The days passed. Makoto found herself thinking less and less of Madison as time continued onwards. Makoto was always someone to be focused on what she was doing. Her time as a Phantom Thief had taught her not to dwell too much on what could have been or any perceived negative emotions, like loneliness.

Though she kept an eye on the Phan-Site, there weren't any more requests nearby. It seemed that the Phantom Thieves remaining in Tokyo were having plenty of work though. She smiled, thinking of Ann, Futaba, and Haru. Ryuji had moved to Okinawa, and Yusuke was in Paris.

Makoto had plenty of other work, though. Her day job as a legal consultant made sure of that. She daily had conversations with prosecutors throughout the country. Even her sister, Sae, sometimes reached out to her to pick her brain.

As she was sitting at her desk in her house, working on a case, she heard her phone ring. It was a particular ring tone, which she had only assigned to other Phantom Thieves. She looked at her phone and saw that it was Ann calling her.

"Hey Ann, what's up?" Makoto answered, putting her work on hold.

"Hey Makoto, how's it going? It's been forever since we talked!" Ann replied.

Makoto smiled, happy to hear from her friend. "It has been a while. I wish we had been talked sooner, but here we are, so I'm just happy we're talking now. How about you?"

"I've been good, but I just broke up with my boyfriend again," Ann said with a sigh.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Makoto said sympathetically.

"It's fine, I'm used to it by now. Anyway, what have you been up to? Anything exciting happen lately?" Ann asked.

Makoto hesitated for a moment, unsure if she should tell Ann about what happened with

Madison. But she trusted her friend and decided to open up.

"Well, actually, something interesting did happen recently. I helped someone who was going through a tough time," Makoto said, her voice taking on a serious tone.

"Really? What happened?" Ann asked, intrigued.

Makoto took a deep breath before explaining. "I found out that a guy named Madison had a palace, and I infiltrated it." She continued. "Afterwards, he decided to quit drinking, and was going through alcohol withdrawal, and I supervised it to make sure he did okay. He used to be a doctor, and he must have some trauma related to that, because he wanted to avoid going to the hospital at all costs."

Ann's eyes widened in surprise. "Wow, Makoto, that's amazing! Congratulations!" She paused. "I've been able to do a little Phantom Thieving here in Tokyo myself."

"It wasn't easy, but I'm glad I was able to help him. I'll have to hear about your own exploits sometime soon."

"Do you think your guy will be okay?" Ann asked.

"I hope so. I haven't seen or heard from him since then, but I'm confident that he'll be able to get his life back on track," Makoto said, her voice filled with conviction.

Ann paused for a moment before speaking. "Makoto, I know we're friends and all, but you never cease to amaze me. You're not just brilliant, but you're also a hero. I'm proud to be your friend."

Makoto smiled, feeling touched by Ann's words, flowery though they were. Ann had a cheerful optimism that always warmed her. "Thank you, Ann. That means a lot to me."

They continued chatting for a while longer, catching up on each other's lives. But in the back of Makoto's mind, she couldn't help but wonder what happened to Madison.

"Let's talk about your situation a little more," Makoto said, refocusing herself. "What happened with the guy you were dating?"

Ann sighs. "It wasn't too serious. He was great and all, but we just weren't compatible in bed. It was like he didn't know what he was doing, you know?"

Makoto raises an eyebrow. "I see. What do you mean by 'not compatible'?"

Ann looks a little embarrassed. "I mean, he couldn't...satisfy me. It was like he didn't know what he was doing, and I didn't want to hurt his feelings by telling him."

Makoto nodded thoughtfully, wishing she understood more than she pretended to. Ann had always been more experienced and open with her sexuality. "I see. And why do you think that was?"

Ann shrugs. "I don't know. Maybe he just wasn't experienced enough, or didn't listen to what I wanted. I tried to give him some guidance, but it didn't seem to help." There was a pause, a moment of silence that would have been awkward with anyone else. Then, with a mischievous tone in her voice, Ann asked, "Was Madison hot?"

Makoto chuckled at Ann's question and shook her head. "Ann, I can't believe you," she says, glad Ann couldn't see her blush through the phone.

"What? I'm just curious," Ann replied, laughing.

Makoto took a deep breath, still feeling embarrassed. "I mean, I guess he was attractive in his own way," she said, trying to downplay the attraction she felt towards Madison.

"In his own way? What does that mean?"

Makoto sighed, knowing she couldn't keep the truth from Ann. "Okay, fine. He was attractive. But that's not the point," she said, trying to steer the conversation back to more important matters.

Ann grinned mischievously. "Ah, so you did have a crush on him," she said, a teasing tone in her voice.

Makoto rolled her eyes. "No, I didn't. I just...I don't know, he was vulnerable and needed help, and I wanted to be there for him," she said, feeling defensive.

Ann's voice softened. "I get it, Makoto. I shouldn't tease you like this. You're a good person, and you always want to help people. That's why I love you," she said.

Makoto smiled, feeling grateful for Ann's support. "I love you too. Thanks, Ann. I appreciate that," she said, a warmth spreading in her chest.

"So…" Ann continued, "I did want to catch up with you, but I have another reason for calling you."

"What is it?" Makoto asked.

"I need help infiltrating a palace," Ann said, "The short of it is there is a college professor who is taking advantage of graduate students to do unethical research, but make it where he won't be implicated if the research is found out, because he'll be able to blame the grad students."

"A Palace belonging to an evil college professor in Tokyo?" Makoto repeated, her mind already racing with possibilities. "Of course, I'll help you infiltrate it."

Ann let out a relieved sigh. "Thank goodness. I didn't know who else to turn to."

Makoto replied. "Don't worry. I'll always be there for you if you need me. It's better for us to always infiltrate palaces together, not alone." She laughed. "Like I just did."

Ann grinned, excited at the prospect of working together again. "That's great news! I knew I could count on you, Makoto."

Makoto felt a sense of satisfaction at being able to help her friend and fight against corruption.

"So, when are we going?"

"I was thinking next week," Ann replied, "I'm still working on some research to figure out how to get past a door in the palace, so I won't be going back in for a while. This guy needs to be stopped, but there's no clear deadline this time.

"Next week it is," Makoto agreed, feeling a surge of excitement. She was looking forward to going back to Tokyo, even if it was for something as dangerous as infiltrating a Palace.

As they continued to talk, Makoto's thoughts drifted back to Madison. She hadn't heard from him since the incident, but she hoped he was doing well. And even though she had infiltrated his Palace as a Phantom Thief, she couldn't help but feel a sense of attachment to him. She shook her head, trying to clear her mind of these thoughts. There were more important things to focus on now.

—

After thinking some about the upcoming Phantom Thieves case and buying train tickets to Tokyo and a hotel reservation near Ann's apartment for when she is there, Makoto decided to make her way to bed.

Not knowing exactly why, she decided to pleasure herself this night. She did it so rarely now. Makoto slipped out of her shorts, naked in the bed. She began pleasuring herself with her fingers.

Makoto intentionally brought her thoughts to Madison, to the way he looked, particularly when he was vulnerable lying on her couch, when he had fallen back asleep after waking from his nightmare and Makoto comforted him.

Except, in Makoto's mind, this time when she laid down next to him, Madison gently woke back up and turned to face her. Their lips met. Makoto's fingers sped up under her shorts, and she decided to slip them off, savoring the feel of the waistband of the shorts as they hugged and slipped past the swell of her ass, imaging Madison's hands there instead.

Makoto's fingers traced the folds of her sex, and she visualized Madison's hands slipping from her butt to her vagina, slowly, but then with increased pressure. Makoto imagined looking up into his eyes…

Another face flashed into her mind, but with years of practice, Makoto immediately suppressed it, and went back to her fantasy.

Her body was to aching with need. Makoto flooded her mind with vivid images of Madison, his lips on hers, his strong hands gripping her hips. She can almost feel his breath on her skin, and it sends shivers down her spine. She imagines him entering her, filling her up with his hard cock, and she gasps at the thought.

With one hand, Makoto was rubbing her clit, and with the other, she was entering herself, moving back and forth. This was good, this was what she needed. God, how long had it been since another person had touched her sexually… or even affectionately.

Even as she fantasized, Makoto planned. She had Madison's number… maybe she could text him, see if he wanted to go out sometime. Maybe she wasn't his type, but he was probably lonely too- even if he wasn't ready for romance, he might be okay with something casual, two lonely adults coming to each other for pleasure? Makoto's thoughts were a warm jumble as she sped up the action of her fingers.

She was close to orgasm, so she slowed down, not wanting it to end. Makoto moved the hand that was on her clit back to her ass, grabbing deep into a muscular cheek, again imagining it was Madison's hand, then dragging her hand up to her breast, squeezing it. God, she would do, she would text Madison tomorrow, she would be honest with him and tell him what she wanted…

Makoto's hand went back down to her clit. She needed to cum…

Ren's face flashed back in the front of her mind, and her desire, her intensity, her joy in pleasuring herself vanished in the space of a heartbeat. Makoto froze, shaking the image out of her mind. Her body was stiff, and she almost felt a panic. A tear dropped from her eye.

Makoto rolled over onto her front, moving her hands out from under herself. Her chest felt tight and heavy. What's happening to me? She thought to herself, feeling a stab of pain in the left side of her chest. Am I having a heart attack? She brought her arms up under her head and felt her chest tightening again, almost heaving. I guess that's okay.

And then, Makoto sobbed. Time passed, and she slept.