facts for the story:
1. this is the third installment to my convention series. it follows behind Convention and Dear Love, This Means War.
2. it can be read separately or it can be read after Convention, skipping Dear Love all together. that depends on you guys, as the readers, and your curiosity to see what happened in the other two stories. it honestly makes no difference to me.
3. the title came from needing something to signify this being the second convention they attend and the line 'round two, fight!' in mortal kombat. i figured it works considering the location of the story.
4. i do not hate or dislike any of the shows, series, characters, or fandoms named throughout this story. sorry if i knock one you love.

warnings that i'll only day once: UNDERAGE DRINKING (caps are necessary as i must emphasis this). possible drug use. homophobic slurs. boy love. language. out of character. drama.

enjoy... or don't, it's totally cool.

mood music - dragonborn, headhunterz.

Home made weapons, skimpy bunny suits with high heels, and people coated with layers of body paint occupied the line that stretched from the convention center, out the door, and around the corner of the building. He knew most of the outfits purely based on how popular the character was and that frightened him. It was no wonder that it was a relief when, among the overdone costumes, he spotted several gems that were waiting to be recognized, appreciated for being different, and ready to pose for the camera. Those people were the ones he liked the most.

For every Cloud he saw (with and without his sword) there was someone portraying a part of his childhood. An old school power ranger, Loonette without her big comfy couch, and a few lazily done ninja turtles wearing green shorts, masks made out of ripped t-shirts, and pullover hoodies with a shell sewn sloppily on back. While he couldn't be caught dead dressing up outside the majority, he had to give them credit where it was due.

For each Haruhi (or any female character) in a bunny suit there was someone running around from newer shows; ones that had taken the anime world by storm. There was a nicely executed Levi and Eren being followed by a colossal titan, or a group of guys with chiseled (and drawn on) abs wearing nothing more than tight swimming briefs. In all honesty, though, he couldn't blame them for their lack of clothing because the temperature was steadily rising. It wasn't his cup of tea, but to each their own. He gave them mad props for being ballsy enough. More so when they looked absolutely amazing and damn near fuckable.

For each and every Homestuck costume there was another. One Feferi always looked better than the last - the face paint was smeared, the colors on the skirt were brighter, and the horns weren't falling off. This group did better than that group, trying to one up each other until one caved and admitted defeat. It was an endless cycle of cosplay hierarchy and betas, and he honestly didn't understand.

Who knew cosplay was such serious business? He sure as hell didn't.

Gone were the days when people didn't pick at costumes for lacking, or not fitting a body type, or being store bought. Gone were the days when he could sit and be completely entertained by hundreds of Naruto cosplayers ganging up on the one Sasuke - glomping them, or propositioning fan service for popularity, or spouting off some random nonsense about an obviously nonexistent cosplaying Itachi. There were no longer many different variations of Sailor Moon shouting 'moon tiara magic!' or crying 'in the name of the moon' each time they posed for a picture.

Hell, even a decently done Mario was a rare sight. Rave Jesus was becoming popular (probably due to the simplicity), and Italy or Germany, or whomever the hell he saw outside were still just as big as they had been two years ago. He never did learn the countries or care to remember what they looked like. That show was a complete loss when it came to him.

He'd been out of the scene far too long and he had plans to stop being so out of touch, though he was probably lying to himself. Conventions didn't seem like his thing anymore. If they ever were in the first place.

"Holy shit!" someone shouted behind him, causing him to turn around with one eyebrow raised.

"Dude, this line is fucking horrible!" another person said to their friend as they tried to cut into the entrance line. Of course, the cardboard box Optimus Prime was having none of that as he shoved their whining asses out of the way.

"I need another drink," a person beside him muttered to anyone willing to listen as they fought their way through the sky walk connecting one building of the convention center to the one directly beside it. By the time he finally got to where he was going he figured that he was going to need one as well, despite the fact that he couldn't legally acquire the substance. That's what room parties for, he told himself as an almost naked character from some show he didn't know felt up on his ass.

He honestly hoped that he could get through this (the sky walk and weekend) alive and in one piece.

Get it? One piece? No? He didn't either.

In total, he spent a good thirty minutes walking the length of standard house hall, only to find out that the people he was supposed met up with decided to go back to their room to cool down, figure out their plans for the weekend, and escape all the craziness. Hell, he had a right mind to stalk back to his hotel room and chill for the remainder of the weekend, but he quickly decided against it since he'd already spent fifty bucks on the three day badge and waited in ninety-hot-as-all-fuck-six degrees for two hours at seven in the morning when the doors didn't even open until nine. To say that he was aggravated at their lack of concern for his well being and because they didn't bother to tell him before he entered the sky walk from hell was an understatement.

He was aggravated, frustrated, hot as all get out, and ready to tear his hair out one strand at a time. And that was saying a lot, because he really liked his hair.

What he didn't like was that there was close to twenty thousand people standing around and making it harder for him to get to his new destination. They were in front of doors, sitting on the floor for people to trip over, and just getting on his nerves. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been so annoyed.

This shit really wasn't for him. What had he been thinking when he decided it would be a good idea? Obviously, that it was a good idea.

"Oh my God!" a cheerful shriek came from the bathroom as he entered the single room.

Misa was the first to slam into him, her arms wrapping around his body as she squealed over how much he'd changed and how he didn't look like the person he used to be. He didn't think that he'd changed that much. Okay, so he got taller and more muscular, but that was to be expect. He returned the hug with less enthusiasm before letting her go so that he could shut the door behind him. Misa wasted no time in grasping his wrist and jerking him into the large part of the room.

"Mello," Near said with a nod, his posture still the same as it had been years before, though he'd grown quite a bit. He actually looked more his age and less like a ten year old.

"Mello, hey! I missed you!" Sayu exclaimed as she shot up from her spot on the bed, nearly jumping the gap between where she'd been and Mello's location.

"Hey," he said as he slid his arms around her waist, hugging her tightly. He'd be lying if he said that she hadn't changed. In fact, if he wasn't still (desperately) in love with his old flame and the main reason for being there in the first place, he would've told her that she'd become very attractive and that he'd be interested in trying them out again. Only, this time for real. His grip tightened around her as he leaned down to whisper that he missed her as well.

"How have you been?" she asked, tilting her head back to look up at him.

"Same old," he said, beating around actually having to answer her. "What about you guys?"

"Can't exactly say the same." Near responded in that same bored tone he used back in high school.

"Misa has been awesome!" Misa answered him as she dug through one of her bags in the corner, flinging pieces of clothing onto the floor. From the looks of it, she was trying to find a particular outfit. She was going to join the masses and blend in with the crowd, he assumed, if the lolita dress she carelessly tossed down said anything. At least this time the dress actually had color and was nothing like the goth style she used to wear.

"I've been good," Sayu chimed in with the only normal response. Normal by his standards, anyway. It wasn't his fault that he'd been surrounded by people that weren't as weird as his friends were. Honestly speaking, they would probably take some getting used to, but he was sure that after the first day he'd stop feeling awkward and out of place.

He hoped.

Misa continued to chatter about nothing as Near toyed with his laptop, fixing the screen resolution as he hooked up the hdmi cable to the television so that he could play music at a much louder volume than was needed. When question why he wanted it to be so loud, Near simply stated that it was customary to play loud music when they pulled out their bottles later that night. Mello was sure that somewhere in his explanation that Near was hinting for him to loosen up and join in.

Sayu flipped through the schedule book, using a pink highlighter to circle the panels that caught her interest and using a green one to circle the panels and events that they'd be doing as a group. If she had to go solo on a few things, she didn't mind. Mello would probably stick with her the majority of the time anyway.

He had no idea how much time they spent in the room before Sayu announced that she was going back down to the convention, extending the invitation to the other three in the room. Mello was the only one who agreed, hoping to get some alone time with her so that he could pry into the lives of all the people he left behind - namely Matt, who he'd been dying to see since he drove up from home the day before.

"So, how's everyone else?" Mello asked.

"Light came around to L about a month after you left. They've been attached at the hip since and I don't see their strange relationship ending any time soon," she said while pushing the buttons on the wall to signal an elevator. She played with the straps of the Ryo-Ohki backpack she bought online a few months back. "And, uh... I met someone, but... eh, that didn't last very long. We had our differences and he was really weird." Sayu laughed a memory that Mello knew nothing about, and no matter how much she tried to explain it to him, he couldn't find the humor in it. It was one of those 'you had to be there' kind of things.

"I know that's not what you want to hear, Mello." Sayu offered as they entered the elevator. "I mean, I don't blame you. Shit happened and you want to know how he's been."

"Mm," he nodded. He couldn't deny that he was more interested in hearing about Matt's life over the past two years than he was about anyone else's life.

"He's been okay," she started. "He's gotten a lot better."

"Better?" Mello asked, cocking an eyebrow and looking down at her.

"Yeah, better. Mello, I'm not gonna lie. He was a complete wreck when you left. He disappeared for a couple days and if L hadn't known where to look... well, there's no telling what would've happened to him. He was so distraught, Mel." Sayu explained as vaguely as she could. Mello knew that she wanted to say more, but he didn't press the issue.

"I'm sorry," Mello muttered, looking at his hands as he played with the badge that was dangling from a belt loop.

"Why? You didn't do anything."

"I left," he said. "If I hadn't left..."

"Mello, what happened couldn't be helped. Plus, it's in the past." Sayu told him as she scooted closer to him when they stopped several floors down to let more convention goers on. She tucked herself against his side, watching the hotel lobby beneath them through the glass wall of the elevator.

As they exited the elevator on the second floor (because the connecting outdoor sky walk was much easier than walking a block to the convention), Sayu pulled Mello over to the balcony. Her eyes scanned the open lobby before she found who she was looking for. She hoped that she wouldn't regret pointing him out.

"I want you to pay attention and look at everyone, okay?"

"Why?" Mello asked, turning to look at her. "What am I looking for?"

"Not what, who."

Mello blinked in confusion before diverting his gaze back to the lobby two floors below them. The first thing he saw was a bar off to the side on the second floor and he wished that he was old enough to ask for a drink. It was after several long minutes of watching people come into the hotel, or leave through the revolving doors, that he finally found him. How he hadn't noticed him the minute he'd been shoved into the short balcony wall was beyond him, but hey, it was whatever.

"That's him?" Mello questioned, blue eyes widening as Sayu confirmed that it was, indeed, Matt. "What's he doing down there?"

"He's going out with some friends; told me he'd join back up with us for dinner and drinks around six or so," she told him. Mello really wanted to ask where the drinks were because he wanted one. Or five. Just enough to get him through the weekend.

"Is that so," he mused.

Mello watched as Matt rose from the chair to lazily wave at a group of people that were walking his way and slip his phone into his back pocket. Even with the distance between them, the blond could clearly tell that Matt had grown taller and that all of his baby fat disappeared. Matt was skinnier than he used to be, but the way the sleeves of his Zelda shirt tightened over his upper arms meant that he was still working out. His shoulders were broader and he walked with more confidence as he pushed his still shaggy hair from his eyes. The one little action nearly had Mello wanting to jizz in his pants then and there, but he had to keep from doing so. He didn't want to spend the rest of the day in sticky boxers.

"He doesn't know that you're here." Sayu spoke, breaking through his train of thought.

"Oh?"

"We didn't tell him you were coming. Hell, I didn't tell anyone that you were going to be here because I was afraid they'd tell him," she said, gripping his wrist with one hand as she softly added, "I was afraid that he wouldn't come if he knew you would be here."

"That makes sense," he said. Mello wasn't sure that he'd want to be around the person that broke his heart without saying a word. It had been more than two years, and while he was still deeply in love with the redhead, he couldn't say that he blamed Matt for moving on. If he had.

If he hadn't, well... then getting him back would be easier than anticipated.

this is going to be around 10-12 chapters long. i'm splitting up the days into chapters so that they can do more. i hope this is okay with you guys.

review, please. thank you.

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