CT-5385 requested this.

Tw: Injury, kidnapping.

Crosshair loves his brothers, that much Piper was sure of.

 He never outright said it, but she noticed the way he would help Wrecker find his doll when it was lost. She observed when Hunter was sick and Crosshair left a cup of tea out on the counter. She saw when Tech stared up for days at a time, forgetting to sleep, and Crosshair would wrap a blanket around his shoulders when he dozed off at his workstation.

Crosshair would deny it ever happened, but Piper knew the truth.

When he cared, he could be sweet.

She knew he showed his love with actions rather than words, but Piper was waiting for the day he'd do something for her. They had been secretly dating for three months, but she was still waiting for him to show some kind of sign that he loved, or at least cared for her.

"I'll pick up some fresh vegetables so I can cook dinner tonight!" Piper said one day, throwing her bag over her shoulder. "It was my grandmother's recipe and it's my favourite dish."

"Yay!" Omega excitedly cheered.

"Oh wow," Crosshair sarcastically said. "Vegetables."

Echo shot him a glare before giving Piper an appreciative smile. "That would be great. It's been a while since we've had a cooked meal."

"It's been nice having you around," Hunter remarked. "A team medic has been so useful."

"I'm glad," Piper said, grabbing her comm and slipping it into her bag. "I'll be back in an hour."

She wasn't back in an hour.

She wants back in two hours.

She wasn't back in three hours.

"We should go look for her," Wrecked suggested, hugging Lula close to his chest.

"She has some basic training." Tech pushed his goggles up his nose with his index finger. "The chances of her getting severely injured-"

"Tech." Hunter crossed his arms. "Just comm her."

Tech sighed, but obliged. A minute went by without her answering, so he eventually shook his head. "She's not answering. Perhaps she just got distracted."

"For three hours?" Echo spun around in his chair, scowling. "We need to go find her."

"She's fine," Crosshair cut in, remarkably calm, he thought, considering his girlfriend was missing. "She has her basic combat training. Unless she ran into a kriffing bounty hunter, she's fine. She doesn't even have a bounty on her head, though."

Tech gave a little cough to clear his throat. "Actually, we have bounties on us, being deserter clones. And seeing as how Piper is always with us, she has a bounty on her for being affiliated with us."

Crosshair's jaw clenched. "She's fine. She probably just got distracted."

Echo stood up, stretching. "I'll go find her."

"I wanna go too!" Omega exclaimed, putting her hands on her hips.

Hunter sighed. "Okay. But I'm going too."

"Me too," Wrecker said, slinging an arm over Crosshair's shoulder. 

"Fine," Crosshair hissed, rolling his eyes. "Let's all go like the happy karking family we apparently are."

So they all filed out of the ship, one after another, with Omega leading the charge.

Piper may have made a mistake by going to the market alone.

She didn't mean to get kidnapped, it just kind of happened! And now she was hanging upside down in some basement as the dumbest bounty hunters she'd ever seen debated what to do with her.

"What if we kill her?" the one on the left asked, toying with his goatee. 

"We need her alive." The other one shook his head. "I think... What did the wanted ad say?"

"I don't remember." Goatee Man frowned.

"Hey, what if you just let me go?" Piper suggested. "I have to cook dinner."

"What're ya making?" Non-Goatee Man curiously asked.

"Pasta. I bought some vegetables from the market for the sauce, but the sauce needs to cook all day. You're ruining my dinner!" Piper could feel her head pounding due to being upside down for too long.

"Oh, that's a shame. What if we let you go and you come back later when the sauce is done?" Goatee Man was already reaching up to untie her. "Maybe you can bring us some too!"

"That's a great idea!" Piper said as he untied her.

"You promise you'll come back?" Non-Goatee Man  suspiciously asked.

"Of course." Piper frantically nodded as she was lowered to the ground. "With some sauce for you."

Goatee Man opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by the door to the basement exploding. Piper cringed as heat from the blast licked over her skin.

Another explosion rocked the building, this one sending her into a wall. She heard a crack as she crumpled, going limp next to Non-Goatee Man.

She heard someone yell her name, but she couldn't tell who. Piper saw someone crouch in front of her, but her vision was blurring and pain was radiating from her head.

"Piper!" The voice was insistent now, much to her displeasure. 

Her vision wasn't just blurring anymore, it was fading into darkness. Just before she lost consciousness, she worried where her vegetables were.

"Concussion," Tech told her once she had woken. "You need lots of rest. Do not strain yourself further, or you will not recover."

Piper frowned. "But what about dinner? I was supposed to-"

"You cannot," Tech cut her off. "In bed. Now."

Piper groaned, but crawled back into her bed, pulling the blanket up. "I can't handle another day of those dry ration bars."

"Then don't." Crosshair leaned against the doorway, bowl in hand.

Piper perked up. "You didn't!"

"I did." Crosshair smirked smugly. "Go on. Say how I'm the best."

"You're the best." Piper held out her hands eagerly. "Now gimme."

Crosshair gently eased the bowl into her hands and gave her a utensil. "I found the recipe on the counter. I... I hope it's okay."

Piper studied him for a moment. He seemed concerned about what she thought of it, for some reason. "I'm sure it is."

Crosshair picked at his sleeve, forcing his gaze away. "I tried my best."

"And I appreciate it." Piper hid a smile as she tried a mouthful. It was happening. She had waited months for him to show he loved her, and here it was.

"Well?" Crosshair impatiently asked once she swallowed.

"It's great, Crosshair. Thank you." Piper beamed at him.

Tech's eyes were flicking back and forth between them. His brow furrowed slightly at the fond looks on their faces before he gasped.

"What?" Crosshair rolled his eyes.

Tech frantically pointed between the two of them with wide eyes. "You- Crosshair- Piper-"

"Aw, blast," Piper cursed. "He figured it out."

"Took him long enough." Crosshair snorted. "He's supposed to be the smart one too."

Piper narrowed her eyes at Crosshair. "Don't do it."

"But he needs to know to keep his mouth shut," Crosshair innocently said, slowly inching closer to Tech.

Tech turned on his heel and bolted away towards the others. "Help! Help!"

Crosshair chased after him, cackling.