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15. Again

A week had passed since receiving the news and Mary Poppins was restless. She spent most of her time pacing up and down the house, distracting herself and having frequent visits to the bathroom. The Banks' looked at each other in worry. They had never seen her look so upset in their life. In their eyes, it was the first time she looked somewhat human.

Unable to bare it anymore, the children watched her grab a coat and her umbrella. Wondering what she was doing they stared until she looked at them.

"Let's go home." Was all she said for them to understand what she was going to do

"But are you sure you're alright?" Annabel asked

"Yes. Now grab your things. It's cold out so put on your hats, scarves and gloves."

Unsure of what was exactly happening, they obeyed her regardless. Coming back dressed, they found her in her usual attire standing at the door. With her bag in hand and the umbrella in the other, she looked just like the Mary Poppins they always knew. Walking out, she locked the door behind them and looked down.

"Hold on to me." She ordered

"Huh?" Grabbing her arm, they all held hands and an the blink of an eye, they were up in the air

"Wow!" They exclaimed

Down below them, the world began to appear smaller and smaller. As if they were toy figures down on the ground. Lifting higher and higher into the clouds, she amazed at the beautiful hills and countryside view. Looking up, Annabel analysed Mary Poppins expression. There was a sense of both worry and determination as she stayed focused.

Floating in the sky, like a kite, they could soon see London city from a distance. Descending lower and lower, they zoomed past the London Bridge and the London eye. In just a few moments, they were greeted by familiar yet unfamiliar scenery.

It Cherry Tree Lane but soldiers roamed around freely and some buildings had collapsed to the ground.

"We are home..." John gasped

Landing to the ground, they quickly walked to their home. Knocking rapidly, the door creaked open and a very surprised Jane greeted them.

"Oh my goodness! John! Annabel! Georgie! Mary Poppins!" Hugging them all one by one she loved out of the way to let them enter "what are you all doing here?!"

"Aunt Jane!" The siblings hugged her tightly as Mary Poppins put her belongings away

"I want to see Jack." Mary Poppins said quite bluntly

"Ah yes!" Jane quickly scurried around before yelling "Michael! Come down!"

"Who is it?" Michael called from up the stairs

"Father!!" The children yelled excitedly

Dashing down the stairs, a wide beaming smile appeared on his face as he was reunited once again with his children.

"Mary Poppins!" He exclaimed "I'm assuming you're here because of... Jack."

"Yes."

"We just got your letter this morning" Jane explained as she walked into the living room "here, eat something first and then we'll head off to the hospital"

As they ate, Jane updated them about Jack's status.

"They've managed to get him in a stable condition since his last check up. He was injured quite badly and there's a chance he won't get completely well if he wakes up..."

"When..." Annabel corrected with her mouth full of bread

"Right. When." Jane smiled "it's been 3 weeks now since he's been unconscious and there's still no sign of him waking up. They say he's in a coma..."

"We've been visiting any time we could" Michael said "though there's only so much we can do..."

"Maybe he'll wake up if he hears Mary Poppins voice?" Georgie suggested

"You know what, that might actually work..." Jane agreed "if you're all done, we can go to the hospital."

Hurrying up to finish their meal, they were all soon out the door and walking towards the hospital. With no time to lose, they arrived at the hospital where they were lead by a nurse to the ward.

This entire time, Jane couldn't help but notice something different about Mary Poppins. She was unusually pale and she seemed sick even though she didn't act it. Unable to fully grasp, she shook her head and they all made their way to Jack's bed.

Seeing him on the bed with bandages wrapped around him, Mary Poppins felt herself become sick once again but decided to fight it. This whole time, she had wanted to see him again but not in this way. Back in the town they had met but now in two different circumstances. Closing her eyes, Mary Poppins held his hand tight seeming as if she would never let go.

The three siblings surrounded him and began talking to him as if he was able to hear them.

"Jack! Did you know we flew today! And then we ended up back home!" Georgie exclaimed excitedly

"Mhm! Being back in London is quite strange and also very loud! It makes me realise that I kinda like the country more" John grinned

"We kept our promise! We made sure Mary Poppins has fun but she's quite persistent and is really worried about you..." Annabel smiled "so please wake up soon!"

The adults all smiled at the children's sweet comments. Jane nodded reassuringly to them, allowing them to continue talking to Jack in a normal conversational way. However, Jane was still feeling worried about Mary Poppins and knew something was wrong.