Cassidy peered around and took in her surroundings. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. She was mortified to find herself plopped in a mud puddle in the middle of a dirt road. Horses and carriages lined the sides of road, as well as old, colonial buildings. The women and girls were dressed in gowns while the men and boys were dressed in breeches, linen shirts, and waistcoats. Cassidy peered down at her mud-covered t-shirt and shorts, immediately realizing she was not wearing the appropriate clothing for wherever she was. Cassidy thought it looked like she was somewhere out of her social studies book, but where?
"Move kid!" a man yelled as he approached her in his wagon. Cassidy attempted to move and startled the bay colored horse that was pulling the wagon. The horse jolted to the right quickly which caused the man driving to fall to the left. He plopped into the mud beside her. Cassidy giggled as he sat and up and spat mud from his mouth, but the man was not amused. He mumbled something and stood up from the ground. He then grabbed Cassidy from the back of her shirt and roughly lifted her to her feet. He kept hold of her and glared down at her, trying to make sense of the strange clothing she was wearing.
"Ow, let me go!" she hollered as she thrashed about, splattering mud in all directions. "Get your hands off of me!"
"Stop your fussing," he grumbled.
"No, let me go!" she ordered.
"What's your family name?" the man demanded, still holding her tightly by the back of her shirt. "I'm sure your parents wouldn't want you wandering about dressed in your undergarments. They should give you a good thrashing." Cassidy flinched at the strong smell of alcohol coming from his breath.
"None of your business!" Cassidy declared, as she struggled to free herself. "And they're not my undergarments!" The man grunted with annoyance and then roughly pushed her aside, causing her to tumble into the mud once again. "Jerk," she growled. She had the urge to kick him and quickly jumped to her feet. She stopped herself when she saw several onlookers staring from the sides of the road, so instead she watched as the wagon clambered away. Cassidy hadn't even noticed that a cool rain was falling, and she began to shiver uncontrollably. She hurried off to find shelter as the rain began to come down harder. She received many disgusted looks as she made her way through town.
"Mama, why is she dressed like that?" one little girl asked.
"Come along," the mother replied as she threw a disgusted glance in Cassidy's direction. Cassidy's cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. She noticed a small opening under a porch and scrambled underneath. Hiding seemed like the best option to her. The opening was big enough for most of body, but her mud-covered, pink Nikes were still exposed after Cassidy pulled her knees into her chest. She rested her chin on her knees and peered outside as the rain poured down on her feet. Cassidy began to question whether she made the right decision to go through the brick wall, facing Mr. Carmen seemed a lot better to her right now. Her teeth began to chatter, and her legs began to feel numb. Cassidy tried to hug her legs even tighter to warm herself up.
"Jamie, look," she heard a voice say after what seemed like hours. "Those look like pink sneakers." Cassidy tried to pull her legs even closer to her body. The next thing she knew a face was peering in the opening. "It's a child," the woman gasped. Cassidy's first thought was how beautiful the woman was with her brownish, black hair pulled back into a messy bun. "Are you ok?" the woman asked.
"I'm fine," Cassidy replied through chattering teeth. The woman, Claire Fraser, turned and spoke to the person behind her.
"We need to get her someplace warm," the woman commented, "She could have hypothermia." Claire turned back toward Cassidy. "Come on out, you're safe," Claire said gently.
"No," Cassidy replied abruptly. "I'm fine."
"You're not fine," Claire insisted. "You're cold, dirty, and probably hungry. Let us help you."
"I'm fine…..go away!" Cassidy snapped as she kicked mud in Claire's direction. Claire stepped back with a sigh. She was annoyed, but she could tell the child was frightened and her motherly instinct wouldn't allow her to walk away.
"Let me try Sassenach," Jamie urged. Claire stepped aside, and Jamie peered inside. Without staying a word, he reached inside and wrapped his arm around Cassidy's waist and pulled her out.
"Let me go, you barbarian!" she yelled, terrified the large man would hurt her. Claire smiled at the child's choice of words. When she saw the child's clothing, she knew the child didn't belong there and was overcome with concern.
"We have to get her someplace quickly," Claire commented.
"We can go to Fergus'," Jamie replied as he continued to hold Cassidy against his hip. "I dinna ken if I can put the lass down though," Jamie commented. Claire looked at Cassidy and could see the child wasn't happy and figured she would run if Jamie put her down.
"Maybe you should just carry her," Claire replied.
"This is kidnapping!" Cassidy cried out as she swung her fists in the air. "Put me down! I'll have you arrested!" Claire and Jamie started walking briskly, hoping they didn't attract too much attention. The streets were fairly empty with the unfavorable weather, but there were still a few townspeople scattered about.
"Hush lass," Jamie said, "We're just tryin to help ye." Cassidy had a hard time believing that they were just trying to help her, but she finally had stopped fighting back when Jamie's grip didn't budge. He was strong and determined, and a 70-pound child was no match for him.
They entered the home of Marsali and Fergus Fraser (Jamie's adopted son). "What do ye have here?" Marsali commented as she covered with mouth with awe. Cassidy still hung from Jamie's hip with his arm securely around her hip. She was exhausted by now. "What happened to the poor dear?" Marsali questioned with concern.
"We found her underneath a porch," Claire replied.
"And ye brought the lass here?" Marsali questioned. "Where are her parents? And why is she dressed in her undergarments?"
"I don't know," Claire sighed in response, "but I'm afraid she might be suffering from hypothermia." "Could you and Fergus draw her a warm bath? I need to warm her up….and clean her up." Marsali agreed that the child needed to be cleaned up and could see they had their work cut out for them considering almost every inch of Cassidy's body was covered with mud.
"Right away," Fergus replied.
"Can I let ye go lass?" Jamie questioned gently.
"Ya," Cassidy replied reluctantly. Jamie hesitantly set her on her feet, and then slowly released the grip he had on her. Cassidy glanced from Claire to Jamie, and thought about running, but she didn't. She stood quietly and shivered from head to toe. Goosebumps covered her small frame.
"Let's get ye in front of the fire," Jamie said as he pointed to a doorway. "Through there." Cassidy started walking in the direction that Jamie gestured. She arrived in a room with two, leather covered chairs and a baby crib. Cassidy peeked inside to find a baby fast asleep, swaddled in a blanket.
"Come stand in front of the fire," Claire urged. Cassidy went and stood beside her. The warmth felt delightful. "What's your name?" Claire asked.
"Cassidy," she replied without looking at Claire.
"What a beautiful name. It's nice to meet you Cassidy. I'm Claire, that's Jamie, and this home belongs to Fergus and Marsali…they're kindly getting a bath ready for you," Claire replied. Cassidy still didn't look up. "Your parents are probably worried about you," Claire commented. Cassidy shrugged her shoulders as she continued to gaze into the fire. "Cassidy, where are your parents?" Claire's voice was a little more demanding to get the child's attention. Cassidy shrugged her shoulders again. Jamie couldn't take it anymore. He placed his hand on Cassidy's shoulder and turned her to face him.
"Look at me lass," he ordered gently. Cassidy huffed and reluctantly made eye contact with him. Jamie could see the sadness and defeat in the child's eyes. "Where are ye parents?" he asked.
"Dead," she snapped. "Happy now?"
"No lass….that does not make me happy," he replied. "I'm sorry to hear that." Jamie and Claire exchanged glances.
"The bath is ready," Fergus interrupted.
"Thank you," Claire replied with a smile. "Let's get you cleaned up Cassidy."
"I'll be here if ye need me Sassenach," Jamie stated.
Cassidy followed Claire into the kitchen where a tub of water sat on the floor. It was a small tub of water, barely big enough for an adult to sit down in. "You expect me to use that?" Cassidy questioned.
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I do," Claire responded. "You'll find things are a lot different here." Surprised, Cassidy made eye contact with Claire. Did Claire know her secret? "I know," Claire said gently. "We have a lot to talk about." Marsali hurried into the kitchen with towel and a gown.
"Get undressed lass," Marsali urged. Cassidy glanced uncomfortably from Claire to Marsali. "It's fine, we are all girls here," Marsali said with a smile.
Cassidy awkwardly pulled off her mud-covered t-shirt, and then her shorts and underwear. Claire helped her into the tub. Cassidy crouched down with her knees up to her chest to fit. Claire grabbed a washcloth and kneeled next to the tub and began washing Cassidy's back. "You're covered in scratches and bruises," Claire commented.
"I fell off my bike," Cassidy replied, and then looked at Claire with surprise.
"It's ok, we can trust Marsali," Claire replied gently. Marsali looked on with confusion. "Marsali, you know my story, right? About how I got here?" Marsali nodded her head. "Well, it appears Cassidy may have gotten here the same way." Cassidy looked at Claire again with surprise, and tears filled her eyes. "I'm not from this time either," Claire said as she continued to wash Cassidy's back.
"What are the odds?" Marsali commented. "Looks like ye were found by the right person lass." Cassidy smiled slightly, relieved that Claire would be able to understand her.
"Where are you from?" Claire asked.
"Wilmington, NC," Cassidy replied.
"Where did you live?" Claire questioned.
"My great grandmother died when I was five, and then I lived in a group home and with some foster families," Cassidy replied, and then her stomach growled loudly. She felt her face flush red with embarrassment. "I haven't eaten in…well…..I actually don't know how long it has been since I ate something."
"I made a nice stew," Marsali said. "I'll get ye some once we get ye cleaned up." Claire continued to help Cassidy get cleaned up and was surprised at how beautiful her hair was once the mud was gone. Her hair was an auburn red and it hung in long ringlets down her back.
"Claire….can I ask you something?" Cassidy questioned.
"Of course," Claire replied.
"Why are you all being so nice to me?" Cassidy asked. Claire smiled and placed her hand gently on Cassidy's cheek.
"Because you're a child who needs our help," she replied. Cassidy smiled in return. "Well…..it looks like you are all clean, let's get you dried off and into clean clothes." Cassidy stood up and Marsali wrapped a towel around her shoulders.
"I have some bedclothes for ye," Marsali said, "But I reckon they might be a little big."
"That's fine Marsali," Claire responded, "Thank you for all your help." The baby's cries echoed throughout the house.
"Sounds like Germain is hungry," Marsali commented as she hurried from the kitchen area. Claire continued to help Cassidy dry off and then helped her into one of Marsali's nightgowns. It dragged on the floor, so Claire knotted up the side.
"That should do for now," Claire commented. She served Cassidy a plate of stew and sat down across from her at the table. Moments later, Jamie appeared behind Claire and tenderly placed his hands on her shoulders. He couldn't believe how differently Cassidy looked all cleaned up.
"Ye look like a young lady now," he commented. Cassidy looked up at him and smiled slightly. "Fergus said we could stay here for the night," Jamie said to Claire. Cassidy yawned. "The lass looks like she could use a good night's sleep." Claire nodded her head in agreement. Cassidy fell asleep as soon as Claire had her settled on a blanket near the fire.
"What are we going to do?" Claire asked as she nestled down next to Jamie on a blanket adjacent to Cassidy's.
"I dinna ken," Jamie replied.
"We can't just abandon her," Claire replied.
"I ken," Jamie replied as he stroked Claire's hair away from her face. "I suppose we can bring the lass home until we figure something out." Jamie's response reminded Claire on why she loved him so much. His generosity always amazed her. She leaned closer to him and kissed him.
"You are a wonderful man Jamie Fraser," she commented.
"And ye are a wonderful woman Sassenach," he replied. "I hope ye are ready for what happens next. I dinna think this lass is going to be easy to care for." They both smiled.
"I think you are right about that," Claire replied.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
~A/N: Thanks so much for reading! Please let me know your thoughts! Outlander fanfiction is all new to me and I just love Jamie and Claire so much! Thanks again!~