When Outlander returns for its fifth season next month, the feeling will be a bit different–at least initially–than previous seasons because Jamie (Sam Heughan) and Claire (Caitriona Balfe) have been able to spend quiet time at Fraser’s Ridge building their future.

It is as if Jamie has been able to fulfill his destiny. While not the Laird of Lallybroch he was set to be once his older brother died, he can be considered to be the Laird of Fraser’s Ridge, and while Claire is not a medical doctor in the 1960s, she has built quite the surgery in their new home and is tending to patients as best she can in the 1770s.

So, the day-to-day part of their life is moving along nicely, but what does it mean for their passionate love story, which is what drew in readers and TV viewers alike? Are they too settled now as a couple, or is the flame still ignited?

“The circumstances of this season have really allowed us to invest in those relationship moments,” Balfe tells Parade.com “We see a lot more of the intimacy and the passion of Claire and Jamie, because we have that luxury of them being in one place a lot of the time, and it’s so nice. Sam and I have been talking a lot about this today, that we get to see how they work together as a couple, the strains and the pressures of these outside things, but they’re able to come together and touch base with each other and support each other. It’s really lovely to see them just converse as a couple in this supportive and emotionally supportive way.”

But the idyll is broken when Jamie gets called up by Governor Tryon (Tim Downie) in season five to hunt down the Regulators, so they also spend some time apart from each other, even as it is their time together that matters most.

“Claire has her surgery and the dealings going on there, and Jamie has this political side,” Heughan says. “He’s working with the British. But they touch base, and they always need and yearn for each other, and they reconnect. It’s those moments we see that are quite domestic. It’s their home life and it’s actually really touching. And those are the really fun scenes to play, to see them need each other and reconnect.”

When season five begins, there is a very heartwarming scene with a young Jamie having a conversation with his godfather Murtagh (Duncan Lacroix). Jamie’s mother has died and Murtagh is reassuring young Jamie that he made a promise to his mother and that he will always be there for him.

This scene pulls us emotionally into the heart-wrenching decision that Jamie has to make in season five, whose theme is: How far will you go to protect family? Will Jamie be able to bring himself to hunt down Murtagh, who is a leader of the Regulators, as requested by Governor Tryon, or will he side with his godfather and risk losing Fraser’s Ridge and the home he has built for Claire and Brianna (Sophie Skelton) by failing to follow the governor’s directive?

“The short answer is you’ll have to watch to find out,” Heughan teases. “This is a storyline that isn’t in the books, and it’s probably one of the biggest deviations from the books. Obviously, the whole Murtagh surviving Culloden [was not in the books], but it’s been brilliantly played out this season. For me, it’s definitely my favorite storyline for my character to play. Jamie’s always had this father figure in his godfather. He’s always been this presence, who has guided him, and we see some great flashbacks this season to when Jamie was a child. So, for Jamie to have to break that bond and put Murtagh at a distance to protect Fraser’s Ridge is very hard for Jamie to do. It is played out. I can’t really tell you an awful lot much more because it is a great storyline. It’s a wonderful piece of writing and, certainly, for Jamie, a very tough situation to be in.”

Outlander premieres season five, based on author Diana Gabaldon’s The Fiery Cross, Feb. 16 on STARZ. [Source]