The break between semesters had been a rather boring one for Team STAR. Amy had taken Terra out camping for a few days, which left Sterling and Raz to take care of the dorm – not that Sterling minded, of course. It gave the guys time to relax and get ready for the next semester. The first day they spent half the day in the gym. It was after a brisk workout that the duo started sparring.

"I figured you could teach me a few things." Sterling's excuse for this was half-assed, and Raz knew it.

"Hey, whatever you want to say about it. I have no problems saying it'll be good to put you in your place for once."

Sterling snorted, his right foot shifting backwards, fists coming up in stance. "Are we using Semblances?"

"Sure, if you want to be in the infirmary the entire time the girls are gone."

"Sounds like fun to me." Raz laughed at that, shifting back to match Sterling's stance. "You can have the first move, Raz."

"So honorable of you." The two started a slow circle around each other, watching each other's footing. It was a moment, but Raz did take that offering, his weight shifting forward, fist heading towards Sterling's stomach. The response was quick, a flat hand shooting out at the elbow, bending the arm in before a flat palm rocked Raz's chest, making him stumble back a few steps.

Raz caught himself, a smirk coming to his face as he stepped forward and started circling again. "I see you've been watching my style."

"Well, yeah. You are better at this than I am."

Raz chuckled, and Sterling was quick to strike, a feint with his knee before shifting low and throwing his weight forward for a hard blow to the stomach. It was a blow which Raz caught, fist in hand. Sterling looked shocked before his arm was tossed aside; three rapid blows hitting him in the chest before his legs were swept, sending him to the ground. He got up in time to see Raz shake his left hand out; good to know that it wasn't easy for him. Sterling looked down, seeing the charred hole in his shirt, and quickly peeled it off.

"I said Semblances, not dust." He said, sourly, as he tossed the shirt out of the ring.

Raz shrugged, chuckling. "It was holding you back, anyway."

His eyes narrowed as he started circling once more, Raz taking a sprier step. "I'll have to have a talk with Terra about your manners. After I tell her how you've been making eyes with her."

Raz scoffed. "You act like I care if you tell her or not. Hell, I'll tell her the moment they get back!"

"Right." Sterling's voice was sarcastic as he feinted moving in, dashing to the side to get to a weak point, although Raz covered up quickly.

"Unlike you, Sterling, I can admit to my feelings."

That made Sterling stall for a moment, his guard lowering. "What's that supposed to mean!?" He paid the price for that, taking a shot to the gut before backing off to get himself back on the guard.

"I mean, with that Yang girl. You've got it something fierce for her, and yet you don't push for it." Raz stopped, his arms crossing over his chest, a hard look in his eyes. "It's like you're toying with her or something."

That brought forth an angry look from Sterling. He stepped forward, sending a blow to Raz's stomach, before one at his side. "That's not true! I just…" He backed off for a moment, his shoulders slumping. "I've lived in near solitude my entire life. I don't know what to do."

Raz could see the fight was over, and he lowered his fists. "She's practically dangling a carrot in front of you to take. Hell, you didn't even get to her about that date, did you?"

"Hey, I asked her out. She said she was busy, one of her teammates was MIA."

"And instead of going with her to find her, you…?"

Sterling pursed his lips at that, but his head fell a moment after, sighing. "I see your point."

"Don't worry, man, it's easy. Just next time you talk to her, make sure to get something concrete. And don't forget to kiss her!"

"Well, what am I supposed to say?"

"Sterling, dating isn't an exact science. It isn't a battle that you can calculate everything on. It's about chance. Say what you think you should say, but say the truth. Can't go wrong with the truth." Raz moved to Sterling, putting his arm over his shoulders. "Just calm down, don't let your nerves get to you, and you'll be fine."

"Easier said than done… But thanks, Raz." He shrugged the arm off his shoulders before moving to the edge of the ring.

"Oh, good. I get the gym to myself. Shame, though. I like the eye candy."

That voice made Sterling freeze at the ropes. He looked up to see Yang leaning against the wall. The door was closed, so she had to have been in there for a while. He gulped, but felt Raz pat him on the back as he jumped the ropes. "See you at the dorm, Sterling. I'll leave you two alone for now. Afternoon, Yang." And with that Raz was gone.

Sterling stood where he was for a long moment, before jumping the ropes, grabbing his burnt shirt and walking over to Yang. She pushed off the wall with her foot, taking a lazy walk that made her sway, her arms crossed over her chest. "So… how long have you been here?"

"I saw Raz burn a hole in your shirt." Yang smirked, tilting her head slightly, not bothering to hide her eyes going over him.

"Heh…" His face turned a light shade of red, his hand coming up to scratch the back of his head. "I guess you heard everything, then."

"You could say that." The smirk on her face widened as she moved closer, until she was an inch from him.

"Yang, I…"

"Shh…" Her finger came up to his lips, cutting him off. "Just stay quiet for a moment…"

That quieted Sterling, and his mouth fell open slightly as she pulled her finger away. Their eyes lingered on each other, and he could feel the distance melting away. His arms wrapped around her hips, hers went around his neck, and the distance was erased as their lips met, a wash of electricity through him at the embrace. A soft sound left his throat, and he felt her lips turn in reply.

It was sudden; the rush of movement, feeling his back hit the wall. Hands started to wander as the kiss went more intense, feeling her fingertips over his chest and sides, the slight bite of fingernails making him shiver in anticipation. His fingers found the edge of her shirt, and he pulled up-

Sterling's eyes opened at that. The sun was starting to rise, the room in the ruddy red and yellow of dawn light. He lifted his head, looking around, and a frown on his face. Angrily, he slammed his fist into the bed. "You have got to be fucking kidding me!" That was loud enough that Amy turned her head to face him. That was right, the break was over, classes started again today. He knew the conversation with Raz was real, but his mind had to have filled in what he wanted to happen. Sadly, he didn't see Yang at all during the break, wherever she had gone to.

"You alright, Sterling?" Amy seemed concerned as she sat up in her bed, stretching.

"Yeah… I'm fine. Just had the first good dream in a long while, and I wake up from it."

He heard a chuckle from the other side of the room, seeing Terra lying on her stomach, chin in her palms. "That's fine with us. I don't want to hear your 'Oh, Yang's' in your sleep." Sterling heard Raz's tired chuckling, and figured he had a hand in that.

"Why not? I have to deal with Raz's gushing of 'Terra this, Terra that.'"

That seemed to be the jackpot, as Terra's eyes left Sterling and went to the corner, and there was the very audible sound of a face slamming into a pillow. It seemed that Raz was bad at following his own word. "Anyway…" Terra turned back to Sterling. "Just go talk to her. I'm sure she'll give you the time of day, considering what Raz already said of you two. And, there's the Dance this weekend, see if she will let you take her."

"At least your advice is more cohesive than His."

"Yeah, well, Raspberry here doesn't know what he's talking about." She shot a look at Raz, who didn't seem to notice it.

"Alright, that's enough chatter. Time to get dressed and head down for breakfast."

"Yeah, I agree. Although, head down without us, Sterling. I want to have a word with Raspberry for a moment."

Uh oh. That was twice already, and Sterling knew better than to deny her that request. She was already looking close to boil, staring at the hiding Raz. So Sterling and Amy got dressed quickly, heading out of the room before they could be a part of the explosion. However, there was a gaze and movement that caught his attention. "Go on ahead, Amy. I'll be there in a moment." He waited until he got a nod and watched her leave, before following the motion. He turned the corner and saw three students, dressed in Haven attire. Sterling couldn't help the smirk.

"I wasn't expecting you here so soon, sister. So things are going better than planned?"

"Far better." Cinder held a half-chuckle back. "We will be moving forward with phase two soon. I see you have integrated with the people here well."

"It wasn't too difficult." He crossed his arms, ignoring Emerald and Mercury behind Cinder, which seemed to irritate the duo.

"Good. I will send you the update of what to do soon. Until then, Roman is holding a rally tonight. I want you to be there to make sure things go smoothly."

"Of course, sister. It will be done."

"Good." Cinder turned, looking between Emerald and Mercury before walking past them. Sterling looked between the two, a smirk on his face.

"Get out of here."

Mercury clenched his fist at that, but he knew better than to argue or strike him. Without a word, both of them left, and Sterling followed suit. After all, he had a team he had to tend to. So hands in his pockets, he headed into the Cafeteria. He sat across from Amy, just before Terra and Raz popped into the room, striding over with fast steps and taking their seats.

The group was silent for a long while, eating and seemingly ignoring the elephant in the room, until Raz lifted his head, facing Sterling. "Hey man… I want to apologize for ripping on you and Yang so much."

Sterling nodded silently, taking another bite of sausage. "Thank you, Terra." He heard Terra snort, and saw Raz's nose flare at that, which made him smirk. "So, Raz, now that your feathers are ruffled, did you settle it with Terra?"

"Uh huh. Well then Raz, if you don't want to spill the beans, I'll just find out myself. Terra, I want to hear all the juicy details when I get back from class tonight."

The smirk on Terra's face couldn't have been any devilish. "You got it, Captain."

Sterling stepped off the airship and into Vale, his clothing switched to black cargo pants and a black hoodie. His hands were in his pockets, toying with his weapons' handles as he walked through the city, towards the warehouse district. He saw it from a distance, the three swipes like a claw on the surface, and he knew he was close. He pulled out his Grimm mask, sliding it on and pulling the hood over his head. The front man waived him past, and he looked over the warehouse as he went in. It was about half full, and he immediately jumped to a nearby ladder, climbing to the rafters. He could see Torchwick from a distance, with a new employee of his. Quickly Sterling took his blade out, spinning it as a signal to Roman before putting it away, moving to a better vantage point up above.

The new recruits were slow to come in, a small crowd of them filling the rest of the room. Sterling was careful in his movements, to not be seen or heard as he observed the crowd to make sure nothing would happen. Torchwick was introduced, and he was quickly able to turn the crowd to his favor. It was soon after that, though, that he saw something fishy, which quickly devolved into something distressing. He made some motions to Roman, which got his attention, and by his movements he seemed to agree.

The next thing he knew, the room was dark.

Sterling was moving over the rafters, towards the stage, slower as to not lose his footing. He heard the shattering of glass and the activation of the Atlesian Paladin, figuring what Roman was planning. The wall was suddenly missing, plowed through by the mech, and Sterling used the light to jump down onto the stage. He turned to the new girl, gesturing. "If I know Roman, he's going to need backup. Get to the Bullhead." Sterling ran ahead of her, considering that he didn't trust her to pilot the thing.

At least tracking where Roman went was easy, with the rubble that he left behind chasing behind the two Fauni that ran. At least the fight was interesting to watch when he arrived. The area was covered in a thin mist that made vision difficult, but he could see the moving colors fairly well. He stayed a distance away, watching the fight in awe. These four in training were able to destroy the Paladin. He opened the bay door, turning his head. "You're up, get him and get out." The woman simply smirked before jumping out of the Bullhead.

Well, that was surprising. The doors were closing as Sterling pulled the Bullhead away, getting to a safe zone so he could switch controls over and get back to Beacon. He could feel the hand on his head as they took off. "Ah, so it was you, Sport. Nice of her to send my little buddy in."

"Good to see you again too, Roman. I told you to read the manual of that machine before taking it into a stress test."

"Manuals are for wimps, and I know my machines, kiddo. I did perfectly fine back there." Roman took a seat, leaning back and putting his feet up on the console.

Sterling snorted, nodding his head back towards the door, where the girl was standing, hands on the walls to steady herself. "Who's the new one?"

"Oh, her? That's Neo, a new associate of mine. She comes in handy."

"Well, welcome aboard, Neo. I foresee a lot of good things ahead of you with us." Sterling didn't hear anything from her, and didn't bother to look back to check. He was already setting down the Bullhead, getting up to let Roman take the controls. "Take it easy, Roman. Cinder may get upset with you, but I'll put a good word in for you. After all, I DID get you this job."

"Yeah, yeah, and I'm eternally grateful for the Lien it's bringing in." Sterling smirked at the sarcasm, opening the bay door and jumping out before patting the side of the airship, watching it head off to the south. He caught another ship to Beacon, and made his way back to his room. For a long time that night he was staring at the ceiling, his mind going over the fight he just watched. Suddenly, he had an idea.