Home > Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Time's Orphan

Wake up.

It's time to go.

Hmm?

( sighs ): Hi, honey.

It's almost 7:00, time to get ready.

( chuckles )

Time to get ready for what?

The picnic.

( sighs )

What picnic?

Is that today?

Yes, don't you remember?

Oh, well, we better get going then.

I'm going to wear my blue jumper.

Oh, good idea, sweetie.

I can't believe how much she's grown since I saw her last.

Mm. Look who's talking.

What?

What have you been eating since we've been gone?

Well, the usual.

Well, say good-bye to the usual.

I'm back and you're going to start eating right.

Can't it wait till after the picnic?

No.

Mommy, can you help me put this on?

Of course, sweetie.

O'BRIEN: Where's the sunscreen?

I've already packed it.

This is where we're going, Yoshi. See?

Last time we went to Golana you were inside Mommy's tummy.

Better get down to the airlock.

The shuttle leaves in 20 minutes.

Can we bring Chester?

I don't think that would be a good idea, sweetie.

He might get lost.

On second thought...

All right, let's go.

Come on, Lupi.

No sausages?

I know what I'm going to be when I grow up.

You do?

Mm-hmm.

I'm going to be an exo-bologist.

An exo-bologist?

What's that?

Someone who studies animals from other planets.

Like Chester.

( chuckles )

Daddy, if you send us away again can we take Chester?

Honey, I'm not going to send you away again.

You're not?

No, I'm not.

I only did it because it wasn't safe for you to be on the station. I know.

We're never going to be apart again.

Promise?

I promise.

You want to see me do some cartwheels?

You bet!

Wow!

Yay! Good one!

( chuckling )

Whoa!

Ah! And what about you, little fella, huh?

What do you say? ( Yoshi babbles )

I couldn't have said it better myself.

Ah, real sunshine.

Fresh air.

You and the kids.

Life doesn't get any better than this.

That was a pretty big promise you made Molly just a second ago.

I meant it.

What if the war heats up and the station isn't safe anymore?

I'll put in for a transfer.

I never want us to be apart again.

( Molly screaming )

Molly?!

Molly!

( screaming )

Molly!

Molly!

Molly!

Molly?!

Daddy! Help!

Molly!

Daddy! Help!

Molly, I'm coming!

Daddy!

Hold on, Molly. Hold on.

Daddy's coming. Come on.

Daddy, help.

Take my hand.

Come on, just... take my hand.

( screaming )

( muted voices )

Keiko.

Have you figured out what this thing is yet?

( sighs )

It's some sort of time portal.

From the chroniton signature we think it sent Molly... back about 300 years into the past.

Ah.

I wonder what this place was like three centuries ago.

Odo contacted the Bajoran Archaeological Institute to see what he could find out.

Well, how do we get Molly back?

Well, first... we have to find a way to reactivate the portal.

It's been abandoned a long time and it was destabilized when Molly fell through.

The problem is, we're not sure how this technology works.

Well, something tells me the Chief isn't going to stop until he figures it out.

Something tells me you're right.

Assuming you get this back on line, what then?

We punch a transport scanning beam through the portal, and then we try to lock on to Molly's DNA signature.

And pull her back into the present.

That's the idea.

Oh!

Oh, bollocks!

( Yoshi crying )

KEIKO: Shh, it's all right, sweetie.

Shh. It's all right.

Maybe you should take him up to the Defiant.

It might be too cold in here for him.

I'm not going anywhere.

I'll take him.

Yeah, come on.

It's going to be all right, Yoshi.

It's going to be all right.

You're okay, sweetie.

Come on.

( crying continues )

Give me a hand here.

Okay.

( humming )

Oh, yes, oh, yes, I know.

Mm-hmm.

You're very good with him.

He knows me.

I had him inside of me for five months.

Oh, ooh, ooh, ooh.

Oh, I know.

I think...

I think I might want to have one of my own someday.

According to the archaeologists I talked to the portal was built by a civilization that vanished 2000 years ago.

Which means... if Molly survived the fall she would have found herself all alone.

You're saying that the planet was uninhabited 300 years ago?

The first Bajoran colonists didn't arrive till the turn of the century.

An eight-year-old girl stranded alone on a deserted planet.

Poor Molly.

With any luck the Chief will be able to beam her out a few minutes after she fell.

She'll hardly know she was gone.

Miles...

I'm getting scared.

You've been at it all day.

( sighs )

Just tell me you're getting closer.

I think I've found a way to modulate the temporal field generators.

If it works...

Molly'll be home in a few hours.

She's just been looking forward to coming out here ever since I told her we were coming back to the station.

Where's our baby?

Shh... shh...

Dear, come on.

Come on.

We're going to get her back.

Everything's going to be all right.

Dax to O'Brien.

Go ahead.

DAX: The power converter you asked me to reconfigure-- it's ready to go on line.

What? What's that mean?

It means Molly's coming home.

Come on.

Transporter interface link.

Synchronized.

DNA acquisition sensors.

Locked in.

We're as ready as we're ever gonna be, Chief.

Okay.

Let's do it.

DAX: The field's destabilizing.

We're losing power!

DAX: Temporal field established.

We've got a DNA lock. It's her.

( grunting )

Molly?

( snarling )

It's all right.

There's no need to be afraid--

( yelling )

Well, there's no doubt about it.

The DNA sequences match.

This is definitely Molly.

My readings suggest that she's 18 years old.

( groaning )

We pulled her out 10 years too late.

It's a miracle you managed to get her back at all, Miles.

Maybe if you tried again you could pull her out when she was still a little girl.

If you do that, there'll be no one to grow up and become this Molly.

You'll be erasing her existence.

Yes, but we'd have our Molly back.

Miles, this is our Molly.

Just because we missed the last ten years of her life, doesn't give us the right to take those ten years away from her.

She's been deprived of human contact for a long time.

It's not going to be easy for her to reassimilate.

Her language skills are rusty.

In fact, you two are the best hope we have of helping her recover them.

KEIKO: She doesn't remember us.

She was so scared

I doubt she even got a good look at us.

It's possible that she's blocked out all memories of her early life in order to cope with her isolation.

So what do we do?

Well, I'm going to keep her under sedation until we get back to Deep Space Nine.

I've asked Captain Sisko to create a safe environment for her.

He's having one of the cargo bays converted.

I want you two to be there with her when she wakes up.

What happens then?

Uh, a case like this, there are no rules.

We'll just have to feel our way through the process.

( Yoshi murmuring )

Hi! We have a little visitor.

Oh, come here.

And what exactly is this infant doing in my home?

Well, I offered to watch him so that the O'Briens could spend some time with Molly.

I thought you said you were going to be working tonight.

I was going to run a spectral scan of the comet that's passing through the Denorios Belt but if I did that who'd watch you?

Me.

That's all right.

I-I want to stay with him.

Jadzia, you have been waiting for this comet to come into sensor range for weeks.

( sighing )

There'll be other comets.

Go.

I will take care of Yoshi.

Worf, that's very sweet but... let's face it, you're not good with babies.

I raised Alexander.

That's different.

He was four years old when he moved in with you.

You didn't have to change diapers.

Babies are a handful.

I should know-- I've had nine of them.

I know-- five as a mother, four as a father.

I can handle a 14-month-old child.

I didn't say you can't--

Fine.

Go run your sensor scans.

Mmm...

Oh...

( crying )

You're holding him wrong.

Leave us.

All right, all right.

I'm leaving.

( crying )

Ah bom-beh mish, Ah bom-beh mish...

( gasping )

Hello, Molly.

It's all right, Molly.

We're not going to hurt you.

Would you like something to eat?

I bet you're hungry.

Golana melon.

Mmm... it's delicious.

It's for you.

It's good, isn't it?

( spitting )

Hi, Molly.

Remember me?

Mommy?

( whispering ): What is she doing?

( whispering ): I think she's trying to figure out who we are.

Maybe she remembers looking up at us when she was little.

( murmuring )

Ma...

That's right.

Mommy... and Daddy.

Ma.

( grunts )

( murmuring )

Show it to her.

KEIKO: I brought you something.

( murmuring )

It's Lupi.

She used to sleep right next to you on your pillow every night.

She's missed you.

Go on, take her.

( chuckling )

You remember Lupi, don't you?

( sighing )

This is a ball, Molly.

May I have the ball?

Would you like the ball, Molly?

O'BRIEN: Molly?

Give me the ball.

Julian said it would take a while.

Yeah, well, I hope she catches on soon.

We're running out.

This is a ball, Molly.

Would you like the ball?

I'll give you the ball then you give me the ball, huh?

Give me the ball, Molly.

Molly?

Give me the ball.

Please?

Yes! That's it!

Yeah! Good girl.

O'BRIEN: Good girl! That's it.

That's my girl. That's my Molly.

( Yoshi crying )

( sighing )

Is he all right?

He is fine.

He just will not go to sleep.

Did you change him?

I changed him.

Did you feed him?

I fed him.

Did you read him a story?

I read him a story.

Did you sing to him?

Till my throat was raw.

Oh, sounds like you tried everything.

I'll take over from here.

That is not necessary.

Worf, you're exhausted.

Get some sleep.

No.

I am a Klingon warrior and a Starfleet officer.

I have piloted starships through Dominion minefields.

I have stood in battle against Kelvans twice my size.

I courted and won the heart of the magnificent Jadzia Dax.

If I can do these things

I can make this child go to sleep.

Talk about losing perspective.

Listen to yourself.

Why is this baby-sitting thing so important all of a sudden?

It is not important to me.

It is important to you.

What are you talking about?

You are judging me on my fitness to be a parent.

Don't deny it, Jadzia.

I can see it in your eyes.

I have proven myself to be a worthy husband to you but you are not convinced

I would be a good parent to your children.

Who said anything about having children?

Go to sleep.

I have work to do.

( Yoshi crying )

Sorry I'm late.

( sighs )

Oh, hi.

( clears throat )

She went to sleep a couple of hours ago.

How does she keep from falling?

You got me.

Dax said she'd look after Yoshi until your shift's over.

Oh, good.

I've fallen behind in my repair schedule the last couple of days.

Miles.

( slight moan )

You want the brush, Molly?

You can have it.

More and more when I look at her

I can see the little girl she used to be.

Has she spoken yet?

No... but I can tell she understands what we're saying.

Has she responded to her name?

Oh, absolutely.

Look at this.

Interesting.

She drew it. Not bad, eh?

She's anthropomorphized the landscape.

Yeah, she loves to draw.

Oh, did I tell you?

She began eating with a spoon.

At this rate she'll be reading and writing in a few weeks.

Well, just be careful not to push her too hard, Miles.

If she gets frustrated, she might withdraw and relapse into her old behavior patterns.

Oh, don't worry.

I'm not going to push her.

I don't have to.

She's doing fine on her own.

Wagh-koh

Doh-goh-ya. Gung-

gung-gung.

Gung-

gung-gung?

I was instructing your son in Hech-doop.

Hech-doop?

It's a Klingon exercise designed to teach children hand-eye coordination so they will grow up to become warriors.

Oh, I get it-- the rattle is like the baby's first bat'leth kind of thing?

How'd he do?

Uh, he acquitted himself well.

Thanks for watching him.

Oh, Worf?

Um, you might want to leave the rattle just in case Yoshi wants to practice his Hech-dooping.

( rattling )

Molly, come on. Molly...

( Molly growling )

Molly, please.

O'BRIEN: What's going on?

She's been like this for over an hour.

Molly...

I'll try to calm her down.

KEIKO: I have to go.

I have to pick up Yoshi and take him home.

Owe-muh!

Did you hear that?

( panting ): Hoe-muh.

Molly, what are you trying to say?

( slowly ): Ho-muh.

Home! Home.

( panting )

Mol-ly.

That's right! Molly!

Molly home.

Do you want us to take you home with us?

Daddy, home, Molly.

All right, we'll take you home.

Mommy, home.

Mommy and Daddy will take you home.

Home, Molly.

This is home.

Starry stars.

KEIKO: They're pretty, aren't they?

Home?

That's right.

Would you like to see your room?

( guttural moan )

Molly... Molly.

Home!

Home.

No, this is your home.

Miles...

I know you lived there a long time but this is home, too.

Molly, home.

I know, sweetie.

We can't go there right now.

( picture thuds on floor )

Maybe we can.

( giggling )

Look, Miles.

She's so happy.

( sighs )

She has no idea it's a holosuite.

It must be confusing to her.

One minute, she's on a space station the next minute, she's running around outside.

Well, there's no reason we can't take her here for an hour or two every day.

I'll talk to Quark about scheduling some regular time.

( laughing )

Mommy... Mommy.

Daddy.

O'BRIEN: Whoa! ( squealing )

Whoa! That's my girl!

( door chimes )

I'll be right back.

Okay.

Look at this.

Sorry to interrupt, Chief, but, uh... your time is up.

These gentlemen have a reservation.

Well, I'll pay for their time if they can wait another half hour.

Yaplosh daq.

They seem to have their heart set on some afternoon carnage...

now.

All right.

Give me a minute.

Let me buy you gentlemen a drink.

Oh, pretty Molly.

Molly, honey, we've got to go.

( laughing )

Molly.

( sighs )

Computer end program.

We'll come back tomorrow.

( panicked groans )

Home!

We have to go, honey.

( muttering groans )

( Molly growling )

O'BRIEN: It's okay, it's okay.

KEIKO: Sweetie, we'll come back another day. I promise.

( yelling )

QUARK: I'm sorry, little lady.

( Quark yells in pain )

( Quark screaming ) O'BRIEN: Molly!

( grunting )

( yells )

( glass breaking )

( Molly grunting )

Molly!

On stun.

KEIKO: Molly?

Odo to Dr. Bashir.

We have a medical emergency in Quark's.

SISKO: The Tarkalean she attacked is recovering in the Infirmary.

Dr. Bashir tells me he should be on his feet in a few days.

He's filed charges against her-- assault with a deadly weapon.

She wasn't trying to hurt him.

She was just trying to get away.

I tried to tell him that but he wasn't interested in hearing "excuses."

As far as he's concerned she's dangerous and should be incarcerated.

Incarcerated?

I've talked to the Federation Magistrate and explained the situation.

She wants Molly taken to a special care center on Dalvos Prime for evaluation.

They're going to keep her there, aren't they?

We might be looking at a long-term situation, yes.

But it's the best facility of its kind.

Molly belongs with Keiko and me.

If she's going to make a connection with anybody, it's going to be with us not some therapist she doesn't even know.

I'm sorry, Chief.

I wish there was another way.

Captain, please.

Don't let them take her away.

( groaning )

Her body's flooded with adrenaline.

I'm not sure how long she can tolerate being confined like this.

It might send her into shock.

We have to find a way to calm her down.

( groaning continues )

Molly.

Molly.

( grunts )

Daddy.

Molly, don't!

( growling )

No!

Miles!

Turn it off, damn it!

( yelling )

Molly, Molly.

Molly.

( sighs )

What are we going to do?

It won't do any good to keep sedating her like this.

The bottom line is she needs open spaces and plenty of it.

Is she going to get that at a special care center?

I'll talk to the Captain about putting her back in a holosuite for the time being.

Well, what happens when they put her on a transport, huh?

What happens then?

Oh, what a day.

I can't wait to get out of my uniform.

Where's Kirayoshi?

I thought you were going to watch him this afternoon.

Worf, what's wrong?

BASHIR: Kirayoshi took a little fall.

Is he all right?

Oh, yes, just a small bump on the forehead.

Happens all the time, children his age.

A little sleep, he'll be as right as rain.

Thanks.

Well, I've got to get back to the Infirmary.

You want to tell me what happened?

We were playing.

I was pretending to be a grint hound and chased him.

He was laughing so hard he did not look to see where he was going and... fell against the edge of the table.

It was an accident.

It could have happened to anyone.

I was too rough with him.

I was careless.

You were right to question my fitness as a father.

Worf, I never questioned your fitness as a father.

Don't put words into my mouth.

I failed Alexander, I failed Kirayoshi... and I would have failed our children as well.

Where are you going?

I should not be here when he wakes up.

Worf... Jadzia,

I am sorry I failed to prove myself to you.

We've got to do something.

We can't let them take her away.

We don't have any choice.

We just have to hope Molly can adjust.

How can you say that?

How can you just give up?

You're planning something.

What are you talking about?

Miles, I've known you a long time.

You are planning something and you want to keep me out of it.

The less you know, the better.

Why?

Because there's going to be consequences.

So we'll face them together.

She's my daughter, too.

Keiko, listen to me.

Don't argue with me.

I am as stubborn as you.

Now, what are we going to do?

We're going to steal a runabout and take Molly back to Golana.

But that's the first place they'll look for her.

They'll find her unle... unless... we send her back through the portal into the past?

Yeah.

Once she's through, we can destroy it.

That way, no one will ever find her.

But we'll never see her again.

( sighs )

I wish there was some other way.

( sighs )

Golana's been her home for ten years.

She knows how to survive there.

She'll be all right.

How is she?

Dr. Bashir said she'd be unconscious for a few more hours.

We'll transfer her to a holosuite before she wakes up.

There are no holosuites available.

Odo said we should move her back to the cargo bay.

He didn't mention it to me.

Well, check the log.

He said he made a note of it.

Did you get everything?

It's all in here.

MAN: Chief.

Jones to Security.

I found them.

They were trying to steal a runabout.

ODO: Find out if Deputy Pinar has regained consciousness.

I'm going to need his statement.

Odo, please let us go.

I-If you put her back in a holding cell she'll die.

I'm disappointed in you, Chief.

If anyone could break a prisoner out of a holding cell and get them off the station

I'd have thought it would have been you.

On your way.

Thank you. Thank you.

ODO: Go.

KEIKO: There's a knife and a blanket...

Ah, Lupi.

Yes, that's right, sweetie.

( equipment powers up )

Everything's ready to go.

I've recalibrated the temporal field generator.

We should be able to put her back at the same moment in time when we took her out.

Molly, honey?

Can I show you something?

( gasps )

You're going home now, Molly.

Home... is right through there.

Home?

Mommy loves you, sweetie.

I love you, too.

Go on, honey.

Home.

Stars.

Your home.

That's right.

When you look up at the stars that's where we'll be... watching you.

Go on, honey.

Molly... loves you.

( sobs )

Shh...

( sniffles )

It's okay.

( child whimpering )

Molly?

I want my mommy and daddy.

There.

Mommy... Daddy-- there.

Molly... home.

BOTH: Molly?

Mommy.

Oh, look at you! Hey, sweetie.

You okay?

Hi.

You can come in. He's gone.

I dropped him off at the O'Briens' a few minutes ago.

You should have seen his face when he saw his sister again.

Did you apologize to them for me?

Yes, and they said not to worry about it.

It isn't the first time he's bumped his head.

They invited us to dinner tonight to thank us for watching him.

What did you tell them?

Well, I told them that we had a holosuite reservation and that I'd check with you.

By the way what does "gung-gung-gung" mean?

Why do you ask?

Well, it was the strangest thing.

I was taking Yoshi home, and he kept shaking his rattle saying, "gung-gung-gung."

He did?

He seemed to get a big kick out of it.

So what does it mean?

That is between Yoshi and me.

Oh, I see.

Well, you made a big impression on him.

Maybe you're not as bad with children as you thought.

Or as you thought.

All right, maybe I had my doubts but I've never been happier to be proven wrong.

Oh, we'd better get going if we're going to make that holosuite reservation.

Holosuite?

And insult the O'Briens?

Yeah, we wouldn't want to do that.

He really said, "gung-gung-gung"?

Over and over again.

The Captain's volunteered to represent me at the hearing.

If anyone can make Starfleet understand what you did, it's him.

Mommy?

Yes, sweetie?

The girl who found me-- can I see her again?

Not for a while, honey.

She was so nice.

According to Dax the recalibration didn't hold so the portal sent her back to the same point in time it sent little Molly.

I wonder if she realized that the little girl she was looking at was herself.

I hope so.

I hope she realized that, in a way she was going home, too.

Look.

It's where we had the picnic.

Don't you like it?

It's beautiful.

Aw, sweetie, it's lovely.

Just lovely.