Mind Boggled

Chapter 42

"Floor it!" Dabi and Harper both shrieked at the same time. Tsukauchi's tires squealed. Shoto was still running. The engine gave a rev, the music hit its peak, and just as they began to roll away--

Shoto dove right through the window. And everyone started screaming.

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Dabi refused to talk as they drove, and Shoto refused to move. He was pretty much in Harper's lap sideways, his legs on his brother's and folded up awkwardly. He had his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes narrowed dangerously. His whole body seemed set into a grimace. Kurogiri was happily humming along to the music. Sansa and Tsukauchi weren't talking, but Harper could see the sweat gathering on the back of her fake-dad's neck. Sansa's fur was all poofed up, and she was pretty sure he'd licked his paw a few times. Harper was, decidedly, done.

"...You can tag along. But no questions until I'm not with my shit." Harper decided, and Shoto looked at her. She raised her brows. He was in her lap, so it's not like he could say no. The half-and-half teen gave Dabi a glance before returning his gaze to his classmate. It was slightly awkward, but she could tell Shoto didn't care. She really didn't either. So, they had some sort of stare-off while Dabi silently fidgeted next to them.

"God, I can't believe he jumped through the window. Poor Harper. All she could do was grimace and help him sit up while we all shrieked. I'll owe that kid some tylenol later." Dabi thought to himself. "But... holy fuck. Shoto is here. Well, sort of. He's sort of curled up. I don't think he wants to sit on Kurogiri. Still, I can't believe it. This is really happening."

"You won't run again?" Shoto raised an eyebrow at her. "Harper has always seemed trustworthy and like a good friend. We sit together at lunch, when she actually eats in the cafeteria. With Midoriya, Iida, and Ochako too. She's the one who invited me to sit with them in the first place, after the Sports Festival, and she helped us with Stain. And in the hospital room... she cares, but she's clearly friends with Touya as well. Where does her loyalty lie most?

"Where would I go? We go to the same school, and Dabi over here will be coming along anyway. Even if we did run, you'd still be able to corner us." She said. The car turned, and she brought up her arm so he didn't topple backwards suddenly. His left hand clasped on her shoulder, and he cringed visibly. Great, so he was enjoying this about as much as she was. Good to know. "If he doesn't talk, I'll make him."

This seemed to satisfy him, and he fell silent again. Harper patted his back awkwardly a few times. For a moment, nobody said anything. Dabi had stopped dwelling and was now silently thinking to her, focused on her face so he could better read her expressions. The fact that he even understood anything she meant just based on her face was sort of amazing and slightly weird, but she'd think about it later. There were worse things. He finally admitted to her directly that he was Touya, though she'd overheard it in his thoughts many times before. A brief background was given. Harper felt a little better, being updated on the situation.

Out of nowhere, Sansa said something that caused Tsukauchi to almost veer into a lamppost. 

"Hey, Tsukauchi. There's a teenage boy in your daughter's lap."

The shriek the brakes produced made them all wince.

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She texted Kirishima and vowed to bring him in and update him later. He'd sent some thumbs up emojis and told her he needed to go home first anyway, and talk to his moms. He gave a tentative invite to her, asking her if she'd at least like to come in and meet his mothers. She'd of course said yes. Not because she actually wanted to meet them, but because Kirishima wanted her to. Harper owed him a metric shit ton for all he'd put up with. Hell, she could donate her heart for transplant to the guy and it still wouldn't be enough to make up for even half of what he'd been through. The comment about Endeavor being a furry had been terrifying enough, but the wedding he'd been forced to go through? Nothing short of traumatizing. Harper still had glitter in her hair.