A part of Dib had hoped the aliens might be gone in the morning…or that Gaz would have realized how right he was and stop dating them. Or at least take some time to sit down with him and listen to reason.

But no, Tenn was still sitting in the living room when he headed up for breakfast, curled up in a blanket and reading a book. He glanced suspiciously around for Tak, and was told by Skoodge that she had gone out to 'survey the neighborhood'. It was still suspicious to him, and he kept an eye peeled through the morning.

Tak returned a few hours later…with Gaz, the two of them smiling about something. Dib grimaced, feeling sick, especially when Tenn immediately perked up upon seeing the two of them. Tak handed her what looked like a tiny metal sculpture of a butterfly, which Tenn beamed at, clutching it tightly and thanking her.

The three got settled on the couch, flicking through the games library. Having had enough, Dib stood from his spot in the corner (where he'd been pointedly avoiding Tenn) and moved to block the television.

"Nice to see you all making yourselves comfortable in our living room," he said, crossing his arms. "Don't you have anywhere else to go?"

"Would you preferred we go to Gaz's and be there without you?" Tak countered with a smirk.

Dib sputtered, face heating up. Gaz leaned over and gave Tak a nudge. "Don't give him an aneurysm," she said. "…besides. We might be able to hang out at home once Dad adjusts to the idea."

Feeling a vein throb in his forehead, Dib rubbed at his temples. "You're telling her to not give me an aneurysm?"

Gaz gave him a look. "How long is this going to be a thing, Dib?"

"As long as you're with them!"

She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Look, I had to deal with this yesterday from both you and Dad. Can you drop it for one hour? Just…go somewhere else if it bothers you so much."

Dib crossed his arms, glaring at the two aliens. Gaz and Tak glared back at him. He threw his hands into the air and turned to leave. "Fine! But the AI will tell me if you try anything, and I'll be right back here!"

"…wait," Tak said.

Dib groaned, whirling back around. "What now!?"

"What did you do to my ship?" Tak asked coldly. "It works, but the AI is unresponsive." She shot him a look. "Did you break it?"

"No! We just…removed it," Dib said. Tak scowled.

That was the moment Zim and Skoodge walked in, talking about something. Zim perked up on seeing Dib, antennae twitching. "What are you talking about?"

"My ship, and what you two did to my AI," Tak hissed.

"…did you want it back?" Zim said, almost hopefully.

"Yes, obviously!"

"Well, the ship is ours now, but…Dib, do we really need the AI anymore?" Zim said.

Dib thought about it, and reluctantly shook his head. A grin spread across Zim's face as he darted to the nearest elevator, Dib following along beside him. He gave Zim a look as they headed down. "Why would you want to help Tak?"

"Oh, it's not about her. But we can get rid of the AI that clearly hates me, and we can stop worrying about it messing with our ship at all!" Zim was quick to point out.

"I guess…" Dib said, rubbing the back of his neck.

Zim paused, then leaned over to wrap an arm around his waist. "It'll be alright," he reassured. "It's not all you have anymore."

That…made Dib feel a little better, and he offered his partner a soft smile.

It didn't take them long to make it to the hangar, where Zim hopped into the Voot and came out a second later with the laptop and AI in hand. The AI was complaining about being handled by Zim, and though the complaints died down when it was passed off to Dib, it still wasn't happy.

"What, thought of an experiment to use me on? Some other foolish device to plug me into?" she sneered.

"Nothing like that," Dib said. "…I think you'll actually be happy with this."

"For once," Zim grumbled under his breath. The AI scoffed disbelievingly. The corner of Dib's lips twitched into a smug grin.

They went back up the same elevator, stepping into the living room. Tak sat up, antennae sticking straight up as soon as they entered, her eyes locked onto the AI and laptop.

"…Master?" the AI said quietly, almost reverently.

Tak immediately jumped to her feet, snatching the AI out of Dib's hands. He had to flinch back to keep himself from being scratched by her claws. She ignored him and held her AI carefully, brushing a hand over the dome.

"Yes, it's me," she assured it. "It's good to have you back. You…" She coughed. "There is no damage. You will still be of great use to me."

"It would be an honor, Master."

Dib fidgeted, feeling slightly uncomfortable watching this. Even Tenn and Gaz were averting their gazes to let their girlfriend have her moment.

Well. If she was going to use the AI (hopefully not for anything too evil), she probably wouldn't need a human device to speak with it, right? "...could I get my laptop back?" he asked, pointing at his device the AI was still plugged into.

Tak lifted her head to glare at him. "You stole my ship and held onto it for years, then tore it apart for parts and held my AI practically hostage." She sneered. "I think your puny human laptop is barely a fraction of what you owe me."

Dib scowled, crossing his arms. In the end, he didn't really need the laptop that much—he had better technology, thanks to Zim. And all the important files on it were backed up elsewhere, anyway. "Whatever. Fine. Have fun with it," he finally said.

"I'm sure I'll find some way to make it useful," she said with a haughty sniff. She scooped it, and the AI, up and carried them away. "Now, tell me everything that happened."

"Oh, it was terrible," the AI began. "Dib found me after I crashed and stole me—what happened to you in your escape pod?"

Dib was a bit curious about that, himself, but they were already out of earshot…and he wasn't quite curious enough to try and trail after her.

"Hmph." Zim crossed his arms. "All that, and she couldn't even give thanks in return?"

Gaz shot him a glare and gave him a shove. "Watch it," she growled.

Zim glared back…though he did shuffle away from her, holding the shoulder he had been shoved on. Dib stepped forward, looking Gaz in the eye. "Are you serious about this, Gaz? Like, actually serious?"

She gave him an unimpressed look. "If I wasn't, I'd have dropped it so you would stop being so annoying badgering me about it."

He held eye contact with her…and sighed, realizing she was telling the truth. "And…what's Dad said about it?"

"He's nearly as annoying as you were…which is why I hadn't told him yet," she said, giving him a sharp look. Dib sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck. "But yeah, he wasn't happy I was dating the same species of alien that 'stole away my brother'."

"…did he say that?"

"Maybe not those exact words, but pretty much," she said. "And he still dropped it because I can handle myself and make my own choices." She poked him in the chest. "Maybe you should think about that, considering I accepted your choice in partner!"

"…yeah," Dib sighed. "I'm just…worried. I don't want you to get hurt, Gaz."

Her expression softened, just a little, and she sighed. "…again, I can look after myself," she said, though her tone was a touch softer.

"I know, but still." He took her hand, and they shared a quiet moment…

At least until Gaz's phone went off. She glanced at it and pulled away from Dib. "Have to go, Dad's taking me to Bloaty's," she said. "…you wanna come?"

"Pass," Dib said. "You have fun, though."

"Yeah, fun with him grilling me for a second time," she muttered. "Anyway, make sure you're around for one family dinner while you're on this planet, got it?"

After swearing he would, she left…giving Tenn (still in the living room) a kiss on the cheek on her way out. Dib grimaced and twitched, but managed to resist saying anything.

"Wow," Zim commented. "You're letting it go?"

"Well…Gaz is right that she can handle herself and make her own choices," Dib said. "I can do my best to respect that.

"But that doesn't mean I trust Tak or Tenn," he continued. "So…I think I need to give what some humans call the 'shovel talk'."

Zim raised an eyebrow. "The what now?"

"It's a human thing, usually given by fathers to their daughter's partners, or friends to their friend's partners…or in this case, an older brother looking out for his little sister." Dib rubbed his hands together. "And with just the two of them here, now's the perfect chance."

He headed to the living room, poking his head in. "Tenn! I need to talk with you and Tak…alone. Grab her and bring her into the kitchen."

"After I best this level," Tenn said, focused on the TV screen. Dib sighed loudly, rolling his eyes.

"Fine!" He stepped back into the kitchen, plopping into one of the chairs.

Zim patted his shoulder. "I'll leave you to it, then. I'm going to check on a few things in the lab."

"Sure, sounds good," Dib said, tilting his head back, their lips meeting in a quick peck. Zim used the elevator in the trash can to head down. Dib grabbed himself a soda from the fridge…and waited.

In about a minute, the music of Tenn's game came to a stop. He heard her shuffle away, and nodded to himself in approval. She was gone for a while, though, just enough to make him start to feel antsy.

Just when he was debating getting up and hunting them both down, he heard two pairs of footsteps returning. He sat up, folding his hands in front of him and frowning. Tak and Tenn entered the kitchen, Tak with her arms crossed. "What do you want?"

"Sit," Dib said, gesturing to the chairs in front of him. Tak narrowed her eyes, but did so, Tenn following her lead. "So. You started dating Gaz while I was away."

"Yes, we've been over this," Tak responded dryly.

"Look," Dib said very seriously, looming forward. "I don't know what your plans are with my sister. But if you hurt her, I will do everything I can to destroy you."

Tak and Tenn shared a look with each other, looked back at Dib...and burst out laughing.

"HEY!" Dib snapped. "I'm being serious!"

"That's the funny part!" Tak cackled.

Dib growled, grinding his teeth together. "I know several Irken weaknesses, and you wouldn't be the first ones I've fought. I wouldn't be so cocky."

Tak scoffed. "You think fighting Zim, that disgrace, makes you at all capable of facing us?"

Dib grinned maliciously. "Well, Zim managed to beat you before. So yes."

Tak's jaw snapped shut, and she glared at him, body shaking with barely-contained rage. Tenn's jaw dropped, and she turned to look at the other alien with worry.

"I ought to destroy you for that," she growled.

Dib smirked. "And Gaz will see just how terrible you really are if you do."

Tak's angry shaking grew—until Tenn set a hand on her shoulder, pushing her back from Dib.

"Gaz does care about him," she said. "Just...don't let him into your head."

Tak scowled sharply…then huffed, turning to fully face Tenn and give Dib the cold shoulder. "Very well," she said through grit teeth. "I…refuse to give his words consideration they do not deserve."

"Hey—!"

She shot him a glare, cutting him off. "Know this," she said. "If we held ill intentions towards Gaz, she can defend herself well. Better than you would do, rushing in like some shiny-armored rookie."

"Not that we're planning anything bad, because we're not," Tenn was quick to add.

Dib narrowed his eyes, trying to convey how little he trusted their word. Tenn looked away…but then, Tenn always seemed nervous. Or maybe she really was planning something, and that was why she looked so nervous all the time…

He snorted and shook his head. "Fine. Just know I'm keeping an eye on you. Don't try anything with Gaz…or Zim!"

Tak sneered. "Like you can stop me from finding a way to finally make him pay for what he's done."

"I can and will!" Dib said, making an 'I'm watching you' gesture. Tak just sneered further, standing up and walking away. "Hey!"

She completely ignored him, leaving the room. Dib growled, grinding his teeth together. "Um," Tenn said, making Dib flinch. He'd almost forgotten she was there. "What would it take to convince you that we're not going to hurt Gaz?"

"You—!" Dib said, then stopped, leaning back to seriously consider the question. He knew, of course, that these were evil aliens that he shouldn't trust. But he wasn't sure how they could prove they weren't evil.

Zim had finally won him over when he'd forsaken the empire he'd been so loyal to. He'd seen no sign Tenn or Tak had done the same. He frowned and leaned forward, resting his chin on his hands. "If your Tallest called and told you to leave to go terrorize some other planet, what would you do?"

"I cannot disobey my Tallest," she answered, almost automatically.

Dib snorted, pushing himself back and pointing at her. "That…that is why I can't trust you. I know you'll put your evil Empire and evil leaders over Gaz, and even if you aren't trying to hurt her directly, you'll still be hurting her."

Tenn's eyes slowly widened. Dib scowled sternly, maintaining eye contact…

At least until he heard the elevator sliding up. He turned to see Zim crawling out, holding a shovel above his head. "I found the thing for your talk!"

"The thing…oh," Dib said, taking the shovel. "It usually doesn't need a literal shovel, but thanks."

"Then why is it even called the shovel talk?" Zim countered with a slight smirk.

"Well—" Dib was about to explain, only to stop when he saw Tenn getting up. "Hey, not you, too!"

"I'm going to find Tak," she said, ignoring him and leaving the room. Dib called after her a bit, but once it was clear she wasn't returning, he groaned, letting his forehead drop onto the table.

Zim patted his back. "…should I have brought the shovel sooner?"

"Maybe," Dib grumbled. "Then I could have whacked them with it when they didn't take me seriously."

Zim chuckled a little, shifting to stand behind Dib so that he could massage his shoulders. "They're fools to not take you seriously, you know. Everyone is."

Dib hummed, smiling fondly at his words. He reached up to place his hand over one of Zim's, closing his eyes as he continued to massage his shoulders.

"…I know we weren't planning on leaving soon, anyway, but I can't leave until I know Gaz—and the Earth—are going to be safe," Dib said quietly.

"I understand," Zim said, gently placing a kiss on the nape of Dib's neck. "But are you going to be watching them the entire time we're planetside? Surely there's more you wanted to do…"

"Well…yeah. Spend time with my family. Reach out to the Swollen Eyeballs so they know I'm not dead, maybe tell them a bit of what I learned about aliens. Perhaps a few cryptid hunts." He sat up a bit, turning to look over his shoulder at Zim. "What about you?"

"I have a…project or two I couldn't start until I had my equipment here in the lab," Zim said. "They're going well so far, but that's still going to take time." He drummed his fingers against Dib. "Other than that…spending time with you, Skoodge, GIR, and Minimoose, I suppose. And catching up on any shows we haven't been able to watch."

"And you'll give me the details about what Tak was saying about your past at some point, right?" Dib said, perhaps a bit more pointedly than necessary.

Zim flinched and looked away…then leaned forward to wrap his arms around Dib. "I will," he assured. "Just…not today. Not yet."

Dib bit back a sigh—he wanted to try and be understanding—and reached up to pat Zim's wrist. "Alright," he said. "I'll hold you to that, you know."

"Of course you will." Zim pecked his forehead. "Of course you will…"

There was a mixture of emotions in his tone, but to Dib he sounded…at least a bit resigned. He turned and shifted upward to pull Zim into a hug, patting his back. Zim sighed, nestling into his chest.

Dib was curious, of course, but…he didn't want to push Zim too much. Not yet, at least, not when he seemed so…apprehensive about it. For now, he could continue to wait.