#Ooh here's a bold move... I'm gonna actually tag this.

[spooky-space-kook]

The creator of Hazbin Hotel (who I know nothing about and *strongly prefer it that way*) simultaneously

A) Making a pitch perfect Tumblr Sexyman, then announcing they're aro ace, and

B) Announcing that Lucifer was the one who gave birth to the child, not Lilith

Will forever be the funniest shit I have ever seen. I'm convinced this is top tier trolling, and I love it.

[librathefangirl]

Glad you like that silly little mute Mel thing I made awhile back, your tags really interest me about things like how would Mel handle things like eating, breathing, and talking. Things I never even considered!

Oh. I'm so glad you sent this ask actually. Because when I wrote those tags, I was like Ooh I could have thoughts about this, and, well, I do. This basically gives me the opportunity to combine my love for Meliodas whump with my actual university studies. (So buckle up people, this will probably get long).

Okay, so what we are talking about here is an AU where Meliodas got an injury during the battle with the gods that damaged his vocal cords, right? And the DK, being the absolute asshole that he is, made sure it was permanent. Not just so it remained through Meliodas' resurrections but also so it was immune to any healing magic or whatever else Meliodas might try over the years.

Now, I might not have much to add about Mel becoming mute that hasn't already been said here (amazing post for anyone who hasn't seen it). But! The potential struggles for him doesn't end there. Say, for instance, instead of rendering him mute, the injury causes vocal cord paralysis (loss of movement in the vocal cords).

What does this mean for Meliodas? Well... (I'm just gonna add a quick read-more here.) Continue reading for a breakdown of how an injury like that would effect Meliodas' speech, voice, breathing, eating, and what else I might think about!

Before we start, I feel like I should mention that I don't have any personal experience with vocal cord paralysis. I am, however, an SLP student, which is what I'm basing this off.

Now then. I'm first gonna give you all some information (about vocal cords and vocal cords paralysis), so we're all on the same page before we get into Meliodas' specific scenario. If you do not care about that, feel free to skip ahead to the bold text for just the AU stuff.

Okay. So the vocal cords (or vocal folds). Incredible little things, aren't they? But what do they do? Well, as you might know, they help us produce speech. When we speak air from the lungs passes through the voice box and causes the vocal cords to come together and vibrate, which creates sound that is then formed into words. But that's not all they do! They are also crucial in our breathing (since we cannot breathe if they are closed) and in protecting our airways (they close when we swallow food and drinks).

What about vocal cords paralysis? Now the term might sound complicated, but it just means that one or both vocal cords are paralyzed, meaning they can't/don't move. One possible cause of this is nerve damage caused by, you guess it, neck trauma (among other things). One-sided paralysis is more common, while both sides being paralyzed is more serious/potentially life-threatening.

So what would all this mean for Meliodas?

Well, it all depends on the paralysis itself, of course. It could be as mild as just a hoarse voice and all the way up to actually life-threatening issues. Does he have a one-sided or two-sided paralysis? In which position are the vocal cords stuck? If his vocal cords are in a more or less closed position, his voice would be less effected but he would have serious issues with his breathing, since the vocal cords need to be open for air to pass through. (He might even need to get a hole cut in his throat to breathe through instead!). If his vocal cords instead are in a more or less open position, he could struggle to produce any voice at all, as well as get winded really easily and probably have issues with eating/drinking as well, since he can't properly protect his airways anymore. He might risk getting pneumonia as a result of drink and food ending up in the lungs instead of the stomach. Even a one-sided paralysis could seriously impact these areas (voice/speech, breathing, eating).

For simplicity's sake, let's focus on one specific scenario. During the battle with their parents, Meliodas suffered an injury to his neck. That the DK then made sure was permanent. This injury damaged some of his nerves, resulting in a one-sided vocal cord paralysis. One of his vocal cords can still move as normal but the other is stuck where it is, immobile. This means that Meliodas can no longer properly close his vocal cords and air leaks out between them. Because of this Meliodas struggles to keep his breath. He gets winded way easily than before, loses his breath more often, struggles with shortness of breath and has a much more noisy breathing. When he speaks, he needs to do so in shorter sentences than before, or stop in the middle of his sentences to breathe - because the air just isn't enough anymore.

He also can't speak as loudly as before or in a high pitch. His voice itself is now hoarse and breathy. A lot of days, Meliodas also suffers from vocal fatigue. You know how your legs will get tired and ache if you run too much? Yeah, that. Except its his voice and his neck muscles instead. Actually, he gets more tired in general than he did before. He has to put so much more effort and energy into speaking nowadays. When Meliodas eats or drinks, he ends up choking and coughing a lot more often than he did before. He also clears his throat more frequently too, and when he coughs it isn't as efficient as it used to be.

Of course, this is all taking its toll emotionally as well. It's all very frustrating for him. I mean, speaking, eating, breathing - these are all things we take for granted. Until the day they don't work as they should anymore. Meliodas also finds himself avoiding places he would otherwise enjoy, like taverns and festivals. They're just too noisy. It takes too much effort to make himself heard in those places. He much more prefers it when it's just him and the rest of the Seven Deadly Sins back at home. Or when he doesn't have to speak/use his voice. Some days, it's hard enough with training and making himself heard in the castle's big rooms or when he has to address a lot of people. The other Sins are supportive of course, even if they don't understand how he ended with an injury like this and why healing magic won't work on it, but it's still hard. Especially when Merlin's only remaining ideas start with breaking curse, which they're still not sure how to do even after all these years. Well, except with the Commandments, but that's not an option Meliodas is ready to face.

(Now I could also get more into Meliodas' communication with others and different ways he and they could help him make himself heard. It's especially interesting to think about given the canon time and setting. But I feel like this post is long enough as it is. Who knows, maybe I'll make a part 2 to this AU.)

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Now, did you actually ask for a looong essay-story answer? No, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway. (That goes out to anyone who made it all the way to the end!)