The next night, the room of the three older girls held no sleeping souls just yet. While Brigitta was wrapped in a book like usual, Louisa lay sprawled on her bed, staring at the ceiling in thought and absently twisting her yellow hair between her fingers. Liesl was at the window seat, searching for something she was expecting to see out the window. Before long, Louisa pulled out of her reverie and noticed.
"Liesl, are you looking for anyone in particular?" she teased. "I don't think telegrams are delivered this late."
Liesl made a face at her sister before turning her gaze out the window again. "Where are they? Those two always take evening walks together when it's nice out."
"You mean Father and Fraulein Maria?" asked Brigitta, looking up from her book.
"Mm-hm," said Liesl, still looking out for them. She shook her head. "They definitely would have passed by now . . ."
"Will someone please fill me in on what's going on between those two?" asked Louisa. Though she was thirteen and just beginning to turn into a woman, she was a tomboy still and didn't like to think about her body and life changing just yet, at least not while it was still summer.
"Well, they're courting, I think," said Liesl, turning to look at her sisters.
"And what exactly does that entail?"
"From what I've read about," said Brigitta knowledgeably. "Courting means when a man likes a woman and shows it to her properly. It's what a person does when they like another."
The three girls exchanged a smile and a squeal. "So have those two finally realized they are in love?" asked Louisa.
"Well, they definitely know they have feelings for each other," said Liesl. "They wouldn't be courting if they didn't. And as far as knowing they're in love . . . I don't know. I mean, I don't think Maria's ever been in a relationship with a man before, at least not a serious one. Whenever we've talked together, she's mentioned crushes but nothing as serious as –" Liesl paused, stopping herself from saying anything about Rolfe. Though only these two sisters and Fraulein Maria knew of the relationship between her and Rolfe, she didn't like to talk about it too much. This was her first real romantic adventure, and preferred to keep it to herself. Also, it had been a while since Rolfe had come with a telegram, longer than he'd ever been before. But she pushed those worries to the back of her mind, and resumed talking with her sisters.
"Either way, at least they're doing something!" said Brigitta triumphantly.
"And you know what else courting means, right?" said Liesl with a smile.
"What?" asked Louisa and Brigitta.
"From what I've read and all I've heard, a man never courts a woman to just show her he likes her. He always has some plan or hope for a future with that woman. No courting comes without intentions, or at least hope."
The girls all shared an excited smile. And that inspired a spark of an idea in Louisa.
"You know what," she said as she got off the bed. "I think I'll find out where exactly they are."
"Louisa, if they see you –" said Liesl, a warning in her eyes. "Are you sure this is a good idea?"
"How else are we going to get answers?" said Louisa, moving towards the door. "And don't worry about me being caught – if I can climb up to the governess's room with a jar of spiders in one hand, I think I can be sneaky enough to not get caught."
She flashed her sisters a mischievous smile before slipping out through the bedroom door.
The next morning before breakfast, all seven of the children gathered, by Liesl's orders, in her room. When the boys had rubbed their eyes and seemed fairly awake to listen, she began the meeting.
"All right, everyone, last night Louisa went on her own little snoop to find out what is going on between Father and Fraulein Maria."
"You did?" said Frederich, impressed. Though he and Louisa were often butting heads more than their other siblings, they shared the greatest of respect and understanding.
"Yup," said Louisa, who was feeling very pleased with herself after a successful mission. "They usually take a walk outside when it's not raining, at least that's what Liesl told me. But last night, when they usually pass beneath our window, we didn't see them at all. So I decided to see where else they could be. First, I checked both of their rooms –"
"Louisa!" exclaimed Liesl, her face beet-red and looking horrified.
"I just wanted to know if they had gone to bed early!" said Louisa defensively and honestly, realizing what else that could have meant and turning beet-red herself. Thankfully, the other five children had completely missed the implication, so hurriedly Louisa moved on. "So I sneaked down to the first floor and saw that a light was on in one room. Though the door was closed, I saw firelight streaming out from the cracks."
"What room was it?" asked Kurt.
"Father's study," said Louisa. "Though I was upset the door was shut, it ensured more security for myself. So I sneaked up to the door and listened to anything I could hear inside."
"What did you hear?" asked Liesl.
Louisa wrinkled her forehead. "I don't know . . . not specifically, anyway. I heard Father talking, but it was strange. As if he were reading poetry. Love poetry."
The other children gasped, and Brigitta's eyes lit up. "Oh, I wish I had been there! I might have been able to recognize the poetry!"
"Well," said Louisa. "I assumed that he wasn't just reading aloud to himself, but I didn't hear Fraulein Maria, so I looked through the keyhole." She paused as she smiled a secret smile.
"Well?" said Liesl impatiently.
"I had to lean at an odd and uncomfortable angle to spot them, but both were sitting on the study couch. Father was reading aloud from a book to her, and . . . he had his arm around her."
All of the children oooohed excitedly, and Liesl clapped her hands once.
"And Fraulein Maria?" asked Brigitta.
"She had her head on his shoulder!"
At this, all of the children got even more excited. Once everyone had calmed down, Marta said, "Does this mean Father and Fraulein Maria will get married, and she will never have to leave us?"
"Slow down, Marta," said Liesl, gently. "Right now, they are just getting to know each other. They aren't even engaged."
"Yet," said Kurt.
"We don't know that, Kurt," said Liesl, trying to be objective, but in her heart she knew that was where she wanted this to lead. Maria had become her best friend and older sister, and to have her as a mother would be the most natural and wonderful thing in the world. "Let's just see what time unfolds."
"What does that mean?" said Gretl, idly picking up one of Brigitta's more colorful books from the bookshelf to look at the pretty cover, though she only knew her letters now.
"It means we must be patient, and allow things to happen naturally," said Liesl. "One can't force these things, you know."
"But one can help it along, can't they?" asked Brigitta, who was looking at the book Gretl was examining; one of the back illustrations caught her interest. "Gretl, can I see that book?"
"What are you up to, Brigitta?" asked Frederich, watching his little sister search through the book to her destination.
"Gretl, Marta, how about we act out a fairy tale this morning?"
Both of the little ones instantly nodded yes to their favorite game, while the boys groaned. "Do we have to?" asked Kurt.
"You two can play a big dragon," said Brigitta, and smiled as they smiled, knowing that would appease them. "We can have Father be the prince this time."
"What's the plan, Brigitta?" asked Liesl, a slow smile spreading across her face as she began to understand what Brigitta was up to.
In response, Brigitta showed them the fairy tale she had turned to. All of the children smiled.
Then a knock came to the door and the children immediately snapped to attention, Brigitta closing the book with a snap. Fraulein Maria poke her head in, looking surprised at the sight of all seven of them gathered together before breakfast.
"What are you all up to?" she asked playfully, but not without wanting to know the answer.
"Oh, you know, just talking about what we want to do today," said Louisa, who had a small smirk for the Fraulein. "Marta and Gretl want to play fairy tales this morning, may we?"
"Of course we can," said Maria smiling. "Now, come on, breakfast is ready."
The children all eagerly got up and followed their governess down the stairs, the excited smiles on their faces not going away.
"Am I missing something here?" asked Maria when the children had led her into a small clearing in the garden, and the end of the hedge maze. "Usually I have to pry Gretl and Marta apart when they argue over who gets to be the princess."
"It's all right, Fraulein Maria," said Marta as Liesl laid out a blanket for Maria. "All Sleeping Beauty has to do is sleep, there's no fun in that."
"Well, thank you," said Maria, sarcastically but smiling.
"The point is, we wanted to give you a break, I suppose," said Liesl. "We know wrangling seven of us can't be easy."
Maria was surprised, but pleased, not suspecting any other possible motive for this act of kindness. She settled down on the blanket. "I'll be sure to fall asleep if I hear anybody coming."
"Yes, do that!" said Kurt excitedly, and that caused Maria to raise her eyebrows as the children rushed away.
Deciding to enjoy this moment to herself, Maria laid on her back on the blanket, looking up at the shifting white clouds in the blue sky, and began to daydream. But she wasn't aware that it soon turned to real dreaming, and truly became a sleeping beauty.
This was how Georg discovered her when he found her.
It hadn't taken much persuading from the children for him to join in the game; after all they had been through, Georg never missed an opportunity to be close to his children. And the game had been fun, playing the handsome prince who was to rescue the sleeping beauty. He did notice that their governess was not with them, but all the children would say is that they wanted to give her the morning to rest. All he thought of that was how kind of his children to offer that, but he did miss her.
Playing out the adventures with the children had been fun, from figuring out the riddles of the witch Brigitta to sword-fighting with his two sons, who turned into a dragon when he had beaten them both. His final task had been to go through the maze of hedges, where the sleeping princess would be at the end of it. Georg assumed that one of Marta and Gretl's dolls would be used for that role.
He was very wrong, he found, when he came to the end of the maze. There, lying on a blanket, was a true sleeping beauty. For a moment he forgot everything else as he allowed himself to gaze upon Maria, and how at peace she looked, how lovely in the late morning light. She lay on her back, with one hand resting on her stomach and the other at her side. Georg then realized, by the steady breathing, she was legitimately asleep. He chuckled.
He heard seven sets of smaller footsteps coming from the maze and quickly turned around and stopped the children before coming into the clearing. "All right, children, the game is over, go wash up for lunch."
"But, Father," said Gretl. "You have to kiss her to wake her up!"
Georg raised his eyebrows. Perhaps he was emanating his dearest wish onto his children's faces, but to him, they all looked as if this was what they had been waiting for.
However, he reached for the book Brigitta had brought as his authorship knowledge kicked in. "Let me see . . ." he murmured, searching for the right page. "Aha! It just says in this tale that the prince merely kneels down beside her and she wakes up. No mention of a kiss in the Perrault version of the tale."
Brigitta winced as all six of her siblings turned to her with annoyed looks. How could she have forgotten it was only in the Brother's Grimm version the princess woke up by a kiss?
"Either way," said Georg, who couldn't quite wipe a small smile off his face. "Your governess is really asleep. I'll wake her up, and you seven go wash up for lunch. We'll see you then, all right?"
Seven children who looked like their brilliant plan had failed all walked away. Once they were out of sight and earshot, Georg chuckled again and turned back to Maria, who was still sleeping peacefully. There was the smallest of smiles on her face; she must have been having good dreams. Georg gingerly sat down beside her, and his mind wandered back to the day of the picnic. How she'd found him in a similar position and had touched his face for the first time. It was the first time Georg had truly been reassured that Maria felt something for him that was akin to what he felt for her.
Georg thought of the fairy tale, and how easy it would be now to kiss her soft, pink lips, that looked so appealing now. Oh, how he wanted to . . . but he held himself back. He would not kiss her in such an intimate way without asking her permission. While the other kisses he had given her all could come from a friend, a kiss on the lips would make it all too clear his true feelings for her. Georg would not venture to do that unless he felt she was ready.
So, remembering what she herself had done, Georg reached out and tenderly brush some strands of her gold hair off her forehead. Feeling even more love for her, he leaned down and tenderly kissed her between the eyes.
When he pulled back and removed his hand, Georg saw Maria stir and wake up. She saw him sitting beside her and her eyes widened. She also blushed, which Georg didn't understand. Of course, how could he know she'd been dreaming of him?
"Georg? Wh . . . what happened? Did I fall asleep?"
"Most definitely," said Georg, smiling at her. "I had no idea you would take your role as Sleeping Beauty so seriously." After all, she was sleeping and is a true beauty.
Maria's eyebrows rose. "You were playing, too? I didn't know."
"I didn't know you were playing, either," said Georg. He thought of his children, who had obviously wanted to play matchmaker. While he found it sweet, he decided not to tell this to Maria, for fear of pushing her.
Maria sat up and rubbed her eyes. "Am I late for lunch?"
"Not at all, but it's in ten minutes. I would, however, like to talk to you about something."
"What about?"
"Well, I know your birthday is on the fifteenth, which is about a week and a half away. I wondered if you would like the children to know or not."
Maria was surprised by his question. "Why would you need to ask my permission, Georg?"
"When Max and I found out that your birthday was coming up, you didn't look exactly enthusiastic about it, almost as if it pained you. And you know if the children find out, there is no way they will let your birthday go by unrecognized."
"Hmm," said Maria, folding her hands in front of her face, resting her lips slightly against her joined fingers. "Before my parents died, I did look forward to my birthdays. After that, they were days I partially dreaded. My uncle always seemed to remember it, and show me just how much he hated that I'd been born."
The tone of her voice was hard, speaking of her pained past. Georg reached out to stroke her cheek. "And there are many people who are so blessed that you were born."
Maria smiled and leaned into his gentle touch. "It wasn't such a bad day. Usually I spent it at the Abbey with Dominik. The fifteenth of August is the day of the Assumption of the Blessed Mother; it's why my name is Maria. The nuns would always celebrate it with a beautiful service."
Georg smiled and continued to stroke her cheek, lost in her soft beauty.
"As for your question, then yes, I don't mind if you tell them," she finished with a slightly cheeky smile.
"How nice to hear," said Georg, who took her hand and they both stood up. "Then you won't mind if I gave you a birthday gift."
"What?" she asked, her curiosity and excitement now peaked. But Georg just kissed her hand and started to walk back towards the house, a smile on his face. "I suggest you wash up for lunch," he called over his shoulder with a wink, leaving a confused Maria behind.
Maria was the last to arrive at the table for lunch by a good few minutes. During that time, Georg told the children of Maria's upcoming birthday. As the children excitedly began to brainstorm what they could do for her special day, everyone was silenced when they heard a happy exclamation coming from the second floor. They could hear Maria coming to lunch the whole way down, for she was singing rather happily. While the children were officially confused, Georg had to bite back a smile.
She obviously liked his gift.
Maria entered into the dining room glowing and with a huge smile. "Hello!" she practically sang. "Who's hungry?"
"Fraulein Maria, why are you so happy?" asked Gretl as Maria sat down at her usual place beside her.
"Oh, nothing," said Maria, turning her gaze to Georg at the other end of the table, the huge smile never leaving her face. "I just love music!"
He allowed himself to smile now, and both began their lunch completely happy while the children ate without the confusion leaving their faces.
Every once and a while, Maria would pat her dress pocket to make sure the tickets to the opera for her birthday's eve were still there and were real.