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bluesylveon2 · 1 year ago

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omg, can I request number 13 with sebek please?????

I did it anon! I wrote this! The ending could be better but I think this turned out good. This prompt really fit Sebek too lol

Prompt: 13. We make contact before trying to steal the last seat on the subway/bus/train and I end up in your lap and fuck you, I’m going to stay here because I’ve had a really long day and this seat was mine

Note: Modern au and aged up characters

Word Count: 1691

Warnings: not beta read, possible OOC characters (Sebek is an asshole at first), and an attempt at writing subways (I based it off NYC)

500 Follower Event

Yuu was having a not-so-good, horrible, very bad day.

It had all started when she had slept past her alarm and woke up to Grim, the recent cat she adopted, making her sofa a scratching post. Then, after running out of her house with a white blouse, a skirt, heels, and a cup of coffee in her hand, she magically ran into someone, spilling coffee on her clothes.

The person apologized, but Yuu wanted to scream. She only had 5 minutes left until her shift at the office started, and she did not want her boss or coworkers to get on her about it.

(There was a redhead in the IT department who was strict and infamous for lecturing a coworker who was late by two seconds).

It was a stroke of luck that Yuu made it on time. Everyone was too busy to notice her arrival except for Vil, who gasped at Yuu's current state. Luckily for her, he had a blouse and a skirt that he lent her (but not before giving her a lecture about her appearance).

The rest of her shift was boring after that. Yuu quietly sat in her cubicle while the chaos happened around her. It was a typical day, to say the least, until her boss, Dire Crowley, showed up with a mountain of paperwork and wanted it done by the end of the day because he was oh-so kind. It reminded her of the infamous trio in Accounting and Finance, who she was 100% certain were in the mafia. And so, Yuu left her job with a massive headache, a plastic bag with the company label of her soiled clothes, and a list of how to get revenge on her boss. The poor girl was working like Cinderella, and she only wanted to sleep while cuddling Grim.

Yuu made her way toward the train station and mindlessly went to her stop. Yuu could not hold back her yawn as the subway appeared. She tiredly followed behind the crowd into the train, letting her feet guide her inside. It was partially full, and luckily, only a few people entered with her. Her eyes landed on the spot near the door, perfect for her to sit and decompress.

Yuu only took two steps towards the seat when suddenly, a man with slicked back light green hair, yellow-green eyes, and the strangest green and black outfit she had seen sat down in HER seat. Now slightly awake but more annoyed, Yuu marched toward him.

"Excuse me, sir. That is my seat."

The man looked her up and down at her appearance, and his lips curled up in disgust like she offended him. "It is clear that I saw this seat and sat down first. Therefore, it is my seat."

Yuu huffed and wanted to say some not-so-nice words to him, but some children were around her. She chose to look down at his stupid-colored eyes with determination. "Look, mister. Don't you know the saying 'ladies first?'"

The man scoffed, "Of course I do. Do you think I was raised like a barbarian?" He said and eyed the plastic bag in her hands. "Unlike some people. Besides, I must be in top shape after spending all day protecting my Master."

Yuu stared at him like he was a crazy person. "You- jjsndgondvisjdf" She could not form words and chose to say sounds instead. One parent covered her child's ears.

"Do you not know who I am?"

Yuu stopped her rambling and looked at him. "I don't know and I don't care. If you don't move, then I have no choice."

The man's eyebrows furrowed, "What are you? HEY!" He yelled, causing some people nearby to silence him. Meanwhile, the girl on his lap made herself comfortable. "What are you doing?"

"Sitting," She said like it was obvious. She turned her head to look into his eyes; a frown etched on her face. "Look, I had a tiring day today too, but I need to sit down after a long day at work."

The man blushed at the close proximity and looked away. His face was slightly red, and a pang of guilt filled his chest. "I'm sorry for being rude to you. I was unaware."

Yuu waved him off, "It's alright. You didn't know." She suddenly yawned and rested her head against his chest. She could feel how fast his heartbeat was going but was too exhausted to ask why. She felt like she was covered in a blanket. "You can just chill until it’s your stop. I'll get up when it is my stop."

The man looked at her curiously, "Where is your stop?"

Yuu yawned again. Her eyes felt heavy. "Ramshackle Street," she replied, her eyes getting starting to close. "You are so warm and comfortable," she said absentmindedly, wrapping her arms around his torso.

"Hey! What are you?" Sebek stopped talking and stared at Yuu's sleeping face. He moved his arm to shake her awake but stopped. He could see how exhausted she was by looking at the eye bags under her eyes and how she managed to sleep so quickly. It reminded him of Silver, but slower by two seconds.

Speaking of, Sebek's suddenly rang, and his friend's name was on the caller ID.

"Hello?"

"Ah! Sebek! There you are! We were looking for you. Where are you right now?" His other Master and Silver's adoptive father, Lilia's voice, replied. "My phone died, so I must use Silver's khee hee."

"Father, that's because you misplaced your charger." Silver's voice called out.

Lilia laughed. “Silly me!”

Sebek rolled his eyes, “Is the Young Master safe?”

Lilia huffed. “Malleus is next to me, eating some ice cream. You know how he is, but we have a more important matter to discuss. Where are you now? The city must be so big for you to accidentally wander off."

Sebek sighed. He should have been more diligent and kept sight of Malleus (the tallest person he knew) or Lilia, but he didn’t. And now he was stuck on a train with a random girl sleeping on his lap.

It was like the girl knew he was thinking about her because she mumbled something about 'that damn Crowley' and was loud enough to be heard by Lilia.

"What was that?"

Sebek scrambled to say something, "I apologize, Master Lilia! I am taking a train that will stop in the Diasomnia area, but I might be delayed. You see, there is this girl-"

"A GIRL?!?" Lilia exclaimed, "Why didn't you say that earlier? Is she your girlfriend? Did you meet online and finally get to meet in person? Am I finally getting grandchildren???"

Sebek could tell that Silver was rolling his eyes at the last part. "No, Master Lilia. She was exhausted from her work and ran into me on the subway. She is taking a nap right now."

"Oh, crumbs," Lilia sighed dramatically. "I thought I would finally experience what it is like being a grandpa. You know I am not getting any younger."

"We know." Silver and Sebek said at the same time.

"Well, make sure that the girl gets home safely, Sebek. Do you know where her stop is?"

"Ramshackle Street."

"Perfect!" Lilia exclaimed. "It is actually nearby Diasomnia, so we can meet you there. Malleus has always wanted to explore it anyways. It is known for its historic mansions, you know. Make sure to send your location or call Silver so we can find you."

Sebek nodded and adjusted Yuu by securely wrapping an arm around her so she did not fall off his lap. "Understood. It should be one of the upcoming stops, so I should be there soon."

"Good. See you soon, Sebek!" Lilia said and hung up. Sebek pocketed his phone and looked down at the sleeping Yuu. She looked peaceful, and she was breathing quietly. However, she did look cold, and her thin long sleeve did not look like it was enough. Sebek took off his coat, leaving him in his white shirt and tie (it surprised him just how he did it, given the complex design), and wrapped it around Yuu's body. He wrapped his arms protectively around her again and sighed.

"Next stop is Ramshackle Station. Stand clear of the closed doors, please," the intercom's voice called out.

Sebek gently shook Yuu's shoulder. "Hey, you need to wake up. Your stop is coming up."

Yuu slowly opened her eyes and looked around her surroundings. "Huh?" Her eyes landed on Sebek's face. "Oh, right. I took a nap on you. Let me get out of your way." She moved to stand up but was stopped by Sebek holding onto her hand.

"You have a few minutes until the train stops. You can stay until then..." His voice trailed off.

Yuu chuckled, her laugh sounding like music to Sebek. "Where are my manners? I'm Yuu." she smiled, causing Sebek's heart to skip a beat.

"I'm Sebek Zigvolt." Yuu's smile grew even wider as she clung to Sebek's coat. Realizing the unfamiliar fabric, she looked down in shock.

"Is this yours? Here, let me return it-" She began to take it off only to stop when Sebek shook his head.

"Keep it. Besides, you can wear it even longer if you allow me to walk you home."

Sebek expected her to say yes, not jump on him, and wrap her arms around his neck. "Yes! Thank you, Sebek!" She grinned. Maybe her day was finally getting better after all.

Bonus: Sometime during the walk back to Yuu's house.

"You know, this fabric seems pretty fancy. Are you a bodyguard or something?" Yuu asked while rubbing Sebek’s coat between her fingers.

Sebek nodded and smiled proudly. "Yes, I am. In fact, you might meet my masters when I drop you off."

Yuu's eyes widen. "Really? They must be important people for you to call them that."

"Of course! It is none other than the great Malleus Draconia! He is so great and powerful-"

Yuu sweatdropped as Sebek went on a rant about Malleus when all she wanted to do was to go home.

Disclaimer: I do not own Twisted Wonderland and its characters. Those belong to Aniplex, Walt Disney Japan, and Yana Toboso.

©: This story belongs to bluesylveon2 2020-23. DO NOT modify, republish, or plagiarize my work.

#twisted wonderland #disney twisted wonderland #twst #twst x reader #sebek zigvolt x reader #sebek x reader #sebek x yuu #sebek zigvolt #thanks for the ask!#bluesylveon 500 follower event

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itseivwhore · 4 years ago

Text

|Ezio Auditore x reader|(Modern)

I was at the beach for an entire day,from morning until evening:with the sun and the impossible heat (plus my pride and the thought of being invincibile to everything and everyone),didn't exactly help the stay...so I ended up to have billions of sunburns all over my shoulders and face (who would have thought...I've been spending 17 years at the beach every damn Summer,yet I never got such a bad sunburn like this one.Invincible my ass). And I was stuck on my bed,I couldn't even move...so how better to spend all this free time if not to write something?

Have a little modern au imagine with all of the Assassins,and at least but not last,with the reader comforting Ezio struggling and being a bit dramatic with the big sunburns he got.

Because I was annoyed,and it was the only idea I got.Oh and it won't be like all my other long imagines:this one will be quite short...maybe.(Oh x 2,I would like to point this out:the writing style will be a little bit different from all the other one shots I have written,since this will be a modern one,so don't really expect philosophical speeches).

~~~~~

Summer.

Probably the most awaited season of the year,where everything changes and the world takes on a new and youthful aspect:longer and warmer days,holidays,exciting and fun experiences,countless of new opportunities to spend free time with friends;maybe spending a few weeks in a beautiful house right in front of a lake,in the middle of nature,away from the city and its continuous noise...and this is what Ezio organized:three weeks in that beautiful large wooden house,where he would celebrate his birthday.

Everybody knew that the Italian boy had always-always-organized fantastic parties,with hundreds of people,inviting almost the whole school and all the people he knew,celebrating all night long.Everybody knew about his famous,big parties.But the group of his closest friends was shocked and amazed,to say the least,when Ezio declared that for this year there would be no big and crazy party:just a few weeks,all together,a sort of summer holiday,near a lake,in the middle of a forest.

And everyone,of course,expected that Ezio had rented an ultra-modern and very expensive house,but when they all arrived at the place of residence,they remained amazed:that infamous house,which the Italian had so long mentioned,was nothing more than a large,simple,two-storey wooden chalet.The outside of the house was surrounded by a thick layer of grass,decorated with many small colorful flowers,overlooked by large trees that partially covered the large lawn with their shade.A hammock had been tied right in the middle of two trees,and was slightly moved by the warm summer breeze.

The interior was spacious and furnished in a very simple way with wodden fornitures,and everything was more cozy and soft thanks to that small touch of vintage everywhere in the house:pendulum clocks,antique paintings hanging on all the walls,huge windows that illuminated immensely the large living room.The second floor was just where the numerous bedrooms were,as well as having a large and spacious balcony overlooking the majestic lake,giving a truly beautiful view.

In short,a truly delightful house,reserved and discreet,away from towns and cities.

Everyone,on the other hand,had found various activities and amusements to do:who,like Edward,Jacob,Ezio and Desmond,as soon as they arrived at the chalet,had lost no time and immediately dived into the lake,swimming and playing in the cool water;who,like Connor and Altaïr,had decided to take a walk in the woods near the chalet,looking for silence and peace,away from Jacob's screams,Edward's dirty jokes and Ezio's curses;who,like Evie and Arno,sat in the shadow of the mighty tall white poplars reading books,sometimes muttering something to each other;who,like Leonardo,spent most of his time painting the landscape around him.

Y/n instead spent the hours of the day alternating between being in everyone's company:swimmimg with the four boys in the lake,or walking together with Altaïr and Connor in the middle of the woods,or simply chatting with the two readers,or watching the painter paint his masterpieces.And,during the last hours of the evening,being together with Ezio,cuddling him,spending sweet and almost infinite moments with him,laying in the hammock next to him,laughing at his flirty comments,shivering at his reserved and gentle touches and blushing at his tempting and allouring glances.

The whole group was having fun,no one was bored,the days went by fast,and Ezio's birthday was getting closer and closer.Everything was normal.

Until...

"Santo Dio!" a heartrending scream of pain,coming from inside the chalet,interrupted the quiet of that mid-June afternoon.All of them had gathered in the large living room,standing around him.Curses and cries of pain had little to do with all that fuss:the real reason why the whole group had gathered in the living room was-as one might have imagined-for Ezio himself.

Once he was finally back from a full day at the lake,most of it spent sunbathing,everyone noticed how incredibly reddish his face had become-noticing however that he was wearing his t-shirt again.But he just shrugged it off,reassuring everyone by telling that it was 'completely normal',as if nothing happened.But the hours went by,and with them grew-more and more-the pain that became unbearable,impossible to ignore,the realization that became more and more vivid in his mind.And consequently,even his complaints and pain only grew:starting from barely audible groans to loud shouts,catching the attention of the whole group...who tried to do everything to help him,but in vain.

"Don't...don't touch me!" Ezio intimidated with a threatening voice,pointing a finger at all his friends who,a little surprised,a little worried-and even a little amused-were in front of him.

"Please,you need to take of your shirt off,Ezio!" Y/n prayed him for the umpteenth time in an exasperated tone,slowly taking a few steps towards the guy,spreading her arms,wanting him to understand that she didn't have any bad intentions.

"I don't need to do anything!Leave me be!" Ezio shouted again with eyes burning with rage,backing away when he saw his fiancée approaching him,his flashing gaze wandering quickly over all his friends' faces.

"You are shouting like a girl,mate.Quit it" Edward's loud,bored and singing voice came from the kitchen,too busy rummaging through the fridge to turn around and look at the poor boy.

"Zitto Kenway!" the Italian apostrophied him,panting heavily,red in the face,drops of sweat running over his forehead,while he walked quickly back and forth in the living room,trying to avoid the looks and comments of everyone.

"Be a man and take that shirt off,you are complaining for nothing" Jacob replied in a careless,nonchalant voice,passing next to Ezio and then placing a heavy hand on his shoulder,purposedly giving some loud pats:smirking in a purely amused way when he saw the Italian hissing and groaning in pain.

"Don't.Touch.Me." Ezio repeated in a cold sharp-edged whisper,violently swatting the Bitish' hand away from his shoulder,watching Jacob chuckling and throwing himself on the couch,sitting beside Arno,who was silently observing the scene.

"Ezio please,try to be reasonable" even Leonardo tried to persuade his friend,thus beginning to talk to him,sometimes even murmuring something in Italian,gesturing from time to time.

Desmond,who in the meantime had returned from the kitchen and was holding a beer in his hand,entered the living room,confusedly looking at Ezio for brief moments,and then sitting down next to Arno

"So that's what Italians are like when they're angry,huh?They shout and insult you?" he asked in a whisper,raising an eyebrow,trying not to be heard from him,receiving instead a furious look that,if he had the power to kill,the young Miles would find himself lying on the wooden floor,dead.Desmond simply cleared his voice a couple of times,then opened his beer and drank a few sips,turning to his French friend when he heard him hide a mischievous smile.

"Not only when they are angry.They're always like that" Arno said,raising a corner of his lip in a bitterly amused smile when he looked up at Ezio,seeing him respond to the artist in a rather nervous,impatient manner.Y/n,meanwhile,had gathered all the patience and strength she could have in herself;she knew that the boy could be dramatic when these things happened:she knew him too well,and she knew she had to use gentle manners with him,not forcing him to do things he didn't want to do.

So,walking slowly towards Ezio once more,with a small,pure smile on her rosy lips,she stopped in front of him,looking into his fervent,deep,dark eyes:and when his shiny eyes met and locked with her e/c ones,the violent fire burning inside his gaze disappeared immediately,returning to the warm,calm,soft brown eyes that she loved.She sighed lightly,looking up at him.

"You have to take off your shirt,you'll only make things worse" the girl explained in a serious tone,but not scolding him and,rising on her tip toes she grabbed his head,slowly took the sunglasses out of his hair,placimg them on a small table next to the sofa."Let me help you,alright?" she proposed to him with a sweet,loving,caring smile,starting to raise the edges of his shirt.

He couldn't do anything.How could he refuse the help of the person who endured him and loved him most of all?He simply couldn't.So he got help from her,but some loud hiss and painful groans,while she tried to get ridd off of that shirt,couldn't miss.Once the girl finally managed to get the shirt off from him,she stepped backwards,e/c eyes widening,bringing her hands on her mouth,staying silent in front of him,amazement and genuine disbelief that formed in her face.

"Oh my God" Y/n couldn't help but let out a shocked sigh at the view of his body:he was completely and totally red,to say the least,burned.Ezio didn't seem to perceive how much he had been burned also,and above all,on his torso and abdomen:but the pains and burns only increased when he took off his shirt.The Italian began frantically to ask questions on questions to his friends who,either too shocked,or too amused,didn't answer him.

Desmond suddenly stood up on the sofa and looked for Connor,who had been sitting on a chair with his arms resting against the backrest until now,and then beckoned him to come closer:

"Hey Connor...come here and stand beside Ezio" Connor,for as much as he was a little reluctant and confused,did as he was asked,got up from his chair,and walked to the center of the living room,stopping next to Ezio.

Everyone watched the two boys in silence,until the young Miles suddenly burst into a loud and hilarious laugh.

"LOOK!He's the same color as your shirt,you could blend in Ezio!" he exclaimed,pointing at the poor guy,looking at his arms and chest and then squaring from head to toe Connor,who was wearing a bordeaux t-shirt:and,not exaggerating at all,all of Ezio's skin in his whole body was exactly of that dark red color.This joke unleashed the hilarity of the whole group,who began to laugh loudly,who more openly and who adding more jokes,who giggling confidently.

"Cosa?Fammi vedere!Non c'è un cazzo di specchio in questa cazzo di casa?!" Ezio shouted loudly,looking around frantically, tarting to speak Italian -probably not realizing it because of the fury and embarrassment he was feeling at the moment-he started to rum around all the rooms to find a mirror in which he could see himself;leaving everyone alone in the living room,he ran to the bathroom,and after a few moments another 'cazzo!' echoed in the chalet.

He returned from the bathroom,mumbling lowly,keeping on cursing and talking Italian,panting,completely and utterly red,tired and angry eyes glaring at everything and everyone around him.

"What are you laughing at,Altaïr?!" Ezio suddenly asked angrily,turning to the Syrian when he heard him laugh silently.He did not even deign to turn around and look at the guy,he just looked over his shoulder,grimacing when he saw all the sunburns on the Italian's body,for then returning to watch outside the window.

"You are getting angry with everyone here.It's only your fault." Ezio took an expression to say the least shocked,when he heard Altaïr blame him so blatantly.

"Why should it be my fault?When I was about to take the sun cream it was empty" Ezio defended himself promptly and assuming an authoritative tone,frowning."And I really wonder who consumed it all" he added,raising his voice,turning to Jacob and glaring at him.All of them followed the Italian's gaze,and the whole group focused on Jacob who,still sitting on the sofa, looked around confused.

"What?It's not my fault if Evie is bloody pale!" he suddenly replied,opening his arms theatrically,pointing to his sister who was sitting right in front of him on another armchair.Laughing cunningly,he quickly dodged the slipper she threw at him.

"Yes,I agree,it's only Ezio's fault" Desmond agreed,taking yet another sip from the beer,getting more comfortable on the couch. "I mean,you are Italian,dude"he replied back,leaning forward and resting both elbows on his knees,giving him a disappointed look.

"And what does it has to do with it?" Leonardo asked,purely curious.

"Shouldn't he be used?You know,all tan,Italy' sun,the heat,Mediterranean people" explained Desmond with a careless voice,gesturing a little with his hands,receiving yet another frosty and furious look from the Italian.Ezio rarely did become nervous,there were few times when he became angry:but he was not offended with his friends or by all the jokes they were telling him;he was just annoyed,tired by the burning that was all over his body.The pain was so acute and so strong that he couldn't even make a single simple move.He appreciated that everyone wanted to help him,but he had to admit that all that talking,all that chaos,didn't help him at all.

"It's no one fault,okay?" Y/n said,slightly impatient,looking at the whole group and then giving a serious look at her boyfriend.But Arno didn't seem to hear her and,softly scoffing,put the book he was reading on the coffee tablet in front of him.

"Do I have to remind you that you yourself have said:'Oh I don't need the suncream'?" he replied in a decisive way,trying to imitate his friend's Italian accent at his best,looking straight into his flaming eyes.

Ezio remained silent,spechless:what the French guy said was nothing but the truth.Hours before,back in the morning,almost everyone-most of all Y/n-tried to convince him on putting some suncream on.But he didn't want to know anything about it,laughing and joking about how the others were so fragile in the sun's rays,bragging a little and feeling proud,proclaiming that he,Ezio Auditore,had no need of sunscream:and so,after swimming in the lake a couple of times,he lay in the sun,and stood there for hours,not moving,even falling asleep...only to find himself,later,in such a state.

"Don't be a smartass with me" Ezio threatened again,lowering his voice in a sharp sigh,pointing a finger at him.

"Otherwise?" Armo challenged him with his natural-old-boldness,quirking an eyebrow as he raised from the couch and took a few steps towards his friend.Ezio of course did not remain silent,to suffer the lecture of Arno,and began to respond fiercely against the provocation of the Frenchman.

"Can't we just try to solve this out without arguing for once?" Y/n suddenly exclaimed in a purely exasperated tone,putting herself between the two men and pushing them away,but receiving a hiss and a painful grunt from Ezio.

"Don't we have some medicenes here?" Evie then asked cautiously,interrupting the silence that had taken hold in the living room after the heated argument between the two guys.

"The only medicine it's alcohol" Edward answered blantatly,coming out of the kitchen with two cold beers in his hand. "Here you go mate" and threw one of the bottles at Ezio,who grabbed it quickly,looking confused and annoyed at the beer that the Welsh had thrown at him.

"I think we should go to the hospital" proposed Connor in a murmur,crossing his arm to his chest,taking on a genuinely worried look when he looked-again-at Ezio's body.

"Perfect!I'll drive.Let's go,shall we?" exclaimed Jacob cheerfully,clapping his hands loudly and smiling,excitement glistening inside his eyes,quickly taking the car keys from the coffee table.

"Yogurt," Desmond said seriously from all of a sudden,silencing everyone.

"What?" Y/n asked,wrinkling her eyebrows in a confused expression,approaching and kneeling next to him.

"We should use yogurt on these sunburns.It helps" continued the young Miles with a firm tone,showing to the young woman his phone,pointing at the screen.

"How can this help?" Altaïr asked in a skeptical tone,turning around and finally taking an interest in the matter.

"Yogurt refresh the sunburns,soften them and have a pleasant moisturizing effect" Y/n read aloud the information she read from the screen,scrolling on it for some more moments,for then giving it back to Desmond.The Syrian guy kept on giving a plain,cold and diffident glance at Miles,shaking his head in the mean time.

"Don't look at me like that,I found it on Internet" concluded Desmond showing his phone,for then shrugging,returning to lay his back on the couch.

"We can try.Do we have some yogurt left in the fridge?" Leonardo asked with curiosity,hoping for the best.

"If the big giant didn't eat them all..." Desmond joked loudly,raising from the couch,giving a playful pat behind the shoulder of his friend when he passed beside him,entering in the kitchen and opening the fridge.

"I only ate the coconut ones..." Connor justified himself in a low murmur,leaning his shoulder on the frame of the kitchen's door,lowering his eyes on the floor.

"You can find a lot of false thing on Internet though" the oldest Frye said,thinking about what Demsond read about using yogurt and other things as an help with sunburns.Jacob scoffed loudly,rolling his eyes in a dramatic way.

"Oh come on Evie!At least we'll be able to help that stubborn dumba..." but Jacob was suddenly and not a little violently interrupted by Ezio's loud and hoarse voice:

"BASTA!" the Italian yelled,making the silence return into the chalet and among his friends once his shout stopped echoing in the house.Everyone was motionless,nobody dared say anything,even Jacob refrained from making one of his jokes.Everyone looked at him in amazement,to say the least,intimidated,sometimes exchanging and casting fugitive glances.Ezio was there,motionless,eyes burning brightly,rapid breathing,red in the face,passing and placing his glare on everyone around him.

"Pasta?" Desmond asked confusedly,frowning and making a grimace.

"We are not going to the hospital,no one is going to put yogurt on me,I won't take any medicine!" Ezio proclaimed authoritatively,higly and stubborly denying any kind of help and refusing any kind of purposes.Taking his sunglasses from the coffee table,placing them on his head,he started to walk towards the door. "And you..." he stopped near the treshold of the kitchen,where Edward still was,before standing im fromt of the Welsh."You can keep your beer Edward" e,taking his hand,he forcefully gave the beer he threw at him before,for then storming out from the chalet.

Y/n-who since the moment Ezio began to shout had been silent as everyone else-was trying to reach him,but she felt a hand grasping her wrist and tugging her slightly,stopping her.Turning around,she found Arno beside her,his hand now resting on her shoulder,squeezing gently.

"Leave him be.He is angry,there's no way to let him reason now" he said to the girl,giving her a bitter and soft smile,nodding towards the window and letting her see that Ezio was outside,laying on the hammock...at least,trying to lay on it,for the sunburns he got all over his body didn't allow him to move,swearing and cursing for at least another hour.

~~~~~

A few hours passed by all what Jacob jokingly called an 'Italian tragedy'.It was late evening by now,almost midnight,and Ezio was still outside sitting on a chair near a wooden table not far from the front door:no one had dared disturb him,for fear of increasing his anger,or of unleashing something infectious.The Italian hadn't even come home for dinner,or for any other reason:he had stayed there for the rest of the day,first lying in a hammock,perhaps asleep,then sitting in a chair staring at nothing,occasionally trying to touch his shoulder or back to see if the pain still persisted.

No one seemed to care so much about him anymore.Apart from Y/n who,of course,was the most worried of all of them:she always turned her gaze towards the windows,trying to catch a glimpse of his form,trying to understand if he was still upset or if he had calmed down,but she certainly couldn't stand there,motionless,looking at him,doing nothing.So she decided to finally get out of the chalet,and try to let him reason,and calming him

Once outside,she gently closed the door behind her,looking for her boyfriend with her eyes,finding him sitting with his back to the chalet,eyes looking at the big,calm lake.The girl took a few steps forward,starting to walk as quietly as possible towards him.But he heard her.

"If there's somebody else then you all can go away," he coldly proclaimed in a loud and decise voice,not turning around and continuing to look at the lake.It was really a beautiful evening:sky full of stars,moon high in the sky,the water reflecting its dull and cold rays on its small waves,a light and fresh breeze made the branches of the trees move gently.

"I'll go away then" Y/n replied in a neutral tone,getting closer and closer until she found herself standing behind his reddish-shoulders.He turned around as soon as he heard her voice,looking at her in an astonished and tired way.

"You're the only person I want next to me even when I'm upset" Ezio murmured in a soothing,low voice,soft and warm brown eyes pleading her shiny e/c ones,her heart almost melting when she heard such a gentle,and utter loving phrase leaving his lips.Her Ezio was back.

"Vieni qui" he whispered,opening his arms,stretching an arm out,gently grabbing her by her waist and delicately letting her sit on his lap.Muscular arms wrapped around her form,pulling her closer,not caring about the pain that action was causing him,just holding her as close as possible,face buried in her chest,snuggling his stubble against her soft flesh,smiling against her skin when he heard her giggling.

She deteached away from him,looking at him before giving him a smile when,as she was caressing his cheek,he leaned his face on her palm,almost wanting to be lulled after such a long,tiring day.He opened his eyes after a while,fixing some strands of h/c hair that were falling in front of her.

"I'm sorry" the Italian whispered suddenly,giving his beloved a look full of guilt and embarrassment.One of the things Y/n adored about Ezio was his honesty and humility:he knew when he was wrong,he knew when to apologize and he knew perfectly well when to do so."I wasn't angry with you all...I was just tired and nervous because I got all thesw fottute sunburns" he explained in a serious voice,squeezing her hips.He could read in his deep eyes how purely sorry he was.She gave him a small smile,leaning in and leaving a chaste kiss upon his lips.

"I,we know,Ezio.No one is mad at you" Y/n reassured him in a soothing and quiet voice,leaning down to kiss him again,with more passion,paying attention to where she put her hands,so as not to hurt him.

Ezio still was whispering apologies near her ear,caressing her,kissing her,thanking her.But she got up from his highs after a while and,after looking at him seriously,the girl leaned towards the table next to them,holding an object that Ezio had not noticed until now.

"It's yogurt.Desmond tried to see if it could really help,and apparently,it could," Y/n explained,raising the yogurt jar in her hand and showing it to him,who in response sighed loudly and deeply,throwing his head back,almost looking in defeat.But despite his reaction,Ezio sat down composedly on the chair and nodded.

The girl laughed purely amused and,opening the jar,she took some yogurt on both hands,and began to smear it on his shoulders and on his red,scalded back;at first groans and hiss,his skin still too sensible and damaged,but after a while,when she started to delicately massage his shoulders with the fresh,cold yogurt,he sighed,relieved.He hummed,closing his eyes,throwing his head back.

"Quanto posso amarti?" he asked in Italian,sounding so hoarse when he-once again-groaned when her small hands slided down from his shoulders to his warm chest.

"Shouldn't you be giving a message to me?" Y/n asked him back in a sarcastic tone,leaning down,whispering that near his ear,hearing the entrance door being opened and closed.

"But it's my birthday today" Ezio answered in a mellifluous tone,claiming to be offended,giving a sad grimace to his lover,who just laughed loudly,for then suddendly returning serious.

"Who told you I don't have a gift for you?" Y/n inquires with a low and semsual voice,leaning more near him,her hands sliding down on his torso,almost tickling him,her lips on his definite jaw,feeling him almost shivering.

And just when he was about to answer her,he stopped when he saw all the others walking towards the table,singing the infamous song:it was,in fact,midnight,and it was Ezio's birthday.Jacob walked in front of everyone,holding a large pizza in his hands,on which were added candles.Once they arrived near the birthday boy,the British placed the pizza on the table in front of Ezio who,with happy eyes,looked at what was to be his birthday cake.

"We didn't have the time to go in the nearest city and buy a cake,so we make a true Italian pizza..." Connor explained with a ghostly smile on his lips,nodding towards the plate.

"For an angry,burnt italian man" concluded Arno with sarcastic voice,raising a corner of his mouth in a cheeky grin,smiling at Ezio.

"I tell you,we aren't even sorry" added Edward with a proud smile,placing his hands on his hips.

"Pizza cake" Desmond said,spreading his arms in a theatrical gesture,but Jacob promptly interrupted him,raising a hand and shushing the young Miles.

"We talked about this before,Des.It's birtday pizza.No discussion," Jacob replied,speaking seriously to say the least. "It is law!" he then proclaimed,roughly smashing his fist in the table,making the flame of the candles tremble.

Ezio heard Y/n laughing behind him,her hands were now wrapped gently around his neck.Pressing a long,chaste kiss on his bearded cheek,she whispered to him:

"The surprise has to wait"

~~~~~~

°°°¡TrAnSlAtIoNs!°°°

"Santo Dio!" = Good God;

"Zitto" = Shut up;

"Cosa?Fammi vedere!Non c'è un cazzo di specchio in questa cazzo di casa?!" = What?Let me see!There's not a fucking mirror in this fuckint house?!;

"Basta!" = Enough;

"Vieni qui" = Come here;

"Quanto posso amarti?" = How much can I love you?

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islamicrays · 5 years ago

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10 Reasons Why Screens Are Bad For Your Kid

I'm a firm believer in a no-screen policy for kids. No TV, no iphone, no ipad, no laptop. No screens of any kind, especially before the age of 2.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that parents "place a reasonable limit on entertainment media," and not allow any screen time for children under 2. Despite those recommendations, kids between the ages of 8 and 18 average 7 ½ hours of entertainment media per day, according to a 2010 study by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.

That is a lot of time a day in front of a screen. So I know that in this day and age, my no-screen stance is very odd. I'm good with that. (Partially because I grew up without TV as a kid myself, alhamdulellah.)

What's so bad about screens? Here are the main harms:

1. Shortened attention span: Screens provide fast-paced flashing images, which is correlated with shorter attention spans. Continuous exposure to such flashing images keeps eroding the attention span of children, and then we see rising rates of ADHD diagnoses.

2. Less reading: Screens become the primary source of entertainment, such that more sedate forms like reading, drawing, writing, etc become boring in comparison. TV presents an exciting extravaganza of lights and sounds. Books are still. Why read a book that requires the child to imagine and muster up the energy to summon mental pictures of the story being read, when the child can just sit and watch images made for him that parade themselves across a screen before his eyes? Reading now becomes arduous, taxing. TV is easier. It's easier to be passive than active.

3. Wasted time: Screens waste a lot of time. There are so many better, more beneficial ways for a child to spend his precious years of childhood than to plop down in front a screen, even if it's just one or two hours a day. That time is better spent exploring, piecing things together, adventuring, talking to a parent or a sibling, looking at pictures in a book (if the child is too young to read), being outdoors.

4. Less outdoor play: Screens have largely replaced outdoor time. This is a big one. We have slowly, over the past several decades, become a country of lazier, more sedentary people. We spend more time indoors than outdoors; much less time outdoors than our predecessors. Before this modern screen-riddled era we find ourselves in right now, people used to spend a substantial amount of time outdoors and in nature, which is proven to improve mood and overall physical and mental health (higher Vitamin D levels, lower rates of depression, etc). Now, however, we spend much of our time indoors, seated on couches, looking at screens. This shift from outdoors to indoors has impacted our collective health; we are now sicker, with weaker immune systems and more vulnerable bodies, than people before us. For kids especially, being outside is absolutely critical for healthy development. I will dedicate forthcoming posts to just this one issue alone, insha'Allah.

5. Obesity: it is constantly being announced that we are witnessing a national obesity epidemic in the United States, and that specifically childhood obesity is at an all-time high. Of course, the kinds of food we eat has a lot do with this phenomenon, but so does the amount of time we spend sitting down. The more active a person is, the better. Screens force us to sit down and be sedentary, which then slowly forms a habit of, and a preference for, sitting for long periods of time instead of moving.

6. Addiction: kids (and adults) can actually become addicted to electronic devices, like an ipad, a smartphone, TV, etc. They become dependent on devices and use them as their exclusive form of entertainment. Without it, some kids have meltdowns and the only way to appease them is to hand them that iPhone. This happens with children as young as 2 years old, tragically.

7. Communication breakdown: in our digital age, many people are replacing face-to-face communication with text messages and social media. Instead of having a real connection in person, with eye contact and physical touch (which humans need developmentally), kids are getting used to communicating on a more superficial level purely through written texts and messages. This stunts emotional growth and interpersonal skills.

8. Filthy content: this one is a no-brainer. The more exposure a child has to screens, the more he consumes the cultural programming of modern western society, which is hypersexualized and riddled with sexual content, violence, and foul language. As Muslims, this is the opposite of what we want to see, whether adults or kids. It's even worse for kids.

9. Less obedience to parents: there are 2 reasons for this harm. One is that in any kids' shows, including cartoons, parents in the show are made out to be bumbling buffoons who don't know anything and who are constantly being outsmarted and outwitted by their own kids. In many cartoons and kids' shows, the kids act flippant and disrespectful toward their idiot parents. The second part of this is that when a kid is watching TV and you try to call him over to you (to eat dinner, to help you with something, to go do homework), the kid is slower to respond to your call. They're too engrossed in whatever is flashing across the screen to heed your mere calling of their name a few times. You, as the parent, are forced to compete with TV for your child's attention.

10. Consumerism: TV, and even YouTube now, relies heavily on commercials. Every few minutes, the show is paused for the commercial break, and your kids will watch the commercials just as they watch the actual show. Companies rely on this captive audience to create artificial desire for their products and create revenue for their business. Avoiding screens allows you to keep your kids away from this endless parading of products and saves them from getting too deep into the comsumerist mentality that we're surrounded by.

Via Umm Khaled

#islam #quote #allah #parenting #parenting tips #good parenting #kids #screen time #islamic #islamic quotes

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x--daughters-of-darkness--x · 3 years ago

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KAT VON D SHARES THE UNEXPECTED INFLUENCES BEHIND HER LONG-AWAITED DEBUT ALBUM ‘LOVE MADE ME DO IT’

The glamorous gothic queen of art, tattoos, business and beauty now redirects her attention to her original passion – music.

Kat Von D has been a staple in alternative culture and pop culture as a whole ever since first exploding onto the scene in the reality television show ‘Miami Ink’ and then promptly securing her own series, ‘LA Ink’, at her home in Hollywood. Quick to prove herself as far more than just another bland reality TV star, Von D built an empire around her interests and established a unique brand of tattoo artistry, best-selling books, art galleries, clothing lines, and most notably, a massively successful and world-renowned beauty line.

But what most people don’t realize about Von D is that out of everything she’s sunken her teeth into and made business ventures out of, her first and most consistent passion has been music. She’s been a constant presence in the world of rock and metal for quite some time – and not just because she’s dated musicians like Nikki Sixx and Deadmau5 and is married to Rafael Reyes of Prayers. She’s been classically trained on the piano since she was a child, practicing every day and growing an appreciation for all different genres as she’s grown older.

Much like her dedication to veganism and animal rights, Von D has a significant place in her heart for music, adorning her body with tattoos of multiple acts like the Misfits, AC/DC, Slayer, Guns N’ Roses, ZZ Top, and appearing in numerous music videos for bands such as HIM, Alkaline Trio, and Gunship. In 2008, she founded the MusInk Tattoo Convention and Music Festival, which has featured artists like Suicidal Tendencies, Limp Bizkit, The Used, Hatebreed, NOFX, Bad Religion, Deftones and more. She’s even had an entire song written for her by Eagles of Death Metal. Needless to say, her street cred in the scene is well established.

She’s now set to release her debut album, entitled ‘Love Made Me Do It’, a project that has been nearly a decade in the making. Described as “a pastiche of shapeshifting analog synths, post-punk dreamscapes, gothic hues, and shy pop magnetism”, the record deals with heartbreak, disillusionment, and ultimately enlightenment. While some might be expecting a hard-hitting, in-your-face type of attitude, Von D opts for a moodier and more atmospheric feel to her music that rides on soaring synth waves and danceable beats. Joining her are bandmates Gregg Foreman, Sammi Doll, Dave Parley, and Brynn Route, as well as notable collaborators Dave Grohl, Linda Perry, Dave Sitek, Peter Murphy, Danny Lohner, Ladyhawke and Charo.

In a conversation with Knotfest, Kat Von D discusses the many inspirations behind her music and unique sound, the artistry that goes into crafting not only her songs but her music videos and live performances as well, and shares some personal stories like the time she and her husband hit up a Rage Room and a week-long horror movie marathon she undertook with a friend.

What made this the right time to finally release your debut album?

Kat Von D – Music has always been a big part of my life and although most people know me from tattooing, they actually don’t know that music has been kind of the most consistent thing in my life. I’ve been not only classically trained since the age of five, but I’ve been playing with my friends’ bands and singing on all my talented friends’ albums and stuff like that. So I’m not a stranger to it but I think that a lot of people are not familiar with me having some form of musicianship. They’re like, “What? She’s coming out with music?” So it could be a little confusing to some people but like everything else I’ve ever done, I’ve always said the proof is in the final product. I’m not here trying to be like a celebrity just slapping my name on something and you know, collecting a check and not really caring about it. I want music to be my main focus in life. I’m not sure if this is the right time, to be honest. I feel like I probably should have released this album ten years ago when I wrote it, but I think life just got in the way. I was filming the TV show and going on book tours and just allowing all these other other forms of expression to kind of get in the way of focusing on music. Basically like a year and a half ago I decided to sell my makeup line so that I could have the time to go on tour and really give the music the attention it needs. And then obviously last year everything kind of got turned upside down and everybody was put to a halt. So I’ve just been waiting within this last year for everything to open up again so that we can go on tour and finally release the album.

How do you go about mixing your unique brand of alternative style with the kind of synth pop sound you’ve got going on?

Kat Von D – I think a lot of my fans and followers were expecting me to come out with like, metal just because I’m a huge fan of metal and I think people kind of know me for liking that music. But I also love a lot of darkwave and I love analog synthesizers and I’m a huge fan of post-punk era music. I love Depeche Mode, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure, that kind of stuff. I feel like when it comes to the music that I want to create it’s more along the lines of that. I love poetry, I love strong lyrics and soulful singing. I love Arch Enemy, but my voice does not lend itself to sing like Alissa [laughs] so I know where I belong.

It’s interesting also because like you were saying, you have your scene with metal and rock and all that stuff, but at the same time, you’ve also always been this kind of like, pop culture icon with LA Ink and everything.

Kat Von D – Yeah, I love pop structure. I’m not a big fan of pop music per se, but I do love the structure of songwriting and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. For us, I feel like we do have pop elements in our music but there’s definitely a darkness to it. Even in a lot of synthwave bands that I love, they tend to sound a lot happier than what we’re producing. I like to live in the more melancholy world. I don’t know how to write a happy love song.

There’s a consistent sound throughout the songs but each one still distinctly feels like it takes inspiration from different genres and eras. There’s definitely that predominantly 80s kind of sound.

Kat Von D – Yeah, especially the drum sounds and not just the synthesizers. I think we only have one song that actually has guitar in it. I really love that era but I also think that when my bandmates and I write songs, we don’t sit there with like, a reference. Like, “Oh, I really like this song, let me try to do a version of it.” We actually just start from scratch and we do a lot of sound design, finding specific synth sounds that are not presets in any way. It doesn’t feel dated to me. I feel like there’s a bit of a modern take on the 1980s I guess, and I think that’s important. We’re not trying to be Depeche Mode or any of those other bands that I mentioned, although you might feel the sentiment of that era.

That instrumental breakdown in ‘Fear You’ is so good, that’s very much in my lane. And that part of the music video looks dangerous as hell!

Kat Von D – Thank you, I love that too. I wanted to do a violent video because I feel like all of our other videos were beautiful. I was thinking, how do we create violence without hurting a person, or violence towards somebody versus like, inanimate objects, you know? So I had taken my husband to this thing called a Rage Room. You can rent these rooms and you buy different packages and you can just break break shit. We obviously got bored after like the first 15 minutes [laughs] but I can see how that could be therapeutic. That was a really cool experience so why not take that experience and make that into a music video?

Did you guys have any protection while you were smashing stuff?

Kat Von D – What’s funny is everybody didn’t want to wear protection, they were like, “we’ll wear some sunglasses”. Dave Parley, our drummer, was the only one that didn’t wear sunglasses and for a minute we thought he got a piece of glass in his eye. Thankfully it was just like, a dust particle but I was like “Oh my god don’t do this, Dave!” [laughs] I think aside from that we might have gotten a few little nicks and cuts but nothing crazy. We did use real glass, there was only a few prop glasses, like the sugar glass. I actually posted a video of Sammi, one of my synth players, breaking a bottle over my head and people were like, “Oh my god, that’s so crazy.” It literally felt like a kitty cat just whispered into my ear. [laughs] Those things break if you just like, squeeze them. I got those red glass skulls made and those were made out of the sugar glass, but other than that we do all our own stunts.

In the music video for Exorcism, you wrote that the song was partially inspired by a week long exorcism-themed movie binge.

Kat Von D – With my friend, Kevvy. We actually ended up writing another song together called Lost At Sea that’s on the album. He’s a huge horror fan and I am too, we’ve seen like, every single one. There’s so many terrible ones. It’s crazy. But there’s a lot of really great ones too and I was fascinated by the concept of demonic possession because it seems like there’s a pattern within every culture and every era in history that calls to some form of possession and exorcism. I just find it so weird that in an era like today, where we have cell phone cameras and all this stuff, you never actually see any footage on YouTube. It’s never like in the movies, you know? I think it’s like this romanticized idea of surrendering control to an outside force. I feel like people write a lot of love songs about the correlation between love and death or love and drugs or addiction. I just wanted to take it one step further and do a song about love that was in correlation with a demonic possession because I think that’s how I felt in the past a lot. It’s like you’re no longer in control or you don’t feel in control and you’ve given this power to somebody that may not be the greatest thing for you.

From that movie binge, which ones were your favorite and which ones were the absolute worst?

Kat Von D – I feel like I’ve subconsciously blocked out the worst ones. I think the worst ones were always like a Blair Witch-style filming, you know? One of my favorites through that marathon was one with Anthony Hopkins called The Rite. I love Anthony Hopkins obviously, who doesn’t? It was shot beautifully and it was the most realistic possession scenes. I don’t want to spoil it but there’s a giant twist at the end which I think was really different than every other exorcism movie out there. I think all of it was shot in Italy, so it’s a very beautiful background. Anthony Hopkins plays an exorcist. I loved The Exorcism of Emily Rose, but I would consider that more like a court case movie. It was so compelling, I think I cried at one point. I didn’t know that there was a part two and three to the original The Exorcist, and I had read the reviews prior to watching and everybody was talking shit about these movies. I thought they were so great. I love part two especially, I love the kind of origin story of Egypt and when you think about that era, they had pretty good CGI effects in that movie. So I gave those a thumbs up.

Were there any other kind of movie inspirations that helped guide the direction of the album?

Kat Von D – So Gregg Foreman AKA Mr. Pharmacist, he’s my other synth player and we’re both huge fans of John Carpenter, especially all the scores for most of his movies. I feel like there is inspiration behind some of those sounds that you find on the album, but as far as inspiration from movies, it was more for the music videos. For the Exorcism video, that one was really inspired by one of my favorite directors, Alejandro Jodorowsky. He did The Holy Mountain and El Topo and Santa Sangre. El Topo was my favorite just because the aesthetic way you would see these like, black silhouettes. The opening scene, for example, is this man in black on a black horse with a black umbrella just cruising through the desert. It was like putting together two things that didn’t belong together and I love that. For the music video for Enough there were definitely some Fellini inspirations with the props of the ocean where we’re kind of like, rowing through the storm and it’s a little bit campy, but in a good way. I don’t feel like the Fear You music video was inspired by any movie in particular, I just had a really clear idea of what I wanted the storyline to be. I love movies, or good movies at least. [laughs]

Do you feel like music videos kind of went away and then steadily came back with stuff like YouTube?

Kat Von D – I don’t know, I think that there are a lot of videos but the filming process for us has been pretty brutal because I don’t tend to do like, the lip syncing videos. I think that’s what the majority of people do, whether it’s hip hop or even metal. It’s like, okay, cool, you’re gonna do a fake performance and then we’re gonna lip sync and we’re gonna have some smoke and stroke. I don’t have any interest in doing that. For me, I’ve always loved music videos that have a narrative. Those just take a lot of time and energy and I can understand why bands don’t do them, but I like these little mini films. It kind of helps storytell the music more than just doing a performance piece. I think there’s creative ways of doing the performance pieces as well, I’m not gonna knock that, but to me, I’m not interested in just shooting a bunch of lip syncing all the time.

It helps show the artistry behind it. I like when artists go the extra mile.

Kat Von D – Me too. It’s funny because I really like our band, we get along so great and we love each other. We always laugh because we’re like The Munsters because we have a contortionist in our band and she looks like Marilyn Munster and then Gregg’s like Herman and so we’re this really weird little kooky family and stuff. I feel like everybody’s so extremely attractive in their own way. When I think of music videos, I always think about different parts that I want to create for each band member. Like, “Oh, this would be a really good scene for Sammi or for Dave.” In the music video for Exorcism, we actually got a stunt crew to come out and put us into those harnesses to make the bandmates fly into the air for those jumping scenes. Then we had to remove the little wires and stuff in post. My drummer always wears this leather fringe fanny pack and then he’s got this long beard and hair and I just want to see that flowing in the wind. It was my favorite jump scene out of all of them.

I just wanted to add that your work concerning animal rights is commendable. Dominion, in particular, that’s an incredibly affecting movie. If everyone was able to view that, you know, maybe things could change faster. I don’t know how you learn and see these things and not be changed by it.

Kat Von D – For sure, there’s definitely some trauma behind all that, I mean you could only imagine. But I always just commend Shaun Monson, because he’s dedicated his life to making those movies. He worked on Earthlings as well and those are just so, so brutal. But thank you, that’s very sweet.

And just so we don’t end on a bummer note, what kind of show can audiences expect to see on your upcoming concert dates?

Kat Von D – I’m a huge fan of going to see bands play and my biggest pet peeve is when you really love a band and you go and see them and it’s just like, a guy standing at a mic. So I definitely want to create an experience, especially with visuals. Like I said, I have a contortionist in my band who’s amazing and she’s part of our group. She is actually going to be playing some sounds but she’ll be moving her body in a crazy way that you won’t even be able to understand. We’ve been shooting all of our live visuals with Linda Strawberry, who does all the art directing for Smashing Pumpkins and a bunch of other bands. Her and I really see eye to eye on finding the beauty in the dark stuff. So we’ve actually been filming and prepping all of the light works and for the LED panels and everything else that we’re doing.I think people are gonna be in for a visual treat. I like that that’s just one other way of storytelling for music and I think that’s how you should be able to present your music to the world. To go back to my bandmates, it’s like they’re all superstars in their own way. I feel like they already have their own fans as well. I’m not interested in just shining a spotlight on myself, we’re all going to be doing some crazy things onstage. We’re like the goth Power Rangers.

#Kat Von D #2021 interviews

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044-eu · 5 years ago

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Rude trader, owner and salesman

I decided to write this article because I noticed a lot of complaints on the internet from people who, dissatisfied with how they had been treated in one store, vented by writing badly about that activity, rather than another. This is not an article that will make you become a trade guru and is not an article to collect the consents of those people who complain about the services received. The ultimate purpose of this article, the mission of this article, is to foster a meeting point between customer and trader by analyzing what are the aspects from both points of view.

The truth

First of all, you should never forget that any trader, is in turn a customer of something. It seems obvious, but it seems that on both sides of the barricade, this simple fact is not so obvious. To write this article, I asked my friends from different countries for various opinions. I therefore looked for historical documentation that could integrate that knowledge that, being me belonging to both parties, are part of my daily life and not only. Some of you will surely have already realized that I am a trader now for several years, I have a small business and like all those who do the same job as mine, I am also a customer with regard to other types of activities. I will not go into the specifics of my type of activity because I did not write this article to advertise my business but rather to give my opinion on this issue. I therefore hope that you, dear readers, will want to be patient and continue reading curious about what might be a different point of view from yours and which can, I hope in the vast majority of cases, relieve you of that stress that is increasingly present in everyday life. I think it would certainly be useful to have a bit of a local mind on some historical aspects of trade. Don't be afraid, I would never dwell on boring yourself describing all the historical aspects. These aspects, I am sure, are widely described in other articles available on the network. This article, dealing with the interactions between those who receive the good or the service (which we will call customers) and those who provide the good or service (which we will call shopkeepers), certainly does not want to be some kind of complete bible about commerce.

Where the trade probably comes from

Trade has always existed, this is certainly nothing new. When I ask myself about when and how this modus was born, I like to close and eyes and think. Imagine regressing almost to the Stone Age, you are fruit pickers for a lifetime, you know all periods and places. You are so good that you find more than you really need for your livelihood. You live in a place far from a fresh and clean source of water such as a spring. Due to the fact that you have decided to live right near the place where you harvest the fruits, having you the need to drink, you will then have to make miles on foot to collect that water that is vital for you. When you arrive at the spring, you meet other people, who do what you do but with water. They have in abundance but living on the rocks, they do not have the same opportunity to reap so many good fruits to feed themselves. At this point, there are only two possible outcomes. The first is to go to war to secure that particular source of livelihood and in the end, no one would fully enjoy it because they are both too far from the two sources of livelihood. The second is to organize peacefully by exchanging what advances from the harvesting of fruits with water and vice versa. In this way, those who have too much of one thing can exchange it for another. For transport you could organize with an intermediate figure who in exchange for water and fruit, would bring to their destination these two objects. In this way trade arises, from the imperative need to survive well aware that we are not alone in the world and that in exchange for a consideration, for the purpose of surviving, we can get what we need. With time and with the advent of money, the trading system has evolved, also greatly increasing complexity.

When a trader or professional is good

To some of you, this paragraph may seem superfluous because for some of you the answer may be a foregone conclusion. A trader or professional is good if he can meet the customer's needs in a timely and professional manner. It's actually not so obvious. In the many interviews I have done to my friends from all over the world, I have received very different responses. One of them, for example, told me that a trader is good to the extent that he can fool the customer without him noticing. Another told me that a trader is good if it's cheap. Or if it provides a service that satisfies for an average period along the customer. Another told me that a trader is good if and only if he can make as much money as possible. At this point, it seems clear that the definition changes according to one's personal experiences, stereotypes or place of origin. We must never forget that with modernity, we need more and more things and that the desire of the latter many times can make us feel frustrated. This state of mind, along with our other personal considerations independent of the desired object or service, have probably helped to form some of the clichés I present below.

Shopkeepers are all, who more and less, tax evaders

Believe it or not, since I am in the trade, I have always worked to carry on my work in an ethical and ligio manner. When I refer to ethics, I would like to pay special attention to the fact that any shopkeeper who respects himself, is a professional in that field, works to make the customer spend as little as possible getting a reasonable profit and advises the customer so that they can wait for their needs to follow the shortest, safest and smooth route possible. It is clear, however, that on the other hand, there are shopkeepers or service providers who do not issue a receipt even under torture or issue a partial and calculated number. These individuals should not be hated, because in most cases they are people who have failed. It is by no means easy in fact in some nations to go ahead paying a flood of taxes, many shopkeepers or professionals therefore choose the lesser evil to feed the children who wait for them at home. Even if not paying taxes is not justifiable, it must also be understood that there are cases where you cannot do otherwise for a matter of survival. There are undoubtedly evaders who do it to enrich themselves, but it is my opinion that these people too should be compensated because they have failed in their mission to be a useful and productive member of society. Don't think they're going to sleep peacefully at the end of the day.

Shopkeepers are thieves who get rich on other people's needs by inflating prices

One thing I always tell my customers is that when a person buys a good or service, the price for that person is always high. When a person sells a certain asset or service, the price is always low. It is for this reason that normally, the people who bargain less when they are in a shop are people from 18 to 24 years old. They probably don't have much experience and are still not inactive by preconceptions. I also have experiences of customers who were amazed at the extremely advantageous and affordable price for them. But normally the opposite happens in trade. I think it is necessary, however, to explain that prices are very rarely inflated. Normally when you make a price, you take into account the competition aware that there is a very strong competitiveness. It should also be considered that in some countries, such as mine for example, the final price is influenced by a measure not less than a quarter by value-added taxes. Then there is an income tax that practically halves the earnings, not to mention the need to pay contributions, other taxes, rent and utilities such as light, telephone etc... In the light of these facts now I ask you, are prices really inflated? Does a trader really get rich? And thieves are something else, anyway. It is obvious that if we report the price to what we see in online stores, it can never be lower for the reasons I explained before. A human trustrelationship is also established with the shopkeeper. Try to buy a defective item in a country on the other side of the world and you will understand the difference.

Shopkeepers are a lobby that forces us to buy and desire things we can't afford

No matter how much money a person can have, almost all of us want something we can't afford. What life would be like if we didn't always want something. Beyond this philosophical aspect, I think it may be useful to dwell on one aspect. In the unlikely event that some professional or commercial activity is organized in the lobby in order to create an oligopoly regime, it would do so against the laws of many states including mine. I have no news of any shopkeeper who has ever legally forced someone to buy anything. It is also true that there are people who are particularly brought to sell. Some of these are specifically hired with the purpose of turning a simple contact with a customer into a business transaction. But a business is not only this, a business you should base on an added value that no trick of the trade can give. For example, I am not so good at bargaining, in fact I calculate the prices of the items I draw so that they are as convenient as possible for my customers, but without damaging my business. Some traders, however, could specifically inflate the prices in order to grant a margin of negotiation giving the customer the satisfaction of having that tug of war. And if they don't bargain so much better. So sometimes it is easy for the unnoticed customer to fall into the discount.

Shopkeepers only think about getting rich and they are also very rude

Anyone who does a job that is not akin to a kind of volunteering gets up in the morning to earn something that will give them the chance to live. Whether addicted, self-employed or owner, any person in a job role would at least want to have an economic gratification that allows them to live. It is rather strange the nature of this stereotype because one would hope that anyone who understands that the need to survive by working, is something common to many on this earth. Who has never dreamed of succeeding with their work and who has never dreamed of earning enough to wait for their needs and those of their loved ones? In the end, as it is easy to guess my dear readers, we are all in the same boat. Those who carry out a business, however, know that the interpersonal relationships that are created are very important. Many of us know that they are confessors many times and that our customers expect compassion that we do not find elsewhere. But are we really sure that all of us, when we play the role of the customer, are equally available with the next one? Some may think that the shopkeeper should wash off any kind of personal problem in favour of those who are crossing the threshold of commercial activity. To give you an example, I myself found myself comforting a person who had lost an object he cared about. At that time I had discovered that my partner was seriously ill with a bad form of cancer but I still struggled to smile and joke to play down from the situation so difficult that it was afflicting my client. In response I was told that my attitude was not good because I was not sufficiently willing to share the immense pain that at that time the client felt having lost that particular object. When you cross the threshold of a business and are tired, stressed and nervous, perhaps you should consider that life does not revolve all around you and that probably the person with whom you interloquite is a human being.

Shopkeepers are chronic liars and would do anything to sell

I've always thought that a predisposition to lie is an independent thing for one to do. Any person accustomed to lying for one reason or another will lie to achieve the goal he has set himself. I have not yet had the pleasure of meeting someone who does not lie but at least, in my professional activity, there have been not uncommon occasions when I have advised my clients to go to another place that I knew, for that particular object or service he was better equipped than I was. Many shopkeepers don't give advice like this because they're afraid of losing customers but over time I've learned that lying to end a transaction is never the right way because people aren't stupid and because it's objectively wrong to do so. It is witnessed that, because of the problem I described earlier, I had to keep my shop closed some time. Maybe I may have lost some customers but my regulars have waited for me because they know that one way or another, I will always wait for their needs, no matter where, but they will find what they are looking for. In fact, it is not uncommon for cases where, although this is something for which I am not equipped, I have a lot to do to convince my customers to refuel elsewhere. A little for laziness sure, but in the vast majority of cases, they trust me and it is precisely this feeling of trust that must inspire a shopkeeper. With facts, not with chatter and smiles. I once told a client if he preferred to be treated well by a good doctor but bad at entertaining his clients or bad by a bad but good at entertaining them? He replied that this is different because I am only a trader.

That particular shopkeeper makes cheaper prices than the other

When I'm told this, because of my experience, I rarely believe it. Because a shopkeeper has to pay the rent, he has to pay his salary, he has to pay his contributions, utilities, insurance, any catastrophes at the shop window (anything but rare) and many other things that if put in the pile make prices rise rightly. Since I was always the kind of shopkeeper who explains things to people, I put on a piece of paper and a pen, I did all the calculations on a piece of paper and at the end I asked a simple question. If a shopkeeper pays all taxes, waits for all obligations and has a physical business, considering that in my country, even more than a fifth of the final price is value-added tax, how does it live? Unless you have an endless line of customers in the store who patiently wait their turn it's impossible. Watch out for prices that are too low because if the service, object or business is too low, it may have a secret, lawful or not that you do not know.

The customer is always right

The enormous competitiveness of the market could lead some shopkeepers to strip themselves of their dignity in order to conclude the transaction. In addition, with the increasing spread of large companies, we have become accustomed to being treated with velvet gloves. I have always thought that when you relate to another person, regardless of everything, you have to respect it. How many times have we faced negative reviews put in place by competitors masquerading as customers or by people who demanded reason from us even when they were blatantly wrong? In my business, I prefer, with education to express my opinion even if it collides with the point of view of my client. This is because I have more experience in the industry, I am proud of what I do and I want to do it to the best, I like to be very clear about the pros and cons of the services or objects I sell. Some people appreciate this attitude but I have realized that many people see this way of doing a shocking attitude that is perceived as rudeness or verbal aggression. We have become accustomed by now that we can say everything within a business and those on the other side must put aside their dignity because we are the customers. Have you wondered how you would feel if this were to happen to you? Or is it precisely because it happens to you that you take revenge in this way? I believe that the client is not always right and you have to make him understand firmly, respect and maximum education. This is because it is preferable that the customer is better then having chosen the article with the characteristics that really served him, rather than concluding the transaction by making him believe that he chose well and then making shrugs when he shows up with a later problem or you don't realize that you took a crab.

To summarize

The client should relate with the same kindness, respect and education that he wants to receive. It would be preferable not to vent his economic shortcomings and personal problems with those who are at that time. I encourage you to ask specific questions without appearing presumptuous. It should be receptive to advice, always careful to filter the veracity and purpose of these tips because not all traders and professionals are intellectually honest. The shopkeeper should try to accommodate anyone in a warm, quiet and professional way even if the person has no intention of buying the goods and services, so even if it is there just to waste time. It should advise the customer according to conscience making in this way a long-term investment on the quality of regular customers. I realize that this article may seem a bit biased being a shopkeeper. As I wrote before, I am also a customer and my status as a business owner certainly does not help me. To give you an explanatory example, I once went to a dealership to buy a very cheap car to replace my car that is almost twenty years old (just to dispel the myth that you enrich yourself in the trade). The dealer, he explained to me all the cars listening to what my economic needs were, explained to me well by thread and by sign everything. Because I was in a hurry, I was literally dragged out of the dealership and after three days, the trader calls me on my mobile phone telling me that he wanted to understand if I was interested in buying, if I wanted to maybe take a test ride. I told him that we were left that he would not call me on the phone and that I would let him know in a very annoyed tone. I was wrong! Because we weren't in any way and because I answered objectively badly. I did not have the courage to apologize to him because of perhaps a weakness called pride. As you can see, in the end customers and shopkeepers are all in the same boat and it would simply be a little more calm and less intransigence to avoid bringing home unnecessary stress. But I propose to go there in person to apologise. Maybe.

Some experience of my shopkeeper s& friends and customers

The experiences i propose below, with the aim of smiling a little and possibly, if you like to comment on them, have really happened. This makes us reflect on the vast variety of minds and customs. Actually, some of these happened to me, let's see if you guess which ones. Shopkeeper: A guy walks in the door without even taking a look at me, I'm a metre away from him and I greet him with a smile asking what I could do for him. I'm buying shoes, and I'm going to point the shelves at him with my hand. He does not even answer my greeting goes in front of a picture, looks at it, passes his finger on the frame and rubs it as if there was dust. After this, always without considering me, he opens the door and exits. Customer: They call me from a call center and present themselves as the customer service of a telephone operator. I explain to him that I am a little bit weighed at the moment and ask if I can be called back. This person insists on telling me that he has an offer for me but I can't continue because I'm about to drive, I had to take my daughter to the gym. I'm going to close the phone. This call center lady calls me back and yells at me that I've been rude. I tell her if I was her boss, I'd fire her in the trunk for calling me up and screaming on the phone. I closed the phone, he never called back. Shopkeeper: A man walks into the store and asks me for the price of a shirt, I check and tell him the price. He asks me, why so much? I begin to explain to him that it is a shirt with certain characteristics etc... But he doesn't let me finish the sentence and tells me that he doesn't care about anything since he had another price in mind. Then he proposes his price and I tell him that it is not up to me. Again, he tells me that he doesn't care about anything and he's leaving. Customer: As soon as I get into the store I am hooked by the saleswoman who starts to stress me with her prosopopee. It fills me with compliments and in the meantime offers me tricks. I tell her I'm interested in buying, just taking a walk. I continue my walk inside the shop but this saleswoman does not want to leave me alone, she is always sticking to me as if I had to buy something. I mean, right up to the checkout, it was a constant offering me what I was looking at. I said hello without even giving her a hand, I'm not going back to that place. Shopkeeper: Today a Lady visits me in my shop and greets me with a big smile. He offers me his (impossible) price for an item he wanted to buy, reminding me that eight years earlier he had bought something from me and that he was therefore entitled to a discount. I explained to her that unfortunately that object was already discounted and I pointed the sign at her. She reciprocates all my smiles and greets me saying she would be for the next time. The next morning, I see a stain of something bad on the window. I look at the camera recording to figure out who was that rude guy who did something like that. I couldn't believe it, she came back and spat on the window. Customer: Something crazy happened to a friend of mine. She got a mega discount on her phone, went to the perfume store and exposed this discount to the saleswoman. This was a 60-year-old woman and she wasted a lot of time browsing the catalogue. The store was full of people and you think the saleswoman even allowed herself to give you to my friend. They wrapped the perfume on her without even putting the designer bag so that it was understood that the gift was original. After this experience. I told her that normally, when this kind of thing happens to me, I boycott the store and I'm happy to see that these close, in the end you see what the shops do with the orders like that. Shopkeeper: I happened to have the rare pleasure of an almost customer, because for me the customers are the ones who buy, not the ones who walk in the store to waste my time. This person, he's not interested in buying something from me, but selling it. I ask you to see what you have to sell me. But she tells me that the items that you have to sell me are original and that I have to go on trust. Checking the items I should buy, I would offend her adds. In the end I told her that it was not possible for me without having any information to give her a range of amounts. She's making sure I'm like she told me. At some point I ask you a specific question intrinsic to the composition of the object because I saw it very ferrata about it. You can't answer me and you ask me why I'm asking you this question. I tell her that because she was sure of the composition of the objects, I needed that information to make the estimate. She told me she didn't know. Then I told her that she could feel free to bring items for free and without obligation for a free evaluation. She started yelling at me that she had no words, then ended with a forget it goes before letting herself close the door behind her back. After some time, she returns to the store, brings me the items and keeps telling me that I am as she says, I explain them and I demonstrate them with the facts that the objects are clearly fakes and she feels close to me answers. And I don't know, you're the one who buys them, you have to be the expert. She basically spent a day telling me that she knew what she had in her hand so that I understood that being an expert, it was not the case to rip her off (as if I had necessarily the intention) and then in the end what was at fault was her. Customer: I enter the store which was empty with an empty sample to ask if I could take some product to try it at home. As soon as I set foot inside, the saleswoman immediately jumps on me and starts to propose things to me. I buy tissues and then ask if I can have some of that foundation to put in my sample. This woman, she didn't want to open a new box in any way to put some foundation in my container. He offered me a free sample but it was of another color! In the end, seeing me agitated, this order pleases me and we find that there is a dispenser, puts just the amount to give the foundation to an ant and hands me my container. Because it was too bad, I went out without insisting. Incredible that nowadays, in such an important store, there are such uneducated orders. Shopkeeper: I work part-time for a supermarket, I also work on Sundays and overtime doesn't weigh me that much because I have a disabled child at home. My company doesn't even pass me meal vouchers and they make me work even 12 hours, despite my contract being part-time even for more than 20 days in a row. Many times, looking in my paycheck, I note that I am not paid overtime hours and missed rests. I live in fear of being fired because my contract is not indefinite. I'm tired and with a muptised brain because of my son's discomfort. The customers just complain to my boss yelling at me all the time and threatening to send me home a recall letter. Customer: I'm going to tell you a story of pure terror! That is basically, I go in and buy a pencil for the eyes and find myself outside without the eye pencil but with a lot of stuff. And as if that weren't enough, shop X made me a trillion euro price! But it's not over here, this saleswoman had the expertise of one who spent her hours behind tutorials on youtube. They look like greengrocers to me, but never in that place again. Shopkeeper: Something very recreational happened to me once. I was in the store where I am the owner, at the time I had an employee. For some reason unknown to me, people thought he was the boss but it wasn't important to me that was good because even though my employee, for me it was a fundamental and important part of my company. At some point by calculating a remainder, I make a mistake, I notice it myself and I do the calculation jokingly with the client about what happened. A normal thing, doesn't it? This client tells me that you should notify my boss/employee/work colleague. At this point, I pretend to be afraid and beg her not to tell anyone. She promises me she wouldn't tell anyone this time. On time, the next day, she returns to the store for the sole purpose of telling the story to what she thought was the owner of the company. My employee, with whom we had and have good relationships calls me on the phone and without stopping laughing tells me this thing. Now my reflection is this. But why did this person bother to go to what he thought was the owner of the company to tell this thing as if it were a complaint? Did he want the subject of his discussion to be punished for no reason?

The end

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