Days of light part 1 [Honor]

The morning was bleak, the firmament an off-white blanket of clouds with an unfulfilled promise of rain; sheer cold wafted from the walls of the Avalodge, in wisps and in curls, fitting right in with the dreary decorum that nature had opted to set for the day; for most, this meant coats and scarves were all but a necessity, such that the venue was surrounded by a miniature sea of wooly caps and fuzzy winter gear whose owners' breath steamed in the frigid air, amid much shivering and muffled complaining. But Zoroarks, or at least that branch of the species that Red hailed from, were built for harsh mountain conditions – as such the atmosphere of the party was, if anything, somewhat nostalgic. Gambit, for his part, felt little difference as the biological mechanism that kept him from overheating in summer silently turned itself off, allowing his Ice-type side to predominate.

'Well this is crowded.'
'Yeah, ein't it great?'
Red pinched the bridge of his nose. 'Maybe for you.' This was, he could tell, going to be a long day.
'Aw come ooon, lighten up will you? Have some fun, have a... erm... have an ice-cream, how about that?'
'You were going to say drink,' the canine said, flatly.
'No I wasn't!'
'Yes, you were.'
'No I- '
'Gambit.'
'Ok so I was. But you know, just because I tend to overdo it doesn't mean you can't be enjoying yourself!'
'I'd rather not, thanks all the same. Come to that, weren't you trying to quit?'
'Hey, no great thing was done in a day.'
At that point someone in the crowd called their team name, causing both Dark-types to spin around, trying to find the source.
'Yeah, you guys!'
Teresa, the Servine guild assistant they had first met on the day of their registration, was waving at them through a few layers of thick winter cloth, next to another duo wearing Explorer badges; she did not seem happy for whatever reason.
'Yeah, have fun with that.' Gambit tapped his larger companion on the elbow, a mischievous look on his face. 'I gotta go check the selection they have at the bar.'
Red turned on the spot, fur bristling up ever so slightly. 'Gambit, so help me, if you...' It was too late – the feline had vanished into the crowd, cackling openly.
'Yo, whatsyername, Red, wasn't it? Over here!'
The Zoroark sighed, and made his way to the Grass-type.

'Good morning. Is there something you wanted?'
'Yeah. Specifically, I wanna know why you always seem to be on your own, and not socializing with anyone.'
'Well we- '
'Actually, you know what, it doesn't matter,' the serpent interrupted, causing the larger of the two mon's beside her, a tall and slender Mienshao, to snicker. 'You can start remedying that right now. There won't be time to get to know eachother in the Dungeons, where any miscommunication can land your party in serious trouble.'
'Is this what these two are here for?' Red inquired wearily, indicating the amused Fighting-type and his partner, an impatient-looking Dewott, with a small nod.
'No,' Teresa corrected, shooting them a silencing glare, 'they're guilty of the same thing as you. Now, I want you to introduce yourselves to eachother.'
'…'
'…'
'…'
She taps her foot in annoyance, seeing the three just stare at eachother awkwardly, each waiting for someone else to go first.
'Oh for the sake of the Gods, come on! It can't be that hard!'
'Hello there,' the Mienshao speaks up. 'My name is Mercutio, of team Hemlock, and this is- '
'I'm Bailey,' the female Water-type cuts in. 'Nice to meet ya.'
'I'm Red,' the Zoroark responds, shaking her outstretched hand, 'of team Wildcard. Nice to meet you too.'
'See!' the Grass-type officer interposes between them, now smiling. 'See? Not that difficult! Now, I have to go talk to Luke, he's forgotten his cold medicine (again), but you guys had better get along nicely.'
The lanky mustelid watches her weave her way towards the Lodge, then rolls his eyes dramatically.
'Yeah leeeet's never speak of this again, shall we? Anyway, you seem ok. I'll see you around, I suppose,' he says, shaking hands with the still befuddled Dark-type.
'See you around!' the Dewott, Bailey, echoes as they head to a particularly large group of chattering Pokemon.
Red raises his hand in a curt wave, then lets his arm drop. Where to now? He didn't really know what one did at parties like these, as the list of activities on the addendum of their invitation wasn't giving him any ideas. I guess I'll just wander around and wait for something to happen.

Something did indeed happen as he idled near the entrance of the ice-cold building, though not necessarily what he had had in mind. Namely, he would get a first-hand experience of his partner being genuinely angry at him:
'How could you not tell me this?!' Gambit demanded.
'Ok, look, try to be reasonable here...'
'I am trying,' Gambit hissed, 'but it's kinda hard when I have to find out from a random stranger what it means when a Zoroark removes his godsdamned eye markings!'
'Gambit, I- '
'Dishonored? Worthless? Is that seriously what you think of yourself?'
'Gambit.' Red breathed in sharply, and lowered his voice now that he knew he could get a word in edgewise, at least. 'You know my story.' In fact, better to lower his voice all the way to a whisper. 'You know what I did, what I am; and, after all that, I left them all behind. What would you have me do?'
'I know what you did,' the Sneasel ignored his question, but quieted down as well. 'But I'm not sure you know who you are. Your actions do not define you, Red. You deserve better. In fact,' he added, 'this is something you should get done. As in, right now. There's a body-paint stand to the right of the bar, in the Avalodge main building. The gal running it is actually the one that dropped that little factoid on me after seeing you, so I imagine she'd be willing to help.'
The canine tried to argue, but eventually he was forced to agree with his friend. Besides... he thought of the letter stashed away inside his teal hair-bead. Perhaps it was all for the best.

The makeup artist turned out to be a Zoroark herself, mane knitted into thick dreads, ears and lower lip pierced with small, tag-like earrings, and subtle yet deceivingly complex markings around her lightning-blue eyes.
She smiled, a broad, heartfelt smile that looked nothing like his.
'Hey there. You must be Gambit's friend!' She gave him a goofy grin. 'He told me you might come around.'
'Well, not like I had much of a choice anymore,' he retorted, still a little morose.
She ducked her head, but kept grinning. 'I'd apologize, but I can't feel sorry for something like that. I hate it when people are down on themselves.'
The lilt of her voice made his heart skip a beat. She was beautiful, he realized, and it was making him just a little bit flustered even though he knew it was frivolous.
'It's more of a memento than anything, really; but I suppose it's high time I let the past go.' He sighed, adding quietly: 'At least that part of my past.'
It was all that she needed to hear. 'That's the spirit! So what will it be? Fortune, Strength...' she gestured vaguely as she sprung to her feet, bidding him to sit down instead. 'Maybe Absolution?'
He thought for a moment, but then shook his head. 'How about... New Beginnings?'
She looked at him appraisingly for a moment, then answered, kindly and much less spastic. 'Yeah, I think it suits you quite well.'
'Rust?' he asked, noticing the color of the small paint jar she had picked.
'Uh-huh, it'll complement your eyes, trust me on this. Now try to stay as still as you can, please.'
He nodded and folded his legs into a half-lotus, closing his eyes as she inspected a set of thin, tiny brushes. It was not a particularly difficult mark, four blocky glyphs in all, but it would require a lot of precision.

Gambit was having the time of his life. Akari peach wine, Iaponese sake, good old-fashioned ale... With cocktails thrown in there was no end to the choices, and he very nearly felt too overwhelmed to settle on something. Only very nearly, though, because thirst springs eternal.
'Another pint of that divine, pale burning ale you have here, please!'
The Ambassador-turned-bartender nodded, giggling happily, and refilled his tankard from a large oaken keg. She was enjoying herself quite a lot, and being in this stress-free environment was doing wonders for her. Her nerves had been frayed with the multiple attempts on her life that she had had to endure, not that she'd ever let it show it affected her – it wasn't the way of the Iaponese ruling class to show weakness like that.
The feline leaned back on his chair as he awaited his drink, and took in his surroundings; the bulk of the people here were making the most of the party, which was good, but there was a small clump of Researchers near the western corner of the Grand Hall that were mostly separated from everyone else, fiddling with bits of ice. He had no clue what they planned to achieve or how he could help them in that regard, but they looked badly in need of cheering up. So cheer them he would, he decided.
'Make that six pints, ma'am! There's people gravely in need of their deiform properties.'
'Are there now?' Ayami asked, in good cheer. 'Well then, I better get on it!'

Carefully balancing the laden tray with one hand, the Sneasel headed towards the table farthest away from the action, scanning the figures sat around it. Let's see... Gild Assistant Kali, friendly but a bit of a klutz. Benjamin the Greninja and Kenny the Bergmite – these two were always pleasant company, and possibly the nicest people he knew, albeit not all that well. And, yes, there was Vimalter the Cubone, and his non-speaking Carnivine follower, Melsanthos; the plant seemed like a gentle and well-meaning creature, if not much good in a conversation, but the Ground-type he could never break through with.
'Hello there, folks! This is your friendly neighborhood Explorer, kindly reminding you to take a break and enjoy the party sometime.'
The younger Researcher duo greeted him with much mirth, while the Cubone merely inclined his head to show he acknowledged his presence; Melsanthos swayed his leaves gently, which he took as a good sign.
'These are for us?' the Dragon-type officer remarked as he imparted the drinks. 'Why, you shouldn't have, really... Um, I mean, it's appreciated, but we can't...'
'Don't worry, it's all on my tab,' Gambit reassured, ducking expertly as a Yanma zoomed past. 'Can't enjoy the party if there's people being left out, now can I? Erm...' He dodged again as the Bug-type buzzed past, this time in the opposite direction.
'Who is that, anyway?' Vimalter huffed in growing annoyance, noticing the insect about to make a third pass by their table.
'Um, I think he's one of ours,' Benjamin offered. 'A Researcher, I mean.'
Gambit nodded and squinted a little – he never forgot a face, or a name associated with one. That's... Dint. Jittery, always a nervous expression; bit of an odd fellow.
'Yo Dint!' he called. 'What's the matter?'
The Bug-type stopped mid-dash, and hovered near his face.
'Hi. Have you seen Norel? Got to find her.'
That was a bit more difficult. Norel; Lileep, doesn't talk much, owns a sack-in-a-sack.
'Yeah... I think. She may have been outside, like, fifteen minutes ago?'
'Thanks.'  Dint circled the table once more, somewhat chaotically, and took off.
'…glad to help.'
Well, at least he did what he could. His mission now complete, he turned to the assembled Researchers and gave a deep, theatrical bow, before moving on towards a side-door himself. He was sure he'd heard someone mention “party activities”.