Chapter 4

Quark's looked as it always did at this time of day. It was somehow reassuring to see something unchanged. The mid-morning crowd consisted of late risers having breakfast, people starting the evening very early, station visitors looking for some kind of excitement, and those with nothing better to do. Out of habit, Odo scanned the clientele with his experienced thoroughness. He recognized a number of station regulars and spotted a score of Starfleet personnel from the orbiting starship, identifiable by their uniforms and insignia. But nobody from the wanted list; nobody with a known history of illegal activity; nobody who appeared to be engaged in a crime at the moment; nobody behaving furtively to suggest an criminal act in the making.

Hmm, where could the inevitable be hiding....

"Odo!" That gushing voice could be heard over anything. A glance revealed Quark hurrying toward him, arms outstretched as if he intended to hug. He was as impeccably dressed as ever - for a Ferengi - in garishly bright colors with bold metallic trim on the coat and headpiece. "My dear old friend, welcome back...."

"Hello, Quark...." The withering look on his face stopped the Ferengi in his tracks, but didn't stop the words.

"Well, you could at least say you're happy to see me," Quark said, grinning to reveal every one of his sharp teeth.

"Who says I'm happy to see you?"

"You must be, or you wouldn't have followed M'Pella and made this your first stop. I'll bet you haven't even been to Ops yet."

"I haven't, as a matter of fact. I thought it was more important to see what you might be up to first."

Quark guffawed, his laughter echoing through the bar. "Me? Up to something? Odo, you never stop, do you. Of course, you never prove anything either," he said with confidential glee.

"Indeed." Odo let a secretive smile cross his face, as if to say, "What I know and can prove about you, I'll keep until I need it."

Quark ignored it, putting an arm around Odo to guide him to the bar. "Come on up to the bar, Odo. I know you don't drink, so I won't offer you anything - thank you, by the way; free drinks can kill an honest bartender-"

"Then you'll live forever," Odo interjected dryly, letting himself be guided, wondering what might be going on behind his back.

?-but Morn should be here in a few minutes, and some of the other regulars, and I know they'll all want to say a few words."

"Indeed."

Quark slipped behind the bar, letting Odo take the seat next to the one Morn always occupied.

"Here, let me fill this order, then I'll be right back...."

Odo watched as Quark hastened down the bar to direct one of his waiters in mixing a couple of drinks - apparently the Ferengi waiter was putting too much alcohol in them, and Quark had to stop the profit leak with something cheaper, like water. Odo couldn't stop a little bit of fondness that slipped into his expression. Some things would never change....

Sending the waiter out with the tray of now sufficiently-watered drinks, Quark hurried back.

"So, Odo," he began, wiping the bar, "now that you're back, will you be staying on the station long?"

"No, Quark, I won't."

"Not even for Kira?" He looked taken aback.

"No," he said automatically, but then wondered.

"Oh." A beat. "Well, that's a relief. Although I'm still figuring out how to deal with your replacement, I'm sure I'll be running this station under her nose, before long."

Odo sensed disappointment despite the deliberately upbeat and challenging comment.

"Really," he said. "And I thought I left such detailed notes about keeping an eye on you."

Quark grinned. "You did. I just don't think she has the experience to take advantage of them." Then he assumed a more injured expression. "Besides, what did I ever do that warranted anyone keeping an eye on me? Except the ladies, of course." He winked knowingly. "I don't mind if they keep an eye on me."

"I understand the new security chief is a Bajoran woman," Odo noted smugly. "You shouldn't be bothered by her attention at all."

"She's a security officer, it only makes it worse that she's a woman!" Quark's baleful glance told Odo better than words that Quark had already tried his charms on the woman - and failed.

"I assume she and Nerys are getting along?" he mused. "Since they both obviously understand you so well."

Quark made a face. "Actually, I'm not sure. To be truthful, I don't think Kira is really comfortable seeing anyone else in your office yet."

It was probably the most honest, and the most unexpected, thing the Ferengi could tell him, and it took Odo aback.

"Of course, ever since that assassination attempt when Carn was on the station, Kira seems to be pretty close-mouthed when the subject of Constable Emyn comes up. And they don't seem to spend much time in each other's company, beyond the regular security reports and staff briefings."

"That you see, anyway," Odo came back, puzzling through that observation.

"Odo, this is me. Trust me, I'd know."

"Maybe they're just taking shifts keeping an eye on you."

"Well, they're certainly entitled to do that." A beat. "You sure you won't stay?"

"Quark, I'm sure you'll continue to manage without me. You always do."

A sudden commotion swept the bar, in the form of a loud, sustained "Morn!" called out by over half the patrons, then a rush to reach the bar and congregate around the stool of the ever-popular Lurian.

Knowing that his business and hence, his profits, automatically doubled when Morn was there, Quark had to go. "Stick around, Odo, or come by later, we'll talk," he said hurriedly, then all but skipped down the bar to start dispensing "the usuals" for "the regulars."

Not feeling up to listening to Morn's usual stories and witticisms, Odo decided it was a good time to slip out unnoticed. He'd planned to check in with security, extend greetings to some of the people he'd worked with for so many years. Maybe he ought to check out the new security chief as well - just to see how well she had things under control, he told himself....

Despite Odo's conviction that his departure wouldn't be noticed, Quark saw him slip away.

"Not going to stay, huh," he muttered to himself as he filled another pair of mugs with Bajoran synthale. "We'll see about that."

It wasn't, he told himself, for Kira's sake. No, nor for Odo's. And not for any feelings of friendship or convictions that Odo belonged on the station or that he and Kira belonged together.

Things had just been ... wrong since Odo left. And it was time to set things right again.

In a lot of ways, his old office looked the same. There were different faces on the alert screens on the wall, but otherwise nothing had been changed or even rearranged. Everything was as neat and orderly as he'd left it.

He studied the woman behind the desk. Near middle age, if he read her body and features right. A somewhat weathered complexion that suggested she'd once spent a lot of time outdoors in the sun and wind, although not recently. Red hair, long and braided up. No faith-earring dangling from either lobe. Gray eyes, studying him intently as she rose from the chair. She was tall, with a whipcord, muscular look. She matched the description Kira had given him of the new security chief. She also, he noted, looked like the no-nonsense type who wouldn't put up with Quark's shenanigans.

"Constable Emyn."

"Odo." He caught a wary undercurrent in the simple acknowledgment. "What can I do for you?"

"Do...?" he repeated, feeling oddly embarrassed. "Oh, nothing. I thought I would stop and see how you were handling things - find out if I'd left my office ... orderly enough for a successor to step in and keep the station secure."

She relaxed minutely. "Yes, everything was well organized, easy to locate and access. I was quite impressed by your system and by your people. Your security staff are very competent, excellent to work with."

"I'm assuming you brought some new personnel with you, your own people?"

"No," she replied simply.

Did that suggest she didn't plan to stay? Or hadn't expected to? He suddenly wondered if she was expecting his presence on the station to be more than short-term - and if his return would define how long she held this office.

"Brilgar to Emyn.

" Distracted, she responded to the comm hail. "Emyn here."

"Constable, the Founders are starting to move around."

"Any suggestion that they may plan on leaving the infirmary?"

"No, not yet. But those Cin'tisali of theirs are giving us some dark looks."

"I'm sending Tarrn and Stevenson to back you up." She turned to the desk long enough to code in the orders.

"More security guards to the infirmary?" he asked, feeling that rising wellspring of irritation again. "Do you really think that's necessary?"

She looked a little surprised. "From my reviews of your reports, I would think you'd be the last person to take chances with station security," she stated. "We have Founders aboard, with guards-"

"The birif'ali are not guards, they are personal servitors and aides," he interrupted.

"Whatever they are," she said with deliberate precision, "they are an unknown factor - and with a ship of unknown weaponry, shielding, and transporter technology orbiting the station."

Odo matched her coolness. "I assure you, Laas's people came here only for medical reasons, and will be gone as soon as they can. They are not a danger to the station or to Bajor, and neither are the Cin'tisali with them, so long as their Founders are not being threatened."

"And what if we feel threatened by their presence?" she came back. "What about our sense of security?"

"Trust me, they will not be here long, and neither will I."

She met his gaze levelly, measuring his assurance against her own concerns and knowledge.

"You have my word on that," he said strongly.

There was a moment of silence.

"Colonel Kira would accept that word," she finally replied. "I will too. I've seen what it's worth." Her fingers briefly touched the desk as if taking in the entire office and all it stood for.

There was no flattery or deceit in her words, just a simple acknowledgment of respect.

Another moment of silence.

"So...," he said. "I understand you've managed to keep Quark from getting out of control."

A quick smile crossed her face, for a second erasing years and adding something impish to her eyes. "As far as I can tell. But he hasn't stopped trying," she admitted.

"I'm sure he's very trying," Odo agreed. "But you found my reports?"

"Yes, I did. And they've been invaluable...."

They settled into their chairs for a very informative chat.

Waiting for Odo after dealing with Minister Jolorn's urgent non-emergency - the situation with Ferenginar had hardly risen to the level of an immediate threat - Kira took the opportunity to review the reports of the last few days on ships in and out of the station. It was amazing how much accumulated when she was gone even that little time.

The Klingon freighter Kloth'nol had departed, with its surly captain - was there any other kind, among the Klingons? For a few seconds, she remembered Worf's tenure on the station.

Two Bajoran local planetary transports had put in and left again, delivering and picking up a number of passengers and cargo. Several smaller craft had also come and gone, some of them personal ships and a handful containing refugee colonists, relocating to try to rebuild. That was common.

Captain Shelby and the Sutherland had arrived only an hour before her own return from the Gamma Quadrant, on a stopover in their regular patrol route. There was almost always a Federation starship in port or due to arrive within a day, since the end of the war. She expected that, whatever its schedule, the Sutherland would remain at the station for as long as the Cin'tisali ship was there - as was confirmed by Captain Shelby's private communique noted in the command log, she discovered a few seconds later.

The Sutherland had been the source of the case on her desk.

It was from the O'Briens, now returned to Earth. Kira couldn't help an eager smile as she held her hand for the palm lock to read her prints - a simple lock, sufficient for most everyday purposes.

There was a letter from Keiko. She quickly dropped it into the reader slot. Keiko's smiling face formed on the screen.

"Dear Nerys," Keiko's voice began. "We're finally getting settled in. We found a lovely little house near Osaka, with a garden and a view of the bay. We've only been here for a month and a half, after staying a week with my mother and then a month with Miles' family, finally meeting his stepmother, and re-introducing Molly and Yoshi to their cousins and other family. It's amazing how long it takes to put a house in order, especially when you're both working and the children have places to be, and every relative and old friend you've got wants to see you after too many years away from home.

"Miles beams to the Academy every morning. I think he likes his new job, although he complains about the students having a long way to go before they're ready to ship out. And he misses Julian, of course. He teases me about being jealous, but-" Keiko's image leaned closer to the screen and whispered with a gleeful, conspiratorial grin. "Just between us, he woke up one night from a dream, calling Julian's name, and I haven't let him live it down. I've honestly considered taking up historical holo-recreations. I've even offered to join Miles at the Battle of Britain. He just laughs at me when I say that, but I can see in his eyes how much it means, and how much he misses those weekly games at Quark's."

She took a deep breath. "As for me, I've taken a part-time position at the University of Tokyo, in the xenobotany department - and on the side, I've begun delivering a few lectures and I'm writing a book about the botany expedition to the Janitza Mountain range, you remember the one. You know how important Bajor has become to the Federation in the last few years - people want to know more about your world, and I'm going to help tell them. About the flora of it, anyway." She laughed. "The University press is already making publishing plans, which means I have to finish it."

Kira smiled too, and began opening the next packet out of the case. "By the time you hear this, Molly will be eight years old. She's in school. I can tell she's not used to a class of twelve students, but she loves being surrounded by children her own age, and she's taking some art classes. And she's made a best friend, Akimi Okamura - I'm sure you'll hear a lot about her in Molly's letter. She also included a present for you...."

Kira carefully unwrapped the small box, inscribed to "Auntie Nerys" in Molly's memorably delicate hand. The girl had an artistic flair. "We have a small bamboo grove in the nearest city park, and she wanted you to know what it looks like. She's come a long way since the first mug she painted for Miles."

It was a thin ceramic cup, hand-painted with stalks of some kind of plant, presumably the bamboo Keiko mentioned, in a light green on white - a perfect size for the ginger tea she loved. Kira couldn't help choking up. She lifted it carefully, almost afraid to hold it too tightly for fear of it being as fragile as it looked.

"And Yoshi will be turning three at about the same time this reaches you." She shook her head. "He's grown so much in the last few months, Nerys, you wouldn't believe it. I've included some holoimages of him as well as several pictures he's drawn at pre-school..."

With her free hand, Kira picked out the small sheaf of child's artwork - green streaks with red blobs among them, with a brown pyramid in the background - flowers against a mountain?; a bright yellow orb in the midst of a long streak of blue and a pair of white amorphous shapes - an Earth sky with clouds and sun?; something orange with four legs and a tail - was it meant to be Chester, the cat? She remembered her own past artistic efforts, both as a child and when she'd tried to follow her d'jarra, and ruefully decided Yoshi was already better than she was.

Keiko's words spun on as she stood there, her thoughts far away from her office. She held the cup painted just for her by a little girl's increasingly skilled fingers. She stared at the colorful blob, meant to be an Earth flower, a first effort by the little boy she had carried inside her for those months. She listened to the cheerful, contented voice of the woman who had become such a close friend, telling of her daily life and the lives of her family.

"So that's what's happening here. Molly sent you a letter too, it's in the case - and Miles says if I don't tell you to say hello to Julian, he'll have to go back to the Station - he finally sent a letter for Julian, it's probably waiting on his desk while this one's waiting for you, and a letter to Nog too. Anyway, we miss you, Nerys. I hope things are going well there. Say hello to any of our friends still on the station - especially Ezri and Julian. Good bye, Nerys."

It hit with a pang. She missed these friends. She missed them painfully. They had been an important part of her life for a long time, and they were so many worlds away.

But lightyears weren't the only distance between herself and those she cared about. With equal pain, she realized how many friends she'd lost touch with on Bajor over the past few years, and even a few here on the station that she hadn't been able to spend any time with recently-

"May I come in?"

Odo stood in the doorway.

She found a smile. "Odo, yes, come in...."

He walked in; the door slid closed behind him. For a second, he stood there, looking at her, his features undecided. "I didn't want to disturb you if you're busy."

"No, no." Kira glanced at the case. "I was just listening to a letter from Keiko O'Brien. They're doing well. Adapting. Molly and Yoshi are growing fast." She touched the small pile of drawings. "And she said to say hello to their friends on the station. That includes you. Come, see what they sent."

"If that wouldn't be an intrusion...."

"Not at all. You were friends with the O'Briens, too."

He nodded awkwardly, but didn't move, looking somehow guilty.

"Did the healing go well?" she asked after a moment, seeing he wasn't going to sit down, and deciding she might as well change the subject.

"Yes, I was able to cure them of the virus, although it was a near thing. They have the antibodies now, and the knowledge that will ensure they can defeat the disease themselves, and cure any other Founders they may encounter."

"That's wonderful. So what are they doing now?" Kira's tone sounded stilted, no matter how she tried to be natural. She'd tried to sound pleased about Laas's recovery, but she may not have been the most believable.

"They're resting. I believe Dr. Monrow doesn't want to release them until she's sure they'll be all right. And I think the rest will be good for them."

"Oh? I guess I thought maybe you'd stay with them as long as there was any danger."

He shook his head. "There's no danger. They just needed time ... alone. As their own Link."

"Their own...?" Did that mean they'd sent him away, as his people had once before? "I'm sorry, I-"

Odo waved it off. "They have not been a Link for very long. And I needed some time myself. To see the station, to be solid again."

"I see."

Another long silence. It broke her heart.

"Odo," she said softly. "Is this how we are now? Afraid to say anything that matters to each other?"

"I'm sorry, Nerys-"

"No, stop apologizing, you don't have to be sorry, if your feelings have changed. I wouldn't-"

"No! My feelings haven't changed, it's just...."

"It's just what?"

"I ... I've changed. In other ways. I need to adjust to being here again, to wearing solid form on a long-term basis. Truly. It seems so long since I was humanoid."

Her heart unexpectedly leapt. "There's plenty of time - I wouldn't expect you to slide right back into the old routines immediately. There's no reason to rush. Take your time-"

He looked introspective. "I think we need some time in other surroundings. Away from the demands of your responsibilities, away from thoughts of the Great Link and Laas's New Link. A place with more personal meaning for us. We need to go to Vic's."

Kira couldn't help grinning, feeling herself relaxing. "Vic's? Tonight? Just us?"

"Yes. You could wear that dress you were wearing first on my world."

"I'd like that." Vic's. That was the perfect place.

Odo nodded. "I'll arrange it with Quark."

"Are you sure you want to owe him a favor?"

Odo half-shrugged, a smile tugging at his smooth features. "Do you think he'd come to the Gamma Quadrant to collect?"

She laughed, but felt a pang at the suggestion that he would be leaving again, probably within a few days. Unless she could change his mind, she thought. Could that comment about "needing time to adjust" mean he was thinking of staying?

"I'll drop by your quarters at twenty-two hundred hours."

"I'll be ready."

"In the meantime, I need to see how Laas and his people are doing."

"And that'll give me time to finish up a few things here." Kira gestured vaguely across her desk. She saw Odo's gaze linger on the painted cup and the childish drawings, but he just nodded.

"I'll see you then."

Then she was alone in her office.

A night at Vic's. Yes, that was just what they needed. It was what she needed.

For more reasons than one, she realized, staring at her desk. How long had it been since she'd taken time off, just to relax? She couldn't really count the time First Minister Shakaar had visited the station - there had been too much going on, and with Vedek Carn there too, it had been all politics, religion, and station business. She hadn't even been to Vic's since the crew's memorial for Captain Sisko.

She was due for a break. She could use a holiday.

Kira smiled to herself. She felt more positive already. Tonight she could really talk with him, in surroundings that should bring back the dearest memories to both of them. Maybe he'd commit to stay. Maybe they could talk about a holiday together.

But first....

She filled Molly's cup with ginger tea from the replicator, then took a deep breath and dove into the waiting reports.

Chapter Five

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