Here's chapter two. Thanks to all those who reviewed the first chapter! Please enjoy!

Unfortunately for Zim, negotiating where he would be staying in Tak's base during their truce had never come up in the offer. So, it was no surprise to him that he was locked up in a holding cell. He was alone most of the time, with only the female's scent to keep him company (and drive him insane).

He would see her every now and then, though. She would bring him food and sustenance. Occasionally she would come and ask him if it was too cold or warm in the cell, which Zim found a little strange. It was always a constant temperature throughout the base. Other times, she would come and lean against the wall outside the jail with her eyes shut, seeming to be deep in thought. After a while, she let herself slide to the floor and draw her legs up to her chest, resting her forehead on her knees as if to hide her face from Zim. Sometimes she would sit there for hours, keeping quietly to herself, and then suddenly get up and leave, all without uttering a single word.

The first few times she sat silently with him, Zim had tried talking to her. Anything he said seemed to fly right over her head. Even if he got angry at her for ignoring him, she still remained silent and unfazed. After several tries, he gave up attempting to converse with her and sat in his own silence.

During his time alone, he began to wonder how he had fallen into this whole mess in the first place. He had always believed he never needed anybody. Getting close to people was a waste of time and effort, especially if you were in the elite ranks of the Irken military. Everything was just fine until she came along.

Until she came along the second time, he reminded himself. Their very first encounter years ago hadn't drawn them to each other because back on Irk, it was nowhere near a mating season. Bad choice of timing was part of the problem. The other part was due to the fact that he was an Invader. Most Irkens, especially those close to home, were given a special sedative when they came of age which targeted certain hormones and reduced the response to others of the opposite sex. This helped many young Irkens to stay focused during mating seasons and kept the population in check. Irkens in training to infiltrate and conquer reached the rank of Invader before they were biologically ready to breed. This meant Invaders were usually exempt from carrying the hormone treatment in their paks since they would be spending most of their lives on assigned worlds or solo missions, separated from other Irkens for great periods of time.

And there was not supposed to be more than one Invader on one assigned planet at a single time.

Though Zim still wondered why Tak was acting as if she didn't have the hormone treatments since it was clear that she never officially reached the title of Invader (thanks to him). He figured she must have ridded herself of everything that made her a drone before coming to Earth, including throwing out the sedative. Not a wise choice he thought. This is all her fault.

Try as he might to stay angry at her, he couldn't help but feel a small relief whenever she visited him. Despite being locked up, he seemed content when she was there.

On his fifth day of being stuck in the cell, Zim attempted to speak to Tak again during one of her quiet appearances. "This isn't much of a truce, you know," he started. "Keeping me prisoner like this...I'm beginning to go crazy in here." He tilted his head to watch for a reaction. Tak remained silent, just as she always did.

Zim sighed, already giving up. "Well, at least you're close to me. I don't feel as anxious anymore."

He shut his eyes, breathing in deeply. He inhaled, letting her scent surround his senses. The knowledge that she was only several feet away kept him relaxed. He was slowly sinking into bliss. The world around him would have vanished if he hadn't noticed the forcefield to the cell's entryway shut down with a low buzz. Startled, he stood and turned his attention to the other Irken, who hadn't moved an inch except for the mechanical leg that reached to turn the energy field's switch off.

Zim examined Tak carefully from inside the cell. She was sitting on the floor of the hall as always, with her legs drawn into her body, her hands resting on her knees, and her head kept low. Warily, Zim began walking towards her. His body went on edge for any sign of attack or ambush. Nothing seemed to readily catch his attention so he continued on until he was only a few feet from her. His breath caught in his throat when she spoke.

"I don't know what else to do," she murmured.

Something inside Zim smiled. It was the first time he heard her talk in days. When he was sure she wouldn't attack him, Zim knelt down in front of her, carefully taking her hands from her knees into his own. Tak lifted her head slightly at the touch, surprised that he had got so close.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Zim said softly, gently massaging her hands. "You're muscles are tense," he said, scooting closer to her and noticing the stiffness in her arms. "You're more of a wreck now than I was a few days ago."

There was a small grin in his words. Tak kept her gaze on her hands in his, never looking at Zim's eyes. "That feels nice..."

Zim smiled at the small comment. "You need to rest," Zim said, "I don't think you've had much sleep."

He was surprised when Tak laughed. "Why are you so concerned about me now?" she said. "You've never shown this kind of interest before." She stared at the other, scolding him. "You would never ha-"

Zim kissed her before she could continue. He pulled back slowly, enjoying having finally made contact with her. The words he didn't want to say forced their way out of his throat. "I want you."

Tak could feel her fist trembling with the urge to punch his eye out, but a second kiss from him made it cease. Waves of warmth went flowing through her body when Zim held on longer, kissing her deeper. Despite her head's screaming protests, Tak gave in and felt every muscle, tendon, and ligament inside her relax. It was as if something had snapped. The huge gaping hole that refused to be ignored over the past days was suddenly filled. The last place she wanted to be right then was the chilling void where thousands of whispers had been telling her to go to him. It was over. The voices had finally died away with the simple contact. Somehow, she couldn't have been happier.

When Tak drew in a breath, Zim moved down to her neck, softly nipping at the flesh there. After a while, he felt her breathing become steadier and her arms fell to her sides. Zim turned his attention away from her neck and took the side of her face in his palm, studying her.

"You need to rest. You're about to fall asleep right here." Zim stood up slowly, pulling Tak with him by her arms and forcing her to stand. "I'll take you to your quarters."

Tak silently nodded, stepping ahead to show him the way. Zim walked with her down several corridors. The two stepped into an elevator and went a level down, finally coming to a small living area. There were two rooms, a bedroom and a cleaning room. Invaders didn't usually require much, only the necessities. This was more or less the same layout Zim had at his own base.

Tak left Zim's side and made for the circular bed near the far wall of the sleeping area. He wasn't quite sure what it was, but something held Zim in place at the doorway. Tak sat on the edge of the bed, glancing at him curiously before pulling her legs up over the side and saying, "You can come in," as she laid down.

Zim slowly walked into the room. It took him slightly longer than it should have to reach the bedside. He looked down at the female Irken who was curled into a ball, slipping into a heavy sleep. Zim grabbed one of the blankets folded to the side and draped it over her form.

It was quiet except for Tak's steady breathing. Zim glanced around at nothing, not quite knowing what he should do next. He looked over his shoulder at Tak. Apparently, she now trusted him enough to fall asleep with him loose in her base.

He hadn't meant to kiss her. He wanted to get close to her and something took over when he got a little too close. He enjoyed it though. It was nice, he thought. And not the destruction kind of nice, it's a different kind of nice. It was one he had never felt before.

-----

Zim wandered through the corridors of Tak's base. He was careful not to stray from the halls he had already seen. He didn't want to run into any unpleasant traps that might be waiting to ensnare intruders. An hour or so ago, he'd awoken next to Tak, who was still sound asleep. He remembered laying down beside her, though he didn't quite recall when he dozed off.

He had woken up hungry. He had yet to get his daily rations from Tak. So he went off to explore the base, hoping he'd find where she kept her food stores. He was lucky enough to find a small kitchen not far from the main corridor. Rummaging through the different cabinets and containers, he found a few varieties of Irken breads and jellies. It wasn't meat or a warm meal like Tak usually brought him but it suited the Irken for the time being.

When he was satisfied, he continued walking through the halls, gnawing on a chewing bone. He'd found a package of them with the bread and decided to take one for himself. It had been a while since he had one and he knew his teeth could use the polishing.

He found a lab room and spotted a console chair to sit down in. He forced the chair to tilt back a bit with his legs, twirling the bone in his mouth as if it were a lollipop. Zim set his elbow on the arm of the chair and rested his head with his knuckle. "Now what?" he muttered to himself. He set his foot firmly against the front panel of the console, using his leg to rock the chair back and forth. The bone was almost gone. It was just a stump now in his mouth. He maneuvered it to a deadly place between his teeth and bit down on it, shattering it to tiny pieces with his powerful jaw muscles.

He could do the same thing to the Dib-human's neck if he wanted to. He grinned evilly at the idea. Irkens usually kept their natural predatory behaviors hidden but sometimes those qualities could be very useful. Zim played with the thought in his mind. He ground what he could of the bone into even smaller particles and swallowed them.

Then he smelled something. Zim turned in his chair to the doorway, waiting for Tak to appear. Spotting him as she was passing by, Tak altered her course and entered the lab, her eyes fixed on him.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

Zim watched her as she came toward him. "Just sitting here. Don't worry. I haven't spied or sabotaged anything," he said with a smirk. Zim stood up and quickly closed the space between them. He stopped a few feet in front of her. "Are you feeling well?"

Tak wanted to step backwards from him. "I'm fine," she replied quietly. Zim brushed her arm with his fingertips. There was a pleasant scent surrounding him. It drew Tak towards him until she was close enough to feel his breath on her face. Their foreheads softly collided when Zim embrace her with his arms. Tak saw that he was smiling.

Tak gripped his shoulders in an attempt to keep him at bay. "What's going on Zim?"

Zim nuzzled the side of her face. "I enjoy being close to you." He started nipping at her neck again, pulling her against him.

Even though she was enjoying the touch, Tak tried to resist him. "I don't think we should be doing this."

Zim looked at her, puzzled. "What do you mean?"

Tak felt his hold on her slack and she stepped away from him. "You and me. We're not supposed to like each other..."

"Why not?"

Tak stared firmly at him. "You said it wouldn't go far."

Something in Zim writhed in irritation. "I don't think this truce even started. You kept me locked up for days."

"And maybe I should put you back in there!" Tak snarled back at him.

Zim glared. "I don't want to start a fight with you Tak." He let a sigh escape him. "Maybe I should just leave. It seems you never wanted me here in the first place."

He made his way towards the door. To get there meant passing by Tak. She grabbed him by the arm, digging her claws into his skin. "I didn't say you could leave the base," she growled.

"Then I'll go someplace away from you." Zim pulled his arm free, feeling her cut shallow marks into him with her claws as he did so, and exited the lab. He strode down the corridor looking for an elevator. He was angry, though somewhere inside he didn't want to leave her. He mentally told his inner thoughts to shut up for once, entering an elevator and going down a level.

When the doors opened he realized where his feet had taken him. He was now in Tak's personal quarters. Shrugging he went over to the circular bed and sat down. His shoulders sagged. Zim shut his eyes and tried to make himself calm. Laying on his side, he wondered how everything had fallen apart. She doesn't really want anything from you. It's all your head. It's all in both of your heads. It's just your body talking, Zim. You would never think twice about destroying her if you had the chance. Would you?

The pillows and fabrics of the bed were still laden with Tak's scent. All ideas of hating Tak left his train of thought, leaving his mind a blank. Turning his head into the cushions, Zim breathed in softly, taking in every last trace of her that he could. Maybe she isn't so bad... The pleasant odor lulled him to sleep. He only just began to feel himself doze off when something heavy sat on top of him.

Startled, Zim twisted his body around as best he could only to find Tak looming over him. He heard a threatening growl deep in her throat.

"You're not leaving until I say you do."

Zim could only gulp before she went down on him, pressing her mouth roughly against his.

-----

Tak allowed Zim to leave several days later. He wasn't exactly sure why she did, but he took his chance and told her he would be off. He didn't really want to abandon her, though for some reason going back to his own base felt like a good idea. So he left Tak with only a simple kiss goodbye.

After that, Zim went back to his daily routines. He started work on his halted plans for conquest. He made his way to and from the local school with Dib chasing him around the city whenever the human got a chance at it. Everything appeared to be normal again. The only thing missing was Tak. Zim had heard not a word from her since their departure.

Weeks after Zim had left Tak's base, Dib had cornered the alien out near the school's ball courts one day during the lunch break, throwing his usual taunts at the Invader.

"When are you gonna tell me what evil plan you were working on all those days you were gone, huh Zim? Huh? Huh!? Huh!?"

Zim only growled in annoyance. "As if I would reveal anything to you, Stinkbeast!" The thought of wrapping his jaws around the human's neck suddenly returned and it seemed like a very good idea at the moment.

Dib gave Zim the best glare he could manage. "You can't hide anything from me for long Zim! I'll find..."

Dib stopped in his tracks when he noticed a figure approaching them. At first he didn't recognize the dark blue-haired girl. Once she got closer, he realized that she wasn't human at all.

"Tak!?" He then turned his sights back on Zim in an accusing look. "So this is what you've been up to? The two of you have been concocting some evil scheme to take over the Earth!"

Zim only looked warily over at the female, no longer interested in listening to Dib. The human was about to snap the Irken out his daze when Zim suddenly spoke. "Tak...it's nice to see y-"

Before Zim could finish his sentence, his face was met with Tak's fist in a punch that sent him to the ground. With a pained grunt, he stared up at the female Irken, bewildered at what she had done. Tak walked away from the two without saying a word.

Dib finally came out of his own shock and stared down at the alien. The human was having trouble suppressing a laugh. "You probably deserved that," he snickered.

Zim pulled himself up, rubbing his face with his hand. "I probably did."

Dib ceased his barely controlled laughter at Zim's reply, surprised by the remark. "What does that mean?"

Zim only gave him an empty glare, heading back to the school building as the bell rang.