#everyone is still alive and happy and well

[r6eduss]

I really wish you’d make up your mind.

•Summary: Daryl comes over for a smoke, who knew things would get so deep? (Fem reader)

•Warnings: 18+, Drug use, a teeny tiny bit suggestive but no smut, mentions of abuse, Stoner!Reader, Angst.

•Word Count: 2.3k.

•Setting: The Commonwealth

•A/N: Heavily inspired by Kimdracula by deftones. I have always thought Daryl is deathly afraid of labels on relationships, so here’s me implementing that into my writing. I love writing for the commonwealth era also let’s also pretend deftones lines up with twd timeline 🫢

Tension.

Tension was always the main thing between you and Daryl. For the longest time since the farm, you two have had something—something that can’t be explained by just simple words.

The both of you have kissed before, but for some reason never have said anything of it. Most people thought you two were a couple, but you don’t know what you two are. one thing for sure, is that you love each other. Platonic or not, you both have always stuck out for each other and world knows Daryl would fight to the ends of the earth to keep you and the rest of his family alive and safe.

Though right now, you haven’t seen much of Daryl, and that’s surprising considering he was your neighbor. Everyone from Alexandria have still been settling in, and he’s been incredibly busy, so have you with your new job settlement.

Suddenly being employed in the apocalypse definitely left you stoked, but you kind of enjoyed it unlike Daryl and the others. It was a bittersweet feeling, left you thinking maybe the world still does have a chance.

With some of the hard earned money that you managed to work up, you decided to head to town looking for music. It’s always been a huge comfort for you, helping you overcome challenges you had to face even before the fall, and you hoped maybe they had some of your favorite albums. Your eyes were set on the storefront at the end of the block, and you soon approached. A sign hung above it, faded but clear. “The Record Shop” and a faint sound of music leaked through the door. On entering, hearing the door chime you’re greeted with a familiar face.

“Welcome!- Oh shit hey!” It was Princess’ shift today, and honestly it was rather refreshing to see her face, you haven’t seen really anybody else you had known.

Looking around for a moment, you take in the decorations. You soon face Princess, giving her a warm smile.

“Hey! How have you been?”

“It’s been great! It’s been great.. How about you?” She responded, excited to be speaking with you.

“I’ve been good! I’m glad things are going well for you Princess.” You were kind of lying, things weren’t really good for you.. it’s been hard adjusting to this kind of life, you’ve always felt as if the apocalypse saved you in a way.

“I’m happy for you dude! Well did you come here to buy something?”

“Yeah actually, do you guys have deftones?” You were hoping to god they did. You were in such a need to listen to your favorite album, and the last time you did was years ago.

You can see her lips curve into a small smirk, as she points to the left. “Yep! All the way to the last aisle on the left.”

You’ve never felt as happy as you felt now.

“Thanks!” You quickly pick up your feet, rushing to the aisle that Princess pointed to. Upon arrival, you quickly scan the area in attempts to find your favorite album “Saturday Night Wrist”.

All you could spot was Around the Fur and White pony as you sifted through the records, fingers brushing against the glossy covers, the album you were looking for nowhere in sight. To be honest, you were a little disappointed, until you spot that beautiful untouched record hidden behind one of the Metallica covers right next to the ones you were looking through. It was very obviously the last one in stock.

You bit your lip while smirking in happiness, grabbing the album and basking in it, the cover still haunting and beautiful just as you remembered. After about 30 seconds of reminiscing, you head to the checkout where Princess was.

“That all?”

“Yep!”

“That’s 30!”

You hand her a 20 and a 10, and she proceeds to print out your receipt. “It was so good seeing you! And hey, don’t be a stranger!” She hands you what you came there for, and waves you off with a grin. You politely tell her goodnight and make your way to your apartment.

A few days ago you had asked Daryl and Judith if you could borrow that record player he had bought for her, since you were planning on buying some music. Of course they agreed, so you knew exactly what you were doing when you got home.

Just as you got to your destination, you spotted Daryl walking up to his own apartment, quickly taking notice of you. “Hey Daryl.” You already felt a bit tense, Daryl looked incredibly exhausted.

“Hey.”

Well this was kind of awkward, you greeted him but didn’t really know how to continue the conversation, until an idea sprang through you. “I uh, finally bought some music. Wanna join me in listening and have a smoke?” He seems like he could use a get away, and you have just the remedies to relax him.

You watched as he looks down at the floor, biting the inside of his lip before responding while slightly nodding his head. “Yea, Yea sure. Ya stayin’ up?” He started to swirl his thumbs together, you always thought it was really cute when he did that.

“Yeah, for a bit. C’mon I’m so excited to unwrap this.” You used your key to unlock your apartment door and enter, leaving the door open for Daryl as he quickly proceeds behind you.

He closes the door behind you both, locking it and following you to your room. It was dimly lit, bathed in the soft glow of candles around. “Hold this.” You hand Daryl the vinyl, before walking over to your drawer, pulling out rolling paper, an herb grinder, a lighter, and some weed. “Sorry, give me a second to do this, then we can put the album on the record player.” He nods, and goes to sit down on the corner of your neatly folded bed.

You go about crushing the marijuana, feeling the uncomfortableness of the situation seep into you. You and Daryl haven’t seen each other in weeks, now all of a sudden you invited him in for a smoke?

The silence starts becoming painfully sharp, so you begin at your poor attempts at starting conversation. “So how have you been settling in?” He looks up, staring at your figure then at your face, watching your movements as you proceed to add the cannabis onto the rolling paper. “I’ve been ‘Ight.” Wow. Was he normally this bland?

“Hm, that’s good. How are the kids?” Please Daryl, give a response that you can actually open a conversation to.. “They been good. Judith is doin’ better than her whole class.”

Finally, something worth answering. Your heart warms up for a moment, remembering that the kids are finally getting a real experience of what school is. You and Daryl are both incredibly thankful that the children are going to have a chance at a semi normal childhood.

“I’m not surprised at all.. Judith is so smart.” You finished up rolling the joint, sealing it with a lick. You turn to face the man you’ve grown to love, passing it to him while taking the record out of his hands, pulling out the vinyl from its frame and heading to where the record player is. This entire situation has got you feeling excited, being able to finally listen to one thing you missed before the dead rose, and doing it with your favorite person. You carefully place it onto the record player, moving the tonearm and playing it.

The first song that played was Hole in the Earth, and it gave you a type of skin crawling sensation that you just couldn’t explain.

Turning to Daryl, you take back the joint and light it. If you weren’t so focused on what you were doing, you would’ve noticed how he was staring at you, admiring everything you were doing, noticing how you felt when the music started playing, and being so entranced with how your hips swayed.

You took your first hit, soon after passing it to Daryl so he can also take a draw. He grabs the joint but he doesn’t bring it to his lips right away. He keeps his gaze on your face, looking you over before taking a deep inhale. He lets the smoke slowly spill from his mouth, while carefully making sure to blow it away from you. He passes it back to you, still maintaining eye contact. The tension was overbearing, and by the way he was looking at you, it was almost impossible not to feel flutters in your stomach.

The slow, moody guitar riff filling the space between you both accompanied with the scent of burning sage lingering in the air mixing with the sharp tang of weed, was making the tension rise all the more. You took a slow drag from the joint, eyes never leaving his, exhaling lazily and letting the smoke swirl between the two of you.

“You okay?” You ask, your voice light and teasing, catching the twitch of nerves in him. Daryl gave a small grunt, nodding and shifting his weight, his gaze flickering between your lips and the joint. He wasn’t used to moments like this—quiet, intimate.

You smiled gently, a little sly, while slowly leaning closer, feeling buzzed while the drug does its job. “Wanna shotgun it?”

Daryl swallowed hard. He wasn’t expecting something so bold, it’s not like you. But the idea of your lips so close, sharing the smoke between you, sent a ripple of emotion through him. So he gave you a nod, wanting more of this confident side of you.

You took another slow hit, eyes smoldering as you leaned in, lips barely parting. “Come here.” You whispered.

Daryl hesitated for a fraction of a second before leaning forward, feeling the heat of your breath as you exhaled into his mouth, smoke filling his lungs. All he could focus on was how close you were, the smell of your hair, and how beautiful you looked.

Before either of you could stop, the moment stretched, and your lips hovered near his. There was a beat, then two, before instinct took over. You closed the gap, pressing your mouth softly against his. Daryl was left caught off guard, still kissing you back.

The music throbbed around you as the kiss deepened, a mixture of nerves and heat rising. The joint, forgotten and placed onto the ashtray as Daryl’s hand found its way on your back, pulling you closer.

The kiss lingered longer than either of you expected. Your lips were soft and tasted of marijuana. He found himself sinking into the warmth of the moment, the aroma that had been hanging between you dissolving into something he wasn’t sure how to handle. His hands, rough and scarred, tightened around your waist, but there was a gentleness in the way he held you that surprised even him.

You kissed him slowly, as if you had all the time in the world, and Daryl could feel something stir inside him, something unfamiliar, almost unsettling. It wasn’t the impulsive thrill of survival, or the adrenaline of his attempts to protect himself from his father, it was something softer. Something he hadn’t felt in a long time, if ever. His mind was racing, trying to make sense of the warmth spreading through his chest, the vulnerability.

You pulled back just a little, breath still warm on his lips, and your forehead resting lightly against his. You smiled, eyes searching his to try and figure him out.

Suddenly, it hit him.

He wasn’t used to this, wasn’t built for it. The closeness, the intimacy, the unspoken understanding in the way you looked at him. He was a man of instinct, not one for quiet moments that left him raw and uncertain. He wasn’t sure what he expected when your lips first met, but this— whatever this was, was way more than he could handle.

Daryl blinked, pulling back a few inches, breaking the connection between you. His hand, still on your waist, fell away, as if it had become too heavy to hold them there any longer.

“I— I cant.” He muttered, the words rough, barely forming in his throat. He stood up abruptly, moving his wavy locs from his face, stepping back as if the space between you could somehow shield him from the feelings creeping up inside him.

You looked up at him, confused. “What are we Daryl?” He can’t just kiss you then walk away? What was this?

“I don’t know.” He responded low, looking at the ground, anywhere but your face. You could hear your favorite song begin to play on the record player, this is not how you would’ve wanted to enjoy it for the first time in years.

“I should get goin’” he mumbled, already heading for the door.

You didn’t stop him, instead, feeling the tears swell up in your eyes, you responded with a simple “okay”.

He paused at the door, his hand resting at the handle. He could hear the sadness in your voice, but he didn’t look back. He couldn’t. If he did, he might see something in your eyes that would make it even harder to walk away.

“I’ll see ya ‘round,” he muttered, before leaving your room and heading for your front door, exiting your apartment. You began to cry, feeling confused and angry, sitting alone in your room listening to your song, comforting you, just like it did before the fall. As Daryl was still processing it all, the night air hit him, clearing his mind a bit but not enough to shake this unfamiliar weight in his chest.

He wasn’t sure what had just happened, all he knew was that it was too much, too real, and it scared him. He wasn’t the type to let anyone in, and yet, in that small dim lit room, he had felt something that had shook him to his core.

But for now, he pushed it down, like he always did, and walked away.

@vampiresluv

[seattledayone]

dina and caretaking

i think there’s a lot to be said for the situations we see dina in throughout tlou2 and how they tie into her backstory, as well as any potential guilt she may be carrying with her.

the first time we see her, she’s supervising a group of children. even though she’s not necessarily taking care of them, she’s still taken it upon herself to ensure their happiness and safety, and it seems like something she does often considering how ellie and jesse know exactly where to find her.

every time after that, she’s taking care of ellie (or, later on, jesse). she’s not a pushover by any means, but she allows ellie to take charge and is always there when the other woman comes back to her with cuts and bruises and bucketloads of trauma to sport. even when she starts to suspect she’s pregnant, she doesn’t say anything in favor of letting ellie finish her mission and keeping her the focus of the trip. when ellie returns from killing nora, broken and beaten, dina doesn’t berate her; she immediately takes to getting her comfortable and as patched up as she can.

when jesse arrives, the first thing dina does is help him take care of his wounds, and she makes sure to check in on ellie and stitch her up too. at the farmhouse, she literally says “you think this is easy? for you and for him, i deal with it,” implying that she sets her grief aside in order to take care of the two most important people in her life.

in my opinion, this all ties back to talia.

talia used to be the one to take care of her, alongside their parents back when they moved from place to place. however, once talia fell into grief-stricken depression, it was dina’s “duty” to lead them to a safe place and keep talia alive.

and she failed.

talia still died. she still succumbed to the world around her, though we don’t know how. no matter what dina did, no matter how much or how little she let herself feel, she couldn’t keep her sister alive.

i think she sees a lot of talia in ellie, particularly at the farmhouse. in her eyes, she may have failed with jesse and failed with talia and failed, even, with herself, but she has an opportunity to right those “wrongs.” she has an opportunity to save ellie. maybe she thinks that the reason talia died is because she pushed her too hard to keep going despite her grief, and that’s why she’s so overly lenient with ellie for the longest time.

until she isn’t.

again, this is all just my opinion, but i think that when dina says “im not gonna do this again,” she is not only referencing waiting in anxious anticipation for ellie to return but also finally admitting to herself that she can’t save everyone. she can’t be waiting with open arms for the sick and dying and traumatized to be patched up and coddled until they run off and do something reckless again. she cannot be the healer. finally, she understands that it isn’t her shortcomings that bring about the deaths of those she loves.

even if she doesn’t understand that quite yet, she now has a baby. she can’t afford to put herself or him in a situation like that — or around people like that, purely out of protectiveness over her son and his view of the world.

she’s letting herself and her peace and safety come first, something that, up until now, we haven’t ever seen her do.

[pinktie]

I find it so sad that underneath all those masks, literally and figuratively, Kaito is just a lonely, miserable teenager left by his parents to fend for himself and carry the burden of being a phantom thief while Chikage is out there enjoying herself and possibly knowing that Toichi is alive.

He can't reach out to anyone about this aside from Jii– I don't know if he'll rant to him though. Then he's surrounded by people who doesn't like or tries to capture his alter ego and he has people trying to kill him.

HE'S SO ????

Yeah, I find Kaito's home life tragic as well, and he's indeed a lonely character.

But I think that he can still find love everywhere he goes to make life enjoyable.

In school, he is popular with friends.

He has a childhood friend that he loves, and she also loves him back.

He has a rival who values their chases and will assist him even though he didn't ask.

He has a witch that cares for his well-being despite it not benefitting her at all.

He has neighbor, who is like a family to him, would ask him for his magic tricks when he's feeling down.

And when he's Kaito KID, he is loved by almost everyone.

He has a girl who sees him as the best magician

He has the trust of a man who, despite seeing him as his nemesis, would trust him to save his dog and help his friend.

He has people who would gather with their friends and family just to see him.

So yeah, I think that Kaito's life might be difficult, but he can still find reasons to be happy.

[prinzrupprecht]

The Competition (Part 1)

This will be two or three part one shot. Takes place during his time alive. Y'all can still send me requests of characters you want done as well as long as the plot is good and nothing too crazy.

Pairing: Okita Souji x fem!reader

Synopsis: You were from another dojo that hated the Tennin Rishin-ryu dojo and there is always fights between your dojo and theirs. You didn’t want to get involved in any of the fights and thought it was all pointless. Your dojo was failing, people were dying daily and your dojo wasn’t getting recognized by the Aizu clan either. It put you down a bit that you weren’t getting any recognition. Yet, that all changed when you were nearly saved by one of them by ruthless ronin trying to kill you. The best swordsman of their dojo… Okita Souji.

TW: violence, swearing, and death mentioned

WC: 1935

March 1860

“Agh! He fought with them again! What an idiot!” Your dojo master yelled while stepping outside to see you sharpening your blade.

“Oh, you’re here?” Kino Yoshida was in his mid-forties and was growing angry by the day. You said nothing and turned your back to continue what you were doing.

“Shino-san is going to get killed like the others, he’s lucky he’s alive.” You spoke up but your master scoffed.

“We’re just ronin in this day of age. After all, we should’ve been the ones promoted to samurai—"

“We will never get promoted at this rate…” You interrupted and couldn’t deny the truth of the Tennin rishin-ryu dojo that was infamous in Edo for cutting down ronin with no effort. They were already gathering a reputation of being a nefarious group, even the three big three dojos in all of Edo failed to beat them numerous of times. Your dojo wasn’t one of the big three of anywhere close.

You were from the Tamiya-ryu dojo that specialized in Iaijutsu. Your dojo was just a few blocks over from the Tennin rishin-ryu dojo. Something about them made you grow more curious and wonder why they were so infamous in Edo. The rumours circulating around them made you wonder if they were actually assholes like everyone else and killing is second nature to them. You wanted to find out for yourself.

It was the truth and you hated saying it. Your dojo was crumbling and people were leaving as they were afraid to die next on the streets. “I’m done for today, take a break as well,” your master was growing irritated lately and it was making you wonder if you should eventually leave as well. Were you happy there? All they do is fight other dojos and you were starting to wonder if it was your dojo was starting the fights and not the other way around.

You decided to leave for a bit to clear your mind. You saw another member of your dojo who was battered but alive thankfully. He smiled with broken teeth as he laid on the tatami mat getting treated by a doctor for his wounds.

Yet, you were contemplating on stopping by the Tennin rishin-ryu dojo to see if they are ruthless. It was a bit of a walk but your heart was growing concern. Your master was talking to some of the Choshou members a few times but never told you what they were talking about. Kusaka Genzui was one creepy guy and you didn’t trust him at all.

You found their dojo and noticed the sign that said Tennin rishin-ryu. You looked at your cloak to see if you stood out. This was it? You could see how run down the place looked. You heard a man counting numbers not far from where you were standing. You quickly went to hide behind a large cherry blossom tree. You saw an older man in his mid thirties swinging a large wooden bokken. He can lift that?!

You quickly turn to leave but he notices you and asks what you were doing behind a tree spying on him. “Huh?! Me? So— Sorry! I was just looking around and got lost.” You couldn’t hide your curious nature anymore. You couldn’t help but notice the scar on the left side of his bottom and upper lip. All he offered you was a genuine smile. He looked tired and worn out from the day after practicing his swing probably for hours. Was he training?

“You’re from that Tamiya-ryu dojo, right? You wouldn’t be here if there’s not something you want.” The man had placed his massive bokken aside.

“No— no I’m not, uh, sorry I’ll take my leave!” You wanted to leave so badly and regret spying on them even if it was harmless. You turned to leave but a small boy was walking towards you two with a black cat in his arms. He didn’t even pay any attention to you but he did notice you right away ignoring your presence.

“Oh, you’re back Souji.” That’s his name? Then it hit you. The user of the Godspeed three-stage thrust? You remember some of the girls fawning over him at how amazing his swordsman skills were. This was outside of your dojo. He was apparently incredibly strong and a sword prodigy who took down multiple of your dojo’s members.

This guy was someone you never wanted to get into a fight with. You’ll lose and probably be easily killed, but he seems so… not like what the rumours say. Unless there’s another side to him but he looked bubbly and reserved around the other man. He didn’t even acknowledge you. And the older man must be the peerless ronin Kondo Isami.

“There was a bit of commotion in town between some of the ronin causing mischief with the commons again, I went with Yamanami-san to resolve it.” You were about to walk away but Kondo said your name. Your name?! How did he know?!

“That’s— that’s not my name! I’m leaving, I’m sorry I was here,” your face was bright red from embarrassment.

“You’re very good at iaijutsu, right? May I see?” Kondo asked and you noticed Okita was sitting on the porch petting the same cat while his eyes were on you.

“I— I guess. I’m probably nowhere near as good as you guys.” You were known as the best with iaijutsu at your dojo, but you lacked actual combat experience. You took a step back to demonstrate your sword drawing techniques. You motioned your upper body to draw your sword and sheath quickly that created small vacuum slashes that were barely noticeable. You were incredibly fast and could beat your opponent up close. You had impressed Kondo with your drawing speed, but that was it.

“How about I spar with you?” Okita clapped his hands gleefully, but you quickly declined. You didn’t want to get defeated in a few seconds if the rumours of his speed were true.

“Why don’t you join here? You got the talent.” Kondo crossed his arms but you shrugged. You were supposed to be an enemy but so far they were kind and not ruthless as the rumours made them out to be. You ignored his question and turned away.

“I— I should head back. Maybe we’ll meet again!” You looked down and as much as you wanted to join the better dojo. You didn’t want to be targeted and called a traitor.

.

.

.

Later that evening, you returned and noticed a sign out in the front. A for sale sign? You were panicking and ran inside where the dojo was quiet and empty. Your master was gone and you were alone… once again.

You sat outside on the porch as the sun was setting and businesses were closing up. Were you going to be out on the streets?

You stood up and went to look around in case some of the other members were nearby so you could ask them why was Kino-sensei closing his dojo. The streets were dark and quiet. You heard some swords clashing from the distance and shouting. You were worried and clutching your shirt tightly to your chest. You didn’t want to get into a fight right now.

You went to run the other way but accidentally caught winds of another rogue ronin in the streets most likely from the Tosa domain or Choshou.

“Huh? Shouldn’t you be indoors sleeping at this hour?” His sinister eyes were full of hate and wanted to kill someone. He tilted his head and was close to dashing forward to strike you.

“Hakai-san, I’ll take care of the rat.” Another man with a bulky build exclaimed while unsheathing his sword. You couldn’t remember a day when you had to fight for your life. Normally you never had to experience a life or death situation.

“Who are you calling a rat?!” You felt insulted. Did they think you were spying? Agh, why couldn’t you have ignored the fighting and gone to sleep?

“Shut up little girl, you're lucky I feel generous in killing you instead… but I do have other ideas I would do to you,” the man smugly said while unsheathing his blade.

Just as you were clutching the hilt of your blade ready to strike up close using your infamous iaijutsu technique to cut down an enemy at a certain distance. Your sword drawing was fast so you had to calculate where he would strike. He went to strike first but he noticed your drawing technique off the bat and your blade was already clashing with his.

“You know? I hate killing pretty things,” he was already causing you to stumble back from the way his eyes were lusting over your form. Gross, gross, gross!

“How about we stop and we can—" he was trying to suggest to take you somewhere, which caused you to push your leg up to kick him back with enough force. He was weaker than you had expected with how you can push him back. You used your drawing technique again to slash his side causing a massive gash from your sword. He started to gag and heave in pain.

“Fucking bitch, you’re asking for it! I'll kill you for this!” He lunged forward at you and kicked your shins with much force causing your katana to fly out of your hands. You tried to reach for your katana but his foot was holding your arm down. You were for sure finished.

“Too bad, you would’ve been fun to play with some more…” he raised his blade over his head as he was going to strike you down. At least dying in the moment is better than your body being violated. You were thankful for even trying to fight and there was nothing left for you anyway. No friends, no family and your dojo was gone.

You expected the blow to kill you but it never came. He was gagging to breathe but you failed to see that his neck was slashed open. Huh?! Instead of still kneeling you grabbed your sword and looked around to see who killed him. Did someone save you? You would’ve been dead just now. Your head jerked backed and you saw a familiar figure standing before you.

Okita Souji.

He looked annoyed, but he wasn’t staring at you. He was looking ahead at the ronin that was running down the street towards you two. “Get out of here, I’ll take care of the rest. If you stick around and get in my way, I’ll cut you down with them.” His words struck you like poison. You’re joking? He’s calling you a liability?!

“I’m not a hindrance you—" you were going to insult him but his eyes snapped back at you which told you to stop or else.

“Fine, whatever!” You took your leave running down the street, but you still witnessed from a distance how he handled the rest of them very easily compared to your swordsman skills. His attack speed was insanely impressive. You wanted to see him again. Learn a bit from him as well.

Maybe you could still join Kondo’s dojo and follow their beliefs and footsteps. Okita was incredibly different now when he is fighting than when he’s not. It’s like a totally different person. He is fast, incredibly fast.

You had hoped to see him again and thank him for sparing your life. It should be the least you can do.

After all, you’re technically still a part of another dojo considered competition to them.

Note: something new for once. Wanted to make reader a swordswoman here.

[black-arcana]

WITHIN TEMPTATION Lost Tens Of Thousands Of Instagram Followers Over 'Pride' Post

In a new interview with Germany's Radio Bob!, vocalist Sharon Den Adel of Dutch symphonic metallers WITHIN TEMPTATION was asked if she took notice of the fact that the band recently surpassed 400,000 followers on Instagram. She responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, to be honest, I'm not sure if I should say this on radio, but I was a bit shocked of our own audience in a way, because we reached actually 4,2 [420,000] and we lost a two [20,000], because we made an announcement, like, okay, just a post about Pride [the yearly event for acceptance and visibility of the LGBTIQ+ community] in the Netherlands. And we lost 0,2 just by one post saying equality stands for…"

She continued: "I don't care about losing those, but it was a shock to me. So many people were appalled by that message, it's, like, what is the world going to? I was a bit sad about that. It was, like, okay, because you said something about equality and how we see people, how we treat people. Wow. It was a shock… It's reflecting how people are thinking about how things are changing in society sometimes by things you post. It's, like, wow. I didn't see this coming. But anyway, anyway, I'm not regretting it at all. So I'm really happy that it happened because it just cleans up the database. [Laughs] Who cannot stand for equality for everyone? It's, like, come on."

Last December, Den Adel was asked by Mexico's Summa Inferno why it was important for her and her bandmates to voice their political views in some of their recently released songs, including "Wireless" and the title track of their latest album "Bleed Out", which have highlighted such current topics as the war in Ukraine and the suspicious death of Mahsa Amini, an Iranian woman "detained" for not wearing a hijab. She said: "We are musicians. And what do musicians do? They're storytellers, in my opinion. At least that's how I see myself, as a storyteller.

"Back in the day when there were castles, hundreds of years ago, when the musicians were traveling from country to country, what they did is bring the news from one country to another country," she explained. "If there was a war far down South, then half year later, people would know up North because then the musicians came and they make music, telling the stories of what's happening in the world. And I think that essence of being a musician, I think that's important. I think the essence of keeping certain subjects alive in a different way than in the past, of course, but now more like the news goes so fast in our time, because we have Internet and everything, we know what's happening in every country, more or less. And the thing is it becomes old news very fast. But certain things you need to keep addressing and talking about, like what's happening in Iran, for instance, but also the war in the Ukraine, and of course now that what's happening in Gaza and in Israel. Those topics are important to talk about.

"For us, we've written songs about certain of these topics, like Ukraine and Iran," Sharon added. "We did write something about that. We were inspired by that. So that's why we're talking about it in our interviews. And because it becomes old news very quickly here in Europe. I don't know how it's in your country, but nobody talks that much anymore about the Ukraine or what's happening in Iran. Not at all, because it's not in the news anymore. Ukraine is, because we are, of course, supporting them, but in different ways from a European point of view. But Iran, it's already very much old news since Mahsa Amini died because she resisted the morality police and died in a horrible way after being beaten to death, just because she wore her clothes in an incorrect way, to them. And it's very important to talk about these topics because otherwise it becomes old news and their fight is still going on. And that's in many subjects. We could have written about so many things in the world, even about South America where certain things are happening. But these were the things that inspired us when we were in the studio. At that moment, the war broke out in Ukraine. At that moment, Mahsa Amini had just died and we watched the news, and before we knew it, it was integrated in our music. But it could have been also other topics that are just as much needed to be talked about, of course. But these were the things that were happening in the moment when we were writing music."

Asked if she is afraid of the backlash and criticism she and the rest of WITHIN TEMPTATION might receive for publicly voicing their political views, Sharon said: "Well, I believe in democracy. And I think also we have a voice, and I believe in debating. What I hope to do with this — we're not lashing out or criticizing anything. It's more like we try to keep the subject alive because just by talking about it, we can bring other people to new ideas or get a little bit deeper into the subject or start being interested in the subject and thinking about what is the right thing to do. What kind of world do we wanna live in? I think that's a good question. So I'm not afraid of feeling attacked because of the fact that we take a certain point of view because I think… Well, I think it's, that's the thing of democracy. We can all be a voice and we can all contribute to the debate on what kind of world do you wanna live in and what do you accept from each other and what don't we accept from each other. There should be a certain pressure from other countries trying to help certain people in need. And I think it's most important that we support those who are in oppression, who are oppressed, and to let them know there's people thinking about them and supporting them."

[tragically-but-finnally-yours]

happy james and lily potter death day 🫡

[kutiee]

K for ELLE KOREA

[ceaseless-watchers-special-girl]

Juno Steel and the Terrible Waste.

'kay, let's be reasonable about this. Past Junoverse episodes have mostly just given a vague understanding about what will happen in the episode. Murderous Mask tells you basically nothing about the plot, only about the most important object. Prince of Mars? You learn who that is in the first five minutes. Midnight Fox? Only really relevant for the last few seconds.

Junoverse titles are not the biggest indicator of how an episode will go. There are some incredible titles, like Monster's Reflection, but even that is somewhat misleading — Juno spends those episodes learning that neither he nor Sarah are monsters.

so basically what i'm saying is the episode could still be happy letmedreammmmmmmm

[josecariohca]

.

[soup-scope]

hey y’all i’m pretty sure imp!Kody is dead 💀💀

i saw some people say he was alive and i rewatched the imperium (all the bits with kody/freelancer/gavin) to see if he really did die or not

yeah he’s dead. that’s the reason gavin didn’t kill lasko after he suffocated freelancer because he was still haunted by kody’s death

👍👍

[flowercrowngods]

i don't know how to be merely acquaintances when we used to be friends. or i think we used to be. i don't know how to yearn for a simple hello when you've been heaping your affection on me months ago, and i don't know how to talk to you when you won't say anything. when suddenly it's all about me. you know i have nothing to say, you know my brain is void of everything but horribleness and i cannot tell you about my day because i don't even know about my day. i cannot tell you about my day when i know you won't listen, when i know you'll apply your philosophy to my world and don't believe me when i say that everything is terrible. i don't know how to be the person you seem to think i am, or the person you want in your life. i don't know if you want anyone else in your life now that you're in love and sappy, found another recipient for your affections, leaving me empty and wounded and yearning.

you said you missed me. said it many times, while i was gone. now i'm back, have been back, and i wonder how you missed me, why you missed me, when you won't talk to me. i think you mistook missing for worrying. i think you mistook caring for a feeling of obligation. i think you like missing me more than talking to me.

and i think i can't breathe with how much that hurts

[imaginaryanon]

my inquisition replay has led me places i wouldn't go with a gun (<- just left hawke in the fade)

[apathyfairy]

you are either a girl who is miserable and sad on her birthday or a girl who loves her birthday and there is no in between and neither group will ever understand the other

[hauntingblue]

ANOTHER DEATH BY INMOLATION???? ENOUGH!!!!

[scionshtola]

it is so hard for me not to post every single thought i have on here the moment i have it

[gurorori]

i say this with utmost seriousness i wish i was employed