Thoughts?

[Jeremiah Raven]

Transfiguration had just finished, and while it was a fine class, Jeremiah's brain was not in the class room. He had been planning this for a while, and now it was coming together. Conan had been told to meet him with Ai after class. Now the Gryffindor just had to get Ai in position so that she did not see Conan coming, and so they would be in a secluded place. The pure-blood had Ai by the sleeve, tugging her out of the class room and down the hall. He ignored any protests she had and simply hoped that she would just follow his lead and not ask too many questions. If this were ever going to work, he had to do it now and it had to be right. He was sick of Conan being stupid and Ai being stubborn. He was going to throw those too together and they were going to be civil again, or Miah feared he was slam his face violently into the wall. He really didn't want to have to do that. So, this really had to work. It was rather simple, actually. All Conan had to do was not be a jerk, while all Ai had to do was just hear him out and not get upset by the stupidity her brother possessed at the best of times and the violence he held at the worse. Jeremiah frowned slightly as the horrifying realisation hit him. Conan was always stupid. This really had a large chance to fail.

But the Gryffindor had a plan. A plan that would completely distract Ai long enough for Conan to show up on the scene and talk to her. It was not perfect, and it was incredibly awkward, but he was confident it would do. Ryder was a terrible influence on him. Such confidence should be reserve for those that did not care for consequences. Jeremiah led Ai to a quiet corner, and stood directly in her line of sight. He was taller, so this worked perfectly. He smiled down at her, attempting to draw all her attention to him. He was about to say the most ridiculous thing in his life and if he was going to say it, he wanted to make damn sure she was listening. "Ai, we have been friends for a decent amount of time," he pressed his hand against the wall in order to take up more of her sight from the hall, since (hopefully) Conan would be walking down it about now. "I am attracted to you and wish to make you mine. Your thoughts?" There, he said it. If this didn't take all of her attention from her surroundings, nothing short of a meteor would.
​

 

[Professor Conan Edogawa]

Conan disliked Transfiguration but he attended it today thanks to something that had been bothering his mind for a while. Jeremiah had told him to attend class and make sure that he'll get the chance to talk to Ai. As a matter of fact, Conan was uneasy about this meeting. He hadn't told Taylor about it yet, but he was going to tell her later on. This time he had to go on his own, although he wasn't quite sure about this. Jeremiah had been describing the Hufflepuff girl as a whole different person which Conan thought wasn't a very good sign. It isn't really possible that they were talking about two different people, yet it was like there was a whole different side of Ai that each of them didn't know. For all Conan knew, Ai was very mean and had fear of relationships and separations.

As soon as class had ended, Conan was one of the firsts out of the room. He had to get to the rendezvous place immediately. He wasn't really sure how long Jeremiah would be able to keep Ai's attention and he certainly really didn't want to find out. He just continued on walking and walking and finally ended up on the place they were to meet. The Hufflepuff boy only sneaked around until he thought that Jeremiah was getting most of Ai's attention. He slowly walked up to the two and suddenly frowned at what the Gryffindor told the girl and the only thought that Conan could process was The hell?!

 

[Ai Nightray]

Ai wasn't too much up for lessons. If only she didn't worry too much about her academic performance, she would have just shut herself in her room. It had only been days since the big encounter with Conan and Taylor at the courtyard and the Hufflepuff wasn't quite sure if she wanted to have anything to do with them. Her life had been quite peaceful after that incident. Thankfully, Liam hadn't contacted her yet for the meantime. The only thing she was worried about was her lessons and missing Heath. That was all that was running through her mind when Transfiguration lesson was ongoing until it had ended.

As always, Ai was one the first people out the room and followed her was Jeremiah. She was just about to invite to get some food at the Great Hall when he had suddenly began tugging her. And while she wasn't really going to go all violent at Miah and she was shorter than him, she had no choice but to be taken somewhere she wasn't sure of. She didn't stay too quiet though, there were constant complaints of Where are we going? or Miah, let's just go downstairs! I'm hungry! or You can let go now... Helloooooo? The Hufflepuff girl wasn't really sure where they were headed but they did eventually stop at a secluded place somewhere within the corridors of the fifth floor. The girl was quite confused though as she looked up at Miah and saw him smiling. "What's going on?" she asked curiously before the Gryffindor began to speak. She smiled though as he told her that they've been friends for a while and she couldn't help but think back to the time he had saved her from Liam once. Her attention was now focused on the boy as she listened to every word he was saying. "I'm attracted to you too," Ai giggled as it was true that she was attracted to Jeremiah as her friend. Well, she did stop giggling as soon as the rest of his words sunk into her.

"Wait what?" the Hufflepuff girl suddenly spoke her head going in circles, her head seemingly in the clouds as her thoughts distracted her and took her away from reality. Was that a confession? she asked herself as there was suddenly an inner debate within the girl. Ai liked Heath for a long time and even now, but Jeremiah was saying that he likes her and wanted her to be his. It wasn't like she didn't like Miah, just not in that way but his sudden words were making her as confused as ever as she was trying to think of something to say. She didn't want to hurt the Gryffindor but this was seriously hard. Her eyes kept wandering around the confines of the walls, searching for an answer. Sadly though, it wasn't an answer she had caught sight of, but a hint of trouble that was already near them and behind Jeremiah. "C-Conan," Ai said softly, her eyes in wide circles as she stepped back, ready to run. She wasn't ready to meet her brother. Not yet.

 

[Jeremiah Raven]

At first, this was going perfectly. However, it quickly went a little downhill as soon as Ai replied to what he had said. She was even giggling and smiling. Oh Merlin. He had hoped that she did not like him, because the Gryffindor considered himself rather unlikeable. In fact, he had not even considered the chance of her liking him because the Gryffindor deemed it incredibly unlikely. Now it was a little awkward, and he felt slightly more than terrible. She was a good friend, and the last thing that Gryffindor wanted was to lose that because he was trying to get her to accept her brother's apology - if he was going to apologise. Miah really hoped he apologised, otherwise he just dragged the Hufflepuff here, and lied to her face for nothing. He looked at Ai with the same amount of confusion as she looked at him when she spoke again. Now what was she meaning by that? Did she think he liked her? Did she like him back? Was this all some big, massive misunderstanding? "Pardon?"

Jeremiah spun around when Ai stammered Conan's name. Right behind them was Conan himself. He stopped himself from smiling and grabbed Ai's wrist. It was supposed to be supportive, because he knew that Ai would probably not want to be near Conan - she never did, and even after the awkwardness that had just happened (and still lingered) needed to let Ai know that she was perfectly safe here. Conan wasn't going to hurt her, and if he did, Jeremiah was completely okay with sending a few spells his way or something. The Gryffindor doubted it would come to that, however, otherwise he would not have allowed this meeting to take place. Well, he would not have played any part in it. "Ai, I promise there's absolutely nothing to worry about. I asked for Conan to come. Please don't be upset." And how his Hufflepuff friend was going to react to that, he was not sure, but he looked at Conan expectantly. This was for his benefit, and so he expected the boy to say something comforting or truce enduing to his sister.
​

 

[Professor Conan Edogawa]

Conan was unsure of how to react at this. First, he was told that his sister was being bullied. Second, he was asked by someone he hated to meet up with said person and sister. Third, he just witnessed the person he hated apparently confessing to his sister. And last, his sister supposedly admitted that she too had some attraction to the boy. This was certainly awkward and worth getting frustrated about. These things were circumstances that he would much rather be kept a secret between two people instead of three. He looked at the two people in front of him skeptically. Apparently, their meeting had became some sort of confession frenzy which he was not actually fond of.

Conan was not particularly happy with how Ai was acting towards him. It was almost like she was scared of him. He wasn't really in a costume for Halloween for someone as tough as Ai to be scared about right? He glared at the Gryffindor as he took his sister's wrist. Them being all lovey-dovey was not something the Hufflepuff particularly wanted to see. "Yeah, he did," the boy said in his calm voice which was often emotionless. He didn't want Ai to know his confusion, he'd be showing her a calm facade. "Said something about meeting you while you were being bullied and helpless," Conan shrugged as he let the words out as if he didn't care which in totality was making him confused all the time. "Of course he was joking," the boy immediately followed as he looked at his sister, seeking for the answer he needed to know. "Unless you say otherwise," he said almost glaring at the prefect, pressing her for the answer. Conan wanted the truth, but hoped that he would not be too confused or too angry about it.

 

[Ai Nightray]

Ai was shocked. The previous conversation was already thrown out of the window as soon as she had caught sight of Conan. The thing of attraction would have to wait until a further date because now, she had to hurry to get out of the place. After what happened in the Courtyard, Ai wasn't even sure of when she'll be ready to face her brother again. She'd been keeping herself from breaking down for days because she was as sure as hell that Ryuuji, Heath or Miah wouldn't be happy to see her in a messed up state, so instead, she had kept herself busy and plastered a smile on her face everyday. But having Conan in front of her, glaring and having an almost emotionless look was killing her inside. The Hufflepuff was about to run, until her Gryffindor friend had caught her wrist, ultimately stopping her from doing so. She stared at her friend wide-eyed as he told her that it was his fault that the Hufflepuff boy was there with them. "Y-you?" she stammered, barely getting her voice out. "Y-you asked him to... to come?" Ai asked. She wanted to get out of there, right now, while she could still keep her tears at bay.

Ai was still getting over the shock of knowing that it was Jeremiah who had planned this whole meeting with Conan. But hearing the Hufflepuff boy's words were almost killing her inside. Conan came just because Miah had asked him and not because he cared? It was almost as if the whole thing was alright with him. "You told him about s-something like that too?" Ai asked in disbelief. Jeremiah knowing her relationship with Liam had been bad enough, but Conan knowing about it seemed much worse. Especially how he was being ignorant of the whole situation and yet wanting to know the truth. "W-why Miah? How could you?" the Hufflepuff felt betrayed. She had been depending on Jeremiah and trusted him, but it just seemed that he was killing her with the meeting he had planned secretly. It might have been better if he had let Taylor know, at the very least it was expected that she wouldn't care. But letting Conan know and then showing her that her brother didn't care at all seemed like a rather big slap in the face. "And you," her voice barely came out as she pointed a finger at her brother. She was trying so hard to keep tears at bay that she didn't care anymore if she was feeling pain inside or even having a bit of trouble breathing. She didn't want to cry in front of these two. "Leave. Me. Alone," each word was laced with venom as she pulled her hand away from the Gryffindor. She couldn't believe she let herself be led to a corner with the two boys blocking her way.

 

[Jeremiah Raven]

Jeremiah held her eye-contact. He had done this, and he would do it again. He regretted hurting Ai, but he did not regret trying to help her and her brother come together as a true family should. He nodded to her stammered question. "Yes Ai, I did. I would do it again, because you need to speak to your brother and you must to it before it is too late." He knew that she was probably going to be very, very upset with him. He only hoped that their friendship would be enough for her to trust him enough to let this happen and hear Conan out. He then snapped his head over to Conan. "Could you stop being a callous brat for one moment, Conan?" he growled. The Gryffindor was not in the mood for Conan's own 'mood', he was sick and tired of Conan being a rotten egg. "She is your sister and she is obviously uncomfortable around you because you are one of the biggest jerks that could ever live on this planet. Why don't you remove whatever chip there is on your shoulder and behave like a proper brother. Take a step towards peace and understanding you bonehead. You're here, you might as well pretend to care." He gave Ai an apologetic look, as he felt horrible for doing this to her, and then scolding her brother right in front of her. But, hopefully, that would excite some sort of response from within either Hufflepuff that could help them come together as a family. "You know damn well that I was not joking. Not everything is how you think. Your narrow point of view is not always the most important, Conan, hear her out for at least a few minutes."

Jeremiah's eyes then slowly slid to Ai, who was upset with him, he could tell. He sighed. "Because, Ai, I had to. He is your brother - whether you wish to accept or admit that is your decision. However, you grew up together and must love each other in some capacity. He has the right to know when his sister is and is not being bullied." he released her wrist and petted it apologetically, before retracting his hand to play with his collar. "I am sorry I betrayed your trust. But I hope that this will be a time where you and Conan can talk-" he stared directly at Conan. "-And listen wholeheartedly. I refuse to believe that two, such close, siblings can not find a way to fix this fight. You are twins, born and grew up together. Sort this. At least try." The pure-blood felt he was getting all mushy or something, it was really weird, but he wanted both to understand how serious this was. "Now please, at least ask the questions you have felt you couldn't, for this might be the only chance you two have to stay in one place and talk." The Gryffindor then took a step back, still within range to be called upon, but far enough to give them some space and privacy.
​

 

[Professor Conan Edogawa]

Conan was not at all sure now about the two's relationship. Well, at first he had suspicions about their friendship but found out that it was surprisingly authentic. And then he apparently heard a confession spree from the two though they're not really acting like they have feelings for each other at all. He decided to shrug off for the moment the speculation he first had and instead paid attention to what was happening right now. "Hey, I'm already doing my best here," the Hufflepuff sneered as the Gryffindor growled at him. He wasn't really trying to be a callous brat, he just was. Especially in front of the two people in front of him. "Well, I'm a jerk by nature if that's what you want to know. Not to everyone though," Conan shrugged as he let his eyes wander to the confines of the corridor that they walked into. "I am being a proper brother here by being who I really am. Bonehead or not, learn to face the reality that this is me. It's just a simple take it or leave it situation. I don't really care either way." He wasn't really happy to be there but since Jeremiah had told him about Ai's situation, curiosity had gotten the best of the Hufflepuff. But since Ai was being dramatic and weird and the Gryffindor was just plainly scolding him, he wasn't much up for the bullying thing anymore. If it was true. "As you may or may not have noticed, I'm not very good at acting so I might as well not try to pretend to care," he said as he rolled his eyes. Conan had no intention of pretending just for the sake of it. If he had to pretend the care it would be for something that truly happened instead of some make-believe bullying act.

Conan just continued to watch the exchange between the Gryffindor and his fellow Hufflepuff. Now it was obvious that there was nothing between them but friendship. After all, the girl was pretty upset with the Jeremiah so all Conan had to do was watch them. "You don't have to say it so loud. I'm not miles away from you and I AM listening," the Japanese stated plainly, emphasizing that he really was listening to the conversation going on. Sure he was a jerk, but he does listen when being talked to, he just doesn't obey or follow everything the other party tells him. "We are far from being close as you can see. And ever since we were nothing of the sort." He wasn't really appreciating how Jeremiah was being all mushy and so, he had to at least deny things for him to stop being all sweet and annoying. "I believe we grew up hating each other because she had been a spoiled b!tch ever since. You can try asking our family about her, I'm sure they'll tell you the same things," the older twin said as he looked directly at his sister's eyes. He still remembered so well how their aunts had disowned her for being a spoiled and conceited brat and he was as sure as hell that Ai remembers that too. He looked at the Gryffindor as he moved away from him and Ai before turning his attention back to the girl. "So, how's your acting coming along?" Conan suddenly brought up as he let his gaze wander, giving the impression of how annoyed and bored he was at the moment. "Bet you're doing great since you managed to fool that idiot. Are you really that desperate to have a friend, Ai?" he shrugged as he looked straight into her eyes. The Ai Edogawa that she was seeing now was someone completely different from the sister he had grown up with. If anything, she seemed more broken and lonely than ever before. But, he knew her acting skills were beyond excellent as she took on from their deceased mother and so, he didn't allow himself to dwell on her emotions. "You won't be fooling me though. I don't know what you're trying to pull but I won't be falling for your tricks," the boy said, his voice laced with venom. He believe that Ai hadn't changed. He knew that Ai was still the same person that would charge into a fight, not caring about the consequences and he was convincing himself that all of this was a part of Ai's acting. "So you better tell the truth right here, right now about how you were not being bullied and there's no way that you are helpless." Conan said as he was glaring at her, daring her to say otherwise. He knew that all of this was some big messed-up situation that was Ai's fault. For Conan, right now, everything was Ai's fault.

 

[Ai Nightray]

Ai remained silent. She had no idea what to do anymore. All she could do for now was keep her tears at bay and after this little exchange rush her way to do something productive. She had to keep herself busy. Very busy. She didn't need to have a breakdown or even want to. Kate had graduated years ago, Ryuuji-niisan had graduated recently, Heath was too busy, JazzyMae was hard to find and she didn't know how she could talk to Miah normally yet. It seemed that she was carrying the whole world's problems when in reality she was only handling her own and yet she can barely take it. The exchange between the two boys were not in deaf ears as Ai had been listening the whole time. And in totality, Ai was slowly losing it by the minute. Conan's words were just too heartless for her since she knew that some things that the Hufflepuff was saying were lies. How could they be true? She and Conan had grown up together happily and contented without even knowing magic. She'd depended on him and even as she did so, he never left her alone. Until their first year in Hogwarts wherein he had left her all alone even until now where he mocked her and continued to hurt her both physically and emotionally. Had she really been so wrong to depend on Conan when they were little? She always knew that it was wrong that she depended on him too much, but, was it really enough to change his treatment towards her? Were those happening before really enough to make him hate her so much?

Ai watched as Miah backed away from the two of them. She didn't like this at all for she knew that Conan wasn't about to make up with her or maybe comfort her or even just have a simple conversation. "What are you talking about?" the girl asked worriedly and she knew that trouble was already fast approaching. She listened to her brother's words and found herself tearing up as it was getting harder and harder to keep the tears. "Shut up," she said in a soft voice but enough for Conan to hear, trying to make an effort to cover her ears. She didn't want to hear anymore of what Conan has to say. Her tears began to show as they were already uncontrollable and all Ai could do was scream, "SHUT UP!!!" She had to stop Conan. She didn't care anymore about the two boys seeing her all messed up. She had had enough of keeping herself from breaking down and now, all her pent up feelings were bursting as tears continuously slid down her face. "How can you be so f*cking thick?!" She knew Miah nor Ryuuji would appreciate her yelling but right now, she was bursting with anger and sadness. "How long are you going to convince yourself that I am ALWAYS the bad guy?!" Ai knew that she'd probably regret what she was doing now, but everything else had been put at the back of her head. All that's left for her to think of was how Conan had left her alone and now, didn't even trust her. "Want to know the everything, genius?!" she said, her face scrunched up in anger despite her tears. "Then get it through you thick skull that I've changed d@mmit! Did you even stop to think that it had been freaking years since you talk to me normally or just as my brother?!" Why can't he notice it? If it were from before, Ai would have already tried to beat him up, but she wasn't. Instead, there she was, barely taking a step towards Conan and just yelling and crying like she had never done so before. "It's been four f*cking years Conan since you left me alone!" Ai could only collapse on the floor, barely breathing through her sobs. She must have looked awfully messed up but her appearance was the least of her cares. "Why can't you just be like before?" she said barely above a whisper. "You said you'd be there for me!" she screamed remembering his words from when they were younger. "Where were you every time Conan? You're there to make things worse!" She remembered everything from when they fought at the cliffs. Everytime that they would meet, it was a disaster ending up with Conan being a jerk and her being awfully hurt. And now, here he was mocking her, insulting her, hurting her and being the most heartless person or creature she knew. "How could you even think that I would trick anyone? You knew me better than anyone," she said, her voice barely above a whisper as she let herself drown in her sobs and cries. Ai didn't care anymore how Jeremiah or Conan would react to her sudden breakdown but one thing's for sure, she needed someone to be there for her because at the moment, it felt like she was all alone.

 

[Jeremiah Raven]

If he were allowed, Jeremiah would have probably hexed Conan, because Merlin knew the Hufflepuff deserved it. Jerks like him should just to thrown into the ocean with lead on their heels. He was just such an irritation. No-one would miss him - except maybe Taylor, but she was not the perfect example of emotional stability. It was be a gift Conan was born with. He had a knack for driving people insane. He ignored the boy for the majority of the time. Everything he had to say was probably rubbish anyway and would be of no significance to the Gryffindor. He also tried his best to ignore their conversation, for it was supposed to be a private affair, except now that they were screaming at each other, it was rather difficult to hide. Even in the corner of the corridor, people were beginning to wonder what was going on, and the Italian doubted it looked good. For what they would see were two boys forcing a rather emotional girl into a corner. What with Conan being as big a jerk as he was, they probably both looked like gits. With the majority of his face in his hand, he sighed. Now she was swearing at Conan. He was surprised at how quickly the languages between them was going down the gutter - call him naïve, but he had hoped that they would make up and be family again. He really was too obvious for his own good.

Miah approached them, and managed to position himself beside Ai to try and remove the imposing position Conan held by giving her back up. As her words drifted into that of a whisper, Jeremiah put his arm around her shoulders and rubbed her arm. This was his fault. Now his friend was crying and even though Conan caused it, he brought her here. He should never have trusted Conan to actually want to help. Conan was an idiot - a self confessed bonehead. No amount of meddling would give the boy an intelligence. He brought his face close to her ear. "I'm sorry, Ai," the ability to apparate would have been lovely. Unfortunately, the school barred it and he had next to no idea how to actually accomplish it without leaving the majority of himself behind. However, he could accio a handkerchief, which he did with a quiet mutter and wave of his wand. He then presented the handkerchief to Ai so she could wipe her face. He turned his head to Conan. "Are you pleased? Do you believe now?"
​

 

[Professor Conan Edogawa]

Conan was speechless with Ai bursting out. He wasn't really too surprised that she had burst like that but he was already expecting a number of different events to happen. And they didn't happen and that was really what made him surprised. He thought that Ai would walk out on him, or maybe he'd even try to beat him up to death. He also thought that his sister would be blaming Jeremiah about all of this or maybe even land a punch or two despite being her friend since he had partly betrayed her. But none of those happened. All that happened was Ai screaming and crying. End of story. Could it be really true that what he was seeing now was the true Ai and not just a simple facade or act she was putting up?

Conan's face showed true confusion for the first time in years. He didn't know what to believe anymore. Now that he stopped to think about it, he did notice that it had been years since he had last talked to his sister just as a brother. It never occurred to him that his sister, Ai, would become so broken in front of him. Before, she would always keep her tears from him, but now here she was, completely messed up. He looked at her and remained silent even as the Gryffindor had approached her and comforted her. Even whispering in her ear that something Conan didn't hear and summoning a handkerchief. He had already dismissed the thought of Jeremiah and Ai being together since they weren't really acting like it earlier, but the Gryffindor's actions seemed to imply that he was her boyfriend. He couldn't really process things right at the moment as he could only draw conclusions from what he was actually seeing. He was pulled out from his thoughts though as the the other boy spoke. He was debating with himself at the boy's question but had decided to play ignorance for now. "Yep, you're acting skills sure are really good. You really are our mother's daughter. Just make sure that next time, you can actually convince me," he said in a mocking tone. For now, he had to make sure of who Ai really was now before he would decide what he should do.

 

[Ai Nightray]

Ai was silent except for her cries and sobs. She refrained from speaking any more than she had to. She wasn't as strong as she wished she was. She was a weak girl who had gotten lucky with the things and opportunities she had been receiving. She was grateful for having friends who were there for her and all, but now she was wondering where all of them were. Why weren't they there for her when she needed the most. She needed them now but they, all of them, were nowhere to be found. Thus, while she needed comfort, all she could do was sob and cry her heart out. Miah bringing Conan had been forgotten as soon as he had put his arms around her. She wouldn't stop crying unless he said it was already bothersome. But for now, she didn't want to stop her tears. The Hufflepuff had the handkerchief in her hands but didn't even remember to use said item. She was only crying and that was it, she was listening to Miah and Conan conversing and was even more so saddened by Conan's answer, but she couldn't change anything now, could she? Her eyes were already swollen and red and her eyes seemed to lose emotion as she cried. She hoped Conan would leave already and for she could not take any more of his heartless words.

 

[Jeremiah Raven]

Jeremiah brought Ai closer and rubbed her back as she continued to sob. He felt terrible for doing this to her. He should not have tried to fix their problems, obviously, Conan was not interested in working this out. Ai could not very well make it all better by herself, and he couldn't help because he and Conan hated each other. Conan himself would have to want to fix this, and since he's just a useless waste of space, it was highly unlikely that he would man-up a little, swallow his inflated pride and actually be a decent human being. He began getting Ai ready to leave, since there was no need to remain here. She had to get cleaned up. However Conan made him pause and narrow his eyes. The Hufflepuff really needed to learn a few things, and the Gryffindor was in the mood to teach him. He was going to hate himself later, but that was later and this was now. "You are such a pig." Pulling away from Ai for a moment, the Gryffindor scrunched up his fist and slammed it into Conan's face with a left hook - and it really hurt. By Merlin did it hurt. He was most certainly not going to do this again.

He looked back at Ai, this scenario being suspiciously familiar, and grabbed her arm - before running away. He had no idea where they were running - but they were just going to continue running until one of them either fainted, or they found somewhere to hide. Because, if the Gryffindor knew Conan, and unfortunately he did, he had the sneaking suspicion that Conan would not be terribly pleased with him, considered he happened to be wearing some rings on his left hand today.
​

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--FINISHED--​

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