In Memory of Niles

"Keep looking Daph, I know it's got to be around here somewhere," Martin said as he moved some more stuff around the nearly full storage room.

"Thanks for helping me with this Martin," Daphne thanked as she looked behind an old card table that Martin used to use for his all night poker games before he moved in with Frasier.

"It was no problem, really. In fact, I'm pretty excited. When Lilith was pregnant with Frederick, they were living in Boston so I never had the opportunity to take part in her pregnancy. Hester and I always wanted grandchildren, and it was really hard to have them 3,000 some miles away. It's different this time of course, since you and Niles are here and….."

He stopped and quickly looked away, wishing he could take back his last comment. "I'm sorry Daph," he apologized.

Daphne cast her eyes down at her ever-expanding belly. "It's okay."

She ran her hand over her belly. "I wish Daddy was here too."

A few minutes passed and neither said anything, respecting the other and their pain.

Finally breaking the silence was Martin.

"So Daph, what made you decide to tackle this project? Wouldn't it have been easier to just buy a new crib? I mean, even if we can find it, its going to need a lot of work to get it ready."

"I know, but..." it was now her turn to get very quiet and reflective. "Niles was actually going to it."

"Niles?" Martin chuckled and asked incredulously.

Before she knew it, Niles was alive again, at least in her memory.

"Reminds me of when I used to mess about in the garage with me brothers. Used to build all sorts of things. Splints, crutches, peg legs."

"Still, you're very sweet to help Dad out. I don't think I could take his bossiness."

"Oh, he's not so bad. Could you hand me a rag?" she requested of Niles.

He scanned the room, "Uh...sure" upon finding one; he handed it over to her. "Here you are."

"Thanks."

Niles was clearly not in the mood to do woodworking, and tried to shift her interests elsewhere.

"So, um, any interest in sneaking off to your room while the foreman's away?" he invited.

"That sounds lovely, but first I have to get these pads on. Can you press on this for a moment?"

Tentative, Niles did as instructed, and leaned over and pressed on the designated pad. "Yeah, no problem." Still not deterred, "Maybe later we'll try out my 'Wagner for Lovers' CD." He hinted and leaned in to give her a kiss.

She was totally oblivious and focused at the task at hand. "I need another rag." She ordered.

"Oh, coming up... a rag." He tried to grab one all while keeping one hand on the pad.

"Could you grab me some sandpaper, too?"

Niles fumbled around trying to find the sandpaper. "Uh, yeah, sure. Of course."

"Don't press too tight or the pad will slide. Careful, even pressure." She took his hand into hers and fixed his hand. "Like this." She instructed.

He smiled and remembered another time when she took his hand, that time she led him into her bedroom to fold laundry and he commented on how he had heard that 'its lovely this time of year.' But his smile quickly turned into a frown when he also remembered that he folded the laundry wrong too.

He started to feel inferior again. Like he had felt for most of his life. First (and technically still did), with Frasier, and then with Maris.

"Yeah, that's-that's what I'm doing." He stammered and defended himself.

"Well, then why is glue squirting out?" she criticized. Without missing a beat, she barked out her next order. "I need the rag."

Niles was getting more frustrated, but continued to assist. "Okay." He found yet another rag and handed it to her and commented. "Never said I was good at carpentry."

"Carpentry?" she echoed. "This is gluing felt. Can you hand me the square?" she said borderline patronizing.

"Ah, yes. Here's the square."

"No, no, no," she pointed "That one. Why is the pad hanging off the side?"

Exasperated and desperate for understanding, Niles pleaded his case.

"Well, I think that it slipped when I was handing you the rags and the sandpaper and the square, and by the way, you're welcome."

Her love's irritation still hadn't fully soaked in, which was made clear when she demanded, "By the way, still waiting for that sandpaper."

That was the last straw. "Okay, let's stop."

He hadn't felt this small since he was with Maris. He walked over and sat on the coffee table and took a deep breath. "This is as bad as working with Dad" (or living with Maris) he mentally added.

She looked over at Niles. He sat like a scared little boy who was desperately trying to win his parents approval and failing miserably. For the first time since they started, she saw the genuine hurt in his eyes.

Softer, and this time more sympathetically, "Look, Niles, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I'm just trying to get this done and get it done well. Okay?"

She realized he needed more then an explanation, he needed reassurance. She had forgotten how insecure he really was at times. "I love you," she told him sincerely.

The sound of Martin shouting jolted her back to realty.

"Hey Daph! Over here, I think I found it."

-------

Later that evening while working on the crib in the nursery, Daphne stopped to take a break. She went downstairs to make some tea and get some cookies. While waiting for the teakettle to whistle, she started to remember Niles again. It was when she first started to feel something for him, but at that the same time trying to fight them.

Niles was over at Frasier's to make a special birthday dinner for Mel and she had agreed to assist. Before too long, it was almost as if they were playing doctor, and she was his nurse and the dish was their 'patient'.

Niles was hard at work on his dish.

"Whisk."

She handed the whisk to him and he whisked

"Spoon."

Again, she handed over the requested object, and he stirred.

"Cheesecloth." This time she wiped the sweat off his brow, as he tasted the dish the oven rang.

"Perfect timing. Daphne, open the oven."

She did as instructed as he placed the pan into the oven

"Shall I close, Dr. Crane?" she teased.

"Please."

She closed the oven door.

"Do you think it'll be all right?"

"It's out of our hands now, Daphne."

They shared a laugh as Daphne playfully hit him over the head with the oven gloves.

"Thank you for your help."

"Oh, my pleasure. I haven't had this much fun in the kitchen since your brother caught his tie in the pasta machine."

They shared another laugh at Frasier's expense.

"Oh, and the real fun's just beginning - clean-up."

Niles then went to pick up a pan and yelped as he scolded himself.

"Oh, you silly sod, here, run it under some cold water, I'll fetch the aloe cream."

He ran the palm of his left hand under the water.

"Come here," she called him over to her and carefully dried the palm of his hand before applying the rub. "This'll help," she commented while applying the rub.

"I can't believe I just did that," he shook his head, disgusted with himself.

"Oh, I do that sort of thing all the time. You must be careful; those panhandles get awfully hot."

"Oh well, not anymore, it's got a protective coating of skin on it."

He attempted to joke, but Daphne was getting a little carried away whilst she rubbed the cream in and never heard it.

"Just give it a minute to absorb."

"That'll be fine. I'm feeling better already," he informed her.

However, it wasn't only the cream that was now completely absorbed, it was also Daphne herself.

"Thanks, Daphne."

Talk about your bad timings, why did Martin have to enter then?

"Hey, what's up?"

She felt like she was a little girl again and had her hand caught in the cookie jar. "Nothing. Why should anything be up? Dr. Crane burnt his hand and I was tending to it, that's all..."

-------

The whistle brought her back. She finished making her tea and then headed back into the nursery and sat in the rocking chair and slowly rocked back and forth. She had another one of Niles' journals. She made it a bedtime story ritual. Someday, when their child got older, she would read these entries again, which recounted their courtship, in their Daddy's words. She pulled out the makeshift bookmark, a dove's feather, and began reading aloud to their unborn child.

"Let me get you a blanket, you'll catch a chill, darling. Get you all comfy." He got up to retrieve a blanket.

All she wanted to do when she got to The Montana was stuff tissues up her nose and pray for a quick death, but that quickly changed. Not escaping her attention was how attentive, how caring Niles was. Which being the germ-a-phobic that she knew him to be, she was touched. It was in that singular act, she never loved him more than she did right then and there. Wanting to show Niles her appreciation she shared when he returned with her blanket.

"I don't know what I did to deserve you."

He knelt in front of her, tucking the blanket in and around her. "You kidding? I got the better end of this deal."

"Oh, yeah, look at me: nose running, hair a mess, I must look a real fright."

"You know, it's funny. You could take a million years to plan the perfect evening, and you'd never come up with this. Daphne, I have to ask you a question."

Damn! She inwardly swore. Here Niles was, being the perfect gentleman as always and I had to…

"Hold on." She grabbed a tissue and blew her nose, long and loud. Daphne stopped, took a breath and blew some more. Upon its completion, "you were saying?"

Niles reached in his pocket and took out a ring, and fought back his own tears and mustered his bravest voice. "Daphne Moon, will you, and your beautiful toes and your exquisite ankles and your precious knees, elbows and arms and fingers, shoulders..."

He took a deep breath and held his breath.

"Will you marry me?" and held up the ring

Even though she knew the question was coming at the end of his little speech, she was still breathless with excitement.

"Oh, Niles! Of course I will." She cried tears of joy.

Then he cried with her and pulled her into a hug. After breaking off the hug, he slid the ring onto her finger.

She closed the journal and looked at her ring and added a footnote to the entry.

"Did you know your Daddy and I have the exact same ring size?" she smiled and continued with her story. "You know what your Daddy didn't write? He caught Mommy's flu a few days later and was even sicker than she was. But your Daddy never complained. And then it was my turn to take care of him."

-------

The next day, she went to work on the crib again but needed a few more tools. She went to one of the hallway closets to see if she could locate the missing tools she needed. If she couldn't find any, she would just have to borrow Martin's. She knelt down and moved a few things around and found something else.

Her eyesight clouded over, as tears were now falling freely down her cheeks. She pulled the item that had belonged to her noble savage, close to her.

Clean-shaven and sporting his now traditional suit, Niles entered Frasier's apartment for his lunch date with Daphne. Upon entering, he greeted,

"Afternoon, Daphne, Dad."

His change in dress and appearance didn't escape her attention and she inquired as he hung up his coat.

"What happened to my noble savage?"

Coming to join Daphne on the couch, Niles shared his story. "I'll tell you what happened. Roz told me about this wonderful nude beach, so I went down there this morning to check it out for us. Well, it was so peaceful I decided to do my sunrise Tai Chi. Have my naked body caressed by the rosy fingers of the new dawn. I left my clothing and my cares in the car, walked down to the beach and settled in for my first exercise, 'Grasping the Bird's Tail.' "

Before continuing, he raised his arms in a martial arts pose. Daphne nodded in understanding and mirrored him.

"Just at that moment, the sun peeked over the mountaintops, illuminating not only my splendid nakedness, but the bus for the Christian Women's Society."

Martin was in disbelief and almost choked on his deviled egg sandwich. "They went to a nude beach?"

"No," Niles answered in the negative, "and neither did I. The next few minutes are a blur, as I zig-zagged my way back to the car, while being pelted with driftwood and Bibles." With a hint of sadness, he confessed. "Needless to say, Island Niles died on that beach."

Daphne tried her best not to laugh. She supportively wrapped her arm around him, which allowed his head to fall on her shoulders. She hugged him maternally. Still trying to fend off her laughter, she asked, sympathetically,

"Oh, honey. Will he ever be back?"

"Maybe at Christmas."

She sniffed and wiped away at some of her tears with the hammock. She then grinned and said aloud, "and true to his word, Island Niles came for Christmas."

-------

"Thanks for meeting me here," Daphne said as they entered Café Nervosa.

"Sure. No problem at all. Glad to." Frasier, Martin and Roz all replied.

"How about that table up there?" Roz suggested.

"So, Daphne, what's this all about?" Frasier asked.

"I'm trying to put together a journal for our child that will contain our favorite memories of Niles."

"What a lovely idea Daph," they all agreed.

"I've already entered some of me own, and I was hoping you might have some too."

Roz started to laugh. "Oh, I've got one that has to go in there."

Daphne pulled out a pen, "go ahead."

"Remember that time when Frasier's mentor, Dr. Tewksbury was in town?" Roz began.

"Niles!"

"Daphne!" Shocked to see her and that he got caught, he jumped up and banged his knee on the table.

"How could you come down here? You broke your promise!" she questioned. Puzzled and hurt that Niles didn't listen to her.

He was in too much pain to fully explain. The pain in his knee spoke for him. "And my patella!"

She wasn't feeling too sympathetic and accused, "Well, nothing bad would have happened if you'd paid attention to my premonition!"

Niles countered with, "Well, actually, nothing bad would have happened if you hadn't shown up."

Daphne countered back. "Well, it wouldn't have not happened had I not shown up."

Not backing down, despite the throbbing pain, "Well, it wouldn't not have happened if you hadn't not shown up!"

Daphne offered her rebuttal and summation, "And I wouldn't have shown up had I not known that you wouldn't have been able to not come down here!

Valiant to the very end, he was losing steam and stammered, "Well I'm not...not...not...what?"

Satisfied she made her point, she smugly declared, "My point exactly! You don't listen."

Everyone around the table laughed.

"I wish I could have been there to see that." Martin said and continued, "I have a couple for you Daph. What made those special to me was Niles and his reactions. Both occurred when he was totally head over heels in love with you, and you had no idea Daph, so he had to cover those feelings that he just exposed before you could catch on to him."

"Keep in mind Daph, Niles feel hard for you the first day he met you, so, there are plenty of Niles incidents before and after the one I am going to share, but these just happen to be my favorites."

Daphne smiled and with pen in hand, "go on…"

"It was the time when Niles and I were building that damn three-masted schooner. And he kept reading all the directions from the very beginning and then you came in, remember Daph?"

"Oh, look at that! What a beautiful ship. I bet you'll have fun building that."

"Not as much fun as we're having reading about it," Martin grumbled.

"Did I ever mention one of my ancestors was a mutineer on the H.M.S. Bounty?"

"No kidding," Martin commented.

"Yeah well, from what we could gather, he made it safely to Pitcairn Island, where he was quite fruitful and multiplied. For all I know there's some girl who looks exactly like me running around the South Seas, frolicking in the surf, all brown-skinned and bare-breasted-"

"Well, what you weren't aware of was Niles. He was in heaven. He was so caught up in whatever fantasy he was in that he snapped that damn mast into two pieces, sending them both flying over the table. I knew what he was thinking and I gave him that 'be careful look,' and to his credit, he quickly recovered." Martin continued with his story.

"So you want to build a two-masted schooner?"

Like they did after Roz finished her story, they all laughed.

"What's the other one?" Roz asked, sipping her coffee.

"Another classic Niles. It was around that time Frase was having those radio wars with…" Martin stopped to try and remember their names.

"Carlos and the Chicken?" Frasier supplied the missing link.

"Yeah, Carlos and the Chicken. And Frase wanted to get his revenge on them and we got to talking about "The Avengers", which was the boys favorite television show growing up…"

"You know, it's funny hearing you talk about "The Avengers." My first Halloween in America, I went to a party dressed as Mrs. Peel. Head-to-toe in that skintight black leather cat suit," Daphne chimed in.

Niles lifted his head in interest and started to fantasize about what Daphne must have looked like.

Totally oblivious to the near salivating Niles, Daphne continued, "Come to think of it, I still have it somewhere, and Halloween's coming up."

Eddie had entered the room and hopped into a kitchen chair, and had joined the group. Noticing Eddie, Martin commented, "Cat suit, huh? Better not let this guy hear you talking about that, he'll go nuts."

Niles instantly thought the comment was directed at him, "I would not!" He then saw Eddie. Again, and, like so many times in the past, he tried to cover. "Be surprised if he did! Ho-ho-ho."

-------

"The fire's started and it's all warm and roaring," Frasier informed Daphne has she started down the last of the stairs.

"Thank you for building me one."

"Anytime Daph. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes."

Daphne went over to warm herself by the fire. When they all left Café Nervosa it was pouring out and Frasier offered to take her home and build her a fire and make her some dinner.

She looked at the pictures they had on the mantle and took down one of her favorites, and one that was always a conversation starter. She could only smile as the memory came rushing back to her.

"I have a little something for you," he announced and handed her a small jewelry box.

Typical Niles, he was always lavishing her with gifts for no reason.

She carefully cracked open the lid. "Ohh...Earrings. They're beautiful."

Since Maris never accepted any of the gifts he bought for her, he was always afraid that Daphne would be disappointed in his selection.

"Try them on" He encouraged. "I've disinfected them with peroxide."

She could only smile and think, 'that's my clean and germ a phobic Niles.' But when she looked at them more closely she quickly realized they were the exact replicas and oddly enough, the same pair she had inserted into her ear lobes earlier in the day.

"Niles," she started tactfully as not to make him feel badly. "It's a lovely thought, but you kind of gave me the exact same pair last summer."

"I did not."

"Yeah, take a look," she pulled back her hair to reveal the earrings.

He was clearly embarrassed and profusely apologized. "I am so sorry."

"Oh, don't be silly. It was bound to happen sometime, after all the nice presents you give me."

Later in the afternoon Niles had run into Roz at Café Nervosa and Roz shared her conversation with Niles to Daphne a few days later.

"Hey, Niles. What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be out buying Daphne another pair of earrings?" she playfully teased.

"Oh...please, don't make me feel any worse."

"Actually, I thought it was sweet."

"Well, I feel just awful."

"You want to know what I would do?" Roz suggested.

Niles hesitated, considering the source of the suggestion, and then finally.

"Oh, what the hell?" he pulled out a chair and sat.

"First of all, enough with the earrings. Everything doesn't have to be so fancy. Don't get me wrong. Jewelry is terrific, but sometimes a woman likes to know that you're paying attention. Mix it up a little. Do something crazy--I mean totally out there."

She now had Niles interest peaked along with his undivided attention.

"Are you talking about scarves?" he inquired, enthusiastically.

Roz bit her lower lip has not to laugh at Nile's question.

"OK, let me give you an example. When I was 20, my boyfriend stole a

"Doyle's Pub" sign for me. We were drunk and we saw it, and he said

'Hey, that's your name on that sign. You should have it.' It was spontaneous,

and a little dangerous...and very romantic!"

She could tell that she had set the wheels in motion and that he was mulling over her suggestion.

"Spontaneous and dangerous..." he echoed as he continue to mull. "Thanks, Roz. You've given me something to mull over during my herbal wrap."

Niles, dressed in black from head to toe, including a trench coat, showed up unexpectedly at Frasier's later that same evening.

Niles had come over and clearly out of the blue, taking both Daphne and Martin by surprise, he had offered to walk Eddie. Daphne, of course invited herself to come along, which also to everyone's surprise, he declined her invite.

It would be well past midnight before she would hear his tale.

While out walking Eddie, he passed by a street lamp that contained the names of two street signs which read 'Maple Street 1700,' and, the other, 'Daphne Lane 200.'"

He pondered briefly before making his move. Once he committed, he glanced around nervously for witnesses. He then whistled his pre-arranged signal with Eddie, who lifted his leg and appeared to be doing his business on the lamp pole.

Niles whistled at Eddie again, and he lowered his leg. He gave Eddie a treat and walked with him to the hedge behind the sidewalk.

Somehow, Niles had managed to stash a folding stepladder behind the hedge and pulled it out. He unfolded it and steadied it next to the pole and directly under the Daphne Lane sign. He briefly thought about the daunting task that was in front of him, he was nearing the point of no return. With fierce determination, he flipped back his coat to reveal a tool belt, from which he grabbed the wrench. He was pumped and ready, he was going to do this.

He looked up at the sign and placed the wrench in his mouth and began to climb the ladder, but was interrupted by Eddie barking at something. He quickly climbed back down, and hurriedly stuck the ladder back behind the hedge, removed the wrench from his mouth, and moved Eddie back to the pole and whistled their code again.

Eddie then repeated the entire leg-lifting routine.

Repeating his moves from minutes earlier, but only quicker since he was now more nervous, he climbed the ladder and placed his hands on top of the 'Daphne Lane' sign. Very nervously, he began to use the wrench to undo the bolts attaching the sign to the pole. Uncoordinated, he quickly lost his balance. Now panic stricken, he struggled to regain his balance and inadvertently kicked the ladder away, so that it was no longer under his feet.

He was left hanging from the sign as Eddie barked repeatedly, trying to forewarn him of something or someone.

The "someone" in this case was a car who literally caught "Niles in the headlights" and shone it's headlights onto Niles suspended frame from the sign. The cars' sirens quickly identified the car as a police cruiser as he looked mortified into the lights, still tightly clutching and hanging from the sign.

Martin got the call from the station shortly after 11 that evening.

Much later that night, Niles showed up at Frasier's, still clothed in the black getup from what Daphne would learn a few minutes later, from his criminal escapade, with a gift in tow.

They went and sat on the couch so she could open it. He looked more nervous than usual as she started to unwrap it.

Noticing Daphne was in her pajamas and bathrobe, Niles apologized.

"Sorry. I know it's late….."

"Oh hush!" Her mouth dropped and she mouthed an "Oh…"

A loving expression formed on her face has she pulled a framed picture out of the box, and looked delighted as she continued to look at it. She stood the picture up on the coffee table.

Niles' uneasiness melted when it was clear that she was pleased with her gift.

She kissed him on the cheek and they embraced with Eddie aka his partner in crime, between them.

"Daphne, dinner's ready." Frasier called out to her and unknowingly interrupted her memory.

She kissed her fingers and laid them on the picture and set the framed picture of Niles' mug shots, one profile and one frontal, complete with the name plate, that were taken that night, back on the fireplace mantel and headed towards the kitchen.

To be continued…