Everybody gathered together in the hall, ready to begin their impromptu trip to town. Only when they were out in the courtyard did they realize that eleven people would never fit in the car, no matter how hard they tried. Maria suggested taking the older siblings by bus, but then the younger ones protested, claiming they wanted to accompany Fräulein Maria too.

In the end, Georg, Elsa and Max took the car, and Maria and the children took the bus, agreeing to meet in Residenz Square.

Once reunited, the group started a leisurely walk, looking at the shop windows and street stalls, lost in the merry bustle of city life. Soon enough, Max strayed when he heard a choir singing in the distance. When Georg informed him that it was St. Ignatius Choir, he uttered a simple "Bye" and disappeared down the street, much to Georg's chagrin and the others' amusement.

Turning a corner, the little girls burst into an "ooohhh" of sheer rapture. A big shop window with a vast array of cuddly toys on display appeared before their eyes, and they plastered their little noses to the window, completely smitten by them.

Georg observed his daughters with an indulgent little smile on his face, when Elsa, who was holding on to his arm, drew his attention to a shop of haute couture directly opposite the toy shop, displaying the most exquisite, sophisticated evening dresses. She urged him to come inside and see if she could find a gown that put her Vienna couturier to shame.

The ghost of a look of irritation crossed Georg's eyes for a heartbeat, and Maria noticed it. It was obvious that her employer's intention was spending some quality time with his children and his future wife like a family, getting to know each other and enjoying each other's company. Shopping clearly wasn't what he had in mind, especially if it meant they had to split up. But one look at the Baroness told Maria that buying a dress wasn't the only reason why she wanted to enter the shop. She needed to have some time alone with her future husband.

Looking around, she spotted a terrace at the end of the street.

"Captain, we can wait for you on that terrace," she pointed at it. "We've been walking for some time now, and I'm sure the children feel like having a refreshment."

"I do!" Kurt quickly stepped forward, a big smile on his face.

Georg looked at Maria for a short, intense moment, and then his gaze softened. He nodded at her gratefully.

"It won't be long," he assured them.

Maria nodded back and turned to the children.

"Come on, children!" she encouraged them enthusiastically. "Have you decided what you want to have?"

"I want an apple strudel with strawberry juice!" Kurt replied excitedly. "Or maybe..."

"Remember that you must leave some room in your stomach for lunch," Maria reminded him while ruffling his hair.

"But I'm very hungry!" Kurt protested.

Georg watched them go with a smile on his face. Turning to Elsa, he offered his arm and escorted her inside. Just before entering the shop, he cast a last look at the retreating group. His children's governess was the last thing his eyes lingered on before walking in.

"I thought Father would buy us something," Marta said, putting her empty glass on the table.

"Don't you have enough cuddly toys already?" Friedrich asked his sister teasingly.

"You never have enough cuddly toys!" Gretl exclaimed.

"The kitten in the shop was soooo cute!" Marta sighed dreamily.

Maria smiled to herself and turned to the little ones.

"I'm certain that your father will buy you whatever you want if you ask him, but that's not the reason why he asked you to accompany him today."

"Then why did he do it?" Kurt asked after swallowing the last mouthful of apple strudel.

"Because he wants to spend some time with you and Baroness Schraeder as a family," Maria said softly.

"The Baroness is so dull!" Louisa rolled her eyes much like her father. "Everything about her is fake."

"Louisa!" Maria reprimanded the teenager, shocked by the hostility in her voice.

"But it's true," Louisa protested, straightening up in her seat. "Her tone of voice is so... so..."

"Languid," Brigitta supplied.

"Exactly," Louisa nodded at her sister. "It's absolutely cloying! And have you seen how she's constantly calling Father 'darling'? 'Darling', this, 'Darling', that. Father is the only thing she cares about. She wants him all to herself. We're nothing but a nuisance to her."

"Now I think you're being unfair..." Maria began.

"Fräulein Maria, you can't deny that she hardly notices us," Liesl intruded with her soft voice, that made it almost impossible to refute her words. "We have nothing in common with her. She doesn't like children, it's plain to see."

"Yes!"

"That's it!"

"She doesn't like us!" a chorus of voices agreed wholeheartedly.

"I think she doesn't know how to relate to you. She doesn't have any children of her own," Maria tried to reason.

"Neither do you," Louisa pointed out. "But you do like us."

"She feels a bit uncomfortable around you. It happens to some people. They have difficulties finding a common ground with children. You have to help her see you. See how sweet, funny and charming you are. That'll break the ice."

"I'm not sure," Louisa crossed her arms, sulking.

"You have to try," Maria insisted, "she's going to be your new mother. You all will have to adapt to each other, and that won't happen if you don't try your hardest. I'm sure everything will be fine if you give her a chance."

A thick silence followed, but Maria could feel a reluctant acceptance of her words.

"Can I go and take a walk?" Louisa asked all of a sudden, rising to her feet.

Caught off guard, it took Maria a few seconds to reply.

"All right, but stay where I can see you," she advised her.

"I'll go with you," Friedrich said, standing up too.

Maria watched the two siblings go, clearly discussing the matter, until they stopped on the opposite sidewalk and started window-shopping distractedly while still engaged in their lively discussion. Looking around her, she could see that the children's mood had dampened considerably.

Georg felt like he wanted to be anywhere else but there. Things weren't going the way they should. He didn't know what he expected when he introduced Elsa to his children, but certainly not this. As time went by, it was becoming clear that they weren't warming to each other. He had expected some awkwardness on both sides until everything fell into place, but after a tentative start, it was as if every party had settled for maintaining the status quo.

Elsa was full of life. She was witty, funny, imbued with a joie de vivre that was contagious. It was what had brought him back to life when he had resigned himself to simply exist. She shone in Vienna, she was the life and soul of the party. Her charm and sophistication found a perfect backdrop there.

He had hoped that spark would find a good catalyst in his children and, in time...

But it hadn't happened that way. Elsa was different. The children were different. He was different.

Everything was different.

As he walked around the shop, waiting for Elsa to try on the fifth evening dress, he engaged in some thorough soul-searching.

He had changed. He wasn't the same man who had sought shelter from his pain and his memories in Vienna and its light and gay way of life. It was what he had needed at the time. Superficial conversations, drowning his sorrows in champagne, and good friends who understood his abrupt silences and his sudden staring into nowhere.

"I found it, Georg!"

Shaking himself out of his musings, Georg turned about and saw Elsa walking up to him in an absolutely stunning gown. Gold, with a square neckline and tiny straps that revealed her shoulders, and an exuberant white lace adornment on the front of her left shoulder that also covered the front of the dress. His face animated at the joy on her face.

"Indeed," he praised as she turned, showing it off. "You look ravishing, Elsa."

"Thank you, darling. You know how to flatter a woman," she smiled at him with a mischievous look in her eyes.

"Practice makes perfect," he shrugged nonchalantly.

"Oh, you brute," she mock-slapped his arm and he laughed out loud. "I'm going to change now... but I hope to be wearing it again soon," she added, giving him a knowing look.

Georg nodded and watched her go with a smile. When she was out of sight, the smile disappeared from his lips.

What was the reason for this sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach? He looked away, trying to clear his mind. Something was floating in the air today, and he found it... unsettling.

Shaking his head, he continued walking the shop, looking at the gorgeous dresses and material. Reaching out, he touched the expensive fabrics: silk, satin, velvet, finding the feel of them somehow soothing. Suddenly, he froze on the spot. Before him, the most beautiful material he remembered seeing, stood out above everything surrounding it, above everything else in the shop. It was lovely in its sweet simplicity, and he felt it between his fingers, convincing himself that it was real. Its soft and rich shade of blue made it feel as if it was alive. The flower motifs scattered all over brought a smile to his face.

"Lovely, isn't it?" the shop assistant came out of nowhere, right beside him.

"Precisely the word I had in mind," Georg nodded, unable to stop touching it.

"Deluxe silk organza," the woman said, unrolling the fabric and showing it to him in daylight. "Imported from France."

"The feel of it is..." Georg murmured, almost trembling. Clearing his throat, he tried to compose himself.

"We've had it for some time now, but no one bothered to buy it," the woman said with a small sigh of disappointment. "I guess it's not... sophisticated enough for our regular customers." She tilted her head to one side with a little smile. "I know this will sound foolish, but I like to think that all my material is waiting for the right person to find it. The one person that'll recognize the special beauty of it, and know it's exactly what they need."

Georg withdrew into himself for a few seconds, and nodded to himself.

"They did," he just said.

"Uncle Max!" Marta's face lit up when she saw the man walking up to their table.

Everybody turned their heads and greeted him warmly.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here? Warming up for lunch?" he said jokingly, pinching softly Gretl's cheek.

"Sit down and have something!" Kurt invited.

"I think I will," Max said, pulling back a chair and sitting down on it. "Where's our favourite philanthropist and his captivating Baroness?" he asked.

"Shopping," Maria replied, pointing at the haute couturier's.

"That's our Georg," Max smiled widely. "He can't deny anything to the people he cares about." He sighed. "That man has the biggest heart I've ever seen. And I'm so lucky to fit in it!" he sprawled out in his seat, making everybody chuckle.

Right then, loud voices made them look up. Friedrich and Louisa were running up to them, crying out something.

"You have to come and see this!" Friedrich said when he reached the table.

"See what?" everybody asked.

"There's the most amazing puppet show in that shop over there," Louisa said, pointing at the farthest corner. "They have puppet people and animals. They have the cutest goats I've seen in my life!"

"It must be Professor Kohner's," Max said, looking in the direction Louisa indicated.

"Oh, please, Fräulein Maria!"

"Can we go and see it?"

"Please, please!"

"I'll accompany them," Max said to Maria with a smile, rising to his feet.

Maria smiled back.

"I'll look after the table," she nodded at him.

Once alone, Maria looked around her instinctively, as if looking for something or someone. Without the children, she felt as if she had no purpose, and truly didn't know what to do. She took a sip of her lemonade and crossed her arms on the table.

"What a pretty young lady," a slurred male voice said, making her whip her head up to the side. A ragged and visibly inebriated middle-aged man walked up to the table, leaning his hands on it.

Maria tensed involuntarily, but tried to cover it with a polite smile.

"Would you have a few coins to give a poor man, who's had nothing to eat for two days?" the man asked, bending forward.

Maria took in his unshaven state, his dishevelled hair, the dirt under his too long fingernails and his smell of alcohol. Drawing back a little, she made a sincerely apologetic face.

"I'm sorry, sir. I didn't bring any money."

"But dear lady, you wouldn't be having a lemonade if you couldn't pay for it," the man reasoned, edging ever closer, and practically blowing his fetid breath of alcohol on her face.

Realizing that even if she explained the situation to him, he still wouldn't believe her, Maria looked around out of the corner of her eye. The few people sitting at the surrounding tables didn't seem to notice her plight.

"I really don't have any money, sir," she repeated. "I'm very sorry."

"That's not a very clever thing to say," the man said, shaking his head and leaning on the table so heavily that he moved it against Maria, who jerked back in reaction. "Especially from a beautiful woman sitting all alone, without any protection," his speech was suddenly clearer, and clearly threatening. He let out an ugly smile, revealing decaying, yellow teeth, and got unbearably close.

Maria moved back as far as her seat allowed, her heart beginning to pound in her chest. She didn't want to make a scene, but that man was giving her no choice. She prepared to defend herself if he got a centimetre closer.

"She has protection," a menacing, familiar voice said right behind the man, startling them both.

Maria's relief knew no bounds when she saw the Captain standing there, poised in his full height, the expression on his face as dangerous as the sound of his voice.

"I advise you to put as much distance as possible between yourself and this lady, if you don't want to sober up much too soon," Georg's stance and his stony look were a dead giveaway as to what would happen if the man didn't comply immediately.

"Certainly, sir," the tramp backed off with surprising speed. But then, in a thoroughly foolhardy move, he tried to provoke Georg. "You wouldn't have a few coins to spare, by any chance?" he asked, a definite glint of defiance in his bloodshot eyes.

Georg's lips curved into a nasty smile. He stepped forward until he was practically nose-to-nose with the drunk.

"Don't push your luck." The clipped tone of voice sounded like a final warning.

The man cast Georg a mocking smile and staggered away at a slow, unhurried pace.

Maria brought up one hand to her face, letting out a small sigh. Now that everything was over, the tension left her body in a rush, leaving it all shaky and a little bit queasy.

"Are you all right, Fräulein?" Georg walked up to Maria, enough for her to feel his closeness.

"Yes, I'm fine, sir," Maria nodded, trying to project a calm façade.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I'm a bit nervous, but it'll pass." She looked up at him, radiating gratitude. "Thank you, Captain," she said from the bottom of her heart.

Georg smiled down at her affectionately and shook his head.

"How fortunate that we arrived here when we did!" Elsa exclaimed, approaching them now that it was safe. Her voice showed that the scene she and Georg had encountered, had upset her greatly. "Are you truly all right, my dear? What a disturbing incident!"

"I'm fine now. Thank you, Baroness," Maria smiled at her with a nod.

"Where did everybody go?" Georg asked then, looking around. He had just realized that his children were nowhere to be seen.

"The children left with Herr Detweiler," Maria explained. "They wanted to see a puppet show on display in one of the shop windows. Professor Kohner's, I think."

"I see," Georg nodded, studying Maria's face closely to verify she was getting her colour back. "Well, we'd better check on them," he said, taking out his wallet and paying Maria and the children's refreshments. "Who knows what they'll be up to!"

"Oh, Georg, you worry too much." Elsa put her hand on the Captain's arm and patted it. "Your children know how to behave."

"I know," Georg held the back of Maria's chair while she stood up. "It's Max that scares me."

Maria's low chuckle at his crack reassured Georg that she was going to be fine.

It was almost dinner time, and Maria was getting ready to come down. As she finished combing her short hair, she stared at her reflection in the mirror, turning over the events of the day in her mind.

It hadn't been a particularly hectic day, quite the contrary. But for some reason, it couldn't hold a candle to the days when the children exhausted her physically. Tonight, she felt emotionally exhausted.

And the Captain was the cause.

Now that the day was almost over, one would think that she could put behind the revelation that finding him so upset and vulnerable had been to her. Instead, he wouldn't leave her thoughts.

There was something about that man that was beyond Maria to explain. To understand, even. And it all came down to the simple fact that she always felt welcomed in his presence. More than that. She felt appreciated, valued. Everything she had to say was taken into consideration, her opinion truly mattered and was even actively sought.

But what had happened that morning was just incredible. That such a man had turned to her for reassurance was incredible. All right, there hadn't been anyone else available at the time, but still...

There was something very unorthodox about Captain von Trapp. For an aristocrat, he didn't seem to care about conventions, about what society considered proper or acceptable. He treated his employees like... well, like people who worked for him. He commanded people's respect because he was the first to respect them.

He was warm, and kind, and with the deepest feelings she had ever encountered. He cared about things and people so deeply that it was almost frightening. For the first time, Maria understood, really understood what had made him withdraw into himself when his wife died. With such depth of feeling, the loss of someone so dear must have been beyond unbearable. It must have hurt so much that hadn't he detached himself from his feelings, he would have lost his mind. And the longer the withdrawal had lasted, the greater testimony to this man's capacity to love, to give himself completely to his love, in heart and soul.

Maria felt as if a knife was slashing through her chest. Being the recipient of such a man's affection had to be overwhelming, all-consuming. Her heart skipped a beat when she remembered that was what she had felt that morning, when she had tried to comfort him. It had been overwhelming. But she felt made better somehow because of it. For the first time in her life, she'd felt like she had something to give.

Today had been different in so many ways. She had seen so many sides of him, and all of them were to be treasured. His angry side, his vulnerable side, his ironical side, his strong and gentlemanly side. And all of them said so much about the kind of person he was.

Everything about Captain von Trapp was to be respected, and protected. She prayed that Baroness Schraeder was aware of how blessed she was. To be responsible for this man's happiness and peace of mind... there couldn't be a greater honour.

The knife seemed to be twisting in her chest, and she brought up one hand to it, trying to make the pain stop. It wasn't a physical pain, but it was just as intense. She couldn't find a word for it and all the same, her eyes misted with its power.

The sudden knock on her door made her start. She cleared her throat, blinked several times and left the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

"Come in," she invited, taking a deep breath.

The door opened and Frau Schmidt walked in.

"I see you're ready for dinner," she observed with a smile.

"Almost," Maria nodded.

"This is for you," the housekeeper said. "It just arrived, along with Baroness Schraeder's gown."

Only then, Maria looked down and saw the piece of material Frau Schmidt was holding out to her. Her eyes opened wide at the sight of the most breathtakingly beautiful material she had ever laid eyes on. It was the richest, loveliest shade of blue, and the moment she touched it, she knew the quality of it was beyond everything she had ever been close to.

"I-It's... organza! Silk organza!" she stuttered.

Frau Schmidt nodded with a smile on her face, enjoying Maria's astonished expression.

"Coming up with a design that does justice to such exquisite material will be a challenge," she said. "But you'll have a flash of inspiration, I'm sure."

Maria just stared at the material she had just been handed, unable to think of anything coherent to say.

"B-But how...? Why...?" she managed to articulate.

"I guess it's the Captain's way of saying 'thank you' to the person who's done so much for him and his family." Frau Schmidt inched a little bit closer and spoke to her in a confidential manner. "And if I may say so, the Captain's giving voice to everybody's sentiments in this household." Her smile now was unequivocally grateful.

Maria looked into the older woman's eyes, feeling the tightness in her chest return, only differently.

"Thank you for saying that, but I did nothing," she said in a hoarse voice. "I only yelled at him."

Frau Schmidt laughed wholeheartedly at that.

"That's good. There had been too many years of silence."

Maria smiled sadly and nodded, knowing how much brutally repressed pain had lurked behind those walls. And it felt as if all that pain was hitting her squarely at that very moment. She looked down.

"Now, I'll see you downstairs." Frau Schmidt noticed that Maria's emotions were very close to the surface, and patting her arm fondly, she left the room.

Maria stood where she was, looking at the precious material in her arms, too bewildered to react. Did the Captain really have her in such esteem? In such regard as to...?

She slumped down on her bed and moved her hands all over that lovely smoothness, almost shuddering at the feel of it. Shakily, she began to unroll the material to get a better look at it. Her actions revealed a small envelope that had been put under the first layers of the cloth. She stared at it for a few moments, hesitant to do anything but look.

Finally, she reached out and with unsteady fingers, opened it. Inside, there was a short, signed note, written in the most elegant handwriting.

'When you can't find the words, maybe actions speak louder.'

Maria read the words over and over until they got blurry. She bit her lower lip in wonder, in sheer disbelief. Once again, her mind began to replay the events of the day in fast, bright flashes, until she had to close her stinging eyes against them and the feelings they evoked.

And for the first time, she thanked the Reverend mother for sending her there. If she had contributed, even in the smallest way, to help that complex, gentle soul to find its way again, then she had achieved far more than she'd ever hoped for.

TO BE CONTINUED...