As a little warning: this story isn't happy…
Actually, I wanted to write the story if we hadn't heard in Mary Poppins 2 what happened to Bert. But more below.
Here we go:
January 1918
The stone figures of the cemetery wall looked down at her with a wicked grin as she opened the icy gates. As soon as she entered the place that separated the living from the dead, an unpleasant, icy wind came up. Frowning, she closed the coat and buried her face in her gathered in her eyes; on the one hand because of the cold, on the other hand because of the sadness, which became more and more present. Nausea overcame Mary as she slowly but surely approached the block where he was buried. By now, her feet knew this way, which was why she often lost her mind or simply trotted when her legs stopped, she looked up and looked directly at a small, rectangular and above all meaningless tombstone. His tombstone. She got a stab in the heart as she read his name on it:
Herbert Alfred
1878-1917
As every time she stood there, her feelings took over and she burst into tears again. She simply couldn't believe that the man she loved above all was no longer among she played on the filigree, silver jewel on her ring finger. It was her engagement evening before he went to war, he proposed to her, and it couldn't have been more beautiful: simple and loving; nothing plan was to marry when he returned from the war; but it shouldn't be granted to them. That evening and night was the most beautiful and intense thing Mary had ever experienced. It seemed to her that she only realised how much he loved her and how much she loved him. Both combined a love and passion that she had never dreamed of. She still could not believe that this evening was only four months ago; and for a couple of weeks he was no longer among them.
Her eyes slid to the tomb to his right; there was also a familiar face there:
George Banks
1870-1917
The only difference between these whole graves were the names, besides that everything was the remembered a day about a week ago when she visited the graveyard with Winifred and the children:Michael was the first time at his father's grave that day, and Mary would never forget the boy's face: his skin was pale, his eyes empty and he looked at the graves, and then the boy said something that gave the nanny an unpleasant goose bump: "uniformed graves" When he noticed the questioning look of the others, he explained his statement, "Soldiers all kinda look the same in their uniforms. Like these tombstones... The war destroys the individuals." She felt a shiver as she thought about that sentence.
There were three reasons why Mary visited his grave that day: The first reason was that she visited him every Tuesday.
The second reason was that it was his 40th birthday and the third and most important reason was that she needed to tell him something and has a special present for him.
Mary first took out of her bag a beautiful bouquet of flowers, which she lovingly placed in front of his tombstone. This counted innumerable flowers, in the most different forms and colours; these should represent his personality.
"Happy Birthday, Bert."
But then she reached into her coat pocket, pulled something out and put it in front of the flowers. It was a small, white cap - a babies cap. Actually, this was not her style, but she knew it was Bert's.
"We're going to be parents." Her voice was just a broken whisper.
She put her hand on her already swollen stomach and lightly stroked it with her thumb. Yes, she, Mary Poppins, was pregnant. Pregnant from the man she loved above all else. But also pregnant by the man at whose grave she was standing.
Mary could laugh and cry at once. He always wanted to start a family, which he has repeatedly mentioned. And he deserved to have his own little family. And now? Now he would not have anything. All because of the devastating war that cost so many lives, destroyed so many families, and caused so much suffering throughout the world. She hated nothing more than this lousy war!
When she got this message in the morning, she swore so well to take care of his child and protect their baby the best as she could. It would not be easy for her to raise a child as a single mother but she was in good spirits.
But the fact that she was learning about the pregnancy on that very day, his birthday, was a strange coincidence. If he were still alive, this would have been the most beautiful gift he could imagine. Mary looked into the grey sky and tears welled up in her eyes: "I love you..."
But then something happened that astonished even Mary: the thick and dark clouds slowly dissolved and a single ray of the midday sun fell on the spot where the little cap lay. Her gaze fell on her in disbelief and her heart stopped for a moment. She was so perplexed that she did not notice that it was starting to snow too. A wind whirled up the colourful petals from the many flowers, and let them, along with a robin, fly around Mary.
And at that moment Mary was sure: she would not have to go through this alone. He would always be with her. He would always be in her heart. Not even death can make us part.
As mentioned above, I only wanted to write and upload the story if Bert wasn't mentioned in Mary Poppins Returns. And then also in a different form (she wouldn't have been pregnant or engaged). I uploaded the story anyway. Just because I had to write something like that for personal reasons and... yeah… Don't know what to say.
I wrote the story in February but today I saw the reason why I had to write it back then.
Sometimes you miss people and don't know how to handle it. Sometimes no one understands you. Sometimes you want to talk about all this but you have no one who listens to you… Sometimes you have to write things down. The loss of people who we love can break our hearts, throw us into holes…But we have to move on. And I bet that's what our lost ones want us to do.
Maybe I should just upload something happy, because somehow everything I write is kinda... depressive.
And yes: I have ideas for cute and happy oneshots.
Sorry for this depressive trash and my depressive thoughts.