Disclaimer: IZ does not belong to me.

"Zim?"

Purple knocked lightly on the door again, attempting to get his offspring's attention. Beside him, Red rolled his eyes. The child had been behaving oddly lately, but this surely took the cake. Disobeying a direct order from his Paternal Units to open his room? Inconceivable! But then again, the young defect was certainly full of surprises...

After yet another unanswered knock, Red took over for Purple, "Zim, we're coming in! Don't even try to resist!" The door slammed open, and the two adult Irkens were greeted with a strange, yet not completely unexpected, sight. Gir was sitting on the floor, cracking open peanuts, and then eating the peanut shells, throwing the peanuts away. Both cocked their heads to the same side, confused. Then Red approached it, "Little defective robot?"

"Yes?" Gir looked up, smiling in a disturbing manner that didn't surprise Red in the least.

Red smiled as pleasantly as he could, "Where is Zim?"

Gir's grin seemed to get wider, if that was even possible, "Mastah left to warn Dibby about the aliens that killed his mom!" He then looked around widely, his smile completely fading, before leaned forward, prompted Red to lean forward too, and whispered in the taller Irken's ear, "But don't tell anyone. His parents aren't supposed to know," Then Gir pulled away and resumed his mad grin, "MY PEANUTS ARE SALTY!"

"That's nice," Red commented offhandedly, turning back to Purple. The Irken's worst fears were confirmed with not the scared look on his face, but the determination in his eyes, "Purple, no. We have to get off the planet-"

"But he's my SMEET!" The purple-eyed Irken exclaimed, as though he was being asked to give up his PAK.

Red sighed, "He's my offspring too, but-"

"Really?" Purple snapped, a long boiling anger being barely contained, "I hadn't noticed," and before Red could even comment on that, Purple climbed out the window, onto the front lawn, and sped across the road, gaining not one strange look from the neighbors. With a halfhearted sigh, Red picked Gir up by it's antenna and followed suit, again not gaining one strange look from the neighbors.

Dib stared down at the carpet, "Stupid Zim. Stupid G470-Blaster in D mode. Stupid Irkens. Stupid life!" Letting out a frustrated Sigh, Dib plopped back on the pillow. Gaz looked up from her game at him, obviously annoyed and unsympathetic.

"Wow, you figured out how I view you. Now shut up!" She then turned back to her game, the images dancing around in her eyes as her focus shifted back to her character and the enemies surrounding him.

Her brother shot up, staring daggers at his little sister, "Gaz our mom just died- no, was just murdered- and you're playing video games like nothing happened? How could you!" The game paused. Gaz stared up, her glare hard, and her brother realized his mistake moments before he was shoved violently into the wall.

"Listen, Dib," She said each word slowly and coldly, to make sure he got the message, "She was my mom, too. I miss her as much as you do. We just coop in different ways. And don't you dare insinuate that I don't care about her!" Slightly softer, she added, "Plus, you didn't need to freak out on Zim. He's the one being hunted, after all."

A weight crashed on Dib's shoulders, "I-I-"

"Is this a bad time?" Both children looked up to see a tall person standing in the doorway. He blinked nervously, wringing his three-clawed hands, bluntly ignorant to the differences between the three. Namely the green skin and purple, glowing eyes. Dib blinked.

"PURPLE! WAIT UP!" Another Irken appeared next to the first one, this one breathing harshly. From the way he was panting, one would be correct to assume he ran all the way here, "Tallest, Purple, why did you have to leave me behind?"

The first Irken, Purple, glanced unamused at his apparent partner, "I didn't leave you behind, you choose to follow me!"

"Well," The other Irken, whom Dib remembered as Red, held up a finger as if making a point, "You could have told the taxi driver to stop and pick me up."

"I didn't notice you," Purple smirked at his oh-so-clever retort.

Red glared, "How could you NOT notice me? I ran after you screaming and waving my arms!" He then stopped talking to cough, still too out of breath to talk. Purple rolled his eyes, but patted Red on the back anyways. Both Dib and Gaz backed away slowly.

"So, anyways," Purple continued, "We're here to pick up Zim. Is he here?" The Irken scanned the hotel room, as if he could spot Zim hiding somewhere.

Dib looked down guiltily, "I was just about to go looking for him. We had... an argument, of sorts, and he left. I was going to go look for him," Dib sighed, "I have no idea where he is right now."

"I do," Every eye in the room shifted to the sister of the Dib. If she was in anyway affected by the attention, she didn't let on at all, "Some green person shot him from behind and took east. Don't know where, though," Red looked automatically to Purple, who in turn looked ready to faint dead away. Dib paled, guilt and fear and paranoia all at once overwhelming his seven year old body.

"Oh man," Dib jumped up and started pacing, "Oh man, oh man, oh man. What are we gonna do? We can't go to the police," Dib frowned at the mere thought, "They'd turn you all over to the government. They're stupid, anyway. Alert the Irken military, maybe?"

"Can't," Purple had joined the pacing child, not really sure why he was doing this, but it looked calming, so he joined in, "Irk is light-years away. It would take months just to get one ship here."

The two were interrupted by a clearing throat, "We'll go after him ourselves," They both turned to Red, who had in front of him some sort of holographic computer around his wrist, "Not far outside of town is a signal from an Irken ship. It's faint, which means it's not on. We still have a chance to save him."

"So why are we still here?" Purple asked, "Let's go!" He ran out the door, before rushing back, an embarrassed blush on his face, "I, uh, don't know the way."

"Oh, give me that!" Gaz grabbed the computer from Red, earning a 'Hey!' in return, "It's not far from Dad's lab. I remember how to get there. Come on," She stared at Dib mockingly, "Or are you too chicken to save your only friend?"

Dib glared back, "Of course not! Lead the way!" Gaz walked out the door, the others still following behind her. Little did they know, a small smile had lit her face at her brother's response. Not that she'd ever let him know that, of course. If anyone ever found out she was proud of her older brother, she would have to kill them mercilessly.

...That includes you, reader. Be wary.

Shorter, mostly just filling the space b/w the capture and the rescue. Gir wasn't in the second part because Red got annoyed with him and turned him off. So there.