Title: Tough Love
Rating: T (intimacy implied, not described)
Pairing: Maria/ Georg married, Friedrich/OC
A/N: So after originally posting this as an update to the story about Liesl, I realized Friedrich's story was much longer, therefore I decided to post it independently. I will be posting other stories for each of the children (if the muse stays with me). If I get a new idea for a specific child (I have suggestions from a reviewer for Louisa and Kurt. I also have another idea for Liesl) I'll tack those onto the proper child. I hope that makes sense.
To set the stage so to speak - The Captain and Maria have married. The family has relocated as in the movie. There are no Trapp Family singers, they make their way through other means. I've also changed the first child birthed my Maria to a son for artistic reasons.
I've always seen the Captain as a loving father, it peaked out in Christopher Plummer's performance even before the rowboat scene. He had a certain way he spoke and looked when the children were upset at the dinner table and when they expressed excitement at seeing Max.
I wanted to put both the Captain and Maria in the place of having to tough love one of their kids and you guys know I like to pick on Friedrich. Anyone who has read For the Sake of the Family know thats, so I've chosen him for this piece.
In the last 18 years, my writing skills have developed so I will be rewriting both of my SOM stories and perhaps a few others as well to make the work more concise and with enhanced scenes and emotions.
I'd love to know what you think of this and if you have any thing you would like to see the Captain deal with regarding the other five kids.
Tough Love
Part One
Rural Vermont
October, 1940
Liesl – 19
Friedrich – 16
Louisa – 15
Kurt – 13
Brigitta – 12
Marta – 9
Gretl – 7
Henry – 1
"Lights are all off," the Captain whispered as he and Maria pulled into the driveway of their quaint farmhouse in rural Vermont. "How is it possible that all of our children had plans on the same night?" He leaned over and nibbled slightly at Maria's earlobe.
"Divine intervention," Maria replied turning her head towards her husband. She smiled at the light in his eyes. It was only recently he started to relax and feel more at home in America. He had taken a job in town, a logistics manager for a factory. It paid well and his skill set was useful.
The Captain had struggled the most with the change. Americans were much looser in their behaviors and attitudes, he found it a bit crass and a lot overwhelming, though once he dropped his guard he found ways to fit in.
They had just come from supper at the home of one of the Captain's new work associates. There were two other couples there; a good time was had by all.
"And for it to be the same night Mary Kate O'Brien down the road decided to play house…" Maria smiled. Mary Kate and her husband were a lovely young couple that operated the dairy in town. They were newly married and talking about having children. This would be a dress rehearsal she'd told Maria when offering to keep the three youngest for the night. Maria didn't quite understand, a couple either had children or they didn't. It wasn't something she ever thought to "rehearse."
The Captain turned off the car and walked around to Maria's side of the vehicle to open her door. As soon as she was standing he had her in his arms. That was the place he liked her most, pressed against him, warm and safe.
The Captain slowly began to kiss his wife's lips, keeping the pressure gentle as he began to walk her towards the door. It had been over a month since they had been able to be alone together like this and he didn't want to waste a second of this precious quality time.
By the time the couple got into the house, the back of Maria's dress had been undone and her hands were busily unbuttoning the Captain's shirt. Shoes, a belt, two socks left a trail towards their bedroom. The Captain whispered soft words into Maria's ear as she held onto him desperately.
When they reached the bedroom, the Captain paused a moment to turn on the lamp on the desk to illuminate both the room and his bride. When the light filled the room, he heard a sharp gasp as Maria covered her mouth with both hands.
The Captain turned to see Friedreich and a woman they had never met before in their bed. "Oh my goodness!" Maria's face was bright red. She looked as if she didn't realize that other people did what she and the Captain were about to do, though that was not the case, she knew the facts of life as well as anyone, but to see their 16-year-old son in flagrante delicto was a enough to make her speechless. Fortunately, the Captain was not suffering from the same affliction.
His blue eyes flashed as he focused on his son, "What on earth do you think you are doing? Get up and get dressed this instant!"
Friedreich didn't make a move to obey his father's order, nor did he try to shield the woman beneath him. He simply froze. Even when his father's command penetrated his foggy mind he didn't move. He wasn't about to get up naked in front of his parents.
The Captain quickly found his composure, "Maria…let's give them a few minutes to…" He reached for her arm and steered her to the kitchen to allow Friedrich and his guest time to dress.
"Georg…" Maria finally caught her breath. "What was he doing? I…"
"We know what he was doing," Georg replied. "We just don't know who he was doing it with. Sit down, take a deep breath."
The Captain took his own advice and inhaled deeply to clear the image from his mind. When the door to the master bedroom opened, Friedrich stepped out alone. "What are you both doing home this early?"
The Captain's eyes nearly bugged out of his head. "That is your first question? In this situation!? Where is your uh…Where is she?"
"You embarrassed her," Friedrich replied. 'She went to her car out the window. She parked out by the barn.
"This girl drives herself?" Maria asked. She did not learn to drive, nor had Liesl chosen to do so. Louisa and Marta both said they didn't like the idea, leaving only Brigita and Gretl, one was remarkably liberated and the other too young.
"Yes," Friedrichs's tone implied that it should be obvious that his companion chose to drive. "She's American, women do that here all the time."
The Captain didn't like Friedrich's insolent tone. "You will speak respectfully in this house when you are addressing us, or you will not speak at all. Is that clear? Now sit down."
When Friedrich made no move to obey his father, the Captain moved closer. "Sit!"
The boy finally did so with a huffed sigh. Maria folded her hands in her lap looking down at her wedding ring. The Captain began to pace back and forth, a habit Maria knew meant he was trying with all his strength to hold his temper. "Friedrich," the Captain began. "I have tried to be understanding about some of the things that have happened with you since we settled here. It's been a long, hard journey for all of us and a little period of adjustment is normal for anyone. I have overlooked your sneaking my cigarettes, your falling grades, your short temper with your brother and sisters, but I cannot, no I will not overlook this. Do you understand what…We had this talk! We had this talk before we left Austria! What if she gets pregnant?! Or God forbid you catch something! What kind of girl…I can't even fathom it!"
"She's just a regular girl," Friedrich defended.
"Where did you meet her?" Maria inquired softly. "Did you meet her at school? Is that why you've been having trouble concentrating?"
"No, I met her in town. She works at the drug store," Friedrich replied.
"The drug store?!" the Captain did a double take. "How OLD is she?"
Friedrich shrugged his shoulders; he was not having this conversation. "I'm 16, I can do what I want to do."
"As long as you live in this house, you will obey our rules," the Captain replied firmly. "And those rules have always included being a useful, respectful, productive member of this family. What you did tonight was shameful. I am ashamed and disappointed in you. I cannot believe a son of mine would step so far outside the boundaries of propriety…"
"We aren't in Austria anymore," Friedrich reminded him. "It's fine, all the boys do it here. Like you didn't do this when you were in the Navy?"
"I most certainly did not!" the Captain snapped. "What you…you were doing is…it's sacrosanct, it's precious and you don't do it lightly! The excuse…"
Maria saw the Captain's posture getting more and more tense, his anger becoming more pronounced. "Georg, Darling, please," she said gently. She hated to see him getting so upset when he was just starting to become himself again.
"Maria…" the Captain sighed in frustration. "Friedrich…The everyone else is doing it excuse is not good enough for me. The fact this girl was a willing participant in this…uh, event is not the point either. What will you do if…Was this the first time?"
The boy didn't reply, that was enough of an answer for both parents. "Go to your room right now," the Captain ordered. "And don't even think about leaving it for anything but school and church for a very very long time! I can't look at you, go!" The Captain dismissed his son with a wave of his hand.
Maria saw just a hint of emotion on Friedrich's face. He had masked it well, pretending not to care his father, his hero in a sense, was embarrassed by him. "You can't stop me if I want to go out with my friends! We aren't in Austria anymore; we live walking distance from people now! You can't control me anymore!" Friedrich thundered as he turned on his heel and left his parents staring after him.
The slamming of the door to the boys' room was almost a sound of relief. Maria let out the breath she'd been holding and rose from the couch. "Georg?" She couldn't read the expression on his face. She had seen her husband happy, playful, sweet, angry, and in terrible emotion pain, but the look on his face now bewildered her. "Georg, say something."
The Captain was shaking. He kept his back turned and gripped the mantle of the fireplace until his knuckles turned white. Maria slowly approached him and laid a hand on his back. "My love, I'm not sure that forbidding him to…"
The Captain turned on a dime, his blue eyes ice cold even as he looked at the face of his beloved wife. "Maria, do not interfere, I mean it. Do not say a word. Not one word."
Maria backed off, for the moment. The Captain would have to settle this in his own mind and heart. Still, she knew that fighting a teen romance was like fighting the ocean current, if you could manage at all it was detrimentally exhausting. Perhaps there was some merit to this young lady. It wasn't unheard of for a younger man and slightly older woman to court or "date" as they said in America. Some even married.
Maria let the Captain pace a few more moments before she stepped closer to him and slid her arms around his waist. She didn't say anything, but her gesture spoke volumes.
The Captain lowered his arms and cradled her against his chest. Whenever things felt wrong or frightening, whenever he felt like he couldn't hold on one more moment, she would be there, his anchor…the heart of the entire family.
"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I behaved badly once again, my love."
"You're upset, Georg," Maria replied. "We're both upset. This is a new place, a different time. They are so far ahead of us here, why here our marriage wouldn't be in the least even whispered about like it was back home."
"He's too young," the Captain sighed. "I know…I was his age once before, I know how it feels, I know what it's like to battle such desires. I had my fun, oh did I have my fun, but I never…I never crossed the line like he has done. Hell, where he is, he can't even see the bloody line!"
"We could try to be more receptive," Maria suggested a short time later as they continued to undress. The Captain had stripped the sheets from the bed as soon as they stepped into the bedroom again. Maria set about making it up once again. "Get to know this girl, she could be a lovely young lady, you know?"
The Captain sighed, "I wouldn't call her a "lady", Maria. Still, you're right. We could get to know her, perhaps that's all it will take to take the wind out of Friedrich's sails so to speak. There was nothing I disliked more at his age than having my parents approval for anything. It was quite off putting."
Maria smiled, he was starting to calm down, his well honed wit was coming through once more. "You are so bad, Georg," she laughed. "I was thinking just the opposite, but either way we could get a little bit ahead of our kids on this one."
The Captain crossed the room to stand before Maria. She was such a beauty, classic, elegant, timeless. He felt his heart speed up as his mind drifted back an hour to when they had first come through the front door. Still, he didn't think he possibly could given what they saw in that very room. Once again, he found himself apologizing. "I'm so sorry. This was supposed to be our night together, and now…"
Maria leaned up and placed a tender, yet chaste kiss on his lips. "There will be other nights. We have our whole lives. Besides, there's always the hay loft…"
The Captain laughed at her implication, "Why, Mrs. Von Trapp…are you suggesting we take a literal roll in the hay in the near future?"
"In the very near future, Captain," Maria whispered, her voice soft and husky with desire for her husband.
The Captain leaned down to kiss her once more. Though they flirted, neither one could bring themselves to engage in love making that night. Instead, they held each other close, whispering words of love to each other. Eventually, Maria fell asleep in her husband's arms, and he, lying awake, mind spinning a million miles a minute, counted each precious breath she took thankful to God for sending her into his life.