#outlander 07x08

But what struck me was something simple yet extraordinary.

Jamie wears his kilt during the visit.

Remember that in the aftermath of Culloden, in August 1746 the Dress Act was passed. It banned men from wearing tartan, kilt, and plaid, and all other manner of Highland dress.

The Second Battle of Saratoga took place on October 7, 1777. When the Dress Act was still in effect.

Jamie Fraser wears his Fraser plaid, proudly, in the British camp. As a Continental soldier who knows and cherishes his Scottish roots. Wearing clothing that is illegal in Britain.

William grows to know her and respect her. Claire grows to love William - not just because he's Jamie's son, but for his own sake.

From the moment she learned about William, Claire had two choices. She could have resented Jamie for fathering him, and tell Jamie to never speak of him. Or, she could have accepted him for what he is, and how he came to be, and recognize that it's a part of Jamie's life that doesn't belong to her.

Fortunately she chooses the second option. And as time passes, William becomes part of her life.

Which is demonstrated so beautifully in 07x08 "Turning Points":

Claire picks up the portrait of William from the battlefield, and gives it back to Jamie.

Claire brings up William when she's in the tent, bandaging Jamie's hand for the first time.

Claire goes to speak with William when Jamie is at Simon Fraser's bedside, and they have a wonderful exchange that shows just how much their relationship has grown this season.

She does all of these things because she recognizes and respects Jamie's love for William, and because she's grown to be fond of him herself. She wants to talk with Jamie about him. So that she can help him shoulder the burdens he carries, the worry he will always feel for his son.

Claire: OMFG I'm so worried, I'm examining you *pokes around*

Jamie: *tries to make a joke*

Claire: SHUT UP THAT'S NOT FUCKING FUNNY YOU IDIOT *keeps poking*

Jamie: *heart eyes I love this ssnch so verra much she gonna fix me up just fine*

And that, boys and girls, is how you adapt a beloved book into a TV series!

He's never done this. She knows it, and he knows it. He says it so casually, but they both know what it cost him. What it means for him.

And another favorite line from An Echo In The Bone:

"Bloody man," I whispered. "I knew you‘d make me cry."

“Don‘t change the subject!” I snapped. 

“Is the subject not that I‘m not killed?” he asked, trying to raise one brow and failing, with another wince. 

“No! The subject is your stupidity, your bloody selfish stubbornness!”

“Oh, that.”

“Yes, that! You—you—oaf! How dare you do that to me? You think I haven‘t got anything better to do with my life than trot round after you, sticking pieces back on?” I was frankly shrieking at him by this time. 

Jamie, at Saratoga, drawing strength from Claire's touch