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Pre-natal checkups/ultrasounds
Topic Started: Dec 17 2007, 09:05 PM (4,965 Views)
Declan Clemens
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Declan had no idea how long they'd been in there, but he figured Kel was right; they probably should get going.

"Maybe," he agreed. "Come on, I'll take you to lunch and we can work out some more details," he suggested. Luckily, she didn't have to go back to work right away, and they could do that, so they headed to lunch.

[permission to GM]
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Ella Morvanna
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So maybe it could be argued one would be less nervous about this sort of thing if you had gone through it before. Well that wasn't true. At least not for her. Sitting on the cot she was attempting to not let her mind wander too much, but she was a worrier by nature. At least with Brad right there she was calmer, and honestly it was more the fact that this? The being there for a first ultrasound? It made it all that much more real.

Ella was excited once she had stopped worrying about all the little things, and talking worked wonders as a distraction too at the moment.

"Hey at least we're in a hospital for something good this time."
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Bradley Cox
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When Bradley had expressed his distaste of hospitals, he had obviously been a tad short-minded in the process. Of course, no one would really blame him considering his experience with said establishment had been a...painful one, to say the least. But here, now, just waiting for a Healer to come to them and start the ultrasound was not painful or unpleasant at all. It was honestly nerve-wracking, and causing him to be anxious and nervous, but he was also a bit excited. He had never...ever gone through something like this. For all of his travelling and his experiences and street knowledge- when it came to this procedure he was entirely clueless. In fact, he was probably a lot more nervous than Ella was- he was just good at hiding it.

He was sitting on an elevated stool of sorts, no doubt the one the healer would be using momentarily, while he held on to Ella's hand, subconsciously rubbing a small circle on the back of it, while they waited. At her comment, which had basically been his own thoughts said out loud, he grinned and laughed quietly, nodding his head. "And here I thought I would never want to see this place again." How badly mistaken he had been.
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Ella Morvanna
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"At least we don't mind it this way," Ella told him. "Considering we'll be here a lot with checkups."

Those kind of visits weren't bad though. It was there because someone was sick or hurt that was. This was both exciting and nerve wracking and...a lot of things she couldn't entirely sum up. The small baby bump she already had? She was attributing that to the fact this was her third pregnancy and therefore was just showing sooner. That seemed like the most likely reason anyways.

"Except the waiting is torture." Then teasingly, "Mr cool, calm, and collected."
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Bradley Cox
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"Hospitals just don't want to let us go," he commented jokingly with a small grin. Considering the situation at hand, however, he did not mind at all. If it meant making sure that his new son or daughter was safe and healthy and growing normally in the womb...that was very weird to say, even to himself. Babies lived inside humans for nine months...like parasites or foreign aliens in some sort of weird sci-fi movie. He was a little bit freaked out now. How did a baby breathe in there? Wasn't that area like completely underwater? Did they have gills?

...He needed to calm down; his imagination was getting the best of him.

"Try Mr. 'way too good at acting," he admitted, just as teasingly, with a slight laugh. He was not cool, calm, or collected. His emotions were entirely all over the place at that moment. Ella expressed a concern that she was bigger than she had expected- Brad's first thought was that they were having a mutant baby with a freakishly large head or something.

When he brought the concern up to Franco when he visited recently, the other man merely laughed in his face- way too loudly for it to be normal. Brad thought it was a valid worry...apparently, it wasn't.

"You would think they would hurry u-" he was interrupted by the door opening, revealing a Healer walking in with a smile on her face, clipboard in hand. Ah, well, that was his cue to stand up from her stool, and he did, but he remained standing next to Els, holding on to her hand.

"Good afternoon," the female Healer greeted the young couple warmly. She sat down on her stool, putting her glasses on immediately as she read over the clipboard once more. "Mrs. Cox, I'm Healer Naomi Wilson, feel free to call me Naomi." Healer Wilson wasn't very catchy, and it made her sound older. "I see this is your third pregnancy, so I'm terribly sorry if the routine is familiar- but we'll start with the basics. How are you feeling?
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Ella Morvanna
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"That too."

Ella had ended up good at hiding things too when she didn't want to Brad to know she was upset about him being sick, but that wasn't necessary anymore. And this? This she didn't care about being outwardly anxious. Glancing at the door when the healer came in she was glad to have the wait over with.

"Nice to meet you."

She didn't say anything about it all seeming familiar because even as trivial as some questions may be, she had to answer them regardless.

"This morning I didn't feel that great but I'm alright now. I've had morning sickness worse this time than with my other two though. That's normal right?"

After-all there was no harm in asking questions; that was the point of the healer being there anyways.
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Bradley Cox
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Brad felt like pretty soon, the women would start conversing in a lingo that was way too sophisticated for him to be able to keep up and it would completely bypass him. They would start talking of girly things, and hormone levels or something. It honestly felt like he would soon be transported to a foreign country in which he didn't know the language, or a new planet.

Brad kept holding Ella's hand supportingly, mildly agreeing with a small nod of his ahead at her morning sickness. He knew he heard this often, seeing as how it was the most overused complaint out there, but he had no idea why they called it morning sickness. It wasn't during the morning, it was...all the time. At the most inopportune of times. Ella didn't even want to apparate anywhere anymore. Or Floo because that involved spinning as well. So did...portkeys, damn...why did so many forms of wizarding transportation involve the possibility of losing your bowels?

Naomi nodded, jotting the information about the morning sickness down. "Every morning sickness varies with each pregnancy, but most pregnant woman agree that morning sickness gets worse with each pregnancy," that was one thought at least. She had another one, but she didn't want to alert them and make them nervous if she ended up being wrong- which could be a possibility.

"And you're on your tenth week?" she asked for confirmation, making sure the information on the clipboard was accurate. After a nod, Naomi nodded as well. "Your showing substantially for ten weeks, but it is your third pregnancy, and it's not uncommon," another note to add to the clipboard, noting the small note reading 'history of multiples' in the background. Hmm, she was getting more and more certain about her hunch now. Only the machine would show a confirmation.

"Alright, if you could lay back and lift up your shirt, we can begin the ultrasound," she informed happily, putting the clipboard down on the stand behind her, as she turned to the side and began to set up the machine. It was pretty outstanding how many wizards preferred to use the machine now; they didn't even have to move it out of the room.
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Ella Morvanna
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Ella squeezed Brad's hand, not sure if he felt entirely lost yet or not but trying to be assuring all the same. Hearing the answer to her question though at least made her feel a little bit better. Not like it was going to make the miserable symptom go away but still. It was unfortunately making certain foods not seem like such a great idea anymore that was for sure. She also wasn't a fan of when the time came and going out places wasn't going to be as easy as it once was, but she was determined not to be one of those pregnant woman who sat around the house all day. That just wasn't her at all. There would definitely be outings somehow.

She nodded when questioned and couldn't help but put her hand on the small bump with the way Naomi commented about it. It wasn't uncommon though, she said, so it wasn't a big deal. It just meant she'd be bigger this time right? Even if Ella didn't like that fact she could live with it. Just as long as the baby was alright.

Finally hearing they could begin though and getting to that answer? She didn't need to be told twice. Laying back she pulled up her shirt and glanced at Brad with a small smile.

"Moment of truth."
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Bradley Cox
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Brad refrained from asking if there was a possibility of their baby being a mutant with a giant head and if that was what was causing the bigger belly because he figured Naomi the Healer wouldn't take him seriously. Even though, he was being perfectly serious. So many things could go wrong with a pregnancy and a baby and...those thoughts weren't going to do them any good so he just decided to forgo them and focus at the task at hand. Quite literally, he thought, as he put his other hand over Ella's and his other when she squeezed his hand tighter.

Standing on the opposite of the cot, away from blocking the view of the monitor of the machine, he held on to Ella's other hand, waiting now even less patiently than before. Answering Ella back with a small smile of his own, Brad couldn't really say anything else. Words were completely devoid to him.

Naomi put on her gloves, picking up the bottle of warm gel and shaking it. "This will be quite warm," she reminded out of habit. She began to apply it, turning on the machine at the same time. She picked up the transducer, and pressed it against the maternal abdomen, being easier because of the fact that she was already showing. The heartbeat immediately apparent even if the image still wasn't, "There we go. If the embryo is in a good position, we'll be able to see that it resemble a baby, the limbs growing..." she paused, tilting her head as she adjusted the transducer, trying to get a better image. "...Oh my word," she remarked.

Not wanting to alarm the parents, she quickly explained, "Well, there's a reason for your bigger baby bump. You're having triplets."
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Ella Morvanna
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Ella nodded, knowing the process by now. As soon as she could hear the heartbeat it was the most amazing thing. It was so surreal to actually hear it like that. It sounded healthy to her and it made her smile but she wasn't looking away from the screen just yet though she could only assume what the look on Brad's face was. The sudden remark though got her worried and she turned her head to look at Naomi.

"What? Is something wrong?"

Even if she was answered a moment later, it was a moment too long of worry as far as she was concerned. What was said though didn't sink in at first. She just went back to looking at the monitor as if she heard that everything was just fine and that was it.

Once the statement did sink in though her smile fell, out of shock more than anything. There was...three? Three babies? How did three babies even fit in there? She couldn't exactly wrap her head around the idea yet.

"You're sure?" Ella asked, her voice quiet as she looked back at the healer just for that moment to ask before she looked at Brad.

All the worries she had over one baby were completely thrown out of whack. There was three. Three dependent little human beings they would be responsible for. How were they going to manage that though? How was she supposed to carry three babies? She knew from Beth that twins didn't generally make it to term so she assumed the same would be with triplets.

All the knowledge she could have used to get through the pregnancy was practically useless. Was this going to be completely different then? Ella couldn't even keep up with all the questions going through her head at the moment and she doubted she could form them into actual words.
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Bradley Cox
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Brad didn't want to think how unpleasant that had to be- having warm gel spread on your abdomen and then poking it with what looked like a cold, metal, tentacle. Actually, the warm gel didn't sound too bad- the being poked by a cold, metal, tentacle though did. He was knocked out of his thoughts almost immediately as he heard a heartbeat, a rather rapid heartbeat, over the small speakers of the ultrasound machine. His mouth opened slowly in shock and wonder. There was an actual living, and tiny, human being growing there...that was so surreal and so... mystifying. God, so tiny. He couldn't even differentiate anything on that monitor yet.

At the Healer's small outburst, Brad thought he might have had a heart attack -not something joke about, he knew, but he couldn't help it- because his head immediately went to one single thought: giant-headed mutant baby. "Is the baby okay?" He asked immediately after Ella's own question. It was answered hastily, and all Brad could do was stare, his eyes wide open now, his mouth agape.

"...Three?"

Naomi nodded, smiling now. This was exciting! Not only was she right, but this was her first multiple pregnancy. What an experience! "Positive, yes. If you listen carefully, you can hear more than one heartbeat," it was a subtle difference, but it was there. The heartbeats were almost in sync, it was kind of beautiful. "And see, here they are, the first one, over on the left- that's the head and those are the arms and legs- little more than stumps now. And then the other two, the middle, and the right- the right one is hiding a little bit, but you can notice the outline," she kept pointing and tracing every little thing she talked about. "Yes, three heartbeats. All at about 163 bpm, very strong."

Brad still couldn't believe it. Three. At the same time. Not one, not even two, but three. Thank...Merlin they were going to live in a bigger house...Oh bloody hell. Three at the same time? Three times as much of...everything? Diapers, crying, feeding...thank Merlin money was of no matter with them.

"Three as in....one plus one...plus...one..." he blinked and looked at Ella briefly in curiosity. All of a sudden, Brad was very very much weak. If he wasn't holding on to Ella's hand, he was sure he would have been falling to the floor.

Three of everything. How in the hell where they going to go handle three at the same time? There were only two of them. Three...they would be a triple threat. Three at once. Uncanny what...okay, what...this is so bizarre. He was three times as excited, he wouldn't deny it- however he was also three times as nervous. He had a chance to fail three times...oh bloody hell.

Three...three. He needed to sit.
Edited by Bradley Cox, Jun 21 2010, 02:26 PM.
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Ella Morvanna
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Ella was still stunned but followed as the healer pointed out all three. That was crazy. She had been expecting to hear news about one baby, not three. They were healthy though at least so she didn't have to worry about that bit. What she did have to worry though was how they were going to manage with three babies, Belle, and Jett. Hell they had to afford all of that and the fact there was three times as much to handle.

Squeezing Brad's hand was about all she could think to do at the moment. She wasn't sure what to say to him, but figured she'd let him deal with the surprise too.

"So this will be different then from my other pregnancies?"

Ella had gotten over the nervousness when she was able to think she knew what was coming, but there was three of them. That had to change things right?

"How are we supposed to.." Manage? Afford? She wasn't sure where the rest of the question went when she asked Brad, but part of it got out.
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Bradley Cox
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Triplets, three babies in one person? His small, and short, and right now seemingly fragile wife had to carry around three babies. Something told him he would not be very popular in the next few weeks to come. He could already hear the shouts of 'you did this to me!' or something of that magnitude. Did having three times the number of babies mean that everything else was going to increase by that amount as well? Good Merlin. Was he ready for this?...Truthfully, no. But he would get ready, he would He just needed a couple of hours to wrap his head around the fact that there were going to be three of them.

Three.

Naomi made sure to take some quick measurements of the three fetuses, jotting it down immediately, as quickly as she could before she turned back to the couple. "Yes, actually, I'm going to assign you a strong prenatal vitamin seeing as how you're going to need a lot more protein. It's also recommended that you gain 18-22 more kilograms, approximately .8 kgs per week- that is no excuse to eat unhealthily, however," she added warningly, turning the machine off as soon as she was done with the measurements. Now it was waiting for a picture of it to come up- that part was aided by magic.

"It's also unwise and very uncommon to carry up to full term with multiples, so a c-section will be scheduled for your 36th week- being January 15th. I'd also like to schedule a pre-natal check up on the 14th week, and another ultrasound on the 18th to see if they're developing normally," she wrote the prescription on her pad and tore it out carefully before handing it Mr. Cox, who still looked a bit out of it.

"Do not be too worried, that's normal. You're going to probably need a lot more bed rest, and once the babies are born, they're going to need to be held in the NICU for two to six weeks, to make sure they are properly developed and can breathe, and feed from a bottle without any complications."
Edited by Bradley Cox, Jun 21 2010, 07:59 PM.
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Ella Morvanna
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It was definitely a lot at once to process. Not even just hearing that there were three babies instead of one, but everything to come. Was she overwhelmed? Definitely. She could have been prepared for one but not three. Three brought on a whole new list of challenges and concerns. Nodding when-ever needed she was trying to not let it all get to her so she could actually get the necessary information, but like hell if that was happening.

A c-section? All Els knew of it was...well basic knowledge. Stuff you just knew about. What she did now of it though didn't make the fact sound any better than it already did. That part was scary. She wasn't afraid to admit that either.

"Besides bed-rest are there any other restrictions I should know about? Or is it like the usual stuff you usually get told?"

Weight gain, prenatal check up's, bed-rest...add that to the list of things to remember and merlin only knew how she was going to manage to not stress out. With any pregnancy she knew stress was bad so with three it had to be worse right? At first it was just figuring out things for finding a house and moving, taking care of Jett and Belle, and knowing there was a baby on the way. Now the last was more like three babies on the way.
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Bradley Cox
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Three. No matter how many times he said it, it still came as a complete and total shock. He hadn't even said anything in a little while, and could only pick up on some things that the two women were talking about. A c-section for starters...that sounded almost painful. Cutting you up? He guessed it was necessary so that the babies could get air quicker or...something. You would think that him being himself, he would have paid more attention when he was taught anatomy but...apparently he had missed that lesson. Or was distracted heavily, since he was only a teenager when he had learned.

He took the written prescription with as steady a hand as he could manage, reading the fair handwriting for the name of the vitamin. Pills, he wasn't awfully found of them anymore after the vast amount of chemotherapy he underwent but he understood that these certain pills were for the best.

Did they have enough money for three new babies? He think they did, they'd probably have to tighten the budget a little bit when they were born for the countless of diapers and baby wipes and...but that was so far off, he didn't want to think about it. He would focus on the positive...three daughters or sons. A bigger family, its what he wanted, maybe not so soon but it still wasn't anything bad. He tightened his grip a bit around Ella's hand reassuringly.

Naomi shook her head, before answering, "It's pretty much the same; avoid stressful situations and physical exertion, keep yourself hydrated, and please don't hesitate to contact me if you feel something off." She smiled and then turned her head with a small exclamation as the photo of the ultrasound popped up, developed. She picked it up and then held it out for Mrs. Cox to take. "There you are, first picture." Once it was out of her hands, she grabbed the clipboard and stood up. "It was a pleasure meeting you," she shook both of their hands, "and congratulations again." With a smile, and a wave, she left in the room to allow them time to talk. They were both pretty shocked still, poor dears.
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Ella Morvanna
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Well, at least there was no other restrictions but the whole bed-rest idea wasn't exactly her cup of tea either. So much for not being one of those that sat around the house. At least now she'd take advantage of getting out while she could.

Sitting up with the picture in hand it was still surreal. She had expected to hear about how one baby was doing and then hear the same old stuff she'd hear before. Instead it was all turned around and she wasn't sure what to say about it yet. When Naomi left the room, Ella looked the picture, able to point out the three since the healer had. Maybe it'd all be a challenge but they could do this. She could handle it. She hoped anyways.

"If I cry, I'm warning you it's not because I'm unhappy, but because I'm shocked...and scared," Ella told Brad, holding the picture angled so he could see it if he wanted to.
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Bradley Cox
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After shaking Naomi the healer's hand and watching her leave, Bradley took in a deep breath and just kind of...stood there. It was sort of a 'what now?' kind of moment. He looked down at Ella, watching her as she just looked at the picture, not being able to tell how she was feeling. Now he was worried, maybe Ella didn't want three babies? That would have been bad, but they really couldn't do anything now. He didn't want to do anything, he wouldn't take it back. It was just surprising.

He moved to stand in front of Ella, kissing her forehead as she revealed that he shouldn't worry if she started to cry, looking at the picture after he pulled away. Three; three babies with very large heads and very small limbs. "It's okay to be scared," he told her soothingly, rubbing small circles on her back. "But I'm here for you, I'm here for them. And if you're worried about the money aspect, don't be. There's a reason I tell you not to look at prices, right?" He tried to assure her, kissing her forehead again. "You have four extremely supportive siblings, and a husband who loves you very much." And was scared shitless himself.

"I'm sorry," he started slowly, clearing his throat before continuing, "For having extremely potent sperm." His lips twitched in the small chuckle he was trying to hold in- jokes, he just couldn't help but to resort back to them.
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Ella Morvanna
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The little assurances were helpful, sure, and better than her reassuring herself too. Not like she'd believe herself and yeah people said it'd be fine to make the other person better, but Ella believed Brad.

"Still working on that remember?" she retorted about the prices, a small smile on her face.

So she tended to sneak a peek when he wasn't looking still sometimes, but she was learning she was better off leaving it alone. He probably did it because of her tendency to worry too much and she didn't blame him for that at all. Looking up as he apologized she had already assumed he wasn't finished with that sentence and once he finished she rolled her eyes.

Instead of freaking out about it though, Ella couldn't help but laugh. Regardless it definitely broke up the seriousness of the situation just a little. Taking the picture she whacked him on the head with it.

"Yeah it's all your fault," she teased. "Just couldn't keep your hands to yourself could you?"

Okay so she was just as guilty but still.
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Bradley Cox
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Brad smiled, putting a couple of strands of her hair behind her ear as she admitted to not being used, still, on his rule of no looking at the price. "You would think, with your enormous trust fund at hand, that you'd get used to it faster," he teased lightly. He knew that she hadn't touched that yet, almost all the siblings, he thought, were hesitant to tap into it. He knew Rose bought a new house with some of the money but apart from that, he wasn't exactly sure where the money came from. He didn't bother asking, it wasn't anything important. Not exactly something to discuss over drinks either.

Once Ella started laughing, Brad figured that it was safe for him to laugh too. He raised his eyebrows with amusement as she declared it was all his fault. "Who on earth would have that amount of self-control? You know dressing rooms are my weakness," he teased back, deciding that telling Ella it was her fault too wasn't the smartest of ideas. "You wouldn't happen to be wearing some of what we bought do you?" he asked teasingly, and a bit serious as well as he tried to peek down her shirt with a grin.

"In complete seriousness though," he started again, "We can do this. This is why the house we're looking at has ten bedrooms." House, villa, whatever, same thing.
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Ella Morvanna
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"Hey at least that enormous trust fund has a good use now."

See, letting it sit and waiting for a good way to use the money was the best idea. Using it on the babies? The best way, she thought.

"Not like I didn't egg on the situation or anything," Ella said, grinning.

Guilty. She wouldn't deny that one either. It didn't hurt to have a little fun while shopping too right? At his question though she opted for a serious face instead of laughing like she wanted to. He was trying to see but she was making it rather simple by pulling her shirt off her shoulder and tugging the front down just enough.

"What? This one?"

Grin still in place she fixed her shirt and moved on as if it had been the most normal of occurrences.

"And here I told you ten bedrooms was too many."
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