Lawrence looked at himself on the mirror, disturbed by the potato-sack-sized bags under his eyes. How late had he stayed up last night? Probably around three in the morning. He wasn't very rested, now was he? No. In fact, he looked like he could drop asleep in the floor at any moment.

He shook his head, pushing such thoughts aside. Staying awake had been the right thing to do. It wasn't very often that he got to mess around with Laurent. for a few seconds, he felt like they were back to children. Sitting in the same couch, a big bowl of popcorn with couple of fizzling sodas, shooting at each other via their controllers. Lawrence hadn't spent so much time playing Heed of Duty back then. Sis brother won four out of ten games each time they played, and every time he himself won it was by a thin margin...

Ahh, the good old days.

He leaned on the couch, staring intently at the ceiling, maybe hoping for it to turn into a starry night sky so he could ramble poetical nonsense about the treasure that was youth and maybe...

Maybe because he had fallen asleep.

He leaned his full weight on the back of the poor furniture, almost ripping it apart, when a noise startled him back to his feet.

It was the sound of glass breaking.

He stood up immediately, all the grogginess leaving his body, replaced by wariness.

The sound came from the kitchen window. It was the only window that looked at the back alley across the street, and also the fastest way in. The other windows were protected with iron bars.

He took his shoes off, making sure to make not the slightest noise. He pushed himself against the living room wall, the one that connected with the hallway to the guest bathrooms and the dining room. He tiptoed across the hall, sticking his head out.

The kitchen's lamp was turned on. Two shadows cut against it, their motions exaggerated by light diffraction.

Lawrence nodded to himself. It looked like someone was trying to rob him...

Well, they messed up with the wrong person, Lawrence thought.

He stepped loudly in the kitchen. The two thieves, currently focusing on unplugging whatever they could and fit it into their backpacks, froze as the looked at him. They wore ski masks and black hoodies. Typical filthy thief outfit, Lawrence thought absentmindedly as he dashed ahead, aiming for the closest thief's face.

They finally unfroze, realizing the owner of the house was inside, awake, and about to smash their plans into tiny pieces. The one Lawrence was aiming for took a defensive stance. A lazy one, Lawrence realized. Probably never fought a decent fight on his life. Not that he'd ever know without the Evileye skill, but one has to use what life has granted them, isn't that right?

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He stared at the other guy (at least based on his complexion it was a guy) intently, as person in question shot forward to help his comrade. Without even stuttering, Lawrence shot him a look that pierced through the very core of his soul, and spoke.

"It looks like you people were eager to come in. Could have just knocked on the door, now I'll have to fix that window."

Lawrence himself wasn't sure of what happened next.

He felt his own eyes burn, like they were replaced by chunks of burning charcoal. The next thing he knew, the other guy was arching backwards in a strange angle, mouth wide open and eyes staring blankly into space as wicked-looking chains bound him on place. Lawrence couldn't help but finding the chains repulsive and maddening, like tentacles of an ancient entity that should have never existed.

He broke from bewilderment in a split second. He remembered his newest acquisition, the Devil's Eye of Redemption. He assumed provoking guilt on the target after looking at it for enough time was enough to trigger his ability.

He minded it no more as he focused back on the other fellow. He looked terrified by the fate his companion had suffered, and looked ready to run away from that very same fate, leaving the other thief behind. Lawrence didn't let him.

"Running away and leaving your friend behind? I've met mosquitoes with a sense of comradeship better than yours."

This, though not enough to trigger a new set of chains (he assumed those could only be used once at the time), did well enough stopping it on its tracks. Lawrence used the opportunity to grab him by his hoodie, violently plucking it back and releasing it, sending its owner tumbling down the ground.

He didn't wait for the thief to try to come up: he kicked his side as hard as his new mules (duck-themed) allowed him to... which was surprisingly very hard. Or at least the wincing face of the bandit in ski hood told him, anyways.

Now grabbing him by the scruff of his neck. Lawrence punched him in the face hard enough to knock him out, but not too hard that it would represent a danger to the mugger's heath. On the long run. Not much.

As for the other, he was still trapped in the coiling chains. Lawrence was curious if he could voluntarily turn down the chains. At the thought of doing so, these broke and disappeared into the air, and the target of their constricting hug fell to the ground.

He tried to get up and Lawrence hit him in the back, sending him down the ground. He stepped on his spine careful not to apply too much pressure, just enough as to keep him pinned down on the ground.

He looked around absentmindedly. No harm to his property seemed to have take place. None other than the broken window, needless to say. The thieves were in the process of packing Lawrence's microwave, toaster and... his knife rack, for some reason.

He looked down to the man his was stepping under his soil. "What was your goal here? Rendering me unable to cook? Well that's just a petty goal" he said to himself as he crouched to look directly at his foe. He shot him the hardest, coldest glare he could.

"As for us" he whispered.

"You and I are going to have a little conversation about the definition of personal property, fellow. The amount of screaming on it depends on your how much you cooperate. Are we clear?"

The thief tried to grumble a husky 'yes', but he was too busy groaning in pain to do so.

"Good. I have an old cupboard that seems just your size. You can spend the night there don't worry, you two will have plenty of chance to thank me when I'm over with you."

He looked ahead to nothing particularly. It was, like he said: just a damn problem after another, huh...?