Chapter 9: So Anxious

"Time to rev it up!"

Add grinned as he punched rapidly at one random assault robot in Beacon's training facility. Not having gotten any of the freedom to wreck as many White Fang goons as he wanted to, he had no problem going to the school's Danger Simulation Room to do what he did best, and that is fighting.

Due to his rather isolated past, Add didn't have much interest associating himself with other people. He much rather would get things done on his own. He was a lone wolf in every sense of the word. And he had spent his whole life fighting for survival. So punching things to oblivion was a sort of stress reliever for him. It was one of the few things that made him happy.

The white-haired male decided to take a quick breather and relax by sitting over on a nearby bench. He took a deep breath and took some time to address some thoughts that had been running through his head.

As he and the rest of Team RWBY were currently on winter break which started yesterday, the team currently had two weeks off from classes before the second semester started. Add took various times over the course of the first semester to learn as much as he could about Dust and its properties. He could say he was very familiar with the medium now. The only problem that he had was how he was going to integrate Dust into his nasod armor.

Of course, while he was here in Remnant, getting Dust would be no problem for him. But what about when he decided to back to Elrios? He could bring as much Dust with him as he wanted, but there's no getting around the fact that it would run out eventually. What would he do then? And there's also the idea of going back to Elrios. What would happen when he left here? He obviously couldn't just sneak away without there being something or someone to stop him. He had become somewhat of a regular here.

So what was he to do? He then thought of his teammates. Yang, the blonde brawler who enjoyed fighting and thrill-seeking just as much as he did. Ruby, the quirky girl who rivaled Add in terms of being a weapons nerd. Weiss, the rude, pompous ice queen who had started to warm up to him more and more lately. And Blake, the mysterious faunus girl who continued to interest him.

It had been more than a month since the White Fang incident in Downtown Vale and a little over five months since he first came here, and over this time, he had started to get used to the company of the four girls, as well as their friends, Team JNPR, almost to the point where it felt normal to be here. Now that he thought about it, he didn't have much to go back to in Elrios. Other than keeping close watch on Eve and her group, and spending time in his lab, he didn't have much else to do with his life. What was he going to do when he got older? If he ever got Eve's core, what would do afterwards? His life hasn't been very fulfilling up to this point and he felt he was drifting through, chasing a goal he may never reach as long Eve's friends had something to say about it.. Here, he felt like he had a reason to fight. A reason to live.

Add ran a hand over the scar on his left eye and then looked up to the ceiling.

Maybe staying here wouldn't be so bad...

He decided to leave these thoughts alone for now and get back to his training. He had already beaten dozens of the robots with no problem. Going it at a bit longer wouldn't hurt. And so he did. He was so into it that he didn't notice his teammates coming in to check on him, standing at the entrance and watching Add do his thing.

"Look at him go. Man, I have to get a chance to fight him one of these days." Yang said with a toothy grin as she pounded left fist into her right palm.

"As if we didn't already have enough trouble with one brute on our team...but I'll admit, his skills are quite remarkable." Weiss said as she watched Add closely.

"He's been coming here a lot lately...I wonder if he's okay. You think he's trying to get something off his mind?" Ruby asked, clearly concerned for her teammate's well being.

"He's fine, I'm sure. I told you guys about that talk me and him had late one night, right? We're a team and we're here for our teammates if they need to talk. I told him that." Yang said as she nodded, patting Ruby on the shoulder.

"Yeah. If he needs something, he'll come to us." Weiss said, thinking back to the talk she had with Blake after the issue with the White Fang.

Blake was the only member who was silent. She just continuously stared at the boy.

"Well, we should let him do his thing. Come on, guys. Let's go get something to eat!" Yang said as she turned, her arms crossed behind her head. Ruby and Weiss followed behind, but Blake simply stood there.

"Guys, I'll catch up with you later..." Blake said, not turning to look at the other girls. Yang simply waved the faunus off.

"Okay. Make sure to let Add know if he ever stops training so he can catch up." With that, the other three continued on their way to the school's cafeteria.

Blake took one look behind her to check if they were gone before turning back and walking up to Add, who looked like he was ready to end his training session for the day. He then noticed the familiar face that stopped by.

"Oh, yo." Add said as he looked at Blake, who continued to be silent.

"What's up?" Add asked, waiting for a response. After a few seconds of getting no response, he spoke again. "You want next against the bots?"

Finally, Blake spoke.

"Add, there's something I need to know..."

"What is it?"

"...Just who are you, exactly?"

Add simply stared at her curiously. "What do you mean?"

"It's obvious there's more to you than meets the eye. Ever since that night when I ran off. When you stared at me with that grin, and that glowing eye...that scared me more than I've ever been in a long while."

Add rubbed the back of his neck, looking off to the side and sighing softly.

"Look, I'm sorry about that. I shouldn't have done that. But just forget about it, it's nothing to worry about-"

"It is something to worry about!" Blake yelled as she got up in Add's face. The tracer turned back to look at the Faunus who was now directly in front of him, the girl only being three inches shorter than him.

"You make me feel on edge...you're like one person at one time, and a completely different person the next. It's as if you're putting on a facade..."

"Blake, where is this all coming from? It's not like you..."

"I...knew someone who is just like you...hiding behind a mask that they crafted in order to hide who they truly are. You remind me of him..."

Silence passed by for ten seconds before Blake chose to speak again.

"I'm asking because this could potentially hurt the foundations of this team if this isn't addressed sooner or later. I told you who I am and where I come from. I think it's only fair if you do the same. And make sure it's the truth this time."

Add thought in his head for a bit. Should he really tell her? He wasn't comfortable with telling someone his life story, but he felt she deserved to know. He wouldn't get away with keeping his secrets forever. But he decided that there was a time and place for everything, and today just wasn't the time.

"Whoever I remind you of is none of my concern. There's a time when you'll know everything you need to know...but now is not the time. " Add said with strength and conviction in his voice. "Sometimes...life just isn't fair, Blake."

Blake's eyes widened before her eyes twitched in anger.

"Fine..."

Blake turned from him and walked towards the entrance of the Danger Room to leave the building, but not before turning to look at Add one more time.

"Pain can consume people. If your pain truly is greater than mine, then I fear for your future."

Add thought back to the statement he said to Blake that night and how she just turned it back around on him.

Blake then turned around again and left out of the building, one final thought running through her mind.

"Even their names are similar...Add...please don't turn out like him..."

Add simply scoffed and sat back down on the bench, placing his face in his hand. Suddenly, his scroll started ringing. He pulled it from his pocket and read the message he received.

Add,

Please come to Professor's Ozpin's office immediately. There is something he would like to discuss with you.

Ms. Goodwitch

Add looked at the message curiously. What did the Professor want with him? He figured he shouldn't waste any time. And so, Add headed off to Professor Ozpin's office.

Add sat quietly in a chair in front of Ozpin's desk. Ozpin simply stared at the boy quietly, his hands clasped together over his mouth.

"Any specific reason why you called me here, Professor?" Add asked, hoping to get this over with so he can go and eat with his team.

"Add...may I ask how you got that scar under your left eye...?"

Add, taken aback by why he would be asking about his scar, reached up to rub his fingertips over it.

"I got it in an accident..." Add lied, hoping that would keep the Professor off of his case.

Ozpin, knowing that there was far more to Add than Add was willing to tell, decided to play along for now.

"I asked you here to see if you could answer something for me. Do you know what Aura is?"

"Of course. It's the manifestation of one's soul. It can be used for offensive and defensive capabilities." Add knew what Aura was. He just didn't know much about using it because he didn't have one, nor a Semblance. But no one else knew that.

"I see...well said. One more thing..." Ozpin said as he got up from his seat and walked over to the window, folding his arms behind his back and looking out to the scenery.

"You are in a unique predicament, Add. Your presence has shaken the foundation of traditional team ways to its core. You have made quite an impact in your short time here. But let me ask you this...is the way you portray yourself who you really are?"

Add's face scrunched up as the man asked him about who he was. He had already had enough of this with Blake. Why was everyone questioning who he was? Does he make it that obvious?

"Where is this going, sir, if I may ask?" Add asked, wanting him to get to the point.

"What I am saying is that you are a special case. There's no one at this school quite like you. Remnant is in a time of peace, but even I know that these times won't last forever, and that something will come to threaten said peace. I can tell you have a conflicted, troubled soul. So I'll leave you with a bit of food for thought..."

Ozpin turned around and walked over to the tracer, placing his hand on the boy's shoulder.

"Which side will you let your soul linger to?" said the Headmaster before turning around to sit back down in his seat. "You may leave."

Add stood there quietly before turning around and leaving out of the room.

Glynda Goodwitch walked into the room as Add left and stood beside Ozpin.

"So you unlocked his Aura?" Glynda asked, her arms crossed over her chest.

"I did. He will be able to handle the rest himself."

"You can't hide the truth of his origins forever, Professor..."

I know... But he will figure everything out in due time. From when he was young, I always knew Ivory's boy would grow up to be something remarkable. I'm just curious as to what his Semblance is..."

Add placed his hands into his jacket pockets and stared forward with a thoughtful look on his face as he left Ozpin's office.

"How can he tell whether or not I'm troubled...he doesn't know anything about me..."

Add was getting real tired of people questioning who he was as a person when they didn't know the full story. It's not like he asked for what happened to him in the past to transpire. It just turned out that way. Regardless, Add couldn't help but find that conversation a bit odd. From Ozpin's tone of voice, he spoke as if he knew him personally...but that was impossible.

"I'm starting to get the feeling that Glave didn't send me here just because I asked him to..."

Add knew that he was eventually going to get involved in something even bigger than himself while in Remnant. He just had no idea what that 'something' was.

It was getting pretty late, and Add was heading through the Beacon courtyard and towards the dorms to see if his team was there when he stopped walking and stood in place.

Nothing but silence...

"I know you're there, Blake...come on out."

And so, Blake did, stepping out from the shadows, standing a few feet way from behind Add with Gambol Shroud unsheathed in her hand.

"I'm guessing you didn't come to talk considering you have your weapon out."

"No..." The faunus girl said as she pointed her katana-like weapon at Add.

"I need to know that I can trust you, Add...I thought about it for a while...and I came to a conclusion. If you have a skeleton in your closet that's just too much to tell, then I understand. But if you can't show me trust through words...then show me through battle."

Add grinned as he willed his dynamos out of passive mode and willed them to float over his back, purple electricity cracking around them.

"Well, what kind of person would I be to turn down a fight?" said Add as he turned around and signaled for Blake to come at him with all she had. "Let's rock.'

With exceptional speed, Blake blitzed towards Add, moving in a zig-zag motion until she reached Add and launched a downwards strike towards him with Gambol Shroud. Add stayed in the same position and let one of his dynamos block the strike.

Add simply stared into Blake's fierce eyes with an equally as fierce stare of his own. Blake stepped forward and landed on one of his dynamos, doing a flip off of it, leaving a clone behind in the process. As the ex-White Fang member floated momentarily in the air, she whipped out her Gambol Shroud's chain scythe and launched it towards the white-haired male, who reached out quickly and grabbed the the scythe by the hilt, pulling Blake towards him.

Blake was stunned slightly, but regained her composure and let the momentum of Add's pull propel her towards him. She managed to catch Add off guard with a quick kick to the jaw, which caused Add to stagger a bit. He quickly shook it off and ran towards her, leaping in the slightly before launching a fist at her, which Blake managed to block by putting up the hilt of her sword. The impact caused a shockwave to emit as well as a few cracks in the ground where Blake was standing.

The faunus girl grunted as she felt the pressure of Add's attack. She needed to stay on her guard. Taking too many of those punches is something she can't afford to do. Add used this moment to spin around in mid air, attempting to land a kick on Blake's jaw, which Blake managed to duck. She then grabbed Add's leg and used his momentum against him by spinning around and throwing him back through the air.

Add responded by regaining his ground and flipping through the air a few times and landing on his feet, skidding back a few times before coming to a halt.

Add and Blake simply stared each other down before both almost disappeared in the blink of an eye. Both combatants were currently speed blitzing each other, moving in quick blurs, trading blow for blow, and sword strike for dynamo strike.

The tracer was holding his own, but ended up letting his guard down for a split second, which Blake did not fail to take advantage of. Blake managed to get in one small cut on his cheek. Add winced in pain as he quickly flipped backwards to gain some space between himself and Blake.

Add reached up to his cheek and rubbed a hand over the cut on his cheek. But before Add could examine it any further, he noticed that the cut on his cheek began to slowly heal due to the purple outline of energy that surrounded his body.

Add's eyes widened slightly as he noticed the cut heal and the purple glow his body had taken on. But before he could ponder on what it was, the glow quickly faded out. Add's moment of slight shock did not go unnoticed by Blake.

"What the hell?! How did my cut heal? And that glow...is that...Aura? But I shouldn't have that!"

Add decided to shake it off for now. He had a fight to finish. He looked over to Blake, and a grin found its way on his face. Blake noticed this and got into a ready stance.

"You landed a cut on me...guess that means I can get serious!" Add grinned as he clenched his fists and let out a loud yell. With the ending of that yell, came the activation of his Nasod Armor mode. A large burst of energy rang out from his body, causing Blake to tense up as she stood on guard.

"So this is the power of your Nasod Armor..." Blake said as she watched.

Purple sparks of luminescent electricity surrounded Add's body as he floated slightly above the ground.

"You know, Blake...I honestly hope you can guard against this..." Add said as he took a stance. "Because sometimes..."

And as soon as that statement was over, Add was in right in front of Blake in a second. The shock on Blake's face was evident.

Add quickly gripped Blake's wrist before she could make a move. The energy radiating from the boy was immense.

"I just can't control myself!" Add yelled. Blake's eyes widened as she watched Add's fist head straight for her.

"I can't block it in time!"

Just when Blake thought she would be sent flying backwards into the air, the punch stopped just inches away from the Faunus's face. The shockwave from the punch was enough to break a tree behind Blake in two.

And soon, the shockwave dissipated, the aftermath evident. Both hunters stood there silently, Blake just staring at Add's fist. Add stared back at her before lowering his fist down and standing up straight.

Blake was dumbfounded. All she could was ask. "Why'd you stop?"

"Because...hurting a teammate...and a friend...just ain't right to me, you know?" Add spoke in a low voice. Blake just stared again before closing her eyes and sheathing her weapon.

"I see...so your heart is in the right place after all..." Blake said with a smile. They hadn't solved their conflict with words, but with battle. She didn't know if the rough patches between them were gone just yet, but she definitely felt like she understood Add a bit more now.

"Hopefully, we can move on from this whole notion of me having a second motive for being on this team, right?" Add asked. While Add having an ulterior motive for being here was true at one point, certain complications have completely changed everything.

"...Of course." Blake said as she nodded in response.

"Great...now let's get back to the dorm. The others must be wondering where we've been for most of the day."

"Right..." Blake and Add walked next to each other on their way back to the dorms. Blake couldn't shake the feeling of strength displayed by Add in their fight.

"For that one moment, I completely lost sight of him...I couldn't react. And he must have known my Aura would keep me from getting hurt too much. There's no mistaking it...he was holding back..."

Add was in his thoughts while he was walking as well.

"Now I'm certain that Glave sent me here with a motive of his own...there's no mistaking that what healed my cut was Aura..."

Add always thought he came to Remnant to get Dust as quickly as possible and leave. But now, he had began to forget about that entirely. Add now had a main agenda. Find some answers. And he wasn't leaving Remnant until he got them.

A few feet behind the two students, stood a figure who watched the battle from afar. The person took a good look at the damage caused by Add's strength.

"Quite the display...but you gotta long way to go, kid..."

(Omake)

RWBY Tracers #1 "I Like Cats"

Blake was alone in the dorm room, laying in bed and reading one of her favorite novels. The rest of her team was out doing whatever it is that they do when she isn't around. She didn't get freedom to read in peace and quiet nearly as much as she used to anymore, so she savored having these kinds of rare moments when she could.

After Blake decided she would take a break from reading for now, her thoughts went to Add. She then thought to how she knew pretty much everything about the other girl members of Team RWBY personally, but when it came to Add, she hardly knew much about what he liked.

So in order to find out more about Add and his interests, she quickly looked around the room before heading over to Add's closet to scope through his items. She normale would never invade someone's privacy like this, but she managed to overlook it for this one time. After finding a few chocolate bar wrappers, some schematics for his weapons, a magazine that had...less than appropriate images of bikini models on it, she felt that she hadn't found anything of much importance that could tell her more about Add than what she already knew. As she was about to give up, she looked into the bottom of a box in his closet and noticed a white hooded jacket.

She curiously picked the jacket up and inspected it.

"One of Add's old jackets? Hmm..."

Upon close inspection...Blake gasped softly as she looked at the hood of the jacket. Upon the hood lay two fluffy cat ears. Blake didn't know how to respond to this.

"So he likes cats..." Blake blushed as the thought of Add petting her ears repeatedly entered into her head.

"Does this mean he might..."

Deciding against finishing that thought, she looked around again before sliding the jacket on over herself, slipping her arms into it and pulling the hood over her head. She felt odd wearing someone else's jacket, but the thought of it being Add's jacket made her feel oddly secure.

"Nice and warm..."

Blake smiled as she snuggled into the jacket, liking the way it felt around her despite being a bit bigger than what size she could normally wear.

She reached up to fiddle with the cat ears on top before letting out a small giggle.

"Having fun there, Blake?" Add said as he stood in the doorstep, grinning as he watched the Faunus. Blake yelped slightly and stood up, muttering over her words.

"A-Add...I-I was just..."

"It's fine. You're a cat Faunus, after all." Add said as he stepped up to her, looking down at the girl who was a few inches shorter than him.

"I always liked the cat ears on this hoodie. But..." Add reached out to pull the hood off of Blake's head and reach out to pull her bow off. He then scratched behind Blake's ears, which elicited a soft purr from the girl.

"It's much more enjoyable having real one to play with." Add chuckled. Blake's eye twitched softly as she backed away from Add's touch and grabbed her bow, tying it back over her ears.

"W-well...I'm gonna go check on the others..." Blake said as she got up and left the room.

Add simply grinned once more to himself as he leaned against the nearest wall.

"She didn't take the jacket off..."