Disclaimers, acknowledgements, notes, warnings, etc: Please see Chapter 01.
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The Sound of Music Chronicles
Part I
The Twelfth Governess
Chapter 15
After the frog
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"Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent."
Eleanor Roosevelt
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"I am not afraid of storms for I am learning how to sail my ship."
Louisa May Alcott
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"People are like stained-glass windows. They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, but when the darkness sets in their true beauty is revealed only if there is light from within."
Elisabeth Kübler-Ross
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Maria watched the children forlornly as they left her and Frau Schmidt, on their way to their morning walk.
They only needed attention, badly, and they were asking for it the only way they knew how. By playing those tricks, they also had their little revenge against their father and against whoever he hired to watch over them. She realized this, as she had seen it in the children she taught at the school. But there was something else about these seven mysteries. They seemed like they actually enjoyed playing these pranks, seeing what their governess's reaction would be and, finally, their father´s reaction to that. She wondered what they had done to the previous governess for her to have only stayed two hours.
"It must have been something dreadful," she sighed.
"I will show you to your room now. Please follow me," Frau Schmidt´s said gently.
Maria followed the elderly woman, who began chatting as soon as they started climbing up the stairs.
"It is a beautiful day outside, don´t you think?"
"Yes, marvelous!" She sighed. In a day like this, she should be hiking around the Untersberg, worried about returning to the Abbey in time. Who would have said, a week ago, that she would be climbing the staircase of a decorated, titled sea captain with seven children? Oh, she would probably have laughed at the ludicrous idea.
"I trust you had a good journey from Salzburg, Fräulein," the housekeeper said.
"Very good, thank you," Maria replied, trying to forget about the children and the sea captain for a moment and pay attention to what the kind woman was saying. She would never find her way around that enormous house if she did not at least look at where she was going!
"Are you tired?"
"How kind of you to ask, but no, not really."
"Oh yes, it was not such a long journey after all. Not for you. The previous governesses came all the way from Vienna, sometimes even farther than that – at least most of them did. They were worn out and weary when they arrived, and in bad need of a rest before they even had a chance to meet the children or the captain. You, on the other hand, look as fresh as a daisy."
"Thank you," Maria smiled.
They were now at the top of the stairs.
"This way, to the right, please. I will show you your part of the house," Frau Schmidt said.
Maria followed her dutifully, sensing that the housekeeper had just informed her, very tactfully, that as a governess she was not expected to mingle with the von Trapp family, unless, of course she was taking care of the children. Funnily, Maria would have expected such polite subtlety not from Frau Schmidt at first, but from her employer, the Captain. He, on the other hand, had been brutally direct, at least when he had told her about the rooms which were not to be disturbed. Well, it hardly mattered; such things did not need to be said. She had no intention of mingling with the aristocracy; her only concern was for the children.
"Here is your room," Frau Schmidt announced, when they arrived at the first door in a very long hallway. "I trust you will find everything you need. But if there is anything else you require, my room is just down the hall – third door to your left." The older lady informed her.
Maria thanked her, as they went inside the room. Her jaw dropped in awe. It was nothing more than a simply furnished room destined for the help, as the housekeeper would probably call them, but it was the prettiest Maria had ever seen in her life. Her attention was instantly drawn to a beautiful brass bed, wide enough for two or three Marias and – the room´s beast feature, in her modest opinion – the open windows in two of the four walls.
"Nice, isn´t it?" said Frau Schmidt amiably, noting her reaction.
"I´m… flabbergasted!" The woman chuckled. "I never had such a beautiful room in my entire life!"
"Well, you should see the rooms in the other part of the house. Not the children´s rooms, but the main guest room, for instance, or the master bedroom. Then you have a real reason to be flabbergasted, Fräulein" Maria just nodded, still in awe. "Yes, the staff is more than happy with our quarters here. The Captain is a very generous man, he always made sure that those employed in his household were adequately lodged. I think it has to do with being in the Navy for so many years, sleeping in cramped quarters – he sympathizes with us, I daresay. See? You have your own bathroom here, through this door."
Her own bathroom!
Maria blinked several times, not sure she had heard correctly. It was unbelievable, something unprecedented in her life. In the farm where she grew up, she used to share a bathroom with her aunt and uncle, and later, in the school she attended in Vienna and in the convent, she always shared her room with several other girls, including the bathroom. It was a small luxury that was unknown to her.
"You can unpack your belongings later, and perhaps you´ll have a little time to rest before the children return from their walk. The Captain has instructed me to show you first where the children´s rooms are, first, and the nursery, of course."
"Of course," Maria echoed, a bit sorrowfully, not willing to leave her beautiful room just yet. But then, she was there to work, not to dream away her summer holidays, in the Captain´s words. After the terrible beginning she had with him, she should start by following his orders strictly. Or, at least, she would try to.
Frau Schmidt took her to the opposite end of the house, to a long, elegantly decorated hallway, where all the main rooms of the house were located. Again, Maria noticed the complete absence of nautical symbols.
"The master bedroom is at the end of the hall," she informed Maria, with a look that clearly said "Don´t even go near it!"
"Oh, I wouldn´t dream of it," Maria replied in thought. Why would the woman think she would have any wish to throw herself willingly into a dragon´s lair?
One by one, she was shown the children´s rooms. Liesl, the eldest, was the only one who occupied a bedroom alone. Louisa and Brigitta, Marta and Gretl; and the boys, Friedrich and Kurt, shared theirs. The rooms were impeccable – well, that was hardly a surprise, considering how the manner in which the children had appeared before her, marching and wearing uniforms.
"When and where do those children play?" she wondered.
"Here is the old nursery." The housekeeper showed her into a spacious room. Maria sighed in relief – at last a sign that children inhabited the house. She would soon learn that it was actually the only place in the house where they were allowed a small degree of freedom. Finally she saw books and toys, neatly arranged in their proper places. Yet, such things that were absent in each of their bedrooms.
"This is where they children study and… oh well, play nowadays," the woman informed. "I suppose it is where you´ll spend a good part of your day as well."
The room was lovely, but Maria wasn´t sure about spending the whole time there, unless the weather was bad. Judging by the little she had seen of the house, the outside of it was even lovelier. And where was that gazebo the driver had mentioned? She burned to ask the housekeeper about it, but then she thought she would have plenty of time to find it on her own. It would be much more fun that way, her very first adventure in the von Trapp home.
After the grand tour, Frau Schmidt walked Maria back to her bedroom. Before she left, she had a few final words to the young governess.
"Fräulein…if I may give you some advice…"
"But of course, Frau Schmidt. As you can see, I need plenty of it."
"Very well. Do you know how many governesses we had in the past years?"
"I'm the twelfth – the Captain told me as much," Maria replied.
"Haven´t you ever wondered why so many?"
"It was the very first thing I asked the Reverend Mother, but she said that the Lord would show me when it was time."
The housekeeper smiled.
"He will, Fräulein, I am sure He will. Trust me, you don´t need to fear, there is nothing sinister going on, but…" The housekeeper rolled her eyes while Maria listened attentively. "There is a bit of a rebel in you, I can see that already. There is nothing wrong with that, but in the meantime, if you want to keep your job until September, it will go easier for you, if you go strictly by the Captain's instructions. Order and discipline – that is what is most important to him. I dare say it is the only way he knows how to live now. He does not tolerate any transgressions in that respect, and I'm afraid that there is little or nothing you, of all people, can do about it. Others have tried and failed miserably. Why should you be any different?"
"Well, I could…" Maria frowned.
"Hah – ha! Don´t even consider it. If you must know, in a few weeks – if you survive that long – it will be you who will be marching and breathing deeply, using that whistle to call your children. That is how the Captain is. One has to adapt to his ways, because changing him is impossible – unless you are some kind of miracle worker. Even the late Baroness had a hard time with him, sometimes."
"But…"
"Please, Fräulein, do try to understand. He had to follow rules all his life – that is how it is, not only in the military, but also in his family. In the war he was a famous officer, doing heroic deeds, all under water – which I can't imagine at all. Then came the defeat… But it was nothing compared to what happened to him when the Baroness died. Surely, the Captain loves his children very much – they are her children too, aren't they? However… he lost his connection with them when he lost her. He does not know how to reach them, nor they him. Very, very sad, indeed. The Baroness was such a remarkable woman, so full of life…"
With a sad sigh, Frau Schmidt finally left Maria alone to unpack her meager belongings, with a lot to think about that extraordinary family and the extraordinary man who commanded it.
Although she had one hour or two before duty called her again, resting or reading the Captain´s instructions – fifteen pages of it - became impossible.
She opened her carpet bag. The frog in her pocked had only been the beginning - the children had somehow managed to put handfuls of dirt into the top. Maria could only hope that no insects had been in the dirt as she continued unpacking.
When she was done that, she became aware of her feet, aching after so much walking and running on the countryside – not to mention the impromptu dance in the ballroom. With a sigh of genuine pleasure, she removed her shoes, and went into the bathroom to freshen up.
"Fresh as a daisy indeed," she grumbled, watching her reflection in the mirror above the sink. Her face looked flushed and sweaty, her hair was a complete, rumpled mess. No wonder that, with her, the Captain had not acted at all like the gentleman they all claimed him to be. "If you wish to be treated like a lady, act like one," that was what Theresa always said.
Maria had not lingered in there for more than five minutes, time enough to wash her face in cool water, comb her hair and take care of an urgent call of nature. The bath tub looked extremely inviting, but she would have to leave that for later, after she had tucked the children in bed. She giggled when she thought about the look in the Captain´s face if he realized that the governess was late because she was soaking in the bath tub!
As soon as she left the bathroom, she noticed something strange. Her leather hat, which she had left on top of the bed, was no longer there. Her shoes were also missing. She did not care very much for the hat, but the shoes – the only pair she possessed - were not to be found anywhere in the room. She looked everywhere – under the bed, inside the closet… Finally, she went into the hallway, not knowing where she would look next. To seek Frau Schmidt's help had been the only idea that occurred to her.
"I had a feeling you would be in need of my help, Fräulein," the woman said enigmatically just after Maria knocked at the door to her bedroom. That is why I did not go very far yet."
"The children?" Maria asked.
"Obviously. What did they do?" she asked. Maria's answer had been to look down at her shoeless feet. "Oh dear! I'm afraid this does not look good for you. The last time they used this trick, Fräulein Irmgard found hers in the… No, I don't think you'll need to know that. Not yet."
"Ooooh," she moaned helplessly.
"However, you should also know that they rarely use the prank twice – except, maybe for the welcome frog in the pocket. That one is a classic."
"Why am I not relieved to hear that? But what am I to do? I can´t walk around the house like this. The Captain would be…"
"Furious, of course, not to mention absolutely scandalized by your lack of propriety." Maria groaned. "Don't you have another pair to wear?" the housekeeper asked.
"Sadly not," was her forlorn reply.
"Well – let me walk you back to your room. Then I'll see if I can find you some shoes to lend you, at least until you recover your own. Mine won´t do, I´m afraid – you have bigger feet."
"If you only tell me where I am most likely to find them, I will go after them myself. You really don't need to go to such trouble, Frau Schmidt."
"Yes, I do! If for no other reason, that to keep a nice girl like you from falling prey to any more practical jokes before dinner. If I am not mistaken, they have already taken advantage of the fact that you have left your room again."
"But how? They could not possibly… We are out here in the hallway and we would have seen then if they passed us…"
"Fräulein Maria, they are the sons and daughters of one of the most astute and ingenious Naval Commanders Europe has ever known. Who are we to believe that they do not carry some of that in their genes…? Trust me, they do!" Looking at Maria's worried face; she had tried to put her at ease. "Don´t worry, your shoes will be found. I'll ask one of the little ones – luckily, Marta and Gretl are still too young to be able to keep a secret. Or maybe I'll ask the cook to bribe Kurt with a few extra apfelstrudel."
"Should we tell the Captain?"
"Oh no, dear," Frau Schmidt replied, worriedly. "You would be sacked on the spot."
Maria frowned. "But why? I was the victim, not the perpetrator?'
"The Captain´s logic about this is a little – ehm - twisted, I´m afraid. Don´t ask me why, it is just the way he is, it is how these things work around here. Perhaps it is good that you learn soon. He thinks that the pranks are the governess´s fault, so he fires them because they are completely unable to…"
"… maintain discipline," Maria finished. "Yes, I heard that one already."
Inside, she was fuming. What an infuriatingly stubborn man? Did it ever occur to the high and mighty Ritter von Trapp that the practical jokes were entirely his fault? Not the children´s fault, not the governesses fault - his! Maria already wondered if she would not have to yell that to him, at the top of her lungs, as if she were the Captain and he a lowly cadet. Well, if they pushed her far enough to lose control of her temper, she certainly would.
"Mmm – I´m sure you did. Oh well – let us go hunting for a pair of shoes now!"
Frau Schmidt's offer had proven to be valuable indeed. Because the door to Maria's room had been locked when she returned, so that the housekeeper had to use her key to open it – which she did with an "I told you so" glance.
"Wait," she had said, when Maria made a motion to get in. "The bucket of mud just inside the door – another classic, I'm afraid."
The bucket having been removed by Frau Schmidt, Maria went inside, feeling no less safe now.
"You are being brave, Fräulein. They had never been this persistent with any of the previous eleven governesses. They usually gave them a few hours to recover between one practical joke and the next. By this time, any of them would be running to the Captain," she had said before leaving.
Maria had felt tempted to do just that when she found her bath tub flooding with water... Her reaction was immediate and this time she did not try to disguise it – she let out a series of loud moans and screams of frustration, something she did not recall doing since she was an uncontrollable youth herself.
She had just closed the faucets and was about to start cleaning the mess when Frau Schmidt returned, informing her that she had seen her shoes on top of the oak tree by the stables…
"What am I to do?"
Eleven governesses – no wonder!
She was number twelve. If she wanted to survive another day with them, she would have to do something.
Eleven governesses, and it seemed that none of them had been successful with the children. They had probably reprimanded them each time a transgression had been made, or better yet, sent them to bed without supper. Or they had gone straight to their father, and in that case they were promptly dismissed. She vowed she would not make the same mistakes. Instead, she would teach them all a lesson, to the children and to their father.
She would not be vanquished. She would not crumble. She would show them all. She would die before admitting defeat. They would look up to her and respect her.
But how?
"Well, it's time that I try something different." What, she wasn't quite sure. "I'm here by God's will. He will show me the way."
And she began to pray.