A/N: Okay PSA this is not an action packed chapter! Sorry but my peoples have been through enough, let them have some fluff and character development before all hell breaks loose later.

Zim angrily grabbed the closest object and threw it against the monitor, shattering it to pieces.

"Oh that was smart!" Computer said dryly

"SHUT UP!!!!" Zim shrieked

"Zim calm down, you were going to face him anyways" Gaz said

Zim huffed and held Gaz tightly startling her. He gulped slightly and growled "Gaz… I need you to leave, go back to your father's house and tell him everything that's happened alright?"

"Zim?" She asked looking up at him confused.

"I appreciate your assistance Gaz…you're brilliant...you really are, but right now I NEED to prepare and being in your presence makes it difficult" he explained through harsh breaths.

He released her from his grip and turned away from her quickly. She stared at him for a moment, concerned seeing his demeanor change completely. She didn't want to leave him like that but also didn't know what to do. He just gripped his tools hard and breathed heavily leaned over the machinery.

"Alright Zim I'll go now…see you later?" She asked.

Zim was silent for a moment almost as if he had forgotten how to speak, he swallowed hard "Yes Gazlene… later"

Gaz sighed and went into the elevator, reluctantly leaving Zim behind. Her mind flashed back to when she found him beaten and half dead years ago, he had come so far since then but in an instant he became that broken Irken soul all over again.

Zim stayed in place and tried to regulate his breathing. He grabbed more tools and threw them at the wall in frustration, creating dents, holes and sparking wires in result. He grabbed his antennae hard and yelled incoherently.

"Are you done yet? Drama queen?" Computer laughed

Zim started to calm down slightly but still struggled to get his breathing back to normal.

"Very… funny...Computer! Tell Mini Moose and Gir to get down here!" He gasped

"Ok Zim seriously what is wrong with you? Are you so stupid that you forgot how to breathe?" Computer asked

Zim rasped again "Maybe...I… I don't know what's wrong with me honestly"

"Scanning now!" Computer shouted and scanned Zim

"It seems you are having a panic attack Zim, I recommend entering hyper sleep mode and charging your Pak immediately" Computer replied

"I don't have time for sleep! Or charging!" Zim shouted.

His antennae began to ring and his vision became blurry. He still struggled to regulate his breathing. Gir and MiniMoose came running to him.

"MASTER! WHYYY do you look like you've eaten too many waffles?"

"Nyah!?"

Zim's vision became black and he stumbled backwards, almost falling before he caught himself.

"The hell is happening to me? I have no reason to be freaking out this badly! I have trained for this while those bastards have done nothing but lay around on a couch! Why? I have no reason to fear them anymore!" He internally fought with himself.

"Master? Master? Hiiii master! Are you there?" Gir screamed happily.

Zim gasped more and more and knelt down holding his head, being poked at by Gir all the while. Mini Moose floated away and the computer gave Zim another scan to check for PAK damage.

"Strange… your PAK has never been better and yet you're still struggling… slow your breathing" he ordered

"I've….been...trying!" Zim rasped

"Calm down! Getting upset won't help!" Computer yelled.

Zim couldn't hear him anymore though, he felt that feeling from before, like he was drowning in a sea of darkness. The world around him was a black distorted blur, the only thing he could hear is the pounding of his own heart and his rapid breaths. He couldn't even hear Gir anymore. He felt trapped, like he was suffocating, but then he felt warmth by his chest, another heart beat against his.

Warm hands took his claws, his breathing became more steady, the darkness slowly faded away revealing blurs of purple, silver, and cyan around him. He was pulled into a tighter embrace and sighed deeply returning the embrace of who he was sure was the same woman who had saved him from destruction before. He ran his claws through her hair while trying to come back to reality, for some reason this always soothed him knowing she was there and willingly staying by him despite his many flaws.

"Sorry… but I couldn't leave you...not like that" she whispered.

"Cuddle time! Hee hee" Gir squealed

"Nyah…"

Zim's eyes flickered a bit and soon his vision became clear. Gaz was snug against him and holding him tightly, Gir was hugging both of them and nuzzled his master's face and Mini Moose nuzzled the other side of Zim's face. For a split second Zim could've swore he felt the metal claw from the computer on his shoulder before it swiftly retracted back into the wall.

"Nyah nyah!" Mini Moose squeaked

"You're right, it is like old times" Gaz said

Zim's eyes widened and he looked at Gaz surprised. "You understood that?" he asked.

"Yeah while you were gone his weird little sounds just became clear to me all of a sudden" she explained.

"Interesting…" he said aloud.

Gaz got up slowly and stretched before turning to Zim and extended her hand to him "I know you want to work, but I believe you need a break, come upstairs and we'll all watch a movie or something" she suggested.

"MOVIE!!!!!" Gir cheered

"Nyah!!!"

Zim took her hand and got up with a displeased face.

"I told you to leave Gaz… when I'm in that state of mind I can't control myself" he admitted looking down

"What if I hurt you?" He muttered softly.

Gaz scoffed "Please Zim, YOU hurt me? Don't make me laugh"

"I'm serious Gaz!" He held both of her hands and looked deep into her eyes "Listen…if I ever, EVER try to hurt you...I want you to kill me, that would mean I am NOT in my right mind! I would throw my PAK on the ground and smash it to smithereens before I hurt you, do you understand?" He stressed

Gaz looked at him anxiously, it had been a while since she had seen him this way, so serious and full of fear. She didn't want him to worry anymore so despite her need to retort she just bit her lip and nodded her head in agreement. He slowly released her hands and sighed

"Good, besides I hate it when you see me in these moments of weakness Gaz" he said.

She cupped his cheeks and brought his face to hers "Hey we've gotten through these issues before and we will continue to do so, I'm not going anywhere, however…"

"What?" He asked with a muffled voice.

"It might help if you actually finally told me what happened? Get it off your chest?" She suggested letting his face go.

Hearing the word chest, caused Zim to painfully groan as he remembered the stinging and burning pain from having his chest torn open years ago. Glimpses of the memories of being strapped to that table and having his ribcage broken appeared before him. He gasped and almost fell back again before Gaz caught him. They looked at each other for a minute before Gaz kissed him softly on the forehead and gently stroked his face.

"Maybe not right now, but whenever you're ready, now let's go upstairs you literally have months to prepare a couple hours of downtime won't kill you, but the stress might," she said gently.

She turned away and started walking

"Come on guys! Let's watch the new Mortal Kombat movie," she said.

"Yaaaaaay! I like it when that guy kicks the air like a chicken!" Gir squealed and ran past her.

Zim grumbled a little but followed her and his minions out the lab "They better not butcher this one like they did Annihilation!" He growled.

Membrane House

The Professor worked diligently for hours on the new PAK transferring device he had in mind. Dib tapped his shoulder gently making Membrane turn around swiftly knocking Dib down in the process.

"Not now Son! I've almost got it!" He shouted.

"Dad it's 1 am! I promised Gaz I wouldn't let you work so hard!" Dib yelled.

Membrane gasped and looked to the clock "Oh my! I suppose this can wait until tomorrow then" he said dejected and yawned.

Tak was working on a new weapon in the corner of the lab and was making progress herself before Membrane's voice startled her suddenly

"I'm shutting down the lab! Does your alien friend need a ride home?" He asked wearily

Tak looked to Dib hesitantly "I think...we should go to Zim's house" she said through gritted teeth.

"Not now Tak! Gaz is most likely sleeping and if we wake her up she will most likely kill us both!" Dib screamed

Tak groaned "I suppose we can go back to my base in the meantime… though it's not as extravagant as the last time I was here"

"Why… Don't you just stay here tonight?" Dib asked with a strained voice, avoiding eye contact.

Tak rolled her eyes "I'm an Irken I have no need for sleep! If I'm at my base I can continue my work-"

"Just because you don't need sleep doesn't mean you shouldn't… For example I don't need cookies but I still enjoy eating them" Dib interrupted.

Tak looked at him confused "You are a strange one Dib, fine if you insist I will try this "sleeping" thing you speak of" she laughed.

They all left the lab and headed upstairs. The Professor went straight to bed and Dib and Tak stared at each other awkwardly in the living room. Dib cleared his throat and moved his eyes back and forth from Tak and the couch, hoping she would take the hint. She didn't she just looked at him and tilted her head confused.

"You can sit on the couch Tak and I'll get us something to eat! Are you hungry?" He asked nervously.

"I am Irken Dib! I don't have to eat! My PAK provides me with nutrients" she said irritated, grinding her teeth. She did sit on the couch and stare at the blank television in front of her.

Dib looked at her and frowned seeing how annoyed she was. However a smile came to his face as he got an idea. He turned on the T.V. and put on mysterious mysteries "Look we'll go back to your base in the morning but for now just bare with me, I'll be right back ok?" He asked.

"Fine" she growled and crossed her arms.

Dib rushed into the kitchen and put some popcorn in the microwave. While that cooked he ran into Gaz's room and raided her drawer for soft and comfortable clothing Tak could wear. Dib started to laugh when he saw that she kept her old pink onesie she used to sleep in.

"She… will probably kill me for this, but I DON'T CARE! This is perfect!" He spoke aloud to himself.

He took the onesie and grabbed a bunch of Gaz's blankets and a pillow and dashed back to the living room.

"What is all that? Were we not going to try the sleeping thing?" She asked

"That's what this stuff is for Tak, I got you some blankets and a pillow and an outfit that may look ridiculous but it's pretty cozy!" He gleamed.

He put the blankets on the couch and held up the fuzzy pink onesie with a cheesy grin.

"If it's so cozy, you wear it! That looks like something one of your infants would wear!" She snarled.

"Believe it or not Tak, this is Gaz's old outfit, she just grew out of it but she still wears things like these to bed" Dib snickered.

Tak's face twisted in confusion "Gaz wears this stuff? The same Gaz that almost killed me? Unbelievable" she asked.

"It's true and if you're going to try and sleep I want you to do it in the most comfortable way possible! Now go put this on and I'll get the couch ready for you!" He said ecstatic.

Tak snarled and grabbed the pjs out of Dib's hand roughly "This had better be worth it!" She walked away and went into the bathroom. Dib ran back to the kitchen and put the popcorn in a giant bowl and put on the living room table. Then he quickly draped the blankets over the couch, fluffed up the pillow and went back into the kitchen to get two sodas.

Meanwhile in the bathroom, Tak stared at the pink fuzzy item with disgust. She set it on the counter and undressed, she turned to look into the mirror and her antennae dropped. She never really took the time to really look at herself in the past, but now she found herself staring at her scars, her weary eyes, her small stature, her hairless head and curled antennae. She sighed "I've become so damaged over the years…why am I even here? There's no way he could ever look at me as anything more than a freak...Wait a minute! Why do I even care about what he thinks?" she thought to herself.

She had wondered previously in her time here if Dib could see her as more than just an ally. If Zim and Gaz could see past the differences of their species, why couldn't they do the same? However did Zim and Gaz truly love each other? Or were they just using each other? Her head began to throb with each burning question. She groaned in annoyance and proceeded to get dressed in the outfit Dib gave her.

"I guess my research didn't include the asinine sleep attire female warriors wear on earth" she grumbled staring at herself again.

She took a couple deep breaths before exiting the bathroom. Dib was dressed differently, he was wearing a two piece pajama set decorated with the planet saturn. His face brightened when he saw her and he patted the couch eager for her to sit down next to him. She slowly approached but her antenna picked up his snickering he was trying to hide.

"What's so funny?!" Tak asked.

"I'm sorry… it's just… You look so fluffy and cute! It's just a huge difference from the badass girl I'm used to being around" he said through his laughter.

"I thought all your female warriors dressed this way for bed? Why am I any different?" She asked, offended.

"Aw come on Tak, lighten up! Here, try this popcorn. I think you'll like it!" He suggested

Tak looked curiously at the strange kernels of corn, she wondered if this was some sort of a trap. However Dib needed her so what reason would there be to poison her?

"It's fine Tak, it won't hurt you, Skoodge and I ate a bunch of it before going to Irk…" he said.

Tak noticed that his voice trailed off at the end of his sentence and his face became somber.

"Do you...hate me Dib?" She asked

"Hate you?! No! Why would you think that? I'm just… trying to show you there's more to life than just fighting and war...I want to show you the good things!" Dib stammered and handed her a soda

She grabbed it softly "Did you guys drink these things too?" She asked

"Yeah" he answered

They both took a drink, Dib looked to see Tak's expression. She couldn't hide the huge smile on her face for that split second but soon her poker face was back on.

"I suppose it's not the most terrible drink I've tried," she said before taking another gulp.

She felt his eyes on her and became irritated once again "Why do you keep staring at me!?" She hissed.

Dib looked away nervously "I- I just wanted to see if you liked it! That's all! Plus you still haven't tried the popcorn" he stuttered.

"Why are you doing this Dib? Who cares if I enjoy these beverages and snacks? Why do you care if I enjoy these things? What is the purpose?" She asked

Dib cleared his throat and stared ahead "Well Tak to be completely honest with you, ah nevermind it's too pathetic" he groaned and put his head in between his legs.

"What? What is it?" She asked, getting impatient.

"It's stupid! You wouldn't understand!" He whined.

Tak shook his body "Try me!" She demanded.

Dib groaned and looked at her sorrowfully, she backed off but took his hand in hers.

"Dib who am I to judge? I couldn't even defeat Zim, the worst of the worst! I won't laugh if that's what you're afraid of" she said softly.

"Okay… the truth is… you are the closest thing to a friend I ever had, and I was excited to be able to spend time with you again" he confessed.

"Oh, I see" she said and cleared her throat while looking away, a dark green blush appearing on her face.

"I know you were just pretending to be interested in the things we used to talk about, but it was still nice while it lasted, it was nice to feel… seen and heard for once! Not ignored or brushed aside like garbage!" he ranted.

Tak looked at him again, he still stared ahead and looked pained. She proceeded to rub his shoulder in an effort to comfort him.

"I feel bad for even complaining about this to you, this probably sounds so petty compared to things you've been through Tak" he said.

"No Dib I understand, I understand completely" she said softly.

"You do?" He asked.

"Of course, I've dedicated my entire life to an empire that would ignore my pleas, worked endlessly for leaders who could care less if I lived or died, and I've been abandoned on numerous occasions… believe me I know how it feels to feel invisible" she explained.

Dib gave Tak a soft smile and flicked one of her antenna playfully.

"You'll never be invisible to me Tak" he smirked.

Tak blushed again and scowled at the human. She was tempted to smack the smirk right off his face. Instead she lightly pulled the scythe like cowlick of his hair.

"You can never be invisible to me either Dib, not with this crazy hair of yours" she laughed.

They both started to laugh for a moment before awkwardly staring at each other once again. Their faces so close to each other that they could feel their breaths. Dib very cautiously started to twirl one of her antenna with one hand, causing Tak to gasp suddenly. Tak curiously ran her fingers through Dib's hair, admiring the jet black strands and the warm glow in his amber eyes. Dib moved his arm around her and moved her closer to him. Time seemed to slow down as they brought their faces even closer to each other, closing their eyes, putting their lips closer together... before Tak backed away at the last minute and turned her attention to.the Tv.

"So tell me more about this show you like so much!" She blurted out.

"I don't know what the hell that was! But that was too much! My heart feels like it's going to explode!" She internally cursed herself.

Dib groaned a bit before trying to compose himself.

"Uhh oh yeah Mysterious Mysteries, it's not as great as it used to be but I still enjoy it sometimes," he answered.

The tension in the air was thick, Tak hastily started shoving popcorn in her mouth in an attempt to change the mood. Dib studied her face, eagerly awaiting her reaction. Her face lit up as she savored the salty buttery flavor of the popcorn. It was the best thing she had ever eaten, for a moment she was in pure bliss… until she noticed the huge grin of the pestering human.

"Wellll?" He asked

"It's satisfactory," she answered.

Dib turned the channel to a movie

"I think you'll like this movie Tak, it's called guardians of the galaxy" he beamed.

Dib got up and yawned "I'm going to go to sleep now, I'll see you in the morning ok?"

"Wait a minute, you're not going to watch this with me?" She asked

"I've seen it before and I would ruin it for you, besides I know you Irkens don't have to sleep but humans do" Dib yawned again.

"Why don't you sleep here? Where are you going?" Tak asked.

Dib stopped in his tracks "She WANTS me to sleep by her? Didn't she just push me away? Oh man! Ok don't panic… just stay calm" he mentally battled himself.

Dib gulped "I.. I was going to my room… but I can sleep out here if… you want me too" he said nervously.

Tak fidgeted with her claws and looked away swiftly "I mean… the decision is ultimately yours to make...but I would feel more...comfortable if you were here" she explained.

"Okay then...I'll get my air mattress and be right back" he said with a strained voice.

He ran upstairs to his room and grabbed said air mattress and dashed back into the living room. He darted back to his room for pillows and blankets and to give himself a pep talk.

"Okay so she doesn't seem TOO disgusted by me! She at least wants me around somewhat! That's good right? Or maybe… She wants to kill me in my sleep? No no no if she wanted me dead she could've done it by now! Oh man how loud am I being? I need to calm down!" He ranted pacing around the room.

He took a couple more deep breaths before heading back downstairs. He saw Tak scarfing down the popcorn, fully immersed in the movie. He felt satisfied knowing he finally succeeded in getting her to enjoy herself and let go of her stress, even for just a little while. He plopped the blankets and on the mattress and followed suit, until that moment he didn't realize how tired he really was. He turned on his side before he felt the heaviness of his eyelids force themselves shut.

Tak was so into the movie that she didn't notice when Dib had re-entered the room. It wasn't until she was out of popcorn that she looked over to see the snoring human who still had his glasses on. She walked over to him and kneeled over to gently take off his glasses.

"Stupid human, they'll get bent if you sleep on them" she snarled and put them on the table.

She looked back and studied him, amused by his weird whiny sounds he made in between his snoring. He looked so peaceful and snug.

"So this is what sleeping is, it does look nice" she mumbled to herself.

She was tempted… so tempted to snuggle next to him. He was loud, drooling slightly but also so warm, so relaxed. She wanted to run her fingers through his hair again, to feel the comfort of his arms around her again. She shook it off and went back to the couch. She laid on her side and closed her eyes, hoping to fall asleep quickly.

Zim's Base

Speaking of snoring and drooling humans, Gaz had fallen asleep on top of Zim on the couch. Her face lopped over on his shoulder and Gir was on his other shoulder snoring even louder. Zim was trapped in an uncomfortable position with no possible escape. It was funny, if it was any other human, snoring and drooling on him he would be absolutely sickened, but with Gaz everything was different. He was still slightly grossed out being the germaphobe that he was, but seeing her normally pissed off self be so serene and content in his lap was enough for him to push those feelings aside. He would gladly endure anything for the fierce female beside him. She started to mumble in her sleep as she often did and shook slightly.

"She must be having one of those falling dreams" he thought to himself.

He gently pushed Gir onto the couch as quietly as he could. Then he put his arm behind Gaz's back and his other under her knees and stood up. She hissed in pain causing Zim to stop in his tracks for a moment.

"Gaz love?" He asked worried

She groaned and tugged at his shirt "I'm...ok, just in a lot of pain…" she mumbled.

He continued to take her back to the bedroom and placed her gently on the bed. She laid on her side holding her stomach unable to hold back the pained hisses and groans. Zim hastily got into the bed opposite her and held her close to him. He rubbed her lower back and she sighed in slight relief.

"Thank you… that feels better," she sighed.

"Is there anything else I can do? Anyway I can ease the pain?" He asked her quietly.

"Just hold me I guess… and this is just the beginning ugh" she groaned

"Shhh… don't think about that right now Gazlene… just try to relax" Zim whispered, and embraced her snug causing her to relax and eventually go back to sleep.

Zim sighed feeling relieved but then she hissed again and grabbed his arm tightly. He wondered about what else he could do to help her through this, when an idea came to mind. He scooted down until his face reached her stomach, he started to speak in Irken that consisted of clicking noises required of his antennae which were moving up and down her tummy lovingly. He listened closely and heard the faintest little heartbeats, and felt their little feet kick rapidly. Irken instinct must have kicked in for Zim, he purred for the first time in years against them in hopes that they would settle down for their mother's sake.

"Calm down little ones" he clicked in his native tongue, rubbing her belly.

Almost as if they understood, their kicking slowed, Zim looked up to see if Gaz's pained expression had changed and to his relief it had. She looked peaceful and pain free. He laughed quietly "First dad victory for Zim!" He whispered.

He nuzzled into Gaz's belly and purred more before closing his eyes and falling asleep.

The Next Day/ Membrane House

Tak awakened slowly, blinking her eyes feeling out of place for a second. She instantly looked to the air mattress where she last saw Dib, her antennae dropped when she saw an empty bed. She yawned and got up smelling something pleasant in the air. She hesitantly walked towards the aroma to see an already beaming Dib setting the table.

"Good morning Tak! I had Foodio make you something special" he said excitedly, his eyes sparkling so bright they put an anime character to shame.

"Oh really? What is it?" She asked with a crooked antennae.

"French toast! With bacon and a mimosa!" He shouted.

"I don't think I can consume bacon Dib" she frowned

"Yes you can! You forget Zim has been here for years, he loves bacon just not in the soap" he explained

"Bacon in the soap?" She asked with a confused expression on her face.

"Long story, come on sit down! We have a long day ahead of us" he said, pulling out a chair for her to sit in.

Tak's antennae narrowed "You have A LOT of nerve to be ordering ME around" she snarled, sitting in the chair with a pout on her face.

Dib rolled his eyes "It's not an order Tak, it's a suggestion! Hey if you don't want to eat delicious food that just means more for me!"

Dib started gobbling up the food before him sloppily, causing Tak to look at him awkwardly. She looked back to the plate of food and tried a piece of the french toast. The sweet syrupy flavor instantly made her eyes shut and her antenna twitch. She moaned in satisfaction, causing Dib to choke on his bacon. He coughed uncontrollably and fell to the ground. Tak dropped her fork and rushed to his side.

"Dib! What's wrong with you?" She asked

"Can't...breathe...choking" he said in between his gagging.

She panicked not really knowing what to do so she just punched him really hard in the back and hoped for the best. It may not have been the Heimlich Maneuver but it still did the trick and knocked out the food blocking his airway. He gasped and gathered himself feeling extremely embarrassed.

"Can you breathe now Dib?" She asked.

"Yeah thanks" he breathed.

She helped him up and she grabbed a napkin off the table and wiped his mouth cleaning him up. They both jolted suddenly hearing a door slam open "I'M LATE FOR WORK! I gotta go son but I'll be back to work on our projects tonight! Call me if anything major happens!" Membrane shouted before rushing out the door.

Upon opening the door he accidently slammed into Zim who had just arrived, knocking him to the ground.

"Oh my! My apologies Zim! Are you alright?" He asked startled.

Zim held his head in pain and groaned "Yeah…"

The Professor held out his hand and helped him up quickly. Zim was disoriented and impressed by how strong and fast his movements were. He watched as he left, wondering to himself if Membrane would be better to take with him to battle the Armada instead of Dib.

"Don't even think about it! My dad's old now Zim!" Gaz snapped him back to reality.

"Yes but his strength and intellect FAR SURPASSES the rest of you inferior humans!... Shit I need to stop that!" He yelled.

"Stop what?" She asked annoyed.

Zim sighed "While MOST of your race is disgusting and inferior, YOU are not. Plus our children are half human! If I insult the HYOO MANS! I am indirectly insulting my own beets!" He ranted.

Gaz tugged one of his antennas and lightly "Zimmy Baby… No one pays that much attention to the things you say" she laughed. He in turn grabbed her close and messed up her hair.

"Regardless Gaz-Love it's a habit I need to change" he growled and kissed her.

Dib walked in the scene "OH COME ON GUYS! Have you no decency!? FIRST thing in the morning!?" He screamed

Zim smirked and Gaz scowled at him in response. "At least we were quiet, Dib-shit! Shut the fuck up!" Gaz snapped.

"But-but Oh nevermind! What's going on anyway?" Dib whined.

Zim pushed past him "To put it simply Dib-Stink, we have three months until we battle the Tallests" he announced marching into the living room.

"Wait I thought it was six months?" Gaz asked

"I'm going to take Red's challenge! That only gives me three months, but it shouldn't be a problem" Zim answered.

"What are you gu-" Dib asked before Gaz interrupted

"Zim! No! That's obviously a trap! You should use the element of surprise and wait until they get here, you don't know if Red is going to keep his word" Gaz yelled.

"I will not risk my children's planet! Facing Red is the better option!" Zim shouted

"He'll just kill you and invade anyway!" Gaz retorted

Dib stood nervously watching their back and forth, he had never seen them argue before that point. Tak was approaching but stopped at the sight. She looked to Dib who made a cringe face at her, she spun on her heel and left.

"I'll just hack into their systems and make them think Earth is a dying sun or something before I go ok?" Zim asked

"Not the point! It's a trap Zim, and you're falling right into it!" Gaz yelled

"WHAT ARE YOU GUYS TALKING ABOUT!?" Dib screamed.

They both looked at him annoyed. Gaz sighed "You tell him Zim, I'm gonna take a shower".

"Alright then be careful" he said softly

"Of what?" She asked

"I don't want you to slip and fall during your wretched acid rain ritual!" He answered and crossed his arms.

She rolled her eyes and left, leaving them to discuss everything that happened. Gaz climbed up the stairs and into her room, widening her eyes when she saw Tak trying in vain to get out of her old onesie. Tak stopped her struggling and stared at her appalled. Gaz shrugged and ignored her and got some clothes out her closet and left. Tak sighed in relief before changing back into her old outfit and started to leave the room. Dib was heading to his room at the same time and bumped into her accidentally.

Tak was smashed face first into Dib's chest. The two of them stood completely, awkwardly still.

"Hurry up Dib-Filth! Get out of the way!" Zim shouted and pushed him.

The force behind Zim's push caused him to fall on top of Tak. Dib's face became bright red and he began to sweat slightly, while Tak turned dark green and breathed heavily not exactly hating the view of his chest she was eye level with. Zim growled and stepped on top of both of them impatient with their antics.

"OW YOU MOTHER FUCKER!"

"FUCKIN ZIM!"

They shouted at the same time.

"I do not have all day to wait around for you FOOLS!" He snarled.

One Lengthy Explanation Later

Dib now dressed in his normal attire, paced around his room while debating what he thought their next move should be. Zim was muttering to himself while doing what appeared to be calculations on a tablet-like device in his hand. Tak stared hard at the floor with her hands balled into fists.

"Zim!" She hissed.

"What do YOU want?" He asked

"I require the life sustaining power of the Control Brains you've collected" she said through gritted teeth.

"Ahh yes that's right! Well I suppose I can give you ONE container for now" he said smugly

"However you hardly deserve it" he spat.

She avoided eye contact, her antennae narrowed "Understandable" she snarled under her breath.

"BESIDES! You are useless to me dead! What other weapons do you have in your arsenal? Tell me" he asked

"None! Your filthy human mate destroyed my weapons!" She growled

"YOU WILL NOT SPEAK OF MY GAZLENE IN SUCH A MANNER!" Zim snapped

The door busted open from one of Gaz's signature kicks with her combat boots. "Who's talking shit?" She glared.

"Okay guys calm down! This isn't important right now! We need to decide our next move, not argue with each other!" Dib yelled.

They are groaned at the same time but seemingly agreed.

"Okay, now I'm sorry Gaz but I agree with Zim! Taking out one guy as opposed to the whole damn Irken Empire sounds a lot easier to me" he explained

Gaz raised a brow "You're both assuming this guy isn't going to play dirty! I KNOW he is! I can tell! And do you really think he's just going to just stop his invasion plans? I've dealt with guys like this! He's setting you up!" Gaz snapped.

"What do we do then? We can't let them invade!" Dib shouted

"How's this? We attack them in 5 months! We'll attack them before they enter our solar system, also I'm working on a way to hack into their database erasing the REAL location of Earth and replacing it with another planet! That way in the EXTREMELY UNLIKELY chance I am defeated… they won't be able to find this planet" Zim rambled.

He turned to Gaz "Does that work for you my darling?" He smirked

"Ew! Don't do that! Makes us sound married" She laughed

Dib's face scrunched up and he made a gagging noise. Gaz and Zim started talking again while Tak studied the exchanges between them with a newfound interest. The idea of the two together was so absurd to her, even taking out of the equation that they were different species it perplexed her. Zim the maniacal ego maniac actually managing to penetrate the stone cold heart of Gazlene Membrane? The very definition of apathy and eternal darkness? Impossible!

There had to be some underlying motive, after all there were plenty of perks to dating the wealthy daughter of a renowned scientist. Yes she was sure of it, this was just a ruse. There is absolutely no way a human and Irken relationship could work.

"Why do I even care about this? I kind of miss my PAK erasing these feelings from me" she thought.

She was lost in her thoughts and completely zoned out from the conversations going on. When she snapped back to attention Zim was talking to Dib but then started to embarrass Gaz by talking to her stomach again.

"Guess what Dib? We had a moment last night didn't we little guys? Yes we did! The first of many!" Zim talked in a baby-like voice.

"He won't stop talking about it" Gaz laughed awkwardly.

"What happened?" Dib asked

"I brilliantly asked my beets to calm down in Irken and they listened! Already! They're going to be so smart!" Zim beamed.

Tak held back a snicker but Gaz caught it and sent another deadly glare her way. Zim got off the ground and composed himself.

"Of course it's no surprise! After all my Gaz-Love is even smarter than I am" He smirked

Tak looked at him intensely, searching for any signs of insincerity. She looked at Gaz and wondered if she regretted that the choices she's made caused her to be stuck with an idiot. She needed something! Something to reassure her this wasn't a true relationship with genuine feelings. Something to really hammer down the fact the humans and Irkens cannot work. She didn't pick up anything, no signs of deception in either of their tones or body language, no inkling of repressed emotions of hatred, just genuine happiness.

"This is...real! They really do have feelings for each other… this is insane!" She thought to herself in horror.

"Yeah but enough about that, did Dad leave the lab open?" Gaz asked.

"No he was late to work so he just rushed out of here" Dib answered.

"Well we still have my labs! Although I admit I was interested in what else his technology had to offer" Zim frowned.

"I have a base too, you know? Let's go to mine!" Tak snarled.

"Yeah Zim! I bet Tak's computer is way more up to date than yours!" Dib teased.

"HOW DARE YOU INSULT MY COMPUTER! Only I can!" Zim yelled

"Well you guys go ahead I'm going to stay here and relax until Dad comes home" Gaz stated. She took off her boots and laid back in a chair putting her feet up.

"Yes! You relax but Mini Moose needs to stay with you in case of an emergency!" Zim insisted.

Gaz groaned "Zim I'll be fine"

"Not taking any chances Gazlene" he replied.

He got out a communication device from his PAK "Mini Moose come to Zim immediately!"

A flash of purple and silver busted through the door. Mini Moose arrived with Gir riding on his back.

"Nyah!"

"Weeee that was fun!"

"Mini Moose you'll be staying here with Gaz again, DO NOT FAIL ME AGAIN! Should anyone pose a threat you have my permission to initiate… the portal'' he said darkly

"Nyah" the moose squeaked.

Gir jumped onto Zim's face "WHAT ABOUT MEEEE? WHAT ABOUT ME? WHAAAAT ABOUT ME?" he screamed.

"You're coming with me Gir! " he answered.

"Aw man! I wanted to dance!" Gir squealed.

"Well Tak it's broad daylight, you're going to have to hide in my trenchcoat again" Dib suggested.

He took it off and handed it to her, and grabbed a hat to put over her antennae. She growled "This hat is STUPID!" she spat.

"It's just until we get into the car, you can take it off once you're inside" Dib said.

Dib went ahead and got the car started. Zim went back to the living room and Tak curiously followed from a distance. He seemed to be saying goodbye to Gaz again and they kissed each other tenderly, seemingly forever as she fixated on them. It seemed to be so natural for them and to her shock she wasn't disgusted by the display of affection that the Empire has conditioned her to frown upon. She gasped when she realized that… she almost did the same thing with Dib.

She quickly turned on her heel and put on the ugly brown sunhat Dib gave her and covered herself in Dib's coat. The coat was nice but the hat had to go, it bugged her antennae. She walked outside and Dib opened the car door for her. Zim walked up to Dib dragging a hyperactive Gir behind him.

"Hey I'll meet you there! I'll get Tak that container she needs from my base" Zim said

"How will you know where to go? Even I don't know where we're going" Dib asked.

"Please… Dib-Flith! Have you learned nothing from all of our battles? Zim always finds a way!" He boasted before walking away smugly.

Dib groaned "This is gonna be a long fucking day" he thought.