— underneath the waterfall

MEET HANSA ‘HAN’ CHAROENSUK

AGE: Thirty-one years old

BIRTHDAY: June 28th, 1990

GENDER / PRONOUNS: Agender | She/They

OCCUPATION:  Journalist

PLACE OF BIRTH:  Bangkok, Thailand

NEIGHBORHOOD:  Birchwood

HAS LIVED IN ASTORIA FOR: Two years and four months

CHARACTER INTERVIEW

What are the reasons why you’re still living in Astoria? What makes it home to you?

Han bit softly on their bottom lip as they thought about how to answer the question properly. Even though they were usually the ones to ask questions, whenever the spotlight was on them, things changed. Would they call it home, though? Did they even know the meaning of that word in the first place? “I’ve always liked big cities in comparison to smaller ones. The fast-pace lifestyle, the sleepless neighborhoods, the pretty lights…” They replied with a small smile. “I guess you could also say my work is one of the reasons I’m still here.”

How would you describe your relationship with others? Are you close to your family?

“I don’t think I’ve ever had a problem with people…” Again, Hansa bit softly on her bottom lip as she thought about any occurrences of where her interpersonal relationships had given her any type of trouble. Sure, not everyone liked her and she didn’t like everyone, but she wasn’t someone hard to get along with. “I’m not a pushover, of course, but I tend to stay away from trouble. I don’t particularly like confrontation, but I can stick up for myself if I have to.” It was okay to say these things, right? It wasn’t like Hansa, as fragile as a human was in comparison to these supernatural beings, was any threat. “As for my family, they live in Veritas. We moved to Nova Pangaea after my sister was turned into a vampire. I guess you could say we’re as close as any family would be? We’re not perfect, but we make it work. I talk to them whenever I can.”

What’s something about your past you could share with others?

“When I was younger, my mother divorced my father and got married again. Both my sister and I only have our mom’s last name because of that.” Too much information, maybe? Well… they did ask for something Han could share, and this was them sharing. “He’s a Brazilian investor, so we used to move around a lot because of his job. That was how I got to see the world in a way.” Han chuckled. “I can’t say it was fun, though. As a child, it’s hard to make friends and to feel like you belong if you have to say goodbye to these people and these memories a couple of years later, you know?” That’s why Han thought she’d become rather clingy to those she cared about, but this wasn’t something she would share with a government officer. Definitely with her therapist, though. “I’ve learned several languages… most of them, I don’t even remember proper grammatical structure anymore, but I guess that was bound to happen. My favorite ones were Spanish and Portuguese.”

Please elaborate on any violent circumstances you may have been involved with in the past.

“Violent? I’ve been mugged a few times, but that was about it.” Hansa knew they would probably be looked down on if they mentioned fearing being in the same room as their sister after they were turned into a vampire. It was their own ignorance speaking, especially since Phailin had been doing well according to her mother. “When I started writing, I covered the criminal section in some newspapers… because that’s what they usually give whoever is starting, so there was a lot of violence there. I guess you could say that my encounters with violence have always been as a bystander rather than it happening to me? Except for the mugging, of course.”

What are your weaknesses and strengths?

“I can be stubborn when I set my mind onto something. Or maybe we can call it determined? Oh well… semantics.” Hansa shrugged, before brushing off some invisible dust from their lap, then returning their hands to rest there. “I think that because I’ve moved a lot as a child, I’ve also become easily adaptable to different scenarios. It might come with a lot of blood, sweat and tears, but in the end, I can make it work for myself. The blood part is merely an expression.” She thought it’d be best to clarify, after all, she didn’t want for them to think she was some kind of threat. “I consider myself to be fun to be around, really. What else—I’m somewhat clingy, which has been a problem according to some exes of mine. Anything else? Ah! Definitely not well-organized, so that could be a weakness… you should see my desk at home. A pure mess. I think that’s it?”

Your thoughts about supernatural beings.

Was this a tricky question? Hansa hoped it wasn’t. “You know… it’s funny, because before coming here, I really thought that supernaturals were different from you and I—I mean, I don’t even know if you’re human. But what I mean is that I thought they were different from me. Only to find out they’re just like anyone else. I guess there’s a lesson in there for me, isn’t there? Being ignorant only generates more ignorance.”

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status: Open

Maybe she should’ve asked her roommate to come along, especially because now that Hansa was standing in front of all of these color swatches while holding onto two different shades of them, she could feel herself storing yet another project in the back of her mind, which would only drive her roommate crazy with everything happening at the same time. 

Letting out a puff, Hansa turned around as she started tapping the paper swatches against her bottom lip. One of her favorite songs came on her ear pods and as Hansa danced away from that previous spot by the color swats, she ended up bumping into someone, which had her stumbling backwards and holding onto his shirt to keep her balance... and she obviously let go of him as soon as she landed on her two feet.

“Sorry ‘bout that!” Hansa then looked around him, towards the exit doors. “What’s going on in the streets?” When her hazel hues moved up again, she finally recognized the man standing before her. “Oh! You’re... are you--? You are, aren’t you? I loved your music!”

Mug of tea beside him, laptop open on the table, and a whole transcript awaiting his full attention, Zhyan - although known in Astoria as Zakary - had every opportunity to work on what needed to be finished for Monday. Instead he was roaming on the internet, just clicking random things on Wikipedia and Google, without really thinking too much on what he was doing. He found a photographer’s blog to the Ranakpur Jain temple, scrolling through the pictures of a familiar building, searching for familiar faces in the crowd. 

He pushed the laptop closed when someone came over to his table, noticing how within the hour he had been there, the whole place had grown crowded, and he was hogging a whole table for himself. “Sorry,” he said, quickly, moving his stuff away with a self-conscious smile. He touched the tea mug to move it too, realising it was cold to the touch, and sighed. “Always the tea.” He pointed at the chair. “It’s free, I’m just… I take far too much space.” 

Although Hansa had been living in Astoria for over two years now, she knew there were still several places she had yet to visit for the first time in the city. As much as she loved going on adventures, ever since starting her job at Astoria Times she felt like her energy had been slowly getting drained and she needed to do something about it. 

Coffee Spells was her destination for the day... and apparently, so was to the rest of Astoria, because this place was packed. 

Holding onto her cup of hazelnut latte and her cherry danish, she stopped there, running her gaze along the space to try and find a spot to sit. She heard someone talking nearby and recognized his voice right away. Okay, maybe not right away, but as soon as her gaze landed on Zakary, she recognized him of course. “Hey! Zak, right?” Since he had said the seat was empty, Han sat down, placing her things on the table. “Don’t worry about it. You should see my working desk at home. Are you working on something fun?”

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Yes! Another workout crushed, or at least done to the best of her ability, but she liked to think the former just to hype herself up. Starting and maintaining a routine like this can be a challenge, so any bit of intrinsic motivation she can stir up, Taylor doesn’t hesitate. “After I’m finished stretching here, I don’t think I’ll be able to move,” she admitted to her workout buddy. From her comfy position on her yoga mat, the Actor continued to run through her regular stretch routine. “I’ll give you everything I own for you to carry me out of here,” she joked. 

Taking another deep breath, she stretched her arms up in the air, then out in front of her and down to her sides. Speaking of sides, she then continued to lean to her right then she held that position for a bit. “What do you have planned for the rest of the day?” Taylor wanted to grab something to eat before heading home. 

If this had been any day of the week, Hansa didn’t think they would have bumped into Taylor at all, but bless her heart for choosing to come into the gym this late in the day, because it gave her the perfect opportunity to just hang out after a killing Muai Thai class and now, here she was helping her friend stretch out after Taylor’s own thing.

“Do you think I’d be able to carry you?” Hansa giggled while pressing her feet to Taylor’s to make the shapeshifter’s legs pull further apart. “I mean... I’d never say no to trying out new things, so how about I try carrying you to the front door and you hop on those pretty legs of yours to--” Han let go of Taylor’s hands and crossed her legs under herself. “Go eat something with me? Hm? Please?”

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