Daiki disappeared. A few minutes later he came back. In his had he held two bottles of his best liquor. He was satisfied that the Air Dragon had taken a few steps back. Payment came first. Earth Dragons were hard to deal with but they always delivered if the payment was right. Daiki held out his hand with his long clawlike fingers stretched out.

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Arete silently took out the pearl she'd taken from her father, along with the bag that contained the second pearl and the ring. With a sigh, she gently placed it in his hand, then waited for him to be satisfied and pass her the bottles of liquor. Her left eye was closed and she swayed slightly, feeling terribly exhausted. She'd likely drop this all off to Satoshi then vanish. Yes, for a good long time. The Air Dragon gave an exhausted and slightly defeated sigh, then took the bottles of liquor, slipping them carefully into a special part of her satchel, then taking off towards Satoshi's place.

Daiki passed her the liquor bottles after receiving the payment. He slipped it into his jacket and went back to tending his garden. The health of the Air Dragon was of no concern to him.

In the Water Dragon tribe it was just another peaceful day. Mizuki was lazing around at the water surface. He played with some water sprites by having them trying to catch water droplets. He conjured those droplets with is water magic, so he could keep lying down. The sprites seemed to have a lot of fun.

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here is my Resume<-do read it for better understanding

Arete silently flew through the air. She sleepily drifted, not bothering to go her full speed and half falling asleep as she flew. Once she'd reached the Air Village, she came to a stop near Satoshi's place, taking out the two bottles of liquor and the bundle she'd pulled from the ocean. With a slight yawn, she set them on a table, wrote a quick note that they were to be taken to Satoshi, then turned and began wandering back towards home with a sleepy sigh. Okay, so she'd likely end up resting near her mountain but she was going to try and get home first.

Out of nowhere, a tall dragon with wispy white hair stopped her, glaring. "Arete, how many times must I tell you to take your medicine before you do it? You're sick and if you don't start taking care of yourself, then I must demand that you stay in the Healing Center!"

Arete gave an exasperated sigh. The air around her shimmered as she began to get angry. "Just leave me alone. You wouldn't care unless someone made you take care of me, anyways," she growled bitterly, before stalking out of the village. The man cursed her, turning away. "I'm sending a nurse to your little mountain. You'd better not scare her off like the last one!"

Arete gave a slight smirk. "Sure thing," she muttered, starting to think up some half baked plan to get rid of the nurse. Giant fake spiders? A storm? A tornado?

Basically out of nowhere Satoshi showed up. "Didn't expect you back so soon," he said to Arete. The medic immidiately threw a fuss. It was about how unresponsible it was that she got send on a mission in her condition. Satoshi made him shut up with just a sign of his hand. "You still have to report to me," he said while walking. Arete had better follow him. He only turned around to tell the medic to bring them some tea.

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here is my Resume<-do read it for better understanding

Arete gave an exasperated sigh, glaring at the medic. AS soon as he was far enough away, she dragged her feet after Satoshi, shivering. "Can... May I please go home now...?" she asked, shivering softly and wanting desperately to be left alone by most of them. Still, Satoshi was being nice and he'd trusted her on a mission so she wandered after him anyways, head ringing slightly. "Fine. Report. The whole thing sucked. Yoshito is a jerk. And Daiki is an even bigger jerk. I got you two things of liquor and I want to go home now. May I?" she asked again, her head aching and trembling slightly. "Oh yes... And the medic is threatening me with prison in the Healing Center!"

After entering the meeting room and sitting down, Satoshi finally faced Arete. "Disappointing," was the only word he said. There was no little wicked smile on his face. He was quiet for a few moments. During that time the medic came in with the tea. Contrary to the last time, Satoshi didn't even touch his tea this time. Satoshi waited until the medic had left. He fixated Arete with his gaze. "Did you even listen to the mission? No need to answer. I'll tell you all the points where you went wrong. I said that you had to go to the Water tribe first. Yet you went to the Fire tribe first. You are saying that Yoshito was being mean to you, I am sure he has said nothing wrong at all. He has probably only lectured you for a bit. He had every right to do that. Adn when you went to Daiki you got pulled over the table, I had even warned you for that. You even gave up your own treasures and then you came back with two bottles instead of one like you were told. Coming back so soon even though you had two weeks the time and in this state. Disappointing" Satoshi kept quiet again. Yet he had no other choice. As an alpha his orders had to be followed no matter what. "You will not be getting reimbursed for what you paid for the second bottle of liquor, and I will keep both bottles. Be happy that I am being lenient with you and not letting the medic lock you up in the medical center. Still, some more punishment is in order for failing your mission. A stock of medicine has been prepared for you. You are to take that with you and not come back to any Air tribe or other dragon settlement until you can function properly again." After having declared the punishment Satoshi stood up and left the meeting room, his feather mantle rustling after him. Outside he encountered Soji. He was carrying a large bag, in it were a lot of small bundles with the herbal medicine in it. When Arete would come out he would hand it to her. He would keep waiting, she could finish her tea without worrying about that. "Did you have to be so harsh?" Soji asked. Being excluded from a tribe even though only temporary was completely different from leaving themselves. "She had left me no other choice," Satoshi answered wryly. He kept walking on, everyone around him quickly got out of his way after seeing the expression on his face.

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here is my Resume<-do read it for better understanding

Arete looked down at the ground, then silently stalked to her feet, taking the bundle. She left quietly. Fine. She'd exile herself. It wasn't like she'd wanted the second bottle of liquor. Shivering, she wandered towards her mountain, tears filling her eyes at his rebuke. Shaking, she set the herbal medicine on the table in her mountain, then wrapped a robe around her shoulders. She left her own little place in silence, flying farther and farther. After several long hours of traveling, she settled onto a rock, outside of the territories of the dragons. She settled into an empty cave, tears filling her eyes. "I can't even do a delivery job right," she sighed to herself, hearing her father lecturing her in her head. "Yes, I know I should just curl up and die. I know I'm a worthless stubborn idiot," she replied back in a sharp scream. Then she sank to the ground, staring into a pool of water. Tears filled her eyes and she curled up against the wall, weeping softly. After a little while, she cried herself to sleep. She wouldn't stir for the next two days, steadily starving herself to death.

Finally, Arete roused herself from her silent rest. She flew home. In an angered rage she destroyed what little home she'd had, then fell into a crying mess in the center of her kitchen floor. Finally, she looked up and noted Satoshi's medicine there. Even when he was punishing her, he was still nice. With a sigh, she walked over and took it, then flew off to the caves. She silently took her medicine. After a few more days, she'd regained her strength. She placed a vial on the kitchen table, poison. She never wanted to have to be ordered around again, let alone take this medicine. Still... It'd be nice to see him and at least ask if he'd enjoyed the liquor. So, she silently slipped the vial into her satchel. She flew past her ruined home. She flew all the way back to Satoshi's place. Then she silently waited outside. She'd say goodbye and that would be that. They didn't need her. No one needed her. She was just a sick, tired, beaten hag. With that, she lowered her head, waiting with tears in her eyes. She could walk. She was sick, but her medicine made her okay. Tears filled her eyes. She hated it. Satoshi was right. She was a disappointment.

The next few days were busy in all Dragon territories. Afterall the Art Festival of the Fire Dragons was a great event. And almost all dragons likes to have a party. Daiki was busy with preparing liquor. His Alpha had just placed a large order last minute.
Yoshito had also stuff to prepare, they were going to recite poems at the festival. Mizuki was still refusing to go. There would be a lot of dragons and he didn't like being in populated areas.
Satoshi and Soji were busy as well. They were in charge of a musical performance. Well, Soji was busy with preparing that. Satoshi kind of escaped from preparations. Still, he was expected to make a solo performance. When Arete came to the Air Tribe, Satoshi was not there. Of course he knew that Arete had arrived and was waiting for him. But he also knew that she was not "fixed up" enough to be said to have fullfilled her punishment. So in order to avoid having to punish her more, he took care to be away from the Air tribe settlement. Coincidently, he escaped have to take care of preparations for the festival as well. Soji did notice her but he made clear pretty quickly that he didn't have any time and that Satoshi was nowhere to be found. He still offered to tell the medic to make some time for her.

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Arete retreated immediately upon arrival. She wandered away from the settlements. Silent, she wandered into the Exile Lands and curled up on the ground. Vindi was there. She looked up slowly and he frowned at her. "Your house is a wreck." Arete looked away. "Satoshi won't let me in my house. I'm exiled from there. It doesn't matter," she whispered. Tears filled her eyes. "I can't make him happy. I can't make my father happy. I can't make anyone happy. I do everything wrong." Vindi stood and slapped her, hard. Arete scowled, then stalked to the cave curling up. She uncorked the vial. Vindi grabbed her wrist and tossed the vial on the ground, shattering it. "Are you done with your medicine?" Arete gave a tiny nod. "Good. Now, I've cleaned your house. I'll talk to Satoshi about letting you come home, but you need to take your medicine and behave."

Arete gave a silent sigh, curling into the ground and staring into the water. She nodded again, making some tea and sipping it. "I belong here. Alone. Forever..."

Vindi sighed, then stalked off and away from her. "Just get better and stop your damn whining," he growled.

Arete tiredly lay against the wall, crying. Vindi ignored her, leaving to handle his own tribe. After she'd finished her tea, the young Air Dragon got to her feet and walked deeper into the exiled lands. She didn't care about the other dragons anymore. No one gave her the time of day. They lectured her and sent her on missions. She silently kicked a rock off of the cliff, then sat down on the ground, tears in her eyes. She didn't care about the pearls. She didn't care that she wouldn't be reimbursed. She didn't care that Yoshito had lectured her. She'd just wanted to get home and prove that she still had value. She could get a mission done, and quickly. She was sick, yeah, but she'd gotten Satoshi his liquor and everyone their messages and packages in a little under a week. Tears filled her eyes, streaming down her face and making it go hot and red. Weeping hard, she began to rock back and forth.

The festival would be starting soon. Arete could hear soft music on the air. She began to weep softly, swaying and tiredly wandering to her cave. She sipped some more tea, feeling lonely and upset. Satoshi had been kind and given her so many chances. She'd just not deserved any of them. Giving a weak shudder, she fell still on the ground, her entire form shuddering as she wept. She wanted to come home. She slowly fell asleep, the soft sounds of a flute sending her into a dreamless unconscious state.


Meanwhile, Erydia was opening up the art caches of the Fire Dragons, setting out sand paintings on the beach and opening the museums. The day passed, full of laughter and cheer as everyone came around and began to enjoy themselves. Vindi delivered some of Daiki's liquor for the Alphas. Erydia set it in a special cool room, then nodded around the room. She noted Arete's absence. The young Air Dragon loved her solitude, but she usually enjoyed this festival. Vindi whispered something in her ear and she blinked, then sighed. "She's finally gone too far on poor Satoshi, then?" she asked. Vindi gave a nod, then began to set out some tapestries.

Preparations for the festival went on all day. The Earth Tribe had been cooking long hours and were setting out exquisite trays of food for everyone. Erydia had even had some of her sculptors make some ornate pools for any of the visiting Water tribe members. A few members of the Air Tribe began to play music while some artists from Fire Tribe were painting the mountain. Erydia smiled and settled into a dark obsidian chair in her home, closing her eyes to relax. She turned to her aid, Venitia, and asked that she bring Satoshi in so they could speak about performance times.

"The festival will likely begin soon," a deep, calm voice broke through the silence of the still forest as the fire dragon known as Yorald spoke aloud to a group of younger fire dragons who were usually found gravitating around him. Due to his magnetic personality he was often surrounded by a small "fan club" of the young-lings who would gather around to hear his stories or watch him practice his combat skills. He was very popular among his tribe even though he was not highly ranked and considered somewhat of a trouble maker of sorts as he is known to be what other members would call a bad influence on the children. Today was no different as while many of the other fire dragon members were busily preparing for the festival he instead brought many of the youths trying to get out of work into the forest to play instead. They sat in the branches of trees encircling Yorald and another elder dragon who was also a friend, the two of them testing each other's strength in a friendly sparring match, no magic to be used.

Cheers of excitement began to rise as the two combatants started their match, two well-honed fighters showing mastery in their respective fighting styles with Yorald seeming to be outmatched as the other dragon is winning in blows and grapples. The tides change as the dragon attempts to get Yorald in a headlock but is instead picked up and slammed on the ground with enough force to knock the air out of his lungs, giving the advantage to Yorald who put the other dragon into a quick and tight choke hold, forcing him to tap out.

The children flew down from the trees to surround the two elders while cheering and screaming. The losing dragon stood up and dusted himself off before patting Yorald on the shoulder "Well fought, my friend, I thought I had you that time."

"Heh," a wide grin played on the face of the victorious dragon, "as did I. Fortune was in my favor just then I guess."

The children were calming down as the other elder spoke up, "I think it might be about time to return to the village," he spoke with an air of authority that the young-lings took with a bit of respect as well as a little disappointment as they were enjoying their time away. "The festival is important to the dragons of all tribes as it allows for diplomacy to continue to keep on while getting to interact with those of other tribes. Plus it is quite fun."

Yorald was all but ignoring the lecture while walking away from the group.

The elder dragon frowned as he watched his friend walking away from the direction of the village, "Going to skip out on it again are we?" There was no response as the fire dragon continued on his walk, a couple of the youths attempting to follow but being stopped by the elder, "No no, you do not have a choice. Well, neither does he, but you shall not follow in his steps in all ways."

Moans and groans were loud as the children were ushered towards the village, the elder watching Yorald take flight towards the horizon, "I know you'll be there," he yelled out, knowing the words were heard but ignored.

For several hours Yorald flew through the vast forest, zipping between trees, he would rise high above them and then dive down almost crashing into the branches before sharply turning up again. He so loved the feeling of flight and practiced it as much as possible. Thoughts of the festival came to his mind as he perched upon a tree that rose above the others, proudly standing as he watched the sun begin to set below the curve of the horizon. It was not that he disliked the festival or interacting with others, quite opposite in fact as he loved to be around with many, it was just with the way he acts he does not want to make the fire tribe look foolish and undisciplined so he would often opt to just let the festivities go on without him. Either way, he was happy regardless of where he was or who he was around.

Satoshi arrived with his official deligation, fashionably late. A light breeze went through the festival grounds as they landed and shaped back into their humanlike forms. It was the proper way to let everyone know that the official Air Dragon deligation has arrived. For the Water Dragons a cool moisture would drift over for a moment, for the Earth Dragons the ground would slightly ripple almost alike a tickle or massage, and for the Fire Dragons a soft warm wave would come. Even though the official delegation with Satoshi and Soji arrived late, they were not the first Air Dragons to arrive, the others just didn't belong to the official group. They were mixed in everywhere, some were playing an instrument and all were having fun.

The Water Dragons were already long since there. They were very pleased with the water tanks that the Fire Dragons had provided. It was not like they couldn't survive without water, but the Fire Tribe territory was always quite warm so being able to cool down was nice. And it was also very helpful in putting out the occasional fire. Mizuki had succesfully escaped attendance to the festival. So Yoshito was the highest ranked Water Dragon. He had already greeted the alpha Fire Dragon and was now relaxing near the water tanks when Satoshi passed them on his way to the Fire alpha. The other Water Dragons were exchanging artistic views with some Fire Dragons, some were even composing poems to fit their artworks.

Daiki also didn't go to the festival. He had just succesfully cultivated a rare herb, so he was going to take care of it. The liquor he could make from that would taste superb and have a superb price. He had to take special care of this little plant.

Satoshi had arrived at the tent of the alpha of the Fire Dragons. He just entered without any restraint, the other Air Dragons did not do that and waited outside. "Hey there," he greeted informally. Since they were of the same status, being informal with each other was completely okay.

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here is my Resume<-do read it for better understanding

Erydia gave him a welcoming nod in return, her head dipping slightly and a smile lighting up her face. "Always nice to see you, Satoshi," she replied. Unlike Yoshito and Vindi, the woman actually enjoyed her dealings with Satoshi. She quickly wrapped a veil over her painting then walked over and passed him some fire liquor. "I trust your trip went well?" she added calmly, settling into a warm brown divan and listening to the sounds of the music outside. It was nice to hear everyone having fun and enjoying the things they'd set up together.

The woman calmly drank some fire liquor, after pouring Satoshi a glass. She looked out the window, watching everyone enjoying the festivities. "I set up a stage of course. Same place as always. After about an hour, then you can do the performances you planned. I'd like to make sure that everyone's in a good mood and enjoying the art first though."

Vindi's tribe arrived, a soft ripple whispering through the ground as they walked over towards the tables, bringing heaping platters of food. "Hope everyone's hungry," the Alpha commented softly, a chuckle rising in his throat.

Satoshi toasted with Erydia. "The trip went smoothly as always," he answered. "We can start whenever you want," he said as an answer to the planning of the musical performances. When he felt the ripple of Vindi's group arriving, he just had to make a remark. "Unbelievable how late the Earth Tribe is, " he said as a joke, he knew very well that he had also been late. But for him it was the norm to arrive the last. Even though the official greeting has now been over, Satoshi decided to stay for a bit longer. He always enjoyed a drink with the Earth alpha.

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Erydia llaughed softly. "Vindi was eating, likely enough," she joked. Looking out the window, she frowned, then silently turned to Satoshi as if something had just popped into her head. "Oh! Did Arete accompany you? I can't find her in the crowd and I had something for her. Don't suppose you know where she is?" she asked, then smirked as Vindi walked in with a yawn and a plate of food. She let out a soft laugh, waving hello. "Nice to see you still have an appetite!" Vindi blushed, then settled into a nearby chair, accepting some fire liquor.

"She is currently feeling unwell," Satoshi answered the question before turning to Vindi. "It's been a while. Can you still hold your drink like in the old days?" He purposely teased the Earth Dragon. Everyone knew that Vindi liked to have a drink very much. And he was probably never going to forgive Satoshi for drinking him under the table once. It was only once, but that was enough.

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Erydia gave a slight nod, then shrugged. "Do you mind telling me where she is? I'd like to send her a gift for the festival at least. Maybe some tea. She told me she was sick." The Fire Alpha smiled charmingly, then turned to Vindi. "I already set up a table for you two in the back, with all the liquor you could possibly dream of. So no reason to say no, eh?" she joked. Vindi's eyes lit up at the challenge. "Oh, you better believe it."

"She'll be back soon," Satoshi ensure her. It wouldn't be long until Arete would be fit enough to return. "Let's do that after the music performance," he promised Vindi. He would surely get scolded by his little brother if he showed up drunk. A Water Dragon came in to inform them that they were ready to start with the poem recitals. Those were also part of the program today. As the organisator Erydia had to go, and since Satoshi and Vindi were present it would be good if they went as well. Satoshi waited until Erydia had risen and followed after her. Outside he met Soji and the other Air Dragons that were still waiting for him. He waved his hand that they can go and have fun. Most of them happily left to eat and drink. A few, including Soji, followed them to the water tanks to listen to the poetry of the Water Dragons.

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Erydia led Satoshi and Vindi outside, turning the two Alphas loose on the parade as she headed off to help plan out some art displays. She noted Yorald missing, then sent her assistant to go bring him to her. She calmly settled onto a perch after introducing the Water Dragons and the ornate tanks' designers. She watched as the first of the Water Dragons began to recite, her eyes closing as the warm and spicy scent of kebabs roasting over fire filled the air. The female licked her lips slightly. Tonight would be another memorable festival for the tribes to enjoy.

Only a few miles outside of the village where the festival being held, Yorald could hear the commotion one would expect from such an event taking place. He had spent the last few hours flying among the forest, whipping in and out of the trees feeling the leaves tickle his body as he passed by, finally deciding to make his way back in order to be accounted for at the festival, although he was not sure how much of an impact his presence would have. Still, figured it would be in good taste to make an appearance, having one of the more popular dragons not around during an important event like this could make the fire tribe look bad, so he thought.

Off in the distance he could make out the silhouette of a dragon, one approaching him at great speed from the direction of the festival. He already had an idea of who it was as well as how this coming dragon knew where he was, noting that the dragon had seen Yorald heading towards the village and waited patiently above the tree line. Without saying a word, although a polite nod was given, Yorald passed by the assistant dragon and continued making his way, arriving at the village a few minutes later.

He was still hovering well above the land as he watched the Water Dragons begin reciting, noticing Erydia watching as well from a nearby perch. Slowly he dropped from the sky to take a position, still flying, right next to his alpha, "I was going to show up anyways," he spoke with a hearty voice.