Jet wrapped some quilts woven from vines about her darling egg, and rose to leave the hut. She had to face the other Charred eventually, even though her conversation with Pitch had sapped her patience. She sighed. Maybe they would surprise her. Maybe they would apologize and promise to treat her and her husband better. A rather grim smile crept up the corners of her mouth. It was unlikely. 

She stepped out of the little hut firmly, her claws sinking into bark. From her vantage point, she could see the thatched roofs of the village through some of the shorter trees. Jet heaved a sigh as she teetered hesitantly on the edge of the limb. She dove off, plummeting downwards. Spreading her wings at the last second, she dropped gracefully to the smooth dirt at the center of the village. 

        Their town was small, only a few rings of buildings surrounding a rough town square. But it was home. No, Jet corrected herself. It had been home. Was a place that had thrown out your beloved really home? Of course not. A dragon with faint red tints to his dark scales emerged from one of the huts and slid over to her.

"Good morning, Jet," Obsidian said with a smile.

Jet snorted out a burst of green flame and her eyes narrowed. "How dare you speak to me, you wretch." She was turning away when he set a claw on her shoulder. Furious, she swatted him off her.

"Jet, my dear," he said, "I was just doing the will of the Charred."

"The will of the Charred was stupid," Jet snarled. "And that doesn't excuse you from throwing my husband out."

Obsidian grimaced. "Bold as ever, aren't you? So I threw your husband out. He failed." His red eyes were cold. "Failure isn't acceptable."

"Ebony was only trying to help that Green. Maybe he made a mistake in showing him our Ember, but a mistake doesn't deserve exile," Jet growled.

Obsidian shook his narrow head. "You see, leaders cannot afford to make mistakes. Everyone sees their failures."

"And when they see them, do they lose their sense of tolerance? Of forgiveness?" She lashed her tail, stirring up the dust of the town square.

"Whether or not you like it, Jet, we did the right thing yesterday," he said impressively. "I feel that we did. I know that we did." With that, he turned and strode along the path through the village.