A/N: I do not own any of the recognizable Gossip Girl characters; they belong solely to Cecily Von Ziegesar. I do, however, own Hanna Waldorf and Rossleton, and any other original characters who may show up during the story. I don't have any specific time that this takes place during any of the seasons. For the sake of the story, let's just say… Blair and Chuck have "dated", and broken up. As of right now, Georgina is nonexistent. Nate is not dating Vanessa OR Jenny. Dan and Serena are a couple. Lily and Chuck's father are NOT married, and she is not with Rufus, either, because simply, I don't have the time to write in all that drama! I will make up my own drama as I go along.
This story isn't the best, I might add. I don't know much about New York, the places there, or exactly where the characters in the show live. I don't own any seasons of the show, nor have I watched it in forever, so I don't have much to go on. I'm basically making things up as I go along. You'll just have to bear with me until I get used to the world of Gossip Girl. I'm more accustomed to the scary funny world of Supernatural.
Chapter One: Welcome to NYC, Hanna Waldorf.
Hanna Waldorf sighed with relief when the plane finally landed, having sat in front of a screaming baby, and next to an elderly man that decided it was absolutely necessary to go on and on about how things were "back in the day", the entire flight, not to mention the horrible selection of movies being played. She quickly grabbed her carry-on items, and, after de-boarding the plane, she got the rest of her luggage and made her way through the crowded New York City airport to the exit. For a moment she figured that her aunt had forgotten to send someone to pick her up, and she started to call a cab, but then she noticed a black stretch limo waiting a couple of yards away, next to the sidewalk. Of course. As she approached the limousine, the driver stepped out and held the door open for her.
"Miss Waldorf?" He questioned, in a British accent. Hanna nodded. He quickly took her suitcases and put them in the trunk as Hanna waited by the limo. "Make yourself comfortable. It takes about half an hour to get there." He said, closing the door behind her as she crawled inside.
She had never been inside a limo before, or any nice vehicle, to be honest, let alone have someone hold a door open for her. Her father was the wealthy one, along with everyone else in the Waldorf family, but when he decided that his business and money was more important than his wife and six year old daughter, he filed for a divorce and left town. They spent the next twelve years in southern California, where her mother worked several different jobs just to make ends meet. Now she was being sent to live with Blair and Eleanor Waldorf for the next six months while her mother sorted her life out... in Paris. Apparently, you have to go out of the country to find yourself.
Hanna was a almost year older than Blair. Back home, she had already graduated from her high school, and was accepted into many universities. However, she and her mom didn't have enough money for a new car, let alone four years of tuition for college, so she took a few inexpensive classes at the community college.
The ride from the airport to the Waldorf's home took, exactly as the driver said, half an hour. The driver held the door open for her, and she stepped out of the limo, to be greeted by a woman who looked to be in her forties, but still had some of her youth and beauty left. She hadn't seen her aunt in years, but she was very sure this was who was standing in front of her. The driver had taken Hanna's things out of the limo, and as Hanna started to reach for a suitcase, when Mrs. Waldorf stopped her. "Don't be silly," She said. "Rossleton will get that for you. Now come along, I'll show you to your room, and then I'm due for a very important business meeting, so I will ask for Blair or Derota to show you around the home." Hanna smiled and nodded, and followed Eleanor inside the house. They went up a very long staircase and turned a left down a hallway. They reached the last door on the right, and Eleanor stopped. "This is will be your room for your stay. I'm sure you will find it... satisfactory. Your things will be up in a couple minutes." She smiled before she turned around and left. That was the last time Hanna saw Mrs. Waldorf for the entire day.
She had spent most of the time in her room, unpacking her things. She knew sooner or later she would run into Blair... and that was something she was not looking forward to. In the time that she and Blair had known each other, they rarely got along. It didn't help that they both lived on opposite sides of the country. Over the years, Hanna had tried to contact Blair, but she was always too busy with, well, being rich and popular. Hanna didn't fit in with the rest of her dad's side of the family, and that made her even more nervous to step foot out of her new bedroom.
She pulled out her cell phone from the new purse her mom had bought her back in California, and sat on the edge of the queen sized bed, which was covered with dark blue, silk bed sheets. She scrolled to her inbox and found three unread text messages from, guess who? Her mother. Apparently, she was worried to death that the plane had crashed and that her daughter was now drowning in some lake in Minnesota. Hanna chuckled and typed a reply.
"I'm fine, mom. You don't have to worry. I arrived in NYC safe and sound, and guess what? I rode in a limo! Eleanor's house is beautiful, but I haven't really gotten a chance to explore it yet, mainly because I'm hiding away in my new room, which is about three times as big as my room back home, and I have my own bathroom. I'm now going to finish up this message and venture downstairs and try to find Blair. Wish me luck. ily, mom." She closed her phone after sending the message, and hopped off the bed, slipping the phone into her jeans' pocket and opening the bedroom door, leaving it open a little bit as she left, so that she would remember which room was hers. Otherwise, she knew she would spend a while trying to look for it again. Her stomach growled. She decided it would be best to find the kitchen, first. She walked down the staircase and was met by a woman standing at the bottom. She was dressed in a maid's outfit, and spoke with an accent. "Oh hello, you must be Hanna. I'm Derota. Is there anything I can get you, Miss Hanna?"
She was not used to that question. She was not used to anyone treating her like this at all. But she was starting to like it. "Uh... a cup of iced tea would be fine." She said a bit quietly, not wanting to sound rude and demanding. "Anything else Ms. Hanna? You must be hungry after that long trip." "No, thanks, I'm fi-" Her stomach growled loudly, interrupting her. She nodded. "Yeah, actually I am kind of... starving." She laughed softly. Derota smiled. "Dinner will be ready in at least fifteen minutes. Is there anything you would like to hold you over until then?" Hanna shook her head. "No, thanks, I.. think I'll be fine until then." Her stomach growled lowly. "Shut up." She hissed quietly as Derota walked away, leaving Hanna standing at the bottom of the staircase. Fifteen minutes... what could she do until then? She caught up with Derota quickly, tapping her on the shoulder. "Um.. do you by any chance know where Blair might be?" She might as well get it over with. "Last I heard she was out with Serena... but she should be back any minute now." "Okay, thank you." She was a bit grateful that Blair wasn't here yet, and a bit regretful that she didn't get out of her room and explore the house earlier; everything about it was magnificent. In a way, she kind of hated her dad for taking all of this away from her. She quickly walked upstairs and into her room, where she closed the door and changed clothes. The ones she had on now reeked of airplane, sweat, and some soda she had spilled on her sweater during some turbulence on the flight. When she left her room again, she was wearing a black t-shirt, some faded jeans, and high tops. She put on a jacket as she walked down the stairs, almost losing her balance. Once she reached the bottom of the steps, safely, she heard voices approaching. She looked up, and walking into the house from the front door were two young women, one brunette and the other blonde. Blair and Serena.
"Well, well. Look what we have here." The brunette one said, stopping in front of her, looking over Hanna's outfit and scoffing in disgust.
"Nice to see you, too, Blair."
Blair rolled her eyes. "Hanna, Serena. Serena, Hanna. Hanna's my cousin, dad's side of the family. She's come to live with us while her mom is out of the country. Hanna, Serena is my best friend, and is way cooler than you. Okay," She said, clapping her hands together, "now that we all know each other, could you please excuse me for a moment, I have to put these away," She said, gesturing toward the shopping bags on her arm before walking up the stairs. Hanna sighed. "She hasn't changed one bit."
"I take it you two don't get along very well?" Serena asked, laughing a little as she sat her shopping bag down by the doorway.
"It's been five years since I saw her last... I came to see her on her thirteenth birthday. Apparently, I wasn't good enough to earn her friendship, because I wasn't some rich little snob. No offense," She said suddenly. "You seem like a nice person."
Serena smiled. "None taken. How long are you staying here for?"
"Until July, I think. My mom's in Paris for the next six months."
"Oh, That sounds nice. Well, I'm sure you'll like it here. And if you want, we could hang out sometime. I could show you around town, and we could maybe go shopping?"
Hanna smiled. " I would like that." Serena rummaged through her purse, and pulled out a cell phone. "Here," She said, handing it to her. "Add your number. I'll give you a call sometime when I don't have any plans."
Hanna took the phone, adding herself to Serena's contact list, and handed it back to her. The sound of footsteps signaled that Blair had returned from upstairs, and the end of Hanna's and Serena's conversation. Blair had changed out of her Constance School uniform upstairs, and was now wearing a casual yet dressy outfit as she headed towards the door. "So you're not staying for dinner?" Hanna asked. She didn't mind if Blair left, but Serena seemed cool, and it would be nice to have at least one friend here to show her around, seeing as Blair didn't seem too enthusiastic about her arrival. Serena followed after her, turning around and waving at Hanna as she left. "It was nice meeting you."
The hardest part of the day was over with, so she started upstairs for her next task: find something to wear to dinner. Back home, dinner wasn't taken so seriously. She could just make some microwave pizza and sit on the couch wearing a simple pair of jeans and an old t-shirt, while watching Friends and explaining to her mom about why Ross and Rachel are not meant for each other. But here, as she had just now figured out, things were different. She just hoped she could get used to it.