Chapter 3.5: When did this become a fantasy?

A/N: OKAY I'VE GOT THIS MAPPED OUT. I finally have a direction that I want this story to go in! At first I was writing this because it just popped up in my imagination and I wanted to document it. However, look forward to something involving time wimey bowls of soup :D.

Here is a tidbit to tide you over until I write a longer chapter.

*Scene where Akihito and Asami part ways as Asami enters a plane*

A white, unmarked private plane was stationed on the helipad. Asami's bodyguards/secretaries Kirishima and Suoh had already boarded the plane.

Asami and Akihito stood together a few feet away from the aircraft.

I stood the farthest away, near the staircase, because it seemed as if I was intruding on a very personal moment. I don't know how the bodyguards do it, I get so awkward just being around them. It's like perpetually being the third wheel to two people who seem like they would fuck each other any second.

I glanced at the lovers who would soon be separated. I turned my head towards the horizon when they kissed, because a virgin like me was not into voyeurism.

I could hear snippets of their conversation, but instead I focused my attention on the dark sky. No one was awake yet, not even the songbirds who habitually announced the first rays of sunlight.

A sigh escaped from my lips, "Twittering birds never fly." It was an old saying my mother used to tell me.

Suddenly, an uncomfortable feeling settled around me. When I turned around, my heterochromic eyes locked onto Asami's golden ones.

"You're like Pepper."

"Your panther?" The golden-eyed crime lord responded.

Oh geez. I was caught up in my thoughts, okay? Pepper is the name of my panther… wait what? How did he know I have a panther named Pepper?

I stared at him with a perplexed look on my face.

Asami, with his golden eyes, ebony-colored hair, and broad shoulders resembles my baby. Her fur is completely black, except for a few white spots dotting the length of her legs. This is how she got the name Pepper. Original, I know.

Pepper and I would often have intense stare offs into silence until she nuzzled her head into the crook of my arm. Tough on the outside, but a softie on the inside.

Her mate is this quirky young panther. He has hazel eyes and a dirty blonde coat. He's a bit of an over-enthusiastic idiot. Even though Pepper is female, she's the alpha of the pair. Their relationship reminded me of the apparently-not-fictional characters Asami and Akihito, so I would sometimes call them Asami or Aki instead of Pepper and Milo.

My unasked question was met with a smirk.

Okay, this is freaky. I'm officially freaked out.

A bit confused, I just decided to storm off and wait in the car.

There's something about being stuck in a fictional world that is a bit disorienting.

The first one would be that they didn't have 5G yet.

The second is that their black market security is not as secure as they thought it was. Being… acquaintances with Asami can get you, well almost anywhere, but when it comes to back doors and loopholes in the tech sector, there's no one better than w1NG2.

And yet… despite this.

WHY AM I STUCK ON BABYSITTING DUTY IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE.

I sighed, my eyes trailing up towards the sky. It's been a few months since that confusing farewell to Asami. Akihito moped the first few weeks, now he's just spacing out all the time.

The mountainside was a quiet place. We were in some sort of remote village located at the bottom of the mountain, but the shrine we were staying at was hidden deep at the top of the mountain. Therefore, we rarely got visitors. Maybe an elderly couple here and there would visit and make an offering to the Shrine God.

For being so remote and with such a small pool of worshippers, the place was surprisingly well kept and maintained.

Must be some sort of safehouse for Asami, because Michihiro-san seemed to have a large amount of respect for him.

Akihito was making some sort of fuss about having to broom all day, but I'm used to staying indoors and hidden away when keeping a low profile.

Being on the opposite end of the law, but using it to take down terrorist cells while remaining anonymous was both hard and annoying as hell.

I had to run from both sides, the shady area and those from the government. It was crazy that most didn't know how deep the pockets of organized crime and terrorist organizations ran.

Police officers, government officials, and judges are all in their pockets. Some people kick up a fuss about America's President but he's just a dickhead with too much time and money on his hands. Not even worth paying attention to. That's why there's a handy concept called natural selection that applies to those who actually listen to him.

It is people who are able to hide their intentions and keep their secrets behind closed doors that are the ones we should truly be concerned about.

Not everyone in this world is like Asami, the lynchpin in the underground world of organized crime and drugs. But despite his… business… he does not condone human trafficking. Those who worked hard and played by his rules were rewarded. He has his code of ethics. He keeps Japan under a tight leash and is able to influence the workings of other countries with his connections.

There isn't anyone like that in my world as far as I'm aware.

On the surface, it seems organized and hidden away from the public.

But once you dig deeper, deep enough to mine diamonds, you'll see the truth. The ugly truth of humanity and their greed.

From the terrors in the Middle East, where thousands of innocent men, women, and children are caught in the cross fires of border disputes and anti-government factions. North Korea who has degraded their people and allowed them to starve so the top brass can live comfortably and in complete power. To the child soldiers of the Congo, who are brainwashed to believe that their brooms and thin clothing are bulletproof armor, then sent to the front lines. Those who are hit by bullets and killed are the ones who "doubted" the magic. I was also investigating this interesting Japanese City that had something called "Kings" involved.

I was in the middle of a project when I suddenly came here. w1NG2 was working on decoding the secrets of the newfound organization called jungle.

The issue isn't about surviving in this world, it's figuring out how I got here in the first place. I need to go back and finish that project.

This world isn't one with magic or supernatural powers (unless you count the good looks of every male lead as a superpower). The only thing that I've noticed is the sparrow tattoo that showed up.

I've never gotten a tattoo, too risky. It can be used to ID me and is hard to cover up. Although I mostly work from home, I do have to make connections here and there so it's best to be able to blend into the crowd.

I dropped my bag so I had lost all my precious materials I kept in there.

However, the secret compartment in my shoes with lock picking tools and other necessities were stored safely.

The only other thing that came with me was my watch and the sparrow charm Rei gave me. And the weird sparrow tattoo that had suddenly appeared on my shoulder.

It appeared as if the sparrow had just taken flight; its wings were spread open to catch the wind and its feet were still untucked. The bird's body has a beautiful and intricate geometric pattern that continues onto its wings. The thirteen feathers on each wing seemed to catch the light as if they were real.

Which couldn't be possible. According to the laws of this universe, whose genre is yaoi, action, drama, and mature, there really should not be a fantasy component. Which is why I'm dumbfounded about my appearance here.