VOYAGER
Chapter 22: All Hallows' Eve


Claire is continuing her preparations to return to the past and now has a cloak and a small fortune in 18th century coins, with the help of Roger and Bree. They they go out for dinner and Roger asks Claire to do something for him. He tells her to close her eyes, step outside of the pub door and open her eyes, and then return and tell him the first thing she saw. She humors him and reports back that she saw a police officer coming towards her. Roger tells her that it is good luck to see a man coming toward you on Samhain and that it means she will find what she seeks.

They return to the manse then and Claire thanks Bree and Roger for everything they've done and tells them she will miss them dearly. Once she retires to bed, Bree and Roger talk and Bree confides to Roger that she needs her mother and is torn over her return to the past. She tells him that her mother is the only person who really knows her and what's she's done and what's she was like as a child, and now she will no longer have anyone who really knows her. Roger understands how she feels and tells her that her mother isn't the only one who cares.

Bree goes to bed, but Roger stays up and Claire later joins him. Roger assures Claire that he will take care of Bree once Claire is gone. Claire tells Roger that she wrote it all down for Bree and asks Roger if he will give the letter to Bree once she is gone. Claire tells him she plans to leave for Craigh na Dun before dawn the next day. She thanks him and leaves.

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A couple of observations on this very brief chapter:

There's a lot of emotion conveyed here - Roger's feelings for Bree, Claire's for Bree and Roger, Bree for Roger, the mother-daughter bond between Claire and Bree, etc... And we see how Jamie fits in here as well, when Roger tells Bree, "She belongs with him, Bree. Can ye not see it? When she speaks of him?" Bree freely admits that Claire needs to be with Jamie.

I also enjoyed learning about Samhain traditions and rituals, however briefly mentioned.

Your thoughts?

I agree that it's always fun to ready about the traditions and rituals that I would otherwise be unaware of. And, I'm glad Claire got a good outcome. I liked that she joked about walking into a police officer and that's exactly what happened, leaving Roger and Bree a little nervous because she was taking so long.

Definitely a lot of emotion. Excitement that their search has concluded and allowed Claire to go back and (hopefully) find Jamie, but also sadness for the separation (mainly between Claire and Bree, but also Roger), and fear of the unknown (will she make it back? How will a third trip through the stones affect Claire? Will she find Jamie? How will Bree do without any parents left in her own time?).

And, of course, the excitement is building for us readers as the reunion approaches.

Great summary, as always Rochelle, the number of relationships and how they are developing is amazing, as well as the emotion. Jamie brought a lot of people together, in so many ways, and it's great to see Roger and Claire with Bree's best interests at heart right at the time that Claire is getting ready to embark on her next adventure into the 18th Century, back to Jamie!

The scene where she walked outside and literally ran into the policeman was great. Lucky policeman! It was reminiscent, just a little, of Frank running across Jamie, in Outlander, albeit not as romantic!

Roger's reassurance of Bree was very touching, and the first time I remember seeing Bree in a situation where she wasn't completely in control that things didn't get broken. Roger's story about his memories of All Hallow's Eve were touching, as well. Agreed that the traditions here are great to learn and read about, Halloween was never as interesting before reading about them, here.