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Gibbs pulled into his driveway at 0415. He shut off the engine and simply sat a moment. He hadn't been followed. Clearly, to that drunken asshole, Tony wasn't worth hauling out the heavy artillery. Good. Gibbs groaned as sleep caught up with him. His head lolled back on the headrest and he shut his eyes, frankly not caring if he fell asleep right here. He sat a moment, then glanced up when he felt a pair of hazel eyes studying his face.
"Alright, Tony?" He asked, still not sure if his friend was all there.
"As well as I can be after a drunken brawl with Bronislav, sir. I feel like Joe Frazier after a round against Ali."
Yep, he was all there.
"Let's go inside." Gibbs yawned and pushed open his door. He got halfway up the walk when he realized he was alone. With a sigh, he went back to the car and pulled open Tony's door. The younger man was staring at his knees, his hands in his lap. The quietness about him weirded Gibbs out.
"Tony?"
He looked up at Gibbs, then looked away. A flush tinted his cheeks.
"I can't." He said in a small voice.
"Can't…?"
Tony reached up and felt his collar, tugging at it. "I need a leash if I'm going to be outside, sir." Tony admitted. "My master doesn't like it if I'm outside without it."
Sir? Gibbs frowned at the honorific even as anger bubbled in his gut at the fear Tony had of simply getting out of the car. What kinds of assholes had he lived with these past few years? Gibbs thought about just encouraging him to walk on his own, but decided it was far too late at night, or early in the morning, for an argument that would just increase Tony's discomfort.
"Hang on." Gibbs went inside, grabbed Abby's red nylon leash from the pegboard by the stairs, and returned to the truck. He clipped it to the small padlock fastening the big metal collar around Tony's neck, scowling at it. His hatred for Bronislav intensified.
Tony got out of the car, crossing his arms self-consciously.
"I'm sorry, sir." He mumbled.
"Don't be, Tony." Gibbs told him. "You don't have to be sorry for anything."
Abby had been like this too, when he'd first found her. Awkward, nervous, apologizing for everything and anything and calling him 'master' and 'sir.' It was painful seeing the people he called his friends forced to be so submissive, their natural bubbly personalities stamped down and deflated. With lots of time and patience, Tony's damage would heal like Abby's had.
Gibbs locked the door once they were inside, throwing the two deadbolts and the chain. It was wise to keep the doors locked tight these days, despite his earlier habits.
Tony looked around, his eyes flicking everywhere in the dim entryway.
"You remember my house?" Gibbs asked.
"Yeah, Gibbs. Hasn't changed. Still got that retro 70's thing going." Tony glanced down and saw a plain black pair of Abby's work shoes. "You didn't get married again, did you?" His eyes immediately widened and he dropped to his knees.
"I'm sorry, master—I just—I didn't think—"
Gibbs, surprised at his sudden subservience, immediately hauled him back to his feet.
"Tony, it's fine. You can make jokes. You don't have to call me 'sir' or anything."
Tony nodded quickly. "Yes, boss. I just…" he trailed off, staring at the floor and wringing his hands.
"Gibbs?" Abby appeared from around the corner in her pajamas—black skull-printed sweatpants and a matching fitted Tshirt. Her black hair hung loose over her shoulders and without the black lipstick her face seemed oddly pale. She looked at Gibbs with worried eyes but smiled warmly when she saw Tony, despite his wounded and different appearance.
"Tony!" She threw her arms around him in a hug. "I missed you like crazy!" She said. She felt the ridges of scars under his shirt and closed her eyes, hugging him even closer.
"Abbs." He breathed shakily into her clean, shampoo-scented hair, hardly able to believe it was her. "I missed you too." He whispered. He eyed Gibbs, smiling warmly at their reunion. Tony gulped and clenched his eyes shut, tightening his arms around Abby as a sudden memory popped into his head…
"You stupid whore!" Tony's first master, Carmichael Sutton, bellowed at his wife's slave, Rachel. "How hard is it to cook something properly?" Tony dropped his broom and walked into the kitchen. Rachel glanced at him, clearly scared by Sutton's anger. Tony glanced down at the offending burned steak.
"Relax." Tony said to him. "She can make you another one."
Sutton threw down his knife and fork. He stood up and glared at Tony. Tony lifted his chin. Sutton was a huge guy. Tony knew the man could knock him unconscious with one swipe of his paw. He didn't care though. Slave or not, nothing gave anyone the right to refer to someone as 'stupid whore.'
"Still don't know your place, boy?" Sutton drawled. He reached over and snatched Rachel's arm. He tore the spatula out of her hand and started beating the hell out of her with it. She shrieked and raised her arms to cover her head.
"Stop!" Tony yelped.
"You'll shutup if you know what's good for you!" Sutton yelled. He continued hitting Rachel. Tony stepped forward. "One more step and I get my whip to use on her and you." Sutton said. Tony froze. "Good boy.We'll have you broken yet." He threw the spatula aside and started beating her with his hand, leaving Tony scared and angry as he helplessly watched his fellow slave get beaten on…
"I missed you more than Pee-Wee missed his bike." Abby mumbled, oblivious to what was going on inside his head.
Tony let out a bark of laughter at the unexpected movie reference, forcing the memory away.
"You okay?" She asked.
"No. Are you owned too?" He said softly.
"Technically, yeah. By Gibbs."
Tony stiffened.
"Don't worry though." She said quickly. "He and Ducky are great masters." She cast Gibbs a little grin and he rolled his eyes.
"Ducky…?" Tony said, looking confused.
"I'd like him to look you over Tony." Gibbs eyed his former agent's skinny frame under the black Tshirt he had given him in the car. Tony was practically swimming in the fabric. "We can start getting you healthy again tonight."
"Yes, sir." Tony said.
Gibbs nodded and headed for the doctor's room.
"Oh Tony!" Abby threw her arms around him again and Tony grunted as Bronislav's cane marks stung in protest. "We didn't know where you were for so long or if you were okay or if anyone was hurting you and we were all soworried and we looked and looked for ages…"
Tony brought his hands up and returned the hug out of reflex. Abby's hugs felt like home and Christmas and birthdays all in one.
"You looked for me?" He said.
"Of course! We never stopped looking. We knew you were out there somewhere. After those riots…we didn't know…but now you're here and safe and we love you and I'm never going to stop hugging you."
"That might be a problem." Tony said.
"Why?"
"Going to the bathroom is going to be awkward."
Abby pulled off him and gave him a look that said, 'smartass.'
He grinned a little.
"I missed that gorgeous smile." Abby said. She gently touched a finger to the bruise on his jaw.
"Gibbs is your master?" He asked.
"On paper, yeah." She said, a hint of sadness in her voice. "Legally he owns me."
"Wow, Gibbs literally owning your ass?" Tony's eyes widened in mock shock and Abby smiled.
"He can get your paperwork settled," Abby said, "and then you can live here with us and it'll be just like old times at the office. Kinda. We kind of still solve cases, well, we help families find their family members who might be slaves now. Gibbs has even helped Ching-Lan's relatives out with some stuff! She kind of knows us, which is both good and bad…"
Tony smiled at her, pulling her into another hug, something deep and wound tight with dark unhappiness within him unraveling at the sound of his best friend's voice.
Gibbs went down the hall to Ducky's den-converted bedroom. When Gibbs insisted that Ducky permanently move in after The Fall, Ducky had insisted right back that he take a downstairs room.
"After all, Jethro, I'm getting older and one day the stairs will just be too much. If I take this room now, it will save us the hassle of moving me later."
Gibbs agreed, just wanting to keep his friends close. Doctors were something of a commodity now and many of them had been sent around the country to wherever China deemed them necessary. Ducky was one of the lucky ones in that he got to stay in his hometown. Jack was still in Pennsylvania, or vicinity 6 as it was known today, his store unharmed and himself in no danger of being enslaved. He was well past the age limit.
"Business is booming, Leroy. Not many general stores in rural Pennsylvania sell gennys and gasoline shelved beside soup and diapers. Don't you worry about me."
Gibbs did, sometimes. But he also knew his father could take care of himself. That Winchester still worked like new.
Gibbs' fist was up, poised to knock, when the door was tugged open. Ducky stood there in soft slippers and a thick flannel robe, wide awake despite the hour.
"Did you get him?" He asked.
"Got him."
"How is he?" Ducky said.
"Hurting. Scared. He's with Abby now. Can you look him over, Duck?"
"Of course. I would insist upon it."
"He's got some bruises." Gibbs said, rubbing a tired hand over his face. "Jaw and eye." Gibbs' voice hardened. "His back too. That bastard was whipping him when I got there."
"Oh, Anthony."
"It's weird, Duck. He remembers me, I think, but he's so…different."
"Remember how Abby was when you brought her home?" Ducky reminded him.
"Yeah." Gibbs said, suddenly feeling very tired.
"She came around and now she's back to her old self. The same thing will happen with Tony."
Gibbs just nodded, hoping the doctor was right.
Tony heard Gibbs clear his throat behind them and he whirled out of Abby's hug. A quick flash of Rachel's bruised face jumped into his brain and Tony growled and pulled Abby behind him protectively, glaring at Gibbs. A teeny tiny little rational voice in his head reminded him that Gibbs wasn't Sutton and that he wouldn't do anything of the sort to Abby or him or anyone. His more recent, harsher memories won out though, and his hands curled into fists. He stared at Gibbs out of cold eyes unafraid of pain, his jaw set, his whole body daring Gibbs to come closer.
"Tony!" Abby yelped. "It's fine—" She lowered her voice. "Gibbs is a friend. Don't worry. He's not going to hurt either of us."
"C'mon, Tony." Gibbs said in a gentle voice. He didn't know where on earth this was coming from, but he decided it would be wise to not get any closer. He continued speaking in a low tone. "Ducky's ready for you."
Tony looked suspicious.
"He's gonna check you over, okay? Really quickly. Give you something for your back and bruises."
"Go on, Tony." Abby urged. Abby's voice seemed to break whatever hold was on Tony's brain.
He nodded. His head hung in defeat and Gibbs' heart ached as the wide, protective stance faded away, leaving the meek slave DiNozzo he had met in the car. Tony gave Abby one final, pained glance before reluctantly walking towards his former boss.
"Do you want me there?" She blurted.
"Go on." Gibbs said. He stepped back, giving Tony space. "If you want her to be in there with you Tony, go ahead."
Tony nodded and Abby took him by the hand, trotting towards Ducky's room. She threw Gibbs a confused look.
'What was that?' she mouthed.
Gibbs shrugged. This was going to be a long road to recovery.
"Anthony, my dear boy!"
Tony edged into the unfamiliar master's bedroom, nervously returning the smile he was being given.
"Hey, Ducky."
"It's been ages, lad. Here, please sit." Ducky pulled over an armchair and Tony sat gingerly on the edge, unused to sitting in chairs. But, a master had commanded it, so he'd better obey. Tony glanced around the small space. Ducky's bedroom was cozy and classy, filled with antique furniture and a cherry wood four poster bed. Lots of thick books sat on a shelf and a small TV rested in one corner beside a mug of tea. The art belied the doctor's eccentric tastes and Tony stared at an abstract sculpture that vaguely resembled a human body as Ducky gathered some things, talking all the while.
"…searched for you every way possible. Gibbs even made a Magnum P.I reference, which you would definitely appreciate…"
Abby crept in and knelt beside Tony on the floor. She took his hand and he turned his attention to her, grinning at his best friend.
"This will be quick, Anthony. Just a once-over, and then you can go to bed and tomorrow we'll get you settled straight away. Ah, good morning, Abby."
"Hi Ducky."
"Tony, can you take your shirt off, please?"
Tony let go of Abby's hand and threw the black Tshirt to the floor. He slid his hand back into Abby's.
"Let's see…" Ducky moved behind Tony, pausing at the faint scars and the fresh red lines across his shoulders. "A few marks." Ducky observed. He glanced up, noticing Gibbs hovering just outside the open door, tensely keeping his distance. He nodded for Gibbs to enter, but the older man stayed put.
"Not too bad, my boy." Ducky said. "I can put some cream on these scrapes. Do they hurt?"
"A little, sir." Tony said.
"Here." Ducky handed him a white pill. "For the pain."
Tony nodded and obediently gulped the pill.
Ducky cleaned the cane wounds and rubbed them with cream before giving the younger man an ice pack to dull the spread of the fresh bruising on his face.
"Alright, lad." Ducky said in a gentle voice. "We're done for now. I'd like to do some bloodwork and give you a physical, but that can wait until you're a bit more rested, hm?"
"Yes, sir." Tony said.
"C'mon, Tony." Abby stood up, still holding his calloused hand. "I'll take you to your room. We've got it totally ready for you. I found these sheets at the store that are the softest thing…"
Gibbs wandered into the kitchen to give them space. He watched Abby lead his former agent up the stairs and down the short hall towards the bedrooms. Ducky joined him, placing his mug in the sink.
"Well?" Gibbs said.
"He'll be alright, Jethro, bruised and battered that he is."
"He's scared of me." Gibbs said bluntly.
"He's a bit nervous of all of us—"
"In the hall," Gibbs interrupted. "Thought he was gonna punch my lights out." Gibbs glanced at Ducky, smirking grimly. "He pulled Abby behind him—protecting her like I was gonna hurt her." Ducky sighed at the guilt and pain in Gibbs' voice.
"He sees you as a threat. A master and a threat." Ducky observed. "Slavery has not been kind to him, Jethro. There's old scarring on his back, delivered with a whip or cane or worse. He's underweight, possibly anemic. And that's just the physical damage. We have no idea what he's seen or endured."
Gibbs nodded, understanding but hating it all the same that Tony was seeing him as one of the bastards who mistreated him.
"Good thing Abby's here." Gibbs said, watching the dark staircase. "He seems to trust her more than anyone right now."
"Here's your room." Abby said. She pulled Tony into the third bedroom and flipped the light. "You've got a double bed and the biggest closet—Gibbs made that dresser!" She pointed at a gorgeous oak set of drawers, the woody scent spicing the air. Tony didn't say anything, but his eyes flitted around the sparse bedroom. Abby, not liking his silence, persevered. "You could put some more shelves up for your movies." She said. "That whole wall is free—we kinda left it that way on purpose, figuring you'd want to put movies there or girlie posters up." This got a faint smile. "The window is nice and big and looks over the front. You could spy on the neighbors like in that one Hitchcock movie with what's his name…"
"Rear Window.One of Jimmy Stewart's finest." Tony said. "I'd rather do it without the broken leg though."
Abby smiled, glad to be seeing some hint of the old DiNozzo.
"He's good to me, you know." She said to Tony. "Gibbs. I mean, c'mon, it's Gibbs." She slid her hand into his. "You know he'd never hurt me—or anyone. Well, maybe a dirtbag, but no one who doesn't deserve it."
Tony wrapped his arm around her, pulling her close. "I used to know, Abby."
She nodded, letting that demon lie for now.
"Do you want to sleep?"
"In here?"
"Yeah. It's your room."
Tony pursed his lips, looking around the room with trepidation. He hadn't slept alone in a room, or in a bed, since The Fall.
"You can sleep in my room if you need to." Abby said.
"Can I?" Tony said.
"C'mon." Abby brought him to her room and Tony froze in the doorway. Tony stared around at the clothes and boots on the floor, Bert on the dresser, and assorted zombie dolls blocking the door to the closet. He tried not to let the sight of his friend's casually lived-in bedroom feel so surreal, but he was too tired to fight down much of anything.
"Wait—Gibbs'll get mad—male and female slaves aren't supposed to sleep in the same quarters—"
"He won't care." Abby assured him.
Tony dropped to the carpet and stretched out, not even looking at the bed. He knew it would be too soft to sleep in. Abby didn't question his choice of bed or even glance twice. She dragged the sheet and blanket to the floor, then tossed the red and black fleece and the skull pillow down as well.
"Wait here."
He nodded, eyes half-closed. She went into the other bedroom—his room—and grabbed the blankets off that bed too. She knew. She knew what it was to be forced to sleep on the floor and hate it, then to accept it, then to prefer it. She eyed the closet, remembering the bag of his stuff that she had dropped in there. Later he could look at his things when he wasn't so skittish and tired.
"Here you go." She settled down beside him on the floor, nesting them both in the softness.
"Thanks Abbs." He stuffed a pillow under his head and pulled her close, obviously wanting to protect her even in sleep. They stared at each for a while, Tony re-remembering every curve and pore on her face. He squeezed her hand under the blanket.
"How are you?" She asked quietly.
Tony shrugged. "Fine. Warm. Comfortable."
"No, how are you,Tony? In here." She brushed her fingertips over his chest.
He didn't answer, but he squeezed her hand again.
"I thought you were dead." He said quietly.
"Why?" Abby said after a beat.
"Only way I could cope." He said. His eyes dropped to her neck.
"You don't have a collar." He changed the subject.
Abby rolled over and reached into a half-open drawer in her nightstand. She pulled out a black leather and silver spiked collar and handed it to Tony.
He ran his fingers over soft collar. The faint hallway light reflected off the shiny spikes. Tony rubbed his thumb over a small metal nameplate fastened to the flat of the leather. Gibbs' name and phone number were engraved there.
"How come you're not wearing this? Does Gibbs not want you to wear it at night?" Tony asked.
"Gibbs doesn't make me wear it."
"Oh." Tony frowned. "But he's your master." He'd never come across a master who didn't insist on collars being worn at all times. He'd had this damn piece of dented metal around his neck for almost a year.
"He's my friend before he's my master." Abby said, gently taking the collar from him.
"Does Ducky make you wear it?" Tony asked.
"No. Ducky's a friend too."
"Friends don't make friends wear collars?" Tony said, the tiniest spark of mischief in his eyes.
Abby smiled, "yeah."
"Hey, is Gibbs gonna be mad?"
"About what?"
"Us sleeping so close like this." He didn't make an innuendo, or even raise his brows at her seductively like he may have once upon a time.
"No, he won't care. We can sleep wherever we want. Eat whatever." She rubbed her thumb over his palm. "Living here is as good as being free again, Tony. Remember what that was like?"
Tony pulled her forward suddenly, hugging her hard. He buried his face in her shoulder and Abby squeezed him, minding his back.
"It's okay." She soothed as he breathed into her neck. "You'll be okay. Promise."
Gibbs wasn't at all surprised to answer the door at 0800 later that morning to two members of Ching-Lan's secret police force. One man was dark skinned, and looked at Gibbs like he was something he had stepped in. Black BDU's accented with red covered his muscular body. Cuffs and a very large gun were strapped to his hip. Beside him, a white woman with shoulder length frizzy red hair looked coolly at Gibbs. Gibbs got the vibe that she hadn't been one of Ching-Lan's cops for very long. Her hips were also stacked with cuffs and an identical large gun. A glittering armband depicting a black and red orchid intertwined with a serpent was wrapped around each of their biceps—Ching-Lan's logo. The dark skinned cop pulled off a pair of mirrored sunglasses and stared at Gibbs.
"Hello, Officer Sacks." Gibbs said pleasantly.
"Gibbs." He said, glancing behind the older man into his house. He nodded to the redhead. "My new partner, Officer Viv Blackadder. The woman nodded and Gibbs nodded back. "You gotta give him back." Sacks said.
"No."
Sacks let out a little huff of air, as if there were better things he could be doing than retrieving a lost slave. "Mind if we come in?"
Gibbs did mind, but he stepped aside. It was extreme politeness on their part that they even asked permission. Long gone were the days when a search warrant was needed to enter someone's home and take whatever you pleased.
"How's your sister?" Gibbs asked him.
"Better since you and Doctor Mallard found my niece." Sacks told him. "Don't think that's getting you out of giving back that slave you stole." Sacks waited a beat. "Bronislav wants Delta-846-592821 back."
"His name is Tony DiNozzo." Gibbs growled.
"Whatever his name is, Bronislav is pissed." Sacks said coolly.
"Too bad."
"Gibbs."
"He's not getting him back." Gibbs said. Sacks sighed and looked at Blackadder.
"Cuff him."
She got out a pair of cuffs and clipped them gently, almost hesitantly around Gibbs' wrists. Sacks went into the depths of the house, intent on finding DiNozzo.
"We'll come peacefully." Gibbs said in a clear voice. Sacks stopped advancing and looked back at him. "I swear I won't run. Let me loose and I'll get the slave." No good would come from his being arrested. He'd lose Tony for sure. And maybe even Abby.
Sacks stared at him a moment, then sighed and nodded to his partner. The cuffs were released and Gibbs shot up the stairs and into Abby's room.
"Gibbs, what's going on?" Abby clutched her blanket as Tony stirred beside her on the floor. Gibbs smiled a bit at the sight of them together, finally. His family was back in one piece after five years of fear and unknowing. Like hell he was going to let some whiny underling of Ching-Lan's take his family away.
"Cops." Gibbs told her. "Don't worry." He bent down and shook the former agent. "Tony…"
"Hm? Boss!" Tony rolled up to his knees.
"Come on, we're gonna take a ride." Gibbs helped Tony to his feet, pushing aside the ache he felt when Tony tensed at his touch. "Abbs," Gibbs said, "I need your help on this one."
"Ching-Lan?" She whispered.
"Yeah. You know how she likes her guests to show off their slaves."
"That Bronislav guy wants Tony back?" Abby said in a small voice. Tony turned fearful eyes on Gibbs and stepped back.
Abby jumped up to quickly change her clothes and Gibbs turned to Tony. He gripped his agent tightly by the shoulders and winced when Tony flinched and looked away. "He's not gonna get you back, Tony. Understand?"
Tony didn't speak and Gibbs shook his head. "I'm going to talk to Ching-Lan. You won't go back to Bronislav." He squeezed his shoulders. "Alright?"
Tony nodded mutely, not looking reassured at all.
Abby threw on her schoolgirl skirt, followed by a black shirt with a pink skull and crossbones. She popped a piece of gum in her mouth, as there was no time for brushing teeth. She buckled the black spiked collar around her neck, and Tony's mouth fell as he saw it in the daylight. Beside the nameplate were two plain, smooth pieces of plastic, one yellow and one bright green. Tony eyed the colored chips enviously.
The yellow tag was sent out by the Chinese government and given to slaves who had a clean criminal record. It proclaimed to anyone who looked at your collar that you hadn't been convicted of a crime since the US fell. The green one though, that could only be given by a slave's owner. Everyone knew that slaves wearing green tags were treated well by their masters. They were allowed jobs and sometimes treated nearly as citizens. Sometimes. Those slaves could even live away from their master's house if the master chose. A slave had to be legally owned by their master for at least eighteen months before they could be given a green tag. They were rare, and not many slaves that Tony had ever seen had ever gotten one. He had never been lucky enough to wear either tag on his collars.
"Gibbs, have I displeased you?" Tony looked away from her collar and stared at the floor again.
"You did nothing wrong Tony." Gibbs said, crouching in front of him. "I'm not getting rid of you. Let's go."
Too well disciplined to disobey, Tony followed Gibbs down the steps, reassured a little by Abby's presence. He stiffened at the sight of the cops. Abby grabbed her red leash from the pegboard and fastened it to her collar.
The cops exchanged a look and nodded. Blackadder reached out and grabbed Tony's forearm, while Sacks roughly threw a chain around Tony's neck and padlocked it.
Tony tensed, cowering as Blackadder slapped the cuffs harshly around his wrists.
"I'm coming with." Gibbs barked. "I want to contest it."
"You already admitted you stole him." Sacks said. "What's there to contest?"
"I want to speak to Ching-Lan."
"No way."
"I wasn't asking, Officer Sacks." Gibbs growled.
Sacks stared at him. Gibbs stared back and Sacks backed down.
"Fine." He put his hands up in defeat. "But if she takes both your slaves because you pissed her off, that's your problem."
A leather lead was fastened to the impromptu collar, and Tony was tied tightly to a hook in the back of the black police Hummer by both the leash and cuffs. Abby was put next to him, restrained only by her leash. The cops stared at Gibbs oddly when he climbed into the back, sitting on the thinly carpeted floor right between them instead of sitting in the comfortable seats, but they shut the doors with a shrug and drove off.
"Tony, listen to me." Gibbs said. He reached out and rubbed Tony's head gently, using his arm to block the police's view as he loosened the tight neck bonds with his other hand. "I'm gonna talk to Ching-Lan—have you met her?"
"No, sir." He whispered.
"I'm gonna tell her that there's no way in hell she's letting her thug take you back."
Tony opened his mouth, then closed it.
"Speak." Gibbs said.
"Do you have some power over Ching-Lan, sir-G-Gibbs?"
"We have an understanding." Gibbs said after a moment. "I've done her favors, and dammit if she doesn't owe me one."
Tony turned pained hazel eyes on Abby and she squeezed his shoulder. "I want to stay with you guys." Tony said quietly.
"You're not going back to Bronislav, DiNozzo." Gibbs growled. "We'll figure it out." Gibbs wished he were as confident as he sounded.
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