A/N: This was just a little something that popped into my mind when I read a similar fic only it was SasuNaru (title is Convention Love which is cute and has a lemon :D). So I was like... what if Tsuna and the others did the same? Of course, it has to be in a different universe because none of the awesomely hot guys would ever cosplay canon-wise, especially with Haru on the loose…

Warning: Yaoi, implied pairings, implied lemons, meddling with the charry ages, and the ever infamous OOC.

Disclaimer: I'll keep this simple enough to understand… I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn or any of the anime/manga, games, and song/s mentioned in this story.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Tsuna's first cosplay experience was way back when he was seventeen. Sure he was a bit late jumping into the bandwagon, but he never regretted joining. On that day, he, along with the rest of his class, had to cosplay for their class booth at Namimori High's School Festival. He cosplayed Yugi Motou while his classmates cosplayed other characters from the same series and they put on a show for the whole school by dueling each other like in the anime. They were a hit at the school festival and Tsuna had miraculously found his passion.

After that memorable cosplay, Tsuna asked his mom to teach him how to sew. It took a lot of practice, perseverance, and band-aids on his fingers, but Tsuna eventually got the hang of sewing, both manually and with a sewing machine. He was pretty good at it too and many might find it difficult to think that the boy who has been dubbed as "Dame-Tsuna" was such an excellent seamstress even though he was bad at everything else.

Shortly after finding his passion in sewing and cosplaying, Tsuna caught wind of an anime convention being held in his hometown. He jumped at the chance to cosplay again but didn't want to show his skill in making costumes just yet. He wanted to get the feel of cosplaying in a real anime convention before anything else, so with little convincing from his parents, Tsuna donned his Yugi Motou costume once again and the family of three made their way to the mall where the convention was taking place.

To say the least, Tsuna was absolutely overwhelmed with all the cosplayers and otakus (whether they be anime or not) that roamed the convention center. He recognized many characters from animes he had watched and even more that he has never heard of. There were so many booths to stop by and many contests to enter in. The music was great too with underground bands playing the songs to their favorite anime, some which Tsuna recognized. He was even stopped by fans who wanted to take pictures of him! It was a more then enjoyable experience and when the individual cosplay competition came, Tsuna became both excited and nervous.

He waited backstage with the other cosplayers, tapping his foot on the ground and biting his lip as he waited for his turn (he received the number 27). His parents weren't allowed backstage, so he was alone for the moment. But it wasn't all that bad. The other cosplayers noticed his nervousness and were kind enough to offer him some advice to help quell the stage-fright. He was grateful to them and was glad that he was able to make friends that didn't just judge him for his clumsiness.

That was when Tsuna met him.

It was a clichéd meeting of all things. Tsuna had been laughing around with some other cosplayers and he took a step back for no reason other than his jittery nerves. Because of that movement, he accidently bumped into someone and the smile fell from his face as he spun around to apologize.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" he said but then his mouth snapped shut when he got a good look at the one he bumped into.

He was a tall youth (taller than Tsuna at least) who had midnight black hair mused up to look like he had just jumped out of bed, pale skin, and dark circles around his eyes that made him look like an insomniac, but considering the wrinkled white sweatshirt and blue jeans he had on, it was part of his costume. Tsuna had to give the boy props for making the eye bags look so natural. He almost looked like L himself!

"S-Sorry…" Tsuna muttered again, still staring at the taller boy for some reason.

"Hn…" was what the taller boy said before turning towards the entrance to the catwalk. Tsuna stared after him, almost in awe.

"Wow, that guy looked hot," said one of his newfound cosplay buddies, a girl who was cosplaying as Saya Mitsuki.

"I hear that," said another girl who wasn't cosplaying as anyone but wore a gothic lolita costume.

"You two say that to every guy you see," said one male cosplaying Harry Potter.

As the girls argued with the guy, Tsuna left them for a moment to watch the L cosplayer walk down the catwalk to the mic that was standing at the end. He noticed that this L was holding a bag of potato chips (something that he didn't notice before) as he slouched down the catwalk and once he got to the mic stand, he just stood there, sweeping his eyes over the audience while munching on the chips, gripping the bag with two fingers and doing the same with each chip. Everyone stared at him with baited breath, the speakers void of music (it was optional that the cosplayers had background music as they introduced themselves). But before the time limit was over, the L cosplayer leaned into the mic and said "L desu," in a clear and monotone voice which caused a roar of cheers and squeals from the audience.

"And that was cosplayer number 18!" the MC said, shaking herself from her state of awe at the cosplayer.

Tsuna did the same. For some reason, he felt an instant attraction to this cosplayer. He didn't know why, he just did. But he was too timid to approach the cosplayer and talk to him. That cosplayer seemed too cold, though Tsuna still wanted to get to know him.

And that was how it started.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Tsuna didn't win the cosplay competition and nor did the L cosplayer he had grown an instant attraction to. But he did feel proud of his performance as Yugi (where he whipped out a Dark Magician card and "summoned" it). His mother and father praised him for his courage and they supported him with his newfound hobby.

But still, Tsuna was disappointed that he wasn't able to see that L cosplayer again.

In the next few months, Tsuna had grown more addicted to cosplaying. He kept in contact with the friends that he made at the convention and was pleasantly surprised to find out they were about the same age. And even though they all went to different schools and had other friends, they found time to spend together as well. With the influences of his new friends, Tsuna got sucked deeper into the world of anime, manga, and games and he began to watch TV more often, read manga more often, and play games more often. Though sometimes Tsuna thought that maybe the life of an otaku wasn't very healthy, he was happy for the first time in a long while and he was content with that.

When he found out that there was another anime convention coming, he convinced his group of cosplaying friends to enter in the group cosplay competition. They all agreed of course and they all insisted that Tsuna was to be the main protagonist of the series they were cosplaying as. Surprisingly, Tsuna agreed, excited at the new chance to cosplay and in a group this time! It was going to fun, but they were going to have to practice for their performance as well as work on their costumes.

Weeks passed and the convention came. Tsuna's group was christened Vongola X because they found out that Tsuna's great-great-great-grandfather was a man named Giotto Vongola and they thought that the surname sounded cool (imagine their surprise when they found out that vongola was actually Italian for clam). The X was stuck there because it sounded cool as well.

At the convention center, they were stopped many times for a photo shoot because of their accurate costumes and character portrayal. Tsuna was cosplaying as a third season Aang, complete with a "tattooed" head covering to give the illusion of being "bald" as well as arrow tattoos running down his arms, legs, and back. Kyoko (a very sweet and soft-spoken girl) was a third season Katara and her best friend Haru (a really energetic and slightly eccentric girl) was cosplaying Toph in battle gear. Takeshi (a slightly airheaded baseball star) was cosplaying Sokka, also in battle gear, while Hayato (a hot-headed half-Japanese boy) cosplayed a third season Zuko. To finish off the group were the more veteran cosplayers, Lambo and I-Pin (a couple who were complete opposites of each other and were a year older then the others) both of whom smoothly portrayed Jet and Ty Lee respectively.

And even though they were all praised for their costumes, the credit for the clothes was mostly given to Kyoko, Haru, and Tsuna who worked together on them. The credit for the props and other accessories were given to Hayato and Lambo, skilled in their craft of making swords, staffs, hats, gloves, shoes, and others. A lot of money and effort went into their costumes as well and thank goodness for Hayato and Lambo who seemed to have money trees growing in their backyard.

After the cosplay parade (where people outside of the convention got to gawk at their costumes) the individual cosplay competition started. Tsuna decided to watch the proceedings and his eyes lit up at the skillfully made costumes (thought admittedly, not all of them were very good).

Minutes later, as Tsuna finished snapping away pictures of the seventeenth cosplayer, the MC spoke up.

"And now we have number 18!" he said and the crowd clapped and cheered. Tsuna nearly dropped his camera at who stepped onto the stage.

It was him! It was the L cosplayer! Tsuna could tell, even though the costume and character was different, he was sure that was the cosplayer he bumped into at his first convention.

This time, Number 18 was wearing a blue coat with swallow tails, black pants and black shoes. He wore a wig with long black hair that was tied back in a ponytail and had a couple strands falling over his face. At his side he held an intricately designed silver cello case, and his abnormally large right hand was wrapped in bandages. Tsuna didn't recognize the character, but the costume looked superb as well as the cello case that was vaguely coffin-shaped.

Number 18 calmly walked up to the mic, eyeing the audience as well as the judges. Once at his destination, he gently placed the cello case at his feet and brought his right hand up to his mouth. Teeth peeked out from behind a pair of pale pink lips and they snagged on the bandage material, pulling it away and letting it unravel the slightly grotesque-looking hand hidden behind the wrappings. It was red, clawed, and rather leathery, like it was the hide of an animal. The audience began to murmur amongst themselves and there were flashes of light as they took pictures of Number 18.

Tsuna was too transfixed on the skilled cosplayer to remember to take pictures. He couldn't even remember what the cosplayer said in that deep, almost baritone voice he had. But he snapped out of his stupor when the audience cheered as Number 18 left the stage and at the same time, Tsuna felt a tap on his shoulder. Turning around, he saw that it was Hayato.

"Tsuna, we're going to have a last minute practice," the Zuko imitator said into his ear since it was so noisy around them.

"Oh, all right," Tsuna said back and he followed Hayato through the crowd, though he glanced back at the stage where Number 18 was previously standing.

The last minute practice Vongola X had was enough to take Tsuna's mind off of Number 18. And once it was time for the group cosplay competition, he practically forgot about the boy as they strutted around the stage, giving their character introductions and performing their martial arts routine to the song "Eye of the Tiger" (which really riled up the crowd). In the end, they managed to win third place in the group cosplay division and Tsuna was pleasantly surprised to see that Number 18 had won second place in the individual cosplay division.

Too bad that Tsuna still wasn't able to meet Number 18 face-to-face.

~*~*~*~*~*~

In the following months, Vongola X had become a tight group of friends. Soon, college was around the corner (though Lambo and I-Pin were already in college) and the younger members all decided that they were going to the same university as their senpais. That meant that were all going to Namimori University and when their freshman year rolled in, imagine how surprised Takeshi, Hayato, Kyoko, Haru, and Tsuna were when they found that they had many classes together. That only meant more time to hang out and plan their next cosplay escapades.

At Tsuna's first cosplay event as a college student, he decided to go casual and not join any competitions. He along with Takeshi and Hayato (the others were busy) went to a game convention and they donned Final Fantasy VII costumes, Advent Children style. Tsuna was Cloud Strife complete with a blond wig and a skillfully made First Tsurugi (Hayato was practically a pro in props making). Takeshi went simple with a black suit, red wig, and a gun-like baton since he was cosplaying Reno and Hayato was a little more extravagant with black leather garments, a long and ragged red coat, a gold gauntlet, a long black wig, and a pistol, cosplaying as Vincent Valentine. Needless to say, they were stopped many times for pictures and Tsuna was riled up even more times because people kept on saying that he was the shortest Cloud Strife they've seen in their life (which was exaggerated because there were plenty of elementary kids cosplaying the former SOLDIER, albeit with more simple costumes).

Tsuna and Hayato watched as Takeshi joined the Dance Dance Revolution contest and they were wowed at how great a DDR player (and dancer) the baseball star was. Takeshi won second place in that contest while Hayato nabbed the top spot in the Tekken Iron Fist Tournament. Tsuna didn't join any contests, but he had fun watching his friends join and win.

After the contests, they rested in the maid café where the maids flirted a bit with them and complimented their outfits. Hayato thought the maid café was stupid, but Tsuna and Takeshi had fun and the food was admittedly great too.

Soon it was time for the cosplay competition and the three friends were lucky enough to find seats near the stage. Hayato scoffed at the crudely made props most of the competitors donned but was awed at a skillfully made Hyourinmaru atop a Hitsugaya Toushiro cosplayer and Takeshi cheered along with the audience. Tsuna was snapping away pictures for his blog (something that Haru had gotten him into) and as the eighteenth cosplayer came closer and closer, Tsuna found his stomach clenching in anticipation.

Could it possibly happen for a third time? Could the same cosplayer he had seen months ago with the same number of eighteen here as well? It seemed impossible, but Tsuna couldn't help but pray to the Gods that it was going to be the same cosplayer.

The three friend's jaws dropped when Sephiroth stepped onto the stage accompanied with the appropriate background music from Advent Children. And this costume was just as great as the last one Tsuna saw him in. With long silvery hair flowing behind him, leather adorning his entire body, a pale chest exposed from the opening of the long coat, and a six foot long Masamune in his hand, Number 18 strode down the catwalk, looking haughty and smirking just right with that little gleam of evil in his eyes. There were flashes of light as cameras went off and cheers erupted from random spectators. Sephiroth raised Masamune and slashed through the air with it, earning more cheers from the crowd, and then, Tsuna's eyes went wide when the tip of Masamune's blade was pointed to him.

"It's been a while, Cloud," Sephiroth said into the mic. Those around the three FFVII cosplaying friends were grinning so wide that their faces might've split in two and there were more fan screams. Tsuna shook himself from his shocked state and forced himself into character, glaring at Sephiroth and reaching around to grip the hilt of First Tsurugi. Sephiroth only smirked at him while withdrawing Masamune and turning to speak to the crowd.

"Wow, that's so cool with him taking notice of your costume and you playing along with it," Takeshi commented with a grin.

Falling out of character, Tsuna only nodded as he watched Number 18 get on with his performance. It was the third time he saw Number 18. Was this Fate telling him something? This might be his last chance to actually go up and talk to this exceptional cosplayer!

Hours later, after the awards were given (Number 18 won second place with the Hitsugaya Toushiro cosplayer coming in first) and the convention was wrapping up, Tsuna finally convinced his self to go find Number 18 and actually talk to him. Still clad in his Cloud costume, Tsuna made his way to the dressing room, smiling at the other cosplayers who were just leaving. He looked around the rather cramped dressing room (which was actually just a corner of the convention hall blocked off with curtains for privacy) and he found Number 18 in a corner, packing up his things. Tsuna wanted to go up to him, but he found his legs unable to move. He was completely nervous and his heart was banging against his chest like it wanted to be free! His whole body was shaking (however minutely) and he couldn't really find his voice. Fortunately (or maybe, unfortunately) Number 18 had just hefted his bag over his shoulder and turned around, stopping when he saw Tsuna standing near him.

"May I help you?" Number 18 said in his deep voice that was void of emotions.

Tsuna jumped, feeling even more nervous, but he mentally slapped (and kicked… and punched…) himself in an attempt to shake his self out of his daze.

"A-Ano," he started, fidgeting in his place. "I-I just wanted to say… th-that I thought y-your costume… was r-really cool and… y-you really surprised me when you talked to me and stuff…"

Tsuna's face was red and he was staring at the floor, fiddling with his fingers in nervousness. Suddenly, he was regretting coming up to Number 18 to talk to him. He was feeling like a complete idiot with all his stuttering and fidgeting.

Silence dominated the air between the two of them. If possible, Tsuna felt his face grow redder and now his wish was to have the ground beneath his feet open up and swallow him whole. Deciding that now was the best time to make his exit, Tsuna opened his mouth to excuse himself but stopped short when a voice spoke up.

"Yugi Motou."

Tsuna looked up at Number 18 with a confused expression. "Huh?"

"You were Yugi Motou, the one who bumped into me in that one convention," said Number 18, a hand reaching up to brush the silver bangs out of his eyes. He had kept his wig on, possibly to avoid any entanglements that might happen if it was wrapped up in a bag.

"Uh, yeah, that was me," Tsuna said, his heart jumping up to his throat when he realized that Number 18 recognized him. "H-How did you recognize me?"

"Probably the same way you recognized me." Tsuna blushed again and he looked around to avoid looking at the other. "You were also in that other convention with that Avatar group; Vongola X was it?"

Tsuna nodded. "Yes. Your costume there was great too but I didn't recognize the character."

Number 18 looked at Tsuna in disbelief. "I was cosplaying Haji from Blood Plus. It's a hit anime."

"Oh, I guess I missed that one."

Another moment of silence hung between the two and Tsuna was increasingly feeling awkward. He wanted to talk to Number 18 longer and maybe even make friends with him, but the air around the taller boy was rather unapproachable. It was like he didn't want to be talking to people, let alone Tsuna who was as timid as rabbit when not in character.

There was a rustling and Tsuna looked up to see Number 18 taking out a small notebook and pen from his bag. He then scribbled something on a blank page before tearing it out and handing it to Tsuna.

"I'll see you around," he said as Tsuna took the piece of paper. His face was a blank as far as Tsuna could tell but he gave the shorter boy a little wave as he left the dressing room. Tsuna nodded his goodbye, turning around to watch Number 18 leave the dressing room and he looked down in his hands, scrutinizing the piece of paper he held.

Written on it in neat handwriting was a website account and URL. Tsuna felt like fainting right then and there.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Tsuna stared at his computer screen, hesitating on what he was about to do. He had just gotten home from the game convention and after changing out of his costume and placing it neatly in his closet he settled down in front of his computer and opened the internet explorer. He realized that the website that Number 18 frequented to was a cosplay website that Tsuna wasn't aware of, but seemed popular. It also seemed that Number 18 was popular on the website as well, seeing that he was a moderator who went by the name of DriftingCloudofSolitude.

He clicked on Number 18's profile and read through it. There wasn't much to read though: name DriftingCloudofSolitude, age 19, location unknown (exact words were "wouldn't you like to know?"), hobbies "many, which includes cosplaying", interests "many", motto "annoy me and I will bite you to death" (which didn't make much sense to Tsuna) and et cetera. The profile picture was of a lone cloud in a blue sky and Tsuna thought it was both appropriate and a bit sad.

He was nervous in contacting Number 18, but the older boy wouldn't give Tsuna his email if he didn't want to talk, right? So, summoning up his courage, Tsuna signed up into the website. He went through the standard procedure and after confirming his account he logged on and went about fixing up his profile.

Half an hour later, Tsuna was satisfied with his profile: name EmbracingSky, age 17, location Namimori, hobbies cosplaying (among other things), interests were many, motto "do everything with your dying will!" and more. His profile picture was recent picture of him, simple and to the point. Once he was done, Tsuna returned to DriftingCloudofSolitude's profile and opened a private chat box.

It was now or never. He typed something down and pushed the enter button, wanting to get it over with like ripping off a band-aid from a particularly deep cut.

EmbracingSky: Hello :D

He wasn't even sure if Number 18 was online. Might as well wait it out and…

DriftingCloudofSolitude: I was waiting for you.

Or not. Tsuna gulped and his heart was pounding hard against his chest as he typed back.

EmbracingSky: You were? O.o

DriftingCloudofSolitude: Yes. Is that so strange?

EmbracingSky: Well, yes… you don't seem like the sociable type.

DriftingCloudofSolitude: No, I'm not.

EmbracingSky: Then why did you talk to me back at the convention?

EmbracingSky: You could've just walked away, seeing that you're the type…

DriftingCloudofSolitude: *shrug* You intrigue me.

EmbracingSky: Eh? Why?

DriftingCloudofSolitude: I don't know. You just do…

And so their conversation stretched on. They didn't really talk much about anything personal. They mostly talked about cosplay (DriftingCloudofSolitude: Do you make your own costumes? / EmbracingSky: Yes, with help from my friends of course. / DriftingCloudofSolitude: Hm, they're very well-made) and anime and such. Tsuna found it relaxing to talk to Number 18, at least online. He didn't have to look at that indifferent face and fidget and feel conscious of what he looked or said. He can express himself freely on the internet for even the most expressive words held little emotion on paper, or in Tsuna's case, on web pages. He felt totally free.

Their relationship stretched on for days, which turned into weeks, and then months. Tsuna found that Cloud (a new name for Number 18) was only ever online at night, though he was too timid to ask as to why. Some nights though, he would be absent and Tsuna would be disappointed but he never voiced it out. Cloud's personality was a mystery to Tsuna though. He seemed kind to an extent but tended to insult people and belittles them (seen whenever they were on the public forums), which unnerved Tsuna a bit. When that happens, he always pacified the older teen which usually earned him an "Hn, herbivore," but thankfully put him out of the line of fire.

The other website members told Tsuna that Cloud used to be much worse. He actually used to threaten the members who annoyed him too much or were deemed very stupid, which happened often. The members tried to ban Cloud many times, but apparently the older teen was friends with the administrator and therefore, would never be banned. But when Tsuna arrived, he certainly mellowed down. It seemed that the members rejoiced greatly for his arrival.

Tsuna blushed when he realized that he actually influenced the usually scary Cloud (or so he heard).

One day at school, while Tsuna was in the computer lab researching for homework, he decided to check the website to see if Cloud was online. Of course, he wasn't online but Tsuna did receive a personal message from him. He quickly opened it, his heart banging while he wondered what the other sent him, and his poor heart nearly stopped when he read the five words that made up the message.

DriftingCloudofSolitude: Give me you cellphone number.

Tsuna's hands froze over the keyboard. He didn't know the older teen much and he didn't received much personal information online, but now, Cloud was actually asking for his number! It was a transition from their previous (practically nonexistent) relationship. Everyone knows that exchanging numbers only meant one thing; the other wanted to be closer.

A lump suddenly formed in Tsuna's throat and heat rose to his face. Should he or shouldn't he? Sure he had an attraction to the cosplayer, but what if he wasn't like Tsuna thought? What if he really was a crazy psycho killer who only went to conventions to find his next victim? Of course, the newspaper never showed anything about a cosplaying killer, but it's a possibility right? He could be dangerous for all Tsuna knew since on the internet, not everyone is completely honest (just like in real life… huh, ironic).

Well, isn't life about making choices and taking risks? Tsuna already broke out of his no-good comfort zone by becoming a cosplayer! Why not give his cellphone number to a complete stranger and see what happens for the lulz?

Gulping thickly, Tsuna quickly typed down his cellphone number and clicked the send button before he changed his mind. Once the deed was done, Tsuna couldn't believe what he just did. But seeing that he was going to have to wait for a while for Cloud to answer, he gathered his things and left the computer lab, trying to quell the frantic beats of his heart. He checked his watch and saw that it was almost lunchtime. He needed a distraction, so he headed for the cafeteria, knowing that his friends will be there, and sure enough he saw the group messing around at their usual table.

"Tsuna-san, I got you your food!" Haru exclaimed as Tsuna took his usual seat at the end of the table. A plate of yakisoba was shoved in front of the boy and he smiled at Haru.

"Thanks Haru, I'll pay you back," he said but Haru shook her head.

"There's no need Tsuna-san! We're all friends here right?"

Tsuna smiled even more brightly and he snapped his chopsticks apart before eating his meal. His friends proved a great distraction as he was engaged in a couple conversations and half an hour passed by when Tsuna's cellphone began ringing. The boy reached into his pocket and took out the vibrating device, checking the screen for caller ID.

It was an unknown number. Tsuna looked at his cellphone in confusion. It could be a wrong number, but he considered it rude to just ignore a call. He clicked the call button and placed the phone to his ear.

"Moshi moshi?" he said.

"Yugi Motou?" said a smooth, deep voice and Tsuna's heart began banging against his chest once more when he recognized who it was.

"C-Cloud?!" Tsuna said loud enough for his friends to whip their heads around to look at him.

A short and deep chuckle entered Tsuna's ear and the boy's face became red. Damn, what a sexy laugh.

"Yes, it's me," said Cloud. "Thank you for trusting me with your number. I hope you don't think I'm a crazy psycho killer who only goes to conventions to find my next victim or something like that."

Shame and embarrassment seeped into Tsuna. "Eh… uh… actually, I did think that," he admitted sheepishly. "I hope you're not mad or anything."

"No, you have every right to think that of me. But if it's not too much to ask, I'd like to meet again."

Tsuna's mouth fell open at that. Him and Cloud meet again? They haven't known each other for long, but the thought of meeting again made Tsuna… happy. Hell, he was more than happy; he was completely ecstatic about the idea!

"N-No, it's all right! I-I'd also like to meet again!" Tsuna all but yelled into his cellphone. Unknown to him, Cloud jumped a bit at his voice and even Tsuna's friends looked surprised.

"All right," Cloud said, sounding amused. "There's a three-day convention in Tokyo two weeks from now. I'd like for us to meet there."

Tsuna's face fell. He still had to wait two weeks to meet Cloud again? "O-Okay, I'll see you there I guess."

"Hn, I'll be waiting."

And their conversation ended.

~*~*~*~*~*~

A/N: This is a very late Valentine's Day fic, but you know what they say; better late then never. And this was supposed to be a short oneshot, but the concept kept on manifesting in my mind and it just grew so much that I decided to cut it a bit before it turns into a longshot.

The next installment will be posted in a day or so. Hope you guys had a Happy Single Awareness Day a.k.a. Valentine's Day! XD