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Re: Slippery Shadows

Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2012 11:53 pm
by Songhue
OOC| I HATES when that happens! So much! Gah!! But I be a lovin the reply, is quite pretty I think. <3 Shows soo much of miss Fancy mare's essence in it!

BIC| She was a peach, this one, and had quite the beautiful spirit if nothing else. He enjoyed listening to her, hearing the different fluctuations in her voice. And for once, he could talk easily himself, without the guard for who and what he was.

It must be of kindness, my sweet, for any proper assassin would have struck by now and I hold nothing with which any may gain, he whickered, easily returning her playfulness. It is a shame that some would be unable to see the merit of such an exploration, even should it require them to venture into areas unknown. I was quite lucky to have stumbled upon your company, Pretty. The Gods must have smiled upon me. Though if we are to continue this at another time I am quite afraid we must either hope upon chance or else reveal ourselves and agree to meet for these further excursions. Although surely you must be busy, even have others falling at your very hooves for company such as yours.

For that matter she could well be mated, although she hadn't mentioned as such. It seemed far too forward to ask - she was fun, and knew how to make him laugh, yet she was still very proper. In that regard she was much like Path; manners, respect and a proper way of speaking all intermingled with this mystery mare's antics. It only made him all the more curious to see deeper.

Part of him regretted being unable to approach Fancy in this same manner, but there always seemed to be this awkward formality between them. He knew she wasn't put off by his appearance, yet at the same time he often felt she was uncomfortable around him. So he gave her the space she seemed to desire; it gave him a chance to watch her, perhaps a bit closer than most others did. The small things always told, and through these things alone he had come to know so very much of her. But it wasn't enough, really.

Her tease on checking his talons caught him in the middle of this shifting of thoughts (it was never long before his crush entered his mind again) and thus by surprise as well. He couldn't help himself; Hybrid laughed.

It was the first full laugh he had ever given in the company of another outside of his bonded. Deep and rolling as if thunder had filled the caverns, it rang and echoed and danced with a nearly musical harmony as the many tones tumbled over one another in sheer delighted glee. The music of the storm.

On impulse, he returned the tease, daring to aim for more than a single quick laugh and perhaps begin a word game.

Naturally, for if the ground is going to target my poor toes then I have to be sure it doesn't fry them right off. That can happen, you know, when you fall deep enough in love; the ground just opens right up and all that warm fire in your heart spits out goblins to burn you all up! It's what the Gopher Overlord has pitted himself against, but that's a secret. He tunnels deep, deep down to try and find the little love-fire-goblins, so that they don't burn off his own toes!

Smirking, he let his tail relax enough to slither on the ground, placing the bulk of his weight on his back legs to balance. His talons left deep, ragged cuts in the rough stone they walked on, though he took no notice; the same thing happened with dirt, and with the same amount of ease.

As he fully relaxed and his tail gave a sort of background music to their footsteps, Hybrid sobered enough to allow a real level of affection to enter his voice as he said I appreciate Oak and Talon, and I am especially fond of the feather-head, but I haven't felt as if I've found such a friend as you before. This may be short or it may be a bit of a walk yet, and perhaps the Fates will not deign to smile in my favor and grant that we pass again. But I am glad to have met you, Lady of Shadows, and I hope one day to find such a companion to enjoy again.

Tossing his head to stretch his muscles, he gave a quick, quiet sound of amusement, pleased with the moment in general before adding I think art would have to be my favorite game, in all truth. It may seem odd, but rather it's connecting bolts of sizzling power to create a proper image or merely scratching at some wood, I enjoy finding what's hidden. And there is, you know. If you take a chunk of wood there is something in there, waiting for you to carve it so the rest of the world can see. Sometimes it's an owl, sometimes a face, sometimes a simple flower. But it's there, hiding.

Without thinking he kicked up a rock he found on the cave floor, using a talon to flip it up in the air and catch it in his mouth. The wind, the sound, and the general length of his body and power used helped him to keep track of the stone's position, though he was slightly mistaken in that it landed a little harder on his tongue than he had planned and gave a rather sharp click on his teeth.

Pausing a moment, he gnawed at the softer parts, feeling with his tongue before dropping the stone again and continuing the work with his back leg. This was easy for him; he always carved in such a manner, and he could never properly see it, so doing it in the dark was of no matter. At times he would grab a tool to aid for the more detailed parts, but it wasn't often he needed to resort to such measures. He enjoyed feeling it come to life.

When he finished he stooped down and scooped up a very lifelike hummingbird figure. There were small flaws to be found, and the overall texture was rough as he had done it quickly; smoothing it would be more work, but it would make the feel match the look of the feathers. But still, even if not a masterpiece, he decided it was worth sharing. Stretching his neck, he held it out towards the mare and gave a low, inviting whicker, carefully talking around the bit of glittering stone.

Rather you have eyes talented enough to see without touch or not, here's one such example, just real quick. I'd imagine this is more unusual than a Lady of Shadows enjoying hide and seek, especially if she got to hide, yes? Though my favorite memory... That, would have to be moments like this, spent with the young colt in my care. Or perhaps he is not quite so young any more. We would linger in my home for hours, each of us dripping from the living storm that my valley resides within, and simply talk. Smiling slightly, he nearly dropped his little carving as he thought back to the days spent with the lad. They were the moments where he had felt the most at home, sitting and talking with young Oak-Heart over their explorations with their elements and life among their bond-mates and everything inbetween.

I'm an odd one, dearling, and some might pity me for it. But don't. I enjoy the strangeness of life.

OOC| Honestly, I love this fella to death, but once he gets comfortable he just has so much trouble hushing up! So many might think he simply didn't have much to say or was merely braindead most of the time... Heh. Wait 'til the Soldier loosens back up into a mere stallion!

Re: Slippery Shadows

Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2012 2:01 am
by Vineda
"Oh, my dear, I've never claimed to be proper... assassin or no." What makes ye of that? Eh? Silvery eyes blink, as a cat much pleased with herself.

The temperature seemed to drop all of a sudden, and for that reason or another her hair stood on end. A peculiar feeling, that. As Talon was on her mind she wondered if this is what it felt like when he raised his crown of feathers. "And are you that unwilling to reveal your identity then sir? Are you a stallion of mystery?" If she winked at him, he certainly wouldn't see it in this lack of light. "Does a name change so much? I could meet you in any cavern two moons from this day as nice as you please." Her voice losing some of it's primness, she smoothed, "It would not be so difficult to do, in any circumstance." It would be a fine kettle of fish if she goaded him into a name exchange this very instant after all her hiding under the cover of these shadows.

As his laugh woke her from her thoughts she nearly expected it to rain around them, even this far underground. The mare caught herself looking upward as though looking for the storm overhead, beginning a whole new procession of musings. THAT was something she'd not done in far too long! Played in a storm, or even just rain for that matter. Perhaps... if she and Hybrid ever broke through this ice she always had frosting her hooves... they might enjoy such a time together. She found herself looking forward to it, toying with the possibility.

But no. Until she could get around that formality with others, how could she consider that train of thought? She didn't feel broken. So what if her past was a haunting melody playing too low in the background to hear the words? It wasn't blotting everything else out, not keeping her from the game of life. So what was the holdup? All pastels and faded watercolors sitting pretty and half finished, never quite fulfilling their promise...

This was the thinking that made your brain hurt, and she shook her head as though to physically clear it and slammed her back hoof into the hard surface below her. The force reverberated through her hoof and up the very marrow of her bone, jarring her back to reality, away from such pesky musings. Enough. The clashing sound she'd created washed quickly away with the echoes of thunder, barely discernible.

Moving on. "Oak spends much time in his forests, tending his trees from what I understand. I've not seen him in a coon's age, though Talon's been spotted here and there. He and I played a game once, finding faces in the knots of wood. Much like others do with clouds. Though obviously the wood doesn't just change its shape from one second to the next." She watched with intrigue, wondering at first if he might eat the rock.

Not at all, she found as she neared the scaled stallion and looked closely at the stone. She could make out the shape of a bird for certain, and the long slender beak hinted perfectly well enough at the hummingbird origins. Her surprise allowed her delight to creep up unexpectedly, and if she'd had the hands her bonded did she would have clapped. "Wonderful! What do you do with your sculptures once they're done? Oh, that is much more interesting than a mare of the shadows hiding and knowing where others hide." She studied the little trinket, quirking her head this way and that in order to see it as well as possible. "Tell me more of the living storm, and of your home. This growing colt..? He sounds very important to you." Though she might be at a loss, she found she liked the rumble of his lightning and thunder voice. Rough and grating though it may have seemed at first, either it had softened or she had grown used to it, for she did not notice it beyond the awareness of it being his own.

"I would not think to pity you, Lord of Sparks. I hope this does not make me cruel, but I find that even those ones that regret their oddness would not trade it. Rather quite the opposite. And I tend to agree with them. Though I wonder at the term 'normal' in the first place..." A whicker of laughter chased this statement, and she wished that her thoughts hadn't stolen away Hybrid's open laughter earlier. She cast around her, aware that she had no crafty talent or hobby to show in return for the carving demonstration.

OOC| yeesh. can't believe i'm still up. and still have studying to do. had to be done though, suuuuuuper late i know >.< i'm terribly sorry to be such a slacker. and rambly and disconnected and brooding tonight. perhaps would've been better to wait for the morrow. buttttt *sigh* that's how i always get into this conundrum in the first place, always waiting for it to be a better time... nope. not this time. no time like the present! onward! *crashes* Zzzzz....

Re: Slippery Shadows

Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2012 9:55 am
by Songhue
You are officially fun.

He had to walk in silence for a moment, reaching back to let his latest rough-work ride between his shoulders; it would sit safely in the dip between his shoulder blades. A benefit to being so powerful with the elements that it left you looking emaciated, he supposed. He had a little pocket along his spine to carry things.

Gathering his words took a moment or two, but when he spoke it was with the steady tone of someone who was essentially granting a very precious confidence. It was the tone of a diary, the tone used with bondeds and best friends, the tone of one with nothing to lose. His voice sounded all the more significant as it echoed while they rounded a bend and the openness began to close in once again.

A name makes little difference, yet a face might.

A face might...

All the same, I see no harm in ending this part of the mystery.

Mystery...

Not if it grants me a chance to keep such company as you've given. Two moons from now? Seek Hybrid, bonded of Songhue and the Storm Dwelling Soldier.

Soldier...

He smiled slightly, knowing he had just changed the playing field. Ambiguity was fun, but it was not honestly his way. He was of storms and yes, they churned darkly and hid much; but he was of lightning the most, and that part of him forced the truth into a sudden, unforgiving light.

Now, when you're free to wander two moonturns from this night, you'll know how to send for me if it should pass that we have no such chances to spend another moment together.

Another moment together...

He didn't ask after her own handle. Hybrid was a firm believer in the phrase 'Never miss a good chance to shut up.' Besides, if his Fancy had taught him anything it was that the more he tried, the more distance there would be.

Perhaps he should take the hint and leave her be. Yet he could not help but admire her.

Ah, well. Surely she deserved better, in any case. He could watch from afar, as he had for a while. And in any case, though he would always see her in a certain light, he had to admit that this strange mare was now someone who he was willing to seek out. He greatly enjoyed her, or at least what he had experienced of her so far.

Now tell me, my shadowy friend, what you would have me do with such trinkets whence they are carved? Much like the trees our dear friends enjoy deciphering, they do not merely change or provide a solution themselves. So my options are only three; to destroy them, to leave them laying about my own place, or to offer a gift.

Offer a gift...

I give them away, of course. They mean more to others, to have been thought of and granted a token. I enjoy the creating, just as you enjoy the game of hide and seek; the conclusion is not the goal, but instead we crave the journey.

The journey...

Darroch... Ah, sweet Lady of Shadows, he has quite a number of them, so he does. This colt of mine which is not truly my own. He has such love within him. Would you believe that he grew a stump into a specific shape, just for these little trinkets? Or that he's woven the trees into lace tapestries with all the faces of his bond-mates, even one for the eyes of our bonded, as they alone remain unchanged no matter how the rest may look. This little Oak-Hearted fellow, he needed me. I can't say why it would be me, of all stallions, but it was me he deferred to. In answering his questions, helping him to understand and find peace, in teaching him; I learned myself.

I learned myself...

He's all a stallion should be, in my opinion. His mother is proud of him. I'm proud to have helped raise him. He used to call me Poppa, when he was little.

He was little...

When he began to grow, when he could focus and was coming into his own, he loved my realm even more than his own, I do think. He knows his land; he shapes his land, he lives as one with it, breathes with it, grows with it. Mine was strange. There is grass, a great valley in a bowl of mountains, and a great storm is forever grounded. It thrives not in the sky, but where we walk; the air is damp, heavy, and charged. Lightning dances and roars all around, and yet when it is still he can hear the water trickling over the thick grass. When the winds move just right there is a patch of brightness, an area that is not as grey, and it makes the ground glitter as if coated with burning silver.

Burning silver...

We would wander that great, endless storm. He would work the grass and ground, honing what he could feel with such a small link as that, and I would play with him with sparks and light. A dangerous game, perhaps, but I would never disrespect him through coddling. His reflexes grew faster, stronger, and he began to dance through it. Dance, can you imagine? Just as his mother. It is not merely a working of magics, of energies and elements with him, nor me after our games together. It is action and reaction, a fluid flow of life.

Flow of Life...

I got the idea for this excursion through that. To hear, to feel, to smell and taste what I can not see. To expand where I am comfortable.

Comfortable...

He is important to me. We would sit... He laughed, quick and rough, momentarily overcome by the memory as his voice cracked with barely suppressed emotion - Pride? Loss? Joy? Love. It was love, the strongest of all. Sit for hours, when he grew tired. Eventually he got so strong that I would tire first, but before that... We would sit and drink the water from the grass, chewing over the sweet denseness while we talked. He asked why. Why, that was all he said, and I knew. When you care for them, these creatures that need you, you simply know that way. Our bonded does the same for us, and until that moment I didn't understand it. I do now. And all I could tell him was that why did not matter. What mattered was what was now, what the truth of it was. Why was his father gone? Why was his mother determined to love someone that abandoned them? Why was he laying there, thinking that the stallion he was next to was his Dad and yet not his Father? I told him that there honestly was no why of it. The why would not change what was. He needed to search for what he chose to do with his now, not to find a why for how it came about. He had a mother who loved him, who was entirely devoted to him; and I loved him. It was the first time I told him that, and it was the first time he was ever perfectly still. I loved him, I said, and that was his now. He need not bother with a why for that; only decide what to do with it.

Do with it...

The smile was back, and his voice a bit more level again. He hadn't meant to ramble so, but she had offered him to open up of such things as this. And it was all too sobering, to realize just how grown his young Greenhorn was now. No longer a Greenhorn.

He is important to me, Pretty one. He is more my own than any other's, save his mother's. We taught him to love, she and I. When he finds the one he is meant for, they will be granted a love like no other. As strong as a storm and as steady as the sun, ever growing as the great trees. I must love one who can give so much of themselves. It is cruel not to.

Not to...

I've lent him the power of storms and the ferocity of lightning itself while he needed it. And I will, always, should he need it again. But for now, he is growing on his own. He needs neither the storm's caress nor the lightning's protection from that which would cut him short. Though should he ever again seek such relief, it will be there. I will be there.

I will be there...

He gave a small toss of his head as the last echo sounded, almost as if he was attempting to shake the last of it out of his ears. The enclosing space had, quite suddenly, dropped away again; that last echo had sounded quite a bit different to him than the others.

Ah, but he had rambled on about the lad. The poor girl! Listening to him babble over a young colt's ability to sit perfectly still.

He was still enjoying himself, and the sound of a gaping canyon nearby had him remembering his many adventures with Breeze before. Once, they had been certain that it would be Hybrid to move forward and make the changes. Instead it had been Breeze; the winged wonder found a mate and through her, a solid grasp on who he wanted to be. He still explored, but not as he once had; then again, Hybrid had settled his urge to wander to dangerous lands when Darroch had begun to refer to him as Poppa and their bonded as his Other Momma.

In the spirit of having fun - such as could be found in the Gopher Overlord - and the spirit of what had once been, Hybrid felt it was time to ease up with all this chatter and simplify things. It would probably make it a little more dangerous for him, what with the chance of falling to his death, but then that could be half the fun. On impulse, he went with an idea that would have been perfect if Breeze had been with him.

But I'm right here for now, Pretty. In fact, I bet I can see you almost as good with a touch down here as I could with eyes up there. You've the eyes for this, but have you the touch?

With that, he gave a side-step and moved his hips in an effort to bump her hide, hoping to at least make her take an extra step herself. He liked to tease, to challenge, to resort to action and watch the different things others revealed about themselves. He'd try to bump her, and then he'd prance ahead a step and attempt to cross around in front of her to the other side, keeping himself just out of easy reach and yet inviting it all the same; she didn't need to know by touch, not with her eyes, and he knew that. But he wanted to see if she would play.

Hybrid had to be careful, at the same time. The way the air bounced on his skin, the temperature and direction it caressed his face, the sounds and smells had to be taken into account to make up for his utter blindness. If he was too foolish, he could seriously harm himself.

Are you just pretty eyes?

He knew she could find him; what he didn't know was if she was anything more than a good chat and pretty eyes, someone who wouldn't bite his head off for a little unorthodox tease and play. Would she do more than hide and watch - or was she too much of a lady, after all? Could she honestly play?

It was all there, in his voice. The tease, the challenge, the dare, they needled at her, though if she even noticed the needling would remain a mystery.

With any luck, he would react in time to get her as well, perhaps a bump or a nip for any distance she closed on him. How would she react to that, he wondered?

Either way, enough talking. He was the Soldier; he wanted to do. For that matter he wanted to listen. She had such a lovely voice, and he was honestly hoping she might be bold enough to tease and taunt him in turn.

Although apparently he needed to do more than listen. A sudden dip in the floor surprised him and made him stumble enough to lose the little hummingbird carving that had been resting on his back; it fell with a clatter and the sound of breaking stone, and he found that he laughed from the mistake. Oh yes, it would be quite easy to find him!

Oops.

When he got his hooves under him proper again, it was with a very loud splash, one which soaked him up to his knee. Surprised, he lifted it and set it down again, repeating the splash. Well, what do you know; an underground lake.

So the hole-of-death was behind them? Oh, this was great news.

He could definitely work with this. Especially as he saw a very faint glow on the far shore; some sort of lichen thriving in the shallows.

OOC| You try and keep caught up on that sleep! And oooh, oh, his whole day way made just then, being asked after in such a way. It means so much to him, to share that way!

Now, if I am to get to anything else I must get to it now, else it will be tomorrow and *I* as well will be still trying to grab that right time! Real quick quick, before the work begins, but I must, else it become a sacrifice! (I can sacrifice lunch, but this? Never this.)

Re: Slippery Shadows

Posted: Mon Apr 16, 2012 1:51 am
by Songhue
OOC| Hybrid demanded Asked that I popped in with what I hadn't been able patient enough to add earlier when his focus broke when she stopped listening close enough.

Hybrid.

Yes?

Shut up.

...

Re: Slippery Shadows

Posted: Mon May 07, 2012 12:16 am
by Vineda
OOC| oish! i took forever again >.< i'm sorry.

BIC| Tilting her head to watch, she whickered at his pocket of sorts. She'd tried keeping things between her wings with little success. Talon sometimes wore saddlebags of sorts, something their bonded had rigged up for him to carry his collected treasures in.

Her heart skipped a beat as he mentioned names, and even moreso... faces. Oh yes, a kettle of fish...
Evenso, she nodded as he gave his title, very formal-like, even dashing. "Soldier you say?" Curiosity was certainly getting the better of her today. "And how did you acquire that title?

And still she felt like squinting. Yet he did not ask, did not press. Perhaps to this strange one it would not make a difference. His silence, his not asking, made her curiosity grow in leaps and bounds. Made her itch to know why he didn't want to know. Made her want to tell him, just to get a good reaction out of him.

"Were it me, I might leave them around for others to find some day when they might be paying attention enough to find them. Or those exploring in places they'd never expect to find such things." Shamrock would have gifted them anonymously, so that the recipients wouldn't know who or where such a gift would have come from. "Letting others know you thought of them... is a wonderful gift as well." Talon always loved such meaningful gifts.

She stayed quiet, awed by the love, the caring there in Hybrid's heart for this son of his. It was wonderful to hear of Hybrid's realm, which he described with wonderful, enticing detail. And his son was there as well, able to share it in an entirety like no other, at peace and sharing it with a loved one.

It was a strong, moving story. It's less about what was than what is. Such a hard concept to keep in mind sometimes. Perhaps not for others. "And what does the not-so-youngling do with himself now?" Was he a family man? Most likely, she guessed. More likely than a wanderer, off doing his own thing. Though with elementals, a bit of that was just a given, right?

Ending her musings quite quickly, Fancy froze for a second as s green-scaled hip swayed toward her. His tone indicated a game, a teasing, a testing. And what did he want from her? Was she supposed to avoid him? Or to make contact? Just barely was she able to squirm and squish her body away from his back end, avoiding contact as she processed.

But no. She was no pretty eyes. "Oh I'll show you who the pretty eyes is around here!" A spark lit up inside, igniting that will to win, the need to give back all the attitude that was taken, that desire to meet a challenge and then show him how it was done. She left the lightest feather of a nip glance his hide as he was moving off again, this time ahead of her. She ducked even farther to the other side, blocking his access while reaching out a wing to see if she could glance it across his hide.

But the shadow mare froze again as she felt the draw of air as his body dipped with the near fall. Luckily there wasn't any greeting the ground for him, and she let the quick knot that had formed in her stomach dissipate. "Goodness! Are you alright?" Wincing, she halted her imagination from playing out ways that could have gone very, very wrong. A stumble like that could be quite dangerous.

She saw and heard him feeling out the water - water she'd been too distracted to realize they'd reached. And then saw his attention directed towards a tiny source of light... but one that just might be enough.Oh dear. It was to him, then, that she looked to for direction. How to proceed?

Re: Slippery Shadows

Posted: Thu May 10, 2012 11:01 pm
by Songhue
He glanced once again at the glowing lichen, curious as to what sort of plant may be thriving in the distant shallows and yet reluctant to merely jump in to find out. He didn't know if this lake had an outlet - either forward or across - and he was a bit reluctant to reach such an ending as would require them to actively turn back. To explore and go forward was a sensation he was comfortable with, yet to retrace for an exit was a retreat. It went against his pride.

Thoughtfully, tail swishing, he stood with his front legs in the chill and somehow slimy water, allowing his eyes to wander from impenetrable black to the soft distant glow and then back to the darkness; it almost seemed as if he hoped the light would remain in his eyes long enough to grant him sight.

Thus it was almost absently that he took the moment to address her previous questions.

We are all granted a nickname, upon my home realm. Mine has been Soldier for time out of mind; I received it when I saved Breeze's life for the first time.

Glancing around again with a quick shake of his head, he turned his face towards the general direction her voice had come from and added I like your idea, of surprise gifts. Those in my bond-herd would know, of course, but there are others who may appreciate finding them, by design or otherwise.

Flicking his ears, Hybrid gave his lean hips a quick swish, vaguely hoping to brush her even though their game was paused. She had gotten in both a nip and a wing brush, the clever thing; he had to get even.

How would all that splashing change the dynamic of a keep away game, any way?

As far as my Green Horn... He enjoys wandering. He'll check on his mother, from time to time, or else come by to keep this old stallion a bit of company, but he knows he's old enough to find his own way now. The more exotic the land, the stranger it is, the more appealing to him. There is so much of life for him to live, so many things to discover that might entertain him if but for a moment; he moves about with his interests, as is fitting for a young blood.

There was a clear note in his voice he found he couldn't hide, one of loneliness that bespoke of missing the company of the young lad. The visits were frequent enough and always welcomed, but he was for the most part once again left to his own devices.

It was lonely. His old buddies had different lives now; he couldn't exactly go back to the way things had been before. And he had little to occupy him now.

Then again, perhaps it was time he struck out on his own. A solo adventure such as he had shared with others before would be more dangerous on his own, but that could be half the appeal.

Then why hadn't he done it yet?

The same reason he had invited this stranger upon his cavern wanderings. It could be nice to strike out alone now and again, and yet true company would be welcomed. Once it had been impossible to set foot outside his realm without having someone there to join him; now, he had to seek out others or hope upon chance.

Thankfully chance had smiled upon him this time.

Maybe he should have a token of faith and take a chance on the lichen as well.

He might have, had he been alone.

Now I have a question for you, Pretty One. Do we see what lays beyond the light, or would you rather go deeper into shadows?

Whatever they did, some game or another was sure to ensue. He still felt his blood tingling with the old urges.

OOC| Ach, didna mean to make you wait so long! I'ma dedicatin tonight to this no matter what. <3