Dead Shattered Hearts {Sweeney Todd Fanfiction}

"The Only One Craziest Enough"

He stood there for a moment in utter silence. She was scared how he'd react. He arched his brow and took a deep breath and sunk into the chair.
"...You did say that last time, didn't you?" Todd mumbled as he hung his head.
"Yes. But what was I thinking? A monster like yourself, I should've known better," she scoffed as she crossed her arms.
"A monster," Todd very softly repeated. "...You wouldn't be the first to call me that."
She furrowed her brow and felt her dead heart sink. "What do you mean?"
Todd once again stood and placed his right hand on his head as he took a deep breath.
"You and me both know I'm a wreck. Anyone who takes one look at me knows I'm a wreck. Those last moments. The last few minutes while I was still breathing air... I was watching my life crumble before me. I watched it break like a fucking mirror." He then paused as he paced back and forth in the small room. "I knew I was a monster. A monster to everything I fucking touch. Everything I even just glance at, I destroyed it, yet I don't fucking mean to!" His voice began raising; startling the baker. This side of him was unbelievable. He was just falling apart into pieces and it was unbearable. "I wanting to look beyond the past! Trust me I wanted to! But I couldn't! I couldn't! I couldn't!"
She watched him. Horrified; terrified.
It was at that moment when the door exploded open and in came Edward Travis and an man perhaps in his late 60's. Both Lovett's and Todd's head turned and faced the two men standing at the doorway.
"... I think we heard enough, madam," Travis spoke out as his eyes shifted from Lovett to Todd.
Todd's eyes sharpened as he realized Travis and perhaps the man who stood next to him heard every word.
"This was a setup," Todd whispered to himself as suddenly felt weak.
Travis heard his whisper, but let it slide.
"Mr. Barker, you're lucky the Authorities aren't throwing you in the jail and-"
"This was a setup!" Todd repeated louder.
"Mr. T, just calm down, love," Lovett tried to soothe.
"You were in on it to! You were to trick me to talk about what's in my head!" He accused.
"No, no. You got it all wrong, love."
"A setup! A fucking setup!" He continued to proclaim.
"Mr. Barker, relax, this was no setup. I just needed to hear a little how your mind thinks and all," the elder man spoke out. "I think I have enough for a diagnosis."
Todd then stayed quiet as he took notes of the man. Tall. A white coat like a doctor's. A file in his hand. Todd's file to be exact.
"You see, Mr. Barker, this is Dr. Vincent, a psychiatrist in out facility who is willing to help you," Travis explained as he gently took the file out of the old man's hands.
"...A psychiatrist? You think I'm insane?" Todd again forced another laugh to ease himself, again it didn't work.
"... Of course not," the doctor choked out. "I'm just hear to make you feel at ease. Feel more comfortable in the After-Life," he lightly explained.
Todd wasn't buying it, not for a second.
"Could I have a word alone with him... just for a second then you may continue," Lovett interrupted.
"Why of course," Travis replied and immediately stepped out of the room along with the doctor.
The second they left, Lovett turned quick on her heel and glared at the barber. He glared back at her; silent and speechless.
"What has gotten into you?" She started. "You're acting worse than you did in London."
He exhaled greatly and ran his hand through his thick hair. "Nothin's gotten in ta me!" He replied sharply. "These are the same thoughts, the same cruel words that are racing through my mind! I want it to stop! I do! But the thoughts won't!"
"Then can't you see what They're trying to do. They're offering you help, dear. I want you to get help," she replied and cautiously approached him. "You're not only scaring me but you're scaring yourself, I know you are. These actions aren't like you."
He only listened. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and hung his head. He knew she was right; he didn't want to acknowledge that fact though.
"You know this isn't like you. I know I'm the last person you'd take advice from. After all I'm just the woman whose heart fell in love with a maddened man who couldn't love back." The second she heard her own words she wanted to take them back. She wanted to just slap herself for admitting that.
Todd didn't even flinch when he heard what she said. Didn't move a single muscle.
"Will you please agree with the psychiatrist. You don't have to do it for me because I'm asking you to, I want you to do it for you to keep you safe. Please?" She pleaded and looked down to his hands which were now out of his pockets. The bandages were gone and his palms lined in red scars were visible. The poor thing.
He took awhile to answer, but soon nodded his head.
She then felt relieved and wanted to just squeeze him tight, but she didn't want to chance the risk. All she could do now was to pray that the psychiatrist could help in some way. Pray that he'd stop acting violent than normal.
~Later That Evening~
The rest of the day was quiet.
Sweeney Todd had drawn back to his cage of darkness without a word to speak. He hadn't said a word to Mrs. Lovett, Travis, or Dr. Vincent.
Eleanor Lovett had returned to her bakery with the young Thomas Pierce still watching over the shop. She had told Travis and the doctor that Todd had agreed with new treatment plan. The meetings would start immediately tomorrow in the morning with Lovett there in case anything goes wrong. She of course didn't mind attending, after all her heart was content as could be when she saw him.
The large crowd of swarming customers had died down and the shop was calm and quiet.
Thomas stayed around after Lovett returned. There was something about the air headed baker that he liked.
"So ma'am," Thomas started as soon as he got the chance to talk to the baker. She was rolling dough with rolling pin and dusting flour off her dress. "What did Mr. Travis need?"
Lovett lifted her head from the dough and into Thomas's sparkling eyes. "You know Mr. Travis, dear?"
"Yes. He's my file owner, I take it he's yours too?"
"I suppose so. I didn't know he was considered a 'file owner.'"
"Well that's part of his job. Anyways, what'd you have to leave for... if you don't mind my asking."
Lovett sighed and set the rolling pin aside and began kneading the dough. "I don't mind at all, love. Mr. Travis just needed my 'elp with another soul. A stubborn one at that," she answered. "Now dear it's get a little late don't ya think? Don't you have any guardian of yours wanting you back?" She changed the topic as she began getting ready to close up shop.
"A guardian? No. No one from my family is here... thank goodness," he mumbled that last part.
"What dear?"
"Nothing," he quickly replied with a smile.
"Well I'm thinking of closing shop up early, dear. And here." She dusted off her hands from flour and stuck her hand in one of the pockets sewn into the dress. She pulled out a few coins and held them out for Thomas. "For helping me out in the shop."
"Oh I couldn't. I didn't help out much I-"
"I insist, love," she smiled. Just as stubborn as Todd.
Thomas smiled back and politely took the money. "Thank you, ma'am. I guess I should run off to my room. Mr. Travis isn't a fan when I'm out late," he softly added.
"Alrighty, lad." Lovett then placed the dough up and brushed more flour off the frills of her dress.
"Will you perhaps be here in the morning?" He asked as he stood up from his seat and slowly shifted to the door.
"The morning? Mr. Travis asked me to be somewhere, but I'll be back here by lunch time," she replied and also shifted to the door.
"You don't mind if I come back... do you?"
"Of course not, love."
And with that Thomas left with a smile and plans to see the baker again the next day. Lovett left with a smile and plans to attend Todd's little insanity conference. By the time Thomas reached his room and Lovett reached hers, the main light in the hall was out leaving the hall pitch black except for the few lights flickering from other souls' rooms.
Lovett entered her room; relieved to rest her aching feet. As she went to close her door, her eyes found Todd's door. She wondered if he was ok in there. She wanted to check on him, but decided against it. He's already been hassled for one day; no need to add onto it.
She then closed the door and crept into her room. She slipped into a loose night gown and fell to her bed; pulling the sheets and covers over her body. She let out a sigh and waited for morning.
•
~Early Morning~
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"Ah Mr. Barker you made it!" Dr. Vincent smiled and welcomed the dead barber in the room.
Sweeney Todd was barley awake as he slowly stepped in the room. It was a medium sized room with a chair, a desk, and some lounge looking couch. Todd was skeptical. Very skeptical. He was very cautious of his surroundings. Just to take one look at the man you would assume he's the most paranoid man alive(dead.)
Todd stuffed his hands in his pockets and slowly walked around the room. His eyes scanned every inch; every centimeter. And every square foot was just mocking him that he's lost his mind.
"Mr. Barker, please, have a seat," the doctor gestured to the couch.
His low voice sent chills down Todd's spine. He jumped a little and lost his train of thought as he staggered over to the couch. He didn't want to be here. He didn't want to in this sort of situation. He exhaled greatly and ran his hand through his messy hair. His gaze went up to the ceiling. It was white with a few cracks here and there. The cracks were there to just mock his mind. There to remind him there's no returning to sanity.
Just then the door flew open and in came that air headed baker. Her hair piled on top of her head and just a dash of makeup caked on her beautiful face. Todd's head quickly turned to the door as his eyes met her.
Her eyes met his and she nearly fell to the floor. The palest he's ever been. His body shaking and trembling as if he were scared. This wasn't his usual self.
The only thing that seemed his normal self was his clothes. Yes, his clothes. His brown vest along with pinstripe pants. She gave him a warm smile and advanced into the room.
"Sorry I'm late..." She started as her eyes shifted from Todd to the doctor.
"You're not late at all, matter a fact Mr. Barker just arrived-"
Todd flinched at the name Mr. Barker. That was the third time he'd call him that today and it was getting on his last nerve. Lovett could see his reaction to the cruel name and quickly came to the doctor's side.
"Doctor, um, if I could have a small word... just for a moment," she whispered as she pulled the doctor to the corner.
Todd's eyes stayed on them and he heard every word.
"What is it, madam?" The doctor asked as he glanced at the barber. He glanced straight in his eyes; his devilish eyes.
"If you're ever gonna get some sense into him it'd be best if you don't refer to him as Mr. Barker," she explained.
"Oh yes, I read in the file he prefers um... Sweeney Todd, am I correct?"
"Yes, Mr. Todd to be more specific. If it's not any trouble could you... refer to him as Mr. Todd, after all that really is his true name." Her eyes then glanced back at Todd. She didn't see the same look in his eyes that the doctor saw. She saw the sincere in him. The small goodness that's left inside him.
He even gave her a small little nod; a nod of saying thank you.
"Of course. I do want him to be as stable and calm as possible," Dr. Vincent replied and stepped back over to his chair.
Lovett followed and headed to the door. "I'll let you do your job and I'll be right outside. Please come get me if you need me." She then looked to Todd. "Please behave, dear."
"I'm not a little kid," Todd muttered and watched her leave. Once she did the room was quiet. Just the doctor and Todd.
"Now, Mr. Todd," the doctor started and looked from the door to Todd. He held his file firmly in his hands. It was open and exposed to Todd's eyes. He looked down at the file, but from his view it was upside down. He could see the picture in the top left hand corner. It looked like a black and white mugshot. His eyes were looking straight and and mouth curved to a frown. His hair was a usual mess and his attire was what looked like what he wore the night he died; even blood stained.
The doctor's eyes began skimming through the long endless paragraphs that described the barber. Todd was even able to catch some the words in the file.
Dangerous.
Violent.
Unpredictable.
Todd couldn't even dare to read more. Those words is what he's leveled to. Those words are the perfect description.
"Now where should we begin?" The doctor asked himself and flipped through the file. "Ah, let's start here. Family. What was your family like?"
Todd immediately froze solid. He stopped breathing; stopped blinking; stopped everything. His mind went back to the place he kept caged up. The cage only he himself could enter. Those were the only cheerful, bright memories he owned. The only bright memories he could remember. His memory was faded and broken, but not when it came to remembering his Lucy. His Johanna.
That dark mind of his went back to his Barker days. The days where the world seemed a beautiful place. A place where nothing could go wrong. But he was naïve then, he was a foolish man without a second thought.
"Mr. Todd?"
"I heard you, I heard you," Todd mumbled and stared at the floor.
She was his reason for everything. She was the only reason he breathed, the only reason he had to escape that shit hole known as prison. The second she was ripped away from him, the second he lost his touch on her, hell broke loose.
"They were my everything..." he whispered. "Then he fucking took them!" He raised his voice and gritted his teeth. "Everything would of been fine he hadn't been around. I wouldn't be here, Lucy wouldn't be wherever the hell she is, and Johanna would still be in my arms!" He raised his voice more as his hands tightened into fists. "I had the perfect life! A life in the heavens with two little angels. But I was foolish... I was stupid. So fucking blind and I took it all for granted!"
"Calm down, Mr. Todd," Dr. Vincent interrupted and flipped another page in the file. "Let's just discuss something different. The only one being foolish is me. I was foolish to ask a vacuous question." He then watched Todd try and regain control over himself.
"...sorry," Todd very softly whispered. He knew yelling would get him no where, but it was only one of the few things he knew how to do.
"Your violent tendencies... I know everything I have to mention is a sore subject but it's the only thing I have to work with. You don't mind, do you?"
Todd sighed and glanced at the door; surprised Lovett had barged in the second he began yelling.
"Violent tendencies, huh? Oh hell I dunno. My family was ripped away from me. Spent years in a horrible conditions of a prison. Came home under the assumption my wife killed herself. Instead I'm the bloody cause of her death because a little bleeder lied to me. Now you tell me why I have violent tendencies." His sarcasm stung just like his razors.
The doctor only sighed and turned another page.
Lovett stayed close to the door; hearing every word the barber had to utter, though he didn't speak much. The most he said was when he was told to talk about Lucy and Johanna. Every thing else he was asked to talk about was just described in a few words.
His head was so far up in the clouds. He was so lost in own world just to distract him from the pitiful reality. She then leaned her ear up against the door. The room was silent for a moment, but then she could hear the doctor ask-
"Reading through your file, the good madam Eleanor Lovett is brought up several times. Do you mind shedding some light on that subject? Just to get a better understanding on the relationship."
She then almost fainted. What was Todd gonna say? Surely he wouldn't say much considering in his mind she was just another obstacle in his life.
Todd opened his mouth and looked to the floor. "Her," he softly whispered. "Even her name burns to say." He paused for a moment and glanced to the door. He knew she was there. He knew she could hear every word that exited his mouth.
"I would call her the devil... the devil's wife as Lucy had called her," he softly explained with his head in his hands. "I would call her a deceiver; just another source of senseless pain. She fancied such a stupid dream; an ignorant fantasy. I would call her deranged, a bit unhinged, ya know?"
Dr. Vincent only nodded his head lightly to please the man.
"I would call her a lot of things... but believe it or not I'm not as dimwitted as I seem. Even though those terms perfectly describe her... I wouldn't call her those things," he sighed.
"And why not?" The doctor asked as he removed his thick glasses.
"Because she's the only crazy one to not give up on me."
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~Session Ends~
"Alright, Mr. Barker, I think we should wrap up the session and start again tomorrow," the doctor atlas said; forgetting Todd despises the name Barker.
Todd only blinked. He stayed seated and only looked at the floor. "Can I just stay 'ere for a minute or two... alone," he softly replied as he reclined in the couch and placed his hand over his eyes.
"Of course, take your time," the doctor replied as he exited the room with the gathered information. He had taken notes even on the small details of the dead barber. Once he left the room he immediately came upon the baker.
"So?" She started out as she tried to peek in the door way as he closed it.
"He's defiantly lost up in there," he replied while pointing to his head.
She couldn't help but smile. "I know that... but he's been acting different since he arrived."
"Well he has reasons, madam. After all the tragedy he's been through just before arriving and everyone handles death differently."
"But death isn't anything new to him," she mumbled to herself. She knew that he knew death. Death was just another accomplice to him. "Is there anything I can do to help? I hate seeing him like this. The way he looks miserable makes me just wanna collapse."
"Well at the moment you could talk to him. A matter of fact, he talked about you a bit."
"I heard," she muttered and crossed her arms. "...He's not in one of his violent moods right now, is he?"
"I suppose he's not. He seemed a little calm when I left him. But just go talk to him, to my understanding you're the only person here he knows here"
"Yes," she answered shortly.
"Well I'm gonna drop these notes and the file back with Mr. Travis. He can leave my office when he's ready."
"Thank you, doctor," she replied and lightly pushed him out of her way. She made her way to the door and pressed her knuckles against the wood. She knocked once, then twice.
"Mr. T?" She called and pressed an ear against the door. She could hear his soft breathing.
"You haven't left have you?" He mumbled.
"You want me to?"
He let out a loud sigh and opened his mouth. "No... you can come in... if you want."
The door then opened and stepped in Eleanor Lovett. When she came in her eyes immediately fell on the barber. His was lying on the couch; feet at one end and head on the other. His right hand was over his eyes; blocking his view from Lovett.
"You alright?" She started as she advanced inward and took a seat where the doctor had sat before.
"I'm not really sure," he answered and took a deep breath.
"You're alright, dear, I know you are," she replied with a smile. "How'd the session go?"
"You should know. I know you heard every word," Todd quickly replied. "So tell me... you think I'm some batshit psychopath with no mind except for the past which has been dead for years on end. The doctor thinks that. Travis thinks that. I suppose you do to?"
"Stop putting words in my mouth," Lovett scoffed. "I'm not like the doctor or Mr. Travis, and trust me they don't think you're like that."
"Have you read my file?" Todd hissed as he quickly sat up straight and glared at her. "The godforsaken words that used to describe me. Violent. Dangerous and I'm pretty sure I saw the word deranged," he mumbled.
"They're just words, love."
"Words they use against me!"
"Mr. T just calm down, please."
"No!" He then stood up; straight and tall. His muscles were tense and tight. His eyes lit up with anger and insanity. "They're making me seem like some lunatic! Trust me, I want the bloody 'elp! I do, ok?! I heard you two talking in the hall. He's mocking me, that's what he's doing! Saying I'm far up in the head!"
"Mr. T, stop it!" She screamed back and stood up as well. They were both huffing and puffing; eyes glued on each other with a sharp look.
Todd then looked away and slowly sunk back into the couch. "... sorry."
"They might be thinking the things they think, but I need you to know that I know better," she explained and sat down as well. "You even said yourself, I heard you. I'm the only crazy person left to have not given up on you."
He didn't reply. He was still in the process of regaining control, but he still heard her. He was breathing hard and his eyes were locked at his black boots. He knew he was far up in the head, but he didn't want to admit it; he refused to.
"Now," she begun as she stood back up. "Ya wanna head back to your room... perhaps catch up on sleep, after all you had to wake up mighty early," she suggested.
He didn't answer at first; he was still staring off at blank space.
"Mr. T?"
"Where are you gonna go?" He then questioned as he slowly sat up.
"My bakery, why?"
"You got a bakery running already? Damn," he softly mumbled.
"Answer my question, love."
"...I was just wondering if I could kinda hang out there awhile... I haven't stepped foot on that second level," he explained with the smallest of smiles.
She couldn't help but smile back. "Of course you can come, love." She then helped him up on his feet and helped lead him to the door and down the hall.
Once again he was letting her help him, but she knew this soft moment of his wouldn't last long. But she was willing to treasure the moment while it lasted.
He was quiet the whole trip up to the second level, but she didn't mind. She knew whenever his mouth was closed and he was silent as a mouse, his mind was one hectic place with thoughts scrambling everywhere.
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dang this was a long chapter. chapters from here on will be planned to be really long so be prepared. please vote and comments reviews, I love reading opinions!
i feel like I'm doing a bad job at keeping up with Todd's mind, so please could you give me some helpful tips perhaps.
anyways thanks for reading and I hope you like it so far.
and as always for more Sweeney Todd follow @demon.of.depp and my personal @peyton__garrett on Instagram