I do not own Invader Zim okay? I know this isn't as updated as often as some of my other fics but I do plan to work on it. Just be patient. Anyway, enough of this A/N, on with the fic!
"So how do I look?" Tenn said as she turned on her disguise. "Do I look like an attractive young scientist who just graduated college?"
"Sure." Tak said as she slung her backpack over her shoulder. "I have another day at the Hi-Skool to look forward to." She said as she turned on her disguise.
"Should I walk my little sister out to the city?" Tenn teased.
Tak rolled her eyes at this. "I guess if you want to walk with me before I have to head to the Hi-Skool, that's fine. But you cannot be with me when I meet up with Dib. I said I would meet him at his house and he'd drive me to school."
"Awwwwwww you really like him." Tenn teased.
"So?" Tak said, finding it was useless to pretend like she didn't care about him. How much, she wasn't going to say, but to deny she did care about Dib was going to lead to nothing but more and more teasing and she had about enough of that. "He's much better and smarter than most any other males I have met, human or Irken. It's actually intellectually stimulating to talk to him, unlike many other people." She added with an exasperated sigh looking over at Tenn.
"What?" Tenn asked.
"When you tell me what you found out at the library, I don't want to know about your Cold War spy yaoi romance novels. It's a massive information center you have access to that isn't the internet. You are bound to have something better you found!" Tak moaned.
"Oh that reminds me. After the interview I have to pick up Purple's order." Tenn said looking at her messages from the Tallest.
Tak placed her face in the palm of her hand. "Don't tell me, novels like you checked out and Spanish telenovellas on DVD?"
"How'd you know?" Tenn asked.
"Just guessed." Tak sighed as they headed out.
"Well I am not the only one on this whole operation that likes those novels." Tenn said smirking as they headed out a path onto the road towards the city.
"But Purple?" Tak said.
"Could be worse. It could be something Skoodge or even worse, Zim liked as well." Tenn suggested.
"Point taken." Tak sighed.
Dib woke up at his desk when Gaz barged into the door. "DIB!" She yelled. "We have school today! Get up, I need you to drive me."
"Wha? What?" Dib said looking around. "I'm up!"
"Dad got us some more groceries while we were out the other day. Milk is fresh and he got a ton of Cocosplodies. Eat something." Gaz said as she walked out. "And take a shower. Teak wouldn't like you smelling like a cow's butthole."
"I don't smell that bad!" Dib said.
"Well maybe not. But still, hygiene dude and remember don't use so much Axe that lighting a match sets the house on fire." Gaz said. "Girls hate that and I figure you and Teak are dating..."
"No we're not..." Dib blushed.
"Yes you are." Gaz said. "Hurry up. You don't want to be late."
"You're right." Dib said as he grabbed some of the clean clothes he had lying around and ran into the bathroom to take a shower.
"Close the door!" She said as she shut the door with Dib taking his shirt off. "I don't want to see that stuff and it's too early for you to be showing that to Tak."
"Sorry!" Dib said to the door as Gaz stormed off to the kitchen to make herself something for breakfast. He started the shower and got inside with a slight chill. She used all the hot water again. Maybe if I did actually take care of my sleep better I could get in in time to get up before her and have some hot water. He thought as he began to wash. Although why is Gaz giving me dating advice? Sure Tak and I may pretty much be a thing but why would Gaz care and want to help me out? She's only had one boyfriend that ended badly, that Iggins guy who she found was a big cheater. She does have her standards when it comes to gaming after all... Dib sighed as he grabbed some body wash and mused further. Maybe I should ask Gretchen what girls like...she is a very good friend of mine... He thought. Dib was never perceptive of her feelings towards him but appreciated the company she did give him.
Gaz stood in the kitchen as she placed a bowl down and grabbed the box of Cocosplodies when she heard a knock on the door. "Uggggh. Who can it be now?" Gaz sighed as she placed the box down angered and answered it. "Oh, Tak." Gaz said simply.
"Yes, I was figuring I could ride to school with you and Dib, if you did not mind." Teak said. "I live pretty far off in the wooded area of town and it's either a long walk or take the bus, and I swear, I hate the people on the bus."
"Me too." Gaz said. "Well Dib's cleaning up, slept at his desk again working on whatever paranormal junk he does. I get him up to make sure he doesn't miss school. Not like Dad ever finds out about when we do something the school doesn't like."
"What do you mean?" Tak asked as she sat down at the kitchen table across from Gaz as she finished putting her bowl of cereal together. She knew that Dib would delete the emails the school sent as he could get into his dad's account at work, but did not know if Gaz did too.
"Oh I break into Dad's work email account and delete the ones the school sends." Gaz said as she took a big bite of her cereal. "You eat yet?"
"Not really." Tak said.
"Here, have some of these Toaster Tarts." Gaz said as she tossed a pack of Wildberry Toaster Tarts to Teak who opened it and sniffed it curiously. "It's not poison. Packed with preservatives and things like that yes, but poison, nah."
Tak took a bite curiously and chew on it. This isn't toxic. Good to know. Seems human junk food is compatible with our systems... She thought as she ate the pastry tapping her foot. "Does Dib usually take awhile?"
"Yes." Gaz moaned. "DIB HURRY UP!" She yelled up the stairs.
"I'm coming." Dib said as he ran down the stairs with his messenger bag with a Swollen Eyeball logo on the side. His classmates just thought of it as a weird looking image plastered on his schoolbag but it was something that he used to show that anyone who may know of the Swollen Eyeball that he was a member. He had attached a kitschy patch he had gotten from a gift shop in Point Pleasant West Virginia that had an online Mothman fan site and swag so that other agents could identify him as Agent Mothman. To those uninitiated, it would look nothing more than just a souvenir patch on a bag.
"You ever going to actually go to Point Pleasant?" Gaz asked. "I see that stupid patch you got online so much."
"Yes, I will." Dib snapped back. "Summer after graduation, got a lot of time to do whatever."
"My sister wanted to tour Europe." Tak said. "After she graduated, but we moved and it messed with her plans."
"Oh, I didn't know that about Tenn." Dib said. "Guess I don't know much about your sister other than she's taking a gap year herself."
"Yeah." Tak said. "You know...it might be something you want to look into too." She blushed. "Maybe use it to see things you never have before." She then had a daydream of taking a ship, or building one and showing Dib all around the Universe Where the hell did that come from? She thought.
"I've toyed with that idea yeah..." Dib said as Gaz picked up her backpack and headed to the car, causing him to grab a pack of Toaster Tarts himself and head to the garage. "Guess Gaz is ready." He chuckled nervously.
"Miss Marshall will hate your patch." Tak laughed.
"Yeah." Dib smirked. "I am really liking that gap year idea..."
"You know Dad wouldn't be to happy with that." Gaz said as she sat in the back seat and Tak took the seat beside Dib.
"Yeah." Dib said defeated. "I'm sure I could think of some way to convince him to let me do that though."
"Good luck with that." Gaz sighed.
"I'd need it." Dib whispered to himself.
Tenn arrived at Membrane Labs in her disguise as a young woman with a nervous smile. She was early, something that would be seen in good etiquette by those looking to hire her. She knew her back story well. Tennessee Marie Irkan nanobiologist PhD recipient. She was going to wow them with her knowledge and the disguise. As much as she hated Tak saying so, her research had proved to be correct with what Tak suggested so she made sure to be subtly appealing to a man's more primal instincts. Something she was still uncomfortable with, but it was part of her job and sometimes was needed to do. Walking past the guard, she headed to the receptionist desk. "What do you want?" The gruff woman said as she spit in a cup. "Can't freaking smoke but I can chew here."
"Gross." Tenn said.
"Yeah...what you want to do about it?" She said. "I am contracted here for a few more months then I have a sweet pension to ride off of."
"Ummm... I'm Tennessee Marie Irkan and I have an interview at 11with Professor Membrane." She said with a little bit of nerves.
"Hmmmmmm...what's your degree?" The old haggered receptionist said.
"PhD in nanobiology." Tenn said simply.
"Oh. Well, at least you're not going to be my replacement that they ogle all day. I swear that's why they hardly talk to me. Scared of a beautiful woman." The receptionist said as she buzzed the lock. "Go to conference room C. That's where you will wait. You are expected. There's coffee and other drinks there you can have while you wait." She said.
"Thank you." Tenn smiled.
"Be careful. You're beautiful and they'll love that." The receptionist said as the door closed behind Tenn. She looked around, impressed at the size of the facility. It looked much bigger on the inside then it did on the outside and it was impressive when she looked in. So many labs all working on different aspects of science and technology. Tenn looked at them and figured she could get them working no sweat. They looked less complicated than things that Irken babies had played with, so she would be fine with any research she had to do. The toughest job would be to find some way to help bridge the gap between human knowledge and the minimum requirements it would to make the Irken replicas. But she could do that with time. Right now the assignment was just to get the job. Looking at the sign, she found her way to Conference room C and opened the door and sat down. "10:50 am...there's still time." She said as she saw the clock and got up and poured herself a cup of coffee. "What is this stuff?" She said as she took a sip and felt drowsy. "Oh no!" She whispered. "I don't need to sleep." She said as she laid back in the chair and closed her eyes.
Professor Membrane opened the door with the use of the Force he had recently invented to find Tenn in her disguise sleeping, with a spilled cup of coffee beside her. "Poor young lady." Professor Membrane said before any of his colleagues could say anything against her. "It must be overwhelming to just have the opportunity to be interviewed by me." He said as he walked over and shook her shoulder. "Doctor Irkan..." He began.
"Oh!" Tenn said. "Yes Doctor Tennessee Marie Irkan!" She jumped looking around. "So sorry..."
"It's nothing." Professor Membrane said with a smile. "I see you have gotten so used to coffee you fall asleep with it. Much like I did when I earned my PhD myself. And in nanobiology. A fellow scientist after my own heart." He looked at the mess when a little robot came by and mopped up the spill. "I'm cutting through the interview crap." Professor Membrane said looking at the rest of his team with a dark look. "You remind me so much of me, I can't not hire you. You start next Monday at 9 am."
"I do?" Tenn asked. "But don't you have to interview me?"
"Your degree says enough to your skill and seeing you in such a state with coffee at this point in your career reminds me of me." Professor Membrane said. "This is my lab and what I say goes."
"Thank you so much." Tenn jumped up.
"Go on." Professor Membrane said. "Here's a gift card to Bloat's. It's my children's favorite restaurant. Get you something delicious to celebrate and get ready to begin Monday when the new work week begins."
"THANK YOU!" Tenn said as she jumped up and hugged him running out.
"That easy?" Simmons asked as Tenn was out of earshot.
"I know how to read people." Professor Membrane said. "Same interests and coffee consumption habits in mid 20s. She will be invaluable to these labs."
"If you say so sir." Simmons sighed, knowing it was pointless to argue with Membrane when he was certain he was right.
"Yes, I say so. Membrane labs just gained a valuable asset." He smirked.
So how was that? Good? Bad? Short? Long? Let me know in a review. Honestly not much to say with this A/N, so remember to read, well you just did and to review. Ciao for now,
otherrealmwriter
aka
Realm.