim out in a heartbeat. Nah. Tak and Tenn, they're the most skilled ones here. "Tak! Tenn!" Red yelled.

"Yes?" Tak asked looking at Red.

"At your service my Tallest!" Tenn said saluting him.

"You two are some of the most skilled of my elite crew." Red said.

"What about me?" Zim yelled from across the room.

"You were not addressed!" Tak said hitting Zim. This felt good, maybe I can find some way to push him off a cliff or get him attacked on this planet. Get rid of him for good. Tak said.

"Thank you Tak." Red said. "But no, you and Tenn are some of the smartest and toughest fighters the Empire is lucky enough to have and onto a total unknown planet, we need some brilliant crew. Tenn, you nearly had Meekrob in your grasp until the accident. And by finding us shows initiative." Red explained being the master of hiding what he thought in pleasant words. "This shows great skill and talent that is needed in missions like this."

"I'm honored my Tallest." Tenn said bowing.

"Thanks." Tak said simply.

"You are to explore the immediate 1000 yard radius. From areal views we can tell this place is far from the city but we cannot be certain their isn't any remote outposts or something that could stop us. What about those disguise generators you were working on Tak?"

"I've finished them." Tak said, holding out a handful of devices. "They are placed by your eye on your left hand side and just press the disguise to generate a copy of the local race. Much better than what typical Invaders come up with.

"Good. Give one to Tenn as well; you two will scour the area as we make base camp here and make the ship look less like a ship. The Earthen race may seem like idiots but most of them would be able to tell this is incredibly different from what they are used to." Red explained.

"Yes sir my Tallest!" Tak and Tenn saluted as they headed out.

Meanwhile Dib and Gretchen were looking at the ship with awe. Gretchen felt her heart pounding in fear of the uncertain, Dib was filming everything he saw to give to the Swollen Eyeball. If there was one group that would believe him, it would be them. "Just stay down and stay quiet Gretchen." Dib ordered quietly, hearing her whimpers of fear.

"I'm trying, but this is so fucking weird. I mean, aliens are real?" Gretchen said.

"What have I been saying since we were little?" Dib sighed.

"I know but it's something you don't really expect to see..." Gretchen whimpered moving closer to him. "Can I hold onto you?" She cried.

"Just don't take it the wrong way." Dib said rolling his eyes, knowing at this point she was no longer trying to date him but was genuinely scared.

"I won't." Gretchen said closing her eyes.

Tak and Tenn headed out of the open bay door and looked around. Dib could see that they didn't look like humans at all, they were indeed aliens. He snapped as many pictures as he could. Tak looked around with her scanner and pointed to the bushes they were in.

"What is she doing?" Gretchen whimpered.

"I don't know. Just stay quiet." Dib said. He just wanted her to be safe and hopefully just forget everything that happened. If she told everyone what she saw they'd treat her much the same they did him and she got it hard enough just by having braces, he didn't want her subjected to the various interrogations, tortures, exclusions, mental home stays and the like he was subjected to.

"I am reading a pair of local life forms in those bushes over there." Tak said looking at her scanner.

"Do they seem hostile?" Tenn asked, holding her pistol close.

"I can't tell." Tak said. "Cover me, I'm going to look at that bush. It seems that if they were hostile they would have attacked by now."

"I got your back." Tenn said as Tak moved the leaves of the bush, uncovering Dib and Gretchen. "A male and a female earthling..." She read from her scanner.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Gretchen yelled in fear as Dib winced in pain.

"That was my ear!" He growled back at her.

"Sorry." She whimpered.

"They sure can be loud when frightened." Tenn said as she headed up to Tak holding up her pistol.

"Just knock them out. They don't seem like a threat." Tak said.

"Huh?" Dib said as Tenn pointed her pistol, set to sleep, and knocked them out.

Tak scanned the area, knowing after Gretchen screamed, there may be other humans summoned, but after seeing that none were coming, she motioned for Tenn to head back to the ship to report on what they had found.

"I heard that one howler monkey in here." Purple said rubbing the side of his head.

"I do believe the female was just afraid." Tenn said as she plugged her scanner into the database on the ship. "I however got a scan of their biometrics so we can make better disguises and blend in better to get a better idea of their society. I will find an educational institution that one of us could go into and learn.

"There's this place, the library." Tenn suggested. "Says there is a record in paper form and in digital forms of many subjects of Earth knowledge."

"There's an idea." Tak said.

"But that's more of a database sort of thing. If we're really going to sneak in to take this planet, we can't just know all their information. Societies have a certain way that they function. That isn't in books and easily just learned. It is something that must be taught and researched in a social function." Red said.

"Speaking of, have you found a way to disguise this place?" Tenn asked.

"I just have the invisibility boosters on at the moment. You will need to go into the city to find how these humans or whatever these earthlings call themselves house themselves in and bring back some schematics so we can simulate it." Red said.

"I think I found just the place to head to to learn about human social interaction." Tak said as the screen displayed a picture of Dib and Gretchen's Hi-Skool. "This has humans together as they are just approaching maturity."

"Looks good. And they are taught there too, so that is a good place to get some sort of information there. Now who to send..." Red said.

Tak looked over at Zim and then to Purple and knowing she just wanted a chance to either prove her worth or get out of the madhouse with two of the Irkens she could not stand the most in the Universe. "I volunteer to go to get preliminary reports before we decide if more are needed." Tak said.

"Are you sure you don't need any more help?" Purple asked.

"Nope." She said as she turned on the disguise generator, looking like a 17 year old human female with long purple hair, a purple dress with boots and leggings under them and a backpack where her PAK was. "I think I got this."

"You look just like a female of that species with that thing." Tenn said in amazement.

"I'm brilliant." Tak said. "Now I'm heading out to be there when the Skool opens. I'll send regular reports back."

"I made a disguise too!" Zim said running over wearing contact lenses that looked like human eyes over the Irken bug like eyes and a pompadour wig.

"Who untied you?" Red said.

"I got Skoodge to." Zim said. "Leadership is important to elite Irken soldiers."

"Ugggghhhhhh." Red moaned.

"NO!" Tak said as she picked Zim up and threw him across the research bay. "I'm first. You're last." She then turned to Red and Purple. "Why can't I just kill him, throw him into a black hole, something?"

"Not now." Purple said. "Now get to Skool Tak."

"I'm gone." Tak said as she headed out.

The sun rose slowly over the field, letting Dib know it was nearing 6 am. "Uggghhh... what happened last night?" He saw Gretchen holding onto him and a head in the opening the spaceship was gone, nowhere to be seen. "I could have sworn there was a spaceship there. I recorded it!"

"Uggghhhh..." Gretchen said waking up. "You sure you didn't leave the lense cap on? Happened to my dad when we went to the Grand Canyon. Lost every picture of the vacation we had."

"I would not be stupid as to- Goddamnit!" Dib yelled seeing he had done just that.

"We have got to get to Skool." Gretchen said.

"Don't tell anyone what you saw here. I appreciate having a collaborating witness for once in my life but I don't think they'll believe you either. And I don't want you to have to go through what I do on a daily basis. I'm used to it. And it's far the same from being teased for physical appearances." Dib warned. "Hop on, we'll just ride this to Skool." He motioned to his dirt bike.

"But they might believe me." Gretchen said.

"Maybe some of your closer friends and see how they react but I don't want you having to spend all your free time in the counselor's office or things like that. Or your dad freaking out." Dib said.

"He's not like yours." Gretchen moaned as she got on the back of the bike.

"Still. You don't deserve that." Dib said.

"You're sweet." Gretchen said. "But what will we tell people because someone will find out we were out last night together."

"Just play it up how it rolls." Dib sighed. "Biggest thing is to not tell them what we saw. If I tell anyone I'll be alone." Gretchen looked dejected. "It's because I want you to enjoy your childhood for once. I've been through this pain enough I'm numb to it."

As Dib sat in third period, after successfully staying awake in first period and making it through trigonometry without insulting the teacher's intelligence, He headed into English with a foreboding feeling. After this he would have to go to deal with Miss Marshall lecturing him about wasting his talent following some of his dreams. I did apply to UNLV, maybe since that isn't in the backwoods of a state she has issues with I can get her to let go there if I say I picked that. Nevada is full of paranormal stories and far enough away no one will follow me there...He thought as he tapped his pencil on his English book he had obtained from Gretchen before the class began.

"Class, we have a new student here today. Introduce yourself Tak." Mrs. Ganoe said.

"Thank you Mrs. Ganoe." Tak said in her human disguise. "I am Tak Mann and I will be joining you my fellow classmates on this educational journey."

"Very nice." Mrs. Ganoe said. "Now pick a seat. I see there's an empty one beside Dib, like usual." She panned the class, "What's wrong with you guys? Cannot take a mind that thinks differently than yours?"

"That's how it seems." Tak said as she sat down beside Dib.

"OW!" Dib said as he got hit in the back of the head by a paper wad. He looked back to see Gretchen motioning to read it. That girl's voice sounds familiar... Do you think it has something to do with last night? Dib read to himself. He quickly wrote a note back and made a paper airplane to deliver it to Gretchen.

Gretchen nodded when it landed at her desk and unfolded it. Maybe. Don't jump to conclusions yet.

Tak sat staring at the teacher and sent a message back to the base "I'm in and these humans think I am nothing more than one of them."

So how was that? Good? Bad? Short? Long? Let me know in a review. And yes while Dib would love someone to side with him, I cannot imagine he would want someone to be made fun of like he was. But now that Irk has landed and Tak's starting her information collecting, this will make things rather interesting. And using the name Mann as a last name is something I figured Tak would do when she noticed humans have 2 names. It's like that old joke name "Hugh Mann" to throw off someone wasn't human. Get it "Hugh Mann" human... Anyway, remember to read (well you just did) and to review.

Ciao for now

otherrealmwriter

aka

Realm.