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It was a quiet night in the Fett household. Crosshair was working the night shift, and Wrecker was spending his evening at a local food festival in the city. Tech, as one would assume, was on a date with Phee.
That left Hunter and Echo in charge of Omega for the night.
“Can we have McDonald’s?” Omega approached her guardians in the kitchen, tugging on Echo’s sleeve.
“Nope. Tonight’s leftovers. Sorry, kiddo.” Echo brushed her off lightly, preparing to heat up their dinner.
“Do you think Wrecker can bring us something to eat?” Omega tried again.
“Sweetheart, Wrecker is most likely… preoccupied.” Echo answered gently. Knowing his brother, the giant was most likely not only distracted by the arrangements of food, but his proneness to flirt.
Omega sighed, hanging her head and accepting defeat.
“Not to worry. Next Friday, the rest of us will be out of town, and you’ll be home alone with Wrecker. There’s no doubt he’ll get you your Happy Meal.” Hunter pat the girl’s back.
“Really?!” Omega beamed at him.
“But for now, it’ll be chicken and roasted vegetables.” Echo sighed, keeping the two in check.
“Yeah, yeah.” Hunter smiled, rolling his eyes. When he caught Omega’s eyes, he winked at her, causing her to erupt into giggles.
Within minutes, their dinner was heated up and prepared to eat.
The three of them, gathered around a table for six, ate their food, lacking conversation.
“So when’s Tech coming home?” Omega inquired.
“No clue.” Hunter answered in between mouthfuls of chicken.
“Phee might keep him all night.” Echo chuckled.
“Why?” Omega glanced at him. Echo, eyes gone sheepish, paused in his chewing.
“He’s very smart and Phee wants to learn a lot from him.” Hunter swiftly answered.
“Oh. Okay.” Omega responded, forking into a wedge of roasted broccoli.
After dinner, the three siblings gathered on the couch. They sat watching the tv, Omega wedged in the middle of Hunter and Echo. It was a nightly routine to watch tv together before bed.
The show, an animated series appropriate for preteens, played on their television.
“Who’s that?” Echo asked Omega, as a character dressed in blue flashed across the screen. Omega explained the characters and backstories to Echo. Eventually, she began to yawn, as he had hoped.
In this episode, they watched as a character reunited with their mother, embracing each other in a long hug.
Omega shifted uncomfortably, lacing her arms around Hunter’s bicep. Hunter reached his hand across his chest, rubbing her wrist gently with his fingers.
“You tired, Mega?” Hunter cooed quietly.
“A little.” Omega responded.
“Mm. How about you go get ready for bed? Echo and I will say goodnight.” Hunter continued rubbing her wrist. Omega hesitated, but nodded. Both the men gave her space to stand up, and she made her way upstairs.
By the time Omega had finished getting ready, Hunter and Echo were upstairs, waiting by her bedroom.
She wore her Totoro pajamas, a gift from Crosshair. In her arm was Lula, from Wrecker.
“Okay. I’m ready.” Omega yawned, as Hunter and Echo approached her bedside. Echo tucked her in gently, placing a light kiss in her hair.
“Goodnight sweetheart.”
Hunter brushed through her hair gently, causing her eyes to flutter shut in admiration.
“Goodnight, Mega. We’ll see you in the morning.”
“Goodnight.” Omega responded in a smile. Her brothers exited the bedroom, turning the light off on their way out.
The two brothers made their ways downstairs, crashing back on the couch. Hunter switched the channel to a cop show, one they wouldn’t be able to watch with Omega. It was a quiet night. At this point, they just had to wait for the rest of their brothers to come home. Him and Echo began to drift to sleep on the couch.
Hunter wasn’t sure what time it was, or how much time had passed.
All he knew was that he woke up to the sound of Omega screaming.
Before he was aware of what was happening, him and Echo were barreling up the stairs.
“Omega!” Hunter frantically exclaimed, landing in her room. The lights were on, and she sat in the middle of the room, holding her soldier doll.
“No, no, no!” Omega was hyperventilating, bringing her brothers to a panic. Hunter fell to his knees before her, careful to gently grab her arms. Echo stood behind the man, watching the scene unfold. Omega’s eyes were glassy and wide, fixated on her toy in a panic.
“Omega, what is going on? Are you hurt?” Hunter’s voice shook, scanning his eyes across her face.
“It’s Trooper. She- she’s hurt. Bad.” She responded in cries. The trooper was torn, as stuffing came spilling out of the tear.
“Oh, honey. You scared us.” Echo sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.
“We can fix her, Omega.” Hunter hushed, holding his hands open for the doll. Omega flinched, ripping the doll away from him and pulling it to her chest. He flinched back as well, not expecting her response.
“You’re gonna stitch her!” Omega yelled, as she began crying harder. Hunter’s back straightened, bewildered at what was even happening. She was clearing having a panic attack, but he wasn’t sure over what. Echo watched in the same confused stare as Hunter.
“Omega, yes, we’ll stitch her back together. It’s okay.”
“That…That hurts!” Omega erupted into quiet sobs. “She came apart, and her stuffing came out, and- and now we’re gonna put her stuffing back and she’s gonna be stitched up. The stitches would always hurt! She- She would always make it hurt…”
“Oh maker.” Echo connected the dots. “Hunter, I’m gonna be sick.” The man mumbled, swiftly leaving the room.
Hunter’s eyes followed after the man, questioning if he should call after him. He grew overwhelmed, wondering if his brother’s own medical trauma was flaring up from the scene.
”I can’t stitch her!” Omega screamed. Her face grew pale; a sign that she could either pass out or throw up, if no one was able to calm her down.
Hunter began to plead, ”Omega-“
Before he could react, Omega bolted into Hunter’s arms; she was unsure of what else to do. He was kneeling, Omega collapsed against his chest. The man was practically shaking with anger and sorrow. He inhaled deeply, holding himself in strength. Slowly, he repositioned himself, so he sat comfortably with his legs out, Omega collapsed into his torso. Gathering himself, he began to rock the girl slowly in his arms. He hushed her, rubbing her back as she sobbed into his chest.
“I understand that this was triggering for you, Omega. I’m right here, you hear me kid? I will never let anybody hurt you again. I swear it on my life, you will always be safe with me.” He whispered into her hair.
“Hunter… Thank you…” She whimpered between sobs. He only held her tighter.
The two of them sat in that position for a little while, Omega against Hunter’s chest. Her breathing steadied itself in his arms, his fingers lacing through her hair. He hushed quiet reassurances, holding her as though she would be ripped from him.
He wanted to squeeze and never let go; he wanted to destroy every shadow from her past. Yet he held her in gentleness, as though she would fracture under his touch. They sat in a comfortable silence, his protective arms remaining around her.
When Echo returned to the room, his cheeks were flushed. His fists were clenched, evidently thinking of his siblings’ mother.
When he saw the scene in front of him, Echo’s eyes met the floor.
“Omega, honey. You’re safe here.” Echo spoke gently. Omega nodded against Hunter’s chest.
Although it was hard to kneel on his prosthetics sometimes, he did for her. Echo reached across the girl, slowly rubbing his fingers over her arm. He knew, just as Hunter knew, that countless experiment scars laid under the sleeves of her pajamas. If he could, he would erase every memory of Nala Se from Omega’s mind. Yet trauma does not discriminate, and it was something they would all have to learn to live with.
”I-I’m sorry, I just wanted to play a bit before I went to bed… I never meant for this to happen, I’m sorry.” Omega cried.
“No need to apologize. You’re allowed to play with your toys. You are safe here, no one will hurt you.” Echo hushed, reaching between Hunter’s arms to rub Omega’s back.
“Let’s get you to bed, Omega. How about Echo and I stay here for the night?” Hunter helped recuperate her, tucking her blonde hair behind her ear.
She did not hesitate on the question. “Okay.” She answered, sniffling.
Echo brought her a tissue, letting her blow her nose. He gave her a hug, squeezing her tightly. When they parted, Omega yawned, crawling into bed.
“…If it would be okay, could someone be with me?” Omega glanced between her brothers.
“You get the bed.” Hunter spoke to Echo, knowing it was easier on his legs. Echo nodded his thanks, crawling into bed next to Omega. He laid between her and the wall, Omega being on the outer side. Next to her, on the floor, Hunter set up a miniature bed of pillows and blankets. Echo encapsulated Omega in his hold, rubbing her arms protectively. Hunter held Omega’s hand, rubbing her hand with his thumb.
Echo glanced to the girl. “How about we get Tech to take care of Trooper in the morning? We’ll get her fixed before you wake up.”
“Really?” Omega met his gaze.
“Yes, Omega. I promise you that we will do whatever it takes to help and heal her. We’ll take good care of her, and we won’t let anything hurt her ever again.” Echo promised, his voice sleepy.
Somehow, Omega didn’t think he was talking about her doll anymore.