Your bribe, delivered, signed, and sealed. Thank you for everyone who came to the stream and hung out! She deserves so many more followers and viewers, and I think she had a great time with the active chat which is just super amazing. Am I a little traumatized from Belleston, Stripper bob, sexy nurse Ronald Mcdonald, and the long furby? A little, but half of those were my ideas so I can't really talk. 

Freeze Frame pops out tomorrow! I did this bribe first because it got more views in the short amount of time said bribes were up and was thus probably more effective.

Third person pov

Not only was Harper coughing up whatever this black, tar-like shit was, she also couldn't bring herself to breathe. She wasn't sure where she'd been warped-- just that whoever had done it was too powerful for her to comprehend. The oppressive aura that fell over her quirk the second she managed to push herself up onto two feet was insane. An all-encompassing feeling of fear overtook her unwittingly, and the distinct feeling that she should be running away hit her like a freight train. The girl swallowed a string of curse words, wiping the sludge from her eyes and trying not to gag. 

The first thing about this new setting that processed was the temperature. The ground beneath her feet was giving off an unnatural heat that made even more sweat than before start to bead at her brow. She was without a doubt outside based on the chilling breeze. There was a distinct smell of smoke drifting about that made her want to cough up a lung and a half as well, which really was the icing on the cake in this situation. It mingled with the scent of overturned dirt and concrete dust, making for an allergy attack and a half. She managed to resist hacking, forcing herself to look up no matter how hesitant she felt. She was pretty sure anyone within a mile radius could hear how fast her heart was beating. 

The man was floating, dressed in a suit a little too pristine for the wrecked environment. Harper had to really push herself to take a breath as she took in the sight of his mask. It was sleek, black, and looked incredibly heavy. Tubes jutted out from both sides, wrapping around and plugging into something she couldn't see. He was close enough that she could reach out and touch him if she wanted to. His focus was set entirely on her; though, she got the sense that he couldn't see the same way most people could. That path of thought was missing, and in its place was something else far more advanced. Something that let him map out what was around him without the use of any eyes. Harper brought a shaky hand up to her head as though she could force it to stop pounding like a jackhammer. 

"Apologies, Harper Rye." The man spoke smoothly and with no remorse whatsoever. Harper struggled to catch her breath, squinting up at him and taking a small step backwards. What the fuck? This had to be their leader. She wasn't sure if she should be surprised or not. With Harper's luck, she probably should've assumed this would happen from the beginning. Things were better to accept when you thought way. "So you're the little bug who's been causing my student so many issues. I must admit that I'm quite... underwhelmed."

Harper felt her eye twitch minimally. She had a sneaking suspicion that she was standing right at Death's doorstep with no real way to turn around and walk off. Which wasn't ideal all things considered, but Harper had been teetering on the edge of life and whatever came after since the moment the attack on the summer camp started. Harper did her best to dispel her shakiness. All the blood that had gotten on her whilst trying to keep Bakugo from bleeding out was beginning to dry somewhat. She was just glad she couldn't smell it so strongly anymore. Her nose had adjusted to the nauseating metallic fragrance. 

If Harper thought she'd ever been in a dire situation at some point during these past few months, apparently she was wrong. Nothing she'd been through during her time at UA could ever compare to this. The crushing sense of absolute hopelessness invaded her unwittingly. Harper wanted to scold herself, but why bother? She was in her own rights to be a pessimist this time. There was no sunny side to this circumstance. There was a supervillain floating in front of her like a being straight out of the Conjuring, and she was probably about to find herself six feet under. Maybe even seven based on current events! 

"Says the fucker with no eyes." Harper hissed out before she could stop herself. He just gave a small chuckle in response, like she was nothing more than an angry kitten. Next to him, maybe she was. The power he emitted washed off of him in never-ending waves. It was astonishing. How could someone like this even exist? Harper could hardly stand next to the guy without falling over. His presence alone carried an immense amount of foreboding. Harper took a few deep breaths. Her staying calm was going to be crucial to her survival. Assuming she lived, that is. 

There were a few splashes behind Harper that had the brunette whipping around, her eyes going wide as the rest of the League seemed to materialize the same way she had. Dark goo dribbled off their forms, and a few of them coughed to try and dislodge it from their lungs. Harper took a small step back. Her head was still thumping just as hardly as it had been earlier. Her quirk felt muddled. Was this what severe overuse felt like? No, that couldn't be it. Not unless she really had stretched it too far. Harper guessed it wasn't something she should bother worrying about. Her head was going to keep hurting an excruciating amount no matter what at this point.

Tomura fell to his knees, lowering his head in the presence of the floating man. Harper took another small step back, watching the villains all get grips on themselves. Her eyes scanned the area. It had clearly been decimated by some sort of quirk. Helmet's, no doubt. This had to be the arch nemesis that had hurt All Might. No one else was strong enough for that sort of thing. Based on the helmet the guy was toting around, it looked like the blonde hero had done his own number on him. It was no surprise the League was trying to kill the Number One pro if that were the case. Harper swallowed thickly, her mouth feeling impossibly dry. What she wouldn't do for a coffee right about now.

"So. You've failed once more, Tomura." His feet touched the ground and he walked forward, his steps soundless. Harper tensed as he swept past her. A shiver shot down her spine, and something in the back of her head screamed 'danger' at her as though she could do anything about it right now. "But you must not be discouraged. You'll try again. That's why I brought your associates back with you. Even this troublesome child, because you deemed her quirk useful enough for me to take."

A jolt flew through Harper's body, and she sucked in a sharp breath of air at the implication. Take? Like what they'd done to Eric? This couldn't... was he behind that entire scheme? If this was the guy who was responsible for making the Nomu, and the Nomu were all a mash-up of different quirks and thoughts... how the fuck hadn't she noticed before? Those fuckers were a fruitcake of different people. She hadn't connected those fucked up creations to the experiments that had been going on in that church basement. It had been so long ago and something she hated thinking about, and the details she had on what they were actually doing with the kids were so few and far between. Did that mean her brother's quirk was in one of those things? His mind? Was he in one of those, asking why it hurt and when he could go home?

The idea made her ill. She wrapped an arm around her stomach, refusing to let herself hunch over. Now wasn't the time for anymore horrifying realizations. If she was going to get out of this alive then she needed to figure out a course of action. It was becoming increasingly less likely that she'd be getting away from this one. Harper's survival hadn't exactly been plausible before, but with Tomura's venomous gaze on her, it was even less so. Her quirk... fuck. It was no wonder he hadn't quite killed her yet. If they'd really wanted her dead and not just maimed, they would've have Toga slash her throat, or Magne crush her head with that giant chunk of metal she toted around. 

"Start over as many times as it takes. I am here to provide you with help. All of this is for you." The villain claimed soothingly, offering a hand out to the young man. Harper's eyes narrowed. She hadn't ever seen such blatant manipulation before. Helmet head's thoughts were even more concerning. There was something deeper going on here, but there almost always was. "Dear Tenko. You have quite a ways to go. The outcome... it will be worth the trouble."

Before anyone could move, the air shifted. A certain pressure she swore she recognized came down heavily, and there was a tense pause in the League as they seemed to notice it as well. Helmet Head tilted his head slightly as though listening for something in particular. Harper was tempted to spread her quirk out to check too, but she knew there was know way she could get away with it without passing out. Her head was reaching dangerous levels of agony that made it hard to keep her eyes open. Each breath she took only seemed to make it worse. 

Harper just barely managed to jump back as Helmet flipped to her suddenly, hand reaching out to grab her for no reason that she could outwardly discern. Her reaction time was oddly good considering her current state. Honestly, that was only because she knew just how fast her shit would end the moment he managed to touch her. It was the only thing that allowed her to propel herself backwards without falling over. She watched his fingers change and extend into jagged black rods streaked with lines of zig-zagging crimson that seemed to glow with untamed energy. They shot forward with incredibly speed.

They never reached her. A few small, familiar portals opened up, redirecting them and causing them to nearly stab back into the individual who'd sent them forward to begin with. Harper almost crumbled with relief, watching another portal pop open above the villain. Stain flipped out of it, limbs poised with careful precision. He was dressed in his inmate uniform, lacking the red eye-mask he'd worn before. He had numerous weapons, including a couple of swords similar to the ones he'd wielded before his capture. The sight was so unexpected she almost fell over. Harper watched in mute awe as he shot downwards, swords brandished and ready to cut. She tried to keep her eyes from bugging entirely out of her sockets.

Helmet Fuck seemed just as taken aback by the random appearance as she was, swiping an arm at the ex-murderer and that created a blast of air that forced him to flip backwards midair. It was the only way to avoid being blown into the stratosphere. Stain grinned, grotesquely long tongue flitting out dangerously as he repositioned his weapon of choice. His eyes slid over to Harper. The brunette swore she saw him wink at her.

"You made the wrong choice messing with Harper Rye." Stain tilted his head, launching at him again. "Interesting, interesting. Getting a hit in on him isn't going to be easy, if it's even possible. Such a shame. I've never been one to back away from a challenge." 

Another one of Kurogiri's portals opened, and Harper could've fainted watching Sero swing out of it with a kick aimed right for Helmet's leg. They'd broken Stain and Sero out? For what? Why? She'd gone through a vat of piping hot shit trying to reform his ass and he breaks out?! She had no fucking idea how she was going to keep him out of Tartarus now. If she even lived that long. She stared, completely unamused by the grin on his face. He looked like he'd just walked out of prison too. He may as well have. The police chief owed her a few favors, sure, but how long were those going to last? 

Helmet danced out of the way of the kick, nearly running into the wall of blue fire that sprouted up almost as soon as he moved. Harper twisted around, watching the fire encircle the area. Dabi strutted forth with his hands in his pockets like he was meant to be here, head held high and eyes gleaming in a venomous manner Harper had never seen before. The girl could barely stand to look, the brightest of the flames making her feel dizzy and sick. Did she have a concussion? She couldn't remember hitting her head on anything. Didn't matter. She could practically see all her hard work flying down the drain with each passing second. Tomura looked absolutely enraged, which wasn't great considering how close he was to her.

Stain charged again, and Sero's tape shot out in an intricate manner that made it look almost like it had a mind of its own. Harper fell backwards as Tomura howled, lunging at her much like he had Katsuki. A few curses flew out of her mouth as his hand wrapped around her arm, eating through the skin and eliciting a shriek from her. A fist flew just over her shoulder before she could even process what was going on. An arm wrapped around her, lifting her up slightly as she clutched her newly-damaged limb close to her chest. She wearily looked up, blinking a few times at Kirishima's concerned face. What the fuck was even going on anymore.

"-per! Harper, can you hear me?" His voice bit through the static, and she stared. "That's a lot of blood! I should've been faster! Where is Kurogiri? I knew he's a little focused on trying to make sure Sero and Stain aren't stabbed, but the whole point of this was the get Harper out of here!" 

Right. That was definitely Kirishima. Kirishima was... what the fuck was he doing here? What were any of them doing here?! She was flattered they came to save her. Really, she was. But looking at Sero and Stain try to take on Helmet whilst Dabi dealt with the other members of the League-- barring Shigaraki, who was seething at them like a rabid animal-- they honestly didn't stand a chance. Where was All Might when you needed him? A murder convict and a teenager who'd been incapacitated and kept from training his quirk for god knows how long were taking on what was probably the greatest super villain of all time, and her classmate had come here and was trying to put himself between her and a guy with a hand on his face.

"Uh huh." Harper managed to croak out. Her arm felt like it was about to fall off, but she'd had period cramps worse than this. "Where is Kurogiri?" 

Kirishima's nervous glance told him he didn't know. Shigaraki lunged forward again.

Harper didn't blame Kirishima for dropping her on her ass, but the horror she felt was pretty palpable. The redhead was a close-range fighter. He couldn't do much of anything from a distance. Shigaraki was unfortunately the same way. Kirishima met him head on too, hardening as much of his body as he could. Where was Kurogiri?! Harper could feel years dropping off her life watching her friend wrestle with him, struggling to keep his grabbing hands from latching onto any part of his body. Harper watched the redhead bring his knee up, burying it in his stomach and causing him to keel over.

Dabi's fire raced towards them. Kirishima shoved Shigaraki off, the villain barely able to twist himself out of the flame's path. He rolled awkwardly, hissing and spitting like a feral cat. Kirishima jumped again, hardened fist drawn back. Harper scrambled backwards a bit to give them more space as the heat nipped uncomfortably at her skin. She wanted to do something to help. Anything, honestly. She couldn't bring herself to, the weight in her head making her feel like she would pass out if she risked even turning her head too fast.

The calamity of the entire situation made it hard to focus, her attention flitting between the fight with Shigaraki and the one with Helmet. Stain and Sero looked like they were holding their own. She forced herself to remember that Sero had been a villain before, and that the skills he'd shown in class were probably nothing compared to what he actually knew. His quirk looked a lot more flexible and controlled, his body bending and manuevering in ways it hadn't before. She groaned, clenching her eyes shut when Dabi's fire burned a little too bright. Opening her eyes again, things were heavily blurred. 

"You UA bastard!" Shigaraki hissed. Kirishima jumped back, and Dabi's flames moved in. The man yowled as the blue fire caught onto his pant leg, climbing rapidly. Helmet's attention snapped back to them like a rubber band, and Harper felt her heart stop. 

Sero and Stain were knocked back, and a blast of air sharper and harsher than the ones from before shot right for Dabi. Harper barely had time to process, eyes growing wide as Kirishima cursed and dove for the scarred man. He pushed Dabi with all his might. Harper's vision cleared slightly, and the world felt like it moved in slow motion. It was a cliche way to put it, but she couldn't phrase the feeling any other way. It's like everything around them stopped existing. The wind stopped. The fighting stopped. Everything just... halted. 

The attack ripped into Kirishima's side, ruthless and harsh. Blood sprayed forth like a geyser, and Dabi let out a roar of rage, fire shooting towards the masked man a second too late. Shigaraki continued to roll and writhe as the flames ate away at his skin, burning away his leg just like his quirk had Bakugo's. Harper felt a scream rip past her throat. Her vision blacked out for a moment as she moved forward to try and get over to the redheaded boy as he collapsed, curling up into a tight ball and letting out a scream of his own.

A portal opened behind her, and soon Harper was being pulled backwards. The sudden jerk backwards sent her over the edge. The last thing she saw was Kirishima being pulled through a warp gate of his own before her eyes rolled back and her world went blank and dark.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It's brutal but don't panic. Or maybe do panic. Now you won't know which to do.

Have something to heal and also so everyone asking questions has a reference! I've gotten loads of messages over the past four days for some reason so I thought it would be good to bring this up here for everyone to see. 

A lot of you have asked about the Patreon exclusive "Mind Reader For Hire", which is an AU of Mind Boggled on my Patreon in which Harper posts an ad on craigslist offering her services as a Mind Reader and doesn't end up going to UA (at least, not the same way she did in this book). here are some snippets if you're interested! The entire thing spirals and she, as usual, finds herself in a massive fucking mess.

The story is available on all tiers of Patreon, featuring Iida, eccentric billionaire's, more of Harper's parents, Harper owning a dog named Eleanor, Eri, Baby Hawks, Nezu getting mauled, and more! 

Snippets (1): 
Harper would have to contemplate the intricacies of Tenya's despair later. Right now, she needed to focus on getting him back on the right track. Whatever that track was, anyway. Like she'd said before-- she had absolutely no fucking clue what she was doing. In no way was Harper Rye trained or equipped to handle Tenya and his depression. Why had she obligated herself to this? Had she just chosen to hate herself that day? If only she could go through life without caring. It would make everything about ten times easier. Eleanor was definitely better with emotions than Harper was. And Eleanor was a dog. Despite Harper being the one with the mental quirk here, she still couldn't see a good way to approach this. Maybe it was better to just avoid.

"Didn't take you for a citrus kind of guy." Harper ended up saying. Like, you know, a fucking idiot. Tenya didn't seem to mind her stupidity. He just gave a weak smile that didn't seem at all genuine. Kudos to him for trying, but Harper was far from fooled. The brunette scrambled for something else to break the awkwardness. She glanced down at Eleanor. The dog blinked at her languidly, trotting along in a content manner. Harper could use that. "You don't mind Eleanor, do you? I didn't take the time to ask whether or not you were a dog guy."

Snippet (2):
Tenya's doubts were dashed the moment Harper let him in the house. Absolutely obliterated off the face of the planet. His thoughts were in no unclear terms dashed away by the explosive reaction he got from her parents. Harper was nearly bowled over by the sheer exuberance that burst forth the moment she opened the door. Even Eleanor seemed a bit hesitant, her ears dropping and her gaze shifting to Harper for instruction. The girl blinked, also stepping in. There were streamers set up, and there was confetti all over the floor. There were even Christmas lights strung up-- her mother's doing, surely. Harper swallowed a sigh. She had said to be subtle. So of course they'd decorate and throw a party.

"Harper!" Her mother all but shrieked, rounding the corner faster than a bat out of hell. Tenya flinched. Visibly flinched. Harper softly closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She wanted a nap. She had a headache. She needed coffee. These were all facts, and yet here she was. Stuck in this hell scape. Her mom let out a gasp, rushing up to the stunned Tenya. "And you must be Tenya Iida, her new friend! I'm Akiara Rye, her mother! Hello!"

Tenya's mind came to a sputtering halt as he was wrapped in a bear hug by the woman. Akiara Rye was at least a head shorter than he was, her eyes warm and welcoming and her hair the same color as her daughter's. He wasn't sure why her absolute overjoy to see him made his chest feel like it was going to burst. He felt oddly like crying as she teetered them side to side, still not letting go of him. When was the last time he'd been hugged? It was an odd question to think about, he realized. He hadn't really thought he deserved to be hugged. There was no time for it. He was older now. That didn't mean he didn't want or enjoy being embraced, however. He just... hadn't really thought about it.

"Fuck, they're here!" A man came barreling around the corner. He was only a little taller than Akiara, and definitely Harper's father. They were both terrifyingly cheerful compared to Harper. "I'm Elijah Rye! Welcome to our humble abode!" 

Snippet (3):
Now, Harper is no expert on birds. She has the same base knowledge just about everyone else does when it comes to them. Little tidbits she's seen on TV or the internet. Whatever her parents and teachers had told her growing up-- the barest of the basics. She hadn't thought about the implications of what that information meant when you applied it to Hawks. He was a baby now. Of course she wasn't going to compare him to an actual animal. She clearly should've. Pardon her for being too enraptured with their near death experience to dwell on it too long.

The first thing Hawks had seen upon returning to his one-to-two year old self was her face. Now, Keigo-- his name, according to Kenta-- had a quirk derived from the very species of bird he'd gotten his hero name from. Actual Hawks. Harper didn't claim to know much about them in general, but a quick Google search confirmed her fears when she tried to hand the toddler over to her millionaire friend only for the brat to start bawling his eyes out and screaming like he'd been stabbed in the kidney with an ice pick. Keigo had... imprinted. On Harper. Had been reversed, seen her immediately, and just decided. Or something. She didn't understand the process, honestly.

Snippet (4):
Her dad was still leaning forward, hand still slapped against the light switch. The sunglasses her mom had been wearing slipped down the bridge of her nose, her wide eyes staring at the baby cooing in her arms. Their trip to the supermarket had woken Keigo up immediately, his gold eyes shining and excited by the colorful toys and clothing. Harper had picked out a few hats for him to hide his blondeness. He was wearing a brown one now with bear ears on it. Even she could admit it was adorable. He let her put it on him with zero complaints to boot. It was more than ideal.

"What the hell is that?" Her dad asked. "I had too much to drink. And I haven't even drunk anything yet."

"And why do you look like you got into a fight with an oven and lost?" Her mom added, eyes still on the baby. Harper could see the sparkle in them growing. "A baby. Harper has a baby. A really, really adorable-- it's a baby! It's cute! But why's she have one? Did she... she didn't kidnap it, did she?"

"Yes, it's a baby. No, I didn't kidnap it." Technically. "Look, I ran into some... trouble. It's why I'm late. You know the pro hero Hawks?"

They both nodded, not having the words. Harper wasn't about to beat around the bush. It was too late for excuses at this point. What could she possibly come up with that they would buy anyway? The truth was the only thing that would do in this instance.

"This is him." Harper gestured to the baby, who grabbed her hand happily and squealed like it was a gift. "He got hit with a quirk and I was there when it happened. I caught him and he did some weird bird shit and won't let anyone but me hold him now. He gets really upset when I try to hand him off. Long story short, the hero commission is corrupt and are gonna kidnap him if they know and like... I don't know. Experiment on him or something. Giving him to the police or heroes is going to funnel him into the commission either way, so now he's with me and no one knows. No one is going to suspect I have him and that he's one, and if they do, I'll know. Plan's full of holes, but... I agreed to it. So now he's here."

Snippet (5):
"So it is Hawks." Nighteye's voice came out flat. "Tsukauchi seems tense. His quirk must've picked it up as a lie. Not that they're being subtle."

"Now, I never said that." Harper's voice came out impossibly bland. Hawks very evident wings fluttered a bit once more, chubby hands coming up to try and touch her face. Eleanor gave a snort, and Tenya eyed her incredulously. "Besides, I thought you wanted to one-two on the mafia shits we stole a kid from."

"It was quite the disconcerting experience." Tenya understated. Severely. "I was useless the entire time."

"Yes, and we'll definitely get to that. However, Hawks has been missing for several days now. And it's pretty obvious that... uh..." Tsukauchi pointed out almost meekly, dark eyes questioning. "That's definitely Hawks. The girl that was retrieved has a quirk that reverts the state of living matter as well. He was spotted on the scene. There's no way this kid isn't Hawks. But why weren't we told he was here? Did they just decide to keep him? That doesn't seem like Harper."

Snippet (6):
"Am I a mouse? A dog? A bear? No, I'm---" The literal fucking rat that had popped out of god knows where was cut off, letting out a very shrill shriek as Eleanor snarled and lunged for his tiny little throat. Harper very carefully turned Keigo's head away from the carnage as Nighteye and Tsukauchi both leapt from their seats, Tenya gaping like a fish out of water next to her. "Dastardly canine!"

"You've got two seconds to tell me why there's a rat in a suit in my house before I let Eleanor maul him." Harper's tone was flat. Tenya gasped, affronted.

"Harper!" He hissed out, and Harper had to applaud his confidence. "That's UA's principal Nezu!"

"And I'm the president of 'I Don't Give A Shit' incorporated, Iida. That doesn't explain why he's in my house." Harper drawled as Keigo twisted around again, giggling as Eleanor grabbed the creature dubbed Nezu by the back of his tiny vest and began to shake him violently in an attempt to end his life. Harper didn't know the rat, but she could already tell just by the feel of his mind that she didn't like him. "Besides, they're literally trying to get us to change our identities and go live with strangers or something. Is that what you want?"

It's 22 chapters long so far and is about to spiral into full on fucking insanity, featuring Harper as a mom, witness protection with semi-new identities and... blonde Harper? It's a lot. It's about to get so insanely fun to write though I'm so excited! Let me know if you have any questions! The link to the Patreon is in my bio if you want to go check it out and look at the different tiers (: Or, it's here at: https://www.patreon.com/strawhatpirate