Chapter Text
Modir sat quietly on a small bench in front of one of the many huge windows looking out into space, the promenade bustling with life on the floor below. Around 20 minutes had passed since Jake and Nog left to find Commander Sisko and try to convince him to let the young Cardassian stay on DS9. Modir had stayed in his hiding spot for a little while after they left, thinking about what just happened and psyching himself up to go back out on the promenade. Once he'd made sure the coast was clear, and that there weren't any scaly, grey tails poking out from the crowds, Modir slipped out into the mass of people. He snuck around as if he was hiding from security again when in reality, he just didn't want to be seen. There wasn't much for him to do on the promenade, and the young Cardassian really wasn't in the mood to go back to the O'Briens. They were lovely people who had been incredibly kind to him, but they weren't what he needed right now. All Modir really wanted was for Sisko get it over with and tell him that he was going back to Bajor.
So he found himself somewhere to wait for his new friends to return. Jake and Nog - Could Modir call them friends yet? They'd only met that morning, but he already felt quite attached to them. The young Cardassian hadn't encountered such generosity from a stranger in a long time, not since his Bajoran parents took him in. Modir wasn't sure if we wanted to just let that go; Perhaps there was some way for him to stay in contact with them once he was back on Bajor.
If Sisko would allow it, Modir thought, as he looked out across the stars that dotted the vast blackness of space. There must be thousands of them, and those were only the ones he could see through this one window. Modir had often gazed up at the stars from his home on Bajor, wondering how many of them had planets which supported life.
Wondering if one of them might be Cardassia's sun.
And perhaps one of them was, but Modir would never be able to see for himself. Jake and Nog came running up to him with the news that they tried, but Sisko "Had already made his decision".
"He wouldn't tell me what it was, though." Jake said, "I guess you're gonna have to wait and find out yourself." Both he and Nog looked apologetic, as if it was their fault that Sisko had already made up his mind.
Modir gave them a little smile, "It's okay. You tried, and... I'm really grateful that you did."
"Mind if we join you?"
"Oh, no, I don't mind." Modir moved his tail out of the way so that it didn't get sat on as Jake and Nog took the spaces either side of him.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" The young Cardassian said after a few minutes of peaceful silence.
"Yeah... It is beautiful." Jake said.
"Beautiful... And full of opportunities to earn profit!" The other two glared at Nog, who quickly defended himself by saying, "What? Rule of Acquisition number 75: 'Home is where the heart is, but the stars are made of latinum'."
"Way to ruin the moment, Nog." Jake rolled his eyes and turned back to the window.
Modir smiled to himself. These two were very entertaining and, not to mention, warm. He wasn't in physical contact with either of them and yet he could feel the heat radiating from their bodies. It was quite comforting in the brisk temperature of the station.
"I hate to interrupt what I'm sure is a lovely bonding moment between the three of you, but Commander Sisko wants to see you, Modir, in his office. Now." The rather miffed voice of the security chief, whose name Modir later learned was Odo, came from just over their shoulders. They all turned to see Odo standing stiffly behind them with arms folded, waiting. Modir couldn't help the wide-eyed expression of fear on his face as he stood up. The young Cardassian gave his new friends one last quick smile before following Odo to the nearest turbolift.
"Ops."
The lift began to move. Modir hadn't been to Ops before, he wasn't even sure what was up there. Assuming that "Ops" was short for "Operations", he supposed that it was probably some sort of control room. But Modir had more on his mind at that moment than guessing about where he was going: The all-too-familiar sensation of anxiety growing in his chest was beginning to overwhelm him. He couldn't help the way his hands trembled as he and Odo stood in silence. Attempts to hide his nerves by steadying his breathing and holing his hands behind his back were futile, as the rapid, unconscious flicking of his tail gave him away to the security chief. Odo didn't say anything, but Modir could tell that he knew. It was fairly obvious that the young Cardassian was agitated about something.
Modir's suspicion turned out to be correct, but as they left the turbolift, his mind was focussed on one thing. Although, as he and Odo passed through Ops towards Commander Sisko's office, he caught the eyes of several officers. Miles gave him a reassuring nod from across the room, and the officer whose intricate, spot-like markings he had noticed before wished him good luck. Major Kira merely spared him a glance at first, but she must have seen his thinly veiled terror and returned his gaze with a slight smile. Modir appreciated their efforts to comfort him, but it did very little. The moment he set foot inside Sisko's office, another wave of adrenaline hit him.
This was it. Time to find out whether he would be allowed to stay on DS9, or sent back to Bajor against his wishes. Modir highly doubted that the Commander would send him to Cardassia; he had no place there, even if he would be among his own kind. It was either the station or Bajor. No in-between, no other options, no questioning Sisko's decision.
The Commander's word was final. No one had said it, but Modir knew it, and he wasn't prepared to go up against someone in a position of power.
"Hello again, Modir." Sisko greeted the young Cardassian from his desk as Odo left the room, leaving only Modir and Sisko in the office. "I trust you had a pleasant night with the O'Briens."
Modir nodded, "They were very kind to me. I... really liked them." He said softly.
"Good. Now, I have been in contact with a... friend on Cardassia to see if you have any living relatives who might be able to care for you." Sisko got up and walked around the table to Modir as he spoke. "As it turns out, unlike Rugal, you truly are an orphan. Unfortunate though that may be, it eliminates Cardassia from your list of options."
Good, at least he agreed with Modir on that one.
"I have also been in touch with your adoptive family on Bajor. As I'm sure you can imagine, they are keen to have you returned to them."
Not a good sign, Modir thought.
"But after some discussion, they and I have come to an agreement. Your parents understand your desire to learn more about your fellow Cardassians despite what they taught you while you were in their care. It's only natural for you to want to know the truth, the full truth, about your people, and to live somewhere where being a Cardassian doesn't matter quite so much."
Wait, what?!
A brief pause, then Sisko broke out into a smile, "It took some convincing, but your parents have agreed to let you stay on DS9. The only conditions are they can keep in touch with you over subspace and come visit you every once in a while."
The young Cardassian was left speechless. He just stood there, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape, completely frozen with shock. Even his tail had stopped twitching.
Sisko clapped a hand on Modir's shoulder. "Congratulations, Modir, you've just become an official resident of Deep Space 9." He said, sounding almost proud that the boy would be staying.
Modir was still at a loss for words. His parents had actually agreed to this?! Not that he was complaining, of course; He simply couldn't believe that, after all these years of essentially brainwashing him to hate his own kind, they were letting Modir abandon that life so easily. Perhaps they truly did care for his wellbeing and weren't merely attempting to raise a generation of Cardassians who went against everything Cardassia stood for. But potentially even more shocking than his parents agreeing to this arrangement was Sisko agreeing to it. That aspect of this strange situation utterly bewildered him.
The Commander had known of Modir's presence on the station for less than a day, yet he was already willing to let Modir, a Cardassian, stay there. On a Bajoran station. Surely DS9's Bajoran population wouldn't approve, which would no doubt cause an abundance of problems for Sisko and his officers. But there he was, giving Modir the opportunity he had been longing for, the chance to start a new life in a new place with new people, and no-one to tell him what he should or shouldn't believe about his kind.
It was perfect. Too perfect.
But now wasn't the time to worry about whether the Commander had some sort of ulterior motive for keeping Modir on the station - The young Cardassian had other things to think about.
After several seconds of shock-induced staring, Modir finally spoke up. "I... oh thank you, sir, thank you so much, you-" His eyes were welling up now, the pure joy he had tried to hold back was starting to overflow, "... I-I never thought you would actually let me stay."
Sisko chuckled softly, "Come on, let's get you properly settled in. You'll still be sharing quarters with the O'Briens, unless there's someone else you'd rather stay with." He said as the two began to make their way out of the office.
"No, no, the O'Briens are perfect." Modir's smile was the biggest, broadest, most genuine smile he'd ever had; The young Cardassian was practically bursting with happiness. He couldn't help the few tears that caught on his eye ridges as he followed Sisko through Ops, grinning giddily at Miles and the others, and back to the turbolift. Their brisk walk down to the O'Briens' quarters was the first time Modir had traversed the station's halls, not as a guest, nor a runaway, but as a resident.
His heart was pounding, and his hands were shaking, and the tears continued to flow, but for all the right reasons.
Modir was finally free to live as he wanted, do as he pleased, and simply exist as a Cardassian without the harsh treatment he faced on Bajor. There would be challenges, of course: Most of the station's population was made up of Bajorans, after all, but that didn't matter. He had a new home, new friends, a new life.
Things were finally looking up.