"Liesl? I can't believe it." She smiled at the girl…well, three years past, she was suddenly a woman standing before her. A woman who met her with a smile of her own, albeit a bit subdued. Maria could feel her heart pounding from joy at the sight of her.

"Hello, Fraulein."

"Oh goodness, I think you could call me Maria by now." She rushed forward, pulling a hesitant Liesl into a hug. She barely returned the gesture, but Maria felt she could ignore it for a moment of living in a memory. "I can't believe you're here. How are you? Oh, you have to tell me everything you've been up to."

She led her into the apartment, closing the door and taking stock of the young woman before her. She wore a lovely little hat, a beautiful day dress beneath a brown cloak. She was quite stunning, the same piercing blue eyes Maria remembered staring her down on her first day as a governess. And there she suddenly was, nineteen going on twenty, standing before her after so much time had passed.

"I'm quite well, thank you." The woman looked about the apartment, and Maria couldn't help but feel a bit self-conscious. Decorating wasn't necessarily her strong suite, and she didn't really need a lot of furniture. She supposed it wasn't much, but it was home to her at least. "I had no idea you were still in Salzburg."

"Yes, Mother Abbess is friends with the owner of the dress shop below. I've been working there and living here…"

"For about three years?" Maria smiled nervously as their eyes met, nodding in affirmation. Then there was silence. She wasn't sure what to say. The look on her company's face let her know there had not necessarily been much forgiveness on her part for the way her governess had abandoned them…but she hadn't, or she hadn't wanted to, at least. She wasn't sure what she could possibly say after so long that would make much difference.

"I…um…well, I never expected to see you again. You look absolutely beautiful."

"You look older." She could tell Liesl was trying to act cold, but she couldn't stop herself from smiling at the attempted insult. She had never really been a cold young lady, even when she desperately tried to be, so it was difficult to take offense.

"Well I should hope so, I looked like a child myself as a governess." She laughed a bit, moving back to make sure nothing was amiss on the stove. "Would you like to stay for supper?"

"No, I don't intend to stay more than a few minutes, actually." Maria nodded, putting some extra noodles in the pot just in case.

"You're welcome to, anyway. I don't often have company. Though I must warn you, I am not much of a chef." She laughed, turning to cut a few more peppers for her sauce. "So how is everyone? Oh goodness, I can't imagine how grown your siblings must be…"

"I'm not here to exchange pleasantries, you know. You don't have to do that fake nice thing you do."

"Fake nice? I don't know what you mean." She frowned…yes, she did know what she meant, but it wasn't as if she were doing it on purpose. She was simply perpetually polite, she couldn't help it.

"Why did you leave us, really?" She looked up from her cutting board, eyebrows raised in surprise.

"You cut right to the point, don't you?"

"You we're so important to us. We loved you, and your reason for leaving was because you were going to be a nun? Obviously, that was bullshit."

"Liesl…"

"I already know why, I want to hear you tell me." Maria ignored her for a moment, putting the rest of her spices and vegetables into the sauce and giving it a stir. She wasn't prepared for such a confrontation, particularly when she had assumed the children had gotten over a simple governess long ago. Surely they weren't still stuck in the last moment they spent together. Surely they'd been luckier than she had.

"What exactly do you know?" She set a timer for the stove before turning to face her company.

"You tell me." She sighed, crossing her arms over her chest. What could she possibly lose, after all, she wondered. After all the scenarios she'd run in her head about seeing one of the children again, this had not been one of them. She shrugged.

"I suppose it's quite simple, really. I was in love with your father, and it was wrong of me. I couldn't stay." Liesl nodded, perhaps not expecting her to speak so honestly, she wasn't sure. She thought for a moment before she hesitantly moved to sit upon a stool at the island counter, letting her guard down a bit as her eyes bore into Maria's.

"He said he kissed you, and Elsa walked in. He said you were quite upset."

"Humiliated is more like it." She couldn't look into her eyes, turning away to stir her sauce again. The feelings came back full force, as if it were only yesterday. She had worked so hard to get over him, to put him in her past. The idea that he had talked to one of the children about her made her stomach ache. "How is he?"

"Elsa left about six months ago, if that's what you mean."

"No…I just hope he's happy, that's all." She bit her lip, pulling out two plates from the cabinet and bringing the noodles to the sink to drain them.

"He's happier without her than I've seen him in years. He talks about you sometimes now." She turned to face her, forgetting herself for a moment as her heart jumped with excitement.

"He does? What does he say?" Liesl shrugged, giving her a soft smile.

"He feels regretful about how you left. He wishes he had stopped you."

"Yes well, it was so long ago. If he truly felt that way, he could have told me anytime. I've only been here, after all." She turned to finish her task, spooning noodles onto each plate. She didn't mean to sound bitter, but it was how she felt. He had made his choice years ago. She put the sauce on the noodles and grabbed a couple forks before pushing a plate in front of Liesl, who seemed confused. "If you're going to make me talk about personal things, you can at least stay for supper."

"I'm a bit afraid of your cooking, Fraulein."

"Honestly, dear, I am too." There was a moment of silence before their eyes met, and they began to laugh together. She couldn't remember the last time she really laughed, and it felt wonderful, as if a part of her that had been missing suddenly resurfaced. She supposed it had.

"I'm sorry I came here with a bad attitude. I suppose I'm still harboring feelings, even though I now understand why you felt you needed to leave." She took a bite of her food, cringing at how bland the sauce was. Liesl didn't seem to mind. Or, if she did, she was too polite to show.

"Liesl, leaving you and your siblings was the hardest thing I've ever done. I loved you all with every piece of my heart, I still do, even though I know nothing about you now." She smiled, her crystal blue eyes full of understanding. Maria couldn't believe she was looking into those eyes again. "It's so late for this, but I am incredibly sorry for the pain I caused you all. I've never wanted to hurt any of you. I still think about it all the time."

"I can still see the look on your face when you told us." She met Liesl's eyes, tears in her own from the sincerity she was showing. It felt strange to speak about it aloud, it had only lived in her head until that moment.

"I can still see the look on yours too…I can still hear Gretl weeping." She cleared her voice to stop the emotions she was feeling, moving to fill two glasses of water for them.

"You know, we all used to fantasize about Father going to find you, sweeping you off your feet, and you becoming our new mother." Maria laughed, placing a glass of water in front of her visitor and taking a long drink of her own.

"Childish fantasies."

"Perhaps, but we desperately wished for it." Maria sighed, watching Liesl take another bite.

"Yes, me too." Her words came in a whisper, and Liesl met her eyes, perhaps surprised by the admission. Maria shook her head, smiling a bit. "Well, no matter now."

"Yes, of course. Oh!" Liesl jumped in surprise as the cat leapt upon the counter next to her. Maria scoffed, rushing to grab the animal and return her to the floor.

"Sorry, she has absolutely no manners." She gave the cat a look, kissing her head and sending her off upon the floor as Liesl laughed.

"What on earth are you doing with a cat?"

"I found her in the wintertime and couldn't leave her in the cold. She's quite cuddly, though." She shrugged, going back to her food. "Lonely people are supposed to have cats, I think. God sent her to me."

"You don't have a lot of company?"

"Not much. Sometimes one of the sisters from the abbey comes to visit. She's not a fan of my cooking either, but she's nice about it." She laughed, taking another bite. "I put every spice that made sense into this, and it is still so bland."

"More garlic, maybe? It's not so bad."

"Oh well, I suppose I'm good at other things." She smiled, taking a drink of her water as she stood across the counter from her former charge.

"Are you very lonely?" She gave a small smile.

"Let's just say, having company fills me with incredible amounts of joy." Liesl tried to return the smile, but Maria changed the subject. She didn't want to talk about herself for fear of becoming aware of too many truths of her own. "So, what's new with you? Are you at university or traveling a lot these days?"

"Actually, I'm engaged to be married." Maria gasped with excitement, rushing around the counter to pull her into another hug.

"Congratulations, that's wonderful!" She pulled away, finally seeing some excitement in the woman's eyes. "We really do have so much to catch up on. When is the wedding?"

"Sunday." Maria's eyes widened in surprise, certain she had heard incorrectly.

"As in, two days from today?"

"Yes. Actually, it's a bit of why I'm here."

"I don't understand." Liesl sighed as Maria made her way back to her plate on the other side of the counter, suddenly a bit nervous again.

"I want you to be there." Maria smiled, unable to hide how honored she felt by the invitation.

"I wouldn't miss it. I'm so happy for you, Liesl."

"I can't imagine the day without you, honestly." She made sure not to cry, not wanting to show just how touched she was by the words. "Though, I must admit, I was hesitant to ask you until I spoke to my father. He's the one who suggested I reach out to the abbey to find you."

"Oh he did? I've wondered if anyone had ever even tried."

"We've all been very angry, or even afraid you would be angry if we found you, so no we haven't. But only because we didn't know the whole story. I must admit, I only learned the truth yesterday. I'm sorry to say that I spoke ill of you in my father's presence, and he decided it was time to tell me the truth." The idea of the children hating her, speaking ill of her, made her heart hurt. She had so many regrets about the past three years, none of which could compare to the day she left them. "Please don't cry."

"I'm sorry." She tried to laugh, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. She hadn't even realized she was crying. "I really am so happy for you. Tell me all about him?"

They hadn't intended to do so, but Maria and Liesl talked for hours, well into the evening as they caught up on one another's lives. Apparently, Liesl met her fiancé after she graduated from high school, and they had been inseparable ever since. Even her father liked him, which Maria knew was the most difficult of all tests the young man would ever face. They planned to be wed on Sunday, then they were off to Venice for two weeks on a honeymoon.

As the they realized the time, Liesl smiled brighter than she had all night, and she pulled Maria into a warm hug. The women held tightly to one another, unwilling to let go of the closeness they had felt. Maria hadn't realized how much she was missing human contact and deep conversation until that night, she had nearly forgotten how to talk like they used to. She finally walked Liesl to the door, smiling as she opened it for her.

"You promise you'll be there?"

"I wouldn't miss it for anything, Liesl. I promise I'll be there, on time and everything." They shared a laugh, and Maria couldn't stop herself from tucking a strand of hair behind Liesl's ear. "What kind of reaction will I be walking into with your siblings?"

"They'll behave, because it's my wedding."

"No frogs in my pockets?"

"Definitely a snake this time, if they do it." Maria gave a quick laugh, slightly unsure if that were actually a joke.

"Do you think they'll allow me to apologize?" She shrugged, leaning forward to place a quick kiss upon her cheek.

"You won us over once before. Surely you'll think of something." Liesl smiled, and just like that she was gone.

Maria sighed, knowing she wouldn't sleep a bit that night. Was she really ready to face the children again, after all those years? And, more intimidating than that, would she truly be able to face him?