AN: AceSabo-ish with the prompt "Lab/Research experiment." Pretty general I suppose?
MINOR BODY HORROR WARNING
There was a boy on the level below him that didn't speak. While most others there would talk to fill the silences they could hear echo in their ears alone, would chatter until their throats grew hoarse and their screams became thin, that boy didn't say a single word.
Sabo, as the son of their major benefactor, had a certain freedom in exploring those levels. He may've had more metal in him than any child on Earth, and he may've been signed in instead of kidnapped, but it didn't make him any less valuable in keeping his father's backing.
He used that freedom to visit that mysterious boy. He would stand outside the glass separating each test subject and watch as experiments were performed, and he had never once seen the boy behind the glass scream or cry, no matter what they did to him.
One day, the curiosity he'd bottled up finally bubbled to the surface, and he couldn't restrain the urge anymore. He knew the inner workings of the facility well, and he was a common enough face visiting the soundless boy that no-one would question his presence when he went down there.
His bare feet clicked only slightly on the floor, places where the flesh on the soles of his feet had grown around instead of over metal, and he stopped outside the boy's door, nervousness a ball in the pit of his stomach.
Would he even be able to say anything? Would the boy even talk, when he'd never said a word before?
You always stand outside the window, echoed through his head, like a whisper had been hissed through his ear, but he hadn't seen the boy's lips move.
Sabo started, staring at the boy behind the glass and the dark-haired boy grinned slightly, obviously delighted by his confusion.
The door opened easily when Sabo pushed it, and he slipped inside, "How'd you do that?"
What's your name? The boy asked instead, ignoring him, and his head cocked to the side, curious.
Sabo started again, now completely sure that the boy's voice had bounced around the inside of his head, and even in his surprise he managed to stutter out, "Uh- I'm Sabo."
Ace! Said the dark-haired boy, and Sabo could half-feel the emotion of delight that came with the introduction.
"Nice to meet you," he mumbled out on reflex, still taken-aback by this strange method of communication. Then again, he'd be one to talk, when he beeped as soon as he walked near a metal detector, and could make flames bend and dance on their wicks.
Sure, Ace replied curtly, before fastening the blond with an even look, Hey Sabo, you should get me out of here. I've got a brother waiting for me back at home, and I promised I'd be back a lot sooner than this.
"You've got a brother?"
Yeah, he's- a whiplash of adoration and love and warmth rocked Sabo all the way down to his toes, and he almost fell over at the pure strength of emotion he could feel-
But it wasn't his.
God, sorry! Sorry, sorry, I'm still not good at that, Ace's mental tone was apologetic as opposed to the forceful one he'd used before, and the wave of affection faded as quickly as it'd come, leaving Sabo feeling as though someone had taken a part of himself with it.
He felt hollow after that strength of emotion, and he had to shake his head a few times to clear his thoughts. Forcing his mission back to the forefront of his mind, Sabo shoved away any lingering, unwanted feelings of jealousy and longing he could feel hovering around in his head.
"Hey, can you answer a question?"
Ace cocked his head to the side again, watching him. Sure.
"Why don't you ever scream?" Sabo asked of him, and wasn't surprised when Ace furrowed his brow and eyed him in confusion.
"I mean," the blond shifted, awkward but trying to disguise how he felt about asking that question, "You know that I've seen them jab you with needles and stuff, and I've never seen you scream."
A look of realisation dawned on the boy's features, and Ace stood from his seat carefully, moving closer to Sabo.
They cut out my tongue because they said I had too many secrets to share. Kinda stupid I guess, when I can always talk like this.
And Ace opened his mouth, pointing in between pearly teeth to a stump that wriggled just a little at his grin.
See? No tongue.