She smiled as she walked around the grounds with the girls, the boys having gone fishing in the lake with Georg and John. Gretl and Marta held each of her hands, unable to stop talking about how excited they were to be big sisters. As the youngest of the group, they were incredibly glad to no longer be considered the babies of the family.

It was amazing to her how supportive and excited everyone was, including the Whiteheads. They gasped in excitement when the news was shared, jumping to hug Maria and Georg, as did the children. She couldn't believe that after so much of her life searching for supporting parental figures, she had found them in the oddest of places. Though she was afraid to get too comfortable. She was worried that becoming too close to Georg's first wife's parents could only hurt them all in the end.

It was hard to explain the reasoning behind her thoughts, but she simply knew that Georg would grow tired in England. He would eventually become restless and want to move on, but she had no idea where they would go. She would have loved to try Switzerland, having heard it was one of the most beautiful places to live, but it was too close to Austria for comfort. It was a breath of fresh air to be away from the negative German influences they had grown accustomed to, and she had to remind herself at times that things were still quite strained in Austria.

She often wondered what would become of Hede and her family. Would they ever see one another again? Hede was an adaptable person, so she knew she would be fine, but she felt desperate to send her a letter or phone her to check in. She had so many pregnancy questions and the need for a real friend. It would be a terrible idea to reach out though, and she refused to put anyone she loved in danger for her own selfish reasons. One day, they would reconnect.

"Mother, look!" Gretl pointed toward the lake, the sight of the four men fishing on the banks. "Can we go see?"

"Yes, but you must stay quiet. If we scare away the fish, we'll never hear the end of it." She smiled at Georg as they approached, Liesl and Louisa whispering something to one another. They had been doing that quite a bit lately, and while Maria felt it was wonderful for them to have become so close, she was a little worried about what they were discussing.

"Hello, girls. Darling." Georg whispered, raising an eyebrow in greeting as they approached, the little girls dropping her hands as they approached their brothers to watch closer. She moved to give him a peck on the lips, smiling as she looked out over the water. He leaned close to whisper into her ear. "Friedrich is great at fishing, Kurt is terrible."

"Stop it."

"It's very true." She gave him a pout, looking over to see Kurt cast out his line, his bait flying off into the air, and a groan of frustration escaping his lips. The poor boy looked defeated, an empty bucket by his side and a frown upon his face.

"I'll help." Georg scoffed, looking at her incredulously.

"Okay." She raised her eyebrows, offended by his sarcastic tone. He never seemed to remember that she grew up on a farm. There were a lot of things she knew about 'man' sports. Giving him a dirty look, she walked over to Kurt, who gave her a small smile in greeting.

"Are you having trouble?" She whispered as she leaned close, and he nodded.

"They keep making fun too. I think I hate fishing." She nodded, giving Georg another look. He responded with a shrug, and she looked back to what Kurt was given as bait. He had some kind of homemade bait, she had no idea what it was, but the others were having decent enough luck with it.

"Come with me." He followed as she led him into a damp, muddy area that was heavy with large rocks and shaded by trees. She found what she hoped was the perfect place, and she began digging with her hands into the damp dirt, quickly finding what she was looking for. "I don't know what they're using, but we'll use worms."

"Gross, they're alive." He groaned as she scooped out a handful of dirt, earthworms wiggling about in her palm.

"That's why they work best. Come on." She led him back to the lake where the girls were now sitting upon the ground, some basking in the weather, the little girls playing with pebbles they found. Maria tossed her handful of worms into Kurt's little bait box with a heavy thud, and Friedrich's eyes widened in disgust as she took one and began stabbing the fishing hook through, balling it up a bit to secure it.

"That is disgusting." Kurt groaned, bringing a hand to his stomach. She rolled her eyes and handed him the fishing pole.

"Try." He took it hesitantly, casting the way his father had shown him. They sat silently for a moment, waiting patiently. She shared a smile with John, who looked very amused. She supposed she wasn't always the most ladylike when it came to the outdoors, but she had never felt too self-conscious about it. She loved everything about nature.

"What's that?" Kurt gasped, his line tugging away from him.

"It's a fish, reel it in slowly." He smiled, following her direction. She reached forward and tugged on his line a bit, smiling at him as he continued to reel. The look of sheer joy upon his face when he pulled his large fish from the water was one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen, and she nearly squealed with excitement, had she not been concerned for scaring away the fish. He received pats upon the back, everyone encouraging him and showing how proud they were, and the boy simply beamed.

"Thank you, Mother." He gave her a quick hug, smiling as he went to grab his fish from the line. It jumped, and he withdrew, cringing. He looked to her in question, and she shook her head, stepping forward and grasping the fish in her hand, removing the hook from its mouth and dropping it into his bucket as if she had done it a million times before. In truth, she had. Her uncle had never treated her like a little girl growing up, she had always been required to learn the things he wanted her to do, regardless of her gender. "Thanks."

"Now, catch more fish than your brother." She gave Friedrich a wink and walked back to join the girls, bending and wiping her hands upon the bottom of her dress. She had taken to wearing some of the old dresses she had made, as they were much easier to wear while playing with the children, and she didn't much mind making a mess of them.

"Mother, did you really touch worms?" Gretl grimaced as she held out a hand for her to take, which she quickly declined.

"Well, yes. I was helping Kurt." They headed back toward the house, all but Louisa disgusted by the things she had just done. Louisa, who was probably the most similar to her in terms of nature, had done her fair share of catching live animals to scare their past governesses. She wasn't afraid of much.

"I still can't believe you did that." Liesl groaned, crossing her arms in a disgusted fashion. Maria laughed, the young girls still refusing to take her hands as they walked.

"There was nothing wrong with it. I told you, I was helping Kurt."

"Helping Kurt with what, dear?" The Countess appeared upon the terrace as they approached the house, smiling delightedly at the sight of her granddaughters. Louisa spoke up, smiling brightly with excitement.

"She helped him put worms on his hook, and then she grabbed a fish and ripped its mouth off the hook when he caught one."

"Louisa!" Her eyes widened, and she met the gaze of the Countess in complete embarrassment. "It…wasn't exactly like that."

"How ghastly." She cringed, and Maria shrugged, awaiting a judgmental tone that never came. "I'm sure Kurt appreciated the help though."

"Yes, he was quite excited to catch a fish. The men were picking on him a bit." She smiled as they all joined the Countess on the terrace, pouring glasses of water from a pitcher upon the table.

"Maria, dear, have you ever had your nails done?" She chuckled, holding her hands out to take a look. Her fingernails had dirt beneath them, and they looked as if she hadn't washed them for days.

"No, I haven't."

"Then I should like take you with me tomorrow. You're a Baroness, you should at least be given some tools to play the part."

"You mean a Baroness can't go fishing?" The Countess laughed, placing a hand upon her back and leading her to the table to sit.

"You are quite a mess." She laughed, never before finding those words endearing, but they were laced with kindness. She felt great joy at being a part of such a lovely family.