Happy Days chapter 4 - Ruby-red sunset
"Frau Schmidt? Frau Schmidt!"
Johanna looked around for the housekeeper as she barged into the kitchen, her hands full of the dishes from the breakfast table.
Frau Schmidt looked up from her sewing, surprised at the urgency in Johanna's voice.
"Frau Schmidt, you'll never guess what I just heard about the Captain and Fraulein Maria!" The maid walked over to Frau Schmidt to stand close to her in a conspiring way.
Of course, Johanna immediately had Frau Schmidt's full attention. So, someone else had noticed their inappropriate behaviour too! Even though she knew she should tell the maid off for gossiping, Frau Schmidt could not resist the chance to hear such a tasty piece of news.
Johanna continued. " I was just cleaning the table in the breakfast room, when I overheard a conversation in the salon. Oh I wasn't trying to eavesdrop," she assured, "but they left the door open and I was only a few steps away. Well, you'll never guess." She paused for effect. "The Captain has broken off his engagement to Baroness Schraeder and he is to marry Fraulein Maria!"
Johanna looked at Frau Schmidt triumphantly. Surely, this must be the most exiting piece of news in the Von Trapp household for years.
Indeed, Frau Schmidt had fallen silent in surprise. She didn't know whether to be disappointed or relieved. All in all, she supposed she should be glad that the Captain's intentions with Maria were honourable. And it still was quite exciting news, there was no doubt about that. But somehow. it was not what she had expected.
She pulled herself together and looked at Johanna. "Well well," she said. "I must say I'm not that surprised. You must have noticed the way she looked into his eyes. And the children love her very much. We should wish them well."
Johanna nodded in agreement. "Oh yes, I like Fraulein Maria a lot better than Baroness Schraeder. It will be strange though to have her as our mistress."
Frau Schmidt hadn't even thought about that yet, but indeed, she would have to get used to having such a young woman, and a former servant even, as her mistress. "Oh well," she sighed. "As long as the Captain is happy."
And the captain was indeed happy. The next few weeks passed in wonderful bliss. Georg had announced his engagement to Maria to the staff. Franz hardly reacted at all, the maids still gossiped, and Frau Schmidt, who had had the chance to get used to the idea, offered her sincere congratulations. Nobody mentioned the baroness anymore, her place at the table was no longer set, and Maria sat next to her future husband at the table from now on.
The wedding had been planned for the end of august, which was only six weeks ahead. Careful and fast planning was therefore necessary. Captain von Trapp was a well-known man, respected by many, and his wedding could not go by unnoticed. Many high-placed citizens of Salzburg would be guests at the wedding, which would of course be held at the church of Maria's former home, the abbey.
Of course, there was plenty of gossip in Salzburg. Captain von Trapp marrying his governess, a postulant without any money or standing? He'd probably gotten her pregnant, the rumour went round. Maria was hurt, but Georg convinced her not to pay too much attention to it, having expected this kind of reaction. However, they did try to keep the rumours away from the children as much as possible.
Maria was slowly getting used to her new lifestyle. She had never been rich, always managing with a few dresses and hardly any other personal possessions except for her guitar. She was too modest at first to want to have all the things her fiancé was arranging for her, but she was beginning to understand that the social position she would hold as the captain's wife would have certain implications. No matter how much she wanted to, she probably couldn't get away with climbing trees again.. (Or at least not when anyone was likely to see, she thought.)
Georg had taken her shopping for a new wardrobe. A tailor was making her several suits of skirt and matching jacket. The style was simple and modest, as Maria had required, but the use of material and cut of, for example, a slightly deeper neckline gave the suits a classy and elegant look. There were a few light summer dresses too, blouses, shoes, coats, silk underwear and nightgowns, which the dressmaker had told her she would need as a married woman...
Of course, she had also ordered a wedding dress. She had not discussed the dress with anybody but the tailor, and the woman was completely smitten with Maria's idea. It would be a simple dress, with no frills or ribbons, but showing all the natural beauty Maria had.
Then of course there was the matter of the engagement- and wedding ring. Georg had gone into town one afternoon without telling Maria where he went, just that he was going on an 'errand' and she'd have to wait to find out. Bursting with curiosity Maria had stayed behind with the children. When Georg finally came back, he took her apart into the salon and presented her with the ring.
He knew her well. The jeweller, knowing that money didn't matter to this rich client, had tried to push a ring with a large, ornate diamond onto him. But the captain knew his young bride's taste and had come back with a plain gold wedding band, with one red ruby in a simple setting in the middle. While Maria looked at him with tears in her eyes, he put the ring on her finger. "Maria," he said, seriously looking into her eyes, " the colour of this ruby represents my heart. It will belong to you for the rest of my life." She had answered his declaration with a kiss, and the ring was forever on her finger from that moment.
Georg wanted to be alone with his bride after the wedding and had decided on a destination for their honeymoon. He hadn't told Maria yet, but he was taking her to Paris. He knew a small, intimate hotel where they'd have all the time in the world for themselves in the most romantic city on earth. Max would stay in Salzburg with the children, together with Frau Schmidt to take care of the house and Liesl's help with the little ones, he would be able to manage for a few weeks.
As the wedding day drew nearer, Georg and Maria spent a lot of time with the children. They didn't know how long they would stay away on their honeymoon, so they wanted to enjoy this 'family time'. They longed to be together, but there would be plenty, plenty of time for that later. They satisfied themselves with occasional moments of heated embraces.
The summer was still warm and gorgeous, so the children were always out in the garden, riding their bikes in the vicinity of the house, or rowing the boat around the lake.
Miraculously, nobody had fallen into the lake anymore. As the children kept themselves busy, the bride and groom -to be often wandered off into the garden by themselves, looking for a quiet spot. Maria re-introduced Georg to long forgotten pleasures. They lay in the sun for hours, on their back in the grass, holding hands, chatting and laughing. She even challenged him to climb a tree and was stunned when he actually took her up on it, climbing the tree easily with his strong muscles and good physical condition.
When he'd gotten up and sat on a thick branch, he looked down on her, sitting on the ground below him and looking up to him with a broad smile. "Now look what you got me into," he told her in a stern voice. "Naval commander Captain von Trapp climbing trees like a twelve-year-old." He stretched out his hand and cocked his head, in a silent invitation to join him.
"I thought you didn't like me climbing trees," Maria mocked him. "After all, I am going to be a Baroness, and climbing trees hardly seems like Baroness-like behaviour!"
"If you don't get up here soon, I'll have to come down and get you," he threatened.
Maria considered her options, and even though the "I'll get you"-part sounded attractive, she felt she couldn't pass up the opportunity to sit on the branch of a tree with her fiancé.
She quickly pulled herself up to sit next to him. Close together, they looked out over the garden and the lake.
After a few minutes of silence, Georg put his arms around Maria and put his lips to her forehead. "You have made me the happiest man on earth," he declared. "I hope you will be happy here with me as well."
Maria closed her eyes and leaned into him. "I will be happy anywhere, just as long as you are with me," she said softly. "Whatever the future may bring - as long as we are together, what more can me need?"
And, sitting close together on a tree branch, they stared into the sunset together.
THE END
"Frau Schmidt? Frau Schmidt!"
Johanna looked around for the housekeeper as she barged into the kitchen, her hands full of the dishes from the breakfast table.
Frau Schmidt looked up from her sewing, surprised at the urgency in Johanna's voice.
"Frau Schmidt, you'll never guess what I just heard about the Captain and Fraulein Maria!" The maid walked over to Frau Schmidt to stand close to her in a conspiring way.
Of course, Johanna immediately had Frau Schmidt's full attention. So, someone else had noticed their inappropriate behaviour too! Even though she knew she should tell the maid off for gossiping, Frau Schmidt could not resist the chance to hear such a tasty piece of news.
Johanna continued. " I was just cleaning the table in the breakfast room, when I overheard a conversation in the salon. Oh I wasn't trying to eavesdrop," she assured, "but they left the door open and I was only a few steps away. Well, you'll never guess." She paused for effect. "The Captain has broken off his engagement to Baroness Schraeder and he is to marry Fraulein Maria!"
Johanna looked at Frau Schmidt triumphantly. Surely, this must be the most exiting piece of news in the Von Trapp household for years.
Indeed, Frau Schmidt had fallen silent in surprise. She didn't know whether to be disappointed or relieved. All in all, she supposed she should be glad that the Captain's intentions with Maria were honourable. And it still was quite exciting news, there was no doubt about that. But somehow. it was not what she had expected.
She pulled herself together and looked at Johanna. "Well well," she said. "I must say I'm not that surprised. You must have noticed the way she looked into his eyes. And the children love her very much. We should wish them well."
Johanna nodded in agreement. "Oh yes, I like Fraulein Maria a lot better than Baroness Schraeder. It will be strange though to have her as our mistress."
Frau Schmidt hadn't even thought about that yet, but indeed, she would have to get used to having such a young woman, and a former servant even, as her mistress. "Oh well," she sighed. "As long as the Captain is happy."
And the captain was indeed happy. The next few weeks passed in wonderful bliss. Georg had announced his engagement to Maria to the staff. Franz hardly reacted at all, the maids still gossiped, and Frau Schmidt, who had had the chance to get used to the idea, offered her sincere congratulations. Nobody mentioned the baroness anymore, her place at the table was no longer set, and Maria sat next to her future husband at the table from now on.
The wedding had been planned for the end of august, which was only six weeks ahead. Careful and fast planning was therefore necessary. Captain von Trapp was a well-known man, respected by many, and his wedding could not go by unnoticed. Many high-placed citizens of Salzburg would be guests at the wedding, which would of course be held at the church of Maria's former home, the abbey.
Of course, there was plenty of gossip in Salzburg. Captain von Trapp marrying his governess, a postulant without any money or standing? He'd probably gotten her pregnant, the rumour went round. Maria was hurt, but Georg convinced her not to pay too much attention to it, having expected this kind of reaction. However, they did try to keep the rumours away from the children as much as possible.
Maria was slowly getting used to her new lifestyle. She had never been rich, always managing with a few dresses and hardly any other personal possessions except for her guitar. She was too modest at first to want to have all the things her fiancé was arranging for her, but she was beginning to understand that the social position she would hold as the captain's wife would have certain implications. No matter how much she wanted to, she probably couldn't get away with climbing trees again.. (Or at least not when anyone was likely to see, she thought.)
Georg had taken her shopping for a new wardrobe. A tailor was making her several suits of skirt and matching jacket. The style was simple and modest, as Maria had required, but the use of material and cut of, for example, a slightly deeper neckline gave the suits a classy and elegant look. There were a few light summer dresses too, blouses, shoes, coats, silk underwear and nightgowns, which the dressmaker had told her she would need as a married woman...
Of course, she had also ordered a wedding dress. She had not discussed the dress with anybody but the tailor, and the woman was completely smitten with Maria's idea. It would be a simple dress, with no frills or ribbons, but showing all the natural beauty Maria had.
Then of course there was the matter of the engagement- and wedding ring. Georg had gone into town one afternoon without telling Maria where he went, just that he was going on an 'errand' and she'd have to wait to find out. Bursting with curiosity Maria had stayed behind with the children. When Georg finally came back, he took her apart into the salon and presented her with the ring.
He knew her well. The jeweller, knowing that money didn't matter to this rich client, had tried to push a ring with a large, ornate diamond onto him. But the captain knew his young bride's taste and had come back with a plain gold wedding band, with one red ruby in a simple setting in the middle. While Maria looked at him with tears in her eyes, he put the ring on her finger. "Maria," he said, seriously looking into her eyes, " the colour of this ruby represents my heart. It will belong to you for the rest of my life." She had answered his declaration with a kiss, and the ring was forever on her finger from that moment.
Georg wanted to be alone with his bride after the wedding and had decided on a destination for their honeymoon. He hadn't told Maria yet, but he was taking her to Paris. He knew a small, intimate hotel where they'd have all the time in the world for themselves in the most romantic city on earth. Max would stay in Salzburg with the children, together with Frau Schmidt to take care of the house and Liesl's help with the little ones, he would be able to manage for a few weeks.
As the wedding day drew nearer, Georg and Maria spent a lot of time with the children. They didn't know how long they would stay away on their honeymoon, so they wanted to enjoy this 'family time'. They longed to be together, but there would be plenty, plenty of time for that later. They satisfied themselves with occasional moments of heated embraces.
The summer was still warm and gorgeous, so the children were always out in the garden, riding their bikes in the vicinity of the house, or rowing the boat around the lake.
Miraculously, nobody had fallen into the lake anymore. As the children kept themselves busy, the bride and groom -to be often wandered off into the garden by themselves, looking for a quiet spot. Maria re-introduced Georg to long forgotten pleasures. They lay in the sun for hours, on their back in the grass, holding hands, chatting and laughing. She even challenged him to climb a tree and was stunned when he actually took her up on it, climbing the tree easily with his strong muscles and good physical condition.
When he'd gotten up and sat on a thick branch, he looked down on her, sitting on the ground below him and looking up to him with a broad smile. "Now look what you got me into," he told her in a stern voice. "Naval commander Captain von Trapp climbing trees like a twelve-year-old." He stretched out his hand and cocked his head, in a silent invitation to join him.
"I thought you didn't like me climbing trees," Maria mocked him. "After all, I am going to be a Baroness, and climbing trees hardly seems like Baroness-like behaviour!"
"If you don't get up here soon, I'll have to come down and get you," he threatened.
Maria considered her options, and even though the "I'll get you"-part sounded attractive, she felt she couldn't pass up the opportunity to sit on the branch of a tree with her fiancé.
She quickly pulled herself up to sit next to him. Close together, they looked out over the garden and the lake.
After a few minutes of silence, Georg put his arms around Maria and put his lips to her forehead. "You have made me the happiest man on earth," he declared. "I hope you will be happy here with me as well."
Maria closed her eyes and leaned into him. "I will be happy anywhere, just as long as you are with me," she said softly. "Whatever the future may bring - as long as we are together, what more can me need?"
And, sitting close together on a tree branch, they stared into the sunset together.
THE END