Usually at the morning ritual when the family members told their dreams, Zim never contributed. He never dreamed. But this morning was different. He had dreamed very vividly the night before. His mind wandered while robosister, as usual, recounted a lengthy dream, this one a frightening one in which she had, against the rules, been riding robomom's bicycle and had been caught by the Security Guards. The rest of the family listened and carefully discussed with robosister the warning that the dream had given.
"Thank you for your dream, robosister." Zim said the standard phrase automatically, and tried to pay attention while robomom told of a dream fragment, a disquieting scene where she had been chastised for a rule infraction she didn't understand. The rest of the family agreed it probably resulted from her feelings when she reluctantly dealt punishment to the citizen who had broken the major rules a second time. Robodad said that he had had no dreams.
"Zim?" robomom asked.
"I had the strangest dream last night," Zim told them. "Good," robodad said. "Tell us."
"There were long metal arms wrapping around the earth. They were coming out of a purple, green weird looking house."
"What were you doing about it?" asked robomom.
Zim looked at his plate."I was at the top, laughing like a crazy person." he paused. "I felt so happy and full of pride, like I did something really great and amazing." He looked up at his "parents". "That's all,"
"Thank you for your dream, Zim," robomom said after a moment. She turned to robodad
"Robosister," robodad said "it's time to leave for school. Would you like to walk beside me this morning and keep an eye on Gir?" Zim got up and began to prepare for school.
"Wait, Zim," said robomom, "we need to talk about your weird dream." Zim sank back into his chair. "Zim, that dream on you happily taking over Earth, you're having a mental breakdown. It rarely happens. But it starts out with strange dreams."
"Do I have to report it?" Zim asked
Robomom laughed. "You did, in the dream-telling. That's enough."
"A...mental break down, what's the treatment?" Zim asked
"You take these special pills." she replied. Suddenly Zim recalled one time when going to school with Keef, both of them on bikes, when Keef's father had called from their dwelling doorway, "You forgot you pill, Keef!" Keef groaned and turned back. Zim swallowed the small pill robomom gave him.
"That's all?" he asked
"That's all," she replied, returning the bottle to the cupboard. "But you mustn't forget. I'll remind you for the first week, but then you must do it on your own. If you forget, your mental break down will continue. The dreams of a mental breakdown will come back. Sometimes the dosage must be adjusted.
"Keef takes them," Zim confided.
"It is very rare, but a few others may have it too."
"How long will I have to take them?"
"Forever as long as you're alive. But I am sure it will soon become a routine after a while and you won't pay much attention to it anymore." She glanced at the clock. "If you leave right now, you won't even be late for school. Hurry along. And thank you again, Zim," She said as Zim went to the door, "for your dream."
Pedaling rapidly down the path, Zim began to feel oddly sick to his "stomach" from taking the pill, but he ignored it. He remembered the dream. For some reason he really liked it.