PARENTHOOD

Chapter One Hundred and Sixty One

Opening the door, Jenna was surprised to see Duer and four year old Faith standing on the porch and Duer placed his hands behind his back, smiling at her.

"Hello, Miss, I was wondering if you would like to join me and my sweet, little girl here for a day of fun and silliness," he said and Jenna pressed her lips together, trying not to laugh.

"And why would I want to do that?" she asked.

"It is "Daddy and Daughter Day"."

"I didn't know there was such a thing as "Daddy and Daughter Day"," she said and his eyes went wide.

"You didn't? Well, allow us to enlightened you by accompanying us on an adventure," he said and Jenna tapped her finger against her lips.

"Ok, let me go tell Jamie," she said then turned when Faith pulled gently on her wrist and she looked down at her.

"Ask him if he wants to come, too," she said and Duer's mouth fell open.

"Hold on, this is "Daddy and Daughter Day" not "Daddy, Daughter and Daddy's Favorite Companion Day"!" he said and Faith giggled.

"But I want him to come, too!" Faith said, crossing her arms over her chest and pouted.

"Oh, ok, go ask if he wants to come," Duer sighed and Jenna nodded, going back inside the house. He looked down at Faith as she smiled up at him and he rolled his eyes. "I just wanted to spend the day with my daughters, but can I do that? No, I have to have HIM come as well! It is so not fair!"

"But I like Uncle Jamie."

"Butterfly, Jamie isn't your uncle."

"He isn't?"

"No, he's your brother-in-law."

"He is?"

"Yep, because he's married to Jenna and Jenna is your sister. So, that makes Jamie a brother of sorts."

"Oh!" Faith said as she smiled then took his hand and started playing with his fingers. "Then it's ok for him to come?"

"Yeah," he said with a nod of his head and Faith smiled up at him.

Culloden, Scotland

Duer had decided to take Faith to see the battlefield as they stood at the marker and Jamie held Jenna close to his side.

"'The Battle of Culloden was fought on this moor 16th April 1746 – The graves of the gallant highlanders who fought for Scotland and Prince Charlie are marked by the names of their clans.'" Duer said while reading the marker and Faith looked over at Jamie, seeing the sadness in his eyes.

"Are you ok, Jamie?" she asked as he looked down at her and nodded. She took his hand as Jamie wrapped his fingers around hers and lightly squeezed her fingers.

"Hey, Doc...Dad, do you remember where you parked the TARDIS when you came here in seventeen forty-six?" Jamie asked as Duer looked around the battlefield and sighed, scratching the back of his neck.

"No, I'm afraid I've forgotten," he said and Jamie sighed, lightly swinging Faith's hand back and forth.

"Then let's go find out!" Faith said as she gently pulled on Jamie's hand and Jamie smiled, following after her. Jenna lightly laughed as Duer shrugged and they went to catch up with them. They stayed on the paths as they looked around when Jamie saw a familiar tree and looked around then walked off the path.

"Jamie, no, you can't go out there," Duer whispered as he followed him and Jenna took Faith's hand, following after Duer. Jamie walked onward when he looked at the tree then smiled, turned and looked at them.

"This is where the TARDIS stood when you invited me tae come travel with you," he said when Duer took out the sonic screwdriver and scanned the area. He was amazed to find faint energy readings as he smiled and placed the sonic screwdriver back in his pocket.

"You're right," he said when Faith pulled on Jamie's hand and he looked down at her.

"Can we look around some more?" she asked.

"No, we have to go back to the path before we get in trouble," Jenna said and Faith sighed, nodding her head. They started walking back when Jamie stopped and a cold chill moved through him. Glancing around, he felt like he was being watched and shivered. Jenna turned around when she noticed that Jamie was still standing by the tree and walked back to him. "You ok, Highland?"

"I think we're being watched," he whispered as she looked around and went for her laser, sighing when she realized that she wasn't armed. Jamie looked to his left when he noticed a mist forming then something moved out of the mist and his eyes went wide. "Stay away from me!"

Jenna frowned when Jamie ran off across the battlefield then turned and called for Duer. Duer ran closer while holding onto Faith and frowned, seeing Jamie scrambling across the battlefield.

"Where is he going?" he asked, handing Faith to Jenna.

"I don't know. He was just standing here then saw something and ran,' she said and Duer sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Take Faith back to the TARDIS and I'll go get him," he said as she nodded and walked away. Duer ran after Jamie when he saw Jamie standing on the top of a hill and could feel the fear in Jamie's mind.

"Jamie, what's wrong?" he thought and Jamie looked toward him, blinking his eyes a few times.

"Cannae you see them?" Jamie thought.

"What are you talking about?"

"Cannae you see the ghosts?"

"Jamie, there is nothing here. Now come down and we'll go back to the TARDIS."

"But I can see them!"

"Blimey, I shouldn't have brought you here. Now, please, come down," Duer thought but Jamie backed up when he lost his balance and tumbled down the hill.

"NO!" Duer said as he ran up the hill and stood at the top of the hill, looking down at Jamie. Jamie was lying on his stomach and was covered in mud and grass. Sighing, Duer ran down the hill, kneeling down next to him. Jamie was unconscious as blood rolled from the gash on his forehead and from his right hand. Duer's eyes went wide from seeing that Jamie's middle finger was almost sheared off from the rock his hand had landed on and he gently lifted Jamie's right hand, removing a handkerchief from his pocket.

"Dad, what happened to Jamie? His mind just blinked out!" Jenna thought and Duer told her what happened. "What do you want me to do?"

"I want you to bring the TARDIS here and tell her to move the medical bay near the control room," Duer thought then felt her mind moving away and looked down at Jamie, stroking his hair.

Jamie felt a dull pain moving up his right arm when he moaned and his head thumped in time with his hearts. Half opening his eyes, he saw the blurry ceiling then blinked his eyes a few times and his vision cleared. He looked around when he noticed that he was in the medical bay then sighed, glancing up at the plastic bags hanging from the metal pole. One of the plastic bags had blood in it and the other had a clear liquid and he lifted his left hand, seeing the tube taped to the back of his hand.

"Blimey," he whispered when the doors hissed open and the sound of small feet coming closer made him turn his head. Faith climbed on the chair next to the bed then sat down as he smiled at her and she moved her finger along the back of his hand. "Hello."

"I'm sorry," she sighed and he pouted, sticking his lower lip out.

"Eh?" he asked, scrunching his face.

"I'm sorry that I made you show me where Daddy parked the TARDIS. If I hadn't done that, you wouldn't have run off and gotten hurt."

"Ah, well, that's nae why I ran off," he said and she tilted her head to one side.

"Then why did you run away?"

"I'm nae really sure. I thought I saw redcoats coming across the moor an' ran, fearing that they were going tae kill me."

"But Daddy said that there was no one there."

Sighing, Jamie carefully lifted up his right hand when he saw the cast and tilted his head to one side. Only his thumb stuck out of the cast and the cast ended just above his elbow. Lowering his hand, he looked at the ceiling when Faith poked him gently in the chest and he looked at her, giving her a small smile.

"Did I break my wrist?"

"Yeah, and you nearly cut your middle finger off. You also banged your head and your left ankle's swollen," she said and he sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Well, it's not the first time I cut that finger off."

"It's not?"

"Nope," he said then smiled, remembering the first time he lost his finger.

"Jamie McCrimmon, what in Heaven's name are you doing?" Polly asked when she walked into the living room, seeing Ben and Jamie sitting at the card table and Jamie had the tip of his dirk's blade balanced in the crease of his right middle finger. The dirk wiggled back and forth as he tried to balance it then looked over at Polly and smiled.

"I'm going tae show Ben a trick that Alexander taught me," he said.

"What sort of trick?"

"I'm going tae flick my dirk into the air an' catch the tip of the blade between my fingers," Jamie said and Polly's mouth fell open.

"No, you're not!" she half shouted and Ben smiled, rolling his eyes.

"Come on, Duchess, he's already done it twice. I bet him a tenner that he can't do it three times in a row," Ben said and Polly walked closer, taking the dirk in her hand.

"I can't believe that you're encouraging such behavior," she said then looked at Jamie, wagging the dirk at him. "And you shouldn't be doing things like that. It's way too dangerous."

"It's nae dangerous," Jamie said, taking the dirk back and placed the point of the dirk's blade back in the crease of his right middle finger.

"Please, Jamie, don't do it," she pleaded but Jamie just shook his head and flicked his hand, sending the dirk sailing up into the air. The dirk spun around while they watch the dirk and Jamie licked his lips. The dirk sailed down toward his hand when the TARDIS lurched to one side and they held onto the table. No one moved when the dirk landed on the table and Jamie's eyes went wide. "NO!"

"Oh shit!" Ben said as he stood up and took the handkerchief out of his pocket and ran to Jamie.

"Sorry about that, it appears that we hit a little bit of turbulence. Is everyone alright?" the Doctor's voice asked over the intercom and Polly ran to the intercom, pushing the button.

'No, Doctor, Jamie's been hurt!" she said.

"Oh dear, what has happened?" he asked.

"His right middle finger was severed and he is bleeding!"

"Take him to the medical bay and, Polly, please bring his finger," he said and Polly looked at Jamie, who looked like he was about to pass out.

"EW!" Faith said as Jamie smiled and shrugged.

"Lucky for me that your daddy was able tae put my finger back on," he said.

"Was Daddy mad at you?"

"Aye, he was, but he also blamed himself for what happened. True, he didnae ken what I was doing when it happened, but he still felt sorry that it happened," Jamie said and Faith giggled.

"Silly Daddy," she said and Jamie nodded his head then yawned, lightly shaking his head. "Are you getting sleepy?"

"Aye, I am," Jamie said then closed his eyes and Faith slid his hand into hers. She watched him go back to sleep when she felt like they were being watched when she looked at the doorway and saw Duer standing there. He walked to the chair when he placed his hand on Faith's shoulder and she smiled up at him.

"Are you mad at him, Daddy?" she asked.

"No, I'm not mad at him," he said and patted her shoulder.

"I think we should take him somewhere nice after he gets better."

"You want to have another "Daddy and Daughter Day"?"

"No, I want a "Daddy, Daughter and Son Day"."

"How about a "Daddy takes Mommy, Jenna, Faith, Cameron and Jamie somewhere nice Day"?" he asked as she looked at Jamie and smiled.

"Yeah, I like that idea," she said as he smiled then leaned down and kissed the top of her head, making her smile and she gently squeezed Jamie's fingers.

Back                         Home                              Doctor Who Main Page                          Next