*shaking and sweating* "be normal about that old man. be normal about that old man. be normal about that old man-" *desires the old man carnally* "-FUCK."
i was talking to my mom about cardassians and said something along the lines of ‘what must it be like to be a cardassian civilian. like abstractly knowing the rest of the galaxy thinks of your species as ‘the evil ones’ and kinda sorta knowing your government runs labor camps and torture prisons and is a military empire, and it’s a huge deal for everyone else in the galaxy, but you just like run a restaurant so it’s not a big part of your daily life, so you just like, go about your day and make soup and don’t think about it’ and then halfway through my sentence i actually heard myself and then had to go sit down for like ten minutes. like sat down in a chair and stared at the floor for ten minutes
America has been Cardassia for a long time, between its aggression to other countries, its police brutality, and its detention of harmless immigrants. The Trump regime just escalated everything to horrifying new levels.
how the ds9 crew reacts when you're hurt
wc: 1,199
CREW: ben sisko, kira nerys, jadzia dax, julian bashir, odo, miles o'brien
benjamin sisko
gets super serious super fast. like a light switch, just flips into Scary Captain Mode. ben is really good at compartmentalizing when there’s an emergency. his fears and worries steady him, makes him focus - but that only means it hits him all the harder once the crisis has passed and now he has to continue being strong for your sake. but it’s difficult for ben not to be thrown back to the worst moment of his life. it’s impossible for him not to think the worse because the worse has already happened and will happen again. the knowledge steels ben’s resolve to keep you safe - no matter what.
but afterward, even after you’re physically okay, ben will start to hover. he’s always been a little overprotective, but it becomes noticeably more intense. asks odo to keep a special eye on you if you’re seen on the promenade. persuades julian to give you one or two more check-ups than is necessary. quietly making sure you’re really okay and he's positive that you’ve got no idea but instantly gives in whenever you prod him about it. even when ben lets up a little, you still feel his eyes on you during the early hours of the morning. like he’s checking to make sure you’re breathing.
you allow him that one paranoid comfort.
kira nerys
does not handle it well at all. gets so angry at whatever hurt you, at herself for not doing enough to protect you, at julian for not helping fast enough - maybe a little angry at you for being hurt at all, but kira quickly recognizes it’s wildly unfair. so many of her emotions instantly switch to rage, it’s difficult to pick them apart. it all happened so fast, her shock was just as white-hot as her rage. her worry as vast and bottomless as her anger. but it’s kinda what she needs, in the moment - kira’s rage has always been a means to an end. a bedrock for determination to get you somewhere safe.
back on the station, when she can see and feel that you’re still alive, kira finally feels like she’s allowed to slow down. she goes back to the woman you only ever really see in private. nerys - soft and thoughtful and concerned. regretful but moving forward. doing whatever she can to make the situation better. nerys is very strict about how much rest you get and the work you do once you’re cleared for duty. but it comes from a place of love.
jadzia dax
the moment jadzia realizes you’re hurt, that starfleet professionalism snaps into place. she’s really good at keeping her focus - compartmentalizing means survival. jadzia’s reaction is immediate. dropping everything to get to you. not letting anybody pull her away unless it’s absolutely necessary. on the surface, she seems steady and collected. but really, she’s fucking terrified. instincts compounded by her past hosts to flee, to help, to fight, to cry - but she stays. because you need her.
absolutely doesn’t leave the infirmary when you’re recovering. she’ll stay as long as you want her to - telling you jokes, playing dumb card games, or just talking because jadzia feels so grateful that she still can. she’s very attentive - not hovering, but always within arms reach. and after a time, jadzia might even initiate conversations about your future together. a near-death experience reminds her how fleeting life can be - a lesson she really outta learn by now.
julian bashir
julian has a tendency to feel things very intensely. learning you’re hurt sets him on a warpath - as in, there’s no force in this galaxy that will stop him from helping you. he doesn’t care who he has to scold, shoot at, or threaten to get to you. beneath the surface, there’s a bit of anger towards himself. all of his starfleet training and enhanced intelligence, and julian still couldn’t keep you safe. but in the moment, only two facts matter to him - he’s your boyfriend, and he’s your doctor. the rest can come later.
once the danger has passed and julian has you safe in the infirmary, he doesn’t stop until he knows you’re on your way to a complete recovery. tends to hyperfocus on this injury or that - his mind just kinda does its own thing and runs through every possible outcome. even as julian starts to calm down, the instinct to heal is still there - subtly checking your pulse when he holds you, or noting your breathing when you kiss his cheek. will be annoyingly meticulous about your recovery. julian just wants you to be okay.
odo
it’s not often that odo allows his emotions to guide his actions. but the moment he sees you go down, there’s a violent storm of unfamiliar and unpleasant feelings that hinder his attempts to help you - and that only makes him more angry. odo is a protector, and he’s just failed to protect one of the only people he genuinely cares for. his first words to you would be quite blunt - “don’t move. i’ll handle this. just lay still.” being so brusque is odo’s way of getting the job done. push down those pesky feelings. but really, his words don’t match his voice. there’s a tangible shakiness to it. odo isn’t well-versed in gentleness, but he tries.
but god help you once you’re safe and sound back on the station. odo keeps a near-constant vigilance under the guise of “safety” and “security.” lingers around for longer than he needs to with flimsy excuses because odo doesn’t want the others to see how worried he is but he just can’t help it. he’ll be an awkward caretaker - frustrated that he can’t fix things right away and not a naturally nurturing person. odo is very practical in his caregiving. keeping your quarters tidy, keeping visitors at a minimum, bringing what you need without complaint.
try not to tease him too much. he’s going through a lot.
miles o'brien
subtly isn’t miles’ strong suit. the moment he realizes you’re hurt, his entire face drops. nothing else is more important. he’s always been the kinda guy to wear his heart on his sleeve - miles wouldn’t be able to cover up his fear, anger, and worry. but he’s also a practical person who’s been in battle situations - i can see him shaping up super quick and jumping into action. talks to you the entire time, damn near begging you to stay awake. stay with him. “come on, sweetheart, show me those eyes.” his panic is visible, but so is his love.
he’ll pretend he’s not hovering while you’re in recovery, but he absolutely is. never leaves your side in case you need anything - it could be as small as wanting an extra blanket, and miles is jumping to fetch it for you. he openly shows his worry, and overcompensates with providing care. cooking hearty meals because his mother told him it helps with healing. tells fascinating stories about the things he’s seen whenever you start to get restless. miles has never been good at talking about his feelings, but in this case, he doesn’t need to - his actions tell you all you need to know.
Forget the Myers-Briggs fucking personality assessment. I am dead tired of hearing if someone is an INFP or an ESLQ or whatever. I want to know if someone is melancholic or choleric. Bring back the four humors. I wanna see “Kaley, 16, phlegmatic” when I go to someone’s blog. Who is with me. Lets make this happen
the deep space nine pilot is deeply unserious. you're benjamin sisko. widowed single father. you get a promotion to a space station. jean luc picard is your ride. your best friend and mentor died and his brainworm is now in another body you have to relearn. your second in command is a freedom fighter with no idea who she is outside of her war for indepenence, or if she can stomach working with the federation. your head of security is made of goo, lives in a bucket and regularly engages in pyschosexual bdsm roleplay with the local criminal bartender goblin. your doctor is a genius, excitable, bisexual mess. the only tailor is a spy. everyone knows this. he knows everyone knows this. your chief engineer is actually the most normal guy of all time but he has to run around fixing eveything always so the station doesn't collapse around you. you're maybe a religious figure?? a wormhole opens next door. you have to explain linear time and grief to otherwordly beings. sisko's the strongest star trek character for real.
Star Trek conventions are so funny. After I got an autograph from somebody, I went to an empty table nearby so I could set my stuff down for a second while I put my autograph in a protective sleeve, and I hear somebody yell at Ethan Peck (whose table is across from the empty table) "HEY HOT SPOCK!" and I turn around because I want to know who the fuck just said that. And it was Jonathan Frakes.
My friend was getting an autograph from Frakes and chatting with him about Adventure Time when I noticed some guy had pushed in front of them and started trying to get him to sign something else first.
That some guy was Robert Picardo.
Apparently he was explaining that they're all signing this ship model for charity, and Shatner had signed it too.
Frakes leaned back in his chair thoughtfully and said "Shatner.... I keep hearing that name, was he on Star Trek?"
And then all three of them got to explore their theories on who this Shatner guy could possibly be.
JONATHAN
generally pretty good with kids. he might try too hard when he first meets them, but jon tends to revert to talking to them like they're adults and that really gets kids to like him. when it comes to kids he might have with you, i think he might struggle a bit at first. ideally, yes, he would take a step back from starfleet to devote time to his new family. but something would always pull him back in. around his own children, he'd be very eager to imbue them with his own sense of curiosity and drive.
TRIP
very good with kids. trip is easy to joke around with, and kids usually think he's a lot of fun to hang out with. he also knows how to talk to them and how they generally think. with you and his kids, trip would be inseparable with them - and yes, he wants multiple. if it were safe enough, he might even drag them into engineering with them. trip might be a little annoyed if none of them share his affinity for engineering, but he's the most ride-or-die dad. you never have to worry about shouldering a lot of the parenting responsibility with trip.
MALCOLM
his skills in child-rearing will leave a lot to be desired. malcolm didn't experience a lot of warm fatherly affection growing up, so he'd struggle to give it, at first. it's difficult to fully push down his walls, even with you and his child. but he'll come around eventually - it's his duty as a father to be there for his kid in every aspect. but don't let malcolm babysit. the only child he enjoys being around is his own. he doesn't have a ton of patience with other people's kids.
