LOVE PAST AND PRESENT

Chapter One: Permission

Disclaimers: I don't own the Sound of Music. Also, the idea for the flashbacks and the format of them isn't really mine. It comes from watching (and reading) so much OUAT.

Thank you to Utility Singer for betaing. I wouldn't be posting this without her help.

This story will always be updated on Fridays. Because I write for a few different fandoms, I find it easier to select a day for each of them. That being said, it won't necessarily be every Friday.

I don't know how often I'll be able to update this. I'm limiting my fanfiction for Lent. (Which started this past Wednesday.) That will include reading and writing. Still, if I ever decide to stop writing this, I will tell you. Otherwise, assume I'm still writing.

I'm going to try to keep this story in historical context. As a former history major, that kind of thing is important to me. I know more about US history than European, but I'll do my best to research. (I think it's fun. )

However, it won't necessarily match up with the real Von Trapp family. Partly because I don't have access to any of the books, but more importantly because I'm trying to make this story match up to the movie timeline and characters.

Oh and,

OOOOOOOOOOO is time change

XXXXXXXXXXX is POV change.

Georg woke up at sunrise, as usual. Although calling it a sunrise might be a bit much, considering all the grey clouds outside. But it was fine. He had more important things on his mind than the weather. Last night as he was drifting off to sleep, he thought about how to proceed with his engagement to Maria. (He may have thought about the kisses, too.)

When he woke up, he decided he ought to choose a piece of jewelry to give to Maria in honor their betrothal. It would show everyone how serious he was about this. Carefully he opened the safe in the back corner of the suite. There were necklaces of gold and silver with diamond, ruby, emerald, and sapphire pendants. There were necklaces made entirely of pearls. There were bracelets made of diamonds and pearls.

Georg sighed as he continued looking. Any of these would look beautiful on Maria, but none of them seemed to really fit her. Then he reached in and pulled out a plain gold necklace. It was a little more Maria's style, but it had been Agathe's favorite.

Georg hardly noticed the drizzle as he pulled his suitcase out of the cab and headed for the Whitehead Estate in the English countryside. The only thing on his mind was his proposal to Agathe. It was time. He couldn't wait see the look on her face when he gave her the ring and asked her to marry him. Of course, before he could ask Agathe Georg would have to speak to her father. He hoped that would go well. Agathe's parents weren't terribly fond of him. Still, they hadn't stopped him from seeing her yet, so there was hope.

Still, what would he do if Sir Whitehead said "no"? Find someone else? He shook his head at the absurd idea. There was no way he could love anyone as much as he loved Agathe. Elope? Agathe had once told him she'd consider eloping if it was necessary. His Agathe loved risks so much, she'd probably even be able to do it, too. For a few moments, he thought of how they would do so if Sir Whitehead turned him down. (Which Georg admitted was a fair possibility.) First, he would leave the Whitehead estate immediately, but he would stay nearby. That night, Georg would sneak back onto the property and make his presence known to Agathe. As soon as she was able to speak to him, they would make plans to sneak away. They could travel under assumed names, so her parents couldn't catch them until they were already married.

Then Georg came to his senses and shook his head. He could never ask Agathe to elope, even if she was willing to do so. Asking her to choose between him and her family and sneaking off under assumed names was dishonest. Dishonorable. If he intended to marry Agathe, he needed to do it the honorable way, or he wouldn't be worry of her. And that meant asking and receiving permission from Sir Whitehead. Georg would just have to hope he would say yes.

Finally, Georg knocked on the door. "Yes. Captain von Trapp, is it?" asked the butler as he opened the door.

"Yes."

"Should I tell Miss Agathe you are here, sir?"

Georg shook his head. "Actually, today I'd like to see Sir Whitehead first."

The butler nodded and called for Sir Whitehead.

Sir Whitehead nodded to Georg. "We can discuss things in my study."

Georg nodded and followed the older man to the corner room on the back of the ground floor. As he sat down, Sir Whitehead handed him a handkerchief. "Why don't you wipe off your face?"

Georg wasn't sure what he meant, but he did so anyway. As he did so, he realized his face was wet and a little muddy from the rain. "I apologize for not presenting myself properly." He knew he was focused on his proposal, but this was still quiet unacceptable. Would Sir Whitehead use this against him? The man already disliked Georg because he wasn't the English suitor Agathe was apparently "supposed to marry." Not to mention the fact that the Whitehead's had more money than he did. "Sir, I promise this will never happen again."

Sir Whitehead nodded but said nothing.

Georg took that as a sign to continue. "Sir. I would like…I would appreciate…if I could have your permission. To marry Agathe," he finally managed. This wasn't easy and not just because he was afraid Sir Whitehead would say "no." Georg Von Trapp wasn't used to ask permission from many people. As a navy captain he gave orders. The only people he ever asked permission from were admirals and the emperor. And well, Sir Whitehead, now.

Sir Whitehead stared at Georg for several minutes, still saying nothing.

"I have a ring for her," Georg continued, pulling out the small dimaond ring he'd brought for Agathe to wear if his proposal was accepted. Perhaps this would show the other man how serious he was.

Sir Whitehead picked up the ring and began examining it. "Hmmmm," he commented several times.

Georg realized that Sir Whitehead would probably say "no" now. How would he live without Agathe? Fortunately, he knew how to look neutral. Georg wasn't about to let Sir Whitehead know how upset he was at this.

Finally Sir Whitehead commented, "I believe Agathe is worth more than this little ring. A bigger diamond perhaps?"

Georg sighed and nodded. Well, there was nothing more to do here, then, was there?

As he began to get up, Georg had an idea. "What if I just used this as a placeholder? Then I will buy her a different ring? Something with a bigger diamond? Or more diamonds? Would you allow me to propose to Agathe then?"

Sir Whitehead sighed and nodded. "That would be acceptable, I suppose."

Georg heart practically lifted out of his chest. But all he said was, "Thank you, Sir."

Ten minutes later, Georg did ask Agathe to marry him. Her face lit up just as much as he knew it would as she threw her arms around him. And she thought the little diamond was perfect, although she would be happy to wear more, as well.

Georg's mind drifted back to the present as he looked at the "ring with more diamonds:" He put it back and began searching once again. His hand found the gold necklace again. "Wouldn't Liesl like to have that necklace?" a voice, which reminded him very much of Maria's, asked. He bristled at the thought of giving Liesl fine jewelry, but the reality was the gold necklace was one of the least fancy items. And Maria was correct. Liesl was growing up.

But Georg still needed a ring for Maria. A ruby to match the red in her hair? Or a sapphire to match her eyes? Finally he, settled on a pearl surrounded by small sapphires. It fit her in a way none of the others did. The pearl looked sweet and innocent but the sapphires were strong.

Georg entered the dining room and found the table already for breakfast. Fiedrich, Liesl, Kurt entered the room as well, with Louisa following soon afterwards. As much as he loved his children, he was disappointed. He had been hoping Maria would come down before the children this morning, and they could have more private time. But there would certainly be time for that later. He smiled at them. "Good morning."

"The others will be down soon, Father," Liesl assured him. "They wanted Fraulein Maria to braid their hair. We told them you wouldn't want anyone to be late, but they insisted."

"Fraulein Maria would have been down sooner otherwise," Kurt added. They were trying to defend Maria so Georg wouldn't be angry at her for being late. Perhaps they were even still afraid he might send her away? Georg resisted the urge to laugh at the ridiculous concept. He had to admit, he still found her lateness a little annoying, but how could he be angry at her for giving the girls some extra attention and care?

"That is fine," he reassured the older children.

The relief on the children's faces was obvious.

Twenty long minutes later Maria and the other children skipped into the room. She looked beautiful, as always, dressed in her gold dress. "See my pretty hair, Father?" Marta asked him softly, turning to show him her braid. "Fraulein Maria braided it perfectly."

He smiled at how happy Maria made his children. "Yes, Marta. She did. She made all of your hair look wonderful." As he said that, he looked into Maria's eyes, trying to show his appreciation.

"Can we eat now, Father?" Kurt asked.

Georg nodded. "I think that's a marvelous idea," he replied as he prepared to tell Franz to bring the food in.

Brigitta looked around the table for a second. "But Father, where is Baroness Schraeder?"

The other children looked sharply at her and Fiedrich commented, "That's none of your business."

Georg sighed. He had been hoping to discuss this after breakfast, on full stomachs, but he supposed he should at least answer Brigitta's question. "She returned to Vienna."

Brigitta nodded.

With that, Georg signaled for Franz to bring in the food. After Maria said grace, they all dug into eggs, sausage, and fresh fruit. As the children chattered on about what they wished to do with Maria that day, Louisa suddenly asked, "When will the Baroness return?"

"She won't actually," Georg admitted. "We called off our engagement."

All of the children shared looks of amazement and relief. Gretl even said, "Yay! No more Baroness!"

Maria shook her head at her. "Now, don't be rude. I know the Bareness was…difficult at times, but that's still no reason to say that."

Gretl hung her head. "I'm sorry, Fraulein Maria." Georg loved the way Maria could scold the children without making them feel scared or unloved. He wished he could do the same.

Liesl studied her father's face for several minutes, but said nothing.

OOOOOOOOOOOOO

When breakfast was finished, Georg knew they all felt more alert. This was the perfect time to talk to the children about their plans, as well as give Maria her new ring. "I want all of you to go into the drawing room," he commanded before they could disappear anywhere else.

The children looked confused, but did so. After they all sat down, Georg sat on the sofa right next to Maria. "We have something we'd like to tell – " he began, but Maria looked at him sharply and shook her head. Her stare reminded him of the way she'd look at him after she'd climbed out of the rowboat. He nodded as he remembered they had agreed they would ask the children about their engagement. Maria was right, as usual of course. Maria came to them as their governess first, so their opinions on the matter should be heard.

Still, if it was hard to ask Sir Whitehead's permission to marry, Agathe, it was so much harder to ask his children's permission. Asking permission for anything barely made any sense to him anymore. He didn't answer to admirals now that he was retired (and Georg would never answerto the new group emerging), and there was no emperor now. He had little contact with Sir Whitehead. Asking permission, particularly to his children, went against Georg's instincts. At least he was relatively certain the children liked him better than Sir Whitehead had.

"I mean, there's… something we would like to ask you," Georg finally corrected himself.

The children looked at him with wide eyes. Kurt's mouth dropped open in shock.

"Why would you need to ask us anything, Father?" Fiedrich commented. Apparently this wasn't easy for them to understand, either. Even though he'd tried to be much more approachable this summer, the children were still used to asking him for permission, not the other way around.

"Well, as I have told you, Baroness Schraeder left," he began.

"Does that mean Fraulein Maria can stay?" Gretl asked eagerly.

Georg leaned over and rustled his youngest daughter's hair. "It might."

"Well, if that's what you wanted to ask, then the answer is yes, Father! Of course we want her to stay," Liesl exclaimed.

"If she wants to, that is," Louisa added, uncertainly.

"I would, actually," Maria replied, softly.

There were a chorus of cheers from the children, and Georg waited for them to calm down. "But that's isn't all. You see, I wasn't planning on having her stay as a governess."

"What else could she be?" asked Marta, confused.

Finally Georg pulled out the ring he'd chosen for Maria. "I was hoping you'd agree for her to be my wife. And your new mother."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Gretl and Marta (who had been clinging to Maria all morning) squealed with delight and launched themselves into her arms. Liesl looked from the Captain to Maria and nodded. "I knew there was something going on between you two. I just couldn't figure out what it was."

"I think Fraulein Maria would be much better than the Bareness," Kurt commented, nodding.

Maria sighed with relief. She had been afraid the children wouldn't want her as a mother. What would they have done if the children didn't agree? Then, Maria realized that thought may have come too soon when Louisa asked, "Do you want to be our new mother, Fraulein Maria?"

Maria sighed, mentally scolding herself for leaving this family again. "Of course I do, darling."

"Why do need to ask our permission first, Father?" Fredrick asked confused.

"Because Maria came to us as your governess. Her only priority was to you. As my wife, her priorities would be split between you and me," the Captain replied. Maria smiled and nodded at him. She was happy that he was willing to explain that to the children, although he'd tried to avoid asking them before.

All of the children thought about this for several minutes before each one began to nod. Liesl first, then Fiedrich, then Brigitta, Marta and Gretl at the same time, and finally Kurt and Louisa. The Captain smiled brightly and slowly slipped the ring on Maria's finger. Her heart jumped when his hand touched hers. She loved how warm his hands were.

"Can I see it?" Liesl asked excitedly.

Maria nodded and held out her left hand. "I chose that one because it reminded me of Maria. Young like a pearl, but strong, too, like the sapphires." She smiled, loving the idea that he'd chosen the ring for such a special reason.

The rest of the children crowded around to see the ring. "I think the blue matches her eyes, too," Marta added.

The Captain smiled. "I may have thought of that as well."

Maria blushed at that. She couldn't help but notice how blue his eyes were as well.

"Now, please go upstairs to study," he tried to instruct the children, but they all protested.

"- But Father!"

"- No!"

"- How can we concentrate on schoolwork today?

"- Can't we take a day off?"

"Quiet!" the Captain told them all firmly.

Maria was glad when they were all silent; it was a bit too much noise even for her when they all spoke at once. But she had to agree expecting them to study to day was probably asking a bit much. "I think they've had too much excitement. Couldn't they wait just one day?"

The Captain sighed. "I suppose you're right, Maria. Although it's raining outside, so you'll have to stay in the house."

"Can we play hide – and – seek Fraulein Maria?" Kurt asked.

"I think that sounds reasonable."

"Come on. You can be 'it'!" added Marta, tugging on Maria's arm.

Maria laughed and started to follow the children when she remembered something. "I'm sorry. I can't. I have to write to the Reverend Mother."

The disappointed faces on the children almost made Maria reconsider, even though she really should write to the Reverend Mother as soon as possible. But then the Captain surprised her. "I can play with you while Maria is busy."

"Really Father?" the children asked eagerly.

"Of course." It was wonderful to see him volunteering to spend time with the children. And he allowed Maria to do what she needed to at the same time. He really was a wonderful man.

So Maria went upstairs to write her letter while the children and their father played.

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Edit: Can anyone tell me how to write titles for my chapters? Usually I don't title chapters, but I've got some good title ideas for this story. But I can't figure how to get the title name to come up instead of just "chapter one."