Summary: She'd seen it in his eyes. Known.

Her demise at Sweeney Todd's hands was upon her, as he clutched her waist and waltzed her around the room with a vengeance.

But she wasn't ready to die.

So she did the only thing she could.

She lied. Again.

Now, with her life miraculously intact, Nellie Lovett is faced with a predicament, one which needs to be amended immediately: she needs to fall pregnant before Sweeney realises the truth. The only problem is how, when the man whose child she is supposed to be carrying won't come near her…what dreadful consequences will her actions have? Alternate Ending.

A/N: I'm probably not doing the right thing by posting this. However, since this is the last time I'll be able to update for a while, I thought it would be okay to start this, since the chapters are going to be shorter and therefore easier to write while I'm at school. For those of you following Forgive Me For My Sins, I will definitely not be abandoning it; but because the chapters can get ridiculously long, I thought it might be nice to have something else to read in the meantime. :) Be aware that the rating will be upped in later chapters. Let me know what you think of it by leaving a review. :)

Disclaimer: Sweeney Todd does not belong to me.

Deceiver of Hearts

Prologue: The End

August, 1850

She stood on the shore, face upturned to the stars. The tide was in, the little waves rushing over her feet and washing the sand from between her toes. Her boots and stockings lay in a haphazard pile, abandoned at the top of the beach. Nellie exhaled into the night, her breath fogging the air. She clutched her skirts in trembling hands, hitching them to bunch at her waist to prevent the salty sea-water from weighing them down. Hot tears stained her face, reddening her eyes and puffing her cheeks. She sniffed noisily, but did not make a move to wipe her face.

Nellie thought of her son Toby, at home, curled up snugly under the covers of his little bed, fast asleep and dreaming, blissfully unaware of the turmoil his mother was going through, holding his little brother close. This only made the tears flow faster.

Goosebumps erupted on her exposed flesh as the wind whistled mournfully, twining itself around her body and freezing her heart. Shivering, Nellie took it as a sign that she should be leaving soon, dropping her skirts to cover her creamy legs and casting one last look at the world which she knew existed just across the ocean. Sometimes, fleetingly, she wished she could be anywhere but here.

Turning on her heel, the baker began the lonely trudge back up the sandy beach to the shingle. It was fast becoming a nightly ritual of hers; she would wait until the final lamp in the house was guttered out before rising from her bed, casting one last lingering glance at her husband (sometimes stooping to press a soft kiss against his cheek if she was feeling particularly guilty) and exiting the house to beat the familiar trek to the beach. Upon reaching her destination she would discard her boots and stockings, stepping into the cold sea. Standing stock-still, she would lament everything she'd ever lost, allowing the tears she refused to cry in the day cleanse her skin in the secrecy of the night. Other times she would toy with the notion of just swimming away from it all, or else holding herself under the silken water until she ceased to breathe. At least that way she would be free from everything. But doing that would mean abandoning her family and leaving them to die with the devastation of the unknown. Over the last two years Nellie could be accused of being many things, including selfish, but she at least liked to believe that she was no longer as driven by her own motives as she had been in prior months.

She'd learned the hard way that selfishness could have dire consequences.

Reaching the pier once again, she paused to dust the sand from her feet. Leaning against the metal barrier, she inhaled a lungful of sea air, licking the salt from her mouth. She would turn from here and return to her little house. She'd slip into the bathroom, fill the bath with bucketfuls of water from the pipe outside, then heat it up. She'd wash her grief from her body, make peace with herself for the coming day. She'd pop her head in on her sons to make sure they were still asleep and tucked in safely. And then she'd return to her bedroom, slip back under the thin sheets and gaze at the ceiling until dawn, sometimes dozing, awakening when her husband shifted beside her, losing herself in his touch if he was in the mood to make love. Then she'd dress silently and go about her housework while he ventured to work. It was a monotonous routine, but at least it was a familiar one.

Footsteps slapped on the concrete ground behind her, and Nellie stiffened as she became acutely aware of a presence taking determined strides towards her. She had an idea who it would be, and resigned herself to the worst. She gave no indication that she'd heard the approach, though the person was obviously not trying to mask the sound of the footsteps. She merely tightened her grasp on the metal, her hands cooling despite the presence of her lace gloves.

The stranger stopped behind her, and Nellie heard the shink of a razor being flicked open. Smiling ironically to herself, Nellie prepared herself to turn and face him. It did not come as a surprise that he'd found her out here – she should have anticipated it, really. Now he'd located her, and she'd have to deal with the penalty.

His face was blank and unsmiling as she regarded him. His hair was a wild array of tangled locks, the white streak standing out shockingly in the darkness of night. His razor glimmered like a beacon, reflecting the moon's rays as it was raised from his side.

Staring into his fathomless eyes, Nellie thought that she'd rather take her chance holding herself under the silken water until she ceased to breathe than face Sweeney Todd.

A/N: If you notice any mistakes, please point them out for me.

The second chapter is finished in draft, so it just needs typing up and editing. Expect it in the near future. :)