A/N. Ok, let me apologise once again for making Elsa into a villainous caricature. I know she is crazily OOC, but someone had to take Prof Henry Higgins' role as a rude, bullying snob and I couldn't do that to Georg.

Also, I should recap that in ch.4 Max made a bet with Sascha Petrie that Maria will win the Festival.

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Chapter 14: "Music hath charms to soothe the savage beast"

Georg drove around the back of the house and parked the car, but he didn't get out. He just sat for a long time, tapping his fingers restlessly on the steering wheel, disturbed by intrusive thoughts of his governess. The image of her standing near the field with her hair shimmering brightly in the sunshine like a golden crown seemed to be burned into his mind. It was even there when he closed his eyes.

He leaned his head back against the headrest, pondering what to do about his feelings for his beguiling governess. Loathed as he was to admit it, everything about her entranced him: her love of the children, her warmth and vivaciousness, her untameable spirit, her exquisite singing voice, and her formidable intellect. He shook his head in disbelief, even her impulsiveness was endearing to him. Usually he couldn't abide a lack of discipline and self-control, and certainly not in a governess.

The most astonishing thing was that she had torpedoed into his life and blown his meticulously regimented world to smithereens, and yet he could only feel profoundly grateful for what she had done. Uniforms, whistles, marching had all disappeared within days of her arrival, replaced with singing, laughter and joy. The children hadn't been this happy since they had Agathe, and nor, he had to admit, had he.

He rubbed the back of his neck wearily, wondering how the children would manage when Maria was gone from their lives. They would already have enough to cope with, on top of being sent away from Austria, and leaving him behind too. How would they manage? How would he manage? He dismissed the last thought irritably. Of course he would endure it. The most important thing was securing the children's safety. Which brought his thoughts abruptly to Elsa.

Could he trust Elsa to see to the children's happiness? Would she make a good mother and take care of the most precious things in the world to him? Her feelings for the children were of muted affection, that is, aside from the terrible scene with Louisa yesterday over the Finishing School. But surely they needed the unconditional love that they had had with their mother. They deserved no less.

He shifted uneasily. When the children left to attend schools outside Austria, if something happened to him would she be able to keep the children out of the rapacious maw of the Third Reich once the Anschluss came? He shuddered at the thought of them joining Hitler Youth, like so many youngsters in Germany.

Worryingly, Elsa had shown a disinclination to be concerned with politics, and had an alarming tendency to tolerate the intolerable. She often chastised him for not being more accommodating to the coming new order. At the Opera on that disastrous night weeks ago, she had rebuked him angrily for his outspokenness, telling him it was one of his worst faults.

Was it even fair of him to marry Elsa and expect her to face the consequences of his actions when he opposed the Nazis? She didn't share his convictions and yet she could be forced into exile because of him. They had barely discussed such matters after the tense encounter with Zeller. Ever since then, both of them had been curiously reluctant to progress in their relationship. They remained in a state of limbo. Perhaps they were both aware, deep inside, that they were standing at cross-roads, facing a very real possibility that they would take different paths now that the Anschluss was so close.

Clearly they needed to talk. He hadn't even had a chance to tell her that the girls wouldn't be attending her Swiss finishing school. Nor did he have any intention of sending the boys to the Theresian Military Academy, as she had proposed, not with the threat of the Anschluss looming. True, it was only yesterday that he had come to that decision, in no small part, due to their governess' passionate appeal on their behalf. But Elsa was bound to be enraged after all her efforts to secure them places in such prestigious schools.

Today, he resolved, they would talk. Everything needed to be settled one way or another and he had to have a strategy in place. Time could very well be running out.

As he sat in the car lost in thought, he was unaware of seven pairs of anxious, suspicious eyes watching him from a third floor window. Minutes later a stream of children poured out of the back door of the house, surrounding the car like an ambush, bombarding him with belligerent questions.

"-Where's Fraulein Maria?"

"-Why didn't she come back with you?"

"-We saw she had packed her bag with all her things."

"-Did you send her back to the Abbey? Are you angry with her because she didn't want you to send us to finishing school?"

"-She didn't do anything wrong, she was just trying to help us."

Georg got out of the car, taken aback by the unexpected attack. He held his hands up sternly to stop the barrage.

"Enough, children. I can't understand a word you're saying. One at a time please. Now what's all this fuss about?"

The children were momentarily silenced but not for long. Louisa spoke up, a definite note of hostility in her voice.

"Why hasn't Fraulein Maria come back with you? She left us this morning because she had a meeting with you, and then she went away in the car with you without even saying goodbye."

Georg wondered, bemused, where the affectionate girl of this morning had disappeared to. Clearly any threat to their cherished governess had them bristling with animosity.

Even Brigitte, who usually favoured him the most, chimed in, her voice laced with concern. "Also, Uncle Max said that she missed her morning music lesson. Did you send her back to the Abbey?"

"Ah, I see, you're all wondering about Fraulein Maria. It's quite simple. We had to attend to something in town and she decided to walk back part of the way. She should be along shortly."

"Why is her bag packed then?" Liesl asked worriedly.

Georg reached out to stroke her cheek, more entertained than annoyed by the interrogation. At the back of his mind, he felt warmed that the children trusted him enough to express their fears. It would have been unthinkable a month ago.

"Perhaps you had better ask her about that when you see her." Georg decided to drop that question on the Fraulein to sort out, realising she really had thought she would be fired once she confessed to her deceit. True enough, he would have sent her packing, normally. He refused to dwell on why he hadn't.

Gretl held her arms up, demanding to be picked up. Although she was long passed the age to be carried she was confident enough with him now to assert her rights, having missed out on that pleasure for most of her young life.

Amused, he picked her up, enjoying the feel of her soft little arms around his neck. With his heart full of tenderness for the children, and refusing to think about how devastated he would be when he sent them away, he ushered them inside.

"I bought some flowers for you girls. Marta can you get them from the front seat of the car please."

While the girls gasped with pleasure over the violets he had bought in town earlier, from Eliza, he teased them all.

"Now, you didn't really think that I had gotten rid of your beloved governess did you? If I did send her away, I have no doubt you would all have run off with her, and then where would I be without all your noise and chaos and arguing and bickering?

Most of them gave reluctant giggles, but Louisa said shortly, "Yes we would have run away with her."

Across the hallway, their governess opened the front door, looking troubled. But the expression vanished, replaced by a smile like beam of sunlight when seven eager children launched themselves at her as if they hadn't seen her in weeks.

Gretl scrambled out of his arms leaving Georg on his own to watch as his children flung themselves exuberantly at Maria, chattering excitedly, relaying their unfounded fears about her absence. Maria cupped their cheeks tenderly and returned their hugs. She even somehow managed to respond to their jumble of questions.

The love flowing between them was palpable. It was almost too painful for Georg to watch, knowing they would not have her for much longer. Whichever came first – the children leaving Austria or Maria returning to the Abbey, they would all be bereft, left with a void in their lives that could never be filled.

When her eyes met his across the hallway, he remembered his resolution to avoid her for everyone's sake, and most decidedly his own. Ignoring his pounding heart, he gave her a curt nod and turned on his heel, unaware of his governess' gaze following him involuntarily, hurt flickering in her eyes.

With grim determination Georg went to find Elsa.

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Although it was closer to lunchtime than breakfast, Elsa preferred to eat later since the excessive noise of the children at breakfast grated on her nerves. And frankly, after the scene yesterday with the shockingly rude and ungrateful Louisa she had no wish to see any of them right now.

Sitting alone, she sipped her tea, reflecting again on how tiresome it was to be in the countryside. Trees, lakes, mountains…. when you'd seen one you'd seen them all. After a dreary month in this Godforsaken backwater she felt she had seen enough wilderness to last a lifetime.

She shuddered delicately at the rural vulgarity of it all. Oh dear Lord, the entertainment! The coarse local yokels considered yodeling a refined art, and Georg had even stopped on the road one day to listen to some peasants playing the Alp Horn, of all things.

Aigen was so culturally barren, so devoid of excitement and sophistication, that even a dead rabbit on the roadside could draw a crowd. How she longed to be back in Vienna with its elegant charms and refined company. She looked forward to regaling her genteel friends with horror stories of her provincial adventures. They would wonder how she survived it.

She simply couldn't understand why Georg was so suddenly enraptured with it all. Where was the suave, sophisticated man she knew from Vienna? He might wish to play the part of country gentry but she did not.

Her mouth tightened, annoyed. That gutter-snipe governess seemed to have bewitched him somehow, dragging him and his children into the muck. Speaking of which, Elsa had been speechless a few days ago when Georg had encouraged the boys to help with mucking out the stables, and she had been outraged when he endorsed the governess' suggestion that his daughters climb trees.

How would they ever learn to become proper ladies and gentlemen if they were being encouraged to race about getting filthy, with torn clothes and scraped knees, and behaving like unruly urchins? No-one in decent society would ever accept such behaviour. She really must persuade Georg to return to Vienna to get his bearings again.

She looked up as Max came in. "Where on earth is Georg?" she demanded peevishly.

"Good morning to you too, Elsa," Max replied dryly, kissing her heavily powdered cheek.

He sat down. "Franz said he took Fraulein Maria to town and Georg muttered something to me on the way to the car about a waitress." He shrugged, perplexed.

Elsa's eyes lit up. "Oh, do you think Georg has finally come to his senses and is getting rid of that atrocious governess? Perhaps he has found her a job as a waitress. But really, she is too coarse even for that. Still, she won't be our problem any longer. What a headache she has been," she said, witheringly.

"Really Elsa, you're terribly hard on the little Fraulein. I find her enchanting, and that voice, my God that voice! When she sings it could move the heavens. And even you can't complain about her speaking voice any more, not after the children taught her Hochdeutsch."

"She may be able to speak without that dreadful dialect but she is still not, nor ever will be, a lady." Elsa declared haughtily.

"Hmm, we'll see," Max stroked his moustache thoughtfully. "I have plans for our dear little Fraulein, and I have feeling she will be able to surprise us all."

"What on earth do you intend to do? Drag her out of her convent to exploit her? Is there nothing you won't do? You're terribly unscrupulous, Max."

"I don't intend to exploit her." Max denied loftily, "but if she does want me to manage her once she bursts on the music scene, I will protect her interests fully."

"What in heaven's name are you talking about?"

"Well, I am in the process of persuading her to sing at the Festival. It will launch her stellar career. Believe me it will be even more than anything I could have dreamed of."

Ignoring Elsa's sceptical look, he continued.

"The biggest problem will be Georg of course. He is so ridiculously over-protective just because she's a postulant. I don't suppose you could use your influence with Georg to persuade him that she should sing at the Festival?"

Elsa preened, flattered that Max thought she had that kind of power over Georg. But if she thought about it a moment she hadn't even been able to convince him to get rid of the lowly governess over her hideously common accent.

She dismissed the thought. No matter how tediously independent Georg was, she felt confident that she would be able to make him see sense eventually. The trick was to make him realise what was best for his children, so that they could take their proper place in society.

Realising Max was awaiting a response she gave a coquettish laugh.

"Max you really are a beast. I could use my influence with Georg but do you really want that wretched girl to make a complete fool of herself? I am willing to concede that she can sing, but does she have the poise, grace and confidence to perform in the Festival in front of Austria's great and good? You do recall it's being broadcast live on the wireless? Even the Chancellor never fails to tune in. You are setting her up for a tremendous fall. But on your own head be it, when she runs in tears from the stage, gibbering with fright."

Elsa paused thoughtfully, reflecting on the possibilities of the downfall of the governess. Perhaps it might teach the little chit something about hubris and humility if she suffered a humiliating defeat. It might curb her impudent ideas, which were far above her station.

Max replied mildly, "I don't intend for her to fail. She has great courage. If she can take Georg on in one of his black moods and get the better of him, the girl can do anything."

Max had observed how the governess seemed to be able to captivate Georg without even trying, just through her singing alone. When he had mentioned it to the Fraulein she had blushed, and modestly attributed Georg's reaction to the music. Laughing, she had quoted the ancient poem by Congreve:

"Music hath charms to soothe the savage beast; to soften rocks or bend a knotted oak."

But, Max thought, it was rather more than that after observing the ruckus yesterday between Louisa and Elsa - some drama about a finishing school. Georg had been bellowing like a raging bull, but only minutes later, he had come downstairs after talking to the governess, quieter and calmer. By nightfall when Max looked in on Georg in his study after the Fraulein's singing lesson, Georg seemed positively enraptured.

It was most extraordinary, Max mused. The governess was like an enchantress, weaving intoxicating spells over the usually truculent Georg. It certainly wasn't just music soothing the savage beast. Max was wise enough not to say anything to Elsa, though surely she must have noticed herself.

Instead he cajoled her jovially. "And you are going to help me to get her to succeed!"

"I am not!" Elsa scoffed. "Why on earth would I want that squashed cabbage leaf to do well? She's going to be locked up in a convent anyway. What do I care what happens to her?"

"But think about it Elsa," Max said craftily. "What if she decides the Abbey is not what she wants to do with her life? It's clear to everyone how unsuited she is for it. It's only a matter of time before she realises that too. It's tragic to think of that voice silenced. It would be like trapping a nightingale in a cold, dark cave."

He could tell by Elsa's wary look that he had her attention, so he continued.

"I have a feeling that our young Fraulein will never be a nun. And if she decides on a singing career, who better than I to get her out of your hair? Once Georg realises the Abbey is not her destiny what if he asks her to stay on longer as his governess, for months, if not years? It's quite possible, given how much the children have taken to her."

Elsa glared at him for a moment then asked sourly, "What do you want me to do?"

"I need you to pay for a dress for her to look the part at the Festival. Jewels we can hire, but a gown will be expensive. At least for what I have in mind."

Elsa sniffed. "Why doesn't she make her own dress? I am sure we can find some potato sacks for her – something like that repulsive dress she arrived in," she said scathingly.

"Really, Elsa," Max chided her.

"I don't see you as her fairy godmother," Elsa responded, acidly.

"What if I sweeten the deal?" Max suggested enticingly. "What if I were to get invitations to the highlight of the Salzburg season – the most sought after event on the calendar: the Pre-Festival ball?"

Elsa gasped in amazement "You know I have been trying to get invitations to that for weeks. It's been impossible. How on earth did you get them? Last year even some of the Habsburg princes were there. And Baroness Eberfeld told me that this year the Queen of Rumania and her son the Crown Prince will be attending."

Max smirked and stroked his moustache complacently. "You forget my dear, I am one of the organizers of the Festival so of course I got tickets. I will escort our little Fraulein, and you of course, will go with Georg. It will be a chance to showcase her extraordinary gifts and give everyone a little taste of her wonderous talent before the Festival.

"So do we have a deal?" he asked persuasively. As she hesitated he added, "Elsa I have a lot riding on this: a small bet with Sascha Petrie. I can't wait to see that scoundrel seething with jealousy, oozing outrage. It's a matter of honour between us - to find the best talent."

Elsa sniffed disdainfully. "Honour among thieves, I should think. Alright, I agree to pay for the girl's dress. But now that I think about it, I need a new gown too. I can't wear anything that I brought with me. I simply must get back to the couturiers in Vienna. The ball is in two weeks. Heavens, there's not a moment to lose."

They both looked up as Georg walked in.

"Elsa - " Georg began but was interrupted.

"Oh darling, you're back." Elsa hurried to him and he dutifully kissed her cheek. "I have the most exciting news. Max has proven his usefulness for once and got us invitations to the Pre Festival ball. Can you imagine? It's the highlight of the Salzburg season."

"Elsa -"

"But Georg, it means I have to rush back to Vienna, right this minute. I need to get a fabulous gown for the occasion." She posed slightly, as if she were on a Parisian catwalk, an elegant hand on her hip, showing her stunning figure to its best vantage.

Usually that brought men to their quivering knees but Georg seemed strangely immune. His eyes slid away from her uncomfortably as he asked, "Why can't you wear what you wore to the von Helmsdof's party? That seemed nice." He vaguely remembered a glamorous golden gown, though it had been a little flamboyant for his taste.

Elsa looked appalled. "What, that old thing? And besides, it's de rigueur to not wear the same thing twice. I don't expect you know anything about ladies' fashion, but trust me this is important. This ball is so difficult to get invitations to, even with the best connections. Oh I know, it's nothing like the Embassy ball in Vienna of course, but for Salzburg it's quite the thing."

"Elsa, do we have to go?" Georg asked irritably. "If you really want to, can't Max take you?"

Elsa stared at him, aghast. "Not go?" she asked slowly, as if he were speaking a foreign language. "You can't be serious. I really think this country air is getting to you Georg. Some kind of rural malaise. But don't worry, darling, I know you'll enjoy it once you are there. Now, I simply must run. Max be an angel and drive me to the station."

"Wait, Elsa," Georg said firmly. "We need to talk. There are important matters to be discussed. They can't wait any longer."

"Georg, I am sure it can wait a few days." She glided out of the dining room before Georg could stop her.

Frustrated, he turned to Max, his temper brewing. "What the hell is this about Fraulein Maria singing at the Festival?" he demanded angrily, without preamble.

"Ah, that," Max gulped his coffee, wincing as it burned his throat. He got up hastily, dabbing his mouth with his napkin. "Well…. she would be simply marvellous, Georg. You've heard her sing. It's incomparable." He edged toward the door. "But I really have to run too if I am to get Elsa to the station on time. We can talk later." He slid out of the dining room as fast he could.

"Max!" Georg thundered, but Max was gone, leaving Georg alone and infuriated.

"Damn, damn, damn."

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"Pssst."

Startled, Maria looked around, wondering who was hissing at her surreptitiously, as she walked past the drawing room.

"Psst. Fraulein."

She turned to see Herr Detweiler looking comically furtive, trying to blend in near some heavy curtains. She laughed quietly, as he put his finger to his lips.

"Is he around?" He looked paranoid

"The Captain? I don't think so," she whispered back. "He's in his study." Maria was relieved that she had been able to avoid the Captain this afternoon, though it had been remarkably easy since he seemed to leave the room whenever their paths crossed.

"Come with me, Fraulein. I need to talk to you."

Maria followed him curiously. She had her own reasons for avoiding the Captain but she doubted they were the same as Herr Detweiler's. At least she hoped not. She held back a giggle at the thought of Herr Detweiler nursing an unrequited love for the Captain.

With a hunted look, he led her to a quiet corner. "I don't have much time. Georg is on the war-path looking for me ever since I got back from the station to drop Elsa off. Apparently he is becoming all 'mother-henish' about you singing in the Festival."

"But I haven't even said I'll do it," Maria gasped.

"But you've got to. It's important for Austria. And yes it's important for me too," he admitted, unrepentantly.

He added cunningly, "Besides, it's a chance for you to win a new roof for the orphanage the Abbey supports."

"What do you mean?" Maria looked baffled.

"Well er…I may have taken a bet, a small wager," Max admitted sheepishly. "It's with my arch nemesis Sascha Petrie, the rogue. If you win the Festival, Petrie has promised a new roof."

"Herr Detweiler, you really shouldn't be gambling," she scolded, affectionately. "It's a sin."

"I know, I'm a terrible fiend. But it's for a good cause – and I don't mean just for my own good, though that is a consideration. Just think of those dear orphans."

Maria had to smile at his feeble attempts at being public spirited.

He continued piously, "When you told me about those poor children that first night at dinner I knew I couldn't rest until I found a solution."

"That was very thoughtful of you, Herr Detweiler," Maria said ironically, amused at his fabrications. "But I haven't even decided if I will sing yet. Even if I do, there is no chance I would win."

"Trust me my dear, your singing could set the stars on fire. But first there's something else. You, Cinderella, are going to a ball!" he announced.

"A ball?" Maria couldn't believe her ears.

"The Pre-Festival Ball. It's a chance for you to capture hearts with your singing. It will give you the confidence to sing at the Festival."

"No really, Herr Detweiler, I am not the sort of person to go to a ball." Maria objected. "And as for singing, well, I just couldn't. It would be too intimidating."

"Nonsense my dear. It will be just a song or two. As a Festival organizer I can arrange it. But the thing is, we need to convince Georg about this. He really is so tiresome and overbearing," Max grumbled.

Maria was about to respond when she sensed movement behind Herr Detweiler. Her eyes widened apprehensively to see the Captain appear behind him, openly listening, his gaze flinty. He must have approached stealthily like those U-boats he commanded. She signaled frantically with her eyes to stop Herr Detweiler but he continued blithely.

"He feels he has to control everything, including you. Why are you twitching like that Fraulein?" he asked, puzzled.

"So, I'm overbearing am I, Max? Tiresome, hmm? Controlling?" Georg's tone was mild but that made it all the more menacing.

Max jumped guiltily and turned, but he recovered quickly. "Ah Georg, I've been searching for you all afternoon," he lied, glibly.

Georg snorted with disbelief.

Ignoring Georg's ominous demeanour and narrowed eyes, Max said cheerfully, "You're just the man we wanted to see. We have an announcement to make: I am escorting our dear Fraulein to the Ball!"

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A/N Thanks so much for reading, and for all the very kind words.