June 1st - June 19th
It's almost summer! The last few weeks of school have come, and students will need to study hard for their final exams! Don't let up yet, or your grades won't be what you want them to. Of course, the weather is almost perfect and pristine, in attempts to lure students away from their studies.
A Hesitant Entrance [ISO: Open]
[Location: Entry Way. Time: 9:55 AM. Five minutes early.]
Breena Stacey never considered herself one to be on time, but this was a very different occasion, without a doubt. It was a reunion. A ten year reunion. Merlin, seeing everyone again... Some of her peers, those that had been in her year at Hogwarts, she had seen much more recently, three years tops actually. But those that were older, the seventh, sixth, fifth, even fourth years seemed like they had been gone for an eternity. So due to this anticipation of seeing people she hadn't seen in about a decade, Breena had made sure to arrive on time. From the looks of the invitation, it was a formal, or at least semi-formal, event, so Breena had squeezed into a fitted black cocktail dress, accentuating all of the curves that she most definitely DIDN'T have ten years before. When she was a first year, she would have killed to wear a black coctail dress like the one she was currently sporting. This made her swell with smug pride, indeed. No longer was she the "little" girl that she was all those years ago.
Indeed, Breena Stacey was different. Older. Not so G Rated anymore. Not that she ever really WAS, seeing as she always had the urge to grow up and be older than she really was, but there were few ways to describe Breena and make her sound innocent. As a witch in training at St. Mungos, she had the dream to become a mediwitch. But for the time being, she was having fun ambushing certain attractive older mediwizards in their offices for a mid-morning "break." The rules of inter-departmental dating only applied to her, seeing as she was just in training, which made such risque acts so much more appealing to her. Push the limits. See how far you can stretch them until you actually get caught. Except it wasn't really about that, because Breena would despise getting caught. It would either lead to her dismissal or her suspension. Neither sounded appealing.
But right now, that wasn't what mattered. Breena apparated just ouside of the Mercury Manor. A black scarf was draped over her arms, resting in the inside crook of her elbow, and a black hand bag was clutched in her hands. Upon getting her first sight of the Mercury Manor, Breena wanted to die. It was incredible! Huge! Amazing! This was where Armand D'Angelo-Crestmere lived?! Merlin if only she was older when he was at Hogwarts. Then she could ambush HIM in some classroom or closet. How did he get the money to afford this place? Breena knew he had gone famous from music for a while, but THAT famous? Maybe he had moved to America and became more of a star there, then brought the money back to Britain. To buy THIS incredible thing. Breena burned green with envy. How many more of her classmates from the 2008/2009 school year would be filthy stinking rich like Armand? Here Breena was, just in training! Only with enough money for a two bedroom, one bathroom flat. And she didn't even have anyone to put in the second bedroom!
Well, at least she could be in the presence of greatness for one day, right? Letting out a sigh, Breena started up toward the manor, her heels clicking on the pathway. As she reached the oak doors, she extended her arm to grasp the handle and open it, but before she could reach it, the door magically flew open, revealing the grand entry way, at the moment completely empty, to Breena's eyes. "Bloody hell," Breena gasped, taking in her surroundings. Well, this was going to be an interesting day.
Armand really did despise this estate. He remembered the first time he'd gotten that letter from his father's lawyer telling him he'd inherited an entire manor. First there had been shock, especially since Armand had hardly spoken to his father, not to mention he didn't really know his father had bought a manor. But then there was disgust. Armand hadn't wanted the estate and had tried to somehow get around his father's will, but there wasn't much he could do. He'd thought about selling it, but he never got around to it. Instead he'd just left it sitting there for a while before finally, grudgingly, coming back. Armand had hated everything about having a manor and when walking in it, he'd hated it even more; everything about it radiated his father and he, frankly, was not okay with that. So then started the whole long process of cleaning and remodeling that Armand really didn't care to do. But he did it nonetheless and the end result wasn't too bad. Armand still didn't like being in the place, thus had many of his things in the apartment above his record store, but occasions such as these called for a place such as this.
When Armand had initially come up with the idea of holding a reunion, it wasn't quite sure what he was thinking. Well, he supposed he was just nostalgic about Hogwarts and everything that had happened. There were some memories he didn't care to remember, but for the most part, the good out-weighed the bad. After Hogwarts, his life had become sort of an emotional rollercoaster, even more so that it had been during his Hogwarts years. He'd put out an album or two, did a tour, moved to New York, visisted San Fransisco, had his share of men and women, done the rehab deal, everything. It was like those ten years had been more like one hundred years and Armand just didn't feel fulfilled. He didn't have that sense the world had anything more offer him and he felt as though he were unable to be happy -- really happy. Not in the way he'd been at Hogwarts, at least. He supposed he was one of those people who peaked at school and never stopped looking back on it.
Armand heard the door open and he glanced in the general direction of the entrance. He slowly got to his feet and fixed his tie as he did so. The occasion had called for a semi-formal attire, but Armand was never one to be boring about his clothes. If anything, he'd gotten a bit more extravagant over the years and cared less and less about his public perception. He looked almost as though he were from the 50s, wearing a black dress shirt under a dark maroon suit vest with metalic red pin stripes. The tie he wore was blood red in color and his slacks and shoes were black. And, to top it all off, he wore a black fedora hat. The sleeves of Armand's shirt were casually rolled up, revealing his slender yet muscled arms. While the young man was still somewhat thin, he looked much more mature now. He'd grown tougher and had the appearance of someone who'd been through a lot, physically and mentally. But he was still Armand.
"Well, looks like you're the first one," Armand said, his voice low and strangely calm. Despite becoming more extravagant, the man had become much mellower in attitude, though he still had a rather violent temper. "Welcome." He gave the young woman a warm smile. Yet behind that seemingly friendly smile seemed to be a hint of that rock star that still lurked beneath the cool visage of this man. He'd lived a wild life and it was almost visable in him.
Armand sauntered down the left staircase, calloused fingers gently tracing the railing before finally stopping at the end. His dark, mischevious eyes met Breena's. Armand only remembered her as the little first year Gryffindor that he'd seen running around the castle on numerous occasions. After that, he hadn't seen her. It was almost hard to believe that this young woman standing before him was that same little girl he'd seen cause trouble time and time again. She'd grown up rather nicely.
"You don't have to wait here, if you don't want to," Armand said casually. He gave a wave toward the largest of the hallways that led to a set of large double doors that were open, revealing the dining hall. "The dining hall is over there if you want to stake out a table." He paused for a moment though, giving the young woman another assessment. It was a shame his mind was occupied with another, or he might have tried to woo her. Nonetheless, Armand gave Breena an almost roguish grin before saying, "And let me just say, you've definitely grown up, Stacey."
Re: A Hesitant Entrance [ISO: Open]
This feeling was familiar. The strange giddiness that had followed her around during her Hogwarts days.. That is... During her days as a student. Puck had returned to Hogwarts, much to the surprise of all of the Professors that had taught her, to take over the job of Transfiguration Professor. Puck had surprised even herself by accepting the job, but she had always secretly wished that she could be in control of a classroom: ordering the students around and being quite ridiculous, while somehow managing to be the favorite and the daydream of many a student. Immediately after leaving Hogwarts in her 7th year, Puck had gone to do some studying under renowned Transfiguration experts. Each and every one of them were Animagi, and they gave Puck further instructions in perfecting her techniques and her skills to help her become a Transfiguration expert. Spending several years in intense training under some of the brightest minds in Britain, Puck went on to do independent studies of her own, perfecting her poor potions skills, and studying new transformation techniques. After several breakthroughs in the art of Transfiguration, Puck published a short 'Transfigurations for Twits' with pointers, tips, and tricks for those who were inept at the art. Naturally, the mischievous side of Puck had never died, but it had lay dormant for some time now. Until two years ago, when she had accepted the letter from the new Headmaster of Hogwarts.
Being in the old castle again brought back memories -- and Puck was proud to see that her 'wizarding hobo signs' that she had left in invisible permi-ink along the walls still remained, and had provided assistance for mischief makers of all ages. Of course when she had begun teaching, the students who took over her in their mischief making exploits were stunned and shocked -- because they recognized her as the one responsible for the marks, and the owner one of the largest 'trouble-maker' files in the Hogwarts cabinet. In the beginning, they had tried to harass her or coerce her into getting off topic and telling them stories from when she had been at Hogwarts, but after a while, when they discovered that her lessons were actually entertaining, overall their desire to learn usually overcame their desire to procrastinate. Puck hadn't really kept in touch with a lot of her friends, because she was the type of girl who had a hard time keeping in contact with everyone. She read columns about Jereff in the Daily Prophet before he had retired, and had listened to a few CDs released by Lucian, but other than that she didn't really keep in touch. She had been doing so much traveling, that it was difficult.
The thought of being around all of her classmates again began a spark of anticipation that had become a roaring fire by the time she entered the entrance hall. So this was Armand's mansion... Puck had no idea that Armand had been so well off, mostly because he had been such a young ruffian during his Hogwarts days... Puck hugged her shoulders slightly. Was she on time? She looked down at her invitation. She had spent most of the day getting ready, before traveling out to the mansion. She was wearing a slinky green-blue dress that hugged her figure. It was slightly reminiscent of the 1940s, a time that Puck knew very little about aside from the popular songs. She had on a simple tear dropped shape necklace and a pair of simple earrings. Puck had never been a girl of gaudy fashion, and she certainly wasn't one now. Her hair had grown out long, well past her shoulders, with a slight wave that she had encouraged for the party. She had pulled back her hair into a half-up-half-down concoction, with some hair hanging down to frame her face while the rest of the top wound back into an elegant mess of a bun. As usual, her use of make up was modest. Nothing too heavy or flashy.
Puck hadn't brought a purse to the affair, which made her feel half naked as she stood in the entryway. She the invitation in her hands and glanced down at it one more time. Armand. How had he changed? Puck walked a little further and saw Armand from behind. She recognized him in an instant, and an imp-like grin quickly spread across her features. "Well Armand D'Angelo. I had no idea that you were so well off. Fancy that. The worst rogue the walls of Hogwarts have ever known turns out to be a Prince in disguise."
Re: A Hesitant Entrance [ISO: Open]
Melana had made it!
Despite her poor marks in just about every single subject in her finals years at Hogwarts, Melana had gotten a much coveted position in a professional quidditch team: the Ballystone Bats of Northern Ireland. After so many years, the age gap certain did seem to close since Dion Roderick was one of her teammates! Former teammates back at school, they now had to work side by side. She couldn't have asked for anything more! Having Dion with her was like having a piece of Hogwarts along with her everywhere she went. Of course, they had many inside jokes about Lianne's pep-talks, numerous screw-ups, former victories against Slytherin, and the like. Consequently, they had grown a lot closer.
Very much one for flashy entrances, Melana arrived at Armand's estate on her new and crested broom, dark crimson cape flapping gracefully behind her. From above she could see a couple of people talking by the front door, and decided to land among them. Of course, before Melana could do that she had to circle around their heads a few times for good measure to make sure they would be nice and dizzy by the time she got down.
"Top o' the mornin' to all of yeh!" she said brightly in her new broken Irish accent as she dismounted her broom. Melana pressed and fluffed out her mid-length layered dress (that happened to match her cape, which she took off), and re-arranged the tiny straps over her shoulders. She had grown in her later years at Hogwarts and now towered at an impressive height of 5"10. Yet Melana still lacked accentuated womanly curves and only had slight, though still sexy, curves. Her hair had kept its fiery hue, and it fell in cascades of soft curls as she untied it after her flight.
"Lordy, flying in these shoes should be strictly left to professionals! I almost fell from the sky three times on my way here," she commented about her astonishing crimson suede stilettos that gave her another two or three inches. In those shoes, Melana easily measured six feet!
"Puck! I heard about your teaching position back at Hogwarts. I can't believe you sold out and became one of the authority! On the other hand... I'm sure your students absolutely adore you!" She then turned to Breena. "And you! One of the very few who sends me owls that have nothing to do with quidditch. It's so refreshing! One would think that getting tons of fanmail is really fun, but really, unless you pay someone to open all the letters and sort out the howlers after lost games and the ones that basically all sound the same, it'll drive you insane. I answer a few of them, like the sick kids and the unreasonably obsessed. Bah, enough about me. I'm sure Dion has his tales too. He's been on the team longer than I. I hear you're in training to become a medi-witch! You were always so much brighter than I was. Can you believe I still can't turn a rat into a teacup yet? Definitely blackmail material..."
Needless to say, Melana had retained her habit of talking non-stop. She also kept her uncanny ability to read people. "Thank you for having us, Armand. What a fancy place! You must hate it. Oh, just out of curiosity, did you invite any professors?"
There were so many people Melana was dying to see again. She missed the older students the most, especially the ones that had been on her quidditch team in her first years, like Tucker and Lianne. Breena had stuck by her the entire time, so it wasn't as if the absence had been all that brutal. The event was sure to be quite the experience!
Edited by: Melana Plume at: 3/29/06 9:45 pm
Re: A Hesitant Entrance [ISO: Open]"Well, looks like you're the first one." Breena gasped, a sharp intake of breath filling her lungs. The voice caught her by surprise, but once she recognized the tone of it, it wasn't at all unwelcome. "Welcome." His voice was delivered in a calm and smooth manner, flowing like silk. Breena returned the smile of Armand D'Angelo-Crestmere, moving further into the room, her heels clicking against the floor. She watched as he sauntered down the stairs with the smooth arrogance that Breena could certainly recall from her years at Hogwarts. While she and Armand hadn't been...close, per se, he did have a rather life moving impact on her. His eighteenth birthday had been a land mark occasion. Tucker Pence had introduced her to the wonderful thing called Firewhiskey. Speaking of Tucker, was that old bugger going to show his face at a reunion? Personally Breena would like to catch up with him a bit. For old time's sake.
Armand reached the bottom of the stairs, and his eyes full of mischief kept Breena almost captivated, waiting for that low, silky voice to speak again. "You don't have to wait here, if you don't want to," he said, gesturing toward what looked like a large dining hall. "The dining hall is over there if you want to stake out a table."Stake out a table? Breena thought. More like stake YOU out, sweetheart."And let me just say, you've definitely grown up, Stacey." Armand finished with an almost roguish grin. A coy smile spread across Breena's lips, and the aforementioned smugness was coming back to her. Yes indeed, Breena Stacey had grown up. There were probably some that wouldn't even recognize her. She was rather impressed that Armand had made the connection. Or rather, she was flattered. It stated that she had a face to remember, did it not?
"Shows you what ten years can do to a girl," Breena replied in a saucy manner, fluttering her eyelashes ever so slightly as she took a step toward Armand. Perhaps getting there early had been a very, very good thing. Guaranteed alone time with their host, the famous (don't forget rich!) Armand D'Angelo-Crestmere. Not that wealth was everything. But it certainly was appealing. Coffee, chocolate, men... Some things are just better when they're rich.
"Well Armand D'Angelo. I had no idea that you were so well off. Fancy that. The worst rogue the walls of Hogwarts have ever known turns out to be a Prince in disguise." Breena jumped ever so slightly at the new voice. She had been so absorbed in her conversation with Armand that she didn't realize it was getting closer and closer to the time that everyone should arrive. Well what a day wasted. Now there was someone else to prove as a witness to Breena's conversation with Armand. It took all the fun out of everything. But upon turning around, Breena caught sight of Puck Goodfellow, the one girl that Breena had admired more than anyone in her years at Hogwarts. Puck was an incredible girl in every way imaginable. And here she was, ten years later.
"Puck?!" Breena exclaimed, her face lighting up with excitement. There was no mistaking that imp-like grin. It was definitely Puck. "No way...I haven't seen you in years!" Breena's saucy act had been instantly dropped, and was now replaced with excitement and giddiness. And to think, this was going to continue for the rest of the day as she saw more and more people she recognized from Hogwarts. How had Armand come up with the idea for a reunion? It was bloody brilliant! Especially at such a favorable location, but Breena was going to stop dwelling on how fantastic Mercury Manor was. Eventually.
"Top o' the mornin' to all of yeh!" Breena turned to see Melana enter their grouping, sporting a red cape and a dress, looking ever the same. Ever as tall (standing about two inches taller than Breena, who reached 5'8". Though that was probably a surprise to Armand and Puck, seeing as Melana had been nothing but a squirt during the first few years at Hogwarts), ever as redheaded, and ever as obsessed with Quidditch. It seemed that the girl had ridden her broomstick all the way to Mercury Manor. "Lordy, flying in these shoes should be strictly left to professionals! I almost fell from the sky three times on my way here."
"But don't forget, Melana," Breena started with a grin. "You are a professional now!"
"Puck! I heard about your teaching position back at Hogwarts. I can't believe you sold out and became one of the authority! On the other hand... I'm sure your students absolutely adore you!" Puck was teaching? Well that was certainly unexpected! "And you!" She turned to Breena. One of the very few who sends me owls that have nothing to do with quidditch. It's so refreshing! One would think that getting tons of fanmail is really fun, but really, unless you pay someone to open all the letters and sort out the howlers after lost games and the ones that basically all sound the same, it'll drive you insane. I answer a few of them, like the sick kids and the unreasonably obsessed. Bah, enough about me. I'm sure Dion has his tales too. He's been on the team longer than I. I hear you're in training to become a medi-witch! You were always so much brighter than I was. Can you believe I still can't turn a rat into a teacup yet? Definitely blackmail material..." All Breena could do during Melana's mile long monologue was try to follow, but she failed miserably. Breena was lost somewhere along the mention of Dion. Speaking of that Irish rogue, where was he?
"Thank you for having us, Armand. What a fancy place! You must hate it. Oh, just out of curiosity, did you invite any professors?"
Breena didn't want to be a stickler, but it was just too tempting. "Melana, have you ever counted how many words you average a minute?" Breena asked with a giggle. "You could make records. Honestly, you could!"
Re: A Hesitant Entrance [ISO: Open]
{ok, two characters entering in here... }
Why she was actually coming was beyond her. She'd been locked up in her house seeing only her husband for so long. She'd been cut off from the wizarding world almost completely. Edward was a muggle, and quite happy he didn't grow up in the wizarding world. He loved all of Nanami, and even protected her when her father tried to call. Which was what she needed.
Nanami had moved past dying her hair tips blue, but instead she was dressed in a blue kimono. Edward was in black dress pants and a blue shirt of the exact same shade as Nanami's kimono. He had dark brown hair and grey eyes. He seemed uncomfortable around the other witches and wizards and stayed close to Nanami.
As she entered the hall, she noticed a few people.She heard them talking and started to skirt around them. That was, until she recognized one person in the group. "Armand? You look great!" she cried. As her eyes floated over the rest of the group, Nanami quickly recognized Puck and Melena Plume. "Puck, you seem to be doing great. And Melena, you're one of the few I'm able to follow. I was at a game of yours a year or so ago. Probably was the last time I did anything wizard related. You're really good. And... I know I know your name. I'm so sorry I can't remember." Nanami smiled from the happiness she felt. She no longer had her forced smile, or her saddened eyes. But she did feel a little bad she did not know the other member of the group. It wasn't someone she'd ever had the moment to meet. But, no matter, there was no time like the present. Nanami reached back and grabbed Edward's hand, helping to keep him from feeling completely alienated.
***---***
Joshua could not believe he was going. He'd heard from someone else that his sister was going, and he hadn't seen her in five years. They'd written, but he hadn't been around much since her wedding. He was an expert on all her books, but wasn't familiar with her husband to well. No matter, he'd at least see her agian.
Dressed in a pair of black pants and a black shirt, Joshua made his way to Mercury Manor. He was there almost directly at 10:00 by his watch that ran a few minutes early. But he was always an early person these days. Working as an auror brought out his better side, and was almost unrecognizable. He entered the great oak doors with a smile on his face. He didn't stop back, instead walked up to the group and smiled a cheery hello. He knew Armand from sight, but had not met most of the others. It was times like this that he regretted being shy and cautious through school. "N-n....Nanami." Joshua stuttered. He hadn't expected to walk almost directly into his sister. "You look well. You all do." He kept up his smile, hoping not to be completely stupid looking.
Re: A Hesitant Entrance [ISO: Open]
Armand took note of how Breena watched him as he walked down the stairs, a small, Slytherin smirk forming on his face as he reached the bottom. Had he really wanted to, Armand had the feeling he could have gotten this young woman in some secluded room deep in his mansion. He had half the mind to do it as well, but warned himself that today wasn’t the day for quickie pick-ups. But ever since Armand had left Lucian, his life was full of those. He’d gone full swing back into his old lifestyle of drinking, abusing, and wooing whatever man or woman caught his fancy. But luckily, Armand had caught himself before he’d gotten too deep in the mess he always seemed to be creating and had even gone to rehab in America. And, surprisingly, Armand hadn’t touched any alcohol or drugs since then and had been sober for nearly two years, which was quite an accomplishment for him, especially since he always seemed to be around the stuff. His mansion was even full of the alcohol his father had bought and never drank. There was hard liquor as well as a wine cellar somewhere in the mansion full of wine that Armand wasn’t about to touch. He’d gotten one of the servants to go down and pick out some bottles for the reunion, but Armand himself had no intention of ruining his soberness streak. As much as he may want to get a drink, Armand would make sure he didn’t. The last thing he needed was to get back into the groove of spending every waking moment in a drunken or stoned haze. While it was pleasant to some extent, it wasn’t good, mentally or physically.
Of course, the whole pick-up thing hadn’t gotten any better. It was like ever since Armand had left Lucian, he was trying to fill up an empty space in him. Somehow Armand had the notion that if he was with a lot of people, he would somehow forget about Lucian. Or that he would somehow feel less empty. Of course, he was only fooling himself. Unless he confronted Lucian, there was no way he would be able to fill up that hole in his life, as much as he tried. No matter how often he was with someone, no matter how alike they were to Lucian, Armand would feel as though there was something missing in him until he talked to Lucian. After all these years. Maybe that’s why he’d had this reunion. Maybe it was because subconsciously, he wanted to see Lucian again. Who could tell these days? Everything seemed so much better when he was in Hogwarts, especially now. Maybe all of Armand’s memories had been changed and distorted by the life he’d led after Hogwarts. Could he even trust his memories anymore?
"Shows you what ten years can do to a girl," Breena stated and Armand had to admit, he quite liked the tone of voice she used. He had a feeling she was the type who went around seducing men quite a bit. He recalled her being quite boy crazy back in the day, so he supposed it was no surprise that she was still quite into the opposite sex.
"Well Armand D'Angelo. I had no idea that you were so well off. Fancy that. The worst rogue the walls of Hogwarts have ever known turns out to be a Prince in disguise," a voice soon called out. The former Slytherin grinned at the voice, knowing quite well who it was. How could he possibly forget the owner of that voice? They may not have kept in touch after their respective graduations, but Puck Goodfellow was indeed a hard figure to forget.
“I’m afraid you’ve got it backwards,” Armand replied suavely. He gave Puck that familiar roguish grin. “I’m that same rogue simply masquerading as a prince.” He gave an exaggerated bow. “But maybe a kiss will turn me into a real prince.” Armand gave a little laugh before winking lightly at Puck. Merlin, he hadn’t seen her in forever, yet it was funny how they seemed to simply go back into the groove of things as though they’d never left.
Breena seemed just as excited to see Puck and soon, they were joined by a third former Gryffindor and Armand was starting to wonder if maybe only the Gryffindors had gotten his letters. Or if only the Gryffindors had decided to answer them. No, Armand was sure others would be arriving soon. It was all about being fashionably late, after all. And so with that thought, Armand watched the girls interact with one another, being as excitable as he’d remembered them ten years ago. Merlin. Ten years. That sounded like such a long time. It felt like even longer at times. But as Armand mused, he heard someone finally address him as he turned his attention back to the Gryffindor girls. "Thank you for having us, Armand. What a fancy place! You must hate it. Oh, just out of curiosity, did you invite any professors?"
Armand laughed at Melana’s quick-paced talking and nodded. “Yes, I did invite professors. The ones I could get a hold of, at least.”
And then another new voice. "Armand? You look great!" Armand turned to find Nanami Rukko and smiled, nodding his head slightly in thanks.
“You’re not looking too bad yourself. I see you’ve got a man in tow, so you must be doing well,” he replied, giving her a wink. But as more people began to arrive, Armand noticed that despite the size of the entrance hall, they were beginning to block the door and people wouldn’t be able to get it. Armand decided this would be a good time to usher people into the dining hall where they would be much more space and thus his guests wouldn’t have to stand all in one spot. And they wouldn’t have to stay standing forever either. “Er, before we continue this reunion, let’s move to the dining hall. Everyone, follow me,” Armand called over the various conversations that were going on. He pushed his way to the front of the crowd, brushed off his clothes, straightened his hat, and then proceeded to walk toward the large double doors that led into the dining hall. Upon reaching the door, he snapped and the doors opened, giving way to the crowd and revealing the glamorous room on the otherside.
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