Dlbn: Hello, everyone. Between work and wedding stuff, I have no time for anything anymore. But I have a ton of this written out, so chapters will keep coming as I get the time to update ^^"

Nbld: Review Corner! Thank you to Invader Johnny and Zim'sMostLoyalServant for reviewing! Cake for you both!

Invader Johnny: He does make an impression everywhere he goes, doesn't he? Good or bad impression, mostly bad, but an impression nonetheless. I think Zim still feels the sting but he wants to be strong for his friends because he knows they're hurting as bad as he is pretending not to be.

Zim'sMostLoyalServant: And with how Riot tends to play dirty, its going to be interesting. Thank you!

Disclaimer: I own the OCs that you recognize as OCs as not part of Invader Zim, and the plot. Anyone/thing canon to Invader Zim belongs to Jhonen C Vasquez. I don't own that stuff. I make no money off writing this.

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Zim wasn't about to tell anyone the majority of his plan just in case, but he wasn't surprised when Zayena brought it up when he was at her place later that night.

"Why are you asking?" Zim wondered. "It's about time we did something about this bullshit."

"No, I'm aware, Junior. Just…" She sighed. "I know how you fight. You fight hard, and you fight dirty. I don't want anyone hurt. They're only children."

"I'm not going to do anything violent." Zim stated. "They rigged our lockers with Jell-O, wrote on my desk, took the legs off my desk…if they want to sink to that level, I'll sink to that level. But I won't sink so far that I hurt a child."

"So what's your plan then?"

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"I'm not telling anyone."

"You told Gabe."

"I bullshitted."

"Liar. Tell me the truth."

"I am."

"If you think I'm going to fall for that, get the hell out of my house." She glared at him, folding her arms over her chest and smirking because she thought she won.

"You and I both know that's punishing you more than me." Zim stated. "I can get off on my own. You, not so much."

"Like you're the only guy around here who would take some if I offered it."

"Have you offered it?" Zim cocked an eyebrow.

"No!" She hit him with a pillow. "Do you think I'm a whore? Sheesh."

"No, not a whore."

She glared. "So why can't you tell me?"

"If they have any inkling of an idea that you might know something or might be close enough to me to get or give information, they'll use you against me." Zim stated. "Especially Caleb. You and I both know he'll threaten to ruin your reputation if it will get him ahead. I'm saving you, here."

Her gaze softened. "Thank you, Junior…" She slid down the bed and snuggled up to his chest. "I can't believe you're going to be thinking of me at a time like this."

There was a sort of sadness in her voice.

"Time like this?" He asked. "Did something happen that I need to know about?"
"No."

"Is something going to?"

"You're going to fight back. Instead of thinking about how to cover your own ass so you don't get caught, you're thinking of how to protect my ass so Caleb can't destroy me."

"People do some crazy shit when they're in love."

She blushed. "Yeah…" A gentle nip was placed at his neck. "Another round"

"My pleasure."

Zim almost jumped when Torque sat down in homeroom and let out an inhuman screeching growl. He held back his smirk as he turned to face the jock like everyone else had.

"What's wrong with you, Mr. Smackey?" Their homeroom teacher wondered.

"Someone put frigging tacks in my chair. Pin up!" Torque complained, brushing the tacks to the floor and sitting own as he rubbed his sore backside.

The teacher sighed, waving him off. 'Whoever did that, please don't do it again. I'd call I an accident, but a bunch of tacks don't accidentally all appear face up on a chair."

People went back to their conversations and whatever else they were doing.

"Well that was weird." Keef commented. "Who would do something like that to the king of the school of all people?"

"Someone with a death wish." Screamy called.

Everyone seemed to ignore him, a rare occurrence.

"Apparently so." Zim stated. "At least I know none of us would be stupid enough to do that."

"Yeah, none of you." Lahna rolled her eyes. "Fess up." She whispered.

"Nothing to fess to." Zim replied, doodling in one of his notebooks.

"Mm hm." She rolled her eyes.

"Hey, he says he didn't do it, who are we to not believe him?" Sila wondered, leaning back in her chair. "He's been with us all morning. Didn't have time."

"Then a janitor must really hate his ass." Lahna commented.

"Lahna!" Keef scolded.

Zim laughed. "I guess we'll never know, then, will we?"

A scream carried down the hallways as a fake spider jumped out of Jessica from her locker. Zim chuckled as he watched the blonde bat away the neon green plastic insect. It was obvious from the laughter around her that everyone else found it humorous, but that ended when Torque stormed through the crowd to make sure she was alright.

"Alright, who did it?" Torque practically roared, grabbing the spider and chucking it down the

hall.

No one answered, instead exchanging confused and worried glances at one another.

"Someone here did it, and someone here knows who it is. Fess up!" Torque ordered as Jessica began rubbing at the corner of her eye with a tissue.

Sill no one answered. Torque opened his mouth again, but the tenth-grade math teacher popped his head out of the classroom.

"Mr. Smackey, calm yourself." He scolded. "After what you and your friends have been doing to your fellow students as of late, it's not unwarranted."

Torque blushed bright red as Jessica slammed her locker and rushed towards the bathrooms with Zayena and Shraela at her heels. Zayena sent Zim a smirk that went unnoticed by the people around them as she passed. Torque huffed and stalked away with Dib and Rob at his heels.

"Loyal dogs." Zim muttered to himself as the crowds dispersed.

"First Torque, now Jessica?" Keef whistled. "Someone's got guts!"

"Gee, I wonder." Gabe rolled his head and fixed Zim with a level gaze.

"I wouldn't know how to break into her locker, Gabe. Don't look at me."

"Absent for the first one, unintelligent for the second one. Dude, you've got to have someone doing shit for you or some shit."

Zim smirked. "No one does shit for me, Gabe." He assured his friend. "I haven't done anything, and I certainly haven't gotten anyone else in on it. If I haven't done nothing, no one can help me do the thing I haven't done."

"You're lucky I've known you long enough to know what you're saying." Gabe rolled his eyes.

"I really hope it's not you, Zim." Keef stated. "Don't sink to their level. Please."

"Let him." Gaz snorted. "It's about time someone took them down a peg. Just sorry it wasn't me."

"I won't Keef. It's not me."

"Sure it isn't." Sila tipped his head back by the chin as she walked past him. "You might wanna rehearse that line later before they drag you to the Principal's Office on Torque's word alone."

"Yeah, yeah." Zim waved her off.

"Take her warning, Zim. I don't want you in trouble." Keef affectionately touched his arm before blushing like a madman and rushing off.

"I think he likes you." Aila commented.

"Of course, he does." Gretchen nodded. "Zim's a good friend."

"Romantically, doll."

"Oh!" She flushed. "Well, I don't know anything about that, but it wouldn't shock me. He's always been a bit more clingy to you than anyone else."

"I hadn't noticed." Zim stated. "I hope he doesn't. No offense to Keef, but I'm not into men, and I don't want to hurt him by rejecting him if he really does like me."

"If he does or doesn't, he won't tell you either way." Gretchen informed. "He's too afraid to lose you as a friend."

"That would never happen. Not the first friend of mine to come out about having a crush on me." He shrugged.

"I think all of Seoul is glad you're not into men, too." Lahna giggled. "Imagine how big your little black book would have to be. You'd need a ten-post bed instead of a four post one."

"Huh?" The jokes went over the heads of Melvin and the others.

"Nothing." Zim laughed. "I'd feel sorry for the world if I was bi, too. But I'm not. So, let's just go to class and stop talking about this."

On Zim's word alone, they parted ways. Once he was away from his friends, Zim couldn't help but smirk.