The bus ride seemed to take forever for both the women. Julia hadn't stopped asking the day old question, "Are we there yet?" and Eliza always gave her the same answer, "Just a little further." Then Julia would rest her head against the window and watch the cows in pastor and the horses grazing on the open meadows. And then she would turn to her mother and ask her question again to receive the same answer.

Eliza loved the bus ride. Even though the length of time it took to get to the captains house was getting to be unbearable. She liked to watch the cows at pastor and the horses grazing in the open meadows. She loved Genovia, it was all she ever knew. She grew up in a small village close to the palace and she was bale to see her Queen in the garden walking about with her King. She always imagined a love like that for her own life, but she never managed to get it quite right. Well, that wasn't all that true, she had loved once, and she pulled on the ring that hung around her neck. That's how she had Julia. But that was a whole other story that she hated to remember.

The bus came to a sudden jerk and halt. It sent Julia into the seat in front of her; she held her hands out so she wouldn't be rammed too hard into the seat in front of her. Eliza's neck was now in a little pain from the sudden jerk. She rubbed it in attempt to vanquish the unwanted feeling of pain pulsating through her neck.

"Grab your bag, Julia."

Julia went to grab her bag and her mother's carpet bag. She wanted to see just how heavy the bag was since her mother had put the other three suitcases inside the little carpet bag. Julia was surprised to find the bag to be lighter then her own suitcase, as if it were empty. Eliza noticing her daughters in trust in the carpet bag quickly grabbed it from Julia.

"Thank you darling. Spit spot! We walk from here."

Eliza and Julia walked off the bus and on to the gravel road. The road didn't carry on too far and it was a rather scenic route. Julia was quickly side tracked to a horse trainer in the process of working with a cream colored pony. Julia stood upon the wooden fence and watched the two working together till her mother called her back.

"Come along Julia, you aren't wearing your play clothes right now."

Julia ran back over to her mother and occasionally looked back to the horse trainer and his pony.

"Are we almost to my surprise now?" Julia asked her mother as she started kicking up gravel.

"Yes, just to the end of the road," Eliza answered as she began together up her strength.

"Woah," Julia gasped as the Captain's house came into view. The wall surrounding the house had been covering it up from their view. "This is my surprise?"

"Yes," Eliza tried to seem confident, "This is our new home." She looked down to Julia for a reaction. But her child showed no emotion at all, she continued to stare at the house behind the iron gates and surround walls.

"Is this the…"

"It's the captain's home and now ours, too," Eliza finished her sentence.

As they became nearer to the gate they could both hear shouting and yelling coming from the entrance of the house.

"No! I do not wish to stay, even if you paid me a million dollars a day! Those brats can not be controlled!" They heard an angry women's voice yelling out.

"Please Fraulein, you must stay! I can't watch the children; I have enough trouble cleaning the house. You have to stay!" Another women's voice entered pleadingly.

"OH NO! That worked last time, but this time it's not going to. Those children and that Captain well be the end of me!"

Eliza and Julia were now opening up the iron gates. The women who had been yelling angrily came storming by them. "Thank you deary, I see they had a rush order for a new one already! Well… Good luck! Good luck with them all!" And the woman was off down the gravel road with her suitcase in hand. Eliza just watched the woman's large back side sway back and forth as she waddled away mumbling angrily to her self down the road.

Julia had placed herself behind her mother and had a hold of her mother's black coat.

"Well… You must be the new Fraulein." A woman old enough to be Julia's grandmother walked up to them both. She was dressed nicely for a housemaid, a black dress with buttons down her back and a white lace apron. This was the woman pleading for the other woman to stay, Eliza realized. "Hello doll, you can come out now." The old woman was looking down at Julia, giving her a warm smile. "Are you okay dear?" the woman directed her gaze to Eliza.

Eliza looked frighten, and she knew it. She tried to look happier, but she found it hard to after the display that had just taken place.

"Oh… umm… Yes, I mean no, I am the new housekeeper." Eliza stuck her hand out to the old lady. The woman stood there looking Eliza and Julia over before she shook Eliza's hand.

"I'm Frau Schmidt," the woman put her own hand in Eliza's. "I didn't know we were getting a new housekeeper." The old women looked confused.

"Hi! I'm Julia and today's my birthday!" Julia came from behind her mother with a smile. She liked this Frau Schmidt; she was a nice lady with a warm smile. And she was giving Julia another one of her warm smiles now.

"How old are you today?"

"I'm six years old," Julia said as she held up six digits with her fingers.

"That's nice darling," gave Julia a pat on the head. "Now, follow me, I'll take you both to the Captain." Frau Schmidt turned around and started walking up towards the house. Eliza grabbed Julia's hand and they walked up to the huge double oak doors, following closely behind Frau Schmidt.