Claire induces Marsali’s labor in Outlander Book 6, Chapter 35
With the Lionel Brown situation handled, it’s time to move the focus back onto Marsali in Outlander Book 6, Chapter 35. We get the birth of her fourth child.
This is a scary chapter for Marsali. Movement has slowed, and she’s sure that there’s something wrong. Claire is also worried about the health of the baby. There is some movement, which is reassuring. However, the heartbeat is slow.
The best thing Claire can do is induce labor. That could mean a danger for both mother and child, but it’s a risk that she needs to take. It’s time for the birth of Henri-Christian. There are some surprising moments within this chapter, especially when it comes to Fergus’s knowledge of women and childbirth.
The chapter foreshadows a little. It’s all about Fergus not immediately being around. People have to find him, and Marsali makes a note that Fergus hasn’t been around all that much. It’s clear that he is struggling mentally.
This chapter hasn’t yet been used in the TV series. I fully expect some, if not all, of it to be included in Outlander Season 6. I’ll get to my thoughts on that in the adaptation section.
Let’s dive into A Breath of Snow and Ashes Chapter 35.
Just the Outlander chapter
The chapter starts with Claire heading to see Marsali. It’s clear that everyone is worried about her baby. Claire is concerned.
Movement has slowed, but everyone believes that’s due to the size of the child in the womb. It’s worth noting that now we know that movement doesn’t slow but it changes at later stages, but this was the knowledge of the time period. It makes sense when you consider that there just isn’t as much room.
Claire is more concerned that the heartbeat has slowed. She needs to induce labor, knowing that it’s safe to do so in terms of the gestation of the baby. It’s just a couple of weeks. It’s more important to get the baby out now and give it a fighting chance.
That means inducing labor, which isn’t all that safe in this time period. If Claire does a c-section, it will mean certain death for Marsali but the child would survive. Inducing Marsali could put the baby at risk, and it could mean a longer labor and more bleeding, which could then mean problems for Marsali. Claire is stuck between a rock and a hard place.
In the end, she realizes that Marsali is a little dilated. Claire can use seaweed to help open the cervix more and induce labor that way.
Fergus, who hasn’t been around much and had to be searched for, turns up. He also helps to speed up labor by suckling on Marsali’s breasts. Fergus explains that the women at the brothel in Paris would do this to help start labor. Claire had never heard of it helping with labor, but she does know that it can help slow down blood loss during labor.
At another point, Fergus and Marsali decide to have sex to speed things up. Claire notes that it is good for helping to start labor close to the end of the due date. She thinks back to when she was pregnant with Brianna and she went into labor a night after being with Frank intimately.
By the end of the chapter, the baby is born. However, Germain points out that he looks funny. Fergus calmly states that the baby is a dwarf and leaves.
Foreshadowing in the Outlander chapter
There is a little foreshadowing in Fergus’s storyline in this chapter. It’s clear that something is going on. While he can still be loving with Marsali, he’s not really there for her or the children.
During the chapter, Claire notes that Fergus is ashamed of not being able to protect his wife. Jamie even says the same thing. It doesn’t even matter that Fergus wasn’t there to stop the men. Marsali was attacked, and Fergus was supposed to look after her.
We’re getting signs of this spiral that Fergus is going down. However, there’s so much focus on other characters that he’s being forgotten about—and I do wonder if this is the reason the show is doing what it is doing, but that’s another topic for another day. This is all about to get worse before it gets better.
Adapting A Breath of Snow and Ashes chapter
The chapter hasn’t been used yet, but I suspect that it will be. At least, some of this chapter will be used.
Marsali is pregnant with Henri-Christian right now. While there are no concerns about the baby just yet, I do wonder if there will be closer to when she’s ready to give birth. Will she come to Claire with the concerns, or will she just go into labor?
I’d love to see this whole chapter play out. We get to see more of Fergus and Marsali together. I’d like to see more of Fergus’s knowledge of women due to growing up in the brothel. I want to see something because we know it’s going to get dark for him during Outlander Season 6.
We also need to see that Henri-Christian is a dwarf. This plays a major part in a few storylines, especially for Fergus’s continued downward spiral. It’s important that nothing changes about who Henri-Christian is.
What did you spot while reading A Breath of Snow and Ashes Chapter 35? Let us know in the comments below.
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