Author's note: I can't believe I forgot to mention sooner that this story was originally published in Outpost 9, a DS9 fanzine, way back in 1998. There are 3 wonderful illustrations by wonderful fan illustrator Lauren Francis, which I can scan into jpeg's and email to anyone who's interested. They were tailored specifically for the story (instead of just being static head shots or generic character illos), and are absolutely gorgeous. Onto the next section!
Four Days Later
Sisko held in an impatient sigh as he waited for the Hitari Foreign Trade Commissioner to finish his latest tirade against the Bajoran government. He'd quickly grown tired of hearing the phrase "when the Cardassians were in charge," and he knew the Bajoran Trade Minister and his people were even more tired of hearing it. However, they weren't tired of it enough to break off negotiations, and Commissioner H'srel always managed to sense when they were almost to that point and suddenly show signs of being reasonable--or at least of being willing to drop that particular tangent. Besides, a trade agreement between the two governments had far too many advantages for both sides for any sort of petty name-calling to be allowed to break off negotiations, even with the prickly Bajoran pride involved. It was especially advantageous for the mineral-poor Bajorans, and both sides knew it. Which was why H'srel had no compunction to resorting to snide remarks whenever he felt his government wasn't getting what it deserved. Which seemed to be all the time, Sisko thought in mounting frustration.
The Bajorans and Hitari had been wrangling over trade concessions for nearly a week now, and H'Srel's incessant demands on Sisko's time, both as ranking Federation officer and as Bajoran Emissary, had taken up far more time than Sisko liked. He'd tried suggesting that the negotiations be held on Bajor, considering the physical state of the station, had even tried to postpone the talks, but neither tactic had worked. Although the Hitari had willingly agreed to travel to Bajor, it was only on the condition that he accompany them as mediator. Thus he'd lost three full days in traveling to Bajor and setting up negotiations there, only to end up back on the station, which was deemed more neutral territory. At this rate, he'd never find the time to talk to Odo about Major Kira, especially since it had turned out to be a particularly busy week for the station's security chief and resident shapeshifter as well. An outbreak of thefts and petty crimes in the wake of their earlier disaster, as well as some minor Maquis activity, had seemed in collusion with Sisko's own problems to keep the two of them on completely different schedules; twice Sisko had tried to contact Odo, only to be informed that he was "indisposed"--a polite way for the Bajoran security officer on duty to let Sisko know that Odo had reverted to his natural, gelatinous state and was thus unable to speak to anyone.
He'd decided that Odo was the best person with whom to discuss his concerns about Major Kira, although he had no shortage of other volunteers, everyone from Garak to Dr. Bashir to Dax. But Dax, whom he would have been most inclined to allow to look into the matter, had been called away on a much-delayed mission in the Gamma Quadrant for the next two weeks, a mission that had already been postponed twice and was now past the point of avoidance, no matter what condition the station was in. At least, that had been the forcefully stated opinion of the Starfleet captain who'd arrived to pick her up the day after the station had literally tried to destroy itself.
Bashir was also out of the question, he was far too busy not only with taking care of residual injuries from that same near-destruction of the station, but also with an outbreak of an especially virulent form of flu a trader had inadvertently brought aboard. As for Garak, although Sisko had politely thanked the Cardassian tailor for his offer, he had just as politely turned it down. If Kira found out Sisko was attempting to probe into her personal life, he'd catch enough hell, but if she found Garak doing the probing... He shuddered as he visualized her reaction.
All that aside, Sisko's instincts still insisted that the direct approach he and Kira both normally favored would be a mistake this time, no matter who was doing the approaching. If that were going to work, it would have done so when he first questioned Kira regarding Dukat's reasons for helping them without extracting any overt costs. Not that he enjoyed discussing his second-in-command's personal life with anyone, but Odo was nothing if not discreet. Besides, he probably had the best handle on the major of anyone on the station.
The station itself was still undergoing extensive repairs from that same disaster, their encounter with a Cardassian booby-trap his son Jake had inadvertently set off at the beginning of the week, just before the Hitari and Bajoran representatives arrived. Chief O'Brien estimated several more days before the station was "up to snuff," as he put it, and Sisko found himself longing for that day--and the return of reliable replicators--nearly as much as he longed for the trade negotiations to be over and done with. Wishing won't make it so, he reminded himself as he reluctantly returned his attention to the latest list of changes demanded by the Hitari.
It was going to be another long night.
