After about two hours of misery, there was a knock at the door. A strong knock, unlikely to be that of a woman.
"I expect that is the doctor to see you," Frau Schmidt informed her.
Maria nodded, already mentally formulating pleas to that medical professional to be allowed to return to the abbey as soon as possible.
"Enter!" called the housekeeper softly.
The door swung open, but instead of the short, bespectacled physician, the Captain strode into the room. His eyes twinkled with joy when they beheld Maria's open ones.
"How do you feel, Fräulein Maria?" he inquired gently.
"Better," the girl croaked in a shaky voice, sinking deeper into her pillows and blankets, fighting the desire to pull the latter over her head completely, like Marta and Gretl did during thunderstorms. "I am sorry for all the trouble I caused."
"You could hardly help it," he said, in a teasing tone, coming nearer the bed, causing her heart to beat wildly and irregularly. "Unless running high fevers is a habit of yours?"
"Usually not, sir," she murmured.
"I hope not. Nothing was the same when you were ill."
Seeing an opening to start turning the man's mind back to his future bride, Maria quickly remarked,
"Yes, I heard that the Baroness unfortunately had to cut her visit short. A house always seems emptier after good friends leave."
The Captain looked at her sharply, then glanced at her nightstand, and then said to the housekeeper who had until then been sitting quietly in her bedside chair,
"Frau Schmidt, it seems like there is not a lot of water left in the pitcher, and Fräulein needs to drink as much as possible after her ordeal. You can go to refill it now, and I will watch the patient for you for a few minutes."
The older woman saw through his ploy perfectly, but had no choice but to nod and obey the direct order of her employer. Collecting the jug, she went out of the room.
Georg took another step nearer to the bed.
"Maria," he said softly, so very gently, "Elsa's leaving was a welcome relief to me. Things were out of place while you were ill because we missed and worried about you."
The young woman shook her head as forcefully as she could.
"No, sir, that is not-"
"That is exactly how it is," he cut in uncompromisingly. He bent over her tenderly. "Maria, Elsa told me what she said to you the night of the party, and apologized for it."
"But she was completely correct!" Maria gasped out, blushing and turning pale by turns as her emotions raged confusedly. "My place is at the abbey, yours is with her! You will see that soon enough!"
"Only the Lord and you can determine whether your permanent place is at the abbey or not. But whatever you choose, my place is not with Elsa. I think, as a man in his forties with seven children, who has already been married once before, that I know my own feelings quite well. Much, much better than a Baroness from Vienna knows them." This reasoning silenced Maria, who gazed up at him with stunned eyes. "And I can hardly marry someone, when I am in love with someone else."
A little cry broke out from the governess's throat. Even with her inexperience in romantic matters, there was no mistaking his meaning. He loved her!
Haltingly, she confessed,
"It…it has been quite some time since I realized that I would never make a good nun. I simply clung to the abbey because I had nowhere else to go. And I knew that I would not be allowed to make my vows...the Reverend Mother would eventually have to dismiss me."
A hopeful smile began to hover around the Captain's lips.
"Now you do," he said softly. "And I hope you will stay here for a long time, as my wife."
Maria's eyes filled with tears. She did not feel equal to speaking at that moment, but the look in her eyes told the Captain everything he needed to know. Very slowly, he leaned over, and pressed a tender kiss on her lips.
…..
Two days later, the Von Trapp children found themselves being summoned to their Fräulein's room.
When they filed in, Fräulein Maria was sitting up in bed, wrapped in a warm shawl. Their father stood at the side of the bed.
"What is it, Father?" Liesl asked. "Why have you sent for us?"
"Now that she is feeling better, Fräulein Maria and I have been speaking a good deal, and we have decided that I need to ask your permission for something."
Seven pairs of wide eyes stared back at him. Their strict father never asked for their permission, even when he left home for weeks at a time. What in the world could this mean?
"I would like to marry your governess and make her your new mother. May I?"
A moment of silence. Then, a shout of unbelievable joy reverberated throughout the room. One after another, they enthusiastically cried out 'Yes!' and dashed at Fräulein Maria, smothering her with hugs and kisses, despite their father's rather half-hearted commands to let her rest. Maria caught her fiancé's eye over the tangle of arms and children's heads, and together, they shared a warm smile and silent laugh.
…
A few miles away, a few nuns were walking around their garden, singing a familiar tune during their recreation, with slightly different lyrics than previously.
"How do you solve a problem like Maria?
How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?
You send her to a Captain's house,
make her a governess,
of seven children,
and marry her off!"
THE END!