A/N: This is a rewrite of chapter 4, Reunions and Unions. Additions begin in the fourth paragraph. I’m posting this in gratitude to ForeverJulie, whose comments and suggestions to ‘put more meat on the bones’ were almost entirely instrumental in my decision to give this chapter another go – hopefully it’s still lean meat and not too much fat. :)

Chapter 4b: Reunions and Unions – Take 2

* * * * *

“Isn’t he here yet? It’s already past 9:30!” Louisa seemed to speak for all of the children; they were all anxious for their father’s return.

Maria could scarcely believe she was about to see Georg. She’d never in her life experienced a longer four weeks. Between the rehearsals for the festival, the wedding plans, the escape plans, while still managing a household with seven children, the weeks had been a bone wearying whirlwind of activity.

Competing in the festival two days earlier had felt like a cacophony of the senses. Although she knew she was relieved that the family had placed first, she’d barely been able to feel it. As the children and everyone else celebrated around her, Maria had remained quiet and subdued. Numbness was beginning to overtake her much of the time; Maria was too overwhelmed with everything around her to feel much of anything anymore. This was not the way she’d expected to feel on her wedding day.

A car horn sounded outside. The children reacted immediately, rushing to open the door and run outside. Maria waited a moment, offering up a silent prayer. As she walked slowly toward the door, she heard the children’s voices and laughter. The voices blended together, with each of the children trying to be heard above the others. To Maria, the sounds were muffled, as if she were underwater, straining to hear through a barrier. She felt the tightness in her chest threatening to squeeze the air out of her lungs. Why could she not break through it?

Maria walked outside and watched as Georg picked up Gretl, tossed her in the air and caught her. The girl shrieked, laughing so hard that she shook. Georg laughed along with her, the sound seemingly contagious as the others joined in boisterously. He shook hands solemnly with Friedrich and Kurt before crushing them to him in a bear hug with the order: “Come here!” He bowed deeply to Liesl, Louisa, Brigitta, and Marta and kissed their hands with flair. They joined in the game and curtseyed flamboyantly, giggling more like school girls than ladies of the court. Georg continued reaching out to touch each of the children, a broad smile on his face. He seemed to be reassuring himself that they were real, that they would not disappear.

Watching the scene, something came loose inside of Maria. She grabbed onto the doorframe as she felt her knees weaken. She had not been willing to admit to herself how much she’d feared that something would go wrong, that Georg would not be able to return. Had that been the case, she would have endured, of course. She would have taken care of the children, of course. But he would not have been with her. Now that she could see him again, the crushing weight she’d been carrying seemed to dissipate, and suddenly she could hear again, she could breathe again, she could feel again. Fervently, she gave thanks to the Lord. Georg was safe; he was home.

At that moment, Georg looked in her direction. Even though he couldn’t know her thoughts, he could see in her face something of her struggle. He stilled instantly, concern evident in face. They stared at each other for a time; it could have been a second or an eternity. The rest of the world seemed to fade away. With a final touch of the children, Georg made his way toward Maria. She closed her eyes as he walked closer, silent cleansing tears of relief and gratitude rolling down her cheeks. Then they were in each other’s arms, and everything was all right again.

* * * * *

“The press has been most cooperative. The papers have followed the wedding story for weeks. And the festival publicity has only added to the romance of it all.” Maria, Georg, and Max were gathered in the study; Max was in his element reporting on the success of his plans.

“Max, I don’t think anyone could have done more than you’ve managed to accomplish. I’ve been granted a five-day leave before I’m to report back for duty. Will everything be in place in time?” Georg held onto Maria’s hand, unwilling to let her out of his sight. She’d weathered the four weeks admirably, but the strain she’d been under was evident. She had not said much since his return, and her eyes had stayed on him almost constantly. Georg was worried about her.

“I had an unexpected ally with those plans. You’ll never guess, Georg.” Max’s eyes were twinkling in amusement. Georg looked questioningly at Maria. He was relieved to see her lips curving up at the corners and a smile peeking through her eyes. He felt a sudden urge to gather her up in his arms, but he settled for lacing his fingers through hers as he waited for her to speak.

Maria looked at their tightly joined hands and smiled to herself, remembering the first time he had taken her hand like this, when she’d been about to leave the house and he’d stopped her at the door. So much had changed since then.

“The Baroness Schraeder has a home near the Swiss border. She’s invited us to stay there when we pass through the city, although she’ll be out of the country at the time. The house is enclosed on her private lands, and the surrounding woods will provide protection.” Maria laughed at Georg’s astonished expression. She could see him struggling to speak, unable for a moment to utter more than a choked sound. She laughed again, feeling freer than she had in weeks. She put her hand on his cheek, so grateful that he was close enough to touch again.

“Baroness Schraeder? Good Lord, how did you manage that?” Georg exclaimed as soon as he found his voice. Her name was the last he would have expected to hear.

“Elsa has been keeping company with a wealthy nobleman. By all accounts, he’s a good man. She appears to have fallen in love, in truth this time. Apparently she’s feeling generous. She says she never would have met him if you and she had not split.” Max chuckled at Georg’s still incredulous expression.

“Well,” Georg said, still somewhat at a loss for words. “I suppose we’ll just have to accept this as a blessing of our plans.” Georg smiled and squeezed Maria’s hand. He thought of what she had once said, one of her Reverend Mother’s sayings: ‘When the Lord closes a door, somewhere he opens a window.’

“There are still a few more details to iron out. I’ll be busy making the final arrangements to coordinate them with the tour. But rest assured; all will be ready.”

Max’s confidence surprised Georg. It seemed that the leadership role he’d been forced into had helped the man discover something in himself, something than ran deeper than self-interest. Whatever had led to the new and improved Max, Georg could only be pleased and impressed. He was about to express his thoughts when Frau Schmidt entered the study.

“Pardon me, but it’s time for Fraulein Maria to begin preparing herself for the wedding.” Frau Schmidt bowed and left the room.

Maria looked at Georg, searching his eyes for assurance. He leaned over to brush her temple with his lips.

“Max, would you give us a moment?” Four weeks of separation was a long time, given all that was happening and all that was about to happen. Georg needed to know what Maria was thinking and feeling. He needed to reassure her.

“I’ll see you both at the church.” Max took his leave.

Georg covered both of Maria’s hands with his own and rested his forehead on hers. He waited until her breath matched his. When he felt her relax against him, he began to speak.

“A lifetime ago I had everything I thought I could ever want. I was in love, married to a marvelous woman. We shared years together that were happier than I ever dreamed they could be. Our children were our blessings; they were seven manifestations of a love so strong it could not be contained simply between the two of us. I had a career and a country I felt proud of. I had everything.”

The words were not what Maria had expected. She was instantly caught up in what Georg was saying. She felt released from her own worries as his words captivated her. She leaned back a little, needing to see his face, to see his truth.

“We are not always prepared for the blows that come our way. When Agathe passed away, I was devastated. I was unprepared for the loss, for the emptiness. I was unprepared to raise seven children on my own. Even the career and country I was so proud to serve began to fail me as I could no longer believe in the direction in which it was headed. I did the only thing I was capable of doing; I withdrew into myself. Although I had begun to move past it somewhat by the time I met you, the man I became is essentially the man you found when you arrived.”

Georg had never spoken of his losses or his suffering to anyone. Even now, speaking the words aloud was difficult. After having tried to bury it for so long, he preferred not to dwell on it. There was no one he had wanted to share this with until now. Now there was her.

Maria heard the pain in Georg’s voice, and her heart ached for him. She wanted to take away that pain. She wanted to erase it from his mind. But it was part of him. She wouldn’t want him to be less than he was.

“I never thought I would have this again. I never thought I could feel so much again. When you entered my life, it was the most unexpected, the most marvelous thing that could have happened. My heart is yours, I am yours. But I know this has been unexpected and difficult for you. Maria, do you have any doubts?” He looked at her searchingly, almost anxiously.

Maria thought of the strain of the past weeks. She was stunned to realize that she had begun to withdraw into herself as he once had, and that she had only returned to herself when he had come back. Looking at him now, after all he had told her, she did not need much time to search her heart and mind. She knew her answer.

“I cannot deny that the past four weeks have been more taxing than I had anticipated. This is not the life I planned, nor the life I envisioned. I have struggled to find the simple peace and joy that used to come so easily.” Maria paused, searching for the right words. He had opened his heart completely to her; she could do less for him.

“Something inside me changed after I met you. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that something inside me was awakened. I never imagined that love, this kind of love, would be part of my life. How could I, living in an abbey? But life is full of wonderful surprises, is it not? I would not trade the hardships for ease if it meant that I would not have you. Do I have doubts? No, Georg. I have no doubts whatsoever. I love you and I want to be your wife. I am yours.”

Maria didn’t know what else to say. She didn’t know how else to express what she felt, so she gave up on words and kissed Georg gently. It was the first time she had initiated a kiss; she would not withhold him any of her love. Georg returned the kiss ardently, accepting everything she was offering him.

“I dreamed of this every night,” he whispered against her lips, “of this and more.” Georg’s fingers kneaded her lower back.

“I…I’ve dreamed of it too. After I read your last letter…” She couldn’t bring herself to say the words, but he knew her desire matched his own. He felt it in the way she responded to his slightest touch. Georg pulled back and almost gave in to the temptation to continue kissing her when he saw the heightened color in her cheeks, her swollen lips. But he stopped himself; there would be time enough for that soon.

“Frau Schmidt must be quite impatient by now. Go, let her help you prepare. I will await you at the altar, Maria. Amidst all of the insanity that is happening, making you my bride today makes everything worthwhile.”

* * * * *

With hundreds of people standing at their pews, the church organ begins to play. A woman bows her head in prayer, thanking God for her blessings. She looks up and begins her walk down the aisle. She is radiant. A murmur is heard as the guests whisper to each other. She does not hear them, she barely sees them. Her eyes look straight ahead to where he waits.

There he stands, tall and proud. He is in full uniform. His eyes never leave hers as he watches her walk closer to him. After an eternity, she finally arrives and holds out her hand. He clasps it in his own, knowing that he will never tire of holding her hand.

Together, they walk forward and kneel before the priest. He blesses them and leads them in the words of love and commitment. I take thee…in sickness, in health…for better, for worse…with this ring… The woman’s voice is filled with unshed tears of joy. The man’s voice shakes with barely controlled emotion. I now pronounce you…

They are one.

* * * * *

Maria’s head was spinning. Had it really been just this morning that Georg had come home? Was she actually a married woman? Had she really danced with her new husband at their reception? She felt as though all of that had happened to another person, and that she was just a witness to the events. She twisted her wedding ring, the feel of it foreign on her finger. How strange, she thought, that it fits so perfectly.

They’d held the reception in the ballroom. Maria’s memory of it was a haze of ephemeral images: music; laughter; champagne; Max’s toast; food she was too excited to eat; a towering cake; endless congratulations; the children happily staying up well past their bedtimes; dancing with her husband. Her husband.

She looked around the bathroom where she sat. It was unfamiliar; it wasn’t the bathroom in her room. It was their bathroom. Georg had given her privacy to prepare herself; he’d told her to take all the time she needed. After changing into her nightgown, she’d sat down and found herself unable to move. She was nearly petrified. Her stomach was in knots, and she was unable to take a deep breath. She looked at herself in the mirror and barely recognized the woman she saw – a woman with stunned eyes and colored cheeks. She closed her eyes.

Maria thought of Georg waiting for her in the bedroom. He was waiting to do things to her, to do things with her that she’d never even allowed herself to imagine. They were going to…she could not finish the thought without her cheeks reddening even more. Her breath quickened. She remembered his body leaning into hers, pressing her back into a tree. She remembered the moment on the balcony when his…when she felt him against her before he’d torn himself away. She thought of how her body had responded so naturally to his. Was she ready to go to him now, knowing that this time they would not stop? The pounding of her heart gave her the answer: yes. With him, yes.

Maria could not even contemplate what she was about to do with anyone else. But she trusted no man as she trusted Georg. He was almost certainly the best man she’d ever known. She loved no man as she loved him. And no one had ever made her feel the way he did. Finally calm enough to take a deep breath, Maria opened her eyes. She stood and left the bathroom.

Georg looked up when he heard the bathroom door open. He’d known Maria would be nervous, that she would need time. He would not pressure her in any way. His commitment was for a lifetime, not just for one night. He could wait. But when he saw Maria in the doorway, looking him straight in the eyes, all such thoughts left him. It was a direct look that made his mouth go dry. He took her in, delighting in the sight of her. He saw the color in her cheeks, the pull of the nightgown against her as she took each rapid, shallow breath. His eyes traveled to the slender waist that widened into the curve of her hips. He looked back up to her face and was bewitched once again by her eyes.

“You look beautiful, my love,” Georg whispered.

His hands twitched; already he ached to touch her. He walked over to her, struggling to maintain control, not wanting to scare her by being too aggressive. He took her hands in his and kissed her slowly, softly, again and again. Each kiss told her he loved her; each kiss told her she was beautiful; each kiss told her he wanted her. He released her hands and, still kissing her, ran his hands up her arms, resting them on her shoulders. He would not rush her.

Maria was getting lost in his kisses. She loved the feel of his mouth on hers, of his breath mingling with hers. His tongue was doing things to her that made her want more. He surprised her by sucking on her tongue, and it felt as if he was pulling at something deep inside her. She was nearly panting; her heart was trying to leap out of her chest. She needed to hold onto something. The closeness of his body was drawing her to him. Her hands moved hesitantly, grabbing onto Georg’s sleeves. With a lick of her lips, Georg drew his head back to look at her. His eyes were dark and he was breathing hard.

“You can touch me, Maria. You can do anything you want.” The roughness in Georg’s voice and the intensity in his eyes sent a spark through her, quickening her pulse even more. She wanted to touch him, to feel him. Knowing that he wanted her hands on him only excited her more; it made her feel powerful. He was feeling all this for her, he wanted her, he desired her. And with every touch, with every moment that passed, she too desperately wanted him.

Maria put her hands on Georg’s chest. He’d left the buttons open on his nightshirt. She slowly raked her fingers through the hair on his chest, feeling the muscles contract beneath her fingers. Georg closed his eyes, tightening his grip on her shoulders. The feel of her hands on him was stimulating every nerve in his body. He knew she had never touched anyone like this. Georg forced himself to keep his hands still, to let her set the pace.

Maria’s fingers shook as she skimmed the surface of his chest, part of her still not believing that she was here, doing this. The hot feel of his skin and the tension she felt in his body, the same tension that she felt in her own body, told her it was real. Her fingers followed the contours of his muscles, finally daring to graze… Georg’s strangled intake of air sent something very like an electrical shock through her.

With a groan, Georg’s mouth was on hers again, kissing her deeply, passionately, no longer able to hold back as before. He thought that she must have no idea that a simple brush of her hand could be so arousing. Wrapping one arm around her, he put his other hand on top of one of hers and dragged it down his chest, down further until she felt him throbbing in her hand.

Heat rushed through her entire body. Maria felt herself pulsating in response. Oh, it felt…it felt…she was having trouble breathing again. She couldn’t keep her hips from moving; the throbbing only continued to grow until it threatened to consume her. She needed to be closer to him, to fit herself to him. She couldn’t think straight anymore, she wanted…she needed…

Georg’s lips left her mouth, only to travel down her neck where he knew she was so sensitive. The sounds she was making in the back of her throat fed his fire. As he kissed and licked along her collarbone, he let his hands explore her supple body, touching, rubbing until she was gasping. He was near the breaking point, and he could feel that she was there with him.

“I love you, Maria.” She could hardly hear the words, but she could feel them.

“And I love you,” she whispered back. Georg carried her to the bed.

* * * * *

Maria awoke, not sure where she was. With a rush of memory, the night before came back to her. She smiled, blushing as she remembered what had happened. She turned to look at her husband, who was still sleeping. Later today they would leave on the festival tour. They would keep to their plans and would eventually settle down and start their life together. They had a lifetime to spend with each other. But for now, they had this morning before either one of them had to think about wars or escape plans. Maria reached out to wake up her husband.

The End