Author's note: This takes place one month after the events in Episode 10. It seemed to me that Makoto sounded a little too relieved to see Daimon safe at the end of that one, so maybe she had feelings for him, and maybe he liked her too…anyway I think they'd make a great couple, so I wrote this to bring them together! Daimon seems to hide behind his sunglasses a lot and I used that in this fic.
Disclaimer: I own nothing!
Ridiculous, Makoto thought to herself as she took the long way to Daimon. I've got no problem jumping off a ten-storey building, but I'm afraid to tell a guy I like him.
Shortly after her ride on the Miracle Train, she'd been officially permitted to do her own stunts again, the most recent of which had involved leaping from the roof of a tall building while keeping a viselike grip on the criminal she'd just nabbed. That was easy compared to this, she reflected. At least I knew there'd be a safety net.
A month ago she never would have predicted the changes that had now taken place in her life. Her new attitude toward Oedo Cops had garnered praise from the director, and there was already talk of expanding her role in future episodes. The cast and crew loved her because she was a pleasure to work with, always cheerful and enthusiastic no matter how long they'd been shooting; fans loved her because she was kind to everyone and never turned down an autograph. Wherever she went, she radiated an aura of happiness…and those closest to her noticed a certain light in her eyes and joked that she had fallen in love with a criminal.
They were only half wrong. She had, in fact, fallen in love with a train station.
That Daimon actually was a train station she did not doubt; how could she, after the extraordinary and otherwise inexplicable events that had taken place mere weeks ago? Yet somehow the knowledge did not bother her. He was simply the man she loved, and that was enough. Beyond that she did not care who or what he was.
When it came to men, Makoto had almost impossibly high standards. Perhaps it was the experience of growing up on the set of Oedo Cops and witnessing the kind of honor, bravery and selflessness that seldom appeared outside a work of fiction; perhaps it was the sterling example set by her father, a real-life embodiment of those ideals. Perhaps it was neither of these, only the little voice in her heart that told her never to settle for second best—from herself, or from anyone else. In the short time she had spent with him, Makoto had come to realize that Daimon was a man who would never fail her. When she saw him proud and defiant under Shinjuku's gun, she felt that she would do anything to protect him; and when she saw him safe and unharmed after the ordeal, such a dizzying wave of relief had flooded her that she knew she had fallen in love. She wanted him to understand that he could trust her with his very life, and she knew that his trust—like his respect and affection—had to be earned. She remembered something her father had told her as a child: "Everything that is of any real value has to be earned, Makoto. If it's worth having, then it's worth earning, no matter what the cost." Those words lent her courage as she neared her destination.
She had reasoned that, being a train station, Daimon was probably confined to his own region—even while chasing Shinjuku, they had never strayed from the Oedo Line area. That meant that if she wanted to see him again, she'd have to go to him. It had taken her quite some time to work up the nerve to do this, but that morning she'd finally resolved to take the plunge…
...without a safety net, she reminded herself with a groan.
