It was a few weeks since Johanna had been rescued by Anthony. He had rescued her from her neverending nightmare. Judge Turpin. Her story was too long and traumatic to go through fromn the start, but a shortened version is that her father had been sent away on a false charge all because the Judge was jealous. The Judge's plan had gone exactly how he wanted it too. My mother was now alone and vulnerable. She was alone with a child too look after and was worried. This meant that she was easily taken in. The Judge did exactly this. Conned her into coming to a party at his house one night, not for a drink together, oh no, he raped her. It made Johanna sick to think about it. Sick to her stomach. Her mother was traumatised after this. So traumatised that she poisoned herself. Luckily she survived, but at a great cost. The poison had made her go mad. She went from a beautiful woman, with long yellow hair, to this dirty, horrible beggar woman. How could any human being do that to someone?
So what happened to her baby? Hell did. The Judge took her in. Looked after her as his own. She grew up with him, but always locked in. Always kept under lock and key. Always under his watchful eye. She needed out. So badly. If only there was atleast one kind soul out there that would help her get out of her nightmare, make it all go away? She sat at her window all day long waiting for this person, hoping that maybe such a person does exisist. Months had passed of this hoping and nobody had turned up. Nobody had come to turn her nightmares into dreams. Into peaceful, neverending dreams.
Until, one day. One special day. A certain sailor, named Anthony Hope. She sat at her usual spot when she noticed him, and he noticed her. It was love at first sight. She didn't even have to say two words to him. She was in love with him. He stood outside her window for a good 5 minutes just gazing, and she gazed back. She never wanted it to end, but of course, it's life, all good things have to come to an end, don't they? She was summoned by the Judge, and past experience bells ringing inside her head were telling her that he was not a man to keep waiting. She quickly snapped her head round and ran off.
This didn't stop Anthony coming round to her window though, which she was glad of.
" She's beautiful, " he would say to himself.
He could see she was not happy though, as though she was longing of being set free, her cage bars being vanished for the first time, and he promised her he would.
He did. She was finally free. Now, she sat in the Judge's house, a free woman. He was dead and she had no sympathy for him. He had left her his house and fortune in his will, so she atleast had a sort of good start now he was dead. She had nearly everything now, she had a house, money and that special someone, Anthony. But despite all of this something was missing. Family. Her family. She had never known her real family.
Fast forward a bit, 3 weeks after the Judge's death to be exact,...
" Anthony? " Johanna said.
" Yes? " He answered.
" I was thinking today, I would really like to find my mother and father " She continued.
At this point Anthony flinched. He knew what had happened to her parents, and he always hoped that he would never have to reveal that information.
" Erm, Johanna? " He said carefully.
" Yes? " She replied, with a slight twinkle of hope in her beautiful eyes.
" You can't find your parents, you won't find them. "
" But, how? " She asked, strangely confused.
" They died a few weeks ago, just after I took you away from the Judge. " He explained.
Johanna couldn't belive what she was hearing. He knew her parents? He knew that her parents had died, but yet, he didn't feel the need to tell her?
" But, h-h-how? I mean, if I didn't know who my parents where, then how the hell could you know? "
She felt slightly angry. She felt like a tiny potion made of a mixture of anger and sadness was bubbling and brewing inside of her. She sat up further in her seat, glaring at Anthony.
" Okay, I'll explain. "
He sat up further in his seat to meet Johanna's poisonous glare.
" Do your remember Mr Todd? Of Fleet Street? "
She nodded.
" Well remember when he died, he had died from a slicing of his neck, just like that old begger woman lying in his arms, and the Judge behind him. Well, after the undertakers had come for his, and everybody else's bodies, I decided to do a little research on ' Mr Sweeney Todd, ' and I found out that he was not actually called Sweeney Todd afterall, but was in fact a Mr Benjamin Barker. You Johanna, Johanna Barker. He was your father. "
She was not glaring anymore, but merely staring in shock.
" The woman lying in his arms? Lucy Barker, your mother. I'm sorry to have kept that from you Johanna, really I am. "
And at that, he sat back in his chair, just waiting for Johanna's response.
She sat for a moment, contemplating what to do, what to say? A few seconds passed and she just flew herself into Anthony's arms.
" Thankyou. " She whispered into his neck.
So now she knew, she knew that her mother was the pesky beggar woman on the streets. As for her father? The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
