#now i'm fully judging people that skip the classic

[vikingpoteto]

So. So I’ve been watching classic Dragon Ball and

Goku was kidnapped, didn’t realize he was being kidnapped and the only reason he got away was that Lunch really wanted to give him an ice cream cone.

Yamcha is hospitalized because of a broken leg. He really started building that useless rep early on.

Krillin won a fight because he knows simple math and Chiaotsu doesn’t.

Everyone is ambivalent at best about the fact that 15 year old Goku killed a man.

Tien: I’m going to avenge Mercenary Tao Master Roshi: Is this true? Did you kill famous assassin Tao, Goku? Goku: Yeah but he was evil Master Roshi: That makes perfect sense. Carry on.

Lunch tried to kill Chiaotsu with a mallet.

Personally I think she should’ve just shot him with one of her multiple guns but perhaps she’s out of ammo after spending the entire tournament shooting into the air.

And this is just the Tien arc, which has been the tamest arc so far.

[anewbeginningagain]

IAM has so far felt comfortable enough to:

advise a couple to get married early in their relationship for citizenship purposes when they didn't even need to

advise one of their teams to switch countries, knowing that it would displace others, resulting in the current mess

continue to coach a skater that has almost died (presumably because they would like to keep judges from that country on their side), resulting in that skater getting another concussion

made a top skater's anguish over getting an abortion about how it was interfering with their training process and Olympic gold chances, leaving her to deal with it on her own

ply a skater with alcohol to convince her to team up with an unsuitable partner to compete for a country neither of them are from and for a federation that has screwed them over in the past

continued to be warm with and supportive of a skater of theirs that's been accused of violent rape

All while making it their mission statement to be the "good, safe school that's skater-first". And I've only listed things that we've either heard from the skaters' own mouths or seen unfold with our very own eyes. There are also other things, like who advised Scott to make that stupid Florida video and lie, when the photos were available on FB? It certainly wasn't his idea. I think it's high time they came under some genuine scrutiny. Fans have been a little too enamored with their success to look at the growing disconnect between their PR and what they've been actually doing. The quality of their product has been declining steadily for a while now as well. I don't think you can be successful in a toxic system like skating for too long without it starts to poison you too.

Anon, honestly you bringing up the Scott/Florida nonsense is so redundant if we are thinking about the same thing. Totally irrelevant to this discussion and a very negative example of "fans" losing their shit over things that do not concern them and were only happening because people couldn't handle the precious fairytale they fabricated in their heads not coming true. If anything it was the epitome of the toxicity of the skating fandom and included all the worst traits involved. I also don't see how I.AM are relevant to it.

Now let's go into I.AM. To be clear as I said I think they've been having a worrying track record for a while now and there's a lot to criticize there. But your list is again a mixture of things based on what skaters said (which as we know should be taken with a grain of salt) and a lot of your own interpretation.

Romain telling a fully adult team in a relationship that getting married will help them with citizenship and reach the Olympics is simply stating the facts. It's not the first nor the last time this type of thing happens. It was their own decision by all accounts and unless they felt pressured and did it against their will (which we have no indication to given they've been married for a good few years no) then it's likely on the skaters. Yes, there's a chance there's an unhealthy dynamic there, and if it was a trend with many teams at the school than I would have found it alarming but that's not the case.

Sorry but what? Should coaches not advise a team to switch countries if it's in their best interest? This one is mind-boggling to me, they shouldn't care about the effect on other skaters just like V/M coming back was in their own right and the impact on mid-level teams was not their concern, just like when P/C skipped 2021 worlds and reduced France to one team instead of 3 it was in their own right. Skaters are allowed to act in their own interest, and it's a coach job to assist with that.

The one about not dropping Solene I agree with, I think even if I.AM would have dropped her she would have continued to skate and find another place, but still. To accuse it's for securing a judge with legit zero evidence is exactly the shit I'm talking about, classic TSL loving DRAMA BS.

I don't even know what you are talking about regarding them plying Olivia with alcohol? The fuck?

Criticism over them sticking by Nikolaj are valid.

Regarding Gabi's abortion, I have an unpopular opinion that I don't have the energy to go into right now, but sufice to say I disagree.

So yeah, I.AM are worthy of a lot of criticism over Nikolaj and over injuries, and over creating a mass-production type of skating (some like it some not), but most of what you wrote here though is WTF, sorry. There's enough to criticize them for without making stuff up.

To summarize: what you wrote here is like 80% interpretation + 15% pure fabrication + 5% actual stuff skaters said. So classic fs fandom turning narratives into "facts".

[axel-fics]

Can I request an axel/reader with your fav trope?? Your stories are very sweet and I'm curious what your fav trope is ;w;

Aww, thanks nonnie! :D Can I just say… that I felt really silly that I didn’t know what a trope was? And then after I did my research and realized I knew what a trope was, I felt even sillier. The 5th grade version of myself is kicking my ass right now. Anyways, I chose The Great Gatsby since it’s one of my favorite books of all time, and the allegories in it are so deep and meaningful. I hope I did the book justice with this! 

Rainy Days and Bookstores

To you, bookstores were a safe haven. If you ever felt down about life or even just a bit more adventurous, you always found yourself skimming through the shelves for new stories to get lost in. It was always a place where you felt free to be yourself, where no one could judge you for sitting in the small reading nook for hours on end reading to your heart’s content. At the end of each trip, you always ended up buying a few books to add to your ever-expanding collection at home; pretty soon you knew you had to stop investing in books and buy a second bookshelf. 

It was a cold and rainy fall afternoon when you decided to pop into your favorite bookstore in Twilight Town. For the first time in a week, you actually had a day off of work and decided to spend it doing all of your favorite things around town. You had wished the weather would be nicer, but a day is a day off, and you were happy to take it. Walking into the bookstore, the bell above the door rang a familiar tune as it dinged above your head, quickly ringing a second time as you shut the door behind you to prevent the cold air from getting in. The bookstore was small and cramped with multiple bookshelves that left narrow passageways throughout the store, but it led to a larger back area with a few couches and chairs, and of course your favorite reading nook. The nook was in the back corner of the store with a large stained glass window of the town’s clock tower that usually glowed on sunny days. Today, however, the colors were slightly muted thanks to the gloominess of the sky. 

The store’s owner gave you a nod as you smiled and gave a small wave before continuing on your merry way of searching for something new to read. You decided today to go down the fiction aisle, which was a change from the mystery novels you were currently divulging into. Running your fingers along the spines of the books, you came across one of your all-time favorite novels: The Great Gatsby. You remembered it being a required text in your junior year of high school and everyone dreaded reading something so outdated. But you? You couldn’t be more excited. Every day you’d volunteer to read aloud, getting lost in the story so quickly that you never noticed all the other kids barely paying attention. It wouldn’t have mattered anyway; F. Scott Fitzgerald was in your top three favorite writers, and nothing would have distracted you from his famous stories. 

Although you were pretty sure you had a copy at home, you couldn’t help but pick up the book and take it with you to your usual spot on the nook along with a few other text you’ve picked up. Instantly diving into the story, you found yourself getting lost once again amongst the classic story of the doomed relationship of Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan and the observations that Nick Carraway described in his first-person narrative. 

‘But I didn’t call to him, for he gave a sudden intimation that he was content to be alone — he stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and, far as I was from him, I could have sworn he was trembling. Involuntarily I glanced seaward — and distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away, that might have been the end of a dock. When I looked once more for—’

“When I looked once more for Gatsby he had vanished, and I was alone in the unquiet darkness.”

A man stretched out on a couch not too far from you was looking in your direction, smirking as he finished the exact line you were just reading. How could he have possibly known??

“You were reading out loud. Actually, it was more like whispering pretty loudly,” he chuckled. 

“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disrupt you,” you bowed your head completely embarrassed. 

“Nah, you didn’t. I just sat down to get out of the storm, haven’t decided what to look at yet.” He pointed at the book you were now clenching in your hand. “Gatsby. Great book.” 

“You’ve read F. Scott Fitzgerald?”

“You sound surprised.”

“No, no! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that—”

“Relax, I’m just messing with you. And yes, I’ve read Fitzgerald. Almost all of his works. That one there is my favorite.”

“Mine too! The symbolism and depth of the entire story, how people’s lives are intertwined so easily and yet it’s never fully known to them. It just makes you think about how every thing in life has a result, a consequence.”

The man stood up from the couch and started walking over towards you. He was taller than he looked, probably because he was slouching on the couch, and had spiky red hair that went almost in every direction like a fireball. His eyes were a piercing green hue that looked simultaneously looked soft and sincere. He hovered above you for a second before you quickly moved your legs to clear some space for him to sit down. 

“The green light is one of my favorite allegories in literature. Being so close to something so dear to your heart but ever so far away. How he was hoping to bring his past and present together to form a suitable future with Daisy. I mean, everyone has a green light in their lives, right? It comes in different forms, but there’s always something that you’ll always desire and hope to have in your future.” You continued pouring your theories over to the man as he silently listened to you. He didn’t say much, but you could tell in his eyes that he actually was listening, and not just showing off to make it seem like he was slightly interested. 

Somewhere in between talking about the Valley of Ashes and Tom Buchanan’s mistress Myrtle Wilson, you caught yourself talking way too much and stopped. “I’m rambling, aren’t I?” 

“No, no, you’re fine. I like hearing your theories. It’s been a while since I read this, so it makes me wanna read it again.”

Blushing you closed the book and held it out to him. He raised an eyebrow at you in confusion. “I thought you were going to buy this?”

“I have a copy at home. I just couldn’t resist re-reading it today.”

The man gladly accepted the book and started carefully flipping through the pages before looking back up at you. “Maybe… after I finish reading this, we can compare notes?”

“Depends, are you asking me out?”

The man laughed. “Yes, I’m asking you out. Although I’m pretty sure I never got your name.”

“And I’m pretty sure I never got yours,” you smirked. 

“Fair enough. Name’s Axel, got it memorized?”

“It’s nice to meet you, Axel. I’m [Y/N].”

“[Y/N], huh? Pretty name for a pretty girl.” You instantly felt your cheeks burn as he gave you a wink. “Think I can get that number of yours?”

“Oh, right.” You took a pen and a piece of paper from your notebook that you stashed in your small backpack and wrote your name and number down before handing it to Axel. 

“Alright then, take a guess at how long it’ll take me to finish.” Axel stood up from his spot on the nook and started walking backwards to the cash register. 

“I’d say… three days.”

“You’d bet on it?” 

“Sure. If I win, uhm… you’ll have to buy me some sea-salt ice cream.”

“‘Kay, and if I win, I get a kiss on the first date.”

“Wait, what??”

“Catch ya later, [Y/N].” 

“But you never wagered how long you’d take!”

By then Axel had already purchased the book and was exiting the door, giving you a devilish smirk once again that made your heart skip a beat. A few hours later, while you were finishing up your day at the bookstore, you felt your phone vibrate in your pocket. An unknown number showed up on your screen. The text was of a picture of a notebook, lined with notes and observations from The Great Gatsby. Axel, that sly fox. 

A: Finished, sweetheart. Looks like you owe me a kiss :*