Am fear eile ~Outlander~

~Chapter twenty one~ Skye

We reached a small village and as soon as we where there the villagers came out to pay the rent.
"Ye stay 'ere 'n' dinnae move 'til we ur dane," Dougal said and I crossed my arms over my chest.
Hell no that I was going to stay and watch how the collect the rent and probably something extra.
As soon as they turned around to start, I walked away, looking around in this village. It looked still something out of the Middle age with small houses made out of clay and hay on the roof.
The smell was how I always imagined the smell when I studied, very country with a hint of Feces of animals and humans.
A woman walked over towards me and smiled. "Goodday Lass," she smiled friendly to me.
"Hello," I smiled back. "I'm Greer, I came with the Mackenzie's,"
"I ken," she took my hand. "Came," a bunch of women sat around the table and the woman trow a big ball of tweed on the table and poured a strong smelling liquid over it.
I immediately know what they where about to do. Waulking. The softing of a new wooven tweed by beating it on a table. The warm urine helped the colour preserve.
"Sit down," the woman pointed towards an empty spot and I took the opportunity.
The women grabbed the tweed and started to sing -link above-.
In my best Gaelic I started to sing together with them and for the first time besides Aisla, I felt a warm and welcome feeling since I was here.
When we where finished the kind woman offered me a warm cloth to wash my hands and then took me inside a small house to drink and sat something.
It was small and crowded, but I enjoyed it none the less. The women where chattering and also asking me questions where I came from since I didn't have a Scottish nor English accent. A child started to cry and a woman jumped up and tried to breastfeed the child who was about one year old.
"He is tae auld fur th' breest, ye ken, bit mah husband hud tae gie th' goat tae Dougal, we hae na money. Bit if we dinnae hae a freish goat quickly th' bairn wull die," the woman told me and I froze.
Life one the countryside of the Highlands was cruel around this time but standing with my nose above it was a blow in my stomach.
"Is there anything, I can do?" I asked softly looking at the mother who was desperately trying to feed her child.
"Na dear, we hae tae dae it ourself, bit ta," she laid her hand on my cheek and smiled kindly.
I wanted to protest but the door swung open and Angus barged in.
"DOUGAL TOLD YE TA STAY," he roared making the child cry again.
"And I didn't," I said as he grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the shed towards the place where they where collecting.
"We caw aroond 'n' she is gaen, christ we hae tae tie her tae a tree," he muttered to himself.
Suddenly I saw a goat tied to a wagon and I pulled myself loose and ran towards it. Unleashing the goat before Jamie jumped on my back to stop me.
"Christ Greer, Whit urr ye daein'?" he said as I wiggeld myself under him.
"There is a small child dying from hunger, that family needs the goat Jamie," tears formed in my eyes I stood up.
"That goat is rent, bit if ye pure care," Dougal turned around. "Rupert gie th' fowk a poke o' grain,"
"A bag of grain is not enough Dougal," Jamie holded me back before I attacked Dougal.
"Madame is everything alright?" A man in blacksmith clothing stepped in.
"I'm sorry?" I asked confused.
"May I be at service?" he asked again as he stepped closer to me.
"Aye ye keep yer nose oot of our business," Angus said as he looked at the man.
"I was talking to the lady," he didn't look frightend by the small Highlander man who was armed until his teeths.
"The lady is a guest of Clan Mackenzie," Dougal told him, his scottish accent faded away.
"Do you treat all your guest this way," The man bravely said as I shivered.
"Aye bugger off," Angus stepped closer and I saw all the other men grabbing there swords. "Or yer logs needed to be cleaned out."
"I assure you sir that my logs are properly cleaned out," the man did a step back.
"Go home Laddie and suckle on yer moms tits," Angus said as I saw Jamie walk around also with his sword in his hands.
It was silenced for a moment besided Angus laughter and then the man walked away. Dougal spinned around.
"Now get ready, where leaving," he orderd as I walked around the carriage towards Cluaran. Away from them.
As I focused my look on the small shed where the Blacksmith disappeared in, I tought I saw a red flash leave on a black horse, but that was probably my imagined playing tricks with me. Also the hunger was not good for my brains as well.
Hopefully tonight, I could eat properly in a tavern as Jamie promised and the tought of a good meal let my mouth water.

That night we indeed sleep in a tavern and I at like a Highlander of the food they put down for me.
Since nobody paid attention to me I stayed where I sat as the other women left.
Dougal started to speak in Gaelic and it sounded like a very angry and terrifying story.
As I kept watching and listening to the men making noises in horror. Dougal suddenly spinned Jamie around and ripped his shirt open. Showing the scars on his back.
I froze and wanted to interfere, but this time I listend to the reasonable side of my mind and sat down.
Dougal ended his storty and then went around with a bag to collect money. This made me even more angry, knowing that he was collection money literally over his nephew's bag for himself.
As the men left one by one Dougal throw me the shirt of Jamie.
"Mend it Lass," he said and I stood up.
"No, collecting money for your own benefits is one thing, but using your Nephew for it," I spat. "That is sicking."
"Mend it our he will walk aroond in this for the whole trip," Dougal treathed and I wanted to take the shirt of him.
But Jamie grabbed it out of mine hand. "I'll mend it myself." and with that he walked away.