Cost of a Cosplayer

Authors Notes: Some inspiration has been taken from the convention branches of Sexual Privilege and The Rulebook, but I am definitely taking things in my own direction.

There are a few places where you can have weird continuity jumps if you don't have Game Mode on, so I'd recommend turning it on. I've tried to make it work as well as reasonably possible if you don't, but that only goes so far.

Feedback, suggestions, and chapter submissions are all welcome. Comments help motivate me and chapters by other people let me step back and enjoy the story for a bit. I try to give lots of branches and choices, but if there's something you want to be able to do that isn't an option yet, I'd encourage you to try writing it.

You stepped into the convention hall where the Annual Yorkmark Gaming, Comics, and Cosplay Convention was being held and looked around. There were lines of booths with vendors selling their wares or authors signing autographs, a help desk, a couple of side rooms for events and video game tournaments, an art display, a few scenes for themed photos, a food court at the back, and lots and lots of cosplayers.

It was a very impressive setup, and you weren't sure how they were able to get away with selling passes as cheaply as they did. Not that you couldn't have afforded an expensive pass, but the low prices had helped you decide to try out this convention instead of a better known one. The long terms and conditions were odd, but to be honest, you hadn't really read those past the first half a page. Probably just a bunch of edge cases to make sure they didn't get sued. Still, requiring all attenders to be eighteen or older was odd, or possibly an indication of some more interesting events that weren't being well advertised.

You headed towards the help desk to get a map and schedule of events, passing a pair of cosplayers dressed as Samus Aran and Princess Peach. The Samus cosplayer's armor was well crafted, though she was holding her helmet rather than wearing it, as she seemed to be encouraging her nervous friend. "... know there's a lot of people, but it'll be fine. I'll be right with you the whole time."

Reaching the help desk, you saw the staff were cosplaying as the characters from Doki Doki Literature Club. The one dressed as Sayori had gotten her costume good enough that you shivered, remembering the end of the first act, while the one dressed as Natsuki seemed to be having trouble keeping her wig on right and seemed nervous about something. There was also a guy dressed as what presumably was supposed to be the game's main character, even though his appearance was never actually shown in the game.

The one cosplaying as Yuri smiled and greeted you, holding what you hoped was a prop knife. "Hello, how can I help you?"

"I'm here to get a map of the convention and schedule of events."

She nodded and bent over to get those out of a drawer, and at the same time the Monika of the group stood up and grabbed a microphone to make an announcement. She was rather beautiful, drawing your eyes away from the girl helping you.

"Hello, and welcome to the Annual Yorkmark Gaming, Comics, and Cosplay Convention. I'm just going to give a reminder of a few rules, or information about the rules for those of you that didn't read everything you agreed to when getting your pass."

You glanced away sheepishly for a moment at that comment, and she apparently saw and gave you an amused, knowing look as she continued her announcement.

"I know they were a little longer than normal, but you really should make sure you know what you're agreeing to. Either way, you're here now, so you're expected to abide by the rules. We don't want to have to kick anyone out, but we will if we have to. First off, you must have your pass clearly visible on your person. Failure to do so may result in a warning or expulsion from the premises. Next, Please do not pose for photos on any stairs. We've had accidents before, we'd rather not have them again. On a similar note, any sort of projectile launcher or squirt gun is also banned. You can rent a locker next to the front entrance if you brought one, but we'll have to throw you out if you use one, even accidentally. There is to be no use of , , or tobacco in the convention hall. You can do it outside, but that doesn't count as an excuse for breaking any other rules."

So far everything was sounding pretty normal, and you were about to tune her out, but what she said next immediately had your attention back on her.

"Finally, at YG3C, all cosplayers are available for purchase." You blinked, sure that you'd heard that wrong, and saw other people around you also looking confused. "To do this you must scan the QR code on the pass of the cosplayer you wish to purchase. Prices are determined by the fame, appearance, and costume quality of the cosplayer in question, as well as the amount of time purchased for. You may extend your purchase by paying the difference in prices, increased by fifty percent. Prices can be looked up on our app or website. Payment may be done via credit card or by submitting cash to the help desk. You may place payments this way in advance if you have the app, and you may get a seventy five percent refund at the end of the event if the money is not spent. Any money stored this way or the price of any cosplayers you purchase is added to your purchase price. Once purchased, a cosplayer is considered the property of the purchaser, including allowing the purchaser the full ability to do with them as they please. A purchased cosplayer may not be purchased by the previously discussed rules, but their owner is free to sell them for the duration they have purchased."

You looked around, seeing that a lot of people were as disoriented by this as you, and more than a few were looking nervous. You did spot a couple people who weren't surprised, but it was clear that like you, most people hadn't read far enough into the terms and conditions to see that part.

It didn't take you long to start thinking about the opportunities this presented, you had fantasized about having your own girl before, but never thought it could really happen. Then it occurred to you that you could potentially end up on the other end of that. But you could probably get around that, you had saved up three thousand dollars for this weekend beyond what you had needed to spend on the hotel and the pass, and you could spare another two thousand that you had set aside for a rainy day. You didn't know exactly how much most people could afford to spend on this, but you doubted anyone would be spending more than that to try to buy you, even without taking into account whatever your 'base' price was.

Speaking of your base price, you looked down at your own attire. You were wearing...