Hello everybody! I hope you've been having a good time wherever in the world you are!

Fancykitty1123: He is! :3 Annnd he wasn't actually going to be in the plot until the end of the fic

aly rose: halelujah :D

Chapter 12

Bitters had nothing against Skoodge staying there as long as she didn't have to see him. So the hurt Irken got his own little makeshift bed in Dib's lab, which made Zim jealous so Dib had to make one for him too. Now he had two tiny Irkens practically living in his lab and while he tried to work, Zim would run around or gibber loudly to Skoodge. After about a day, gave Zim a calculator and told him to figure out what it did. It silenced him for about an hour before he ran up to Dib and stood on his lap.

"The call-cue-later does counting!" he exclaimed, raised hands and head held high.

"Good work Zim!" Dib said loudly," go explain how it works to your friend." And so Zim did, and the two Irkens were once again talking loudly in the native tongue. Dib wondered if he could learn their language, but shook his head when Skoodge made a very inhuman sound which Zim seemed to understand perfectly. He kept on typing in his report about Skoodge, hoping to get a better insight about the Irken race.

Skoodge was obviously just as intelligent as Zim, but didn't seem as... interested? Eager? about the various human things Zim would show him. Dib looked over to them. They were both in Skoodge's bed, while Skoodge was fingering on the calculator and Zim commented and pointed every so often. He couldn't place it ... it was just a feeling in his gut which told him that Zim was much more eager to learn than Skoodge. Or maybe it was simply because of Zim's so very exaggerated behavior which made Skoodge's quiet and careful ways to seem a lot less, well, exaggerated. Dib turned back to his report. Maybe it was all about different survival techniques.

Once he'd finished the report and looked up again, he found that Zim had gotten a screwdriver and opened up the calculator. It was broken forever. Oh well, it didn't really matter.

"Well, are you guys up for a snack?" he asked.

"Yes", Zim said and looked up expectantly.

"I'll just get something from the fridge then", Dib said and left. He could hear Zim talking to Skoodge.

He came back with a tray with a bowl of fruits and a jug of juice. Zim grinned and said something in his native tongue. If only he knew what they were saying. He felt like such an outsider.

...

"What are those?" Skoodge asked and indicated to the see-through things on Dib's tray.

"It's a glass. The Humans invented them because their tongues are so flat and short so they needed a tool to help them drink", Zim explained. When Dib put the tray down, Zim took one of the things and showed to Skoodge. He noticed that its inside was carved out. Zim poured some of the juice in it and held it up for Skoodge to see.

"Since they cannot reach the juice with their tongue, they invented this", he held the thing to his lips and put it upside down. The juice easily flowed down hit throat. "So they wouldn't thirst to DEATH!"

"That's great Zim!" Skoodge said, though he felt that having a short and flat tongue shouldn't be that much of a problem. Zim nodded.

"Yes, and I figured that out myself!" He grinned. Immediately Skoodge doubted the truth behind these things. He decided that it didn't mind and took a glass for himself, which Dib and already filled with the juice. At first he imitated how Zim had used the glass, but tilted it too much and spilled juice all over his face. Zim burst out laughing and Dib said something while he got a piece of soft fabric and rubbed it against Skoodge's face. Suddenly he was clean again! He decided to just use his tongue for drinking.

...

It didn't take as long as Zita had guessed for Skoodge's leg to heal. He could walk around easily in just a week and was happy to see the outside world again. He wanted to leave as fast as possible, too, much to Zim's puzzlement. They were both just outside the Piggie, and no Human had yet awoken.

"Why would you leave? Just look as all the AMAZING Human things!" he made some arm movements to show his point," they make things easier! Dib called it ... Ummm ... life hackers!"

"Yes, it's all very great, Zim. They have created many useful tools and they clearly know how to use them", Skoodge looked down," But it's all ... intimidating. It feels like they all look down at me for not knowing what all the things they know. I feel ... inferior."Zim's eyes widened and his antennae rose.

"That's not true! The Dib-"

"I'm not talking about Dib particularly. He's nice. I mean the rest of the Humans. Sometimes They would pass me and they would suddenly become defensive! It's like they think I'll attack them!" Skoodge exclaimed. "It's like they think of me as a savage." Zim scowled at him without saying anything for a long time.

"Pfffft! You are just being the careful little thing you are! Don't worry too much!" He finally said with a dismissive gesture. Skoodge shrugged.

"Maybe you're right. Anyway, they make me feel funny. I am not going to stay in their nest any longer. See you later, Zim," He smiled and left. Zim stood and looked after him, as it gradually got lighter around him and he could hear the Humans wake up inside. Finally he stuck his tongue out at the direction Skoodge had disappeared and went in.

He later entered the kitchen and jumped up the island, just a few inches from the letter M's knife. He was doing the pointless task of cutting vegetables into tiny pieces instead of simply eating them as they were. Zim would never understand why humans prepared so much before they ate.

"Hey! I'm cutting vegetables here! Be careful!" the human said. They'd stopped scolding him for standing on the island by now. Zim snatched a fruit and ran away, ignoring the letter M's shouts and calls.

The sleeping dorm was quiet. Only one was still asleep and it was Dib. Zim walked straight up to him. He sneaked up and stood on his sleeping chest. Dib laid on his back and slept with his mouth open. Skoodge said that the humans looked at him like a savage. Skoodge was the least savage Irken out there and for it was Dib's fault for not telling his comrades to be nicer! He weighted the fruit in his hand.

With all the force of a pissed off Irken, he shoved the thing into Dib face. The fruit exploded and spread its juicy contents all over Dib's face. Dib jumped, suddenly awake, his eyes on alert. It looked funny. It took some spooch-beats for the human to regain himself, but when he did, he glared fiercely at the Irken.

"What the fuck, Zim?! What's your problem?" He hiss-whispered. Zim simply fell on his back, lying on Dib's belly. Dib propped himself onto his elbows and looked at Zim with raised eyebrows. Zim put on his best snarl and glared back.

"I am not inferior to you!" He hissed through his teeth. Now the Dib's expression was down right confused.

"Off course you're not..." the boy trailed off. Zim turned his head away and closed his eyes. He wasn't about to talk to Dib now that he'd gotten to say what he wanted to say. There was a silent for a while before Dib grumbled and sat up. Zim fell off his belly with a yelp. He didn't have time to get up before Dib threw his blanket over him and rolled him up into a burrito.

"Dib, you-" He struggled to get loose, but Dib had already left and Zim could feel his steps heading towards the bathroom. Gaz snickered nearby. He stopped struggled and lay still inside the burrito, frowning. They were not inferior and the humans were not superior! Skoodge was just dumb and paranoid! He hid his face in the blanket. Dib still deserved that fruit-in-the-face thing though. For some reason.

Dib washed his face rid of the stinky fruit and scowled and the mirror. Zim was upset for some reason and he couldn't figure out why. He'd said that thing and it was kind of unsettling. Dib had personally never thought of Zim as inferior! He knew that Zita had thought Irkens were simply animals in the beginning, but she'd obviously changed her mind. He wasn't close friend with anyone else, so he didn't know what they though about it, but he wondered who could've made Zim say such a thing.

He shook his head and went back to his bed. Zim's antennae pointed out from underneath his blanket. Great, the was pouting. Dib sighed and sat down beside the Irken burrito.

"Okay, tell me what's the matter", he said and lifted Zim into a sitting position. The blanket fell off his face and landed on his shoulder. He scowled at Dib.

"Your face", he snapped. Dib groaned.

"Whatever! I didn't care anyway", Dib lied. It was a tactic that had worked in the past. Zim always spit everything out if he was told nobody cared. True enough, Zim lifted his chin and glared.

"Skoodge left. He said you were all stupid and ugly then left!" The Irken snapped.

"Oh. Well, that's nothing to get all pissed off over", Dib shrugged. He was sure those were not Skoodge's real words, so he didn't feel very offended. Still, something more must have happened for Zim to get all pouty over. "What more did he say?"

"Nothing! Nothing, and Zim is not pissed off!" Zim said and hid his face in the blanket. He wouldn't tell, so Dib sighed and laid down. It was too early to get dressed, but too late to go back to sleep. Plus, Zim had his blanket. At least it wasn't too early to talk semi-loudly.

"Whatever", he sighed and closed his eyes. "Hey, you sure he left?" It that was true then Dib could finally bring up the thing that he'd wanted to talk about ever since that storm started. Zim nodded, or at least, Dib thought the way the blanket moved might be him nodding. He took a deep breath and let it go. Maybe he should take this conversation some other time when Zim wasn't in this kind of mood. But then again, the 'perfect moment' wouldn't come. And hey, it wasn't the end of the world or anything.

"Say, Zim", he started," if I told you that we're leaving in just a few month, how would you react?" No one could tell whether Zim would get the hint or not, but Dib didn't think so.

Zim's antennae rose underneath the blanket, lifting the fabric where they were located. Though Zim didn't leave the covers.

"I would come with you", he stated, having apparently not taken the hint. Dib lifted his eyebrows in suprise.

"You would? Why?" He asked. His heart thumped at the thought. If Zim followed - well, it would be interesting, at least. As Zim ran out of air, his face poked forth and he sat up straighter and glared at Dib.

"Do not question me!" He hissed. Dib shrugged.

"Okay, okay, just curious, you know", he said. Zim huffed and looked at the ceiling. Dib fell backwards into his bed, laying across it on his back. He played with the thought of having Zim by his side on Vort. He could teach Zim about the machinery the Vortians were so proud about. Off course, Lard Nar and Sev En didn't seem to like Irkens, but that was just plain old prejudice, right? If they met Zim, surely they'd realize that not all Irkens were violent killer machines. He decided to call Vort and ask.

tbc

I don't really like this chapter :( It makes no sense

/Saga