Chapter 1: The Beginning

Notes: I wanted to do a story where Claire was a single mom when she met Jamie but the only way I could see that working was if she really was from the 18th century and no matter how stubborn she maybe I don't think she'd travel through the highlands alone with her son with her. So I decided to add in another OC that being Claire's new brother, Christopher plus I thought it would be interesting to see how her brother who has been taking care of his sister and nephew for a while would feel when some stranger suddenly takes over being they protector.

Claire's POV

My name is Claire, Claire Beauchamp and me, my seven-year-old son, Harry and my brother, Christopher Balfe had been travelling through the highlands for nearly two weeks now, Chris decided we should try to earn a bit of money before we catch a ship to France to meet with my late husband, Frank's relatives just so we didn't show up as beggars and so we had something to fall back on since we weren't sure what our reception would be once we got there. Luckily we managed to earn quite a bit between my abilities as a healer and Chris earning money doing God knows what, his latest get-rich-quick scheme was sword fighting for money by gathering a few people in every village we passed in a circle and announce that he'd bet one pound for anyone who could fight him and win, this would go on raising the bet a pound each time until he felt he'd earned enough to stop for the day before this it was odd work as a blacksmith but we weren't able to always gain access to a smithy for him to use. Chris was a well built young man of four and twenty years of age, who like me had the golden-brown eyes we inherited from our mother but he had also got her straight, dark blonde hair, while I got our father's wild, light brown curls.

Harry on the other hand spent the day either playing with some of the other children we met along the way with me or Chris keeping an eye on him or he insisting on assisting me when I was seeing patients, even at seven years old he was as smart as a whip and already convinced he'd become a healer some day too like me. He looked so much like me with the same light, brown hair but without my curls and we shared the same fair skin he'd hardly inherited anything appearance-wise from Frank apart from his bright blue eyes and he also had a great love for animals.

Chris was finally convinced we pulled together enough money so he bought us two horses, one for him and one for me and Harry to carry us to Inverness to find a ship. He put the rest of the money in a pocket in his cloak to keep it out of sight and also kept his sword with him the whole time, with his cloak draped over it also keeping it hidden. We had been riding for a while when out of nowhere a band of ruffians in masks came upon us and ordered us off the horses.

One of them, obviously the their leader spoke then "Well then want do we ha'e 'ere?."

I quickly pulled Harry towards me, keeping my arm around him in a faint hope that it would protect him. Chris answered them with forced calmness, "Gentlemen, we're just some simple travellers making our way north."

The bandits leader spoke up again pulling out his dirk. "Well then, if ye'd just hand over ye money we'll let ye be on ye way."

Chris slowly looked around to count how many men there were, there were five and all well-armed so he sighed and said "Alright then." He slowly reached into his cloak to get out the bag with our money in it and threw it at one of the men to catch.

"Thank ye sir, pleasure doing business with ye," The man said smiling.

Luckily the men kept their word and all turned to ride off then because like us they properly knew there had been reports of british soldiers in the area so they had no desire to linger and likely left us alive because if they were caught at least they wouldn't get hanged for murder. Unluckily though they also took our horses with them so we now had to walk but at least we knew it wasn't far from Craigh na Dun which was only a couple of miles from Inverness we would just have to worry about earning some more money when we got there.

We were all a little shaken up by what happened but none to us were hurt and since we weren't carrying anything too valuable once we got over the shock of it we were more or less back to our normal selves and Harry was young enough to think of the whole thing as an exciting story he could tell our relatives in France when we got there. We walked for a while when Harry who had been walking by my side while holding to my hand the whole time started slowing down. I called to Chris to tell him we had to stop for a minute. I then turned and knelt down in front of my son so I could look into his eyes and asked, "Harry, honey are you alright?."

He answered quickly trying to sound tough. "Yes, I'm fine Mamma," I slitted my eyes at him and gave him a sceptical look until he continued on reluctantly with "I'm just a little tired."

"Oh that's okay it's just a little further until we reach the top of Craigh na Dun then we can stop and rest for a bit, but Uncle Chris can give you a piggy-back ride until then if you want?".

Chris spoke up then while also kneeling down but with his back turned to him. "Of course I can, come on hop on."

Harry happily agrred with this suggestion, so we managed to roughly keep up the same pace until we reached the top of the hill where we sat down and to rest like I promised.

We sat there for a while catching our breath and taking in the fresh air when the sound of a gunshot rolled across the land, which caused us all to jump up and look in the direction of the gunshot it couldn't of come from far off. Then we heard more gunshots coming closer to us.

Chris swallowed loudly and said, "Well family, I think this is when we should run."

"Good idea, little brother." I said a little choked

So we ran from where the gunshots came from knowing that whatever was going on we shouldn't be part of it. As we were doing so we ran past a small slope and since I wasn't wearing boots like my brother and son, I slipped on the fresh mud and tumbled down to the bottom of the hill. When I regathered myself and pulled myself upright and on to my feet I looked up the hill to see Chris and Harry still up at the top of the hill I heard the two of them call down to me asking if I was alright.

"I'm fine boys," I answered.

"Good, don't worry Claire, I think I see a path down to you we'll meet you down there."

I waited for abit until I heard the sound of running water and knew there must be a stream nearby I knew it would be while for the boys to come down to me and wanting to wash the mud that got on my face from the fall I followed the sound until I came upon an opening, where sure enough there was a stream but there was someone else there too.

Endnotes: Yes I had Christopher's last name and Claire's maiden name be Balfe after Caitriona Balfe who is the actress who plays Claire in the Outlander TV series.