Icon by @ThatSpookyAgent. Call me Tir or Julian. 37. He/They. Queer. Twitter: @tirlaeyn. ao3: tirlaeyn. 18+ Only. Star Trek. The X-Files. Sandman. IwtV. OMFD. Definitionless in this Strict Atmosphere.
This face like, “If you don’t want it, can I have it? As a treat?”
In all the conversations about Cardassians’ resemblance to alligators, DS9 fandom is totally sleeping on the fact that Sisko is from a region of the world whose cuisine, which he is an expert at making, famously includes alligator meat. Now, I’m not saying that there should be any actual threats to eat anyone (as Cardassians are not literally gators anyway) but imagine him just slipping this fact into conversation with Dukat. Imagine Bashir finally gets up the nerve to invite Garak as his date to a Sisko Dinner and doesn’t know that’s on the menu. Imagine Kira finding this out! There’s just so much unrealized comedy potential here
benjamin sisko deserves to be the most celebrated man in starfleet fucking history after everything he did for the entirety of the federation and the god damn alpha quadrant and no one has said his name in 22 years
one thing i love about sisko is that he gives us these incredible monologues about how much of our own morality we’re willing to sacrifice for a perceived greater good and how a life with undirtied hands is something generally only afforded to the privileged
but then he also gives us iconic lines like “*points a gun at someone* you get on my nerves. and i don’t like your hat.”
Bashir’s the last person Sisko has talked to in this conversation, he’s turned way, not facing Sisko, so therefore misses out on the visual context clue of Sisko facing Dax, falls back not on the fact that Dax and Sisko are old friends who have shared lunch many times (whilst Julian, as far as I know/remember, hasn’t shared lunch with Sisko before), but on the context clue of ‘I was the last person he talked to and he didn’t specify a name, so may be talking to me.’
Plus, probably, previous conversations with other people where he’s ignored them whilst turned away from them (because they couldn’t be talking to him, right? turning away means ending the conversation, right?) have probably ended with that person complaining about how he ignored them and acting as if it was on purpose (when really it was just because he didn’t realise it was him they were talking to.)
So when Sisko asks if someone would care to have lunch, he assumes that it could be him, therefore it would be best to make sure he doesn’t upset Sisko like he has other people by definitely responding.
Whether he even processes that Jadzia turns Sisko down afterwards I don’t know. He’s probably too busy thinking to himself ‘Good job, Julian. You did the thing neurotypicals do. You can relax now.’, without realising that that’s not the thing he should have done in that situation.
Bonus:
[ID: Benjamin Sisko and Julian Bashir having lunch together, behind them to the left is another man. To the right is a bright yellow and red wall. End ID]
