Disclaimer: of course I don't own...
Chapter 10 : Distance
The floo in Snape's house allowed her direct access to the Weasleys. The house was bustling with activity as smells of cooking bacon and eggs greeted her. The family was having breakfast in the kitchen. She was surprised to hear the twins' voices, but then she figured they must have stayed the night to spend time with Ron and Ginny before they returned to Hogwarts. She knew that the shop was slow after Christmas and Fred mentioned that they may try to spend more time at the Burrow, leaving the store in the hands of the employee they hired. She was glad that Fred was here. Going unnoticed, she made her way to the kitchen quietly, shifting awkwardly at the door- her overnight bag heavy on her shoulder.
The first person to notice her was Mrs. Weasley, who upon viewing her pale face, approached her. The table fell silent as the other Weasleys and Harry turned to watch in surprise at Sarah's unexpected arrival.
"Sarah, dear" Molly touched her shoulder. "Everything, alright?"
"Can I stay here tonight?" Sarah asked, her voice uncertain and shaky. At the tone of her voice, Fred quickly rose from the table and Harry followed suit, looking very concerned.
"Does Severus know you are here?" She asked as she steadied her.
"I told Wiggles. I don't think he cares, Mrs. Weasley" Sarah replied, shrugging in hopes of appearing indifferent, but at the same time having to fight her tears. Molly touched her face in a knowing, motherly fashion that made Sarah miss her mum even more.
"I'm sure that is not the case. As long as he knows where you are, I know Severus well enough to know that he will come and get you if he wants you. In the meantime, you know you are always welcome in our home" She responded. "You can share with Ginny as usual. You look pale." her voice was gentle. "Breakfast is on the table. Fred- get Sarah some food, please"
Molly pulled her into a hug.
"Thank you, Mrs. Wealsey" Sarah said, gratefully.
"You're certainly welcome" Molly released her and smoothed down her hair tenderly. "If you need to talk, Sarah I'm here" she said quietly.
Sarah chose a seat next to Ginny and Fred made her a plate, putting it down in front of her, a quick kiss to her cheek as he did. The table was quiet and Sarah picked at her breakfast.
"Aren't you late for work?" Sarah asked, forcing herself to look at her plate. Fred, who sat nearby, was in conference with George, and while Sarah couldn't make out exactly what they were saying she had a feeling it had something to do with her.
"We were just talking about that" George said. "I'm going to floo over and check on the store and come right back and Freddie is staying here"
"I'm fine, you don't have to change your plans for me" Sarah's argument was feeble because everyone at the table could tell something was definitely wrong.
"Don't tell all until I come back" George instructed. "I don't want to miss it" Sarah nodded and George left them.
Sarah stared at her plate. Now that she was here, she wasn't sure that she wanted to be here and tell them all that happened. It would make it real. And she knew that she would have to tread carefully lest her friends question Snape's loyalties even further. She believed in Snape's goodness, even when the evidence seemed to contradict her beliefs.
Fred sensed her mood. Turning to Ron, he asked, "Should we firecall Hermione and have her come over?"
"Yeah...I guess...I suppose..." Ron fumbled, "if someone else asks her"
Ginny rolled her eyes. "I'll go do it". She stood up and Harry stood up after her. "I'll come with you, GIn"
Sarah reached to touch Ginny's arm. "Are you ok with me staying with you?"
Ginny smiled at her. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?" She turned to her brother. "You just better not try to sneak in and snog with Sarah"
Ron groaned loudly and Sarah kicked him under the table. "Don't you start. I have seen you and Lavender quite a bit and in not all that private places"
Ron ducked his head, somewhat sheepishly. "Well, yeah, but it's different."
Fred poked at his brother's side and inclined his head towards the door. Ron, unable to ignore took the rather blatant hint, rose. "I'll just be in our room"
"Great. We are coming up there soon" Fred watched his brother leave. With an eye to his mum, who was cleaning up, he sat down next to Sarah. Molly smiled to herself.
"Take your time, Sarah. Leave the dishes when you are done. I'm off to do some wash" Molly said, casually. She loved the tender side that Sarah always brought out in her prankster son. On many occasions in the past years, she wondered if he had a conscious and how to keep him in tow. There was a roughness to Fred, that she didn't usually see in George, but those edges seemed to fade with Sarah. And she loved Sarah like another daughter- she just hoped and prayed that she didn't break her son's heart.
After Molly left, Fred reached to take her hand. He gripped it lightly, his fingers comfortably fitting through hers. "I know you want to tell the others what is going on too, but would it help to get it out now or tell us all at once?"
Sarah turned her body towards him as they sat on the long wooden bench that comprised the seating to the Weasley's table. She folded her leg, moving their hands to rest on her knee between them. Finally, she looked up at him. "I can't tell them everything...Harry and Ron would go bonkers and use it to perhaps unjustly accuse Snape" She met his eyes. He looked somewhat blurry as tears began to cloud her eyes. She blinked and cleared her throat. "I can trust you to remain calm and sensible, right?"
"Of course, you know you can" Fred replied firmly. "I take the confrontation with Snape didn't go well"
"That would be an understatement" Sarah laughed, ironically as she swiped her tears. "Snape hasn't left his room in three days"
"For real?" Fred asked, astounded. "He's in hiding? Bloody hell, what did you do?"
"He wouldn't talk to me about it, Fred. He insisted on practicing occlumency" Sarah looked up at him, showing him her distress. Fred squeezed her hand in response. "He kept pushing me. I got angry. I used the shield spell..."
"The same thing Harry did? Sarah! No wonder Snape is pissed" Fred interrupted. "What did you see?"
"You see that's what I can't tell the others..." Sarah leaned forward to rest the top of her head against Fred's chest. "I saw Snape torture a girl not much older than me- a muggle. It was during the first war and Snape was probably just out of school, yet he did it...it was awful" She lifted her head to look Fred in the eyes.
"Are you convinced that Snape has changed?" Fred asked, tracing his finger against her jaw and trying to keep his voice neutral. "Torturing someone can't just be glossed over, Sarah- no matter how much you love someone"
"I know that..." Sarah started, "And I know the others will use that as a reason not to trust Snape. I know that he once truly believed in Voldemort's cause, but things...things I can't exactly say, changed him."
"And do you think these things that changed him once are still there?" Fred asked.
"They are- I'm sure of it. And Headmaster Dumbledore believes in him and I trust Dumbledore. And my mother chose him for my guardian. If she thought that he was still a Death Eater, she would have never... she would have never asked Snape. I do have other family- on my Dad's side. The Tonks family...she could have asked them, but she asked Snape. She trusted that he had changed. And I do too..."
"OK" Fred let out a breath as he gently tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "So, this is more about you and what you did"
"I think Snape sees it as a betrayal. What if that pushes him closer to Voldemort? I feel like I'm losing my family- one by one. I can't Fred. I can't lose Snape. Not like this..." Sarah began to cry openly and Fred pulled her to him, squeezing her tightly.
"You won't. We will figure it out" Fred tried to reassure her.
"How?" Sarah responded, brokenly. "I've tried. I've cooked him dinner. I've even brewed potions for him. I came here without asking him. If he didn't follow me and drag me back home, it means that he has given up on me. He's done"
"Parents just don't give up on their kids, Sarah" Fred reminded her. "We will come up with something. Between all of us, we should be able to figure out what to do. Mione is good at things like this..." He kissed her tears before moving to her lips. But even as Sarah took comfort from Fred, they both knew that it didn't look good.
Sarah's friends didn't have any ideas either. They all knew that Snape had a difficult and stubborn side to him- one not to be trifled with. And if Sarah's efforts didn't work, they weren't sure what she could try next, besides going to him and demanding a conversation. The next morning, Sarah returned to Snape Manor to find Snape again in seclusion, much to her frustration and worry. When the day to return to Hogwarts arrived, Wiggles instructed Sarah to use the portkey to get to platform 9 3/4 and ride the train into Hogwarts, to Sarah's dismay that Snape continued to leave things unsettled. Since Snape took guardianship of her, he rarely delayed in doling out her punishments and the only time he did so was when mitigating circumstances interfered. This was not Snape and that worried her.
Sarah arrived at the train station and quickly sought out Harry- trying to juggle her trunk and bags and failing miserably. She should have shrunk them down before using the porkey, but she was afraid to anger Snape by using underage magic outside of school. Normally, he would have encouraged her with small spells such as these, but those were different times. Her bag had bonked her on her head as she entered the train platform- she was just thankful it wasn't her trunk.
"Here let me help you get those aboard- mine are already there" Harry reached for them and Sarah was thankful for his help. They boarded the train and found the compartment. "Where is Snape?" he asked her.
"Who knows?" Sarah replied as she flung herself on the seat, rubbing her head.
Harry lifted her bags and attached them to the overhead. "Well, he can't avoid you forever. You are his student. Why don't you seek him out as his student and go from there? I'm sure you could come up with a reason in the next few days to see him during his set office hours."
"That's an idea" Sarah responded. "It's just- well, to be honest, I'm kind of scared to" she admitted.
Harry grimaced. "Can't say I blame you in the least"
Snape didn't appear that night for dinner. The following day was Defense class and Sarah's stomach was in a knot as she waited outside the room.
"What's wrong with you, Black?" Draco paused while the others entered the classroom. He couldn't help but be curious about the cause behind her distraught expression and nervous demeanor. While things had been extremely tense between the two of them for some time now, the look on Sarah's face compelled him to break his silence.
"Long story" Sarah replied, shuffling her feet.
"Are you coming inside?" he asked, holding the door and trying to get a handle on the situation.
"Is Snape in there yet?" Sarah met his eyes. She tried to erase the panic from her voice.
Draco peeked his head in the classroom and nodded. "Yeah..."
"Then I'm staying here for a bit" Sarah replied. "I can't go in there right now"
Draco's eyes narrowed. "Did you and Uncle Sev have a fight or something?"
"Be careful, Draco...you are bordering on being nice here" Sarah's tone turned light, trying to distract him.
"I wouldn't want to be accused of that, Sarah" he retorted sarcastically. "I better go inside now. Just don't be late. You know what happened the last time"
"Yeah, that was pretty unpleasant. I'll be on time" Sarah assured him as she remembered that time in fourth year when Snape outed her crush on Draco in front of her entire class. She wasn't sure what Snape would have to embarrass her with, and at this point, she wasn't even sure he would care enough to do so. With one last probing look, Draco went inside and Sarah waited until Harry came.
"You haven't gone in yet?" Harry asked, incredulously. "I told you to go ahead and I would be right there. Did the others go in?"
"Yep, but I wanted to wait for you" Sarah replied. "Um, I might need you to drag me in. My Gryffindorness is hopelessly failing me right now..."
Harry smirked and grabbed her wrist. "Let's go, Sarah" He practically dragged her into the classroom and pushed her into her seat.
"We will begin" Snape started "with an assessment. I do hope that you did your reading over break because if you did not, I will surely know about it"
With a flick of his wand, the papers began to pass themselves out. "When you are done, you may leave. And yes, Miss Granger" he looked towards Hermione who had flung her hand in the air, "this does count as part of your grade, but it will also enable me to know what further work we have to do, at least as far as defense theory goes...I am fairly confident that there is much to be done"
He waited until everyone had their parchment. "You may begin"
Sarah tried to remain calm at this surprise test. She hated surprises and she did not benefit from Snape's extra coaching this past week. She just hoped she would remember all her reading. She was determined to do as well as possible to show Snape that indeed she was competent. At least, he could be proud in that, right?
She was so engrossed that she neglected to realized that all the other students had finished leaving her alone with Snape, until Snape came up behind her causing her to practically jump out of her seat.
Snape stilled. He had hoped that he could sneak behind her to check on what number she was working on without her noticing. Now he was forced to talk to her. And the look that she was giving him was a true mixture of fear, nervousness, uncertainty and...even hope.
"I was just checking on your progress" Snape said smoothly and professionally. "The others finished way earlier than anticipated so you still have about 15 more minutes. Take your time"
Sarah nodded, finishing her work. She walked to the front of the room and handed him the parchment. Gathering nerve, she asked,"Sir...?"
"That is all" Snape replied, somewhat curtly- effectively dismissing her. Sarah quickly left before he could see her tears.
"Come in, Severus" Dumbledore instructed. "Have a seat"
Severus swept in, disgruntled. He had been summoned to the Headmaster's Office and somehow he felt like a schoolboy about to be disciplined. But how would Albus know about what happened with Sarah? He certainly did not tell him, did Sarah? Surely not...
Albus wasted no time. "I got a visit from Molly Weasley today- she needed to bring Mr. Weasley some books he left behind mistakenly. Is there something you would like to tell me?"
"Not particularly" Severus answered smoothly. "If that is it, Headmaster, I best be going. I have much work to be done" he stood.
"Sit back down, Severus" Dumbledore told him, piercing him with his gaze and Snape complied, begrudgingly. "She said that Sarah came spend a day with them over break- not abnormal, but she said it was clear that something was wrong. Sarah was quite upset. When Molly questioned her, she implied that you didn't care about her. Why would she say such a thing?"
"Molly Weasley has no right to meddle in the affairs of my household" Severus retorted. "Nor do you" Snape rose again and Dumbledore stood as well.
"Sit down, Severus" his voice, firm and unyielding. "I will use a sticking charm if I need to"
"Fine" Severus sat and crossed his arms. "But I still don't have to talk to you"
Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. "You do realize that you are acting more like a boy of eleven than a man of thirty-seven?"
Severus grunted, but did not argue further and Dumbledore pressed ahead. "Did something happen with you and Sarah? Molly also mentioned that Sarah took the portkey to the train station and failed to shrink her luggage"
"Well, she certainly knows how to shrink her own luggage, if she decided against that, then it is not my responsibility if my niece is an imbecile"
"Excuse me?" Dumbledore was shocked by Severus's attitude towards his niece. "What has happened? And do not lie to me, Severus. I want the truth and I want it now"
"Fine" Severus responded. "Do you want to know what happened? Well, let me tell you Headmaster and afterwards, you can see if your precious princess is as saintly as everybody makes her out to be"
"Well, I seriously doubt that anyone would characterize Sarah as saintly, but she is a sweet, intelligent, agreeable child..and growing into a lovely woman...a thought that not too long ago you would have agreed with. Go on"
Severus told recounted the last few days, omitting few details. Albus listened attentively before asking, "And what did you do to her? Clearly, she wronged you by entering your mind deliberately and without consent...so what was her consequence?"
"She doesn't need one, Headmaster" Severus stated. "We're done. She and I...it's over"
Albus shook his head. "What are you talking about? Of course, you're not done with her. She's your niece- your adopted daughter. You love that child more than anyone now and perhaps even more than you loved Lily or Grace."
Severus stood, his fist balled. "I am about to kill you upon your orders. The rift happened naturally...let her deal with it now, that way it won't be so much of a shock to her. I'm avoiding her for her benefit. I can't make amends with her and then go through this again. And she did wrong me. If that child cared for me-"
"Oh Severus" Albus's tone turned gentle. "you can't see how much Sarah adores you? I know she regrets casting that spell. You know she regrets it. Punish her and let her heal"
"I can't do that, Headmaster" Severus argued. "I will find the strength to be your man- your spy..I will do the unthinkable and end your life for you...and for Draco...but you have to allow me this... it is easier for me to complete your mission for me if I distance myself from her"
"Easier for you" Albus stood, his hands upon his desk. He swept around the desk to stand next to Severus, a hand on his shoulder. "But not for Sarah. Do you realize what she will think when you kill me?"
"She will think that I was the Dark Lord's man all along" Severus responded, swiftly. "It is the most logical conclusion"
"Maybe to one who thinks primarily with their mind, not their heart..." Albus replied. "No, Severus" Albus continued. "by ignoring her, you have left her with another alternative- she will think that she drove you to Voldemort with her actions. You would let her live with that guilt to think that this was her fault?"
Knowing the truth to his words, Severus backed away. "I can't deal with this right now. I'm sorry, Headmaster. I must go"
"I will let you go" Albus sighed. "Just promise me one thing and I will leave you alone with it. Promise me that if Sarah comes to you, you will not turn her away. When you do this for me, she mustn't even consider that her actions might have pushed you in that direction. She knows what happened when Grace married Sirius. She mustn't think the past was repeated. That might be too much for her to handle"
"Are you really concerned about Sarah?" Snape asked, "or are you just worried that Harry won't be able to defeat the Dark Lord without Sarah's help?"
"I care about Sarah...she isn't some pawn in a game" Albus argued. "You know that..."
"We are all pawns in some game..." Snape retorted. "Good night, Headmaster" With that, he swept out of the room and back to the blessed solitary of his quarters.
Another week passed and Snape remained silent towards her. The only thing that kept Sarah sane was Harry and Hermione's friendship and Fred's letters. Finally, Fred made a suggestion that Sarah couldn't believe came from him, but made perfect sense. Ask Draco. At this point, Snape's godson would maybe be the only one to have an idea to heal the rift. But it was tricky- could Sarah truly trust Draco? She knew he was a Death Eater- but he was also Draco. Maybe not her Draco anymore, but she refused to believe he was truly a Death Eater. Still to approach Draco in front of his Slytherin friends was dangerous. She would have to be sneaky about it.
She waited for the opportunity to sneak the note into Draco's things, but so far it had been a few days and she hadn't found the right moment...until she entered Defense class a bit earlier to find Draco studying. Snape was preparing in the front of the room and others were also there, but Draco was at the end of his table and away from other Slytherins. Feeling like she was in a 50s movie, she clumsily knocked Draco's stack of books off the counter spreading them on the floor.
"Black!" Draco snapped. "Watch what you are doing!" Snape lifted his head to watch, but Sarah's back was turned to him as she scooped down to help Draco with his books.
"I'm sorry, Draco" Sarah said as she handed him some books, slipping a note into his hand as she did so. Draco didn't miss a beat.
He gathered his books and piled them back on the table. Sarah went to her seat and opened a book and Snape went back to his preparations. Draco slowly opened the piece of parchment under the table.
Meet me- astronomy tower-11 pm. We have to talk. SB
Sarah met his eyes and Draco nodded once his agreement. Now, she just hoped Draco wouldn't rat her out to her professors. Otherwise she would be in humungous trouble once again.
Sarah had forgotten her gloves and it was frigid in the tower. She pulled her wool cape around her, trying to get warm as she waited for Draco. Would this be a trap? The full moon shone through the tower providing much needed light.
Draco arrive promptly about 11 pm, thankfully alone. "What is this about, Black?" he asked, wasting no time.
Sarah rubbed her hands together anxiously. "I didn't know where else to turn. It's about Snape. Since you are his godson..."
"You think I might be able to help" Draco finished for her. "You must be really desperate to come to me for help. What makes you think that after everything, I will still help you?"
"I am desperate, but I came to you because I know in spite of everything, we can't just erase our shared history" Sarah replied. "And frankly, I do trust you..."
"You trust me?" Draco asked incredulously. "Even with what you know about me?"
"But you are still Draco...you will always be Draco, not some Death Eater" Sarah shivered and Draco came to grab her hands. "Black, why do insist on always forgetting your gloves? You've done this too many times" he scolded lightly, but removed his own gloves and handed it to her. "Here take these. The inside of my coat is lined. You're shivering"
Sarah took them gratefully and put her cold hands in the oversized gloves, thankful for the heat they provided. Draco stuffed his hands in his pockets.
"Now, tell me what happened between you and Snape" Draco instructed. Sarah told him just about what she did, through not about how she questioned Snape about his true allegiance, taking care to protect both Draco and Snape.
"Snape values his privacy more than anything, Sarah. It's one thing for him to enter your mind as part of your instruction and with your consent, it's another for you to invade his like that, knowingly"
"I know I was wrong, Draco. I get that" Sarah twisted her hands, the gloves making the habit awkward. "He was just being so aggressive. I got frustrated"
"That isn't going to matter to him right now, especially if he sees it has you breaking his trust" Draco argued.
"He still doesn't have the right to ignore me for weeks on end...he is my guardian, my adopted father..." Sarah insisted. "How can he just shut down on me like this?"
"I think you have to realize that Snape is generally different with you than with others..." Draco began, but Sarah interrupted.
"He's hard on me, Draco. He has been strict and tough and at times, not all that understanding"
Draco held up his hand to silence her. "But compared to others...Snape doesn't let people get close to him. My mum is an exception and by extension me...you are an exception. You hurt him by doing this. Not to mention things are complicated with me and mum and his role as a spy. He probably feels like distance is wise right now"
"I can't be distant from him. He is all I have left, Draco. My family is dead. He is my family" Sarah rubbed her face. "Please tell me what to do"
Draco thought for a few moments, then responded. "Have you tried to go to him? Tell him that you will consent to any punishment that he deems necessary to fix this. Tell him how you feel. Make him listen to you"
"And if he doesn't?" Sarah asked. "I tried that first day of class and he shut me down, quickly"
Draco frowned, then continued. "I have an idea, but you aren't going to like it...it will be humbling to say the least"
"Go on..."
"Ask him to treat you as one of his house members"
"Meaning?" Sarah asked curiously. "Snape is definitely preferential towards his house..."
"In public" Draco pointed out pulling his coat closer to him, "Have you ever wondered how Snape commands control of his Slytherins without taking points or giving many detentions?"
"Not really" Sarah shrugged. "I know you guys respect him, but then again, I do too"
"But it is different" Draco argued. "There are different expectations for discipline, not only by Snape but by pureblooded families who believe that the old way of doing things is the best way of doing things..."
"Old ways?" Sarah asked. "Like physical punishment? Dumbledore or the board would never allow that..."
"But the Slytherin parents do give consent- often demand it as consequences" Draco replied. "It's how we do things in Slytherin House...and let's face it, we don't cross Snape often"
"But...still...aren't you too old for that kind of punishment?" Sarah asked. "Snape would spank me occasionally when I was younger, but not now"
"No, no...older students, he more takes a ruler to our hand...granted, not often...the threat in itself is enough" Draco replied. "You look doubtful"
Sarah shrugged again. "I just can't believe this is all happening without me knowing about it...if he believes in that kind of discipline, then why hasn't he tried it with me now that I'm older?"
"Say what you will about Snape" Draco said, "but he is soft when it comes to you..."
"It doesn't feel soft" Sarah mumbled. "Not with all the groundings and scoldings..." Sarah crossed her arms to warm herself. "So what you are telling me is that I should go to Snape and ask him to smack me on my hand? You seriously think that will work with him?"
Draco gave her a grin. "Well, I think it will shock him out of his silence. And then you go from there..."
"Oh Merlin" Sarah responded, with a roll of her eyes. "I just think it might work to get Snape talking...lucky me"
Draco laughed with her and then they were silent.
"We should get back" Draco said. "Before anyone catches us out on bed or each of us will be receiving discipline, whether we want to or not"
Sarah agreed, but as they were leaving, she shot out her hand to grab his arm. "Listen, Draco...I know things are hard for you right now. You didn't have to come and help me, not with everything going on"
Draco turned towards her. "I'm always here for you, Sarah. I want you to know that" he reached to gently touch her hair then dropped his hand abruptly. "Things are hard. I have to do things I would never imagine doing...things that will be impossible for me to recover from"
Sarah's heart quickened. "Are you sure there is nothing I can do to help you, Draco? You aren't a Death Eater...that's not you"
"I have the mark to prove that I am just that" Draco replied. "Its who I have to be. For my family's sake..."
"Why do things have to always be so complicated?" Sarah asked. "We are teenagers. We shouldn't be worrying about stuff like this- whether or not we will live to become adults. I want to be eleven again at Snape Manor, fighting with you...not having these grown up worries. Some nights, I lie awake just wondering if at the end of it will I even see twenty five or thirty?"
"You will live" Draco assured her."I know it"
Sarah's throat was dry. "How do you know?"
"Because you have men who would die to protect you" Draco responded, quickly and with a confidence beyond his years. "And I am one of them..."
She swallowed hard. "Thank you, Draco" she managed to get out before breaking into tears. She was with Fred now and was confident about that decision, yet still...Draco pulled at her heart. She was worried about him. Whatever Voldemort tasked him with, she knew it was bad. Would Draco be lost forever? And Snape was being pulled into it. What did that mean for him? She wished she could go back to that time where things just seemed less complicated. Snape ruled her with a firm hand, but all in all, a soft heart. He set forth expectations and consequences, but also gave her all the support and guidance she needed. She just hoped that Snape and her could recover...they had to. She had to make sure. She had already lost one father by her mistakes, she wasn't going to lose another. Even if it meant a few minutes of humility and pain...she would have to summon all her Gryffindor courage to approach Snape. But she would...and soon.
A/N: do you think that will shock Snape into talking to her? Or will he remain silent? It's different, but I think it fits with Snape and Sarah's character... she is desperate...Hum...and I hope the sweet scene between Sarah/Draco didn't seem forced. Thoughts? We move oversees in a week. I want to get the next chapter up and written before I leave, but we'll see.