Relevant tags/content warnings: Crosshair/Original Female Character, Slow Burn, Enemies to Lovers, Periodic Smut, Canon-Typical Violence, Alcohol Use, 18+/Explicit
Read previous chapters on Tumblr: Ch. 1 l Ch. 2 l Ch. 3 l Ch. 4 l Ch. 5 l Ch. 6 l Ch. 7 l Ch. 8 l Ch. 9 l Ch. 10 l Ch. 11 l Ch. 12 l Ch. 13 l Ch. 14 l Ch. 15 l Ch. 16 l Ch. 17 l Ch. 18 l Ch. 19 l Ch. 20 l Ch. 21 l Ch. 22 l Ch. 23 l Ch. 24 l Ch. 25 l Ch. 26 l Ch. 27 l Ch. 28 l Ch. 29
Chapter 30 summary: The purpose of the Empire's new drug is revealed as the Partisans and clones make plans. Crosshair gets to know Brith and Dara better.
Extra content warnings for this chapter: Reference to genocide; smoking of space marijuana; non-explicit reference to size kink
Omega wrinkled her nose, looking back and forth between Crosshair and Dara, unsure what had changed.
For the last several rotations, her grumpiest brother had had a marked improvement in disposition. When he had first returned to them months ago, after finally deserting the Empire, it had taken some time for him—for all of them, really—to adjust. He and Hunter had clashed more often than not, especially at first, and most days he was gloomy and miserable (even more so than he used to be, according to her other brothers). And although things had gotten steadily better, and Omega could tell that he was trying, Crosshair was still prone to a certain amount of brooding and bad moods.
But lately, his usual barbs had taken on a decidedly less vicious tone. He hadn’t picked a single fight—with Hunter or the regs—since they’d been back on base after Xagalus. And while he was still spending plenty of time away from them, now, when he turned back up, he was at least more likely to haunt the common areas, quietly keeping the rest of them company.
She’d even caught him smiling a little to himself while he prepared the caf the other morning. It was weird.