Title: It's A Boy!
By: FicWriter82
Pairing: Maria/Georg married
Summary: It's baby time at the Villa.
Setting: Villa von Trapp, Austria. Post-wedding. Assumes the Anschluss didn't happen yet
The Captain awoke with the dawn each day. It went back to his days in the Navy when being an early riser was expected and in fact, required. It had taken him a lot of getting used to when he first joined the Navy, but now he couldn't seem to break the habit. The children modeled his behavior all their lives. They would be awake, dressed, and ready for breakfast by 7am. Maria too, having been raised on a farm, got up with the chickens, that was until recently.
The Captain finished buttoning his shirt and looked down at his wife. She was sleeping on her side facing him, one arm tucked under her head and the other draped protectively over her belly. She was nine months, one week pregnant with their first baby and feeling quite tired and miserable. The baby had been kicking most of the night and when he wasn't he was lying so that her sciatic nerve shot pain through one side of her body.
Frau Schmidt advised Maria to get on her hands and knees and "hang" the baby to encourage him to shift position. Maria stayed in that pose for an hour to no avail. "He's just like you, Georg," she told her husband. "Mule headed stubborn."
The Captain wasn't sure he had the monopoly on stubbornness in the family, but if it made Maria feel better to blame him, it was the least he could do. He leaned over and brushed a soft kiss on her cheek, inadvertently causing her to stir. "Hmmm," she sighed. "I was having a dream. I wasn't pregnant anymore."
The Captain sat on the side of the bed and smoothed back a stray piece of hair. "It won't be too much longer," he whispered gently. "If I could bare it for you, I would."
"Why is it that men always say they would do something if they could when they know there's no possible way?" Maria asked. She was tired and cranky. She pushed herself up in the bed, so she was sitting up.
"You don't have to get up, my love," the Captain told her, not letting her bad mood get to him. "I can bring a tray."
"I do have to get up, I have use the bathroom," she griped. "Again."
The Captain helped Maria stand, providing a firm arm to give her leverage. He straightened the bed while she used the toilet and splashed water on her face. "Do you want to go back to sleep for a while, Love?" he asked, not sure if she was going to snap at him or start to cry.
She did neither, she simply took a deep breath and moved to put counter pressure on her aching lower back. "No, I won't sleep anyway. Maybe later I'll lie down, when the sun moves to the other side of the villa and it's cooler in here."
The Captain moved closer to Maria and pressed his own strong hand against her back. "Right there?" he asked starting to massage the area that was causing her pain.
She nodded, "Oh…that feels so good. I can't do this much longer, Georg. I really can't. I'm so tired."
"I know you are," he empathized. "It will be soon, I assure you. Good things come to those who wait, yes?"
As the Captain massaged Maria's back, he felt the muscles tightening and loosening under his hand. The baby had clearly dropped in the last few days and now it seemed like, "Are you having contractions, Maria?"
"No," she replied. "I think I would know if I were having contractions. It's not contractions, it just hurts."
"I know it does," he soothed. "I'm sorry. It's just that when Agathe was starting labor and I'd rub her back, it felt similar to this. You're lower, sweetheart, your belly has shifted down. I think some of what you are feeling is labor, Maria."
Maria had to admit her husband knew more about childbirth than she did, this was his eighth time down this path, but he wasn't in her body. She wasn't in labor, at this rate, she might be pregnant for the rest of her life.
"Does that feel better now?" the Captain asked her. The pressure under his hand seemed to let up.
"No," she replied. "It just feels like I'm on fire. Really, Georg, I'm not in labor."
The Captain dropped the subject, but he would plan on sticking close to home for the next few days. He believed the birth of his eighth child was imminent and he wanted to be on hand when he was needed. He held Maria's arm as the made their way down the stairs to breakfast. The children were already seated and had started to eat. "There they are," Kurt announced. "We thought maybe you were having the baby; you took so long."
The Captain glared at his son, but Maria shook her head. "Not yet. Soon, I hope. What are you children planning to do this fine day?"
Max was in town, so of course the children were planning to spend time with him. Max told them he was in Salzburg to meet with a potential client, but Maria knew better. He was here for Georg, as he had been for the previous births. Early in her pregnancy, Georg had expressed fear that her small stature would make the delivery difficult, he was anxious and apprehensive though he never mentioned that to Maria. She heard it from the upstairs maid who had heard it hot off the lips of Frau Schmidt.
Max was a self-described "charming sponge" living off of anyone and everyone he could, but he was also Georg's oldest friend and wanted to be close by if he were needed to keep things calm during the delivery.
While Maria talked with the children and gave instructions on what to cook that night for their guest, the Captain watched her. Every 13 to 15 minutes she shifted her position and pressed her hand on her back. Three times during the hour-long meal she excused herself to use the bathroom. She was in labor, there was no doubt in his mind.
"Franz," the Captain spoke to the old butler. "Please cancel all of my meetings today and for the rest of the week please. And please call and see if Frau Gunther is about today. I have a feeling we might need her by nightfall."
"Yes, Captain," Franz replied. Maria turned to look at him, "Georg, I told you, I am not in labor. I would know!"
He didn't say anything, if he were wrong, there would be no harm done, if he were right, at least they would be prepared.
Maria put her feet up in the salon and worked on cutting diaper material and sewing little garments for the baby. When she got tired she closed her eyes, but the pain in her back would not let her rest. Neither would her bladder, she couldn't stop going to the bathroom. It had been like that when she first got pregnant and the need was more urgent the last month, but today…
The Captain worked in the study and tried to focus his mind on something other than Maria. He found himself checking on her about every half hour. Around 2pm, when he went to get himself a glass of water, he saw her the foyer leaning down with her hand on her back. He rushed to her side, "Darling, what is it?"
She shook her head, her eyes full of tears. "It hurts. It just hurts."
The Captain pressed his hand against her back again, "Here?"
"Yes," Maria breathed. "Into my thigh and hip, I don't feel well. It's too hot in here."
"It's a bit stuffy, yes," he agreed. He believed now more than before his son would arrive in the next day or two if memory served him.. Still, he wasn't sure if the contractions were strong enough for Maria to feel them over the other pain just yet. He didn't want her to get upset; he held his tongue. "I think you should lie down. How about your old room? There's not a lot of light there now and it has a good cross breeze."
"No," Maria shook her head. "I want to lie down in our bed, there's not enough room for you in the smaller one. I want you to hold me."
The Captain slid his arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple. "Let's get you upstairs, I'll have Frau Schmidt bring some cool water. Lean on me, I'm right here."
He felt sick to his stomach. It had never gone this way with Agathe. She had long labors but were relatively easy and predictable. He had to stifle a laugh, what was he expecting with Maria? She hadn't done a predictable thing in her life. He laid Maria down on the bed and helped her slip her shoes off. It killed him to see her in so much pain. "Where does it hurt the most?"
"My left back and hip," she replied. "I feel like I'm going to be sick."
The Captain helped Maria move to her right side and placed a chamber pot within reach. He kicked off his own shoes and laid down behind her pressing the area causing her so much pain. He could still feel the rhythmic tightening under his hand. It was irregular and varied in intensity. "Try a couple sips of water," he encouraged. It was very hot in the house. He laid a cool cloth on the back of her neck, doing what he could to keep her comfortable.
Maria managed to fall into a light sleep about an hour after lying down with Georg. He slipped out the door and went downstairs. "Frau Schmidt, I think Maria's time is close, very close. Can you make sure all the proper linens and things are ready when we need them? Where is Herr Detweiler?"
"In the study, enjoying a schnapps no doubt," she replied. "He returned with the children a few minutes ago. They are asking about the Baroness, what should I tell them?"
"Tell them she is resting, and I don't want her to be troubled for anything. If they need anything, send them to me," the Captain replied. "She's going to need all the sleep she can manage."
Frau Schmidt nodded her agreement and went to do as the Captain asked. Georg stepped into his study where Max was indeed enjoying a glass of his finest. "Were the children good?" he asked going straight for the vodka over the schnapps.
"As always," Max replied. "They are an interesting lot, the best and worst of both you and Agathe, now with a little Maria mized in. Is she feeling any better? She didn't look that well when I saw her earlier."
"She's in labor," Georg said seriously. "She just can't admit it yet. I think she's afraid if she's having so much discomfort carrying the baby…"
"Georg, I know you and Maria are ridiculously in-tune with one another, but how could you possibly know that she's in labor when she doesn't?" Max marveled at his friend's presumption.
"Because this is her first time and my eighth," the Captain replied. "I know what labor looks like, I've seen it up close and she is in labor, Max." He drank the vodka down in one shot. "It might be too early for her to be able to tell because of the sciatica, but my son will be here in no more than a day or two at most, mark my words."
"Would you like to put a little wager on that?" Max asked. The Captain's eyebrows shot up into his hairline. "Max…"
"Half of Salzburg has good money on the arrival of the newest von Trapp, luckily for me I have the inside track, though I still bet on next week seeing as the mother of the child doesn't anticipate his or her arrival in the next 48 hours."
"Max, I'm astonished at you," the Captain laughed. "But yes, I am willing to put my money where my mouth is on this one. A son, by the tomorrow at midnight."
"I'll take the bet, Georg," Max replied. 'Double or nothing on the gender."
"Father!" Liesl's voice broken into the men's conversation. "I can't believe you would bet on this. I can't believe anyone would. Having a baby is such a wonderful thing…"
Both men looked guilty, but had no intention of calling off their fun, it was a stress reliever for Georg if nothing else. "Please, Liesl, keep this to yourself. If your mother found out it would upset her."
"It should!" Liesl replied. She was becoming as outspoken as Maria. "Of course, I won't say anything. Frau Schmidt just asked me to come get you. Mother told her she was not hungry for her lunch and turned her away. She thinks that food is as important as sleep, plus she put something in the tea that might help her soreness."
"I'll see about it in a moment, Liesl," the Captain replied. "Stubborn as a mule," he murmured. "Don't overindulge Max, we might be needing the baby's godfather sooner rather than later if she's stopped eating."
The Captain was able to get Maria to eat some of her lunch and drink the tea Frau Schmidt made for her. She was uncomfortable on the bed now, so he helped her get up to walk around and stretch her legs. She wanted to come downstairs for supper, so he helped her to do that, but she didn't eat much and once again kept excusing herself.
After the meal, the men went to the study and Maria began the children's evening routine. All seven of them, plus several servants were watching Maria as if she were about to explode any minute. Finally, it got a little unnerving and Maria asked them, "What on earth are you all staring at? Did I sprout a second head I don't know about?"
They shook their heads and tried to occupy their minds with other things.
That night Maria barely slept. The pain in her back and left side was spreading now to her right side and down both legs. The Captain stayed up with her as long as he could manage, trying to put the proper pressure on the sorest places, still feeling the changes in muscle tensions come and go with increasing predictability. He knew though, that this was probably all Maria would experience until her water broke.
"Try to take very deep breaths, my love," he advised. "Get all the oxygen you can into your muscles, it will help them relax. Like this," he demonstrated a breathing technique he'd used before with Agathe, one he'd learned to help ease pain and tension for men wounded in battle while they waited for the medical corps to come treat them.
Maria modeled her husband's breathing, remaining on her right side, that was how she felt the best. "That's good," he encouraged. "Try to unlock your shoulders, relax your jaw…that's really good, Maria."
She fell asleep that way, with her husband coaxing her with soft words and gentle hands. The Captain was glad for her slumber.
Maria was more agreeable the next morning than she had been the day before. She had gotten a decent sleep but at sunrise her bladder was demanding she visit the bathroom. "I don't understand," she complained to Georg. "How one tiny human can make you go to the bathroom this much. I stopped all liquids except for that horrid tea Frau Schmidt made me drink and still I had to get up twice in the night."
"I'm told you forget about this part," he sympathized. "Are you coming down for breakfast? I don't want you on the stairs alone. I will only be gone for a couple hours this afternoon so please decide if you want to wait for me here or downstairs. If you must move about have one of the children help you. Promise me."
"I promise," Maria whispered and kissed his cheek. "You have been a dear putting up with me these last couple weeks."
"It'll be over very soon, Darling. And we'll have something wonderful and miraculous to show for all of this." He returned her affection then helped her finish dressing before going downstairs.
The staff and Max were particularly attentive that day, curious about how she was feeling, if she was tired, things the normally did not pay attention to unless they were asked. When the Captain came home, he went to the study with Max to do some bookkeeping, glad nothing did happen while he was away from the villa. The last time he rubbed Maria's back, the sensations he felt were getting more intense. If only the baby would move inside of her, she would be able to tell she was having cramps instead of the horrific nerve pains.
Maria settled herself in the salon with the girls to look over fashion magazines that had arrived from France. Liesl had her eye on a floor length dress for the upcoming party season, but Maria knew the Captain would not approve. He wanted Liesl to stay his little girl forever. That's why when Liesl mentioned she would like to be one of the women attending Maria during her labor, Maria was surprised he gave his consent. When Helga, a usually quiet downstairs maid asked Maria, for the third time that day, how she was feeling, Maria knew something was going on. "Why is everyone so interested in my health all of a sudden?" she asked aloud. "I've been pregnant for 41 weeks and haven't been asked this much in all that time."
"That's on account of the bet," Brigitta replied, not even looking up from her book.
"Bet?" Maria sat up straighter, her eyes flashing. "What bet?"
"Well," Brigitta began even as Liesl tried to silence her. "Father's business associates in town have a, I think they call it a pool, on when the baby will come and how much it might weigh because you got so big and the staff has one about if it is going to come by the weekend like Father said it would. And he and Uncle Max have a bet that the baby will be born by tonight and that'll it'll be a boy, that's what Father says."
Maria couldn't see straight she was so angry. How dare they? It was bad enough the people in town, they gossiped about her all the time, but her own husband and the man they intended to name their child's godfather…She pried herself out of the chair in one quick motion, pressing her hand on her back as it throbbed.
"Nice going," Friedrich chided his sister. "Father is going to be boiling mad at us now for upsetting Mother. Even if he's wrong about the baby coming before midnight, it's still coming really soon and she shouldn't be upset. She's probably going to cry, and we all will be sent to our rooms."
But Maria wasn't crying, she was fuming. As she slowly made her way to the study, Frau Schmidt stopped her to ask, "Is everything okay, Baroness? You look flushed."
"Everything is fine," Maria grated through tight lips. "Or it will be as soon as I get my hands on that husband of mine…"
Fueled by her anger, Maria quickly got to the Captain's study speaking before she even opened the door, "Captain von Trapp!"
The Captain knew he'd done something wrong; Maria never called him Captain like that unless she was very angry with him. "Darling?"
"Uh, it's bad enough the staff and the town but my own husband and friend gambling on the birth of….Oowww!" Maria doubled over holding her right arm over her belly and using her left to brace herself.
The Captain was on his feet in a flash. He rushed to Maria's side. "Maria!" He put his hand on her back in the same place he'd been feeling the muscles contracting for about 36 hours now. It was tight as a drum. "You've having a contraction." It wasn't a question.
"No, I'm not," Maria insisted. "I refuse to have this baby until tomorrow, I'm not going to…" She stopped again, not because of pain this time, but because of the uncomfortable rush of fluid that ran down her legs. She was suddenly very frightened. She looked over at the Captain with her blue eyes wide. "My water just broke."
"That it has," the Captain replied. "Max, help me. I need to get Maria up to bed, get Frau Schmidt, tell her Maria's time has come. She needs to check her; see how far along she's progressed. It's going to be all right, my love. I'm right here, I'm not going anywhere. Move slowly, let me know if you need to stop for a contraction."
Their arms around each other, Maria and the Captain ascended the stairs toward their bedroom. He was able to get her up the steps and into their room before she felt another pain starting in her back, moving into her thighs, then gripping her stomach. Skillfully, the Captain noted the time of the contraction on grandfather clock in their suite. It would give him a vague idea at least of how long she would have to endure this.
"Look at me, Darling," he guided. "Look at my eyes, don't look away, just look at me." He held her hand tightly. "Breathe, Maria. Don't tense so."
"You breathe!" she griped, yet she did as he suggested and held his gaze.
Frau Schmidt entered the room just as the contraction was ending. Maria's dress was wet from her water breaking and she was beginning to perspire in the summer heat. She looked at the Captain and all but dismissed him from the room. "I'll be right outside, Maria. I'll be back in a few minutes when Frau Schmidt has helped you change, all right?"
"You told me…" she took a deep breath against a sharp kick and the increasing pressure in her pelvis. "You weren't going anywhere."
"I'm not, my love," he soothed. "I'll be right outside the door; Frau Schmidt can make you more comfortable than I can." He gave her a soft kiss on the lips, not caring the housekeeper was standing mere inches from them. Maria let go of his hand with a nod and returned the kiss.
Max was waiting outside the bedroom door. "How is she?"
"She's in pain but has been for weeks. I think her getting angry with me for the wager we made gave her body the push it needed," he replied. "She's also terrified, I could see it in her eyes. I think when she's more comfortable…"
Max nodded, "How are you?"
The Captain sighed, "It's always worrisome, Max, but Maria is healthy and the pregnancy went very well except this last little while. I believe she'll have a healthy little boy and come through just fine."
Inside the bed chamber, Frau Schmidt helped Maria change into a clean nightgown and propped her up in bed. She took a look at her to see how far along she was in her labor, glad to see she was mostly thinned out, but had a while left to go before she would be open enough to push the child into the world. "Can the Captain return?" she asked. She was scared, so very scared all of a sudden and needed her husband. He was more than that, he was her best friend, her partner and she needed him.
Frau Schmidt opened the door to let the Captain back in. "It's not time yet to call for Frau Gunther, Captain, but she has come very far considering she has only been laboring a short while."
"Helena," the Captain called his housekeeper by her first name. "She's been laboring since at least yesterday, I'm certain of it."
"Sir," she began but Max interrupted. "He thinks after seven children he knows the signs of labor more than the woman having the baby."
"Well, given the progress I've seen so far, he just might."
The Captain stayed by Maria's side the next three hours. She insisted on lying on her side, saying it was the only position she felt she could even breath. She was sick to her stomach and kept locking her body against the pain. "You need to try to relax, Maria," the Captain gently urged. "You can't forget to take a breathe, my son still needs you for oxygen."
Maria turned slightly to look at him, "I'm still angry with you, Georg for betting on me like I'm some brood mare!"
"I didn't see it as that, and I had nothing to do with what the townspeople got started, this was a friendly wager between Max and me that's all. A $10 gold piece that you would have the baby today, before midnight, and double if it was a boy. I'm certain we're having a boy."
"You might be an expert on pregnant women, Georg, but you're no soothsayer…Who says I won't hold on a few extra hours and have a girl just to spite you?" she asked, but there was laughter in her voice.
"Even if you do, my love, there won't be a baby born that's loved more." He planted a soft kiss on the tip of her nose. She seized up again as she felt a much more intense pain. The Captain checked the clock, it had only been three minutes. When the pain had passed, Maria whimpered, "The pains are getting worse, Georg and closer together."
"I know, I'm watching. I think it might be time to call Frau Gunther, let's have Frau Schmidt check on you, and we'll see."
"I don't want Frau Gunther here," Maria told him out of the blue.
"And why not, Maria? She's the most experienced midwife in the area and has delivered all my other children," he reminded her.
"Yes, but she won't let you be with me," Maria whispered. "I need you to be. I can't do this by myself. I'm scared."
"I won't be far," the Captain replied holding her hands in his. "But Frau Gunther came make sure you and the baby come through this with flying colors. I'll be with you the moment that baby cries, I promise."
Frau Schmidt checked Maria again and agreed with the Captain's assessment that she was close to transition and would be needing Frau Gunther very soon. The Captain made the call personally and stayed with his wife until the stern, efficient midwife arrived. She welcomed Liesl into the birthing room along with Frau Schmidt and one other older maid before unceremoniously shutting the Captain out.
The Captain sat in the alcove in the upstairs hallway. Max took the liberty of getting his friend a brandy though he kept the drink pretty well watered. Max has been present at all 7 von Trapp births as well and he knew that as the cries of pain intensified so did Georg's need to drink if for no other reason than to have something to do. While his friend's first marriage was a love match and quite idyllic, the relationship he had with Maria was different, they were soul mates. Georg would struggle more getting through her delivery than any of the previous ones Max was certain.
The Captain surprised Max when he didn't take a sip of the drink, he just swirled the glass back and forth. "This one," he mused. "Lord help him, he's going to get it from both sides, stubbornness, pride, intensity, but he's going to bring us so much joy. In these rough times, he's going to bring us so much joy. I marvel every time I think about my children, and now this new baby, it makes you feel immortal. You are given life and you give life in return, some day that child will do the same for someone else…It's thrilling."
The two men paced back and forth passing each other. The other children were downstairs but very nervous, so at Franz's request the Captain moved his waiting area to the salon. He could sometimes still hear Maria crying out, even down there. He looked at Max, "Transition. She's in the thick of it now. The contractions aren't even a minute apart. She's got to be exhausted. I hope they are reminding her to breath, she kept locking her jaw and not breathing, if she does that now she won't be able to push, she'll pass out."
"I'm sure they are, Georg," Max replied. "Take a sip of the brandy and breathe yourself. You're going to be a father again by sunrise more than likely."
"Perhaps," the Captain replied. "Though Maria did threaten to wait until I had lost that wager. It was rather insensitive of us to do that, wasn't it?"
"I don't know," Max pondered. "I think it was just among friends. You were so insistent she was in labor, and she didn't notice a thing."
"She's never had a baby before and my son was lying on her sciatic nerve for two weeks," the Captain reminded him. "She thought that was labor, when she tried to stand up the morning after her shifted and felt so much pain in her back. I had the doctor out, but he said there wasn't much she could do except hope the baby moved." He heard Maria cry out again, "Forty-five seconds now and it is getting late. I need to get the children to bed."
None of the children wanted to go to sleep, they all wanted to wait up for their new brother or sister to be born. Friedrich had a few memories of his biological mother having Gretl but none of the other's remembered the experience. Gretl and Marta were especially frightened so the Captain sat with them longer than he normally would allow. It was comforting to him as well to be busy.
Bedtime took closer to two hours that night. By the sound of the gasps and cries coming from the master bedroom, Maria was finally pushing. This was the part that always made him nervous, if something was going to happen to the mother or baby, it would happen now.
The Captain finally did take a drink of the brandy Max made for him. Max closed his hand over the Captain's shoulder. "Almost Georg…it has to be soon."
He only nodded, his stomach suddenly a knot. The elation he felt when Maria told him of the pregnancy and all the way through was being replaced by fear. He couldn't lose Maria; he would never be able to survive it. He took his own advice and took a couple deep breaths. Max was right, it couldn't last much longer. He couldn't last shut out of that room much longer.
Two hours passed and still they heard Maria's cries as she worked with all her strength to give her child life. It was torture for the Captain to sit and wait, to not be able to hold her, to comfort her, this part had always had been rough for him. Finally, though Maria's deep moans and harsh sobs were replaced with a newborn's lusty wail.
Max and the Captain quickly embraced, patting each other's backs firmly. "Listen to that, Max. Listen to him, that's a son for certain, a cry like that."
Max smiled, it was so good to see Georg so happy again. Max loved Agathe too, he grieved her loss, but it was the loss of Georg that really shook him. He was indebted to Maria for bringing his best friend back to life.
Liesl stepped out of the room only a moment after they heard the baby cry. She was smiling from ear to ear. "Maria?" the Captain asked, he needed to hear she was alright.
"She's fine," Liesl smiled. "She's tired, but she did beautifully. Frau Gunther is cleaning them up, then you can go in. Mother's asking for you."
The Captain nodded, "I can tell the baby is all right. He takes after his mother already. He sounds beautiful."
"Yes," Liesl said with a hint of humor in her voice. It wasn't every day her father was this wrong about something. "SHE does."
"You can come in now, Captain," Frau Schmidt said from the doorway before Liesl's words sank in. The Captain moved like a moth to a flame for the now open door, then paused, "She?"
Liesl laughed as the Captain absorbed her words. "Seems you owe Uncle Max a few dollars. Father. It's a girl and she was born a few minutes past midnight. You lost your bet."
The Captain didn't answer that, the wager had gone clear out of his head as soon as he heard the baby cry. Now all he could think of was the promise he made to Maria and holding his newest daughter…That he had a newborn girl amazed him; everything about the pregnancy dictated the baby would be a boy from the way Maria carried to how sick she had been to the glow and sheen of her hair, and yet they were welcoming a little girl, a perfect little flower.
The Captain pushed through the doors of the master bedroom. Frau Gunther was just finishing up with Maria. Frau Schmidt had wiped her face and propped her exhausted body up on several pillows. Maria's hair was still stuck to her forehead, and she looked so very tired, but all the Captain could focus on was her smile. "Georg…we have a baby daughter," she whispered as the Captain approached the bed. "And she's perfect."
The Captain looked at his wife, beaming with joy, then at the tiny bundle she cradled in her arms. "Oh, she is beautiful, she looks just like you. Hello, my sweet angel. Hello…" he whispered reaching out to softly touch the baby's cheek.
Half hour later Frau Gunther had gone home, and Frau Schmidt had retired to her own quarters. Maria had fought sleep while they were still in the room with her, but as soon as the Captain settled down beside her, she gave into her exhaustion. The Captain slipped off the bed and gently took the baby from Maria's arms. He had Franz bring the cradle out of the attic, their precious little one would stay close by for a few months at least. He laid the sleeping newborn into the cradle that held all seven of her brothers and sisters and brushed a feather light kiss on her perfect, tiny forehead. "You are going to be something else, aren't you my little Rosie? Already costing me money and you aren't even two hours old. You get that from your sisters, and they get it from me, I must admit. You have your mother's eyes, and I think that is my nose. I've already heard you give a good yell; I think that's from us both. You are perfect my little flower, and I love you so very much."
The baby gurgled just a bit at her father's voice and opened her midnight blue eyes for just a second before she yawned and went back to sleep. In the morning, the Captain gave Franz two $10 gold pieces, making good on his wager with Max. He looked at Maria with their little girl contentedly nursing at her mother's breast and determined this was one bet he was more than happy to lose.