Maria carried her paint and brushes to the car, placing them on the floor of the back seat. She had also ordered some new drapes and bought a few decorative pieces while she was shopping, excited for a project she actually cared about. While she was pleased with the way the wedding was shaping up, she was looking forward to something she could do with her own hands. Nobody besides she and Georg would get an input on this project, and that fact alone made her smile.

"Maria, it's lovely to see you." She turned to see Elsa walking toward her, a shopping bag on her arm.

"Good morning, Baroness. I didn't realize you were still in town."

"Oh yes, I'm leaving tomorrow. I was just shopping for a few last minute things." She looked into the car, seeing the paint cans. "What are you up to?"

"I'm redecorating a room, actually. I'm quite excited." She smiled, trying her best not to divulge information. It was likely very uncustomary for a woman to even know what her fiancé's bedroom looked like, let alone have a hand in redecorating. She especially didn't want to let Elsa in on the details of her project, given their history.

"Well, I was just stopping for lunch. Care to join me?" She opened her mouth to speak, weighing her response.

"Thank you, but I don't think it's a good idea." Elsa took her arm in her hand, pulling her along with her.

"It's only lunch. Besides, I need you to tell me how you talked him into letting you drive his car."

She didn't want to join Elsa for lunch, truly she didn't, but suddenly she found herself sitting across from her in a restaurant, ordering something she had never heard of before. When she told Georg of her discovery that Elsa was courting Herr Zeller, he was surprisingly quiet about it. He gave her the whole speech, of course, but he hadn't brought it up since. Unfortunately, she knew he would be incredibly angry with her for having lunch with her.

It felt strange sitting across from Elsa in a restaurant, acting as equals. For so long she had felt less-than whenever they were together, but she found that she wasn't afraid of her in the slightest anymore. They did have quite the history, after all, she supposed. She noticed a table full of women she had seen at various parties sitting across the room, and she smiled at the knowledge that Elsa was clearly using her for one last public appearance before returning to Vienna.

"Well, you have me here. Though I'm afraid I will be in quite a bit of trouble for it when I get home." She took a sip of her tea, raising her eyebrows at how wonderful it tasted.

"I'm sure you'll manage." Elsa gave her a smile, laced with false meaning. Maria sighed, placing her hands upon her lap. She was ready to just get it all over with.

"So then, what is your intention here?"

"I saw you on the street and decided to take the opportunity. Those women in the corner have been most vicious."

"How is it that a woman of your status pays any mind to that nonsense? Soon enough something else scandalous will come about, and they'll forget they ever cared." The waiter placed their food in front of them, and Maria smiled a thank you to him.

"I do suppose I'm a bit obsessive. I've simply never had such negative gossip about myself. I'm usually the one gossiping, you know." She chuckled a bit as they began to eat, Maria doing her best to eat quickly so she could leave. She was terrified to give anything away to her company that may be useful to Herr Zeller in any way. He had very obviously had his eye on Georg in the most negative way for quite a while.

"You mean you've not been sent out as a spy for another party?" Elsa looked up from her plate, eyebrows raised, as Maria took another bite of her food.

"You think I'm helping him do your family harm?"

"I don't know what I think. But I do know I've never been able to trust you." She looked up to meet her eyes, finding her quite surprised by how forward Maria had been. In truth, they had never had difficulty being honest with one another due to their general lack of interest in forming a friendship. She wondered if they had unintentionally formed a friendship due to exactly the same reasons.

"I'm not here to spy, I can assure you. He has other ways."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean exactly that; he doesn't need me to spy." Maria nodded, continuing to eat her meal. She wasn't so sure she believed that, but she was willing to accept her answer.

"How did you two get together?" Elsa scoffed, offended by the question.

"Now you're judging..."

"I'm asking out of curiosity. It's what people who are friendly do to get to know one another." Maria's response was sharp, but she did her best not to appear frustrated to those who may have been watching. The whole point was to stop the gossip, not add new layers to it.

"Oh. Well, I've known him for a while, obviously. He called on me after I went home to Vienna, and after refusing him a few times, we went to dinner together. I found we have quite a lot in common." She smiled, truly seeming to care for him.

"I'm glad you're happy."

"I am. It's not always sunshine, given his profession, but we don't talk about it." Maria nodded, feeling that her company was truly being honest with her for a change.

"Does it bother you much to spend so much time with them?" She didn't have to elaborate on what she meant by 'them.' They both knew she was talking about the Nazi party.

"Them, us, we'll all be flying the same flag soon enough anyway. It's only a matter of time before the Anschluss."

"I can't hear that."

"Georg can't hear that, but you can. You're not stupid, you know it will be soon." Her heart began beating faster. Yes, she knew it was inevitable, no matter how much faith Georg had that their country would make the right decision. It was becoming quite obvious to her as she began to see the flags changing and the men in uniform looking a bit differently. She could even feel it in the air. Austria was clearly preparing for a change.

"Yes, I think you're right." She ate a bit faster, wishing she hadn't brought up the subject, but remaining curious. "How long do you think we have?"

"I'm told within six months time." She quickly looked around, making certain no one heard her. Maria noted that she looked afraid for a moment. "I shouldn't be saying anything."

"No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

"You have a wedding coming up. Are you excited?" She sighed, knowing Elsa didn't care in the slightest about her wedding, but glad for a change in subject.

"Yes. Mostly to get our houseguests to leave, honestly. Though, I don't know if his mother will make it that long."

"Oh no, is she ill?"

"No, we've been talking about drowning her in the lake." Elsa laughed, a real laugh, and Maria smiled excitedly at being able to illicit the reaction from her.

The rest of lunch was actually quite pleasant, as if in a different time or place they could have had a real friendship. As they left the restaurant, they paused for a moment, before Maria pulled her into a quick hug. Sharing a smile, they went their separate ways, and that was that.

As Maria drove home, she wondered how she was going to approach the conversation with Georg. He would be upset with her for going along with the lunch, and even more upset when she told him she believed the Anschluss was unavoidable. She was afraid for her family, for what would happen to them all once the change occurred. Georg would obviously be called away to serve, and then what? In six months time, she would be just shy of giving birth to their child, and she was not interested in doing so, or raising the children and a new baby alone.

When she entered the house carrying her paint and supplies, he greeted her with a large smile. He told her how he loved her, how much he missed her, how much he couldn't wait to marry her; he said all the sweet things that she loved to hear, but made her heart break a bit after the conversation she had at lunch.

She decided that she was going to wait until after the wedding to discuss the Anschluss. There was no reason to bring that kind of darkness into the light they had just found.