Chapter Text
"Hey, hey, calm down. They can't hurt you anymore."
Bastion's eye flickered, sky blue to blood red. Orisa placed her metal hand as gently as she could to their cheek. She tried prompting any sort of noise from them; their quietness worried her. They usually made all sorts of mechanical noises and chirps, speaking cheerfully in Omnicode. Now, all she heard was the whirring of their fans and the sounds of the alleyway around them.
"Look at me, E-54. You are okay. Everything is okay," she whispered to him as calmly as she could manage. Her "native language" felt odd coming from her speakers. She hardly ever used it, except times like these when her fellow Omnics were in trouble (or, in this case, if they believed they were).
She pressed her forehead to theirs, the soft clink of metal normally a comforting noise for her dear Bastion unit. "Do you have any glass stuck in you?"
Thankfully, this emitted a response. "...no, I don't think so..."
Orisa sighed in relief. She pressed a "kiss" to their forehead. "I love you, E-54. I will not let them harm you, I promise."
"What if they harm you?" The genuine concern in their voice broke her metaphorical heart. She let out a chuckle, trying to mask her fear.
"They will not. Efi has built me to protect the people I care about, and I care about you. I will not fail. If they harm you, they would have to have shattered every one of my servos first."
"Don't say things like that!" They were clearly distressed at the thought of losing her. As cute as it was, now was not the time for such negativity.
"I only say it because it is true. I love you, do you understand?"
"Yes...but I want to protect you too. I don't want to see you get hurt, especially if I could do something about it!"
"You do protect me, just by being around. I can't thank you enough for what you have shown me already. I wouldn't know so many things in this world if you had not offered your hand. You protect me from heartbreak, because I know you will be there by my side no matter what attempts to come between us. You protect me from the enemy as we fight, making sure they stop firing before my shield drops and leaves us in the open. You protect me from rude individuals like the one that had the audacity to try and harm us simply because of things we cannot control. You protect me as I protect you, E-54, and I love you for that."
Bastion's eye grew bright, and they wrapped their arms around Orisa's waist.
"I love you too. I love you so, so much. I just...I can't...I don't want them to hurt you. They won't hurt you. If they do, I'll hurt them just as bad."
"That's my Bastion," she said as she accepted their hug, happy that they was starting to feel better. That human better hope and pray that he doesn't run into them again soon.