Unconventional

Mr. Todd was watching Lily intently, his jaw tight and eyes steely. Lily stepped back slowly, feeling gently with each foot before planting it on the ground. She was slowly inching her way back to Nellie, who hadn't yet moved from her prostate position on the floor.

"Nellie," Lily called softly, "wake up, Nellie. Come on love, wake up." Her eyes never left Mr. Todd's face. She fought the urge to turn and drop down next to Nellie with every fiber of her being, but she couldn't stop her eyes from flicking towards Mrs. Lovett. She was breathing steadily, so she couldn't have been injured too badly Lily told herself, as she turned her eyes back to Mr. Todd. He had started to advance on her, the blade glittering in his hand. Lily stepped back quickly until she was standing over Mrs. Lovett, intending to protect her until her last breath. Lily swung the blade in her hand quickly across Mr. Todd's arm, drawing a thin line of blood. Mr. Todd took no heed of it and arched his silver friend up over his head.

"What's this then!" A tall man stood in the doorway to Mr. Todd's shop, his hat in his hand and a dog standing at his side. Mr. Todd quickly lowered his blade and turned so that his injured arm faced away from the man. Lily dropped the blade in her hand to the floor with a clatter and grabbed Mrs. Lovett's arm. The woman sat up with a start and quickly scrambled to her feet, making a great show of dusting off her skirt.

"Must have tripped over summin' on the floor." She said a little too loudly, dragging Lily -who was still holding Mrs. Lovett's arm- out of the shop with her, pushing past the gentleman and the dog in the doorway and leaving them to Mr. Todd's devices. The pair hurried down the stairs and into the shop, were they flopped down onto stools in the kitchen, thankfully for the lull in customers between breakfast and lunch. After she had caught her breath, Lily spoke, her voice trembling,

"Why'd you do that?" Lily rubbed her forearm where Mr. Todd had gripped her. Mrs. Lovett spoke softly, for she was a woman of limited wind, and she had just had almost all of it knocked out of her.

"Do what?" Mrs. Lovett gripped a stitch growing in her side and cursed the damn corset for keeping her from being able to stretch it out.

"Defend me, why'd you get between me and Mr. Todd?" Lily looked directly into Mrs. Lovett's face, her curiosity obvious in her green eyes.

" 'Cause. I couldn't just let 'im getcha. Not after we've gotten to be such good friends. Mr. Todd was just in one of 'is moods is all. He'll be fine later."

The smile that had graced Lily's face after "friends" clouded. "What? He's a cruel, vicious man, Nellie. Why are you letting him stay here?" Mrs. Lovett fidgeted with her fingers in her lap, not meeting Lily's eyes.

"'E's been good to me and Toby, and he's not that bad, once you get to know 'im. 'E's 'ad a 'ard life is all." Mrs. Lovett slid off her stool and moved to enter the kitchen. "Better get ready for the lunch rush then, shall we?" Lily didn't move from her stool but stared at Mrs. Lovett's back.

"Do you love him, Mrs. Lovett?"

"Yes," Mrs. Lovett answered. "He used to live above my shop way back when I was just a slip of a thing. I've loved him for a long time." And with that she entered the kitchen and began her routine of making pies, and Lily had no option but to follow her, albeit with a scowl on her face. They worked side by side, by the tension was palpable and very quickly Lily wished that she hadn't said anything about Mr. Todd.

'Why shouldn't I say anything?' She asked herself as she pounded the dough in frustration. 'He was going to kill her! He was going to kill me!' She continued to sulk through the entire day, through the lunch rush, through the lull, and then through the dinner rush. Mrs. Lovett wasn't unaware of the dark cloud following her help around, but she didn't say anything about it, figuring that the girl would come around.

Later that night, Mrs. Lovett and Toby shared a bottle of gin while Lily sat, not in her usual seat, but on the floor next to Toby's small couch, facing Mrs. Lovett instead of sitting next to her. Toby chattered away, either unaware of the uncomfortable silence or ignoring, and Lily forced herself to make pleasant conversation with the boy. Mrs. Lovett, however, sat in her chair with a book in her lap that she wasn't actually reading, and stared at her lap. When the clock struck eleven she seemed to snap out her own little world and notice the real one for the first time.

"Would you look a' the time! These old bones need some rest, as do your younger ones, if you want to be able to walk tomorrow." She rose up out of her chair, dropping the book onto a table. She stretched her arms up above her head and stifled a yawn. "Come on love, let's get to sleep. Goodnight, Toby dear." Toby was already half-asleep and just nodded in response. Lily lifted herself off the ground and followed Mrs. Lovett into the bedroom.

Mrs. Lovett rummage through her wardrobe for a moment before pulling out a slightly worn nightgown which she tossed towards Lily.

"We can't 'ave you sleeping in your dress again now, can we? We best get you some dresses of your own to wear so people won't be wonderin' wot you're doin' wearing mine." Mrs. Lovett laughed softly. While she and Lily were almost the same height, Mrs. Lovett had her outdone in the womanly curves department and the dresses that the elder woman filled and then some hung oddly on the younger, more slender woman's frame. Mrs. Lovett's kindness was met with silence as Lily undressed. Mrs. Lovett began to shed her layers as well, laying each one out over the back of a chair before she tugged a worn old nightdress over her head and climbed into bed. Lily's sulks were beginning to affect her mood, and she found herself itching for the young woman to talk to her or help her with her hair or even just smile at her.

When Mrs. Lovett glanced over at Lily, she found herself caught up in the captivating green eyes which had staring at directly at her for quite some time. The two stared for a long moment before Mrs. Lovett blushed at looked away, asking,

"What are lookin' at, love?" even though she was sure she already knew the answer. Lily didn't answer, but simply moved to the bed, the own rustling softly as she climbed under the covers next to Mrs. Lovett. She laid on her side, looking at Mrs. Lovett and brought a hand up to brush some hair out of the elder woman's eyes.

"You didn't take down your hair tonight," Lily stated simply, resting her hand on Mrs. Lovett's cheek. Mrs. Lovett fought the shivers that ran down her spine and managed to hold still under the gently touch.

"It doesn't matter. There aren't that many pins in it today, so I'll just take care of it in the mornin'." Lily nodded, running her fingers over Mrs. Lovett's cheekbones and down the side of her neck. Her fingers rested gently on the light purple bruises that had started to rise there.

"He was going to kill you." Lily said softly. "I don't know how you can stay under the same roof as him." Mrs. Lovett sighed and rolled over to put out the lamp at her bedside, avoiding looking Lily in the eyes.

"'E wasn't goin' to kill me. 'E just got upset is all. There's nothing for you to worry about." Mrs. Lovett settled down on her side, with her back to Lily. She couldn't bring herself to face the girl who had defended her so ferociously against Mr. Todd's threat. She heard a deep sigh and then Lily's voice,

"I just don't want you to get hurt love. Your body or your heart." Mrs. Lovett could think of a reply, so she remained silent, and thus Lily fell into silence also. There was a sudden shift behind her, and Mrs. Lovett felt a warm body press against her back, an arm reaching over and looping around her waist, pulling her close. "You're all I have Nellie." Mrs. Lovett smiled gently, setting a hand on the one grasping her waist.

"I'm 'ere for you, love, don't worry." The baker closed her eyes and as she began to drift off to sleep, she felt what may have been a kiss on her shoulder, but it was too soft for her to be sure it wasn't just a dream. And so she fell into a dreamless sleep, with Lily warm breath blowing rhythmically on the back of her neck.

AN: Generally, I like it! Btw, this story is meant to take place between 'Johanna' and 'By the Sea' in the movie, just to give some context in case it was unclear. Read and review loves!

raven