This chapter was a bit different than other recent chapters; it seemed more, um,
manly. There's a lot of fighting, swordplay, and knife training going on. And of course more sex. I'm half-tempted to think that Diana was challenged to a wager that she couldn't write a chapter that would appeal more to men. I would bet she won the wager.
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| The only other manly thing missing from this chapter... |
One of the first things encountered is the after-effects of the wedding. I like how the reaction of Randall is downplayed; this is a fine point that may have been missed in any other novel. Sometimes the main characters begin to take on an oversized value within the confines of the narrative, but this does not seem lost on how Claire's marriage is portrayed from the perspective of Randall's point of view (via Dougal):
“He’s more to worry about than one stray Sassenach wench, no matter how pretty.” He raised an eyebrow and half-bowed toward me, as though the compliment were meant in apology. “He’s also better sense than to rile Colum by kidnapping his niece,” he said, more matter-of-factly.
Not only how Randall would think about it, but how the balance of power in the MacKenzie clan would be affected. What would the ramifications be beyond the immediate needs of keeping Claire safe? In my estimation, this tends to bring flesh and blood to the characterizations, as they have potential for consequences beyond the immediate story.
As they were settling in for the evening after dinner around the campfire, I did like the little story about the waterhorse, and learned some trivia about the legends:
These beings, I was given to understand, inhabited almost all bodies of water, being especially common at fords and crossings, though many lived in the depths of the lochs.
And here I thought there was only one in the depths of the Loch Ness.
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| The truth about the Loch Ness monster. |
The raid brought things back to the seriousness, and dangers, of the mission at hand. The casual nature
of the men shifting positions around the campfire while moving closer to their weapons had a ring of authenticity to it. Also, I liked the fact that there wasn't a lot of screaming or talking during the fighting, just lots of grunting and shuffling while the hand-to-hand fighting is taking place. This, I'm sure, is how much of the adrenaline-fueled skirmish fighting was carried out. We tend to think in terms of modern movies with characters shouting their catch-phrases at each other, but a good ol' fight was probably just a bunch of dull thuds and groans. I find it hard to imagine Jamie making some sort of witty comment to best his opponents; he would be much more likely to just beat them to a pulp, but with grace and style, I'm sure.
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| One of Jamie's less used fighting catch-phrases. |
The field skirmish brings the reality of the times to the foreground, as well. It had to be difficult from a safety perspective to travel on long journeys, something that we take for granted in our modern vehicles and interstate highways. Understanding some of these dangers, and seeing the fighting up close, certainly brought a tangible urgency to training Claire how to defend herself. These are obvious skills needed for the times.
I was timid and extremely clumsy at first, but Rupert was a good teacher, very patient and good about demonstrating moves, over and over. He rolled his eyes in mock lewdness when he moved behind me and put his arm about my waist, but he was quite businesslike about taking hold of my wrist to show me the way of ripping an enemy across the eyes.
I also like how the men are starting to take to her, now that she is an official member of the clan. I can see how it would take some time for them to warm up to her, but now that she has immediate ties to the welfare of their little caravaning troupe, they begin to take her under their wing, even if Jamie wouldn't let her handle a pistol:
“I’d let ye see [how it fires] for yourself,” he said, raising one eyebrow, “but I like ye better wi’ all of your teeth. You’ve a nice smile, Sassenach, even if ye are a bit feisty.”
Only just married and he already knows her so well.
