No One Can Hear You

When You Scream No One Can Hear You

It started out all fine and dandy. Just another practical heroics lesson. Izuku had hurt his hand in training the day before and was under strict orders from Recovery Girl to not use it too much. So of course All Might took that as the perfect excuse to have the boy be the hostage for that day's scenario.

The man had clipped a device around his neck, explaining that it was a harmless quirk suppressor. Wouldn't want him to rescue himself after all. Then came the hand cuffs, they weren't too tight though he thought about asking if he could have his hands infront of him instead before deciding not to bother. He wouldn't be cuffed too long.

All Might led him into the building where he was to be hidden, bringing him up stairs and to a closet. "Here we are my boy! Your friends should be here to get you soon I'm sure!" He turned to leave, before pulling out a remote from his pocket. "Oops! Before I forget! Gotta turn the suppressor on!" He pressed the button with a smile before the door swung shut. The click of the lock signaling Izuku's doom.

At the same time the collar lit up with a slight whine. That in and of itself didn't alarm the teen, what did was that the thing UNFOLDED and snapped itself across the lower half of his face. Locking his jaw closed. It wasn't just a collar. It was a muzzle.

His breathing picked up and he flinched backwards on instinct. His brain choosing to flash memories across his nerves instead of helping him figure a way out of the situation.

Being pinned behind the elementary school, kids shoving sand into his mouth, taunting him for his creepy rambles.

Being dragged into class, duct tape wrapped around his head. The teacher finding it amusing and making him keep it on in the name of 'peace'.

The substitute using her scarf to gag him when she finally got too annoyed with his mumbles.

The janitor having to use wire cutters to free him when the kids had locked him in the closet, face covered in a home made muzzle just like the one on his face rightthissecond ohgodohgod.

He felt himself collapse into a sitting position against the back wall of the empty closet. Distantly he felt the pain of jarring his already injured hand. And he knew he shouldn't be leaning against the wall like that. But he couldn't seem to focus on anything but his rising panic.

His breaths were coming in quick desperate gasps through his nose. They weren't enough. He couldn't breathe. His chest was aching and he couldn't breathe. Fearful tears streaked down his face as he was reduced to a quirkless, useless Deku, once again.

Time passed in a blur of panic and relived memories. Eventually the door knob jiggled and he was aware of voices, though the meaning of the words was lost on him. "Hey Riot! We got another locked door! Wanna be a pal?"

"Sure thing Uravity! Be right there!"

A few more moments of painful breaths and shaking limbs passed before there was a bang and the door creaked open. The light was blinding and he once again flinched back into the wall.

"Hey! We found him guys! Sector 2, block 8, building 3! Meet you at the check in point!" The voice above him was cheerful and he kept his head down, knowing that eye contact was even more dangerous when they were happy. He bit back a whimper. 

"Hey man! Up we go! All might has the keys for the cuffs at the check in!"

He doesn't move. Don't move and they might get bored before they hurt you.

"Deku?" He flinched a bit at the name, the only thing that really made sense of what was being said around him.

A deeper voice joined in. Oh there where three people standing above him. How had he completely missed the last one? That's dangerous, someone whose presence was so quiet meant danger. "Midoriya?" A large hand was laid on his shoulder and he violently cringed away his face tilting up on instinct to see who had attacked.

His gaze locked with stricken purple eyes. He was aware of confused questions, but there was something in those eyes that gave him hope for once. There was something there that said their owner knew his pain. This time he let the whimper through.

The figure, who had been standing infront of him dropped to their knees to be on a more even level with him. They turned away briefly to bark an order to the other two, but were quick to focus their attention back on Izuku. "Hey hey. It's ok. We need to focus on breathing ok? Can you follow the rhythm?" Rhythm? Oh they were knocking out a pattern on the floor. It was nice. Calm and steady. He grabbed a hold of it with all of his scattered focus.

"Uhm. All Might?"

"Yes young Uraraka?"

"Is Deku supposed to be wearing a muzzle?"

"Oh? Yes? We couldn't have him calling out now could we? That would have made the exercise too easy!"

Another voice cuts in over the coms. "You put WHAT on the nerd?! Shit! What the fuck! ME I can understand! But Deku?!"

"Bakugo. What's going on?" 

"Not now Specs. All Might we need to get that thing off RIGHT NOW."

The calm presence infront of him was novel. He wasn't sure anyone had ever helped him breathe through one of his meltdowns before. Things were slowly fading back in to perspective. He wasn't in the janitors closet, or behind Aldera. And oh. The purple blur infront of him was Shinso.

God he was tired. He had never wanted to think of those things again. Reliving them sucked.

There was a blur of fast moving silver in the door was and the click of a button. Then the constricting pressure around his jaw practically melted away. He took one stuttering breath. And then a wet gasp. And then he was shuttering at the feeling of freedom and a choked cry left his lips. 

Shinso's hand was on his shoulder as he continued to walk him through breathing excocizes. Iida was slowly moving to unlock the cuffs and collar with the keys he had snatched from All Might. And Uraraka and Kirishima were looking on in stunned horror as Bakugo explained to the rest of the class how Midoriya's muttering and stimming had not always been tolerated. And that their middle school wasn't above odd punishments if it meant quiet in a classroom.

Eventually Shinso managed to get the other boy to his feet and headed to Recovery Girl to check on his swelling wrist. The others changed out in near silence before heading to the dorms, no one interested in the debrief of the class. Momo immediately started making cups of calming tea as the rest of the teens settled into the common room.

Asui was trying to soothe a quietly sobbing Ochaco.

The Bakusquad was trying to gently ply Katsuki to see if he knew of any other triggers for Midoriya. He begrudgingly listed them off. The length of the list made no one happy.

It would be a long hour before Shinso came in, awkwardly carrying an asleep Izuku. Setting him down on the couch he explained the prognosis from the nurse. Then they all settled in to wait for the boy to wake up. It was time for a long talk between friends it seemed.

---

Needless to say All Might was in for a rough lecture when Aizawa found out that a student had been muzzled for any reason, just like Midnight had been talked to after the sports festival incident. It would not be a good time.