what is a witch?

hanna hazelton rousseau witch. mother.

[hanna-rousseau]

Hanna and her family never really celebrated Christmas or other December holidays, but she wanted to do something for her daughter now that she was back in town. She wasn’t entirely sure what Alex was going to be doing, but she was certain they could figure something out that they could do together. She knew that Mira would love to go out to see the lights decorated everywhere, especially at the botanical gardens. Since Hanna had been gone so long, she didn’t know if a lot of the festivities around town had changed. “Hey, do you know if they’re still doing the lights show at the Botanical Gardens?” she quickly asked someone passing by.

[hanna-rousseau]

ianxfairchild​:

location: coffee spells open to: all @astoriastarter​

“For the hundredth time, I am not reading Fifty Shades of Grey.” Ian whispered harshly to Ines in one of the aisles of Coffee Spells. She always attempted to get Ian to pick up the book whenever they came to the shop. His refusal had her in a ball of laughter on the floor as she pointed behind him and Ian turned, seeing that in between her suggesting the book and his speaking aloud, someone had joined them in the aisle. “Oh –– I…” he cleared his throat, holding up the True Crime book he had in his hands as if proving that the wasn’t, in fact, planning to read the aforementioned book. “I was just saying that I don’t know how uh…anyone reads that book when they can read about unsolved murders instead…” good save, Ines’s voice sounded between giggles and he gave the other person in the aisle a sheepish smile. “This is a good one…if you haven’t read it. A bit gruesome but uh, serial murders usually are…” He needed to stop talking. 

"You might want to give it a go then if someone keeps suggesting it to you,” Hanna said with a small smile. “Then you can give them all the reasons and evidence as to why it’s bad.” He seemed to be talking to no one, but then again, he could have been talking to someone with AirPods or whatever wireless technology was out these days. She’d never read the book and never had any interest in it and she would never read the book, even if someone kept bugging her about it. She ran her fingertips along the spines of the books on the shelf and then looked at the book that the man had. “Don’t worry, if you decide to read Fifty Shades of Grey, I won’t tell anyone. But you’re right, unsolved mysteries are much more interesting.” She picked up a book and leafed through the pages, glancing over the description before putting it back. She focused on the book that the man had in his hands and she raised her eyebrows. “Oh, really? May I see it?”

[hanna-rousseau]

maliahorton​:

— ◈ —

“That is a nice trait to have,” she grinned. “How I would love to have the power to be exceptionally lucky at any given moment.” It was sure to make her work life easier if that were the case. The other woman’s candor was refreshing, if not a tad surprising. “Well that’s probably the smarter move–the carrying cash around anyway,” Malia chuckled. “There’s not too many places I know of that doesn’t take cards, but you never know when it can come in handy.” Smiling, she held out her hand towards the other woman. “I’m Malia, by the way. Malia Horton.” 

"I always told my daughter that it was my special magical power,” Hanna said with a laugh. “I used to know someone who could always guess the right amount of something. Like M&Ms in a jar or someone’s age or height or the number of books on a shelf,” she added. Even though she was a witch and knew magic was real, she also believed in little magic like that, and sometimes it was for ordinary people, not just witches. “I’m Hanna...” Hanna held out her hand. “Hanna Rousseau.” For so long, she’d been Hanna Hazelton, so it felt strange again to say out loud that her last name was Rousseau. All the women in her family kept their last names, but Hanna was the first to change it, angering her mother and grandmother. When she returned home and changed her name back, they were more than thrilled.

[hanna-rousseau]

alexhazeltons​:

It was almost as if Hanna knew exactly what to say to push his buttons. Considering they’d once been married, Alex was sure that she did in fact know that with each word she spoke, Hanna was digging a deeper hole for him. He was sure that Mira would bombard him with requests to see her mother. It was to be expected. But now he’d have to deal with requests to see the cat as well.

Part of him wanted to step in, to pull his wife to the side, and ask her as gently as possible to explain herself, but that would have to wait. “Sure,” Alex agreed, the word barely audible. “Life is too short to get bogged down down in routine,” he said as he entered the ice cream parlor. It was a favorite of Mira’s and somewhere the pair frequented after school.  He watched as his daughter happily pointed out the strawberry ice cream to her mother, and for a moment, Alex could almost pretend that this was normal. That they were just a happy family out for an after school treat. There was a small part of him that still wanted to believe that that imagined situation could be a reality, but the logical, intelligent part of him knew that it was foolish to even think it. Hanna had chosen to leave, and while it had taken him two years to come to terms with her decision, he had. He had moved on. Mira had moved on. 

“We should get going,” he stated simply, after a few minutes. He hated to be the bad guy, but he still held so many questions about Hanna’s return and he didn’t expect any answers to come while they bonded over ice cream. Not with Mira around. “Why don’t you…” Alex paused, the words drying up on his tongue. He needed to be firm, put boundaries in place, and yet, against his better judgment, he heard himself say that words he’d been thinking. “Why don’t you have dinner with us sometime?” 

Hanna bent down and grinned as she watched her daughter point out all her favorite flavors. Of course, her favorite was strawberry. Hanna had been gone for far too long, but she did remember Mira loving strawberries when she was a baby. She’d sit with Mira in the kitchen and she’d be in her high chair. They would play a game and Hanna would hand Mira strawberries every time she did well. Sometimes, the two of them would surprise Alex with chocolate covered strawberries. Hanna brushed her hair behind her ear and picked out her favorite flavor. “I can never resist Oreos, so cookies and cream is my favorite flavor,” Hanna told Mira. She spoke to the person behind the counter to get them the ice cream that they wanted. She turned back to look at Alex. “Do you want something? It’s on me,” she said. 

Hanna almost believed that they were a family together again. She could almost believe that nothing was wrong and that Alex and Mira hadn’t moved on without her. She hated herself for leaving and knew she could never make up for lost time, but she knew she could be there now for Mira and teach her about her witch abilities and witchcraft. “Already? We’ve just got our ice cream,” she said, handing Mira’s ice cream cone to her. She didn’t want to push it though, so if he wanted to go, he could go. Hanna had her own cup of ice cream and was surprised, but relieved by the next thing that Alex asked. She gave him a smile, a real genuine and grateful smile. “I’d love that. I’ll be ready whenever you are.” Hanna loved him and she still did and she was sure that Alex had moved on and would never go back to her, but a part of her still hoped and wished he would. He’d never leave Astoria though and she wasn’t going to stay in the city.

[hanna-rousseau]

raine-morgan​:

“Mechanic,” they admitted. “Used to having people by pay card, though. Guess it don’ always happen, but it happens often enough, don’ like the register having too many bills,” they added. It wasn’t why they didn’t like cash money though, his parents had ended up in way too many scams, handing out cash money a plenty to people that never gave anything back. “It ain’t, well, ye know better than I then, are ye a local?” Raine couldn’t remember being pickpocketed either, although they were certain they always ended with empty pockets after going out. On account of their behaviour, it wouldn’t be a complete surprise if some of that money didn’t find its way to the bartender. 

"Yeah, I can’t imagine many people are paying car bills with cash,” Hanna said with a light laugh. She took a sip of her drink and pushed the melting pieces of ice around. It was strange to think of herself as a local after living there so long, starting a life with her husband, and then leaving on such short notice. Still, she knew the ins and outs of the city and the best and worst places to go. “You could say that. I moved here about nine years ago and lived here for seven before leaving for a short while,” she explained. More than likely, they would ask why she left and she already had an explanation at the tip of her tongue. It was a well rehearsed answer for anyone who would ask, who would certainly be close friends that she’d left behind. 

[hanna-rousseau]

sahid-chettair​:

Sahid followed, or at least they got the gist of it, perhaps not the full story, but certainly the idea behind her many words. They were never late, even when they had way too much to drink and ended up with a headache. “Oh, okay good! Glad you are confident about getting the job! What are you interviewing for?” They smiled when the question was also directed at them. They wished they could give a better answer, not that there was anything wrong with being a cleaner, but at times they wished they were still a teacher. “I’m a cleaner at County General,” they said. “It’s temporary though, I- I don’t know how long I’ll be in Astoria for.” 

"Oh, just a job at a store. Selling and folding clothes, you know,” Hanna said. She didn’t want to do something that she’d get attached to and it was only a temporary job to support herself while she was in town. She always loved her job as a museum curator and hoped to get back to it sooner rather than later, but it was taking more time than she wanted to take to get back home. “Me too,” she said with a smile. “I’m only here for a little while and then I’ll go back home. I actually used to work at the museum as a curator before I left. I’d love to return to that job, but since I’m going to leave ultimately, I don’t want to get sucked back into it.”

[hanna-rousseau]

choileon​:

“I haven’t seen you in what–a year?” Give or take. Maye Leon had never been one to stick his nose in someone else’s relationships, or lives in general, but Alex was a friend… a good friend above it all, so of course he couldn’t help but wonder how his friend was handling having his ex wife back… or if he even knew Hanna was back. “How have you been?” Still, he asked. Being close to Alex had also meant knowing of Hanna and being close to their child, so Leon hardbored no hard feelings towards the woman. It prompted in him a sense of duty in a way. He didn’t know how to explain it, but it was there. He cared for this family. “Nah, c’mon. It’s my treat. A little welcome back gift.” Even if he didn’t know if Hanna was back for good. “As for me, I’m okay. Doing better, I guess…” He waved the bartender over and asked them to include his things in Hanna’s tab and to close them. “I went back to the Forensic Institute, I’m also changing careers, which is weird, but nice in so many ways, and I found out recently that I have a kid. It’s been a ride… speaking of rides, do you need one home? I promise I’m sober enough to drive.”

Hanna pursed her lips and shifted in her seat at the mention of how long it’d been since she’d seen Leon. “Give or take,” she said with a nod. Once she’d left Astoria, she didn’t stay in touch with anyone while she was away. It was a clean break from them and Alex and Mira. “I’ve been doing well. I was able to see my mother and grandmother for the first time in a long time,” she said, careful to choose her words in case Leon said anything to Alex once they parted ways that evening. “I’ve been busy, but I’ve missed it here,” she told him. She did miss him. She missed all the friends she’d made here considering the city had been her home for years once she met Alex. She knew they would think poorly of her if she saw them again, but she was ready to move beyond that and return to what mattered most: her daughter. “Thank you,” she said as Leon insisted on buying her drinks. “What career are you changing to?” Hanna realized that she really had missed a lot once Leon listed off everything. “Yeah, I could use a ride. You’re going to have to use that ride to tell me everything I’ve missed. Tell me about that kid of yours.”

[hanna-rousseau]

mscarleighaortiz​:

Carleigha nodded softly at her response pulling her wallet from her purse. She always seemed to keep cash on hand. It had always been a habit from her years before Astoria. She doubted anyone was tracking her existence by far but cash was much harder to track then credit cards and the like. Tugging a few bills out of her wallet she slid them over to her. “I hope that works, few twenties and tens. I unfortunately don’t have anything smaller but a couple ones.” Her head tilted toward the woman with a soft smile. “Are you new to town? I just mean I have been here a while and I don’t remember seeing you before” 

Hanna smiled and took the money from the other woman while handing off the hundred dollar bill. “Thank you,” she said. She straightened all the bills out, undoing any of the folds and creases in the paper. “This is perfect.” She set down the money and put the rest of it in her bag. “Um, not really. I used to live here for about seven years, but I left a couple of years ago. Now I’m back, but only for a little while. I don’t plan on staying as long,” she explained. She didn’t know this woman, so it felt nice that she wouldn’t be judged and called the bad guy after she had to leave Alex and Mira. “How long have you lived here in Astoria?”

[hanna-rousseau]

{ B A S I C S }

LEGAL NAME: Hanna Rousseau Hazelton

ALIAS: Unknown

GENDER / PRONOUNS: Demi-Woman / She/Her or They/Them

AGE: 36 years old

DOB: November 1st, 1984

PLACE OF BIRTH: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

NATIONALITY: Canadian

ETHNICITY: Métis, Saulteaux-Cree, Chinese, and British

OCCUPATION: Museum Curator Currently unemployed;seeking employment

LANGUAGES: English, Michif, Cree (conversational), French (conversational), ASL (elementary proficiency)

RELIGION: Agnostic

ORIENTATION: Pansexual

DRINK | SMOKE | DRUGS: YES | NO | NO

{ P H Y S I C A L  A T T R I B U T E S }

HAIR COLOR: Black

EYE COLOR: Brown

HEIGHT: 5′-9″

WEIGHT: 134 lbs

TATTOOS: A sparrow on her right shoulder for her daughter, Mira

SCARS: A scar on her left arm from a fight

{ P E R S O N A L I T Y }

TRAITS:

+ thoughtful, modest, steady, serious, caring

- secretive, short temper, cunning, pedantic

MBTI: ESTJ

ALIGNMENT: Lawful Neutral/True Neutral

LIKES: Tea, cats, exploring, hikes, reading, spending time with Mira, witchcraft, being on the water

DISLIKES: Coffee, small talk, arrogance, her father, losing control of her abilities, hot weather

GOALS/DREAMS: Getting her daughter back and moving back to Canada, gaining Alex’s trust again and get him back, meeting someone new (?), teach her daughter about witchcraft

FEARS: Losing her sister, losing her daughter, losing her witch abilities, meeting her father

{ R E L A T I O N S H I P S }

Sara Rousseau (mother) - 61 - Alive

Unknown (father) - ## - Unknown

Unknown (adopted/half-sister) - ## - Alive;Estranged

Theresa Rousseau (grandmother) - 86 - Deceased

Alex Hazelton (ex-husband) - 37 - Alive;Estranged

Mira Hazelton (daughter) - 6 - Alive;Estranged

{ B I O G R A P H Y }

trigger/content warnings: death (suspected murder of Hanna’s grandmother), divorce

Hanna Rousseau was born to Sara Rousseau and was part of her mother and grandmother’s small coven. She never knew her father, but her mother said he was also a witch who was living in their town at the time before he up and left. 

Hanna was made aware of her witch abilities from a young age and taught how to use her powers as soon as they appeared. She had an exceptional affinity for witchcraft and caught on quickly with learning the craft. 

When Hanna was young, her mother and grandmother struggled with money as their store didn’t always do well. In their store, they often collected supernatural artifacts and either kept them or returned them to their rightful owners. 

In order to make ends meet, her mother and grandmother would sometimes do special magical favors for people. They would use their abilities to enchant items, create potions, create new identities for people, and even find ways to get winning lottery tickets for people. 

Once Hanna grew up, she chose to go to college far away from home, wanting to learn more about the world and experience it. She went to college and then traveled the world after getting her degree. After that, she realized that she wanted to be a museum curator and find artifacts for exhibits. 

She eventually went to Nova Pangea and landed herself in Astoria while looking for items for an exhibit. It was there that she met Alex Hazelton, a professor at the university nearby. Immediately, they hit it off and Hanna ended up staying in Astoria where they eventually married. 

A few years later, she gave birth to her daughter, Mira. Her mother and grandmother liked Alex, but were never particularly thrilled that he wasn’t a witch and Mira would only ever have abstract powers. Still, they loved Mira and stayed in touch with Hanna. 

About two years ago, Hanna’s mother contacted her to let her know that her grandmother died under possibly suspicious circumstances. However, there was never enough evidence for a case to be opened. Hanna mourned her grandmother but also never saw any reason to believe that her grandmother died under any other circumstances other than old age. 

It wasn’t until Hanna was attacked by an old enemy that she realized that there was probably some truth to what her mother said. She disappeared that night, returning home to Winnipeg to protect her mother and the rest of her coven from the enemies that surrounded them. 

She never told Alex about her former life, although he knew she was a witch. She also chose not to tell him about the enemies that were attacking her. This way, he’d stay safe in Astoria with their daughter and her enemies would never find them. 

But, the longer she stayed with her coven, the less she told Alex and eventually, she decided that there was no way she could be with a mortal human. So, she called him to tell him to stop looking for her and to sign the divorce papers she sent over. 

Fast forward to present day, Hanna has returned to Astoria to get her daughter, Mira, back into her life. She wants to take her daughter back home to Winnipeg to raise her with the rest of her coven just as she was raised so she could learn about being a witch and how to use her abilities. 

[hanna-rousseau]

maliahorton​:

— ◈ — 

“You’re welcome,” she smiled. Exchanging the bills, Malia placed the hundred back into her wallet. Putting everything away, she put her purse back on the seat beside her. She let out a short laugh at the other woman’s words. “Yes, I guess that’s true. Though I do think you just caught me on one of those rare occasions.” There weren’t too many places that didn’t take card, but she had needed to go to one of them this past week. Otherwise she wouldn’t have been able to help. “But having some cash on you is always helpful in case of an emergency.” 

Hanna laughed and nodded. “Then I guess it was pure luck then,” she said. “I kind of have a knack for getting lucky when I’m in need.” She sorted through the money and tucked it down in the checkbook that the bartender left behind. “I think I’m just a stickler about carrying cash all the time because I was caught one too many times without cash as a teenager and then did some questionable things like stealing or tricking people into giving me stuff,” she said, laughing. It wasn’t completely untrue, but it was more out of boredom and being a hell-raising teenager that got her into trouble rather than being out of cash. Although, there were times when they were short on money and needed to get some cash somehow to pay for food and bills.

[jacnaylor]

#AN AESTHETIC TBH

[laurastacey]

We don’t have to answer to David Hanley anymore

[hanna-rousseau]

sahid-chettair​:

They nodded intently, very much understanding that sometimes not having a phone was a lot nicer. Although Sahid didn’t feel like they had a lot going for them in their day to day life, so sometimes they just needed to pick it up and send Brandon a message, knowing he might not even answer. “Definitely, but I would rather just… leave it somewhere instead of loose it,” they suggested. “Oh, I hope I am not keeping you from it,” they said quickly, realising job interviews usually meant a lot of stress. Though they hadn’t really had one since applying to be a cleaner at County General, and that hadn’t been too difficult. Despite having to convince the person they had mailed that calling really wasn’t a good idea. “Or.. uhm, taken you out of the interview zone?” 

"Oh, no, you’re not keeping me,” Hanna said. “It’s actually not for another forty minutes or so. I just like being early to things, usually in case something happens beforehand like a wardrobe malfunction, car breakdown, or some other kind of accident. I feel like it’s bad luck not to show up early,” she added with a light laugh. Besides, it was only for some menial job to get her some cash flow while she stayed in Astoria. It wasn’t nearly like her old job. “It’s fine, trust me. I feel pretty confident I can get the job anyways, so no need to worry. What do you do for work?” 

[hanna-rousseau]

naomiacker​:

Taking the hundred dollar bill, Naomi tucked it into her wallet with the few other bills that remained. “Now let’s see if I remember to make another stop at the bank on my way home for work this week to get a few more smaller bills.” The hundred was larger than she needed but she didn’t mind helping the other woman out. Another trip to the bank wasn’t out of her way. “It’s a Moscow mule.” Naomi slide her cup towards Hanna so she could take a closer look. “The ginger beer mixed in is what makes the drink for me, it adds to the vodka. What are you drinking?”

Hanna reminded herself that she needed to go to the bank herself to set up a temporary account for her stay here. “I greatly appreciate it,” she said as another thank you. “I’m Hanna, by the way.” She looked down at the other woman’s cup to see what she had. “Oh yeah. I used to drink that a lot. I once had one with peach vodka and that was really good. Now, I turned to this other drink that has orange juice, Grenadine, and tequila. I think it’s got other stuff in it too, but I can’t remember it all. It’s on the sweeter side so you can barely taste the alcohol. Oh wait, I think the bartender said it was a tequila sunrise. Once I had another drink like it with pineapple juice instead and that was really good.” 

[hanna-rousseau]

alexhazeltons​:

As they walked, Alex trailed behind them quietly observing the two holding hands and chatting as if it had been days that had passed rather than years. Mira could barely contain her excitement at having her mother back. He could see it in the way her hand swung and in the slight bounce in her step. She’d always been an active child, her motion more dancing than walking, but today, she just about buzzed. Alex knew that she would have lots to tell him when they got home and none of it would be about the school day. A part of him wished he could be happy about it – happy that Hanna had returned, happy that his daughter had her mother, and that his family was back together – but the bigger part of him was suspicious. 

“Make a right at the next corner and you’ll see the shop,” he called ahead. It was mostly unnecessary as Mira could walk the few blocks from the school to the ice cream parlor in her sleep. “Remember we’re having one ice cream and then we have to leave. And thank you for your offer, Hanna, but Mira and I have a routine down. I’m never too busy to help my child.”

It was a dig, a childish one that he regretted almost immediately. Alex had never been the petulant one, but it was difficult to look at his daughter and her mother thick as thieves and not remember the nights when his child had been inconsolable missing her mother. It ate at him and made him want to yell, but he’d never cause a scene. Especially not in front of Mira. “Plus, it’s a school night so neither of us can really afford to be out for long.”

"One day, baby, you’re going to have to visit me and come see my new cat,” Hanna told Mira with a smile. “Her name is Luna and she could really use a friend like you to keep her company, play with her, and take care of her. What do you think about that?” Hanna and Alex had always talked about getting a pet, but they always found reasons not to have one. She’d always had cats around the house when she was growing up, whether they were hers or just street cats that loved to stick around. Now that Hanna was on her own, she got a new one to keep her company in Astoria since she figured it’d take some time to get her daughter back. 

Hanna glanced back at Alex as they walked, noticing that he kept a bit of distance between them. She shot him a small glare, resisting the urge to send daggers with her eyes and spit something else back. It wasn’t that she didn’t deserve the dig since she did leave, but then she remembered being alone so many days and nights when Alex went off to work and research trips. She never wanted to give up her career to raise a child and become a stay at home mom and she never did fully give it up, but she definitely had to scale back on her own work to keep up with caring for their daughter. 

She looked down at Mira, who was still grinning from ear to ear. “Just one ice cream, baby. We don’t want you to get full before dinner, do we?” she said, raising her eyebrows. “But it doesn’t hurt to break a routine once and while because otherwise, life gets boring and life’s too short to be boring,” she said to Mira with a warm smile. She wasn’t going to push it since this was the first time she was seeing Mira and Alex in two years. She turned the corner and opened the door for Mira as they walked into the ice cream shop. “Okay, little bird, tell me which is your favorite flavor,” she said, bending down to look in the case with Mira.

[hanna-rousseau]

raine-morgan​:

“Fair, but I think anyone walking around with a hundred dollar bill is crazy, no offence,” they said, looking the stranger over. Yet, as she waved their suggestion in the wind, they shrugged. “Fine by me,” they said, waving over the bartender for another drink of their own. “Cannea know if ye’ll pay me back either, so less worry for the both of us.” They ordered another beer by just shaking a finger at the bartender, familiar enough with the fellow by now. “Ye best get that hundred to a bank soon though, figure it ain’t a good idea to be walking around with it.” 

"Then you obviously haven’t worked in the service industry,” she replied, taking a sip of her drink. “I’ve seen people hand me hundreds for twenty dollar bills and I’ve seen people give me all ones for sixty dollar bills,” she added. Hanna laughed lightly and shrugged her shoulders. She glanced over at them, and then at the bartender so she could order another drink. One more wouldn’t hurt as the bartender made a last call. She didn’t have anywhere to be in the morning. “Well, I guess that does make it easier for the both of us to pay for our own drinks.” She finished off her drink and set the glass aside. “I’m sure I’ll be okay,” she said regarding getting her hundred to a bank. “Last I checked, petty theft isn’t all that common here in Astoria.”

[b-n-a-o]