Ch. 5: Blossoming Love
Georg woke up around nine and walked downstairs knowing he had probably missed breakfast. He saw that he was correct when he spotted his children singing with Maria while she played her harmonica. The Baroness sat away from them taking note of how Maria and children blended so nicely together. The Captain leaned on the doorframe still unseen to the children. Maria reminded him so much of Agathe. Agathe used to sing with the children for hours on end.
"Good morning Captain!" Maria smiled happily at the sight of him.
"Good morning Father!" came a happy chime from seven children.
"Good morning children, Maria." He told them meeting Maria's gaze. She smiled and he was unable to take his eyes off her.
"Georg, Georg…" Elsa practically shrieked to get his attention.
"Oh good morning Elsa how are you today?" He asked cringing at her unhappy tone.
"I am fine. The question is how are you today? Are you feeling ill? You slept in so long today…"
"It is only nine o'clock Elsa. Sometimes people need sleep." Maria told her. Georg was dumbfounded by her standing up to Elsa. He could not tell why, but there seemed to be ice between them. "I fixed your harmonica Elsa. Will you play us something now?" Maria asked changing the subject. Elsa took it and happily began to play. At the end of the song the children's ears were ringing, but they applauded politely anyways. Maria smiled at the children and gave them a signal. They began to talk to their father.
"Father do you remember when Mother and you would take us on camping trips in the Alps?" Liesl asked. Georg looked at them suddenly knowing what Maria and them had spoken about earlier.
"Well yes I do remember." Georg told her.
"Remember how Mother would always sing with us at night under the stars, and how we would have canoe races and other fun things during the day?" Georg nodded at Liesl. "Father we just realized that Gretl, Marta and Brigitta do not remember them at all. So we were hoping you would take us all on one before school starts!" Georg did not know what to say. He knew it would be fun, but was also well aware that Elsa hated hiking and camping.
"Well…" He began.
"Oh please Father!" Gretl begged with her eyes.
"Well I would say yes except Elsa hates to camp." He stated flatly, disappointed at his lame excuse.
"Oh I could stay here Georg it is really no big deal." Elsa told him.
"Well then alright I guess lets go then!" Georg told them. The children all smiled. He knew they had something else up their sleeves.
"When will we go?" Asked Louisa.
"How about next week?" The children nodded and then Brigitta stopped.
"Father that is Fraulien Maria's last week here." Brigitta told him dryly. "I want to spend time with her on her last week with us."
"Well that's no problem. Maria can come if she wants. I'm sure she is the type of person that loves to camp." Georg told them. The children smiled larger. "Would you like to come with us Maria?" He asked.
"I would be honored." Maria answered. She was surprised the children had entered that in to there plead to go camping. She had not told them to do that. She was also surprised it was the Captains idea she should come. She kept glancing over at the Baroness. All she could see on Elsa's face was a distinct hatred for Maria. She walked over to Georg.
"Darling I actually changed my mind. I think I would love to camp with you." Elsa told him. Georg could tell the only reason she was going was to keep an eye on him and Maria. He wanted to try to convince her not to go, but then decided he would be way to obvious if he told her that. So he smiled up at her and told her that was fine with him. He knew he was lying, but could not help it.
***
For a week the villa buzzed with happy excited children ready to go on a camping trip. The family had gotten everything prepared and was ready to leave the next morning. Everyone that is except Elsa. She was having major difficulties packing. Georg had told her she didn't need too much, yet her bag was the size of the storage in the car. After hours of trying to lessen her load the campers were finally all packed and ready for the next day. Maria put the children to sleep and sat in her bedroom reading the bible before she went to sleep.
Georg could not seem to sleep so he decided to show Maria what he had wanted to show her since their discussion a week ago. Since then they had their moments, but had never had a chance to sit and talk. Georg was longing for another night of talking with her so he decided to go and get her and take her to the attic. Georg knocked on the door and he opened it in his excitement right after Maria spoke the words "Come in." Dashing forward into the room, Georg had a huge grin on his face.
"Maria, please come with me. I have something I want to show you." He told her excitedly. Maria looked hesitant, but grabbed her robe and exited her room with him.
"What is it?" Maria asked as he walked her over to the other side of the chamber. Maria hesitated as she stepped further down the chamber. She knew she was dreadfully close to where Georg slept. Georg stopped at a door and stared at her.
"Well this is the attic…" Maria looked at him blankly not understanding why of all things Georg wanted to show her some storage area. He continued, "You see Maria, when we moved here I put all of our memories up here. All the old photo albums, everything. I locked it in the attic and decided never to look at it again. Now though, after I spoke with you I want to look through the pictures again, but I don't want to look alone." Georg smiled at the thought. He didn't tell her, but in a way Maria was like his security blanket for braving the attic. He also did not tell her he wanted nobody else to look at them with him, just him and Maria. "So do you want to look?" He asked her.
"Of course, I would love to." Maria told him. She was in awe that the Captain wanted to share his life with her so much he went to get her at this hour to come and see.
Slowly Georg opened the door. He had not seen the attic since he had first arrived. The room was rather large. By that time it had gathered up much dust. There were boxes piled on boxes that had large amounts of dust on them. Maria looked around curiously at the room. The room had a Victorian style ceiling that seemed to rise to the clouds. Maria could not make out the top of it due to the spider webs hanging all over. Georg moved around some boxes and then brushed some curtains back. Instantly the moonlight filled the room. Georg found a light and for the first time Maria saw the beauty the room may have once had.
"Captain it looks like a ballroom." Maria told him. Two walls were covered with huge glass doors that covered the whole wall. Outside was a balcony, though you could barley tell since a brown dust covered the windows. On the other two walls Maria leaned against one and realized it was not merely a wall, but a gold wall.
"I believe it might have been used as one before." He told her.
"Why then, did you decide to cover this room up…I have never seen any room so beautiful…well except for churches of course, but for a room this is so pretty. It could almost be a church." She finished.
"Yes, but like I said Maria, I couldn't face anything beautiful." He told her while taking a dust cover off a small couch. He motioned Maria to come sit and the two of them began to look through dozens of pictures.
"They were all so cute!" Maria squealed as she looked at the many baby pictures of the children.
"Yes they all were cute weren't they? I wonder what happened to them." He told her without a hint of a smile. Maria glared at him.
"Do you mean to tell me that you think these children are not cute?" Maria asked upset. By then Georg had burst into laughter. Realizing it had been a joke Maria blushed and laughed along with him. He loved to get Maria riled up. They continued to gaze at pictures. When they were finished Maria laid the album on the table near by.
"I wish I grew up in a family like this one." She sighed. "I can tell there was nothing but love. Unlike my wonderful family, with nothing but hate." Georg grinned a little.
"Maria if you don't mind me asking, why do you want to become a nun then?" He asked.
"Well because God loves me if no one else does. It does not feel warm and cozy like a home should in the Abbey, but you do feel God's love." She told him.
"Yes, but can you not feel God's love in this household?"
"Oh I can. I do feel Him at work here." Maria said. Georg wanted to ask why then did she really need the Abbey, but decided that might be too cruel.
"See Maria, then you could go out into the regular world and live a life outside those walls. Outside those walls where you can't sing, dance, live…you could live the life you were meant to live." He told her.
"What are you saying?" Maria asked him confused. He wanted to tell her so badly that he was trying to convince her to stay. Yet he couldn't go through with it…not before he had a discussion with Elsa.
"I don't know, it just doesn't seem like should be a nun." Her head shot up offended. "I don't mean it that way." He told her cringing at what he had told her. "Don't you just wonder sometimes if it is the will of God that you become a nun?"
"It is." Maria said firmly. She did not give away the sudden feeling that she was wrong. "Or at least I think it is." Maria told him uncertainly. "Why do you ask?" Maria looked at him.
"Oh well I…" He wanted to tell he, he loved her more than anything, but sensed it was not the right moment. "I was just curious."
"Oh." Maria said dully. Georg cringed at her look of disappointment and wished he had told her right then. "I suppose I will see you tomorrow Captain. Thank you for sharing all those lovely pictures with me."
"Your very welcome. Goodnight…Maria." He said he name with all the love in the world. It made her stop dead in her tracks. She had never heard her name said that way. Deciding her mind was playing tricks on her she told him goodnight again and went out the door. Maria walked to her room in a daze. It had almost seemed like he was in love with her. Why else would he have asked her if it was God's will she become a nun? Why else would have he stuttered when she asked why he had asked that. The way he had said her name still rang in her ears, and it had been weeks since her referred to her as Fraulien. Yet she decided her heart was just playing tricks on her. He couldn't be in love with her; there was no way. She was only a peasant girl in respect to him. There was no way he could possibly fall in love with a small poor peasant…that would be too much like Cinderella…a fairy tale…never meant to come true. Besides she was supposed to be nun. She felt like she had sinned by even slightly thinking of Georg as her husband. It would be so much like a fairy tale. It would be so completely wonderful. She couldn't help but think of what it would feel like to be in his arms, to feel his kiss and for him to whisper the words of love in her ear. Though she tried as she slept, she couldn't manage to remove these sinful thoughts from her head.