Grub Street

Fic Recs: Princess Maker, Madoka Magica, Tiger & Bunny, X-Men.

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 23:56:54 GMT

Fandom: Princess Maker

Dear Father
Author: xiuxi

Another thing that shouldn’t have been featured in my upbringing is Lucifon, Prince of Darkness. I swear, my life would have been so much better without Lucifon, Prince of Darkness. I would have been a much happier woman if I had never had to utter phrases like “Hello, Lucifon, Prince of Darkness! How are you doing, Lucifon, Prince of Darkness? Is there a lot of carnage in your cave, Lucifon, Prince of Darkness? Orgies again, Lucifon, Prince of Darkness!” My views of sin and morality will never be the same after those conversations. Hours of monotonous sweeping under the constant guidance of Sister Lee cannot eradicate the sights I have seen and the feelings I have felt. Next time you raise someone, Daddy, the Prince of Darkness has got to go.

Admit it. You were a terrible parent.

Fandom: Madoka Magica

Stop. Rewind. Repeat
Author: Steelneko

Mami smiles politely but coldly. Akemi is nothing but a nuisance. She doesn't understand the proper way of going about things, or what a magical girl's duty should be.

"I don't plan on letting you get hurt, but if you struggle too much, I can't promise that won't happen," Mami says.

Akemi glares at her. "You don't know what you're getting into. This witch is in an entirely different class than all others so far." Anger and annoyance creeps into her usually controlled tone.

Mami ignores the emotions. "If you sit still, I'll let you out on the way back," she says. She turns to her companion. "Let's go, Kaname-san."

"O-okay," Kaname-chan says.

"Wait!" Akemi yells. She grinds her teeth in pain as the ribbons cut into her.

In a quiet voice that Mami can only barely make out, she adds, "Don't make me redo this one too."

Mami ignores her.

Snapshots of Homura at various stages, as heartbreaking as you'd expect.

Fandom: Tiger & Bunny

Life in Gotham
Author: anon

She sometimes wondered whether she had some kind of unconscious NEXT power that attracted criminals to her. In her just her first couple months of classes, she'd had her rabbit backpack stolen by a man in a dolphin costume, been attacked by someone in a mecha suit with guns, been threatened by a NEXT who could manipulate cement like it was playdough, been frozen by accident while Blue Rose was trying to put out a burning coffee shop she had been studying in when an arsonist had attacked, been held hostage by a thug with a gun dressed as a clown, had part of her apartment wall destroyed during one of Wild Tiger's battles, been thrown off the Gold Stage sidewalks and caught by Sky High just before she splattered on the pavement, and had very briefly been turned into a cat by a seriously embarrassed adolescent NEXT who was still learning to control her powers.

Sternbild is rough.

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A Traditional Family Road Trip
Author: Kantayra

When Kaede had first learned that Barnaby would be joining them on this road trip, she’d thought that maybe she’d get a really cool autograph out of the deal.

She didn’t expect to get a picture of her and her dad looking really bored while Barnaby smiled in front of the world’s largest ball of string.

As the title suggests: Kaburagi family road trip. Kaede laments about the sheer uncoolness (but not too much) and tries to wrap her mind around things.

Fandom: X-Men

Hide a Hundred Girls in Your Hair
Author: lilacsigil

She looked back over her shoulder. "Raven, why are you here? Not Scott or Ororo? Or even Logan? Can't the Professor find me?"

Raven stood up, the fire now well alight, and joined Jean at the shore. Her voice was tense, but surprisingly gentle. "Are you asking me because you don't know, or because you don't want to remember?"

"I don't know." The moment Jean spoke, she realised that she did know – her family was no more. The constant warm hum of their presence, near or far, was gone entirely. She didn't know if they were dead or alive – or if that even mattered – but they were no longer hers. Jean stretched her arms out again, more awkwardly, then twisted her hands together, and caught Raven watched her closely. "Stop staring at me!"

"Okay." Raven walked away in instant obedience, then shook her head, turned and glared back at her. "Don't start with the telepathy again. I don't need that."

I've seen the movies, but I'm not really an X-Men fan. However, without spoiling things too much, I love the idea behind this.

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Mandatory 'LEAVE BUNNY ALOOONNNE' post.

Mon, 08 Aug 2011 14:34:12 GMT

Hoo boy, the Barnaby hate in the Tiger & Bunny fandom. It's like Shinji Ikari all over again.

Jeez, people, give the kid a break. Yes, he's a dick, but it's not as if his personality flaws aren't understandable. He's been treated like a pampered pet and groomed for stardom all his life - so, while he might be superficially charismatic and a consummate performer, he can also be surprisingly childish, and his people skills suck. Throw in his other considerable issues, and you've got a hot mess with fabulous hair.

God, if nothing else, look how cute he was in a Santa hat:

How can you hate that? You monsters.

Also, the vitriol directed at Kaede weirds me the fuck out. She's a 10 year old girl! Who lost her mother at a young age! And her flaky Dad always breaks his promises and hardly sees her! Clearly in some people's eyes that makes her a NASTY BRAT BITCH WHORE but god man I don't even know.

I get the impression that people underestimate just how badly losing a parent (or two) as a child can mess you up.

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One last T&B post before bed.

Mon, 01 Aug 2011 21:45:05 GMT

Oh my word how come I am the last person to know about the Engrish-tastic Tiger and Bunny pilot?

BRING YOU THE TEARS.

I'm unspeakably glad they didn't go with that costume design for Blue Rose. She looks like chorus girl Sonic the Hedgehog. (As opposed to her canon costume, which makes her look like, uh, a sexy waitress?)

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This may well be my favorite prompt ever.

Mon, 01 Aug 2011 19:03:40 GMT

Posted to t_and_b_anon here:

Sort of inspired my The Spiderman Musical.
Sky High has a musical made about him. It's a total disaster with many stunt men getting injured, the plot doesn't make any sense and all the costumes look like rejected Lady Gaga outfits.
All the Heroes have been given front row seats to the abomination.

Anon, you have a beautiful, beautiful mind.

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Fic recs: Discworld, Madoka Magica, Ex Machina

Thu, 28 Jul 2011 21:50:23 GMT

Fandom: Discworld

Beginnings
Word count: 736
Author: Wasuremono

Death was not used to having no dominion.

It was one of the small perks of the job, after all: that wherever he went, there would be something for him to do. His work was everywhere, from the emperors to the lowliest crawling thing, and in every footstep he could find some small creature that had finally decided to make an end of its existence. It was strange to force himself away from it -- to take a holiday, as his son-in-law had suggested not so long ago, and as he had duly considered and discarded. It simply was not his way.

Thankfully, though, he had just made himself a small diversion. As the stove began to heat up, he set to work on the tiny lives swarming within the kettle's water, releasing them each as it came closer and closer to boiling.

It was easier to make tea when one considered all the deaths required.

Death becomes a grandfather.

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Verity Pushpram's Diary
Word count: 3326
Author: Virtuella

My back has been itching like crazy today. Had to resolve to rubbing against a lamppost when nobody was watching. Fortunately not terribly busy today. Nobby Nobbs came round in the afternoon, not like he ever buys anything. Trying to stick his hand into the cashbox again, more likely. Strange little man. Asked me to choose a cobble stone, then squeezed one of his spots and hit that cobble. It was really disgusting, I don’t know why I laughed so much about it. Had to hit him with a haddock to get rid of him.

Nobby Nobbs/Verity Pushpram. YES.

Fandom: Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Stay, Don't Go
Word count: 4487
Author: thereisafire

Kyouko's finishing the last of the demons off when she feels the presence of a new magical girl. There aren't many that hunt for demons in this area - they're either too scared of Kyouko to stay, or they've disappeared. It suits her fine, anyway, she isn't here to make friends, and less competition means there are more demons to hunt.

She turns around, and it's a blonde girl. She looks a bit older than Kyouko, but it's hard to tell, with magical girls. She's wearing a frilly white and yellow outfit, and her hair is twisted into corkscrew curls. She doesn't look like much of a threat, but she's holding a rifle in her hand and staring at Kyouko, so Kyouko decides to test her skills.

"What's your name, newbie?"

"Tomoe Mami." Mami's perceptive enough to detect the shift in the air and prepare herself for battle - most magical girls would assume that they could talk things out, but Mami seems to be perpetually on guard. Good instincts, for someone new. A pity that Mami will have to leave the district after this fight.

"Tomoe Mami, when you lose, you leave this district to me. Got that?"

Lovely Kyoko/Mami fic set after the series, with just the right amount of sad and sweet.

Fandom: Ex Machina

Nothing Man
Word count: 8587
Author: destroythemeek

Mitch himself only visited once. The conversation was stilted, awkward; Mitch had never done sentimentality well, and neither had Rick. They both knew what Rick had sacrificed, but it wasn’t something they were going to talk about. Mitch told Rick that he was a hero, that when he got out of there he’d have people lining up to meet him. That he deserved the praise and the limelight that Mitch had been hogging. Rick just let him talk, pressing his hand to the glass between them. Mitch mirrored the motion with his own hand, mumbling some bullshit about Star Trek that he had to know Rick wouldn’t get. They said goodbye, and Rick knew he wouldn’t be back.

Oh goddammit Rick Bradbury. This fic. I have something in my eye.

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A short rec post: Bioshock 2, The Wire, Tiger & Bunny

Wed, 27 Jul 2011 13:41:50 GMT

Fandom: Bioshock/Bioshock 2

Narcosis
Word count: 1721
Author: Wallwalker

Today a reporter somehow managed to find and accost me as I was enjoying an otherwise lovely dinner with Diane, and demanded that I share with all of Rapture my opinions about the new Narcosis Clubs that are sprouting in dark, hidden places like tumors in my city.

I said nothing, of course. I have no desire to speak of such sordid things. I find them utterly distasteful, and I say that it is a horrid display of all of the worst qualities of mankind that in the face of complete regulatory freedom they see fit to esbablish dens of hedonism that make Eve's Garden look like a child's playground. I know nothing about what is within them, and I have no desire to know.

I said as much to the reporter, who of course reacted with surprise and suspicion. I of course had to have her taken away; Diane was beside herself. It was... necessary that I save face.

Sinclair runs a vice den where plasmid-fueled tentacle sex occurs. As far as I'm concerned, this is practically canon.

Fandom: The Wire

Brains
Word count: 610
Author: evilhippo

The beacon was strongest in a certain condominium complex, but the buzzer proved too complex. He squinted at it hopelessly, drooling slightly before beating his head against it in defeat. Bunk took it upon himself to pound on the window, summoning the doorman to their aid. Instinct dictated that, when met with confusion, he was to hold up his badge. It was enough to get the doorman to open the door.

His brain had a slight rum and coke aftertaste.

The 'one word investigation scene', but with zombies.

Fandom: Tiger & Bunny

The Hare-Raising Adventures of Kotetsu Kaburagi
Word count: 8514
Author: Ardwynna

Kaede ran along the river bank with Barnaby for a while, always circling safely around the tree. When they finally grew tired and sat down, Kotetsu was napping. Barnaby hopped closer and nudged Kotetsu’s knee. Kaede sank down beside him, studying her father. “Want to know something?” she said, reaching out to stroke Barnaby. “He uses a stencil for that beard.”

During an unfortunate encounter with a young NEXT, Bunny gets turned into a bunny. Hijinks ensue. This fic is so cute. I just. Augh.

Last but not least, I'm in love with the Ask Sky High and Ask Tiny Teegur tumblrs. So. Cute. Hnnnghgh.

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For testsexuals everywhere.

Fri, 29 Apr 2011 23:23:59 GMT

portalkink

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Fallout NV fic: A Best Friend's Best Friend.

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 20:09:49 GMT

Title: A Best Friend's Best Friend.
Characters: Tabitha, Moe.
Rating: Worksafe, gen.
Word count: 248
Summary: Written for the Fallout kinkmeme. Everyone loves centaurs. And by 'everyone', I really mean 'Tabitha'.

( Moe was sunning himself on a rock, licking his eyeballs and scratching one of his vestigial legs. )

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Fallout NV fic: RTFM

Wed, 19 Jan 2011 19:44:06 GMT

This is practically canon okay.

Title: RTFM
Characters: James Garret/Fisto.
Rating: Mature, explicit. Contains a brief dubcon-y moment.
Word count: 1131
Summary: Written for the Fallout kinkmeme: James Garret tests Fisto. For science.

( James triple-checked that the bedroom door was locked )

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Wed, 19 Jan 2011 00:13:13 GMT

Oh man I keep meaning to post my silly falloutkinkmeme fics to this journal. Maybe tomorrow.

Anyway, as findmyantidrug's post has just reminded me: dark_fest is accepting prompts. You can post prompts anon or signed in, and for any fandom. It's a very nice, mellow fest with sensible rules, and it was ran very smoothly last year. I'd recommend it.

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Pass the laudanum, and don't look down the well.

Fri, 07 Jan 2011 19:46:10 GMT

I finally caved and created an Echo Bazaar account after seeing people sing its virtues in numerous places for the past few months... And good god, considering that the game limits the amount of time spent playing each day, it still manages to be addictive. For example: to play, I need to spend action points. I can only spend a maximum of ten action points at any one time, and the points are replenished at a rate of one every seven minutes - so, once all of my action points have been depleted, I find it very tempting to just sit on my ass and tool around on the internet until they've regenerated.

The thing I find most compelling about Echo Bazaar is the setting. It feels like a mix of gaslight romance and Neverwhere, with a cheeky bit of Lovecraft Mythos thrown in for good measure. It's baroque without being over-written, and silly without being twee. The game itself plays out like a Choose Your Own Adventure story, although it's rather difficult to explain beyond that. There's more focus placed on exploring the world than fighting and/or teaming up with other players, and difficulty levels are very gentle. (PvP is optional.) If I remember correctly, the skill levels are currently capped at 100, but the worldbuilding is ongoing. If you want to play a specific sort of character, then the choices presented in the game allow you to RP in a way, although I'm currently winging it. (My character is a magnanimous yet hedonistic detective searching for a man who murdered her true love.)

If you like campy Victorian gothic fiction, then I'd recommend it - it manages to keep the charm of the genre while scrapping the frilly prose.

My account is rosethouartsick @ twitter, although I'm not much good for hearing confessions of fear right now, as my nightmares are at 5. I need to buy a goldfish.

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Fallout NV fic: Ain't That A Kick In The Head?

Fri, 07 Jan 2011 14:07:04 GMT

Title: Ain't That A Kick In The Head?
Characters: f!courier, Benny, assorted Khans.
Rating: Worksafe, gen.
Word count: 978
Summary: Written for the Fallout kinkmeme, for the 'write a short piece of fiction introducing your version of the LW or Courier' prompt. Tweaked slightly.

( When Providence was a little girl, she was taught a few basic things about gambling. )

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In Soviet Britain, fox hunt you.

Thu, 06 Jan 2011 10:26:43 GMT

During my Fallout UK post, I forgot to mention that, instead of giant scorpions and molerats, there'd be giant foxes. (The Daily Mail says foxes are getting bigger, so it must be true.) I might be more worried about the big mystery cats, though.

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That's the end, little girl.

Sat, 01 Jan 2011 13:06:22 GMT

I've been thinking about what the UK would be like in the Fallout series. Somehow, I'm imagining Heartbeat crossed with Nineteen Eighty-Four, with a few Gerry Anderson references thrown in. The BBC would still exist, but it would be ran by an awfully middle-class super computer dedicated to educating the masses. There would be a Marconi Robotics Company Ltd. The obligatory post-apocalyptic motorcycle gangs would consist of mods and rockers, and every year they'd have a ritual battle by the seaside. Tribes would be divided by their different accents. The sinister government would wage war on the clans, seeking to claim land and resources so they could build New Milton Keynes.

Also, instead of Deathclaws, you'd get chased by things that made noises like Freddie, god rest his soul:

Can you imagine running through an unlit Burlington while being hounded by unseen creatures who giggled like that?

I know that Fallout's setting mainly seems to be influenced by the 1950s, but the UK was a pretty austere place back then, without the post-war affluence of America. The 1960s were a much more interesting time for Britain, and they still fell within the 'atomic age' (just barely - nuclear optimism took a downturn at the end of the decade). The Red Scare might have been over, but the early 60s also saw what was arguably the height of the Cold War and the space age. So I think that a retro-futurist version of the 60s would qualify as being suitably 'atompunk'*.

(Still, I guess that if the Fallout version of the UK had to be closer to 1950s, then it'd probably be more Quatermass and Dan Dare-y. And there'd be a terrifying amount of skiffle music.)

*Yes, there's such a thing as 'atompunk'. No, I didn't just make the word up. To all you people who hate the -punk suffix applied to sci-fi subgenres: I'm sorry.

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Video Game Meme - Day 5 - Game character you feel you are most like (or wish you were)

Mon, 27 Dec 2010 18:55:44 GMT

Uhhhhhhh...

( Actually, I choose Sander Cohen. )

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My feelings about Fallout New Vegas: Dead Money, expressed through the medium of text and owl photos

Sun, 26 Dec 2010 15:49:32 GMT

I've spent my Christmas poopsocking my way through Dead Money.

It could've been better.

When I began, my first thought was, 'I'm trapped in Silent Hill with a bitchy zombie, Ms. Jigsawface, sinister George and self-harming Lenny! I like Fallout! I like abandoned resorts! I like mystery! I like survival horror! I like The Mist! I like unnatural abominations that wear gas masks! IT'S LIKE FALLOUT AND BIOSHOCK HAD A BABY! WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG?'

I was like this:

Then I got to the vault, and I was like this:

( Beep... beep... beep... BEEP BEEP BEEP. )

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Video Game Meme - Day 4 - Your guilty pleasure game.

Thu, 23 Dec 2010 20:14:14 GMT

Evil Zone.

I don't know if Evil Zone should really be a guilty pleasure, admittedly, because it was awesome. It was cheesier than a bag of mouse farts. When you played it in story mode, the cutscenes were presented like episodes in a (badly-dubbed) anime series, and the characters all resembled expats from different genres. The voice acting was wonderfully terrible, and every attack was completely OTT and required the characters to shout nonsense at the top of their lungs in order to make it as EPIC AS POSSIBLE. Playing Evil Zone was like having an entire library of shitty 90s anime fall on your head, although mercifully without the godawful harem 'comedies' included.

( I cannot be defeated. Absolutely. Positively. For the sake of the WORLD! HERE GOES! THE POWER OF THE SUPREME RULER DESTROYS EVIL! THE ULTIMATE HERO! DANZAIVER! )

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Video Game Meme - Day 3 - A game that is underrated

Sun, 19 Dec 2010 17:01:27 GMT

Vandal Hearts is a solid little tactical RPG with a decent plot and graphics that are ugly yet strangely endearing. As PS1 RPGs go, it's kind of a cult classic, as it never really developed a fandom comparable to that of FFVII or Suikoden - I've always thought that this was a crying shame, as Vandal Hearts had much more likeable characters. Given the choice, I'd rather be stuck in a lift with Ash Lambert and Eleni Dunbar than Cloud n' Aeris.

Plus, at one point the Magnificent Bastard character says, "Sanctimonious whelp! How many souls have you yourself released from their corporeal bondage?" which probably my most favorite line from a video game, ever.

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Video Game Meme Day 2 - Your favorite character

Sat, 18 Dec 2010 19:46:55 GMT

( Despite your violent behavior, the only thing you have managed to break so far is my heart. )

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Fallout fic: The Problem of Interactionism

Fri, 17 Dec 2010 18:24:55 GMT

Title: The Problem of Interactionism
Characters: Mr. House
Rating: Worksafe, gen.
Word count: 271
Summary: Mr. House doesn't sleep, but sometimes he feels like he's dreaming.

( Robert House doesn't sleep anymore. )

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Video Game Meme - Day 1 - Very first video game.

Thu, 16 Dec 2010 23:44:50 GMT

The first game I played was Bomb Jack, although I can't remember which version. I played it at a friend's house and I was hooked. From that day on, I became the sort of awful child who'd visit people just on the off-chance that they'd let me use their computer. Computers fascinated me. I was completely batshit about them. I was a pretty slow kid (and I've never had the patience for coding) so I didn't wade too deeply into the technical side of things, but computers really did seem genuinely magical to my dorky self.

The first game I owned was Terminator 2 for the Commodore 64. (I received it as part of a Terminator 2-themed C64 package for Christmas, after much pestering.) I couldn't get past level 4, because shit was hardcore back in those days and I was a goofy 7-year-old with two left thumbs.

As someone notes in the comments of this youtube video, the best way to defeat T-1000 in level 1 was to block him into a corner, jam on the rapid-fire button, and repeatedly punch him in his mimetic poly-alloy dick. This still amuses me, because I am puerile.

I can't remember much else about the game - I found it kind of dull, to be honest - but it was in cartridge format, which seemed pretty damn luxurious at the time. All my other C64 games were stored on tape and could take anything from 2-5 minutes to load, which was balls. When people complain about loading times these days, I'm like, 'YOU PEOPLE DON'T KNOW HOW GOOD YOU HAVE IT. WHEN I WAS A LASS, WE USED TO LIVE IN A SHOEBOX AND WORK DOWN T'MILL FOURTEEN HOURS A DAY etc.'

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Fallout fic: The Car Incident

Wed, 15 Dec 2010 22:08:23 GMT

Title: The Car Incident
Characters: Tabitha, Raul, Cuddles.
Rating: Worksafe, gen, contains your garden-variety super mutant violence.
Word count: 483
Summary: Minimizing fuel emissions is Utobitha's #1 priority.

( Tabitha was reviewing a few policies when she heard people shouting outside the radio building. )

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Thu, 09 Dec 2010 00:10:11 GMT

Look at this awesome Alisha-centric bit of Misfits meta.

I keep meaning to hork up a Misfits-related post, but I'm a lazy bum. In other news, I am trying to weigh up whether I should watch Star Trek: TOS (it has stuff like this!) or DS9 because it probably has the best writing. ~~Also I may have had an inexplicable crush on Odo when I was a kid.~~

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It's that time of year again.

Fri, 03 Dec 2010 18:32:17 GMT

What is this horsehockey.

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Tue, 23 Nov 2010 10:49:42 GMT

Firstly, LOOK AT THIS.

LOOK AT IT.

Secondly, inspired by quietprofanity's posts: my list of unread books.
( Look at all this stuff I am not reading. )

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