Habits

Mistakes

"Dad!" Johanna screamed, horrified, as Sweeney looked up from the bloodied body, "how could you kill him?!"

"The boy was onto me!" Sweeney snarled.

"I am too! And yet I'm alive..."

The girl was cut off by a flash of silver and blood spilled from her throat before she fell to the ground... dead.  Sweeneys eyes glistened with blood lust as she stared down at his daughters body.  The realization of what he'd done had yet to reach him.  He looked around at his surroundings.  Nellie dead.  Johanna dead.  Toby dead.  Hundreds of men dead. And in the midst of it all... him.

Sweeney's eyes flew open.  Sweat dripped from his forehead as he realized it was all a dream.  Nellie sat up next to him placing a hand on his shoulder which made him jump.

"Everythin' alright love?" She asked.

"Just a nightmare, I'll be fine," he laid back down, it was still dark as pitch outside.

Sweeney felt Nellie cuddle closer to him which made him smile slightly.  He hugged her tightly and laid his chin on her head.  His mind calmed as he slowly drifted of again with the warmth of Nellie's body in his arms.

——————————————————

Nellie woke up to the bed creaking, opening one eye she saw Sweeney pulling on a shirt.  Climbing out of bed herself she changed out of her nightdress quickly.  It had been a month since Johanna had moved in with them.  Sweeney's daughter now stayed in Nellie's room and the baker stayed with Todd.

Everything was finally going well in her life.  Sweeney really did love her, though he didn't always show it.  She almost had a family, a very broken, manic family but it existed.  Nellie had Toby, Sweeney had Johanna, and they had each other.

"Nell!" Sweeney called, she only then realized he had left the room, "you're going to have to check the bakehouse!  Business was rather good yesterday."

Nellie huffed before walking out of the room, hands on her hips.

"When will ya learn I'm not a young woman anymore?  If there are anymore them three I'll kill ya!"

Sweeney smirked, walking over to her.

"Well you may as well take me now."

Nellie tried to stand her ground as he got closer and closer but she failed.  He kissed her softly but it slowly heated up, he pushed her up against the wall only breaking away when he heard a man clearing his throat.

"Am I interrupting something sir?"

"As a matter of face y..." Sweeney was cut off by Nellie elbowing him in the side.

"'O course not sir, I was 'bout to leave."

"I'm sure you were," the man chuckled as she, blushing, walked out of the shop.

"Lovely tart you've got there Mr. Todd."

Sweeney growled in anger, he was just asking to be killed.

——————————————————

"Sweeney you bastard..." Nellie huffed as yet another body fell from the trapdoor.

That was the third body today not counting the four bodies from the day before.  She was tired after working for two hours on butchering bodies.  Her apron was sticky with blood and the smell of smoke was making her dizzy.  She had already made up her mind to keep the shop closed today.  Instead of working her ass off any longer she had decided on a nice long day of reading.  The bakehouse door opened suddenly and Sweeney walked in quietly.

"I had my customers make appointments for tomorrow, I figured you'd need some help from me."

Though she was glad he had thought of her Nellie was still pissed at him.

"I do... now get your ass over here and take care of the last three bodies ya so kindly left me."

"Your so sexy when your mad at me." He cooed.

Nellie rolled her eyes, "You can talk like that when your done butchering."

Sweeney chuckled and walked over to the bodies lifting one onto the table.  Nellke looked at the man, the man who had walked in on them both.  She sighed exasperated, which he heard.

"He had it coming..." Sweeney growled as he brought the butchers knife to the mans throat.

Nellie flinched at the blood that hit her face but wiped it off quickly.  Sweeney was obviously angry with the man as he chopped him cruely ignoring the fact he was dead.

"Well I'll be upstairs waitin' for ya, you'll get a reward for helpin' me." She winked at Sweeney who smirked in response.

"I'm looking forward to it pet."

——————————————————

Toby watched suspiciously from his room as Mr. Todd walked over to Mrs. Lovett and whispered something into her ear.  His sleeves were slightly pink and damp and he had been in the bakehouse for a long time.  Mrs. Lovett nodded in response and they both stood, leaving the shop and walking upstairs.

He felt alone, his mum paid little to no attention to him now.  The most he heard from her anymore was when she needed him to watch the shop.

It was hard for Toby to get used to the fact that Mrs. Lovett cared more about her stupid barber than she did her son.  Mr. Todd still talked to Johanna a lot, still treated her with love and respect and Toby was growing jealous.  He decided to talk to his mum again.  Of course he had to wait because he didn't want a repeat of what happened last time.

——————————————————

Nellie was deep into one of her books and she could sense Sweeney reading along behind her.  They'd had a wonderful night so far, full of sharing stories from their past and quite intense, yet quiet, loving.  Nellie closed her book and sat up turning to Sweeney.

"Shit! I forgot about dinner!  Johanna will be back in an hour and I promised to 'ave the food done!"

"Go on down, I'll throw on some clothes and meet you downstairs."  Sweeney responded giving her a sweet kiss on the forehead.

As Nellie opened the door to the shop she saw Toby sitting in a booth glaring at her.

"Everythin' alright love?" She asked, his eyes bubbled with anger.

"NO! Everythin's not alright!  That god damn barber is takin' ya from me!  He only wants ya for the sex I swear it! He aint a good man! He don't love ya!  Hes got no place in 'is heart to love!  Ya need a good man, not 'im!  Don't let 'im trick ya, you'll only end up hurtin'!" The anger in his voice took Nellie by surprise.

"Now love, theres more to 'is story then ya think..."

"I dont care! Are ya really so thickheaded that ya don't see he's usin' ya?  Wake up mum! He's cruel!"

Nellie felt tears spring to her eyes as she processed Toby's words.

"T-Toby he does love m-me..." Nellie sobbed.

Toby showed no sympathy.

"No he don't! He's a bastard who just wants ya for 'is own disgusting needs, and if ya don't see that..." Toby didn't hear the door open behind him, " then you're just as he thinks of ya... a stupid bitch..."

Toby only then saw the shadow towering above him...

"Oh that was a mistake lad..."

A/N: This chapter was so fun to write so I hope you enjoyed it...
Thanks for reading!