Discalimer-I don't own anything about Claire and Jamie. I don't own Outlnader. The original story and characters are mine. Yadayadayada, you all know the drill.
Author's Note- Ok. So, this story blew up more than I was expecting. First, I would like to apologize for a little mistake I made in the first chapter. I spelt Jamie's name wrong the same way for the entire chapter. I truly don't know how it happened, so I apologize for that. Secondly, ya'll are scarin' me a little with how much you liked that first chapter. I'm still new at this so anyone liking my writing is a foreign sensation. Thirdly, thank you so much to AtHeart150, top story, MeredithRobbins, and lamenegati for your reviews, they really made my day and I will try not to disappoint you. Finally, this chapter is a lot longer than the first. Enjoy!
Jamie watched Claire as she descended down the hill, skirts hiked up nearly to her knees. She walked with a sure foot and a steady gait, like she knew where she was going, like she knew what would happen at the end of the trail. A trail, he realized, that hadn't been there when he'd last been to Craigh na Dun. He took a deep breath and shook his head. He knew, logically, that of course things would be different because they were two hundred years in the future, but, despite the fact that he knew his wife was a time traveler and he had heard her stories of the future before, he was having a difficult time wrapping his head around the idea of it all happening to him.
"Claire," he called out, "lass, where are we goin'? Ye're walkin' around like ye know precisely what ye're up to, but do ye?"
Claire stopped and looked up at the sky, taking a deep breath before she turned to face him.
"No, Jamie, I don't know exactly what I am doing or where we are going. I do know, however, that we couldn't stay on top of that hill forever, much as we'd like to. I'm hoping that when we get to the road we are lucky enough to be able to catch a ride with someone headed into the town. If not, we've got one hell of a walk ahead of us."
Jamie sighed, "What about when we get to the town?" he asked.
Claire blinked. To be honest, she hadn't thought that far ahead yet. "Let's just get to town first, Jamie. I need to find a newspaper to figure out the date and we'll go from there."
Jamie nodded, understanding most of what his wife was telling him. They walked along, both in quiet, introspective thought. Neither knew what was going to happen at the end of the road.
Claire was thinking how this was just the very last thing she wanted to deal with right now. She had family, friends, and patients back home and an unplanned trip into the future was not what she, or any other doctor for that matter, had ordered. She looked at the paved road ahead of them with contempt; remembering the last time she had made the trek down that hill, alone, pregnant, and scared. She stopped when she got onto the road and it took her a second to realize Jamie was not beside her.
Jamie was thinking about how the world had changed so very much, and not nearly at all. The sky was still the same bright blue it had been this morning when he'd woken up in 1771. The grass was still green and the dirt was still brown, but it didna smell the same. He remembered the smell of Scotland more than anything and the memory of the earth, wet with the morning dew was one of his strongest memories. It smelled different. There was none of the familiarity to it that there should have been. The grass seemed harsher and the sky cloudier. This may be Scotland, but this was not the Scotland he remembered. It had changed.
Both of them looked up the road when they heard a sound.
Claire smiled, they were in luck.
Jamie frowned, what the bloody hell was the gawd awful sound?
Claire jogged off the road and grabbed Jamie's hand.
"Looks like Lady Luck is with us today. Somebody's coming." She said.
Jamie eyed his wife and wondered, for not the first time, if she was all there in the head. He trusted her though, so he looked in the same direction she was looking. It came around the bend faster than he could have imagined. His eyes grew wide as it barreled towards them. Claire dropped her his hand and waved at thing. Miraculously, it started to slow. She took a step toward it and Jamie, panicked reached out to grab her. Claire looked back at him and smiled that smile he had seen a thousand times in a hundred different situations. Trust me it said. He dropped his hand and his wife walked up to the thing that had stopped in front of them.
It opened up and a man stepped out.
"Ye folks look fit for the day!" He stated, rather jovially. He was a stout man with a balding head and grey in his beard. "Reenactors, are ye? Aye, they've been infesting the village all week waitin' fer today."
"Reenactors?" Claire asked, with dread filling her body.
"Englishwoman are ye? That explains it. It's the 16th of April, 1971. 225 years ago today, my ancestors rose up against yours in a fight for our independence. We may have lost that day, but it didna kill our fighting spirit, aye? I'm a history professor in Edinburgh, ye ken."
Claire tried to interrupt the longwinded Scotsman. She should have known that wasn't going to happen.
He kept talking, "There was a big reenactment of it this morning and celebrations to be held all day in remembrance of the fallen. Ye'll be needin' a lift to the field to partake in these jubilations I suppose? Well, never let it be said we Scots have lost our manners towards ye British. I never did get your name? Come to think of it, I didna give ye mine either. Och, forgive me lass, tis a big day and my mind isna what it used to be. The names Andy McLellan."
He stuck out his hand awaiting her response. Jamie, felling slightly disgruntled that this man hadn't spoken directly to him once during this entire conversation stepped around Claire before she could say anything.
"James Fraiser and this is my wife, Claire." He said, shaking the mans soft hands. Jamie grunted. This man hadn't done a day of hard labor in his life.
"Oh! So ye are Scots then. Well, as one Scot to another, let me offer you a ride to the memorial."
Claire tried to interrupt, "Oh we couldn't poss-"
"Nonsense," Mr. McLellan said, "Ye'll be ridin' with me and that's the end of it. Can't leave ye out here with no car. How did ye get up here without a car anyway?"
"We were dropped off," Claire answered quickly, "They were supposed to come pick us up, but I guess they must've gotten swept up in the celebrations."
"Well than, can't have none of that. Into the car, both of ya." Mr. McLellan said as he opened the back door for them.
Claire sighed, and as she could see no way out of this, she slid into the backseat and gestured that Jamie should do the same. The atmosphere in the backseat was tense as McLellan got into the driver's seat and started the car up again. They both knew where they were headed and neither wanted anything to do with the 'celebrations'. Jamie's jaw was clenched and his hand was fisted. Claire grabbed it and pulled it into her lap, leaning into him for both her support and his. They would get through this. They always had.
"We're off to Culloden!" McLellan yelled from the driver's seat as they pulled away.
Author's Note-I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I'm not sure when the next one will be up, but my hope is that you don't have to wait longer than two weeks. Until next time! Please review, I love hearing what you guys think!
