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Little "warning":

This chapter is rated M.

Especially towards the end.

But you will see what I mean xD

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5th March 1942

Elizabeth walked concerned through the large, empty halls of a hospital. A look at the clock on the big wall told her that it was just after half past ten in the night.

It was quiet. Almost as if there was no life in this building.

Elizabeth turned into a long corridor that led to a large window. The rays of the waning, full moon fell through it.

But then the young woman saw a movement that got her full attention. She stopped and waited: a thin figure passed the window and toward the room on the left side of the hall. The figure had a slight hump and pulled a limp leg behind it.

"'ey!" Liz called, "do you need help?"

No reaction.

"Wait!"

She quickly jogged to the figure, but they either didn't notice or ignore her. Just before Elizabeth reached the figure, they went into the door.
But... she hadn't touched the door handle! The door opened and closed on its own.

Frowning, Elizabeth slowed down and paused in front of the wooden door.

She was about to reach for the handle when the door opened on its own. An invisible force pushed the young woman in and closed the gates behind her with a loud bang.

What she saw took Elizabeth's breath away: there was everyone in the room she couldn't save. Everyone who died more or less in her hands.

The bang which was caused by the door made everyone look at Elizabeth with their dead but haunting eyes.

Panicked, Elizabeth turned to reach for the handle. But there was no handle! She pushed against the door with all her strength, even throwing herself against it. But nothing happened! Scared she whirled around again and leaned against the solid wood.

"Because of you, I burned under a the rubble of a house," began the fireman from Shoe Lane. He had bruises and burns everywhere. Burns so severe that his half face had no skin or flesh left.

"Because of you, my son is an orphan!" Continued the mother who had died on the air raid of the 7th of September 1940. She was the hunchbacked figure Elizabeth just saw.

"I didn't want that," Elizabeth whimpered, making herself small. Her words were ignored.

"Because of you, my brother and I have been beheaded!" Said a young woman standing next to a young man. Both had their heads sewn on badly.

Elizabeth was about to answer when the voice of her dream came back: "Because of you, Elizabeth Katherine Alfred, many more people will die."

Elizabeth sank to the floor crying and buried her face in her hands as she was repeatedly accused.

—

Elizabeth woke up bathed in sweat and with a racing pulse; her chest rose and fell at an unhealthy pace. She immediately straightened up and looked around: she was still in the forest where she had been resting. No hospital in sight.

"Calm down," she murmured, "it was just a nightmare... nothing more."

But was that true? Because she heard the strange voice again.

—

In the late evening of the 5th of March, Bert and his section sat in a restaurant in Paris. Fortunately, this was in the hotel where they stayed. The room was well filled, because there was live music in a room next to the actual restaurant that evening. And: there was a dance floor.

"Too bad we have to leave the day after tomorrow," Johnny said as he sipped his red wine.

"True... Paris has some pretty women that I would like to get to know better."

"You are so awful, Andrew," Peter said in disgust and grimaced, "you only think about the same thing! As soon as you see a woman, you want to end up in bed with her! "

"It's enough, boys," Bert said in a soft, slightly tired tone.

"You don't always have to behave like the boss, Alfred!"

"But he's your sergeant!"

Andrew eyed the usually quiet Jerry Butterfield suspiciously.

"It's okay," Bert got up before there would be another argument, went outside and strolled around the corner.

He was tired. But not because the day was so exhausting. No, he was tired because he was tired of all of this.
Bert didn't feel ready to be the sergeant of his section. He was a chimney sweep, an artist, a dreamer.
But not a soldier.

Bert sighed and stopped to light a cigarette. He's been smoking a lot and a lot lately; presumably to get some distraction.

"I didn't know you were smoking, Mister Alfred," he heard a lovely voice saying. A voice more beautiful than any song.

Bert whirled around looking for the source of the sound. And there she was in the pale beam of street lamps: Mary Poppins.

"Mary," he breathed, dropping the cigarette.

They both started walking towards each other, and their steps became faster and faster until they almost ran.
Mary literally threw herself in his arms and closed her eyes as he hugged her.

Almost at the same time they broke away and just looked at each other with tears in their eyes. Bert took her face in his hands and kissed her with all his love.

Their lips moved in perfect sync and tasted slightly salty due to the tears of joy that ran down their cheeks. Only when the air ran out of their lungs they let go of each other and looked at one another:

Mary was as beautiful as ever. Her hair was a bit shorter, a little longer than her chin, and open.

But Bert had changed a lot more. The nanny felt and saw that he had become a lot more muscular; especially on the arms, back and chest. Unusual, since most men lost weight and became skinny at times like these.
His facial features were now more prominent and the cheekbones were now visible.

"What are ya doin' 'ere, Mary? Please don't get me wrong: I'm glad t' see you... Really! But isn't it too dangerous 'ere? "

"Isn't it dangerous everywhere now?", Bert just nodded in shame.

"The wind brought me here this morning... But not to see a family," she smiled sweetly at him, hoping he would understand.

A broad grin spread across Bert's face: the wind brought her to him!

He couldn't find a word; it was just full of endorphins.

"You have a moustache now," she remarked with an undertone that Bert couldn't really interpret. She had already felt the new facial hair while kissing him.

Bert raised an eyebrow: "Don't ya like it?"

"On the contrary."

The next moment her lips were on his again. The kiss was shorter than the one before, but it was by no means meaningless.

After that, they just looked at each other.
There was so much to say, so much to discuss. But both of them quietly agreed that this was not the right place or time for it. They also didn't want to rush anything; after all, they had been separated by almost exactly a year.

"I... I don't know what t' say," Bert stammered honestly. He crossed his arms behind his back and looked down.

Mary raised his chin so that he had to look into her blue eyes: "You don't have to say anything... Really... I'm just so happy to see you healthy and unharmed."

Bert kissed the tip of her nose.

"Would you like a drink?" He started a casual topic. "The boys and I are in a restaurant around the corner," he carefully stroked a stray strand behind her ear, "it's warmer there than out 'ere."

"With pleasure."

Bert offered her his arm; an offer she couldn't refuse, of course.

As they walked down the street, they just looked at each other in love; like a cheesy Hollywood romance.

It wasn't long before they were at the restaurant. The Sergeant, like the real gentleman he was, led her to the table where the others were sitting. In the meantime, Bert's hand rested lovingly on her waist.

Neither of the soldiers noticed the two of them because their eyes were fixed on the dance floor.

Bert also noticed that only Johnny, Peter, Jerry and Fred were still sitting there. He cleared his throat.

"Guys," Bert said, slightly amused, when they didn't respond to the clearing of the throat.

The soldiers turned and when they saw Mary, their jaws dropped slightly.
And at that moment everyone was thinking the same thing: Mary was definitely not a character from Bert's fantasies. Because now she stood before them - alive and in colour.

"May I introduce Mary Poppins t' you?" He looked at her, "Mary, that's John Andrews, called Johnny,"

Johnny nodded.

"Jerry Butterfield,"

The private raised a greeting hand.

"Fred Huntington,"

"Hello," replied Fred.

"And our medic Peter Pegg."

"Glad to meet you, Miss," said Peter gently, sitting next to Johnny so that Mary and Bert could sit next to each other, "please take a seat."

Both accepted the offer with thanks.

"Do you want something t' drink? The red wine is fantastic! "

"With pleasure."

As soon as Mary had said this, Bert ordered a bottle of the red wine for his pretty companion and himself. The nanny raised an eyebrow when she heard Bert speak in French; it was so unfamiliar.

To her amazement, it took less than five minutes before the waiter brought them the bottle.

And as soon as the alcoholic drink was there, it was also gone. Because the other men told Mary a lot about themselves. But when they started talking about Bert's enthusiasm and when Johnny started to tell her about the song he sang almost two months ago, the sergeant jumped up. She should never ever know about this!

"May I 'ave this dance, Miss Poppins?" He asked, holding out his hand.

"You may, Mister Alfred."

Both walked hand in hand and with a big smile on the dance floor. They couldn't really comprehend what was happening here.
After almost exactly a year they saw each other again and danced as if they had never been separated.

Yes, they had been separated several times before... But this was something completely different. This time they were literally torn apart.

However, both quickly suppressed these thoughts because they simply wanted to have a nice evening. An evening with music, dance and of course each other.

They danced like on the rooftops of London and it wasn't long before they stole the show. The musicians played slow, fast and also very fast songs. And Mary and Bert could dance to each of them.

Any sense of time was lost and they didn't even notice that the others had already gone to their rooms.

When they felt slightly tired after what felt like an eternity, the musicians also said goodbye.

"That was a fabulous dance," said Bert as he went up the steps of the platform and sat on the chair in front of the grand piano.

"Dance? Bert, that was several dances."

"I don't care," he laughed while tinkling briefly on the keys of the grand piano, "then they were fabulous dances."

Bert just sat straight on the grand piano and started to play.

Oh, how Mary loved how his long, elegant fingers sliding over the keys. He was a very good pianist, but he couldn't afford a piano, let alone a grand piano.

But then her brain registered the tune and she started to sing:

"Feed the birds, tuppence a bag,
Tuppence, tuppence, tuppence a bag
'Feed the birds,' that's what she cries
While overhead, her birds fill the skies"

Then Mary fell silent and shortly afterwards the music: "Is the chorus all I get t' 'ear?" Bert asked slightly sarcastically.

He started playing again and Mary sang the entire song.

She was so focused on singing that she didn't even notice that Bert had stopped playing early.
Only when she was finished and the room was completely quiet did she notice this.

Mary looked over at him and Bert just stared at her.

"Wow…"

"It's not the first time you've heard me sing," her cheeks were flushed.

"Yea', but it's the first time in over a year that your lovely voice is coming to my ear again."

Mary went down the stairs to the dance floor: "All the poet today, huh?"

"I mean it," Bert followed, "when you're singing, the birds fall silent so they can hear you."

Bert stood behind her and when Mary turned around, he wrapped his arms around her waist. They lost each other's eyes before their lips approached again and they kissed shortly afterwards. Mary's hands moved to the back of his head and chest, while his slipped to her hips.

"Mary," Bert breathed between two kisses.

"Yes?"

"Do you want to come with me?"

Her eyes spoke more than a thousand words, which is why both went to the first floor.
Bert put his arm around her shoulders while her arm was wrapped around his waist.

The way took half an eternity, because in both a fire burned, which they had not felt in an eternity.

But as soon as Bert closed the door of his room her lips met his. They kissed as if their lives depended on it; driven by the lust that flared up in them.

Bert sat on the edge of the bed and Mary sat on his lap and started to unbutton the shirt of his uniform with her filigree fingers, hoping he wouldn't stop again.

He pulled back and looked into her eyes. Not as worried as usual. No, this time his eyes were dark, veiled and full of lust.

He kissed her again, like he had never before. He opened the zipper on the back of her dress after she took off the top of his uniform.

While he was sitting in front of her with his bare chest, she got up and he stripped off her dress so that she was standing in front of him only in her underwear. With a wry smile, he put his hands on her waist and pulled her closer.
"You are so beautiful," he whispered as he brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

Mary ran her fingers over his skin as they kissed. Her hands kept going down until she felt the buckle on his belt and skilfully opened it. She pushed him onto the bed so that she could take off his pants better.
To Bert's surprise, she removed his underpants in the same breath as the pants on his uniform.

Now he lay completely exposed in front of her while she was still wearing her underwear.
But the next moment, Bert straightened up and removed the rest of her clothes.

"Wow," he just said. No language in the world had the right words for her natural beauty. Mary smiled, dropped down to him and kissed him.

He might not have the words for it, but he could show her!

His lips moved from her neck over her breasts to her thighs. Slowly but surely he approached the area where she wanted him the most.
When his lips got there, Mary moaned in relief. But it was not good enough for her: she wanted him completely; and now!

As if he could read her mind, he dragged her onto the bed and positioned himself over her; ready to make love to her.

They looked at each other for a moment before their lips met again when he slid inside her. Both groaned into the kiss and paused for a moment: it was the first time in almost twenty years that they had become so intimate.

Yes, they had made love to each other in 1922 and that night was the most beautiful and intense they had ever shared.

After both had relaxed after the unfamiliar feeling, Bert began to thrust his hips sensitively. He didn't want to overpower her and wanted to avoid hurting her.
But he was far from that. Mary's fingers stroked his back and pulled him even closer; she wanted to be as close to him as possible.

After a while that they couldn't assess, they came closer to their climax. They kissed one last time before the peak of their lust.
Then they moaned each other's names and then it was over.

Bert kissed her affectionately on the forehead before he rolled over and pulled her into his arms.
"That was incredible."

Mary purred in agreement and put her head on his chest; just enjoying his heartbeat and the raising and lowering of his chest. Her arms wrapped firmly around him and she stuck there as if she was about to lose him.

But then something came up in her that she actually wanted to suppress: feelings of guilt.

Even if that night in 1922 was one of the most beautiful, if not THE most beautiful, in her entire life, it had an aftermath.
An aftermath that she had never told Bert about.

Yeah... Well... So the two lovebirds met again hehe

As always, I would be very happy to receive your feedback :)