VOYAGER
© Diana Gabaldon 1994
Chapter 25: A Wedding Takes Place

Please forgive the early posting, but my reasons are quite appropos: my husband and I are going on a little getaway for our 24th wedding anniversary. And here we are, chatting about chapter 25: A Wedding Takes Place, which is not only about the actual wedding of Fergus and Marsali, but also a restatement of vows for Claire and Jamie. There is so much that is endearing in this chapter! Funny and witty, and romantic. *sigh*

Section One:

One Captain Allessandro (aka auburn-bearded Jamie Fraser) sets his troops to help the crew of the Artemis. Fergus asks Maitland to begin singing, which he does with a rendition of Nut-Brown Maid. Normally, this would have gone right over my head, the name of the song, but having spent months now researching all poetry and music within The Game of Kings, I know this song! It’s an ancient anonymous ballad. A few stanzas:

The Nut Brown Maid
The Corries: The Corries singing The Nut-Brown Maid


He: I counsel you, Remember how
It is no maiden’s law
Nothin to doubt, but to run out
To wood with an outlàw.
For ye must there in your hand bear
A bow ready to draw;
And as a thief thus must you live
Ever in dread and awe;
Whereby to you great harm might grow:
Yet had I liever than
That I had to the green-wood go,
Alone, a banished man.

She: I think not nay, but as ye say;
It is no maiden’s lore;
But love may make me for your sake,
As ye have said before,
To come on foot, to hunt and shoot
To get us meat and store;
For so that I your company
May have, I ask no more;
From which to part, it maketh my heart
As cold as any stone:
For, in my mind, of all mankind
I love but you alone.

He: For an outlàw, this is the law
That men him take and bind;
Without pitie, hangëd to be,
And waver with the wind.
If I had need, (as God forbede!)
What rescues could ye find?
Forsooth, I trow, you and your bow
Should draw for fear behind.
And no mervail; for little avail
Where in your counsel than:
Wherefore I to the wood will go,
Alone, a banished man.

Section Two: Jamie comes through the brush for Claire in a wonderful scene:

‘Claire!’ He crushed me tight against his chest. Then he grabbed me by the shoulders and shook me, hard.
‘Damn you!’ he said, in a piercing whisper. ‘I thought ye were dead for sure! How dare ye do something harebrained like jump off a ship in the middle of the night! Have ye no sense at all?’
‘Let go!’ I hissed. The shaking had made me bite my lip. ‘Let go, I say! What do you mean, how dare I do something harebrained? You idiot, what possessed you to follow me?’
His face was darkened by the sun; now a deep red began to darken it further, washing up from the edges of his new beard.
‘What possessed me?’ he repeated. ‘You’re my wife, for the Lord’s sake! Of course I would follow ye; why did ye not wait for me? Christ, if I had time I’d --’

*snip*

‘Stay here, the both of ye, and dinna stir a foot or I swear I’ll beat ye senseless.’
Without pausing for a response, he whirled and strode back through the trees, toward the beach.
Marsali and I exchanged stares, which were interrupted a second later, when Jamie, breathless, hurtled back into the small clearing. He grabbed me by both arms, and kissed me briefly but thoroughly.
‘I forgot. I love you,’ he said, giving me another shake for emphasis. ‘And I’m glad you’re no dead. Dinna do that again!’

Section Three:

Claire discovers the joy of Jamie’s beard . . . which is showing a bit of white! And then we progress to possibly THE best scene (or maybe a close second to Turtle Soup?) with Jamie telling Claire what he’s got planned. *cough*


‘And we’ll see what sort of noise it is ye don’t make then, Sassenach.’

While Jamie waxes poetic over what he has planned for Claire, she quotes the Song of Solomon:


My beloved's arm is under me
and his hand behind my head.
Comfort me with apples,
and stay me with flagons,
For I am sick of love.

Section Four: The Wedding

The drunk Father Fogden presides over the wedding of Marsali and Fergus, which is absolutely hilarious! And Fergus becomes a Fraser:


The priest frowned slightly at this. ‘Fergus?’ he said. ‘Fergus. Fergus. Yes. Fergus, got that. That’s all? No more name? Need more names, surely?’
‘Fergus,’ Fergus repeated, with a note of strain in his voice. Fergus was the only name he had ever had – bar his original French name of Claudel. Jamie had given him the name Fergus in Paris, when they had met, twenty years before. But naturally a brothel-born b*st*rd would have no last name to give a wife.
‘Fraser,’ said a deep, sure voice beside me. Fergus and Marsali both glanced back in surprise, and Jamie nodded. His eyes met Fergus’s, and he smiled faintly.
‘Fergus Claudel Fraser,’ he said, slowly and clearly. One eyebrow lifted as he look at Fergus.

After the wedding, Claire confirms her own commitment to Jamie:


So she [Marsali] had done it. One fifteen-year old girl, with nothing but stubbornness as a weapon. ‘I want him,’ she had said. And kept saying it, through her mother’s objections and Jamie’s arguments, through Fergus’s scruples and her own fears, through three thousand miles of homesickness, hardship, ocean storm, and shipwreck.
She raised her face, shining, and found her mirror in Fergus’s eyes. I saw them look at each other, and felt the tears prickle behind my lids.
‘I want him.’ I had not said that to Jamie at our marriage; I had not wanted him, then. But I had said it since, three times; two in moments of choice at Craigh na Dun, and once again at Lallybroch.
‘I want him.’ I wanted him still, and nothing whatever could stand between us.
He was looking down at me; I could feel the weight of his gaze, dark blue and tender as the sea at dawn.
‘What are ye thinking, mo chridhe?’ he asked softly.
I blinked back the tears and smiled at him. His hands were large and warm on mine.
‘What I tell you three times is true,’ I said. And standing on timtoe, I kissed him as the sailor’s cheer went up.

This has to be one of the most romantic chapters in the book. I was as happy to see Fergus in love finally and Jamie and Claire reunited. The priest was hilarious. And when Jamie gave Fergus his name, I wanted to melt. I love Fergus' character so much.

I love when Jamie says "Fraser " when the priest asks for Fergus's full name. What a great chapter. So romantic. Everyone accounted for and happy.

I absolutely loved this scene, especially the one with Fergus as Pauline and Janet have stated. The beginning of that scene is hysterical. Jamie is nothing is not full of surprises! There was so much going on that I think I had to read it twice to figure it out and then listening to it on audio was hysterical.

I agree that the priest at the wedding and before was just too funny, probably one of my favorite characters in Voyager (along with Mr. Willoughby).

Great summary Laura and Happy Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary Laura!

I absolutely loved this chapter! I laughed so hard and cried, too. Father Fogden is the funniest character with his sheep and the entire wedding ceremony! I was teary when Jamie gave Fergus his name. It amazes me that Jamie has such fatherly instincts when he has never been able to be a father to his own children.

Has anyone else noticed that DG's wedding scenes (I won't mention here) are usually very entertaining??? I find myself waiting for another wedding just to see what she does!

I just finished reading the chapter and I literally laughed out load several times at comments from Father Fogden during the wedding. And, I wanted to melt when Jamie gave Fergus the name Fraser. And, of course, in some of the scenes with Jamie and Claire back together again. I love the "I'm glad you're no dead" line. And, the whole scene in the captain's cabin (though, I have to say that I am less a fan of facial hair than Claire is).

The one thing that bugs me about the chapter is yet another significant coincidence. I can accept that Jamie managed to insinuate himself into the French military somehow after meeting those kids. But, he was the captain of the squad that came to check out the shipwreck? Pretty convenient. And, why Captain Allessandro? I think I always assumed they were Spanish, despite Claire clearing saying that they are French like the Artemis' papers, because of that name.

And, I had forgotten that they put the soldiers in the hold. I don't remember what ends up happening to them. . .

ABL - I also loved the wedding scene.

I also had difficulty with Jamie leading a French army squad. Apparently, Jamie found out enough information about them when he visited the children's mother, combined with his previous knowledge as a mercenary and living in France, to assemble a squad. We don't know that they might be deserters or other irregulars who would accept an unknown leader.

Exactly! DG gets everyone together, healthy, happy, and committed to 'the family', before ALL HELL BREAKS LOSE in the final chapters!

I know, right? What a great thread that would be in GenDisc, aye? *hint*hint* My own wedding was filled with humour, from my PaPa walking me down the aisle and us laughing ... well... even before the walking down the aisle part: I was waiting downstairs (with the wedding party) for someone to come down and say 'hey! it's time!' and was waiting and waiting until my PaPa came down and said, 'Is there something we should know? We've been ringing the bell for you.' There was this doorbell thingy that he kept hitting but it wasn't going off downstairs. OY! I was 15 minutes late and I was downstairs, for cryin' out loud!

Laura, thanks for the great chapter review and for including the lyrics to the song "The Nut Brown Maid." I wonder if it was a specific request on the part of the captain or Fergus.

I agree that this is an outstanding chapter. It is Jamie and Claire's second reunion and each one keeps getting better and better. Father Fogdon is aptly named for he seems to be in an indefinite foggy state. He brings to mind the old Carole Burnett sitcom skits where one of the characters was always a bit tipsy.

Jamie has a way of taking control of a situation and charming his way through a situation, using force if necessary, so it is no wonder that he was able to commandeer the French sailors. I guess they are left to fend for themselves once Jamie finds Claire.

I am surprised no one mentioned the fact that Jamie was once again fraternizing with women of leisure on the island. Claire complains about the smell of cheap perfume on him, which Jamie dismisses as an issue of small consequence so he could gain the confidence of the locals. Some things never change.

Jamie certainly takes his role as guardian seriously and is a phenomenal father figure to both Fergus and Marsali. I do think Marsali comes to respect and love him by the end of the voyage, at least moreso than she did at the start of the trip. How could she resist?

Happy Anniversary Laura!

This was a fun and romantic chapter.
I was happy that Fergus got a little spotlight. He deserved it.
Hilarious when Jamie met up with Claire and shook her for jumping off the ship at night. Fun!

*lol* I did note that little bit, but then got caught up in all the romantic stuff!

Thank you!

Where I'm pleased as punch for both Fergus and Marsali, I cringe at her age (15) and their age difference (if I remember correctly, Fergus is about 30). At 15, Marsali is young but certainly not outside the norm for marriage in the time period, but my modern sensibilities are agog! I cannot even begin to imagine my youngest daughter, who is 14, thinking about marriage. I respect how Diana deals with the juxtaposition between time periods via Claire's perceptions.

Laura - I guess the funniest thing at my wedding was me! I thought I was being so cool about everything before the wedding, everyone was dressed and ready but yours truly and I was just laughing and talking. There I sat in my dainties with my hair in curlers and no make up thinking I would just take my time when the photographer showed up at the door to make pictures! In a panic, I was putting what I thought was astringent on my face before putting on my make up only to have my cousin look at me with this horrified look - she wanted to know why I was putting nail polish remover all over my face!!! Needless to say my cool attitude crumbled!!! I slopped on my makeup, tore out my curlers and threw on my dress. Guess you could say that my skin did not look glowing on my wedding day!!!

I will start a thread once I can get my thoughts together!