Mind Boggled

Chapter 42

Third person pov

The day flew by, and soon they were running from Shoto again. Or they were trying to. Hound Dog materialized from god knows where, there to say goodbye to them and give his woeful farewells to a clearly-smitten Kurogiri who lingered a little too long for Harper's liking. The half-and-half boy was determined. He sprinted out of the classroom not even a second after the bell rang, causing Harper to suck in a sharp breath of air and yank Kurogiri. If only he were allowed to use his quirk on school grounds. Sansa and Tsukauchi were already waiting outside, ready to haul them out. It was just a matter of getting there in time.

"Come. On." Touya hissed, punctuating each word with a tug. Kurogiri finally seemed to budge, clearly not sensing their urgency as Shoto got closer and closer. "Dammit, he's gaining. I knew I wouldn't be able to avoid this forever, but I would've thought I'd at least last a day."

Harper had to agree with that. Harper had been doing pretty shitty on her own, but add Kurogiri and Dabi into the mix, and they were a mega-magnet for bad luck. Even worse, Ectoplasm popped out of his classroom just to tell them not to run. Not that they listened, but it made them feel all the more pressured as they tore through the crowd, weaving between students and ducking under arms. Kurogiri seemed to find immense joy in it all, so at least one of them could say they were having fun. Shoto was gaining though, and fast. He was right on their tails.

"Harper!" Shoto exclaimed behind her, voice pleading and possibly a little pissed. Harper wasn't about to turn around and look at him to see which was plastered on his face. "If they're running away, it's because they know something. Touya must've recognized me. That must be him!"

Harper muttered a few curses to herself. Of course. They should've acted natural and pulled lies right out of their asses. Kurogiri could even mindlessly play along, seeing as Harper and Dabi himself were the only ones who actually knew his real name. That being said, the tired girl wasn't sure Dabi would've been able to handle lying to his younger brother. His mind had circulated around the teen all day. About how much he'd grown, and how powerful he was, and how he was finally using the full extent of his quirks. They had Izuku to thank for that. One less issue for Harper to tackle, she supposed.

They skidded down a set of stairs. It was only then that she realized they'd left Kirishima in the classroom, and she cursed herself. Of course they'd accidentally forgotten him. Just her luck. Excellent. This was great. She'd have to text him, and work out some sort of way to warp him. Since he knew about Sero, he'd been cleared to come alone. Though he couldn't see Sero or Stain, or enter Sero's home, he could at least tag along. Not that having four people in the back seat was legal, but Tsukauchi and Sansa said it was probably fine, so they were going to go with that. When the law speaks, it speaks.

"Shit, shit, shit." Dabi hissed as they exited the school. The crowd was thinner there. It meant they could go faster, but it meant the same thing for Shoto. The half-and-half boy sped up when he saw the car they were heading for. Sansa and Tsukauchi saw them coming, and the cat-headed officer scrambled out to open the door for them. One of the few useful things he'd ever done in his lifetime. A small blessing. At this point, Harper was counting every one she got no matter its size. "We're not going to make it. Shoto's too stubborn."

Sansa hopped back in the car. All the windows were rolled down anyway, and Hallelujah by Panic at the Disco was pouring out at max volume. Harper didn't have time to think about it. She slowed down slightly, still pulling Kurogiri behind her. Dabi took the lead, boots hitting the pavement hard as he put the rest of his energy into the last few strides. He propelled himself in, scrambling to the end. Harper jumped in next, pulling Kurogiri with her. The warp-gate user seemed to get the memo and slammed the door behind him, the gaseous shroud his quirk produced springing from his clothing and giving him his usual appearance of a purple mist cloud in a suit.