#⁺ 𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐒𝐀 › threads.

[aeipathys]

closed › @nxnbinarydracvla​

Actions had consequences. 

She had known that her entire life — had known it even in high school, back when her classmates were still sneaking out at night and getting intoxicated on the roofs of vacant houses. Yet, it seemed that Hansa Xu had been like all the rest when it came to the development of a rebellious phase. It happened in her early twenties, short-lived and far from home — yet still, she should have expected that one day it would come back to bite her. 

And bite it did, in the familiar face of Cyrus ( or was it Henrek? ) from across the room. 

Of course, it was always an option to pivot and walk away into the opposite direction. But it would never be an option for her — better to get it over with now than later, when she could be taken by surprise yet again. To allow for one surprise was understandable. A second would be ineptitude. 

She wasted no time in walking up to him. “So you exist.” Her words had the makings of a pickup line gone wrong, if not for the way she pressed her lips into a thin, humorless line. 

[aeipathys]

closed  › @thvnderr​.

If asked, Hansa Xu would ardently deny ever being in love. It wasn’t a concept that suited her — the tenderness; the proximity; the ideal of seeing another person for exactly as they were, and still somehow choosing to be with them. Because being seen meant being stripped of all the practiced charm, perfected grace, and self-assured invulnerability. It had always sounded too much like sacrifice being dressed in pretty romantics to her, and Hansa wasn’t one to set up her own altar. 

She had, however, entertained a long term relationship — a childhood sweetheart, they called it, though neither had been particularly sweet or innocent. But they had an understanding, and perhaps in their world, that was as close to romance as one could ever hope for. 

But then he had broken things off. Their engagement — the happily ever after framed in crystalline glass. And the tabloids knew what happened next — how the heartbroken Xu heiress locked herself away, traveling to anywhere and everywhere for the next few years to lick her proverbial wounds. And perhaps to some, the truth was better — Hansa wasn’t heartbroken — she was surprised. It wasn’t a move she expected from Sky, whom she had grown up with and thought had figured out completely. It wasn’t within her plans. For most, it would have been better. But for her, it was worse. 

So of course she visited his home right after she stepped foot on Alaskan soil. She had stayed in contact with his father throughout the years and figured it was finally time to accept one of his many invitations to visit. 

So no, it wasn’t quite love that brought her here — though the honey sweet smile playing on the corners of her mouth when she saw him presented differently — but retribution. “Long time no see.” A pause in which her grin only widened. “Missed me?”

[aeipathys]

closed › @conkniving​

This was not her scene. 

The exterior alone of the Scaredy Cat Club should have been enough of a sign for her to run in the opposite direction, but Hansa Xu was never one to run, brushing off raised eyebrows at the entrance and heading straight to the bar. Leather jackets and ripped jeans brushed against the soft silk of her dress, and absently she wondered if the stains from spilled drinks she was accumulating helped make her look less out of place. It didn’t matter, anyway — she flourished under the spotlight, even if they were dim neon ones. Hansa knew she made a pretty show, regardless. 

“Watenshi, on the rocks.”

She pressed her lips together when several heads turned in her direction, puzzled looks within bleary eyes. “Gin — with ice.” She corrected dryly, shooting the bartender a mild smile. And then, under her breath, “ ฉันหวังว่านี่จะไม่ใช่คำพูดสุดท้ายของฉัน ( tr: I hope these won’t be my last words ).”

[aeipathys]

closed ›  @drkvlght​

Meet me by the fountain. 

Promises spoken years ago echoed against the flowing water outside the winery, trickle of droplets into cold stone the only answer. It had been different, back then — humid Vegas air surrounding her, eyes bright in misadventure. The dull thud of stone dispassionately thrown into the fountain seemed to more fitting to the brisk Nevada night. It had been different, back then — she’d waited. Patiently, foolishly — for a familiar pair of dark eyes that never arrived. 

She wasn’t one to regret, but she also wasn’t one to forgive. And to forget? Well, water had too long a memory. 

Arms crossed as a useless defense against the cold weather, Hansa was halfway through turning back inside when she stopped, her gaze meeting one that seemed to belong to a different lifetime. Too much time had passed, but perhaps also none at all. 

It was a moment before she spoke. “This is not quite what fashionably late means.” 

[aeipathys]

closed › @hxneybvns​

Hansa Xu did not make a good friend. 

And she’d be the first to admit it — if only to ward away those overtly friendly strangers that were drawn in by her unmoving self-composure. She wasn’t anywhere close to empathetic, drew away from physical affection, and only ever gave affirmations if they were truly deserved. So the few friends that she did keep — the ones that managed to worm their way to the center of her cold heart and find kindling to light fires and warm their bones without burning to ash altogether — she held special regard for. 

Doroteja was one of them. 

They were an unlikely pair — opposites in more ways than they were similar, and Hansa often wondered how it had worked out at all. If she was the opaque night sky, then TJ was the stars — nothing as glaring as the sun, but instead pinpricks of light that made the world more gentle, more beautiful. It was from the other that Hansa learned strength could also be found in softness. 

“Light of my life,” she called when she entered Puggy’s Cakes, a rare genuine smile blooming from the corners of her mouth as she entered the shop. She hadn’t informed Doroteja of her planned arrival, if only to make the surprise sweeter. 

[aeipathys]

closed › @vibesfm​

She had heard once that she survived off sheer spite. Do you know why her hair is so big? It’s because it’s full of schemes, they had said. But in reality, Hansa Xu survived off too much caffeine and time zone differences. And, of course, the occasional sugar kick, which was why she stood in waiting in the bakery for her order, coffee cup already in hand. 

“Order for Sarai!”

She paused in her silent critique of the dreamy retro movie soundtrack playing in the background. The name sounded vaguely familiar, though not familiar enough to cause her stress out of apprehension for forgetting that yet another close acquaintance had relocated to Anchorage. Curious, she walked up to the counter where the other woman was picking up her pastries. Never one to ask something so blunt as, Have we met?, she simply threw a small smile in the other’s direction. “Is that one good? I’ve never tried it, myself.”

[aeipathys]

closed  ›  @mcdesties​

It had been a while since she had seen Fahima. Now one of her closest confidants, the two originally had not seen eye-to-eye when they had first been forced together by their families. And how could they — when they were so different in their aspiration for perfection; Fahima’s out of piety for her mother and Hansa’s out of sheer vainglory. But over time, how could their souls have ever avoided touching, when they were of one heart? 

“Fahima Char-Warhol, it’s been years since we’ve met, but I’m quite surprised to see you now in the business of stealing hearts,” she drawled, grinning, though her expression softened as she continued to speak. “Or perhaps just mine.”