>It is currently a month after the Battle of the Bands >And you are Adagio >As you crouch in the bushes outside your teacher's house, you reflect on the circumstances that brought you to your current position >You never felt the need to save money while you had your powers, so your financial assets at present are somewhat lacking >You'd never tell your fellow ex-Sirens this, but you were only a few days away from being evicted from your apartment >Speaking of your comrades, you've continued to tell them that everything will be fine and that you have a plan >You've got the latter, but you can only hope for the former >As the leader, you feel responsible for the loss of your powers and current near-destitute state >You yourself were feeling empty ever since your loss, and you could only imagine they felt the same >You shake your head as you realize you've been subconsciously stalling >Time to make it up to them >You chose Cheerilee for your first heist for several reasons >For one, you noticed she did not have a wedding ring, and you know that she doesn't have any children >After following her home, you saw that she lives in a rather upscale area; safe enough to warrant lax personal security, but not so rich as to warrant a neighborhood watch >Most importantly, while she lacked a ring, she did seem to have some other nice pieces of jewelry >You know teachers don't make much, but it seems as if she decided to condense some of her earnings into a very portable form >The house has been completely dark for about an hour now, more than enough time for its single occupant to fall asleep >You approach the door, making sure your gloves and hair net are secured tightly >No need to leave evidence lying around >You produce your lock picks, thankful that you've retained this skill over the years >Just because it's easy to control people doesn't mean it's economical, so you've found that you needed to do your own breaking-in in the past >The door opens noiselessly within three minutes, and you're relieved that no alarm greets you when it does >You enter the house and begin to climb the stairs, going so slowly and quietly that not even an old man with an evil eye would notice you >Entering Cheerilee's bedroom, you see her sleeping on the far side of the room, with her jewelry box sitting much closer to you on a dresser, and a bathroom behind you >As you take long steps over to the box, one of your feet lands on a creaky floorboard, producing a creak that sounds as loud as a shotgun blast in your pounding ears >It seems you weren't the only one who heard the noise, as you see Cheerilee begin to stir >You quickly hide behind the bathroom door, hoping that her movements are a false alarm >It seems as if luck isn't on your side, as Cheerilee rises from the bed and shuffles toward your hiding place >Preparing for the worst, you retrieve a small object from your pocket >A knife, purchased recently, as you were afraid of walking around defenseless after losing your powers >Your heart pounds in your ears as she comes into view >You don't even think as you thrust forward, burying your knife in her windpipe >It's as if you blinked, and the woman standing before you suddenly fell like a sack of bricks >You try to turn away, but find that you can't as the dying teacher looks up at you with wide eyes and an open throat >As her sputtering quiets, you see her eyes dim as she slumps fully to the floor >You stare at the body for what feels like a full minute before you take action >Barely registering anything around you, you drag her into the bathroom closet, and begin to clean up the blood from the floor >Finishing this, you take everything from the jewelry box, and slowly exit the house, locking the door behind you >As you walk back to your apartment, your senses soon return to you >Additionally, the empty feeling in your chest that had been plaguing you since your defeat has diminished somewhat >You may not be able to harvest negative energy anymore, but you think you may have found a substitute