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[givingback]

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[seventeenfortythree]

[ Jamie kisses her forehead tenderly, every ounce the concerning father. ]

When I first saw ye again it was a shock. Seeing ye all grown, not a bairn. You're beautiful, a leannan. M’ annsachd.

[ He says the words softly, thumb ghosting over the apple of her cheek. ]

[givingback]

[ His 'darlin' he said. His blessing. ]

Can I admit something to you? I just...I don't know how to say it.

[seventeenfortythree]

You can say anything ye wish, Brianna. Wi' no fear of judgment.

[ He looks at her with complete honesty. ]

Ye have my word.

[givingback]

[ Bree looks down and lets out a soft breath. ]

Since the moment I've woken up here, the first time, all that I've wanted is for...

[ She hesitates, looking down for a second before looking back at Jamie. ]

For my father to wake up.

[seventeenfortythree]

[ Jamie softens and looks at her. ]

Mo leannan. First, ye need to ken I will never be upset if you speak of yer father. The man who raised ye ,and raised ye well. All that I wanted was for you to be safe and taken care of. Loved. And ye were.

[ He wants her to know it, that she doesn't have to censor herself. ]

Ye miss him, and that's an ache that doesna go away easily. I'm no' trying to replace yer father, Brianna. If he woke tomorrow, I would be glad for ye.

[ Not for himself, perhaps, but for her. ]

[givingback]

[ He's a good man. An incredible man, really. She understands why her mother loves him so much. ]

And what should I call you? It doesn't feel right, to just call you by your first name.

[seventeenfortythree]

Ye can call me anything ye'd like. First name or...

[ He thinks about it quietly for a moment before looking at her. ]

Ye could call me 'da.' If ye wish. It's simple, ye ken.

[givingback]

Da.

[ Bree looks at him, eyes watery, and she nods, swallowing. Why that's the thing that makes this little dam break she isn't sure, but suddenly she's fighting real tears. ]

I think I really need you and mama right now.

[ She pushes her hands under her eyes, trying to keep the tears away but they're falling anyway. ]

[seventeenfortythree]

[ Jamie moves into action quickly and his arms wrap around her, one hand cradling the back of her head as she falls apart. He rocks slowly, whispering quietly to her. ]

Mo leannan. It's all right. I have ye, lass. Much, mo naoidheachan, much.

[nineteenfortyfive]

[Of course, this is when Claire returns, a bag in one arm full of soup containers and a bag on the other arm with tiny bottles of sugary drinks she hopes won't kill Jamie and that Bree will like. To say she's hurried would be an understatement--the woman's hair is a mess, and she's winded and a little sweaty despite the cold. Did she run? Perhaps.

Perhaps she just sensed that Bree really needed her. A good thing Jamie has it all in hand, then, but there's no denying that it breaks her heart to see.

Setting the items down on the small table for two in the room, she sits on the bed beside the two, putting a hand on Bree's back. She wonders if she should take her from Jamie, but--no. He has her.]

Oh, baby. My sweet baby.

[givingback]

[ She meant it, when she said she needed them both, and she shifts just a little for them to both hold her. ]

When does this part stop?

[seventeenfortythree]

[ Her anguish makes Jamie feel as though he's drowning, and tears threaten as he looks at Claire.

When does it stop?

Naked behind a blade of grass. ]

Mo muirninn. It doesn't. [ His voice is low, quiet. He's glad Claire is here, after all. ] No' for a while. But eventually, the pain no one can heal fades away. Ye find reasons to smile again, to be all right. People who love you never stop telling ye so.

[ Jamie's tears fall, silently, onto the top of Brianna's head. ]

Ye stop blamin' yourself. Stop feeling as though you should've done something to keep it from happening. Once ye understand you survived, mo chridhe, your heart begins to feel less heavy. Day by day until in a moment, ye feel as if ye can feel joy again.

[ He's held her, through all of this, but now he pulls her back, just enough to see her face, so that she can see his. ]

I survived it. And I ken my daughter is stronger than I. So you will survive it, too.

[nineteenfortyfive]

[She told Jamie it might help Bree, knowing he suffered and overcame such brutality himself, but she hadn't expected him to open up about it now. Then again, when? Knowing how difficult this is for him, how rarely he chooses to speak of that time, she moves closer to rest her forehead against Bree's temple and reach behind her to rest a hand on Jamie's arm.]

Jamie and I are as stubborn as they come, and God knows that's where you get it from.

[Frustrating, sometimes. Necessary, in times like these.]

[givingback]

[ Bree looks at him, first with a frown as she tries to understand and then when it becomes clear her mouth hangs open a little.

He knows. He knows the pain and the hurt and the feeling that you should have done more, fought harder, gotten over it quicker. Blindly, she reaches back for her mother even as her opposite hand holds onto Jamie's arm tightly. Taking a few deep breaths she tries not to fall apart again. ]

I always thought I only got it from you.

[ Said in Claire's direction. ]

[seventeenfortythree]

Och, aye.

[ Jamie makes a very amused face in light of things. ]

I'm no' the stubborn one. Everything yer mother wants, she gets, ye ken.

[ But he does shift closer so that Bree can be firmly held by both of them. And he does recant his statement - a bit, anyway. ]

Yer mother and I are both stubborn enough to be here for every moment ye may need us. Big or small, we'an.

[nineteenfortyfive]

[Claire will remember these comments for later. She just sighs, shaking her head a little, but not quite in a place to laugh.]

He's right. If you need to cry, do it. We're here. You don't need to explain why or... anything, Bree. Just let us take care of you.

[givingback]

I think, for right now, I'm cried out. I just feel tired. I want to sleep for a while.

[ She definitely doesn't feel like eating, but she also knows she won't be getting out of it either. So she hugs Jamie again, then turns to wrap around Claire for a few seconds, just breathing her in as she commits to eating something enough to placate her parents. ]

[seventeenfortythree]

If ye eat now, m’ annsachd, then sleep will come for as long as you'd like. I promise.

[ He touches her hair lightly as she rests against Claire, and when he looks at his wife holding their babe, he knows there's nothing in this world or the next that would keep him from protecting them both. If Bonnet ever awakens from stasis, Jamie will be the one to end him permanently. If anyone ever touches his wife or child again, they will have him to contend with and he will not be merciful. ]

[nineteenfortyfive]

[Good girl, eating before Claire has to make her. Claire keeps an arm around her, though, since parting to go get the food was already far too much time away from her.]

I think a shower might be in order, after you eat. Then we can curl up in bed again, hmm?

[She gives her shoulders a little squeeze. Then, she looks to Jamie.]

You need to eat, too. Go on.

[givingback]

[ Bree can't help but smirk a little at Jamie who is, apparently, not immune to he mother's prodding. Still, Bree nods, smiling, though it doesn't quite reach her eyes. ]

That sounds good, mama.

[ The soup smells good and her stomach does actually growl in eager anticipation of food. ]

[seventeenfortythree]

[ When Bree tucks into the food first, Jamie takes a moment to kiss Claire's temple, closing his eyes and squeezing her hand in a silent show of shared strength.

He sits down to eat and the good itself is familiar enough, but when he gets to the drink, he turns it over in his hands, inspecting the bottle. ]

What sort of beverage is this, then? Some sort of dark ale?

[nineteenfortyfive]

[So no one gets on her case, she settles in to eat as well, though her appetite is hardly a thing she feels. An eye is carefully kept on Bree, in case--well, anything, really--but Jamie catches her attention.]

Oh. That. I've no idea. It might be a Nadril specialty. I was just told it's good. And sweet. Shall you try it for us first?

[givingback]

I've had it.

[ Bree supplies this information. ]

It's like a soda but...a little more bubbly. [ Which is mostly said for her mother's clarification because she knows Jamie won't know what a 'soda' is either. ]

It is pretty sweet. I'm almost positive you've never had anything like it before.

[seventeenfortythree]

[ No, he has no idea what they're talking about, but he takes a sip after Bree does.

The bubbles surprise him and he coughs a little, then looks at the bottle before looking at his wife and daughter. ]

It is bubbly. I dinnae ken why a drink needs to have bubbles.

[nineteenfortyfive]

[Somehow, despite all the grief in her heart, hearing Jamie say bubbly in that Scots accent of his almost makes her smile.]

Don't worry. We have a fine stock of liquor at home.

[Between mouthfuls of soup, she decides to give them both something to look forward to.]

If you're lucky, Bree might bless you with some pancakes.

[It's usually Claire making them and sharing them with Bree while in bed, their little late night tradition kept from the boys, but Bree and Jamie can begin something of their own. She hopes.]