LEANNE: Jake! Hi!
JAKE: Leanne. I thought you were on Bajor.
LEANNE: I came back early. You know, I was just thinking about you.
JAKE: Really?
LEANNE: Yeah. I passed by the Klingon restaurant and I was thinking about the time you and I and Orak were eating dinner
JAKE: And you ordered the gagh. How is Orak? I haven't talked to him in a while.
LEANNE: We stopped seeing each other a few weeks ago.
JAKE: Oh.
LEANNE: Yeah. So, are you doing anything tomorrow night?
JAKE: I'm supposed to play dom-jot with Nog.
LEANNE: Oh.
JAKE: But they're not really firm plans. In fact, I was thinking of cancelling them.
LEANNE: Really? If you do cancel, would you be interested in dinner?
JAKE: Sure.
LEANNE: Great. How about eighteen hundred at the Klingon restaurant?
JAKE: I'll be there. But this time we'll skip the gagh.
LEANNE: Definitely. I'll see you then.
JAKE: Okay.
(Leanne walks away, the security office doors open and O'Brien, Odo and security run out)
ODO: Move aside! Look out! Move! Move!

[Airlock]

(The runners arrive about the same time as Bashir and a nurse.)
BASHIR: What have we got?
O'BRIEN: Bajoran transport coming in. They had some kind of accident on board. They've got casualties.
ODO: They're docking.
BASHIR: We should have beamed the wounded directly to the Infirmary.
O'BRIEN: They have a loose plasma coil. We couldn't beam through the radiation.
ODO: Docking clamps secure. I'm opening the airlock. Stand back.
(The ship's doors open to a scene of smoke.)
O'BRIEN: Come on.
ODO: This way, this way. It's all right.
(A Bajoran woman comes out.)
NURSE: Here, I've got you.
ODO: It's all right. Come along now.
BAJORAN: This way, Eminence.
BASHIR: Kai Winn?
WINN: The Vedek. Take care of the Vedek.
(Bareil is carried out with a nasty wound to his chest.)
ODO: Odo to Kira.
KIRA [OC]: Kira here.
ODO: I think you should meet us in the Infirmary, Major.

[Ops]

ODO [OC]: Vedek Bareil was on the transport. He's been injured.

[Infirmary]

O'BRIEN: The report from the transport, sir.
SISKO: Give me the short version.
O'BRIEN: There was a molecular fracture in one of the warp plasma conduits. It was only a matter of time before it gave way. Once it collapsed the entire relay system exploded.
WINN: Was it sabotage?
O'BRIEN: I don't think so.
KIRA: Why would you suspect sabotage?
WINN: I would prefer to discuss that with the Emissary in private.

[Operating theatre]

(Bashir is operating on Bareil's head, or brain?)
BASHIR: Put a pressor field on that artery.
NURSE: The arterial disruption is too severe the pressor can't stop the haemorrhaging.
BASHIR: All right. Clamp off the artery and then increase the plasma level to maximum.
NURSE: Cardiac arrest.
BASHIR: Clear.
(Jolt)
BASHIR: Clear.
(Jolt)
BASHIR: He can't take much more of that.
NURSE: The arterial pressure is falling.
BASHIR: I see it.
NURSE: The neurotransmitter levels are falling too.
BASHIR: Two cc's cordrazine.
NURSE: Doctor?
BASHIR: Do it.
(She does.)
BASHIR: Synaptic failure. Apply direct neuro-stimulation to the brainstem.

[Commander's office]

(Sisko brings Winn a drink.)
WINN: Thank you. Vedek Bareil and I were on our way to a secret meeting with a member of the Cardassian Central Command. It was my intention to open talks between Bajor and Cardassia that would lead to a treaty and to a final peace settlement.
SISKO: You have been negotiating peace with Cardassia?
WINN: The Prophets teach us that while violence may keep an enemy at bay, only peace can make him a friend.
SISKO: How long has this been going on?
WINN: Vedek Bareil has been working to set up this meeting with Legate Turrel for the past five months. They've discussed issues ranging from war reparations to the exchange of ambassadors. There's even the possibility that the Cardassians will issue a formal apology for the pain and suffering inflicted on the Bajoran people during the occupation. I was on my way to our first face-to-face meeting when we had the accident.
SISKO: Please, don't take this the wrong way, but I never would've guessed that you would be the one to bring such a bold vision of peace to Bajor.
WINN: A large share of the credit goes to Vedek Bareil. Without him, the talks could have never come this far.
SISKO: It sounds like you've developed a deeper appreciation for Vedek Bareil.
WINN: I must admit he has been a loyal and trustworthy aide since the election. I'm not sure I could have been as forgiving if I'd been in his place. These talks were Bareil's idea. He's guided me through them, and without him in the future, these talks may never resume.

[Infirmary]

BASHIR: I'm sorry. The radiation severely damaged his neural pathways. I did everything I could.
KIRA: I know you did. Did he ever regain consciousness?
BASHIR: No. I don't think he suffered.
KIRA: Thank you, Doctor. I'm on duty in Ops. Excuse me.
BASHIR: Kira. I think they can get along without you in Ops today.
KIRA: Maybe, but I need to be there. I appreciate your concern but I'll grieve in my own way in my own time.

[Operating theatre]

NURSE: We're ready to begin the autopsy, Doctor.
BASHIR: Release the stasis field. Let's begin with a neural scan. I want to map his central axonal pathways, find out where the breakdown began.
NURSE: Shall I begin taking neural tissue samples?
BASHIR: Looks like the damage began in the parietal lobe, spread through the rest of the brain in a retrograde manner.
(Something flashes on the screen)
BASHIR: Wait a minute. A neuron just fired in his cerebral cortex. There it is again. His nerves. His nerves are still transmitting electrical impulses to his brain
NURSE: How can that be? His brain activity level is zero. His nervous system should be completely inactive.
BASHIR: I don't know but it means his body's still capable of sending messages to the brain, even though the brain can't process them. The radiation he was exposed to might have fortified his peripheral cell membranes. If we can regenerate his pathways with his own neuron cells, we might be able to revive him.
NURSE: What about brain damage? There's been no oxygen to his brain for almost forty minutes.
BASHIR: But he's been in stasis for most of that time. That, combined with the strengthening of his cell membranes might buy us the time we need.
(Later)
BASHIR: We'll have to direct a burst of electrical energy into his cerebral cortex. If the burst is the proper intensity, it should create a cascade effect within the brain and the neurons might resume their normal firing pattern. Okay. Let's close up the cranial cavity.
(Later)
BASHIR: The neurogenic stimulator is in place. Let's try a fifty millivolt burst.
(Twitch)
BASHIR: Increase it to sixty.
(Twitch)
BASHIR: Seventy.
NURSE: That's five millivolts above what normal tissue can withstand. It'll burn out his cerebral cortex.
BASHIR: If I'm right, the inaprovaline drug I gave him should provide additional resistance against the excess electro-stimulation. Seventy.
(Jerk, gasp.)
NURSE: Doctor!
(Bareil opens his eyes.)
(Later, Winn, Sisko and Kira are by Bareil's bed.)
BASHIR: Well, it's a little early to tell, but I'm hoping he'll make a full recovery. He should be back on his feet again in a few weeks.
SISKO: You say that so calmly, but it's not every doctor that can lose a patient and then has him back on his feet in a few weeks.
WINN: Indeed, you are too modest. You've performed nothing less than a miracle here. The Prophets must walk with you, Doctor.
BASHIR: Well, I and the Prophets, were lucky that the ionising radiation left a residual signature on Bareil's axonal pathways. That's what really made this possible.
BAREIL: Whoever deserves the credit, Doctor, I am grateful.
WINN: And I am grateful you were not taken from us, Vedek Bareil.
BAREIL: My work here is not yet finished.
WINN: No, it is not. We must resume the negotiations immediately. We can't risk losing the momentum we've established. I would like to send a coded message to Legate Turrel and invite him to come to DS Nine to continue the talks.
BASHIR: Wait a minute. Bareil's in no condition to conduct negotiations.
WINN: Bareil will simply be advising me. I will conduct the actual talks.
BASHIR: I'll allow it as long as your visits don't tire him.
WINN: Agreed. Vedek, we will talk again soon.
BAREIL: Eminence.
(Winn and Sisko leave.)
BAREIL: So, are we going to be playing springball next month?
KIRA: You bet, although I'm afraid I'll have an unfair advantage.
BAREIL: You mean playing against a dead man?
KIRA: No. I've been practicing.

[Sisko's quarters]

NOG: My Dad said that you were looking for me.
JAKE: Yeah. It's about tomorrow night
NOG: Don't worry, I've already taken care of that. I met these three Terrellians who were bragging about how great they are at dom-jot. So I arranged a game, us against them.
JAKE: Nog, we have a little problem.
NOG: No, we don't. I guarantee we'll beat them.
JAKE: It's not that. I just can't make it tomorrow night.
NOG: But it has to be tomorrow night. They're leaving the next day.
JAKE: I, I made other plans.
NOG: What could be more important than dom-jot?
JAKE: I have a date.
NOG: Oh. Well, that's different.
JAKE: It is?
NOG: Yeah. Money is money, but women are better.
JAKE: Is that a Rule of Acquisition?
NOG: It's a personal rule. So, who is she?
JAKE: Leanne.
NOG: Leanne! Way to go, Jake. So, what is the name of my date? I hope she's as cute as Leanne.
JAKE: Your date?
NOG: She has a friend, right?
JAKE: I'm sure she does.
NOG: Then tell her to bring her along.
JAKE: Nog, that's not what I had in mind.
NOG: That's because you were confused. Would you rather the three of us go out?
JAKE: When you put it that way.
NOG: Exactly. Just one thing, Jake. You're still pretty new at this dating business. Just promise me you won't do anything to embarrass me.
JAKE: I'll do my best.
NOG: Ah, this'll be great. Maybe I'll even wash my lobes.

[Operating theatre]

BAREIL: I suggest that we put off discussion of the Cardassians returning the Orbs until diplomatic relations have been established.
WINN: That would only delay an inevitable argument.
BAREIL: But it will give the peace process a chance to grow. Once the Cardassians are invested in the process, it may be easier to discuss these matters.
WINN: Very well.
BAREIL: A wise decision, Eminence.
WINN: I hope so, Vedek Bareil. The first meeting with Turrel is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. I will see you again before then.
(Winn leaves)
BAREIL: I take it you're not here to deliver a good report, Doctor?
BASHIR: In order to revive you, I had to flood your nervous system with neurogenic radiation. Unfortunately, this has caused some kind of selective vaso-constriction of your arteries. The result is an inadequate blood flow to your internal organs.
BAREIL: So what do we do?
BASHIR: We'd like to place you back into stasis, do some research on your condition.
BAREIL: For how long?
BASHIR: I don't know yet. Days, weeks even months.
BAREIL: Maybe even years?
BASHIR: Maybe.
BAREIL: I'm sorry, Doctor, that's not acceptable. I can't allow myself to be put in storage when my people need me. I don't want to wake to a Bajor still haunted by the memory of the occupation.
BASHIR: I realize how important these talks are to Bajor, but as your physician my duty is to you first.
BAREIL: And I have a duty to Bajor. Please, help me heal my people. It's the only thing that matters to me.
BASHIR: There is an experimental drug called Vasokin which would increase the blood flow to your organs and might enable you to function normally for a while. But there is a great deal of risk attached.
BAREIL: What sort of risk?
BASHIR: In twenty two percent of cases, Vasokin has severely damaged the patient's lungs, kidneys, even heart. Sometimes the brain. In your condition, it could even be fatal.
BAREIL: But it would allow me to function normally for the next few days?
BASHIR: Yes. But why risk your life for a few days?
BAREIL: I have no great desire to die, Doctor, but I am determined to carry out the will of the Prophets as long as I am able, and I cannot carry out their will if I am unconscious in some stasis tube. Please, begin the Vasokin treatment.
BASHIR: All right. We'll start this afternoon. I only hope we don't regret this.
BAREIL: So do I.

Station log, stardate 48498.4. Legate Turrel has arrived aboard the station to resume the negotiations. Vedek Bareil suggested that I sit in on the talks as an impartial observer, and Kai Winn has agreed.

[Wardroom]

TURREL: Perhaps you didn't hear me. There are no Bajoran prisoners left in Cardassian hands.
SISKO: Maybe we should redefine our terms. Perhaps there are no official prisoners but are there be a number of, shall we say, detainees?
TURREL: There are, of course, people being detained at the Justice Ministry for crimes against the state, but that is a discussion for another time. Now, I would like to discuss what you've called war reparations. We would be willing to pay for the destruction of all Bajoran property incurred during the occupation as long as you would be willing to return to us all Cardassian property and equipment left behind on Bajor.
WINN: What sort of property?
TURREL: I can provide you with lists of material, equipment, as long as we have an agreement in principle that anything of Cardassian origin does still belong to the Cardassian people.
WINN: I will consider your offer.
TURREL: Good. Shall we take a recess?
(Turrel leaves.)
WINN: He's up to something.
SISKO: That much seems clear.
WINN: But what? Why is he insisting on this principle of his? I need Bareil. He's the only one who knows the entire negotiating record. Bareil has been talking with Turrel for months. He understands him, respects him. I think he even likes him.
SISKO: I'm afraid you may have to face the possibility that Bareil may not be able to help you much longer.
WINN: I was chosen by the Prophets to lead our people into a new era. I know that. But I was not meant to be in a room with a Cardassian debating legalisms and diplomatic nuances. I can't do this without Bareil. If he dies, then peace with Cardassia dies with him.

[Quark's cafe]

(The double date is in full swing)
LEANNE: My father used to take me to the wilderness preserves on Vulcan, so for years I thought their planet was like, animals and plants everywhere. I had no idea there were people on Vulcan.
NOG: Boy, Jake, she talks a lot for a female.
LEANNE: Excuse me?
JAKE: Riska ,weren't you telling me your uncle runs a bar on Osinar Six? You know, Nog's uncle runs this bar.
RISKA: Is that right?
NOG: Let's not make foolish conversation. Just sit there and look beautiful.
JAKE: Nog, what do you think you're doing?
NOG: I think I know how to handle females. Jake, you know, I've been thinking. After we're done eating, we could take the females to the holosuites. I borrowed one of my uncle's private programmes, The Massacre on Ferris Six. We could spend an hour pillaging and looting the frightened townspeople.
RISKA: I don't think so.
NOG: No one's asking you to think, my dear. Here, make yourself useful. Cut up my food for me.
RISKA: You must be joking.
(Nog laughs so they all join in.)
NOG: She's so dumb. She's perfect.
RISKA: That's it.
(Riska gets up and Leanne follows.)
JAKE: Wait, you're not leaving?
LEANNE: I suppose you want me to sit here and cut your food for you, too?
JAKE: I never said anything about cutting
LEANNE: I hope you and your friend enjoy your holosuite. Come on.
(Leanne and Riska leave.)
JAKE: Nog!
NOG: Don't say another word, Jake. I think you've done enough damage for one night.
JAKE: Me?
NOG: Yeah, you. You were treating my female as if she was an equal.
JAKE: And you were behaving like an idiot. This is the last time I'll ever do a favour for you. From now on you get your own dates.
NOG: And you can find someone else to play dom-jot with.
JAKE: Fine!
NOG: Good!

[Infirmary]

BAREIL: Turrel is trying to get a concession from you that I already rejected. Tell him that the question of Cardassian property on Bajor was already dealt with in the Armistice talks four years ago. Don't worry, he'll still pay the reparations.
WINN: What about this question of mining rights? His attention has been wandering. He's in pain. Give him more of the drug.
BASHIR: He's had enough.
WINN: Then you'll need to give him something else. The negotiations resume in less than six hours and we still have forty pages.
BASHIR: Listen to me. I don't care about your negotiations, and I don't care about your treaty. All I care about is my patient, and at the moment he needs more medical care and less politics. Now, you can either leave here willingly or I'll call security and have you thrown out.
KIRA: You won't need to call them. I'll do it myself.
WINN: Put yourself in the hands of the Prophets, Bareil. They will not forsake you.
BAREIL: Yes, Eminence.
(Winn leaves)
KIRA: Is there anything I can do?
BAREIL: Just be here. I'm beginning to dislike seeing that look on your face, Doctor.
BASHIR: As I feared, the Vasokin has already damaged your internal organs.
KIRA: What happens now?
BASHIR: I can replace the damaged organs with artificial implants, but as long as you're taking the drug I can't guarantee that the damage won't spread. I think you should reconsider letting me put you in stasis.
BAREIL: I'm afraid my mind's made up. Just get me through the negotiations. I must carry out the will of the Prophets. Please. Whatever it takes, just do it.

[Wardroom]

(Winn is studying PADDs.)
WINN: Are you going to call security and have me removed from this room now, Doctor?
BASHIR: It hadn't occurred to me. Yet.
WINN: How is Bareil?
BASHIR: The organ replacement surgery went well. He's still unconscious, but he should be awake within the hour.
WINN: Oh, good. There are still several points I have to discuss with him before the next negotiating session.
BASHIR: That's why I'm here. When you see Bareil, I want you to tell him that you don't need him, that you can complete these negotiations without him.
WINN: But I do need him, Doctor.
BASHIR: I realise that. But I want you to tell him that you don't.
WINN: You seem to be asking me to lie.
BASHIR: I'm asking you to free Bareil of his obligations to you. The only way he'll accept that is if you tell him he's no longer needed, that you can go on without him. Now, if that's a lie, then so be it.
WINN: That doesn't sound like a Starfleet officer.
BASHIR: I'm a doctor first. And right now, I'm trying to give my patient his best chance to live. The only way to do that is to put him in stasis. Bareil knows that, but his desire to complete these negotiations is so strong that he's forcing me to keep him conscious and mentally alert, even though it may kill him.
WINN: None of us wants that to happen, Doctor. But if I'm not mistaken, the decision regarding Bareil's treatment is up to him.
BASHIR: Yes. As the patient, it is his right to make that choice. But I'm asking you to help me change his mind. Eminence, you're the Kai. These are your negotiations. Let this be your moment in history. Finish the talks on your own and you won't have to share the credit with anyone.
WINN: You say that as though success is guaranteed, Doctor.
BASHIR: Of course. If the talks fail, you'll need someone to accept the blame. A scapegoat. You're a coward. You're afraid to stand alone.
WINN: Bareil's already made his decision, Doctor. I won't interfere. And Doctor? I won't forget what you've said here.
BASHIR: Neither will I.

[Sisko's quarters]

(Dinnertime)
SISKO: So, you never told me about your double-date.
JAKE: Not much to tell
SISKO: That's not what I hear. Quark tells me that you and Nog aren't speaking to each other.
JAKE: You should've seen the way he acted, Dad. He was acting like a spoiled brat. I've never been so embarrassed. I don't think Leanne will ever speak to me again.
SISKO: So what did he do?
JAKE: All kinds of stupid things. Riska couldn't even say two words without him telling her to be quiet. And he insisted that she cut up his food for him. He was treating her like she was some kind of slave.
SISKO: Sounds like he's acting like a Ferengi to me. You can't blame him for that.
JAKE: Well, in that case, maybe you were right all along.
SISKO: About what?
JAKE: You once said that Humans and Ferengis are too different to ever really be friends.
SISKO: I remember saying that. And you know what? I was wrong. You and Nog proved that. Sure, you have your cultural differences, but there's a real bond between you.
JAKE: Well, I know one thing. I'm never going to set him up on a date again.
SISKO: I think you two should talk this over before it becomes too big a problem.
JAKE: I'm not sure Nog is going to be willing to talk to me so soon.
SISKO: Well, I guess you'll have to do something to get his attention.

[Infirmary]

(Winn is there and Bareil is in agony as Bashir runs in.)
BASHIR: What happened?
NURSE: I don't know.
BASHIR: Two cc's morphenolog. It's all right, it's all right. You're getting help. You're getting help. I thought I made it clear there were to be no visitors for the next three hours.
WINN: It's not her fault, Doctor. Bareil called me himself. He said he had some ideas on the treaty.
BASHIR: And you just couldn't wait to hear them, could you. His left temporal lobe is showing signs of massive synaptic failure. Well, I hope you got all the advice you needed, Eminence, because the Vasokin has damaged his brain and that damage is irreversible.

[Commander's office]

SISKO: Will he regain consciousness?
BASHIR: Not in his present condition.
WINN: You were able to replace some of his internal organs with artificial implants. Could you do something similar with the damaged parts of his brain?
BASHIR: It's hard to say with any certainty. There's still a great deal about the way the brain operates we don't understand. One of my professors at medical school used to say that the brain had a spark of life that can't be replicated. If we begin to replace parts of Bareil's brain with artificial implants, that spark may be lost.
KIRA: But you're saying if we don't do it, Bareil will never regain consciousness and he'll die.
SISKO: I think we need to consider what Bareil would want us to do.
WINN: Vedek Bareil wanted these negotiations to be completed, no matter what the cost.
BASHIR: With all due respect, your Eminence, you're hardly an impartial observer here. You have a personal interest in these talks.
WINN: There is more at stake than one man's life.
BASHIR: One man's life is all I'm concerned with at the moment.
KIRA: I think she's right, Julian. I think Bareil would want the positronic implants.
BASHIR: Kira, if I go through with this, the man who wakes up may not be the man you used to know.
KIRA: I realise that, but I know how important this is to him, and I know he wouldn't want to just be put into stasis indefinitely, waiting for some medical solution that may never come. Do the surgery, Julian. Let him finish what he started.

[Security]

ODO: Mister Sisko.
JAKE: Odo, I'd like you to do me a favour. I want to be arrested.

[Holding area]

(Jake is already in a cell when Nog is hauled in.)
NOG: Argh! This is outrageous! I didn't steal anything from a Tholian Ambassador!
ODO: Just another innocent man arrested for a crime he didn't commit.
NOG: What is he doing here?
ODO: As if you didn't know. Your accomplice here has also denied involvement, but I have an eyewitness who saw both of you breaking into the Tholian Ambassador's quarters last night.
NOG: I don't even know what a Tholian looks like!
ODO: Tell it to the Magistrate.
NOG: At least put me in my own cell.
ODO: I'm sorry the quarters aren't to your liking. Please feel free to submit a complaint to the management.

[Infirmary]

BASHIR: The positronic implant is functioning normally. The mid-brain interface is online and he's awake.

[Operating theatre]

KIRA: Bareil?
BAREIL: Yes, Major.
KIRA: How are you feeling?
BAREIL: Awake. Everything is different.
KIRA: Different? In what way?
BAREIL: It's hard to explain, but when you touch me, it doesn't seem real. It's more like the distant memory of a touch.
WINN: Vedek, do you remember the negotiations? I have some questions for you.
BAREIL: Of course, Eminence. I will do all I can.

[Holding area]

NOG: Something's wrong.
JAKE: No kidding.
NOG: That's not what I mean. My father told me that if I got caught stealing again, he would send me back to live on the Ferengi homeworld with my grandmother. So where is he? Why isn't he here yelling and threatening me? And where's Uncle Quark? I'm late for work. And come to think of it, what are you doing here?
JAKE: Ask Odo.
NOG: No, no, no. Throwing you in here wasn't Odo's idea. You don't just arrest the station commander's son without some really strong evidence. And I know there is no evidence because I know we didn't do anything. So why are we in here, Jake?
JAKE: All right. I put Odo up to this because I wanted to talk to you.
NOG: In here?
JAKE: I didn't think you'd listen to me otherwise.
NOG: Well, this better be good.
JAKE: I wanted to say I'm sorry. I guess I just forgot you're a Ferengi.
NOG: You forgot? To most people, the lobes are a dead giveaway.
JAKE: What I mean is, we spend so much time together and we seem so much alike, I sometimes forget we're different.
NOG: I know we're different. I mean, anyone who talks to a female with fawning respect is no Ferengi. It made me sick.
JAKE: You want to talk about sick? Sick is making Riska cut up your food for you.
NOG: At least I didn't have her chew.
JAKE: Chew it?
NOG: That's right. In traditional Ferengi homes, the females soften the food with her teeth before they give it to the males.
JAKE: That is disgusting.
NOG: I knew you would react that way, which is why I didn't have her do it.
JAKE: Well, do you have any other disgusting Ferengi customs I should know about?
NOG: Plenty. And I know plenty of human customs that disgust me.
JAKE: Great. So we both disgust each other. You know, as we get older, this is just going to get worse. But I know one thing. I don't want to lose you as a friend.
NOG: Well, in that case, double-dating is definitely out.
JAKE: Agreed. And I guess we'll just have to deal with the rest of our disgusting habits as they come up.
NOG: I guess so. You feel better?
JAKE: Yeah.
NOG: Good. Now can we get out of here?
JAKE: Sure. Odo? Odo? He's just playing around. Odo!

Station log, supplemental. Kai Winn has announced that Legate Turrel has signed the peace treaty. The news has sent a shockwave throughout the quadrant. And although there is still some opposition from hard-line elements on both Bajor and Cardassia, it looks as though they're finally willing to put their long conflict behind them.

[Wardroom]

(It's party time, but one guest is very down.)
DAX: Remind me not to invite you to my next party.
BASHIR: I'm sorry. I guess I'm sort of casting a pall over this gathering.
DAX: Julian, no one's expecting you to provide entertainment. But you should try to enjoy yourself. After all, this celebration is for you, too.
BASHIR: Frankly, I can't imagine what I've done deserves a celebration.
DAX: You kept him alive against incredible odds. No matter what happens, you should always be proud of that.
(Quark leads in a waiter carrying a large dessert on a tray.)
QUARK: Excuse me, your Eminence.
WINN: Yes?
QUARK: Kai Winn, allow me to introduce Kai Winn.
WINN: I don't understand.
QUARK: In honour of the occasion, I've named my latest creation after you. It's a chocolate soufflé with Haligian tongue sauce.
WINN: Well, I'm very honoured.
QUARK: And you're also very popular. Believe me, I can't keep up with the orders so far.
NURSE [OC]: Medical emergency. Doctor Bashir to the Infirmary.
WINN: Please, excuse me.

[Infirmary]

KIRA: It's the other half of his brain, isn't it? But you can still help him can't you? You can replace the other half of his brain with a positronic matrix.
BASHIR: I'm sorry, Nerys, but this is where it ends.
KIRA: What do you mean?
BASHIR: I won't remove whatever last shred of humanity Bareil has left.
KIRA: But you can do it.
WINN: Perhaps, child, it is time to listen to Doctor Bashir.
KIRA: Sure. You've got your peace treaty, your place in history. You don't need Bareil anymore.
WINN: Believe me child, I share your pain. But I think the Prophets are calling to Bareil. I will see to it that Bajor never forgets him. Doctor.
(Winn puts her hand on Bareil's chest for a moment, then leaves.)
KIRA: Julian, you can't give up now. You have to keep going.
BASHIR: Nerys, if I remove the rest of his brain and replace it with a machine, he may look like Bareil, he may even talk like Bareil, but he won't be Bareil. The spark of life will be gone. He'll be dead. And I'll be the one who killed him.
KIRA: But if we do nothing he'll die.
BASHIR: That's right, he will. But he'll die like a man, not a machine. Please, don't make me fight you on this one. Just let him go.
KIRA: How much time?
BASHIR: All brain activity should cease within the next three hours.
KIRA: I'd like to stay with him until then.
BASHIR: Of course.
(Bashir and the nurse leave.)
KIRA: You got your treaty. I just wish we'd had more time for us. There's so much I never told you, but this is the time we have left so I'd better say it now. I'll never forget the first time I saw you, the day you came to the station. You had such a serenity about you. I thought you had all the answers. It really got on my nerves for a while. But then I got to know you and I realised you were just as confused as the rest of us. You just accepted your confusion better than anyone I've ever known. That's when I realised I loved you.