[Editor’s note: The following contains some spoilers for Season 7 of Outlander.]In Season 7 of the Starz series Outlander, war, change, and evolution are always looming, while the Frasers work to protect their home and their way of life. A growing family also means the possibility of new dangers that separate them across the centuries, with their love for each other being the thread that always ties them together.

During this interview with Collider, co-stars Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan talked about the emotions they’re experiencing with Outlander coming to an end with its eighth season, what 10 years playing the same character feels like, the most important lessons that Claire and Jamie have learned since the beginning of the series, shooting the scene on the gallows, singing “Ave Maria,” the challenges with separating their family unit again, and whether Jamie might actually enjoy himself, if he ever made it to Disneyland with Brianna (Sophie Skelton).

Collider: What does it feel like to be at the point with Outlander where you can say that you only have one season left? Has the emotion of that hit you, or has reality not set in? Are you in denial? What stage of emotion are you at?

CAITRIONA BALFE: I think the emotion is starting to hit a little. We have a lot of work left to do, and there are a lot of episodes for people to still see. But it does feel like a huge accomplishment, when we’re coming up to 10 years. That’s such a crazy number, and it’s so wild to think we started this a decade ago, but it’s also a very proud moment too.

SAM HEUGHAN: I think we all started feeling it, towards the end of this last season. It was very tangible, the fact we were coming towards the end of it. It’s mixed, isn’t it?

BALFE: Yeah.

HEUGHAN: We are very proud and always very excited to promote and celebrate, with the fans, the new season, but we also know that, when we go back, it will be the last time. So, it’s mixed emotions.

Image via Starz

What does 10 years with the same character feel like? What has been the happiest surprise of that experience?

HEUGHAN: For me, honestly, it’s that you can spend 10 years with a character and still be surprised by them, and still come to work every day and feel like you still don’t know what’s gonna happen. That’s partly down to the writing, partly down to Diana [Gabaldon]’s great characters, but it’s been such a great journey. Every day that we come to set, you feel comfortable, which is amazing. Having lived with the character that long is incredible. To actually say goodbye to that character will also be difficult.

What do you think is the most important lesson your character has learned, since the beginning of the show?

BALFE: The journey Claire has gone on, since the end of Season 5 through Season 6 to this season, has been a real shift in her psyche. She’s somebody who, because of circumstance and being a product of her time, would compartmentalize things and suppress things a lot. She quickly discovered that wasn’t servicing her anymore. This season, she’s learned to really express herself a little bit more and to share when she’s having difficulties. By doing that, you can get through problems in a different way. It’s just been really nice to allow these characters to mature and to evolve, and to go on that journey with them.

HEUGHAN :The fact that Jamie is now just responsible for so many people, not just himself and Claire and his extended family and everyone at Fraser’s Ridge, but now people that are under his command, and he almost has a responsibility to do the right thing for America, this new country that’s forming. The weight of responsibility is something that he never knew would happen to him.

Image via Starz

Caitriona, this season opens with a scene of Claire being hung on the gallows, which is a shocking visual moment. I literally took an audible breath when that happened. What was that like to shoot? How does it feel to actually shoot something like that, in the moment?

BALFE: It’s a weird mix of being like, “Oh, this will be fun,” but then you start doing it and you’re like, “This isn’t fun. This is absolutely crazy.” Any time you bring your character to the precipice of death, it’s always a weird thing. What I find interesting about doing those scenes is always the mechanics of it. You work with your stunt coordinator, Dom [Preece], who we’ve worked with since Season 1 and who’s amazing. And then, the way that they’ve built the rigs and the way that they’re going to do the camera angles, and all of that kind of stuff, that’s the stuff that’s really fascinating about that. And then, bringing yourself to that emotional point is always a little bit uncomfortable. I don’t know. These are just the crazy things that they throw at you on Outlander, all the time. You’re like, “All right. Okay. Another near death moment.”

Sam, at the end of the first episode, Jamie refers to himself as a violent man and there’s a moment where he feels a little scary. How does he feel about that? Has he made peace with himself, knowing that that’s within him?

HEUGHAN: I think he knows how to channel it. You see Red Jamie again there, for a moment. When Jamie does go to that, he will fight for his family to protect them and he won’t hold back. We’ve seen it a few times, but maybe he now knows how to channel it and how to hide it. It’s always there. He’s Red Jamie and he has this quite, not violent streak, but this ability to wreak great violence or great vengeance, in this case.

Image via Starz

Caitriona, you sing “Ave Maria” in this season. That song, much like “Amazing Grace,” seems to often be sung in very emotional moments. What was it like to do that, in that context? How do you get through that?

BALFE: They proposed doing this, and then they threw that song at me. I was like, “Wait, hold on a minute. I am not a singer.” So, I had a couple of sessions with a vocal coach, this amazing guy, Michael L Roberts, and big shout out to him because most of it is just my absolute mortification of having to do it in public in front of people, and he helped me get through that. But then, in the moment, we did it in one long take, and I think we only did one take of it. It was amazing work by the camera team. We just did the squelching through mud, with this long take walking through that funeral procession, and just did it a cappella. To be honest, in those situations, you just have to go, “Okay, Claire is not a professional singer. Neither am I. It’s about the emotion of the moment, and it’s about saying goodbye to a beloved character and what everybody’s feeling in that.” You focus on that stuff, rather than how you sound. And I may have noticed that there’s a slight auto-tune, when they put it into the trailer. I definitely think there’s a little bit of fixing going on there. But raw is good. You’ve just gotta go with it.

How meaningful is it for both Claire and Jamie to be at the stones with Brianna and Roger and their children? They’re saying goodbye, but at the same time they really are communicating how much they love and care for them. What was it like to have a moment like that, where they can express those feelings?

HEUGHAN: Yeah, it’s true. They’ve spent a lot of time apart, and now they’ve created this quite close-knit family unit. It’s hard for Jamie and Claire to say goodbye to those that they love, and it was hard for us, as well, to then not spend time with Richard [Rankin] and Sophie [Skelton]. The whole season, we really were fly by night. We would come to work, and they would leave. It was sad because we have built up this great relationship, as characters, but also as actors, so it was difficult.

BALFE: It’s this idea of setting people free when you love them so much. Obviously, Mandy and her health are the primary thing. Knowing that they can go to the future and save her is the main thing. That’s the primary focus. But you’re saying goodbye to your loved ones, and the idea that they’ll never see them again, it’s like a death, in some ways, and that was really, really sad. And then, just to reiterate what Sam said, it was really sad, not working together with them. We’ve been the OG core crew for the last three or four seasons, so it really was strange not to see them. But what it meant was that the show has these really amazing, different storylines running, and we have lots of lovely, great new characters that come in. It just freshens everything up and adds a new dimension to the whole show, as well.

Because of the moment between Jamie and Brianna, now I’m curious about how Jamie would react to going to Disneyland. If he ever got the chance to go, would he be a roller coaster guy or a Dumbo guy?

BALFE: He gets seasick, so I don’t know if his stomach could handle it.

HEUGHAN: He’s the big, strong, dependable man, but actually, he’d probably hate it.

Outlander airs on Friday nights on Starz.