hhhhhh so. Bashir is genetically enhanced. we don’t know exactly what his genetic resequencing consists of, but we do know that his reflexes and reaction times are superior, that he’s at least stronger and faster than the average Vulcan (so, about three times stronger and faster than the average human), that his memory and learning capacity are hugely enhanced, etc. 

we know that genetic resequencing is complex work fraught with a million potential complications, and that it’s not necessarily just about editing existing genes, but potentially includes genetic splicing and similar work - especially when you consider that the most legal and acceptable genetic engineering under Federation rules is in the case of assisting hybrid species and allowing healthy gestation of mixed-species babies, and also addressing potential health concerns and defects in-utero

it’s not unreasonable, therefore, to guess that part of the reason bashir’s genetic resequencing has resulted in such success, in such a stable subject, is in part because of choices made in the editing of his genetic profile; with the most research possible being into species hybridisation and cross-species genetics, it’s equally reasonable to assert that part of the best route to stabilising negative effects is in splicing in non-human genes. therefore, it’s possible that within his genetic profile, bashir has hidden aspects that aren’t entirely human - that he might be susceptible to some things that would affect other species that wouldn’t affect other humans

so i’ve been reading several rewrites of Empok Nor (5x24) where Bashir comes along for whatever reason, either replacing Nog or coming along to join the team and i’m just

what if Bashir was affected by the biogenetic compound that triggers the paranoid and defensive reaction in him that it triggers in Garak and the other Cardassians? what if Bashir, like Garak, became absolutely certain that everyone else on the station was a threat to him… but like Garak, had a complex “xenophobic” reaction?

because in Garak’s xenophobia, he still kills Cardassians. xenophobia, as pointed out in M_Moonshade’s excellent I could Be Your Own Avenging Angel, is about in-groups and out-groups - its about protecting what and who’s yours against what isn’t and who isn’t

and I think most of us would agree that Garak’s response to Bashir would at the very least be complicated, because Garak is probably closest to and most loyal to Bashir in the whole of the Alpha Quadrant, so much so that he repeatedly betrays - in small ways - Cardassia for him

but what about Bashir himself?

Exposed to the biogenetic compound, I would posit that if for the next hour or two he was with O’Brien, his loyalties would stick with O’Brien and maybe to the rest of the Starfleet crew - but if he was with Garak, it would stick with Garak

and. honestly? I think it might stick with Garak anyway

because Bashir loves O’Brien, and Bashir does trust O’Brien, but his relationship with O’Brien is fundamentally different to the one he has with Garak. Not because of his attraction to Garak or because of sex or love, but simply because like

O’Brien and Bashir’s levels of intimacy, like those between Garak and Bashir, are by their nature based in deception and lies. 

O’Brien and Bashir love one another very deeply but for various reasons (O’Brien’s Irish emotional repression, ingrained toxic masculinity, the secrets between them, the complex class and racial dynamics between a posh Arab Brit and a working class white Irishman depending on how much you subscribe to the fiction that race and class don’t exist on Earth anymore, except for the many places where they obviously do, etc) cannot voice their affection, or the specifics of it, outright

Garak and Bashir love one another too, but for different various reasons (of course, the secrets between them, Bashir as a young naive Human painfully caught up in the Federation’s liberal expansionism versus Garak as an older man deeply conditioned to be loyal to Cardassia’s imperial expansionism, but also critical of both it and the Federation when they share xenophobia etc in common, the complex power dynamics between Bashir as CMO with full citizenship and a command versus Garak, an exile in a tenuous position of stability with little more to his name than his shop), they cannot voice their affection, or the specifics of it, outright

but when O’Brien and Bashir fight, they need breaks from one another. they constantly disagree and have clashing values - and Bashir can and will overrule O’Brien as a senior officer, but O’Brien won’t always take that, and will sometimes force his hand; they genuinely get on one another’s nerves at times and need breaks from one another, bc for all their shared affection Miles is a very repressed allistic cishet and Bashir is a lonely, clingy autistic disaster bi. there’s nothing wrong with either of them being the way they are, but between differing values and fundamentally different personality types, not to mention small things that they do either on purpose or by accident to wound the other - Bashir playing on O’Brien’s insecurities when he’s casual about his intellectual or genetic superiority, O’Brien when he points out Bashir’s fragile relationships etc - they need space and time from one another. their relationship works as well it does because they let each other have distance.

meanwhile, the dynamic between Bashir and Garak is… quite different. Bashir can shoot Garak in the neck one evening, and the very next day, they’re back to having lunch together. Bashir barely bats an eyelid at Garak attempting genocide, let alone the numerous times he’s killed people in front of Bashir - or attempted to kill Bashir himself. it’s not that their values don’t clash - they do. constantly. it’s not that both of them don’t keep secrets from the other. it’s not that they don’t have vastly different personality types.

but where O’Brien and Bashir’s clashes often lead to little wounds that need time to heal, Bashir and Garak, they’re… you know, they’re fucked up. if they cut each other, the next step isn’t always the infirmary - sometimes, it’s fingerpainting in each other’s blood, and as much as Bashir feels conflicted about this, he frequently goes along with Garak anyway, so long as there’s no one else to observe

disagreements, especially minor clashes, rarely serve to shove them apart - they typically bring them closer together, so that they can argue-flirt with more intimacy. it’s not that Bashir trusts Garak more than O’Brien, or really that he entirely trusts Garak at all - but if you put Garak in the room, Bashir automatically stands at his side and falls into rhythm with him because of their shared wavelength, no matter who else is there. just look at Civil Defence, or any other episode where Bashir appoints himself resident lizard wrangler

so with empok nor like… just the idea of Bashir, just as inflamed and paranoid and struggling to think clearly as Garak, naturally gravitating toward and falling into his rhythm with Garak, and he doesn’t want to do any harm but they’re under attack! they need to defend themselves - he needs to defend Garak, and let Garak defend him!

and maybe he falters when he sees Nog - and when he sees O’Brien, boom, there’s the conflict, because he and O’Brien are friends. he loves Miles, Miles loves  him, and they’re both Human, they’re both from Earth, they’re the same, but… are they the same in the way that Bashir and Garak are?

if there’s an in-group and and out-group, where does Bashir belong? who does he belong with? 

and what does the fallout look like after, when all three of them have to grapple with the way that trust looks between them, surprising or otherwise?