I'M ON A ROLLLLLL notrllyIjustdon'twannastudy XD Enjoy.

...

The damp night air pressed upon Sweeney Todd as he made his way down the alley. Barely twenty minutes ago, he'd finished his dinner – the first with his daughter, and a complete disaster. He hadn't had a clue what he ought to have said. He'd caught her looking at him with a frank curiosity, though he could hardly imagine why. Rotti had told her everything about her father, hadn't he? Surely she'd heard what a horrible man he was, how he deserved to rot in prison? Shilo had certainly run from the room fast enough to confirm it. Todd scowled as he turned a corner, wishing once again that his enemy was alive.

His right hand, Cato Snake, was in perfect health though – at least, that's what Todd assumed, considering he'd gotten a call from the lawyer as he helped Mrs. Lovett to clear the table. He'd wanted to meet Todd in GeneCo's basement, though he hadn't said why. Todd wasn't a fool; of course it had occurred to him that Snake might be a lot less than friendly. Hidden beneath his coat was a small holster housing one of his straightrazors. Suddenly it occurred to Todd that it might not matter whether or not he used it in self defense. Who would believe a convict fresh off the boat over a lawyer? The irony - that the little thing that had landed him in prison for a framed murder might very well put him there again for defending himself - was not lost on the barber. Still, having the razor made Todd feel more secure.

Presently Todd arrived at GeneCo's back door. After making sure no one was around, he pulled the door open and slipped inside. The door swung shut behind him, and would have left him in complete darkness if not for the light at the bottom of the staircase he was standing atop. He descended the stairs and pushed open another door. It was white and pristine, with a single chair in the middle of the room; it looked more like a dentists' chair than anything, with leather straps attached to it. Todd made his way cautiously into the room.

"Good evening, Mr. Todd," a smooth, oiled voice made Todd jump and look around. Cato Snake leaned back on the wall in the far corner of the room, opposite the door. Todd had been so focused on the strange chair that he hadn't looked past it and noticed the lawyer. Snake straightened his lanky form, uncrossing his arms sheathed in a grey business suit, and started towards the barber.

"Snake," Todd said by way of greeting, straightening up some himself. He was not here to be fooled with, and he wanted Snake to be well aware of it.

"Tell me, how was your first day as a newly freed man?" Snake smiled in what he clearly thought was a friendly manner, but it more closely resembled a leer. His nearly golden eyes glittered maliciously.

"Cut the crap, Snake. What do you want?" Todd snapped as the lawyer stopped in front of him. He now noticed because of their close proximity that Snake was a few inches taller than him. He did not like having to look up to glare in his face. It rather spoiled the effect.

"My, my, what manners." Snake jeered softly, "And to think I called you here about a job offer."

For the briefest instant, Todd was too stunned to say anything. A job? From him? When he recovered himself, he spat, "You could've told me about this when you called. It would've saved me so much suspenseful agony." His sarcasm couldn't improve his chances, but he figured Snake deserved a taste of his own medicine.

"Oh, but this is a special top-secret job," Snake explained, still in that smoothly scornful tone, "What a disaster it would've been if a certain someone had overheard our little interview… like your daughter, perhaps." He grinned again, and it was obvious he thought the possibility was funny rather than grave.

"Leave Shilo out of it," Todd snarled.

"Temper, temper," chastised Snake, "Of course that's what I intend to do. And you too, if you know what's good for her." He then added, almost as an afterthought, "Though I'm sure you don't know what's good for her, considering you were wasting away on Inmate Island her whole life."

The barber said nothing, instead quietly seething. Who was Snake, to tell him what was good for his own daughter? Yet his words rang with an unmistakable truth: he hadn't been there for his daughter. Though it was for reasons out of his own hands, he couldn't deny it. He glared up at Snake with a loathing that up until this point he had only reserved for Rotti. His trembling right hand twitched towards his razor.

"Are you mad at me?" Snake whispered, "Do you, perhaps, hate me? Do you want to hurt me?" When Todd again didn't reply, he continued, "I'll take that as a yes. Good. You'll need that anger for the job I have for you."

"And what," Todd managed through his gritted teeth, "would that job be?"

"You, my fuming friend, are going to be my new Repoman."

Todd was again struck dumb. "You're kidding." Snake merely raised an eyebrow in amusement. "… You're not kidding." Todd realized out loud.

"Indeed not, Mr. Todd." The lawyer clasped his hands behind his back, rocking back on his heels. "As you may know, being GeneCo's Repoman requires you to repossess our organs from those who haven't paid for them. The lives of these careless customers are not important; the main objective is getting back our property."

"So, you want me to kill these people just so you won't lose money from a multi-billion dollar company?" asked the incredulous Todd.

"You said it, not me," Snake grinned in that awful way.

The barber shook his head, more out of disbelief than anything else. He had gone to jail framed for murder, he wasn't about to risk going again for actually murdering someone. Multiple people, he realized, Snake said lives. Who knows how many haven't paid! No, no, it was absolutely out of the question.

"You're not interested." It wasn't a question. Todd shook his head again, wondering why Snake's smile had grown.

"Let me ask you this, Mr. Todd: How would you like those nasty charges against you cleared?"

Todd snorted, "No one can fix that, not even someone with an ego as big as yours."

Ignoring the insult, Snake said with a cool confidence, "Oh yes I can. Listen. Your case was a big one in this little city. For Christ's sake, you can't even walk down the street in broad daylight without someone pointing at you. Nevermind getting a job! No one will hire you with the ugly 'murderer' stigma hanging above your head." Snake paused for effect. "If you do this job for me, I make one call, and your record is wiped clean. Deal?"

Todd didn't answer right away. Something inside him was whispering, Two wrongs don't make a right. Murdering many to take one false murder out of his life was wrong. He could go to jail again. For forever this time, with no hope of ever seeing Shilo again. And yet…

What about the bloodlust? It had never left him, not since the night the police carried him kicking and screaming from his own home. For nearly eighteen years he had been dreaming of the perfect revenge. When Rotti died, nearly everything he had been living for died with him. The smoldering anger had branded itself upon his soul. Todd was certain he'd never be rid of it.

This is it, another voice inside him murmured, this is your chance to have your revenge. If you can't have your vengeance on him, what's wrong with the rest of this miserable city? Yes. As long as he was stuck with the bloodlust, why try and suppress it when he could have a chance to use it? And for something good, he realized with a jolt. So he could finally be rid of those false charges. So he could see justice at last. So he could have a stab at a normal life. With Shilo. With his daughter.

"Do we have a deal?" Snake repeated, extending his hand.

Todd hesitated for a second longer. "Deal," he agreed, shaking hands.

"Excellent," Snake beamed in the way that didn't reach his hypnotic eyes. "I'll have some supplies mailed to you. You'll be expected to start tomorrow night." He let go of Todd's hand as the barber nodded his understanding. Both men turned away from each other to leave. Todd had just grasped the doorknob when the light went out. He heard Snake speak one last time from across the room in his quiet, oily voice:

"Oh, and do be sure to think of something to do with the bodies. I'd hate to litter our fine city."

...

*LE GASP* Leave me alone I'm tired XD They only had decaf coffee at breakfast this morning OH WHAT A WORLD. I'll just slink off to bed now - yeah right XD Stay tuned!