Okay people (aka Darling Pretty for the most part), this chapter in my humble opinion will carry a mascara warning of five, which means ALL YOUR CRYS ARE BELONG TO ME. There will be some sad parts, some fuzzy happy parts and...BERT'S PROPOSING. So yeah. No mascara unless it's water proof!

(London, 1923)

"Did she go after him?" Tom queried as poor Michael took a moment to get another sip of his drink.

The young man nodded as he set the mug down carefully. "Yes. She was still awake when morning came and Jane gave her the map Gavin had drawn for her the night before."

"Sounds like Gavin's a nice man." Matthew observed, looking at Michael to see what his reaction would be.

"Of course he is! Then again, I can't go unsulting my brother in law." he chuckled.

"So he married your sister?" Davey grinned.

"He did, and they've got two children so far." Michael nodded. "But back to Bert and Mary!"

(London, April 4th, 1917)

It was a sunny day, but Mary Poppins almost wouldn't have even been aware of it. All of her thoughts were on the man that she was currently heading toward, a piece of paper with directions held tightly in her gloved fist. According to the wind, this would be the day that decided both her fate and his.

What could she say to him? Obviously, there were things that they needed to talk about and although they had been friends for many years, some things in her past were painful. But if there was to even be a hint of a chance for them, they had to tackle these issues head on even thought she would much rather not speak of her father.

Sighing silently to herself, she was almost all the way up to the house before she really saw it and stopped dead.

It was the house from her dream. The flower beds hadn't been planted, but the outside had been freshly painted and the fence was almost up. It would be a lovely little house when it was finished and she swallowed hard.

Hesitating, she had to remind herself that the wind hadn't given her the dream for nothing. It was time to act on it. Briskly, she rapped on the door and waited. The familiar sound of Bert's clomping gait could be heard coming toward the door and she lifted a hand, nervously patting her hair to make sure it was secure under her hat.

The door swung open and Bert stood there, gaping at her. He obviously hadn't slept much, judging from his red rimmed eyes and disheveled appearance. "Mary?" he asked, as though making sure this wasn't some kind of a dream.

"Hello Bert." she replied calmly. "Aren't you going to invite me in?"

"Of course! Please, come in." he said, stepping back to allow her room to come in. There were a few pictures hanging up in the hall and she gazed at them curiously. One was a drawing of a man and a woman who were obviously Bert's parents. She knew he had lost them some time ago, but knew nothing more beyond that. He never spoke of them.

The sitting room had a small sofa as well as a desk and a couple of chairs. It wasn't fully furnished yet, but she had to admire Bert's eye for picking pieces that complimented each other without matching exactly. It was a quirky style, perfect for him.

"How...how did you find me?" he asked as he motioned for her to have a seat on the sofa while he pulled one of the chairs over to sit by her but at a respectful distance.

She smiled a little. "Gavin. He drew me a map after we searched for you without any avail."

Bert's brow furrowed immediately. "Seached? I left a note so no one would worry! Unless the window got opened and it blew away..."

Mary closed her eyes. She hadn't even thought to look for a note. Still, he was alive and safe. That was what mattered at the moment. "We didn't get the note. And Jane rushed out to go looking for you but stumbled into a group of rather...unsavory men."

Bert half rose from his chair. "Is she all right?"

She nodded, waving a hand carelessly. "She's fine. Gavin found her and got her home."

"And she likes him." Bert said astutely.

"She does. And he likes her too." Mary chuckled.

"He's a good lad. Reminds me a lot of Jerry." Bert replied before an awkward silence fell. Neither one of them was willing to speak first until Mary got tired of it and took charge of the situation.

"Bert...I came because we need to discuss a few things." she began tentatively and she was rather taken aback when he nodded.

"I agree. We do." he said softly. "You need to know a few things about me, and I need to know a few about you. And I have a feeling they're not going to be nice things, but it has to be done."

Nodding, she looked down at her hands, still wrapped around her umbrella. "Why did you leave like that after...after kissing me?"

Bert rested his elbows on his knees, thinking for a long moment. "When you went all stiff like that...I thought that perhaps you didn't want me kissing you. I thought...I thought you might find me...repulsive somehow."

Her heart immediately constricted and she wanted to reassure him that this wasn't the case. How could she possibly find him replusive? He was a handsome man and had only gotten better the longer she knew him.

"Oh Bert, that's not it at all." she sighed and he turned his gaze to her, blue eyes gazing intently into hers.

"Then why?" he asked.

She closed her eyes, taking a moment of her own. "I...I haven't told you much of my childhood." she said softly. "And for good reason. My mother and father had a rather tumultuous relationship and fought with each other often. He would always be sorry after one of their altercations and hug her and kiss her and promise to never hurt her again. But he always did. And over time, I came to believe that hugs and kisses..."

She struggled for a word until Bert finished her thought. "They became cheap. They didn't mean anything."

"Exactly. And I always thought I would never fall in love because of how strongly I did not trust the emotion. I took etiquette classes, learned to control my talents and made sure that sentiment did not direct my thinking. I was logical, I was poised...until a handsome young sweep got my hat out of a tree for me."

Bert smiled at the memory of the day they had met and she went on. "I told myself that you were my dear friend and nothing more. But I was always the happiest when I was in London...and I could see you. Leaving became harder and harder because I could see the sadness you tried to hide and I knew it was because of me. But the wind still called me, and I went."

She took a moment, trying to phrase her words carefully. "Yesterday when you kissed me was the first time I had ever been kissed in my life. I didn't know what to do, Bert." She tried to joke a bit. "I wasn't sure of the proper proceedure for a first kiss."

"And it didn't help that I practically attacked you." he sighed.

"You didn't attack me, you silly man. Just surprised me."

"Well, that explains a bit now." he mused. "And...I suppose it's my turn. I didn't just go because you got all stiff with me."

"I thought as much." she said softly. "I'm listening."

Bert closed his eyes, his shoulder drooping a bit. "I dashed off so fast yesterday because I was afraid. You see, everybody I have ever truly loved has left me."

Mary's eyes widened and he looked away so he could finish. "My mother died when I was seven. She was sick for a long while before she finally passed and then my Da passed on when I was about 15. Then I came to London and met Jerry."

A sad smile touched his lips. "Then the war came and Jerry left me too."

He finally allowed himself to look up at her. "And then there was you. You left me over and over again and every time you did, another piece of me started to hurt."

Her eyes were tearing up and he felt wretched for saying it, but it was the truth. And he couldn't lie to her. He took a deep breath before beginning his next sentence. "I love you, Mary. But if you leave again, it might bloody well kill me. I...I need you, you see."

She reached out, resting one of her hands on top of his as he continued. "And I'm sorry that you had to see your mum and dad like that. My Da had a slightly different view on kissing, you see."

"Did he?" she asked, tiliting her head to one side.

Bert nodded slowly. "He always told me that you never kissed a lady unless you meant it. And that a kiss was when you couldn't tell her how much you loved her with words. Sometimes, you had to show her. And that was what I wanted to do yesterday. I just wanted to show you that I loved you. But I'm sorry that I scared you."

"I'm sorry too, Bert." Mary said softly. "I'm sorry that you had to grow up without your parents. They sound like wonderful people."

"They were." he said, thinking back to his childhood out in the ccuntry. "I think you would've liked 'em. And they would've liked you too."

She rubbed her thumb over the back of his hand and he looked at her again. "So, that's my piece. I love you, but this is a lot to take on and I understand if you have some second thoughts or aren't ready yet. If you need more time to think about all this, I'll wait. I'd wait a thousand years for you, Mary Poppins."

Mary looked at Bert, unsure of what to say. She did love him, but she wasn't sure that she would be a good wife, given her fears of love and also of letting someone get so close to her.

The longer she thought about what to say, she could see Bert deflating and wished that she had the words to say something, anything to make him understand. Then, his own words came back to her. Perhaps...perhaps it was just time to show him, rather than tell him.

Mustering every ounce of courage she had, Mary scooted over until she was right next to him. He looked puzzled, but before he could say a word, she had taken his face between her hands and kissed him like he'd kissd her yesterday. A small part of her was panicking, but instead of focusing on that, she tried to think instead that this was a man who loved her, who would never hurt her.

He brought both of his arms around her and when he did, she wanted to laugh and weep all at once because for the first time in her life...she was home. No place, no family that she had ever stayed with had ever felt like the place that she truly belonged. But this was her place. Rather, Bert was her place.

When he finally pulled away, she hadn't realized that her hands had moved. One of them was resting on his broad shoulder and another had tangled itself into his soft hair. "What was that for?" he asked, looking slightly dazed.

She smiled. "A handsome man that I love told me that sometimes, you have to show someone you love them. Words alone aren't enough."

He grinned at her, and it was like looking back through time. This was the Bert she remembered, the man with the beaming smile and sparkling eyes. And it warmed her to know that she was the one who had brought the shine back to his face.

Sitting back, Bert reached into his pocket. "Might as well do this proper." he said softly as he drew out a small box.

Gasping, Mary covered her mouth with one hand, watching as Bert opened the box to reveal a simple diamond ring. It was obviously old, but she loved it. He smiled as he slid down from the sofa onto his left knee and gazed up at her. "Mary Poppins, I love you more than anything in this world. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?"

There were many things she wanted to say, many things that were racing through her mind but all she could do was nod and whisper, "I would love to marry you, Herbert Alfred."

The light from his smile would have been enough to brighen the skies of London for at least a month as he pushed himself back onto the sofa and reverently slid the ring onto her finger. "It was my grandmum's." he explained. "Da made me promise to give it to the woman I was going to marry."

Mary looked at it, a wide smile of her own on her face. She knew that she probably looked foolish, but in an instance like this, she thought it would be allowed. It wasn't every day a woman was proposed to.

Bert tipped her chin up and she met his kiss gladly before resting her head against his shoulder. As he arm wrapped around her, she couldn't help but think that now, her life truly was perfect.