Chapter Text
Fergus stared his sister down, eyes a bit too squinty for her liking.
“So… when you said you stole the carriage of your neighbor… it was one of these… ‘motor cars’, yes?”
“Yes!” Brianna was so happy; he’d taken it so well!
“Are you insane, petite seour?!” Or not…
“I TOLD YOU I was a terrible child! Now you know… I was… not… lying.” Brianna finished primly.
“Oui, no shit! Poor Maman had to what, bail you out of jail? Please say non…”
“No! Not… that time.”
“Brianna!” Jamie and Fergus were horrified and Claire was in tears laughing.
“Joking! Joking… Your faces… oh my God…”
“Oh… Oui… hilaaarious… I still cannot believe you…” Fergus shook his head.
“You said you DID believe us!” Brianna cried.
“Oh non, I believe that part, it makes so much more sense now, truly… Non, I meant about you, mon petite, calling Milady 'Dr. Randall' for two years… If your baby is a girl and she does something like that to you, I will laugh, I warn you now… I will laugh so very hard…”
“Is there a brothering class you can go take and come back?” Bree squinted at him, nostrils flaring.
“You love me… as I am!” Fergus grinned.
“Shut up… of course I do. Jerk.” Instantly mollified, Brianna wondered if this was how all siblings operated…
“This is a word of your time and it is stupid. Like you.”
A dried cherry bounced off Fergus’ forehead, right over his eyebrow… Jerk shouldn’t’ve called his baby sister stupid…
“Oh! Ye might want te watch the wrath o’ the redhead… One of us should’ve warned ye Fergus… your sister’s got perfect aim with the wee foodstuffs.” Jamie piped up, grinning.
“Let him learn the hard way, Jamie… I tried to warn you, you didn’t believe me, did you… Noooo… So she had to go and prove it! Men. Tstst.” Claire chuckled.
“Oh? What’s this I hear? Did my wife have to bean you with something, Jamie? Do tell… Hello my darling…” John cackled as he walked in and heard the snippet of conversation, kissing his wife hello and settling into the corner of the sofa so she could lean on him. It seemed tea was going brilliantly…
“She did!” Claire grinned. “You missed one of her best, John, because he doubted her skills and… well, you know how she takes to that…”
“I do NOT, because I am too smart to ever do such a thing.” John smiled cheekily, stroking his wife’s hair.
“He’s right… taught him early.” Bree grinned and smooched his cheek.
“Darling… don’t ruin it. I have a reputation to uphold, it's very manly and whatnot.” John pouted, utterly not at all bothered but enjoying the silly banter of his finally animus-free family.
“I’m not! Other than Mama, you are the only smart person here who took me seriously… as a food fight threat!”
“I can see zee future of zis family is very mature.” Fergus quipped, happily playing with fire.
“Are you trying to get pelted with grapes?! Has Marsali not taught you that pregnant ladies have short fuses, brother mine?”
“She has… If she were here too, it would… not be safe.”
“Where is Marsali? I thought she was coming with you?” John asked.
“No, John, remember? We told Fergus about… you know…”
“I’m assuming since you told him already, and we are the only ones here, we don’t have to call it ‘you know’ though, right?” John asked.
“Oh… suppose not. Yes, tea and time travel! It’s been interesting.”
John looked over at Fergus who merely shrugged and smiled. “We can never tell Marsali though, Milady knows… my wife is many things but open-minded is not one of them.”
“Not as bad as her mother…” Claire muttered under her breath.
“Oh, fuck no, and merci to God.” Fergus obviously heard, as had they all. Jamie was admiring the ceiling. “But still, save me the whole rest of my lifetime of stress and… just… non.”
“But… you’re glad we told you?” Claire asked nervously, obviously still unsure if the knowledge should in any way absolve her in the eyes of her children.
“Oui… Milady, very glad…”
“Hey, umm… Fergus? How come you still call her ‘Milady’? Feels kinda hypocritical to get all upitty about me calling her ‘Dr. Randall’… Just sayin’.”
“Non it is not! Because, mon petite heathen of a sister, I have the utmost respect for our Maman. If I called her ‘Dr. Randall’ it would not be the same. I cannot articulate why, exactly, other than intent… but I am correct, which is what matters here.”
“I pity Marsali, having to deal with you all the time. You’re a ‘small doses’ type of personality.”
“Oh, please… have you met you?!”
John, Jamie and Claire all sat back to enjoy the sibling fireworks, sipping their tea and grinning to each other. No one would ever say it out loud, but if the two had grown up together… that joke Fergus made about Claire having to bail her offspring out of jail might have been far more literal… they really were like fire and black powder with a whole lot of laughter - i.e. best handled, when in combination, as adults.
“You two need to go back to pretending you are mature-ish adults in a minute… Mrs. Fields only has William until 5 and he is going to run in here to see his Mummy… so… finish bickering.”
Fergus and Bree both looked at John like he had two heads.
“We weren’t bickering.”
“She started it.” The two spoke over each other but… conceded John’s point directly after that, despite Bree refusing to say she started any of it.
“Blame le grenouille, he’s older and he started it. Alright… now I’m done.”
Fergus was about to jump back in when they all heard the sound of little-boy-feet running up from the kitchens.
“Mummy!” William skidded to a stop and hopped into her lap. “Hello Granny, hello Mac…”
“Hey baby… this is your Uncle Fergus; Fergus, this is our son William.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you!” William chirped, scootching backward to be the smallest spoon with his parents, mostly on John's lap.
“And you, monsieur!”
“You’re Mummy’s big brother now, right?” William asked, making everyone smile, especially Fergus.
“Oui, I am! I hear you are to be a big brother soon too, non?”
William leaned back against John so he could eye Bree’s belly. “Mmhmm! I’m quite excited about it… but also a bit nervous.” He admitted with an adorable sigh.
“Oh? Why is that?” Fergus asked, eyeing everyone’s barely restrained awww.
“Well… I suppose because... I don’t know anything about it?” It was clear William hadn’t really figured out what it was he was nervous about exactly, just that he was.
“Hey kiddo.” Brianna whispered, loudly enough for all to hear.
“Hmm?” William’s head swiveled against John’s chest, making him smile and run his fingers through his son’s hair as he watched the two talk.
“You know, I didn’t have any idea how to be a Mama before I met you. You were my son from the first minute I saw you, I loved you so much… but that doesn’t mean I wasn’t nervous.”
William looked mildly shocked at this admission. Claire smile and adored her daughter so much; she was such a wonderful mother. William looked up at Brianna in wonder. “You’re very good at it...”
Bree chuckled, booping his nose. “Thank you, lovie. Just like you will be a wonderful big brother. Don’t worry so hard, sweetheart, just let Mummy and Daddy love you, and your little sister or brother will love you too. It is impossible not to.”
William got a bit sniffly and climbed more in-between his parents for a cuddle.
As the little family of three were talking quietly for a moment, assuaging William's worries, Fergus took the opportunity to lean behind him and ask Claire a question.
“Is your time… more… ehh…” His whisper trailed off as he couldn’t quite figure out how to ask what he meant.
Claire leaned in, smiling softly. “She’s quite emotionally open, isn’t she?”
Fergus nodded, figuring that encompassed it well enough. “Is that… what it is like? Then?”
Claire considered for a moment, Jamie listening in curiously. “Far more so that now, definitely… but Brianna…” Claire paused, watching the trio across from her finishing up their little chat and catching the eye of her son-in-law with a smile. “Bree is perhaps more special than most in that way, for any time.”