Abandoned

10

Trigger warning: Graphic nightmares and panic attacks and slight self harm.

Deku was running. But running from what, he could not say. All he knew was that if he slowed down, he'd be caught.

He could feel the heat licking up his back, but he didn't dare stop to check. His bare feet barely even touched the ground as he dashed this way and that.

He could dimly hear voices as they shouted at him from unseen places, terrifying Deku even more. He pushed himself to even greater speeds, his chest heaving.

The words that were being thrown at him made no sense. He couldn't understand any of them, no matter how hard he tried.

As Deku's attention was diverted, he tripped. Down he went, colliding painfully with the metal floor. He struggled to push himself up, but found that he couldn't move. His poor body had finally collapsed from fear and exhaustion.

A voice hissed its displeasure from the shadows, and Deku could feel the temperature rise considerably in the dark room.

His shoulders heaved as he struggled to inhale properly. The world faded in and out of focus as he grew lightheaded.

"You're useless, boy."

Deku felt chills race up his body. It was that damn voice again. He snapped back to reality, trying to steady his breathing.

"I'll have to get rid of you if you don't improve soon, Deku," the voice continued in an alarmingly soft voice. "We wouldn't want that, would we?"

Deku shook his head frantically. Then suddenly,
a foot shot out of the darkness, connecting painfully with his ribs and sending him flying.

The small boy gasped for air, coughing violently. He clutched at his side, his other arm coming up to shield his head. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.

"I said," the voice snarled, heavy footsteps accompanying every word. "We wouldn't want that, would we?"

Deku shook his head again. "N-no, sir," he stammered, struggling to form words.

A large hand came to grip at the back of Deku's shirt. The boy made no move to escape the deathly strong grip, he knew what would happen if he resisted any form of punishment.

The strong hand lifted the boy up off the ground, bringing his face closer to the shadows shielding the voice from view.

"Good."

Then Deku was thrown into the center of the room. His nose was suddenly filled with the scent of burning flesh, and he knew what was about to happen next.

"Do it," Deku heard the voice say, then it was gone. Deku couldn't control his shaking as he knew that the voice hadn't really departed, just hidden in the darkness that surrounded the room.

Those two words scared Deku even more than any other weapon he had been hurt with.

The greenette's world was then filled with blue flames as the inferno raged around him, burning everything in its path.

The blue fire reached the terrified boy, and then Deku was transported into a world of pain.

He screamed as the fire raced up his back, shooting down into his throat and scorching his lungs. The blue flames tore his clothes away, burning through his skin and burying itself in his veins.