Blossoms and The Abyss
July 29th, Monday, Prompts Day 1:
Carnation- fascination, distinction, love
AU
Note: I am terribly sorry for the much belated abcense. Between work killing me and writers block, I have felt pretty useless... But I am trying to make a comeback. And I'm starting with SessKag Week Prompts 2019! ...Yes, I know...another new series. I have a bunch I need to work on, but it was driving my blood pressure up trying to force it. >< I battled writer's block, but I managed to get this out. Hopefully the next chapters will come very soon!
Disclaimer:
I do not own Inuyasha or the characters therein.
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Chapter 1 - College Daze
Somewhere in the distance, a thoroughly annoying buzzing sound was steadily getting louder and making his left ear tick. But he didn't want to get up. He knew what sort of day awaited him- the same bleak day as yesterday was...and the day before that...and the day before that. Reaching out blindly, Sesshoumaru hit the snooze button on his alarm clock and burrowed deeper into his pillow. There. Problem solved...for about five minutes. So he thought...
"Oh, Sesshoumaru!" Toga's frustratingly gleeful voice kept him from drifting back into nothingness. A frown pulled at the younger Daiyoukai's lips as the metallic sound of the door handle twisting caught his attention. "You won't believe..." His father's voice paused as he strode right on into Sesshoumaru's territory without any sort of askance. Parents. He barely resisted the urge to snort. Even after several centuries, Toga had no respect for personal boundaries... "Well, now. I can't remember the last time you slept in."
"It is not sleeping in if the individual is not asleep," Sesshoumaru replied in a deep, husky timbre that suggested that he had woken not too long ago. "I am simply resting."
"I see," Toga chuckled, and Sesshoumaru barely restrained his growl of irritation.
"What do you want, Father?"
"I was just coming to inform you that the Higurashi miko will finally be coming to Awaseru Academy," he could hear the grin in his father's voice. And then the infernal alarm went off again...Sesshoumaru's hand firmly pressed the large snooze button on top.
"Hrrmnn....the Shikon Miko?" Sesshoumaru asked slowly, curiosity nagging at him. Little was known about the miko- her family had kept her on their sacred grounds with numerous wards in place that repelled demons. It couldn't keep him away, but he'd had no reason to venture there. With his curiosity piqued, Sesshoumaru reluctantly bid any semblance of sleep goodbye.
"That's the one. Because Inuyasha failed to protect her in her last life fifty years ago...that responsibility now falls to you."
"Joy," Sesshoumaru replied with all the enthusiasm of a dog at the vet. His fair mood had instantly soured. "How is it that I end up cleaning up Inuyasha's mistakes?" He finally cracked his molten golden eyes open, silver lashes fluttering against his pale cheeks. He managed to glare at his father as his eyes adjusted to the dim florescent light filtering in from the hallway.
"You still refuse to take your rightful place as Lord of the West so that I may step down," Toga spoke, Sesshoumaru able to see him clearly now. His brow was drawn, and his lips thinned into a tight line. He knew that look...stern disappointment. It no longer bothered Sesshoumaru. He had his reasons for not stepping up...they simply did not want to listen. "Since I cannot, and Inuyasha has failed the task, you must be the one to step up and take on the responsibility...lest it fall to Kouga. And we all know how that would end..." Sesshoumaru could only let out a disgruntled grunt at that, his own lips pulling into a deep frown. Kouga. Prince of the East. Renown for his viciousness and womanizing ways. No...that wouldn't end well at all. "So...up and at 'em!" As if to punctuate his words, the damnable alarm clock went off again. With a snarl, Sesshoumaru grasped the clock, intending to turn it off...but it crushed into hundreds of pieces in his hand instead...at least it was finally silent.
"Hrrrmm...," Sesshoumaru's bare chest rumbled with his disgruntled hum as Toga's chuckling reached his ears. He opened his hand and let the pieces slide to the floor with a clatter, batteries and all. "I suppose I shall have to buy a new one on my way home from school."
"Or you may not wake tomorrow," Toga's teasing tone had Sesshoumaru gazing back at the older male, amusement dancing in his bright golden eyes. "Get up and get dressed, Sesshoumaru. You have a full day ahead of you. Breakfast will be waiting." Just as abruptly as he entered, Toga left Sesshoumaru's territory with a click of the door. The younger Daiyoukai waited for the older Daiyoukai's footfalls to retreat down the hall before he collapsed back in bed, his silvery hair falling all around him in a silken mess.
For the first time in a very long time, Sesshoumaru did not feel like getting up. If it had been any other day, his father would have allowed it and covered for him. It was not often Sesshoumaru felt this tired...but it wasn't simply from exertion or the frustrating repetition of day to day life that blurred days together. Although that certainly didn't help. No...Sesshoumaru was weary in his very soul. It felt like something very powerful had bound him in youki-sealing chains and was steadily dragging him into the deepest, darkest depths of the ocean. No hope, no air, no light, just pressure all around and a depersonalization that left him largely apathetic. This wasn't the first time...and he knew it wouldn't be the last, either.
"In the least...today will be more eventful than yesterday," Sesshoumaru spoke his thought aloud with a mirthless chuckle. It took some effort, but he managed to drag himself out of bed to begin his morning routine he'd been practicing for nearly a millennia now. Wash his face, brush his teeth, brush his hair out, and put on the clothes he'd set out the night before. His garb had vastly changed over time, and had modernized so that he would fit in with the humans. Awaseru Academy, his college as elected by the demon Lords and top miko, monk, and taijiya, had its own uniform code. Demon males had to dress in black slacks, a crimson or black undershirt, and a black blazer with its red, white, and black insignia on the upper left side. He had set aside just that, with a crimson undershirt and a silver watch Sesshoumaru always wore on his left wrist.
After dressing, the young Daiyoukai grabbed his blue and black canvas backpack and made his way through the winding hallways of their mansion home to the large dining room. Toga was already seated at the head of the table, with Inukimi at his left side. Inuyasha had a seat in the middle of the twenty-seating table. He was leaning back in his chair so that only two legs balanced him on the hardwood floors, with his arms folded behind his head.
"Took ya long enough," the halfbreed snorted as Sesshoumaru passed him to sit between Inuyasha and their parents. Neither at his father's right side nor at Inuyasha's side, a subtle stand that had his mother rubbing her temples. He slid his backpack beside his chair neatly as he sat on it, pointedly ignoring his half-brother.
"This one apologizes for my tardiness," Sesshoumaru spoke, smoothing his pants and sitting perfectly upright in his chair. As was expected of him.
"You're excused," Toga waved off before any more could be said. "It's been a while since you've slept in, and I'm sure you needed the rest. Itadakimasu." He took a bite from his prefixed plate of various bloody meats. As per custom, once the Alpha had eaten the first bite, the others could then eat from their own plates.
"Finally!" Inuyasha grumbled. "Itadakimasu!" He started in on his lightly cooked meat as Sesshoumaru really took in the spread before him. There were three platters with lightly warmed raw meats, and one platter with lightly cooked meats for Inuyasha. The raw meats were venison, pork, and beef. Nothing truly wild or gamey...probably bought from livestock owners. His fangs tingled, itching to tear into the flesh of a living deer. It wasn't often he got to hunt anymore...and even less often in his true form. It had been a century since his last transformation...
"Are you going to sit there and fantasize about the meat, or are you actually going to eat it?" Inukimi shot off, Sesshoumaru letting out a sigh as he met his mother's sunset golden orbs. Inuyasha snickered and Toga shot her a look.
"I am not very hungry." It wasn't a lie...he didn't feel like eating. Especially not this meat. And he didn't miss the way Toga refocused his attention on him.
"Overtired and not hungry? Are you out doing things late at night we should know about, Sesshoumaru?" Inukimi pressed in that irritating way of hers that would usually rile him up. It certainly choked Inuyasha up. The comment made him inhale his food by accident, no doubt. But Sesshoumaru...felt nothing more than exhaustion.
"You can check the security system if you wish," he replied, completely unfazed. "But you will find that I did not leave my rooms last night...and no one snuck in." He added onto his statement to nip that possible argument in the bud. Her lips pursed, and he knew he'd made the right decision. Kami...he hadn't lain with a female in....well, centuries, at least. Females did not interest him. Neither did power, as it had in the Feudal Era. Very little did these days...
"Are you feeling well?" Toga asked, brow furrowed. Obviously trying to puzzle him out.
"I am tired, father...that is all," Sesshoumaru shrugged off, not missing the way his parents shared a look as he turned back to his plate. "Itadakimasu." He used chopsticks to pull some venison onto his plate and began to eat...for the sake of normalcy and halting more troublesome questions. It was fairly quiet for the remainder of the meal.
"Before you go...," Toga spoke up as Sesshoumaru pushed his plate away. Dread started to creep in...what now? "You will need to go to the Higurashi Shrine to pick the girl up."
"Pick her up?" Sesshoumaru repeated with a raised brow and skepticism in his voice.
"Yes, pick her up," Toga reiterated with a stern tone. "Her name is Higurashi Kagome, and you will be picking her up from her shrine each morning and escorting her to the Academy and from it each afternoon. The Shikon no Tama she carries places a very large target on her back...some of our own may not be able to resist its call. Worse yet, humans may be influenced by it."
"You make it sound as though humans would be a larger threat to her," Sesshoumaru spoke, brow furrowing lightly. How could that be? Demons were more powerful by far, and more influenced by it than any human.
"They are," Toga chuckled, a strange darkness to his tone. "She has been trained to use her powers to fight demons...but ordinary humans are unaffected by it. At the very least, against a demon, she can cast a powerful barrier that cannot be penetrated by youki. But against a human...her reiki attacks will do nothing. Her barriers won't keep them out. Little Kagome fights well from afar, but she lacks the proper strength to fend off a strong enough human. And the little dear is pure. She would never harm someone if she didn't have to, human or demon. And this is another reason why she needs you as her protector. You can see the threats she will be blind to."
"Hn...," Sesshoumaru hummed, absorbing this bit of information. It was an angle he hadn't yet considered...but, ever the war general he was, Toga was on his toes and had already considered all of the different angles, it seemed. And something else Sesshoumaru realized...was that his father had already met the girl. Hmph. This felt like some sort of set up now... Troublesome... "Dually noted. I will take care with this one."
"Do," Toga inclined his head. "And Sesshoumaru?" The younger Daiyoukai hummed in acknowledgement. "Buy the girl a welcoming gift. This is her first day of school, ever. She hasn't been allowed off the shrine grounds with only a handful of exceptions where she met with the human council or the Lords. She deserves a little something..."
"It sounds like a courting gift, mate," Inukimi sneered. "Are you thinking of courting another human in secret? Through our son, no less."
"No, Kimi," Toga sighed, but Sesshoumaru caught the hint of displeasure that flashed across his face before he turned to his mate. "We've spoken of this many a times. If I wish to take on another mate or concubine, we will speak. It will not be a hidden affair." Sesshoumaru caught Inuyasha's anxious shifting...and actually felt a miniscule hint of pity for the hanyou. He had been caught up in many arguments over the years, thanks to their father's affair with a human princess in secret. Inuyasha'd had no choice in the matter, who his parents were and what they'd done...but he always wound up on the wrong side of Inukimi's arguments. And for that, Sesshoumaru pitied him. Inukimi could be ruthless...
"Headin' to college," Inuyasha bid as he grabbed his own backpack and hightailed it out of the room before any backlash could be had. Sesshoumaru didn't blame him...not with the way Inukimi seemed to be wanting to poke at someone this morning...
"I will get her a gift. Excuse me," Sesshoumaru excused himself from the table as Toga and Inukimi got into yet another argument. Of course...Sesshoumaru also had to wonder if she didn't start these arguments just to end them in bed. Or on the table, in this case. She was quite the manipulative bitch... Clicking a button on his watch, his hair turned to ebony, his demonic features were hidden, and his eyes darkened to a honeyed chestnut hue. His human guise. With that and his bag, he set off into town in search of a gift on his way to the miko's shrine.
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"Hmm...," Sesshoumaru's chest rumbled as he growled softly. Nothing seemed appropriate, and he was quickly nearing the shrine. And...he didn't know anything about this priestess, what she might like, or even what she may be allergic to. Humans were so fragile... Taking another glance around, he spotted a small flower shop around the bend. Females liked flowers, didn't they? Taking another glance around, then down at his watch, he decided. It would have to do- class would be starting fairly soon. He strode across the road and into the shop like a male on a mission, and took a look at all of the many flowers crammed into the small shop...his nose was nearly overpowered by the numerous floral scents within. It was better than smog, but still strong enough to give him a headache...
"May I help you?" A scrawny human female behind the counter asked, her voice soft and almost hesitant. Sesshoumaru blinked back at her, and then scanned the blossoms, finding a flower that produced a softer scent than the others. And sweet, like honey.
"I would like a small bouquet of these...in red and white," Sesshoumaru pointed at the sweet smelling flower. Red and white would do, they were symbolic of the red and white miko garb. The girl paused, eyes wide, before she snapped into motion, making a nicely wrapped bouquet of fresh white and red flowers.
"That will be two thousand, one hundred and sixty-nine yen, sir," she rang up his order, and he reached into a pocket in his pack to procure the money. ($20 USD) He exchanged the yen for the flowers. "You're going to make someone very happy today." Sesshoumaru glanced back up at the cashier, a warm smile on her face with a blush dusting her cheeks. She smelled oddly...content.
"Hmm," he nodded his thanks, mildly confused. Was there some sort of human custom revolving around flowers he was unaware of? Or...did she simply assume he was taking them to a significant other? The latter seemed more plausible... Either way, Sesshoumaru shook it off, deposited his change and receipt into his bag, and headed back on track with the flowers in hand.
However...the closer he got, the more on-edge he felt. The hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end, and his aching fangs nearly broke through his guise. The sheer amount of reiki he felt from this one area...it was impressive, to say the least. Was it truly necessary to display their power so? Surely the threats they encountered were not that bad...or were they? A bad feeling settled into the pit of his gut as he finally reached the bottom stair of the shrine. Well...things wouldn't be monotonous anymore. Of that one and only thing he was certain.
"I come in peace," he uttered before taking a step up the stair, a reassurance to the reiki as he forcibly stood down and let it wash over him. Electricity cracked in the air and over his skin, not truly painful...but warning. The pressure it put upon him, though, made his teeth grind together and he struggled to breathe for a brief moment. His youki was raging inside of him...eyes beginning to glow red. It had been so very long since a power had challenged him so...and he itched for a good fight... But he closed his crimson-lined, more gold than brown, eyes and took a few steadying breaths instead of allowing it to take over. Tamping his youki down firmly, and taking a deeper breath, he opened his honeyed brown orbs once more. "My name is Taisho Sesshoumaru, son of Taisho Toga. I am here to escort the Shikon Miko to school." All at once, the reiki seemed to stop its passive aggressive assault. The weight remained, but he could deal with that. It didn't taunt his youki...and vaguely reminded him of a time he trained with his father when he was young. Toga had strapped boulders to his back and expected him to climb mountains by foot. This felt similar. Especially when he resumed his assent in a slow, steady gait. He didn't bow or bend as he had at that age, he bore it all while standing ramrod straight.
But it still wore on him. And he felt some relief in nearing the landing, struggling against his desire to just jump the remaining distance, reiki be damned. He didn't...but he wanted to. As he was able to finally see above the stairwell, the traditional red arch looming overhead, a young female came into view. Stunning blazing blue eyes greeted him, ebony hair dancing in the breeze. She wore a crimson pleated miniskirt, white knee-high socks, a pair of casual loafers that smelled of new leather, and a white button-up shirt that peeked out from beneath a familiar matching red blazer with an insignia on the left side. Ah. So it was her. Higurashi Kagome. It seemed almost scandalous to see a miko in a miniskirt, but his attention wasn't fully focused on that detail and the lean, muscular legs he could see between the skirt and her socks. It was focused on the nocked bow in her hands, the arrow aimed at him.
"Is this how you treat all of your guests?" Sesshoumaru couldn't help but ask, a thin eyebrow lifting with his question.
"I didn't invite you in, therefore you are not my guest," she came back at him with a surprising amount of fire. Her hand pulled the string of the bow back so far he could hear it creaking in her hold, reiki beginning to ebb and swirl around her lithe form in fuchsia and cobalt tendrils. And what power... She revealed only a small amount, but it was obvious she was holding back quite a deal more. It was almost...exciting... The feeling was almost foreign to him now... But, the only other beings, besides himself, that had such power nowadays, were the Lords. It certainly had his youki stirring in its cage within, his fingers twitching and fangs tingling as it threatened to break through his guise.
"The reiki allowed this one passage in," Sesshoumaru held out his right hand, the reiki sparking in warning across his palm. It raised the little hairs all along his arm, but did no damage to him. The female's brow furrowed as her hold eased on the bow, reiki dispersing. "You are Higurashi Kagome, correct?"
"...If I am..?...," she answered slowly, cautiously. Good. She needed to be wary. Perhaps this wouldn't be as troublesome as he first thought...
"Taisho Toga, my father, asked me to escort you to and from college each day," he answered, drawing some amusement from the shocked expression that crossed her pretty face. "This Sesshoumaru is to protect you while you are away from your defensible home." Her mouth opened and shut a few times, until it finally clicked shut and her bow and arrow was lowered to point at the ground, the arrow slack within it.
"But I thought...Toga would...," Kagome started, her tone broken and sounding oddly disappointed. "You don't look much like him...how do I know you're telling the truth?" Her hands tensed on the bow again, raising it a bit from its resting place.
"My father is Lord, and thus too busy to accompany you and be near you all day," Sesshoumaru explained simply, reaching over to click the button on his watch. The familiar tingling sensation swept over him as the magic that concealed his true humanoid form fell away. Blue eyes widened and a gasp fell from the miko's lips as she openly ogled him. If it was this easy to shock her...then perhaps he would make a game of it. How many times could he shock the miko in one day? Only one way to find out...
"O-Oh...," she stammered, still staring at him as her fingers laxed on her weapon again. "Okay...I can see the resemblance now..." Sesshoumaru inclined his head...and then moved to stand before her. It wasn't very fast by his standards, but he'd made the distance in the blink of her azure eyes. "Aii!" Kagome stumbled backwards, right into the side of the shrine, weapons slipped from her hands to the ground. Her heart was racing, cheeks flushed, and eyes wide. A smirk began to pull at Sesshoumaru's lips even as the reiki cracked against his flesh, mildly shocking him. This would be a fun game, indeed.
"Did I frighten you?" He asked, mirth dancing in his golden orbs. She seemed to understand that he was teasing her, a scowl twisting her lips as her heart slowed...but the blush remained.
"You just surprised me, that's all!" The miko huffed, lightly slapping his unoccupied arm. "Jerk!" Hm. She didn't fear or kowtow to him as others did. Just the opposite, she treated him like someone of her own kind. There was anger in her stormy orbs...but no hatred. Curious...
"I reiterate. Is that any way to treat a guest? One that brought you a gift, no less," Sesshoumaru spoke, shifting the flowers in his arm to his hand, offering them to the now-stunned miko.
"Those...those are for me?" She asked softly, blinking up at him with wide, innocent orbs. Had she never received flowers from a male before?
"Mmm," Sesshoumaru hummed and nodded, offering the blossoms up for her to take. Kagome looked between him and the flowers once more before she slowly, gently, removed them from his hand.
"They're beautiful!" She gushed, a smile finally settling across her face, lighting her features and bringing a sparkle to her eyes. Such a small thing...brought her much joy. Sesshoumaru had never seen anyone quite as elated as she over something so small and trivial. How puzzling... Wild ebony locks framed her fair face as her eyes slid shut and she leaned forwards to bury her small, dull human nose in the blossoms. "Mmm...are these...?" Her eyes fluttered open as she really took a good look at the blooms. "Carnations." She appeared to be stunned...but now Sesshoumaru was confused. More so as she looked up at him with wide orbs, a heavy blush settling across her cheeks. "Does this, ah...mean something?"
"They are red and white flowers, symbolic of your garb," He pointed out simply.
"Hmm? Oh...," Kagome nodded, still appearing...unsure. "Okay...you didn't mean anything by picking carnations, then?"
"They are a welcoming gift, courtesy of the Taisho family," Sesshoumaru further explained, holding back his urge to sigh. "Do these...carnations hold some special meaning?"
"Er...," she hesitated. Had her cheeks just darkened a shade? "I know you didn't intend them as this, and I really appreciate the gift, the flowers truly are beautiful...but...it's sort of like...a confession..."
"A confession?" Sesshoumaru's head tilted to the side.
"Of...ahem...love," Kagome fidgeted, unable to look at him. Sesshoumaru was just a little irked. How could flowers mean such a thing? "Those colors in particular, that is."
"Is there some secret language of flowers among mortals?" He asked, causing a laugh to bubble up and out of her mouth even as she tried to restrict it with her hand. What was so amusing about this? He just...didn't understand it at all...
"Not exactly," Kagome giggled as she wiped at her watering eyes. "The language of flowers is translated all throughout time by all species. Some are silent professions of love, others mean good luck, and some can even mean goodbye. It all depends on the situation and flower presented."
"...Can the carnations mean other things, then?"
"Red carnations stand for deep love and admiration, while white stands for pure love and good luck," she recited like she had read it a hundred times already and memorized the text. "Overall, though, they mean love, fascination, and distinction." Sesshoumaru grunted. Not very much for him to choose from...
"Let them be a tiding of good luck for the distinguished Shikon Miko, then," he answered, rousing another earnest smile from the strange female.
"I can live with that," she grinned up at him cheerily. Truly, she was a simple, fascinating creature...
"Kagome!" An elderly female voice called, and the younger female turned towards the shrine house. "Where are ye, child?"
"Kaede-obaasan! Come see what the Taishos brought!" Kagome called back before turning back to Sesshoumaru and lowering her voice. Kaede...where had he heard that name before..? "Kaede-obaasan taught me all about herbs and flowers! She was also the sister of the last Shikon Miko." Ah. There was the connection.
"Toga? Is that ye?" Kaede called as he listened to her amble to the door before sliding it open with a click of the lock and a twist of the handle. She was a far cry from the child he remembered, her pale skin wrinkled and covered in scars...her back hunched as she made her way towards them with an unamused brown orb. Her right eye was covered by an old fashioned eye patch. "Hmph. Old dog."
"Little imp," Sesshoumaru inclined his head to her for formality's sake. It still unnerved him how quickly humans aged in the span of a short fifty years. Kaede cracked a smile as she looked up at him.
"Surprised to see how old I look?" Had he shown his unease? Sesshoumaru tightened his hold on his stoic facade.
"...I did not expect you to look so..."
"Old," she finished with a wise, knowing smile.
"Yes," he admitted softly. "I forget how quickly humans age..."
"You know each other?" Kagome popped back into the conversation, looking between the two as they both faced her.
"Aye," Kaede nodded. "He is Inuyasha's elder half-brother, heir to the Lordship of the West. Old mutt hasn't aged a day since I last saw him as a child."
"You haven't?" Kagome looked up at him in awe with those innocent eyes of hers.
"No...demons age very slowly." Didn't she know this already?
"Woah...it's one thing to read about it, but another entirely to experience it!" She was so excited...strange little female. "How old are you, if you don't mind my asking?" The question caught him off guard...just as much as his answer. Had so much time passed already?
"...Nearly a millennia," he spoke, watching her eyes nearly pop from their sockets.
"Old mutt," Kaede teased, her single eye warm.
"Indeed," Sesshoumaru agreed. Old, indeed...he was beginning to feel his age now. The years, as they crept upon him and added to the burden he bore. Kagome began spouting a hundred questions at once, to which Sesshoumaru's brow raised. Thankfully, the old brat intervened.
"Do ye not have college this morning?" Kaede broke in, Kagome stammering to a halt.
"Crap!" She cried, looking around. "Can you put these in a vase for me please, obaasan?" She handed the flowers off to the elderly woman.
"Yes...," Kaede took the flowers gently as Kagome ran back inside and exited a moment later with a pink backpack.
"Ready! Let's go, Sesshoumaru-sama!" Kagome smiled up at him, taking him by the crook of his arm and turning him around. He clicked his watch, reinstating his guise as he peered back at the elderly woman behind them.
"Good luck child, mutt," Kaede waved as Kagome all but dragged Sesshoumaru down the shrine steps. "Kagome is the polar opposite of me sister...good luck to ye, milord." She chuckled as she caught a loud half-hum, half-growl as Kagome moved him onwards. Kaede turned her old eye back to the flowers in hand. "Carnations? What a strange choice, milord.....is this, perhaps, a premonition of things to come? Hmm..." She turned her orb to the clouds overhead. "Kikyo...I hope ye can find peace and joy in this new life...after everything...ye deserve it most."
- End Chapter 1 -
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