Chapter Text
Kira stumbled back from the Orb and tripped, landing on her butt. Her clothes suddenly dwarfed her. She looked down to find herself prepubescent. She hit her combadge.
"Kira to Dax."
"Dax here. You sound different, are comms okay?"
"Please meet me in the shrine."
"The shrine? Are you sure?"
"Pleeeeease!" Kira hadn't intended to whine, but it had come out that way.
"Look, kid, you need to find Major Kira and give her her combadge back before Odo catches you-" Jadzia advised.
"Jadzia it's me! It's Nerys. I need you to come to the shrine. Something happened."
"On my way." Jadzia promised. Once the comlink ended Kira let out the sniffle she'd been suppressing. She didn't know what was going on and she was scared. For now she pulled off her boots and rolled up her sleeves and pants.
"Kira?" Jadzia asked as she entered.
"Jadzia!" Kira ran over in her too-big socks and hugged her friend tight. Jadzia was easily 40cm taller than her now. "I don't know what happened! I had an Orb vision-" she sniffled, "and then I- I was like this! I don't know how it happened, or how to change me back, or anything!" She was crying, and Jadzia rubbed her back.
"Okay, shhhh, it's okay, we'll figure it out." Jadzia soothed. Once Kira got control of herself she let Jadzia scan her with the tricorder. "According to this, you're 9 years old now. Unfortunately, there's not much else this can tell me." Jadzia frowned.
"But you're a scientist!" Kira protested.
"I'm sorry. You should go to the Infirmary just in case, I'll let Sisko know what's going on, and get you some clothes that fit."
"Okay." Kira knew it was the smart thing to do, even though she didn't like it.
"Bashir?" She asked as she entered.
"Yes?" He looked up and immediately grabbed his tricorder to scan her. "Kira?" He asked as he knelt down and started the scan. She hated being short again.
"Yeah. Something happened with the Orb of Time. I don't know what." She took a deep breath to not cry again. "Can you fix me?"
"Logically we should be able to, but we need to determine how it happened in order to reverse the process. I'll need to do some more scans. Would you like something more comfortable to wear?"
"Jadzia said she'd get me clothing, but maybe for now..." Kira hiked her collar up off her shoulder. Bashir grabbed her a child-size set of patient clothes and left her alone to change.
"Okay, I'm ready." Kira walked over to Bashir.
"First off, the fact that you remember who Jadzia and I are is promising." Bashir led her to a biobed and Kira climbed up. "How do you feel?"
"Frustrated." Kira replied immediately. "Scared." She admitted. "Physically I feel fine."
"So it would be accurate to say that all of your adult memories and personality are just in a smaller, younger body." Bashir stated.
"Yes."
"Dax to Kira." Her combadge was somewhat muffled in the pile of her uniform. Bashir grabbed it for her.
"Kira here."
"Kira, would you be okay waiting in the infirmary for a bit? Sisko and I would like to investigate the shrine before this happens to anyone else."
"Do whatever you need to, Dax. I'm sure Bashir's tests are going to take time."
Kira sat on the biobed and swung her legs as she waited for Bashir to analyze the test results. Why was boredom so much more unbearable now? Was she going to have to grow up again? What if she went to the Orb again, would it fix her? Or make her even younger? The Orb of Time seemed to be nothing but trouble, they should probably lock it up somewhere or something. Once she was an adult again. Chief O'Brien entered the infirmary, sighed when he saw her, and went to talk to Bashir. Kira hopped down and followed him. What could he possibly have to discuss with Bashir at work?
"Kira." Bashir greeted her. "You may be surprised to know that you are not the first case of spontaneous gross age regression known to Starfleet."
"I'm not?" She asked.
"In fact, a few years ago, members of the Enterprise D were affected, and Chief O'Brien helped restore them to their proper ages. I'm still waiting on a response from their CMO, I'm hoping the Chief can give me a hand in the meantime."
"Any idea how long it will take? Can I wait in my quarters?"
"You don't seem to be in danger of regressing further, I don't see why not." Bashir nodded.
"Come on!" Kira jabbed at the display on the infirmary replicator and banged it with a fist.
"What's the matter?" O'Brien sighed.
"It won't give me my uniform in my current size." Kira seethed.
"It has very limited clothing patterns unfortunately." Bashir replied.
"Probably it expects members of the Bajoran Militia to be taller. I'll see what I can do once I have my toolkit, but you ought to be able to replicate other clothes your size for now."
"But I want my uniform ." Kira crossed her arms. Wearing children's clothes would just make her feel even more like a child.
"Well, then, you'll have to wait. Sorry." O'Brien shrugged. Kira went to the bathroom for privacy. This wasn't a big deal, it was just clothes, why was she getting so upset? When she had been 9 for real she had had much bigger problems to worry about. But she couldn't stop the twisting in her gut, the heat in her chest, on her face. She looked in the mirror and stopped. She looked so juvenile. The sinks came up past her navel, her hair was long and disheveled. Her face was splotchy with rage, her eyes puffy and wet, nearly crying. She looked pitiful, and no militia uniform would fix that. She wiped her face and composed herself, then sullenly went to get children's clothes from the replicator. At least she could get an all red outfit, and shoes that fit.
Kira paced her quarters. She had so much energy and nothing to do with it. She'd combed out her hair, tied it up, and stopped herself from cutting it. She'd tried praying, but couldn't sit still. She'd nearly opened a comm to Bashir half a dozen times, but she knew he'd comm her the minute he had something to report. Re-aging her wasn't going to be easy, it was going to take time to figure out. She wondered how similar her case was to what O'Brien had helped with. She needed to do something. When she was really 9 she'd just run, run laps around the Singha refugee camp. Well, she could still run. The habitat ring was a good size, and she could move to the docking ring if need be. She left her quarters and started to run. Her shoes were too stiff so she took them off and ran with one in each hand.
"No running." A Starfleet security officer held a hand out to stop her. Kira scowled. If she had looked normal no-one would have stopped her. "Go to the holosuites if you want to play, kid." Kira didn't know if Quark would sell holosuite time to her when she looked like this, but she remembered Jake bought holosuite time when he was 13. But she looked even younger, and didn't want to talk to Quark, and didn't want to spend money just to run. She walked out to the docking ring and started to run again. When would Bashir comm her? Surely it would be today. Would Sisko want her to work tomorrow, looking like she did?
"Hey, what's going on?" A Bajoran security officer stepped in front of her.
"Nothing." Kira replied, scowling again.
"Why aren't you wearing your shoes?"
"Because I want to run and these aren't good for running."
"Where'd you get that combadge?" The woman frowned.
"It's mine." Kira sighed. "This is going to sound crazy. I'm Kira Nerys, Major in the Bajoran Militia, second in command of the station. Something happened to me a few hours ago that made me look like a 9 year old."
"Where's your family, kid?" The woman sighed.
"Ask Lieutenant Dax! She can confirm everything I'm saying!" Kira crossed her arms. The woman frowned and hit her own combadge.
"Atola to Lieutenant Dax."
"Dax."
"Lieutenant, I'm sorry to interrupt, I have a child here claiming to be Major Kira, insisting I call you."
"Yes, that is the Major. We're not certain what happened, we're working on aging her back up." Dax informed her.
"Oh. My apologies."
"We understand, you did the right thing. Dax out."
"I'm sorry Major." Atola frowned. "Would you like me to alert the other security officers so they know you look younger?"
"I'm hoping we'll have this fixed soon." Kira sighed. "Though it may be a good idea, since we don't know how long I'll be stuck like this."
"You understand that we can't allow running, even in low-frequented areas of the station." Atola noted.
"Yeah." Kira sighed. "I still have all my memories of being an adult, I still feel like an adult, but I guess I've got kid logic." She nodded. "I'll let you get back to work. Thanks for understanding." Kira sat on the lip of a nearby doorway to put her shoes back on.
Kira paced her quarters again. She didn't want to talk to Quark, but she couldn't sit still. When was Bashir going to have even a hint of an answer? She grabbed some money and headed to Quark's. She didn't make it to the bar, her gaze stopped at Garak's shop. She hadn't heard from Jadzia, and would need clothes for tomorrow, at least. She sighed and headed in.
"Well aren't you brave." The tailor observed, keeping his distance. Kira didn't reply, looking at the few options for children. "Most Bajoran children your age hide behind their parents when they visit, but you came alone, that's commendable." He continued.
"Do you have anything in red?" Kira asked.
"Not at the moment, unfortunately. Favorite color?"
"It doesn't show blood." Kira stared him in the eyes as she said it. Garak merely smiled.
"Fresh blood, not as much, but it does show dried blood, not to mention blood of Vulcans, Bolians, Orions… Plenty of races have non-red blood. I can make you something, if you like." He offered. Kira considered.
"How much for a rush on a Bajoran Militia uniform in my size?"
"That would depend when you need it by. How urgent is this game of pretend?"
"0500 tomorrow." Kira crossed her arms.
"Quite a rush. Let's see, for something that complex that soon… Are you paying in litas or latinum?"
"Latinum."
"30 strips." That was double the price of his most expensive child's piece, but she did want it tomorrow.
"Deal." Kira emptied her pouch on the counter. "I only have 15 strips with me, I'll get you the rest soon."
"Alright." Garak replied and scanned her for measurements, then spoke up when she was almost to the door. "I do hope you get this sorted out soon, Major." Kira whirled around, hands in fists.
"Bashir to Kira." Her combadge relayed. Her fists tightened. She wanted to question how the man knew it was her, but Bashir had finally gotten back to her.
"0500 tomorrow." She pointed at Garak. He nodded. Kira hit her combadge and stalked over to the infirmary. "Kira here, be there in a minute." She ended the connection before Bashir could say anything.
Kira strode into the infirmary and was stunned at the sight of Sisko. Normally he was tall, but now the Emissary towered over her.
"Ah, Kira, I almost didn't recognize you with long hair." Sisko smiled and they started the impromptu meeting. He and Jadzia had scanned the Orb of Time, and spoken to every Vedek they could, even Bareil on Bajor. The Vedeks all suggested that the Prophets had done this for a reason that Kira needed to figure out. Bashir had spoken with the doctor from the Enterprise, and he had some theories, but nothing solid.
"What do you need from me?" Kira asked once they'd all finished.
"For now, your patience." Bashir replied. "It may take me up to a week to identify and reverse the process."
"Chief O'Brien and his wife have volunteered to let you stay with them and their daughter if you like." Sisko said gently. Kira scowled.
"I know I'm shorter than usual, but I'll be fine staying in my quarters alone, like normal."
"I'd like you to speak with Vedek Porta about your Orb vision tomorrow." Sisko added. Kira stared at him. It was unlike him to accept his role as Emissary so easily. "Any clue that you or he can give us about what caused this would be useful." He continued. Kira nodded.
"So you don't want me at work."
"Not tomorrow, no. We'll end up playing this by ear, seeing how everything goes, how it's affected you." He replied simply. Kira nodded again, remembering how her thoughts had been affected. "Alright. I promise we're going to figure this out and get you back to normal, Major." Everyone wandered out of the infirmary (except Bashir).
"I know you said you want to stay in your quarters alone like normal," Jadzia started, "I just wanted to remind you that I'm always here if you want to talk, anytime."
"Thanks. I think I want to be alone for now." Kira smiled up at her friend, then doubled back to the infirmary.
"Kira?" Bashir looked just as alarmed as when she'd first entered the infirmary as a child. It didn't help her nerves.
"I think this thing is affecting my brain." She admitted, climbing onto a biobed and clenching her fists. "I still feel like an adult, I have all my memories, but my logic, and especially my emotions, it's like I'm a kid again."
"It could be due to brain structure or hormones." Bashir thought aloud as he scanned her. "You're not regressing further, Major." He assured after looking at the results. "A 9 year old's brain hasn't finished forming yet, that's likely the culprit for why you're feeling this way. Everything's more intense, right?"
"Yeah." She nodded, glad he was certain she wasn't getting worse.
"The emotional processing of your brain is more powerful than the logic processing right now."
"Thanks Bashir." She smiled and hopped off the biobed.
Kira had gone back to her quarters for money, paid Garak for the rest of her uniform (he'd already gotten started working on it), and went to Quark's. She paid for an hour in a holosuite, and didn't respond to any of his questions. The computer constructed a children's park with play structures, things Kira had seen very rarely in her life. She climbed all over the structures, enjoyed the simple rebellion and achievement of climbing up a slide, climbed and jumped and balanced places she clearly wasn't meant to be. She stood on the pointed roof of the tallest structure and sighed. This was the childhood she wished she'd had, the childhood she ought to have had. She sniffled and clambered down too fast, feet skidding, hurtling around corners on just the strength of a hand on a pole, bruising her shoulder on the wall when she let go too early. She hit the ground and ran, feet and heart pounding a jagged beat. The holosuite continued to create nondescript areas of soft moss and short grass as she kept running. Eventually she tired and threw herself to the ground to catch her breath, shoulders heaving.
Kira flopped to her back. She felt… She was mourning her childhood of course, but she wished someone else was here. She felt lonely. Solitude had been another rarity in her life, there were always other people around, starving Bajorans or uniformed Cardassians. She pushed herself up and left the holosuite just as the 5 minute warning went off.
"Springwine." Kira said as she pulled herself up onto the barstool. Quark turned to the replicator.
"Kava juice." He said as he set a glass in front of her. "1 slip."
"You don't realize who I am." She sighed.
"I don't care if you're the great granddaughter of the Grand Nagus, I'm not serving alcohol to a minor." Quark replied.
"Quark. I'm Kira. Look at my face. You know the big commotion at the shrine today? That's because I got turned into a 9 year old." Kira explained. Quark frowned at her. Just then Bashir entered after his shift, Kira waved him over.
"Bashir, please tell Quark who I am."
"This is the Major." Bashir nodded, Quark stared at her in shock.
"And please tell him that I am old enough to have a springwine." Kira continued.
"Actually, I would advise against alcohol or synthehol with your condition, we don't know how it might affect the re-aging process."
"You said you won't be able to fix me for a week." Kira crossed her arms.
"Alcohol affects the brain. I'd rather not take chances with yours." He frowned apologetically. Kira huffed and slid off her barstool, then reconsidered and slapped a slip of latinum on the bar and grabbed the glass. She was still thirsty from her run. She headed to the habitat ring, drinking her juice.
"Kira to Dax." She said, opening a comlink. "You up for company?"
"Of course!" Jadzia sounded genuinely excited.
"Hey." Jadzia smiled when the door to her quarters opened. "I know I promised to get you clothes that fit, but I was thinking about standard Starfleet replicators, not Cardassian station ones." She frowned apologetically. "But we can check out the Promenade if you like."
"Not now, thanks though. I just paid Garak to make me a new uniform for tomorrow." Kira replied as they sat on the couch. "Thanks for being so understanding earlier. Bashir said my emotions are being processed like I'm 9, which makes everything more intense."
"Makes sense." Jadzia nodded. "I'd probably react the same if I was suddenly a kid again."
"Did you find out anything about the Orb?" Kira asked.
"It scans the exact same as the first time we saw it." Jadzia shook her head.
"I know you're not very comfortable with my religion, thank you for investigating so thoroughly."
"Of course." Jadzia laid a soft hand on Kira's shoulder. "I care about you, Nerys." Kira nodded and sniffled, Jadzia smiled. "So what were you doing that caused that officer to question you?" Jadzia asked with a knowing grin.
"Running." Kira shrugged. "She wouldn't have stopped me if I didn't look like this."
"Just running to run?" Jadzia asked casually, Kira nodded. "When's the last time you did that?" Kira thought back. It had been years.
"Before I came to the station." She replied. She probably would have been stopped even as an adult.
"Is that what you did to pass the time while you waited for Bashir?"
"And I went to a holosuite." Kira shrugged, Jadzia stared at her.
"You hate the holosuites." Jadzia stated, Kira scoffed.
"I don't hate them, I just think usually they're a waste of time, and I don't like the characters."
"So what program did you run?"
"No program, I just told the computer to make a climbing structure."
"A playground?" Jadzia asked.
"Yeah. I climbed on that for a while."
"You can say you played." Jadzia said gently. Kira scowled. "Or not." Jadzia shrugged. Kira took a deep breath.
"I... played. I- I had fun."
"That's good, I'd hate to think you were bored for hours on end."
"Went to Quark's and Bashir said I'm not even allowed to have synthehol." Kira frowned.
"Well, I agree that alcohol would probably not be a good idea, but we're not going to be getting you back to normal tonight, I think a little synthehol between friends would be okay." Jadzia smiled.
"Please." Kira grinned. Jadzia got them each a glass of synthale from the replicator. Kira took a deep sip and fought not to spit it out.
"Tastebuds of a 9 year old, too?" Jadzia frowned sympathetically as Kira nodded. Kira stubbornly took another sip. She was an adult and she was going to enjoy a glass of synthale with her friend. "We can have soft drinks, I don't mind." Jadzia said.
"This is soft." Kira argued.
"Okay." Jadzia replied easily.
"This sucks. I can't have a drink with my friend, I can't go to work, I can't even enjoy being a kid again-" Kira stopped, realizing she'd said too much. Jadzia frowned at her, then shrugged and took another sip of her synthale. They drank quietly for a few minutes, Kira glad her friend didn't press for more information.
"Any plans for tomorrow besides talking with Vedek Porta?" Jadzia asked.
"Maybe pay Garak for another outfit." Kira sighed. "He knew who I was without me telling him."
"He's a very perceptive man." Jadzia frowned. "Are there no other places to buy clothes on the station? I'd think you'd rather buy from anyone but Garak."
"Oh, I would, but nobody else makes children's clothes." Kira sighed. "And he can make my uniform in my size."
"I was thinking maybe we could visit a holosuite together tomorrow after work, I can show you some of my favorite activities from my childhood."
"From Jadzia's childhood?" Kira clarified.
"Well, most Dax hosts loved playing in the snow as kids." Jadzia shrugged. "Does Dakhur province get snow?"
"Not a lot, usually around this much," Kira held her thumb and forefinger apart, "comes and goes multiple times throughout winter."
"Trill gets loads more, up to your knees or higher." Jadzia smiled. "The holosuite can make us warm clothing." Kira allowed herself a grin, her friend's excitement rubbing off. "Oh, speaking of clothing, do you know when Garak's going to have your uniform done?" Jadzia asked.
"I paid him good money to have it done by 0500 tomorrow." Kira replied. "I guess I'll go to his shop then, we didn't discuss that."
"I'm getting hungry, you want to have dinner here?" Jadzia asked.
"Sure." Kira replied. They both ordered food from the replicator and chatted while they ate. Spending time with her best friend, Kira almost felt like nothing was wrong, except everything was the wrong size. After dinner they talked some more, until Kira found herself nodding off.
"Computer, time." Kira said.
"2200 hours." The computer answered. Kira groaned. Jadzia sighed.
"You're welcome to the couch if you like, or we could share the bed." She offered.
"I'll be fine in my own quarters." Kira shook her head with a smile. "I'll see you at Quark's tomorrow?"
"I'll book us 1900 if that works? We can grab dinner after."
"Sure." Kira headed to her own quarters.
She knelt in front of her prayer wheel and prayed for guidance. Why did this happen? What was she supposed to do? She prayed until she woke up suddenly, still in front of the prayer wheel. She changed into what had been her shortest nightgown, which now reached past her knees, and got in bed. And couldn't sleep. She had just fallen asleep while praying, and now that she was in bed, she wasn't tired at all. She punched her stupid Cardassian triangular pillow.
"Computer, play Bajoran lullabies, volume 10%." Eventually she drifted off to sleep.