Disclaimer: As I tried to get this chapter sorted I came to the conclusion that I don't own The Sound of Music..

Author's Note: Sorry this wasn't up sooner, but with a mixture of finals, work, and writer's block…well, you know. But enough rambling, On Ward We GO!

Oh, one quick thing. In the movie the family climbs over the mountain, as we all know. But if they did that, they would really end up in Germany…so, in my fic, I'm keeping real geographical lines, as you could say. So all traveling, will be done according to a real map…if you want to see just google Map of Austria…

I Trust In My Heart-
-Chapter Nineteen: The Safety of Leaving

Liesl sat staring blankly out the window. The night was dark, too dark. The train was moving so fast that there appeared to be no stars in the sky. Pitch black.

She swallowed the lump that had been building in her throat. They had been on the train for an hour. Liesl looked to her siblings that sat in the seats around her. Brigitta and Kurt had fallen asleep minutes ago, resting their heads on each others. Gretl clung tightly to Friedrich. Liesl looked just in time to see Friedrich's eyes close into a restless sleep. Louisa was resting her head against the cold glass of the window, her eyes shut tightly. It was obvious that she wasn't really sleeping. Liesl sighed and hugged the sleeping Marta tighter to her herself.

Suddenly there was a sniffle from across the seat. Liesl looked into the dark of the compartment to see that Louisa was, indeed, not sleeping. She was crying.

"Louisa?" Liesl whispered, hoping not to wake anyone else.

There was no response. "Louisa?" she tried again. Her only response was a stifled sob.

Liesl, sighed inwardly, carefully stood. She let Marta fall into a laying position on the seat, she wrapped her traveling cloak over the younger girls body, in hopes of keeping her warm. Liesl carefully moved the little distance across the compartment to where Louisa sat, her legs shaking as they adjusted to the movement of the train. She sat down and touched Louis lightly on the shoulder. "Louisa?" she tried, one more time to get a response.

There silence deepened for a moment before Louis slowly turned towards her older sister. Through the darkness Liesl could see that Louisa's face was tear stained. "Oh Louisa." she said, wrapping her arms around her sister as the younger of the two finally allowed herself to succumb to her tears.

"I'm scared." Louisa whispered, in between her sobs into Liesl's shoulder.

"I know, I am too." Liesl whispered back, rubbing her sister's shoulder. "But we're safe now."

"Sure, we are…but what about Father?" Louisa bitterly asked, her voice losing some sadness and adding a snap.

Liesl sighed, and hugged her sister closer. "I'm sure he's fine. Where ever he is, I know he's safe." she said, hoping to God that her words were true.

"Captain, Captain get up." Maria lightly shook Georg's shoulder as he slept on her couch., as she crouched down to his level.

Her groaned slightly, and tried to move away from her. Maria suppressed a giggle. "Captain!" she nearly yelled after her shaking had not woken him.

He groaned and opened his eyes to meet the ones of an expectant Maria. "You better get up," she said, standing, "the sun will rise in about an hour, and if we want to make it out of the city we need to leave soon."

Georg sat up, rubbing his eyes, as Maria walked over to the table and picked something up, bringing back to him. "Here's some fresh clothes."

"How did you-?" he asked, not fully voicing his question as he yawned.

"I borrowed them from the man who lives next door." Maria replied, walking into the kitchen.

"Wasn't he a little suspicious that you were asking for a pair of men's clothing. And what in the world was he doing up at this hour?" he asked, standing and holding the clothes out in front of him, looking them up and down, judging if they would fit.

"He's always up at this hour, and he's usually noisy about it. But he wasn't suspicious." as she said this her cheeks reddened. Without an explanation one could only guess what rumors would have flown about Maria asking for a pair of men's clothing. But then again, they sort of already had. Maria shook her head, to rid herself of such thoughts. "I told him I needed them for an idea about some clothes that I was making, a guideline."

"Didn't he ask why you would need such a thing this early?" Georg asked, seeing a flaw in her simple plan.

"No, like I said, he's always up early and rather active, he believes everyone else is up at this hour too. He's a little odd, but a sweet man." she said, laughing lightly. "The bathroom is just through the door on the other side of the room," she said, pointing towards the door that led to her bedroom/bathroom. "It's through the door that's immediately to your left as you go through the main door. You can use it to freshen up in there." Georg nodded and walked towards the door.

He was a little apprehensive about entering this part of Maria's small home. If you walked directly straight through the door you entered into Maria's bedroom. He paused, not daring to go in to far, he felt like he was intruding. He stood, staring, despite the fact that she was leaving her bed was still neatly made, the pillows fluffed nicely. Next to her bed sat her single carpet bag suite case, waiting to be taken away. He inhaled the air, it was sweet. He smiled softly.

With the feeling of intruding suddenly becoming stronger he did a left face and walked into the bathroom, lightly closing the door.

Maria was humming a quiet tune when Georg walked back into the room, fully awake and dressed in new clothes. He walked into the kitchen and looked at her. Her back was to him as she was bent over something, what he couldn't see. Her humming slowly turned into whistling. Georg couldn't quite hear what it was she was whistling, but knew the tune was familiar.

"CAPTAIN!" Maria yelled, as she turned and jumped, surprised to see him there. The toast that was on the plate she had almost fell onto the floor.

"Sorry, to uh, scare you. I uh, finished changing" he said, stating the obvious.

Maria nodded, "Here's some toast." she said, handing him the plate. "I put the jams out on the table."

He nodded, took the plate, and went to the table. Maria joined him seconds later with two cups of coffee. She set one in front of the Captain and sat herself in the chair opposite him.

"Thank you." he said, looking up at her briefly, before returning to spreading jam on his toast.

"You're welcome." she said, not looking at him, but helping herself to some toast.

An odd silence filled the air as both began to remember the night before. Maria awkwardly ate her toast, not looking anywhere in the room but coffee cup. Georg on the other hand, took in every inch of the apartment. For the most part it was bare, except for a wood cross that hung on the wall, and a small couch, two small plants, and they table they sat at. It was so bare and yet held truth to the person who lived there. So simple, yet beautiful.

"Let me see your eye." Maria said, once they had eaten.

"What?" Georg asked, confused at her request.

"Your eye." she said, again. Georg's hand shot up to his face and his hand came into contact with sore skin.

"Oh, right." he hadn't even thought about it. When he had been in the bathroom his mind had been filled with thoughts of the next few days that he hadn't seen it when he looked into the mirror.

Maria moved her chair closer, and tilted his head back, trying to get the right lighting. "It doesn't look to bad, I thought it would be worse…well, bigger that is. But the only spot that's horrible is right there." she said as she lightly touched the spot on his cheek bone where the bruise was the most black. He flinched slightly. "Sorry. Well, let me check the cut on your head and then we should probably start going." Georg nodded as Maria stood. She stood behind him, and tilted his head forward. The small cut on the back of his skull became visible.

"Doesn't look horrible, either. Does it hurt?" she asked, touching lightly around the area.

"Only a little." he said, inwardly groaning. The small touches she made sent jolts of electricity through his body, and there was nothing he could do about it. And that simple thought made him sick to his stomach.

"All looks good. We should-" Maria paused as she spoke, and swallowed. "leave." her voice was just above a whisper.

Minutes later the two stood in the cold morning air. It was obvious that fall was approaching because the morning was chilled, and almost frosty. Maria shivered, and clutched her traveling cloak tighter around her as she and the Captain loaded their car with necessities.

Maria opened the back trunk and stepped aside to let Georg put her carpet bag, which he had insisted on taking, in the back.

"Oh, here." she said, stepping back into his way and removing a picnic basket that had been in the car to make more room. "Let me get thi-"

"No, don't. It might come in handy."

Maria looked at him and rose and eyebrow.

"You never know." he said, raising an eyebrow as well. Maria shook her head, shrugged, and put the basket back. Georg placed his one pair of clothing, from the night before, on top of Maria's bag. On their drive he would have to stop somewhere and another shirt or something, he still a little money on him, but that would be needed for food. They would decide when the time came.

"Well, ready?" Georg asked, closing the back compartment door. Maria gave no response. Georg turned to see her standing by the driver's door of the car, but was staring at the apartment building.

Maria's eyes bore into the side of the building. This had only been her home for a month and a half, and yet she couldn't bare to part with it. It had been the place that was her own. The first time she was by herself in the world she found refuge in that small apartment and now she was leaving it, perhaps for ever. Marie felt her body begin to slump and small tears forming in her eyes.

"Maria?" she heard the Captain whisper.

She stood up straight again, and pushed her tears aside. He wouldn't see her cry, even if it was for this reason.

"Yes?" her voice was hollow as she turned to face him.

Georg looked into her eyes, sadness etched in their every sparkle. He wished he could take the pain away, tell her all would be ok, but he couldn't cause he wasn't so certain himself. "Are you ready?"

She flattened the end of her dress and nodded. "Shall we?" she asked, getting into the car. Georg followed suit and the two were soon driving towards Switzerland in the dark morning.

They had been traveling for fifteen minutes in a tense silence. Georg was slightly slouched down in his seat as they traveled through the heart of the city. It was taking longer than expected, despite the fact that it was early morning and the sun was just beginning to make it's presence known, many people were out. Georg blamed it on the festival the night before.

There were also many Nazi cars and soldiers out, getting ready for what their daily routine was. Because of this Maria had to move the car down many side roads and back ways, in hopes of them not being stopped and someone seeing the Captain.

Maria's heart was beating furiously. Being in the city, fleeing was unlike anything in her life. She had always done what she had been told, always obliged to what others asked of her. But now, here she was defying a more powerful force than any she had ever seen. It terrified her.

She was shaking slightly, but she kept her hands steady.

"It will be ok." Georg said, after seeing her composure. "I pro-"

"Don't make promises you can't keep." Maria said, knowing exactly what he was going to say.

He sighed. Knowing there was no point in trying to make her think other wise. Another silence filled the air.

Georg watched Maria as she drove. At first, it was hard to see her, but then the sun began to shine. As it got brighter Maria became more tense, for with more sunlight meant that more people would be out, and someone could spot them.

He sighed again, but didn't remove his gaze from her. The hostility that she had held in her eyes the night before was gone. Now there was nothing but sorrow in them, whether it was because of their leaving the county, or because of their conversation the night before Georg didn't know. Another uneasy silence filled the car.

There was an unspoken agreement made between Maria and the Captain. They would put aside any thing that had to do with what had happened to their relationship in the past and work together to get out of Austria. What ever happened then, they still didn't know.
As early-mid-morning approached Maria and the Captain reached the edge of town. Everything had gone well, to well. They hadn't been stopped, nor had anyone paid any attention to them. Their plan of leaving before sunrise had proved a key and vital role in their escapade.

Maria turned down a small road that would lead them into the rolling country side, it was one of the only roads that would take them to the Swiss border, and gasped. At the end of the road, in the middle of a four way cross section sat a car, with a man standing beside it. The car and the man both wore signs of the Third Reich.

"What do we?" Maria said, not fully voicing her concern, and glancing quickly at Georg. She could tell that his mind was thinking quickly of a plan.

"Just keep driving."

"He's in the way and he's probably going to stop us."

"Then let him."

Maria was about to protest, but the Captain took his coat and pulled it up to his face, covering most of it, slumped down in the seat more, pulled his hat down, and closed his eyes. He looked like he was sleeping.

Maria looked at him nervously, but continued driving, hoping that Georg knew what he was doing. When their car got closer the Nazi stood up straighter and stepped away from his own car, moving forward and holding out his hand, ordering Maria to stop. Maria lowered the window as the soldier approached.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked.

Maria's mind raced and she wished Georg would say something, but no one could know who he truly was. Where were they going? Switzerland, ha, like that would go over well. "Innsbruck." was her reply, the first word coming to her mind. She thought she heard Georg cough quietly as she spoke.

"Innsbruck?" the man asked, leaning closer to the window. "This road doesn't lead to Innsbruck." Maria's heart jumped. "the road back a mile led to Innsbruck. This road, on the other hand, leads to Switzerland." his tone was icy. Maria suddenly realized that this soldier was placed here to stop anyone from heading towards Switzerland.

"OH!" Maria said, mind racing quickly as her pulse quickened. "Does it? Well, I uh, you see I'm not very good with er, directions…"

"I suppose that's what he's for." the Nazi said, pointing towards Georg.

"Uh, yes." Maria said, agreeing with him and slightly thanking the Nazi for unwillingly helping her create her lie.

"Who is he?"

"My husband." Maria said the first thing that came to her mind. The simple sentence filled her with butterflies and at the same time made her sick to her stomach. What was wrong with her?
"Your husband?"

"Yes."

"HEY!" the soldier yelled, obviously trying to wake Georg up.

"Oh, please don't!" Maria nearly jumped. "He, uh, he…he just fell asleep. He's been driving for quite some time, and so we decided to switch so he could sleep. He's only just dozed off. Please don't wake him." with each word she spoke, Maria's voice became more confident. She was even beginning to believe her lie.

The Nazi eyed her with one eye. She could tell that he was debating whether or not to believe her. "Well….alright. You can go. Just make sure you turn right," he said, pointing to the road that led to the right at the cross section. "That will take you to Innsbruck."

"Yes, I will. Thank you." Maria rose her hand and gave him a small wave. She was about to put the window back up when the soldier moved faster than anyone she had ever seen and grabbed her wrist. "What do you thin-"

"You're not wearing a wedding band." he said, pointing at her ring finger on the hand he clasped. His grip tightened.

"Oh, well. I uh." Maria desperately tried to not look around nervously and come up with a good excuse.

"Yes?" the soldier had an edge to his voice.

"I…" he grabbed her other hand.

"You're not married, are you? Where are you going?" his grip tightened even more, and Maria felt as if he could break her wrists.

"I..we…I.."

"MARIA DRIVE!" the Captain's command filled the air.

The Nazi was stunned at the sudden outburst from a man he thought was sleeping a loosened his grip a little.

Even Maria was taken aback, she had forgotten that he wasn't actually sleeping. "Whah?"

"Step on the gas!" he said, again, reaching forward for the steering wheel. Maria did as she was told and pushed the gas peddle forcefully as Georg turned the wheel towards the Nazi, making him stumble backwards, and causing the car to travel swiftly over his leg. They heard his scream of pain as Georg maneuvered the car around the Nazi car and out of his sight.

After Maria had realized what had happened she grabbed hold of the steering wheel, and Georg let go, and lightened the pressure her foot had on the gas, but still making the car travel faster than normal. After making sure they were far enough away from the soldier, Maria pulled over to the side of the road. She was shaking, and if she hadn't stopped the car she would have sent both of them into a ditch. She turned the car off.

They sat in silence for a moment. Then suddenly, Georg started laughing. Maria looked at him, eyes big as saucers. What in the world was he laughing at? She couldn't understand it. They had almost gotten caught. But she listened on and let his laughter fill her, she had forgotten how wonderful that sound was. Without realizing it, she was laughing slightly too.

"What in the world are you laughing at?" she asked.

"I have no idea. I was waiting for something like that to happen all morning, and it hadn't. I was beginning to think we would get out of the city with no problems. Right when I was going to comment on that fact there he was. I should be worried that we got spotted. But I can't help but laugh."
Maria gave a giggle again.

Georg's laughter subsided. "You handled yourself well."

"Well! I nearly myself thrown in jail and you in the hands of their military!"

"No," he said, shaking his head. "Any other man wouldn't have noticed that you weren't wearing a wedding band, or would have thought that you took it off. We just happened to come across the path of an over analyzer."

"Still."

Georg shook it off. "You did fine."

Maria shrugged her shoulders. They sat in a silence, but this time it was a comfortable silence. The tension that had been between them since last night finally seemed to crack the slightest. Without a word, Maria started the car and pulled into the road.

Despite herself she snuck a glance at the Captain. He had an unusually large smile on his face. "What are you smiling at?" she asked.

"Husband?"

Maria's face turned bright red and she returned her gaze to the road. "Oh shush."

Author's Note: Well, what do you think? I'm not sure about it….let me know!

THANK YOU TO ALL OF THOSE WHO REVIEWED! YOU GUYS ARE WONDERFUL AND I DON"T KNOW WHAT I WOULD DO WITHOUT YOU! THANKS MUCHLY!

I don't know when I'll update again…maybe tomorrow…maybe not…but it will come in due time!

Until next time!
Your humble Author,
The Lonely Goatherd