A/N: Hello, again, everybody! Who's here for more Clout! You! Good! Cause here it is. Think I did pretty well with Blake, all things told. Hop you like it.

RWBY is own by Roosterteeh and the late Monty Oum

Clout

Chapter 5

A week after the reverse Tickle Punishment of Yang and things had settled down again. While the channel and that particular video had exploded with likes and follows, Ruby had suggested a brief hiatus from doing videos.

Obviously, things weren't working like they wanted, and Jaune needed to time to recover, she surmised to the rest of her team. They, naturally, had agreed. Especially after Jaune got a terrible rash from all the Red Sap he had been in contact with. One where he once again found himself in the School's infirmary for.

There might also have been the issue with a slightly ticked off Viking, and her stoic boyfriend, manning the door to his room all week, preventing them from doing anything as well. But, that was besides the point. Jaune needed a break just everybody else.

He had smiled and laughed off whatever concerns they had, saying that it got him out of Mid Terms. For the time being.

He had used the extra week to study.

Which is where Blake Belladonna found herself on a Friday afternoon. In the library. Just her and her team's crush.

Now, Blake would normally find being alone in Beacon's Library a joy. She loved to read. Loved to have some peace and quiet to herself.

She loved her girlfriend, Yang, and her sisters, Ruby and Weiss, but there were times when she needed to be alone. Yang blamed it on her "cat-ness". Blake blamed it on how unruly her team could be at times.

However, Blake Belladonna had… not a problem. More of a concern. About a boy.

One Jaune Arc.

Who was sitting next to her right now. Studying. Like she was suppose to be doing.

She went back to looking over her notes again. Only to find her mind drifting.

See, she had never been a particularly adventurous person. Oh, she read plenty of romance novels like that-No, Yang! They were not smut! Even if, there was, an abnormal amount of bondage and-Ahem!-Where was she?

Oh, yes.

Blake had never been particularly adventurous. Romantically speaking, that is. She had spent most of her early teenage life with one person. A person who, had not been particularly good for her.

Adam, had been many things. But, a good boyfriend, he was not. He had hurt her. In so many ways. Mentally. Emotionally.

Physically.

It was why, as much as she did love him, Blake never really saw Sun in that way. Which was why it was such a relief when he didn't expect anything of her besides friendship. And, she loved him for that.

It was also why she gravitated to her partner so much, so quickly.

Yang was strong, yes. Just like Adam. But she was also so much kinder, warmer. She was like her namesake, the Sun. Blake could spend hours basking in her light. Like a cat at its favorite spot on a windowsill.

… Don't tell Yang she said that. She would never live it down.

She, had hurt Yang, when she left. No, when she ran away.

She hadn't meant to. If she had known about Yang's issues with her mom-No. She shook her head mentally as she thought about it. No, she wouldn't lie to herself like that. In her fear of Adam and what he would do to those she loved, she would've ran, regardless of knowing about Yang's past. Heck, she had known about it, somewhat. Yang had told her.

And, she had still ran.

She breathed a sigh in and let it out slowly as she felt tears prick the corner of her eyes as she remembered.

…Because of that, their relationship had been on shaky ground for so long. Until they had fought Adam again. This time, together. And, they had won.

They had overcome their shared fear of him, together. Blake, had never been scared as she had during that fight. So worried, that she, or Yang, might die. And, she couldn't bear it if Yang had died while saving her again.

But, she hadn't. They hadn't.

And, Adam was now in prison. In some dark, deep pit in Mistral. And that's where he would stay for the rest of his life, after she, and so many other Faunus, many former White Fang just like her, had testified to his rampages, his massacres. His madness.

She breathed another sigh in and out again, remembering the rage, the vitriol Adam had spat her way as he had been dragged away in chains, never to see the light of day again, his scarred, mismatched eyes glaring murderously at her.

It had taken some time for their relationship to develop further. Yang was a surprisingly shy girl when it came to opening up to things like that. She found it cute, all the same.

Especially, when she did so these days.

But, that brought her back to the present, and her current worries with Jaune.

See, Jaune wasn't he wasn't Sun either. And, he was certainly no Yang. But, he was a guy. Something she had been cautious about getting close to again.

But, moreover, he was a friend. One she didn't want to lose.

Not for something so simple as a crush.

Only, it wasn't a crush anymore.

She swallowed at that before glancing over at him as he studied various reports and other paperwork for Oobleck's exam.

See, she and the rest of Team RWBY had noticed how their leader acted around him during their travels across Anima and Solitas. The long stares into each other eyes. The constant looking for each other after they had separated.

The love, that was clearly there.

They had all been doing their best to give the two, awkward teens, and fellow team leaders, space. Hoping to see their feelings for each other blossom into something more.

Only to see it get pushed to one side when Pyrrha had shown up after recovering from her temporary coma.

She felt her hand clench into a fist then.

Now, Blake, like the rest of her friends and teammates, considered the Mistrali Champion to be a friend. But she would be lying, if she said that having her come back and ruins things between her "sister" Ruby and Jaune, didn't just piss her off at times.

But, they had let it go, seeing how happy Jaune had been when Pyrrha came back. How much in love the two were. Even if, there were days where Ruby couldn't stand to be in the same room as the two of them.

And then Pyrrha had broken up with Jaune in their third year. And, in the worst way possible.

Publically.

Before a crowd of adoring fans. On national news coverage.

When he had been about to ask for her hand in marriage. She had "overheard" the conversation between him and Ren about the matter a week beforehand.

Blake gritted her teeth at that memory.

Yeah, friend or no. Honorary sister or no. Blake would never be able to look at the Mistrali Champion the same way again. Especially, not when she had "overheard" the girl arguing with her Manager and Agent about it, and agreeing to do it. All for her publicity's sake, according to her Agent.

At least, Jaune hadn't actually proposed to her beforehand.

But, all the same, he had been broken afterwards. For weeks, months even.

And Pyrrha would never know why, thinking it was just him being his usual over-sensitive self.

She was surprised that Nora hadn't broken her knees for that comment. Let alone Yang. Or, Jaune's sisters when they found out. Or, her herself.

She shook her head and smiled then.

Afterwards, Ruby had come up with a plan to make him feel better, to show him that there were plenty of people that did love him. At least, that's what she had told her and the rest of her team.

But, Blake knew better. Had known better.

She had known that Ruby had never really gotten over her crush with Jaune. Because it wasn't a crush at all!

If this was how Ruby sought to go after him again, then who was she to say anything about it? It's not like she was any better with her relationships. She had said as much to Yang later on.

Of course, she had never really thought that she would develop feeling for the boy herself. It had happened, as such things often did, unexpectedly.

She had been walking with him to one of their mutual Book Club meetings with Velvet, a bunny Faunus and Senior Huntress-in-training, discussing had happened previously in Dr. Oobleck's class that day. And, she had made one of her rare jokes that cause Jaune to erupt in a fit of laughter.

She had been watching him in amusement, a faint smile on her face. And, then, bang! The next thing she knew she had noticed him. Really noticed him then.

The sun had struck his profile just so, highlighting just handsome he had become over the years. How he filled out his uniform these days. How he carried himself with that quiet confidence that he had so been missing for all these years. How his hair had lit up into strands of messy, wavy gold as he laughed.

And, his eyes. When he had opened his eyes to look at her afterwards, and she had seen just how blue they were. So blue. Like an ocean she could get lost forever.

And, she had felt her heartstrings tug. Violently. Deeply.

She swallowed once, glancing over at Jaune. But he was still buried in his notes.

Velvet had known instantly that something was up with her, and afterwards she had confronted her about it. For all her shyness and bashfulness around strangers, the Rabbit Faunus was surprisingly protective of her few friends, Jaune included.

Blake had assured her that it was nothing, merely a passing thought. Something that would disappear relatively soon.

Only, it hadn't.

As they spent more time together during the making of their channel's videos, Blake had felt her feelings for the blond doofus develop further. Clever, little Ruby. She had known from the start, and had later confronted her whole team as to the real reason for having them all do something like this with Jaune, their crush.

Not just hers.

Blake had never been more proud of her then. Of how she had expertly manhandled them all into opening up on why, why they felt the way they did. Especially,Weiss.

Blake blinked at that and flinched from mutual pain. Poor Weiss. After all these years to finally have to confess that she did have feelings for Jaune. Romantic feelings. And, after all the things she had said to him over that first year, too...

It was not wonder why she had been so recalcitrant about her own feelings. They felt like a betrayal of emotions to her. Like she was being as two-faced with Jaune as her own father had to to her and her mother. It had made her think about her Mother and Father's relationship, and what it had done their children's, about how her own Popularity and celebrity status would, could be used against Jaune, should she confess to him.

And she had burst into tears as she confessed to the rest of them that, yes, she loved him. Had loved him for years.

Blake had been the first to wrap her in a hug, faster even than Ruby herself.

And, in that instance, they had all promised to love Jaune equally. For themselves, and for his own sake. And, they had vowed to get him, in their own way.

She sighed to herself and slumped down in her seat. Of course, that was easier said than done when the object of your affections was a loving, oblivious doofus like Jaune Arc.

Oh, just what was she to do?

/ /

Jaune was trying his best to ignore Blake, but it was harder than he thought possible. Especially, as his thoughts kept wandering to what he had Cardin had discussed several items now. What he and Ren had discussed. What Sun had talked to him about.

Could it be true? Could the girls of Team RWBY really, actually have feeling for him?

He glanced over at where Blake was seating in misery, and thought about it again. Thought hard about it.

Could it be true?

They had all been spending an awful lot of time with him these days. It was mostly in regards to their channel that he was helping them out with. But, was that really the only reason? Or, even, the actual one?

He couldn't be sure.

He thought about Ruby and his last conversation over the private message board she had set up. She was always so smart when it came to machines.

What if I told you that there were several people who like you. Like, really liked you. Four, specifically.

…

And you're sure its not just a crush with them?

I think it's a bit more than that now. A lot more, actually.

He thought about it. Thought hard. Could she have been talking about them. Could they, could they all be-

(Ursa Rap plays)

"Darn it all, Russel!" Jaune swore as he pulled out his Scroll to answer it. "How'd you even get this stupid thing on my phone again?!"

"Yeah?" he said on answering it.

"I got the stuff." Was all Cardin said before hanging up.

Jaune blinked at that and looked at his Scroll for a moment. Then he turned to Blake and said, "Hey. Sorry 'bout this, but I got to go, Blake. Cardin needs my help on something."

"Oh, okay." the raven-haired Faunus said quietly as she watched him go, feeling like she might have missed her chance at saying something.

A/N: Well, tell me what you think and all that. By the by, did you guys know that Fanfiction has a option to ship two or more characters? Cause I didn't. Not like they say how, or anything. Nope. But, here we are.

Alright, Essiter out, folks!