Author's Notes: The Next Episode is up! And for those of you interested this episode covers Chapters 11-13 of my original story, Invader Zim Renegades and is inspired by, The Disney movies: The Little Mermaid and Hercules all rights reserved.

Thanks for reading and please review!

Yours Truly, RoxieDivine

S01 Ep06: The Dance Of Madness

Episode Summary: Zim takes Gaz to the beach party, where he continues to struggle with his growing feelings for her. Meanwhile, the Tallest finally have a means to end Operation Impending Doom II. The only problem is, its thanks to Zim and the Earth that they have this victory at all! Can the Tallest find a way to discredit him once and for all?

[Back with Dib]

(Location: Membrane Residence)

Dib heard their doorbell ring at exactly 6:45 P.M. Of course, Dib knew that Zim would be early. After all, he wanted to impress Gaz.

Dib zipped up his invisibility jacket and put on his spy goggles. It was time!

Gaz opened the door to see Zim holding a bouquet of white roses.

"A little birdy told me that these were your favorite," Zim said, handing them to her.

"Zim, they're beautiful!" Gaz said as she rushed inside to put them in a vase.

Zim waited for her to return. Once she did, they began to walk to Bloaty's.

Dib watched his enemy from afar. Dib seethed at Zim as he ate pizza, laughed at jokes, and worst of all; enjoyed his date with Gaz! His very own SISTER!

Dib watched them sit close together at the movies while they watched Insurgent on the big screen. They shared popcorn and a large soda, smiling at each other, and sometimes leaning in closer. Dib could have gagged! What had gotten into them?! Especially Gaz!

"It's love," Gir said as he seemed to appear out of nowhere. "I can see yoouu!" He said.

Dib turned off the invisibility of his jacket, knowing all too well that Gir's impressive robotic eyes actually could see him. "It's not love, Gir. It's just gross!"

Gir just smiled. They'd all see that he was right! Now that his Master and Gazzy were dating, Master had never been happier! Surely the world was better off this way, but Dib didn't seem to think so.

Dib's eyes narrowed at the enemy. "You will mess up, Zim. And when you do, I will be there to stop you!"

Zim laughed as he walked Gaz home. It was late, the movie had ended at around 10:30, and now Zim was helping Gaz sneak into her bedroom window.

It was so past her curfew! Dib watched her climb into her window. He then gave a sigh of relief when Zim didn't follow her in. At least she was safe… for now…

Gaz waved goodbye to Zim and watched him walk away.

"You can come out now, Dib," Gaz said from her window.

Dib walked out, knowing he had been caught. "I was just watching out for you."

"I know," Gaz snapped, then to his surprise, she smiled. "Thanks Dib."

"Really?" Dib was taken aback by her words. "You're welcome!" He wanted to say more, like how he was right about Zim; that he was using her… But this time he stopped himself. He had finally done something right as a big brother, and he didn't want to ruin it now.

(With Zim...)

Zim closed his door with a sigh. He and Gaz had spent the whole evening together. He never knew how cool she really was until today.

"So how was your date?" Gir asked.

Zim smiled, lost in the moment. "It was amazing! We watched a movie in 3D! Gir, it was like it was really happening around me! Things jumped out of the screen! It was… cool."

Gir smiled as Zim went on and on about his day with Gaz. He was so happy now, and nothing could ruin this moment!

(Somewhere In Deep Space...)

The end…

After six years it was finally happening! The destruction of their enemies was finally upon them! The great and powerful Armada had begun its reign of terror. The Tallest had been watching with unmeasurable pride as their fleet of ships conquered one enemy planet after another. They all fell down, begging for their mercy, except for the final standing planet. The final planet on the list had been matching their forces head-to-head, and toe to toe. Yet, after months of war, the enemy was struggling to keep up.

"Look at them squirm!" The Tallest leader known as Purple laughed.

"Yes; like little worms writhing on a hook," Red agreed. "That's right, run! Flee, little cowards. Cower in fear before the Almighty Tallest!"

Suddenly there was a beep of an incoming call. "Incoming transition, Sir," an Irken pilot reported as he answered the call. In just seconds, the image of a Zorganain appeared. They were small creatures, but their forces were mighty, and their technology was the most advanced in the entire whirl-pool galaxy! However, the once strong Zorganain Commander now looked weak and tired.

"What is it?" Red asked. "Come to threaten us?!"

"No, we… we have decided that we want to discuss our terms of surrender." The Zorganain Commander rasped.

"Your terms…?" Purple looked confused.

"Yes. My men are weak; they're tired…" The Zorganain Commander tried to explain.

"And why should we help you?" Red asked.

"All we're asking is for food and water." The Zorganain Commander reasoned.

"So, you're telling me that you'd give up for such small, trivial little things?!" Red asked in surprise.

"My men; we're desperate. Please…" The Zorganain Commander begged.

"Well, it's just too bad we Irkens don't need water," Purple laughed.

"Surely you must have some!" The Zorganain Commander insisted.

"Actually…" Red smiled. "We do, and if you announce your surrender right now then you can have all the water we possess. Drink to your hearts content. We'll even give your people reasonable work hours!"

"Agreed!" The Zorganain replied. "We surrender."

"Good then. Our troops shall board your ship shortly," Red informed him before cutting the transmission.

"But, Red, we don't have a planet with water; it's a rare resource! Only so many planets have it left…" Purple argued.

"Yes, and that small collective number includes a planet where one of our own Invaders are right now." Red said.

"And which one would that be?" Purple looked at his list, confused.

"Navigator Bork, set our course to these coordinates…" Red ordered as he showed a set of coordinates on the large screen.

Purple's eyes widen as he recognized the coordinates. "Zim! But Red, if we chose Earth then Zim will be rewarded, not punished! And after all the crimes he's committed he deserves to be punished! Besides, we hate him!"

"My Tallest, twelve out of the fifteen allied armies of the Zorganain's have heard word of our rare supply of water. They have announced their own surrender as well."

"So, you're telling me the entire success of Operation Impending Doom 2 is because of Zim?!" Purple exclaimed.

"Stop worrying," Red assured his companion. "All we have to do is announce our gratitude and wait for Zim to royally mess it up, as he always does!"

"And what if he doesn't?" Purple asked fearfully.

"Purple, this is Zim we're talking about. He's a defective; he can't do anything right." Red pulled out one of their spy drones. "Find Invader Zim," he told the drone. "Find him and follow his every move." He then turned to Purple and explained; "We will spy on Zim with this drone, and when he messes up, we will have proof."

"And when he fails are we gonna blow him up?" Purple asked hopefully.

"Yes, but first let's give him a call!" Red pressed a button, and a signal began to transmit a message. The message would be transmitted to Zim's PAK, and that message would say only two words.

"It's time," Red whispered as the drone took off to find its target. "It's time to meet your doom."

The Tallest laughed evilly as the Massive traveled on, closing in on the source of the Tallests' hatred and anger…

Zim; Invader of Earth.

[Back With Zim]

[One Week later]

This was it! Everything he had been working for was all about this moment.

It was the night of Rachel's party and Zim had spent all week getting ready for the special moment. The moment that Gaz would fall helplessly in love with him, and then the Dib would have no choice but to bow.

"Okay Gir, tonight's the night I sweep Gaz off her feet. How do I look?"

Gir looked at his master from head to toe. He was wearing his usual Irken Uniform and the same old human disguise. "You're not wearing that, are you?" Gir asked.

"Of course. Why, what's wrong with it?" Zim looked offended.

"You always wear that," Gir explain. "You want to impress her, don't you? Sweep her off her feet and make her fall in love with you?"

"Yes," Zim admitted, listening very closely now.

"Then you got to do something unexpected; something that will blow her mind!"

"Like what?" Zim asked.

"Something…" Gir thought out loud. "Something like THAT!" He said, pointing at an outfit a man was wearing on the TV.

Zim looked at Gir, unsure. "And you're sure this will work?"

Gir nodded excitingly. "Trust me! I'm the love expert!"

Zim looked at the clock. The party started at 5:00PM, and it was already 3:30. "Okay Gir, but we will have to hurry," he said as they rushed out the door and headed to the nearest store.

(With the Tallest on the Massive...)

"My Tallest, we are here," an Irken pilot announced as Earth came into view.

"Computer, find the spy drone that's watching Invader Zim and give us a live video feed," Red ordered.

The computer brain obeyed, and the big screen showed Zim stepping out of a store with his SIR unit.

Purple and Red smiled at each other evilly. They had found their target, now all they had to do was watch and wait for him to royally screw up.

(At Rachel's Party...)

Rachel looked around her in high spirits. The beach had never been so crowded! Rachel's father, Mr. Hearting, was a multi-billionaire and owned his own private beach at the far side of town. One completed with a beach house that towered several stories high, a volleyball court, a hot tub, and a salon.

"Wow, it looks like the whole school is here!" Dib told Rachel. He suddenly burst out laughing. "Man, Gaz! Just how long is this bet supposed to last?!"

Gaz glared at him. It was already bad enough that she had lost a bet to Trina, and she had put up with the first outfit, but this time Trina had gone too far! It wasn't that Gaz didn't like the outfit; it was the attention that came along with it.

She was wearing a red mermaid dress with a black over jacket and red high heels. Trina and Rachel took her to the salon and got her hair curled and did her make-up. Gaz had to admit; she never thought she could look this pretty, but at the same time she hated the stares.

She gave Dib a sinister glare. "Drop it now, or you will pay the consequences," she warned as she walked away to get some punch.

"I think she looks beautiful." Dib turned to see Zim. Only… it wasn't the Zim he knew. Zim's black hair was pushed back with sleek gel, he had ditched his Irken clothes for a nice black collared shirt, and he adorned a tie around his neck, black slacks, a black overcoat, and a pair of sleek ebony dress shoes.

"Zim?" Dib whispered darkly.

"Hello, Dib-worm. How do I look?"

(On the Massive watching the scene play out before them...)

The Tallest watched as Zim circled his enemy.

"Hey, who's the large headed kid?" Purple asked. "Haven't we seen him before?"

Red took out his notes. For once he was silently wishing they had actually paid attention to Zim's reports. Their entire victory now rested on the shoulders of a planet they knew nothing about. "I think his name is… Dib," Red said, finding it in his notes. It wasn't really his notes. After all, it was the computer brain that took the notes of every transmission that came into the Massive. Red had the computer brain print out every transmission that Zim ever made so they could learn about the planet and the situation Zim was in. "Dib is the human child that has been trying to expose Zim since day one," Red explained to Purple. "Zim described him as big headed and as his greatest foe," Red went on reading straight from the notes.

"That's right. He called us alien scum!" Purple remembered now. "I didn't like that. I didn't like that at all."

"He may be trouble, My Tallests," an Irken soldier pointed out. "He could know too much about us."

"Yes, maybe… but let's see how Zim handles this before we take action," Red said, giving Purple a wink.

Purple smiled evilly. "This should be good."

(Back to Zim, and Dib...)

"You will never pull this off, Zim! You don't know the first thing about parties!" Dib yelled.

"Actually, I do. I have been studying this planet's party rituals all of last night and this morning. I even got the party girl, Rachel, to teach me a few moves," Zim said as he waved to Rachel.

She waved back.

"You know, she's very nice. I can see why you like her."

"You monster!" Dib's scowl turned even darker.

The Irken Armada watched as the two enemies circled around each other, both looking ready to pounce.

"You won't get away with this!" Dib growled. "You aren't getting anywhere near her! She may be blind to your lies, but I'm not!" Dib blocked Zim's path towards Gaz with an aggressive stance. He wasn't going to let Zim hurt his sister! This was it; he was done spying on them, and he was done trying to convince Gaz that Zim was evil. He would stop Zim right here and now!

"Ha! Silly Earth-monkey! Your sister is like putty in my hands, and once I get her to fall in love with me you will surrender," Zim said with confidence.

"I will never bow to you!" Dib swore.

"Oh yes you will; after all, you wouldn't want Gaz to get hurt, would you?" Zim sneered.

"What are you planning to do to her?! You think just because you win her affection I will bow?! You've got to be kidding me! I bet you don't even have a full plan," Dib challenged.

"The plan is simple, worm. Gaz is your sister; you care for her very much. Do you deny that?"

"No. She's my sister, of course I care about her!" Dib shouted.

"You'd do anything for her, yes?" Zim asked.

Dib bowed his head. "Yes," he spoke softly.

"You see, Dib, this is why my plan will work. She is your weakness," Zim laughed. "Love… it makes you humans blind to reality. I will sweep her off her feet tonight and then you will do what you must to insure her safety… which leaves your only one option: surrender!"

(Back and forth between the massive and Zim...)

The Tallest looked at each other in a panic. Zim's plan was working; he had his enemy in a bind, and they knew this Dib was the only thing standing in Zim's way to victory. Suddenly, a very beautiful human female with purple hair began to walk their way.

Zim smiled as he caught Gaz walking towards them, holding two drinks. "Now watch, Dib worm. Watch as I destroy everything you know and love!" He scoffed as he took the drinks from Gaz, set them down on the nearest table, and took her hand. "Would you care to honor me with a dance?" He asked her. Dib's anger began to boil over.

Gaz took one look at her brother and smiled. "Why, I would love to dance." This would show him! Dib wouldn't laugh at her clothes again!

"So, his plan is to win the affections of this female, a female that his enemy cares for, and use her to make his enemy submit," an Irken cadet stated the obvious.

"Yes, cadet. It's a delicate strategy; one that takes constant role play," Purple explained.

He absolutely hated Irkens in training (or cadets, as they were more commonly known.) They ask too many questions, and their voices were always so annoying. A soldier would do anything they said immediately without question. A cadet would ask a thousand questions about how to do the task properly, and so on. It was such a big headache.

"So, what is the final phase?" The cadet asked. "What does Invader Zim have to do in order to make their affection final?"

"Hey, that's a good question," Purple said to Red. "What is the final step?"

"You, there!" Red pointed to a random Irken. "Find my notes from the Tak Invasion; Zim tried this plan once before. If Tak had not been Irken, it might have even worked."

"How far are we going to let this go?" Purple whispered.

"Relax. He will mess up and if he doesn't," Red smiled evilly, "then we will do it for him, just like we did in the first Operation Impending Doom."

"We should have just killed him," Purple whispered. "We both know what he is. His very existence is a threat to our position! Look at him; he's already started growing!"

"You were the one that insisted that it be much easier to get him labeled as a defective!" Red hissed. "and we both know how that worked out!"

"How was I supposed to know the Computer Brain would banish him instead?" Purple hissed back.

"Sirs, I found the notes," a random Irken interrupted their augment and handed the notes to Red.

"Okay," Red said as he began to read out loud. "The first and obvious stage of physical affection is…" He paused, shocked.

"Is what?" Purple asked, looking over Red's shoulder, trying to read. His eyes suddenly widened as he found out. "He has to kiss her?!"

The entire ship of Irkens gasped.

"Wow. Invader Zim would do that for the mission?" Another cadet asked.

"Yes; you must be willing to do anything for the mission," Red mused. "No matter how disgusting it is."

(Back with Gaz)

Gaz began to move with the music. As the song carried on, she realized this wasn't all that bad, and that perhaps she blew this party up as a waste of her time for no real reason. She looked to Zim, puzzled. He seemed to be having a good time, and he wasn't a bad dancer either. Plus, he look pretty cool in his new clothes. He even looked kind of normal, minus the green skin. He was even kind of cute. She blushed as she realized what she had just thought; She thought Zim was cute… maybe even handsome? What?! Since when did such emotions lived inside of her? What was going on?

Zim fell into step with the music perfectly. Human dancing was so easy to pick up; all he had to do was convince himself he was learning combat steps in the academy, like he had done so many times before. It was a stretch, but it worked. He got the moves down so quickly that Gir himself was impressed.

Zim stopped looking at his feet and looked up at Gaz just in time to see her cheeks turn red. He vaguely remembered what that meant. Wasn't that a sign of human affection? Didn't she blush before? 'Yes, when I said she looked beautiful at lunch. So does this mean that Gaz likes me?' The thought made his throat swell, and his tummy turn. What was going on with his body; why was it feeling this way? What was this, and how did he get it to stop?!

And did he want it to stop? He silently wrestled with these emotions as he and Gaz continued to dance. It was a fairly standard paced song, not too fast nor too slow, and he had to admit that he kind of liked this whole "having fun" thing. Maybe these humans weren't all that bad; Gaz sure wasn't!

Gir watched as Zim, and Gaz danced to the music. They seemed to be having fun, but Gir knew that at this rate Master would never kiss Gazzy.

Gir suddenly saw the DJ and had an idea. He had to create the mood! The DJ was playing fast beach party songs when what they needed was a good love song! Gir ran towards the DJ and drop-kicked him on the spot. The DJ fell to the ground and Gir quickly dragged him out of sight. Once he was sure the DJ was out cold and well-hidden, he went back to where the DJ was standing by the big speakers. He had seen this scene on countless love stories. The boy was too shy to kiss the girl, and the girl also wants to kiss the guy, but was afraid to make the first move. He knew all he had to do was pick the perfect song. A song that got straight to the point. He looked at the I-pod that was connected to the speakers and one of the songs jumped out at him.

"Kiss the Girl," by Ashley Tisdale.

'Perfect!' Gir thought.

Gir pressed play.

"There you see her…"

"Sitting there across the way…"

"She don't got a lot to say…"

"But there's something about her…"

"And you don't know why,"

"But you're dying to try,"

"You wanna… kiss the girl."

Zim felt his stomach take a dive as the words to the song reached his antennas. No doubt this was Gir's doing! He looked at Gaz as the music continued.

"Yes, you want her…"

"Look at her, you know you do…"

"It's possible she wants you too…"

"There's one way to ask her."

Zim closed his eyes and leaned in. All he had to do was kiss her… all he had to do was touch his lips to hers, and then the final phase of his plan would be done.

"It don't take a word, not a single word,"

"Go on and kiss the girl, kiss the girl."

Suddenly, Gaz's and his eyes met, and Zim stopped. He turned his head sharply away.

"Sha la la la la la,"

"My, oh my,"

"Looks like the boy's too shy,"

"Ain't gonna kiss the girl."

Gaz was in a daze. Was Zim just about to kiss her?

"Sha la la la la la,"

"Ain't that sad,"

"It's such a shame, too bad,"

"You're gonna miss the girl…"

"Go on and kiss the girl, kiss the girl."

Gir face-palmed in frustration. He had to do something, or Master would never be with Gazzy! He ran over to one of the master's human friends. "You, hold this," he said, handing the video camera to Rachel.

Rachel stared at Gir in disbelief. "You're a dog," she said. "And you can talk!"

"Oh, yeah, I'm not supposed to talk in my doggy suit," Gir said as he took off his costume. "My name is Gir!" He held out a hand.

Rachel shook his hand. "It's nice to meet you, Gir. Now what do I do with this?" She gestured to the camera.

"Just hold it. I got to help my Master!" Gir stated.

"Who's your master?"

"Zim!" Gir pointed to Zim. "He needs me!"

"Rachel, get away from that thing!" Dib pushed her away from Gir. "What do you want?"

Gir growled in frustration. "You will not ruin this!" He then ran off to help his Master.

"Are you okay, Raych?" Dib asked.

"No, I'm not. Why can't you just have some fun for once?" Rachel yelled.

"Oh, come on! You saw the alien robot!" Dib yelled.

"Yes, and he was kind and sweet! I've had enough of this, Dib. You're banned from my party for the rest of the night. This is my party, and I'm not even having fun with you here!"

"Raych," Dib looked at her in shock.

"No. Just go." She turned away, and Dib walked away in shame.

Zim could have ripped his own spine out! How could he get cold feet at a time like this?! All he had to do was kiss her; was it so hard?!

Gir ran around Zim and Gaz as he made the mood more romantic. Suddenly fireworks started going off as confetti began to fall around them, and the music continued to play.

"Now's your moment…"

"Floating in a blue lagoon…"

"Boy, you better do it soon…"

"No time will be better."

This was it. Zim took a deep breath. All he had to was kiss her!

Gaz saw Zim start to lean in again. Should she stop him? Did she want to stop him? They shouldn't… couldn't…

"She don't say a word,"

"And she won't say a word,"

"Until you kiss that girl… kiss the girl."

The Tallest watched as Zim pulled away, yet again. At this rate he'd never kiss her!

"Poor Invader Zim," an Irken child said. "I wouldn't want to kiss a filthy human either."

"Sha la la la la la,"

"My oh my,"

"Looks like the boy's too shy,"

"Ain't gonna kiss the girl."

"Sha la la la la la,"

"Ain't that sad,"

"It's such a shame, too bad,"

"You're gonna miss the girl."

'Get a hold of yourself!' Zim demanded as he prepared himself for the real thing. 'It's just touching with your lips! It means nothing!'

Their eyes met again, but this time Zim found he couldn't look away. He was lost in those brown pools; he felt like they could see into his very soul. 'She is actually very pretty tonight,' Zim realized. He had never been attracted to any female before, from any race, but Gaz was different. She was… special…

Special? Different? No! Zim suddenly realized the truth; why he had been acting this way, and why his stomach was constantly sick. He remembered reading that love was the most contagious illness on the planet, and many referred to it as the "love bug". He was sick with the love bug, but he still had to carry on with the mission. He couldn't give in; he had to stay focus on the prize!

Gaz knew she should stop this, but she couldn't. She… wanted this to happen.

"Sha la la la la la,"

"Don't be scared,"

"You better be prepared,"

"Go on and kiss the girl."

"Sha la la la la la,"

"Don't stop now,"

"Don't try to hide it…"

Zim leaned in further, and the entire Armada seemed to hold their breath as Zim's, and Gaz's lips got closer and closer.

This was it. Zim was going to kiss her! Gaz closed her eyes.

Zim knew had to get a hold of himself! He knew in the back of his mind what the danger was. Kissing her now would mean… he would… no. He was just getting nervous. There was no way he actually had grown feelings for… Irkens don't… It's a silly human emotion…

"How you wanna kiss the girl…"

"Go on and kiss the girl, kiss the girl…"

"Oh, kiss the girl… kiss the girl…"

"La la la la, la la la la,"

"Go on and kiss the girl."

"La la la la, la la la la,"

"Go on and kiss the girl."

The world seemed to stop turning as Zim stopped and…

He walked away!

Gaz almost fell over as she kissed nothing but air. She opened her eyes to see Zim leaving. He was walking away from her! How could she have been so stupid?! She looked around, suddenly feeling very self-conscious. She ran in the opposite direction of Zim as tears filled her eyes.

Gir watched the scene play out before him and he broke out into tears. He was so close! Master was so happy! Why did he have to run? Why couldn't he just see his feelings for what they really were?!

"Sha la la la la la,"

"My oh my,"

"Looks like the boy's too shy,"

"Ain't gonna kiss the girl."

"Sha la la la la la,"

"Ain't that sad,"

"It's such a shame,"

"Too bad,"

"You're gonna, miss the girl…"

The Tallest smiled slowly. What was this? Could it be? Had Zim actually fallen for his own plan?

"This could work in our favor," Purple pointed out.

"Yes," Red agreed evilly. "Yes, it can."

'Correction… it will.'

Gaz was…stunned he walked away from her!

Zim had walked away from her. Gaz growled in frustration. Why didn't he kiss her?! After all they had been through, he just walked away?! She felt the tears coming to her eyes. She had done the one thing she had sworn she'd never do. She had… no, she would not admit it. She could not admit it. If she did, then she would truly go insane.

(Back to Zim...)

He could have scooped his own eyes out in pure rage. How could he choke? He had Dib's sister right where he wanted her, and he blew it! What was wrong with him?! Why couldn't he do anything right?! He had one simple job; take over one simple planet, and he was so close! So why? Why couldn't he just kiss her? Zim punched his stomach, trying to will the butterflies away. "What is wrong with me?!" He screamed.

(Back to Gir...)

"Gir, what's wrong?" Rachel asked as she approached the crying robot.

Gir sniffled, covered in tears. "I tried so hard to get my Master and Gazzy together so Master wouldn't be lonely anymore."

"Zim and Gaz?" Rachel looked at him, thinking to herself. "You know, I can kind of see it. Yeah, they're perfect for each other."

"I know! But my Master thinks Love is a silly human emotion, but he loves her! I know he does! He just won't admit it to himself."

"And Gaz feels the same way, but she won't admit it either." Rachel added.

"I know it's hopeless," Gir wined.

"Maybe not. Maybe you're just going about it the wrong way. Maybe we have to force them to admit their feelings," Rachel said.

"But how?" Gir asked.

Rachel smiled. "Just follow my lead."

(Going back and Forth between Zim and Gaz...)

Zim froze as music began to play around him. He turned to see Gir. "Gir, where have you been, and what are you doing?" He raised a brow. Gir was holding a radio and it was playing music.

"You love her, and she loves you," Gir told him.

"Gir, we've been over this. Love is a human emotion. I am only pretending in order to use her to get to the Dib."

"You're lying!" Gir yelled. "You love her!"

"No, Gir! No, I don't!"

"Yes, you do!"

"Gir, listen to me. This planet, Earth… it's my last chance to prove myself to the Tallest. Don't you understand, Gir? The mission… that's what's important here."

"This is bigger than the mission," Gir said. "This is about you and how you feel…"

(Back with Gaz who is having the same conversation with Rachel...)

"How I feel?!" Gaz screamed at Rachel. "I feel nothing! Zim and I are just friends, Rachel. He made that pretty clear when he walked away from me."

"He's scared, Gaz. Can't you see that?" Rachel reasoned with her holding up her own radio.

"Scared?! Scared of what?!"

"Of rejection, maybe? He's afraid you don't feel the same way."

"I don't!" Gaz yelled.

"Gaz, what are you afraid of?" Rachel asked.

(Back and forth between Zim and Gaz...)

"Afraid?! Zim fears nothing!" Zim yelled at Gir.

"Then what is it?"

Zim sighed. "If there's a prize for rotten judgment, I guess I've already won that," he whispered knowingly.

"No man is worth the aggravation," Gaz told Rachel, as if she knew better. "That's ancient history. Been there, done that!"

"Who do you think you're kiddin'? He's the Earth and Heaven to you! Try to keep it hidden, honey. We can see right through you, girl." Rachel sang to the music on her own radio.

"You can't conceal it. We know how you feel, and who you're thinking of!" Gir sang as he handed Zim a picture of him and Gaz.

Zim looks at the photo and sighs, then catching himself he balls it up and throws it on the ground. "No chance, no way! I won't say it! No, no!"

"You swoon, you sigh; why deny it? Uh, oh," Gir sings.

"It's too cliché!" Zim says, walking away. "I won't say I'm in love!"

"I thought my heart had learned its lesson," Gaz sang, leaning against a tree. "It feels so good when you start out. My head is screaming: 'get a grip, girl! Unless you're dying to cry your heart out,' oh…"

Rachel wasn't gonna give up that easy. She sang right back. "You keep on denying who you are, and how you're feeling. Baby, we're not buying/ Hon, we saw you hit the ceiling."

"Face it like a grown up," Gir demanded. "When you gonna own up; that you got, got, got it bad!"

"No chance, no way! I won't say it, no! No." Zim shakes his head in denial.

Gir pulls up a hologram of Gaz. Zim smiles.

"Give up, give in! Check the grin! You're in love."

Zim forces himself to look away from the hologram. "This scene won't play. I won't say I'm in love!"

"You're doin' flips, read our lips. You're in love," Rachel sang.

"You're way off base! I won't say it, no!" Gaz screamed at her.

"Get off my case! I won't say it!" Zim bared his teeth at Gir, warning him to back off.

Gir handed him back the picture of him and Gaz.

Zim smoothed out the picture and looked at it, his body, mind, and soul homed in on one person. "Gaz," he whispered.

Rachel gave Gaz the flower that Zim had given her earlier. "Girl, don't be proud.
It's okay. You're in love."

Gaz took the flower to her nose and smelled it. A white rose... her favorite...

She watched Rachel slowly walkway as her heart filled up with that long-forgotten feeling.

Gaz and Zim sighed as they both slid down two separate tree trunks, and as the music faded to a close, they both whispered...

"At least out loud I won't say I'm in love…"

The spy drone zoomed in on Zim, hidden from sight behind a line of bushes.

The Tallest smiled to themselves. Zim had committed the ultimate crime! He had fallen in love; he had let the sickness of the enemy infect him. He had morphed into one of them.

"It's sickening," one of the Irken soldiers spat in disgust. "My Tallest, what shall we do? If this continues, we could lose Earth and the war."

"No," Red demanded. "Zim will not ruin this; not again." He suddenly smiled. "Invader Skoodge, come forward."

Invader Skoodge approached his leaders obediently. "Yes, my Tallest!"

"How would you like to be the new Invader Zim, and become the sole reason for the victory of Operation Impending Doom II?"

Skoodge smiled as he realized he was finally going to get the honor and glory he so rightfully deserved. No more being walked on; no more people stepping over him! He would no longer be seen as the one who could not measure up! "It would be my greatest honor, my Tallest!"

"Good," Purple smiled as well. "All you have to do in return is bring Zim to us."

"As you wish, my Tallest." Skoodge's eyes narrowed at the image of Zim on the screen. "As you wish..."

Zim looked at the photo of him and Gaz and sighed. He felt torn. He loved her; he knew that now, and somehow, in the back of his mind, he always did, but what did this mean about his mission?

"Take a chance," Gir told him, as if reading his mind.

"But Gir, the mission! The Tallest… if they were to find out…"

"What they don't know won't hurt them, or you."

"But Gir-"

"Go to her," Gir urged. "Go now while you still can."

Zim looked to the photo and then to the stars. He then looked to Gir, and then back to the picture once more. He smiled; he had made up his mind. He felt this; he knew he did! It wasn't his imagination. He felt something… something he may never feel again. He didn't care what the Tallest thought, or what they'd do to him if they found out. All he cared about was Gaz. He had to let her know how he felt before it was too late!

He put the picture in his pocket and ran to find her with a new since of purpose. Finally, he had found the one place he belong, and it was with her: with Gaz. And nothing was going to take that away from him! He would not go back to the dark. No, he would never go back to that void of nothingness. If he died, then so be it. If he didn't, and ended up being the enslaver of all mankind, then it should be so. Zim would see this mission through to the end either way, but first he had to tell Gaz how he felt. He owed her that much.

Gir followed his master, his spirits flying high. He had done it! Now Master would never feel lonely again!

If only they had known the truth. If only they had known of the ever-inclosing doom that was bearing down upon them. Then maybe they would have had a chance of survival, but alas they did not know nor understand what consequences were about to unfold. And soon… very soon… the world as they knew it would be lost forever.

3D Phantom: It's sad, really; isn't it? :)

RoxieDivine: Yes, it is if only they could be together…. Will they be together? Will the Tallest prevail in their plans for world domination? Will they kill Zim in the process? Will good triumph over evil? Find out next time on Invader Zim: Renegades.

As Always thanks for Reading and please Review!

Yours Truly, RoxieDivine ;)