Chapter Eleven:
Fight

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of howPokémonlook in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3

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"I'm a lean, mean, fighting machine. I'm a lean, mean, fighting machine. I'm a robot. Robots are cool. Green Lantern fought a robot. I love Green Lantern. I love pie. Mmmmmm, pie. Wait why am I thinking about pie? I'm supposed to be thinking about something else. Does it rhyme with pie? Fly, by, cry, die, pie? Pie! No. Pie, Green Lantern, Fighting robot, fighting machine, me. I'm a lean, mean, fighting machine. I'm a lean, mean, fighting machine."
-Reese, "Malcolm in the Middle"

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"I can walk, you know."

"I know. I kinda like having you on my shoulders now, though."

A sigh sounded off against her hat and what little fur from her ear that couldn't be hidden tickled under the gush of air. It made her ears twitch in response. Totodile settled more comfortably on her shoulders, hunkering down for the long haul. He gazed up at the moderately sized business buildings they were passing through to reach the end of Cherrygrove with a half-lidded, bored expression in his eyes. There was warmth there, however, one that reflected in his tone.

"You spoil me."

"Just until we get back to the lab. Then you can hate and avoid me all you like for not letting you walk."

"I'm not an invalid."

"I prefer to think of you as a trouble-seeking magnet. I'd rather not have a repeat of the Mankey Incident."

"…point taken. I still stand by my statement, however."

"Troublemaker."

"I had everything under control," he muttered derisively back. Lupin sighed.

"Yes, and if things hadn't gone so swimmingly, I would have been caught with no trainer's license. Kids are easier to give a warning to. A thirty-something year old, though? No. I prefer to continue not knowing what the inside of a jail cell looks like, thank you."

"You act as though you're expecting a cop to pop around the corner in the middle of a battle. As long as we don't cause property damage, I find that scenario highly unlikely. You can relax."

Totodile paused, tilting his head. She felt a little unnerved at the unblinking stare he had pinned her with.

"Unless, that's not the only thing you're worried about."

"What a genius you are."

"I have my moments. Thank you." He replied dryly, snorting. "Relax. You have some immunity protecting you while under the professor's wing, so to speak. As long as you maintain your junior assistant license, you have authority to act in the professor's stead. Not as fully as Phillip, but well…can't win them all. Most people will give you some leeway. It worked in Catallia."

"Riiight…"

Cherrygrove was in full swing at the moment, oblivious to the worries of the two travelers. People bustled about, some smelling of fresh brine, others of fragrant flowers and herbs. Totodile lifted himself up higher on Lupin's shoulders, practically balancing on his hind legs and tail as he sniffed the air with a hungry sheen to his eyes as he searched the bobbing heads around them.

"I smell fresh fish!"

"Well, Cherrygrove is a small port city, it doesn't surprise me you smell fish."

"Can we get some fresh salmon? Or maybe some crawfish or some tuna. Or maybe some crabs. Can we get some of that? I hear it's really tender."

He shivered pleasantly against her and she reached up to lower him back down. "Calm down. Jeez. Look, we're heading out of town, we don't have time to double back to get you a snack."

He slumped with a disgruntled huff, grumbling under his breath. Lupin flicked the side of his crooked snout and he hissed.

"We're getting an early start for a reason. We wanna get to the professor's by the end of tomorrow, so we gotta go now. Got it?"

"Yes, all right…fun killer. You kill my fun. My fun was eating fish."

"I'm sure you'll live well enough on the canned meat I got you."

"Bah. Chemically treated tripe. It pales in comparison to fresh meat."

She huffed a few quiet laughs and reached back up to pat his hard skull and he leaned into the touch. She gave him a few scratches in return. "We'll get you your fresh meat when we get back to the lab, okay? Promise."

"I'd hold you to your word, but I'm afraid you might conveniently forget it."

"Oh, wow. Cheap shots, really? Okay, I'll remember that later."

Totodile laughed at that. He slid back along her shoulder, a scaly blue scarf dotted with spiny crimson plates that were looking quite uninviting. Other trainers and denizens passed them by, their pokémon either strolling beside, flying above, or riding atop their humans. No one paid them much mind, except for perhaps a young child at a crosswalk, who looked at Totodile with the reverence of something holy that had just crossed his path. Totodile was the first to notice and gave the boy a crooked grin and another rattling laugh. Lupin, only noting the last of the exchange, smiled when she saw him staring. The boy hurriedly buried his face in his mother's side, but his eyes were smiling at her when he peeped shyly back up at her.

The outskirts of the city were fringed with little houses and cottages that slowly gave way to rolling hills and gentle, sloping fields and a clear sky above them. The forest lay beyond, a green hazy line on the horizon that slowly grew with definition as they left the city proper. The renewed scent of the salty ocean blew towards them on a light breeze, heady and invigorating. It carried along with them as they headed onto the main road that led back to New Bark Town, mixing with the earthy wooded fragrance of the forest they were slowly closing in on. The city wasn't even out of their sight, however, when the wind changed and a new scent carried on it.

Lupin sighed as she adjusted her hat a little more securely on her head and did the same with her coat for good measure. People stared, she knew they did. She's already caught them doing so. But none have, so far, said a thing about the bushy tail that was not quite so easily hidden by her coat. She hoped she could safely assume that they believed it to be a clip-on for the time being. An eccentricity, to be sure, but it seemed somewhat acceptable so far.

"I smell Chikorita. Can you? That herby smell she's always covered in, can you smell it?"

She could indeed, and it had taken her a few moments to recognize the earthy scent of the grass pokémon. Lupin could hear the faint longing and crooning melancholy rolling in between the lines of his words and it carried in the tone of his voice. She knew that while he did want to be back at the lab, at the same time, he didn't want to return there. He wanted to stay on the road and his lethargy in returning was becoming more present with each passing step that heralded them closer to their destination. To have some shred of evidence that one of the others had been picked up before him must have been disheartening. He slumped further against her shoulder, and by now she had a good idea of his body language to know he was sliding into that mental rut once more.

The distance was eaten away as they continued, and soon the owner of the new scent mark came into view. He was young, perhaps in his late teens, sporting a head full of shocking red hair that leveled out to his shoulders. His outfit was simple, but uniform for traveling, as was the pack he carried. Totodile adjusted himself on her shoulder, stirring for the first time since they'd left Cherrygrove.

"She's not out…"

"Doesn't look like it," Lupin concurred, noting his dejected tone. The glint from the midmorning sun on the approaching trainer's belt told her that the little pokémon was most likely nestled in her pokéball. A very small part of her was relieved. She didn't want to deal with a shaking, scared pokémon staring at her like she was a harbinger of death. At least in the cities, most of the pokémon seemed unfazed by her. It was a relief of scenery compared to the lab's confined spaces and sheltered pokémon.

Even from the distance, she could tell the trainer was in a hurry. It wasn't too long before they were within distance to properly greet one another. Lupin gave a curt nod, although the redheaded young man didn't return the gesture. He all but glared at her, his gaze intense and hard. She noticed off the bat his eyes were a light grey, but the study was interrupted when she noticed him sneering at her, just as she was getting ready to pass him by. He stopped short, eyes locked on her and she hesitated on continuing. Her reluctance gave him leeway to speak, as his eyes slid to Totodile resting on her shoulders.

"Well, well. If I'm to guess, you got that pokémon at Professor Elm's laboratory."

Lupin's muscles locked up at the observation and she pursed her lips, yet she nodded all the same. It was technically true. She continued to study him in return, feeling like she's seen this boy before, but she couldn't pin down where. Some town, maybe, on her way to Mr. Pokémon's home, perhaps?

But he was coming from New Bark Town, she corrected herself. She eyed the pokéball attached on his belt, recognizing the little leaf motif engraved on its front, right above the release button. How could she know him? She couldn't, no way. Her eyes flicked to meet his again.

"And you must have gotten yours from him as well," she replied in kind, nodding to the pokéball. "Chikorita, right?"

He gave an ugly snort, his hands resting on his hips now, his attention fully on her.

"Of course. And she can take on that wimpy little reptile any day of the week. Is it too lazy to walk on its own?" He smirked a bit, fingers brushing against the pokéball on his belt now, as though in contemplation.

Lupin bristled, but didn't take the bait. She knew what he was trying to do. She wasn't falling for it.

"Great, well, have fun with her, and good luck I guess. See ya," she replied in a clipped tone. She gave a mocking salute as she turned to continue on her way. Her ears gave a massive twitch under her hat at the sound of a pokéball releasing energy and suddenly, something was yanking her back by the arm. It squeezed tight and refused to let go, forcing her to pivot. Totodile growled deep in his chest and snarled. Chikorita was out, a pair of thin, reedy vines sprouting from the base of her neck and wrapped around the werewolf's arm. Despite the rank scent of fear that was mixing with her usually pleasant herby smell, she had followed a silent order to attack. The vines wrapped tighter around her arm. Lupin dug her heels into the ground in response. The redheaded young man still had that smarmy leer on his face and in that instant, Lupin came to one conclusion: she preferred Totodile's smugness to this kid's.

"I want to see just how pathetic you lot are. I challenge you to a battle."

"Sorry, but I'm not into battling. Now tell her to—no, fuck this, let go, Chikorita. I mean it!" Lupin snapped, directing her words to the grass pokémon. Chikorita stared her down, terror and determination shining in those red eyes, but she refused to adhere to the order. The redhead's smirk widened, if it were possible.

"You're not going anywhere until I beat your pokémon, so you might as well dump that scaly sack of meat and get it over with."

Totodile hissed menacingly, a throaty growl building up. Lupin gritted her teeth, the idea of unleashing a few sparks to teach this kid a good lesson sorely tempting. Totodile leapt in before she could decide, snapping his jaws shut on the vines holding Lupin's arm immobile. Chikorita let out a nearly ear-piercing shriek of pain, and the hold on the woman's arm released, retreating as soon as Totodile released and landed nimbly on the ground. He hissed at the grass pokémon, rising up to his hind legs with his mouth gaping open in a threatening display. Chikorita whimpered, backing up toward her trainer, but instead of being scooped up or checked up on, he gave her shove forward with his foot.

"Get back in there, I didn't say you were done."

Lupin bristled. It struck a sudden nerve with her at the sight of Chikorita's treatment and she felt abashed at her previous thought using her fire to scare her. She'd be no better if she'd done so, she realized.

"What in the hell is wrong with you? Don't kick her, you slimy jerk!"

A part of her wanted to scoop the grass pokémon up and snatch that pokéball out of the redhead's hand and take her back to the lab. Did Professor Elm know what kind of person he'd given her to? Did they do background checks on potential new trainers, or at least a personality test? Something to weed out potential abusers, at the very least.

"I'll do what I want with her. She's my pokémon. Chikorita, vine whip!"

A torrential gush of water poured from Totodile's maw, canceling out the skinny vines from attacking again. It doused the grass pokémon and sent her spinning across the dirt road, spluttering and coughing. The redhead's grin faded and a thunderous expression replaced it. He jerked his head impatiently toward Chikorita and barked, "Get back up! Razor leaf!"

"Hey, I'm not battling here, so knock it off!"

"Oh, really? I'd say your Totodile is ready and willing. Not that it matters. I have type advantage. Grass types overwhelm water types any day of the week. There's no way I'd lose to a weakling like you."

That prickling, indignant feeling overcame her again, souring her stomach. It made her want to give in to the temptation to unleash a firestorm as a distraction. She quelled the enticing idea, and glanced at Totodile, uncertainty weighing her down. She eyed the flesh around his neck that was still slightly puffy, the ugly little puncture wounds that had finally closed up and healed from where the Spinarak had bitten him. He'd been doing much better in the last few days since they left Catallia City, but he always felt ragged and worn out by the end of the day, even after riding on her shoulders. He tilted his head, glancing at her with one yellow-red eye facing her. He gave her that rattle-laugh, snout tilting into a crooked gator grin.

"Trust me. I have this."

She opened her mouth to argue back, to make an excuse, but she snapped it shut just as quickly. This was what he'd been bred to do, he always told her. She kept taking him away from potential battles before they'd even started in earnest and managed to get away. Here, their hands were being forced. Even if they could get away, he'd resent her for it. And she knew she'd never forgive herself either. She could see how important this was to him. He wanted to fight.

She nodded to him. It was a short, curt movement, but she saw a fire ignite in those eyes at the reaction, the floodgates opening and allowing him free reign to let loose. He snapped his head forward and opened his jaws, emitting a startlingly low, deep and angry hiss at Chikorita. The sudden change in his behavior toward the grass pokémon was shocking. One moment, he was reminiscing, the next he's ready to attack.

Chikorita's body tensed and her lower half lowered, shoulders locking, ready to either push forward or brace for a hit. She let out a snarl of her own. The redhead across the makeshift battleground smirked.

"Hiss and growl all you want, you two are going down. Tackle!"

Chikorita darted forward on quick little feet. Totodile hunkered himself down a little more and at the last moment, ducked out of the way. He gave the grass pokémon a light smack with his tail as he retreated away from her and released another surge of water from his maw. It struck true, hitting Chikorita in her side and sent her flipping over herself across the road. Totodile snorted, waiting tensely as the grass pokémon struggled back to her feet at the behest of her trainer's snarled shouts.

"Get back up! Use razor leaf!"

Totodile didn't give her the chance. Just as she had rushed forward moments before, he did the same, splaying his claws and taking a hard swipe at her. She tried to dodge, but he caught her in the flank. She missed most of the damage, but long, thin lies were left in her flank and she limp-hopped away muttering under her breath as she gave Totodile the stink eye. It didn't take a genius to see she was hurting and looked ready to fold. Lupin pursed her lips and glanced back at Totodile.

"Hey, I think she's had enough. C'mon back, yeah?"

Her opponent scoffed. "Those are the words of a weakling. Razor leaf."

A flurry of leaves suddenly flew from the crest of the leaf atop Chikorita's head, sharp little green darts hurtling toward Totodile. He ducked low to the ground, dodging most, but a few scraped across his backside. He winced, but didn't move from his spot. Lupin lurched forward, ready to intervene when a pair of those reedy vines came whipping out of nowhere, cracking at her feet. She jumped back, first glaring at Chikorita and then the redhead. He said nothing, but that grim smirk was still on his face.

"Razor leaf again."

"Dammit, that's enough, I—!"

"Don't interfere!"

Her mouth clacked shut as she turned her gaze toward Totodile, stunned at his outburst. He was lifting himself up to his hind legs again, flexing his little paws. Another barrage of leaves skewered past him, some knocking him back but he held his ground, hind paws leaving deep gouges in the ground. Totodile clacked his jaws and she blinked, swearing she saw a flicker of light in his jaws.

"Almost…" he muttered. "One more, dammit. Just one more."

She furrowed her brow, confused, but jumped when another barrage of those leaves went hurtling toward him. Some struck true and she heard him yowl. Instinct urged her to move forward again, but she was frozen, an outside bystander with no control of her own limbs. It felt different than in the forest with the nest of Spinarak. She couldn't move, only watch as fine lines of red oozed from the fresh wounds decorating his blue hide. They stood out starkly in contrast, thin red ribbons making oddly placed stripes along his scales.

Her attention was diverted from the wounds, and she saw the light appear again, and she knew she wasn't seeing things. Her opponent must have seen too. When she looked back at him, his mouth was hinged open in angry astonishment. He shouted a garbled command back at his pokémon, but it came moments too late. Chikorita froze up, realizing what was happening just as late, belatedly preparing for another of her razor leaf attacks. The attack that Totodile had been building up was released and the energy plunged toward the grass pokémon and struck her hard before she could execute her counterattack. It flung her into the air and she flew far before careening back onto the ground. She didn't move for several seconds, but it seemed to last an eternity. Totodile hissed and let out a menacing growl of victory.

Chikorita finally stirred, struggling to push herself to her feet, only to collapse back onto her side. Lupin finally felt her limbs release from the iron vice grip that held her tight, and she stumbled over to Totodile, carefully checking him over. She gave especial attention to the just recently healed wounds on his neck. He groaned, pushing away at her with his paws.

"Stop smothering me, I'm fine, just get me some potion so we don't have to go back to the center."

She hesitated, but nodded all the same and dropped her pack to dig into it, her hand wrapping around the small vial in a side pocket. The sunlight gleamed against the purple and clear flask, the medicinal liquids sloshing about inside. He side-eyed it as she held it parallel to one of the nastier gouge marks on his body.

"Hold still," she muttered, pressing down on the spray tip. It took a second, but the medicine shot out against the wound, and the reaction was instantaneous. The cut began to close and stitch back together, and while it was still red and raw, it looked better and was no longer bleeding freely. She continued the process until all the wounds were closed and the potion was completely out. Lupin sighed in relief, scratching the side of his head.

"What in the hell was that?"

"Rage. I have to take a few hits, but it helps build up the power behind my own. The more damage I take, the more powerful I can return it in kind. It doesn't help if I get knocked out before that happens, though."

"Geez. Scared the hell outta me."

"You should learn my move set, then. It'd be easier if you had a pokédex and not a bunch of books to lug around..." He eyed her pointedly at this and she sheepishly slung her pack back onto her shoulders.

"Wait, what's a—"

She stopped herself short at a loud stomp and purposeful huff. She looked up and saw the redhead glaring at her from down the road, his jaw set rigidly in anger. His gaze, for a brief few seconds, settled on Chikorita, who was limping over to him. She passed them by, and gave a nod to Totodile.

"Good battle," she said. Her eyes slid toward Lupin and she hesitated, then nodded to her as well. "You're not as bad as I thought you were. You're…pretty nice."

Lupin was surprised, but she smiled in thanks. She was already digging in her pack for another potion when the redhead's voice cut in sharply.

"Chikorita! Get away from those weaklings. We're going."

She hesitated, looking torn, before she trotted awkwardly after her trainer. He glowered at her approaching form. "Hmph. What a disappointment. You're supposed to be stronger than a water-type."

Lupin opened her mouth to shout at him, but a paw on her arm distracted her. Totodile was observing her with half-lidded eyes, his gaze deceptively lazy looking at first but she saw the ire there as well.

"There's nothing you can do. He's her trainer now."

"But he's—"

"A jerk, yes. There are plenty of those kinds of trainers, but short of reporting him for abuse—which we haven't seen—we can't do much to take Chikorita away. She's stuck…unfortunately."

He stared her down and she reluctantly withdrew her hand from her pack, sighing. Quietly, she finished checking him over, especially the area around his neck. It was looking better than the last few days, but he often complained it was sore. She stood at last, dusting her jeans off. "I…guess we should get going, then. We need to make up for our lost time. That jerk threw us off schedule."

"Not much lost time," he observed, pausing to look up at her. "Can I ride on your shoulders again?"

She barely heard the question, however, her eyes momentarily drawn to something lying on the ground a few feet away from them. It sat plainly in the middle of the road, and it was clear what it was: an ID card. Lupin could see, as she got closer, that it was the trainer ID for the redhead that had stormed off. She peeked at the name, frowning. Shirubā Noboru. 16 years old, red hair, grey eyes, originating from Kanto, so on and so forth…

No wonder he's such a stuck up punk, she thought with pursed lips, her eyes focused on the age. So young, he thinks he's invincible, that he can challenge anyone and no consequence will come of it. He was arrogant and not in the charming way, either. Totodile growled beside her in warning and she looked up to see the redhead—Shirubā—double backing toward them. She motioned to him to clamber onto her shoulder and he complied, agilely sliding up her arm as she stood and turned, heading back for New Bark Town.

She didn't have time to deal with brats that have an ego problem. She left the ID where she'd found it, refusing to listen to the shouts behind her.

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The sight of the lab was a welcome one. Plain and simple, that was what it was in the barest sense. The time on the road, however, felt like a much needed kick in the pants that made her want to keep going. She didn't want to stay long. She didn't want to become complacent and cooped up, letting herself wallow in self-pity or woeful what-ifs. She wanted to heed to the advice others had already given her, to go out and find the answers that were obviously not forthcoming to her.

"You're thinking of leaving again, aren't you?"

The voice in her ear startled her out of her churning thoughts. She didn't answer at first, mulling over how to answer that question. Yes, she wanted to go back out again, but she didn't know when. No, she didn't really want to, but she had to. She had slipped into the police station at Cherrygrove last night before heading to the center for a room, to see if they'd had any leads. She'd ended up waiting nearly forty-five minutes before they got back to her, and it had been a disappointment as well as a waste of time. There had been no changes, no missing persons reports regarding her, and no leads to her identity.

"Yeah, thinking about it," she finally settled for. Totodile shifted a bit on her shoulder, adjusting himself into a more comfortable position. He steadied himself, quiet for a moment.

"You know the professor isn't going to let you go alone, right?"

"…I know."

"Then I hope you don't mind if I stick around for a little longer," he said with one of his rattle-laughs. She found enough of it in her to smile.

"I suppose I don't have much of a choice. It's either you or I wrestle a feral pokémon with my bare hands."

"I'll bet on you…most days. I'm not sure you'd have a fair fight against an Ursaring, however."

"A what?"

"Big giant bear of doom that lives in the mountains surrounding Blackthorn City just north of here. I've heard horror stories from my mother and father."

That gave her pause. "You said you and your siblings were bred for battle…are you part of some sort of breeder's program?"

"Something along those lines. The owners, they pick out the best in our nests. Some are given to trainers ready to go and in the area. Others, like myself, are sent to starter pokémon programs. Since we're native to Johto, we get sent to Professor Elm. Just like Squirtle are part of Kanto, for example, they get sent to Professor Oak. I'm not too sure about the other regions, though. I do know one of us gets sent every six or so months. Usually by then, the last one gets picked up and the next is alone."

Totodile adjusted himself again. "My older brother, he was still there when I got to the lab, almost six months ago now. He was picked up a week after I'd arrived. It helps the professor have a wider range of subjects to study from versus a stagnant one."

"Did you have a name before coming here?"

She saw him shift his head so he was looking at her more properly.

"You wouldn't be able to pronounce it in your tongue," he scoffed.

"Humour me."

He watched her for a few moments longer and that unblinking reptilian gaze bore into hers. It made her uncomfortable as the silence dragged on before he slid out of her peripheral. The silence pursued for a few seconds longer before he let out a low trill that evolved into a purr, squeak, and growl, then was topped off by a long hiss at the end.

She stopped dead in her tracks, amazed and stunned by the vocal range he emitted. She stood stock still for what felt the longest minute in her life and she could just feel the smugness radiated off of the little blue gator.

"…I'm not even going to try and pronounce that. Do you have something more…translatable?"

"Why?" He sounded suspicious now, but also curious.

"I'm not calling you 'Totodile'. That's the name of your species. That's like me getting a dog and naming it 'Dog'."

"Point taken," he muttered back, falling silent again. "The-Tide-That-Flows-Strong. It's the closest translation we can make of it into your language."

"Your name isn't really a name," she pointed out and he snorted against her cheek.

"Maybe not to you, but to us, it's a perfect way of separating ourselves. My father is The-Teeth-That-Break-Stone and my mother is known as The-Bones-That-Shatter-All."

Lupin clucked her tongue. "Kind of…intimidating sounding."

"That's the point. A boastful name tends to drive off potential challengers."

"I'm not calling you…Tide-Flows-whatever." She frowned, pausing just outside the lab's doors. "What about Riptide?"

He made a disgruntled noise. "You insult me by sullying my name."

"I can't exactly pronounce your actual name and that tide flowing name is too long. Riptide is close enough, ain't it?"

Another discontented sound in her ear, before it devolved into a long sigh. "I suppose it's…acceptable, considering your uncultured tongue can't pronounce my given name. Hmmm. Riptide." A pause. "I'm sure it'll grow on me."

"Eventually," she agreed with a nod and a wry smile. She pushed the door open, the faint smile still on her face. "Like a fungus."

"The crustiest fungus that exists, I'm sure."

His rattle-laugh died almost as quickly as it had started and she stopped short herself, going so far as to freeze on the spot. The lab was occupied, and it wasn't by its usual patrons of pokémon, professor and lab assistant. Three officers garbed in uniform stood with the professor, but whatever conversation they'd been having cut short and all eyes landed on the two of them. There was a brief, awkward moment of silence that passed between them, quickly filling the void.

Riptide broke it by bumping his jaw into her temple.

"…well, it was nice knowing you. Be sure to write when you get to the big house."

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