Binti

When they arrive in Osemba, Mwinyi and Binti see the Root still burning. Every part of the Root has either melted or turned into ash. The sight of it devastates Binti, and she calls out for her family. Binti blames herself for their deaths, for bringing war to their doorstep: “The Khoush had always seen my people as expendable, tools to use, toy with, and discard, useful animals until we weren’t useful anymore. During war, we were just in the way” (243). Binti is heartbroken and resigns to the fact that “when elephants fight, the grass suffers” (243). Binti tells Mwinyi that the Root was built on the old root of an Undying Tree.

Binti looks towards the road that leads to the Root and sees the Night Masquerade one more. The Night Masquerade represents change, a big revolution. It speaks to Binti and tells her to remove her shoes and listen. Instead of removing her shoes, Binti follows Mwinyi around the side of the house and sees the split open bodies of the Khoush soldiers. Binti runs down the street away from the Root and to the pink lake. There,