AN- Mary and Bert are not mine.

Mary was in the middle of reading when all of the sudden she heard, "Good Evening, Miss Mary." She jumped and with that Bert came out of the chimney grinning at her, with his goofy grin.

"Bert! What are you doing here? You scared me."

"My heartiest apologies, Miss Mary. What are you reading?" She softened a moment before realizing he had just climbed down the Banks' chimney in the middle of the night.

"You shouldn't be here." It was the first time he had ever come to see her in the middle of the night when her bosses did not know he was over.

"I'm just sweepin' the chimney, Miss."

"It's after midnight, Bert."

"I didn't get to it today. Was having too much fun in Fairyland."

"I am sorry for that—" He held up a hand for silence.

" 'tis my own fault. I should have left before. Is everyone asleep?"

"Yes and you should not be sweeping the chimney at this hour. It is after midnight. What if somebody wakes up because they hear you?"

"Don't worry, Miss Mary. I charmed me tools so that they'll be silent. Only'll last until sun-up, though." He stepped closer to her. She smiled.

"I just don't want you to get in trouble, Bert—"

"Oh, don't worry about me. Sweeps are the luckiest guys you'll ever meet." She smiled. "They asked about us, didn't they?"

She nodded. "Jane and Michael know…"

"What'd they say?" He asked, intrigued.

"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious." They laughed. He was grinning like a crazy person.

There were mere inches between them. "So I take it they approve of me for you?" He teased playfully pulling at her hair.

"Michael practically worships the ground you walk on, Bert." He grinned at that. "You really should not be here."

"Did they like the drawing?"

"Very much, Barbara and John keep asking when they can go back. You weren't actually going to take them there would you?"

"Perhaps." He grinned mischievously. "But you're better at it than I am. I always make us dizzy." He slipped his hand into hers. "When's your next Day Off?"

"Not for a while." She sighed, thinking about the bird woman. It has been a few months since Mary visited her. "She didn't remember me." He kissed her.

"Miss Mary, her magic is failing. All she knows is the birds need food. When I last talked with her, she told me all about each and every bird. I paid my tuppence to feed them—"

"You needn't pay."

"She doesn't remember the people any longer, only the birds. I talked with her about you. I told her how wonderful you were. Practically perfect." He teased.

"Mothers shouldn't forget their children…"

"Neither should Fathers. A lesson Mr. and Mrs. Banks need to learn again." He said putting his arm around her. He looked at her, grinning as much as so many of her charges before she'd find a toy snake in her hat. "Miss, Mary. Would you please dance with your husband?" he said taking her hand. She smiled and kissed his cheek.

"Don't you have a chimney to sweep? In addition to all the others you didn't do today?"

"Nope. Just this one."

"Then get to it then."

"Oh, but Miss Mary, don't you want the company of a Chimney Sweep?"

She frowned. "The children have told me they watch you as you work. You do not let the near the chimney with you, do you?"

He look scandalized that she would even ask such a question. "Never. Not since the first time. Chimneys be dangerous places for children"

She was pleased about that. "Why did you tell them you worked in a bank?" She knew he didn't like that job, and would always complain of the people who came to him, when he was a banker.

"That is enough questions, now. Miss Mary." He said in his best 'I'm the nanny and you are just a child voice', the one she mastered long ago, but he never could get the hang of it. She laughed.

"Bert Alfred, you are perfectly…."

"Idiotic?" he finished with that goofy grin she'd fallen in love with a lifetime ago.

"Perfect" she said before kissing him.

"Indubitably." That was when realized all the soot he had brought down with him. She realized his face was covered in black smudges. He saw her concern and added "You look positively filthy, Miss Mary. You have soot all over your face." He mock-scolded.

It was very late now, nearly three. "What are you going to do with them tomorrow?"

"Perhaps a picnic? Or perhaps we make gingerbread cookies."

"The very best kind." He agreed.

"What about you?" she asked him.

"I've got a wedding tomorrow, but perhaps, I'll have James take my place. I never understood why, I'm always being invited to weddings."

"You know as well as I do that they think it'll bring good luck into the marriage to have a sweep at weddings. Besides, you are always good luck, Bert." He grinned.

" 'ow was your first day? They gonna give you trouble?"

"Annabel and the twins will, I'm sure. But Jane and Michael know how I am, they'll have their siblings behave."

"And the parents?" She shrugged. " 'ope the winds don't change for a while, I like it 'ere. London's nice."

"You know I can't control that. But I know it will take quite a while for the winds to change."

"These kids love you, Miss Mary. They asked about you all the time. I just told 'em you were off nannying somewhere. They asked if it were in London, and I told 'em perhaps. Now don't look at me like that, Miss Mary, 'twasn't a lie."

"I know, I just wish they hadn't asked. I missed them terribly, but I do with all my children."

"Come with me to the roof, Miss Mary. The stars are out, and they are awful pretty. Not near as pretty as you, though." She blushed. "I'm nearly through with sweepin' and we have about an hour from sun rise."

"Not tonight, Bert, perhaps tomorrow?"

"Invitin' me over? Ain't that against the masters' rules or something?" he stood up grinnig. "Go fly a kite, Miss Mary!"

"Pardon?" she asked taken aback.

"Take the children to fly kites. I know a kite seller who has some lonely kites that need to be sold…"

"Enough, Bert. Mrs. Banks asked me to take the children into town. Besides don't you have sweeping to do tomorrow?"

"The work of a sweeper is never done, Miss Mary, same as a nanny." He said tipping his hat.

"You really should be going." She said although she really didn't him to. "The servants will be up soon to make breakfast. I do not think it pertinent that they have to set an extra place for the chimney sweep."

He nodded. Grinning he kissed her on the cheek. "See you later, Miss Mary."

"Bye Bert!" she called as he disappeared up the Chimney. Mary went over to the mirror to try to get off as much soot as she could, before the maids woke up.

An- I hope you like this chapter. I will have many more Bert/Mary moments in the coming chapters.