81: Masquerade

His disguise had never been a good one. Still, except for Dib and maybe his little sister Gaz, no one looked through it. Sometimes, Dib wondered how it was even possible to NOT see through the crappy outfit. Also... Dib thought that the alien was better off without any disguise. His large, magenta eyes were much too expressive to be hidden behind those ugly lenses. When they were alone, the masquerade was unneeded. They preferred each other without disguises and the masks that both of them showed the world.

82: Don't Make a Sound
„Shh!" Zim hissed, pressing his body against Dib's and his hand over the human's mouth. He pushed them into a tiny niche in the pink, metal wall, feeling his companion comply at once. A pair of soldier drones were patrolling the ship's machine rooms, coming dangerously close to their hiding spot. Gloved fingers pressed Dib's lips closed for good measure, unable to hide Zim's own nervousness. Though, even without the reminder, the human was completely silent. All that was heard was the quiet hum and buzz of the machinery around them. And the steps of the soldiers approaching. If they were found out, they were dead. Only after the footsteps had faded and they were left with the silent sound of the machine room again, they relaxed a little. „Don't make a sound." Zim mouthed, making his ally nod. Only two more of those rooms and they'd reach the ducts that would lead them to their destination. The Tallest's private quarters. Until then, complete silence was their only chance for survival.

83: Cold

How he hated the winter season. This planet's weather changed so much between summer and winter, it was annoying. Especially since his body wasn't made to compensate the terrible freezing temperatures during this season. His race was able to withstand very high temperatures, but the cold was horrible. All the more, he was thankful for his human companion. The Dib proved to be quite useful. Humans, as Zim had learned, or at least this human, possessed an impressive body heat. And the Dib was so eager to share it, too. No heater would ever match the comforting warmth he felt whenever he pressed his – and he hated to admit it – smaller body against the strong, warm, human one. The delicious heat seeped right to his very core and, being buried in a cocoon of plush comforters and warm skin, he found the winter season wasn't all that bad anymore.

84: Umbrella
Looking back, it might have been the very first, tentative step from being enemies to becoming friends. Pouring rain, an impressive thunderstorm and an alien in disguise, cowering at the skool's front door in hopes the rain would stop soon. Before either of them even know what was happening, the human had pushed the umbrella into the gloved, three-fingered hands and run off with his leather coat pulled over his head.

85: Please

It was everything he heard now. All around him, screaming, screeching in his ears. Please... please... please... save us, spare us. He had grown tired of it. And he took his pleasure in silencing those screams. It was ecstatic. The silence that followed was ever so sweet.

86: To and From
„What will we do now?" Zim asked, hugging closer to his mate's warm chest. „I don't know... does it matter?" Zim looked up at those golden eyes. „Doesn't it?" he seemed a little confused. Dib just smiled softly, calmly. „It really doesn't... the to and from. Where we're going to, where we came from. We're here. We're alive. It doesn't matter where we're going. It'll all be ours. We'll go where we want." Pressing his cheek against the warm skin again, Zim nodded. It was true. They'd go where they'd go, and that would be it.

87: Say When
Dib couldn't remember why they had started drinking, but they had. Zim had a similar tolerance to alcohol as he did, so the game was fair. „Say when.." Dib slurred, pouring his alien partner yet another glass of wine, using both hands to keep the bottle steady in his unsteady grip.

88: On Top of the World
The top of the world. That's where they were, looking down on something that would soon be gone. Soon, nothing would be left of this place but their memories. Both of them were on top of the world and marveling at the beauty of it all, while at the same moment condemning it to extinction without so much as a second thought.

89: Forgiveness
Zim thought forgiveness was sweet. Much, much sweeter than most of the victories he had achieved. Each kiss and each „I forgive you" sent warm shivers down his spine. And each time he decided to forgive one of the things the Dib asked forgiveness for, he felt something lift from his weary mind. They sat comfortably on the round, irken bed, naked, with Zim comfortably straddling Dib's crossed legs. After the first, awkward confessions and wanting to make up for the worse things they had done to each other, they relaxed, not wanting this new intimacy and fidelity for each other to end so soon. It became more and more playful, until they started apologizing for each and every time they had glared, or called each other names. And every forgiveness was accompanied with a warm kiss and gentle, whispered words.

90: Mr. Mom
As he stood there, one smeet in his arms, suckling away on a bottle, rocking the other's crib with his foot, Dib thought he must look more like a mother than Zim ever had. The headband and cooing noises he made probably didn't help the picture, either. Still... the leader of the most powerful empire and largest army in existence found... he didn't care how he looked. His family was more important than his pride.

91: Doomsday Clock

Time was running out. Dib stared at the irken numbers as they changed, announcing the state of preparation of the sweeper cannons. For such a large planet, they needed a lot of energy. And since the new Tallest was known to actually think more than five minutes ahead, he told his Armada to prepare properly. To make sure they would not run out of energy and that all energy spent could easily be compensated. They couldn't afford to be vulnerable for even mere minutes. The clock was ticking and life on earth lived through its last minutes. Dib brushed his fingers over the large, purple button. Soon...

92: Gold
On earth, there was a rare metal. Gold, the humans called it. Zim had seen a few pieces of jewelery and knick-knacks made of said metal. It was yellow colored, with tints of red, silver and brown. It possessed a certain beauty, with the reflected colors and a warm yellow glow. When he looked closely, which he did too much, lately, he would find tiny golden specks in the warm honey color of his human's eyes. When the light hit the iris just so, they would sparkle like polished orbs of gold.

93: Unstoppable
Even with all the twitchiness and inanity that dominated his exterior, Dib wasn't fooled. He knew, inside, the alien was frighteningly intelligent and cunning. Once they got over the bugs in his PAK that caused Zim to be a complete spaz, he would be unstoppable. Smiling, Dib fixed another, minor error in the PAK's programming, helping Zim to become even more of a menace than before.

94: Race

They played like kids. Their newfound freedom allowed them to indulge themselves in all the childish pleasures they wanted. Like racing each other. A voot cruiser race was refreshingly simple and enjoyable, while still giving both mates the thrill of competition. Zim was the better and more experienced pilot, while Dib came up with more tricks and maneuvers.

95: Time is Running Short

Zim was antsy. He ran past Dib for what had to be the twentieth time, carrying half-organic, half-technical -ooking material and occasionally a few snacks to the smallest room in the underground lab. He was building a nest. The human felt useless, unsure what to do. He had tried offering help with carrying things, but his pregnant mate had only hissed at him and told him he'd only be in the way. This nesting the irken was preparing for was quite curious. Zim would have to finish a nest before the last stage of his pregnancy started. He had warned Dib that he would not be able to go near him. His „maternal" instincts would kick in and anyone coming too close to the nest, including his own mate, would be attacked mercilessly. Time was running short and Dib was left to stand uselessly in the corridor, sighing, while he watched Zim rush around in his pregnant state.

96: Not Over Yet

„It's not over yet..." Dib whispered, breath puffing against the cool glass-like barrier seperating him from his father's prison. His eyes were wide, crazed, mouth twisted into a cruel, face-splitting grin. „You'll watch it all, the sweep, the destruction and the whole time, you will know you could have stopped this!" The professor dropped to the simple pallet, having no more strength left to stand, unable to look at his son any longer. How had it come to this...? Where had he gone wrong to create such a monster?

97: This is Home

With his head resting in his mate's lap, children cuddled to his chest and napping, Dib was content. Without wanting to admit it, he had been scared. Scared of feeling homesick, of missing his home, his race, his planet. But he didn't. He was with the beings that were important to him... that he was important to... and he felt more at peace than ever before. This here, right now, this was home.

98: Almost

As he watched the carnage before him, Zim almost felt something akin to pity. Almost. He cringed a little when his mate buried both hands in twitching, irken flesh, but at the same time, he felt an overwhelming sense of satisfaction watching the scene before him. His Tallest were getting what they deserved. The brutal way in which it was happening made his newly developed parental instincts kick in a bit. He almost felt pity... but only almost.

99: Tranquil

In all of his 28 years life, Dib had never felt such peace before. As he lay on his back in the darkness, he watched the stars around him twinkle and glint, barely giving off any light, just enough to be noticed. It was dead silent here, not a single sound made its way past the invisible barrier around the cupola of the Massive. It was as if he was floating in the nonentity of space and nothing mattered anymore. All his battles were done, all the fights won and all duties fulfilled. All the buzz of his chaotic thoughts had calmed. Now, he could just... be. The universe around him filled him with the same black silence that was itself and it felt good.

100: Peace at Last

All their battles had been won. The universe was theirs. And among their people, mixed from scores of different species, they were respected and looked up to. Respect. Honor. Being accepted. Being one of their people. Having a family. It all had become true for them. After all the hardships and all the chaos... they could finally have peace.