A/N: Hello everyone! Summer vacation is officially here and I now have loads of time to write. But with that also comes some weekends when I'm going to be gone… like this upcoming weekend. Heh. I'm going to my grandparent's house this Saturday-Tuesday so there won't be a Sunday update. But, if I work hard enough, I could have an update for you guys on Friday. So let's hope for that :] Oh and I ended up changing Hermione's birthday and middle name last chapter to fit this one. So to clarify: Hermione JANE Granger was born on September 19, 1979.
Thanks to my beta Vincent. You rock!
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Disclaimer: Harry Potter and Jessica's Guide aren't mine no matter how much I ask Santa.
Enjoy!
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Strange and Beautiful
"To me, you're strange and you're beautiful,
You'd be so perfect with me but you just can't see,
You turn every head but you don't see me."
- Aqualung (Strange and Beautiful)
Today was going to be an off day.
From the moment my alarm went off informing me of the weather this morning I knew that something was wrong. There was no clear evidence, seeing as I was still in my room, staring at my white plaster ceiling, and the deep baritone of the weatherman certainly wasn't giving anything away, but I just knew. It didn't help that today was my first day of Year 13-my last year of school. I should be excited, exhilarated, or even giddy. Instead I had a dark feeling of dread in the pit of my stomach that made me feel almost nauseous.
I turned my alarm off and threw my comforter to the side, hoping that I could walk the unwelcome feeling out of system. As I slipped my feet into the slippers that were placed on the side of my bed I knew that that wasn't going to be an option. This wasn't one of those passing senses that could be easily avoided. It was one of those feelings; the ones I've been getting since before I could remember - the ones that usually led to disaster.
I remembered the last time I woke up like this: It was a little over two years ago and after I passed the feeling off as nothing, my parents sat me down and told me that I was a witch. Can you believe that? A witch! They said that everything weird that had been happening to me had to do with magic and my powers maturing. Of course, you could probably sum up my reaction when I heard that. I thought they had gone positively insane. I laughed for a minute straight and told them that if they really expected me to believe that, they should both buy round-trip tickets for Loony Land out of my university account.
Magic does not exist. It's against everything I have been taught since I began schooling. Scientific evidence proves that everything deemed "magical" was simply chemical. Magic shows put on to entertain the masses were just a clever use of mirrors and sly talent. Only in books and films did magic exist; and that was only to create false hope in children whose minds were too underdeveloped to perceive magic as inconceivable. I, on the other hand, was smart and had a very overdeveloped brain (something of which I am somewhat proud), so magic was not something that could exist to me. Sure, it is entertaining and somewhat interesting to think that somewhere out there, there really is a school named Hogwarts with students from around England enrolled to practice their talents. It might even make for a great children's book one day. But places like that only existed in ones imagination; in this case, my parent's.
I do have to give them some credit for thinking all of that up. They went so in-depth with their explanation that for a moment I almost believed them, but then I reminded myself that it was magic and wizards that they were talking about and remembered my place. They explained things like Hogwarts and an organization named the Order of the Phoenix of which they were a part of as "Muggle" correspondents; "Muggle" being a term they said described non-magical people, ergo, them. I think that was where they lost me. You see, if they were these "Muggles" then how could I possess any magical abilities whatsoever? It made no sense. If I was to really believe them, then they should have had some magic in them as well and passed it down to me by blood. But no, according to them, I was somewhat of a miracle. Fat chance.
After rearranging my sheets and pillows to their proper positions, I made my way to the washroom to get ready: brushing my teeth for two minutes, gargling mouthwash for thirty seconds, and then finally showering and drying my hair. If this routine sounds too precise for believability, then I'm sorry to disappoint. I am a very organized individual and have always followed the same routine. Normalcy is a relief to me; anything otherwise is problematic and adds to my overall stress level, and the last thing I need right now is stress. Being at the top of my class is a very heavy burden to bear and I'm surprised that I haven't cracked yet. As I said; normalcy is my rock. If anything was out of place, then I would have a problem. But for now, I count myself thankful that I'm not in a psych ward.
Dressing in my normal school attire - jeans, tee-shirt, jumper, and a pair of high tops - I padded downstairs to have breakfast. Today was the only day of the year I didn't have to make it myself. My mum always took it upon herself to make a celebratory meal to send me off to my first day of school and today was no exception. I smelled the cinnamon flapjacks from the last step of the stairs and hurried to the kitchen. As I entered, I saw my mum finishing the last of the sausage links on the stove and my father reading the morning newspaper from his normal seat at the table. The flapjacks and eggs were already on the table and I hurried over to my chair and began piling the food onto my plate. Right on cue, my mum set a plate of sausage links beside my plate and I grabbed a few of those as well.
"Thank you, mum." I said before taking my first bite of eggs.
She gave me a kind smile. "You're welcome, dear. Now don't eat too quickly, you still have plenty of time until school starts."
"I know, but I wanted to fit in some reading before I have to head off."
I could hear my mum roll her eyes. "Honestly, Hermione, give yourself a break. School hasn't even started yet and you're already reading the textbooks?"
"Not the textbooks, mum, summer reading. I forgot that I was supposed to finish up The Sound and the Fury before class today."
"Still, it's not reason enough to give yourself a stomachache before your last first day of school."
I sighed and continued to eat. I knew she was right, but school has always been the most important thing to me. Label me whatever you like, it would only get me further in life.
I finished in a record two minutes and hurried to rinse off my dish in the sink. I could only vaguely hear my mum calling after me, but ignored her in my rush to finish up my book. I reached my room quickly and pulled out the book from my backpack, flipping to the page with the small envelope I used as a bookmark.
The book in itself wasn't very intriguing, but I knew that it was going to be discussed today in class and if I wanted to keep my participation grade up, I had to at least know what I was talking about. Faulkner's style of writing wasn't what I deemed the best and I had no clue why our teacher assigned this particular book to read over the summer, but I was the one who had enrolled in an honors literature class so I really had no room to complain. All of my summer work was finished and this was the only assignment I had yet to complete thanks to my summer job working at a local diner. I worked from nine to five every other day, excluding the weekend and got a decent amount of money to prove it. I knew that if I wanted to keep the car that my parents had gotten me for my birthday last year I had to pull my weight and pay for petrol on my own for the summer. During school, they had no problem forking over thirty or so pounds every few days to help me get to school and back. Summer, on the other hand, was all on me.
The last few pages were finished within twenty minutes and I looked at my clock to make sure I still had time to get to school. I did. If I left now, I would have a good ten minutes before the first bell would ring. So with that goal in mind, I put the book back in my bag and slung it over my right shoulder, making sure to grab the keys that were on my bedside table.
As I headed down the stairs for the second time, I yelled a goodbye to my parents and heard them respond just before I closed the door to head out to my car, a lovely red Jeep Grand Cherokee that looked new as the day my parents had given it to me. I remember the reaction I had when my dad opened the garage door the day I turned seventeen to show me the car. I had never expected them to get me something this extravagant, but they claimed they had good reason; it was a reward for my perfect grades. I couldn't really argue with that.
As I opened the door to throw my backpack in, I felt myself stiffen. Something wasn't right. I turned around in a slow 360-degree circle and looked around. Nothing was there and yet my body was still stiff. If I didn't know any better, I would say that someone was watching me. But that was ridiculous. No one was around here. Unless they could make themselves invisible, there was no way anyone was here besides me. I tried to relax, but there was still an uneasiness surrounding my senses. Maybe I was just paranoid because of how I woke up this morning. Yes, that was all it was. I was too paranoid.
So I moved my paranoid ass out of there as quickly as I could.
Only when I was on the main road did I allow myself to relax. Whatever that had been it was gone. Knowing me, I was probably just overreacting to a squirrel's gaze on me and nothing else.
Relax, Hermione, I mentally told myself, whatever it was, it's gone now. No need to dwell too much on it.
I breathed in deep through my nose and nodded. It was gone and I could move on and, more importantly, focus on the road so that I didn't get in an accident.
Yes, squirrels are unimportant, accidents are bad. Focus on the road.
The trip to school took little more than ten minutes. I pulled up to the large building and steered in the direction of the student parking lot. I parked in my assigned space and pulled my bag from where I'd put it in the passenger's seat. Thankfully, my space was close to the walkway that leads to the entrance so I only had to walk a few hundred meters before I reached the front doors.
The distinct school smell filled my senses instantly and I relished in it. Unlike many of my fellow classmates, I enjoyed learning and looked at each day spent at school as one step closer to my new life rather than freedom, although that was a nice thought as well.
Livonia High is a spectacle among the schools of London. Instead of being named after a historical figure or important location, it received its name from the first principal that led the school back in 1612. It was one of the older schools, but still maintained modern equipment in most departments. If you observed the grounds only, you would think it some privatized school for snobs, but it was, indeed, public to all who wanted to attend. It was built from brown and tan brick with white windows that allowed lots of sunlight into the many classrooms. The main entrance had three pillars holding up a formal archway that looked to be carved by some sort of architectural genius and three sets of oaken double-doors that were all propped open. Bushes and flowers tended by the gardening club lined the perimeter and the grass was perfectly trimmed.
Remember, this is a state school. My theory is that the outside is just a façade built to dupe passersby that our student body was very well mannered and deserved nothing but the best. In reality, it was the opposite. If you observed the inner workings of this school for a day, you would think that it was a zoo rather than a school.
I began maneuvering the hallways to find my locker, which was located near the gymnasium. There were a few bundles of students in various places, catching up with hugs and conversation about their holidays. My high tops made tiny padding noses against the newly polished stone floors; one of the familiar sounds my ears were welcomed back to. I arrived at my locker and entered the combination by the turning lock. It was already pre-decorated since I chose to get that out of the way when I picked up my schedule. I had a small cork-board/whiteboard on the door with a small magnetic bin filled with dry erase markers, thumbtacks, and extra utensils underneath it. In the top cubby, I had put a handy shelving system to organize all of my reading material and extra knick-knacks. At the bottom, I had another larger one that organized all of my folders and textbooks. The only thing that wasn't in use were the three hooks that most filled with extra sweaters and things, but I only used when it got chilly. There was no sense in using space if it wasn't going to be beneficial.
I pulled out my schedule and remembered I had my Honors Literature class first period. I pulled out the binder I had put at the bottom labeled HonLit and put it in my bag along with a few pencils and pens. I also put in my HonChem folder in there since I had the class before lunch.
"Well lookie what we have here. Perfect student Hermione Granger preparing for the first classes of her day as an official Senior." A sly voice said from behind me.
I turned around and smiled. "Hey Kat."
Katherine Brennan was my gorgeous, perfect best friend. She had wavy strawberry blonde hair that was currently half pulled back with a cute little bow, sun kissed skin, perfectly applied makeup, and an outfit that would probably get her yelled at by half of the teachers in our school by first period. It was a wonder she wasn't a cheerleader or held some other popular title, but she chose to be above all of those labels and hang around me instead. It was one of the mysteries in my life that I could not comprehend.
"You mind if I put my jumper in your locker? Mine's jammed already and Chuck said he can't get it open until after lunch. Looks like the lockers in this school aren't what they used to be."
"Sure." I said as I moved aside and let her hang her pink bejeweled jumper on one of my hooks. She then gave me a look that asked if I was done using my locker and I nodded. She promptly shut it and we began walking down the hallway together.
"So how was your summer, Herm?" She asked.
"I told you to stop calling me that." I scolded. She was unperturbed by my retort, as usual, so I simply sighed and answered her question. "Pretty uneventful. I worked at Tom's Café in town for most of it and paid for my gas and a few books. It's not like I went to Paris like some other people I know."
Kat blushed. "It's not my fault I have an aunt who loves to spoil me. Besides, contrary to my first thought, there aren't many hot blokes in Paris."
"Really?"
She bit her lip as I stared her down. "Well there was one, but nothing really happened. It was sad, really. I spent all of my time at the bakery he works at, talking with him, but never found the guts to ask him out for coffee. It was pathetic."
"Oh come off it. Tell me you at least enjoyed the sights while you were there."
"Well of course. Being the history geek I am, I went everywhere and even got you a few souvenirs."
"Seriously?" I asked, excitement bubbling up in my stomach.
"Yep, but I'm not going to give them to you until your birthday to be fair."
I sighed. "Fine. But now I'm going to spend my whole day wondering what you got little old me."
She giggled. "But enough about my adventure, what shenanigans did you get up to at Tom's?"
"Well my first day, I slipped and nearly broke five plates."
"Wow, that's really interesting." She said dryly. "Come on, tell me the dirty details! I know who else got a job there on the same schedule as you. Spill."
I rolled my eyes as I passed a couple of horny freshman groping each other behind one of the vending machines. "We ended up talking a lot when things got slow. He's a lot mellower than I thought."
"Oh come on, Herm, that is so boring. Give me more than that!"
I shrugged. "Sorry Kat, that's all that happened."
We arrived at out class and took our seats in the back. Mr. Cain always let us pick our seats at the beginning of the year just so he didn't have to waste time making a seating chart. I put my bag on the left of my desk and turned to see Kat looking at me expectantly. I looked away quickly and got out my materials for the class.
"You're telling me," She said as I pulled out my binder, "that you spent an entire summer with Drake, the boy you've had a crush on since last year, just talking? Why did you make a move?!"
"Kat, hush!" I said when she yelled. "I'm not like you. I can't ask guys out."
"Well obviously I'm not like me either or else I would have gotten some action this summer." I snorted. "But seriously, why didn't you?"
"Like I said-I can't ask out guys, especially ones that are out of my league."
"Drake is so not out of your league!" Kat said as though she had been personally offended. "You are gorgeous, so is he, so you two would make the most gorgeous babies on the planet."
"So that's it then? You think because we would have cute kids it would be enough reason to go for it?"
"Hell yes!" She said with a wide grin. "You guys would be great together. Besides, you haven't gone out with anyone since Robby Benson and that was five years ago. Don't tell me he scared you so much you swore off guys for life."
"No, he didn't." I said plainly. "We only went out for three days and it wasn't a very memorable experience."
"My God woman, than freaking go for it! I swear if you don't then-well wouldn't you know it, speak of the devil and he shall appear."
I craned my neck to where she was looking and saw that she was right. Drake Malloy was just coming through the door looking as though he just walked out of a photo shoot for Playgirl, except that he still had his clothes on. Damnit.
Drake was a good six feet tall with bleach blonde hair the perfect length to run your fingers through. His eyes were a piercing silver shade and highly accentuated by his pale compaction which had been slightly darkened by the summer sun. His outfit today consisted of a gray and white striped wool sweater, dark washed jeans, and loafers. What made the picture of him even more alluring was that he wasn't even trying to look this good.
His eyes scanned the room until they fell on me. I was about to look away and berate myself for acting like a love struck moron when he smiled and waved. I felt my face heat up slightly but tried to cover it up by returning his gesture. Then, he surprised me by making his way through the desks and sitting in the seat directly in front of mine, something I never would have expected in this lifetime.
"Hey Hermione." He said charmingly as he put his backpack close to mine on the floor. "Haven't seen you in a while."
"Oh yes, last Friday certainly is a long time to be apart."
"Most definitely." He agreed. "I'm going to miss working with you. We had a lot of fun."
I smiled. "Yeah, it was great getting to know you better."
"Ditto." He said before reaching behind him on his desk to pull out his copy of The Sound and the Fury. "So did you get this book at all? Because the whole time I was reading it I thought I was going through one massive hangover."
I chuckled. "Yeah, I got the gist of it. Faulkner has an, err, interesting way of writing is all. All you have to do is decipher it and go on from there."
"Well not all of us are top of our class and can crack the cipher." He said teasingly.
I blushed. "It's not terribly difficult. I could have helped you if you asked for it."
It was his turn to look embarrassed. "I wanted to… but to be honest, I was a bit scared."
I looked at him oddly. "Why were you scared?"
"Well you're, you know, the smartest person in this school and I thought that if I asked you anything school related, you might think I was an idiot."
Was it weird that I was a bit touched? Yeah, probably, but I didn't care. Drake Malloy was intimidated by me!
"I wouldn't have thought that at all. I would have loved to help you out."
"Really?"
"Of course."
"Well, if that's the case, I'm probably going to need loads of help in math. So maybe you and I could-"
"Ho-ly crap."
I wanted to smack Kat for interrupting what was sure to be another opportunity to get even closer to Drake. I turned over to her to ask what was wrong, though, but saw that she was staring wide-eyed at the door. I followed her line of sight and I saw what she was so amazed at. There, standing in the doorway looking back and forth between his schedule and the number plastered outside the classroom, was someone I had never seen or met before, but was very intent on wanting to. I couldn't explain it, but I couldn't take my eyes off of him.
And then he lifted his eyes and met mine almost instantly, causing a very familiar sensation to wash through me like a new tide.
His eyes were the shade of emeralds and covered with a pair of silver circular glasses. And to be honest, that was the only thing I noticed as I stared at him. Oh crap, I was staring! I quickly pulled my eyes away and turned back around to Drake and Kat. Drake was looking rather upset about something, but I dismissed it as nothing.
"Who is that guy?" Kat asked in awe.
"I dunno." I answered in a breathy voice.
"Looks like a real asshole to me." Drake said in a low voice.
Kat and I turned over to Drake. He had the same expression of disgust on his features and turned to look at us when he realized we were looking at him. Kat spoke up first, "I don't think so. He's gorgeous and gorgeous guys are not assholes. It's like the unspoken law of hotness."
"Kat," I said, highly amused by her analogy. "That makes no sense. For all we know he could be the next Adolf Hitler."
"Well call me a Nazi, because I would sure like to be under his power."
"Kat!"
"Oh come on, Herms. You saw him! Tell me you wouldn't like to tap that."
I refused to look back over at him. "I am not having this discussion with you. Pardon me if I don't think Nazis and sexual innuendos should be in the same sentence."
"Well you should have compared him with something else, then."
I snorted. "Kat, you are incorrigible."
She shrugged and went back to starring at the newcomer, who was making his way to Mr. Cain's desk. I followed him as well but quickly pulled myself away. I was in the middle of a discussion with Drake and had full intent of finishing it. But when I turned to him, his back was facing me and he looked to be fully immersed in his notepad.
Damnit.
The bell rang and the rest of the class came pouring in. Looks like I wouldn't have had any time to talk anyway. The rest of the class found their seats and I turned to face the front of the room. The new guy was gone, presumably finding his seat among the rest of the other students.
"Welcome back." Mr. Cain said with a grin. "First off, let me take attendance to make sure you are all in the right place. Heather Abbey?"
"Here."
He continued down the list and I said the appropriate response when he called my name. After I put my hand down did I feel it - the same sensation I had earlier at my car. The feeling of being watched. My back was stiff and I unconsciously craned my neck to look around my shoulder to the row on my left and a few seats back. My eyes connected with the familiar bespectacled ones of the nameless new guy. He was staring at me intently and showed no sign of embarrassment or anger that he had been caught staring. He just continued to observe me, only blinking when it seemed necessary.
"Harry Potter?"
His eyes never wavered from mine as he moved his lips to emit a distinct "Present."
His name being called only added to the sensation. I felt goose bumps form down my arm and forced myself to look away. It didn't make any difference. I could still feel his eyes on me. I struggled to maintain my composure throughout the rest of Mr. Cain's obligatory welcome speech. I kept on reminding myself that this Harry fellow could only stare at me for so long without becoming bored. I wasn't exactly the picture of a perfect womanly figure, what with my too-skinny build and boring choice of clothes and hairstyle. But still, his blatant stare continued throughout the class period and never wavered.
The class was exactly what I predicted; Mr. Cain opened the floor for discussion immediately after going through the class guidelines. I did my best to participate as often as I felt necessary, but it was very hard to do with Harry's eyes following my every movement. Finally, the bell rang to signify the end of class and I bolted from the room, eager to get away from him.
But apparently, fate had other plans.
By some ridiculous alignment of the stars, Harry Potter was placed in every single one of my classes. And in every single one of those classes, his eyes never left me. In Honors Chemistry, his seat was directly behind me, which only made things worse. Close proximity only added to the uncomfortable environment that surrounded me.F
During lunch, though there were ten tables between us, I still felt his stare. It was very hard to eat with that much attention being paid to you. I had half a mind to storm over to him and demand what his problem was. Too bad I wasn't a very assertive person or I would have done just that.
"Herms, you okay?" Kat asked me, her head tilted to the side.
"Yeah, I'm fine." I lied.
"There's no use lying to me, princess. This morning you were a ray of sunshine and now you're a little black raincloud."
I sighed. "You know that new guy, Harry something?"
Her face brightened. "You mean Mr. I-wanna-rip-your-clothes-off?"
I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, him."
She narrowed her eyes. "What-do you not like him or something?"
"He's been staring at me all day, Kat." I said quietly. "I haven't said a word to him and yet he feels the need to stare me down like I'm something interesting."
"You are something interesting, Herms. You're a regulation hottie. Obviously, he sees something he likes and can't take his eyes off of you. Girl, I'm jealous!"
"Well don't be, it's creeping me out."
"You're joking, right?" I shook my head. "When a guy pays you this much attention, you're supposed to be flattered, not appalled."
"Sorry if I don't have much experience." I said hotly.
She sighed and took a bite out of her sandwich instead of responding.
"Kat, it just doesn't feel right." I confessed. She gave me an odd look. "It doesn't feel like he's staring at me because he… sees something he likes."
"Then what does it feel like?"
I tried to think of a way to put it before speaking. "Like he's studying me."
"Studying you? What does that even mean?"
"I dunno. But that's the only way I can think of putting it. It's kind of like I'm more of a complex Shakespearean play rather than a graphic adult novel."
"Oh." She said in understanding. "So to him you're an old playwright and not a hot busty babe."
I flinched. "That's one way to put it, I guess."
"Oh Herms, I didn't mean-"
"It's okay, it's fine. I just need to focus on my studies and not Harry's weird fascination with me."
Kat nodded. She took another bite of her sandwich when she looked back at me with a thoughtful expression. "You know what I find odd? That this Harry guy hasn't even approached you yet. He strikes me as the kind of guy who when he sees what he wants, he goes for it."
"Kat, you haven't even talked to him."
"Neither have you." She countered. "I don't think anyone has yet, so all we have to work with is our opinions."
I sighed.
"Is he still looking?"
"Yes." I said without thought.
"You didn't even look."
"I don't have to." I said in a monotone. "I can feel his eyes on me."
"Really?" She asked in awe. "Like a sixth sense or something?"
I shrugged. "I guess."
"Right on."
And the topic was dropped. In Psychology and Math nothing changed. As soon as the bell rang, I felt his eyes on me and couldn't shake them off.
At the end of the day, I sprinted to my car and took the fastest route home.
Only when I was on the road did the feeling leave me and I had the opportunity to relax. The problem with that was I couldn't find the will. The only thing that occupied my mind was Harry bloody Potter and his lack of modesty. It was a miracle I made it home without a speeding ticket in my glove box.
As I parked my car in the driveway, I tried to remain calm. I had about two hours worth of homework and needed to get it finished before dinner and I couldn't do that without a focused state of mind. The only way I could achieve that was by forgetting about this new Harry person who seemed to be endlessly fascinated by me.
Looks like my schoolwork load was the ticket because all thoughts of him were then wiped out. I got out of my car and grabbed my backpack. I made a beeline for the living room, got out my first assignment and got straight to work.
I was hard at work on the last of my Psychology worksheet when I heard the door open.
"We're home." I heard my mom say.
"And we brought Thai!" My dad added.
I grinned and quickly scribbled down the rest of my answers before going to the kitchen. My mum was setting down her coat while my dad was unloading the paper bag that contained our dinner. I walked over to help him and he smiled at me. Together we unloaded the food while my mum set the table. In just under five minutes, we were all seated at the table and loading our plates with food.
"So Hermione how was your day?" My mum asked.
"Fine." I replied curtly.
"Anything exciting happen?"
"Not particularly, just a normal day." Except for the fact that I have a new stalker.
"Oh."
I nodded and was just about to take a bite of noodles when there was a knock on the door. I put my fork down and looked at my parents. They had an odd expression on their faces.
"Hermione, dear, would you mind getting that?" My dad asked, looking down at his food.
"Um, sure." I said, getting up.
Weird.
I reached the door just as whoever was on the other side knocked again. I called out to them to hold on as I gripped the doorknob. I then pulled open the door and I felt a huge lump form in my throat when I saw who was on the other side.
He had his hands in his pockets and was smiling as if he hadn't a care in the world. "Hi, Hermione. My name is Harry Potter and I'm your fiancée."
Incredulous. That was the only word to describe my feelings as my tight grip on the door knob slipped and my vision faded to gray.
~*~
*Edited 6/22/10 for cultural errors
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