>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