Weeks had passed since Dib and Zim had celebrated Halloween together. Now, it was the middle of November, the temperature outside had dropped, and there was even some snow covering the ground.

But the two of them spent most of their time inside, preparing for their eventual space trip. Zim (with Dib's help) was working on upgrading the Voot to be comfortable for them both, though he mentioned a few times they might upgrade to another ship to make their travels a little easier. They'd need to save up some more credits for that, though.

Dib expected they'd be working on that for most of the day…until they got derailed with just a few questions from Zim.

"So…what places would you like to go to first?" Zim asked.

Dib frowned as he thought about it. He couldn't think of any places he'd want to revisit and said so. Zim paused and turned to look at him, asking if he knew of any places he hadn't already been to, or had heard Zim mention. Dib had to admit he didn't think so.

"…you do know how to navigate through the cosmos, right?" Zim had asked. "You could travel to a specific location if you had to?"

"I don't know," Dib had admitted. "I've always just followed you into space, or convinced the ship to jump directly to wherever I needed to go."

Zim declared that his partner's lack of knowledge was 'unacceptable', and that he'd need to 'immediately rectify the situation'. Dib had been a bit worried, but apparently, all Zim had in mind (for now) was pulling out a large star chart of the nearest inhabited galaxy and giving Dib a tablet with several historical and geographic files uploaded to it. He'd shoved it into Dib's hands and insisted he study up, ignoring Dib's moaning.

"Can't I just look all this up as I need it?" he said after an hour of looking through and being quizzed on maps. "I mean, you're working on a device to translate for me, right? Can't we make another for all of this?"

Zim looked up from his newest knitting project. "And when we're in danger, and I'm busy firing to keep bogeys from chasing us, you would know exactly where to fly us to without looking it up?"

"Yeah, away from whoever's chasing us."

Zim shot him a look, tossing the yarn ball. It bounced off of Dib's forehead and rolled across the floor. "Smart aleck. I'm just saying, you need to have at least some basic knowledge. You can't rely on databases for everything…you never know what could happen."

Dib sighed, flopping back in his beanbag chair. He had dragged it over to sit comfortably next to Zim near his giant screens when they were both working on different things. "Ugh…I know. But studying like this is boring, and it won't stick!"

"Trust me, I think you'll like this better than the idea of uploading it directly to your brain meats," Zim said, needles clicking together. "That option involves a big spike. About this big." He wiggled one of the needles.

Dib cringed. "Yeah, I think I'll stick with this." He picked up his tablet again, flicking through various star maps. He was pretty sure he'd managed to get some locations near Earth memorized.

He sat up and was about to ask Zim to quiz him when the screen flashed with an alert. "The Dib has approached the front door."

…what?

"What!?" Zim said, tossing his knitting aside. "Repeat that!"

"I said, The Dib has approached the front door," the Computer repeated.

"I must need to check your programming for errors," Zim said. "You're clearly glitching out, because the Dib is sitting right here!" He jabbed a finger back at Dib.

"Yeah, I can detect him there," the Computer said. "But he's also right outside the front door."

"I'm pretty sure I'm not," Dib said.

"He's not!" Zim said.

"...but it might be a good idea to check the security feed to see if someone is up there," Dib pointed out. "Especially since we have no idea who it is."

"Good point," Zim said. "Computer! Pull up the camera feed of this supposed 'Dib'."

"Fine." The screen flicked over to a camera feed of the front door...where Professor Membrane was standing on the doorstep, looking expectantly at the door.

"Dad!?" Dib said in shock.

"Computerrr!" Zim said. "How could you mistake the Dib's father-unit for Dib! They're clearly different!"

"Look, don't shoot the messenger. I just report what the scans from the security you developed are telling me." Red text was added to the screen, labeling Membrane as "The Dib".

Zim growled under his breath. Dib swallowed, tapping his shoulder and making him look back. "I know that the weird readings are kind of a pressing issue, but could we maybe figure out what to do about Dad first?" he said. "…how long has he been standing there?"

"A little over a minute," the Computer said. "I told you about him right around when he knocked on the door."

"Oh, man." Dib ran his fingers through his hair. "Dad gets impatient about stuff. Who knows what he'll do if we just leave him waiting? Even if he only leaves, he might come back later. If we answer, he…I don't actually know what would happen. What should we do, Zim?"

Zim blinked, pointing at himself. "You want to know what I'd do?" Dib nodded, and Zim hummed in thought before quickly finding an answer.

"…I'd tell him that I saw you in the woods a while back, and that you refused to come back to town," Zim said. "Let him despair and begin a pointless search in the wrong direction."

He nudged Dib's shoulder. "But he's your father-unit…however bad he is at it. What do you want to do about him?"

"I…" Dib sighed, leaning back and staring at the footage. What did he want? Zim's idea sounded nice, almost…let his dad squirm and fear for his safety. Wonder what had happened to him, maybe even think about what he could have done better…

But…it had been a while since he had spoken to his dad, and he did miss him. Maybe his dad was already worried for him, which was why he was here?

Dib would probably never know if he let Zim just send him away. If he didn't take the chance to at least talk to him, it would probably gnaw at him for days.

With another sigh, he stood up. "…I'm going to at least see what he wants for myself," he said. "And I can kick him out if I don't like the sound of it."

Zim flicked his antennae. "Do you need me there?"

"No, unless you want to be there," Dib said, scratching at the base of his antennae and making Zim let out a delighted chirp. "I think I can handle him. …if not, security can probably throw him out, right?"

"Oh, absolutely," Zim said, seeming excited about that possibility. "…though on that note, I should work out that glitch in the system. But I'll be keeping an eye out to make sure the father-unit doesn't try anything!"

"Thanks, Zim." Dib kissed his cheek before turning and heading to the elevator.


Dib had made his choice, he knew he wanted to at least learn what his dad was here for…and yet, he found himself hesitating at the front door.

He swallowed, wiping his sweaty palms on his jeans. Well. No point in delaying this. Unless he wanted to just wait for his dad to leave, but in that case, it would be easier to go with Zim's plan…

With a huff, he shook his head. This was it. No more stalling. With a deep breath, he took the final step forward, grabbed the handle, and pulled the door open. He had to tilt his head up to look his dad in the eyes. "…hey, Dad."

"Son!" his dad said, beaming at him. "I was starting to become worried. But it's good to see your sister was right about you being here."

"Yep. Here I am." Dib patted the doorframe. "Did you need…do you…bleh. What did you come here for, Dad?"

"Well, I was hoping we could talk. It…may be more comfortable if we did so inside."

Dib was a bit wary of letting his dad inside. But he didn't want to awkwardly stand in the doorframe for this, and he wasn't stepping out into the snow and cold for this. And it wasn't like his dad would notice anything alien about the house, anyway.

So, he stepped to the side, gesturing to invite his dad inside. The two of them headed into the kitchen, and after a few moments of standing there feeling awkward, Dib remembered he should probably offer something to drink. That was what people did for guests, right?

"Could I…get you anything?" he asked. "Water, a small snack?"

"Well, some tea would be nice," Membrane said, taking a seat at the table.

"Sorry, no tea. Hot chocolate?" Dib was already moving over to the machine to make his own mug of the stuff.

"I…yes, I suppose a cup of that sounds fine," Membrane said. Dib nodded, grabbing a second mug and hot chocolate pod. Once his mug was finished, he got started on the second, and in a relatively short amount of time, he was carrying the two drinks over to the table.

"Thank you," his dad said as Dib passed one mug over to him and took a seat across from him. "I…hope I didn't stop you from doing a planned grocery run."

"What?" Dib glanced around, wondering what made his dad think that…maybe GIR had left a nonsensical "grocery list" sitting out, or Zim left an equally nonsensical one out to try and appear "normal". "No, we weren't going out. Why—oh, is this about the tea?"

Membrane nodded, and Dib sighed. "We're not out of tea, Dad, we just don't keep any." His dad raised his eyebrows, and Dib gave him a flat look. "You know that not everyone keeps and drinks tea, right? It's not shocking."

"Well, yes, but it is a bit surprising," Membrane said. "I mean, you like tea, don't you?"

Dib bristled up a little. He couldn't care less about tea, actually, and he really only drank it whenever he was with his dad…in an effort to connect with him. It was his dad who loved tea, and apparently didn't realize that Dib didn't share his exact preferences!

"…tea's okay," Dib said, shrugging and doing his best to shake off his annoyance. He was going to give his dad a fair chance…no reason to blow up within the first few minutes.

He shifted, making himself comfortable and taking a sip of his hot chocolate before setting the mug down. "…so," he said. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

"I came to bring you back home, son," Membrane said. "Gaz told me I could find you here, and that you had been…stubborn about not coming back. I came to figure out why, and to change your mind."

Dib blinked at him. "…that's it? You just want me to come back? You're not even curious about why I'm here and not back there?"

"Of course I am!" Membrane said. "You must have had a reason for doing so. But I'm sure I can present an equally good reason for you to change your mind."

Dib blinked at him. He opened his mouth, then closed it, taking a deep breath through his nose. He picked up his mug again, taking a long drink. He practically slammed the mug back onto the table.

"No."

"E-Excuse me?" his dad said, flinching a little.

"No, you can't change my mind," Dib continued. "I've already made my decision to move in here, and I'm not planning on moving back out."

Membrane looked nervous…but then took a sip of cocoa, frowned a little, and became calm again. "Moving is a very big decision to make, son," he said. "I would understand doing do for college or similar, but…I just think you made this decision too quickly."

Dib frowned at him. "Too quickly, huh? Okay. Let me just…get a calendar real quick…" He stood and opened a few drawers, muttering to himself…actually, to the Computer. They complied by sliding a physical calendar into his hand, full of randomly generated images.

He returned to the table, dropping it onto the table and flipping through the pages. "This is today's date," Dib pointed to it on the calendar. "And this is the day I left home." He flipped back several pages and pointed at the day he had decided to leave with Zim. "How much time is between those?"

"About…two months," Membrane said.

Dib gave him a cold look, folding his hands over each other. "So. Did it take you that long to realize that I had left, or did you know and just not care?"

"That is…a very biased question, son," Membrane said, sweat appearing on his forehead. "Biased questions are very—"

"Unscientific, yeah, I know," Dib said, cutting him off. "But it's still a question, and you're dodging it. I'd just love to hear what kind of 'unbiased' scenario leads to you not reaching out to me for months."

Membrane was silent for a minute or so, picking up his mug and taking a small sip. Dib kept a cold look trained on him the whole time.

"…the labs were…quite busy, after the unveiling of our latest project," he said after setting his mug down. "I'm sure you already know about the newest light-rail system I designed."

"I don't," Dib said bluntly. "I didn't pay attention to your unveiling. My life doesn't revolve around you."

"…ah. Well. After the reveal, there was a large bidding war over which city would get the system set up first," Membrane said. "Visiting you was high on my to-do list, but there were so many meetings to discuss where the first trains would be built, and the potential of inter-city connections, that it just kept getting pushed back."

"So. Meeting with me was just another thing on your schedule?" Dib said. "Something that wasn't as 'important' as your work, like usual?"

"Son, everything in the labs rubs on a very tight schedule—"

"Only because you're bad at scheduling, apparently! Seeing as you can make time for everything except anything that involves your own family!" Dib cut him off, jabbing a finger into the calendar. "And that! Is one of the main reasons I left!"

"Just because my scheduling isn't meeting your standards isn't—"

"It's not about your stupid schedule! It's that you never made time for me! …or Gaz, for that matter!" He slammed a hand on the calendar, aggressively sending it sliding across the table at Membrane, who didn't even flinch as it hit his chest. "And that's just one reason."

"What else is it, then?" Membrane said. "I want to address any…grievances you have, son."

"So you can convince me to come back with you?" Dib said. "Okay. For starters, how about undoing the years you spent calling me 'insane'? Or making up for missing almost every event in my life that was important to me and not you? Oh, or the times you put me in an asylum!"

Membrane shifted in his seat. "I admit, the Crazy House for Boys was…a poor choice," he said. "But you did need the help, son, and I just wish I had chosen a better way to help you."

Dib inhaled sharply through his nose, his blood boiling at the complete non-apology. He stood up abruptly. "You know what? Unless you had any other reason for coming here, we're done."

"…excuse me?"

"I said we. Are. Done. Unless you have any other reason to come here, and even then, it had better actually be a good reason for me to accept it." He pointed at the doorway.

"Son, please…can't we discuss this like civilized adults?" his dad said, not getting up from his seat.

"Pretty sure 'civilized adults' don't try to second-guess decisions made by other adults or wave off big mistakes," Dib snapped back, glowering at him.

"The least you could do is give me some time to finish my drink," Membrane said, picking up his mug and taking another sip.

Dib's eyelid twitched. He lunged forward, smacking his dad's mug out of his hand and to the floor. It shattered, hot chocolate spraying all over the floor…with some splashing up and onto one of his dad's boots.

"There. I 'finished' your drink for you," he snapped. "Get out."

Membrane stared at him in utter shock. Dib just raised one arm and pointed at the doorway again, glaring at him. For once, his dad listened—he slowly shook up, shook some hot chocolate off of his boots, and walked into the living room.

He paused at the front door to look back at Dib, but Dib just crossed his arms and deepened his glare. His dad sighed, opened the door…and left, just as Dib had told him to.

Once the door had been shut behind him, Dib sighed, rubbing the heel of his palm against his forehead. Ugh, what a mess. Bending down, he picked up the mug shards and frowned. It hadn't been his favorite, but it had still been a pretty nice mug…it sucked to lose it.

For now, he carefully set the shards on the counter by the sink. Maybe they could fix it later, or…something. GIR would probably enjoy getting some ceramic to paint on and play with…

He should probably do…something about the mess. Or at least something in general. But…ugh! He felt angry, but that was fading a little bit, which just left him tired. He sat back down, slumping back in his chair with a loud groan. He fumbled for his mug and took a drink.

…already lukewarm. Of course it was. He groaned again, but downed the rest of it anyway, putting the mug back on the table and resting his forehead next to it.

A familiar three-fingered hand rested on his upper back, making Dib flinch, his head snapping up. "Dib-partner?"

"Zim!" Dib quickly stood up, and stumbled as he nearly slipped on the hot chocolate puddle. "Shit. I'm sorry, I'll…I can clean that up."

But when he reached for some paper towels, a robotic arm swooped from the ceiling to snatch it up. It started mopping up the spill, and Zim grabbed Dib's hand before he could step in and help.

"I'm sorry," Dib said when Zim gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "The mess, I just…ugh." He pressed his palm against his forehead before running his fingers through his hair.

"The spill is nothing," Zim assured him. "GIR makes worse messes on a weekly basis." That made Dib chuckle, and Zim relaxed a little. "Are you…alright?"

"I…yeah. Probably." Dib sighed, sitting down again. The arm finished cleaning the spill and retreated into the ceiling, dropping the mug into the sink along the way. "I just…the way he talked made me so angry, and I couldn't…"

He groaned, burying his head in his hands. "I couldn't even make it fifteen minutes, talking to him."

Zim patted his cheek, making him lift his head just enough to peer at him. His partner was holding his arms out in invitation. Dib didn't need more encouragement than that to turn and lean forward, wrapping his arms around Zim and burying his face against his shoulder.

Zim's arms wrapped around him, squeezing his tightly. "You were brave to try and talk to him," he whispered. "And did so very, very well in standing up for yourself." He patted Dib's back. "Amazing, wonderful Dib."

"Mmm thank you." Dib just tightened his hold, burying his face further into Zim. Zim continued rubbing circles on his back.

After a minute or so, Dib felt…still a bit upset, and tired, but most of his anger had faded. And Zim seemed to have noticed, as his hug loosened up a little.

"Do you want to cuddle and watch an old, cheesy horror film?" Zim asked.

"…yes, please," Dib mumbled into his shoulder.

Zim snaked an arm under Dib's legs, picking him up and carrying him into the living room. Once they were both settled on the couch—Dib laying back with his head on a pillow, and Zim on top of him—Zim used a PAK leg to drag a remote over to the two of them.

"What are you in the mood for?" Zim asked. "…if we pick an alien invasion film, I promise not to laugh at all the humans' horrible deaths."

The corner of Dib's mouth twitched up into a smile. "…maybe one with vampire aliens. And I won't mind if you laugh."

Zim flicked through a selection of movies before settling on what looked like a pretty old one. It showed a vampire holding a damsel in distress…though the vampire was also wearing some sort of silly headband, probably the cheapest way they could convey they were also an alien. "Ugh, the effects of this will be horrible…I can tell already."

"And the plot's predictable and cheesy, I bet," Dib added. "…looks perfect. Let's watch it."

With a nod, Zim started the movie. Dib fidgeted, making himself comfortable and wrapping his arms around Zim, his hands resting just below his PAK. Zim moved forward until his head was resting just under Dib's chin.

A few minutes into the movie, Zim started purring very quietly, his hands kneading on Dib's chest. The vibrations traveling through his torso helped soothe him…and laughing together at the horribly cheesy movie helped, too.

By the time the movie was over, Dib's spirits had completely lifted. He and Zim headed back into the depths of the base to keep working on their project, and later, Dib cooked dinner while Zim distracted GIR out of the kitchen and away from one of his newest recipe ideas.

Dib had no idea what it was, this time, and Zim had just shuddered when he asked him.

They both enjoyed a couple of sandwiches, watched one episode of a ghost-hunting show and then a recorded episode of Floopsy Bloops Schmoopsy before relinquishing the TV and couch to GIR and heading downstairs.

Dib laid in his nest, in the room made just for him, with his partner in his arms…and he felt content. He gave Zim a light squeeze, closing his eyes and curling close. He didn't need to wait pointlessly for validation from his father. Right now, he had everything he could ever want...or at least, anything he desired wouldn't be too far out of reach.

Zim started to pet his hair, and he quickly fell asleep. His dreams were haunted by looming shadows with gleaming eyes, but they stayed at the very edges…and when his dream shifted to one about showing a vampire alien (that looked like Keef for some reason) off to the world, the shadows were totally forgotten.


The next day started well. The two of them stayed in the nest to cuddle for an hour or so, long after they were awake, but they always accounted for that as part of their day. After breakfast, Dib felt fully recharged and ready to go. The memory of yesterday was still very fresh in his mind, but…it was relatively easy to ignore it and pick up where he and Zim had left off yesterday.

"So, is…this the Delta-Squiggle galaxy?" Dib said, pointing at a part of the starmap.

Zim reared back his head and laughed. "That's the Delta-Wobble galaxy!" he said. "And you're lucky no one from either of those places heard that, or you'd already have a bounty on your head!"

"Ah, man." Dib frowned, glaring at the map and trying to commit yet another piece of information to memory. He was about to start listing the differences between the two galaxies when an alert popped up on the screen.

"The Dib has approached the front door." An exclamation mark appeared. "Two Dibs detected. Running visual scans." Two different camera feeds showed up—one of Dib sitting curled next to Zim, and another showing Professor Membrane standing on their doorstep. Again.

Dib groaned, throwing back his head. "What is he doing here?" Zim said with a sneer.

"Probably to try and convince me to come back again," Dib grumbled. "Ugh, he's just…stubborn!"

"I can't believe he'd show his face here again already," Zim said. "Want me to shoo him away this time?"

"No, no point. He already knows I'm here, he'll just keep coming back." Dib reluctantly stood up. "I'll go talk to him again."

Zim reached out, gripping his sleeve. Dib paused, patting his hand. "I can handle him," he assured him. "There's no way I'm leaving."

Zim still hesitated for a few moments before letting Dib go. Dib headed to the nearest elevator, then to the front door. He took a deep breath, keeping his expression as neutral as possible.

He opened the door just a crack, keeping it as a half-barrier between him and the professor. "What do you want?"

"Dib, I wanted to apologize."

Dib snorted. "For what? Please, this'll be good." He gestured for him to continue, wondering what kind of non-apology he would get today.

"I'm…sorry," Membrane said, hanging his head. "There is no good excuse for the time it took for me to reach out to you. I should have come sooner, and that's all there is to say."

Dib raised both eyebrows. He quickly pinched himself while his dad was still looking at the ground, proving that he wasn't dreaming. He had never thought his dad could admit he was wrong about something. Sure, it would have been nice to hear earlier, but…

Wait. Something was glowing on his dad's wrist, and he squinted at it. "…did you just read that apology off of your screen?"

Membrane flinched, covering up his wrist. "…yes," he admitted. "I wrote it beforehand…with the help of your sister."

"…did you actually mean it?"

"…just because I practice for my presentations and use notes to guide me doesn't make the facts I present less true," Membrane said. "If I didn't mean it, I wouldn't have said it."

Dib relaxed a little, looking over his dad. He looked nervous, waiting for Dib to take the next step. Dib had full control here, full power over how things would be, and he liked that.

"…why don't you come in?" he offered. "We still don't have tea, though."

"That's perfectly fine," Membrane said. "It would be nice to just…talk."

Dib stepped aside, letting him in. The two of them headed into the kitchen again. The drink machine was already humming as the two of them took seats at the table.

And then…awkward silence. Dib drummed his fingers against the table, standing up to grab the mugs of cocoa once they had finished filling up. He sat down again, wrapping his hands around his mug and staring into the contents.

There was so much he wanted to say that he wasn't sure exactly where to start.

His dad was the first to speak up. "Oh, I nearly forgot." Membrane reached into his lab coat's pocket, pulling out an object covered in wrapping paper with an atom pattern. "I thought I would bring you something," he said, sliding it across the table to Dib.

"…what's it for?" Dib said, picking it up and looking at it with a little suspicion. He wasn't a fan of the idea of being bought back, but maybe it was a genuine gesture…

"Consider it a belated gift for your seventeenth birthday."

Dib twitched a little. He had very nearly forgotten Dad hadn't been there for his birthday. Well…not quite forget, per se. But it had been so common that he just hadn't thought much of it. He frowned, turning the object over in his hands.

It was rectangular, not very big…probably a book. But to make up for some many missed birthdays, it would have to be a pretty good one. He began to tear through the wrapping paper, flicking the trash over to the side.

It was…a compilation of folklore stories from across the country, most involving cryptids. He raised an eyebrow and turned it over to read the synopsis. It was more anthropological than what he usually read—trying to explain the origins of the stories and not treating the creatures within them as real—but it did look interesting. And much more related to his interests than any sort of scientific field.

"…thanks," he said, meaning it genuinely, even if he wasn't entirely sure how to feel about the gesture. For now, he set the book over to the side.

"I'm glad you like it," his dad said. "…I bought a cake, as well. Back at home, if you…want to come back." Dib shot him a look, and he quickly added, "Temporarily! Even just for an hour or so."

"I think it's going to take more than cake to get me to come back, even for a little bit," Dib said.

"Well, you could also…come to officially move some of your things out. And bring them here," his dad offered. "…there were quite a lot of things you left behind."

Dib opened his mouth, but closed it quickly. Sure, Zim had provided him with new stuff, and they had gone back to get nearly all of Dib's old stuff eventually. But maybe he had missed a few things, and admitting they had essentially broken in probably wasn't the greatest idea.

…and maybe visiting wouldn't be such a bad idea. "I'll think about it," he said, taking a sip of his drink. "…what kind of cake did you get?"

"Chocolate, with blue frosting," his dad told him. "You do like chocolate, don't you?"

"Yeah, chocolate is good," Dib said. They lapsed into a silence that was only broken when Zim walked in from the living room, wearing his human disguise.

"Just…checking in," Zim told Dib. "Since you've been up here a while and all."

"Oh, right." Dib gestured to his dad. "Dad decided to apologize, so I decided to talk to him for a bit." He turned back to face his dad, holding Zim's hand. "Dad, this is Zim. I've moved in with him, and we're dating."

He squeezed Zim's hand, worried about a negative reaction, but his dad barely seemed to react at all. "I see. And you're happy with him?" he asked, to which Dib nodded. "Ah, good…good." Still, he seemed to be…eyeing Zim, as though looking for something. Or perhaps like he was an interesting specimen.

Zim shivered, tugging on Dib's hand until he stood up. "Dib-partner, may I speak with you for a few moments? In there?" He nodded back to the living room.

"Hmm? Sure." Dib got up and followed him. Zim walked them over to the far side of the room, glancing suspiciously back at the kitchen doorway before beginning to speak.

"I…really don't trust him. At all," he hissed. "I still haven't figured out how he broke my scanning system. And do you think an apology from him fixes everything?"

"No, of course not!" Dib countered, also keeping his voice quiet. "But he seems genuine, and so I'll give him a chance to fix things. That's all."

Zim grumbled, scowling. "It could be a trick…"

"And as soon as it looks like one, I'll get away," Dib said. Zim still seemed unconvinced, and so with a sigh, Dib took his hands between his own. "Hey. You changed a lot—wanting to be with me, and deciding to separate from the Empire. Don't you think he might be able to change, too?"

Zim hunched down, scowl deepening as he shot a glare at Dib. "Do not compare those circumstances lightly, human mine."

"Right, sorry," Dib said. "Look, if you talk to him for a few minutes…" He frowned. "Well. It's no guarantee you'll find him trustworthy, but you'll at least be able to tell whether he's up to something or not."

"Hmm. Or I could throw him out and see how determined he is to get back inside," Zim said, chuckling.

"No, you'll just make him mad," Dib said. "No fighting, no throwing him out…for now. Okay?"

"Fine," Zim said. "Shall I interrogate him while you watch?"

Dib thought about it. He should probably stick around, but…he wanted a minute to process what was happening. "…why don't you go talk to him by yourself first? Plus, if he's trying to put on an act, he might drop it when I'm not around and it'll be easier for you to spot."

"So, I'm meant to go in alone?" Zim said, narrowing his eyes.

"I need to use the bathroom anyway," Dib said. "I just need you to keep Dad distracted for a little bit. And by distracted, I mean just talk to him without trying to fight him."

"Why can't I just wait for you to come back?" Zim said. "I don't care if it's 'rude' to just leave him waiting."

"I also just need a second to take all this in," Dib admitted. "So…I could be a while. I don't know how long. But I don't want him to just leave, and you talking with him keeps him here and gives you a chance to try and get a read on him."

"…very well," Zim said. "I'll speak with him. And the second I know that he's up to something, I'll tell you so we can throw him out together!"

"I guess that's all I can ask for…" Dib said. He quickly poked his head back into the kitchen. "Hey, Dad, I'm just going to use the restroom really quick. Be back soon, promise!"

With that, he headed downstairs via an elevator in the living room, still reeling a bit from his dad's appearance and apology. With that and the belated gift…it seemed like he really was trying to do better.


Zim didn't trust Membrane. Not at all. After all, it was his neglect that affected Dib so much, and his actions or lack thereof were a large part of what made Dib desperate for affection, even from his greatest enemy.

Things might not have ended up like this if Dib wasn't so starved for affection, though…

Zim snorted, shaking his head. He didn't need to dwell on that. He and Dib had come together through their own efforts…no one else should take any credit for that!

But right now, he had a mission—to keep Dib's father-unit here while Dib spent some time thinking. He should also take the opportunity to discover what the human's true intentions here were. With that in mind, he entered the kitchen, scanning Membrane up and down as he took a sip from his mug.

Zim took a seat at the table, staring Membrane down. "So. You are Dib's father."

"Yes. And you're his partner?" Membrane said. Zim nodded, and Membrane hummed. "We've met before, haven't we?"

"Oh, a few times," Zim said. "I've known Dib for quite a while."

"Ah, yes, of course." Membrane sipped his drink…and they fell into silence.

Zim was uncomfortable enough that he got up to fix his own mug. Oh, he highly suspected the older human had some kind of plan…he just needed some way to find out what it was.

One good place to start would be figuring out how he managed to break Zim's superior Irken technology. "You know a lot about robotics, don't you?" Zim said off-handedly as he came back to the table.

"Yes, of course," Membrane said. "That was the focus of one of my first PhDs, after all."

"I have a question about a…totally hypothetical scenario," Zim continued. "Let's say that, just for this fictional scenario, there exists technology able to scan the genetics of anyone nearby automatically...for security purposes. To identify intruders and such."

Membrane nodded. "Yes…that would be a rather efficient security system, if the scanners could accurately identify each person," he mused. "Anyone unauthorized would have a difficult time getting in…hmm."

"Yes, yes, I know the idea is an impressive one, but that's not my question," Zim said, getting Membrane's attention again.

"So, under such a hypothetical scenario…what would it mean if, say, you and Dib were being read as exactly the same person?" Zim asked, folding his hands and leaning forward.

"Hmm. I suppose that would make sense in the hypothetical scenario," Membrane said. "Dib and I have matching genetics, after all."

"Yes, you've passed your traits onto him, that's how genetics work," Zim said, rolling his eyes. "But my superior…the totally hypothetical but very superior scanners identified you as being exactly like Dib. Not just similar, but exactly the same."

"Well, we do have perfectly identical genetics," Membrane said. "I suppose you must have noticed all the similarities between us."

Zim narrowed his eyes at him. "…that isn't possible," he said. "Urth doesn't have the technology to clone their offspring." And yet they had still somehow produced enough people to crowd the surface of their planet and were still going without spreading into space, which still baffled Zim.

"Technically, we do, but the ethics are so hotly debated that it goes unused," Membrane said. "As of right now, to my knowledge, there are only two successful human clones—Dibromide and Gazlene Membrane."

Dibromide…Dib. Zim blinked a few times, letting that information sink in. "Dib is…a clone?" Somehow, a lot of things suddenly made sense. But Dib had never mentioned it to him, so… "He doesn't know, does he?"

"Well, I never directly talked to either of them about it, but I never kept it a secret, either," Membrane said. "I'm sure they must have deduced something close to it, knowing they had no biological mother. And both are intelligent enough to come to correct, if not directly obvious, conclusions."

Zim laughed dryly. "Dib is smart, but did you really expect him to know about it if you didn't at least talk to him about it? Implications and open secrets aren't good enough."

"You seem to think you know Dib well."

"I do. Probably better than you do," Zim said. "We are partners, after all."

"Yes, he did just say that…and Gaz mentioned that last night, as well." Membrane placed a hand to his chin in thought. "You know, that reminds me of something else I found yesterday."

"Eh?" Zim tilted his head a little, slightly miffed that he was trying to avoid this conversation.

"I was looking through Dib's computer, to see if he had left anything indicating his...sudden desire to leave," Membrane said. "I found a rather...interesting story about him being emotionally manipulated before getting kidnapped."

Zim froze up, quickly fighting to keep his expression neutral. "Oh? How, er, interesting."

"I mean, some parts of it were completely illogical...there's no way that an 'alien menace' could have been behind everything," Membrane continued. "But his description of the emotional manipulation was...surprisingly realistic. And ignoring the parts about alien technology, the kidnapping itself sounded almost realistic."

Zim chuckled. "Well...Dib certainly is...a creative writer!"

Membrane narrowed his eyes. "The most interesting thing was how the character that kidnapped him had your exact name."

"How…funny!"

Membrane folded his hands on the table. "I believe Dib's grievances towards me are genuine, and I'll trust that he moved in with you willingly if he claims it," he said. "But if I find out that his story had any basis in reality—that you manipulated my son for your own benefit—I will not be well pleased. And I'll do whatever it takes to keep him safe."

Zim shrank down for a moment before forcing himself to sit up straighter. "Well. I want to keep Dib both safe and happy," he said. "Which is more than I can say about you."

"Excuse me?"

"Oh, sure, now you want him safe…even though you ignored him in his younger years, even when he faced bullying from his peers and countless things you'd never believe him about," Zim said. "But you've never cared about whether he was happy."

Membrane stood up, glaring at him. "From what I've heard about you, you weren't exactly a good friend to Dib," he said. "How can you claim you care about his happiness, but reject the idea that I might be making an effort to be better?"

Zim scowled back. "I might consider that…if you ever start to actually trust Dib isn't crazy. Good luck making up for all those years of making Dib feel insane and alone, by the way. You should get started on that as soon as possible."

The two of them stared even other down, only breaking their gazes away when Dib came back in. He looked back and forth between the two of them, and Zim flashed him a small smile to assure him that all was well.

Dib sat down, and Zim took his mug to heat it up for him in the microwave. "…Dad, I really appreciate the apology, and the gift," Dib said. "But we should probably start…slow."

"Yes…yes, of course," Membrane said. "…perhaps I could…join the phone calls you've been having with your sister? If you're comfortable with that."

"Yeah…we can try that," Dib said. "I mean, if Gaz is okay with that, too. She probably would be, but you never know." Zim headed back over, blowing on Dib's drink to cool it a bit before handing it over. Dib thanked him and took a small sip.

"Hey…are you still playing on staying up on Christmas Eve to fight off Santa?" Dib asked.

"Yes, of course."

"Well, maybe...Zim and I...could join you for Santa watch," Dib suggested. "And then maybe, I don't know...celebrate the holiday together, with you and Gaz?"

Membrane thought about it…and then smiled, the skin around his eyes crinkling. "I'd like that."

Dib also grinned, though his was a touch more tentative. "Yeah, it'll be fun. …right, Zim?"

"Yes, how...fun," Zim said, already feeling tense. Spending hours, even days around Dib's father-unit? Even with Dib there as a buffer, he already felt uncomfortable at the thought.

Dib glanced over, and Zim quickly shot him a fake smile to reassure him...shooting a glance over at Membrane, who was carefully watching their interaction.

Like he had any right to judge Zim for how he treated Dib. Sure, Zim may have been his enemy before, but they were now partners! And Zim treated him leagues better than Membrane ever had, he was certain of it.

Maybe...this 'holiday' would be the perfect chance to prove it. He'd be the perfect partner to Dib, make sure he had the best holiday ever, and show Membrane up. Ooh, how fun would it be, to rub it right in Membrane's face how much better he was, how much more Dib liked him?

His smile became more real, and he shifted his gaze to look Membrane in the eyes, challenging him. Membrane met his gaze, and Zim unflinchingly took a sip of cocoa. Membrane took a sip of his own cocoa, the two of them refusing to look away.

Dib glanced back and forth between the two of them, raising an eyebrow. "…did something happen?" he asked.

"Oh, nothing to worry about," Membrane said lightly. "Just me getting to know your…partner."

"Yes, and me learning more about you from your…father," Zim said, clicking his teeth together on the last word.

Dib narrowed his eyes at the both of them, suspicious. "If you say so," he said. He frowned, drumming his fingers on the table as an awkward silence fell over them.

Membrane finished his cocoa and stood up. "Well…thank you for seeing me," he said with a nod to Dib. "I hope you enjoy your gift…and that you'll stop by sometime for some cake."

"Yeah, maybe in a couple of days," Dib said.

"I'll try to keep Gaz from finishing it off for as long as I can," Membrane said with a light smile. He fiddled with his hands for a moment, then held his arms out to Dib.

Dib hesitated…but stepped closer to give his dad a brief hug. Membrane hugged him back, and Dib pressed himself further against him.

The moment only lasted a few seconds before Dib pulled away again, though. Membrane patted his shoulder. "…stay safe, son," he said. "I…I'm always proud of you, no matter where you are you what you choose."

Dib looked teary-eyed for a moment. "…thanks, Dad," he said in a quiet voice.

Membrane smiled at him, squeezing his shoulder once before turning and leaving. As soon as he was out the door, Zim sighed heavily, flopping forward on the table and pulling his disguise off.

"You okay there?" Dib asked.

"I think I should be the one asking you that," Zim pointed out.

"I'm fine, really," Dib assured him. He sat down, then reached over to pull Zim onto his lap. Zim sighed, snuggling against him. "Wanna tell me what was going on between you two?"

Zim frowned, unsure of how much he should tell. The truth about Dib's origins? That might have been too much…too heavy. But he couldn't play it off as though nothing had occurred, since Dib had noticed something was amiss.

"He just made it clear that he does…not entirely trust me," Zim said.

"…did he see through your disguise?"

"No, no, he's still convinced I'm human," Zim assured him. "He just mentioned…something about files on your computer? And he's suspicious that I'm actually manipulating you."

"Files…? Oh, damn it," Dib muttered. "I wrote those things months ago, and just now he notices?" He sighed, holding Zim more tightly. "Don't worry about it, Zim. He can believe whatever he wants, but I'm not going anywhere."

Zim relaxed a little, snuggling closer to him. Hearing Dib say that out loud did make him feel a little bit better. "Good," he said. "Because I wouldn't give you up. Not to him, not to anyone."

Dib squeezed him in response, kissing his cheek. "…do you want to tell me more stories about all the places you've been? Would showing off how much you know make you feel more like yourself?"

"I think it would, actually," Zim said. Dib chuckled and stood up, carrying Zim into the living room and sitting on the couch. Zim stretched out before curling back up against his human's chest, shuffling and making himself cozy.

"We were talking about the two Delta galaxies, weren't we?" Zim said. When Dib nodded, he closed his eyes and thought. "Hmm. I've only personally been to either in passing, but there was a very interesting incident I saw at the Qorum Quasar, which lies somewhere between them. You see, somehow dignitaries from both rivaling galaxies were invited to come at the same time, and so…"

As Zim rambled on, he felt better. Not just from being able to talk, but because he had his Dib's full attention, and it made him confident in Dib's promise that he would not leave. He grabbed Dib's hand between his own, fiddling with it as he spoke. Dib went along with it, using his fingers to tickle at Zim's palm.

Zim smiled and relaxed. Yes, even with Dib's father-unit complicating things, everything would be fine.