The… whatever it was that was inside the container began to move around again. A shimmer of translucent rainbow colours shimmered and suddenly the container was empty and there was a round, sparkly stone in Odo's hand. He sighed.
"I must say, if this whole situation wasn't so confusing I'd be jealous of you," he admitted although he wasn't sure if it could hear him. "Considering you seem to have literally been born yesterday, you've certainly learned how to shapeshift quickly."
It had been 27 hours, 34 minutes, and 40 seconds since they had found the strange creature in the container. First Odo had brought it to Dax, who, after scanning it, had determined that it was definitely alive, and definitely had Changeling DNA, but it seemed to be some kind of hybrid. After doctor Bashir had looked it over, he'd said that it looked like the DNA of Odo and Quark had somehow combined somehow into this creature. It seemed unbelievable, but once Quark had admitted to having been convinced to letting a sample of his blood fall into the container, it made a bit more sense.
No doubt this had something to do with the sample of Odo's DNA that Snuzhi had taken. But having a little piece of one person come in contact with the blood of another didn't result in the birth of a new lifeform. Still, somehow in this case it had, and now Odo was doing his best to look after it.
The stone in his hand changed again, sliding out from between his fingers and taking the form of a bottle. Words appeared on the front of the bottle, slowly spelling out a message.
I want to go outside.
"Well, you could have chosen an easier way of letting me know that," Odo muttered. "You can always link with me if you want to tell me something."
The message changed; this time the letters on the bottle were larger.
I don't want to only be in here.
"Well, where do you want to be, then?"
The hybrid Changeling was a stubborn little thing, apparently. The bottle melted away and it lay on Odo's desk in its natural state for a few seconds before shifting into what looked like a head with large ears.
Was it supposed to be a Ferengi?
"If you want me to take you to see Quark, forget it." He turned back to his criminal report. "That no-good Ferengi would only be a bad influence."
To his surprise, this time he got a spoken reply.
"But I'm him too." The creature had formed a mouth that had no lips but had a row of tiny, sharp teeth. "You and him together-"
"No." Odo stared down the little head sternly. The little creature's learning rate was remarkable, but that didn't mean it could get away with whatever it wanted. "Quark doesn't know that you were formed by samples of our DNA merging. He doesn't even know you're a living being. As far as he's concerned, you ended up being a toy that moves around to amuse children."
The head formed eyes and a nose as well. It was a smooth face, but with a few lumps and ridges here and there. The eyes were black and hollow but ringed by dark circles, and there were a few pale strands of hair at the top of it. Then after a few hesitant seconds, an entire body formed beneath it, and a moment later a child dressed in a Bajoran security uniform wearing a pink vest was sitting on Odo's desk, kicking its feet impatiently.
"It's like this, you see?" It pointed down at the body it had just formed itself. "I'm both of you at once. So I've got to be able to see the other half of me."
Odo was stunned by the creature's shapeshifting capabilities. It had managed to take on the appearance of what it might look like if he and Quark were to actually reproduce- not that that subject was something that Odo had ever thought about, of course! It had taken Odo years to even attempt a humanoid form. Perhaps this creature's status as a hybrid was behind its accelerated growth and learning rate?
Still, impressively quick learner or not, this strange little hybrid creature was not actually the child of Odo and Quark. It was some bizarre anomaly that would require further studying. And it certainly had no reason to be hanging around a petty criminal.
The child that should never have existed was sitting on the desk. Rather than simple moving its facial features around, it shifted its face into an exaggerated frowning shape.
"If I can't see the other one, just show me other stuff," it pleaded. "I've gotta see other things! How am I supposed to get good at shapeshifting if all I can see is your stupid office?"
Demanding to see Quark of all people was one thing, but now the little ingrate was insulting him! Angry, Odo reached out and grabbed it by its arm.
"Don't talk to me like that," he spat, adding, "You don't even need to see Quark; you're starting to sound like him already."
"I wanna go out!"
With a forceful tug, the wrist that Odo was holding pulled away. The child was replaced by an eagle, which flapped its wings and flew away. Well if that's how we're going to do things, so be it, Odo thought. He shapeshifted into a hawk and flew after the hybrid.
Quark hummed to himself as he washed a glass. Business had been slow that day, but at least there were no Snuzzelbians there. Those creatures were annoying even compared to his regular annoying customers. One good thing about them, though, was that they never complained. He could give them sewage water and they'd still squeal with bliss from being served by their "horrible garbage egg".
Other than that weird gunk that had turned out to be just a toy, nothing unusual had happened in a while. That was why Quark figured it had only been a matter of time when screams broke out in his bar as a large bird flew through it. It pointed its beak at Quark and dove at him. He ducked and the bird crashed into the shelf behind him, shattering several glasses.
It must have been Odo. But what did he want?
"Look, I don't know why you're after me, but I swear I haven't done anything illegal in at least a week!" Quark told the bird, batting at it as it flapped around his head. "Now if you'll please go away, I'm busy!"
The bird opened its beak and cawed. Then it changed form, becoming a child, and threw its arms around Quark.
"So you're the other one who made me!" the child exclaimed happily. "I like the way you look! It's not as scary as the big one."
"Made you? ...The other one?!" Quark blinked in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
The child pulled away. Quark noticed that it looked kind of like him, but… smoother. And it had hair, too. In fact, it looked a bit like… Odo?
Suddenly a tentacle wrapped around the child's neck. They clutched at it, kicking the air. Odo stepped up from behind the counter, looking angry- but for once, not at Quark. The child dangled in the air in front of him, and he gently set it down but kept the appendage wrapped around its waist.
"If you'll excuse us, we'll just be going now," Odo said, shooting a stern glance at the child.
But Quark wanted answers.
"Not so fast, Odo," he called. "What is that kid? Is it a Changeling? Why does it look like me?!"
"It's none of your business," Odo huffed. He began to pull the child away. But Quark wasn't giving up that easily. He followed after Odo, walking quickly to match his pace.
"Does this have something to do with that weird container I found yesterday?" he inquired. "It does, doesn't it? See, you think I'm an idiot, but I'm clever, Odo. I'm on to you."
Odo stopped and turned, frustration flashing in his eyes. Quark took a step back, hoping the constable wouldn't yell at him. They bickered all the time, but when one of them got mad at the other for real it felt horrible. Still, Quark needed to know what was up with that shapeshifting kid.
"This is NOT OUR CHILD, Quark!" Odo snapped, his deep voice booming across the promenade. "Stay out of this! It doesn't concern you!"
"Not our child?" Quark cocked his head, confused. "Why would it be our child? We don't even have a child. Why would we have a child? We hate each other." Something occurred to him. "If you say this isn't our child, does this mean we do have a child that I don't know about?"
"Of course we don't have a child, Quark," Odo sighed. "I just… I just wanted to make it clear that you have nothing to do with this. Now, if you'll please just leave me alone…"
But in a flash of gaudy rainbow colours, the child slipped into a gelatinous form and slid out from Odo's arms. It retook the form of the weird Ferengi-Changeling hybrid, standing next to Quark now. Odo crossed his arms, but he sighed in defeat and didn't object.
"Fine," he grumbled loudly. "I'll tell you all I know about this creature so far. Come to my office and don't ask too many questions."
Quark nodded apprehensively. He followed Odo, the strange child trailing behind him, its blank expression drilling into the back of Quark's head. It was unnerving, to say the least, but that seemed to be the smallest concern surrounding the thing's existence.