Stranger Things Have Happened

Warning: I use a swear word!

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A flickering of the light as the candles burned so bright. It was one of the darkest nights. THe moon had long gone to sleep. There was barely any movement in the keep. Silently feet shuffled back and forth, but most of the servants were sleeping as well.

However not Amir al-Umara. He could not sleep. The worries of ruling his Grand Emirate, his Kingdom, were too many to count. There was the tax dispute in one county, in another there was the threat of an attack by Christians. Another nearby Christian count was eager to meet up and discuss increased trade. He juggled the possibility of having one speak to the other, as Christians. Some he got along with very well, others not so much.

He muttered under his breath as he tallied up the number of men each ruler under him had, as he would prepare to see if he could have some men from one Emirate, or Duchy, to another. Then he heard a knock from outside in the hallway. His ears perked up, it seemed to be at another door. He only had one guard outside his door at this hour, Ishaq the brave. This time Ishaq said nothing and al-Umara could faintly hear the whispering. What was going on? He gently got up from the chair so as not to make a noise, else they would go away. Perhaps Ishaq was even in on it? It was not the first time Ishaq had hidden something from him. There was the time that the cook had been admitting he bought poached meat from a nearby farmer. Generous as al-Umara was he said he would not punish the farmer this time, nor the cook, but it should not happen again without them asking him first. Everyone was very relieved that al-Umara was such a calm Amir compared to his great-grandfather. His father was a very forgiving man as well, so it was calming to be in this court.

The whispering continued and swelled up and down. Something spoken quickly, then a pause. Then there was a hush and a push of a door, then nothing. al-Umara put his head to the door and tried to listen through it. The whispers became clearer, barely. They were two voices. "Look, I will not say a thing, but we have talk somewhere quieter. Come on." He heard one say to the other. He noticed there was snoring on the other side of the door. Ever so deeply, Ishaq was asleep. al-Umira continued to listen.

"Come, come into the room. We can talk there." The door gently shut and al-Umira gently opened his. Ishaq startled up from his slumber and feigned to be paying attention. "Amir, what is it?" He turned to al-Umira. "Do you request another candle? Perhaps some ink?"

al-Umira shook his head "No, be quiet. There is some treachery going on. Let us listen to the door, there. Come." He whispered and gingerly lifted his legs to not make a sound on the tiled floor. Ishaq did the same right behind al-Umira. They approached the door and al-Umira removed his crown to listen better.

They still whispered, but just loud enough that yet again, al-Umira could hear it. "I saw what happened that day." One voice spoke. The other scoffed at him "What day, fool? Come out and say already what you want to say..."

"I know you killed your son. That it was an accident, but I saw it all. On the hunting trip in-" They stopped talking. A chair moved and al-Umira backed away from the door, fearing it to open. Ishaq braced himself. The moving of feet continued and there was a whisper, and the first person speaking began again.

"And I know that you know... that I am a heretic. The other day when we were out on the road and you saw me... with the goat... it's... it's a religious thing..."

The second voice gasped "Were you...?" The first voice scoffed "What? No. No I would never. That's crazy. No it was a sacrifice thing."

"So you killed it?" The second asked, the voices became louder, they forgot themselves.

"Yeah. This. This is what I did. I killed it." The first voice replied.

The second continued "That's... not a crime. You had sex with the goat, didn't you..."

The first muttered something and footsteps were heard again. A brief pause. "Fine. I will not tell a soul about this, but I know that with you knowing that I killed Bilal you will probably want something of me..."

Bilal... Bilal... The name rang a bell and al-Umira wondered who the name belonged to. He got up and moved Ishaq and himself away from the door. "Ishaq," he whispered "Bilal, this name. Who is that? I remember it... from somewhere..." Ishaq looked up and remembered "Ah, this is a cousin of yours. He is a child of your great-grandfather Ifser."

"Ifser son of Hrod?" al-Umira asked. Ishaq nodded. Such intrigue! He bid Ishaq to get another two guards for dramatic effect and he put his crown back on. As he waited outside the door for Ishaq to return he wondered what he would say to them. He played it out in his head. First he would confront Ighlaf, the father of Bilal. Then he would give a stern talking to whoever had sex with the goat. Whoever that was worried him, as this was already getting very familiar.

The guards soon arrived with Ishaq, a total of three would be enough. The talking in the guest room had already finished. HE would have to make sure that the bedding was changed, he could not be sure if the goat fucker had been laying in it. They barged into the room and caught Ighlaf and one of his courtier's toasting to their new pact.

"Amir al-Umira! My liege! What a... surprise!" Bernart Benavides fumbled to speak, a frequent guest to the court of Wali, or Count, Ighlaf in the castle of Niebla. So this was the goat fucker?

"My... My... What do we have here? We caught quite something, didn't we men? But, worry not my vassals... your secrets will be safe with me... But, to be clear, Bernart, did you fornicate with the goat?"

Ighlaf was nodding as Bernart shook his head "What? No!" He looked over to Ighlaf and saw him nodding and looked back to al-Umira "Definitely not!"