A/N: Hello, and welcome to the last chapter, of the first season of Clout. Yes, uh, I am not actually done with this story yet. This was going to Be the Final chapter, but I find that I personally like it too much to end it now. Also, Not going to lie. I don't really think the pay-off here is worth all the build up. So, it at least needed another chapter in my estimate, and that naturally expanded to "Why don't I just keep the story going?" and here we are.
RWBY is owned by Roosterteeth and the late Monty Oum
Clout
Chapter 7
In the Beacon Academy Seniors Wing,
Commons,
One week later…
He had to be careful. One slip-up and it would all amount to nothing. Everything had to be perfect.
And, It. Would. Be. Perfect. His honor demanded no less.
Ding!
With a merry chime the oven timer went off and he swiftly took out the homemade rolls. He checked each one for any flaw and when he found none he sighed with relief. Perfect.
Then he put in the two desserts and reset the timer.
Now, on to the rest of the meal.
First, he washed the heads of lettuce he had taken from the cafeteria-he bribed the staff with some home cooked muffins earlier. Blueberry, of course-before tearing them apart by hand and, finally, chopping up the remains into proper bite-sized pieces. Then he dusted it with bits of cheese, bacon bits, carrots and ham-leaving aside a vegan bowl for the likes of Weiss, Blake and Ren.
He set the salad on the table next to the rolls before setting out plates and cutlery. Glasses of iced water, with two pitchers for refills. Two different salad dressings for those who wanted to to ruin a good head of lettuce. Eh, he couldn't blame them. He was one of them, too, after all.
Next he moved on to the fruit. He took half a dozen assorted green and red apples, pears, peaches, strawberries and began to cut them all up into chunks after he had washed each one before tossing them into a large bowl. Then he drizzled a layer of sweet honey over top and set it on the table. He then did the same thing to a plate of sliced fruit only instead he lightly dusted it with sugar.
That was set on the table as well.
Then he took the pots full of green beans, broccoli heads, and carrots that he had let boil down into a mush in a pot of water with salt and black pepper and strained the water from them before setting them on the table as well.
Ding!
By then the desserts were finished baking. He took them out and began layering on slabs of icing. A spectacular seven layer chocolate cake with thick white frosting and a seven layer raspberry and chocolate cake with dark chocolate frosting. He set the two in the fridge for later before getting down to business, with the main course.
Chili. And, fish gumbo, for Blake, of course.
The red kidney beans, black beans, and white pinto bean, chopped up steak and beef chunks and various assorted peppers, spices and onions had been stewing for a good two hours now. Now, it was time for his secret weapon. His mom would kill him for doing this, but those girls, and Ren, deserved just a bit of their own medicine after all this time.
An Arc might forgive, but they never forgot.
He grinned at that.
First, he put on a pair of gloves before taking out the bag of Mistrali Ghost Peppers that Cardin had smuggled in for him, and he went to town. First, he crushed each of the thirty odd peppers under the flat edge of a knife before he then diced up the lot finely. Twice. Then he took the peppers and put them in the chili pot, stirring it in properly before taking the three new jars of Red Sap that he had personally gotten the other day and stirred them in as well, to hide the initial flavor and scent of the peppers from his more eagle-eyed targets. Or, Bake's nose.
Just in case.
Finally, he added an extra touch and put in three handfuls of the special powder he had "found" in CRDL's restroom.
He grinned again at that. Protege, indeed.
Then he put the lid back on. He let the pot simmered for another two hours so that the chili, and gumbo, were just right.
And, then, it was showtime.
/ /
ClassicSwordandBoard: Hey, Ruby! Go and gather the girls and have them come to the Commons. I got something you all.
Lancaster's_Arms: Oh, yeah? Do tell? It's not a prank, is it? I'm kind of tired of those right now.
ClassicSwordandBoard: No worries, Rubes. Nothing like that. I made lunch for everybody. As thanks for helping me pass.
Lancaster's_Arms: Oooh, any lunch of yours will be Awesome! (Five Heart emojis, and three drooling face emojis)
Lancaster's_Arms: Wait. Did you say that you passed?!
(A "Woo-hoo!" could be heard in the distance. Jaune smiled at that and how adorable it was. Yep. That was his best friend.)
ClassicSwordandBoard: Yep.
ClassicSwordandBoard: And it's all thanks to you guys. Thanks for looking out for me. Like always. You're the best, Ruby. Truly.
Lancaster's_Arms: Any time, Bestest Buddy! (Embarrassed/Pleased face emoji)
(Jaune smirked at that before glancing over at the pot of chili and grinned wickedly. Oh, yeah. It was all coming together.
Now, he just had one more thing to do.)
ClassicSwordandBoard: Hey, Ren. Go gather the rest of the team. I made lunch. Thought I'd celebrate passing Mid-Terms with you guys and the girls from RWBY.
One_Wise_Monk: I would be delighted. Should I send an invitation to our friends as well?
ClassicSwordandBoard: Nah. I already invited them.
One_Wise_Monk: Very well. I will gather the others. When should we be there? (Jaune checked the pot for a moment before calculating the time needed in his head before sending his reply.)
ClassicSwordandBoard: Give it another hour or so. And bring your appetite. I made my patented homemade chili!
One_Wise_Monk: Is it the one famously handed down throughout the Arc Family for Generations type of chili?
ClassicSwordandBoard: You know it!
One_Wise_Monk: Then I would be honored to partake of it. I see you soon, my friend. (Jaune grinned at that as he sat there, waiting.)
/ /
While he waited for his friends, and the punishment he was about to drop on them, Jaune couldn't help but find his mind wandering. His first year. Meeting Ruby, Yang, the others. Initiation.
He shook his head at how stupid he had been, thinking he could just go it alone, without help. Without his friends. Pyrrha.
That epic Food Fight. They would definitely need to do another one soon. He wondered who would win this time?
He scoffed to himself at that ridiculous question. JNPR, obviously.
The Dance, and helping Weiss out with Neptune. He shook his head at that. What a mistake that had been, in hindsight at least. Let's just say that when he found out what Neptune had done, someone had had words with him.
Just words. Honest.
And a flight of stairs. How else do you think Sun was able to enter the final one v one ranks for the Tournament?
The Fall of Beacon. He grimace and shivered as that passed through his mind. That, had been bad. He thought he was going to lose, well, everyone. All the people that were important to him.
And when Pyrrha had done that stupid stunt. He wouldn't be able to thank Ruby and Weiss enough for risking their lives for her.
Even if, they were no longer a couple.
He froze, tensing, before sighed and rubbing at his face. He wouldn't blame her, not for that. Not again. He wouldn't, couldn't understand it, but, he wouldn't blame her for it either. She had her life, and he had his.
That, was all there was to it now.
Besides, Ruby had been there, to help him out. All of Team RWBY had, actually, now, that he thought about it. They really were great friends, weren't they? Always there for him.
Always…
Huh, how about that. They really were always there for him, weren't they. Traveling across Anima, Solitas. Fighting against terrorists.
"Hey, Jaune" Ruby called out to him as she entered the Commons kitchen/dining area and saw him standing there in the kitchen. He waved back and, with a smile, motioned to the table he had set out for them. She squeed at how cute it all looked while the rest of her team and his walked in behind her, expressing their own compliments.
Jaune smiled and nodded at all of them before discreetly placing his Scroll on the counter, and hitting record. He watched them as they all began eating with a swelling sense of pride, enjoying how much they liked his cooking.
He laughed and chatted with them as he began dishing out the chili then, and, in Blake's case, the gumbo, while telling everybody to eat the salad and fruit first as it was still hot. All while thinking, recalling, remembering.
Team RWBY. Ruby. Weiss. Blake. Yang. Always there for him. Helping him out with his classes, his training, when he stopped sparring with Pyrrha after the… After. The decision made by Ruby to have him help out with their new channel, while also having him promise to never watch any of the videos on it.
The last few weeks, in particular, stood out to him.
The looks thrown his way by each of them when they thought he wasn't looking. The way they got closer to him whenever he was standing next to them. They way they spoke to him, talked to him these days. The way they all acted.
Weiss staring at him while they sat by the statue, her eyes trying to convey a message to him. Blake smiling as he laughed at her jokes. Yang smiling at him right before she played one of her silly pranks on him. Ruby…
The way she looked at him, her beautiful silver eyes shining, as he told her that she gave them the strength to follow after her. The way she looked at him in Argus, in Atlas.
The love there… from all of them… in their eyes…
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, her message, as he looked at her. At them all as they glanced his way and back, smiling quietly, softly. Secretly. And then he recalled Cardin asking him on what he would do if they did like him. Recalled the looks Ren gave him. Nora gave him.
"Hey, Rubes…" He started, before pausing in thought. She looked at him then, in question, pausing before eating the chili. The others did the same, somehow sensing something important was about to go down.
"Yeah, Jaune?" She asked softly, looking at him expectantly.
So, what would say you say if you were told that four girls liked you. More than liked you. What would you say if they asked you out? Collectively?
"About that conversation we had, the question that you asked? That I said I'd get back to you on?" He said. She paused, tensing up. The others noticed and quieted down, watching the two of them. She nodded at him, saying nothing.
So, what would say you say if you were told that four girls liked you. More than liked you. What would you say if they asked you out? Collectively?
He smiled at her and said, "Yes. The answer's yes."
She moved. A jerk. Tears pricked her eyes as she smiled. Beamed. And then she took a bite of the chili.
"Hell, yeah!" She cheered. The others all laughed and began eating their food again, not realizing what was going on, but knowing that their two team leaders would tell them later. Though, the girls of RWBY seemed to know.
Jaune couldn't help but smile at that, something tugging at his heartstrings then.
/ /
Ruby was so happy. She couldn't believe it. He said yes! Yes! To all of them. She looked up at her sister and grinned as Yang to a huge bite of the chili, it was really good.
She couldn't wait to tell them all the good news! Although, it looked like they all knew it already.
Now, if only she wasn't so hot. The chili was really good, but it was sooo spicy!
She drank some water. It didn't help.
She looked around the table, but there was no more fruit. No more salad. She drank more water. It didn't help!
Everybody was starting to react now, even Blake! And she had had gumbo instead!
"Hey, Jaune," she whined. "What did you put in the chili? It's so hot!"
He said nothing as he stood behind the kitchen counter. Where he had been standing this whole time.
The others were all running out of water now. Ruby groaned. Her stomach was cramping.
"Jaune?" She asked again.
They all looked towards him, and felt their collective eyes widen as he grinned evilly and held up his Scroll, the screen showing that it was recording. Then he said, "Ghost Peppers. Mistrali Ghost Peppers, and some laxatives."
"Eeeuuuggghhh?!" They all cried before they collectively got up and ran to the nearest bathroom, crying out in distress as their stomachs continued to cramp and gurgle mightily.
Jaune continued to grin as he turned the Scroll to face him and said, "And, that's all for this video on Pollination Knight, guys. Take care and stay safe out there. And, remember, it's all of the Clout!" He then took a bite of the chili leftover in the bowl and then another before saying, "And, remember, be careful with those peppers. You never know what someone will do with them."
"I'll make you pay for this, Arc!" A voice yelled out indignantly from beyond the room. It was soon joined by a chorus of other like minded people. Jaune merely smiled at that before turning off his Scroll and making a swift beeline for the nearest restroom himself.
/ /
It would take days for the smell to go down, and weeks for the toilets to be unclogged. An investigation into the matter would be made, but no evidence or suspects would ever be found.
Glynda would be beside herself for the same amount of time, wondering at just how stupid some people could be, all while watching the latest video of Pollination Knight, and cheering when her favorite student-er, Influencer-finally realized the truth of his co-stars.
A/N: Alright, that ends it for this chapter of Clout. Again, I'm not entirely sure if the pay-off from all the build up was worth it, but, then again, the revenge wasn't really what the story's about. It's the romance.
I would like to point out that Jaune isn't necessarily all that dense in this. It's more like that scene at the Dance in Volume 2. He got it when Pyrrha told him what she felt. It was just taking him a moment to process it. And, then, Neptune comes and ruins things by making him lose his train of thought.
At least, everything worked out in the end in this AU, right? Oh, wait. Nevermind.
jk, jk, Essiter out.
P.S. Eagled-eyed readers might noticed the change to each chapter's title, too.
