#both nog and rom

[monkeyoc]

I feel like out of Rom Nog and Quark, Quark feels like the only neurotypical

[jvlianbashir]

would they have a driver's license (ds9 edition)

sisko: yes. overall a good driver. serious about "defensive driving" and believes everyone should know how to drive manual in a pinch. gets annoyed when people don't respect zipper merging

kira: she got one as an adult after a few attempts, but was definitely driving both cars and other vehicles/equipment illegally as a young teen and had to rein in some of those "seat-of-the-pants" driving habits

jadzia: yes and is a pretty good driver but has collected a few speeding tickets over the years

o'brien: yes and somehow ended up de facto driver's ed instructor for other ds9 folks trying to get one. it is very stressful

worf: yes and is a solid driver overall but the road rage is crazy when people cut him off or drive like assholes

bashir: yes. aced the written exam and knows all the rules well, but you CANNOT talk to or argue with him while he's driving or he becomes a distractible terror on the road

odo: yes and abides by traffic laws and speed limits perfectly (some may say pettily) which ironically makes him a bit of a hazard at times

ezri: no and she's scared to get one, but wants to eventually

quark: license chronically suspended

nog: similar to kira. got one later (after instruction from sisko and o'brien) and is a very good driver now but was an absolute menace on the roads as a teen

rom: yes but drives slow as hell and causes traffic jams that make him anxious so he drives even slower

[azrael08]

Something I picked up on while rewatching “Little Green Men” S4:E7

When the humans go to greet the Ferengi and we see that their UT’s aren’t working and they all do the head bangy thing Rom and Nog only do it to one side of their head with one hand while Quark uses both hands and hits both sides of his head/both his ears

And when we turn and see the humans copying them all the men copy Rom and Nog and only use one hand, but the lady copy’s Quark and uses both her hands, and only later when Quark switches to use just one hand does she follow and they all use one hand.

Again later in the episode the nurse and her fiancée have a conversation about the three of them possibly being family. They correctly identify Rom and Nog as being father and son but then she points out that Quark could be the mother to which he immediately agrees, switches pronouns, and calls Quark out saying, “If she is the mother, she’s quite a shrew.”

Idk if I had a genuine point to all this aside from a shout out to this legend of a couple and specifically nurse Garland for recognizing the pure feminine energy radiating off of Quark at all times.

Side note: Love that she absolutely clocks Quark's “My hero” moment towards Odo with that look on her face, meanwhile her fiancé is just freaking out trying to wrap his mind around whatever the hell Odo is in the background

[thethirdromana]

There's a question that I think lies at the heart of nearly every character on Deep Space Nine: who am I and where do I belong?

In Star Trek terms it's not a question that's unique to DS9 - TOS asks it of Spock, TNG asks it of Worf and Data, in both cases very effectively. But where DS9 differs is that, with the loveable exception of Miles O'Brien, it's something that every main character grapples with at some point, and usually in depth.

At the start of the series, Sisko thinks he knows who he is (normal human) and where he belongs (Earth, ultimately), but he discovers he's wrong about both of those things.

Bashir hides who he is, and his belonging in Starfleet, the only home he has, is fragile and threatened.

Worf's sense of who he is as a Klingon adopted by human parents is a key theme of TNG; his arc on DS9 is in part about finding a way to belong to both parts of his background.

Kira seems like she has a very strong sense of who she is and where she belongs, but 'Second Skin' throws all that into doubt. (Never mind the part of her identity that is "fighter of Cardassians").

Odo doesn't even know what his species is at the start of DS9. Even by the end of the series, the question of whether he belongs on the station or with the Changelings is an open one.

Jadzia Dax is more certain of who she is and where she belongs, but her nature as a joined Trill inherently raises questions of identity and belonging.

Ezri Dax, unprepared for joining, sometimes has literally no idea who she is when she's first introduced.

Garak knows who he is (a Cardassian) and where he belongs (Cardassia). But you could hardly describe either answer as straightforward.

Quark believes himself to be a traditional Ferengi through-and-through, and desperately tries to cling on to that belief despite all evidence to the contrary.

Nog breaks away from what's expected of him based on who he is, in order to find where he belongs.

Jake does the same, albeit with an easier journey.

Rom believes himself to be of little worth and that with his lack of business sense he could never really belong on Ferenginar, and he learns that he's wrong about both of those things.

The same question even plays out with minor characters - Eddington, Ziyal, Damar, Weyoun 6.

For me, I think this is a significant part of what makes DS9 such a rich series, and what makes its characters so interesting. None of them are static because in almost all cases their identities are actively being challenged and changed as the series goes on. And all of this intersects with DS9's themes of colonialism, migration, and cultural assimilation in fascinating ways.

[walkingstackofbooks]

Thinking about a DS9 version of Voyager, that happened a few years later (late s4?), only they sent the Defiant along with Voyager to find Chakotay's crew. Mostly because I think it's really hard sometimes to think about what the Voyager crew lost/left behind in those seven years, whereas we know the families and friends of the Niners.

This is just a bunch of assorted floating character thoughts, really...

Maybe Sisko got Kasidy brought along instead of/as well as Tom Paris as a "Maquis expert" - but Jake definitely wouldn't be there. And the last time he saw his father, Joseph was having heart troubles, so there'd always be that question if if he'd even get to see his father again...

Miles of course is worrying about Keiko, who's pregnant, and Molly. Or maybe Kira's pregnant at this point... It would be interesting to have had Kira as the Maquis agent rather than Tuvok, but would also be interesting to see the pov of Kira who'd been left in charge of DS9 as she fairly often is on Starfleet things like this, and how they adapt on the station to losing most of their senior command crew.

Odo's almost definitely still on the station. He takes any feelings he totally denies having on Quark.

Hmmm, if we squeezed this into early season 5, we could have Nog going along as one of his first missions. Him and Jake barely get a chance to start arguing about living together before he's disappeared. Quark takes out any feelings he might have about this on Odo. And the new Starfleet commander, naturally.

If we're getting Nog, then Julian's already broken up with Leeta. (Sidenote - will she and Rom still get together, with Rom missing his son?) But Julian'll be missing Garak, who vice-versa misses him. (Sorry Garak, there's no way you were let in on this one.) I wonder if after a few years, when they feel really far away from the Federation, Julian would tell the crew about his enhancements? Or if it would be forced out in some incident?

Jadzia and Worf would all be fairly alright? There'd be the added no-trill-to-host-Dax-if-Jadzia-dies concern. And oooh, I can really imagine there being a massive conflict/solidarity love/hate relationship between B'Elanna and Worf...

To give enough room for everyone, I think the Defiant should remain intact, with Sisko as captain, and Worf as his XO. I think those two would be the only permanent fixtures though, as Janeway would insist they all act as functionally one crew and have a rota shifting the crew across the two ships.

Sisko would have a far harder time accepting the Maquis as officers though - while he'd have agreed with Janeway to work with them against the Caretaker, his personal negative feelings around Calvin and Kasidy and Eddington would not make him so agreeable to accepting them as crew for the long-term. I feel like he'd be more chill with the ones who'd never been in Starfleet, but Janeway's decision to have Chakotay as XO in particular he'd really push against. (Although, if Sisko could push past that all, it would then be a beautiful friendship imo - he and Chakotay are very similar people, I think.Maybe it turns out Chakotay knew and disliked Eddington, and they start to bond over that?)

Miles and B'Elanna would work well together, I think.He'd treat her fairly and respect what she could do - honestly, I think he'd be very happy to have someone that competent to rely on as his second. I think he'd be the first to ask Sisko to give B'Elanna an official Starfleet role of some description. I'd it possible to have a Chief of Ops on a starship? Maybe Miles suggests that he keeps that role and is responsible for the entire running of the ship, but B'Elanna's in charge of the engine room or something? I want to give her her well-earned seniority 😭

Julian and the EMH would be super interesting to see. Voyager's medbay would be used for both ships, and Janeway would want him there as CMO. Hmmm, although, maybe he could be incapacitated when the ships are pulled through and the EMH does still have to take over... maybe even in a long-lasting way - losing a hand, or something? - that means he has to rely on the EMH? Either they'd be firm friends or wouldn't be able to stand each other, but I think they'd play off each other really well, just spouting medical theories at each other without missing a beat. Although, Julian might soon realise he can't allow himself to get too carried away, because while it's a delight that the EMH can keep up with him, *he* shouldn't be able to keep up with the EMH in terms of quoting textbooks word-for-word etc.

(I can't not mention the potential Harry/Julian/Tom/B'Elanna mess? They all make each other worse...)

I'd like to see Kasidy getting on with Neelix and Kes, feeling a bit on the outside. She'd be able to bring her diplomatic skills to the table - maybe internally at first, helping to smooth Maquis-Starfleet tensions? But it wouldn't be easy for her, as a captain, serving under either Janeway or Ben on their ships, I don't think. I think she and Kes could have a really lovely friendship though.

Sisko would, at the very least, love Neelix's idea of a kitchen and try to get involved in cooking something as often as he could. And the whole crew would conspire to make this happen because 1. It makes Sisko happy and 2. They get fed much better on the days he's in charge XD

There's definitely way more to explore here but I need to go and make lunch and I'm trying not to grow my draft box too much again, so hey, have some random food for thought!

[fatalism-and-villainy]

I said this on another post, but the ending of Quark’s arc is so depressing to me. The Dogs of War sees him going full reactionary and responding to Ferengi reforms by doubling down on his most conservative beliefs (and his misogyny). Which is disappointing given the show’s forays into his heroism and his inability to actually be an amoral and ruthlessly profit-oriented model Ferengi (like The House of Quark, or Business as Usual especially) but is also kind of sad in that it demonstrates how small he actually is, that the last bastion of Ferengi traditionalism is just his bar on a space station.

And he’s lonely. Both Odo and Rom have left the station by the end, and even though other people he’s close to (especially Nog) are still around, there’s distance between them because he hasn’t been through the war with them (while Nog has been fully brought into the Starfleet fold). There’s that exchange with Vic in What You Leave Behind about how hard it is to get left behind when everyone else is in battle, and “a bartender’s life is a lonely one” and “the person giving the party is never having any fun.” And while the other characters get decidedly bittersweet but still hopeful endings, Quark is just kinda stagnant and does not have a lot to look forward to except more of the same. And he’s in an ideological prison of his own making. It’s believable as a character direction but it’s still pretty bleak.

[denahi]

A very late Multifandom Doodle gift -- I started this in 2021. I saw these eight characters being requested and came up with a 4-piece idea themed around pairs of characters in Quark's family celebrating a Ferengi holiday themed around Rule of Acquisition #75 ("Home is where the heart is, but the stars are made of latinum") and the date the Ferengi acquired warp drive technology, but then didn't have the time to actually execute it. I was finally able to finish this up for Late Treat Bonanza. More notes under the cut if you're interested:

Jake and Nog are in charge of cooking. This is post-canon, so Jake has some facial hair, and also can cook Ferengi dishes.

Rom and Leeta are in charge of decorating. I get the feeling they'd both enjoy making things look pretty. I wanted to come up with a holiday that Ferengi might celebrate, so I decided on a commemoration of when Ferengi bought warp drive technology and so were able to travel the stars for the first time (and so engage in many new business ventures!). Traditional decorations are the Tower of Commerce (this one here is an official 1/300 scale model) plus the Ferengi Alliance insignia, stars, and slips of latinum. This one took me forever -- trying to figure out poses and perspective and the background... ToT

Pel and Ishka are making the dough! Pel is on a business call, and Ishka is giving her advice while also doing some stock trading.

Finally, Quark and Odo are doing nothing of value arguing with each other at the dining room table.

[cdr2002]

I gushed about the DS9 mirror universe in a previous post and how I feel the setting is more fluid than stories centered on the dominance of the Terran Empire, but I really do love the way it handles inverting and “mirroring” characters and concepts

“The names are the same, but the players are in different places” I think Prime Kira put it

The Federation and the mirror Cardassian Union are direct parallels. Both powers enjoy beneficial alliances with the Klingons and Bajor, and a severe dominance over Alpha Quadrant politics. The Alliance is on a larger scale essentially the mirror Federation of this era. Kira at the beginning of the series worried that the Federation would be just like the Cardassians. Oh the irony.

The TNG era is generally considered to be the Federation at its height, before the losses suffered at the hands of the Borg and the Dominion, at least. Meanwhile in the mirror universe, the Terrans, vulcans, and others are at their absolute lowest. They are in essentially the same position that the Bajorans were under the Cardassian occupation. And the Bajorans are, at least in part, among their oppressors.

Kira’s nemesis is Gul Dukat. The Intendant has Gul Dukat’s old job, and behaves similarly to him in many ways. Both Kiras are fundamentally the same person enough to understand each other, but in the ways that they differ are all traits that Intendant shares with Dukat. Kira is second in command of the station, under Sisko’s command. The Intendant commands the station, and Sisko works for her. The reversal of their egos is the most obvious, and the component Nana Visitor herself has commented on.

Prime Garak is an exile. Mirror Garak is still trapped in Cardassian military service, and seems miserable with it, much the way I imagine Prime Garak would have found himself eventually.

O’Brien has a loving family. Smiley has nothing. This very fact helps to inspire him to become a revolutionary. O’Brien knows what he lives for. Smiley has to find it.

Both Siskos “lost” Jennifer. One to the Borg, one or his own hubris.

Prime Bashir is a genius and a savant. Mirror Bashir is kind of a thug.

Prime Quark is arrogant and swaggering. Mirror Quark is timid and quiet, but also more outwardly kind. Too outwardly perhaps, considering he got caught, but we can’t fault him for doing the right thing.

Prime Worf was raised by humans. Regent Worf is all Klingon. If he knew the Rozhenkos, they were probably house servants or something. He was intentionally written to be like Gowron.

Similarly, Mirror Nog is very Quark-like.

The situation that the Rebellion finds itself in forces them to operate and conduct themselves VERY similarly to the Maquis, ironic considering how many of our Starfleet characters have mirror selves who are members of this Rebellion, and who in the prime universe, have opposed the Maquis. Sisko being the most prominent example. They even use more or less the same vehicles and weapons as the Maquis, and I think there are a few shared background actors between both groups, potentially the prime and mirror versions of the same peoples.

Similarly, Tuvok is a spy for Starfleet within the Maquis in the prime universe. He is genuinely 100% a rebel in the mirror universe. Both Tuvoks also have the same outfit in their wardrobe.

Prime Rom is relatively timid. Mirror Rom is fairly aggressive.

Ezri received the Dax symbiont in the prime universe. This never happened in the mirror universe, and the episode makes sure to emphasize this. She’s also tough, guarded, sassy, and aggressive where Prime Ezri is somewhat meek, fairly open, friendly, and usually cordial but does say what’s on her mind, bringing a similarity between her and her mirror counterpart. Mirror Ezri ultimately choosing to become a member of the rebellion could also be argued as a similarity.

Mirror Jadzia is unfortunately quite underdeveloped and boils down to mostly sleeping with people Prime Jadzia ordinarily doesn’t. But there is an interesting note to Mirror Jadzia seeming to be a more frivolous and carefree person (or at least fronting as such), while Prime Jadzia is a relatively more serious person, and while both engage in casual sex, Prime Jadzia is a lot more considered when it comes to starting long term relationships than her counterpart, who doesn’t see Bashir’s immaturity as an obstacle to his compatibility as a partner.

The mirror Klingons and Cardassians find success and dominance in aligning. In the prime universe they go to war, to their mutual detriment.

DS9 ends with the prime universe Cardassian Union brought low and made to suffer a form of ironic penance for their past sins at the hands of a greater fascist power than themselves, much like the fall of the Terran Empire. But where the Empire was conquered by the Alliance, Cardassia is brought back to its feet by the Federation.

I don’t know precisely how intentional any of this was but I found it fascinating.

Oh and Mirror Bariel has a personality.

[kitkatt0430]

Quark doesn't have any children of his own (goodness knows he'd be paying out the nose for child support if he did) but he helped raise Nog. In a lot of ways, Nog is very much his kid.

When Quark was a kid, his father wasn't a good businessman. We learn over the course of the show that he's a lot more like his mother. She's brilliant with managing finances and gaining profit. Rom is much more like their father and for that reason Quark initially keeps him on a short leash. Rom's already been screwed over by his first wife and Quark feels like he has to protect his brother, even as he also tries to be a good ferengi by exploiting him.

Nog, raised with his father and uncle as his primary guardians, is acutely aware that his father has no real business sense. And while Nog is his father's son in many ways... he's also Quark's son. I doubt Quark would appreciate thinking it's his influence on Nog that leads him to join Starfleet, but Nog does inherit his uncle's intelligence and realizes that while he doesn't want the same life his father has... he doesn't want the life Quark has, either. Chasing profit and having it never be truly fulfilling enough. Nog's smart enough to figure out what he wants his own path to be, however, and he applies the lessons of their culture in ways that might not gain Quark's approval but does often gain his respect. (And inspires his father to eventually chart his own path too.)

Quark may never outright say it, but the way he feels at heart is pretty clearly that Nog is his kid too; we see him act parental, concerned... perhaps treating Nog at times the same way Ishka treated Quark and Rom when they were younger. Quark takes an interest in Nog's schooling when he's young and while he thinks Starfleet Academy is a mistake, still takes pride in being part of Nog's send off. Quark often 'mothers' Nog; I'm not really sure how else to put the way Quark will hover over Nog when he worries about his nephew, but it's definitely behavior Quark learned from his own mother. And when Nog is injured so badly during the war that he loses his leg, Quark nurses his nephew and even sets aside his own ideals to pick up a weapon in defense of them both from the attacking jem'hadar.

Every time I watch this show I think I come to love the way Quark, Rom, and Nog grow and change as a family over the course of the years a little more.

[attiredpan]

Miscellaneous Nog headcanons I have in no particular order;

Hates alcohol and restrictive dieting with all five feet zero inches of his entire being.

His first kiss was with one of Dukats kids during by the occupation.

Had a crush on Jake that lasted two years before he realized that shit wasn’t going anywhere and decided to move on instead of #LettingItLinger.

Bisexual, simultaneously a disaster and functioning. The mix of crippling anxiety and frightening self assurance doesn’t do any favors here.

Masculine by Human Gender Standard and Androgynous by Ferengi Gender Standards.

He’s that friend who will listen to anything and everything, fixates on singular songs for a couple months at a time, and his favorite genre of music is atonal minimalism. In my more general “Ferengi are good singers because of the hearing” headcanon; he’s also a good singer, gets it from Quark.

Got into Jane Austen’s novels while at the academy.

Clingy.

Bigger romantic than I think most would give him credit for. It’s something for him where any long term experience with it isn’t there so he always feels very awkward and janky whenever he does it.

Between him and Jake, he’s the one who can cook.

Was partially fluent in both Cardassian and Bajoran during the occupation and dropped the former when it ended. His Bajoran remained relatively the same while Federation Standard became the second language he was fully fluent in. Picked up learning Bajoran again when Rom and Leeta got together.

The kid everyone was trying to get the answers for the math homework from. I see everyone going “Nog’s a jock” like that man is a FREAKING NERD. And the both can coexist but we need to recognize the fact that he is a total nerd.

Denies it, but is actually very good with kids especially infants. He’s got the magic hold that makes babies stop crying in seconds while he internally freaks out cause he’s worried he’ll drop them.

[whispsofwind]

Tbh I still absolutely refuse to entertain the idea of Ziyal as a love interest for Garak because it just - isn't thematically interesting nor coherent with the rest of the series??

Like, there's so much importance on fatherhood and parental figures on DS9.

There's Ben Sisko and his relationship with both his own father and his son Jake, and how the positive relationship with his father translated into a virtuose generational cycle where he does his absolute best for Jake, always. Also, Sisko acts as a Moses figure in Bajoran religion, becoming as a paternal figure of sorts of Kira and as a Captain he acts a paternal figure for all of the Station, much more than Kirk or Picard ever did imo. (And quite frankly he is basically the MC so his character arc informs the whole series)

There's Julian and his relationship with his parents and especially his father - the father who became his architect because his son was "defective" and then resented Julian for it.

There's Rom and Nog and their mutually supportive relationships.

There is Kira Nerys and her relationship to multiple father figures - her biological father, sure, but also Ben Sisko and Tekeny Ghemor, and all the complicated messy feelings that those bring in their intersection with religious and political elements. And then the fact that Kira was a surrogate for the O'brien family and all the complicated feelings there, and her role as a parental figure to Ziyal.

There's Dukat and his absolute disaster of a relationship with his daughter (and his implied relationship with the rest of his children - and the implication that Dukat is not a good father by neither Federation or Cardassian standards).

There is Garak and the absolutely fucked up relationship he has with Tain and the intersection between Tain as a representative of the State and Tain as a father and the State as a parental figure to Cardassia.

In a smaller capacity there's also Miles who literally becomes a father a second time in DS9 and Worf and his complicated relationship with Alexander.

Odo and his complicated relationship with his "father", who wasn't his father at all but in a way wasn't he in the way he shaped Odo and his perspective of the world?

Even Dax, one could argue if stretching the argument enough, can be read through the lens of parental figures- Curzon as a father figure of sorts to Benjamin, albeit in a more fun dad sense, and Ezri as a metaphorical daughter figure to both Jadzia and Curzon, the young one with such big shoes to fill - I feel like I am not stretching it toooooo much here ok.

Just - so much of DS9 narrative revolves about being children of someone, and parents of someone. What it means to be a good father, a good parent, and how parents shape and form ad hurt and traumatise you.

And the writers were aware of that! So many episodes directly parallel two or more different plots about these elements with either the main characters or one-shot characters.

So, like, the subplot with Ziyal and Garak is basically already written?? Garak supplanting Dukat as a father to Ziyal is so thematically resonant with Garak and Dukat's storylines in the context of the broader implications of the show. It works on multiple levels in terms of Dukat not deserving fatherhood, and Garak breaking away from Tain's cycle of trauma and reconciling with a more humane and natural approach to family, and it also serves Ziyal's character arc in bridging her Cardassian and Bajoran sides through her putative parents, Garak and Nerys.

It's unfortunate that they really needed to make sure Garak looked straight and they chose Ziyal for it, because I truly think it was such a bad choice. I do not believe for a second that Garak is straight, so it didn't even work, but it surely ruined a perfectly good thematic streak they had going on.

[sopranoentravesti]

All right, DS9 fans who are opera freaks

For the 3 of you on tumblr, @currymuttonpizza and myself got chatting and one thing led to another and Badda-bing, Badda bang, we came up with the Fächer of the characters for the Opera version of DS9. Here goes

Captain Sisko: Bass Baritone. This seems self explanatory

Jake Sisko: countertenor

Major Kira: Coloratura mezzo. I may have been biased for this one bc that is the closest thing to my fach, but think Rossini‘s heroines, or some of Vivaldi‘s work (like Armatae Face et Anguibus from Juditha Triumphans)

Gul Dukat: also Bass-baritone, but of the villainous variety. Think Samuel Ramey as Reverend Olin Blitch in Susannah, or the titular role in Don Giovanni

Julian Bashir: Tenor leggiero. This also seems self explanatory

Kai Winn: originally I thought of a mezzo a la Ježibaba, but I think actually this may be a place for a villainous contralto

Jadzia Dax: mezzo, but of the type that delves down in contralto territory periodically (a la Avery Amereau ❤️)

Odo: dramatic baritone— to use @currymuttonpizza‘s inimitable phrasing “He's like if Scarpia were a good person idk.”

Worf: Bass, nuff said

Miles: baritone. Mostly an Everyman lyric kind but can venture in dramatic territory when he’s Suffering (he’s basically Wozzeck, if you think about it)

Keiko: sweet, loving, badass, sassy when needed? A soubrette, of the Mozart variety, a la Susanna and Zerlina

Garak: Britten tenor

Quark: dramatic baritone. Basically Alberich in space

Rom: Basso buffo

Nog: the guy you think is a tenor buffo, but is actually a Helden tenor

Kasidy Yates: full lyric soprano

Weyoun: tenor buffo. Complete Don Basilio type

Brunt: also tenor buffo. Both played by combs who brings buffo energy to both

Ezri: soubrette

Leeta: high poppy squeaky coloratura soprano (I’m thinking Olympia in the doll aria)

Damar: baritone, maybe slightly romantic but pretty run of the mill

Ziyal: light lyric soprano, ala Gilda from Rigoletto

Joseph Sisko: Dramatic Bass

Female Changeling: contralto, think Erda

Moogie: mezzo a la Marcelina from Nozze, but also some Despina vibes

Grand Nagus Zek: gonna trust @currymuttonpizza on this one, heldentenor like the drum major, but make it funny

Vedek Bareil: speaking role

[ferengii]

Sometimes I think about how different Nog and Bena’s (rom and leetas daughter) childhoods would’ve been.

Like nog grew up on terok nor, in the middle of the occupation, with only his father and uncle (who were both assholes tbh) and him and his having to work for low wages and quark cheating rom out of his .

And bena would grow up with two loving parents, being the daughter of the grand magus. She probably wouldn’t have to work a day in her life if she really didn’t want to.

Wonder how nog would feel about this tbh

[cloveroctobers]

starting to get to you — 9. Paul Cho (beef) [Winter Prompts]

A/N: Y’all have been asking for more Paul since forever and here’s me delivering it year(s)later. My concept of time has been trash since 2020 don’t mind me. I know this won’t probably do much in the notes department but I don’t really have anybody else to write about tbh. Also haven’t heard anything else on season 2 and if that’s still a go but they’re changing the storylines to anthology anyway which is unfortunate for Danny & Paul’s story and ironic since that’s pretty much all I write. At least we get to see YM in the last of us? Anyways! Happy new year to you all 🩵

~ @cigarettesandcoffeex I thought you might like a tag 😊

PROMPTS ARE FROM HERE & I’m using: DIALOGUE PROMPTS — "Someone spiked the eggnog!" + “Yeah, yeah i know, you hate Christmas.”

WARNINGS: language + innuendos, grumpy reader! & minor use of possible incorrect German.

<- read my previous winter anthology prompt here.

⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･

At the holiday market was honestly the last place you wanted to be but having a best friend—who was broke mind you—who also adored Christmas was basically a set up to begin with. The both of you arrived to the festivities right before the sun set, since you had to go to work and Paul was gracious enough to give you an hour to decompress before bringing you out to interact with more humans.

You were content staying in, hate watching crappy Christmas rom coms, having some snacks, catching a few naps that you knew would hit perfectly since you had the day off tomorrow but you should have known Paul would make you his number one target to hang out with him. It’s not like you hated Paul’s presence by any means, he wouldn’t be your friend if you did, it’s just that Christmas wasn’t your thing.

And this year in particular felt heavier for some reason. Like you weren’t meant to enjoy the gift that is Christmas but you put on a happy face, caught an uber together down where the holiday market was held, and braced yourself against the chill in the California air.

It felt like the both of you had been here for hours, walking down the large street of vendors filled with too many people. Paul ended up pulling you off to a less crowded area so you could try the beverage he brought without anyone bumping your elbow in the process. Placing your lips against the rim, Paul watched you as if you were his favorite tv show, anticipating your reaction as you tasted the contents.

You’re coughing as soon as you do, “Someone spiked the eggnog!"

Paul furrows his brows first, plucking the cup from your hand and sips himself, before a grin appears on his face, “Whoa, you’re right! Guess that’s why this was called: Esther’s spunky Nog.”

Giving him a blank expression, Paul just laughs further before shoving a hand into the pocket of his hoodie and nudging his head for the both of you to continue, “C‘Mon, I heard there’s a mini tree decoration competition. Maybe that’s more your vibe.”

“Maybe if I get to stomp them out after everyone puts up the decorations?” You countered as you fall into step with Paul.

He rolls his eyes at you, taking another sip of the disgusting beverage, “I forgot how much of a grinch you are…you’re worse than Danny and that says a lot.”

Scoffing you say, “Am I supposed to be offended?”

“…I would be.” Paul mutters just for you to jam your elbow into his hip, “Ow! Hey! I’m just being honest.”

“And I’m being honest about Christmas being too much that it actually makes me want to gag.”

“I thought you didn’t have a gag reflex?” The twenty something year old man jokes, which immediately makes you walk off ahead of him.

Yet he didn’t want to lose you in the sea of people, however due to his height, he had the advantage if he did. Paul gives you your space for a little, enjoying the soft bells of music that plays from overhead speakers tucked somewhere above your heads, embracing the chilly air that Californians would often label as cold but wouldn’t last a day in areas that actually were in the winter, and he did find himself smiling at a family in particular that felt familiar until his senses pull him back to you.

You’re being led off to one of the stalls, disappearing beneath the tent and Paul has no problem pushing through people to get to you. Once inside the surprisingly warm tent, he sees you sitting in a chair chatting with a woman who has a heavy German accent, holding up a gingerbread heart.

“You good?” Paul questions, making your attention shift from the woman to him.

The heavy set woman who is dressed traditionally beams at the sight of Paul as she winks at you, “Liebling.”

Is all Paul catches and you’re shaking your head, which lets Paul know that you understand what’s being said and he’s out of the loop. The German woman pulls Paul by the wrist and shoves him into the space beside you.

“Nice to meet you too.” Paul snorts as the woman yells for the young man with the camera, while Paul slouched down beside you and leans towards you, “Guess you really have no choice but to get in the Christmas spirit now, huh?”

Crossing your arms you side eyed the man in the rolled beanie, “Little do you know, I already asked Mrs. Adelheid if she has any Krampus masks.”

It was Paul’s turn to give you a blank stare while you smiled sweetly at him, “What the fuck? That’s not very Christmas of you.”

“It is in Germany.” You bump his shoulder, smiling to yourself while Paul rolls his eyes.

Mrs. Adelheid comes back questioning and motioning what you two wanted on the gingerbread heart. Paul got the gist, pressing his elbows into his knees and letting a smirk grace his lips, “What about…y/n loves Paul? X-Mas ‘22.”

The annoyance on your face is evident while Mrs. Adelheid smiles at you two, before letting out a yell for the young teen to step forward and take their picture. Paul tosses an arm across your shoulder, leaning back against the chair and grinning while roughly pulling you into his side that you have to hold onto his chest so you don’t double over as you quickly look up at him. The camera flashes before you know it, making you call out to the anxious teen.

“Hey, I wasn’t ready!”

Before you translate it into the bit of German that you know. Studying photo journalism abroad in Germany was a tale within itself but it was definitely a learning experience.

“1 hour.” Mrs. Adelheid informs the two after shooing her son off, “You’re welcome to stay and browse.”

Paul dips his head at the woman while you pull yourself away from under his arm. He lets his hand rest against his thigh, taking another sip of the warm spiked drink, smiling in secret amusement.

“How many likes do you think our gingerbread heart is going to get?” He asks.

Shaking your head you immediately reply, “You’re not posting that. We don’t even know how the picture came out.”

You understand getting raw footage but you can only wonder how this footage appeared.

“Quit your worrying, we’re hot and there’s no such thing as bad photos if you know your angles. And I would hope the kid would.”

“Seems like he’s forced to be here…something I can relate to so who knows?!” You throw your hands up in the air, “And I don’t need a repeat of your little fangirls threatening me on every social media account they stalk me on.”

Paul rubs at the back of his neck, “I did say I was sorry about that and made it clear to stream that no harassment towards you is cool…unless it’s from me of course.”

Your best friend was doing so well until he threw that last bit into it. It was during the summer time when Paul’s content creation slowly started to take off and people on the internet can definitely be more vicious since they felt like they had a screen that protects them. Even had a few “dedicated” fans pull up on you at work once, which was honestly the last straw and caused you to not want to be part of any streams Paul had going on.

He definitely understood and didn’t blame you.

The both of you sat in silence for a while, seeing the constant movement of attendees from outside the open tent. A few people would come in to browse and one ended up purchasing a wooden toy for their twins before it became quiet once more. Paul eventually got to his feet, looking around the vendor himself, knowing he couldn’t afford to purchase anything else right now but window shopping didn’t hurt.

You decided to browse your phone instead until you heard Paul’s booming voice, “Oh this turned out sick!”

That got you to your feet, moving to see the artwork. It was your photo in faded black and white placed in the shape of the gingerbread heart cookie, red frosting along the trimming, and a white string for it to be hung up. You peeked at Paul who appeared just like a kid on Christmas Day with stars in his eyes. Something so small brought him the biggest amount of joy and you were included on that.

The way your heart seemed to skip at the sight was something you’d never share.

“You like?” Mrs. Adelheid asks, “If not he will do it again.”

Paul shakes his head, “No! We love it, right?”

He glanced at you, hopeful.

A crooked smile appears on your lips, “We do. We’ll take it, you two do incredible work.”

Mrs. Adelheid smiles followed by a laugh at her own pun, “Herzlichen Dank.”

“Danke.” You still have a small smile on your lips, as Paul is holding onto the gingerbread heart by the string and the woman leaves to retrieve a padded box to protect it on your way home.

Your chin is hovering over Paul’s arm as he can’t seem to take his eyes off the cookie, “I told you we would look good as fuck. Or we ate down as you like to say. This is going to look fire hanging in the window…whoever decides to keep this and takes this home that is.”

Sighing, your lips part but Paul interrupts already having an idea of what you’re going to say,“Yeah, yeah I know, you hate Christmas.”

The longer you stare at the picture of you two together on this stiff cookie, the warmth that’s radiating from just standing beside your best friend, his soothing scent of ginger, mint, and cedar, and the way his own eyes are studying your gaze makes you appreciate the moment he’s loved all along.

Being around someone that mattered was perhaps maybe the only gift that you need.

“…I tolerate it because you love it.” Is what you come up with as your eyes meet his.

A stupid grin shines all over his features quicker than the glance he sends to your lips, “I’ve always known you were mushy underneath it all.”

“Don’t ruin it.” You shush with a finger to your lips.

Paul chuckles, “I won’t. It only lasts for a few seconds anyway.”

“Aw…you shouldn’t talk so low of yourself. It’s all about stamina.” You tease.

Paul scoffs, “Trust me, you don’t ever have to worry about that inside or outside the bedroom.”

Grimacing you lightly shove him, “Shut up, Paul.”

“You started it.”

Before you could get into a bickering match, the mother and son are back, wrapping and placing your gift into the box, collecting payment and wishing you a happy holiday before you’re blending back into the crowd. Paul’s holding onto the box underneath his arm, your arm is linked with his other now, and you’re stuck holding onto the eggnog that you’re occasionally sipping on to keep warm.

You don’t have much trouble doing that as your laughter echoes with Paul into the all and good night.

⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･:*౨ৎ ⛇･

Continue with my winter anthology prompts here.

[sputnikodin]

mar and i did finally get to watch another ds9 episode btw and it was GOOD it was the one where quark rom and nog go back in time and quark tries to strike up a trade agreement with the 1947 usa government. of gay odo german shepherd gif fame. it so thoroughly restored both of us afterward we both kept going that was so good I feel so normal

[cheeseanonioncrisps]

My personal hc is that, though Nog was the first, post-DS9 and Rom becoming Nagus Starfleet Academy is going to start becoming an increasingly attractive option for young Ferengi women whose families are more liberal in their beliefs but aren't as ‘radical’ as Ishka.

Cause I mean, Ferengi men are going to keep experiencing the pressure to earn Profit. That's not going to go away anytime soon.

Their religion appears to centre around the idea that it is a man's responsibility to earn enough latinum to allow themselves and any dependants (meaning both female family members and male members who can't earn for some reason) to enter the afterlife. Profit essentially = prayer.

Give it a few decades and I imagine they'll come up with some way to work around it— maybe Starfleet and the Alliance will rustle up some kind of ‘cultural stipend’ for Ferengi Fleet Members, or maybe the religion will start allowing for symbolic ‘earnings’ for unpaid labour— but in the mean time almost any male Ferengi who tries to apply is going to face exactly the same issues that Nog faced.

Concern from family members about how they're going to earn a Profit, and potentially resentment from male family members who will now have to pick up their slack.

But we can tell from the fuss everyone makes when Ishka starts earning that female Profit either doesn't count or is possibly actively profane. Ferengi females can clearly handle latinum that is earned by males (Quark sends his mother a stipend to live off) but they can't contribute to the family coffers.

So what can you do, if you're a newly liberated Ferengi Female who doesn't want to be married off and have to spend your life chewing food and performing Oomox on demand, but who perhaps isn't ready to bring Ultimate Shame on your family by earning Profit?

Well now there's an Option 3.

Yeah, you'll have to wear clothes. But I suspect that that particular social convention will vanish fairly quickly once Ferengi tailors start making Profit from selling women's clothing. And you get to have a job where you'll be treated with respect, with lots of opportunities for advancement, but no Profit is involved, so you're not stepping on any male family member's toes.

Hell, you can even spin it as a positive to your Head of Family (or a potential Mate). Like, they won't have to pay for your upkeep anymore, because Starfleet covers employee room and board. And you'll be travelling across the galaxy gaining potential business contacts for the Family.

And when trading with other species, especially Federation members, I suspect that having a sister or daughter employed and living out in the open would be a real positive when it came to negotiation.

Not only would you have a (wo)man on the inside, but you'd get to present yourselves as some of the New Modern Ferengi who are respectful towards Feeemales and Hoomans and are definitely nothing like those other Ferengi you may have heard about, who are just awful.

It'd be the equivalent of irl corporations tweeting about feminism to advertise how progressive they are.