EXPLANATION: you all have been amazing with the reviews and I tried to get this chapter up sooner but things were really getting hectic around here, first I had finals, then I had graduation and a million grad parties I was obligated to go to [ just kidding peoples you know I love you ;) ], but then right after that my grandmother had to go to the hospital for a surgery and had a fifty percent chance of recovery because she also has heart disease and she's 80 something years old so anethesia might have killed her. LUCKILY she's fine now but then a hoard of family members flew in or drove down so then I had to take care of all that, finally things are dying down (ooh, bad choice of words), things are clearing up now, grandma's recovering nicely and family members are all going back home now. So now it's summer and so long as the reviews keep coming, I'll be updating on a more regular basis.

Thank Yous Go Out To: Midna Hytwilian, linalove, -Valor-, GladeSistas, bittersweetxsymphony, Browneyes101, and ..Hale. and of course a HUGE thanks to ThePurpleness who always helps me through my muddled thinking. :) luv ya babe!

I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.

~ Frank Herbert

It was him.

The man who plagued her nightmares every time she closed her eyes during the course of her pregnancy, the man who did not care one lick for the pain he had caused her that night. Both emotional and physical. She could still feel the burning ache between her thighs as she looked upon his face that had not changed at all. In the back of her mind she registered a faint tug on her arm as Sweeney attempted to wake her from her reverie and pull her towards their homes but she could not move.

Frozen to the spot as she was, Linnet allowed one solitary tear to mark a trail down her cheek as her greatest fear had come true. The man whose face she held in regard to the devil, Satan, had not moved away or on. He remained in the town of her downfall, walking the streets, smiling, as if he deserved God's gift of life!

Linnet became enraged as she looked upon him and red swam before her eyes. The red of blood. She looked upon his face and the exposure of his chest at the V of his work shirt but did not see the pale peach of skin; only the blood that ran through his veins underneath. She saw him stop in his tracks as streaks of the oozing red liquid dribbled down his face and down his body. She saw him fall into a crumpled heap on the street and spasm as the last traces of life left him, as his soul escaped the confines of his body and let loose the agonized scream of those banished to a condemned eternity in Hell. She saw herself, standing over the beaten man, smiling like a madwoman and in that instant, she realized what she needed to do, was no different than the words Sweeney Todd had muttered to her in her shop days ago.

Revenge.

She would not be able to move on to the greater things in life, the second book of her life if you will, until she finished the first. She could not retain the joys of having survived her ordeal until she could resolve all the questions and loose ends aroused by the climax of the previous chapters. She had to destroy this man, as he had destroyed her.

"I see you've got your eye caught on Mr. Reuben there lass. He is quite the handsome fellow isn't he?" A passing woman asked her, placing her hand gently on Linnet's arm, clearly oblivious to the seething rage, boiling within her. This managed to wake Linnet from the reverie she was so stooped in.

"Mr. Reuben you say? Pray, what is his first name?" She asked in a tone so sickeningly sweet, the old woman smiled and patted her arm, thinking nothing but the best intentions, unaware of the malice beneath.

"Dear his name is Michael Reuben but do not let his good looks and charming smile fool you, he is most likely the finest courtier this side of London has ever seen."

"I assure you madam, a relationship is not what I had in mind with this man and I am not so fickle as to wish him for my bed." Linnet replied with her own charming smile to the woman, "I was merely curious as to his identity, you see he reminded me of an old acquaintance of mine."

"Well dear I must be off." The woman smiled and tottered away to her next venue. Linnet turned as her smiled dropped and began trudging home under the weight of her bags. She had not made it more than seven steps however before the weight was being lifted and Sweeney fell into step beside her.

"That was him wasn't it?" Sweeney asked her after a brief silence, keeping his eyes fixated on the path ahead. Linnet did not need to answer for him to know it was. "I noticed the look on your face. Lovett says I get the same face when I look at or think of Turpin."

"I need what you need Sweeney. I need atonement. I need his blood." Linnet replied monotonously.

"We'll both get what we need Netty, and they'll both get what they deserve. Why don't we drop these things off and grab a bite to eat eh? Give you a bit of a break and since Lovett's got some other business to take care of, give our stomach's a bit of a break too."

Linnet couldn't help but smile. This was Benjamin speaking, not Sweeney. He seemed to switch without notice. Especially around her. "That sounds wonderful Sweeney."

"And then perhaps you can explain the little gift you've delivered just in the nick of time." He smirked as he glanced sidelong at her.

Linnet swallowed thickly, her gift had seemed an okay idea at the time but now that Sweeney was acting as Benjamin, she was terribly afraid her confession would revert him back to Sweeney. They entered her shop together and Sweeney helped her put the things away.

"Well?" He asked, "You did say you'd explain."

Linnet sighed and decided it would be safer for her to play stranger, "You remind me of a very good friend of mine Sweeney."

He looked at her strangely, not quite sure what she was saying, "What do you mean?" He asked.

"Please let me explain before you say something, this is quite hard for me to admit out loud. You see, you remind me very much of my best friend. His name was Benjamin Barker."

"Was?" Sweeney asked, looking at her suspiciously.

"Yes, was. I've been told he is dead. The news devastated me to no end. Although he'll stay alive so long as at least I remember him, it hurts to think he is gone from others."

"What does this have to do with your gift?" Sweeney asked darkly, she could see the shadows returning in his eyes as she spoke.

"Benjamin's birthday is coming soon, and I thought that since you remind me of him from time to time, I could honor his memory through you. You have beautiful razors Mr. Todd, I thought you could use a beautiful crème pot and brush to match."

"You only wished to honor his memory?" Sweeney asked, cocking a brow in confusion.

"Well that, and I wish to...commemorate in a way, our new friendship." Before he could question her further, she reached forward and embraced him in a soft hug, "You truly have become a close friend in such short time Sweeney Todd. I know you and Benjamin will never be the same person, however I hope that our new friendship may grow to be as we once were."

Sweeney awkwardly embraced her in return wondering why her words did not affect him as much as if Lovett would have said such a thing. That's when he realized Lovett would have never said anything close to the sort. Her words would have been blunt and harsh and they would not have made him feel conflicted between his identities. When he had killed Benjamin to create Sweeney, he had forgotten that there was at least one other person who would be affected. But Sweeney did not see how Benjamin could remain living when his reason for life was destroyed. Or was it destroyed?

Sweeney's arms tightened ever so slightly around Linnet's frame and she in return, sank into his embrace as she waited for him to think through her words and his feelings.

Benjamin's sole reason for existence was his family. His family consisted of his parents, who were now deceased, his wife, who had killed herself, his daughter, who was being held captive by his wife's rapist, and, he mused, Linnet. His best friend had become as much a part of his family as Lucy. He of course had no choice but to become Sweeney in order to exact his revenge and bring back his daughter but what about after? Would it be possible for Benjamin to return? A part of his family was still with him. Maybe it was possible.

As Sweeney pulled back and looked into Linnet's smiling face, he stopped for a moment. He couldn't become Benjamin ever again. Benjamin Barker would forever belong to his wife, Lucy. Whether she was living or dead, Benjamin would forever be hers and hers alone. Perhaps by becoming and remaining Sweeney Todd, Linnet Reynolds could belong to him, and him alone. But not now, now was when their revenge must be planned. Only after, once things could settle and all was well, once Sweeney had Joanna and Linnet had Antony and all of their rivals were sent to hell, could he begin to think of what more could come of his new friendship.

With a fleeting smile that was all he could muster, he released Linnet from his arms and they both left the shop, Linnet being sure to lock the door, and sneaked into Madame Mooney's pie shop before Nellie could see them.

review please!

ps: I put up pictures of what I imagine to be Linnet but you can picture her any way you wish