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Prologue

Sweeney Todd glared out of his large window at the citizens of London below. It was Christmas Eve and everyone was in a merry mood, well, except for him. Scowling, Sweeney began to sharpen his razor at a rapid pace. He grunted when he accidently cut himself. Cursing, Sweeney walked across the room and grabbed a cloth to wrap around his wounded hand. He winced when he heard all-too-familiar knocking on his door.

"Breakfast, Mr. Todd," Mrs. Lovett announced cheerfully as she entered Sweeney's shop. He watched her like a hawk as she placed his food down on his desk. When she faced him, her eyes widened slightly when she noticed the bloody cloth around his hand.

"Mr. Todd, I thought tha' we discussed tha' there'll be no more killin' people!" She scolded. Sweeney glared at her, removing the cloth to reveal his wound. Mrs. Lovett let out a gasp and rushed to his side, seizing his arm firmly.

"Mr. Todd, wot did yeh do to your hand?"

"I cut it, you silly woman," He growled dangerously. Mrs. Lovett paid no attention to his pissy mood. With his arm still in her grasp, Mrs. Lovett led Sweeney down to her shop for more proper bandaging.

"You're th' silly one, useless thing. Cuttin' yourself with yer own razor. I would think tha' now that th' Judge an' Beadle are no more, you'd cheer up some an' quit your broodin'!" As she said this, Mrs. Lovett gingerly poured some Gin on the wound to clean it. Sweeney clenched his jaw, but did not make a sound. Mrs. Lovett then began to bandage up Sweeney's hand. She made sure that he could still shave with it by not wrapping it too tight.

"There. All better, love. Be more careful next time." Sweeney glared at Mrs. Lovett as he got up.

"You are not my mother, Mrs. Lovett. So, quit treatin' me like a child." Mrs. Lovett stared up at him with raised eyebrows.

"Well, maybe if yeh didn't act like a child, I wouldn't treat yeh like one," She pointed out. Sweeney took a step closer to Mrs. Lovett, wearing a furious look on his face.

"There will be one more killing in this building if you do not shut that hole in your face!" Sweeney bellowed. Mrs. Lovett stared at him, her eyes wide and her lips tightly shut. His look lingered upon her for a moment before he turned and headed back up to his shop.

"Bloody woman…I'd be doin' the world a favor if I permanently silenced her," Sweeney muttered darkly as he entered his shop. He collapsed in his chair, staring up at the ceiling. It had been two months since he had gotten his revenge, two months since Mrs. Lovett had made him swear that he'd stop his killing spree. The woman did have a point about it being unnecessary to continue killing, but when the barber was in a bad mood, the urge to kill was very strong. Sighing, Sweeney got up and stared out the window. He glared at a happy couple kissing in the middle of the street.

"Naïve fools," He grumbles, turning away from the window when he hears his door open. A cheerful looking elder comes in, giving Sweeney a toothy grin.

"Merry Christmas, Mr. Todd! How are you today?"

"Wonderful," Sweeney spat sarcastically. The man took no notice to Sweeney's sarcasm.

"I would like a clean shave, please. I'm leaving town this afternoon to visit family in Plymouth," The man stated happily as he removed his coat and took a seat in the barber chair. Sweeney shaved the man as quickly as possible and sent him on his way. The barber was relieved when the overly-cheerful man was gone. With a sigh, Sweeney continued to stare out the window and brood.

Mrs. Lovett left Sweeney wordlessly after she brought up his dinner, which was a relief to him. He really didn't want to put up with her pointless chatter about how wonderful Christmas was. Sweeney approached the meal that Mrs. Lovett had left for him. It was the usual pie with ale, or so he thought. At second glance, there were two gingerbread men beside the pie. Sweeney glared at the cookies with pure hate. He sat down and began to eat in silence. It was then that he heard a loathing voice calling his name.

"Mr. Todd."

Sweeney turned and saw two people he did not ever want to see again. The barber jumped up and faced Judge Turpin and Beadle Bamford. They were each transparent and they were covered in chains.

"Mr. Todd, you are damned." The Turpin ghost stated. Sweeney glared at the two of them, not at all afraid.

"You got what was coming to you, Turpin. You mutilated my wife and drove her to killing herself. And you," Sweeney turned his attention to the Beadle's ghost, "You helped him ruin my life."

"As you can see, Mr. Todd, we are suffering for our crimes." The Beadle said quietly.

"You shall suffer, too, if you do not change your ways." The Judge whispered cryptically. Sweeney stared at the two ghosts, confusion washing over his features.

"Why are you here to warn me of my fate?"

"Because, like you, we were not always corrupted and cruel." The ghost of the Beadle stated.

"Prepare yourself, Mr. Todd. There will be three other spirits visiting you tonight. The first will come at the strike of one." Before Sweeney could ask any more questions, the ghosts of Judge Turpin and Beadle Bamford disappeared without a trace. Sweeney stood still, waiting for anymore weird encounters. He pulled his watch out to check the time. It was 8:15 PM. Sighing, Sweeney turned and finished eating his dinner.