The Turn in the Road
"Ah, Harry." Dumbledore glanced up from his desk and smiled at them all as they filed into his office. Alice was the last of the four students to enter and once he had greeted her, his eyes flicked behind her to a still invisible Sirius and Pettigrew. "Ah." The slightest of frowns flickered across the old headmasters face. She wondered if anything ever fazed him, or if in his long years at the school he had gotten so used to unexpected interruptions that nothing shocked him anymore. Certainly he didn't seem overly bothered that four of his students had turned up in the middle of the night, one of whom was still bleeding quite badly despite the scarf Alice had tied around Ron's arm to try and stop it, accompanied by an escaped purported mass murderer and man who was supposedly dead floating unconscious in the air. After a moment of silence during which he surveyed the odd group with those measured blue eyes of his he spoke with what she could have sworn was a touch of humour. "Sirius I think perhaps we could dispense with the Cloak, don't you?"
In a flurry of fabric Sirius suddenly reappeared, an odd tight expression had come across his face, and a wariness reminding Alice of how he had looked when they had met earlier in the evening. "Dumbledore." She wasn't sure if it was a greeting or not.
"Why don't you all take a seat? I can see that this may take some time." He waved his wand and five comfy chairs materialised in front of his desk, another flourish and a tiny camp bed appeared next to one of the many tables scattered around the office. One final motion and Pettigrew's body was lowered onto it, becoming visible to them all as he did so. After glancing at each other, the four Gryffindors sat down, followed by a grey-faced Sirius. "It appears that we have a lot to catch up on. If one of you would like to start?" They were each treated to the Headmaster's twinkling blue gaze for a few moments, and not for the first time Alice had the impression of being rapidly assessed. She tried to keep the anger and injustice, that had sprung up within her earlier and had been pushed aside out of necessity, suppressed, but she wasn't sure how successfully she was.
"Sir, Sirius is innocent," Harry blurted, "he didn't kill Peter Pettigrew."
"Yes, I had rather surmised that." The blue eyes flicked in the direction of the camp bed before returning to Harry. "Although perhaps if we could begin at the beginning. I find that often helps with these things."
Harry looked at him and nodded before taking a deep breath and reliving the night's events. Hermione chipped in occasionally and once when Harry got to the point of explaining about Scabbers not actually being a rat Ron said his piece, although he mostly kept silent as his arm seemed to be paining him again. Sirius never said a word throughout the whole account he just sat, his rapid, alert gaze flickering between Harry and Dumbledore; every so often he would look over at Alice too. She could only wonder what he must be thinking. She herself didn't contribute to the tale; she had already lived through it once and had no desire to do so again, her brain was liable to explode with the overload of information. Besides she knew her tongue could be sharp if riled enough, something that happened only exceptionally rarely, and she didn't want to say something to Dumbledore she might regret.
What she did notice was that when Harry reached the point in the tale where Alice had realised they were related he hesitated momentarily before omitting that part from his account. She glanced at the Headmaster to see if he had noticed anything amiss, but if he did he barely batted an eyelid. It was impossible to tell if he had realised the extent of the night's revelations or not. She suspected it wouldn't be long before they found out though, Harry was not likely to disregard the matter, or the fact that Dumbledore had lied to him yet again. And if Harry didn't bring it up then she certainly would, there were some times when embarrassment just had to be sidelined.
When Harry had finished, Dumbledore was silent for a moment; he scratched his long, thin nose, pushed his glasses into place, smoothed his beard contemplatively and cleared his throat before speaking. It was the nearest to being unsettled Alice suspected she would ever see him. "Well," he began, "I will be the first to admit that life never ceases to surprise me with its variation and intricacies. It would seem first and foremost that I owe you Sirius an apology -" Alice felt it was more than a little inadequate for what her godfather had been through, but then what did she really expect him to do?
"You believe him then?"
"I would imagine that the presence of Mr Pettigrew, more than vouches for the story," Dumbledore looked kindly at Harry. Alice wasn't finding his presence as reassuring as normal however, there had just been too many times that he had lied to them and let them down this year for her to have the confidence in him that she had once had.
"What is going to happen to him?" Alice eventually piped up. She felt her stomach lurch at the prospect of the Dementors but hardened her heart against any sympathy that might lurk there. He wasn't worth it.
Dumbledore exhaled slowly through his long nose and regarded Pettigrew's sleeping form for a moment. "Mr Pettigrew will be turned over to Ministry authorities; after that it is up to them to decide his fate. I would imagine though that he will be taken before the Wizengamot and if found guilty of his crimes, Azkaban in all likelihood awaits."
"Or," Sirius was almost glaring at his former teacher with hard eyes, "we could just deal with him ourselves."
"Sirius." Harry's tone was somewhere between pleading, and a warning.
"Alright, alright!" Their godfather swept his hair impatiently from his face and fidgeted in his chair before hunching back in it. "It was only a suggestion."
Dumbledore gave a small cough to attract their attention again. "I think perhaps we should deal with the most immediate concerns. Mr Weasley seems to be in some pain and I rather think that Madam Pomfrey might want to see to that arm. Miss Granger," Hermione flushed to be thus addressed by the Headmaster, "if you would be so kind as to accompany him down to the Hospital Wing?"
Immediately he spoke Hermione jumped up from her seat as though electrocuted; Alice suspected that for all of her braveness she was a little intimidated by him. Moving quickly over to Ron she helped him to his feet, issuing a stream of whispered questions and concerns so rapidly that Alice could barely make any sense of them at all. As they left she threw an encouraging smile in Alice and Harry's direction, although her eyes were worried.
"Well then…" Dumbledore gazed steadily at them for a moment. "I gather that is not all you wanted to say to me?"
"Professor," there was a bite of anger in Harry's direct tone. Alice had never heard him speak to the Headmaster like that before, even on previous occasions when he had lost control and raged at the old man there had never been the determination that there was now. His voice was even, but angry sparks seemed to jump from his eyes as he made sure Dumbledore was listening and understanding every word he said. "Why did you never tell me that Alice was my sister?"
A sigh like autumn leaves rustling over dried grass escaped from across the desk. With weary hands Dumbledore reached up and adjusted the golden frames perched delicately on his long, thin nose. Had she been feeling more charitable Alice may have felt some measure of sympathy for him, always having to confront so many difficult and problematic issues at his age - not that he hadn't any option in the matter - but she was too angry at him herself to care much at the moment. For the minute though she kept silent and let Harry steer the conversation.
"Why did you let me believe that my sister was dead?" He continued. "Why didn't you tell Alice who she was? Why -?" He stopped as Dumbledore raised one long thin finger from the desk. It was a simple, fleeting gesture, but its request for silence was unmistakable.
"I believed that I had good reason for my actions Harry and I will explain them to you in good time if you will allow me, but first I offer my apologies for having concealed things from you yet again. I did believe, and I do still, that I was acting in the best interests of both yourself and Miss Evans, for your protection. Nevertheless you are both understandably upset," his eyes flickered from Harry's face to Alice's as he spoke and she was careful to keep it devoid of any of the emotions which were roiling within her. She was angry yes, livid even, at the way they had been lied to by everyone; irritated at herself for having taken so long to work out what was blindingly obvious; upset and grieving even for parents that she felt as though she had lost them all over again; nervous, elated and worried about what it would all mean for herself and Harry; most of all though she was curious as to what exactly Dumbledore had to say, there was still so much that she didn't understand. " - and for that," the Headmaster continued, "I am sorry."
The Headmaster stood and walked out from behind his desk, midnight blue robes peppered with tiny silver stars swirled around him as he turned towards one of the darkened windows. Moonlight, the same moonlight that had transformed Professor Lupin so terribly, illuminated his face, picking out each spidery crease and careworn line upon it.
"Wh-"
"Shh!" She chastised Harry as he made to interrupt impatiently just as Dumbledore seemed about to speak. Sure enough he did, although his voice sounded older than it ever had.
"I told you earlier to start at the beginning, so perhaps I should do the same here." Another pause. "I told you before that few people were aware of Harry and his sister's existence prior to the night your parents were killed, their closest friends of course -" Alice glanced towards Sirius and although he never took his eyes from the Headmaster he nodded to show that he had seen her questioning look. It seemed he was soaking up this story every bit as eagerly as Harry and herself. "-but no one else. On the night of Halloween Alice was not in Godric's Hollow -"
"She wasn't?" Sirius clearly couldn't help but interrupt. "Where was she then?"
"She was with Minerva. Several days before Alice had contracted a form of flu. Not serious but it is contagious, so rather than give it to Harry she was taken out of the house for a few days. So when Voldemort turned up looking for Harry, Alice wasn't there. He would have known of her existence of course, I'm sure Peter would have seen to that, but since he never had the chance to relate events in Godric's Hollow that night to anyone and never finished his business there it is of little consequence."
"But I don't understand," Alice felt she had to speak up, it was after all her they were talking about, "if Professor McGonagall knew, why didn't she tell me, or why didn't someone…"
Dumbledore turned back from the window and looked at them. "I am afraid that she didn't know my dear. You see once I had heard what had happened and dispatched Hagrid to collect Harry I immediately went to ensure Alice was still safe. Finding that she was I then had to decide what was to be done for the best, I realised that the Death Eaters would be looking for you almost as ardently as for Harry and that the best way to keep you safe was to put you somewhere they could never reach you. And where after all is safer than death? After modifying Minerva's memory - something I am not proud of might I add, and she will no doubt be livid with me when I explain it to her - I took you to the Orphanage and left you in their care under your mother's name, it was all there was left to give you."
"But why didn't someone recognise her as a Potter earlier?" Sirius asked incredulously. "I mean she's so like Lily at that age and when she stands next to Harry, well the resemblance is unmistakable."
Alice could feel Harry staring at her wordlessly, trying to pick out all of her features and identify their similarities. She flushed uncomfortably at the scrutiny.
"I performed a - well, an old and complicated piece of magic, it operates rather in the same way as a Fidelius Charm does on a building; so long as Alice was under the charm most people would look at her and see nothing remarkable. Any time her name would magically appear - on the Hogwarts Lists for example - it would be as Alice Evans and not as Potter. The memories of those who knew of her were not modified to forget her completely, but masked. Of course those who were most well acquainted with her, with Lily and James would not be able to forget her entirely. You Sirius and Remus, one or two others I believe recognised her, or recognised Lily and James in her. It would be very few however. If anyone tried to work it out the spell would divert their thinking, they wouldn't be able to hold onto all of the facts required to add things up -" at least that explained her confusion all year Alice realised. "Of course," Dumbledore came back and sat at his desk, his chin resting thoughtfully on arched fingers, "once you planted the seed in her head this evening it was all too much, the mask slipped and the spell's hold was broken at least in part. I would also add that it must have taken powerful magic on your part too Miss Evans to have broken the enchantment."
Alice was only half aware that he had fallen silent at this point; her mind was reeling from the momentous information that she was being asked to take in. She felt slightly sick again. It had been Dumbledore that had left her in the Home, who had lied not only to herself and Harry, but everyone for years, had all but erased her existence. She was a Potter not an Evans. Her parents had been murdered by Voldemort, and undoubtedly he would have killed her too had she been in Godric's Hollow that Halloween. She wasn't quite sure which issue she wanted to examine first; every time she tried to focus on something she felt her head spin and her stomach lurched. Eventually she settled on the simplest of questions. "So my name isn't really Alice then at all is it? You said Harry's sister was called Clover Potter."
"Well," for the first time that evening Dumbledore looked mildly sheepish, "I must admit to having told a small fib there. In actual fact your middle name was - is Clover. I believe Lily wanted to carry on the family naming tradition. Your full name is Alice Clover Potter."
"Right…" Alice Clover Potter. That would take some getting used to.
Glancing up with wide, bewildered eyes she saw Harry and Sirius on either side of her gazing at her in concern. "Are you alright?" Sirius asked. He was still the gaunt, bedraggled scare-crow of a man they had encountered earlier, but the turn of events that evening had imbued him with a life and energy which seemed to fill out some of the hollowed flesh and made him look rather more like the man she imagined he must once have been before Azkaban.
"Yes." She tried hard to muster a smile. The expression felt forced.
"Really?" Harry looked at her sceptically. He too was looking pale.
"Well about as fine as you I should imagine," she countered.
He smirked and shrugged in acknowledgement of her point.
"I want them to come and live with me." She wasn't sure if Sirius' statement, it certainly wasn't a question, was intended to cover her awkwardness but she nonetheless appreciated the diversion of attention. Both children looked hopefully up into his determined face and then at Dumbledore who quickly smoothed the tiny frown from his face.
"I think there will be plenty of time to talk about things like that Sirius, but for now I think we should set about clearing your name first." Sirius tutted at the deflection, but he didn't argue. "With your permission I would like to summon the Minister and Aurors to the office. I will explain everything to them, you have my word that they will not arrest you again. Children," he looked down at their tired but cautiously alert faces. The mention of Fudge had put them on guard again. "You are more than welcome to stay, but I can also see that you are exhausted. I shall leave it up to you whether or not you wish to go and join your friends in the Hospital Wing."
Alice and Harry glanced at each other. Neither needed to speak to know what the other was thinking. "We'll stay."
"Very well."
Dumbledore walked over to the fire place scooped up a handful of what Alice could only assume was Floo-powder, for it turned the fire an emerald shade that rivalled Harry's eyes, and through it in. That done he aimed his wand at the flames and sent a spell of unknown properties spinning off into the ether, for unknown purposes, and to an unknown destination. Alice could only assume that this was his way of summoning the Minister for Magic. She wondered how Fudge took to being called like a dog, and at rather an antisocial hour too. It didn't take long for her to find out.
"Really Dumbledore, what on earth can be so urgent at this hour?" All of a flap, bottle green cloak still askew and without his customary bowler hat Fudge tumbled out of the fireplace followed by several severe looking wizards who she assumed were Aurors and a diminutive man in grey robes who could only be some sort of assistant. "Surely this could have waited until -" He stumbled to a halt upon catching sight of Sirius sitting with apparent calm at the Headmaster's desk, although sitting next to her godfather Alice could see his clawed hands gripping the arms of the chair, a gesture which belied his composure. "Oh." Fudge's eyes bulged as he turned an alarming shade of purple which she suspected Harry's uncle would have had to work to achieve. "What is…? Dubledore I… Gentlemen seize that man!" He ordered after blustering and gaping like a fish for a few moments.
"Now, now," Dumbledore stood as Sirius twitched in his chair. He hadn't drawn his wand or raised his voice, but the Headmaster's commanding presence was such that the Aurors who had moved on Fudge's command paused. "Cornelius, please do not act hastily; I have a perfectly good reason for inviting you here tonight. Please take my word for it, none of us are in any danger from Mr Black. Events have occurred of which you are unaware so if you will please give me the opportunity to enlighten you; take a seat." He conjured more chairs, so closely behind the new arrivals that they were all but forced to sit in them.
"Dumbledore!" Fudge raged, a rather odd attitude for a sitting man to adopt. "Have you taken leave of your senses? What could Black have possibly done to atone for his crimes? The man killed thirteen people; there were witnesses! And what are these children doing here?" He suddenly seemed to notice them, Harry especially, with surprise and was momentarily flabbergasted, but quickly regained his voice, albeit several indignant octaves higher. "What on earth…? Do our security measures mean nothing to you man?! This was exactly what the Dementors are here to prevent -"
"You know I was never in favour of the Dementors Cornelius, and Sirius is in the room, perhaps you would get further if you were to speak to him rather than over him."
"And as I would have told you at the time if you had ever bothered to ask me," Sirius' quiet voice seemed to stun the room into silence, "I didn't kill anyone twelve years ago, nor have I ever killed anyone, then or since."
Fudge emitted several incoherent, spluttering noises but otherwise didn't say anything. Alice wasn't sure if he was too shocked at being addressed so rationally by a convicted man who looked as mad and as dangerous as he was purported to be or if he simply had nothing to say.
"You may notice that there is another member of our little party here tonight, Cornelius, who I think may go some way towards explaining things." He gestured expansively in the direction of Pettigrew who was still to all intents and purposes dead to the world on the camp bed Dumbledore had conjured for him.
"What…? But that's… I was the first there… I saw… How can…?"
"Quite." The Headmaster returned to his desk and sat slowly. "Now if you would allow me to explain, without interruptions," he added as Fudge opened his mouth again, "then perhaps we can clear this up." And for what seemed to Alice like the hundredth time that night the story began to be reiterated, although it didn't escape her notice that the Minister received a somewhat cut down version; Dumbledore made no mention of Ron's injuries, the fact Lupin and Sirius had been going to kill Pettigrew, or the fact the professor was currently roaming the grounds in a decidedly unfriendly guise.
Sirius was now lounging comfortably in his chair for all the world as though his fate didn't rest on Dumbledore's ability to convince Fudge of his innocence. Harry as always was alert to everything going on in the room, keeping half an eye on Pettigrew, perhaps afraid that he would somehow vanish and all would be lost, whilst listening intently to the exchange between the adults. For her own part Alice couldn't seem to keep her eyes open. The day finally seemed to have caught up with her and it wasn't until she nearly fell forwards out of her seat that she realised that she had dozed off at all. She gave herself a little shake.
"So you see Cornelius," Dumbledore was saying, evidently reaching the end of his tale, "it would seem that Sirius was never the perpetrator at all, but in fact Mr Pettigrew here."
For quite some time Fudge remained silent mulling over everything he had heard, every so often he would glance warily at Sirius and then at the children before turning to Pettigrew, frowning, and then go back to staring at the floor in contemplation. She wasn't sure if he was weighing up his options or simply struggling to think of a response. After an age he eventually spoke. "Well now see here Dumbledore, I can take what you say about P-Pettigrew here, however madcap the whole thing sounds, but really, Black is a convicted criminal I he can't simply be allowed to walk free on the say so of a few children. I'd never be able to show my face in the Ministry again!"
"Well, of course, that can be easily remedied. Some Veritaserum should provide the truth of the matter." Dumbledore extracted a tiny glass vial from some pocket in his expansive robes and held it up to the light to reveal the clear liquid within. Alice couldn't help a tiny smile of triumph; he really did seem to think of everything. She wondered if he always carried around Veritaserum being accustomed to being put in spots such as this, or if he had just somehow known it would be needed tonight. Both, she suspected, were plausible. "Would you like to administer the potion Cornelius? I believe we should start with Mr Pettigrew."
"No, no," Fudge looked appalled at the very suggestion and shrank back slightly in his chair looking askance at the unconscious Pettigrew. "No, no, you be my guest… hang on!" He suddenly exclaimed as Dumbledore began to move again. The Headmaster glanced across at him questioningly and although Fudge seemed to wilt under the stern gaze he was not cowed completely, which Alice thought said something about the man. Without another word he gestured for the Aurors sitting on either side of him to move and with an alacrity and understanding which Alice felt could only be borne of considerable training they immediately sprang up and went to stand one either side of Pettigrew's prone form. From the look on Dumbledore's face Alice wondered if he was refraining from rolling his eyes, but you never could really tell with the man. Striding over he proceeded to tip half the contents of the bottle down Petitgrew's throat.
"Is that safe?" Alice hissed, her question was directed at Harry, but Sirius heard too and they answered, rather unnervingly, in unison.
"Who cares?" They glanced across her at each other and grinned wickedly.
"Ennervate." At Dumbledore's spell, Pettigrew woke with a splutter and tried to rise groggily.
"Peter," Dumbledore's tone was far more gentle than Alice felt the man deserved. Now that he was awake again, she felt all the loathing and hatred that she had suppressed earlier come flooding back. "Peter," he repeated when no immediate response was forthcoming.
"Yes?" Pettigrew's eyes were oddly unfocused, he seemed to be seeing everyone in the room but there was very little expression on his face to indicate that he recognised any of them. Alice wondered if perhaps they hadn't hit his head a little two hard, or often against solid objects that evening. So long as he was able to clear Sirius' name, she found she didn't really care.
"Are you Peter Pettigrew?" Dumbledore was asking.
"Yes." Again the monotonous, monosyllabic response. Fudge sucked in a hissing breath between his teeth.
"Peter - can you tell me what happened on the 31st of October 1981?"
Pettigrew's brow furrowed for a moment; he looked like a child, albeit a very large, ugly, filthy one, trying to grasp for the correct answer he knew was already expected. "October… The Dark Lord killed the Potters and then… then he tried to kill Harry, but it - it failed somehow… I don't understand…"
"And how did Lord Voldemort -" even in his semi-catatonic state, Pettigrew flinched at the name. It also didn't escape Alice's notice that Fudge and the Aurors paled slightly too. "- know where Lily and James were Peter?"
"Because I told him," Pettigrew whimpered and ducked his head slightly into his shoulders as though expecting to be struck. Alice felt a surge of revulsion in the pit of her stomach at this pathetic creature. Beside her she felt more than saw Sirius fidget in his seat, obviously impatient with the speed of Dumbeldore's questioning, or perhaps just angry again at the admission from his former friend.
"Get to the point Albus," Fudge himself was sounding impatient now. His wide, popping eyes were transfixed on the scene before him as though he couldn't believe any of what he was hearing, but the tight cast to his mouth suggested to Alice that a part of him must. He certainly seemed angry, or perhaps it was just at having been proved wrong about Sirius all this time.
"And what happened after that? What happened with Sirius?" The Headmaster prodded.
"Sirius…" A grin suddenly seemed to spread across Pettigrew's face making him look quite mad; madder even than Sirius had at times appeared. Perhaps Alice reasoned that this was what happened when you spent twelve years as a rat. "Ah he underestimated me didn't he? All those years at school, him and James, thinking they were better than I was, pitying me, looking down on me -"
"WE WERE YOUR FRIENDS DAMN IT!" Sirius' sudden roar made Alice jump in her seat. Her godfather was on his feet, face scarlet with rage, quivering fists clenched by his sides in an effort to restrain himself. The Aurors were instantly on the alert.
"Sirius." Dumbledore warned. "Sit down."
He didn't move.
"Sirius," Harry hissed, looking desperately at his godfather, who seemed not to hear him, and then glancing at Alice. Really did he want to get himself arrested again? Quickly Alice reached out and gently tugged on his ragged sleeve to get his attention. When he eventually looked down at her the anger and grief in his eyes was of a scale she could hardly even comprehend. She could almost see the lost young man he had been, inside him, falling through a chasm of emotions, flailing for something to grab onto. She slipped her hand, so tiny in comparison, into his and pulled him back into his seat. He acquiesced without a word, eyes still blazing fiercely.
Dumbledore turned back to the prisoner. "What happened when Sirius confronted you?"
"I fooled him didn't I?" Pettigrew giggled childishly. "Fooled everyone. I cut it off," he held up the remains of his severed finger, "blew the street to bits, and transformed. I escaped."
There was silence in the room for a moment.
"And then?" Dumbeldore asked eventually.
"Then I hid, found a wizard family to take me in. Twelve years I spent like that… twelve years…" His voice, which had been full of excitably emotion, seemed to taper off and his eyes lost their focus, his head drooped onto his shoulder. It was like watching a wind up toy suddenly reach the end of its mechanism. Alice blinked.
"I think that may have been the proof that you were looking for Cornelius." The Headmaster eventually broke the hush that had descended on them all.
"Right… well then, that was… Right, I see…" Fudge seemed baffled. His gaze flickered from Pettigrew to Dumbledore and back again in rapid succession.
"You will of course undoubtedly want to question him further, once he is in custody, but there can be no doubt about the truth of his statement. Which of course in turn, clears Sirius' name."
"Hmm," Fudge bristled at the assumption. "I'll be the judge of that thank you Dumbledore. Your turn then Mr Black." The Minister looked at him, half in expectation and half in accusation. Clearly he still had his doubts about him.
"Dumbeldore," Sirius, who had regained his composure, spoke up, blatantly ignoring Fudge, "these two are exhausted," he nodded at Harry and Alice, both of whom had been struggling to stay awake, immediately tried to look alert and awake at his words, "maybe it's about time they were in bed?"
Straight away Harry began protesting that they were fine; Alice left him to it, partly because keeping quiet was just what she did, but also partly because she suspected that Sirius wanted them to leave, that he didn't want them to see him questioned.
"I think perhaps Harry," Dumbledore looked at him not unkindly, "that Sirius is right on this occasion. If you both return to Gryffindor Tower and get some rest, that would be best. Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to your godfather."
Harry huffed, but didn't argue back.
Placing a hand on his shoulder, Sirius looked him square in the face. "I'll see you two later, alright? I'm not going anywhere."
"Ok." With a smile at Sirius that was interrupted by a yawn which she tried to suppress, Alice followed him as Harry began shuffling sleepily towards the door.
"Goodnight," Sirius called.
"G'night." Was the sleepy response.
A/N: There you have it, another instalment. Apologies that this one goes over a lot of old ground; I did consider just paraphrasing most of the scene, but then there were some important bits that needed to be stuck in there. I promise the next one will be more interesting… or it least I'll try to make it so! Please R&R as always… and enjoy!
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