Fear into Bravery

by irisdietrich

What if Frank Randall had always been more like his ancestor? Claire isn't trying to return to Frank, she had been trying to flee from him when she discovered the stones at craigh na dun and although scared to be in a different time she has no plans on returning to her own. ClaireXJamie

1. Chapter 1

Claire was a very respected nurse throughout the war. The doctors and other soldiers were always surprised how calm she was able to stay despite everyone else succumbing to fear and despair. The other female nurses had to look away during amputations, or run outside the tent to vomit at the sight of so much suffering and gore. And the soldiers, even the most hardened of them, could be heard crying out for their mothers most nights. Yet Claire never showed that any of the pressures of this war effected her in the slightest. It wasn't that she was some uncaring ice queen, she cared... she cared a great deal especially for her patients. However there was no denying life had hardened her.

Her parents had died when she was very young, she could barely remember them, and what she could remember she was never sure if it was imagined to make herself feel better or if it was an actual memory. She had never been like the other demure women of her time, maybe because she had such little time with her own mother and had mostly been raised by her uncle Lamb. He was an archeologist and her formative years were spent in far away lands having adventures. While other little girls were playing dress up or hosting imaginary tea parties she was rolling cigarettes and helping to dust bones.

She was only 19 when she lost Uncle Lamb and found herself completely alone in the world. Perhaps that's why she had been so easy to sweep up. She had never been the type of girl to dream of Prince Charming and she was ashamed that the first time a man pursued her she had jumped at the chance to be his wife. She supposed she had just wanted to belong to someone, to feel she had some place in the world and wasn't completely on her own. Frank offered her that, he promised to be her family, to take care of her, and fool that she was she had believed him.

Frank's parents hadn't been very fond of her, so when he started suggesting she dress differently, speak differently, she assumed it had been only temporary to win them over. But it wasn't temporary, and what started as suggestions became intense scrutinizing pressure. Still she had made excuses and tried to reason away the doubts that kept creeping in, it wasn't until their first wedding anniversary that she finally had to admit, she had married a monster.