"Hey, where's Kyt?"

   Gaz tried her hardest not to cringe at the sound of Dib's voice. But it made her SO angry. It was the most annoying thing. She gritted her teeth together, burying her face into her GS3 more. "Don't know."

   Beside her, she sensed Dib shifting around on the bench uncomfortably. Gaz noticed that he was beginning to act different whenever Kyt wasn't around. Not as happy or loud. Less.... Dibby. She let her amber eyes shift to him, yet kept playing her game; something she had mastered long ago. Dib didn't look like himself as she watched his dull, brown eyes scan the Hi-Skool's front lawn. He noticeably didn't find Kyt, because he sighed and his shoulders slumped. Then a bright glint came bit his eyes. Gaz knew what that meant.

   Dib had just noticed something suspicious; it probably involved Zim, too.

  She glanced down at her GS3 and saved the game, then shut it off. She watched Dib scan over the crowd of students, adjusting his glasses. He stood, eyes narrowed. "Zim isn't here, either."

   Gaz scowled as Dib made his way off the Hi-Skool grounds. She followed, "Where are you going?"

   "To Zim's." Dib snapped, making Gaz blink. "It can't be a coincidence that both Kyt and Zim are gone! Zim's up to something."

   Gaz paused, watching her brother. What was the bighead's problem? She quickly caught up with him, and allowed him to take hold of her hand like he had when they were younger. It was instinctive of him, she knew. She looked around, controlling her anger.

   This sucked. He was probably going to get her in trouble and for what? Some stupid girl? Why? He had never shown an interest in girls before except for one weird one. What had been her name? Tek? Tik? Tok? Gaz struggled to remember, she had been so hideously strange. Then she remembered.

   Tak. The girls name had been Tak.

   Gaz looked around Zim's familiar neighborhood, wondering what had become of the strange female. But she didn't think too hard on her. She was pulled out of her reverie by the sound of Dib's fist slamming violently down on Zim's 'MEN'S' bathroom door. "Zim! Come out here! I KNOW YOU'RE UP TO SOMETHING."

   A muffled, "Shut up, Dib-stink!" Was slightly audible from inside. Just as Dib was about to punch the hell out of the door some more, it opened to reveal Zim. He had his bouffant wig on, but not his contacts. He narrowed his maroon-pink eyes at the two humans before him. "What do you worthless, worm-babies want? Zim is very busy!"

   Gaz watched the two boys with indifference. Zim had changed over the years. He had begun to grow like a normal human kid, and he could also eat human food without vomitting out his.... 'squeedly-spooch'. Dib leaned into Zim, both being the same height, and snarled, "Where is Kyt?"

   "Kyt?" Zim's eyes opened wide with surprise. He wanted to know where the strange earth monkey was? As if he knew! "Your filthy earthworm friend is at school, isn't she?"

   "No. She isn't." Dib growled, and Gaz shook her head as to confirm this. Zim tilted his head, glaring at the stupid human boy, "Then I don't know where she is. Maybe she's sick. You humans and your weak immune systems. Computer! Rid Zim of these disgusting hyumans! Now!"

   Dib quickly began to back away as the human-sized lawn gnomes began to approach him. "Wait! At least tell me where she lives!"

   Zim's heart suddenly twinged with that unfamiliar emotion as he caught sight of her house. Why should he care if the idiot knew where she lived? He pointed to the white house directly across the street from his, and regretted it immediately. Why?! He wanted to scream. As soon as he saw that Dib and Gaz were gone he retreated back into his base. The sick feeling returning to his squeedly-spooch.

   Meanwhile, Gaz and Dib had run across the street to Kyt's house. They paused in front of her door, Dib looking back at Zim's 'home'. He stared at quietly, unaware that Zim was scowling right back at him from the peephole.

   "Come in."

   Kyt's voice and the sound of the door opening grabbed Dib's attention away from Zim. Stupid alien. Gaz opened the door and went in looking around, Dib following. The house felt..... eerie. Both the teens shuddered. They found Kyt in the kitchen eating a bowl of soup, bundled up in a bathrobe and blankets.

   She looked paler than normal, sickly almost. There were dark circles under her eyes. Dib looked at her eyes; they didn't have that mystic glow to them. None of her did. He watched as his sister went into the fridge, as if she owned the place, and got a Poop Cola. Kyt didn't even seemed to care.

   "Shouldn't you two be in skool?" Kyt asked in a weakened tone. She closed her listless eyes, and Gaz shot Dib a glare.

   "Yeah, we should." Gaz started, "But when he saw you weren't there he went to interrogate Zim.

   "Zim?"

   "He thought Zim was doing stuff to you and to prove he's an alien."

   "Zim doing what kind of stuff to me?" One of Kyt's eyelids popped open with curiousity. Dib got a sudden bad feeling.

   "Stuff Dib would never get to do outside of his dreams." Gaz gave Kyt a devilish smirk. She loved watching Dib's face heat up with embarassment. This is what he gets for pulling her out of school. Dib sputtered, failing to explain.

   "I thought he was experimenting on you!"

   "So in your dreams you experiment on me....?"

   "Yes- No! I mean no!"

   Gaz tried not to laugh as she added in, "He experiments on ways for you to have his fatheaded kid."

   "GAZ!" Dib growled, trying his hardest not to lunge at her. "I don't have a fathead."

   He covered his head with his hands defensively, sinking into himself. Kyt gave out a small, tinkling laugh. The two looked at her; her eyes were very faintly a glow. But that dimmed swiftly and she coughed in such a horrid way even Gaz didn't like it.

   "That's some cold you got."

   "Not a cold. I don't know what it is...." Kyt coughed, and an intense heat suddenly flared out from her body making the two teens gasp at the instant sweat they produced. She continued on, "Mom said I'll be fine though."

   Dib gave Kyt a look of worry. "Right...."

    Kyt shrugged, getting up in her cocoon of blankets and waddled over to the living room. She curled up on the couch turning on The Scary Monkey Show. Gaz watched as Dib picked up a snotty tissue from a pile in the trash. He placed it in a see through compact he had in his pocket. He looked up to his sister, "I'm taking it to Dad's lab to analyze it... That wasn't normal."

   Before Gaz could make a smart remark, the doorbell rang. Dib was in motion for Kyt, giving her a smile as he went to the door. There was a split-second of surprised silence.

   "Hello again, Dib-Monkey." Zim said, pushing past Dib to get into the house. The alien boy shuddered when he entered. Dib shut the door. "I came over here because some strange energy short-circuited Gir and the Computer. I tracked the source and it lead me here. What weird things are you filthy Earth children doing in here?"

    "Hi, Zim." Kyt said with a yawn. He looked at the earth child and his heart took off. He looked away with a soft hiss, but spoke in a sincere friendly tone, "Hello, Kyt."

   Gaz had come in and was now sitting on the couch playing her Game Slave. The two boys watched as Kyt fell asleep and didn't do so much as look at Gaz. They turned their attention to one another. Dib spoke first, "We aren't doing anything as you can see. Kyt is sick."

    "Something weird did happen, though." Dib added with a thoughtful look. Zim's antennaes lifted with interest, "Oh?"

    "She started coughing like crazy and it got really hot for a moment."

   Zim's eyes traveled down to the ill-looking Kyt fast asleep, swaddled up in blankets. "You're saying her illness messed with Gir and the house's Computer? Do you have any sample of this strange sickness?"

    Dib glared at the Irken. He knew how much Zim despised germs. "Tissues in the kitchen."

    He smirked as Zim winced dramatically. But that only lasted for a second, "Oh, all right! I will go fetch the hyuuman's FILTHY snot rag."

    The human boy watched in confusion as Zim swept past him and into the kitchen. He looked at Gaz now playing her GS3. "I'm leaving. You staying to watch over?"

   "Mhm. Yeah, sure."

   Dib furrowed his brow, shrugging and without another word he left. A moment after, Zim came in holding a tissue with one of the arms protruding from his PAK. He scoured the living room with narrowed eyes, "Dib-stink left?"

    "Mhm." Was Gaz's response. The alien boy looked back down at Kyt's sleeping figure. He moved closer with a look of fascination more than simple interest. He wasn't even aware Gaz was watching.

   He guessed the hyuman looked.... cute as it slept. Zim felt a strange urge rise up within him. And this time he didn't even try to fight it. The Irken male found himself leaning down to Kyt. His lips made quick contact with the human's forehead; it was an affectionate gesture he saw hyumans do on the ridiculous shows Gir wasted his time watching. Her skin was surprisingly cool. Hesitantly he lowered his face so their lips were level. There was another gesture of affection he saw the filthy earth-monkeys do. He leaned into her, close enough now to feel her breath on his own lips. Millimeters apart, he paused and looked up.

    Gaz was watching with a smile that made Zim's blood boil. "Go ahead. I won't tell."

   Gaz went back to playing her game. Who knew the alien could fall in love with the very things he hated? Zim hissed, moving away, antennaes folded back. He stood upright and stormed out. Gaz looked at the door with a raised brow. What was his deal?

~¥~

    Millions of lightyears away, they were being watched. Little did they know. Glowing purple eyes watched a moniter screen from the umbra they sat in. Red eyes joined the violet ones. A high, nearly demonic laugh was let it.

   "I can not believe this."