| Author:
Kim Riley
Pairing: Garak/Q Rating: PG-13 Feedback: < [email protected] > Disclaimer: Viacom is Borg - that pretty much says it all. Notes: Part of the "Garak Fuh-q Fest" Archiving: ( Cardassian Choir )
The hour was late as Garak and Bashir snuggled together deep in sleep. They had confessed their love for one another over a year ago in an unusual outburst of honesty by the tailor to the doctor in his office. The sudden impulse of truth quickly turned into an impulse of love, passionate love. Tonight another impulse of passionate love had lulled them into a deep sleep. Neither of them was aware of their visitor that sat weightlessly beside Julian, as he shifted gently over to his other side, now facing the visitor as he slept peacefully. Q sat silently watching the young lovers; his eyes warmly resting on the young human, as a unique smile of love and pride came across his face. He reached down with a gentle hand to caress the soft dark hair of Julian as he slept on. The young man seemed unaware of the touch till his lips curled in a sleepy smile, still not breaking his connection of rested bliss. Q shushed the young man softly, and then there was no more concern on Q's part of waking him or the Cardassian next to him. Q continued to fatherly caress the young man's hair, his eyes closing in remembrance… ******** "What is it you want now, Q?" Q asked annoyed, as he appeared in the middle of space dressed in a red Starfleet uniform, looking at a glowing yellow mass. "After all this time, Q, you haven't learned an ounce of manners," echoed a male voice from the glowing mass, which in a blink of an eye turned into an older blond human male wearing the same outfit as the other Q before him. "You 'really' didn't expect me too, did you?" Q sneered back. "No." "Then at the risk of sounding repetitious, I'll ask again. What is it you want?" The impatient younger looking Q asked. The blond Q smiled. This would have sent chills down the other Q's spine if he really had one. "I thought, since you have been doing 'so well' with your humans that 'I' would give you a gift. Say, a reward for your 'good' behavior." Q looked cautiously at Q. Something didn't sound right, but the idea of getting a reward started to overshadow his good sense of letting the matter drop and return to the future where he could taunt Picard some more. "A reward?" "Why, yes, Q. I've given it a great deal of thought, and I have chosen the best reward possible, just for you," The older Q said slyly. Q was almost beside himself with intrigue. What could Q possibly give him that he couldn't give himself; the thought drove him forward. "What is it?" he asked eagerly. "Why I've decided to give you, your very own human!" he grinned. "A human?" "Of course it wouldn't be just 'any' human," the blond Q interjected to keep the other Q from rejecting the offer. Q thought about it for a couple of moments. "They would be a 'special' human?" The other Q grinned as he saw the door to his trap slam shut, "Why of course, though 'special' is a relevant term. Let it just be said, that they will be different than most, and they have a potential for a great destiny, 'if' you care for them correctly, that is." "I don't understand, Q. What are you taking about?" Q asked fixing the red shirt he wore as it just became uncomfortable. That initial feeling of being suckered in again, started in once more. "Why, that's the whole point, Q. You 'don't' understand," he returned daringly. "I don't like what you're implying, Q! Forget it, I don't want your 'reward'." The older Q laughed mockingly, "I didn't think you were up to the job, any way." "'I' can 'do' anything!" Q shot back. "Can you?" "Yes 'I' can!" "Very well," the older Q said. Then with a snap of his fingers, the two Qs were standing inside a room. It was dark, gloomy, and the only color was a sterile white. There was a large empty bed in the middle of the room that didn't look the least bit inviting. "Here we go, Q." Q looked around the dreary room, "Where are we?" "Oh, just what the humans call a hospital room." Q looked irritated at the blond Q, "I know that! What I 'don't' know, is one, where and two, why 'I' don't 'know' where I'm at?" The older Q laughed. "The whole point of this, Q, is that 'you' don't know. You have to take it one day at a time with this human. Even 'if' you jump to the future, 'I' won't let you discover the time line. The 'only' way you find out is by…living it with him." "Besides being ridiculous, it sounds terribly boring! Besides, I 'don't' like this!" The older Q, seeing that his prey just might bolt, gave in a little, "Very well, Q. I'll let you have 'some' insight, but just enough to keep 'you' interested," he grinned snapping his fingers.' "Adigeon Prime? What a strange location! Why 'this' is a medical facility?" Q turned to the other Q. "When I said a 'special' human, I didn't mean one that needed fixing." "Ah, but brother," he soothed. "In the mortal world, some 'fixing' is exactly what's going to make your human special, or not…," he added leaving the statement lingering. "Ah, here we go," The blond Q said, as the door to the hospital room was opened by a tall, strong human male dressed in white pants, white shirt, and matching shoes. "That's him?" Q asked disappointedly. "Oh, no, Q. That's just the orderly, your human will be in any…. second…now!" Just then a small boy with rich olive skin, soft dark hair with wide dark eyes to match, peered into the room, afraid. He looked to be around six or seven years old, small, frail, but he didn't cry, he only looked up at the tall man beside him, and pointed inside the room. The man nodded with a warm smile, "Yes, Jules. This will be your room while you stay with us for awhile. Do you like it?" The small boy hugged his dark blue jacket around himself tightly as he shook his head no, then took off running down the hall, with the orderly right behind him. "Jules, come back. It'll be ok!" "At least the boy has some taste," Q quipped. Then it dawned on him, "The boy?" "Yes, Q. The boy. His name is Jules Bashir; he's six years, seven months, and two days old. Oh, don't let his actions fool you, Q," The other Q smirked. "By human standards, he's 'quite'…stupid." "He doesn't 'look' stupid. If he was, he wouldn't have run away. If you ask me, it's the most intelligent thing anyone could do if faced with… this," he gestured towards the room, "as a prospect." Q laughed. "Well, not according to human specialists, or his parents. They are the ones who brought him here to be 'fixed'." The other Q looked annoyed again. "I don't like this seeping of information I'm getting on the boy, any better than not knowing anything. I demand you remove whatever block you have on me!" "No." The younger Q looked like he was about to pout himself when the door was opened once again by the male orderly while he held Jules in his arms. The boy looked scared, but still didn't cry, nor did he put up a fuss. He let himself be placed on the bed, then stripped of his clothes to be replaced with a white hospital gown, never speaking a word. His dark eyes kept wondering around, fear still present along with confusion. "I can't believe humans do 'this' to their own offspring," Q said flatly. The blond looked at Q surprised, then retreated to his smug look before the other Q could see his earlier expression. The younger Q folded his arms as he watched while the child was made ready for his stay in the dreary hospital room, tucked under a couple of thin blankets, and had an electronic bracelet placed upon his wrist. Q heard the Orderly tell Jules that the bracelet would help keep him from getting lost. "It's a tracking device. Who are you trying to kid?" Q snipped, but the Orderly couldn't hear him. As the man was about to leave, a woman dressed in civilian clothes, being they were not white, came into the room trying to mask her concern. "Who…oh, the mother," he said with a bit of disdain." Q turned to his companion, "So?" "So…what, Q?" Q gave out a frustrated sound, "What happens to the boy?" he shouted. "Oh. Well, I told you, Q. There is only 'one' way to find out. That is, 'if' you're up to it?" "Humph! Observing a child is 'not' a challenge!" "Ah, but interacting with one on a regular basis, without an over abundance of your power…would be." He chirped, with a big grin. Q pulled at his red shirt while looking towards the blond Q irritated. "I see what you're driving at, Q, and it won't work!" "Humph," the other said with indifference. "I suppose you're right," he said folding his arms while turning his gaze over to the young boy who sat quietly as his mother hugged him, trying to explain the impossible to him. "He probably 'is' better off being alone here, than having 'you' around." "He's 'not' alone. He has his mother, father, and an entire hospital full of people!" "Yes, you're right again, Q," he replied with an over exaggerated glee. "Why he 'does' look right at home here," he said pointing at the boy so the other Q would look to see the dull, almost empty look of little Jules. "Why, after his mother leaves, and isn't able to return here for several weeks due to her husband's work, which they must continue on the up an up, for this 'fixing' is illegal, you know. He'll be just fine with 'all' these wonderful, warm, hospital folk." Q shook his head, "What was 'I' thinking! Why, my apologies, Q. You are free to leave whenever you wish." With that he snapped his fingers and was gone, leaving the younger Q alone to watch the scene of a young mother saying goodbye to her young son. Soon it was only Q watching the small silent child huddling under his thin blankets, afraid. ******* The boy had barely fallen asleep, when he felt something move in his bed. He peered up, his large dark eyes from beneath the covers to see a brown stuffed teddy bear. Jules knew he had gone on a trip and was now here, but he didn't know why he couldn't bring his own toys along. He remembered his mommy saying something about needing to…hurry. The adorable soft, brown bear sat there with a big red ribbon tied around it's neck. It was almost half his size, sitting there with its arms out wide, as if asking for a hug. Jules smiled. He must have fallen asleep, and his mom brought him the teddy bear, he thought. "Nope. Your mom didn't bring me, Jules," the teddy bear said. Jules flew under the covers as fast as he could, wondering if he really saw the teddy bear talk. "Yes, Jules, I talked. It's okay. I came to see you. Would you like to be friends?" The young boy stopped cowering under his blankets at hearing the word friends. He didn't have any friends. Most of the other children made fun of him or left him alone. He peered up from beneath the blankets again. "Friends?" came a small soft voice. "Yes, Jules. Friends. My name is Q like a…um…" "Kukalaka?" "No, no. Q," the bear corrected. Jules smiled warmly as he reached out to grab hold of the bear and in a swift motion, hug it tightly. "Kukalaka!" he cried with joy. "Hmmm," Q said while getting the stuffing hugged out of him, "Ok, Kukalaka." 
Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months of treatments, many of which were very painful. Q decided to adopt a second form, besides the always flattened teddy bear, to that of a new orderly, so he could speak up for the boy when he wouldn't speak for himself. They tried firing the 'new' orderly a few times, but for some reason it never happened, and no one pushed it. Q tried taking the pain away when Jules was crying his little heart out from one of the many treatments, but wasn't allowed too. The older Q saw to that. He could only be there, holding his hand, or becoming Ku, short for Kukalaka (it was the closest Q could get Jules to say) at night, allowing the small boy to hug him in desperation for all the pain to go away. Q began feeling resentment towards the elder Q for not letting him help the child more. The feeling flooded over to Jules' parents who had only visited twice, his mother an additional three more times over the four moths the boy had been there. They saw the changes in the young child, becoming more talkative, friendly, smarter and quicker on picking up on things. Q got so angry at them for taking all the credit for the boy's remarkable change, as if all he had to do was simply apply himself more, that he had turned them into lab rats. However, Jules' warm smile and forgiving nature won out in convincing Q to turn them back and not have them remember what happened. "Besides," Jules began, "They didn't believe me about you, why would they believe they were just lab rats?" he laughed. Q had to admit; the sound of this child's laughter warmed him, as his tears made him cold. Then the day came that Jules was going home. He sat in his room of five months, dressed, packed, and hugging Kukalaka with all his might. "Ku?" he called out. "I'm here," Q said popping in next to him. "Are your coming with me?" Q was unsure how to answer the question. He was just informed that he was free to leave anytime he wanted, yet he stayed. But he couldn't hang around forever, could he? "Sort of," Q replied. "I'm not going to be around like I was here, but I'll always be around," he said tapping the nose of the brown teddy bear, then noticed the stitching in it's arm. "What happen here?" Jules looked sad, "Oh, I accidentally ripped him." Then he looked up proudly, "But I got one of those sewing kits they used on me and I sewed him up…see?" Jules showed Q the bear's arm, and the good job he did at so young an age. "That is a fine job, my boy. Perhaps one day you'll be a doctor, what do you thing?" "Do you really think so?" "Jules, you can do 'anything' you put your heart and mind too," Q smiled then scruffed the top of the boy's head playfully. He was only taken a little off guard when the boy jumped up and hugged him tightly. Q knew his parents were coming, "They're coming, Jules. I have to go, but remember…if you need me, just call me, I'll be around," he smiled. The feelings that saying goodbye to this young boy was causing him, were beginning to become too much. One last hug and Q was gone. *********** Q kept his promise. He was there on long winter nights to chat, to helping the boy adjust to his father's temper, while trying not to turn the man into a whipping post. One night, several years later, when called he found a bruise on half the boy's face. Q was about to explode, but Jules begged him not to hurt 'the man mommy married.' Q was livid but didn't want to appear to be another foul creature in the young boy's eyes, so agreed not to do any harm to the man. "But I swear to you, Jules. He will 'never' touch you again like this...'ever'. Q found another part of his heart that night when Jules jumped into his lap, hugged him tightly and told him that he had been more of a father to him then the "man mommy married." From that night on, as far as Q was concerned, Jules was his son. Q was there throughout the young boy's youth, and his early teens. He was there when Jules found out about Adigeon Prime from his parents. He went to ask Q if it was true, and most importantly why he hadn't remembered most of it. Q told him the truth, that after he was home he was having nightmares, so Q took them away. Q couldn't understand the young man's pain at finally coming to understand his circumstances. It was the first time the two of them argued. Q snapped off in a huff, he thought he was doing Jules a favor by helping him forget the nightmares, and the pain, but Jules was stubborn to the core, like most spirited humans. It would be weeks before the two of them would speak again. Alot less time than Jules', now Julian, parents had to wait for their son to speak to them. Julian wasn't happy about not knowing, but was able to understand Q's motives, just not his parents. He was convinced that little Jules died in the hospital, and Julian was created. No matter how persistent Q was, he couldn't convince the young man any differently, so gave up trying. What mattered was Julian knew about himself, and they were together again. ********* The frequency of Q's visits to his son were less and less, as Julian entered into the academy, but their bond never deteriorated. Julian never liked keeping secrets, but realized that he had been keeping two most of his life. One he was a shamed of, the other he wished he could brag about. Q had explained why his role in the young man's life had to remain a secret, while Julian himself explained to Q why his 'fix' needed to remain a secret. Q though it was stupid, but for Julian's sake, agreed. On Julian's graduation day, people from the audience only saw a bright young man, second in his class, receive his certification from Admiral Patomkins, head physician at Starfleet medical, and the huge hug he had received from the overly happy young man. Only Julian knew that Q stepped in to hand him his certificate, letting him know just how proud he was of him. Julian was more happy about seeing Q at his graduation then his own parents, he forgot that everyone else only saw Admiral Patomkins, and hugged Q. Of course, Q (Patomkins) hugged him back, then when right on giving out certificates as if nothing happened, for Q was gone. ********** Julian had been assigned to DS9, where he could practice 'frontier medicine' as he called it. By now, Q was more than caught up in the time line, but he was too attached to Julian to ever let go of the young man. It was because of his 'son' that he understood Picard better, and was able to give the stubborn Captain, who was about to cave in on himself, the gift of understanding. Had it not been for Julian, Q simply wouldn't have cared one way or the other, but knowing Julian, loving him, he did understand, more than he would ever let anyone, but Julian know. Years went by, and Julian was not too happy having to lie about knowing the alien being to his Captain on the few open visits Q made. This didn't hold well for the two of them; it led to the second argument of their long relationship. This time it took Q to come back and apologize to Julian for his 'behavior' and he had promised that he would go somewhere else to taunt Captains. Julian being his forgiving self, excepted the terms of his alien father, and let things return to normal. But Q wasn't happy not 'knowing' what lay in store for his son. He could see everything around him, except for Julian himself. Then after witnessing several heartbreaks, Serena being the last, he decided he had had enough. He went to another Q, who owed him one, and called in a favor. To find the true love of Julian's life, that he would share a extremely happy existence with, that was until he thought Julian was ready and make him a Q also. To Q's surprise, it was the Cardassian tailor, but if things kept going the way they were, both men would live a very lonely existence dedicated to their work, but not much else. Well, this simply wouldn't do, for his son. He thought about snapping the tailor into wanting Julian, but found he already did. Then he was going to snap him into confessing, but his own intrigue, plus knowing Julian would call him on it if he did…the young man had a knack for getting Q to tell the truth regardless of whether or not he wanted to. He told Julian that him and Garak were perfect for each other, but Julian was very shy, regardless of his reputation with women, and he had never been with a man before. He wanted to move on his own terms, or be open to Garak's invite if it should come his way. It didn't, so Q told Julian that if he wouldn't make the first move, that he (Q) would help the Cardassian to do it. Of course Julian made him promise not to snap the tailor into it. Julian had wanted Garak to tell him himself, Q had to find a way to keep his promise, and he did. Now he sat here watching his son snuggled next to his lover, and found himself very happy at seeing his son so happy. He gave up caring what any of the other Qs thought about him caring for the young man like he was his son along time ago. He knew love that only a parent could know…wasn't that the point? "Yes, Q, that 'was' the point." Came the voice of Q2, still blond, in the human form he chose. This time wearing a gray skin tight jumpsuit, standing by the port window with his arms folded across his chest. "But most 'parents' are unable to know their children's future, Q. You went outside the scope of the agreement, and you know what that means?" In an instant the younger Q was in front of the other Q face to face, steaming with protective anger. "Do 'anything' to him or the one he loves and 'you' will understand the true meaning of regret for a long time to come." The blond Q smiled at the threat, "My Q, such hostility…over a 'human.' But not to worry, for 'I' or anyone else in the Q 'won't' do a thing. In fact, that's going to be the next point, Q. What ever happens next, since you've changed the time line with this unorthodox coupling, is…what happens, and 'you' won't be able to do a thing about it!" "Just what are you getting at, Q?" "Only that you are hereby restricted in your activities, when it comes to your…son," the older Q stated looking nauseous speaking the last word. "You can't do that!" "Oh, but Q, I already have…and the council has agreed." "But…" "No buts, Q. You went outside the scope. You interfered in his future, now that future has altered, and 'you will' have to stand by and let it happen. As your humans say, 'you play you pay'!" and with that the older Q snapped his fingers and was gone. Q looked back to where the sleeping lovers lie, unaware that something terrible was heading their way in the form of their future. Q found he had a new sensation, fear, but not for himself, for Julian. He stood there looking at them, uncertain of what to do. He could wake Julian and tell him…tell him what? //No, let them be happy for as long as they can. I'll just…visit him more, perhaps I'll be able to stop…whatever it is…I hope.// END [ main page || basics || pairings || list || tales || disclaimer || links ] |