Under Water

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There was never much need to hide when the sun began to drop. Sure there were college students and teenagers partying on the beaches at night, but none ever looked far enough out onto the sandbars to really see him. Sometimes he'd even go up onto the beach and get dressed to hang out with the humans.
It was those times that he treasured.
Sure he could walk onto land whenever he wished, his legs returning, forming from the large dolphin fluke he had when in water, but he didn't really have many friends...and especially none he could trust with his secret.
His head tilted slightly as he noticed a few wave boards closing in on his position.
Hmph.
Of all the nights the kids decided to play around...

With a sigh he pushed himself off the sandbar and silently slid into the water.
A minute later the humans were jumping off their boards straight onto the sand.
Fin was watching them from beneath the water and could easily hear the conversation going on;

"Man, I thought I saw something!"

"That's what you always say when we come out here, but each time we come out to look, there's nothing!"

"B-But you guys saw it! It just slid off the bar a moment ago!"

"Right. Now come on, let's get back so we can head home, it's getting late."

When the boys finally departed Fin climbed back up into his sandbar, finger tracing the footprints left by the three kids. It would be nice to have school like them, or to be able to learn so much. Fin loved books but he obviously couldn't have any underwater. Well, that settled that!
With a flip of his fluke he stretched on the tiny beach, grinning up at the sky.
"Tomorrow I'll go to the library!"
He could finish that book he'd wanted too for the last week!
The librarian always asked him why he never checked anything out, but Fin didn't want to ruin it by having to leave it outdoors.
 
Stepping onto the warm sand that no longer burned his feet, Alexander began to walk around the beach, glancing as people began to leave - the sunset caught his eyes though. The sky was a mix of colors, like a palette of paint smeared together, he sighed in content and took in a breath of air as the salty and warm air filled his lungs, only to leave shortly after. His eyes were half lidded, a bag was on his back while his hands were burrowed in his black cargo shorts, his shirt consisted of a white tank top and a white button up shirt with several different black lines that went vertically and horizontally - all different sizes. His hair was in a tussle and his face held a stubble, the man glanced around the beach once more before he began to walk forwards. His shoes scooped sand and tossed it around as he scuffled forwards, moving to walk closer to the beach's water, seeing as he didn't like the feeling of sand splashing against his shins and ankles. Green eyes half lidded, the man headed off towards the rocks that were near and within the water, they were often dangerous to stay near, seeing as they were rather slippery and a few people managed to get hurt in that area from hitting their heads and drowning. It didn't take long until Alexander managed to the big, bulky rocks, they were a bit smooth to the touch, but had grooves within their surfaces, he climbed over the rocks and looked into the puddles of water. Alex sat his bag down on a semi-dry rock, pulling out small, narrow jars with corks - he dipped it into the water and took the sample, placing the cork in it before he began to write on the glass with a Sharpie marker. This was repeated about four times in four different puddles, one starfish was taken and one small crab, too - seeing as live samples would be needed. After the spill of oil in April of two thousand ten, it would be nice to see how the water was and how the sea creatures were copping, even if it was a few years after. He brushed back his dark brown hair, eyes half lidded before he set the items in his back pack - which was made to be safe for its contents. Once pleased with what he had, he turned around and furrowed his brows - moving a hand up to shade his eyes - he saw a black silhouette on the sand bank not too far from the water's edge, how strange, the shape wasn't normal. Was there a seal or a beached sea creature? The shape wasn't all too human from the angle he was at. Curiosity killed the cat, but the cat must explore first before dying - he wandered off the rocks and set his bags down before stepping in the water. "Hey!" He called out, waving his arms, "Are you alright?!" He called, seeing as if it were human, they would respond, if it wasn't - he'd soon find out.
 
Fin stretched out on his little personal beach as the sky began to mist.
He couldn't smell a full storm in the air but it would likely drizzle off and on tonight, nice.
The young merman was half asleep when he heard someone shouting.
At first he thought it was one of the teens on the beach, but then he realized it must be near the water's edge because it was much louder then their party had been.
He rolled over, eyes widening in surprise at the man in the water.
"AH!"
His tail slapped the ground repeatedly as his arms heaved at the ground, sending him over the side of the sandbar and into the darkened water.
Damnit! He was normally much more careful about hanging out of the water in his mer form where humans could see!

After a few minutes beneath the waves Fin surfaced, eyes landing on the human again.
He seemed like one of those researchers he saw on those big boats out at sea.
It was too dangerous to swim very far from the beach because of all the fishing traps and research boats looking for specimens, but he did eventually have to hunt large game. Only once or twice a year for a boost before winter, but still, it was needed and dangerous.

His head tilted slightly as he bobbed along with the waves.
Why was that man just standing out in his territory?
Maybe he wanted to make sure the animal on the beach was okay?
With an inward groan Fin ducked back underwater and swam closer, then surface enough so that his tail and dorsal fin were visible, splashing a little just to make sure the man noticed.
Then he vanished back beneath the waves to resurface several yards away to see the man's reaction.
Hopefully he'll just leave now...
 
Alexander watched the creature thrash in a startled fit and duck under the water for safety, most would take it as a seal - but seals weren't common in their area. Let alone upon closer inspection - he saw limbs and the creature had sat up right just enough to make out a semi-human silhouette, which was a surprise. Though, he had to remember, not much of the ocean was truly explored, they'd basically just skimmed the surface of life, for heaven's sake things were still being discovered within the waters of their lands. Anything could be alive and mermaids and mermen weren't an exception - they could be real too. He watched as it stayed submerged for quite some time, he'd had hands on with the common sea creatures before, giant jelly fish and whales, seals and penguins, fish of all kinds and swimming over the reefs, sea snakes and such - he'd dealt with land animals too, but they weren't much of a fascination to him. Alexander moved himself to crouch down, squatting almost and straining the muscles in hsi thighs and calves, he hadn't gone to the gym in quite some time, having been so engrossed in his studies for exams would be soon and he'd finally finish collage. He pursed his lips as he watched the head pop up, just a slight bit though. It bobbed with the movement of the steady, calm waves that washed around, then it submerged once more. However, the light glistened on the water and he saw the shadow of the figure approaching, just upon sight it looked like a dolphin, though it missed the upper part of the creature and held the human like body. What amazing camouflage, maybe that's how they survived so long, rather than actually looking like fish, they looked like larger creatures. He had to ponder though, was this sea mammal the only thing they could take after? What about a narwhal or an orca? Any other creatures like sharks? His mind raced with interesting facts, it was so amazing, so interesting, fascinating and it lured him in more. Though he watched as the fin on the creature's back resurfaced and so did just the top of their head, they splashed around a slight bit and Alexander found himself chuckling at this. Though when the head popped up just slightly, they were farther away. Alexander stole a few glances around him before flashing a kind and warm hearted smile, holding out his hand, elbow propped on his knee. "Come here, don't worry - I'm not going to hurt you." He cooed over in a soft, soothing tone - he didn't want to startle this amazing creation that dwelled under the ocean's surface.
 
Fin had tried to swim far enough away to not be seen by the human again, but even with his dark blue hair for camouflage, the human obviously still caught sight of him. Damnit, and now the guy was thinking things he shouldn't!
Most times people would take the dolphin play and just think there was a kid out swimming and a dolphin in the same area.
With an inward sigh he ducked under the water again and reemerged back over by the sandbar.
Alright.
Time to play this as best he could and hope the human was gullible.

Taking a deep breath he surfaced so that his head and part of his shoulders were out of the water.
Then he tried to mirror how a human swims, being sure to keep his fluke beneath the water.
He was coming from the complete different direction then he was a minute ago, so hopefully that fact helped out too.

"Hey! Did you see that dolphin?"
He stopped about five yards away, moving his arms beneath the darkening water just like a human who was treading.
"I've never seen one up close before but it kept swimming around me, it was pretty cool."
He tried to copy the man's smile, though was carefully not to make it too big and show off his back incisors that were just a tad too sharp for a human to have.
 
Alexander let his hand drop as the sea creature swam off and away from him once more, he watched - after a small extent of time - the other's head and the top of his shoulders peek out from the water. He raised a brow at the typical impersonation of a human, so this creature had two disguises if it needed, human and sea creature. Intriguing really, he was amazing and watched with slight awe, eyes brilliant and wide with amazement, "Yea, amazing. I didn't know dolphins traveled this close to shore nor sand banks. I was worried it was beached when I saw it on the sandbank." He murmured with a warm look touching his features, he seemed kind, though many found him intimidating for several reasons. He was a serious fellow, he was one that didn't take others into his life, he lived in solitude. Though the warm smile he gave off didn't seem to show that stone faced side, he rest his elbows on his knees, finger tips brushing the water's surface. "But," his voice trailed off a little and he pointed to the sand bank where there was disruption in the sand, it could be seen clearly from where he sat. "That wasn't a dolphin. It didn't move like one and it had arms and a human like body, I doubt that it could have been a dolphin, it was strange yet interesting, really." He murmured, Alexander was rather sure this person he was speaking with was what he'd seen, even if all he'd been able to see were shady features, it was good enough to depict the species. "I'm Alexander, and you are?" He asked, moving to hold out his hand to give the other a hand shake - even if he was a few yards away, it was just the common, kind thing to do when being introduced or introducing.
 
Fin sighed, his smile widening slightly when it appeared like the man was going to take his bait.
Unfortunately, the guy quickly started disproving his trick.
Gah!
He wanted to argue but the other was talking too quickly and then the handshake gesture...shit.
Obviously he'd have to walk forward and mostly out of the water in order to accept the gesture.
No doubt that's what the human was trying to get from him.
Alright, plan three was going to have to work...it was the last idea he had besides just swimming off!
Of course that option was rather disgraceful and left the human with thoughts of them being real, and that was dangerous.
With a deep breath he forced his fluke to reform into legs and the dorsal fin to vanish.
"The name's Fin...pardon me being naked, felt like skinny dipping since it was getting dark."
It was taking some effort to keep his fluke and fin in, but as soon as the wind dried him completely he would be totally fine and not have to concentrate on staying in his human form.

His hair was dark blue but in the darkness that now covered the beach near the water, it was too hard to tell.
It just looked pitch black. It was about shoulder length but mussy from days in the ocean.
His eyes were a light grey and he was well fit, showing a lean body with lean muscles in all the right places for a swimmer.
Under his ribs on either side of his torso were three lines that looked like old, faded scars.
Those were his gills that closed when he was on land.
They never truly went away but they were very hard to distinguish unless you poked at them enough to force them open on land.
 
When Fin had taken a step forwards and accepted his hand, he gave a firm shake, his own hands were warm and slightly damp, rough however from the work he'd done in the past. The man's smile brightened slightly and he gave a nod, "It's nice to meet you Fin, and careful about swimming like that, there's a lot of sick freaks in the world." He murmured before pulling his hand back, it seemed that - despite what he'd seen, this wasn't a dolphin but a regular human... He pursed his lips in thought, he could have sworn that he'd seen something miraculous like such, but clearly it was a trick of the eye, how inconvenient, he'd gotten all excited for nothing. This somewhat caused a downer on his mood, having discovered a new creature would have been the light up of his day - let alone his life. Standing up, he stood rather tall, maybe in the six foot range, he was well built - though not like a swimmer. More like the kind that regularly go to the gym and work out just for the hell of it, however, he didn't have the well built muscles of a body builder nor a professional football player, he found muscle that defined repulsive. "It was nice to meet you Fin, I hope to see you around." He murmured, giving a slight wave to the male, he had to head back to the collage and hand in his findings before he could head home, the man stepped out of the water - which had been up to the middle of his shin - thankfully had didn't wet his butt from crouching too close to the water, that wouldn't just be embarrassing but a pain when he got in his car since he didn't pack any towels. Though that was the least of his worries, seeing as nothing but his skin, shoes, and socks had wet.
 
Thank the gods he finally gave up!
Fin nodded and shook the others' hand as he replied;
"Yeah, I'll see you around some time."
As soon as Alexander walked away Fin dove back into the water, letting his fluke and fin reemerge with a sigh.
God! It seriously hurt forcing them to disappear when he hadn't planned on getting out of the water!
At least the trick had finally worked and the guy was leaving.
He danced beneath the waves before splashing back over towards the sandbar.
Considering he'd seen no one else on the beach but Alexander, he didn't care much about splashing around now.
It was his chance to lose some of that extra energy and also to hunt.
Unlike humans his eyes were well adapted to see underwater, even in darkness.
His pupils focused and directed the light as he swam until he spotted a small grouper.
Mmmmmmm!
Those things were hard to catch barehanded but he was more than willing to try!
With a grin he pumped his fluke and bolted after the startled fish.
He was splashing the surface every few seconds until he finally flipped the darn fish onto the sand bar.

Success!!
Fin dug into it with his sharpened teeth, claws holding the squirming thing as he crunched through scales and bones alike.
He was facing away from the shore, fin above the water as he rested on the sandbar on his belly.
Darn good meal after such an awkward situation!
 
Alexander collected his bag but he made sure to walk along the water's edge, that way the dry sand wouldn't cling to his shoes just yet, he found it annoying and quite a hassle, the man glanced over his shoulder to the soft sound of splashing that faded in the background as the distance between where he was and where he headed grew. He gave a slight grin, a chuckle to follow as he walked forwards, hands in his pockets and bag over his shoulders and on his back. He'd have to come back tomorrow with fish, a note book, and a camera. It would be nice to get some facts on this new being named Fin, he had no clue as to how he'd managed to change his appearance in such a fast motion, maybe that's why no one believed in mermaids and mermen, because they were so well adapted to their surroundings and intruders on their territory. He just had a few questions floating in his mind that he'd have to write down and study tomorrow, it seemed that near night time when the sun was setting would be best for observation, seeing as then he would be alone and he could see how Fin moved around. Did he have a home or form of shelter that prevented him from harsh weather and being swept to sea? What did his diet consist of? And most importantly, were there more? And how common were these mer-people?
 
As the sun began to go down after a long, quiet day, Fin blinked open his eyes and stretched on the sand.
He often slept below the overhang of the giant slippery rocks.
No one was ever able to swim beneath it because there was quite a strong current if you went more than a few feet underneath.
There were even warning signs telling anyone nearby not to get close, or at least not to dive down.
He, however, had no trouble pushing past the current and often used it to rest.
Of course Fin could sleep beneath the water too, but sharks often came out in the deep of night around one, so he often found himself curled up in the small hidden area by that time.
It was originally just rock, but after a few days of hauling up sand, he'd managed to make a decent bed with that and seaweed.

With a big yawn Fin sat up and slid into the crisp, cool water to stretch out his tail.
It felt good to have it again.
Being in his human form for a long time always felt odd.
Considering it was a Monday there were barely any people on the beach partying.
The students were all studying or finishing homework for tomorrow so he didn't hesitate to go back out to his sandbar.
When he resurfaced a sent caught his attention and he quickly turned his eyes towards the beach.
Oh man...
Those fried candy bars were back!
Sure he hated human food, but come on!! Fried snickers on a stick?!
With an excited chirp he dove back into the water and swam down past where most would venture.
Surfacing again he grabbed a pair of shorts he kept hidden in the tall sea-oat grass, he yanked them on and ran up to the beach after drying enough to maintain his human form.
Human's always dropped money in the sand too, so his pockets had a few tens in it.

With a big grin he stopped in front of the stand that was just starting to close and eyed the last fried bar.
"Sir, can I have the last one?!"
The older man turned around and smiled as soon as he saw Fin.
"Of course kid! Haven't seen ya in awhile."
Reaching sideways he took the last treat and handed it over, waiving away the money as he nodded.
"It's fine, you enjoy that. It would have just been tossed if you hadn't just run up."

Fin's eyes sparkled and he gave a little hop of excitement.
"Thanks a lot mister! See you again!"
The man waved as Fin ran back down towards the waves, but instead of going into the water he easily climbed the slippery rocks until his feet were hanging over the furthest outcrop where beneath it, his little sleeping area was hidden.
Mmmm, time to eat!
 
It didn't take long until he was in the parking lot where he walked to his car, getting in - it was a big truck, nothing fancy really. He slid in and gently set his bag on the passenger seat before he began to start the big hunk of metal, eyes half lidded as he began the drive home, he didn't live too far from the beach, he had a nice house out off and away from the crowded beach area, it was more of a common neighborhood that you'd see anywhere else, it was a new one, developing slowly. He had managed his way home within a few minutes, parking in his drive way and stepping out, grabbing his bag and heading inside his house, it was a two story home, somewhat small. Three bedrooms, three bathrooms, a living room and a dining room, a kitchen and a sun room, nothing all too fancy. There was a master bedroom on the first floor where he stayed and two guest bedrooms up stairs, there wasn't an extra room there, that was all that was there, two rooms and a bathroom. He walked up the stairs after he slid off his shoes in the mudroom - or the laundry room, he tossed his socks in the basket on top of the dryer machine, once he was up stairs he went into one of the two rooms which he used as his bonus room. He set down his bag and pulled out the contents before he took a seat and began to take note of everything that had happened when he encountered Fin - the strange aquatic creature.
 
It was beginning to get dark as Fin finally finished off his treat.
He tended to saver human food when he got it, since he didn't often go past the stands on the beach, unless it was to the library.
As his legs kicked over the edge he flopped back onto the rocks, arms stretching up over his head.
"Nnnnn."
His eyes were beginning to close as they watched the gulls fly overhead.
Heh, it almost looked like they were swimming on the air currents.
Such funny creatures...
They tasted like the human version of chicken but often catching them wasn't worth the effort.
Kinda bony.

With a faint smile he yawned and let his lids slide the rest of the way down, not bothering that a gull landed to carry off the cleaned stick from his candy treat.
After a few more minutes he was snoring quietly.
No one ever came down to the beach Monday, so he wasn't too worried about being found.
Either way, he was in his full human form and his arms were moved by his sides, so the gill slits were generally covered.
 
The next day arrived, it was roughly six in the afternoon, a perfect time to head out since the beach would be cleared of visitors and would only host a few late night fisher men. Glancing around, Alexander grabbed a cooler that was filled with all kinds of different treats. There was two bottle of beer and two cans of soda, one candy bar, a bag of chips, a little bit of bread that was soon to go bad, and he had other things within it too. He grabbed a towel and made sure he had his phone, keys, and wallet with him. Once assured of this, the man began to walk to his truck, he was in swim shorts and flip flops with a mere tank top over his chest - he had intentions to try and see that sea creature again, and hopefully Fin - he seemed a bit sketchy, and more than likely he was the sea creature he was after. He also had a bag that contained a camera, pencil, and paper - all what he needed in case he needed to jot things down or snap a photo. Alexander glanced around for a moment, patting himself before he grabbed the keys out of a hidden pocket on his red shorts, he pushed the key in the ignition and started the car, heading out of the drive way and down towards the beach's parking area, hoping to get closer this time rather than he had last time, seeing as Fin had been ducking back every now and then when he hosted the lower half of a dolphin.
He couldn't help but feel a bit excited, it wasn't every day you could just walk right on out and see a miracle before your very eyes, he hummed along with the songs that played on the radio, drumming his fingers as the bright sun continued to carry high in the sky, it wouldn't go down until roughly eight at night, seeing as it was summer. It didn't take long until Alexander managed to the parking lot where he parked the truck and grabbed his items, paying the man behind the toll booth, seeing as this wasn't free parking. He made his way onto the beach and walked along the sand, heading towards the small cliff of rocks and boulders, the sand kicked up and scrapped across the lower parts of his shins, causing irritation - but that wasn't even flowing in his mind.
 
The only good thing about seagulls was that they were great alarm clocks.
If anything got too close, they'd screech to the point of deafness for anything nearby.
That's exactly what they were doing, forcing Fin to groan and shield his eyes from the waning sun.
"Nnnnn?"
The birds were freaking out, so someone must be coming close...
With a grunt he sat up, then glanced sideways before groaning louder.
That blasted human again of all people!
Hiding the scowl he wanted to portray, he forced on a smile and nodded.
The guy seemed dressed for the weather this time, so he'd obviously planned on coming back today.
Mmph.
Maybe he still thought he was weird and wanted to make sure?
Annoying, but Fin could deal with it.
Being in human form for awhile was nothing too hard, as long as he didn't have to swim for too long.
He turned on the large overhanging rock so he could stand, then carefully hopped over to the safer areas.
Sure the rocks were slippery, but his human feet were ever-so-slightly webbed between the toes and had tiny pores to help with grasping slippery surfaces.
 
In actual truth, Alexander didn't think he'd run into Fin once more, he thought it would be a once in a life time chance to see a marvelous species, but he was wrong because standing by the rocks was the person that he'd hoped to see. He saw a glimmer of a smile, or what seemed to be a smile, he couldn't see all to well due to the distance between them and he was sure his contacts were going bad. He sighed and made his way over towards the rocks but he didn't get too close, he set the things down and flapped the towel, setting it down and taking a seat on it. It was within the perfect spot, he could see the rocks with the swivel of his head and he could see the ocean's tides as well as the sand banks farther back in the ocean's vast area. He opened the cooler - which was set to his side, his bag of materials between his legs, one heel in the sand on either side of the towel's corners. He pulled out a beer and twisted off the cap, tossing the metal in the cooler - he was against littering with a passion, he hated it to no end and hated the effects it had on the wide open blue. He brushed back his hair and took a sip of the cold liquid that slid from the glass and into his mouth. Alexander could only wait and hope that Fin would walk over, he'd have to talk with him, see if he could get the man to slip up on his words, he wanted to know all he could. But it was clear that Fin wasn't going to give up the information so easily.
 
Fin eyed the male, half expecting him to walk right over and start the questions.
Obviously he was going to stay for awhile judging from the towel and cooler, and since it was already late?
Yeah, Fin wasn't an idiot.
He was either waiting for him to slip up, or wanting to see if maybe he'd made a mistake assuming Fin was a creature other than human.
Pursing his lips Fin grumbled beneath his breath and hopped off the rocks.
Best to just deal with this now...
He easily jumped from one to the other, then down to the sand.
Thankfully he'd practiced walking on land weekly so the ability never looked clumsy.

After a moment he was walking up to Alexander's blanket, a fake smile on his lips.
"Fancy seeing you here again so soon...though I guess I could say that for myself, too."
He carefully sat himself down besides the other in the sand, being sure to keep his right arm mostly covering his closed gill slits.
"Come to drink your sorrows away, today?"
No doubt the guy tended to stay out there for awhile considering the cooler and other things he'd brought.
Tch.
Guess there would be no playing in the water tonight...
 
"Living near the beach has it's perks, doesn't it?" He gave a chuckle and raised a brow towards the second comment, "Nah, I'm drinking for fun. Would you like one?" He asked, opening the cooler for the other to take what he wanted, however he pulled the remaining slices of bread he had - which were torn apart to smaller pieces, and empties it on the sand for the gulls to devour, they must be hungry after all - humans were stingy and wouldn't feed scraps. Healthy or not, food was food and everything needed something for survival. Within no time the fives slices that had been broken apart were swarmed at with the competitive birds flapping their wings and cawing loudly while diving for the mere crumbs the morsels managed to create.
Alexander turned his attention away and took a swig of the contents in the brown glass, picking at the wrapping around the girth of the glass, he had an odd habit of removing it and then tucking it in the bottle, like a pirate would a treasure map.
 
Fin fidgeted as the birds were beckoned in.
He hated those flying rats!
It was rather tempting to try and grab one though, but that wouldn't be obvious, heh.
Sucked, being surrounded by food you could just reach out and grab, and not be able too without inciting suspicion.
When offered a drink he shrugged and reached into the cooler, grabbing out a beer and eying it wearily.
He had never bothered to touch the stuff considering what it did to the teenagers who always came to party on the beach, but eh, why not?
When he got the cap off and started sipping the drink his face contorted in disgust.
"Uhhnn! That tastes terrible!"

He eyed the bottle with furrowed brows, then offered it back to Alexander.
"I can't drink that."
His manners were a bit lacking, but eh, he didn't need them when he lived mostly by himself.
Sure friends came and went, but most mer didn't stay in one place the whole year.
They tended to move to keep from being discovered, but Fin didn't have any interest in going elsewhere.
Every time he tried beforehand he always got attacked by sharks or hunted by fishermen.
It sucked!
 
Alexander chuckled at the other's reaction and took the glass away from him, setting it back in the cooler and offering a soda instead, "It takes time to get used to the taste." He murmured, seeing as it was rather bitter, but you got over it and soon you discovered new tastes that you'd like later on in life. He brushed back his hair and sipped from his own glass bottle before setting it down once more, looking at the other. "Are you hungry?" He asked, seeing as there was food in the bag that he'd more than gladly hand over if the other wanted it. He seemed a bit skinny, though he also had the body of a well trained swimmer, seeing as he'd encountered him the night before when he claimed to be 'skinny dipping' in the public ocean.
 
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