A/N: Ah, yes. I have returned to the world of writing fanfiction with a brand new ZADR roleplay to be uploaded. Written with the help of ScourgeSong over on DA, this will be a WIP story. :)

Note: Constructive criticism welcome on this story. We'll accept any feedback we can get and take it into thoughtful consideration.

Summary: "16-year-old paranormal investigator, Dib Membrane, wants nothing more than to expose his arch nemesis, Zim, as an alien to the rest of the world so he can prove his sanity and gain his father's respect. But when one of his attempts to capture and expose Zim results in an unexpected trip into the past, Zim and Dib must put aside their differences and work together along with Dib's teenage father to return to the future without critically altering the time line."

Disclaimer: We do not own the cartoon that this fanfiction is written for, nor any of the characters from it. They are the sole property of Invader Zim creator, Jhonen Vasquez.

We hope you guys enjoy! :)

Chapter 1: Selfish

"Damn it!" a curse left the staggering boy's mouth. "Damn it, damn it, damn it!" he continued in fierce and rapid succession as he skirted past a street lamp with a fatigued and arduous limp to his step.

If he had known this could happen, known that his feelings might change so suddenly, he never would have attempted to alter his circumstances to such a degree, he told himself between racing thoughts and endless profanities. How could he have let things get so out of hand? he asked himself as he rounded the corner to his destination, only hoping there was still SOMETHING that could be done to undo the events of the past month or so.

He thought back to the day this had all started.

It had begun as any other day in late November. Classes were in session, the trees were losing their scarlet color, and with the exception of one MINOR detail in Dib Membrane's life, the day was progressing as it always had, slowly and with no end in sight.

Dib sighed as he watched the final leaf of a tree outside his homeroom class finally detach itself from the branch it was clinging to and fall to earth without care. He envied that leaf. It was free to ride the wind now and no longer be burdened by the expectations of the fading autumn season.

Turning his gaze to the painfully boring lecture his teacher was currently giving amidst the backdrop of a green and white-marked chalkboard, he wondered how many more days of this he could bear. It was his sixteenth birthday today and yet nothing in his life had changed. He was still remarkably unpopular with the majority of his peers, his own father was of the belief that he was insane, and above all else, his attempts to expose his arch nemesis, Zim, as an alien to the world had been thwarted by the egotistical little extraterrestrial whom still resided on Earth despite 5 years of failed attempts to conquer it.

It wasn't at all conceivable to him how the other could go so long without being discovered. His disguise was as awful as it had always been, and there was no denying the other was starting to fall behind in height when compared to the rest of their classmates. Although the little green menace had grown an inch or two taller since his arrival on the planet Earth, Zim now resembled a petite seventh grader more so than a gradually maturing tenth grader.

Focusing his stare on the short alien in question, he noted the other's attempts to appear "normal." As he always did, Zim tapped away at some horrible-looking alien device he had on hand, pretending to take notes on the lesson as opposed to plotting the planet's eventual downfall. The only preventive he had for inhibiting the other students from asking him about its peculiar appearance was a single sticky note attached to the corner of the device that read, "Normal Human Tablet." Typical.

Dib rolled his eyes and fixed them on the clock. Only five more minutes left of class before they would be set free to go about their days. Although he had planned on following Zim home to conduct his routine research on the Irken, he couldn't help but cringe at the memory of how his morning had started off that day. At breakfast, his father had announced that he had a surprise for his kids come the end of the day.

Rather taken aback by the announcement, Dib had nearly falling into the trap of assuming that perhaps just ONCE his father had actually remembered his birthday. But that assumption had quickly been squashed by the mention of his father's work. NOTHING that involved his father's work ever had anything to actually do with him or his sister, Gaz. If anything, it usually involved the unveiling of some new invention to a worldwide audience, which Membrane insisted his children attend.

Dib breathed out another heavy sigh before a sudden wisp of air followed by the unmistakable thwack of a ruler against his desk had him jolting upright in his seat.

"Is there something you'd like to share with the rest of the class, Mr. Membrane? Or are you simply so bored with my lecture that you'd rather take it over for yourself?" Their teacher interrupted Dib's thought process before prodding him with said measuring stick to make him sit up straight.

A flush of color rose to Dib's cheeks without fail as the rest of his classmates, Zim included, erupted into laughter. "N-No, sir." Dib looked away to one side momentarily before then directing a harsh glare in Zim's direction when the Irken's cackling rose above the rest. If only he could find a way to expose Zim to a larger audience, he mused. The classmates at his current school had proven time and again to be anything but cognizant.

Tucking his chin into the palm of his hand just as soon as the teacher had returned his attention back to the board, Dib then sat up in his spot when an idea suddenly struck him. If he was right about his father broadcasting a worldwide announcement later this evening, then what was to stop him from uploading a video of his own to the same live broadcast? He certainly had enough footage of the other that he had collected over his years of observation, and surely SOMEBODY in the audience would be likely to see the footage for what it actually was. Dib brandished a devious smile at the thought before writing it down in his notebook and eagerly awaiting the school bell's final toll.

While the teacher continued to drone on with his lecture for the next few minutes, it didn't take Zim long to notice Dib's insidious grin. He narrowed a pointed look on him suspiciously, wondering what the other was planning. Shaking his head to rid himself of any further distractions, he then went back to the calculations for his next evil scheme, which wasn't as grand as some of his past plots had been. As the years had progressed, he had started thinking on a bit of a smaller scale to help him regain some traction. Continuing to scheme throughout the rest of the lesson, he barely registered when the school bell finally rang, only taking note of it after a few students started getting up to leave, some of whom knocked into his desk on their way out, effectively breaking his concentration. Grumbling to himself in mild frustration, Zim shoved his device back into his PAK and strode his way out of the classroom.

There were a few stops he needed to make before heading back to the base that day. Walking outside to the front of the high school, he then waited patiently for Gir, his defective SIR unit, to come and meet him there… that is, if the dumb little robot didn't get distracted by his favorite TV show or a snack stand on the way there.

After waiting a decent amount of time for the android to show up, he soon realized that the little robot was likely not coming. Moaning in annoyance, he considered his options for a brief moment before then heading off towards the heart of the city on foot. At the very least, he had learned his way around the bustling metropolis he'd once gotten so horribly lost within.

Making a quick stop at a hardware store he frequented on occasion, Zim grabbed the few items he needed and threw what money he owed at the disinterested cashier's face. Now there was just the minor headache of getting everything he had purchased back home. If Gir had actually shown up like he was supposed to, he could have used the robot to carry everything back to the base. But now that he was stuck carrying it all back himself, he'd had to find a faster route home than the one he usually traveled on foot. Although he knew of a shortcut he could take through some back alleys and side streets to get back home faster, he couldn't help but cringe at the thought of having to pass by that horrible stink-worm, Dib's house. Surely the human would make a fuss if he saw all the newly purchased equipment he'd just procured.

Taking a minute to weigh out the pros and cons of his predicament, Zim then decided to just take his chances as it would serve his purposes better to get back sooner rather than later. He only hoped the human wouldn't be home at the time.

Arriving at his base no more than 20 minutes later, Zim then sighed in some relief when he finally managed slip inside his house unnoticed, his by now old robot parents welcoming him home the second he stepped inside.

"Welcome home, son!" the two robots announced in animated unison, momentarily blocking Zim's path before retreating back to their posts just within the entryway closet.

Zim didn't bother with a response back but rather fixed a scowl onto the SIR unit currently occupying his living room sofa.

None the wiser to his master's fixed gaze in that moment, Gir merely sat at the edge of the couch, his own gaze glued to the television screen in front of him as it blared his favorite TV show all throughout the room.

The irritated Irken moved to stand in front of the vibrantly obnoxious television set.

"OOOH! HI, MASTER!" the android finally greeted him in his usual naive tone of voice, oblivious to the countless icy daggers that Zim what currently directing at him with his stare. "Ooooh, what's that?!" he then exclaimed magnanimously, pointing to the handful of items Zim had purchased at the hardware store and admiring them with childlike curiosity.

"THESE, -GIR-, are the newest components to my latest evil plan. You know, the plan that you were SUPPOSED TO BE HELPING ME WITH TODAY!" Zim barked in a voice edged with hostility.

"Oh yeeeeaaaahhhh." Gir responded back with a casual absent mindedness that had Zim bringing a single hand up to his face and shaking his head in defeat. "I was watching TV!" he then announced as though it weren't already obvious. "The Big-Head Boy was there, and so was the Spooky Lady, and the pointy guy that looks like Mary!" he exclaimed excitedly before then pointing to the TV in question, which had switched over from its usual broadcasting to a live feed of what was labeled as the "Membrane Appreciation Awards." In the background, a large stage with crowds of people surrounding it could clearly be seen while a single newscaster spoke over the many voices of excited Membrane fans who had come to see their triumphant idol receive recognition from the world for his contributions to the scientific realm.

"Eh!? What!? The Dib!?" Zim immediately dropped what he was holding to turn and face the screen.

"Yeah!" Gir chirped before hopping off the couch to go and rewind some of the footage he'd been watching shortly before Zim arrived. When he found the bit he was looking for, he paused the screen for a moment before hitting play on what appeared to be an interview happening between Membrane and the news reporter. "See!" Gir then pointed to Dib standing next to his father, seemingly cradling a labeled disc drive to his person with scrupulous care. Zim could vaguely make out the words "Proof of Zim's Alien Existence" written across its label and growled.

Finishing up his interview with the professor, the news anchor then turned his attention to Dib and Gaz. "And so tell me, how are you two feeling about tonight's ceremony event, being the FAMOUS PROFESSOR MEMBRANE'S current roommates?" he asked with effortless ease of misconception.

Dib struggled for a moment to come up with a sophisticated response he could use to excuse himself from the live interview before Gaz merely jabbed the guy off camera and turned to walk away without saying a word, allowing her brother the chance to take off into the crowds in search of where they were storing pre-recorded footage for tonight's staged event.

Zim glared at the TV critically for a moment before then turning to look at Gir, a plan already forming in his head to foil whatever plans it was Dib was plotting, or just to ruin his day in general. He snatched the remote away from the currently preoccupied robot, successfully gaining his attention in the process.

"Gir, listen carefully now. I'm going to go back out and I need you to watch over the base while I'm gone, understand?" Zim asked, waving the remote just out of Gir's reach.

"Okiee dokie!" Gir's eyes shifted to a red glow momentarily as he gave Zim a quick salute before turquoise flooded back in to dispel the alert gleam he temporarily had in his eyes.

Nodding his head in satisfaction at that response, Zim tossed back the TV remote to his SIR unit, permitting the little robot to cheerfully return back to his televised programming. Heading out of the base as quickly as he could, Zim then pulled out a handheld GPS device from his PAK, having taken out the one he'd installed in Gir long ago. He no longer trusted the small robot to follow its predetermined directions, let alone actually keep the thing installed.

Locating the auditorium that the awards ceremony was currently being held at, Zim made his way there with haste, the trip itself being uneventful aside from having to quickly dodge the evil chihuahua that sat in the middle of the sidewalk sometimes. Upon arriving, he then noticed a web of security stations that were dotting the outside perimeter of the stadium, keeping people without proper clearance or those without a ticket from entering the venue. Zim glared at the security stations testily. Of course there were bound to be guards at a place like this. He had to get through though and pondered on how he could do so without being noticed.

As he contemplated his circumstances for a brief moment, it wasn't more than a few seconds later that a small family of four came rushing up to one of the security posts, explaining to the guards that they had been late getting off work as they handed over their tickets for entry. Zim smiled to himself at the welcome diversion before quickly joining in beside them and hoping the guards wouldn't notice him as they entered into the ceremony event. It worked like a charm and Zim cackled quietly to himself at his successful infiltration. Humans were such dumb creatures at times, he thought as he strolled into the auditorium.

Entering into a massive reception hall, he scanned over the area once and then frowned. The place was much larger than he could have imagined, and there was a giant crowd of people separating him from the stage. Grumbling to himself, Zim reluctantly started to wade his way through the sea of bodies, shoving people aside as needed while still trying to keep a low profile and look out for the Dib.

As Zim neared the center of the crowded assembly hall, the lights suddenly dimmed to a muted hue before a single spot light was directed to the front of the stage.

"Welcome, dedicated science enthusiasts! And thank you for joining us here this evening! As many of you may already know, we have gathered here tonight to pay homage to one of the greatest scientific minds of today's time and age, the world-famous and remarkably-talented PROFESSOR MEMBRANE!" a single voice boomed above the rest, causing the buzz of muffled whispers in the audience to settle to a note of attentive silence.

"For nearly two decades now," he continued, "the professor has devoted a majority of his time and efforts to mankind's betterment. That being said, we've come together tonight to celebrate and pay tribute to the many achievements thus far accomplished in the field of science by the man sitting directly behind me. Please give a round of applause for the man of the hour, Professor Membrane!"

A roar of delighted cheers exploded from the audience in response to that as the light then focused in on the professor himself. He sat in a chair near the back of the stage, his daughter, Gaz, situated in a seat directly to his left. It was only then that Zim noticed Dib discreetly rushing up onto the stage from one side to join his sister in the shaded seating area near the back. The professor cast his son a momentary warning glance before then turning his attention to the crowd in front of them.

"Ah, yes, well thank you, Simmons." Membrane nodded his head in his faithful assistant's general direction before standing to address the audience briefly. "It's an honor to be recognized here tonight and truly humbling to be surrounded by so many passionate supporters of my work. Before we commence with this evening's main viewing event though, I'd just like to extend my sincerest gratitude to some of the people sitting up here on stage with me: my fellow colleagues, my loyal television sponsors, my avid fan base, and of course, my supportive loved ones." he said, gesturing to the long line of filled chairs occupying the stage's circumference and ending with Dib and Gaz's seats. "Without the lifelong support of so many friendly faces, surely my life's work wouldn't be as fulfilling or as successful as it is today." he ended his speech with one final fond glimpse at his two kids sitting off to one side of the large auditorium stage.

Sticking his tongue out in silent, gagging protest, Zim eyeballed the area once more in desperation before locking his gaze onto a single door that seemed to lead into a room backstage. Surely that was where Dib had just come from, he thought to himself as he continued his trek through the mass of human bodies. If the human was planning to expose him on live television programming then boy did he have another thing coming.

Reaching the door within less than a minute's time, Zim ushered himself into the back room stealthily, taking care to make absolutely certain that nobody had seen him enter. Once inside, he then reached into his PAK to pull out a disk drive of his own making, quickly locating the video evidence he'd seen Dib with earlier and replacing it into his PAK for later disposal. "There. That outta show the human not to mess with ZIM!" he proclaimed in hushed triumph before then taking a moment to admire his vengeance. It was a good video clip, to say the very least, but somehow it just didn't seem like enough to him. Sticking his tongue out in idle dissatisfaction for a moment, he then reached back to rummage through his PAK again for something to add onto the footage he'd already exchanged. "Perfect!" he announced once he'd made one final alteration to his plan. Now all that was left to do was sit back and watch as the chaos unfolded.

Slipping out from the back room silently, Zim then found himself an empty corner to press his back against in anticipation of the soon to be pandemonium. He could just see Dib's face now, contorted into nothing less than a tantrum of complete and utter humiliation and shame.

As the ceremony resumed with Simmons back at the microphone now, he moved on to speak about a few projects the professor was currently working on before then listing off a number of awards that they planned on presenting shortly following the tribute video that had been prepared for that evening.

"And now if you'd all direct your attention to the screen directly behind us, we'd like to present you with just a quick montage of the great Professor Membrane's outstanding achievements made thus far!" Simmons announced, clicking on a button attached to the podium and waiting for the video feed that had been prepared to start up, or so they thought. The video took a moment to load before finally a shoddily-taped recording of the Mysterious Mysteries' opening theme appeared on the screen.

Dib's eyes widened in horror at the all too familiar intro to his favorite television series. This wasn't what he had uploaded to the projector; it wasn't what he had uploaded at all. As the recording continued to play out on screen, Dib didn't dare to look over at his father in that moment. He knew he would be in trouble for this one and could already feel himself being pinned down by the look of disappointment his father was no doubt aiming at him. The video then transitioned into another clip, something Dib recognized from a long time ago, and something he had hoped to never witness again. It had taken place back when he was still in Ms. Bitters' class. He had been trying to get his classmates to understand that Zim was an alien, with a giant space setup, diagram, and floating monitors assembled in the background. As could be expected though, his classmates had all disagreed with him, mumbling in agreement amongst each other about some absurd comment Zim had made to defend himself in lieu of all Dib's evidence. It had been the final straw for Dib at that point, and he had just sort of...flipped; jumping on desks, making incoherent noises, and even crawling back and forth along one of the classroom light fixtures.

Dib couldn't even watch the rest of the video recording, physically cringing at the mere memory of the biggest episode he'd ever had in class over the stupid alien. To his relief, the video cut off after his freak out had ended, leaving Dib feeling somehow cheated for the fact that the footage hadn't included Zim's kidnapping shortly following his temporary break down. At least the part where the bird had pooped on him and his classmates laughed wasn't present. But still, the brunt of what had happened that day was definitely there.

A longstanding silence fell over the audience before they all then ruptured into fits of laughter, some mocking Dib's shenanigans and calling him crazy while others he could hear were questioning what kind of roommates the professor was keeping nowadays.

Zim watched the circus act of confused and inept staff members calling out orders to cut to a commercial with glee, cackling to himself lightly at a job well done. It was always a pleasure watching the human struggle in utter failure and humiliation, especially as a result his own doing.

Slinking from his seat as though to dislodge himself from the situation at hand, Dib swept a sheepish glance about the room in search of a possible escape route. That's when his eyes locked onto those of his nemesis, the other's fake lavender irises alight with unbridled amusement. He felt a wave of anger and frustration wash over him in an instant, his previously-felt embarrassment being postponed in favor of complete and utter outrage.

"Oh you horrible, alien mon-!" he began to rant before suddenly being grabbed by somebody and escorted from the stage in as unobtrusive a manner as possible. Dib jerked his arm free once removed, firing off his mouth before he could register who exactly had grabbed him. "Hey, what's the big ide-a..." his voice fell from a shout to a stammer in the face of his father's scrutiny.

For the first time in his life, Dib could actually sense his father's silent fury, having never experienced anything beyond mild annoyance from him before.

"Just. what. were. you. THINKING. Dib!?" the words came out slow and steady, as though Membrane was struggling to maintain an even-tempered tone with his son.

"I-I c-can explain!" Dib sputtered out instinctively, unaccustomed to the foreboding sensation he currently felt spreading throughout his body. "You see, Zim-" he began to say but was instantly cut off.

"Oh, no you don't! Enough about your little foreign friend already! How many times must I say it, son? There are no such things as aliens!" Membrane spoke in obvious exasperation.

"But, Dad! I'm telling you the truth! He-" Dib tried again to argue his case, only to be shut down immediately by Membrane's disapproving glare. This obviously wasn't an eligible time to be bringing up his theories about Zim, not after everything that had just unfolded at least. Dib fixed his gaze to the floor beneath him and exhaled out a defeated sigh. "...Sorry, Dad..." he apologized in an enigmatic tone of voice, his words holding less sincerity to them than what was to be expected in that moment.

Sighing in response to his son's scantily-prepared apology, Membrane hailed over one of the many security personnel there and spoke to him in hushed dialogue for a moment before then turning back to Dib. "I'm going to have you and Gaz taken home for the rest of the ceremony and we'll have a talk afterwards about what happened here today." he said in a voice tinged with suppressed vexation. For the time being, he couldn't afford to let his anger get out of control here of all places as he turned to exit back out onto the stage with keenly disguised poise.

The security guard in question merely tilted his head forward in compliance with the professor's orders before ushering Dib away towards the exit and into the back parking lot area. Looking behind himself, Dib could then see Gaz being walked out with another guard, a very displeased look on her face. Yeah, he was definitely going to hear it from her when they got back to the house, he thought, a more familiar fear temporarily replacing the unfamiliar tension he'd felt at the hands of his father. Hopefully it wouldn't be too bad.

As they were driven home from the ceremony event, which continued without anymore unexpected interruptions, Gaz gave Dib a sharp punch to his arm upon arriving, glaring at him with deft precision.

"Thanks for ruining everything again," she snapped viciously before stomping off to her room in her usual volatile fashion, leaving Dib alone in the living room.

Sighing to himself and retreating to his room, Dib stayed locked it in for the rest of the evening, anxiously awaiting the inevitable punishment he knew he had coming. It wouldn't be too much longer until the ceremony was over, probably another hour or two at best. In the meantime, he just sat in his room, laden with frustration over what had just occurred. Things would have been perfect if Zim just hadn't intervened. His thoughts now on the alien, he frowned automatically. If nothing else, he figured he should at least start coming up with another new way to expose and get back at him for what he had done to him today. Pulling out his laptop, Dib then started typing up some plans he'd had in mind previously, leafing through folders on his hard drive that contained elaborate bits of information he had gathered about the other throughout his years of continued observation.

Getting caught up in his research and planning, Dib almost didn't hear the front door when it finally opened downstairs. Almost. Looking up from his laptop, another wave of unease dwarfed his composure as he waited in silence for his dad to come to his room. After a minute of waiting, there came a firm knock on the door. Getting up from his bed, Dib forced himself to take in a deep breath before going over to open the door with slight hesitation.

"So what happened today? Would you mind explaining to me what you think you were doing?" Membrane inquired with immediate resolve, getting straight to the point as he assumed his son had had plenty of time to think on it in the time he'd been gone.

Dib deadpanned at the question, having gotten so caught up in his research on Zim that he hadn't even considered how to explain his actions beyond stating the same as he had back at the ceremony. "Uh...W-Well, you see, I…" he tried to stall for time to come up with something reasonable, his mind treacherously denying him access to any sort of explanation he could use in his favor.

Lifting a brow marginally to signal his growing impatience in the face of Dib's current diversionary disposition, Membrane then sighed when he received no answer at all. Although he had calmed considerably since he'd last spoken with Dib, there would be no letting this one slide. "You're grounded. Two months and I'll be having Simmons stop by to take you to and from school from now on, as well as remove any technology you have in your room dedicated to your 'Para-science.'" he said before turning to leave, a part of him still displeased with himself for how light a consequence he felt he was letting Dib off with. He had never considered raising a hand to one of his kids before, but in light of what had happened, Membrane had nearly slapped Dib back at the venue. Fortunately for Dib, he had a little more patience than that, but it was definitely running thin at this point.

Snapping his head up at his father's seemingly one-ended decision, Dib couldn't stop himself from shooting back a cursory response. "But, Dad! That's totally unfair! You didn't even give me a chance to explain!" he blurted out breathlessly amidst a wave of panic he hadn't been expecting. After all, if Zim were left to his own devices, there was no telling what disasters might unfold as a result.

Stopping in his tracks, Membrane exhaled a calming breath, doing his best to keep his temper from reincarnating itself into something far more threatening than what it had been back at the stadium. "Alright, three months then." he responded sedately, adding on another month for the back talk and feeling just a little more dissatisfied with himself for not knowing how to balance out what he felt was an insufficient repercussion in relation to his son's actions.

"What!?" Dib was quickly losing his cool, even more so now for how flippant his father was behaving in that moment. He opened his mouth to continue voicing his protest but was quickly silenced by a single finger Membrane held up to silence him.

"Say another word about it, and it will be four months." Membrane warned tentatively, far from used to having to punish his kids in such a way. Although he was well-educated in matters that demanded a scientific approach to them, this matter was far from anything that fell into his area of expertise.

Dib considered the professor's words with versatile deliberation for a moment before continuing in voluntary defiance now. "I can't believe you won't even hear me out on this! Not that I should be surprised considering you almost never listen to anything besides your own voice!" he spoke caustically now. "Hell, you can hardly even take the time to punish us yourself, getting your assistant to do your bidding! Guess that's why you rely so heavily on everybody else to do all your dirty work for you!" he spat amidst a torrent of raging emotions.

At that, Membrane couldn't help but lose his cool now too. "Do you have ANY IDEA how incredibly selfish you sound right now!?" he mirrored his son's own temper with uncanny veracity. Although Simmons had always worked under him as a fellow colleague and his personal assistant, the two of them had been companionable friends for longer than he could even recall.

"Selfish!?" Dib blinked in perplexed astonishment. "Look who's talking now!" Dib countered defensively.

"And what exactly is that supposed to mean!?" Membrane demanded with interrupting force, advancing back on his son fiercely.

"Oh, I don't know, Dad! Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that you forgot my birthday AGAIN this year! Never mind the fact that this has been going on for practically six years now! You really have no consideration for anybody but yourself!" Dib threw out critically, fingers already twining themselves around the doorknob to his bedroom door, which he forcefully slammed in the face of his father before locking it behind himself, thus putting an end to their current yelling match.

And there you have it for Chapter 1. Until out next upload~