#Rouen Blake

[children-of-epiales]

Whumptober 2023

Prompt No. 07- "Can you hear me?"

When she reaches up and touches her cheek, the pads of her fingers press deep into her skin. It’s not until she feels the bone that Rouen reaches further, feeling wetness dripping from her ear canal. She looks at her hand to confirm that it’s blood. 

The soldier notices light on the floor and looks up at the tv in the room ahead of her. A commercial goes on, all the bright lights flashing and people speaking-speaking but not making a single sound. 

Rouen cannot hear a single sound. 

It’s gone, the brunette thinks. Oh my god it’s gone…It was real.

She chokes on a gasp, the adrenaline giving her the energy to stand. Reaper stumbles backward, shutting her eyes as she hits the wall; when she opens them, the soldier sees the pool she had previously laid in and the thought of how long she’d been there struck her. If she passed out while running from it, then why hadn’t it found her? Or did it find her, and not kill her? 

Fear washes over Rouen, gluing her to the wall for a moment. Where is it where is it where is it

Eventually she shoves away from the wall, running into the corner of the door frame in front of her, smashing her face against it. The world spins, colors take over her vision, yet the soldier continues into the room with the tv. 

Hel..lo?

The struggling to say the word stops Rouen in her tracks. This time it sounds just like her, having any conversation with her family or the love of her life. Tears blur her vision, run down her cheeks, it takes everything she has left to turn her head. Just barely able to see behind her, the dim light and pool of blood are all that occupies the vacant room she awoke in. 

No one’s there, she tries to convince herself. No one’s there’s-it’s not there. None of it is true, the fact is enough for her to continue outside, climbing through one of the broken windows and jumping out into trees, weeds, and other things the soldier can’t see. Things she can no longer hear. 

She doesn’t know what’s waiting for her, yet she takes off. The soldier runs into the waiting woods, pushing away vines and branches that block her path and try to grab at her to keep her company among the isolation. 

Hel-lo? 

Rouen’s pace quickens until the branches start to leave cuts on her. It must be her mind, she’s lost all that blood and has been stressed and scared since the evening prior-it must be her mind cracking. It’s all she can do to convince herself. 

She trips onto a road and continues on her hands and knees across the hot pavement, a red shape in the distance giving her the incentive to stand up. The closer the vehicle comes, the more she waves her arms and screams as loud as she can imagine she’s able to. 

Hello? Oh-

The truck slows so it stops right next to her, only for the soldier to freeze despite watching the woman’s lips move. It’s there. It’s there with her. It never left; it waited for her to wake up, so it could find her again. 

There you are.

Rouen walks over and opens the door to the passenger seat. She slips in and slams it before telling the woman to drive. She doesn’t try to blink away the tears that overwhelm her again. 

Hello? Can you hear me? Hello? There you are. Can you hear me?

She shuts her eyes. “ Get-Get us out of here.” She repeats through grit teeth. The soldier turns and opens her eyes, the reflection in the window blocked by another reflection of herself, smiling brightly at the deafened woman. 

I see you.

[children-of-epiales]

Gimme all the lore for the ship prompt ask <3

Absolutely!

Rouen BlakexNéon Ngoma Mutombo

Gives nose/forehead kisses: Néon! Rouen is more of a cheek kisser

Gets jealous the most: ROUEN

Takes care of on sick days: Néon has to force Rouen to let them care for her bc my gal gets Embarrassed even though she'd do the same for them

Drags the other person out into the water on beach day: Rouen! There would be no "if" or "but" about it

Brings the other lunch at work: Néon, they would REMEMBER to bring lunch in the first place

Tries to start role-playing in bed: Néon tbh, Rouen wouldn't even try bc she knows she'd be so bad at it

Embarrassingly drunk dancer: Neither? I don't think Néon would let themselves get drunk

Firmly believes in couples costumes: Néon, again my gal would be SO embarrassed just by thinking about it but she couldn't say no to them

Breaks the expensive gift rule during Christmas: Rouen, at least for one gift

Makes the other eat breakfast: Rouen, she is a firm believer in 3 meals a day

Remembers anniversaries: Both

Brings up having kids first: Probably Rouen? Just to clear the air about the subject

Kills the bugs: ROUEN, those bugs wouldn't stand a chance

First to define them as a couple: Rouen, she would address Néon as her s/o, say she's in a relationship, etc. Not that I think it'd take Néon too long but she'd still be the first

Who hides their guilty pleasures longer: Rouen, she's so iffy (for lack of a better word) when it comes to that stuff

Snorts while laughing: ROUEN

Lara Darling-JóźwiakxSage O’Malley

Gives nose/forehead kisses: Sage

Gets jealous the most: Sage

Takes care of on sick days: Sage, he fights makes sure Lara is cared for when she's ill bc she refuses to relax herself

Drags the other person out into the water on beach day: SAGE! He's an ocean-lover

Brings the other lunch at work: Lara, she makes Sage a lunch to take for himself

Tries to start role-playing in bed: Neither, my bbs are not good actors and Sage would just start laughing at his silliness anyway

Embarrassingly drunk dancer: Lara doesn't get drunk, but she's been tipsy a couple times and she loosens up just enough that she would try to bust a move

Firmly believes in couples costumes: Lara, Sage would do it bc he doesn't want to be a party pooper but he gets embarrassed

Breaks the expensive gift rule during Christmas: Sage

Makes the other eat breakfast: Lara, Sage simply forgets or is so focused on something he ignores it

Remembers anniversaries: Both bc they have a marked calendar

Brings up having kids first: Sage

Kills the bugs: Neither, but Lara won't touch them so Sage takes them outside

First to define them as a couple: Lara

Who hides their guilty pleasures longer: SAGE

Snorts while laughing: Sage

Rouen BlakexSalvatrice Muselli

Gives nose/forehead kisses: Neither, I feel Sal gives mouth kisses, kisses on the hand, and neck kisses

Gets jealous the most: OOF I feel Sal in this case

Takes care of on sick days: Rouen

Drags the other person out into the water on beach day: Rouen

Brings the other lunch at work: Sal

Tries to start role-playing in bed: Neither

Embarrassingly drunk dancer: Neither (Sal is an angry drunk imo)

Firmly believes in couples costumes: Rouen she'd wanna do it at least once

Breaks the expensive gift rule during Christmas: Rouen

Makes the other eat breakfast: Rouen

Remembers anniversaries: Rouen

Brings up having kids first: Neither

Kills the bugs: ROUEN

First to define them as a couple: Sal

Who hides their guilty pleasures longer: Sal

Snorts while laughing: Rouen

[children-of-epiales]

YA BOI IS LATE TO SEE YOUR RB BUT:

do they prepare their clothes before going to sleep, or do they prefer to improvize?

do they prefer their shampoos and soaps plain, or do they like to smell like something specific?

do they have a proper meals everyday, or do they tend to skip or get just a snack for lunch/dinner?

which chore is the one they dread doing the most?

are they the kind of person who think of their car as if it was their baby? perfectly clean, not a scratch, almost overly protective of it?

what's their background and lock-screen?

are they registered to any social media?

what's their usual sleeping position?

For my beloved Reaper, Renata, Halyna, Lara and Sage pls <3 (or pick a few if it's too much)

Reaper

Improvises for sure, she has never nor will ever prepare an outfit for the next day

Reaper likes bath soaps that have berry-related scents or coconut scents, she doesn't care when it comes to shampoo and conditioner

She has a habit of eating lunch kinda late sometimes, on those days she will get a snack or just skip dinner

The laundry (she will hide pile of clothes on her bed with her blankets lol)

Reaper doesn't go that far about her car but definitely values it, considers it one of her "safe spaces" since she can be alone, so she does keep it tidy and everything

Background is whatever it came as when she first got her cellphone, her lockscreen though will be her Beloved (Reaper is not ashamed of this)

She has instagram only so she can look at the accounts for her friends', s/o, an inspo instagram account, etc., discord, and Whatsapp; she used to have vimeo

Reaper is a supine sleeper b/c she wants to take care of her back, but is a stomach sleeper at heart

Renata

Renata is the last person on the earth to plan any of her outfits, she definitely goes with the Flow (her mood is the Flow)

She's fond of floral hygiene products

She'll grab a snack for lunch every now and then

All of them, Renata forces herself to do all of her chores in one day so she can just get it over with

Renata has become rather fond of her vehicle over time (mostly b/c she talks to it too much) so she does give it such treatment

Her background is a picture of her sister, sister-in-law, and niece and nephew, her lockscreen is a picture of her grandparents

Her younger siblings forced her to get Snapchat

Renata is a strict left-side sleeper

Halyna

The first person on earth who can and should be suspected of preparing her outfits for the next day, Halyna absolutely takes the time to do this

Funnily enough, she can be overwhelmed by fragrance, so either her products have "gentle" scents or none at all

Like her mother, the poor gal will skip breakfast (if she's with someone she must be forced to eat breakfast) or at least drink some coffee

The dishes, Halyna has to wear two sets of gloves to avoid the Textures at all costs (and she despises the Smells as well)

Yes but only b/c it's probably a Fancy car, she does not have such feelings for a vehicle

Her background is a picture of a place from home that she has good memories of, her lockscreen is the default bc she doesn't want anyone seeing her pictures (will probably become Icarus later on)

Only Pinterest, she used to have an instagram but grew tired of all the bullshit Discourse and doesn't feel like dealing with anything else

Halyna switches between sleeping on her back and her right-side

Lara

Lara SOMETIMES does this, mostly if she knows she has something important to do later in the day and doesn't wanna feel out of place for the event, or if she simply wants to put extra effort into what she's wearing the next day

She usually doesn't consider this sort of thing, though she does enjoy dessert-themed scents more than others

Definitely a three-meals-a-day gal

Vacuuming and dusting, the former is overwhelming when it comes to the noise and she gets annoyed with having to make sure she doesn't trip on the cord; the latter is just something she doesn't like to do

Another person who will take care of her care b/c it's a "safe space" for her

Her background is a picture of her and Eike together, her lockscreen is a picture of something related to the Mid-autumn festival

Used to use Skype, she wasn't allowed to have other any social media accounts until she got older; now uses Whatsapp and Instagram (doesn't post selfies or photos of others, mostly nice views, things she think were interesting to take pictures of, etc)

A stomach sleeper that hugs her pillow like nobody's business

Sage

Sage prefers to plan his outfits b/c he's terrible at improvising and is really bothered by it

He doesn't care, he just focuses on avoiding strong fragrances

Only eats lunch and dinner b/c Lara reminds him he needs to, he will hyper-focus on something and forget to eat

Cleaning, no matter how bad his messes are, Sage Knows where to find things and organizing messes with his head

He keeps his vehicle clean b/c his mother raised him to, the most he'll give is that he appreciates when he doesn't have to get it checked out at a shop

Background is an animal, probably his favorite species of snake, his background is another favorite species

Whatsapp and Instagram (Bunny made him make an Instagram account); his experiences on social media in the past have left a bad taste for him

Switches between his left and right sides

[children-of-epiales]

❓+ Reaper when you gonna kiss your WIFE STILETTO

(It's a serious question)

Reaper's face heats up, her cheeks turn red. " Christ why does everyone have to ask those kind of questions?!" She asks, her voice cracking. " We're not even married yet-I mean I don't know if she would want to get married but I would like to. But that's not what you asked me-why would you ask that question? I kiss her every morning, okay? There's your answer!" She covers her face with both hand immediately after.

[children-of-epiales]

Tagged by @shegetsburned to do this uquiz!

Reaper

the haunted house

decrepit and falling apart at the seams; time has not been kind to you, has it? termites have nestled in your bones, and stray cats find comfort in your sinews. you may be victim to time and erosion, but your abandoned corpse remains a refuge for unwanted things. vermin and ghosts thank you. what greater kindness can there be than offering shelter

Sage

the sacrifice

 a knife to your back is your first memory– it will also be your last. you cannot help but let things into your heart, such is your nature. time and time again, however, they hurt you and leave you to rot. but your heart remains open, and you continue to let more in. is it kindness, at that point, or is it sacrifice?

Bunny

the killer

 was there ever a choice? maybe, but that fork in the road is far, far behind you. you surround yourself now with sharp things, tools to harm, and they have become your only family. you are the thing that goes bump in the night, and you hunt for scurrying mice like a hungry cat. maybe, just maybe, though, one can finally put an end to your hunt, and allow you to finally rest.

Soleil

the lover

love has brought you to this place, and it will not let you leave. fear clutches you, constricts you, and it will have you killed– and yet, it is still no match for the bounty of your heart. you will try as hard as you can to protect the object of your affections. evil is nothing in the face of your warmth. even if you are successful in protecting your lover, that does not guarantee your own survival. your heart has doomed you, but what greater death is there than dying for love?

[children-of-epiales]

Tagged by the wonderful @unpetitoiseau & @unbindingkerberos to do this picrew!

Top left: Reaper

Top right: Bunny

Bottom: Nemesis

Tagging: @scentedcandleibex @poisonedtruth

[children-of-epiales]

WIP whenever

Tagging: @poisonedtruth @unbindingkerberos @voidika @scentedcandleibex @shegetsburned​

Just as Olivier’s fingers grazed the rifle, the brunette reached for the gun, slinging it over her shoulder without even turning in the Frenchman’s direction. “ C’est quoi ce bordel? What are you doing?!” The Frenchman slammed his locker shut and reached for the weapon, only to fail to grab it once again when the Canadian turned to face him. The two appeared to be almost frozen, eyes locked in a quiet battle of sorts; fortunately for the two, neither particularly preferred the “quiet” fight. “ I usually don’t mind repeating myself-but I won’t repeat anything for you because I can already tell you’re a fucking idiot.” Reaper finally answered him. “ So listen well. I’m not here to be anyone’s enemy, just to do my job. And the last thing I need is you running your big mouth and telling me what to do-you do your job and I do mine, motherfucker, understand? If I want advice or orders, I’ll go to Six or Zero. Or someone who’s actually worth respecting. So unless you’ve got something worth saying to me, you can keep your mouth shut, got it?”

[children-of-epiales]

WIP Sunday Whenever

Tagged by @poisonedtruth!

A long whistle escapes through the man’s wounded lips. “ Nice ride,” are the first words that leave his mouth. His fingers linger over the seat, the glint of sunlight fixed on the black paint, then finally the handle. 

His fingers linger for seconds that feels like forever until he shoves his hand back in his pocket. 

Oh how he would love to ruin this vehicle.

“ Didn’t take you for someone who enjoys going faster than ten, Rouen.” Jody realizes. He finally looks over his shoulder to address the impatient woman, who’s already opened the door for him. 

“ Not at first-” The brunette answers him. “-but we change. Now, will you come inside?” 

The French-Canadian snickers, turning on his heels so he can see his friend clearly without touching the motorcycle. 

“ I agree to do this now instead of having to chat with your boss and so-and-so…” He starts again. “ Will you take me out for a ride on this bad boy?”

“ It won’t save you from having to meet everyone, Jody.” Rouen reminds him.

[children-of-epiales]

Thanks to the most recent siege stories comic:

Ookami: Rouen, when did you get sunglasses? 

Reaper: *looking at him with the shades on* Idk what you mean, why do you always have to question me every time I do something?

*Zofia walks by*

Ookami: ...Righttttt.

Reaper: I really need you to shut the fuck up right now.

[children-of-epiales]

Tis the season

     Rouen didn’t dare turn around. She knew the boys were smiling because of how red her face was.

“ This is silly-why are you even getting invested in-in me being nice?” The question came out all wrong, but it’s all she could manage until the embarrassment wore off. “ You know what I mean!”

Joshua cracked up first, and it didn’t take long for Augustin to join him in the laughter. “ You see, Rouen, this is how we know you have a horrible crush on Ngoma.” The former pointed out. “ Giving a gift isn’t difficult for you, but if it’s for someone you love-”

“ I don’t love Néon!” Rouen hissed loudly and bitterly at the boys. Her eyes grew at what she just did and the brunette removed her glasses so she could cover her eyes. “ Why can’t you two just let me be miserable?”

“ Because you’re getting embarrassed and upset over something that is perfectly human,” Augustin answered, his voice carrying some fierceness as well. “ Joshua, me, Hayat, Evangeline-everyone knows you-you care about Sens more than you’d like. We want this to happen for you and we know you’ve been making your own efforts to get close with them anyway.”

“ They’re some very sad efforts, so I decided you earned yourself a B plus for trying multiple times.” 

Augustin glared down at Joshua, his eyes narrowed to remind the Irishman of the conversation they had earlier. “ Okay I know the joking doesn’t help-” Joshua said to correct himself, “-but can we all agree that there’s an easier way to go about getting close with someone instead of having multiple, short conversations about small details?”

Rouen had half of a mind to ask how long Joshua watched her approach Néon and lose nerve before she could say something important to them, the realization that they were being quite patient with her struck her. “ You’re right.” The brunette muttered as she leaned against the lockers. “ But giving Néon a gift-that’s really bold, and you know the rules about being buddy-buddy is around here.”

A loud “Ha!” escaped the boys at the same time. “ Don’t you worry about that, Rouen-we got the dirt about Pulse and Hibana being ‘buddy-buddy’!” Joshua announced cheekily. “ We heard that Mr. Sunglasses split with Hibana before he joined Nighthaven; how she feels about that-I couldn’t get-but that’s not important. What is important is that you have a chance.” 

“ Okay-” Joshua placed a hand on Rouen’s shoulder and they sat down on the bench together. “ How about we start small first? You invited Ngoma to the holiday dinner-we’ll host it on the twenty-seventh and then see about New Years, how’s that sound?”

“ The twenty-seventh? I can’t ask Néon for that-”

“ Of course you can.” Augustin cut in. “ Think about it: when’s the last time someone joined us in one of our celebrations? I think Six would certainly approve of the arrangement. And who would Sens be to say no?”

Rouen put her glasses on and let out a very tired sigh. Who would she be to back out of an opportunity to get closer to Néon? Especially when she had so much support? 

“ Just do me a favor…” The brunette requested. “ I’ll ask Sens to come to the dinner, but you two better let Evan know about this. The last thing I want is to have to explain myself in front of everyone-do you guys hear me?” 

Joshua sat up straight and saluted his friend. “ Understood, Ma’am!” He stood up and motioned for Rouen to hurry up. “ Now c’mon, c’mon! You’ve got a lovely Belgian person to ask out to dinner!”

“ Don’t say it like that!” Rouen chastised, her face immediately flushed again. 

While Joshua went to fulfill his end of the bargain, Augustin and Rouen went to fulfill the latter’s end and tried to look for Sens. 

They found the Belgian operator speaking to Melusi; they both still wore their Wolfguard uniforms, so it appeared they just finished training together. 

“ Those uniforms have grown on me-” Joshua quietly revealed to Rouen, “-especially those blue colors, I guess I was so used to what Nightmare was doing that the color choice seemed-I don’t know-bold? It certainly looks nice on Ngoma though, doesn’t it?” He patted his friend firmly in the middle of her back. 

Rouen rolled her eyes. “ You keep your mouth shut unless you’re absolutely positive you’re gonna say something helpful, got it?” 

“ Hey I’m the best wingman-” 

The brunette shushed Joshua before she tried to force herself to approach the two Wolfguard members; she paused upon noticing Sens already spotted her, watching as they and Melusi went their separate ways and they approached the two Nightmare members.

Feeling a sudden boost of confidence and determination, Rouen decided to dive head first into the conversation. “ So we were wondering-I was wondering but we were wondering too-there’s gonna be a dinner…” She paused, trying to think of how to make sense of all the babbling she just did. “ It’s going to be at my place this year, we-Nightmare-we try to do it every year and-and it’s fun and there’s food there. If you’re into that sort of thing.” 

She went quiet for a moment after noticing the humored smile that appeared on Sens’ face. “ I’m very into eating food for the holidays,” They said, “ are you asking me if I’d like to go?”

From behind Rouen, Joshua gave the Belgian a thumbs up. 

“ Yeah, I’m pretty sure I am…” The brunette confirmed, knowing her face was horribly flushed. “ If you can’t go, that’s fine too. I-uh-I know I don’t exactly see you as much as I should. I mean like talk to you when I see you-but I know you’re busy and all so-” Her chest felt so heavy, she wanted to fall to her knees and curl up in a ball. But Rouen knew she wouldn’t regret asking Sens to attend the dinner, this would be the first step of her attempt to make it known that she liked them.

“ Augustin and I are cooking this year too,” Joshua spoke up from behind the Canadian. “ We’re pretty damn good cooks, if I do say so myself.”

“ Oh, well if that’s the case-how could I refuse?” Sens said, shrugging their shoulders as if that comment sealed the deal. 

Rouen’s mouth fell open and she glanced back at her friend. “ What-are you two working together or something?” The question came out a little more sour than she wanted, and only Joshua knew that. 

Sens’ eyes grew a little, recognizing that the brunette clearly didn’t mean like being co-workers, but that they had agreed to play some nasty joke on her. “ Rouen, I wouldn’t just go to the dinner party for the food…” They put a hand on Rouen’s arm. “ I would like to go because you invited me, I was only joking about the food part.” 

They offered the brunette a soft smile. “ So, when is the dinner?” 

When Rouen clearly seemed to be speechless, Joshua stepped in for her again. “ The twenty-seventh! We’ll pay for your flight, Buddy-so don’t you worry about that!” 

Sens acknowledged Joshua with a joyful grin-a typical response to his silliness-but before they had to go, they gently squeezed Rouen’s arm and wished her and Joshua well. 

“ I swear-” Rouen mumbled as she turned to face Joshua, “-I’m gonna die, J. Please help me.”

“ Oh no-there will be none of that, not before you confess your feelings to Ngoma.” Joshua reminded his friend. “ Then you can pass out, and-you know-it’ll be one of those scenes from the movies. They’ll pick you up and their face will be really close to yours and-”

“ J!”

Tag list: @poisonedtruth @kryptonian-puppy

[children-of-epiales]

Tagged by @wretched-mischief to do this quiz!

Reaper

Gluttony

gluttony: "overindulgence and overconsumption of anything to the point of waste." basically you overeat. honestly same. once you start something you find it hard to stop. you tend to overly focus on whatever you're working on and lose yourself when you're "in the zone". but you're really good at what you do!! and have lots of undiscovered talents. don't worry, people will notice soon ;)

Friča

Pride

pride: "dangerously corrupt selfishness, the putting of one's own desires, urges, wants, and whims before the welfare of other people." basically, you're selfish. but hey, at least you love yourself!! that's a good thing. you know what you want and when you want it. you're very determined and tend to block out negativity in your life. good!! your ambitions might block your view of everyone else in your life, but deep down you know they're there and you care for them very deeply. you're very energized and invoke a lot of emotions in other people. your voice has a very big impact, so don't forget to use it (for the right reasons) :)

Haemon

Wrath

wrath: "uncontrolled feelings of anger, rage, and even hatred. feelings of wrath can manifest in different ways, including impatience, hateful misanthropy, revenge, and self-destructive behavior." basically you have anger issues. you tend to seek vengeance and hold grudges for a loooooongggggg time. but that's only because you're looking out for yourself and the people you care about. you're not afraid of a fight and are very confrontational. you're strong-willed and thick-skinned. don't forget to show ur soft side every once in a while :)

Tagging: @spacestephh @illmetbymoonlight @theelderhazelnut @darialovesstuff @pretzelbytess