To The O'Briens With Love 4

By Fire Frog 

"I hear the O'Briens had to send Molly to her grandparents on Earth. Such a shame." He polished a glass reflectively as Dax took a sip of her drink. She pulled a face, but not because the Blackhole was too bitter. Her news was.

"She started following Julian around," the Trill sighed unhappily. "When they asked why, she said she was going to stop the bad Bajorans from taking her brother away. Then she showed them a pulse drill she had in her overall pocket, to make them leave him alone."

"Wow, don't mess with an O'Brien, not even a little one." Quark paused in his work, then set to at a faster pace. "How'd she get ahold of a pulse drill, anyway? I can't see the chief leaving one of those around."

"No, she 'found' it at the new cafe they're building on the promenade." Jadzia smiled a little at the child's ingenuity. "According to Morn, the owner 'had something to say' on the pregnancy issue to Keiko several days before, so Molly didn't feel bad about 'finding' their power tool. Miles was upset, thinks his tendency to hit things to make them work may have been taken up by his daughter. Keiko was furious at the Bajorans and Julian thinks it's all his fault. Idiot. I think another Bajoran cafe is one too many. I wouldn't be at all surprised if it went out of business. Soon." Dax's eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Er, yes." Quark polished his glass even faster. The cafe was a rival business to him, he'd be glad to see it go. Still, time to change the subject. "Julian's been looking a little pinched lately. Anything wrong? Besides the usual, I mean."

Jadzia forced her hand to relax on the glass stem of her drink. The O'Briens had been so distraught with what had happened with Molly, it was hard to distance herself from it. But for the sake of keeping the station as stable as possible, she had to. They had to. Stirring up trouble with the Bajorans would not help things in the long run.

"Julian's last operation's scarring didn't stretch like it should have," she turned to the less controversial topic with a sigh, "and the baby has grown again. The scars are pulling, but Miles says there's a good chance the next op will fix it. In the mean time Julian's in a bit of pain. Don't worry, I'm sure he'll make full term." Jadzia gave Quark a knowing smirk.

"He better, I've got quite a tidy sum ridding on it. Anything we can do?" Quark tried to hide his genuine concern behind his business veneer, but his deflection was wasted on the Trill.

"Miles is looking for a holo program. One he and Julian can share together, that doesn't require a lot of physical activity, a balloon or train ride. Something to help them relax," she told him.

"I'll get right on it. You know, despite the pain, Julian looks, how can I put it, prettier somehow. It's that hu-mon glow I've heard about, right? It suits him." He put the glass under the bar with the others, brushing the back of his fingers casually along the lobe of one ear as he stood back up.

"Quark, you old lecher you." Dax leered at him.

"Just keeping an eye on my investment," he said, wiping at the bar with a fresh pluffa sponge. Her smile widened and he felt his ears turn pink. Time to change the topic again. "You up to a game of Tongo tonight? The Falalec is still in port and there are plenty of suckers, I mean, patrons to be met."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world." Dax smiled. She happened to look over Quark's shoulder just then and frowned at something she saw in the promenade. "Quark, what's that string doing, leading into the infirmary?"

The Ferengi looked around. There was a brightly colored yarn winding from the infirmary's door and out to a shadowed corner of the main walkway. They both got up and wandered over for a closer look, wondering who had put it there.

With a sickening thump a Bajoran male, dressed in heavy robes, flew past them from out of the darkness. He was followed by a visibly shaking and furious Doctor Bashir.

"Dax, call Security. This person," he paused as if trying to decide whether the fallen man warranted the title, "has just assaulted me. I shall be in the infirmary, running a scan over myself." He turned and stalked angrily into the medical facility.

Jadzia and Quark turned their gaze on the fallen Bajoran, who was not getting up. From the angle his jaw was at, the man was probably lucky to be out cold.

"Looks like Molly had a point," Quark muttered, taking off his belt and trussing the Bajoran as firmly as a toadworm for roasting.

Kira was not amused. Within half an hour of the assault on Doctor Bashir she had authorized a thorough screening of all Bajorans to the station. Nobody with any connection to an anti-male pregnancy lobby was permitted on board. This was despite the assailant's apparent derangement and claim to be working alone, 'at the directions of the Prophets.'

The attacker, a man named Lonar, was treated in his cell by Nurse Bandee, then shipped out on the first available runabout. Kira couldn't trust herself, otherwise. Especially after the long knife was found in the alcove off the promenade.

The man had used Julian's own inquisitive nature against him, rolling a brightly colored ball of yarn in through the infirmary door just as the doctor passed. Curious, Bashir had followed the string and Lonar had ambushed him.

Kira had rolled her eyes at the Bajoran's ploy. Only Julian, she felt, would have fallen for something so obvious. Jadzia volunteered that it would have worked on her, too, but Nerys wasn't listening.

"That man is trying to drive me to an early grave," she snarled. He had walked right into Lonar's trap and then, instead of using the emergency comm link she'd given him, he'd chosen to fight the armed man off himself! Irresponsible! Dunderheaded, thick-skulled human!

Terrified, cornered, pregnant human, Jadzia had gently reminded her. Kira just glared at the Trill for a moment. Then sighed.

"Well, he did all right, I suppose," she conceded, referring to the report on her desk. Bashir had been damn lucky, though.

Having wandered blithely out to investigate the mysterious yarn, carrying only a spent hypo in one hand, the doctor had turned instinctively and been able to block the Bajoran fanatic's initial thrust. Stunned, Julian had rammed the spent hypo he'd been holding into the man's solar plexus, the pain causing him to drop his weapon.

The doctor immediately tried to backpedal out into the promenade, but his assailant had grabbed the front of his tunic and yanked him close. The Bajoran had then used his heavier weight to pin the doctor between himself and the wall.

Recovering from Bashir's initial blow he then straitened up and reached for the human's throat. Desperate, the Starfleet officer had pushed him back and away before he could take a proper grip. Making a two-handed fist, Julian had then delivered a powerful blow to his assailant's jaw, lifting the man off his feet and sending him skidding out into the promenade, to fall at Dax's and Quark's feet.

"Better than I thought he was capable of, anyway," Kira continued, thinking of the prisoner's broken jaw, sprained wrist, two cracked ribs and the misaligned vertebrae in his neck. She just wished she could have had the opportunity to do it.

But now was definitely time to put operation Rocket Launcher in place. With this last incident, she knew she had to set up a special line of defense.

Later, alone in the command room, she sat before the monitor going over her proposal in her head one last time. Wondering if she was about to make things better or worse, Kira put through a covert message to Bajor.

The weathered Bajoran woman who answered the call raised one thin eyebrow in disbelief.

"Well, hello again, little bit," Pak Dorran, terrorist and Bajoran patriot, smirked nastily. Kira knew she only got this much respect from the older woman because Dorran happened to owe her big time,

Oh, this will be fun, Nerys thought, fighting to keep the look of irritation off her face. I just hope it's worth it. And she began to talk.

A game of darts was just what the doctor ordered. Miles lined himself up at the mark, thought trajectory, wind speed and velocity thoughts, then let fly. As usual, the dart went exactly where it damn well wanted to go, irrespective of his efforts. Oh, well, next time.

Julian went up to the mark and promptly dropped his dart.

"I'll get it!" Miles sang out, swooping after the fallen game piece. He made a show of polishing it up on his sleeve before handing it back over.

"Thank you, Miles," Julian said dryly, making another stab at throwing his dart. This time he managed to hit the board.

The latest medication was making Julian's tendons relax. In a normal pregnancy, they would do so naturally, to accommodate the growing size of the child. But Julian's tendons had had to be artificially encouraged to loosen up and the dosage had proven tricky. Then his natural hormones had kicked in as well, producing an excess of what was needed.

The result was inconvenient; Julian had found himself dropping things left, right and center. Dropping silly things like medical journals, hypo sprays and darts. He'd been forced to relieve himself of duty for a few days, not something the doctor was fond of doing.

But it wasn't a bad thing, as far as Miles was concerned. It gave him more access, more time to coddle the man and after the incident with that mad Bajoran, may he rot in psychiatric hell, Miles needed to coddle him.

Thank God Molly had already gone to Earth. They didn't know what might have happened if she had been around when her worst fears had come true. As it was he and Keiko had to settle Julian down from more nightmares than usual. Even the O'Briens weren't immune to them. Keiko had had a particularly nasty one just last night.

Talk of the devil! He reached over to tap Julian on the shoulder. The younger man turned and nodded and they both made their way to the bar, where Keiko awaited them. Julian handed over his darts and engineer Enrique Muniz took them up, heading over to the dart board with Miles.

Somewhat relieved to be leaving the curious eyes of the barroom (he had seen Quark adjusting odds every time he dropped a dart, damn him) Julian let Mrs. O'Brien pull him up to the holo deck. The doors whooshed open and they stepped into their latest adventure, the Mystical MI5.

The holo recording was of a long and winding road that passed through incredible scenery, some of it from other worlds, which was traversed by an old style motor car. Called a 'convertible' it was blue and white, with a pulled back top, a simple control wheel and programmable speed limit.

They hopped in, Keiko at the helm. The car's engine rumbled to life and they started to explore the highway. A giant moon came up on their left; it was being orbited by six snow white swans.

"Where do you think Quark came up with this program?" Julian asked, tilting his head back to look at the stars.

"It's almost like a child's fantasy. Like something one of my students would make." Keiko put one arm along the back of the seat. She had her hair hidden by a scarf for driving and a pair of sunglasses perched on top of that. Not that she needed the sun glasses this time around, although the giant moon shone nearly as bright as day. But it had been quite sunny the last time they were here. That was part of the program's appeal, you never knew what would happen or what you would come across next.

They rounded a bend in the road and a steep cliff dropped away to their right. Schools of sea mammals called dolphins began to frolic in the ocean below, the moonlight shining off their sleek backs as phosphorus glowed fleetingly through the surf. It was a peaceful scene.

"Are you all right, Julian?" Keiko turned to look at him. "Is there anything we can do?" His face was limned in gold from the bright moonlight and for a moment she was struck by just how beautiful he was. So often she thought of him as her husband's boyish nuisance of a friend. But he was more than that, so much more.

Untangling himself from his own thoughts, Julian didn't answer her straight away, but watched the distant dolphins with longing. He remembered seeing the real thing, back on Earth. At length he turned to face her.

"I am all right, you know. You needn't worry about that fool attacking me the other day. I've been attacked by people before, it's not a new experience. Thugs on Limus set upon my friend Felix and I for sitting in their chairs at a cafe. And remember that Lethian? There have been any number of times...."

"This was different. This was our fault!" Keiko hit the steering wheel angrily with her fist. She stared in shock at her stinging hand, the sudden anger having struck from nowhere. "I'm sorry," she whispered, curling her fingers in on the reddening palm.

"No, I am. It was my fault, the assault, for being so idiotic in the first place. I knew there was a possibility of attack from the Bajorans, despite this little ear ornament the kai forced on me. I should have been more careful.

Instead I endangered both the baby and myself by wandering into that trap like a witless idiot. Kira was furious with me. Now please, can we agree that we're both sorry, and move on? I've already had Miles say he's sorry, and Jadzia, and Quark. Kira is sorry, too, just because it's her people being so pig-headed. I think its time to put all the apologizing behind us."

"But...."

"Keiko, just drive the car. I don't want to hear anyone else telling me how much you all regret everything. It's over, Major Kira has taken steps and the baby and I are both fine. Now, it's a beautiful night, I'm in the company of a very lovely lady, please let's just enjoy the drive."

"Miles is right, you really are an annoying pest, aren't you?" Keiko sighed. She had wanted to wallow in her guilt a little longer, but with Julian around it was impossible. The young doctor smiled and fluttered his eyelashes at her charmingly. Oooh, he made her blood boil! What a brat!

The drive continued and, as had happened before, the ride worked its enchanting magic. Julian's eyes gradually closed and he gently drifted off to sleep. With only the slightest guilt, Keiko coaxed his sleeping body in against her side. It made her feel closer to her son, being this close to Julian. He snuggled in against her and Keiko snuggled back.

Stroking his shoulder, she wondered what he would think if he woke up right now. He had never done so before, the combination of soothing sounds, images and a safe person nearby allowing him to sleep peacefully. Only the sound of the chime, letting them know their time in the holo suite was up, ever woke him. She would make sure to have already separated from him by then. But not yet. There was still plenty of time for her illicit cuddle.

Around them the scenes changed and they passed a midnight picnic on the beach, with laughing children scurrying about, shinning handlights in some complicated game and adults watching indulgently from deck chairs.

"Why can't our lives be like a holo?" she asked, her voice soft as she thought with longing of her daughter, then with fear of her son and the man bearing him.

Just then Julian sighed, startling her a little. But it was a sigh of contentment, not a comment on her foolish question. The convertible followed another bend in the road, when unexpectedly it led out over the cliff and into thin air. Feeling out of control and reckless, Keiko went with it - steering out into the emptiness. Luckily for her, the path simply went on and they headed off towards the stars.

"Children are a blessing," Miles said. He was sitting in Molly's room, on the floor, looking at her display of drawings.

"I'm sure they are," Julian agreed, wondering how much his friend had had to drink and how soon Keiko would be home. Soon, he hoped.

"They really are." A tear slid slowly down one ruddy cheek and Miles took another pull at his beer. "They take you outside yourself and make you look at the big picture. It's great, and it's terrible. But I wouldn't give them up for anything."

There was a wobbly kind of silence, then Miles pointed to the pictures as if showing them for the first time to his friend who stood in shadow at the room's doorway. "She's gone, my little Molly. Julian, she's gone!" He turned tear-filled eyes to his best friend and Julian knelt besides him and opened his arms.

Miles crawled into them like a lost soul seeking harbor and Julian held him close. "Shh," he said into tousled curls, rocking gently. "Shh, it will be all right."

When Keiko at last came home, she found her husband lying fast asleep in their daughter's room, held tightly by a worried looking doctor Bashir. A stab of envy sped through her, but for the life of her, she could not tell which of them she was most envious of. Julian, who held the trust and ability to comfort the man she loved, or Miles, who was being held so protectively in Julian's arms. Softly she shut the room's door and went to prepare their evening meal.

Doctor Bashir was busy placing instruments into a sterilization field when Security brought the Klingon in. They seemed to be having more civil disobedience now that Sisko, Worf and Odo had gone looking for a changeling in the Klingon Empire's ranks.

This Klingon Security had hauled in had been trying to steal a runabout, to take a one way ticket to SoVoKor, if the smell of bloodwine was any indication. Julian swallowed against the nausea he felt rising from the man's stench.

He prepared a detox shot and waited for the security team to settle their prisoner down. The Klingon's arm was hanging oddly and Bashir was running through his dislocated shoulder realignment methods (as perfected upon Chief O'Brien) when the drunken warrior freed himself. Security closed in, but were on the wrong side and caught the heavily swung blow from the Klingon's good arm, which sent them spinning.

Picking up a tray of implements the rampaging drunk flung them at the fallen men, then swung around onto the medical staff. Before anyone could stop him he'd pushed Julian into a wall, reaching for the Starfleet officer's comm badge.

He activated the comm then pinned the doctor to the wall with a forearm across his throat.

"Beam two to the nearest runabout," he grunted.

"Who is this? Julian, who has your comm?" Jadzia's anxious voice came to them from Ops.

The Klingon snarled and threatened violence if he and his captive weren't beamed over right away. Apparently he had some alcohol-induced conviction that he could take the Dominion on alone and win.

Julian was seeing black spots before his eyes and there was a persistent ringing noise. He was trying to self diagnose when the Klingon grew impatient and used the arm under his prisoner's chin to lift him, effectively strangling the suspended human.

That's when Nurse Bandee decided enough was enough and hit the Klingon over the head with a bonesetting kit. He met the deck with a heavy thud.

"Good shot," murmured Doctor Bashir, as he tried to focus his eyes.

"Doctor, are you all right?"

"I think I'll just rest here for a little, Nurse. Call me if...." and he slid down the wall, out cold.

Julian woke up with a headache, sore throat and bruised shoulders, he presumed from being slammed into the wall. There were people yelling in the next room, but he was getting used to that.

It reminded him of that first awkward night with Keiko and Miles. To his surprise they had settled him down in their own bedroom. They had a nice single bed set up next to their own, showing just how much they had planned on his agreeing to stay over with them.

It made sense, actually, if they intended to monitor him, but somehow he still hadn't expected it. Keiko was normally so reserved. Still, by having him here in their bedroom Keiko had the doctor in touching distance. He'd remembered what Miles had said, about how just looking in on him sleeping would make them feel better.

He'd lain beneath the sheets where they had firmly tucked him in and listened as husband and wife argued over who should be sleeping on the side closest to him in their double bed.

Miles wanted it to be him, in case any emergency carrying had to be done. Julian felt a shiver of disquiet at that. He meant in case Julian passed out again and needed to be taken to the infirmary, of course. Damn the man for his worrying.

Keiko insisted it should be her, as Miles had been capable of sleeping through a screaming Molly at bottle feeding times and couldn't be trusted to act on any muffled moans of pain Julian might let slip. How well she knows us, the doctor had thought. He was beginning to feel like a contested-over prized bone when there came a distinct thump and a whimper of pain. Keiko serenely walked into the room and scooted over to lay on the side of the bed closest to him. Miles followed, walking with a slight hobble. It appeared Keiko had the, um, firmer argument.

Julian had lain awake for a while, getting used to the strange bed and wondering idly if he were going to be treated to any of the O'Briens' wild sex that Miles was always talking about. The idea had given him an embarrassed thrill.

So far, however, he hadn't had the pleasure. He noticed the argument in the infirmary had become louder. Julian was just considering getting up to see what all the noise was about when a dark-haired older woman entered the room, leaned over him and removed his comm badge. For a second he thought she must be in league with the deranged Klingon, but it was far worse than that.

"Doctor Bashir, I am Doctor Idean Morou. I am the replacement sent by Starfleet Medical Academy. And I am relieving you of your duties as of right now."

Julian sat glumly between Keiko and Miles, a cooling glass of cherry syrup forgotten in his elegant hands. Keiko eyed the slimy red goo dubiously, but Julian had developed a taste for it, claiming it was an excellent source of essential vitamins.

Julian reached up to tug a little on the monitor Morou had stuck on his neck, then went back to moping. He was to have worked side by side with his replacement until practically the birth, but she had decreed working conditions too dangerous and suspended him immediately.

"It's that blasted Klingon's fault," snarled O'Brien. "I never did like Klingons."

Julian sighed. "It's nobody's fault, Miles. Just bad timing. I'll let Morou calm down then go and see her again. If that doesn't work I'll go to Captain...." Damn it all. He'd forgotten Sisko was off-station, and Kira was still in charge. No way he could make the Bajoran major change her mind on anything.

He forced himself to drink the last of his syrup, Miles' consoling hand massaging one shoulder. He'd reached the bottom of the glass when the door to the O'Briens' home opened and Garak stormed in.

"So it's true." The Cardassian moved into the room and the better light revealed the angry glitter of his narrowed blue eyes. He took in the doctor's thickened waistline and the proprietary hand Miles had on his shoulder.

"Come with me, Doctor. I can save you from these..." He used a Cardassian word that made Chief O'Brien blanch white. "There is still time. You probably have Gul knows what in your system to make you do their bidding, but I promise you, it can all be undone."

He held out a hand, but Julian shook his head emphatically at him.

"What are you talking about? There's no coercion involved, Garak. I promise you, I've agreed to carry the O'Briens' child of my own free will. It was my idea, in fact."

Shocked, the tailor simply stared at him a moment, then shook his head in denial. "I don't believe it." The Cardassian closed his eyes as if in pain. Then he snapped them open again and pinned the doctor with his gaze. "You've finally done it, haven't you? Found a cause so noble, so stupid it just might end your life. How splendidly heroic of you!" The man was hissing with rage, hands clenched so tight at his sides the knuckles were blue.

"Garak!" Miles sprung to his feet while Keiko put a protective arm around the doctor.

"And you - this is your fault!" The furious man turned on the O'Briens. "You're perfectly capable of creating a whole host of other children! Why insist on this one? If I ever find out you put him up to this, I will see to it personally that you don't get a chance to reproduce ever again!"

"Now wait a God-blessed minute...." "Garak, you've gone too far!" "How dare you come into our house...." They all spoke at once, their voices easily covering the soft blip made by the monitor at Julian's throat. No one noticed Julian's pallor, while the other humans where all turning flushed. They were too busy screaming at each other.

"Why else would he carry your brat, if he wasn't coerced? For the love of you? I think not! I have reason to believe our good doctor is incapable of such tender feelings! But he is gullible enough to have been tricked and now I demand Odo be called in, to determine if you have beguiled this little fool into being your surrogate!"

"You take that back, yer Cardie bastard!" The chief felt the bands of his control slip away. He'd had just about enough of the accusations the Bajorans had been laying on them; to hear the words from this slimy Cardassian torturer was too much. "We haven't forced him to do anything!"

"The accident was so sudden." Keiko went to stand besides her husband, placing a restraining hand on his arm. "If Julian hadn't acted when he did...."

"The O'Briens would have had to make another baby. Oh, how tragic! However, I see no impediment to you bearing another one. There is no reason for the doctor to go ahead with this dangerous procedure. We should arrange for that thing to be aborted at once!"

Keiko's voice dropped, becoming so low thermal reactors could have run on it. "That thing is my son!" Her hand curled into a fist and she prepared to hit the arrogant bastard for all she was worth.

"Are you people trying to kill him?" The last of a transport beam shimmered and they all turned to find Doctor Morou glaring at them furiously. In the sudden silence the steady beep of Julian's throat monitor could at last be heard. The older woman swiftly moved towards the sofa.

"Assault?" Garak demanded, but no one answered him. They were too horrified by what was happening on their sofa.

"Computer, increase room temperature by 5 degrees. Julian, it's all right. It's over, you can come back now. Squeeze my hand."

He did so, in a remote kind of way. Everything was unfocused, reality no longer felt like a place he belonged in.

Am I visiting the Prophets again? he asked himself distractedly. No, I'm just feeling a little light headed. What's going on? He blinked slowly at Doctor Morou, then tried to turn his head. Her hand came up and kept his gaze on her. She looked down and he followed her eyes to a hypospray that she rested against his wrist. I wonder what that's for, he mused, somewhat disinterested. A wave of mild warmth went through him and his eyes became heavy. Morou took his shoulder and guided him down onto the sofa's cushions.

He still looked like a waxen doll, but the danger was past. Morou reached to confirm a stronger, faster heart beat, as one of the room's other occupants again spoke up.

"What...." Garak got no further with his inquiry than that.

"Get out." The doctor narrowed her eyes at him dangerously. "All of you. This little scene, whatever it was, could have killed him. You are to leave and no one is to return or have any form of contact with my patient until I specifically say so. And that won't happen until after we've all had a little talk. Now. Get. Out!"

Stunned the threesome backed out into the corridor. Garak looked like someone had just slammed him into a rock face. Miles and Keiko were as bewildered as he and clung desperately together.

"I believe ..." His voice cracked so Garak cleared his throat and began again. "I believe we should go to the replimat and share a drink. There is much I would like to discuss."

"I'm not going anywhere with the likes of you!" Miles snarled, pulling Keiko away from him and down the corridor. He headed for the shelter of Jadzia's quarters, hoping the Trill could tell them what was going on. They'd just been arguing, for faith's sake, and Julian was well out of it, sitting down on the sofa. What could have gone wrong?

Garak considered marching back into the O'Briens' home and demanding answers. But curiously the near blinding fury he had felt on being told of Julian's condition had left him. He was now drained of resolve and stood in the corridor, bitterly regretting the weakening of his control. Only Julian could do this to him, he knew. Only Julian.