Lochlainneach

Across the Glens

Featured Gaelic and Pronunciations:

- mo chion-gràidh (moh hee-ohn graih) - my darling

- Mo leanabh (moh leh-nehv) - baby/bairn

- Caol Loch Aillse (koohl lohk eyel-sheh) - Kyle of Lochalsh

- Seòras (shohr-ahs) -Gaelic form of George

- Laoghaire (leer-ree) - Gaelic name meaning 'calf herder', comes from the Gaelic word 'loach' (loohg) meaning 'calf'

- Hamish (hay-mish) - another Gaelic form of James

- Siusan (shoo-sehn) - Gaelic form of Susan

- Seòsamh (show-sehv) - Gaelic form of Joseph

- Luran (loo-rahn) - pretty lad

- A' ghrian (ah gree-yehn) - the sun

- Màiri (mah-ree) - Gaelic form of Mary

- Mòran taing (moor-rahn tayng) - many thanks

- Gabh mo leisgeul (gahv moh leesh-gahl) - excuse me

- Tha sin bàta (hah shin bah-tah) - that is a boat

- Mo uanag (moh ooh-ahn-ahg) - my little lamb

- An urrain dhut ... a ràdh? (Ahn ooh-reyn ooht ... ah rahd) - can you say...

- Faisg gu leòr (faysg goo lee-yohr) - close enough

- A chairdeach (ah hahrsh-johk) - kin

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16 April, 1746

The Highlands, Scotland

The black walnut shells cracked against the slab of stone as I ground them with another. They had to be ground into a fine powder and steeped in hot water, but it wasn't like I had an easy way of just boiling water. The best that I had was a few vials that I kept in a small pouch I kept on my person that were usually filled with herbs, but I removed the herbs and set them on the stone while I got to work. I had set up an apparatus to hold the vials filled with water over the fire while I dumped the powder into the vials and allowed them to steep. It would take several hours, but I was far enough away from the battlefield where I felt safe enough to do so. I next considered the length of my hair. Would I have enough paste to cover all of it or would I have to trim it? My hair had gotten quite long, so I opted to sharpen my sgian dubh and hack away at my hair until it was shoulder length.

Archie was entertaining himself with a few stones and sticks, stacking them on top of each other and then knocking his towers over again. I let out a sigh as I looked at him, the spitting image of his father. I hate you right now for leaving me behind , I thought angrily to Jamie, but it wasn't his fault. He had no possible idea that I wouldn't be able to travel through the stones again. As far as he knew at the time, I was gone, having no idea that Archie and I were actually unconscious on the other side. Well, now he was dead, and Archie and I were all alone as we had to navigate the highlands and travel to Barra.

I had to think through carefully of where all I needed to go. Culloden was very far north, quite a distance away from the easiest place to leave the mainland for Barra, but then again, it was known that I was a Fowlis of Barra. I had to stay off of the main roads and keep myself confined to the woods. It helped that my tartan was green and spring was well on its way. The greenery would conceal me, but first, I had to do something about my hair. The red hair would stick out like a sore thumb, and if I was caught, I'd probably be recognised, so I had to change the colour of it. In this time, dying hair was significantly more complicated than in mine, so I was reduced to using the hulls of black walnuts to create a paste that would dye my hair. It wouldn't take all of the red away, of course, and was pretty much just depositing the colour onto my hair, but it would cover up the red just enough and for long enough, and that was all I needed.