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.
Anonymous:
add-on to last question: do you think Garak ever "plays doctor" with either Julian or Kelas in like, a sexy way
Garak’s definitive gayest moment actually was when he was on the bridge of that Romulan warbird, smoke everywhere, death imminent and his immediate thought is to shout some Shakespeare that his bf gave him at his father who he has a complicated relationship in the middle of a military crisis.
Garak’s like hi dad you know the man who cared so much about whether I Iived or died that he braved an unauthorized trip to Cardassian space to try and get some obscure information from you the terrifying leader of the Obsidian Order which is super brave and also more of act of love for me than anything you’ve ever done? That Julian Bashir? His taste in literature is flawless and super applicable actually
Okay but seriously though. Bc here’s the thing even though we’re all here for this romance it’s not like Garak was happily Tain’s protege and then Bashir walks into his life and starts to give him a crash course in morality. If Garak were Tain’s perfect son and a soulless Obsidian Order agent he wouldn’t have wanted to befriend and fall in love with Bashir in the first place. He would have found his morals and whatnot laughable and his presence exhausting. The fact that Bashir’s empathetic and do-gooder personality is attractive to Garak in the first place signals that Tain failed in some way. Tain and Bashir are a neat way to simplify two opposite forces in Garak’s life that exist on a much larger scale than personal influences.
I think Garak’s willingness to let Lang escape is evidence of the above. Would he have killed her if it meant he got to go home? Maybe, maybe not. Once he had no skin in the game, though, a dutiful Cardassian still would’ve turned her in. Garak did not.
This is why I love the idea that Garak was secretly a dissident. Maybe he was exiled because Tain found out and somehow, once again, couldn’t quite bear to have Garak killed. Or maybe Tain never found out and he exiled Garak for some other reason altogether.
Viewed this way, Garak’s arguments with Julian are almost arguments with himself.
Adding to this, I like the idea that Garak isn’t actually sure why Tain exiled him. Does Tain know about his dissident activities? If yes, how much? Or did he exile Garak for other reasons? A perceived insult? Was Garak up to something else?
I recently did a Garak run of DS9 where I only watch the Garak episodes, and my friend Rebecca asked me to put together a list of the best ones for her to watch (with a special emphasis on the Garak/Bashir ship). So, here are my picks! What are your favorite Garak episodes?
I forget which comes first, second skin or the episode Kira and Dukat find Ziyal. But this is fanfiction so whatever. This is in regards to my earlier headcanon that Kira takes in Ziyal instead of Dukat, lonely Ziyal visits Garak’s shop, and he ends up being her mentor in Cardassian mentors. Also there’s still plenty of sniping between Kira and Garak because of course.
But Ghemor and Kira get back to the station, and Ziyal immediately hugs Kira (who still looks like a Cardassian) and Ghemor is just. Immediately “Oh who is this?”
Garak is of course prickly because _he’s_ Ziyal’s mentor in Cardassian matters, and shouldn’t Ghemor move on.
But no, as far as Ghemor’s concerned, Kira is now his daughter as well, so if Kira has taken in this child, this child is now his grandchild and he must know everything and be involved. (If Cardassia must take away his family, he will create a new one out of sheer spite and desire for grandchildren.)
Kira would just like to be in her own skin thank you very much and also _wtf_.
It also leads to some humorous moments where everyone discovers that no, Garak is NOT a normal Cardassian. He’s just weird.
Lost plot of ds9: Garak and O’Brien are on a shuttle mission when an ion storm leaves them adrift in the Gamma quadrant. The stress make Garak’s molting season start early. Dukat visits the station to ask Sisko why his computer is malfunctioning as it keeps denying Dukat’s friend requests on Spacebook.
I know garak is omni (in Robinsons words) not bi but having read a stitch in time I’ve come to the conclusion he’s the exact inverse of those “being bi is being attracted to every woman and like 3 men” posts
once experts in their fields who try to fill the emptiness and surplus of time in their lives with their personal relationships and a less challenging career but constantly feel a sense of gnawing lack of purpose that they feel guilty for acknowledging
