[ Add is surely minding his own business somewhere, perhaps deeply invested in something he's working on, in the inn when 9S just pops up behind him like the most enthusiastic jumpscare. ]
There you are! [ As though it's hard to find one of a dozen-odd people in this tiny place. He'll get right onto business— ] What's your friend's name?
[He's examining some of the local flora around the grove today, crouched down by some flowers with a dynamo handy. He stands up when addressed, though, smiling reflexively.
luckily this isn't a hard question to figure out because there's only 1 person he arrived here with and that person happens to forget his own name a lot, so. definitely not the first time he's had this kind of conversation.]
You must mean the swordsman in white and red. It's Elsword. I'd appreciate it if you could remind him next time you meet.
[Karte had been sort of? subtle about its break-in to Elsword's house. Leon is absolutely not this. Leon simply trundles out the front door, stomps toward the inn, somehow manages to open that door don't ask questions, pads upstairs to the rooms...
Bonks his head into Add's door, then paws at it with his claws out until Add opens it. Scrrrrtch... scrrtch...]
glad this is what we've decided to boomerang tonight
[... well. even if there was another cat in the Grove, it'd be hard to mistake the sound of an actual lion scratching at the door. He's tempted to just ignore it, but he can almost feel the depth of those scratch marks on his door. Ugh...
After only a minute, the door creaks open—again, it's Leon, so he knows better than to try and tell him to shoo, he'd just push his way through anyway. He lets the miniature lion inside, clicking the lock shut behind him.]
I thought Elsword said he moved...? Ah, whatever. It's not like it matters...
[Leon is Leon, so none of this is all that surprising. Add sighs, sitting down his bed. He's finally gotten his room cleaned, at least, so it's not a mess anymore. The bed looks a little too made, like he's falling back into bad habits.]
What do you want this time? Go back to your master if you want treats, I don't have any on me.
Add is not going out there, thanks, he may have actually learned his lesson the first time something like this happened... but he is going to wave Dynamo over and start recording. the fuck that river fog up to huh]
( how long had chung stayed out there, waiting, thinking? he'd almost remained even longer before he saw dynamo returning to the house, spurring him to finally go back in. it's late still, everyone else must be asleep...
[there's no answer. faintly, he can hear a quiet drip, drip. when he gets the door open...
the doctor is laying face-down at his desk, half hanging from the edge of it. a red liquid drips onto the floor from his fingertips, slowly forming a small pool at his feet—
in the next moment Add snores loudly.
he knocked over one of Elsword's blood samples.... also, he hasn't slept right in weeks. he probably shouldn't have spent an extra hour analyzing the whole damn fog wall but yknow.]
I understand if you don't want to say more than you have to. It's an incredibly hard thing to live with, dying and coming back. Very few will ever understand it, too.
But I do. So if you ever want someone to listen, I'm just down the hall.
[ Ever the jellyfish to fully respect someone’s privacy, Mizuki doesn’t so much as knock when he goes to seek Add out with his new information. At the very least, it isn’t exactly a quiet process, so it may not be all that surprising to see a very squished Mizuki pushing himself through the crack at the bottom of the door.
Yes, hi, hello, he is actually super excited to be here this time and not nervous wreck. ]
[... he is staring the entire time, hand frozen over the letter he'd been trying to pen. Sure, he did a cursory analysis of Mizuki's physiology back when he brought him the venom sample for an antidote, but seeing something like this in action...
It's kind of disturbing to watch, but to someone like Add, that only makes it more fascinating.
Anyway.
He clears his throat, quickly covering up whatever he'd been working on... okay, business face on. Friendly smiles! Keep that mood positive! Don't think about how awkward it was when he left the other day.]
If it isn't my favourite Aegir assistant. What can I do for you, Mizuki?
[After getting the rundown on Alleged Feelings and the meeting carrying on and Add not coming back... Elsword decides he's not gonna give Add space, actually, he's gonna go seek him out. Call it impulse, or Elsword's paranoia that him leaving Add alone for too long is gonna result in him dying again — whatever it is, he's gonna go look for his friend.
It doesn't take long to find him. Elsword thinks he'll check their house first, and then he stumbles across a familiar sight of white hair, curled up and alone...
God. Add was right when he said that Elsword doesn't think, huh? Even from this far, he thinks Add looks utterly destroyed, and clearly that's his fault; he should've brought up that photo sooner, or not said anything at all, but lying is worse in the end.]
...Add?
[He wants to hold him so bad. That's not unusual for him, but it's far worse now. Maybe something awoke in him on his way out, when he found two more shards of the Trader's mirror. They always seem to crop up around big events for him.
Elsword quietly reminds himself that Add is upset with him and he shouldn't force the touch-averse guy to touch him, but then he thinks of the way they were clinging to each other, and all that is out the window. He sits on the bank and there's only two seconds of hesitation before his arms are around the doctor's shoulders.]
Add, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen. Let me make it up to you somehow.
[He hasn't moved an inch since Nene left: good leg pulled up, arms wrapped around his knee, face buried in his arms... he already cried himself out, barely moving now that there's nothing left to release. How long has been here, alone by the riverside? His white pants are going to be stained...
He doesn't move... but there's a flinch at Elsword's voice, the tiniest shift when he sits down next to him. His throat feels dry and raw.]
... I want to know you. Let's start over. [thin, fragile words, barely whispered on a breath... but they aren't for Elsword. the person he meant to hear them is already gone.
he's drawn into warm arms, only now realizing how cold he is out here by the river... he leans in to the warmth, face rubbing against Elsword's chest, feeling the thump of his blood against his ear. he wants to stay like this, wrapped up in strong arms and soft feathers...
ah... that's right. he left the meeting. that's why Elsword is here.]
It's not your fault. [he still sounds hoarse... but he's calm. maybe a little too calm, but he's run out of energy for everything else. all that's left are the simple facts.] I don't care about that anymore. You were right.
[the photo did make him upset. he should've listened.]
( so. felicity does generally try to not nudge into people's sleep habits- between her atrocious sleep as a teen and the lengths she went to to solve it and between the various states of inhuman, she figures... its not her business. until it becomes her business.
and add looks fucking dead on his feet. how much caffeine has the man been living off of? so after everyone's all well and taken care of, she gently boops a dynamo as a soft 'i got this' and... goes to the kitchen to brew some tea.
and if she sprinkles some extra something into add's cup, so be it.
when she finally slides the cup to add, it's about two hours after the whole nonsense of everything. )
Made you a drink.
( and she's got her own mug too! it's normal. we're normal. )
[He's been getting some sleep, so he's fine. He even slept, like... two, three hours? the night before the new moon, so clearly he would've been good to go out and explore the forest until dawn... but it's harder to stay focused when he's in his room and staring at a screen versus out in a dangerous location where the adrenaline can keep him conscious. That's the excuse he's going with, anyway.
Zahliya is still passed out in his bed, so he's hunched over his desk with some blood and tissue samples instead. Gargoyles are neat. There's a slight jump when Fel puts the cup down, having completely missed her walking in.
... did he ask for a drink? He smiles anyway, sliding the cup to a better spot on his table. Away from the samples with ye.]
Thank you, Felicity... how's the patient? Still unconscious?
[Dynamo ain't saying shit. He's ignored the past ten sleep reminders, he's on his own.]
[ Hello I have two things for you, feel free to tag them in a timely manner or at any time. Like even in a few weeks if you need to, let me know if you want to handwave anything at any point too:
Caoimhe will walk in with one repotted plant in her hand, it is the aloe one. This one she is mildly aware of but wants to talk to Add so he can study them and do his... Doctor things. ]
E-Excuse me Add...?
[ She went to find him somewhere in Elsword's house. ]
[He won't be difficult to find—even if she doesn't know where his room is, a Dynamo will come out to assist upon hearing his name. It beeps! cheerfully in greeting before flying off towards Add's "office".
He has some actual lab equipment in here now, don't mind the bed shoved way back in the corner to make room for an operating table. There's a new mint plant on the edge of his workbench next to a small potted anemone. He slides his holoscreens out of the way as she enters, turning his chair to face her.]
[ With the flower now in her chest or whatever! She will find Add again, with the intention to talk to him about it! This time she looks a bit more dejected and tired, she also seems to be patiently waiting to speak up if Add is busy doing something. But she does want to talk to him -
She fidgets a bit. ]
[some time after the talk with ydalir] [no response needed]
At some point, when Add next goes into the kitchen, he'll find... well. Three things, actually. A magic circle on a sheet of piece of paper, glowing warmly, and atop the paper is a mug of the most decadent hot chocolate... and lastly, a note.
post mizuki's crimes // blanket cw for yan bs mentions
[Very shortly after he and Mizuki are done washing the paint off of them at the bathhouse, and also cleaning out the literal fucking bitemark left from whatever Mizuki's whole Thing was about... Elsword returns home to seek out Add. He figures he's in his lab, so he knocks politely once before turning the knob to let himself in. Please don't be doing surgery rn thanks.]
Hey.
[A little sombre, a little "????" right now, no need to figure out what ???? means in this instance. Elsword clicks the door shut behind him and leans against it.]
So, uh... I dunno how to word this, but we should talk about Mizuki.
[Add sure is in his lab! Ignore how he is hastily closing out holoscreens the moment he hears a knock. By the time Elsword steps in he's removed all the evidence of his current project, a random blood sample placed in front of him instead. Totally smooth. He's a genius, a master of deception, a true mastermind...
until Elsword says its about Mizuki]
Wh— [did Mizuki tell him?? how did he find out???] Wh-what are you talking about? I don't know what you mean. I haven't even seen Mizuki today, so if he said anything weird that has nothing to do with me!
[There's a letter on Add's desk whenever he gets home, the outside completely unmarked. The handwriting within is chicken-scratchy, a Liberi's scrawl if you will.]
Doctor Add,
I hope this letter finds you well. I wanted to reach out to say I greatly appreciate you allowing me to borrow your equipment regularly. I would have said so in person if I could find you. With that being said, I recently constructed a lab to the far west of the Grove just south of the Manor — you can consider this a formal invitation to freely access the supplies and equipment there.
The door will be unlocked most of the time, but there's a key within the envelope should you or I ever decide it needs to be locked up to the general public, especially considering the inclinations of some of the more problematic residents.
I trust that I won't have to clean up after you. Let me know if you find anything lacking, and I'll inquire with Ydalir about procuring what we may be missing.
~Gnosis Edelweiss
[...for some reason he's attached his business card to this. Anyway, the key is within the envelope as promised. It's engraved with the Karlan Trade logo... at least it won't be easy to lose.]
[ Perhaps "a jellyfish broke into my house" shouldn't be a common occurrence, and yet, somehow, the Elswordians have to deal with this frequently. This means Add's lab, too, gets to deal with the squished boy clawing his way under the door and brushing himself off on the other side. ]
Um, excuse me, Doctor Add? … Are you busy, I'd like to talk if that's alright…
[It's fine, Dynamo keeps him informed about intrusions... at least Mizuki is the only person he's currently not trying to hide his latest project from.]
Good timing. The prototype should be ready for compatibility testing soon. I'll need a blood and tissue sample, if there are no issues we can move on to the next stage...
... Ah, but I'm getting ahead of myself. [closing out his array of holoscreens to actually look at Mizuki... he's not going to back out now, is he? this late into planning? He shouldn't dwell on his baseless paranoid thoughts, but...] Is there something wrong? Let's talk.
[Elsword and Add share a room so there's no note attached to his door like Elsword's done with other gifts, but rather, this note is left on Add's desk at the clinic.]
Hi Add!!
I love you! I made you a gift. I know it's not your thing but I made it anyway. :P
[There's a handmade knit bee next to the note. Y'know, because Add's a busy bee. Get it, do you get it, do you get—]
[ There's a brown box left at Add's door with the words "BIOHAZARD" written across the lid of it. There's a letter attached. It reads: ]
I wanted to get you something exciting! I know you really like this science-y stuff, so I got you some of my god's — the Caerula Arbor's — flesh. The very same Cicero had fed to me~! It does grow despite just being a piece, so please keep it contained when you're not studying it. I hope you like it!
If you don't, let me know, I can come eat it for you!!
[At some point that day, Elsword drops by the clinic to give Add a cake he baked because birthday. It does not say anything coherent, rather just BIRTH because he ran out of space, having overestimated a) how lettering cakes works and b) the size of his childish handwriting. It's a chocolate cake. Have fun.
Add will also receive a very pretty ring because somewhere Elsword heard "rings show devotion" and did not pick up on the connotations, which is obviously in Elsword's colours so that something something Add's been claimed gay shit or something, and a very long, slow kiss. Could even be sloppy if he wanted it to be.
[even if the clinic is technically open to the public, livio still hesitates to enter. sooner or later, he decides to knock before coming into the waiting area. notably, he isn't wearing the guns he was last night. and he sure as hell doesn't seem to have any energy left in his haggard body. if possible, he looks even meeker than ever, so it's clear right away that he isn't here for any sort of fight, verbal, physical, or otherwise.]
[There's no one else in the lobby, but there is a lone syringe-shaped drone manning(?) the check-in desk. It emits a string of friendly(??) beeps.
... and then Add steps out of the other room, already pulling down some fresh holoscreens to work with. He sighs, barely even looking at the arrival.]
Livio, is it? It's about time. Come on, this way. [if he doesn't follow the drones will start gently prodding him towards the examination room it's time for your mandatory post-combat checkup sir]
action.
There you are! [ As though it's hard to find one of a dozen-odd people in this tiny place. He'll get right onto business— ] What's your friend's name?
[ He's been ever so curious. ]
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luckily this isn't a hard question to figure out because there's only 1 person he arrived here with and that person happens to forget his own name a lot, so. definitely not the first time he's had this kind of conversation.]
You must mean the swordsman in white and red. It's Elsword. I'd appreciate it if you could remind him next time you meet.
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letter.
return of the mutual pining animals
Bonks his head into Add's door, then paws at it with his claws out until Add opens it. Scrrrrtch... scrrtch...]
glad this is what we've decided to boomerang tonight
After only a minute, the door creaks open—again, it's Leon, so he knows better than to try and tell him to shoo, he'd just push his way through anyway. He lets the miniature lion inside, clicking the lock shut behind him.]
I thought Elsword said he moved...? Ah, whatever. It's not like it matters...
[Leon is Leon, so none of this is all that surprising. Add sighs, sitting down his bed. He's finally gotten his room cleaned, at least, so it's not a mess anymore. The bed looks a little too made, like he's falling back into bad habits.]
What do you want this time? Go back to your master if you want treats, I don't have any on me.
i can't be serious when i have a headcold okay
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add vc: i have to stay strong for leon.....
this tag gave me transient, inexplicable sadness-
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3AM.
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Add is not going out there, thanks, he may have actually learned his lesson the first time something like this happened... but he is going to wave Dynamo over and start recording. the fuck that river fog up to huh]
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congrats on being the first to get a name out of them
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1/2
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after their mutual ???? encounters-
after a moment, he knocks on add's door. )
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the doctor is laying face-down at his desk, half hanging from the edge of it. a red liquid drips onto the floor from his fingertips, slowly forming a small pool at his feet—
in the next moment Add snores loudly.
he knocked over one of Elsword's blood samples.... also, he hasn't slept right in weeks. he probably shouldn't have spent an extra hour analyzing the whole damn fog wall but yknow.]
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[a note left on his desk after the meeting]
But I do. So if you ever want someone to listen, I'm just down the hall.
( it's marked with only a pink flower. )
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Yes, hi, hello, he is actually super excited to be here this time and not nervous wreck. ]
Doctor Add!
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It's kind of disturbing to watch, but to someone like Add, that only makes it more fascinating.
Anyway.
He clears his throat, quickly covering up whatever he'd been working on... okay, business face on. Friendly smiles! Keep that mood positive! Don't think about how awkward it was when he left the other day.]
If it isn't my favourite Aegir assistant. What can I do for you, Mizuki?
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1/2
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After the fammeet...
It doesn't take long to find him. Elsword thinks he'll check their house first, and then he stumbles across a familiar sight of white hair, curled up and alone...
God. Add was right when he said that Elsword doesn't think, huh? Even from this far, he thinks Add looks utterly destroyed, and clearly that's his fault; he should've brought up that photo sooner, or not said anything at all, but lying is worse in the end.]
...Add?
[He wants to hold him so bad. That's not unusual for him, but it's far worse now. Maybe something awoke in him on his way out, when he found two more shards of the Trader's mirror. They always seem to crop up around big events for him.
Elsword quietly reminds himself that Add is upset with him and he shouldn't force the touch-averse guy to touch him, but then he thinks of the way they were clinging to each other, and all that is out the window. He sits on the bank and there's only two seconds of hesitation before his arms are around the doctor's shoulders.]
Add, I'm really sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen. Let me make it up to you somehow.
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He doesn't move... but there's a flinch at Elsword's voice, the tiniest shift when he sits down next to him. His throat feels dry and raw.]
... I want to know you. Let's start over. [thin, fragile words, barely whispered on a breath... but they aren't for Elsword. the person he meant to hear them is already gone.
he's drawn into warm arms, only now realizing how cold he is out here by the river... he leans in to the warmth, face rubbing against Elsword's chest, feeling the thump of his blood against his ear. he wants to stay like this, wrapped up in strong arms and soft feathers...
ah... that's right. he left the meeting. that's why Elsword is here.]
It's not your fault. [he still sounds hoarse... but he's calm. maybe a little too calm, but he's run out of energy for everything else. all that's left are the simple facts.] I don't care about that anymore. You were right.
[the photo did make him upset. he should've listened.]
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IMMEDIATELY post new moon cw nonconsensual sleep drugging the whole way down
and add looks fucking dead on his feet. how much caffeine has the man been living off of? so after everyone's all well and taken care of, she gently boops a dynamo as a soft 'i got this' and... goes to the kitchen to brew some tea.
and if she sprinkles some extra something into add's cup, so be it.
when she finally slides the cup to add, it's about two hours after the whole nonsense of everything. )
Made you a drink.
( and she's got her own mug too! it's normal. we're normal. )
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Zahliya is still passed out in his bed, so he's hunched over his desk with some blood and tissue samples instead. Gargoyles are neat. There's a slight jump when Fel puts the cup down, having completely missed her walking in.
... did he ask for a drink? He smiles anyway, sliding the cup to a better spot on his table. Away from the samples with ye.]
Thank you, Felicity... how's the patient? Still unconscious?
[Dynamo ain't saying shit. He's ignored the past ten sleep reminders, he's on his own.]
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TIME SKIP TIME SKIP this is the time skip
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Sometime post moon event.
Caoimhe will walk in with one repotted plant in her hand, it is the aloe one. This one she is mildly aware of but wants to talk to Add so he can study them and do his... Doctor things. ]
E-Excuse me Add...?
[ She went to find him somewhere in Elsword's house. ]
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He has some actual lab equipment in here now, don't mind the bed shoved way back in the corner to make room for an operating table. There's a new mint plant on the edge of his workbench next to a small potted anemone. He slides his holoscreens out of the way as she enters, turning his chair to face her.]
What can I help you with, Caoimhe?
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science clas...
Post her shrine making.
She fidgets a bit. ]
[some time after the talk with ydalir] [no response needed]
post mizuki's crimes // blanket cw for yan bs mentions
Hey.
[A little sombre, a little "????" right now, no need to figure out what ???? means in this instance. Elsword clicks the door shut behind him and leans against it.]
So, uh... I dunno how to word this, but we should talk about Mizuki.
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until Elsword says its about Mizuki]
Wh— [did Mizuki tell him?? how did he find out???] Wh-what are you talking about? I don't know what you mean. I haven't even seen Mizuki today, so if he said anything weird that has nothing to do with me!
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end of month / no response needed unless ya wanna
Doctor Add,
I hope this letter finds you well. I wanted to reach out to say I greatly appreciate you allowing me to borrow your equipment regularly. I would have said so in person if I could find you. With that being said, I recently constructed a lab to the far west of the Grove just south of the Manor — you can consider this a formal invitation to freely access the supplies and equipment there.
The door will be unlocked most of the time, but there's a key within the envelope should you or I ever decide it needs to be locked up to the general public, especially considering the inclinations of some of the more problematic residents.
I trust that I won't have to clean up after you. Let me know if you find anything lacking, and I'll inquire with Ydalir about procuring what we may be missing.
~Gnosis Edelweiss
[...for some reason he's attached his business card to this. Anyway, the key is within the envelope as promised. It's engraved with the Karlan Trade logo... at least it won't be easy to lose.]
Beginning of the month
Um, excuse me, Doctor Add? … Are you busy, I'd like to talk if that's alright…
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Good timing. The prototype should be ready for compatibility testing soon. I'll need a blood and tissue sample, if there are no issues we can move on to the next stage...
... Ah, but I'm getting ahead of myself. [closing out his array of holoscreens to actually look at Mizuki... he's not going to back out now, is he? this late into planning? He shouldn't dwell on his baseless paranoid thoughts, but...] Is there something wrong? Let's talk.
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Christmas Day
Hi Add!!
I love you! I made you a gift. I know it's not your thing but I made it anyway. :P
[There's a handmade knit bee next to the note. Y'know, because Add's a busy bee. Get it, do you get it, do you get—]
Mizuki also leaves Krimmus gifts
I wanted to get you something exciting! I know you really like this science-y stuff, so I got you some of my god's — the Caerula Arbor's — flesh. The very same Cicero had fed to me~! It does grow despite just being a piece, so please keep it contained when you're not studying it. I hope you like it!
If you don't, let me know, I can come eat it for you!!
~ Mizuki
[ Inside the box is something that looks akin to a branch, but old, discolored and… if Add touches it, it's definitely flesh-y. ]
Birthday boy hours // no response needed unless u want to
Add will also receive a very pretty ring because somewhere Elsword heard "rings show devotion" and did not pick up on the connotations, which is obviously in Elsword's colours so that something something Add's been claimed gay shit or something, and a very long, slow kiss. Could even be sloppy if he wanted it to be.
Happy birthday he loves you idiot 💜❤️]
day after Evil Bonfire™, maybe like around noon
Hello...? Uh... Mr. Add?
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... and then Add steps out of the other room, already pulling down some fresh holoscreens to work with. He sighs, barely even looking at the arrival.]
Livio, is it? It's about time. Come on, this way. [if he doesn't follow the drones will start gently prodding him towards the examination room it's time for your mandatory post-combat checkup sir]
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