Or she's not sure how she really feels. Our relationship started out great, but now she's acting weird. I don't know if it's me or what, but she's different now after 56 levels. Maybe I took her for granted, or maybe something is bothering her, I don't know. It really hit home tonight, though. Got word of Taffington Boathouse being under attack. We're not far away, so I decide to swing by. There's a few ghouls there fighting some of those big mosquitoes. I open up fire on them, Piper opens fire. I was standing beside a settler, when one of the ghouls rushed toward us. Piper (I hope) inadvertently shot the settler, causing the two that are there to be come hostile. I lowered my weapon in hopes they'd be cool with us not fighting it out. Piper on the other hand completely wasted them. Not only did she murder those two settlers, she was saying things like, "We really showed them." "Guess they were trying to run." She was laughing and joyful about her decline into murdering innocents. Then she had the audacity to "hate" that. Do I deserve her hate and negative affinity because she's slowly becoming a monster? I don't know. I don't know what's happening to her.

I think what happens is that her combat AI sometimes can't distinguish friend from foe when shooting, and when her general AI discovers she's shooting innocent settlers instead, her affinity kicks in, telling you she hated that.

Disclaimer: That's just my random guess. I've no idea.

* Papa Palpatine voice * Good, good. Give into your anger. It gives you focus, makes you Stronger!

PIPER: I pledge myself...to your teachings...

PALPATINE: Goooood....Gooooooood! For your first assignment...wipe out everyone in Diamond City. You hate them, don't you? They're all involved in the Synth plot to destroy you. I fear if they win, there shall be no safe haven for you and your little sister. Do what must be done, young Piper. Do not hesitate, show no mercy. Only then, will you be powerful enough...to expose the truth.

PIPER: I agree, they...they're too corrupt...by the Synths...by the Institute...

NAT: The hell? I just felt something bad here...

SOLE SURVIVOR: What is it? The Institute?

NAT: No... Something... worse...

<Cue Piper leading an army of Brother of Steel soldiers into Diamond City with dramatic music playing>

Haha, I love it. Poor Kylo Ren in Force Awakens just can't compete with my boy Palpatine.

Keep picking locks.

Y'know, sounds just like some of my ex-wives...

Man, I'm sorry, haha.

That can happen with companions.

You or the companion accidentally injure a settler or an npc catches you doing something that turns the npc hostile.

Because you are under attack the companion fights back on your behalf and blames you for it.

If it goes far enough the game banishes the companion to a settlement and the companion can hate you and start attacking you as well.

Usually if you give it enough time it all blows over.

The other option is to circumvent the wait and reload a recent save and be more careful.

One time I was working building a settlement, running to and fro, and I dunno, somehow I pushed my 'grenade' button. Duh.

I heard that click sound and said WTF - but I knew that sound and it was not good (idiot)...

Grenade didn't kill anyone. Though it took out the water pump I had just placed, heheh.

But, Danse! He'd heard enough; he whipped out his laser and wasted everyone in the area. Must have been at least eight or ten settlers, LoL.

Not really funny, heheh...

Ah, well. That's a reload!

I never did that again (fingers crossed) but, although I lost only ~10 minutes work, it was still a pain.

Wow, these guys really go crazy sometimes, haha.