I can’t know how I’ll feel about it in the future. Only how I feel in the now.
— Todoroki Shouto
Do What You Will, If That's What You Want
by stanzas is a My Hero Academia Fanfic."What do you mean you're retiring?" Bakugou asks nicely, or at least as nicely as someone like Bakugou can ask. The question is phrased more like a demand.
"Call it a mid-life crisis," Shouto answers, like Bakugou asked him what the weather would be tomorrow, and takes a deep sip from his coffee. "I'm thinking of changing careers."
The world of heroes is quick to adapt to surprises, but Pro Hero Entropy's (very premature) retirement announcement throws almost everyone for a pretty impressive loop.
Followed by a Prequel, Second Interlude, which follows Izuku as he deals with some unusual events that unfold during their second year at U.A.
Do What You Will, If That's What You Want provides examples of:
- Adapted Out: Set in an Alternate Universe where Mineta Minoru doesn't exist, with his usual spot in 1-A taken by Shiozaki Ibara instead.
- Almost Kiss: Near the end of the third chapter, Todoroki thanks Midoriya for rescuing him. Midoriya forgets personal space. Midoriya's phone rings and ruins the moment.
- Big Damn Heroes: Most of the old gang responds to Izuku's call for action, with Aoyama and Bakugou playing it the straightest by showing up Just in Time.
- Blinded by the Light: With lasting effects. During the confrontation with Komiya, Shouto gets blinded several times in rapid succession. This results in him developing vision problems, and while he goes to a specialist to get them treated, the procedure can't completely fix them and he has to get glasses.
- Chekhov's Gag: Todoroki is kidnapped multiple times after retiring, thus being unable to legally fight back. This is eventually revealed to be setting up for his being kidnapped by the main villain.
- "Could Have Avoided This!" Plot: Discussed by Izuku and Shouto after they finally manage to get on the same page regarding their feelings for each other.
- Covert Distress Code: Coming up with these was one of the last courses 3-A took before graduating. Shouto came up with discussing rain in Musutafu, and uses it after finding a threatening note in his apartment.
- False Start: Their first kiss is almost perfect, except they both jump to the wrong conclusion and flee without talking.
- First-Name Basis:
- After Shouto calls them in to share drinks and explain what happened between him and Izuku, Ochako orders him to start calling her by her first name, saying that he's earned that right. Shouto then offers the same courtesy to Tenya.
- Izuku points out to Shouto that he only calls him by his first name when he has something important to say, and sticks to his surname otherwise.
- Frames of Reference: When Shouto has to get glasses, he orders a pair that look exactly like Tenya's, causing Izuku to burst out laughing the first time he sees them (since they aren't suited to the shape of his face). Other reactions are more mixed:Ochako: "People like you and me aren't meant to wear anything with squares."
- Height Angst: Izuku has a minor case of this; he doesn't like having his relative lack of height brought up.
- I Don't Want to Ruin Our Friendship: Todoroki locks himself in the friend zone for an incredibly long time. Later, Midoriya refers to him as his closest friend and Todoroki interprets that as a rejection.
- I Need a Freaking Drink: After the incident at the end of Chapter 4, Shouto texts his closest friends and asks Tenya to bring whiskey. Momo, the last to arrive, declares as much after learning exactly what happened.
- Love Epiphany: In a conversation with Todoroki and Yaoyorozu, Todoroki confesses he has feelings for Midoriya. Despite fairly obvious comments or remarks from his friends, Todoroki wasn't completely aware of his emotions up until this moment of realization. He tells Yaoyorozu after he discovers Midoriya was sleeping outside his apartment as an overprotective sense of duty.
- Master of the Mixed Message: Both Izuku and Shouto are unfortunately quite skilled at misunderstanding and misinterpreting each other.
- Meaningful Echo: When Izuku tries to explain to Shouto why he kissed him on the day the rankings were released.Izuku: "I — I looked at you and... I moved without thinking."
- Moment Killer: Midoriya's phone interrupts them before their first kiss.
- Paparazzi: A persistent problem for Pro Heroes.
- Poor Communication Kills:
- Several times throughout, Todoroki and Midoriya experience a tragic series of misunderstandings about their relationship with one another. The most frustrating example occurs at the end of Chapter 4, after Midoriya kisses him and runs away.
- More seriously, Izuku keeps several of his friends Locked Out of the Loop regarding a certain case he's working on until circumstances force him to explain. Namely, the fact that Shouto gets kidnapped.
- Shipper on Deck: Momo, Jirou, Tenya and Ochako are all very supportive of the idea of Shouto and Izuku getting together, especially since they're well aware that their attraction to each other isn't one-sided, as both assume.
- There Is Only One Bed: After their trip to the Japan LGBT Youth charity event, everyone heads to a restaurant and parties a little too much. Todoroki and Midoriya return to their hotel and discover Midoriya booked the wrong room.
- Undercover as Lovers: In the first chapter, Todoroki and Midoriya meet at a coffee shop to discuss the info leak about Todoroki's retirement. The meeting is a set up to catch the reporter spying on them. Todoroki throws the reporter off guard by acting like he and Midoriya are dating.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Played for Laughs after the confrontation with Komiya is resolved, as Yuuga rounds on Tenya and starts calling him out for only contacting him during an emergency.
- Will They or Won't They?: Todoroki and Midoriya. Boy...
- Chapter 5 reveals that this also applies to Tenya and Yuuga, though Shouto was unaware of that particular drama. Izuku, on the other hand, was, and is clearly satisified by the sight of Yuuga taking matters into his own hands.
Second Interlude contains examples of:
- Adaptational Diversity: In this 'verse, Kirishima and Midoriya are both Transgender, which gets a bit more focus in this fic. They aren't the only ones, as Izuku learns when Eijirou introduces him to a support chat for alumni of U.A.
- Broken Pedestal: After all the dramatic events that defined their first year, most of the students of Classes 2-A and 2-B have a much dimmer view of U.A. than they did before, darkly joking about the school's less competent moments in the group chat. Even Iida comments on how he wishes the school provided more resources to help with finding internships rather than expecting their students to figure it out by themselves. And this comes before the class is attacked again during an exercise, and they learn Aizawa was aware of the security breach and didn't warn anyone.
- Cast Full of Gay: Played for Laughs when Ochako, Izuku and Tenya come out in the group chat, as Tooru notes how many members of Class 2-A that makes who qualify in some form.
- Closet Key: Midoriya gradually realizes that he's bisexual due to developing a major crush on Iida. Uraraka comes to the same conclusion about herself for the same reason.
- Didn't Think This Through: One of the academy's secret defenses that they didn't inform any of the students about are landmines which only activate if they detect motion while the cameras aren't picking up anybody. A measure set up to deal with a potentially invisible threat... while failing to take into account the existence of their invisible student.
- Dreaming of Things to Come: One of Izuku's nightmares appears to be this, foreshadowing another assault on the school.
- Married to the Job: Izuku struggles with a form of this, believing that in order to properly take up the mantle All Might has passed down to him, he needs to be able to handle all of his problems alone, without any outside help.
- Meaningful Rename: Reveals and explains the origins of the names Bakugou and Todoroki use as Pro Heroes. In particular, it turns out that Entrophy first came up as a suggestion Izuku had written in his notes that Shouto liked the sound of.
- Real Dreams are Weirder: Early on, Izuku notes that his Weird Dreams usually run along the lines of hearing All Might's voice come out of food, screaming "Young Midoriya, why are you eating me!?!?" The dreams that have starting haunting him more recently, meanwhile, while weird, are not that level of weird.
- Running Gag:
- The Sports Festival's status is continuously in flux throughout the story.
- Iida's name in the group chat keeps being changed by other members.
- Stealth Hi/Bye: Hagakure is naturally incredibly good at this. Her name in the group chat is '(right behind you)', and she startles several of her classmates by pulling this on them.
- Think Unsexy Thoughts: One way Izuku tries to cope with his worsening crush on Tenya is by forcing himself to think about hero statistics until he's distracted himself.
- Trophy Wife: Gender-inverted; Jirou jokingly asks Satou to become her trophy chef husband after he announces that his latest batch of goodies will be ready shortly.
- Wild Card: Midoriya sees All Might as one when it comes to the matter of whether or not he picks up on his protege's anxiety, flipping back and forth between being totally oblivious and awkward helicoptering.
