Chapter Five: Loopholes

Trystmar blinked awake from a dream of transporter beams, a dream so vivid his stomach actually had that half sick feeling being transported had caused ever since he had been joined. Or…had it been a dream? Even in the dim light the room looked different…his cabin on the ship, not the quarters he had been assigned on the space station.

So, Bashir had been right, he mused, reaching in the dark for the combadge the doctor had given him. But before he could activate it, a transporter beam once more washed over him, this time depositing him on one of the pads in the Deep Space Nine space station.

"Thank you," he said, pushing himself to sit up.

The operator grinned. "No trouble; Dr Bashir said to watch for unauthorized transport. Say, are you all right?" he added as Trystmar stood, then half doubled over with a hand pressed to his belly.

Trystmar drew a deep breath. "Yes; transporting always makes me a little queasy, and doing it twice in two minutes doesn't help."

"Do you need the doctor?"

"No; I'll be all right if I lie down…and don't transport again anytime soon," he added with a wry smile.

The operator nodded. "I'll call someone to walk you back, then."

Trystmar flushed. "That's not necessary; I'm really fine. It's already passing."

The operator eyed him doubtfully, but didn't argue further.

oOo

Trystmar grinned as he walked into the infirmary the next morning. "Checkmate!" he announced jovially. "I wonder how long it took Bendris to notice I'm not there?"

Bashir chuckled. "That's a good question."

"I wonder if I still have a job," Trystmar mused a bit more seriously, but still without any true worry.

"I would think a joined Trill could do better, anyway," Bashir said seriously. "No offence, but he didn't strike me as a particularly good lawyer."

"Too blunt and opinionated? I know," Trystmar nodded. "He does argue well in the courtroom…but most of the arguments are mine; when the opposition throws in something unexpected, he usually fumbles and loses the case if I can't slip him a note in time. He was pretty much a nobody before he took me as his aide, and that was before I was joined.

"Actually, he was the one who pushed for joining," Trystmar added reflectively. "I was starting to make him famous, and he thought my being joined would increase the accolades — the prestige of an unjoined Trill having a joined aide, even if I didn't gain any additional skill."

He shook his head. "If he hadn't been pushing so hard, I don't think I would have accepted Shan even with the doctors' assurance that Ogravrett's wouldn't affect the symbiont. I wouldn't have in any case if I had known then about the second victim."

He shuddered, then grinned suddenly. "He will be back for me, but maybe it's time I stopped building his reputation and started on my own."

"You're not bound to him by contract?"

Trystmar's eyes twinkled. "I am…but there's a glaring loophole in it that I didn't see the necessity of pointing out — any decent lawyer would have seen it for himself, and I thought even then that it might come in handy one day…"

Bashir chuckled. "I will admit, it will just about serve him right to come back and find you gone."

Next chapter coming next week!

I proofread all my stories at least once before posting, but if you see any mistakes I might have missed, please let me know!

Please note that I have internet access only once a week, and may not have time to respond to all reviews/messages. If you have questions regarding my Deep Space Nine alternate history, check my profile first to see if they're answered there. Thanks for your understanding! Barbie