What’s worse than being flung through a circle of magical stones into another timeline? Incurring the wrath of the fairy folk for spilling milk, that’s what. They will play tricks on you and steal your baby from its bed if you’re not careful.
This is the dilemma Julia (Hermione Corfield) faces in the opening scene of Outlander: Blood of My Blood episode 4, as we watch her pay an offering to the “milk stone” for being a klutz. Julia doesn’t believe in fairies, but she also didn’t expect to be catapulted into 18th-century Scotland, either, so who’s to say if a mystical creature isn’t waiting in the shadows to wreak havoc on the life of her baby?
Flashing back to a former time with Henry (Jeremy Irvine), Julia remembers a conversation where all Henry wants is for his wife and baby to be safe and well. If that means making amends with the fairy folk, so be it. Also, it doesn’t hurt to rub a generous collection of poison oak all over your body to deflect the advances of Lord Lovat (Tony Curran).
Sure, Julia slept with Lord Lovat to protect her unborn child, but what is Henry’s excuse for standing in a brothel with a naked woman? Oh, that’s right. The owner of the brothel promised to find the brunette Englishwoman Henry’s been looking for, and the lass has been found! Obviously, it’s not Julia, and Henry has a simple conversation with the woman, finding comfort in letting his guard down.
Back at Castle Leathers, Brian (Jamie Roy) greets his father with a letter from the Grants. Lord Lovat has been gone for more than a month and must read this correspondence on the toilet. When you gotta go, you gotta go. Look at the showrunners trying to keep it real!
Remember, Lord Lovat warned the Grants that Ellen (Harriet Slater) was not suitable for marriage to Malcom (Jhon Lumsden), but since Lord Lovat didn’t have sufficient evidence to prove such matters, they see nothing further to discuss. The news irritates Lord Lovat, knowing that if the MacKenzie brothers thought Ellen had run off with Malcom Grant, and Dougal (Sam Retford) was dumb enough to beat Malcom as a result, there has to be a moral lapse in judgment somewhere. Lord Lovat vows to find it.
Cue Brian looking all sorts of guilty.
Julia later serves Lord Lovat some food and is quick to casually show off her horrendous rash, which she announces is covering her entire body. It’s the curse of the fairy folk for spilling the milk! Lord Lovat insists she go to the doctor, and Julia is visibly relieved when Brian offers to take her.
What a gentleman. Colum (Séamus McLean Ross) and Dougal need to take a page from Brian’s book. If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a thousand times. They are the absolute worst. Ellen assures Colum that she will not be marrying Malcom Grant. All they needed was an alliance to secure the clan. Look around, brother. Clan secured!
Ellen suggests that Colum tell the Grants that she’s sickly or ill-tempered and that he is saving them from a life of misery. Colum shares a story about this guy named Graham, who no one has ever heard of, who was once betrothed to a Grant. He “looked elsewhere” and was never heard from again. The moral of the story is that if Ellen doesn’t go through with the marriage, she will more than likely be killed.
Cool. Ellen has been promised to a despicable family. Why would Colum do such a thing?
Of course, the answer is money. And power. Dear old dad dabbled in some reckless spending, and Colum has inherited a fraction of the fortune he expected. Spoiler alert, big sister. The coffers are empty. And the MacKenzies are one silver fork away from being destitute.
Colum implores Ellen to marry and be the eyes and ears of Castle Grant. Ellen is quick to retort that when you marry someone, you marry them body and soul. Her loyalty and allegiance will be with the Grants. She marches off in a huff and runs straight into the other brother in the hallway.
Ellen officially can’t catch a break. Dougal is totally Team Grant and instructs his sister to accept her role as he has accepted his. Ellen’s eyes practically roll back into her head. She knows Dougal is just biding his time, waiting for Colum to fail so he can swoop in. Let the record show that Dougal does not deny it.
Ellen’s point about the Grants being awful people is fair. Poor Henry is forced to collect the rents from Lord Isaac Grant’s (Brian McCardie) tenants and flippantly mentions that Henry needs to raise the rent for no other reason than that they should be happy that they have a place to live on his land.
The increased price is met with grumbling by the first man, which turns to rage when Henry allows a widower of four to use honey as payment. Mr. Bug (Terence Rae) sneers at Henry, warning him to do what Lord Grant commanded. Henry doesn’t listen, and he is immediately punched in the face by a tenant. Henry comes up fists flying and pounds the man to a pulp.
Once he calms himself, he notices a necklace on the ground by the man’s neck. He picks it up as Mr. Bug prophesies that Henry’s head will soon be on a pike for not following orders. The scene flicks to a flashback of Henry at war, which then switches to Henry in his previous timeline suffering from a nightmare. Julia comforts him with a soothing song, offering her Saint Anthony necklace to watch over him.
We find Henry jerked awake, with Mr. Bug asking why he’s screaming the name Julia. Henry apologizes for bothering Mr. Bug, clasps the necklace, and tries to fall back asleep. The scene flashes back again to Henry and Julia discussing a national lottery to help war efforts. Henry is against the idea, but Julia reminds him that this process will help people seize hope wherever they can find it.
The next day, Henry introduces a lottery to the tenants. They are to pay what they can for their rent, but any additional money can go toward a lottery ticket, with the prize being one year free from rent. The strategy is brilliant, and the ones who can afford to spend a few extra dollars clamor to give Henry their savings for the chance to win.
As Henry counts his large mound of coins, Brian presses into Julia, squeezing details about her mysterious rash. They talk about how he’s an eligible bachelor, even though he’s a bastard, and Brian is intrigued to learn that Julia can read a little bit.
They leave the horse and cart, and Julia soon realizes that Brian has not led her to the apothecary. He knows she’s lying about her illness, and he’s okay with that, as long as she delivers a message for her in Castle Leoch. Which is right over there on yonder hill.
Julia looks over at the looming castle, cradles her bump, and comes clean, telling Brian that she isn’t technically ill. She’s having a baby and is scared to wander around the castle. She doesn’t want to put her baby in danger. Brian promises that she will be fine, as long as she asks for Lady Ellen’s maid, Glenna (Sally Messham). If she agrees to help him, he will help her. Which means Brian will help Julia escape.
The next thing we know, Julia is walking up to the servant’s entrance. Glenna eyes her suspiciously when she spots her in the hallway, slightly irritated that a “lost” servant from the Fraser house ended up at Castle Leoch, but also unwilling to turn her out so late in the evening.
When Glenna excuses herself to go check on Lady Ellen, Julia thanks the woman and then proceeds to sneakily follow her straight up to Ellen’s quarters. Glenna can’t get Ellen to answer the door and soon leaves, a worried look etching her brow. Julia marches up to the door quickly and knocks feverishly until Ellen finally flings it open.
Julia whispers to Ellen that she has been sent by Brian Fraser to deliver a message. Ellen scoffs, not knowing who this Brian person is, to which the random servant is referring. And the Academy Award goes to Lady Ellen!
Julia whispers, “I am the bridge,” and all award-show hopes fall as Ellen drags Julia into her room. The bummer is that Ellen can’t go meet Brian because the entire house is watching her like a hawk. They will kill Brian if they see him anywhere near the castle. Plus, the only time she can leave is the May Day festival in Inverness, where she will probably be locked in a dance with Malcom Grant for a hundred years.
What an odd thing to say.
Julia thinks so too, and presses in, sucking in a breath when Ellen mentions Fairy Hill and how people dance into the nights and wake up a hundred years later. Julia wonders if Fairy Hill is marked by stones in Inverness. The answer is yes. Julia knows that this is her answer to get back to the stones and demands that Ellen find a way to meet Brian this second. He is her one true love, and if she loves him, she will go to him this very minute.
Cue Julia and Ellen taking an underground tunnel outside of the castle gates straight into the arms of Brian Fraser. Ellen warns the others that men are patrolling the grounds, but it doesn’t deter Brian from asking a very important question. Does Ellen want to marry Malcom Grant? Ellen is beside herself that he risked his life to ask her that question. What do her eyes say?
I’m sorry, Ellen, but we are going to need words here. No, her feelings have not changed, and she promises to get out of her betrothal however she can.
Julia hears someone coming, and Ellen begs Brian to meet her at the festival in Inverness before shoving him into the woods. Dougal walks up, demanding to know why Ellen is out in the middle of the night. She was praying! Duh! Dougal grabs her arm to escort her back to the castle. Ellen bites back that she is not a caged bird. Something tells me that she’s about to fly!
Julia is sad that Brian didn’t get more time, but Brian is encouraged that he will see her at the festival. Julia points out one teeny tiny problem, and that is Malcom Grant. He will need someone to distract Malcom while he sneaks off to be with Ellen. And she’s just the gal to do it!
Then she shares that she parted from her husband in Inverness, so if he could take her there to help run traps with Ellen, perhaps she will find him. Brian softens and agrees to the bargain. My guess is that they will 100 percent run into each other, and I can’t wait.
Of course, the hope is that Henry’s head will not be on a pike, considering Lord Grant isn’t too thrilled that Henry didn’t raise the rent. Henry did collect an amount that was more than double what was requested, but that’s neither here nor there. If Henry crosses Lord Grant again, it won’t be good. Henry needs his head when he meets back up with Julia.
We flash back to Henry apologizing to Julia for scaring her the evening of his nightmare. He doesn’t want to burden his wife. Julia understands his suffering and offers herself and the unborn baby as his guiding light.
We find Henry at the brothel, visiting with Fake Julia, who wants to show him a good time. I was nervous for a minute, but Henry refrained, opting to take a nap on the woman’s bed during his paid time. Julia, on the other hand, announces her pregnancy to Lord Lovat, who is overjoyed by the blessed news.
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