20
"Mr. Todd.. Sir?" Toby knew it was pointless, but he still had to ask. Untying his gin soaked bundle of gin, the boy carefully set down his cargo before creeping up to the barber.
His eyes were closed, and his mouth was opened slightly. If he wasn't always so pale Toby would have thought he was dead.
A sudden cough wracked the man's body, causing Toby to jump in shock. The man's dark eyes slid open and immediately landed on the boy.
"I said I would catch you."
His voice was so cracked and soft Toby was almost positive he had misheard. The boy's jaw hung open as Sweeney slowly sat up.
"Get me some gin." He growled, as if he hadn't said anything.
Johanna stared at Mrs. Lovett. "You…?"
Shit, the baker thought, dropping her face into her hands. "I knew 'er, yes."
"Why didn't..?"
"'Ow I knew 'er is a long, complicated story." She looked back up at the girl, hoping her questions would stop.
"Please." Johanna was across the room and on her knees in front of the woman before she could blink. "Tell me."
The baker sighed. "Ya don't want to hear it."
"I do!" She insisted.
"Alrigh', ya do, but ya wont want ta 'ave 'eard it after I tell it ta ya. It's best ya don't hear it." Mrs. Lovett was begging just as much as the girl on her knees in front of her.
"Mrs. Lovett.. Ma'm.. please. Just.. Something."
Her grip tightened and loosened on the rolling pin as she considered the request. "She an' your father rented space above my shop."
The girl looked positively delighted.
"They were good people." Mrs. Lovett's voice was rather flat and emotionless as she spoke, but Johanna's didn't seem to notice. All she did was lap up the scraps of information she was given.
"Where?" She asked, almost breathless.
"Fleet Street." Her dead-pan tone was difficult to ignore, but Johanna was, mind gone off.
"Fleet Street?" The blonde muttered. "That's where Mr. Mayhew's shop is."
"Mayhew?" Mrs. Lovett snapped, suddenly becoming very animated. "James Mayhew?"
"Yes, he runs the apothecary there." She frowned, then realization hit her. "You must know him!"
"Yes." The rolling pin was pulled close to her chest. "Yes.. yes I do."
"There isn't much left, I'm 'fraid sir."
"Fine." Sweeney snapped, taking the gin soaked shirt over a bottle. "This is fine." He amended, holding the cloth up to his face and taking a deep breath.
Toby watched him, perplexed.
"This will be fine." the man grumbled, most likely to himself. Tearing apart the shirt, and looking as if in pain while doing so, Sweeney handed the shirt back to Toby. "Cover your mouth." Without anything else, he walked towards a contraption near the oven.
The boy watched the arm the man kept wrapped around his side suspiciously. Mr. Todd surely had to be going through hell to even be showing that much. Almost putting the cloth to his nose subconsciously, Toby took a calming breath, which was amplified by the familiar scent and taste of gin. Following after the barber, he almost wished he hadn't when a dismembered hand sailed over his head.
Without the cloth Toby was sure he would have vomited at the sight of limbs poking out of what looked like a meat grinder. As Sweeney threw a foot almost casually over his shoulder, the boy gagged.
"Something.." the man growled, throwing another limb.
Standing as far away as he dared, Toby kept his eyes on the ground. Being left alone to think for a moment brought a strange realization to him. Mr. Todd had always come across as the silent type, hardly ever talking. Especially in Mrs. Lovett's company. And yet, ever since the appearance of dead men and especially after she had been taken away, the man had engaged in several conversations and had taken to talking to himself out loud. The boy let his mind take itself on a flight of fancy, imagining that Mr. Todd missed Mrs. Lovett, and was talking to fill the silence like she most certainly would have.
Of course, that didn't account for everything before her departure. Lifting his eyes off the floor for just a moment, Toby let them rest on Sweeney's back.
Another growl of 'something' echoed through the bake house.
A/N Well, I hope chapter twenty wasn't too disappointing.. Bwahaha.. no clues as to how Mrs. Lovett knows Mr. Mayhew ;)
