Work Text:
Echo couldn’t help but hate himself.
Ever since Skako Minor, he struggled with self confidence. Who wouldn’t after being a prisoner of war for nearly two years, on top of finding out your tactical advantages were used against your own brothers and almost everybody you loved were dead.
Being apart of the Bad Batch made him feel useful after the whole incident. Sure, it had taken some time to adjust, but they had all been so patient.
They treated him like glass for awhile, being careful as to what they said and what they did. Echo understood, because he also didn’t know how he’d react to certain things. They knew the physical damages, but Echo was never prepared for the mental obstacles he would face.
Sometimes he, or his brothers, would catch him dazing off, a glazed look in his pale eyes before he was snapped back into reality.
Echo found himself having more restless nights than not, usually cooping himself up in the cockpit if it was empty or just sulking in his bunk.
He never mentioned it to anybody, not wanting to be a nuisance. And he never thought anybody knew.
Except he forgot about the one person that could physically detect something like that.
~
Echo had probably about 20 hours of sleep in the whole nearly two weeks after Kamino. He had definitely gone longer with sleep with his days being an ARC trooper, but unlike those days, he wasn’t on the move and there wasn’t any battle at the moment to keep him distracted.
Echo hated sulking in his feelings, but sometimes he couldn’t help it. Staring at his prosthetics with a hateful gaze, wishing he had his human legs back so he could feel the dirt on his feet just one last time.
They ached. As did his head from scomping in so much recently. He hadn’t mentioned it to any of the crew (ironic since he had been mothering them the past weeks), but he just felt it wasn’t a necessity at the moment. After all, why waste resources on the cripple, he figured.
The cold of the Marauder (that Tech and Omega preferred it to be, and Crosshair when he was here) wafted through the ship, making Echo shiver a bit and wrap his arms around himself as his chin dropped tiredly to his chest.
The cold.
It reminded him of the faint memories of being a prisoner. His tortured days, being picked apart and put back together. The agony and crying of wanting to get away.
Of wanting to end the pain once and for all.
Even now.
Echo jumped when a hand rested on his shoulder. He turned with his wide eyes, Hunter standing next to him with his hand still on his brothers shoulder and the other rubbing one of his eyes.
His sedatives were definitely still kicked in, by the tired look on his face, but Hunter was definitely more conscious than the night before.
“Sorry…didn’t mean to scare you but you didn’t respond.” Hunter mumbled tiredly. Echo huffed. “Sorry, I was just…thinking.”
“You’re always thinking…cmon, come back to bed.” Hunter said and Echo shook his head. “I’m okay. I’m not tired.” The former ARC tried to sound convincing, but Hunter could feel how tired he was based off his heartbeat and his smell.
“You’re lying. Cmon Ech.” Hunter tried to urge, tugging on his biceps but Echo shook it off.
“I said I’m fine, Hunter.”
“Don’t think Tech and I haven’t noticed you’re sleep pattern. Or should I say the one that doesn’t exist?” Hunter raised his eyebrows. Now Echo was getting irritated.
He wanted to be alone. He didn’t know why, but that was what his brain was telling him. And Hunter bothering him was just making it worse.
“Kriff off.” Echo turned the copilot chair. Hunter raised his eyebrows in surprise. Usually Tech and Crosshair were the defensive ones that Hunter argued with. Echo never lashed out unless it was bickering during a mission.
“Can you just…tell me what’s going on? I’m worried about you, Echo. You’ve been mothering us all week, but yet haven’t even taken care of yourself!” Hunter said as he went to the side of the chair, looking down at Echo with his hand resting on top of the chair.
Echo didn’t meet his gaze. Echo couldn’t meet his gaze, because if he did, he knew he would break.
All these months of build up. Of blocking out the emotions that Echo had been feeling and pretending like nothing was wrong,
pretending like death sounded better than anything,
was finally cracking down. All because of the stupid empire destroying stupid Kamino, and everything in it. All the years of memories and the brothers created there. And Echo didn’t know how to deal with it.
Echo trembled. Hunter had to focus to catch it, but he knew it was there. “Leave me alone.” Echo mumbled. “No.” Hunter stood his ground.
“You can’t keep bottling up these emotions, Echo. No matter how much you think you’re ‘just a machine’ now, you’re not. You are human. You have emotions. And you’re my brother. Our brother.“
Echo felt like he wanted to vomit from the feeling of weakness that radiated through his body. He wanted to cry, but he still didn’t feel ready to just yet.
Echo felt a hand on the back of his head and his mind felt a familiar one for a brief moment. One he hadn’t felt in awhile run through his black hair that he missed so much.
“Cmon, brother. Let’s go find Rex.”
Echo glanced up and could finally see the similarities between his lost twin and the younger brother in front of him, blinking to shake his mind away from it.
Hunter gave a soft smile, one he always gave to his family when he spoke to them as a brother and not a leader.
“Tell me what’s wrong, ori’vod.”
And Echo finally broke.
~
Echo woke, still in Hunter’s bunk after he was practically dragged there after calming down last night.
Hunter was still pressed up against him, but Echo was surprised to see a small bundle between him and the wall.
Omega clung to his arm, looking happy and content as she was fast asleep. She snored a bit, thankfully not as loud as Wrecker, but it was something she definitely got from her brother.
Echo turned his head to glance over at one of the foggy windows and could see it was raining outside, and most likely just the crack of dawn.
He glanced down more and saw Hunter’s face pressed up against his back with his arms draped over his torso and one leg over Echo’s prosthetics.
‘Wrecker wasn’t joking about him being a heat seeking missile.’ Echo thought to himself as he turned his head back over. Omega snuggled up farther against his arm, body practically trapping it in her own.
‘I guess that’s another thing she gets from her brother.’
Echo pressed a kiss to the back of her head before he finally drifted off again, finally getting the rest he earned after the years that haunted him.