S.T. Pov
I smiled tightly and slowly twirled the razor, my friend, my dear, dear friend. It had done its purpose. It had killed the bloody scoundrel, Judge Turpin. I silently congratulated the razor for its fine work. I was covered in blood and so was the whole room, but I didn't care.
And then it came; the soft creaking noise of a hinge. I whirled around. The trunk was open, and two pairs of crystal blue eyes were staring back at me with sheer terror. I marched to the trunk and opened the lid. There was a boy there, staring up at me. He had a hat on, which I found unusual. No matter, I thought to myself. He saw things he shouldn't have, and for that, he would die.
I lifted him by the collar and dragged him to Albert's old chair. "Come here for a shave, eh, boy?" I growled into his ear, holding the razor to his throat.
"No, no," he whimpered in a high-pitched voice. Just as I was about to press my friend into the boy's throat and make him bleed to death, I heard a woman's cry of terror. It was a voice that I knew all too well. One that I secretly loved.
I removed the razor from the boy's throat. "I'll be right back to finish what I started," I snarled. I marched to the door.
"Wait, mister," the boy cried. He was brave. I was just about to kill him, and yet he was still addressing me. "You are Benjamin Barker?"
I turned to him with one eyebrow raised. "Well, if you plan on telling anyone, I suggest that you call off that plan, since you'll be dead within the hour."
The boy shook his head fast. "No, no, of course not!" he said quickly several times. "What I mean is," he continued. I could hear his voice trembling. "I think… I think I might know you…" and the boy took off his hat.
Golden ringlets hung down the boy, or I suppose it was a girl's back. The way they were shaped in a perfectly circular way… The way they glistened in the moonlight coming from a nearby window… it was all too familiar.
I looked into her eyes. Only then did I notice how truly beautiful she was. "Johanna?" I asked incredulously. Her cheeks were glistening with little tears, and she nodded silently. My eyes pooled up but, as usual, I was able to keep them from overflowing.
"Yes, that is me," she choked. "I am… I am your daughter."
I felt like running to her, and yet, I felt like running away all at the same time. Running to her won over, but just as I took a step forward, I heard another screech. I looked out the window, then back again at my daughter. "Follow me," I said quickly and rushed out the door.
We ran down the stairs to the alley in the back where the entrance to the boiler room was. We went down another flight of stairs. I swung the heavy door open. Mrs. Lovett gave one last shove to a limp figure that hung over her shoulder and the beggar lady fell into the oven.
Mrs. Lovett closed the door quickly and turned to me. She nodded her head towards Johanna, who stood uncertainly at the door, and asked, "Who's she?"
I smiled tightly. "She is my daughter," I said happily. It was the first time I spoke in such a tone in years. My life was as complete as it would ever get.
Mrs. Lovett took quick, small steps towards Johanna and leaned over so she was looking into her eyes. "Johanna?" she asked incredulously. She tackled the girl with her little pixie-like body and kissed her on each cheek. "You shouldn't see your father like this," she muttered disapprovingly, frowning at me. I grinned back. It felt strange. It had been so long since I had done so.
I looked around. The beadle and the judge were lying dead on the ground. I picked up each of their bodies and slowly threw them in the fire. I turned around and there, standing between Mrs. Lovett and Johanna and me, was Toby.
"Toby," Mrs. Lovett sighed with relief. She walked quickly to him and hugged him close. "Where had you been, lad? We'd been looking all over for you."
But Toby's eyes never left mine. He was trembling madly. He lifted a finger and pointed it at me. It wobbled. "You… you're a monster!" he croaked.
Mrs. Lovett shook her finger at him disapprovingly. I nodded my head towards Johanna and motioned for her to come and stand by me. She walked slowly, staring at the boy curiously. I was still surprised and quite interested at her amazing courage. "He worked for some fancy Italian barber that recognized me from the old days. I had taken care of him, but Mrs. Lovett cared for the boy and convinced me to let him stay," I explained. She must have seen the compassion in my face while I had said Mrs. Lovett's name, because she was grinning from ear to ear by the time I finished talking.
Suddenly, I remembered why she was there. "When does Anthony arrive?" I asked her.
Johanna thought for a moment, and then said, "He's supposed to be here any minute now." I nodded and led her out of the room, back up the stairs, out of the alley, up the other flight of stairs, and into the barber shop. Anthony was waiting there, and when he saw us come in, he rushed over and nodded his head at Johanna. When he saw me, though, he backed up slowly. "Mr. Todd," he said slowly, "is that… is that blood?"
"It's a long story, that I may tell you later," Johanna said, coming to my rescue. "The short story is that Mr. Todd and I are old friends, and it is great to see him again. But he must run away, too, must you not, Mr. Todd?" She looked at me expectantly. I nodded quickly.
"Think of it as a way to repay me, Anthony," I told the boy convincingly. He shrugged and nodded.
"Mr. Todd," he said slowly. "Are you alright? Please do not take offense from this, but it seems that you have changed, in a way. You seem more positive, in fact."
I nodded approvingly at his recognition of my attitude. "Yet another story that Johanna and I may tell you later, when we creep out of this little village without getting caught," I said, trying to make our escape as soon as possible. "Now, Mrs. Lovett and I will go get packing and we'll meet you in the shop downstairs in ten minutes, all right?"
They both nodded and rushed out together. I smiled at the way they trusted each other so truly. But there was no time for compassion. It was time to scram. I ran out the door to explain to Mrs. Lovett.
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A/N: that was chapitooro uno of mi alternate ending to Sweeney Todd. My inspiration music was By The Sea!!!! R+R… ya know u wanna!!!!
