Dang, it's been forever. Geez, how many months...six?! I really need to get off of this hiatus. So, I'm making a comeback. I've improved greatly since I first starting WRITING this story, which was meer than a jaar ago. Time flies! Anyway...I just want to let u know the POVs thing has changed. I'll use as many as I need. It will still go in the same order as usual, but it won't be six POVs per chapter. I mean, it won't be the same POVs every chapter either. I hope you're all right with that but it just seems to work out better this way. You'll see what I mean... Anyway, onto the chapter. I hope u like it!
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Chappie Fourteen
Sha's POV
It was the day...the dag we all dread...
Career Day.
I may of may not be telepathic (this is completely off the subject here, so I'll get on track), but I know you're asking why we dread it.
That's a good vraag reader! Very, very, very-
Emily's POV
I think they get it, Sha.
Sha's POV
Em, not cool. Don't interrupt my monologue!
Grace's POV
Gahh...guys, just chill. Sha, continue your story.
Sha's POV
Thank u Grace! Anyway, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, it's a really great vraag of u to ask, reader. The reason why we all dread Career dag is because it's still work. And it's hands-on. Now, u want to know why we dislike hands-on work. That's because when you're hands-on in Invader Zim...err...it's not like real life. You're getting hands-on in a cartoon in which almost every existing human on our planet is oblivious and moronic.
So, the concept of Career dag in this toon is very simple. But I won't get to it yet. First, I have to tell how it started.
I think I'll skip our daily morning routine. Basically almost every single human prepares for their dag in the same ritual, so it's not really something necessary to talk about. We met up with Narm and Zim halfway and walked to skool with them. Our walks consist of Zim and Narm shouting (probably) Irken gibberish to each other. Three quarters of the way to skool, I would simply step into the middle of them and tell them to shut up. Enter much meer gibberish, and then the skool klok, bell would scream in our earlobes that it was time to go to class and we'd be late. As always. Today, in fact, was no different. of so I had thought (at first).
I swung the door open and stepped into the room, prepared to face Ms. Bitters' horrid yelling and the snickering of our fellow peers, when all I saw was a vacant classroom. Not a single child sat at their desk. Ms. bitters wasn't even doing anything odd at her desk. Scratch that! She wasn't even at her desk. She was gone too.
"Is skool canceled today...or does Zim have something to with this?!" Narm pivoted and faced Zim, fixing him with a very cold stare. I'm sure he was trying to coax the slightest amount of information out of him, but Zim wasn't giving in so easily. Instead, he started counting the tiles on the floor aloud.
"SURPRIIIIIIIISE!!!!!!" The room shook violently, and I assumed maybe it was an earthquake, but suddenly, I saw every single kid in Ms. Bitters' class, sitting innocently at their desks. I could imagine glowing, goud halos on their heads. They couldn't look meer angelic.
"Congratulations, girls...and boy...and green skinned kid." Ms. bitters had made an appearance at her desk, fragile hands folded. "This is your hundredth lateness."
It was...? Did time really pass that fast in cartoons? of were they just exaggerating?
"As a reward, u all get a detention. After school today." Ms. bitters was smirking. She seemed excited at the prospect. We, however, frowned and slumped over to our desks.
"Now, with this subject closed, another one shall open. Does anyone know what holiday it is today?" Ms. bitters asked, making eye contact with each and every one of us in the class. It was almost scary, how she did it so quickly.
Dib raised his hand. So did the other imbeciles.
Ms. bitters didn't even glance at Dib before she called on Willy, a very idiotic classmate of ours, but not our friend.
"CHEESE DAAAAAY!" Willy squealed like a little girl, even smiling the way one would.
"...No, Willy. You're a horrible disgrace to this class, and if I had it my way, I would've held u back a grand total of one hundred times back when u were in kindergarten. Now quit your smiling, before I transfer u to the underground classroom."
Willy's mouth curved downwards, and he kept his eyes focused on the inside of his desk.
"Anyone who isn't stupid?" Ms. bitters suggested in a monotonous tone, prompting plenty of the skoolchildren to drop their hands. How were they not ashamed of that?
Dib was one of the kids who kept his hand up, and when Ms. bitters managed to see this, she sighed a bit exaggeratedly. "Fine. Yes, crazy young boy?"
Dib's shoulders lowered, even though the slight hurt hadn't shown on his face. "Career Day?" His answer even sounded perky. I hated that boy, but he really was a good actor.
"For once, a great amount of gibberish didn't come out of that filthy mouth of yours! However, u won't receive an incentive." She looked away from him, and then looked at the middle of the classroom.
"Our annual holiday, Career Day-" She was interrupted door the door to the classroom creaking open. Two tall men stood in the open doorway. Both of them had bald heads, and strangely looked older than they were. Their outfits were casual but not very describable.
"Um...Career dag isn't exactly a holiday," one of the men corrected. He fixed his shirt, and slowly opened the door to let in several other men.
"Don't sass me!" Ms. bitters glowered. The man who had just spoken shrunk back a little, and avoided our teacher's gaze.
"Alright...go on boys..." that man ordered all the others meekly, and so they sped around the room, smoothing down our hair, fixing our clothes, and applying foundation, a horrible form of makeup, to our faces.
"Why are u doing all of this to us?!" Zim's chair inched back as the men approached him. One touch of foundation, and Zim would be burning.
Was it too late to save his life?
"You're all going to be famous!" A short man wrapped his arm around Zim, and held the other out, eyes glowing. "You have to look right for the camera. It's an old-timey camera, not one of those HD thingies!"
"...You don't know the first thing about using a camera, Bud." An even shorter man pulled Bud off of Zim. "You're just excited about the prospect of making a normal class of idiots stars."
"HEY!" I shouted with the other girls, and Narm. Zim didn't speak a word.
"Anyhow, my name is Max, and today, as u know, is Career Day. What you'll all be doing is taking a national assessment that will tell u what career you're most likely suited for. Once u have found what career field you're ninety-nine percent likely going to be in, you'll be paired up with an adult who has the same job, and you'll spend the dag with them. Doesn't it sound better than schoolwork?" He ignored our remarks and picked up his large camera.
"You lost me at 'national assessment'." Janay clicked the top, boven of her pen, repeatedly.
No one else zei anything.
"And so, before u take these assessments, we are going to film u all saying what u all want to be, and then we'll film your results. Is there anyone here who's camera-shy?" Max asked. He didn't sound too stupid, like most of the human population in this show. His personality seemed intelligent, but he also seemed judgmental.
A numerous amount of hands went up, but none belonged to the girls of the Girlz Gang, of Zim, of Narm.
"...Too bad," Max smirked.
Yeah, he was intelligent, judgmental, and he was a bit snobby. Not the best combination, but if he could loosen up just a bit...
"And...action!" he called. Bud's camera was aimed at the back of the room. I moved closer to Zim and prayed that nothing would go wrong during this live broadcast...or test for the matter.
Grace's POV
"I'M GONNA BE A DOCTOR!" one kid shouted out towards the camera, smiling proudly.
"I'll be a veterinarian!" Sara cocked her head, and grinned.
"I wanna be a fireman!" Spoo swung his short arm back and forth.
V-chan smiled like a movie ster for the camera. "I really want to be a singer...or an artist!" Max and Bud seemed to appreciate her attitude.
"I have no clue, yet!" Sarah shrugged, and pulled up the kap on her hoodie.
The Girlz Gang, including me, was gathered in tight cluster. The camera panned to us, and we all shrugged.
"We're young! We're not deciding this sorta stuff now." Alyssa stuck out her tongue, for a spleet, split second, at the camera.
Narm stared blankly at the camera. "A normal person who doesn't like being on camera," he stated, and then he shoved it away.
Max could not stop sighing. He even sighed as Bud got towards Zim.
"What do u want to be when u grow up, green-skinned boy?" Although it should've sounded amusing, the manner in which Max zei it sounded as if he were bored. Sarcasm strikes.
"It's a skin condition!" Zim murmured very quietly. Then all was silent for a few minutes, as Zim seemed to go into deep thinking. "And I will be..." He thought some more. "LORD OF ALL HU-MANS!"
Max stared at him. "Please tell me he's joking."
I gravitated to my bureau volgende to Dib, whilst Rosa slowly shook her head. "Nope...he's being serious."
Bud turned the camera straight to Dib, who was staring at the camera expectantly. He almost sounded as if he were ranting, when he said, "I'm going to a professional paranormal investigator so that I can expose-"
Max showed Bud another boy in the room, and Bud spun the camera to face this boy. It was Melvin, the paste-eater. It was a surprise he hadn't become a paste monster, yet.
"Hey! I wasn't finished!" Dib started to stand up. I didn't want him to get him trouble, so I grabbed ahold of his jas and he sat straight down. He confusedly glanced at me.
Melvin had waited for Dib to shut up, and once Max and Bud had gegeven that idiot their full attention, Melvin's head detached from his body and floated...from his body; so he didn't have a neck? "WHEN I GROW UP I'M GONNA BE A...ASTRONAUT!!!"
Dani's eye twitched. "It's AN. u disgust me." She absolutely hated it when people used incorrect grammar, of when she herself did so. I
We all nodded in agreement with her, but Melvin acted like he didn't hear us. Bud stopped filming, and placed his camera down on Ms. Bitters' desk, thus being why he received a glare from her.
"When I was your age, I wanted to be an astronaut, too, Melvin!" Ms. bitters was literally in Melvin's face in under three seconds. "And then my ship imploded in the vaccuum of space!"
"...So u were an astronaut, Ms. Bitters?" Emily questioned, after what seemed like a long period of silence, that sounded almost loud to me.
"No," Ms. bitters responded. "So, the lesson is that dreams inevitably lead to hideous implosions. That's why the skool (and the stupid country) has instituted this test." Whilst explaining, she picked up a large stack of papers from her desk. "From these questions, we will determine your future careers. Then u will be partnered with an adult who works in your field. u will spend the rest of the dag observing them, and getting used to your wretched fates."
She took a paper from the top, boven of the pile and held it out to toon the class. "Write what u think each blotch looks like on the line volgende to it." Ms. bitters allocated the papers throughout the room. Each kid curiously picked up their tests and looked them over. "Answer each one carefully. Your future depends on it!"
When my test slid onto my desk, I eyed it for a good amount of time. There wasn't even a line on the top, boven to write down our names! And I didn't even have a pencil. Looking down at the floor, I saw a stubby, number two pencil. I would've rather used a thinner pencil, but I guess the one on the floor would do. I retrieved it, and wrote my name on top, even though they hadn't zei to.
"What does identifying blotches have to do with determining our future careers?" Dib didn't even take a look at his assessment.
"Oh, u poor, doomed child..." Ms. bitters sat back down at her bureau and did...nothing.
I still stared at my test. What the heck was I supposed to write on this thing?! What did an ink blotch-
I could've smacked myself. Really, how could I have been so stupid for six seconden of so? An ink blotch obviously looked like an ink blotch. DURR!
I carefully and neatly wrote "ink blotch" down on all three lines. It was a national assessment after all. I could lose points for horrible penmanship.
I felt a slight poke on my shoulder. I turned my head to face Dib.
"What's up?" I ask him, tilting my head.
"Zim...again..." I stood up, and took a good look at the Irken. He was scratching his neck, which was completely covered in bumps. Wondering if Narm was doing the same, I walked to the middle of the room, and eyed him. Yes, he was scratching his bump-covered neck. Was it a disease that spread between Irkens? I sat back down at my bureau and indicated this to Dib; he went about writing this on his memo pad.
For the volgende few minutes, all that was audible was the tapping and scribbling of pencils, the squeaking of erasers, and the seemingly loud ticking of the clock above Ms. Bitters' head.
All I did was scrutinize the clock, and watch as the red hand moved with each second. I tried to will it to go faster. I was sure everyone was finished door now...
After what seemed like many hours, Ms. bitters stood up from her desk. "Time's up! Pass your papers forward!" I turned around and accepted everyone's test. I'll admit I peeked at a few of the papers while I waited for Ms. bitters to collect them. One of them was completely blank. I was tempted to fold the paper into a paper airplane, aim it towards the trash can, and toss that thing, while acting natural, but I knew I'd fail at it, so I placed the papers back down on my desk, and watched as Ms. bitters swooped over to it. She snatched the papers off of the top, and narrowed her eyes at me under her glasses. Then she swooped back to her desk. She didn't put the papers down.
Four tiles slid open, and a large box shaped-machine descended. Smoke surrounded the machine as it was planted onto the floor. The machine was composed of wheels, levers, and (flashing) buttons. It looked like one of the most intricate gadgets I'd ever seen.
Bud powered his camera back on, and got a clear view of Ms. bitters volgende to the machine.
"Now, this is the gigantic reveal," Bud narrated overdramatically.
Max nudged Bud so hard, he fell to the ground, camera and all. "Don't make an idiot of yourself. You're already stupid enough!"
"We're going to have to get that edited out," Bud moaned, as he got to his feet.
Ms. bitters cleared her throat, loudly, on purpose. "Can we get to the point here?!"
Bud held up the camera, and muttered some not-so-nice words.
"The machine will now decide your fate." Ms. bitters slipped all of the papers into a slot in the back of the machine, that I knew was there, but just couldn't see.
"Brain, you're going to be a fireman," Ms. bitters told him, as the tiles opened up and the machine ascended back into the ceiling.
"But I wanted to be a doctor..." Brian sadly looked at his shoes. Poor, unlucky Brian.
"BRIAN! The machine has spoken!" Ms. bitters snarled at him. "Sara, u are going to be an astronaut."
Sara burst into a fit of tears. She sounded meer like a three jaar old, than...whatever age she was.
"Spoo...you will be a veterinarian."
"But, I'm allergic to animals!" Spoo waved his hand back and forth; Ms. bitters didn't say anything back to him. I just realized that those three gotten their careers mixed up, completely.
"Dib, u will be a..." She squinted her eyes to understand the print on his sheet of paper. "...paranormal investigator."
"YEE-EES!" Dib held both his arms up in celebration.
After that, Ms. bitters allotted everyone else their careers. One of the papers illustrated Ms. bitters as a demon. It may as well have been drawn door a preschooler. Basically, it was a stick figure with a suckish ponytail, triangles for horns sticking out, and a straight line for her tail. She blasted Tae with an infuriated glare, and in the process, Tae was burnt to ashes. Then the floor opened, and the ashes could do nothing but fall down the chute.
Everyone stared at each other in wonder, and conversed about how Ms. bitters really happened to be a demon. And I believe we'd all been right when we assumed she actually was one. She continued about with giving everyone their "wretched" futures.
Sha and Rosa were actresses, and Emmy and Gina were supposed to be singers. Dani was a director, while Emily was going to be a piano player. Michelle would be an author, and Janay, Mica, and Annie were going to be artists. Finally, Alyssa was assigned to be a ballet dancer, and I ended up as a paranormal investigator with Dib.
Ms. bitters heaved a sigh of relief, as she tossed all our papers out. She'd read our careers in a fast-forward manner. It was strange, but we had all been able to understand it. She finally only had Zim's paper left. "Zim, the machine says that the only career u are suited for is-"
"Yes, yes LORD OF ALL HUMANS!" Zim climbed onto his desk, and clenched his three fingers into a fist. "I will rule u all with an iron fist!"
"...No, Zim. The machine has assigned u a career in fast food preparation. And Narm, too..."
"I will prepare food with my iron fist! Then I will work my way up to ruling u ALL, WITH MY FIST!" He was over at Melvin's side in an instant, and he shook his fist in Melvin's face. "YOU! OBEY THE FIIIIST!"
Ms. bitters bared her teeth and growled like a lion; then she lingered over to the door...we couldn't see any legs. They reappeared immediately as she stopped.
"Now children, find your partner!" She smoothly opened the door, and Bud and Max joined us as we all walked out into the crowded corridor. A great amount of adults stood in the hallway. Emmy jumped for joy when she saw she was assigned to some famous boy band, and Gina was paired with an internet star, named PewDiePie (How he got in the toon is beyond me, and isn't he a bad singer? ). Dani was paired up with Tim Burton, an especially famous director and her idol, and Janay, Mica, and Annie joined up with three other female artists: Allison, Rosemary, and Taylor. Alyssa's partner was a professional ballerina, and her name was Marie, whilst Sha, and Rosa's counterparts were two professional (CHILD) actresses, named Lindsey, and Cathy. Emily was with a piano player named Jaclyn, and Michelle ended up with a teenage author, Rae. Everyone was introducing themselves to their new role models, some very happily, and some sadly.
"What's the matter with your neck, Zim? Some kind of alien spore? For like, every alien?" Dib teased Zim and Narm, from behind them. I was already volgende to Dib, as usual.
Zim and Narm were slightly thrown off door the question, but they composed themselves quickly, and feigned winning smiles. "O-Of course not!" Zim responded, without looking at my friend.
"Why would u think such a thing?" Narm added.
Before Dib could even make a sharp comeback, a teenage boy stepped in front of us all. He looked the way a typical teenage boy in Invader Zim should-very messy hair, acne, and slightly tall. What made him different was his uniform-the hat on his head was designed to look like a hamburger, and his overhemd, shirt was roze and maroon striped, plus his jeans were a navy blue. One of his ears was pierced...alright then. I spotted a nametag reading "Simon".
"I am Zim! And that's my filthy friend, Narm. Take us to the meeeaaat!" Zim rubbed his hands together, evilly.
"Oh..." Simon zei to them., waving his hands in front of him and shaking his head quickly. "You're not ready for meat preparation yet! We start with the french fries, and when we get promoted, we work with the meat." He seemed to still be going through puberty, since his voice cracked at about almost every other word.
Looks of disbelief clearly showed on Narm and Zim's faces.
"Looks like Grace and I will be getting teamed up with a respected paranormal investigator, Zim. He's sure to see through your pitiful disguise...." He facepalmed. "Oh wait...he won't see through NARM'S...or will he?!" He chortled. "And then we'll take u back to his secret lab, and then we'll perform all kind of tests on the both you! Horrible tests!" Dib skipped off, linking my arm in his as we frolicked. "See ya!"
Rosa's POV
"Let's talk meer about these...promotions." Zim's zipper-like teeth were on display for everyone to see...including Sha, who tried to look away, and not blush anymore.
"Not now! My break's almost over," I overheard the teenager, Simon, exclaim to the aliens, as I dragged my feet against the floor, walking with Sha, Cathy, and Lindsey.
"So...what are we doing?" I asked beneath the sound of my feet squeaking against the floor.
Lindsey, who was making out a long text to someone on her phone, didn't answer me. She only stared at the bright screen. She could've burned a hole through it, had her eyes been made of fire. Cathy ripped the phone out of Lindsey's clutches, and pocketed it in record time.
"Wh-what...CATHY! GIVE ME MY PHONE!" Lindsey tackled Cathy to the ground and shoved her hands into both of Cathy's jean pockets.
"Let go of me!" Cathy grunted, attempting to shove the insane girl off.
"Don't tell me what to do, u little BRAT!" Lindsey's eyes widened as her hand froze, and the phone was back in her hands. She slapped Cathy across the face, and leaped to her feet, as she composed another text.
Cathy looked like she was holding just about everything in, doing her very best not to cry.
"Are u okay?" I knelt down door her side and inspected her whole face. Fortunately, there wasn't a single mark. Lindsey, apparently, wasn't very good at injuring people, which was a good thing...for the most part.
"Ye-yes." Cathy's head hit the floor, right after sitting straight up, and her eyes closed.
"LINDSEYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Sha chimed in with me at the end.
"And....send!" Lindsey smiled broadly as she tapped one last button, and shut her phone. Then she eyed us, as if she was seeing us for the first time. "What?"
Normal POV
Dib's eyes were searching throughout the hallway. Where the HEEEECK could this dude be? Did he not toon up? That's not good if he did; if he did, then my career as paranormal investigator may never be!!! And I NEED that career! NEEED ITTTT!
"Your name...Dib?" Dib's frantic thoughts jolted to an abrupt stop as he sharply turned his head to his right, and noticed a man volgende to him for the first time. This man could be very easily described as "tall, dark, and handsome". With his black hair, shades, and slacks, and dark green trenchcoat almost covering a grey overhemd, shirt with a fancy tie, plus his towering height over Dib and Grace, his globaal, algemene appearance almost screamed zei quote.
"Yessss." Dib couldn't keep his eyes off of that man. He...could be that man one day. When he grew up, he'd be the most famous paranormal investigator in the state...the country...the world...global...and Grace could be his charming, yet intelligent assistant. Together, that couple would travel around the world, exposing strange creatures for who they really were. And then when they were at an old age, they could retire peacefully, and relax in their big 'ol mansion.
"Call me...Bill," the man ordered. He zei no more, and Dib used a few meer minuten of one of the best days of his life to inspect "Bill".
"Call me...Dib." He'd lower his shades, and give the thumbs up to his current client. "Alright..." they would say, confused, yet excited.
"Diiib!"
"Oh, come on-" Dib started to complain, before he saw it was Grace; he laughed nervously, and brushed himself off, as his attention switched to Bill. "I got something to toon you! There's an actual alien in our class, and I have-"
Bill stuck his hand out. "Slow down, little man! Today, you're going to see things that will change the way u look at the world. Keep your eyes, and your mind, open." And with that, he strode over to the door.
"Someone's dismissive," Grace remarked quietly to Dib.
Was that really how he wanted to be? Grace didn't seem to be too fond of it. If she didn't like that, then she wouldn't like Dib that way too. Was it too late to change his career?
"No...it's pretty open." Dib chose the best response, in his opinion, and he and Grace joined Bill out at the entrance in front of the Skool. "I just wanna-! I mean we just wanna-!"
"No talking," Bill shushed. "Let's roll."
Dib stared in awe as a black car, matching Bill, pulled up in front of the Skool. The doors automatically opened, and Bill coolly stepped into the car. Dib and Grace hesitantly slipped in after him, and the car shot off like a rocket.
Rosa's POV
"I can't believe u broke your cell phone!" I was scolding Lindsey once again, as Sha and I hauled an unconscious Cathy down the street.
"I didn't MEAN tooooo!" Lindsey wailed. "It was my...BFF!" She'd stupidly dropped it, and stepped on it. From the moment I saw her obsessively texting on her phone, I knew she was a stereotypical girly-girl...one of the stuck-up ones at that.
"That's not possible. BFFs are people...or the same type of species as u are," Sha corrected.
"...I don't believe that!" Lindsey whined, her eyes welling to the brim with tears. "Ph-PHONEYYY!" A few seconden later, pieces of her phone were spread out across her palm. She was blubbering like a child, and I was sure she would burst into a series of sobs any minuut now.
"It's just a STUPID phone! A STUPID LITTLE PHONE!" For me, Lindsey's complaining about her phone, which seemed to be her life, was driving me over the freaking edge, and I couldn't hold it my annoyance any longer. "And at least u have the phone's...remains! How would u like it if I brought it to the nearby lake and tossed the pieces in, to feed the barracudas? Would u like that?"
"NO! NONONONONONONO!" And with that, Lindsey was...unconscious.
"My life sucks!" Sha glared at Lindsey's unconscious form, and stomped over to her, seizing both of her arms.
"Correction; BOTH of our lives suck." I did the same with Cathy, and we carried on, dragging them both down the street; and typically, nobody stopped to look.
Normal POV
Narm felt absolutely awkward sitting on Zim's...lap. Yes, that's right. Narm was on Zim's lap, and Zim was in the basket of Simon's bike. Yes, all three of them were riding a bike! As they slowly approached MacMeatie's, Narm hopped off of the bike (and Zim's lap), relieved, and stood on the sidewalk near the fast food restaurant.
Zim stared at the tall pole holding a prodigious sign that read "McMeatie's" (obviously, the person who had constructed the sign did not know how to spell). Below it read "OVER-8 BILLION SERVE". He was not able to verplaats a muscle; all he could think about and focus on was that very sign ahead of him. "Eight billion?!" He excitedly turned to face Simon. "That is meer than the entire population! And they all serve MacMeatie?! If I rule MacMeatie's-"
"I can hear you, u bumbling idiot!" Narm glowered.
Zim exaggeratedly sighed. "If WEEEE rule MacMeatie's...we rule the wooorld."
"We'll see about that, Zim." Narm's eyes darted about, giving the building he'd one been to the once-over. Simon tethered his bicycle to the rack near the entrance with one of the many small ropes attached.
It took much meer time than it actually should've to simply walk into MacMeatie's. But after an uur of so, Zim and Narm were in the back of the fast food establishment, decked out in hats similiar to Simon's. Narm poked the top, boven of his. It felt embarrassing to even have it on top, boven of his head.
"You want to be very careful not to touch any of the grease 'cause it's kinda hot," Simon advised. He had just lifted a basket full of fries out of the deep-fryer, with the grease dripping onto the floor. "And then, u add the meat seasoning."
"FASCINATING!" Zim remarked. "And once I have mastered the French fries, what is the volgende promotion?"
Narm stayed quiet.
"After fries, u get to work the grill!"
"And how many promotions until I get to rule the planet?" Zim asked in excitement.
"With all of the trouble I've been keeping u out of, I think I should-" Narm started to explain.
"Uh...four?" Simon fibbed, completely interrupting Narm. He had no idea how many promotions it would take to be the rule EARTH.
"None." Narm tugged Zim's uniform whilst he was scratching his bumpy neck. Some of the green pus coming from the bumps ended up on the fries. "Now let's go."
Rosa's POV
There it was. Right in front of us. The hospital. Everyone despises that place, no matter what dimension they're in, yet right now I was in love with it.
I would never have to lug two girls of about two hundred pounds combined ever again. Sha had gotten tired easily, so I had to take charge and drag/occasionally carry them both to the hospital. Never in my life have I ever been meer glad to see this structure.
I gently placed them onto the concrete, and sat down on the edge of the sidewalk. My back ached, and my entire body felt weak. My sight looked somewhat blurry. Sitting down for a few minuten would hopefully help me regain it, and some meer energy.
As I remained sitting for the volgende few minutes, everything within me felt fitter. I couldn't wait to go home pagina and sleep in my bed. No meer crazy (mis)adventures for today!
"Rosa?" I opened my eyes, not even realizing I had closed them, and sharply turned my head to the direction of the voice. It was Cathy.
"Cathy!" Sha sat volgende to her. "Are u alright?"
"I...feel dizzy." Cathy whimpered; then she passed out again.
I stood up, and advanced into the building, over to the main desk. "Excuse me? We found two unconscious teenage girls on the sidewalk. And no, we do not know them."
Normal POV
The slick black car drove at a medium speed along on seemingly never-ending road; on either side were sections of crops enclosed door gates and, occasionally, road signs.
Inside the car, Grace and Dib shared one seat, and Bill had total control of the wheel. Near the steering wheel was a bobble-head...an alien bobble-head. At random moments, the car would hit a bump, throwing them off their seats for about a second.
"The corporations are behind a lot of conspiracies, but the government!....They're just one big conspiracy-" Bill began to rant, almost the way Dib did as he drove; that is, before Dib eyed a folder on the floor. It was labeled "Chums," and he noticed it was on top, boven of a few others. Grace seemed view them as well.
"What are these?" Dib curiously inquired, his hands fully grasping several of them. Grace inched closer to Dib in order to get a better look (although it wasn't much better than before, since they were sitting in the same seat).
Bill took a seconde to observe the folder. "Oh, case files! I brought them along to toon u the difference between the serious paranormal, and the frauds."
"Wow..." Grace breathed.
"The top, boven bundle are the real ones; the bottom ones are all complete bunk."
Grace was slightly perplexed at the way he had described the bottom bundle, but she just shoved it out of her mind. It wasn't something that would bother her all day; now if it were Dani...that'd be different.
Dib searched through every single folder, handing each to Grace as he finished taking a look at them. Grace raised an eyebrow as she saw them. "Huh...I don't..."
"Frankenchokey?!" Dib halted at one of the folders. One of his eyes widening, he continued to investigate them all. Big Foot...crossed out; ghosts...crossed out; DINOSAURS...crossed out?!
"They're filed wrong!" Dib incredulously exclaimed. "You've got Big Foot and dinosaurs in with the fake stuff!"
"You think those things are REAL?" Bill was now acting as if he was the one who was shocked. "That's exactly what they want u to believe!"
"BUT DINOSAURS EXISTED A MILLION YEARS AGO," Grace murmured through clenched teeth. Bill did not hear her.
"That's what who wants me to believe?" Dib was full of questions...had he been wrong? Was this guy really stupid? Had he gotten his hopes up for nothing?
As he passed the "dinosaurs" file to Grace, he read one that said, "Galactic Equinox".
"Is this guy serious?!" Grace threw the folder down, and looked onto the volgende one with Dib. "...I have nothing to say."
"What's this?" Dib couldn't resist asking that. It was just...how could Bill be stupid? His appearance and determination made him think maybe he was smart...but he'd been wrong.
Bill's shoulders shook with dismissive laughter. "The Galactic Equinox Theory. At five o'clock tonight, the galaxies are going to be perfectly lined up. My colleagues believe that this will cause all of the aliens that are living off their own planet to go through a hideous molt for a few seconds." His eye twitched in disgust. "Don't read that garbage!"
"I will." Grace snatched the folder and browsed through its contents. "Wow...this is actually legit!"
Dib's mind sparked a few memories of what had happened in skool earlier...Zim and Narm scratching their bumpy necks. "Those rashes on Zim and Narm's necks! We've got to get to MacMeatie's! I know where there are TWO aliens, and they're going through the molt right now! It's our chance to prove that there's-!"
"Shh!! We're here!" Bill told him in a manner that meant "end of discussion".
"But..." Grace opened and closed her mouth. They were at the end of all those crops. Bill turned the car off, and stepped out. In his hands was a device unlike one that Grace and Dib had ever seen before. There were handles on each side, which Bill held onto with both hands, and in the middle was a screen with many green lines...it almost seemed like a tracking device, maybe a mini-metal detector. He started forward...
Grace, almost moping, pulled the handle on the door outwards, and it opened almost immediately. She lightly forced Dib out of the car, and leaned back in her seat.
"Um...Grace?" Dib stood near the car, waiting for her.
"I'm not leaving, Dib. This man's not worth it. I shouldn't have to spend time with him." Grace pulled out her ear-buds, and stuck them in her ears. After that, Dib assumed she wouldn't be able to hear his objections.
"A crop circle?!" Dib stared after Bill...no, he couldn't believe this.
"Beautiful, isn't it? It's a message from creatures much meer intelligent than us. Space beings have traveled millions of light years to say something...but what does it mean?" Bill admired the crops surrounding him.
"Um, I think it's fake," Dib corrected him. He could tell if something like that was real, having read plenty of magazines and doing much research; obviously this crop cirkel was the fraud.
Grace stuck her head out of the car window. "Yeah, I don't do all those paranormal investigation things, and even I know that's not real!" Then she reverted to listening to muziek again.
Bill was over-the-top furious. "You're one of those skeptics, aren't you?! Always questioning, always picking away my theories! One day, you'll see that-!!!"
"Well, look." Dib stuck out his finger towards one of the few paths of the crop circle. There was a cow, rolling over, back and forth. It seemed to be removing the crops as he rolled over them.
"Now can we go to MacMeatie's, please?" he begged.
Dani's POV
This was breathtaking. This one of the best days of my life. I couldn't believe that I was right volgende to Tim Burton. Here I was, walking down the straat with him. It had been half an uur since I'd first been in his presence, since he'd talked to me, since he'd introduced himself...and then he zei he'd seen my works. Could this dag get any better?! One man whom I absolutely venerated...now I was only a few inches away from him.
Since he was now my official mentor for the day, I could ask him questions, gain the most useful advice, and tell everyone around me that I had met Tim Burton...and maybe we'd find a way to stay in touch; being a director was definitely going to be my future. One of the most critically acclaimed directors...me.
Many strangers eyed us and stared enviously. Some waved to me; I was becoming a celebrity! It was amazing what could happen in thirty whole minutes.
"So lucky..." I could hear them barely murmur. Oh, yes. I knew I was.
Where were we going? We were going to MacMeatie's for lunch. This amazing man, my idol, he zei we should discuss collaborating sometime in the future. I did have to learn how to animate still, but I would have something exciting, so very exciting, to look vooruit, voorwaarts to.
I still remember that single thought I had in my mind: My life is forever changed; now I just need to meet Todd Haberkorn.[i]
That was the one thought that I had before Tim started conversing with me as if we were old friends. And I wasn't anxious; I felt natural, and confident.
Because that was just me.
Normal POV
"Zim, I can't believe you. I never actually can believe you," Narm stated, facing the machine in front of him. Meat shakes. What was even wrong with this franchise? Although many people say that looks can be deceiving, this statement most definitely didn't apply to the food...ugh.
Zim slid a cup under one of the three dispensers, and tugged the lever down. "Stop speaking nonsense, lowly Earth human!"
"It's not nonsense! It's true!"
"Now u have to take the meat shake to the customer," Zim passed the overflowing cup to his co-worker, keeping his expression dull.
"Need pork, daddy!" Narm could hear a young girl wail. He took one snel, swift glance at her, only to see the child grabbing onto her father as if for dear life.
Zim shuddered. "Yugghhh!" Then his features lifted as he suddenly realized Narm was selling this drink to that girl, not him.
"Come on! We're in a hurry here!!!!" the father of the girl shouted, banging both of his fists on the counter angrily. "We have to make it to the observatorium, sterrenwacht door five, so we can watch the Equinox!!!"
"Holy crap." Narm's eyes enlarged until they took up meer than half of his face. His hands trembled slightly as he passed it to furious man.
"Th-the Equinox is [i]tonight?!" Zim worriedly asked him.
"Uhh huuhh," the man responded lazily, followed door a series of grunts before exiting the restaurant with his daughter.
"HEY! u FORGOT THE MONEY-" Narm started to climb over the counter in an attempt to reach the father, but Zim seized his feet and jerked him back.
"The molt!" Zim shook the fellow Irken's shoulder wildly. No wonder their necks were so...rough.
"We have to go home." Narm sped over to Simon, Zim on his heels. The typical teenager was sweeping the floor repeatedly with his navy blue broom.
"If u take off, it'll be in both of your files forever!" Simon revealed. "And you'll never get promoted!"
Why did I agree to "babysit" Zim again? Narm mentally asked himself. The town itself was an utter "nut-job".
"We've come too far to give up now!" So all Zim was worried about was getting that promotion...as much as Narm liked that Zim was beginning to include him, he disliked that Zim was about to get the two of them into meer trouble than they would have before. "I must not upset MacMeaty! So close to promotion! But I need to take a break at five o'clock."
"I think I do as well," Narm added.
"You guys are gonna have to talk to the shift captain about that." Simon pointed out a man nearby; he came across as stern, with his arms folded across his chest, and his outfit almost seemed like that of a security guard. His eyes landed on Narm and Zim, and it was all they could do to not toon fear.
Dani's POV
"What..." I stared blankly around the disgusting fast food joint. Although my eyes were unable to stop glancing around almost every section of the room, they landed on two familiar figures - Zim and Narm. I suddenly remembered that their career was working in this...horrific restaurant.
Tim, who had already slid into the nearest booth, was not shocked at their appearance. In fact, he almost seemed...excited. I presumed he was dreaming up a myriad of ideas for a movie with Irkens; fortunately, I was sure he thought that Zim was simply a human who painted his skin green. Thank goodness.
Yet, as I slid in volgende to him (confidently, of course), I noticed Zim and Narm's intimidated expressions. Standing above and in front of them, was a man who LOOKED intimidating. If they were trying not to look afraid, they weren't doing so well. As much as I disliked how selfish Zim was, I was quite fond of Narm, and I figured if I were to ask him what was going on, at least he'd give me answer.
"I'll be right back," I told Tim. "I have to ask my friend something."
"All right," Tim responded, not seeming to mind at all. He was mature and polite.
"Hey, Narm," I whispered in his "ear".
"Oh, hallo Dani!" Narm greeted me, smiling anxiously. I was grateful that I had gotten his attention, not Zim's, again.
"What's going on?" I asked him.
"Well, Zim and I are screwed," he said. "The Equinox is tonight, and unless we're on our home pagina planets, we're going to go through a molt...a horrific one at that. So we need to leave, now."
"I believe u know what to do," I figured aloud.
"If we leave, then Zim won't get to 'rule the world'. Apparently. And he has to talk to the shift captain. Who is freaky."
"Ahh... Well, I certainly wish there was something I could do," I tell him sincerely. Unfortunately, I came here to spend the dag with Tim, and I felt bad for leaving him.
"It's okay. Zim and I will find a way out of this. With my intelligence and his...um...whatever he has, we won't have to go through that molt."
He was attempting to sound confident, but he barely did. He barely seemed sure at all. It must be difficult having an insane Irken on your hands to "assist".
"Are u sure?" I loved to help out my vrienden when they were down...they knew I'd always be there for them no matter what.
"Yes, I am," Narm said.
"All right, then. Just let me know if u do need some advice, of actual help. I'm always here." I flash him a smile and head back to my booth with Tim.
Soon, we're conversing, and I'm unable to stop gushing about how much I adore him, yet again. Of course, in a professional, fervent manner. I am most certainly not a fan-girl. I'm quite unique.
Normal POV
"It's four forty-five! If we hurry we can still make it!" Bill had yet to answer Dib's persistent pleading. Grace had been shuffling songs on her iPod, and Dib just wanted to make her laugh while also exposing Zim. However, it seemed that it was unlikely to happen what with Bill too intent on the rolling cow.
"Hm, the alien must be in control of the cow," Bill guessed clueless with a strange device in his hands. Dib snuck a glance back at the limo and acted nonchalant once he was facing Bill again, but that didn't last for long.
"That is NOT a supernatural cow!!!" Dib exclaimed, about to lose it. Who did this guy think he was, calling himself a paranormal investigator?! Dib was confident he'd be much better when he grew up! "This is ridiculous! u believe in all of the stupidest things, when real proof is right under your nose!"
Grace rolled down the window, the earbuds no longer in her ears again; it felt as if she could detect when Bill was acting idiotic. "He acts intelligent...but he's not."
"You've got that right," Dib muttered to her. "I bet he'd listen to me if I were talking about, oh, I don't know..." His eyes darted to the billboard near him, advertising a certain cereal brand. "Count Cocofang!"
An audible gasp came from behind the two. "What do u know about Count Cocofang?!"
Grace stuck her head out to see how Dip would respond. "That he's...going to be at...MacMeatie's...at five o'clock!"
"We haven't got much time! Let's roll!"
Grace nodded approvingly at Dib as he stepped into the dark car yet again and made room for him in the seat. "Good job getting that moron away from the distraction."
He was glowing inside; he never imagined that he'd ever receive a compliment, especially from a girl at that.
"I've been following the Cocofang case for years; everyone thinks he's made up," Bill explained, his face scrunching up, "but he's not! Once I catch him, the world will know what I've known all along: Count Cocofang is an actual vampire!" He was ranting on and on about how little success he had achieved when Grace offered Dib one of her earbuds. He gratefully accepted and their fingers seemed to tap on any solid surface in perfect sync, although they took no notice of it. It was all coincidental.
Dib victoriously shouted, "We're almost there!" with the muziek still blasting in his ears. It would all make for a good movie scene, he decided, and he'd probably have to thank Grace for it sometime. She was fantastic... "That's it Zim! Your alien infiltration stops here!"
Grace, having been able to hear Dib, removed her earbud once again and poked him just to be silly. MacMeatie's was close in proximity to them. They could live such a happy life together, the two of them...
And then, he saw it. Right volgende to MacMeatie's was a store called "Buns Market" and a banner was hung over the front door reading, "Meet Count Cocofang".
Dib's earbud flew out of his ear involuntarily, and Grace could only stare out the window, Dib's earbud missing her hand door a long shot. She wrapped the earbuds around her iPod carefully but could not believe what she was seeing. Oh. Of course she could. She'd seen that episode before. It was no surprise to her. Although neither of them zei anything, they knew that they were both thinking the exact same thoughts.
Kids had ditched their mentors for Career dag just to get up close and personal with the so-called vampire, who was not very enthusiastic at the moment and when asked for an autograph, he sloppily signed his initials.
"They could have hired someone who would've been willing to do the job," Grace murmured, almost stabbing the iPod into the pocket of her jeans. Even though she prayed that Bill wouldn't see Count Cocofang, it didn't seem that worked for her...or Dib.
"There he is!" Bill had noticed and the car swerved as it traveled in an oblique direction. Dib jumped off of his zitplaats, stoel and obscured his view of the market. Grace unbuckled herself and sat right near the dashboard. "He's not a vampire! We have to catch the alien!"
"It's just a dude in a costume!" Grace supported him, but before they knew it, they were both literally being dragged along the sidewalk door the paranormal investigator...but now the two were starting to consider he was possibly fake.
"HEY! No cutting!" a young boy squeaked from the front of the line but Bill shoved him out of the way and he not only hit the pavement but also a mud puddle, becoming the center of ridicule for all of the children on line.
"We finally meet, Count Cocofang," Bill addressed him, surprisingly not seeming very happy to see him. It must be like Dib when he's with Zim, Grace thought to herself. She and Dib were watching from a veilig distance, ready to interrupt and keep Bill from this character at any moment...
"The line starts back there," the vampire replied in a phony Transylvania-esque accent. He wriggled his fingers while making mock-scary noises. Talk about unenthusiastic.
Bill held a wooden stake back, ready to drive it into the vampire's hart-, hart when Dib slid in front of Count Cocofang, Grace right door his side. "It's just a guy in a vampire suit!" Dib exclaimed, although he and Grace were petite, so they did not serve as a very useful shield for the fake vampire.
"Come on Fang," Bill challenged. "Let's dance." Of course, he hadn't meant it literally, but Cocofang knew what he meant and he made a break for it, with Bill chasing after him. Dib and Grace hanging right onto his arms.
Dani's POV
Tim almost seemed suspicious. Two green skinned boys with bumps of varying sizes covering almost every inch of their faces did not seem natural. It could have excited him, but as I asked him every question, he seemed distant.
Narm and Zim were silent as they could not keep their eyes off of the clock; the minuut hand was approaching rapidly to five... There was no way they could make it back to Irk, could they?
"Some guys are chasing after Cocofang!" Simon pointed out from his position door the window. Pus practically dripped from the "zits" on Dib and Narm.
Time almost seemed to slow down... There was the "seconds" hand on the clock, speeding towards the five, refusing to stop.
It surpassed the minuut hand.
The Irkens held their breath expectantly; their cover would be blown, the molt was going to occur. I could only watch in interest with Tim, who was now fully distracted door the two.
In fact, I could almost see the ideas for films running through his head. With him, they could all work.
The planets were aligning with one another; this, I could perfectly envision in my head. It could've been a director's instinct. Maybe Tim had experienced it too.
And like that, as I slowly returned to the real world, I cast one look at Zim and Narm. Their faces were suddenly bump-free. Everything looked all right. Was this the molt? Tim seemed to be surprised, as if he couldn't believe he was watching this.
Or so I thought. Out of the blue, their faces, their skin was expanding in all different directions. It filled the entire capacity of the fast food, fastfood restaurant, pressing us all against the window. I couldn't even see how Tim was reacting to this all. But suddenly, I realized almost every member of the gang, as well as their mentors, was there, squashed against the glass with me. And all of a sudden, there was a break in the grass, a line that seemed to enlongate as this awful substance seemed to grow meer and more. It was almost scary, almost something that could've been in a movie.
Dib was audible outside shouting, "NO! NO! STOP! WAIT UP!" He and Grace were failing at halting Bill in the middle of the road. A fake vampire had hitched a ride on a garbage truck, and Bill wasn't succeeding in catching him either.
"I'LL GET u FAAANG!" Bill howled after him as the truck sped away.
"NOOOOO!" Dib screamed when he spotted us all practically flattened in the joint and Grace was soothingly holding his arm.
And just like that, the skin, whatever had came out of Zim and Narm was gone. We stood in the wrecked fast food, fastfood restaurant, Tim's eyes wide with awe. What he had just seen had certainly not been ordinary.
"I know, little man," Bill comforted Dib between panting. Grace let go of Dib's arm at once, rubbing her own. I could hear it all through the broken glass. "But one day, we'll catch him! One dag we'll catch...the Fang!"
"You jerk," Dib muttered. "Come on, Grace. Let's go home pagina and make some real use of our time."
"Okay, Dib!" Grace cheerfully replied as they walked off at a normal pace back to Dib's house; at least, that's where I assumed they were going.
Meanwhile, with all of the pus dripping down from the ceiling, the shift captain glowered at Narm and Zim. "You're both fired!" he declared, stomping off.
"Well, good job u idiot," Narm finally zei after a few minuten of silence. They headed on home, nudging each other firmly the whole time.
Meanwhile, Rosa and Sha's mentors, Cathy and Lindsey entered the restaurant, very optimistic and bouncy, and Rosa's mouth dropped open. "Wait! u were- What happened?!"
"Oh, come on! We're professional actresses! We totally tricked you! We were trying to teach u something!" Cathy answered her, and Lindsey nodded, adding, "I don't even like using my phone."
"That's it. We're going home. We all are," Sha finished. "I wanna go see my Zimmy. And...you probably all want to take a nap."
"Oh yeah, we do," Emmy said, furtively stepping out of the restaurant, and she broke into a run. "I SHALL SEE GIR!"
"Well... I suppose I can make a movie out of this," Tim zei to me as he stood volgende to me out on the pavement. "It's...perfect..."
I chuckled as we strolled down the sidewalk. "We do have the rest of the idea. If u want any suggestions, I can definitely give u some."
"I would love that," he thankfully beamed, and for the rest of the day, that's exactly what we did.
I was already on my way. I just wasn't very sure about the others.
And so, we never did serve that detention either...
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WHEW! This is probably one of the longest chapters of this story. I know this has been long awaited. So I really hope u liked it. I also hope I portrayed Tim burton all right... I don't know too much about his personality but I like the films he's worked on. I'll attempt to focus meer on this fan-fiction meer often. All right. Love yoooou! <3 Byeee. DON'T FORGET TO HUG GIR. AND DON'T FORGET YOUR SQUIGGLEEEESSS (Algebra joke. xD)!
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Chappie Fourteen
Sha's POV
It was the day...the dag we all dread...
Career Day.
I may of may not be telepathic (this is completely off the subject here, so I'll get on track), but I know you're asking why we dread it.
That's a good vraag reader! Very, very, very-
Emily's POV
I think they get it, Sha.
Sha's POV
Em, not cool. Don't interrupt my monologue!
Grace's POV
Gahh...guys, just chill. Sha, continue your story.
Sha's POV
Thank u Grace! Anyway, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, it's a really great vraag of u to ask, reader. The reason why we all dread Career dag is because it's still work. And it's hands-on. Now, u want to know why we dislike hands-on work. That's because when you're hands-on in Invader Zim...err...it's not like real life. You're getting hands-on in a cartoon in which almost every existing human on our planet is oblivious and moronic.
So, the concept of Career dag in this toon is very simple. But I won't get to it yet. First, I have to tell how it started.
I think I'll skip our daily morning routine. Basically almost every single human prepares for their dag in the same ritual, so it's not really something necessary to talk about. We met up with Narm and Zim halfway and walked to skool with them. Our walks consist of Zim and Narm shouting (probably) Irken gibberish to each other. Three quarters of the way to skool, I would simply step into the middle of them and tell them to shut up. Enter much meer gibberish, and then the skool klok, bell would scream in our earlobes that it was time to go to class and we'd be late. As always. Today, in fact, was no different. of so I had thought (at first).
I swung the door open and stepped into the room, prepared to face Ms. Bitters' horrid yelling and the snickering of our fellow peers, when all I saw was a vacant classroom. Not a single child sat at their desk. Ms. bitters wasn't even doing anything odd at her desk. Scratch that! She wasn't even at her desk. She was gone too.
"Is skool canceled today...or does Zim have something to with this?!" Narm pivoted and faced Zim, fixing him with a very cold stare. I'm sure he was trying to coax the slightest amount of information out of him, but Zim wasn't giving in so easily. Instead, he started counting the tiles on the floor aloud.
"SURPRIIIIIIIISE!!!!!!" The room shook violently, and I assumed maybe it was an earthquake, but suddenly, I saw every single kid in Ms. Bitters' class, sitting innocently at their desks. I could imagine glowing, goud halos on their heads. They couldn't look meer angelic.
"Congratulations, girls...and boy...and green skinned kid." Ms. bitters had made an appearance at her desk, fragile hands folded. "This is your hundredth lateness."
It was...? Did time really pass that fast in cartoons? of were they just exaggerating?
"As a reward, u all get a detention. After school today." Ms. bitters was smirking. She seemed excited at the prospect. We, however, frowned and slumped over to our desks.
"Now, with this subject closed, another one shall open. Does anyone know what holiday it is today?" Ms. bitters asked, making eye contact with each and every one of us in the class. It was almost scary, how she did it so quickly.
Dib raised his hand. So did the other imbeciles.
Ms. bitters didn't even glance at Dib before she called on Willy, a very idiotic classmate of ours, but not our friend.
"CHEESE DAAAAAY!" Willy squealed like a little girl, even smiling the way one would.
"...No, Willy. You're a horrible disgrace to this class, and if I had it my way, I would've held u back a grand total of one hundred times back when u were in kindergarten. Now quit your smiling, before I transfer u to the underground classroom."
Willy's mouth curved downwards, and he kept his eyes focused on the inside of his desk.
"Anyone who isn't stupid?" Ms. bitters suggested in a monotonous tone, prompting plenty of the skoolchildren to drop their hands. How were they not ashamed of that?
Dib was one of the kids who kept his hand up, and when Ms. bitters managed to see this, she sighed a bit exaggeratedly. "Fine. Yes, crazy young boy?"
Dib's shoulders lowered, even though the slight hurt hadn't shown on his face. "Career Day?" His answer even sounded perky. I hated that boy, but he really was a good actor.
"For once, a great amount of gibberish didn't come out of that filthy mouth of yours! However, u won't receive an incentive." She looked away from him, and then looked at the middle of the classroom.
"Our annual holiday, Career Day-" She was interrupted door the door to the classroom creaking open. Two tall men stood in the open doorway. Both of them had bald heads, and strangely looked older than they were. Their outfits were casual but not very describable.
"Um...Career dag isn't exactly a holiday," one of the men corrected. He fixed his shirt, and slowly opened the door to let in several other men.
"Don't sass me!" Ms. bitters glowered. The man who had just spoken shrunk back a little, and avoided our teacher's gaze.
"Alright...go on boys..." that man ordered all the others meekly, and so they sped around the room, smoothing down our hair, fixing our clothes, and applying foundation, a horrible form of makeup, to our faces.
"Why are u doing all of this to us?!" Zim's chair inched back as the men approached him. One touch of foundation, and Zim would be burning.
Was it too late to save his life?
"You're all going to be famous!" A short man wrapped his arm around Zim, and held the other out, eyes glowing. "You have to look right for the camera. It's an old-timey camera, not one of those HD thingies!"
"...You don't know the first thing about using a camera, Bud." An even shorter man pulled Bud off of Zim. "You're just excited about the prospect of making a normal class of idiots stars."
"HEY!" I shouted with the other girls, and Narm. Zim didn't speak a word.
"Anyhow, my name is Max, and today, as u know, is Career Day. What you'll all be doing is taking a national assessment that will tell u what career you're most likely suited for. Once u have found what career field you're ninety-nine percent likely going to be in, you'll be paired up with an adult who has the same job, and you'll spend the dag with them. Doesn't it sound better than schoolwork?" He ignored our remarks and picked up his large camera.
"You lost me at 'national assessment'." Janay clicked the top, boven of her pen, repeatedly.
No one else zei anything.
"And so, before u take these assessments, we are going to film u all saying what u all want to be, and then we'll film your results. Is there anyone here who's camera-shy?" Max asked. He didn't sound too stupid, like most of the human population in this show. His personality seemed intelligent, but he also seemed judgmental.
A numerous amount of hands went up, but none belonged to the girls of the Girlz Gang, of Zim, of Narm.
"...Too bad," Max smirked.
Yeah, he was intelligent, judgmental, and he was a bit snobby. Not the best combination, but if he could loosen up just a bit...
"And...action!" he called. Bud's camera was aimed at the back of the room. I moved closer to Zim and prayed that nothing would go wrong during this live broadcast...or test for the matter.
Grace's POV
"I'M GONNA BE A DOCTOR!" one kid shouted out towards the camera, smiling proudly.
"I'll be a veterinarian!" Sara cocked her head, and grinned.
"I wanna be a fireman!" Spoo swung his short arm back and forth.
V-chan smiled like a movie ster for the camera. "I really want to be a singer...or an artist!" Max and Bud seemed to appreciate her attitude.
"I have no clue, yet!" Sarah shrugged, and pulled up the kap on her hoodie.
The Girlz Gang, including me, was gathered in tight cluster. The camera panned to us, and we all shrugged.
"We're young! We're not deciding this sorta stuff now." Alyssa stuck out her tongue, for a spleet, split second, at the camera.
Narm stared blankly at the camera. "A normal person who doesn't like being on camera," he stated, and then he shoved it away.
Max could not stop sighing. He even sighed as Bud got towards Zim.
"What do u want to be when u grow up, green-skinned boy?" Although it should've sounded amusing, the manner in which Max zei it sounded as if he were bored. Sarcasm strikes.
"It's a skin condition!" Zim murmured very quietly. Then all was silent for a few minutes, as Zim seemed to go into deep thinking. "And I will be..." He thought some more. "LORD OF ALL HU-MANS!"
Max stared at him. "Please tell me he's joking."
I gravitated to my bureau volgende to Dib, whilst Rosa slowly shook her head. "Nope...he's being serious."
Bud turned the camera straight to Dib, who was staring at the camera expectantly. He almost sounded as if he were ranting, when he said, "I'm going to a professional paranormal investigator so that I can expose-"
Max showed Bud another boy in the room, and Bud spun the camera to face this boy. It was Melvin, the paste-eater. It was a surprise he hadn't become a paste monster, yet.
"Hey! I wasn't finished!" Dib started to stand up. I didn't want him to get him trouble, so I grabbed ahold of his jas and he sat straight down. He confusedly glanced at me.
Melvin had waited for Dib to shut up, and once Max and Bud had gegeven that idiot their full attention, Melvin's head detached from his body and floated...from his body; so he didn't have a neck? "WHEN I GROW UP I'M GONNA BE A...ASTRONAUT!!!"
Dani's eye twitched. "It's AN. u disgust me." She absolutely hated it when people used incorrect grammar, of when she herself did so. I
We all nodded in agreement with her, but Melvin acted like he didn't hear us. Bud stopped filming, and placed his camera down on Ms. Bitters' desk, thus being why he received a glare from her.
"When I was your age, I wanted to be an astronaut, too, Melvin!" Ms. bitters was literally in Melvin's face in under three seconds. "And then my ship imploded in the vaccuum of space!"
"...So u were an astronaut, Ms. Bitters?" Emily questioned, after what seemed like a long period of silence, that sounded almost loud to me.
"No," Ms. bitters responded. "So, the lesson is that dreams inevitably lead to hideous implosions. That's why the skool (and the stupid country) has instituted this test." Whilst explaining, she picked up a large stack of papers from her desk. "From these questions, we will determine your future careers. Then u will be partnered with an adult who works in your field. u will spend the rest of the dag observing them, and getting used to your wretched fates."
She took a paper from the top, boven of the pile and held it out to toon the class. "Write what u think each blotch looks like on the line volgende to it." Ms. bitters allocated the papers throughout the room. Each kid curiously picked up their tests and looked them over. "Answer each one carefully. Your future depends on it!"
When my test slid onto my desk, I eyed it for a good amount of time. There wasn't even a line on the top, boven to write down our names! And I didn't even have a pencil. Looking down at the floor, I saw a stubby, number two pencil. I would've rather used a thinner pencil, but I guess the one on the floor would do. I retrieved it, and wrote my name on top, even though they hadn't zei to.
"What does identifying blotches have to do with determining our future careers?" Dib didn't even take a look at his assessment.
"Oh, u poor, doomed child..." Ms. bitters sat back down at her bureau and did...nothing.
I still stared at my test. What the heck was I supposed to write on this thing?! What did an ink blotch-
I could've smacked myself. Really, how could I have been so stupid for six seconden of so? An ink blotch obviously looked like an ink blotch. DURR!
I carefully and neatly wrote "ink blotch" down on all three lines. It was a national assessment after all. I could lose points for horrible penmanship.
I felt a slight poke on my shoulder. I turned my head to face Dib.
"What's up?" I ask him, tilting my head.
"Zim...again..." I stood up, and took a good look at the Irken. He was scratching his neck, which was completely covered in bumps. Wondering if Narm was doing the same, I walked to the middle of the room, and eyed him. Yes, he was scratching his bump-covered neck. Was it a disease that spread between Irkens? I sat back down at my bureau and indicated this to Dib; he went about writing this on his memo pad.
For the volgende few minutes, all that was audible was the tapping and scribbling of pencils, the squeaking of erasers, and the seemingly loud ticking of the clock above Ms. Bitters' head.
All I did was scrutinize the clock, and watch as the red hand moved with each second. I tried to will it to go faster. I was sure everyone was finished door now...
After what seemed like many hours, Ms. bitters stood up from her desk. "Time's up! Pass your papers forward!" I turned around and accepted everyone's test. I'll admit I peeked at a few of the papers while I waited for Ms. bitters to collect them. One of them was completely blank. I was tempted to fold the paper into a paper airplane, aim it towards the trash can, and toss that thing, while acting natural, but I knew I'd fail at it, so I placed the papers back down on my desk, and watched as Ms. bitters swooped over to it. She snatched the papers off of the top, and narrowed her eyes at me under her glasses. Then she swooped back to her desk. She didn't put the papers down.
Four tiles slid open, and a large box shaped-machine descended. Smoke surrounded the machine as it was planted onto the floor. The machine was composed of wheels, levers, and (flashing) buttons. It looked like one of the most intricate gadgets I'd ever seen.
Bud powered his camera back on, and got a clear view of Ms. bitters volgende to the machine.
"Now, this is the gigantic reveal," Bud narrated overdramatically.
Max nudged Bud so hard, he fell to the ground, camera and all. "Don't make an idiot of yourself. You're already stupid enough!"
"We're going to have to get that edited out," Bud moaned, as he got to his feet.
Ms. bitters cleared her throat, loudly, on purpose. "Can we get to the point here?!"
Bud held up the camera, and muttered some not-so-nice words.
"The machine will now decide your fate." Ms. bitters slipped all of the papers into a slot in the back of the machine, that I knew was there, but just couldn't see.
"Brain, you're going to be a fireman," Ms. bitters told him, as the tiles opened up and the machine ascended back into the ceiling.
"But I wanted to be a doctor..." Brian sadly looked at his shoes. Poor, unlucky Brian.
"BRIAN! The machine has spoken!" Ms. bitters snarled at him. "Sara, u are going to be an astronaut."
Sara burst into a fit of tears. She sounded meer like a three jaar old, than...whatever age she was.
"Spoo...you will be a veterinarian."
"But, I'm allergic to animals!" Spoo waved his hand back and forth; Ms. bitters didn't say anything back to him. I just realized that those three gotten their careers mixed up, completely.
"Dib, u will be a..." She squinted her eyes to understand the print on his sheet of paper. "...paranormal investigator."
"YEE-EES!" Dib held both his arms up in celebration.
After that, Ms. bitters allotted everyone else their careers. One of the papers illustrated Ms. bitters as a demon. It may as well have been drawn door a preschooler. Basically, it was a stick figure with a suckish ponytail, triangles for horns sticking out, and a straight line for her tail. She blasted Tae with an infuriated glare, and in the process, Tae was burnt to ashes. Then the floor opened, and the ashes could do nothing but fall down the chute.
Everyone stared at each other in wonder, and conversed about how Ms. bitters really happened to be a demon. And I believe we'd all been right when we assumed she actually was one. She continued about with giving everyone their "wretched" futures.
Sha and Rosa were actresses, and Emmy and Gina were supposed to be singers. Dani was a director, while Emily was going to be a piano player. Michelle would be an author, and Janay, Mica, and Annie were going to be artists. Finally, Alyssa was assigned to be a ballet dancer, and I ended up as a paranormal investigator with Dib.
Ms. bitters heaved a sigh of relief, as she tossed all our papers out. She'd read our careers in a fast-forward manner. It was strange, but we had all been able to understand it. She finally only had Zim's paper left. "Zim, the machine says that the only career u are suited for is-"
"Yes, yes LORD OF ALL HUMANS!" Zim climbed onto his desk, and clenched his three fingers into a fist. "I will rule u all with an iron fist!"
"...No, Zim. The machine has assigned u a career in fast food preparation. And Narm, too..."
"I will prepare food with my iron fist! Then I will work my way up to ruling u ALL, WITH MY FIST!" He was over at Melvin's side in an instant, and he shook his fist in Melvin's face. "YOU! OBEY THE FIIIIST!"
Ms. bitters bared her teeth and growled like a lion; then she lingered over to the door...we couldn't see any legs. They reappeared immediately as she stopped.
"Now children, find your partner!" She smoothly opened the door, and Bud and Max joined us as we all walked out into the crowded corridor. A great amount of adults stood in the hallway. Emmy jumped for joy when she saw she was assigned to some famous boy band, and Gina was paired with an internet star, named PewDiePie (How he got in the toon is beyond me, and isn't he a bad singer? ). Dani was paired up with Tim Burton, an especially famous director and her idol, and Janay, Mica, and Annie joined up with three other female artists: Allison, Rosemary, and Taylor. Alyssa's partner was a professional ballerina, and her name was Marie, whilst Sha, and Rosa's counterparts were two professional (CHILD) actresses, named Lindsey, and Cathy. Emily was with a piano player named Jaclyn, and Michelle ended up with a teenage author, Rae. Everyone was introducing themselves to their new role models, some very happily, and some sadly.
"What's the matter with your neck, Zim? Some kind of alien spore? For like, every alien?" Dib teased Zim and Narm, from behind them. I was already volgende to Dib, as usual.
Zim and Narm were slightly thrown off door the question, but they composed themselves quickly, and feigned winning smiles. "O-Of course not!" Zim responded, without looking at my friend.
"Why would u think such a thing?" Narm added.
Before Dib could even make a sharp comeback, a teenage boy stepped in front of us all. He looked the way a typical teenage boy in Invader Zim should-very messy hair, acne, and slightly tall. What made him different was his uniform-the hat on his head was designed to look like a hamburger, and his overhemd, shirt was roze and maroon striped, plus his jeans were a navy blue. One of his ears was pierced...alright then. I spotted a nametag reading "Simon".
"I am Zim! And that's my filthy friend, Narm. Take us to the meeeaaat!" Zim rubbed his hands together, evilly.
"Oh..." Simon zei to them., waving his hands in front of him and shaking his head quickly. "You're not ready for meat preparation yet! We start with the french fries, and when we get promoted, we work with the meat." He seemed to still be going through puberty, since his voice cracked at about almost every other word.
Looks of disbelief clearly showed on Narm and Zim's faces.
"Looks like Grace and I will be getting teamed up with a respected paranormal investigator, Zim. He's sure to see through your pitiful disguise...." He facepalmed. "Oh wait...he won't see through NARM'S...or will he?!" He chortled. "And then we'll take u back to his secret lab, and then we'll perform all kind of tests on the both you! Horrible tests!" Dib skipped off, linking my arm in his as we frolicked. "See ya!"
Rosa's POV
"Let's talk meer about these...promotions." Zim's zipper-like teeth were on display for everyone to see...including Sha, who tried to look away, and not blush anymore.
"Not now! My break's almost over," I overheard the teenager, Simon, exclaim to the aliens, as I dragged my feet against the floor, walking with Sha, Cathy, and Lindsey.
"So...what are we doing?" I asked beneath the sound of my feet squeaking against the floor.
Lindsey, who was making out a long text to someone on her phone, didn't answer me. She only stared at the bright screen. She could've burned a hole through it, had her eyes been made of fire. Cathy ripped the phone out of Lindsey's clutches, and pocketed it in record time.
"Wh-what...CATHY! GIVE ME MY PHONE!" Lindsey tackled Cathy to the ground and shoved her hands into both of Cathy's jean pockets.
"Let go of me!" Cathy grunted, attempting to shove the insane girl off.
"Don't tell me what to do, u little BRAT!" Lindsey's eyes widened as her hand froze, and the phone was back in her hands. She slapped Cathy across the face, and leaped to her feet, as she composed another text.
Cathy looked like she was holding just about everything in, doing her very best not to cry.
"Are u okay?" I knelt down door her side and inspected her whole face. Fortunately, there wasn't a single mark. Lindsey, apparently, wasn't very good at injuring people, which was a good thing...for the most part.
"Ye-yes." Cathy's head hit the floor, right after sitting straight up, and her eyes closed.
"LINDSEYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Sha chimed in with me at the end.
"And....send!" Lindsey smiled broadly as she tapped one last button, and shut her phone. Then she eyed us, as if she was seeing us for the first time. "What?"
Normal POV
Dib's eyes were searching throughout the hallway. Where the HEEEECK could this dude be? Did he not toon up? That's not good if he did; if he did, then my career as paranormal investigator may never be!!! And I NEED that career! NEEED ITTTT!
"Your name...Dib?" Dib's frantic thoughts jolted to an abrupt stop as he sharply turned his head to his right, and noticed a man volgende to him for the first time. This man could be very easily described as "tall, dark, and handsome". With his black hair, shades, and slacks, and dark green trenchcoat almost covering a grey overhemd, shirt with a fancy tie, plus his towering height over Dib and Grace, his globaal, algemene appearance almost screamed zei quote.
"Yessss." Dib couldn't keep his eyes off of that man. He...could be that man one day. When he grew up, he'd be the most famous paranormal investigator in the state...the country...the world...global...and Grace could be his charming, yet intelligent assistant. Together, that couple would travel around the world, exposing strange creatures for who they really were. And then when they were at an old age, they could retire peacefully, and relax in their big 'ol mansion.
"Call me...Bill," the man ordered. He zei no more, and Dib used a few meer minuten of one of the best days of his life to inspect "Bill".
"Call me...Dib." He'd lower his shades, and give the thumbs up to his current client. "Alright..." they would say, confused, yet excited.
"Diiib!"
"Oh, come on-" Dib started to complain, before he saw it was Grace; he laughed nervously, and brushed himself off, as his attention switched to Bill. "I got something to toon you! There's an actual alien in our class, and I have-"
Bill stuck his hand out. "Slow down, little man! Today, you're going to see things that will change the way u look at the world. Keep your eyes, and your mind, open." And with that, he strode over to the door.
"Someone's dismissive," Grace remarked quietly to Dib.
Was that really how he wanted to be? Grace didn't seem to be too fond of it. If she didn't like that, then she wouldn't like Dib that way too. Was it too late to change his career?
"No...it's pretty open." Dib chose the best response, in his opinion, and he and Grace joined Bill out at the entrance in front of the Skool. "I just wanna-! I mean we just wanna-!"
"No talking," Bill shushed. "Let's roll."
Dib stared in awe as a black car, matching Bill, pulled up in front of the Skool. The doors automatically opened, and Bill coolly stepped into the car. Dib and Grace hesitantly slipped in after him, and the car shot off like a rocket.
Rosa's POV
"I can't believe u broke your cell phone!" I was scolding Lindsey once again, as Sha and I hauled an unconscious Cathy down the street.
"I didn't MEAN tooooo!" Lindsey wailed. "It was my...BFF!" She'd stupidly dropped it, and stepped on it. From the moment I saw her obsessively texting on her phone, I knew she was a stereotypical girly-girl...one of the stuck-up ones at that.
"That's not possible. BFFs are people...or the same type of species as u are," Sha corrected.
"...I don't believe that!" Lindsey whined, her eyes welling to the brim with tears. "Ph-PHONEYYY!" A few seconden later, pieces of her phone were spread out across her palm. She was blubbering like a child, and I was sure she would burst into a series of sobs any minuut now.
"It's just a STUPID phone! A STUPID LITTLE PHONE!" For me, Lindsey's complaining about her phone, which seemed to be her life, was driving me over the freaking edge, and I couldn't hold it my annoyance any longer. "And at least u have the phone's...remains! How would u like it if I brought it to the nearby lake and tossed the pieces in, to feed the barracudas? Would u like that?"
"NO! NONONONONONONO!" And with that, Lindsey was...unconscious.
"My life sucks!" Sha glared at Lindsey's unconscious form, and stomped over to her, seizing both of her arms.
"Correction; BOTH of our lives suck." I did the same with Cathy, and we carried on, dragging them both down the street; and typically, nobody stopped to look.
Normal POV
Narm felt absolutely awkward sitting on Zim's...lap. Yes, that's right. Narm was on Zim's lap, and Zim was in the basket of Simon's bike. Yes, all three of them were riding a bike! As they slowly approached MacMeatie's, Narm hopped off of the bike (and Zim's lap), relieved, and stood on the sidewalk near the fast food restaurant.
Zim stared at the tall pole holding a prodigious sign that read "McMeatie's" (obviously, the person who had constructed the sign did not know how to spell). Below it read "OVER-8 BILLION SERVE". He was not able to verplaats a muscle; all he could think about and focus on was that very sign ahead of him. "Eight billion?!" He excitedly turned to face Simon. "That is meer than the entire population! And they all serve MacMeatie?! If I rule MacMeatie's-"
"I can hear you, u bumbling idiot!" Narm glowered.
Zim exaggeratedly sighed. "If WEEEE rule MacMeatie's...we rule the wooorld."
"We'll see about that, Zim." Narm's eyes darted about, giving the building he'd one been to the once-over. Simon tethered his bicycle to the rack near the entrance with one of the many small ropes attached.
It took much meer time than it actually should've to simply walk into MacMeatie's. But after an uur of so, Zim and Narm were in the back of the fast food establishment, decked out in hats similiar to Simon's. Narm poked the top, boven of his. It felt embarrassing to even have it on top, boven of his head.
"You want to be very careful not to touch any of the grease 'cause it's kinda hot," Simon advised. He had just lifted a basket full of fries out of the deep-fryer, with the grease dripping onto the floor. "And then, u add the meat seasoning."
"FASCINATING!" Zim remarked. "And once I have mastered the French fries, what is the volgende promotion?"
Narm stayed quiet.
"After fries, u get to work the grill!"
"And how many promotions until I get to rule the planet?" Zim asked in excitement.
"With all of the trouble I've been keeping u out of, I think I should-" Narm started to explain.
"Uh...four?" Simon fibbed, completely interrupting Narm. He had no idea how many promotions it would take to be the rule EARTH.
"None." Narm tugged Zim's uniform whilst he was scratching his bumpy neck. Some of the green pus coming from the bumps ended up on the fries. "Now let's go."
Rosa's POV
There it was. Right in front of us. The hospital. Everyone despises that place, no matter what dimension they're in, yet right now I was in love with it.
I would never have to lug two girls of about two hundred pounds combined ever again. Sha had gotten tired easily, so I had to take charge and drag/occasionally carry them both to the hospital. Never in my life have I ever been meer glad to see this structure.
I gently placed them onto the concrete, and sat down on the edge of the sidewalk. My back ached, and my entire body felt weak. My sight looked somewhat blurry. Sitting down for a few minuten would hopefully help me regain it, and some meer energy.
As I remained sitting for the volgende few minutes, everything within me felt fitter. I couldn't wait to go home pagina and sleep in my bed. No meer crazy (mis)adventures for today!
"Rosa?" I opened my eyes, not even realizing I had closed them, and sharply turned my head to the direction of the voice. It was Cathy.
"Cathy!" Sha sat volgende to her. "Are u alright?"
"I...feel dizzy." Cathy whimpered; then she passed out again.
I stood up, and advanced into the building, over to the main desk. "Excuse me? We found two unconscious teenage girls on the sidewalk. And no, we do not know them."
Normal POV
The slick black car drove at a medium speed along on seemingly never-ending road; on either side were sections of crops enclosed door gates and, occasionally, road signs.
Inside the car, Grace and Dib shared one seat, and Bill had total control of the wheel. Near the steering wheel was a bobble-head...an alien bobble-head. At random moments, the car would hit a bump, throwing them off their seats for about a second.
"The corporations are behind a lot of conspiracies, but the government!....They're just one big conspiracy-" Bill began to rant, almost the way Dib did as he drove; that is, before Dib eyed a folder on the floor. It was labeled "Chums," and he noticed it was on top, boven of a few others. Grace seemed view them as well.
"What are these?" Dib curiously inquired, his hands fully grasping several of them. Grace inched closer to Dib in order to get a better look (although it wasn't much better than before, since they were sitting in the same seat).
Bill took a seconde to observe the folder. "Oh, case files! I brought them along to toon u the difference between the serious paranormal, and the frauds."
"Wow..." Grace breathed.
"The top, boven bundle are the real ones; the bottom ones are all complete bunk."
Grace was slightly perplexed at the way he had described the bottom bundle, but she just shoved it out of her mind. It wasn't something that would bother her all day; now if it were Dani...that'd be different.
Dib searched through every single folder, handing each to Grace as he finished taking a look at them. Grace raised an eyebrow as she saw them. "Huh...I don't..."
"Frankenchokey?!" Dib halted at one of the folders. One of his eyes widening, he continued to investigate them all. Big Foot...crossed out; ghosts...crossed out; DINOSAURS...crossed out?!
"They're filed wrong!" Dib incredulously exclaimed. "You've got Big Foot and dinosaurs in with the fake stuff!"
"You think those things are REAL?" Bill was now acting as if he was the one who was shocked. "That's exactly what they want u to believe!"
"BUT DINOSAURS EXISTED A MILLION YEARS AGO," Grace murmured through clenched teeth. Bill did not hear her.
"That's what who wants me to believe?" Dib was full of questions...had he been wrong? Was this guy really stupid? Had he gotten his hopes up for nothing?
As he passed the "dinosaurs" file to Grace, he read one that said, "Galactic Equinox".
"Is this guy serious?!" Grace threw the folder down, and looked onto the volgende one with Dib. "...I have nothing to say."
"What's this?" Dib couldn't resist asking that. It was just...how could Bill be stupid? His appearance and determination made him think maybe he was smart...but he'd been wrong.
Bill's shoulders shook with dismissive laughter. "The Galactic Equinox Theory. At five o'clock tonight, the galaxies are going to be perfectly lined up. My colleagues believe that this will cause all of the aliens that are living off their own planet to go through a hideous molt for a few seconds." His eye twitched in disgust. "Don't read that garbage!"
"I will." Grace snatched the folder and browsed through its contents. "Wow...this is actually legit!"
Dib's mind sparked a few memories of what had happened in skool earlier...Zim and Narm scratching their bumpy necks. "Those rashes on Zim and Narm's necks! We've got to get to MacMeatie's! I know where there are TWO aliens, and they're going through the molt right now! It's our chance to prove that there's-!"
"Shh!! We're here!" Bill told him in a manner that meant "end of discussion".
"But..." Grace opened and closed her mouth. They were at the end of all those crops. Bill turned the car off, and stepped out. In his hands was a device unlike one that Grace and Dib had ever seen before. There were handles on each side, which Bill held onto with both hands, and in the middle was a screen with many green lines...it almost seemed like a tracking device, maybe a mini-metal detector. He started forward...
Grace, almost moping, pulled the handle on the door outwards, and it opened almost immediately. She lightly forced Dib out of the car, and leaned back in her seat.
"Um...Grace?" Dib stood near the car, waiting for her.
"I'm not leaving, Dib. This man's not worth it. I shouldn't have to spend time with him." Grace pulled out her ear-buds, and stuck them in her ears. After that, Dib assumed she wouldn't be able to hear his objections.
"A crop circle?!" Dib stared after Bill...no, he couldn't believe this.
"Beautiful, isn't it? It's a message from creatures much meer intelligent than us. Space beings have traveled millions of light years to say something...but what does it mean?" Bill admired the crops surrounding him.
"Um, I think it's fake," Dib corrected him. He could tell if something like that was real, having read plenty of magazines and doing much research; obviously this crop cirkel was the fraud.
Grace stuck her head out of the car window. "Yeah, I don't do all those paranormal investigation things, and even I know that's not real!" Then she reverted to listening to muziek again.
Bill was over-the-top furious. "You're one of those skeptics, aren't you?! Always questioning, always picking away my theories! One day, you'll see that-!!!"
"Well, look." Dib stuck out his finger towards one of the few paths of the crop circle. There was a cow, rolling over, back and forth. It seemed to be removing the crops as he rolled over them.
"Now can we go to MacMeatie's, please?" he begged.
Dani's POV
This was breathtaking. This one of the best days of my life. I couldn't believe that I was right volgende to Tim Burton. Here I was, walking down the straat with him. It had been half an uur since I'd first been in his presence, since he'd talked to me, since he'd introduced himself...and then he zei he'd seen my works. Could this dag get any better?! One man whom I absolutely venerated...now I was only a few inches away from him.
Since he was now my official mentor for the day, I could ask him questions, gain the most useful advice, and tell everyone around me that I had met Tim Burton...and maybe we'd find a way to stay in touch; being a director was definitely going to be my future. One of the most critically acclaimed directors...me.
Many strangers eyed us and stared enviously. Some waved to me; I was becoming a celebrity! It was amazing what could happen in thirty whole minutes.
"So lucky..." I could hear them barely murmur. Oh, yes. I knew I was.
Where were we going? We were going to MacMeatie's for lunch. This amazing man, my idol, he zei we should discuss collaborating sometime in the future. I did have to learn how to animate still, but I would have something exciting, so very exciting, to look vooruit, voorwaarts to.
I still remember that single thought I had in my mind: My life is forever changed; now I just need to meet Todd Haberkorn.[i]
That was the one thought that I had before Tim started conversing with me as if we were old friends. And I wasn't anxious; I felt natural, and confident.
Because that was just me.
Normal POV
"Zim, I can't believe you. I never actually can believe you," Narm stated, facing the machine in front of him. Meat shakes. What was even wrong with this franchise? Although many people say that looks can be deceiving, this statement most definitely didn't apply to the food...ugh.
Zim slid a cup under one of the three dispensers, and tugged the lever down. "Stop speaking nonsense, lowly Earth human!"
"It's not nonsense! It's true!"
"Now u have to take the meat shake to the customer," Zim passed the overflowing cup to his co-worker, keeping his expression dull.
"Need pork, daddy!" Narm could hear a young girl wail. He took one snel, swift glance at her, only to see the child grabbing onto her father as if for dear life.
Zim shuddered. "Yugghhh!" Then his features lifted as he suddenly realized Narm was selling this drink to that girl, not him.
"Come on! We're in a hurry here!!!!" the father of the girl shouted, banging both of his fists on the counter angrily. "We have to make it to the observatorium, sterrenwacht door five, so we can watch the Equinox!!!"
"Holy crap." Narm's eyes enlarged until they took up meer than half of his face. His hands trembled slightly as he passed it to furious man.
"Th-the Equinox is [i]tonight?!" Zim worriedly asked him.
"Uhh huuhh," the man responded lazily, followed door a series of grunts before exiting the restaurant with his daughter.
"HEY! u FORGOT THE MONEY-" Narm started to climb over the counter in an attempt to reach the father, but Zim seized his feet and jerked him back.
"The molt!" Zim shook the fellow Irken's shoulder wildly. No wonder their necks were so...rough.
"We have to go home." Narm sped over to Simon, Zim on his heels. The typical teenager was sweeping the floor repeatedly with his navy blue broom.
"If u take off, it'll be in both of your files forever!" Simon revealed. "And you'll never get promoted!"
Why did I agree to "babysit" Zim again? Narm mentally asked himself. The town itself was an utter "nut-job".
"We've come too far to give up now!" So all Zim was worried about was getting that promotion...as much as Narm liked that Zim was beginning to include him, he disliked that Zim was about to get the two of them into meer trouble than they would have before. "I must not upset MacMeaty! So close to promotion! But I need to take a break at five o'clock."
"I think I do as well," Narm added.
"You guys are gonna have to talk to the shift captain about that." Simon pointed out a man nearby; he came across as stern, with his arms folded across his chest, and his outfit almost seemed like that of a security guard. His eyes landed on Narm and Zim, and it was all they could do to not toon fear.
Dani's POV
"What..." I stared blankly around the disgusting fast food joint. Although my eyes were unable to stop glancing around almost every section of the room, they landed on two familiar figures - Zim and Narm. I suddenly remembered that their career was working in this...horrific restaurant.
Tim, who had already slid into the nearest booth, was not shocked at their appearance. In fact, he almost seemed...excited. I presumed he was dreaming up a myriad of ideas for a movie with Irkens; fortunately, I was sure he thought that Zim was simply a human who painted his skin green. Thank goodness.
Yet, as I slid in volgende to him (confidently, of course), I noticed Zim and Narm's intimidated expressions. Standing above and in front of them, was a man who LOOKED intimidating. If they were trying not to look afraid, they weren't doing so well. As much as I disliked how selfish Zim was, I was quite fond of Narm, and I figured if I were to ask him what was going on, at least he'd give me answer.
"I'll be right back," I told Tim. "I have to ask my friend something."
"All right," Tim responded, not seeming to mind at all. He was mature and polite.
"Hey, Narm," I whispered in his "ear".
"Oh, hallo Dani!" Narm greeted me, smiling anxiously. I was grateful that I had gotten his attention, not Zim's, again.
"What's going on?" I asked him.
"Well, Zim and I are screwed," he said. "The Equinox is tonight, and unless we're on our home pagina planets, we're going to go through a molt...a horrific one at that. So we need to leave, now."
"I believe u know what to do," I figured aloud.
"If we leave, then Zim won't get to 'rule the world'. Apparently. And he has to talk to the shift captain. Who is freaky."
"Ahh... Well, I certainly wish there was something I could do," I tell him sincerely. Unfortunately, I came here to spend the dag with Tim, and I felt bad for leaving him.
"It's okay. Zim and I will find a way out of this. With my intelligence and his...um...whatever he has, we won't have to go through that molt."
He was attempting to sound confident, but he barely did. He barely seemed sure at all. It must be difficult having an insane Irken on your hands to "assist".
"Are u sure?" I loved to help out my vrienden when they were down...they knew I'd always be there for them no matter what.
"Yes, I am," Narm said.
"All right, then. Just let me know if u do need some advice, of actual help. I'm always here." I flash him a smile and head back to my booth with Tim.
Soon, we're conversing, and I'm unable to stop gushing about how much I adore him, yet again. Of course, in a professional, fervent manner. I am most certainly not a fan-girl. I'm quite unique.
Normal POV
"It's four forty-five! If we hurry we can still make it!" Bill had yet to answer Dib's persistent pleading. Grace had been shuffling songs on her iPod, and Dib just wanted to make her laugh while also exposing Zim. However, it seemed that it was unlikely to happen what with Bill too intent on the rolling cow.
"Hm, the alien must be in control of the cow," Bill guessed clueless with a strange device in his hands. Dib snuck a glance back at the limo and acted nonchalant once he was facing Bill again, but that didn't last for long.
"That is NOT a supernatural cow!!!" Dib exclaimed, about to lose it. Who did this guy think he was, calling himself a paranormal investigator?! Dib was confident he'd be much better when he grew up! "This is ridiculous! u believe in all of the stupidest things, when real proof is right under your nose!"
Grace rolled down the window, the earbuds no longer in her ears again; it felt as if she could detect when Bill was acting idiotic. "He acts intelligent...but he's not."
"You've got that right," Dib muttered to her. "I bet he'd listen to me if I were talking about, oh, I don't know..." His eyes darted to the billboard near him, advertising a certain cereal brand. "Count Cocofang!"
An audible gasp came from behind the two. "What do u know about Count Cocofang?!"
Grace stuck her head out to see how Dip would respond. "That he's...going to be at...MacMeatie's...at five o'clock!"
"We haven't got much time! Let's roll!"
Grace nodded approvingly at Dib as he stepped into the dark car yet again and made room for him in the seat. "Good job getting that moron away from the distraction."
He was glowing inside; he never imagined that he'd ever receive a compliment, especially from a girl at that.
"I've been following the Cocofang case for years; everyone thinks he's made up," Bill explained, his face scrunching up, "but he's not! Once I catch him, the world will know what I've known all along: Count Cocofang is an actual vampire!" He was ranting on and on about how little success he had achieved when Grace offered Dib one of her earbuds. He gratefully accepted and their fingers seemed to tap on any solid surface in perfect sync, although they took no notice of it. It was all coincidental.
Dib victoriously shouted, "We're almost there!" with the muziek still blasting in his ears. It would all make for a good movie scene, he decided, and he'd probably have to thank Grace for it sometime. She was fantastic... "That's it Zim! Your alien infiltration stops here!"
Grace, having been able to hear Dib, removed her earbud once again and poked him just to be silly. MacMeatie's was close in proximity to them. They could live such a happy life together, the two of them...
And then, he saw it. Right volgende to MacMeatie's was a store called "Buns Market" and a banner was hung over the front door reading, "Meet Count Cocofang".
Dib's earbud flew out of his ear involuntarily, and Grace could only stare out the window, Dib's earbud missing her hand door a long shot. She wrapped the earbuds around her iPod carefully but could not believe what she was seeing. Oh. Of course she could. She'd seen that episode before. It was no surprise to her. Although neither of them zei anything, they knew that they were both thinking the exact same thoughts.
Kids had ditched their mentors for Career dag just to get up close and personal with the so-called vampire, who was not very enthusiastic at the moment and when asked for an autograph, he sloppily signed his initials.
"They could have hired someone who would've been willing to do the job," Grace murmured, almost stabbing the iPod into the pocket of her jeans. Even though she prayed that Bill wouldn't see Count Cocofang, it didn't seem that worked for her...or Dib.
"There he is!" Bill had noticed and the car swerved as it traveled in an oblique direction. Dib jumped off of his zitplaats, stoel and obscured his view of the market. Grace unbuckled herself and sat right near the dashboard. "He's not a vampire! We have to catch the alien!"
"It's just a dude in a costume!" Grace supported him, but before they knew it, they were both literally being dragged along the sidewalk door the paranormal investigator...but now the two were starting to consider he was possibly fake.
"HEY! No cutting!" a young boy squeaked from the front of the line but Bill shoved him out of the way and he not only hit the pavement but also a mud puddle, becoming the center of ridicule for all of the children on line.
"We finally meet, Count Cocofang," Bill addressed him, surprisingly not seeming very happy to see him. It must be like Dib when he's with Zim, Grace thought to herself. She and Dib were watching from a veilig distance, ready to interrupt and keep Bill from this character at any moment...
"The line starts back there," the vampire replied in a phony Transylvania-esque accent. He wriggled his fingers while making mock-scary noises. Talk about unenthusiastic.
Bill held a wooden stake back, ready to drive it into the vampire's hart-, hart when Dib slid in front of Count Cocofang, Grace right door his side. "It's just a guy in a vampire suit!" Dib exclaimed, although he and Grace were petite, so they did not serve as a very useful shield for the fake vampire.
"Come on Fang," Bill challenged. "Let's dance." Of course, he hadn't meant it literally, but Cocofang knew what he meant and he made a break for it, with Bill chasing after him. Dib and Grace hanging right onto his arms.
Dani's POV
Tim almost seemed suspicious. Two green skinned boys with bumps of varying sizes covering almost every inch of their faces did not seem natural. It could have excited him, but as I asked him every question, he seemed distant.
Narm and Zim were silent as they could not keep their eyes off of the clock; the minuut hand was approaching rapidly to five... There was no way they could make it back to Irk, could they?
"Some guys are chasing after Cocofang!" Simon pointed out from his position door the window. Pus practically dripped from the "zits" on Dib and Narm.
Time almost seemed to slow down... There was the "seconds" hand on the clock, speeding towards the five, refusing to stop.
It surpassed the minuut hand.
The Irkens held their breath expectantly; their cover would be blown, the molt was going to occur. I could only watch in interest with Tim, who was now fully distracted door the two.
In fact, I could almost see the ideas for films running through his head. With him, they could all work.
The planets were aligning with one another; this, I could perfectly envision in my head. It could've been a director's instinct. Maybe Tim had experienced it too.
And like that, as I slowly returned to the real world, I cast one look at Zim and Narm. Their faces were suddenly bump-free. Everything looked all right. Was this the molt? Tim seemed to be surprised, as if he couldn't believe he was watching this.
Or so I thought. Out of the blue, their faces, their skin was expanding in all different directions. It filled the entire capacity of the fast food, fastfood restaurant, pressing us all against the window. I couldn't even see how Tim was reacting to this all. But suddenly, I realized almost every member of the gang, as well as their mentors, was there, squashed against the glass with me. And all of a sudden, there was a break in the grass, a line that seemed to enlongate as this awful substance seemed to grow meer and more. It was almost scary, almost something that could've been in a movie.
Dib was audible outside shouting, "NO! NO! STOP! WAIT UP!" He and Grace were failing at halting Bill in the middle of the road. A fake vampire had hitched a ride on a garbage truck, and Bill wasn't succeeding in catching him either.
"I'LL GET u FAAANG!" Bill howled after him as the truck sped away.
"NOOOOO!" Dib screamed when he spotted us all practically flattened in the joint and Grace was soothingly holding his arm.
And just like that, the skin, whatever had came out of Zim and Narm was gone. We stood in the wrecked fast food, fastfood restaurant, Tim's eyes wide with awe. What he had just seen had certainly not been ordinary.
"I know, little man," Bill comforted Dib between panting. Grace let go of Dib's arm at once, rubbing her own. I could hear it all through the broken glass. "But one day, we'll catch him! One dag we'll catch...the Fang!"
"You jerk," Dib muttered. "Come on, Grace. Let's go home pagina and make some real use of our time."
"Okay, Dib!" Grace cheerfully replied as they walked off at a normal pace back to Dib's house; at least, that's where I assumed they were going.
Meanwhile, with all of the pus dripping down from the ceiling, the shift captain glowered at Narm and Zim. "You're both fired!" he declared, stomping off.
"Well, good job u idiot," Narm finally zei after a few minuten of silence. They headed on home, nudging each other firmly the whole time.
Meanwhile, Rosa and Sha's mentors, Cathy and Lindsey entered the restaurant, very optimistic and bouncy, and Rosa's mouth dropped open. "Wait! u were- What happened?!"
"Oh, come on! We're professional actresses! We totally tricked you! We were trying to teach u something!" Cathy answered her, and Lindsey nodded, adding, "I don't even like using my phone."
"That's it. We're going home. We all are," Sha finished. "I wanna go see my Zimmy. And...you probably all want to take a nap."
"Oh yeah, we do," Emmy said, furtively stepping out of the restaurant, and she broke into a run. "I SHALL SEE GIR!"
"Well... I suppose I can make a movie out of this," Tim zei to me as he stood volgende to me out on the pavement. "It's...perfect..."
I chuckled as we strolled down the sidewalk. "We do have the rest of the idea. If u want any suggestions, I can definitely give u some."
"I would love that," he thankfully beamed, and for the rest of the day, that's exactly what we did.
I was already on my way. I just wasn't very sure about the others.
And so, we never did serve that detention either...
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WHEW! This is probably one of the longest chapters of this story. I know this has been long awaited. So I really hope u liked it. I also hope I portrayed Tim burton all right... I don't know too much about his personality but I like the films he's worked on. I'll attempt to focus meer on this fan-fiction meer often. All right. Love yoooou! <3 Byeee. DON'T FORGET TO HUG GIR. AND DON'T FORGET YOUR SQUIGGLEEEESSS (Algebra joke. xD)!
