5/30 Monday
"Oh, no no no! This is horrible!" the principal groaned, rubbing his temples.
He had just received a call about how one of his students had just been arrested.
Things had just gone from bad to worse for him lately. First, everything about Kamoshida had come to light, giving an enormous amount of bad press towards the school, and by extension, himself.
And now that those Phantom Thieves had changed the heart of that artist, that Mafia group went looking for another way of making money.
And they had settled on his students, likely because they knew he couldn't fight back without angering his superiors.
Still, he was confident that he would have been able to sweep it under the rug, and get the police to look the other way. But now that one of his students had been arrested…
This would surely bring even more negative press to him, and potentially a police investigation if things escalated enough.
That was twice now that those Phantom Thieves had gotten in his way… he needed to deal with them, and fast!
A knock at his door startled him out of his thoughts.
"Principal Kobayakawa?"
He had nearly forgotten that he was expecting someone.
"Ah, Takamaki-san! Come in!"
Having been called done to the principal's office, Ann slowly made her way inside.
"Have you made any progress in your investigation?" the principal asked.
She bit her lip. it probably wouldn't be a good idea to mention the doubts that she'd been having.
"I… I saw Niijima-sempai a few days ago. She was hanging out with Sakamoto-kun and the transfer student." Ann recalled.
"I see… that is troubling news." Kobayakawa muttered. "Is there anything else that you discovered?"
"Well… I saw Niijima-sempai at the hospital." Ann added. "She was visiting Shiho."
"E-Excuse me?!" the principal stammered. "She was speaking with Suzui-san?! What were they discussing?!"
"I don't know." Ann answered. "By the time I got there, Niijima-sempai had just left Shiho's room."
"I see… have you been visiting Suzui-san?" the principal asked.
"Yeah… why?" Ann asked.
"The next time you speak with her… I would like you to tell her not to… share any information about what happened during her 'incident'." the principal requested.
"What?!" Ann exclaimed. "And why not?!"
"Well, there's been a lot of media attention on our school lately." the principal informed her. "I was going to tell all of our students not to speak with the media about anything that's been happening."
Ann narrowed her eyes, growing suspicious.
"It sounds like he's more upset that Kamoshida was caught than about what he did." Ann mused.
"High school can be a stressful time in anyone's life, so we'd like to do whatever we can to manage that stress, including trying to keep all this attention off of the school." Kobayakawa explained.
"...I think that everything that Kamoshida did was a lot more stressful to them." Ann countered.
The principal squirmed in his seat, not expecting that response. "A-Ah, well, what happened was unfortunate, of course. But because we care about the mental health of our students, we have hired the services of Dr. Maruki, and-"
Ann began tuning him out, not wanting to hear his excuses.
"Ugh… I know he's just using me, but why…?" she thought.
The fact that he was bringing Shiho into this bothered her. It was if he wanted to silence her…
It sounded like he only cared about the negative press.
She had her suspicions that he was involved with covering up Kamoshida's crimes, but it wasn't like she had proof.
But assuming that he only cared about making himself look better, that would explain a few things.
The hiring of Dr. Maruki, the cleanup event happening today… those would make the school look good.
Stopping students from talking about the Kamoshida incident would stop bad press…
"He also asked me to deal with the Phantom Thieves." Ann mused. "If he was converting Kamoshida's crimes, he probably wants to get back at the Phantom Thieves for exposing his crimes and making him look bad."
"Takamaki-san, are you listening?"
"H-Huh?" Ann stammered. "Oh, of course! I was just wondering about the Phantom Thieves. Do you think… they could be students?"
"I believe it's a possibility." the principal answered.
Ann began thinking about it some more.
"He also asked me to investigate some students… Ren and Ryuji." she mused. "I know those two are troublemakers… but they also have a connection to Kamoshida."
She had deduced their connection to Kamoshida, as well as their friend Yusuke's connection to Madarame.
That left Niijima.
Before, she had wondered where her place in all this was.
But Shiho had said that Kamoshida tried to abuse her too.
There was a connection.
So, did that mean…?
"No way…" she muttered. "She can't be!"
"Err, what was that?" the principal asked.
"Oh, n-nothing." Ann insisted. "I just remembered that I had something else to do… um, somewhere else!"
"Well, as long as you know what I expect from you." the principal said. "Oh, and do remember to inform Suzui-san not to speak to the media. And that goes for you as well. There will be… severe consequences if you do."
She could feel a chill run down her spine. "Y-Yes, sir…"
"Good. You're dismissed." The principal replied.
She didn't have to be told twice.
She quickly got out of his office and wandered the halls until she spied the transfer student.
She… she had to keep spying on them.
If it meant protecting Shiho from that asshole of a principal, she would do whatever he asked.
She tried to stealthily tail him, but found her efforts quickly thwarted.
The transfer student turned around, an unamused look on his face.
"What are you doing?" he asked.
"I-I was just, um…"
"You were following me." Ren accused, glaring.
"I-I'm sorry!" Ann stammered, backing up from him.
Noticing her fear, he eased up. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."
"I-It's fine." Ann muttered. "I just…"
"Did you think I was going to hurt you?" Ren wondered.
"W-Well… I don't know, honestly." Ann muttered. "Were you actually, um..."
"I was convicted of assault… but I was framed." Ren told her. "I know that the other students like to gossip about me or Makoto, but you shouldn't be so quick to believe them."
"And why not…" Ann muttered.
Ren frowned. "Well, when Kamoshida was still around, I didn't believe all of the rumors about you."
Ann winced, remembering all of the terrible rumors that had spread about her during that time.
"You really didn't believe them?" she asked.
Ren nodded. "I know how bad it is to have people spread false rumors about you. So I try not to judge people on things I can't be sure about."
"Oh…" Ann trailed off.
"I think that the best way to learn if something about Makoto is true or not is to just talk to her." Ren suggested.
"Maybe he's right…" Ann mused.
While she was lost in thought, Ren started to run off.
"Hey, wait up!" Ann yelled.
Ann tried to continue following him… only to see him walking into the bathroom.
The boy's bathroom.
"Damn it." Ann muttered.
Seeing as the cleanup event was coming up soon, she figured she'd put off her investigation for a bit and make her way to the park after changing.
"I'm in way over my head..." Ann muttered to herself, walking the halls. "What the hell am I doing?"
After wandering the halls for a bit, she felt something rumbling in her bag.
"W-What the?" she stammered, opening her bag.
"MRROW!"
Suddenly, a cat hoped out of her bag, spilling some of her things onto the floor.
"W-What?! A cat?!" Ann stammered.
The cat quickly ran off, leaving her to pick her things.
Among them, however, was something she had never seen before.
"Hey, what's thi-WHAT?!" she gasped.
Quickly, she stuffed it into her bag and ran somewhere she wouldn't be soon before pulling it back out.
"This is… a calling card?" Ann gasped.
It looked exactly like the one she had seen on the news when they were talking about that artist.
Her hands trembling, she carefully read the letter.
"The Phantom Thieves request a meeting. We will meet at 5:00pm today. Please arrive 10 minutes early, and come alone."
The letter went on to give precise instructions on where she was supposed to meet them.
At the very least, it didn't mention stealing her heart, but the design was exactly like Madarame's card.
"This can't be some kind of prank…" she mused. "The card looks so real."
After taking the time to change and set everything up, all of the students made their way to the park.
Seeing as she had a little bit of free time, Makoto quickly sought out Ren and Ryuji in the crowd.
"Hey, Makoto, what's bonkin'?!" Ryuji yelled.
"Um… excuse me?" she questioned.
"That's just Ryuji's new greeting." Ren chuckled. "He swears it'll catch on someday."
"That's cause it will!" Ryuji insisted, before growing serious again. "...So, is everything set?"
She nodded, lowering her voice to a whisper. "I'll work on a disguise. Ren?"
Ren unzipped his bag, revealing Morgana inside.
"The card was delivered!" the not-cat beamed.
"Then everything's all set." she smiled.
"Are you going to be cleaning with us?" Ren asked.
"Sadly, no." she denied. "The staff all arranged us into groups, and we're all split up."
"Tch. Figures that they'd split us up." Ryuji grumbled.
"Ah well, guess we can meet up during lunchtime." Ren suggested.
"That's the spirit!"
The three of them turned to see Dr. Maruki.
"Dr. Maruki?" she said, surprised. "Are you helping out with cleaning too?"
"Oh no, I'm part of the cooking crew." Maruki said. "There'll be plenty of snacks."
Ren immediately perked up.
"Enough with the snacks!" Ryuji snapped.
"Sorry, sorry, I couldn't resist." Maruki chuckled.
"U-Um… D-Dr. Maruki?"
They all turned to see Akemi awkwardly shuffling behind the doctor.
"Oh, Ito-kun." Makoto greeted. "Are you helping with making the soup?"
Akemi shyly nodded. "Dr. Maruki, w-we're ready to begin."
"Ah, I suppose I should get going then." Maruki said, excusing himself.
"Y-Yasui-san wanted to s-see you…" Akemi mumbled.
Chiaki wanted to see her? She would have to keep an eye out for her.
"I need to get ready to." she told them as Maruki left. "I'll see you two later."
She walked into position, picking up a megaphone to address the students.
"Good morning, Shujin Academy students and staff…" Makoto greeted. "Please pick up all trash located in the areas assigned to your group! Once the cleanup is completed, a lunch of miso soup with pork and vegetables will be served!"
She really liked the megaphone she was using. It made her feel more… empowered!
"Hey Makoto, where do I put this?" Ryuji asked, holding up a wallet.
"There's a police box over there!" she instructed.
"Gah, my ears!" Ryuji shouted.
"O-Oh… my bad." she mumbled, realizing he was right next to her while she spoke into the megaphone.
"Geez, is that how loud I sound when I yell?" Ryuji asked.
"Well…"
"Never mind, don't answer that." Ryuji quickly said, walking towards a nearby police box.
As Ryuji walked away, she could hear some of the other students whispering amongst themselves.
"Wait, Sakamoto actually brought that wallet back?"
"I would have thought he would have taken it for himself."
"Say, do you think he's one of those guys who got involved with that gang?"
"Oh man, one of my classmates got involved with those guys."
She frowned when she started hearing the rumors. Before she could stop them, however…
"Niijima."
She turned around, seeing Chiaki behind her.
"Yasui-san." she greeted.
"I assume you've been hearing all of the rumors?" Chiaki asked.
"You mean about the gangs?" she asked.
Chiaki nodded. "Turns out, there's a kernel of truth to them. A few days ago, one of the students got arrested for drug transporting."
"What?!" she exclaimed.
"No doubt about it. There's a gang in Shibuya that's targeting the students here." Chiaki concluded. "It pisses me off! Instead of actually doing something about it, the school's just having us picking up trash!"
"Well, it's a good deed." she pointed out.
"I know that." Chiaki scoffed. "But it's obvious that the only reason that this is happening is that the principal wanted to look good."
"...I'm inclined to agree." she admitted. "I spoke to him a few days ago, and he seemed completely unconcerned about the gang when I informed him of it. He even requested that I not investigate."
"Tch, that sucks." Chiaki muttered. "But I guess it's what I expected."
"If we want to investigate this, we'll have to be discrete about it." Makoto advised. "We wouldn't want the principal finding out."
Chiaki nodded. "I'll keep my ear to the ground. I suggest that you do the same."
She walked off, heading to her own group.
For the next hour, she quietly worked at picking up any trash that she could find in her area.
Out of the corner of her eye, she spied a fluffy-haired girl in her group doing the same, a frown on her face.
"That's that girl I met on the roof." she mused. "She's been frowning the entire time she's been here."
Keeping her ears open, she overheard a few students talking to each other.
"Say, that's that rich Okumura girl, right?"
"She's the CEO's daughter, right? I'd like to talk to her, but..."
"It's a little intimidating, yeah."
She saw the fluffy-haired girl let out a sigh, sitting down at a nearby bench.
It was clear that she overheard what they were saying.
While, at the very least, the other students weren't malicious towards her, they did seem a bit intimidated.
Maybe… she just needed a friend.
She sat down next to the girl at the bench, hoping to comfort her.
"Um… hello." she greeted. "Is everything ok?"
"Huh?" the fluffy-haired gasped. "Oh, it's nothing. There's no need to concern yourself."
She frowned, wondering what she could do to help.
After thinking about it for a bit, she cleared her throat before speaking.
"It's pretty tough, having everyone associate you with something or someone else." Makoto said.
Haru looked up, a surprised look on her face.
"People always compare me to my sister… but I'm nothing like her." Makoto confessed. "She's successful, strong, elegant… I feel like I'm living in her shadow."
It was something she rarely brought up with others, but the principal's comments comparing her to her sister still stung for that reason.
"I see… I guess you understand." the fluffy-haired girl muttered.
"Your name is Haru Okumura, right?" she asked. "I remember that we met on the school roof a while ago."
"Oh, yes." Haru nodded. "Now I remember."
"If you'd like, I could let you continue to grow your plants up there." Makoto offered.
"Really?" Haru asked. "Are you sure that's alright?"
"I don't mind." she smiled. "The roof is probably a good place to raise them, right?"
Haru gave a small smile. "Yes. I loved gardening when I was little, but I haven't been able to do it at home recently. Things have been… hectic at home."
She figured the recent scandal probably had something to do with that, but didn't voice those thoughts.
"If you ever need any assistance, I'd be happy to help you with your gardening." Makoto offered.
"Oh no, I couldn't ask you to do that." Haru stressed. "I wouldn't want to bother you."
"No no, it wouldn't be any problem at all." Makoto insisted. "I'm actually a little curious to try out gardening myself."
"Really?!" Haru exclaimed. "Oh, I'd love to teach you!"
"Thank you." she beamed. "Oh, and if there's anything else that you're troubled with, I'd be happy to help you in any way I can."
"That's very kind of you." Haru smiled. "Thank you, Niijima-san."
Haru seemed to perk up, happy about their newly formed friendship.
I am thou, thou art I… thou hast acquired a new vow. It shall become the wings of rebellion that carry you to thy future. With the birth of the Empress Persona, I have obtained the winds of blessing that shall lead to freedom and new power…
EMPRESS CONFIDANT: RANK 1
"Man, this park is trashed… we really should do something about all these people that just throw trash on the ground." Mishima muttered. "Maybe we could-"
"HELLOOOO!"
"BWAH?!"
Mishima fell to the ground in surprise.
"Say, you must be that Nishima guy that Niijima-san was talking about!" the other student observed.
"T-That's Mishima." Mishima corrected. "A-And you are…?"
"Takayo Tachibana!" Takayo enthusiastically greeted. "I needed to speak to you about something important… but not here."
She grabbed his hand and led him to a more secluded area.
"W-Wait! You're h-holding my-"
"Shh! Talk later!" Takayo instructed, running with him until they were alone and out of the other student's earshot.
"W-What do you want?" Mishima nervously gasped.
"I talked with the Student Council President a while back." Takayo brought up. "We had a very interesting conversation about the Phantom Thieves."
"O-Oh, r-really?" Mishima stammered.
"Yeah." Takayo nodded. "One thing we discussed was the Phan-Site, and how it's used by people to post requests to the Phantom Thieves. I was really interested in who was running that site."
Mishima could feel himself beginning to sweat. "O-Oh… you don't… have an idea who it is, d-do you?"
Takayo beamed. "Of course I know! It's you!"
"Wha-HUH?!" Mishima exclaimed.
"Yeah, I know all about how you manage the Phan-Site." Takayo grinned. "And that's something I have to say about that…"
"Oh man, what's she going to do?!" Mishima thought, panicking. "She isn't going to turn me in, is she?! I'm doomed!"
"I wanted to say… that that's so cool!" Takayo beamed.
"Please don't tell anyone about… wait, huh?" Mishima questioned.
"I think it's really cool how you put together a resource to help victims of crimes." Takayo confessed. "So many people are too afraid to speak out, or have no one to turn to. So having something like this really helps them."
"Y-You really like it?" Mishima stuttered. "You're a Phangirl?"
"The biggest Phangirl!" Takayo emphasized. "Your website is really cool too! I've always been interested in website design myself."
"You have?" Mishima asked.
Takayo nodded. "Online articles are the way of the future! I'm really curious, so you could tell me about it later. Oh, and also, I could snoop out people in need of help, and spread the words of the Phantom Thieves!"
"T-That would be great!" Mishima said.
"Cool! There's this nice cafe near the school. We can meet up there sometime to discuss." Takayo offered.
"W-Wait, you mean like a d-d-da-"
"Oh, people are coming!" Takayo warned, cutting him off. "See you then, Mishima-kun!"
Takayo walked off, leaving Mishima to himself.
"Wow…" Mishima muttered.
Taking a small break from cleaning, Ren sat down at a nearby bench after filling up his trash bag.
"Wait, that's the transfer student, right?"
"Was he actually picking up trash?"
"Quiet! What if he hears us?"
Ren sighed, trying to drown out their whispering.
"Oh! I've finally found you!"
Ren looked up, seeing a red-haired girl smiling down at him.
"Oh, hey Yoshizawa-san." Ren greeted. "What's up?"
"I wanted to thank you properly for when you helped me this morning." Kasumi told him.
This morning, he had intervened when an older man had harassed her on the way to the park.
"It's nothing, really." Ren assured her. "I just did what anyone would have done."
"I thought it was really brave of you." Kasumi complemented. "But… there was one other thing that I wanted to talk about…"
"What would that be?" Ren asked.
"I heard a lot of my classmates gossiping about you." Kasumi frowned.
"I see..." Ren muttered.
"O-Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to imply that I believe any of them!" Kasumi insisted. "I don't really like gossip or rumors or any of that. Admittedly, I haven't known you for long, but you've already helped me out so much, that I can't imagine any of them being true!"
"Really? T-Thanks." Ren stammered, surprised at her trust in him.
"The rumors ranged from serious to… downright bizarre." Kasumi informed him. "Arson, murder, gang member… and elephant tusk trafficker, I think it was?"
"Did they tell you I'm a thief, too?" Ren joked.
Kasumi let out a laugh. "You, a thief? I can't see it. Now I know you're kidding."
"So, what about you?" Ren asked. "I know that you're a transfer student like me."
"I'm a gymnast." Kasumi explained. "Shujin offered me a scholarship when they heard about me. One day, I hope to compete at the top level."
"That's pretty cool." Ren complimented. "I'm sure you'll do great."
"I hope so…" Kasumi trailed off. "Lately, I've been having trouble getting the results that I've wanted in competitions, and I'm worried that I might be overthinking things. Maybe… you could give me some advice?"
"Sorry… I don't really know a lot about gymnastics." Ren muttered.
"Not about that." Kasumi replied. "You just always seem so calm and collected. I thought that maybe you could help keep my nerves under control. And, well… it helps to have someone willing to lend an ear from time to time."
"Well, if you really think I can help, then sure." Ren smiled.
"Thank you!" Kasumi beamed. "We should exchange contact information too."
Kasumi pulled out her phone, but frowned when she looked at it.
"Something wrong?" Ren asked.
"It shut down." Kasumi explained. "Sorry, my smartphone's been acting up lately."
She waited a few moments before smiling again.
"Alright, it's working again." she said, before brightly smiling at him. "I call you and we can meet up when we have some free time, Amamiya-sempai!"
"Y-Yeah." Ren mumbled, his face beginning to redden. "That, um… sounds good."
Kasumi waved before heading back to her group.
Figuring that it was time to start clearing again, Ren got up from his seat, only to let out a gasp as he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"Heeey, Renren!" Ryuji smirked. "Soooo, who was that girl?"
"Huh?" Ren wondered.
"Just wondering if that girl's your type." Ryuji grinned. "Oooor… are you more into Makoto?"
"T-That's… what are you talking about?!" Ren stammered. "They're both just friends!"
"Sure, now they are, but you're probably crushin' on one of them, right?" Ryuji asked.
"N-No, of course not!" Ren exclaimed.
"Come on…" Ryuji smirked. "I caught you staring at Makoto in that tight Metaverse outfit of hers tons of times."
"That was only a few tim- I mean I would never do that!" Ren insisted. "I-I need to get cleaning!"
Ren quickly got away from the laughing Ryuji, diligently cleaning up the park until it was time for food.
As soon as food was being passed out, Makoto quickly grabbed her soup before finding and sitting next to Ren and Ryuji.
"Are you sure you don't want us to come?" Ren asked.
"I wouldn't want to take any unnecessary risks, like her discovering your identities." she told them. "And I'll have Mona with me."
"So, are you ready?" Ryuji asked.
She frowned. "I still need something to wear. A disguise. Something I won't get recognized in. Different from what I normally wear."
While she was going to reveal her identity to Ann, she didn't want anyone else to know, so it was good to be cautious in case she didn't come alone.
"Maybe ask Takao-san?" Ren suggested. "She might know a lot about fashion."
"Maybe…" she trailed off considering it. "It's just, Eiko's been feeling a little down late-"
"HEY BESTIE!"
Suddenly, Makoto found herself being pulled into a hug from behind.
"Eep!" she squeaked.
"Hey, Makoto!" Eiko grinned. "I've been looking for you!"
"E-Eiko!" Makoto stammered. "Don't scare me like that!"
"My bad." Eiko giggled. "So, are these your friends?
"I'm Ryuji." Ryuji grinned. "If you're friends with Makoto, then you must be cool."
"Aw, thanks!" Eiko beamed. "And I've already met Renny!"
Ren frowned, not happy with the nickname.
"Renny?" Ryuji laughed. "That's a new one. Makoto and I just call him Renren."
"Oh. My. God." Eiko gasped, glancing at Makoto. "You have a pet name for him?! That's so cute!"
"H-Huh?!" Makoto stammered.
Both Makoto and Ren started to blush.
"Oh man, you didn't know?" Ryuji laughed. "You know, Ren likes to call her Beep Boop."
Eiko let out a squeal, causing Ren and Makoto to blush even harder.
"And sometimes, he even calls her Quee-"
"That's enough, Ryuji!" Ren and Makoto shouted at the same time.
After Eiko and Ryuji stopped laughing, a flustered Makoto went up to Eiko.
"Eiko… I was going to go clothes shopping today, but I wanted something different than my normal look, and I'm not sure where to start." Makoto told her. "I thought you could help."
"Hmm… well, do you have a basic idea of what you want?" Eiko asked.
"Well… very different from what I normally wear." Makoto began. "Maybe something… rebellious?"
Rebellious seemed good. It would make for a good disguise, but also be good for selling the Phantom Thief angle.
"Rebellious… like a punk look?" Eiko asked. "Oooh, I can see it. Sure, I can help."
"Thank you, Eiko." she expressed.
"Alright Makoto, time to embrace your inner punk!" Eiko exclaimed. "Let's go!"
"E-Eiko, I'm not sure about this…" she stammered.
"Oh come on, at least try it on!" Eiko encouraged.
"O-Ok…" she relented.
She stepped out of the changing booth, covering her ears as Eiko let out a squeal.
"You pull it off so well!" Eiko beamed. "You have to look!"
She took a look at herself in the mirror.
She kept her red and black Shujin skirt, but she now had a black belt around her waist, and a chain attached to it. Attached to her skirt were garters connecting thigh high stockings and high-top sneakers. She wore a bright red scarf and gloves, and finally, she wore a tattered and stitched dark grey shirt with a black spattered pattern.
The outfit was so different from anything she had ever worn in her life.
It showed a lot more skin than she was used to.
Her past self would never have considered wearing something like this.
Sae would probably faint if she saw her like this.
But she loved it.
Something about 'embracing her inner punk' just felt right to her.
Before, she had simply picked out clothes that were simple and functional. And while she still liked clothes like this, she really felt that she was expressing a new part of her with these clothes.
"I… I really like it." she smiled.
"See? I told you it looked good!" Eiko beamed. "Now come on and I'll pay for them."
"Are you sure?" she asked.
"Of course!" Eiko grinned. "Besides, my parent's give me a huge allowance, and I'm in a great mood today!"
"You are?" Makoto asked. "I'm happier for you Eiko, but the last time we talked…"
"Oh, right, the exams." Eiko recalled. "Well, now that, like, it's been a while I'm not as upset. Plus, sooo much has happened recently. We're still having sweets, right?"
"Of course." she promised.
"Great! I'll tell you all about it then!" Eiko beamed. "I have to go now, though! I'm meeting up with my special someone!"
"Special someone?" she mused as Eiko paid for her clothes and left. "I wonder what she means by that?"
Feeling her phone buzzing, she saw that she had gotten a text from Sae.
Sae: Discussing a case with a coworker over sushi, so don't bother making dinner for me.
"What?! She was supposed to get sushi for me!" Morgana yelled. "Err… for us, I mean."
"Oh well." she shrugged. "Another time, then. For now, we have something more important."
She got into disguise, and made her way towards the meeting place.
"Alright, I'm in position." she called.
She arrived at the meeting place, reading the next volume of her manga while she waited.
She had also opted to wear a face mask and a plain black hat to further disguise herself.
"Makoto, that manga is still not stealt-
"Just get into position, Morgana!" she snapped.
"Y-Yes, Queen!"
The not-cat served as a lookout, but they didn't have to wait for long.
"She's coming!" Mona hissed.
"Keep an eye on her." she instructed.
"Soooo cuuuute…"
"Focus, Mona!"
"R-Right!"
Morgana kept a careful eye on her for a few minutes, ensuring that she wasn't followed or that she had anything on her.
"All clear!" Morgana called.
She slowly came out of her hiding position, confidant that Ann didn't come here with bad intentions.
"So you really did come."
Ann gasped. "A-Are you…?"
"A Phantom Thief." she answered.
"T-Then you can help me!" Ann exclaimed, giving a sigh of relief. "Please, I need your help!"
Slowly, she removed her hat and mask.
"M-Makoto?!" Ann stammered. "W-Why are you wearing that?"
"I-I didn't want anyone else to recognize me!" Makoto excused. "I was worried that you would have brought someone else with you."
"Wait, so then… you really are a member of the Phantom Thieves…" Ann muttered.
"You don't seem all that surprised." Makoto said.
"I suppose I managed to work things out on my own." Ann said. "When I saw that you were hanging out with people related to Kamoshida and Madarame… that's when it clicked."
"Takamaki-san…" Makoto trailed off. "I'm sorry that I couldn't act fast enough to-"
"Stop!"
"Huh?"
"Stop apologizing!" Ann snapped. "You… this whole time, you were a Phantom Thief. You stopped Kamoshida! But I couldn't do anything! I couldn't protect Shiho!"
Ann's eyes began welling with tears as she poured her heart out.
"I accused you of turning a blind eye to Kamoshida… that you only cared about a letter or recommendation… I even posted about you on the Phan-Site!" Ann confessed.
She gently tried to comfort the younger girl. "Takamaki-san, it's ok. I know that things have been hard for you too."
"I hate this!" Ann cried. "I hate all of this! Shiho was all I had left in that sorry excuse of a school! And they know that… that's why they're all taking advantage of me…"
"Takamaki-san, let me help you." she pleaded. "Last time, I wasn't able to help you and Shiho before it was too late. That's why I'm determined to help you two in any way I can."
"H-He's pitting us against each other, and trying to silence Shiho, and everyone else from talking about the incident! He's using me and I don't know what to do!" Ann exclaimed.
"Who is it?" she asked, gentle but firm. "Please, Takamaki-san, I need a name."
Ann paused for several moments, wiping her tears before finally responding. "If you really are a Phantom Thief, then I want you… to change Principal Kobayakawa's heart."
Makoto's Confidant Progress:
THE FOOL - Ren Amamiya: Rank 4
THE HUNGER - Igor: Rank 4
THE CHARIOT - Ryuji Sakamoto: Rank 2
THE MAGICIAN - Morgana: Rank 3
THE FAITH - Eiko Takao: Rank 2
THE TOWER - Chiaki Yasui: Rank 3
THE SUN - Shiho Suzui: Rank 3
THE MOON - Takayo Tachibana: Rank 2
THE HIEROPHANT - Sojiro Sakura: Rank 3
THE TEMPERANCE - Naoya Makigami: Rank 2
THE EMPEROR - Yusuke Kitagawa: Rank 1
THE EMPRESS - Haru Okumura: Rank 1
THE STRENGTH - Caroline and Justine: Rank 2
THE JUSTICE - Goro Akechi: Rank 1
THE FORTUNE - Phantom Thieves of Heart: Rank 2
THE JUDGEMENT - Sae Niijima: Rank 2
THE COUNCILLOR - Takuto Maruki: Rank 3
Do you believe in the Phantom Thieves? Yes 15.8%