Outlander Season 6 is going to be tumultuous, and not just for Jamie and Claire Fraser. In a recent interview, Marsali actor Lauren Lyle said Marsali and Fergus’ plot in the sixth season will show them “at their most tested,” which is saying a lot about a couple that’s largely been in marital bliss. A photo released from Outlander Season 6 in June hinted at what’s to come for Fergus and Marsali in the upcoming episodes, but fans may have missed it. And it could mean a dramatic plot for their infant son, Henri-Christian Fraser, that’s part of Outlander Book 6, A Breath of Snow and Ashes.
[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for the book Outlander Season 6 is based on, A Breath of Snow and Ashes.]
What happens to Fergus and Marsali in ‘Outlander’ Season 6?
All of Outlander‘s characters have experienced hard times in their lives. But Marsali and Fergus’ relationship has been a breath of fresh air. Their young love and baby bliss has largely remained unharmed in comparison to the traumas their family members have experienced. But Lyle said things are going to get dark for the couple in Outlander Season 6.
“Marsali and Fergus have always been this fun, romantic couple—young, cool—like the ones that make people laugh and are just really in love with each other and have all these kids,” Lyle told Radio Times. “This time, it just got really deep and really dark… They’re at their most tested.”
“It’s the most tumultuous time that we’ve seen them and their relationship [in],” she continued. “Marsali really has, this season—it’s the first time you see her having to step up, and she’s sort of supporting the family and dealing with her own needs.”
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Who is Henri-Christian in ‘Outlander’?
At the end of Outlander Season 5, Marsali was pregnant with her and Fergus’ fourth child. Their first, Germain, was born in season 4. And their second and third children, daughters Joan and Felicite, were born in season 5. Time lapses allowed for Marsali to be pregnant again at the end of the fifth season.
While pregnant, Marsali killed the man who led the group that assaulted Claire. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that her and Fergus’ future could be fraught because of this. But what the photo from season 6 implies is that their hardship will involve their fourth baby, Henri-Christian.
The photo shows Roger MacKenzie (Richard Rankin) drenched in water from the river in the background. He carries a baby wrapped in a blanket. Based on the plot of A Breath of Snow and Ashes, it’s likely that this baby is Henri-Christian.
Henri-Christian is born with dwarfism. He’s the only one is his family born that way. And it causes the neighboring locals to discriminate against Marsali, Fergus, and their family. Some of the locals take the baby, put him in a basket, and send him down a river because of his dwarfism. But he’s saved by Roger, who then baptizes him to protect him.
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When does season 6 of ‘Outlander’ start?
Roger is able to baptize Henri-Christian because he becomes a minister in book 6. That could explain why Roger isn’t seen in the one of the four photos released from season 6 on June 1.
The photos, tweeted by Outlander‘s Twitter account, show Sam Heughan and Caitriona Balfe embracing as Jamie and Claire, Sophie Skelton’s Brianna and Rankin’s Roger smiling at each other on a front porch, Roger carrying the baby by the river, and Jamie, Claire, and Brianna smiling at each other on what appears to be a church pew bench. Roger is notably missing from that last photo. That could be because he’s off camera as the church’s minister.
Outlander Season 6 will be eight episodes long and have a 90-minute season premiere. Heughan tweeted fans can expect Outlander Season 6 to air in February 2022, but no official release date has been announced.
