I saw him before she did.
His body was wrapped in a deep velvet frock, contrasting his fiery hair, accentuating the blaze. He was a hulking mass of man, towering over the crowd.
A lion amongst a herd of sheep.
And he had seen his lioness.
I glanced to Claire, her eyes were round and her cheeks flushed. She watched his every step as he neared our bench, a smile growing with his every motion, until it was a fully-fledged grin. I hid my smile, feigning need for the bathroom as I abandoned ship.
This love boat was taking off.
I wove my way through the crowd, mentally retracing my steps back to where Claire had pointed out the bathrooms. Squeezing past scots of all shapes, sizes, and kilt colors. One thing I missed about the 21st century was certainly the hygiene; the smothering scent of alcohol, sweat, and musk filled the air. Climbing down my throat and making my eyes water.
Fresh air. That's what I needed, far more than a bathroom at this point.
I set off in the direction of the stables, stopped halfway, rethought, and turned for the gardens. If for some reason Claire and Jamie decided to sail the love boat out of the great hall, the stables might be one of their destinations. Better be safe than sorry.
The gardens were just around the corner of the stables, a turret of the castle separated them from sight, but if one listened carefully, the sounds of horses could be heard as if they were carried on the wind.
The gardens were quiet when I walked out, the moon was out, full and white. Glistening and reflecting off the puddles scattered across the ground. The water-moons wobbled as I walked by, vibrating like the water cup in Jurassic Park.
I felt very ethereal as I walked amongst the overgrowth, my gown trailing along the ground, the moon turning my skin a pearly white. I was Artemis, the moon incarnate.
I breathed in the fresh mountain air, its chilly fingers clawing down my throat and sinus'; into my brain until I was fully awake. It was then that my ears perked up, the sound of boots coming nearer began to overshadow the faint neighing of horses in the background. My heart seized as I looked back to the door, a few steps, whoever it was would see me but I would be inside the castle before they could catch me.
I began hurrying. Women's rights were close to nothing in this era, respect of women ran along the same lines. Inside, I needed to be inside.
I heard the stranger splash through a puddle just as my feet crossed the threshold; to Claire I must go, and so I did.
Through the halls I went, retracing my steps until I was squeezing past the scots of Clan Mackenzie, back to Claire's bench, that was now devoid of Jamie. Her scanning eyes met mine as I sat down beside her,
"Oh there you are! Did you get lost on the way to the privies?" she asked in a whisper as the proceedings began up front.
"No," I said, "merely wandering the halls to give Jamie some time with you." I said this with a cheeky smile and turned to watch the ceremony. Claire huffed a laugh, blushed, and swatted my shoulder. I grinned.
In hushed tones throughout the event, Mrs. Fitz-Gibbons explain what was taking place and the meaning behind the ceremony. She had found us and squeezed onto our bench soon after I had returned.
It was a swearing-in of sorts. The men of Clan Mackenzie were giving their allegiance to Colum and Dougal, drinking the castle's wine and reciting a pledge. It was a ceremony of great meaning, if you did not say the oath, you were pretty much dead meat from what I understood.
I didn't realize that I would have a demonstration of such an event.
As the last few men were sworn into the clan, men of all ages and sizes, a great red brute was thrust forward into the great hall. Held back by men I had seen before but did not remember their names, Jamie was marched straight to the feet of Colum, placed in a spotlight that I realized he had no intention of getting caught in the first place.
I hid my eyes as the awkwardly stiff tension in the room reached an all-out high, Claire gasped and squeezed my hand as Mrs. Fitz-Gibbons explained what was happening.
Jamie was an idiot, that was what was happening.
Due to his undying love for the woman at my side, it seemed like the Scottish giant was caught loitering around the castle, not hiding where he should have been if he had wanted to avoid this event. Some of his peers, who seemed to have been highly inebriated, thought to take it upon themselves to escort him back to where he should have been. The very place he had wanted to avoid.
A conversation between Colum and Jamie began, tense and muffled. Even Mrs. Fitz-Gibbons could discern nothing to translate to us.
Dark stares were exchanged throughout the crowd, daggers were grasped, and throats cleared. Colum raised his hand as Jamie stopped talking, beckoning the room to be quiet. Jamie then took the bowl of alcohol and drained it, not sharing with Colum, not even bowing.
An anxiety, adrenaline filled moment passed, silent as the dead, and then,
Colum clasped Jamie's shoulders and smiled.
It was like a balloon had popped.
The hall erupted in cheers as the last clan member swore into the Clan Mackenzie. Clothing was thrown, glasses clinked and yells were exchanged.
My head felt stuffed with cotton as my senses were over stimulated with all the celebration surrounding me.
Claire looked for Jamie but he had been swept away by his fellow warriors, off to get drunk I assumed. I looked at Claire, asking with my eyes whether we would stay or retire to our rooms for the night. But before she could answer me, I was interrupted by a cough and "excuse me".
I turned around in surprise, nobody acknowledged me in the castle besides my own little family, they were all still wary about my presence.
Before me stood a man, new to manhood, but no longer a boy. His hair was a dark tangle of curls, swept carelessly away from his face, and gathering at the nape of his neck in a thong of leather. His face was tanned, and pleasing to look at, a small white scare decorated the corner of his eye and another, longer one graced his bottom lip and part of his chin. I blinked at his hulking form, tall yet lanky, at least a head over my own. My eyes met his; deep, warm and chocolate brown. They weren't a deep blue and yet I felt as if they went on forever, and for the first time in my life, I felt that cliché statement for myself, I got "lost in his eyes".
His scared and ruddy hand was outstretched and within it was a black silk ribbon. I looked at it, lost.
"It fell from your hair as you exited the garden," he said, his voice was deep and rumbled out of his chest like a bear's growl, "I figured you'd want it back".
I automatically smiled and said thank you, auto pilot taking over as my mind stumbled over his smooth voice and intriguing features.
He nodded and faded away back into the crowd and my mind immediately began criticizing how I handled the situation. Stupid, that's how I handled it, awkwardly stupid.