Plain white stained with red. Every time I see the color red, it would mean that something is dead; something or someone has spilled blood. Red is the color of death and sometimes power; that is what I have come to learn in this life. There came a time when I believed red meant life, but that didn’t last long because that life was taken away from me.

 This time, red meant there was life again. And I intend to keep it that way; I won’t let it get taken away.

I stared at the crib that was rocking back and forth while a soft and slow melody played from the music box. Even if I’m known for not smiling all the time, the baby sleeping right in front of me made my lips curve up. It has been a while since I had smiled and experienced happiness like this.

“Back again, Sehun?” the voice of my father came from behind me and I turned around slightly to see him with my mother in tow.

“He’s a cute little boy isn’t he?” my mother asked and I gave her a nod. I turned to look back on the sleeping child when it suddenly opened its eyes. His wide and curious eyes looked all over the place as if searching for something, and then it found me. My mother walked over and saw that my brother was awake, she picked him up in her arms but to our surprise, he cried.

“Hush now, little one.” My mother soothed my brother down but he wouldn’t stop bawling.

The earth shook wildly all of a sudden and I felt the floorboards in the room were opening up. The walls started to crack and part in half, vines with sharp thorns came out of the spaces and covered the walls. And the baby continued to cry.

“He’s doing this.” My father said and appeared behind my mother who was still trying to calm my baby brother down. The earth continued to shake, causing the music box to drop from the table and break into pieces. My eyes immediately turned red and the wind picked up the pieces of the broken toy. The crying suddenly stopped.

We halted and stared at the baby. He definitely stopped crying. The music box’s contents remained floating in the air as I took control of it; I commanded the wind to take it towards my brother, the parts danced around in front of his face and my brother’s eyes grew bigger. And then he laughed.

I fixed the toy in front of him and he giggled happily. The earth stopped shaking, the cracks were now closed and the vines started to grow beautiful and different kinds of flowers. The music box started to play again so I carefully dropped it on my brother’s hands. He continued to laugh while hugging the toy with one hand and then he reached for me with the other.

“Sehun, hold him for a while.” Mother said and stooped down to my level to hand over my baby brother. “He likes you.” She added and my eyes fell on his face. He was smiling so brightly, and so lovingly. His tiny hands reached for me so I gave him my hand, he held my finger and squeezed it softly before biting onto it. His fangs weren’t developed yet so it was funny seeing him chew with his lips.

“You’ll take care of him, right?” I suddenly asked out of the blue. My parents looked at each other, as if they were shocked that I asked such a question. But I know they know why I asked.

My mother walked over to me and placed her hand on top of my head, she kissed my forehead and smiled before giving me an answer that I knew was too good to be true.

“Yes, Sehun. Don’t worry. Never again.”

***

The office of the chairman was too bright for Kyungsoo’s taste, his eyes squinted a little as he walked in the spacious room filled with books and files that in his opinion, could use a little reorganizing. But Kyungsoo didn’t think much on it as soon as Lay appeared from a door on the right; carrying a bunch of papers with one hand and a blue pen with the other. Kyungsoo wondered why the Chairman called him so early in the afternoon but he figured it was for a good cause.

“Oh! Kyungsoo, I didn’t see you there.” the chairman spoke ever so brightly and Kyungsoo gave a bow in response.

“You called me here, Headmaster.” The young vampire replied as Lay sat down his table and started to read the important paperwork in his hands.

“Yes, I did. I know Sehun doesn’t go out of the dormitory at this hour unlike you, so I called for you instead.” Lay starts. “I intend to have a Dorm Inspection today, around five in the afternoon, right after Day Class classes and right before Night Class classes.” He finished and Kyungsoo gave a nod. It was three in the afternoon and once he informs Sehun about it, he’s sure that his brother would immediately act upon the Chairman’s requests.

“Is that all, Headmaster?” Kyungsoo asks and Lay turns to him with a smile. “Yes, that is all. Thank you.” The Chairman answered and Kyungsoo took it as a sign to bow and leave.

This isn’t the first time Lay has called him over to his office for an announcement so Kyungsoo knew his way in and out of the place even with his eyes closed. The sun was still at its peak but thankfully, the curtains in the hallways were already drawn out to block its rays. Kyungsoo didn’t mind a little sunlight but since they turn to ash when exposed, he preferred being in the shadows.

A wave of light suddenly made Kyungsoo stop in his tracks, his eyes glowed red and flashes of a scenery showed up right in front of him. It was one of the powers he had acquired as a Pureblood; the gift of Precognition, he can see certain events before they actually happen.

Kyungsoo took a step; he needed to stop the boy in front of him from going towards the staircase, he knows something terrible would happen if he did. But that’s the limit of Kyungsoo’s powers; he can see the events happening beforehand but he cannot stop the events while he is viewing them with his precognition, he could only hope to warn the people involved or meddle in during the situation to prevent anything from happening.

“Wait, Luhan!” Kyungsoo called out the view of Luhan from his sighting but he knows the latter wouldn’t listen; it was just a precognition. The view of Luhan continued and Kyungsoo unknowingly took another step to follow him.

Then Kyungsoo saw blood, blood spilled everywhere because of the Vampire that was feasting on Luhan’s neck. “Luhan!” he unconsciously yelled and the Vampire looked right at him, but he didn’t have blood on his mouth like what Kyungsoo expected. “What? Why are you calling Luhan hyung?” the latter asked. And in that moment, Kyungsoo knew the precognition was over.

Kyungsoo blinked twice to get rid of the signs he was using his ability but the moment he laid on eyes on Kai, they were back to the color of blood once again. Kai wondered why every time the two of them meet, Kyungsoo’s eyes would always turn red. It’s not like they have been acquainted many times, but Kai had never seen Sehun or the other Vampires switch eye color whenever he is around, unless they are mad at him of course.

Kai grabbed the smaller one‘s arm and dragged him towards the staircase, surprisingly though, Kyungsoo didn’t react violently. They reached the top of the second floor and Kai pushed Kyungsoo towards the wall, he stared into the Vampire’s eyes that were still a bright shade of red.

“Why do your eyes turn red every time you are near me? I’ve never seen Sehun and the others react like that when it comes to me, unless Chanyeol’s being an and he wants to rip my head off.” Kai admits and Kyungsoo closes his eyes in an attempt to rid of his instincts but it was futile. The moment he opened his eyes again, they were still blood red.

“My control over my powers is weak. One of my powers includes sensing other Vampires; my eyes turn red whenever I sense a Vampire nearby, be it Pureblood, Noble or some others.” The smaller replies and Kai’s hands balled into fists. “The reason why you don’t see me walking with the Night Class is because of that, because my eyes may suddenly turn red while we are walking. It would cause a lot of problems.” Kyungsoo finished and looked directly at Kai with his eyes turning from red to black. Obviously, he is training himself to gain better control but sometimes his power gets the best of him, so he opt to stay away from Sehun and the other Night Class students whenever the Day Class students are still around.

“I am not a Vampire. Don’t compare me to blood thirsty demons like you.” Kai spat, his anger boiled when he heard the reason for Kyungsoo’s eyes, and the mere fact that the latter “senses” what he is to become made him furious. He wasn’t one of them.

“My eyes don’t lie, Kim Jongin. You know very well what you will be, you can’t keep this up. You will hurt people because of the growing instinct in your veins.” Kyungsoo said.

“What do you know?! I’m not like you.” Enraged, Kai grabbed Kyungsoo’s collar and pushed him to the wall.

“I have seen it. Other than sensing the presence of other Vampires, I have the gift to see events that will happen in the future.” Kyungsoo replied, his feet were a bit off the ground but he didn’t bother shaking off the angry hunter in front of him. “You will hurt Luhan, Kai. Before I bumped into you… the reason why I yelled Luhan’s name was because I saw him getting attacked by you.” He continued and Kai’s eyes went wide before he dropped Kyungsoo from his hold. He didn’t want to believe the latter but Kai knows about the power of Vampires and they are not to be taken lightly.

“You will hurt him, maybe even kill him. I don’t know. The precognition stopped before I saw anything else.” Kyungsoo then finishes and stares at Kai who was just looking back at him with wide, fearful yet angry eyes. This is Kai’s fate, and there’s nothing he could do to stop it. It’s something he can’t run away from.

***

Luhan went through door to door in the Sun Dormitory for the Day Class students. It was time for the dorm inspection and he didn’t think it would take up much of his time. The students had so much junk that they hid in their rooms. And by “junk”, Luhan meant boxes and albums of stolen photos of the Night Class students. Because of so much junk, Luhan had to ask help from Kris to push and pull the cart where all the confiscated items were placed. Kai was nowhere to be found.

“Damn, these are a lot.” Kris says and drags the bag towards the bell tower where they usually dump the trash before it gets taken away by a truck in the morning.

Luhan simply laughs at his roommate’s remark. He didn’t blame the Day Class students for taking such photos; the beauty of the students in the Night Class was ethereal. “Well, that’s the Day Class for you.” The guardian laughs when he suddenly spotted a familiar shade of dark brown. There he is.

Luhan then drags the bag over with Kris coming along; wondering why the latter suddenly changed course, but the moment his eyes laid on Kai who was silently sitting behind a tree, he heaved a sigh. The guy was going to get an earful and he knew it.

Kai was staring at the box of medicines in his hand, he gritted his teeth and cursed the tablets inside but he knows he needed them in order to not let Kyungsoo’s precognition come true. He has been thinking a lot about what the smaller Vampire had said and he figured, if he didn’t lose control over his growing instincts, he wouldn’t hurt anybody, especially Luhan.

 “KIM JONGIN!” a voice Kai was trying to avoid hearing the whole afternoon perked up and he immediately hid the box of medicines in his jacket. He turned around to see the two males who were dragging a big bag of junk with them.

“You’re ditching again! Lay assigned us with this task, how dare you leave me alone to do it!” Luhan grumbled while crossing his arms in front of his chest. It wasn’t fair that he had to deal with the curses and whines of the Day Class students while Kai just sat there quietly behind a tree.

“You’re not alone hyung. You have Kris hyung with you.” Kai responds and Luhan snorts before pulling the younger up by his ear. “OW! HYUNG! LET ME GO!” Kai shouts but since Luhan had had enough of whining for one day, he didn’t let go of the latter. He dragged Kai towards Kris and motioned the other to let go of the bag.

“Because you ditched me, Kim Jongin, you will carry this full bag to the bell tower. And when you’re done, we will proceed to the Moon Dormitory to continue the inspection.” Luhan ordered causing Kai to groan but of course, he knows he has to follow Luhan’s orders or he’d never hear the end of it. So Kai took the bag and hauled it over his shoulder, much to Kris and Luhan’s surprise since it did take the both of them to carry the heavy load around.

“Have you been working out? You’ve gotten stronger.” Kris compliments and Kai stopped in his tracks. He does not work out. Hell, his spirit animal is a sloth and everyone knew that but this new found strength showed Luhan and Kris otherwise. “I guess I don’t know my own strength.” Kai replies and continues on his way to the bell tower to avoid further questioning.

Luhan looked at Kai and he wondered why the younger seemed more distant than before. Sure, Kai was not the type to open up his feelings, he was silent and wouldn’t talk unless spoken too, but Luhan felt like Kai was a hundred yards away from him, literally.

“Thanks for the help, Kris. Sorry for the trouble.” He then says once he spotted Kai throwing the bag into the crate. “Jongin and I will handle the Moon Dormitory, you can go back to the dorms.” He adds and the taller nods before taking his leave. Luhan then walks over to Kai and the hunter turns to see the older frowning at him.

“What? I took your bloody bag didn’t I?” Kai grunts and Luhan scoffs before turning around; stomping his foot like a spoiled brat, and walking away.

Kai sighed, he knows Luhan is mad but it wasn’t his intention to get the older mad. He was just being cautious of the precognition that may or may not happen. It could happen, it could not. But Kai wasn’t taking any chances of it ever happening so staying away from his supposed victim seemed to prevent it.

Luhan walked towards the Moon Dormitory, not taking a glance at Kai even one bit. He was annoyed but he was more curious and worried. He didn’t like it when Kai doesn’t talk to him about things when there’s obviously something bothering him. He worried that it might have something to do with the box of medicines the latter was holding on to earlier. He wondered what it was and he wondered why Kai suddenly hid it in a flash in his jacket. What was in that box?

“Jongin.” Luhan finally called and stopped at the stairway leading to the Moon Dormitory’s entrance. “Before we go on, I want you to take out that box you hid underneath your jacket.” He finished and Kai’s eyes went wide. He didn’t think Luhan saw it, let alone ask boldly about it.

“What are you talking about?” Kai tries to avoid the situation even if he already knew there was no stopping Luhan’s curiosity. “Stop playing, I saw you hide something in your jacket. What is it? I’ve seen it in your room as well.” Luhan replies while turning around to face Kai. However, because they were on a staircase, Luhan lost his footing and balance, causing him to fall forward.

“Luhan hyung!” Kai says in alarm and catches Luhan before he completely falls. “Be careful hyung! What are you---” before he could finish his sentence, Luhan parted from him and jumped back two steps.

“Gotcha.” Luhan grins triumphantly, showing the box of medicines that were in his hands. “Now tell me, Jongin, what is in this?” he asks again and attempted to slide open the box. But even before he could, Kai had already snatched it back with haste.

“STOP MEDDLING INTO THINGS THAT AREN’T TO BE MEDDLED WITH!” the younger snaps and shoves the box in his pocket. “You’re so annoying, hyung!” he adds before completely turning around leaving Luhan by the staircase.

***

Luhan didn’t mean for Kai to get angry. He just wanted to know if there was something bothering him; he only wanted to know so he could help. It wasn’t his intention to be an annoying older brother.

“Where did you go, Jongin?” Luhan asked himself as he looked around the small town found near Intercross Academy. He followed Kai of course, he needed to apologize and explain why he was pestering the latter so much. But Luhan was terrible at tracking people down, he lost Kai the moment the hunter turned to a street.

Now Luhan was going around in circles.

Luhan suddenly felt a chill go up his spine. It was ten minutes past seven already, the skies weren’t covered in darkness yet but it was getting there. He knows the town is full of Vampires and Humans, but he didn’t know which is which and being alone in such a vulnerable manner made him frightened. He sat down the empty square for a while to catch his breath and settle his mind but it didn’t help at all. Luhan didn’t feel safe and he wished a certain prince was there with him; he always felt safe whenever Sehun was around.

While catching his breath, Luhan suddenly saw a whiff of the color red. He immediately turned around to see a young boy running while holding on to a red balloon. However, the balloon flew off as the boy accidentally let the string slip away from his hands; the red toy flew up and got stuck to a tree branch. The boy stared at the tree and Luhan quickly stood up to help; he climbed the tree and hung on the branch, he reached for the string with his free hand and snatched the balloon before jumping down.

“Here you go.” Luhan smiled at the small boy and handed him the balloon. The boy, however, ran away. “Hey wait!” Luhan yelled and ran after the boy, wondering why he suddenly scampered off.

Luhan followed the boy here and there, unable to catch him or even stop him from running. He accidentally bumped into a woman while hurrying to find the young boy. “I’m sorry!” Luhan quickly apologizes; he bows and then runs away.

“Why is he running away from me?” Luhan huffs and continues to follow the boy, unaware of where the child was leading him.

The child finally stopped running and Luhan sighed in relief, he didn’t know where they were but what mattered to him more was the return of the child’s balloon.

“You finally stopped. Here’s your balloon, little kid.” Luhan said while trying to catch his breath, he reached over to the boy for him to take the balloon but got a shock when the child roughly grabbed his hand, making him let go of the balloon. “Hey, what’s wrong?” Luhan asks.

The young boy gripped on Luhan’s uniform and then it looked up, only to reveal blood red eyes. “V-Vampire?!” he shouted when all of a sudden, the Vampire’s eyes grew bigger; the red pupils turned to nothing but dots, and the young boy’s mouth grew wider, showing all of its teeth that were sharp as razors.

Luhan screamed; he’s never seen a Vampire like that before, even the Vampire that attacked him when he was young didn’t look like that. The monstrous creature managed to scratch Luhan’s hand before avoiding a swing of the guardian’s foot. The Vampire jumped back and Luhan took it as a cue to run.

He ran towards the tall tower since it was the only place strong enough to hide him. He knows he can’t outrun a Vampire, but he also knows that the thing that attacked him was no ordinary Vampire. The Vampires Luhan knew were beautiful, kind and gentle. Sure they had their moments but what he saw today was nothing like them. There wasn’t a hint of beauty in the monster that he saw.

Suddenly, Luhan heard cackling and then he felt that the monster was close by. He drew out his Hunter Rod and took a stance. No one was going to protect him now, he needed to protect himself. Luhan felt a presence and he turned just in time to avoid the woman he had bumped onto earlier. She had the same features as the young boy and she looked mischievously at the human before her. The monster jumped in front but Luhan was quick to hit her with the rod, it sent her flying back a few feet. The monster twitched and before it could even get up, Luhan continued to run towards the tower.

Upon reaching the tower, he immediately climbed up the staircase and reached the highest peak where the bell and its mechanics were. Luhan knows he can’t rest yet but he felt so drained and exhausted, he wearily slumped down the floor but then he was suddenly reminded of the faces of the monsters.

I’m scared. Luhan’s seven year old self sprouted up and he closed his eyes to rid of such thoughts. Those that attacked him were not the same Vampires that he admired, they were different and he knew that. He mustered up his courage and stood right back up before facing the door which he had entered.

The female monster was right outside the window and Luhan had no clue, it was about to strike when she laid eyes on another human near the premises.

Luhan waited for the monster to come and attack him. He was too preoccupied with his own thoughts, he didn’t hear the faint calling of his name. He gripped on his Hunter Rod so tight, his knuckles were turning white. Then he suddenly heard movement from behind him. He quickly turned around to block the young child from jumping at him.

“GET OFF!” Luhan yelled and tossed the boy away but the little monster only did a flip and it perched on one of the mechanics, causing the bell to ring loudly in Luhan’s ears. Luhan dropped the rod to cover his ears in a flash, the sound echoed and it hurt his head very badly. The child took Luhan’s distraction as a loop hole and immediately attacked; he sliced Luhan’s arm and pushed him back. Luhan’s head hit the brick wall behind him and he slumped down the floor from exhaustion.

The ringing didn’t stop and Luhan held on his bleeding arm. He looked up to see the monster smiling down at him, ready to take its final blow, but then a shadow suddenly appeared right behind him.

“Such a pity. You have succumbed to such a state.” The all too familiar voice of the Pureblood Prince gave Luhan hope, but it scared the wits out of the monster in front of him.

Sehun disappeared and reappeared right next to Luhan; bringing him up to his feet, he covered Luhan’s eyes in the process and protectively enveloped his body with his other arm. “S-Sehun?” Luhan asked in confusion. How did Sehun find him there?

“You have hurt the most important person to me.” Sehun said and his eyes glowed red, he stared down at the frightened child before him. “I won’t show you any mercy.” He finished and Luhan felt a huge gust of wind, followed by a loud, monstrous scream.

“It’s over, Luhan hyung.” Sehun put down his hand and Luhan saw no traces of the monster he ran away from, not even the blood.

“What are you doing here, hyung? It’s dangerous. It’s almost eight.” Sehun says and holds on to Luhan’s arm, making him flinch.

The Prince’s eyes immediately turned red once he saw the blood on his hands. Luhan saw the change in his eyes and his first move was to apologize and then he held on his wound with a shaking hand.

“Hyung, your shaking is not helping.” Sehun states and a purple glow appeared from his palm. He held on Luhan’s shaking hand, applying one of his powers to close the open wound on his arm.

“T-Thank you.” Luhan gave him a smile and the latter patted his head. “I’ll take you back.” Sehun says but then Luhan remembers what made him come to the town in the first place.

“W-Wait. I was looking for Jongin.” He says

“Kai? He’s back at the dorms already.” Sehun replies and Luhan wondered how he knew, but before he could even ask, Sehun had already teleported them back to Intercross Academy.

***

“Where are you?” Kai looked around the abandoned part of the town. He had sensed Luhan was in danger and he smelled his blood, so for once, he followed his growing instincts. “Luhan hyung!” Kai yelled but there was no response. Instead, Kai felt a dangerous presence right in front of him. He looked up and saw a woman. He immediately drew out his gun the moment the woman looked up and it didn’t have the features of a human.

“What did you do to Luhan hyung!?” Kai asked but the woman just stared at him and then smiled; showing its abnormally sharp teeth. Kai knew this wasn’t an ordinary Vampire so he took aim.

However, he felt another presence right behind him so he turned around, only to be jumped at by the little boy. Kai felt his lungs take a blow from the fall and he dropped his gun in the process. The boy stared at Kai with a malicious smile and was about to strike but then it stopped.

“C-C---” it tried to speak with its robotic and strained voice. “Comrade...” the young boy finished and Kai’s eyes grew wide. He pushed the child away and threw him off to the side, he searched for his gun when he saw a shadow above him; the female was about to clobber him down, if not for the sudden appearance of vines around her neck.

“Pathetic.” Kai heard a familiar voice and when he turned around, he saw Kyungsoo standing there. His bright red hair added flares to his already blood red eyes, his hands were hidden in his pockets and his eyebrows glared dangerously at the female monster within his grasp.

“Kyungsoo… why are you here?” Kai asks and the Vampire walks towards him. “I’m surprised to see you here as well; we only smelled Luhan’s blood.” Kyungsoo admits before decapitating the monster’s head with his whip of thorns.

“Luhan hyung!” Kai suddenly remembered why he was there in the first place but before he could even run, Kyungsoo got in front of him. “Weren’t you listening, Kim Jongin? We smelled Luhan’s blood. ” he emphasizes and Kai immediately registered what he meant.

“I’m taking you back, Sehun’s orders. You might lose your control once you get near Luhan. I take it you found him by using your nose?” Kyungsoo then says making the hunter’s eyes flare but then he turned around and went on ahead.

Kyungsoo followed quietly behind Kai; closing his eyes every now and then whenever he senses a Vampire among the people walking in the town. He hated his lack of control but he couldn’t help it, all he could do now is close his eyes and try to take control over his powers.

“OW.” Kyungsoo mumbled when he was put to an abrupt stop. He glared at Kai’s back before rubbing his nose in annoyance.

“What were those things? They weren’t Vampires, right?” Kai asked pertaining to the monsters he encountered earlier.

“No.” Kyungsoo answers. “They’re Level E’s. Humans who turned into Vampires but cannot control their thirst for blood. The smell of blood drives them to the edge and they turn into monstrous creatures at the very sight of it.” He finishes before walking ahead.

Kyungsoo and Kai arrived at the Academy around nine. Kyungsoo knows Sehun’s probably already back with Luhan so he and Kai went to the office instead of the dorms.

“I’m fine. I’m going back to my room.” Kai says before they reach the office. Kyungsoo really had no say in the matter so he let Kai be. They parted ways and he headed towards the Headmaster’s office to inform them of their return.

***

“Headmaster, you know I agreed to your pacifist beliefs and ideals. I sponsored your fantasy in putting up this school, but this manner is the one thing I cannot agree with!” Sehun’s voice raised a tone when he spoke with Lay later that night. Kyungsoo was right there in the room and he admits to himself that it’s the first time he has heard his brother raise his voice.

“How long do you intend on keeping Kim Jongin in the Day Class? His human instinct slowly decreases as time passes. You shouldn’t let it go too far.” The prince adds.

Lay sighs. “I knew you were the only person I cannot fool; you and your brother.”

Sehun then slams his palms on the Headmaster’s table. “I admired Jongin for his resistance but you know very well what happens to a human when bitten by a Pureblood. It’s either they die of blood loss or get haunted by the sickening feeling that they’re slowly turning. Unless he’s been turned into a Noble, Jongin has no escape and will soon become a Level E.”

 “But the Vampire that bit Jongin is dead, right?” Kyungsoo asked but Lay shook his head.

“He fled before I could even get the chance to finish him.” The Chairman replied and then turned to Sehun who wanted immediate action taken for the things happening in Kai’s life.

“Jongin needs to be controlled if you don’t want him turning into a Level E. We cannot take him as Noble since he has his own Master, he would only be free if his Master dies, though I highly doubt that chance. But you must at least let him be trained to control his new self. It’s the least you could do to suppress the Level E in him.” Sehun says again.

Biting a human to turn him into a Vampire is completely different from biting a human to turn him into a Noble. When a Pureblood bites someone in order to turn them into their Nobles, there should be a special bond between both parties. The Master and Slave Relationship of the Purebloods and Nobles isn’t one sided. When it is one sided, that is when the humans turned to Vampires transform to Level E.

 Suddenly, Sehun hears Kyungsoo take a sharp intake of breath. He turned around to see that his brother’s eyes were blood red but he was staring into space. Sehun then smelled the scent of blood that was all too familiar.

“SEHUN!” Lay yelled as soon as Sehun disappeared from his office. He knew he had to follow suit, especially when right before disappearing, Sehun mentioned Luhan’s name.

***