***Ok so my goal with this chapter is to let the Captain have his big revaltion in regaurds to Maria. And I promise you, we'll find out exactly what Maria was thinking that night, what she thinks now, and of course she'll realize her ture feelings. Next chapter, I promise!:D

*** I can't take credit for everything in this chapter. I borrowed the line about Maria being pledged to the coventt, from my wonderful beta, Amyflo. Thanks for letting me steal that line, it's great!:D

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Chapter 7: Heart vs. Mind

The Captain's POV

The wind blows lightly around me, while the summer sun is shining bright above me. I look down at my hands, her letter staring back up at me. I close my eyes tightly, letting the summer sun take me away. Take me back to that night, three days ago…and the utter bliss I felt with her in my arms.

I should have never let her walk away that night, I should gone to her, explained what had happened between us. What she must have been thinking, the confusion she must have felt. I shake my head, enraged at myself for not going to her immediately. By the time I was able to break away from Elsa that night, she was already gone. Her letter on the dresser was the only thing there to greet me.

I pound my fists against the railing, and open my eyes. The site of Elsa and the children playing ball in the yard below me fills my eyes. I watch as Elsa tries her best to bond with the children, her attempts completely disastrous.

I remember back all those months ago when I met Elsa, her bright eyes smiling at me. She was a sight for sore eyes, a welcome companion for a lonely heart. Her beauty, charm, grace and elegance conquered me instantly. She opened up *a part* of my heart that had been hidden since Agathe's death. Yet, as I look back now, I realize something was missing, something has always been missing. She could never pull me back completely, make me feel with my entire heart. She couldn't help me remember the love I have for my family. I know now, that while I love Elsa, I'm not in love with her…

I'm in love with Maria. It hits me like lighting, I love Maria, and I have since that day in the market. From that first moment in at the market, she began to change my life. Just her smile evoked more emotions then I felt since Agathe's death. She is the one who gave me back my family, taught me to feel again, to breathe again.

Her letter catches my eye, and my heart nearly breaks again. She's gone…she's returned to the abbey, which according to her letter is where she wants to be. She says she wants to be in the Abbey, but a woman bound to the convent doesn't kiss like that.

I look up into the sky, practically begging God to help me.

Help to figure out if I should listen to my heart and go to Maria. Or if I should listen to my what my mind is telling me, and move on without her?

To be continued…