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Summary: An Invader Zim one-shot, part of a series of unusual pairings. Dib walks in on a relationship that he does not like at all. Warning: This one is extra wrong.
"You are SICK!"
Membrane flinched the slightest bit at his son's outburst. Dib glared at him through a black eye and cracked glasses, shaking with anger, his mind racing. He wanted to punch or kick something, but the best he could do was scream and watch his father cower in front of him.
"I mean, you and, and—and her, and—"
"Now, son...if you just calm down for a minute, you'll see that—"
"See what, Dad, huh?!" Dib made a sound that was part gasp, part scoff. "I mean, I'm probably too insane to understand it, but please tell me your explanation for why I just saw you making out with YOUR OWN DAUGHTER?!"
Membrane took a slow breath, trying to collect himself. "I know you've been snooping in my personal files, son," he began, and and had to quickly interrupt before Dib could respond. "You know that you and your sister were not created as normal little children. You were experiments—"
"AND YOU THINK THAT MAKES IT BETTER?!" Dib screamed, and Membrane was cowed by the vehemence in his voice. "So you're saying, what—we're not your kids anymore? We're just your—little organic sex-toys or something?!"
"Language, son!" Membrane gasped—as if I'm the one acting perverted, Dib thought. Then, "I cloned the two of you from the respective DNA of myself and your mother. However—" he started to falter now, beads of sweat flowing from his forehead onto his goggles "since Gaz and I do not share any genetic relationship, we—that is to say—"
"She's made from Mom's DNA, so you didn't think there was anything wrong with you boning her too," Dib sneered. It scared Membrane, somehow, that despite Dib's numerous insanities he was suddenly the one lecturing him with disgust in his voice. "And—hell, is that what Gaz is to you? Just a replacement for Mom? She died and you just figured who cares, I can just wait for her replacement to hit puberty in a couple years?!"
"Don't you talk to me that way!" Membrane shouted, trying to use anger to mask his growing sense of shame. "Your mother's death was one of the hardest—"
"What do you think she would say about this, huh?! You—you spent years raising us as your kids, and now—how long has this even been—I—"
Dib seemed at a loss for words now, and he suddenly let out a scream of frustration, spinning on his heels. He grabbed a baseball bat from the corner—for a wild moment Membrane thought that he was going to attack him, but instead Dib threw open the front door, turning back to give his father a look of pure hatred.
"I'm going to Zim's. I'd rather have my organs ripped out by a psychotic lizard than spend tonight looking at either of you freaks."
"Son, please!" Membrane called weakly, holding his hand out to him. "It's...Family Night, and—"
"Oh, I'm sure you and Gaz can think of SOMETHING to do together without me!"
The door slammed; Membrane lowered his hand, suddenly feeling weak. He thought about chasing Dib and instantly dismissed the idea. Instead he slumped onto the sofa, putting his face in his gloved hands and letting out a moan.
How long had he really thought he could keep Dib from finding out about this? What kind of reaction had he been expecting? Even though Dib never listened to reason, Membrane had convinced himself that somehow he could talk some reason into his son, that Dib would fall into line after Membrane's rational arguments proved that his and Gaz relationship was normal, not the sort of strange perversion lesser minds might intrepret it to be.
But he had been kidding himself, and not just about Dib's reaction. Not only had his justifications been ignored, each of them disintegrated before his son and his violent, horrified reaction.
Genetic sexual attraction? Just a fancy term meaning he was trying to replace Gaz's mother. A lack of biological relationship? The Westermark Effect was an observable pattern in every test group on the planet. She was mature enough? She was only a teenager, and more to the point, his daughter. Membrane was not one for moral philosophizing, but nor could he justify this with scientific reasoning. His relationship with Gaz was wrong—period. He could not claim that she and Dib were his children at one moment and then bring up their unorthodox creation to justify something like this.
He heard footsteps. He didn't look up, but he could hear Gaz's voice.
"Is he gone now?"
Membrane nodded into his hands. After a moment Gaz sat down on the couch, close to him. Too close.
A long moment passed. "You shouldn't have hit your brother," Membrane murmured finally.
"He shouldn't have come in my room when he thought I wasn't there," she growled.
Another long silence. "His reaction was...regrettable," Membrane said. "But understandable."
"Screw him."
"Language, Gaz." He had only started calling her that recently, and only in private. Otherwise she was simply "daughter," the way that Dib was simply "son."
"No," she said, and her tone was forceful. "He's always ruining everything. I'm not going to let him ruin this."
"'This?' Daughter—Gaz, I—this—"
What was this, anyway? How had it started? He wasn't even sure. He had always been close to Gaz, especially in comparison to Dib; the poor boy was so insane sometimes that it was just easier for Membrane to ignore him. Of course, Membrane had grown accustomed to ignoring a lot of things; over time Gaz seemed to be the only person who could really distract him from his work at the lab.
Unlike Dib, Gaz only rarely prompted calls from the skool, and the only real complaint he heard was that she was "angry" and "unsocial." Membrane had never really put much stock in those reports—she had always come off as stoic but perfectly sociable to him. It was only recently that he realized that was because he was her one exception, too—the only person who brought her out of her bitter shell, the one person she wanted to be around when she usually thrived with her lonely Game Slave.
She really wasn't much like her mother. Well, they looked identical, of course, but she had never been this cynical, this introverted. But the effects on him were the same—Gaz brought Membrane out of his own introversion, made him feel in a way he hadn't since her mother had died. And yet...
His thoughts were broken as Gaz suddenly grabbed his hand; he turned to her, and before he knew it she was kissing him. He knew he shouldn't let her—he should pull away—Dib's furious expression flashed through his mind—but...
"I don't care what that moron says," Gaz said. Had she always sounded so fierce? Was this another thing that Membrane had just never noticed before? "I don't care what anyone says. Dib will learn to keep his stupid face out of our business or else."
"But—"
Gaz put her hand over his mouth to silence him. "You're the only one I care about." It sounded almost like a threat. "And you care about me too, right?" Still fierce, but with an underlying tone that was vulnerable, pleading.
"I...of course, Gaz. More than anything."
"Good."
Gaz kissed him again, and Membrane closed his eyes behind his foggy goggles, trying to remember his old rationalizations.

Description

Summary: An Invader Zim one-shot, part of a series of unusual pairings. Dib walks in on a relationship that he does not like at all. Warning: This one is extra wrong.
"You are SICK!"
Membrane flinched the slightest bit at his son's outburst. Dib glared at him through a black eye and cracked glasses, shaking with anger, his mind racing. He wanted to punch or kick something, but the best he could do was scream and watch his father cower in front of him.
"I mean, you and, and—and her, and—"
"Now, son...if you just calm down for a minute, you'll see that—"
"See what, Dad, huh?!" Dib made a sound that was part gasp, part scoff. "I mean, I'm probably too insane to understand it, but please tell me your explanation for why I just saw you making out with YOUR OWN DAUGHTER?!"
Membrane took a slow breath, trying to collect himself. "I know you've been snooping in my personal files, son," he began, and and had to quickly interrupt before Dib could respond. "You know that you and your sister were not created as normal little children. You were experiments—"
"AND YOU THINK THAT MAKES IT BETTER?!" Dib screamed, and Membrane was cowed by the vehemence in his voice. "So you're saying, what—we're not your kids anymore? We're just your—little organic sex-toys or something?!"
"Language, son!" Membrane gasped—as if I'm the one acting perverted, Dib thought. Then, "I cloned the two of you from the respective DNA of myself and your mother. However—" he started to falter now, beads of sweat flowing from his forehead onto his goggles "since Gaz and I do not share any genetic relationship, we—that is to say—"
"She's made from Mom's DNA, so you didn't think there was anything wrong with you boning her too," Dib sneered. It scared Membrane, somehow, that despite Dib's numerous insanities he was suddenly the one lecturing him with disgust in his voice. "And—hell, is that what Gaz is to you? Just a replacement for Mom? She died and you just figured who cares, I can just wait for her replacement to hit puberty in a couple years?!"
"Don't you talk to me that way!" Membrane shouted, trying to use anger to mask his growing sense of shame. "Your mother's death was one of the hardest—"
"What do you think she would say about this, huh?! You—you spent years raising us as your kids, and now—how long has this even been—I—"
Dib seemed at a loss for words now, and he suddenly let out a scream of frustration, spinning on his heels. He grabbed a baseball bat from the corner—for a wild moment Membrane thought that he was going to attack him, but instead Dib threw open the front door, turning back to give his father a look of pure hatred.
"I'm going to Zim's. I'd rather have my organs ripped out by a psychotic lizard than spend tonight looking at either of you freaks."
"Son, please!" Membrane called weakly, holding his hand out to him. "It's...Family Night, and—"
"Oh, I'm sure you and Gaz can think of SOMETHING to do together without me!"
The door slammed; Membrane lowered his hand, suddenly feeling weak. He thought about chasing Dib and instantly dismissed the idea. Instead he slumped onto the sofa, putting his face in his gloved hands and letting out a moan.
How long had he really thought he could keep Dib from finding out about this? What kind of reaction had he been expecting? Even though Dib never listened to reason, Membrane had convinced himself that somehow he could talk some reason into his son, that Dib would fall into line after Membrane's rational arguments proved that his and Gaz relationship was normal, not the sort of strange perversion lesser minds might intrepret it to be.
But he had been kidding himself, and not just about Dib's reaction. Not only had his justifications been ignored, each of them disintegrated before his son and his violent, horrified reaction.
Genetic sexual attraction? Just a fancy term meaning he was trying to replace Gaz's mother. A lack of biological relationship? The Westermark Effect was an observable pattern in every test group on the planet. She was mature enough? She was only a teenager, and more to the point, his daughter. Membrane was not one for moral philosophizing, but nor could he justify this with scientific reasoning. His relationship with Gaz was wrong—period. He could not claim that she and Dib were his children at one moment and then bring up their unorthodox creation to justify something like this.
He heard footsteps. He didn't look up, but he could hear Gaz's voice.
"Is he gone now?"
Membrane nodded into his hands. After a moment Gaz sat down on the couch, close to him. Too close.
A long moment passed. "You shouldn't have hit your brother," Membrane murmured finally.
"He shouldn't have come in my room when he thought I wasn't there," she growled.
Another long silence. "His reaction was...regrettable," Membrane said. "But understandable."
"Screw him."
"Language, Gaz." He had only started calling her that recently, and only in private. Otherwise she was simply "daughter," the way that Dib was simply "son."
"No," she said, and her tone was forceful. "He's always ruining everything. I'm not going to let him ruin this."
"'This?' Daughter—Gaz, I—this—"
What was this, anyway? How had it started? He wasn't even sure. He had always been close to Gaz, especially in comparison to Dib; the poor boy was so insane sometimes that it was just easier for Membrane to ignore him. Of course, Membrane had grown accustomed to ignoring a lot of things; over time Gaz seemed to be the only person who could really distract him from his work at the lab.
Unlike Dib, Gaz only rarely prompted calls from the skool, and the only real complaint he heard was that she was "angry" and "unsocial." Membrane had never really put much stock in those reports—she had always come off as stoic but perfectly sociable to him. It was only recently that he realized that was because he was her one exception, too—the only person who brought her out of her bitter shell, the one person she wanted to be around when she usually thrived with her lonely Game Slave.
She really wasn't much like her mother. Well, they looked identical, of course, but she had never been this cynical, this introverted. But the effects on him were the same—Gaz brought Membrane out of his own introversion, made him feel in a way he hadn't since her mother had died. And yet...
His thoughts were broken as Gaz suddenly grabbed his hand; he turned to her, and before he knew it she was kissing him. He knew he shouldn't let her—he should pull away—Dib's furious expression flashed through his mind—but...
"I don't care what that moron says," Gaz said. Had she always sounded so fierce? Was this another thing that Membrane had just never noticed before? "I don't care what anyone says. Dib will learn to keep his stupid face out of our business or else."
"But—"
Gaz put her hand over his mouth to silence him. "You're the only one I care about." It sounded almost like a threat. "And you care about me too, right?" Still fierce, but with an underlying tone that was vulnerable, pleading.
"I...of course, Gaz. More than anything."
"Good."
Gaz kissed him again, and Membrane closed his eyes behind his foggy goggles, trying to remember his old rationalizations.