halloween fic again!
Nov. 4th, 2006 04:44 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rivendellroseVery little NaNo progress so far today, but I managed to finish another Halloween request!
This one's for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
penmage, who requested DS9. This is... a tiny bit random. I blame leftover Halloween candy. XD
“I’m sorry, perhaps I’ve misunderstood you, Doctor. You’re telling me that a primary holiday on your world, up to the contemporary era, consists of dressing your children up as monsters and letting them... run around to frighten the neighborhood?”
“Er,” was all Julian managed to reply.
“Is there some kind of metaphysical point to this, or is it simply an exercise in teaching them early how sadism and vicious manners are a constant throughout the known universe?”
Garak was laughing at him, of course. Julian gritted his teeth and took a slow sip of his tea to calm himself.
“To be honest, Garak, I really haven’t the foggiest notion. It’s not an especially important holiday in the part of Earth that I come from.”
“But the parts you’ve visited do practice it?”
“Some of them.”
“Then surely you know enough about your own planet’s customs to tell me what this lovely little endeavor is about.”
Julian sighed. “It’s some kind of... I think it was meant to chase away demons, in the ancient days. Scaring away bad luck or something like that. I don’t know, Garak, I’m a doctor, not an historian!”
“Mm, indeed.” Garak waved the data padd he’d been reading when Julian sat down, and Julian had to resist the temptation to snatch the blasted thing right out of his hand. They were supposed to be planning their next excursion into the holosuite, not discussing ancient Earth customs. Particularly the ones associated with several of the more embarassing stories from Julian’s tenure at Starfleet Academy. While Halloween might not be particularly popular anywhere else Julian had lived on Earth, it had been quite the event in San Francisco, particularly among stressed and exhausted young students who desperately needed an outlet for their creative energies and frustrations.
Not that Julian Bashir, model student, had ever gotten involved in anything like that... at least not that he was going to tell Garak. But the Cardassian did have a distressing knack with computers, and Julian wasn’t entirely convinced that the evidence of a particularly ill-advised toga party had ever been fully erased.
“Look, Garak, this is ridiculous. I--”
“What’s going on?”
“Major Kira! What a pleasure to see you. Won’t you join us?” Garak offered one of his most ingratiating smiles, calculated, Julian was sure, exactly to make Kira grit her teeth. The more a person hated him, Julian had noticed, the more the Cardassian seemed to take intense pleasure in being so very, painfully polite and pleasant that the person couldn’t possibly fault him, while still being aware all the time that he was enjoying every minute of their misery at this state of affairs.
Kira rolled her eyes at the Cardassian, and turned her attention back to Julian. “Doctor?”
“I was just explaining to Garak--”
“Our intrepid doctor was explaining to me that today is an important holiday by the Terran calendar,” Garak interrupted. “All Hallow’s Eve, I believe it’s called, correct, Doctor? A celebration of death and mayhem in which passive aggressive acts of sadism are carried out on children dressed up as scapegoats for the fears and frustrations of the culture.”
Julian gaped. “Passive aggressive... Garak! That’s not at all--” He turned to Kira, who was now eyeing both of them with an expression of extreme suspicion and distaste. “That isn’t how it works! He’s intentionally twisting the details!”
“Dressing children as murderers, monsters, and parodic caricatures of politicians? Filling their minds with stories of night terrors and then sending them out into the darkness to knock on the doors of strangers and demand treats, then bring them home and tell stories of children who received razor blades and poison in their sweets? I hardly call that a practice that needs twisting around to appear more than a little disturbed, Doctor.” He turned his gaze back on Julian for a moment, mischief gleaming in his eyes, and then looked back at Kira, shaking his head with patently over-played sorrow and resignation. “They are a strange people, are they not, Major? We can only be grateful that they seem to have left these traditions on their own world...”
Kira looked back and forth between them, then shook her head. “I don’t have time for this - you’re both twisted, as far as I’m concerned. Just make sure you’re done with this little nostalgia game in time for the staff meeting at thirteen-hundred, Doctor. And you...” she glared at Garak. “Just don’t get any ideas. If I see any costumes around the promenade in the next few weeks, I’ll know exactly who to blame.”
Jaw hanging, Julian watched her stalk away.
“Do you have any idea how much damage this might do to Federation relations with Bajor, Garak? The Bajorans are already paranoid about the growing cult of the Pagh Wraiths...”
“Goodness. I hadn’t thought that they might... dear me, Doctor. I do apologize. Perhaps I could issue some sort of public statement to clear things up...” Even with all his training, Garak was visibly struggling to restrain his laughter, now.
“You’re enjoying this.”
“But of course, my dear doctor. I’ve always said, I really have no idea how I entertained myself before I met you.” Garak stood, gathering his empty tea cup and data padd, and bowed his head to his friend, his eyes still glittering with more than even his usual amounts of predatory mirth.
There was a good chance, Julian realized, that by the time he got the to staff meeting that afternoon, Garak’s version of the ‘Terran holiday’ would be all over the station. At the very least, he’d have to deal with anyone Kira told... and Sisko would no doubt want to know what he’d been thinking telling Garak such things about Halloween. “You just couldn’t resist, could you?” he growled at his friend.
“I think my favorite detail about the holiday has to be the traditional greeting. ‘Trick or treat.’” Garak smiled. “I choose ‘trick,’ Doctor. Very foolish of you Humans to offer a choice on the matter.”
This one's for
penmage, who requested DS9. This is... a tiny bit random. I blame leftover Halloween candy. XD“I’m sorry, perhaps I’ve misunderstood you, Doctor. You’re telling me that a primary holiday on your world, up to the contemporary era, consists of dressing your children up as monsters and letting them... run around to frighten the neighborhood?”
“Er,” was all Julian managed to reply.
“Is there some kind of metaphysical point to this, or is it simply an exercise in teaching them early how sadism and vicious manners are a constant throughout the known universe?”
Garak was laughing at him, of course. Julian gritted his teeth and took a slow sip of his tea to calm himself.
“To be honest, Garak, I really haven’t the foggiest notion. It’s not an especially important holiday in the part of Earth that I come from.”
“But the parts you’ve visited do practice it?”
“Some of them.”
“Then surely you know enough about your own planet’s customs to tell me what this lovely little endeavor is about.”
Julian sighed. “It’s some kind of... I think it was meant to chase away demons, in the ancient days. Scaring away bad luck or something like that. I don’t know, Garak, I’m a doctor, not an historian!”
“Mm, indeed.” Garak waved the data padd he’d been reading when Julian sat down, and Julian had to resist the temptation to snatch the blasted thing right out of his hand. They were supposed to be planning their next excursion into the holosuite, not discussing ancient Earth customs. Particularly the ones associated with several of the more embarassing stories from Julian’s tenure at Starfleet Academy. While Halloween might not be particularly popular anywhere else Julian had lived on Earth, it had been quite the event in San Francisco, particularly among stressed and exhausted young students who desperately needed an outlet for their creative energies and frustrations.
Not that Julian Bashir, model student, had ever gotten involved in anything like that... at least not that he was going to tell Garak. But the Cardassian did have a distressing knack with computers, and Julian wasn’t entirely convinced that the evidence of a particularly ill-advised toga party had ever been fully erased.
“Look, Garak, this is ridiculous. I--”
“What’s going on?”
“Major Kira! What a pleasure to see you. Won’t you join us?” Garak offered one of his most ingratiating smiles, calculated, Julian was sure, exactly to make Kira grit her teeth. The more a person hated him, Julian had noticed, the more the Cardassian seemed to take intense pleasure in being so very, painfully polite and pleasant that the person couldn’t possibly fault him, while still being aware all the time that he was enjoying every minute of their misery at this state of affairs.
Kira rolled her eyes at the Cardassian, and turned her attention back to Julian. “Doctor?”
“I was just explaining to Garak--”
“Our intrepid doctor was explaining to me that today is an important holiday by the Terran calendar,” Garak interrupted. “All Hallow’s Eve, I believe it’s called, correct, Doctor? A celebration of death and mayhem in which passive aggressive acts of sadism are carried out on children dressed up as scapegoats for the fears and frustrations of the culture.”
Julian gaped. “Passive aggressive... Garak! That’s not at all--” He turned to Kira, who was now eyeing both of them with an expression of extreme suspicion and distaste. “That isn’t how it works! He’s intentionally twisting the details!”
“Dressing children as murderers, monsters, and parodic caricatures of politicians? Filling their minds with stories of night terrors and then sending them out into the darkness to knock on the doors of strangers and demand treats, then bring them home and tell stories of children who received razor blades and poison in their sweets? I hardly call that a practice that needs twisting around to appear more than a little disturbed, Doctor.” He turned his gaze back on Julian for a moment, mischief gleaming in his eyes, and then looked back at Kira, shaking his head with patently over-played sorrow and resignation. “They are a strange people, are they not, Major? We can only be grateful that they seem to have left these traditions on their own world...”
Kira looked back and forth between them, then shook her head. “I don’t have time for this - you’re both twisted, as far as I’m concerned. Just make sure you’re done with this little nostalgia game in time for the staff meeting at thirteen-hundred, Doctor. And you...” she glared at Garak. “Just don’t get any ideas. If I see any costumes around the promenade in the next few weeks, I’ll know exactly who to blame.”
Jaw hanging, Julian watched her stalk away.
“Do you have any idea how much damage this might do to Federation relations with Bajor, Garak? The Bajorans are already paranoid about the growing cult of the Pagh Wraiths...”
“Goodness. I hadn’t thought that they might... dear me, Doctor. I do apologize. Perhaps I could issue some sort of public statement to clear things up...” Even with all his training, Garak was visibly struggling to restrain his laughter, now.
“You’re enjoying this.”
“But of course, my dear doctor. I’ve always said, I really have no idea how I entertained myself before I met you.” Garak stood, gathering his empty tea cup and data padd, and bowed his head to his friend, his eyes still glittering with more than even his usual amounts of predatory mirth.
There was a good chance, Julian realized, that by the time he got the to staff meeting that afternoon, Garak’s version of the ‘Terran holiday’ would be all over the station. At the very least, he’d have to deal with anyone Kira told... and Sisko would no doubt want to know what he’d been thinking telling Garak such things about Halloween. “You just couldn’t resist, could you?” he growled at his friend.
“I think my favorite detail about the holiday has to be the traditional greeting. ‘Trick or treat.’” Garak smiled. “I choose ‘trick,’ Doctor. Very foolish of you Humans to offer a choice on the matter.”
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no subject
Date: 2006-11-05 01:21 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-11-05 01:29 am (UTC)Thanks, and I'm glad you liked it! :D
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Date: 2006-11-05 09:03 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-11-05 06:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-11-05 05:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-11-05 06:13 pm (UTC)