Nightmares and Forgiveness

Disclaimer: I don't own The Sound of Music.

Georg found himself standing in the foggy courtyard of the Abbey. This was where Fraulein Maria was, correct? As suddenly as he thought of her, Fraulein Maria appeared in front of him, although it was so misty, he couldn't see her very clearly. "Fraulein Maria?" he asked, to make sure it was her.

"Yes, of course, Captain," she replied in her sweet voice.

In the last couple of weeks, that voice always brought a smile to Georg's face. But now it made him scowl. Why was she so cheerful today? "What are you so happy? Don't you know how heartbroken you've made my children?" he snapped at her.

Fraulein Maria sighed. "I'm sorry, but I had to leave."

"Why? Why did you have to leave now? Just when my life was finally good again, you disappear?" he protested, giving her one of his famous hard stares.

"I belong here, Captain. At the Abbey. My time with your family was temporary; you knew that. I'm going to be a nun very soon."

With that, Fraulein Maria disappeared back into the fog. She was gone from his life.

Georg Von Trapp woke up in his bedroom and grumbled to himself. Fraulein Maria was gone. He knew that. He'd known since he'd found her note yesterday morning and the telephone call from the Reverend Mother later that day. As angry as it made him, he needed to accept it. He needed to help his children accept it. He forced the dream away from his mind.

OOOOOOOOOOOO

Georg was driving back to the Villa with Fraulein Maria sitting next to him. She was coming home with him! "I'm glad you have agreed to do the right thing, Fraulein," Georg commented, without looking at her. "You can be forgiven for your mistake." He still didn't like the way she'd left, but he'd tolerate if she was willing to make amends.

"My Mistake?" she protested. "What about your mistakes?" Georg finally turned to look at her, only to notice she was covered in lake water again, which made her stunning figure even more obvious. "You know you shouldn't be looking at me that way, Captain." The look on her face reminded him of the last time he'd seen her covered in water. "After all, I will be a nun soon." Suddenly Fraulein Maria was wearing a nun's habit.

"You should still come back home until September," Georg protested, hoping to have her with him…with his family for the rest of the summer, at least.

"No," Fraulein Maria replied. "I'm afraid I cannot." And then she was gone again.

Georg Von Trapp woke up in his bedroom again. He'd been determined to block Fraulein Maria from his mind, but it was more difficult than he expected, especially at night. Georg still couldn'tbelieve she'd left them like that, but now he wondered if there was some truth to his latest dream. Had he chased her away with the intensity of his stares? She was planning to be a nun, after all… It was no matter. Fraulein Maria was gone and the sooner he accepted it, the better. After all, Georg still needed to help his children handle her disappearance.

OOOOOOOOOOOO

Georg saw Fraulein Maria disappear out the door of the Villa and into the night. He rushed past the nameless guests, determined to catch her. "Fraulein!" he called as he shut the front door behind him.

But Fraulein Maria kept running ahead of him. She was already almost to the gate. That didn't surprise him; Georg knew how fast she could be when she wanted to be.

But Georg knew he could catch her if he tried hard enough. After all, he kept his body in excellent condition. More importantly, Georg didn't let anyone get away from him if he could help it. "Fraulein Maria!" he called again as he reached the gate. "You must return immediately!"

She didn't even turn around.

"Maria!" he called one last time, hoping that name would make her notice him. "Why are you leaving?"

Maria continued running down the street.

Georg Von Trapp opened his eyes to see his bedroom again. The last dream had made everything perfectly clear: Maria didn't want anything to do with Georg anymore. That was why she left, after all. She wished to be a nun and she had returned to the abbey to peruse that goal. The talkative woman hadn't even contacted him since she left. Not even to ask about the children. Meanwhile, he was forced to pick up the pieces she'd left behind. He pounded his mattress a little at that. Georg couldn't get over how angry Maria had made him in the last week.

Georg looked around the bedroom for a second before his eyes landed on something, or rather someone he didn't expect to see. Not here. "Marta?" What was she doing in his room? Gosh, had she seen his nightmare? Notice him pound his mattress? "What are you doing in here?" he snapped at her.

"I…I…wanted…to see you, Father," she replied, looking at the floor.

"Can't that wait until morning?" he asked her shortly. Georg was tired and these dreams weren't helping his state of mind.

Marta nodded and began walking back to the door slowly. "I wouldn't have come in at all Father, but…I had a nightmare. That you were gone, too, and I just had to see…make sure…I'm sorry."

She sniffed at the last line and Georg realized she had started crying. He suddenly felt horrible for dismissing her. Of course Marta would have a reason for entering his suite. "It's all right, Marta. Come here, Sweetheart." He sat up in his bed and held out his arms for his daughter.

Marta looked at him with a mix of shock and gratitude and crossed the bedroom quickly. It took her a few minutes to manage to climb onto his bed, but she managed. Then she cuddled right into his arms. "With Fraulein Maria gone…It's so hard." Sniff, sniff, sniff. "And then I dreamed you were gone, too, and I…" Marta's voice trailed off as she began sobbing into her father's chest.

Georg hugged his daughter tightly. "I know it's hard, Marta." If Maria were standing in front of him, he would certainly give her a piece of his mind. How could she? "But I'm not going to leave you, all right? Ever. I'm your father, and I will always be your father. I'm trying to act like a good one now."

Marta nodded but she continued to sob. However, within five minutes, she had fallen asleep on Georg's chest. He carefully picked her up and carried her back to her room. As he did so, he wondered what he should do. No one in the Von Trapp family was handling this situation. Georg needed to fix things. For all of them. And focusing on how angry he was at Maria wasn't helping anyone. All it was doing was making it more difficult for him to sleep.

Elsa was still hinting she would like a proposal. Very soon. If he proposed, all of his family could put Maria behind them and become a real family. He and Elsa made a good match, after all. Georg could show everyone that Maria leaving didn't bother him at all. And as he put Marta gently back in her bed, he was determined to prove that was the case. He would talk to Elsa tonight.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Georg poured himself a drink and sat down to relax in the black chair in his study. He was still smiling at the exchange between him and the children several minutes ago. Berry – picking? Blue strawberries? His children could definitely make him laugh. Or at least chuckle. It was nice that the mood at the villa was improving. Georg knew he'd made a good decision when he'd proposed to Elsa. Maria didn't matter…at…all…

"…These are a few of my favorite things…" he heard the children continue to sing from outside. Wait, was it his imagination or could he hear another voice as well? A beautiful voice that he just had to investigate…

Sure enough, his children were crowding around Maria as it seemed they all wanted a chance to touch her. Georg stared at her for a minute, in shock to see her back again. As upset as they were that she'd left, the children didn't seem to be angry at her at all. And she seemed to be just as eager to see them, accepting every hug with her famous warm smiles. For the last week Georg had believed if he ever saw Maria again, he would scream at her. Ask her how she dared leave his children like that? How could she not contact him at all? How could she disappear when he was finally happy again? But Georg didn't expect her to look so beautiful, so joyful, as she greeted his children. He didn't expect her voice to draw him out of his study like he was in a trance. Perhaps if the children could forgive her he could, too?

"Look Father, Fraulein Maria's back from the Abbey!"

"That's wonderful," he told the children. "Now go get your dinner." The children rushed off, just as he knew they would, leaving Maria and him alone together. It was perfect time to talk.

Georg turned and looked her in the eye. "You didn't even say goodbye. Not even to the children," he said, trying to sound accusing. Still, he was too surprised to find her beautiful face in front of him again. But he couldn't let it go completely.

Maria looked right back at him, although without a smile. "That was a mistake. Forgive me?" She sounded just as sad as the children had been that she'd left.

Georg thought about how easy it seemed that the children forgave her. How easily they forgave him for his atrocious behavior towards them in the last few years. And the reality was it was possible Maria left partly because of him. Had he made her uncomfortable with the way he looked at her? Whatever the reason, she had returned and asked for forgiveness. Of course Georg could forgive Maria. He was beginning to think he could forgive her for anything.

Just as he was about to tell her so, Elsa walked outside and took his arm. "Isn't it wonderful, Georg? Fraulein Maria has come back!"

Elsa. A person who seemed like the answer to all his troubles earlier suddenly seemed like a complication.

"I hear congratulations are in order. The children tell me you are to be married," Maria commented.

Her voice sounded neutral, but something in her tone wasn't right. Her smile didn't light up her face the way it normally did. Was Maria…upset? Maria was ordinarily so cheerful, so her being upset wasn't appropriate. Not at all. In fact, the very idea that she might be upset was painful to him. Was there something Georg could do to make her feel better? He would fix whatever the problem was.

First he needed to know whether she was staying. "You are back to stay?" Georg asked, almost afraid of her answer. She was staying at home, with him, right? He reached over to take her hand without thinking about it. They belonged together.

But Maria disappeared before he could do that. "Only until arrangements can be made for another governess," she replied firmly.

As Maria went inside, Georg suddenly realized Elsa was still clutching his arm. Elsa. Could Maria actually be upset because of Elsa? Or was that too much to hope for? Still if there was even a possibility, Georg needed to straighten things out with Elsa. He'd asked Elsa to marry him for all the wrong reasons anyway. He'd proposed because he was angry at Maria for leaving and he wanted to show everyone Maria didn't matter to him. Now that Maria had returned and he'd forgiven her, Georg realized how ridiculous that was. Maria would always matter. She was one of the most important people in the world, as far as he was concerned. He was in love with Maria.

I'm still not comfortable with writing Georg by myself, but I decided to post this as it was.