Splintered Dreams Chapter 3
By: Sweeneytodgirl58
I do not own anything, because if I did, I would have made Sweeney fall inlove with Mrs. Lovett in the movie!
Sweeney Todd remained still as a statue as Mrs. Lovett exited his shop. What had she meaned when she said, 'I'd do anything for you',? His brow was furrowed, and his mind was far from easy. He was still wondering why he had been so cruel to his landlady. He hadn't meant to be so cruel, or had he? He sighed reluctantly and was about to begin his now cold breakfast, when a loud thud stopped him in his tracks. Mr. Todd, curious as to what had made the noise, made his way to his door and opened it. He stepped outside, and as soon as he did, his eyes widened at what he saw. At the bottom of the stairs, laid Mrs. Lovett. Her back was facing him, but he was sure she was unconscious. Mrs. Lovett had most likely slipped on the wet stairs, and had crashed all the way down. Sweeney cautiously raced down the stairs, to his landlady's side. A gasp escaped his lips as he saw the shape Mrs. Lovett was in. Her leg was folded in a way he was sure was not suppose to be. A small stream of blood was running down her pale forehead, as well as her lips. Sweeney Todd kneeled down and gently tapped Eleanor's cheek, hoping she would open her dark brown eyes. "Mrs. Lovett? Can you hear me? Open your eyes, Eleanor." Nothing happened. Not even a flutter of her eyelids. Mr. Todd was beginning to worry. He was about to try to carry her when a loud gasp came from behind him. He turned his head and saw Toby, his eyes wide. From the look of the clothes he was wearing, it seemed he had bearly awoken.
"Mr Todd, wot 'appened to' mum!!", he nearly shouted. His face was set in terror.
Mr. Todd frowned, and turned his gaze back at Eleanor. "She fell down the stairs when she was coming down. Go call the doctor, and tell him to hurry.", he said sternly, still staring at Mrs. Lovett's unconscious form.
Toby was about to argue that he should stay with his mum, but the glare that Mr. Todd gave him was enough to make a bull run for cover. Once the boy was out of sight, Sweeney proceeded on carrying Mrs. Lovett. He gently craddled her into his arms bridal style, being careful as to not drop her. Once she was set in his arms, he felt something wet and gooey on her head. He winced inwardly as he realized that the substance was blood. The hit must have been harder than he first thought. He made his way to her shop and after some trouble with the door, he was able to enter the building. He sighed with relief as he entered Eleanor's bedroom, placing her gently on the matress. He left the room and came back with a damp towel and a bottle of gin. Sweeney began wiping the blood off of her sleeping form with the damp towel.(He had to gritt his teeth when he was wiping the blood off of her head.) After that, he soaked the towel with some gin and carefully dabbed it on the deep cuts. A part of him was glad that Mrs. Lovett was unconscious, he didn't want to imagine how she would have taken it if she was fully awake. Once that was finished, he placed the soiled towel and the bottle of gin on the nightstand. Now he only had to wait for the bloody doctor to come. His eyes roamed over Mrs. Lovett's appearence, and he felt censured as he saw her gashes. It was his fault that she was like this. She must have been so angry at him, that she rushed down the stairs. Intending to get away from him. But the thing was, she didn't seem that frustrated when she had uttered her last words. On the contrary, she seemed calm, and sad? He could understand rage, but sadness? What had he done to make her sad and not mad? Mr. Todd pondered this for a moment, trying to figure out the mystery. Sweeney was then brought out of his thoughts as he heard a bell ring. The doctor had arrived. A man in a white jacket then entered the quiet bedroom. He was holding a black handbag, probably where he kept his medications. He turned his pale, blue eyes at Sweeney and smiled.
"Hello, mate. My name is Doctor Smith and I was informed I was needed.", he said, while he extended a pale hand at Mr. Todd. Sweeney took his hand and shook it. "Mr. Sweeney Todd, sir. Indeed I did send someone to get you. You see, my landlady had an accident and she fell down the stairs."he finished, gratefully letting go of the other man's hand.
He turned his gaze to Mrs. Lovett, and saw Toby sitting next to her. He was caressing her hand, with a look of utter concern on his face.
"Oh my! I'll get right to it then", the blonde doctor said, as he rushed toward Eleanor's side.
Mr. Todd shooed Toby away as the doctor examined Eleanor. He didn't want the boy to see her leg, for the child had not laid eyes on it yet. Toby left after Mr. Todd convinced him that the longer they argued, the longer it would take for Mrs. Lovett to heal. After his little match with the boy, he eyed the doctor. He was bandaging her wounds, including the gash on her head. After he was done with that, he lifted up her skirts. A wave of rage crashed on Sweeney as he saw this. Mr. Todd was about three seconds away to ripping the other man's head off, when it dawned on him what the doctor was doing. He was simply inspecting Mrs. Lovett's leg. Mr. Todd forced himself to believe that the reason he had gotten angry was because he hated the idea of a man taking advantage on a woman.
The middle-aged doctor bit his bottom lip anxiously as he eyed her right leg. Then he said, "Mr. Todd, I will require your assistance for this task."
Mr. Todd raised his eyebrow. "How so?", he asked curiously, but making his way toward the doctor anyway.
Dr. Smith pointed at the leg he was staring at. It was curved in an odd way. "Her leg has been dislocated, see how her leg turns that way? I have to make it connect with the other bones again if it is to heal properly. I need you to hold the Mrs. down, in case she wakes, while I attach the bone to its proper place."
If Sweeney Todd wasn't so used to masking his emotions, he would have cringed infront of the blonde professional. He could only imagine the pain Mrs. Lovett were to feel if she were to wake up. Mr. Todd stiffened as he took hold on to both of Mrs. Lovett's shoulders, and pressed lightly. He tried his hardest not to shake. The doctor looked at him.
"Ready?", he asked in a shaky voice. Not being able to speak at the moment, Mr. Todd settled with a simple nod. Doctor Smith took a deep breath and held onto Mrs. Lovett's leg firmly. In a second, he twisted the leg, so it was to face the right direction. They both heard a loud, violent crack, and both glanced at Mrs. Lovett with fear that she had awoken. Her face was still as it was before, not a single muscle on her face had moved. Mr. Todd felt relief when he saw this. He was grateful that Mrs. Lovett had not gone into consciousness, and that the boy wasn't there to witness the disturbing scene. He was sure it would have traumatized him for years.
"Well", the doctor began as he cut the silence, "She sure is a heavy sleeper." Mr. Todd glanced over at Mrs. Lovett once more, as if she was going to wake up any minute and scream in agony. Luckily, that did not happen.
"Will she be alright?", Mr. Todd asked, not noticing how concerned he sounded. Dr. Smith nodded. "She'll need alot of rest. 4-5 months to be exact. Her leg is swollen, so she won't be able to walk around for some time. The hit on her head was luckily not enough to cause any brain damage, or any concussion by that matter, but a headache should be expected frequently. To sever the swollen leg, ice should be placed on it daily."
He opened his bag and just like Mr. Todd had thought, it was filled with medications. The doctor pulled out a small, glass bottle with orange liquid inside it. "And lastly, this is for her headaches. Mix it with a cup of tea when needed. Follow these simple steps and your wife should be good as new.", he said while handing the small vile to Sweeney.
Mr. Todd nodded and handed the man his pay. It wasn't until the man was gone, that he noticed what the doctor had said. He had called Eleanor his wife! How did he not notice that the second it left the blonde, middle aged man's lips. Eleanor was NOT his wife. She would never be his wife. No one could ever be his wife, not after Lucy. She was his only reason and his life, even if she had already departed from this world. She would never be forgotten, nor replaced. He shook his head and placed the small bottle on the nightstand, that also held the gin and the dirty towel he had placed earlier. The door to the bedroom opened once more, and Toby entered, fully dressed now. The small child did not utter a word to Sweeney, but made his way to Eleanor's side of the bed, and like he did earlier, began caressing Mrs. Lovett's hand. "Mum, can ya' hear me?", he asked, his voice hoarse. Mr. Todd said nothing. He just stared at the boy and his attempts to wake his guardian up. Toby glanced up at Mrs. Lovett. He wished his mum would wake up. The young child licked his dry lips and decided to speak to her again. "Mum, please wake up. I'm worried sick about ya'. Do you know how I felt when I saw you passed out on Mr. Todd's arms?", he asked, not noticing what he had just said. Mr. Todd on the other hand, tried his best not to blush. The way the boy had described it. It sounded, naughty. Toby went on, not paying any attention to the other man in the room. "Please mum' I just can't stand ya' laying there like that. Please mum. Wake up.", he pleaded, blinking away tears. Sweeney decided to leave the boy alone and stood up. He was about to leave when he heard a gasp. Mr. Todd turned around, and at the sight before him, he almost gasped as well.
Staring back at him, with her dark, chocolate eyes, was his landlady.