A/N: because despite it all, Elsa deserves happiness too...
Elsa Shraeder was a woman who notoriously valued her beauty sleep. Never one to rise with the sun, she preferred to doze until long after breakfast - much to her husband's chagrin. With all the military precision that a life in the navy had ingrained in him, Georg would always rise at the crack of dawn and disturb her precious rest. On this particular morning however, it was not Elsa's husband, but her lover who lay beside her - a man who, like her, appreciated the many benefits of a morning spent in bed.
She'd met Diedrich Helstrom at a Viennese ball a month or two before her second wedding, though of course the affair hadn't started until some time after that. He hadn't been amongst the aristocracy at the ball but had instead formed part of the orchestra that'd been playing that night. He was a musician, a fine musician - well respected in his field, though from a more humble background than Elsa was normally accustomed to in her glittering circle of friends. It was perhaps for that reason that she'd been shocked by just how much the man had intrigued her upon their first introduction.
Like every other man she'd ever had the pleasure of meeting, he was charming, witty, graceful - but unlike the rest, he came with a fiendish playfulness that she begrudgingly admitted reminded her a little of a certain Max Detweiler. Perhaps it was a mischief that belonged only to those who lived among high society while never quite being part of it. Either way, Elsa had been scandalised by his unabashed frankness at first, and she had told him as much, declaring that he was exhibiting a considerable lack of decorum. But he had merely chuckled, handing her a champagne flute, before saying: "Works of art make rules; rules do not make works of art."
"Claude Debussy!" she'd named the quoted composer instantly, impressed not only by his knowledge but by his sophisticated response where other men would simply have apologised awkwardly and sauntered away.
"Yes, a favourite of yours?" He'd asked, and while she didn't much care for the finer points of musical history, she'd nodded - for Debussy was indeed a favourite. From there they had got to talking, before she'd eventually bid him farewell and rejoined the rest of the ladies in attendance.
She didn't see or think about Diedrich again until after she was married, during her first trip back to Vienna as Baroness Von Trapp. They'd bumped into each other for a second time during a luncheon, since he happened to be friends with another gentleman in attendance - and again they'd got to talking. It wasn't until her fourth or fifth trip to the city however, that she realised just how much she hoped to bump into Diedrich whenever she was in Vienna - and the implications had rather shaken her.
They ran in very much the same circles and sure enough their paths had continued to cross, sometimes with Georg in attendance, other times not. Inevitably she and Diedrich had grown familiar with one another, an easy friendship blossoming - but Elsa had continued to ignore the obvious signs that something more significant was perhaps developing between them under the surface. She was not a naive woman - she'd recognised the way that Diedrich had begun to look at her. It was a look that set her body aflame in ways she hadn't felt since she was a virgin bride, a look that Georg had once bestowed upon her - before the arrival and subsequent departure of a certain young governess...
It had taken Elsa a good few months of being baroness Von Trapp to realise that winning her husband's hand in marriage did not mean that she'd won his heart. While she'd succeeded in eliminating her one true threat the night that Fraulein Maria had fled the villa, it had soon become apparent that the girl had taken Georg's heart with her. As it turned out, the husband Elsa had hoped for in Georg Von Trapp had never existed. The man she'd thought she loved was gone. And ridding the villa of fraulein Maria had done nothing to bring him back to her.
She knew now that she'd made a terrible mistake in marrying Georg, and an even greater mistake in separating him from the girl he'd fallen in love with. A year ago she would've done anything to win his affections but she had soon come to realise that it was impossible to truly love a man when his heart belonged to another. Rather than solving the problem, marriage had torn them further apart - and Elsa had grown lonelier with every week that had passed. That was, until a night at the Viennese opera changed her life forever.
It had been a cold night, she remembered, and Diedrich had been playing in the opera's accompanying orchestra. Though the sopranos on stage had been quite magnificent, it was he who'd held her full attention for the entire evening. And it wasn't until she'd found herself alone with him in her villa after the performance that she'd realised the full extent of their forbidden desire for one another.
They'd been talking, laughing, flirting over digestifs in her drawing room, all the while convincing themselves there was nothing untoward going on between them. That was, until the laughter had died, and Diedrich had stared at her with such adoration that she'd felt her lungs entirely constrict, the room pulsating with a new and dangerous charge.
"Elsa.." he'd rasped, recognising the desire in her own eyes and deciding to take a leap of faith, "I know I ought not to... but I have to confess, for I fear I might go mad. I need you desperately.."
Trying to make light of the situation despite the uncontrollable pounding of her heart, Elsa had given a light titter of laughter and smacked him playfully on the arm, "you mean you need my money desperately!" She'd teased - a running joke between them that poked fun at his humble background. But there had been no laughter in his face as he'd moved gradually closer.
"No.." he'd whispered, running a hand down her cheek, "Just you. Only you."
"Don't," she'd begged suddenly, her anguish evident, "Don't say another word, please."
And he hadn't. Instead, he'd taken her face in his hands and kissed her. That night, he'd made her come alive in ways she'd never experienced before. She'd felt wanted, adored and cherished by someone who needed her desperately. No one had ever truly needed her in her whole life. And it was perhaps for that reason that she found herself falling accidentally and irrevocably in love with Diedrich Helstrom while married to another.
At times she felt guilty for her sins, knowing that if it wasn't for her own misjudged deception then Georg might have found happiness elsewhere all those months ago, and she and Diedrich perhaps would've met under better circumstances - free to court one another properly, openly.
But retrospect was a wonderful thing...
"Darling..." Diedrich stirred beside her, reaching sleepily for her waist and pulling her to him, nuzzling groggily into her neck, "please tell me I'm not the only one suffering after that exquisite second bottle.."
Immediately she smiled, feeling her mood lighten at his touch.
"A lady never overindulges, Diedrich darling," she simpered teasingly, "you ought to know that by now."
"A lady indeed!" he retorted, his tone laced with amusement, "too bad I know better!"
Pretending to be scandalised she smacked him playfully from over her shoulder, "you are outrageous!"
"Not at all," he chuckled, turning her round for a kiss, "I'm a very charming maverick."
When their laughter ebbed away, his face turned grave and he stroked a hand down her cheek.
"Do you remember what you promised me last night?" He murmured, his eyes etched with apprehension.
"Of course I do..."
"And will you?" He asked, clearly afraid she'd changed her mind.
She sighed heavily and cupped his face. It would not be easy, she knew - but she'd put it off for long enough. For once, she needed to consider not only her own feelings but those of the people around her. Past mistakes had proven that to her in spades.
"Yes darling," she pledged, watching him close his eyes in relief, "I'll tell him everything when I get back to Aigen. I promise..."
Georg stared through the window of his study with his hands clasped behind his back, watching the children play in the afternoon sun with a heavy heart. Elsa would be back soon, and he knew the inevitable conversation would need to be had, that he would need to end his marriage by whatever means possible. Divorce was unconventional, almost unheard of in the highest circles of the aristocracy - those who were in unhappy marriages simply took lovers on the side and spent as much time apart as they could get away with. But Georg knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that he couldn't bear to live that way. One night spent with Maria without being able to call her his own was painful enough. A lifetime would surely destroy him.
Not that it mattered - for Maria belonged to someone else regardless of Georg's marital status. He had insisted that his marriage was already over and she had refused him anyway - driven, no doubt, by guilt towards Alfred and fear that she would tarnish the Von Trapp name if Georg were to love her openly. He suspected that, much like the circumstances of ten months ago, she did not deem herself worthy of his family's love. And it devastated him that he hadn't been able to convince her otherwise.
The fact still remained however, that he needed to tell Elsa the truth - that his heart belonged to another and that he couldn't remain married to someone while being in love with someone else. Even if he never saw Maria again, he was better off alone than with a woman who deserved better than his half-hearted affections. He'd toyed with the idea of confronting Elsa about her own affair but had decided that the indiscretion was irrelevant. Whether she chose to tell him herself would remain up to her - their marriage was over anyway.
The sound of the front door opening and his wife's voice instructing Franz to take her bags upstairs pulled him from his reverie, and he took a deep breath, squaring his shoulders in an attempt to find courage. It was time - and mere minutes later, Elsa was knocking at his door, no doubt knowing that she would find him in his sanctuary.
"Georg.." she greeted a little stiffly once he'd given permission to enter.
"Elsa.." he replied tersely, crossing the room and giving her an obligatory kiss on the cheek, ignoring the obvious lack of affection in the gesture, "How was your trip?"
"Fine.. just fine, thank you," she patted her hair awkwardly while he poured himself a much needed whiskey, "And the Goldener?"
"Hmm? Yes, yes.. all splendid.."
An impenetrable silence followed, the air thick with a bizarre tension as Georg struggled to find the words, gulping on his drink to take the edge off. He knew he needed to confront the situation head on, that he ought to put an end to their awkward suffering sooner rather than later - but just as he opened his mouth to speak, Elsa beat him to it.
"Georg.. " she flustered, her face a sudden picture of discomfort, "there's something I've been meaning to tell you," she seemed uncharacteristically nervous, "Something I'm not particularly proud of-"
"Is this about your affair?" He heard himself ask, and he watched as the shock spread across her face, the blood draining from her cheeks. She recovered quickly however, with all the composure that a life in the aristocracy had taught her. Perhaps she could read in his eyes that he'd known all along.
"I.. I was going to say something else actually," she replied a little breathlessly, her voice laced with a mournful acceptance, "but I suppose we can start with that.."
"I've known for a while Elsa," he sighed honestly, placing his drink on the nearby desk, "You've been unhappy - I'm sorry," he forced himself to look at her and hoped his eyes were kind, "We've both been unhappy.."
Her gaze shifted to the floor under his scrutiny and she nodded regretfully in wordless agreement, a lump forming in her throat. He was right - they'd both been unhappy for far too long now.
"When did it start?" he pressed gently, knowing the answer hardly mattered anymore.
"A few months ago.." she whispered, her voice so unlike her own.
"Around about the same time we both realised our marriage was a mistake?"
Another wordless nod and Georg paused for a moment, allowing the revelation to sink in.
"And this gentleman of yours.. " he continued eventually, his voice soft, "does he make you happy? Does he treat you well?"
Again she nodded, a sad smile pulling at her lips in response to his compassion.
"Then that's all I need to know," he said, returning her woeful smile with one of his own, "Now," he gestured for her to take a seat, "what was it you were going to say before I interrupted?"
If she was startled by his lack of anger on the subject, she didn't show it. Instead she took a shuddering breath, settling into the closest chair, her eyes glassy with unshed tears, though she attempted to keep her tone light, "I was going to say, Georg darling, that there's something I've been meaning to tell you about.. about the night of the party.."
Instantly Georg knew what she was going to confess, and he had to admit that he was shocked at her decency - even if it was ten months too late.
"What of it?"
She hesitated for only a moment but it was enough for Georg to realise that it was guilt he could see playing out across her face. He was glad to know she had a conscience after all.
"It.. it was I who caused Fraulein Maria to flee to the abbey that night," Elsa revealed, staring into her lap, "I told her things to frighten her into leaving. I could see the way the two of you looked at each other and I feared that I would lose you. What I failed to realise-" she smiled sadly, "was that I already had."
He didn't speak for long moments, striding back to the window as he thought about the direction he wanted his future to take. It would be very easy to blame Elsa for everything that had come to pass, but he knew that he too had to take responsibility. No one had forced him onto the path he had chosen - he alone had decided to tread it. And it was hardly Elsa's fault that he'd ended up falling for another.
"Did you not stop to think about how your actions might be ruining everybody's future happiness?" He murmured, "including your own?"
"You loved her didn't you..." Elsa replied from somewhere behind him, her voice so quiet that Georg thought he might've imagined it. But there was no mistaking the melancholy in her tone - and he sighed, turning to face her with a mournful nod.
"I still do," he whispered.
"Even after all these months?" She asked, though the look in his eyes was answer enough.
"Always."
Neither of them said a word then, the room thick with the implications of their confessions, both of them lost to thoughts of what life could've been like had things worked out differently, had they both made the right choices.
"I'm sorry Georg, truly I am," Elsa broke the quietude with remorse, and he could tell that, for once, she meant every word.
"I'm sorry too," he muttered regretfully, turning back to the window.
"If I could, I'd go to the convent myself and -"
"She never joined the convent," Georg revealed, noting the brief surprise that flitted across Elsa's face in the reflection of the window pane.
"Oh?"
"I'm afraid I haven't been entirely honest with you either," he disclosed, taking a seat behind his desk and picking up his glass, swilling the amber contents absentmindedly, "A week or two ago I bumped into Maria in town," he confessed, "She left the abbey shortly after returning, you see. We got to talking and.. well-"
Immediately Elsa held up her hand to silence him, "I think I can guess at the rest," she smiled wistfully, knowing all too well how her own affair had started.
Grateful that she was sparing him the awkward explanation Georg nodded, a silent understanding somehow passing between them that their marriage was coming to its natural end, that they'd formed an eventual truce of some kind. They were both responsible in their own way - she for her manipulations and he for his cowardice.
"oh Georg," Elsa sighed heavily, moving to perch on the edge of his desk, shaking her head with rueful sadness, "what an awful mess we managed to make of things."
"We both did wrong," he muttered, his shoulders heavy with the weight of the world, "The question is, how do we fix it?"
Elsa pondered for a moment, her face suddenly looking wearier than Georg had ever seen it.
"Well," she breathed defeatedly, pulling herself from the desk and beginning to pace the length of the room, "it will be.. frowned upon - our separation. There's no doubt about that."
Georg grunted his agreement and watched her pace, caring very little for what others would have to say on the subject. He was about to tell her as much but she seemed too deep in thought to acknowledge him.
"But we can be.. discreet about the situation," she muttered, as though to herself, and Georg's curiosity suddenly heightened. Just what exactly did she have up her sleeve?
"Divorce is out of the question, of course," she continued, "but perhaps-" she halted and turned to face him,"- an annulment?"
"An annulment?" He snorted, rolling his eyes, "on what grounds?"
Elsa's lips suddenly curved into a devilish smile then, her eyes sparkling, "On the grounds of defect of willingness, darling.." she simpered, and he merely stared at her with eyes narrowed.
"It would require a teensy weensy loophole, I'm sure," she muttered conspiratorially once again, "but one I believe that I can negotiate with friends in high places."
Georg shook his head incredulously, an amused grin beginning to tug at his lips despite himself.
"A marriage deemed invalid on the basis of defected willingness.." he murmured, his eyes sparkling with humour.
"Indeed," Elsa smirked surreptitiously, the irony not lost on either of them, "seems rather fitting, wouldn't you agree?"
Given that his proposal had been based on a lie he supposed the description was fitting, in its own bizarrely humorous way. Hadn't Elsa used manipulation to indirectly bend his will, after all? Despite everything they'd both put each other through, he couldn't help but marvel at her willingness to take responsibility, as well as her intellect in finding a possible loophole in their situation. Using her many connections and her way with people as a means to an end was something Elsa no doubt excelled at - and for once, it would work in Georg's favour. Whether it held up in court was another matter entirely, but he had faith that when Elsa Shraeder put her mind to something, she would find a way.
"Consider it done, Georg darling."
Baroness Machiavelli indeed, he thought to himself with a knowing chuckle - but instead he said;
"Thank you, Elsa. Truly."
And he meant every word, grateful that she would do what was necessary and altogether relieved that she would find her own happiness elsewhere. What would become of his own heart however, he still didn't know.
"Make sure the children understand, won't you?"
He nodded, knowing it would be up to him to ensure the children didn't suffer the fallout for any indecencies the thick-headed adults in their lives had committed.
"Now," she tittered with false bravado, though some of her previous spirit had indeed returned, "if you'll forgive me, I'm going to go upstairs, collect my little bags and return to Vienna where I belong."
She smiled then, a warm, gentile smile full of compassion, a silent acknowledgment passing between them that they had finally forgiven one another, though wistful tears still laced her eyes.
"Auf Wiedersehen, darling."
Turning on her heels she sashayed out of the room, leaving him with a heavy heart for the way things had turned out. But it had been a necessary evil, a twist of fate that brought them both one step closer to achieving their own happiness.
"Auf Wiedersehen, Elsa."
A/N: I always felt a little sorry for Elsa in the film. Even though she manipulated Maria she did so out of desperation because she had to watch helplessly while her man fell in love with another. Normally in my stories I write her as being evil because it's easier to get rid of her and easier to side with G+M, but this time I wanted to keep things a little more complex. I think if Elsa had known Georg would never get over Maria, she perhaps would've accepted defeat the night of the party. Both G and E have done wrong in their marriage and they both had their reasons. Both are sorry and both forgive each other and are ready to move on. Sorry to the Elsa haters amongst us! Maybe now both G and E will find their happiness apart.
Also I hope you don't think the way I've handled their break up is a cop out. Elsa would no doubt have friends in high places who could take care of their situation. And I wanted to show that she and Georg finally understand one another. Anyway, thoughts much appreciated!