Shoto Todoroki Oneshots

Depressive Episodes

TRIGGER WARNING: depression, RBD (recurrent brief depression)

THEMES: angst, sad Shoto, Shoto X Class 1A 

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("Where are you going, Todoroki-kun?" Midoriya asked, looking over the back of the sofa as his friend made to leave the common room.

"To my dorm. I'm not feeling too good so I'll try sleeping it off." Shoto explained numbly as he began to ascend the stairs.

"Goodnight!" the greenete called after him, a frown appearing on his face at the signs coming from Todoroki: not talking, little eating, blank expression...

He opened the group chat and sent a few messages, just in case.)

"Quiet." Aizawa commanded, the class immediately turning in their seats and cutting off their conversations. "Right. Before I take attendance I'm letting you all know that Todoroki won't be in class with us for the next few days. Don't bother him too much and be considerate, but I'd appreciate if a few of you kept tabs on him throughout the day."

"Yes sir!" they replied passionately.

Momo immediately took her phone out of her bag to record the lessons for Todoroki, whilst Iida created a matching set of notes to offer him after school. The class representatives wanted to make sure Todoroki didn't miss out anything important, and that he would still continue to excel at his studies.

Morning studies passed quickly, although when Midoriya turned around to talk to Todoroki at the back of the classroom he frowned at the empty chair. Momo noticed and they shared a sympathetic look. It had been a few months since Todoroki's last RBD, and it had seemed he was doing just fine. They wondered what it could be that had triggered this episode: maybe a news story about his family?

Since the end of the war, most of the class were in non-optional therapy. These sessions proved useful and helped the kids deal with their traumas whilst growing closer as a class. Due to the whole Dabi/Touya situation, there was a point in time where Todoroki couldn't even go outside, having to be transferred from the hospital to the dorms overnight once his burns healed enough.

As time went on the media found other stories to exploit and the Todorokis had some peace and quiet, but every so often something would come up about Endeavour's parenting or Touya's villainy that made Todoroki retreat into the cold, stoic person he was at the start of their first year. And even now, when he had made strong friendships and enjoyed childhood experiences some things still got him down.

("Did you know there are straws that change the flavours of milk?"

"Yeah! Which one is your favourite?"  They never mocked, always encouraged him to learn things they took for granted as children.

"Strawberry."

"Me too!")

During his first episode in the middle of their second year, Aizawa (with Todoroki's permission) educated them about Recurring Brief Depression, episodes that happened frequently that left the person feeling tired, sad, or just very low. Their teacher told them to simply be there for their friend, and to ask if he wanted to talk when he opened up again; this was good in finding and removing any possible triggers for these episodes. 

So now, whenever Todoroki had an episode, they knew methods that would hopefully help shorten their length. They always had food ready, blankets and cushions that he may like, and the girls even put together care packages for him. They never really knew if they were effective since Todoroki didn't always talk about his episodes, but the fact that they always disappeared from outside his door was a good sign.