A Disguised Singularity

Chapter 2 - Amira

Amira swept the front porch as the sunlight faded behind the stone wall that surrounded the estate. Anartz was supposed to be home two days ago, and his continued absence was sending her into something short of a panic. Is it possible something went horribly wrong? And with less than a month before he was set to come work for his father? She struggled to push the thought out of her mind.

Two mornings ago, Amira put on her best dress in anticipation of her husband's arrival home sometime that day. When Anartz failed to show up, she chose her second-best option the next morning. After two days of disappointment, she gave up and wore her normal work clothes. Seeing her daughters-in-law's concern, Aspacia tried to distract her last night with a glass of wine after dinner. Wine is a rare treat in her husband's family, so the gesture was appreciated. Unfortunately, the alcohol only succeeded in heightening her anxiety as she laid down to sleep... alone.

Having put it off long enough, Amira pulled herself away from the spotless porch she'd been sweeping for the better part of an hour and went back towards the main living area. She stopped to place the broom in its proper storage closet before returning to the door of the main family room. After cracking it slightly, she peaked inside at the people gathered there. Iker was sitting in his grandmother's lap as she read him a children's story. The tender moment put an unexpected smile on her face, despite her sullen mood.

Growing up as an only child, Amira always felt as though she was missing out on what all her friends in large families took for granted... siblings. When she married Anartz, she pictured a very different life for her own children than she had growing up. However, things hadn't turned out the way she had planned. After they were married, it was over a year later before she finally became pregnant... and not for lack of trying. It had been such a relief at the time because family members had begun to discreetly question her to find out if there were "problems in the bedroom". Unfortunately, her joy was short lived. Only a few months into her pregnancy, she lost the child. That pattern repeated itself a half dozen times until by some miracle, Iker was finally born. Amira finally felt like she could breathe again, having carried out the only request given to her by Itzal: to provide the family with another boy to help carry the school through another generation.

Keeping the school in the family was of the utmost importance to Itzal. Therefore, male grandchildren had become indispensable to his plan. Until Iker was born, only Itzal's eldest son, Indar, had been successful at giving him a grandson. It was a point of pride with Indar, especially since his son was something close to a prodigy. Only thirteen and yet Indar's son, Bakar, had all but mastered his father and grandfather's craft. Nothing made Itzal quite as happy as that teenage boys' success. Since Kepa, Itzal's middle son, has only produced girls, Anartz had been the family's last hope for more male heirs.

As the conversation amongst the men in the living room began to get heated again, Amira turned away and started the long walk to her bedroom. She couldn't bear the tension again tonight. The last month had brought a dramatic shift in the once inseparable family dynamic between Itzal and Indar's family over an issue Amira could only see as irrelevant. Then again, she rarely seemed to agree with how violently the men in her husband's family handled things.

For at least two generations now, the relationships between fathers and sons seemed heartbreakingly impersonal. To her, their relationship more closely mirrored that of a critical teacher and student instead of a loving father and son. It was obvious that the men thought she was coddling Iker just because she often refused to let him train with them. Their quips about her son being weak or crying too much or not being able to hold a practice sword correctly, were all beginning to wear on her patience. Iker wasn't quite five years old, but he was already beginning to understand his grandfather and uncle's disappointment. She could see it in his expression when he was corrected. In her opinion, Iker was far too young to start any kind of combat or weapons training, despite what was done with the rest of the boys in the family. Perhaps if Anartz were here, he could figure out how to redirect his father and brother's attention onto something else.