InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "know what you did last summer"

Sweeney Todd (fleetstbarber) wrote in utr_logs,
@ 2008-06-04 01:25:00

Entry tags:

sadako yamamura, sweeney todd

Who: Sweeney Todd & Sadako Yamamura
When: Late Night Tuesday/Wednesday
Where: London
What: Learning the city (all over again...)
Warnings: With the exception of them talking about their pasts? Nada. It's weird.

Sweeney was in rare form, he'd actually gotten some sleep AND food somewhere between work and when he decided to tinker around on the computer. So he had a bit more color to him than he'd had in the past few days. And not only that, but he was almost just a bit more emotionally charged. He'd written the first part of his journal that chronicled what he felt was left out of the history books, and therefore, he was a bit less burdened with the past.
A walk sounded like a splendid idea, all 'round.

He showed up at the doorstep of the young lady after about twenty minutes, having had to find directions from the nearest portkey, and after he knocked, he straightened his jacket and waited patiently as he could, looking around him, getting a feel for the neighborhood as it was now. Seemed to have changed only marginally since he last saw it - new buildings, old streets.

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 08:17 am UTC (link)

She stopped walking as well, grinning up at him. He wasn't scared of her! It was enough to make her want to bounce on her heels. She squeezed his hand, swinging it girlishly.

"My mother was psychic as well. Not as good as I am, but I got them from her. The rumor on the island where I was born is that I'm the daughter of a sea god." She shook her head, then shrugged. "I don't know about my mother's activities, but I've been able to do that since I was little. Other things too." She didn't want to tell him everything right away. Most people tended to frown upon those who ended humanity.

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fleetstbarber
2008-06-04 08:25 am UTC (link)

Well, if it made any difference, he was a rather loud open book, mentally. Sure, his memories were scattered and flitted about like ashes from a fire, but they were lucid and just as clear as when they'd occurred.

He gave her the slightest of smiles as he started to walk once more, still in a leisurely pace, "Miss Yamamoto, I'm intrigued by your abilities. How deep and far do they go?" The ability to project as well as her when most people couldn't even describe a simple scene would have to be outstanding! He continued to try and sort out the details on his own, though he was certain he just didn't have enough information or the right sort of mind to even comprehend what had just happened in full.

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 08:28 am UTC (link)

Sadako laughed, amused at how his smiles seemed to almost pain him. She continued to walk with him.

"I can do any number of things." She focused for a moment, then laughed. "There's a piece of paper in your pocket. Pull it out." She decided to start small and show him thermographic projection as opposed to paralyzing him. That, and it seemed more polite not to paralyze someone the first time she met them.

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fleetstbarber
2008-06-04 08:38 am UTC (link)

He watched the paper as they walked, somehow still avoiding obstacles that were in their way. He was fairly much astounded, and then tucked the paper away again. "You're unique." He said then, and left it at that. The tone was fond enough, even though his tones always sounded a bit darker and colder than the usual. He sincerely was impressed.

Once they got to a certain street corner, he veered left and started walking on the outskirts of Whitechapel. "Was told that after I'd died, a man started killing whores in this area. Took the spotlight off of what I'd done. Don't know whether I'm glad for it or if I want to go back and kill him for it."

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 08:41 am UTC (link)

Sadako laughed as they veered away from a certain area, as Mister Todd told her what she'd wanted to know. Surely it would have been easy enough to pluck the thoughts from his brain, but instead, she preferred to let people reveal themselves to her.

"Am I to think that you killed people? Why, Mister Todd. That's not very polite." She smirked at him, a conspiratorial thing, and leaned up to whisper in his ear. "I won't brag, but I think I may have managed a few more than you. Though I'm trying not to do that now. For a change."

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fleetstbarber
2008-06-04 08:46 am UTC (link)

He actually managed a smile that was neither malicious or pained. "Well, it's a long story, but I'll tell it to you if you'd like." He turned to her, the smile still on his face, "And I would very much like to know your story as well. Then again, I'm always up for a good, dark story."

He was more than happy to be in the company of a fellow person who'd seen plenty of death in her time, and had instigated more than her share of it firsthand. It was... a bit of a catharsis, in fact. Here, he'd been thinking he'd have to settle for some dimwitted barmaid to talk to after a while, or even have to struggle through another agonizingly awkward lunch with Mrs. Lovett. But well, apparently people in this world, in this day, were a lot more colorful just all told.

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 08:49 am UTC (link)

"Oh, your story first, I insist." Sadako held up her hands to let him know to stop, then darted into a shop for a few moments. She returned with an ice cream cone for each of them, girlishly licking her own. "Okay, start."

Of all the things Sadako had never expected to find in her lifetime, that would be a kindred spirit. Mister Todd was as close as she'd come in quite some time.

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fleetstbarber
2008-06-04 08:55 am UTC (link)

Ice cream was had, and he stared at it for a moment before shrugging and taking a suspicious lick of it. Then he shrugged, brow raised, and continued on.
He started his story from how he was married to a beautiful lady, and how Lucy meant the world to him, carried on through about Turpin and how he was sent to Australia, then returned fifteen years later only to hear that Lucy had poisoned herself, that his daughter was being kept by Turpin and then all the death and destruction and pies that followed. He made the allusions to his romance with Mrs. Lovett that were a little more than out of kindness, and finally ended with his own death.

"The total number as it stood when I died was thirty-six. Thirty-four of those were with my ladies." And by that me meant his razors. He had finished his ice cream by the time he finished his story, and they'd wound up about two blocks from his own neighborhood, even at the slow paced they'd walked.

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 08:59 am UTC (link)

Sadako told her story the same way she'd told the first one. She started with her rape and attempted murder, glazing over the thirty years spent in the well, trying to stay alive through sheer will alone. Then she let him see her videotape, the will to be reborn, the desire to start a new world. She didn't want to overwhelm him, so she went slowly through her rebirth, trying to let him understand it had all been about survival. How human it was to not die! She finished her tale with her as the last, standing in an empty Tokyo, smiling to herself.

"Though that did grow quite boring. It's a tiresome thing, to know you're the only one left." She shrugged and licked at a dribble of vanilla that had slipped onto her hand. "Though I admire a man who's willing to bloody himself. I don't have to use weapons. I don't know if I could."

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fleetstbarber
2008-06-04 09:05 am UTC (link)

He followed along, this time it only made him miss a half-step in his walking just at the first. The tale was fascinating to him, and lamentable, and quite frankly, he went from smiling to looking pained. The poor girl had done so much!

He nodded to her once she was finished with the story, and looked into her eyes, something he rarely did with anyone, ever. "Your mind is as deadly a weapon as any blade or pistol, Miss Yamamura." He put her free hand in his, then cupped over it with his other, pausing. "Do you like dancing? Music?" This was apparently rather important.

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 09:07 am UTC (link)

That made Sadako laugh. "Moreso than those things, I think. My mind is faster than knives or bullets - and more subtle. and I can't forget to have it on me."

She blinked when he took her hand, then felt a faint flush crawl to her cheeks. "Yes, actually. I took lessons for a production of Romeo and Juliet I was in, and never really stopped. Why?" She cocked her head to the side, letting her hair cover her face and her reddened cheeks.

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fleetstbarber
2008-06-04 09:17 am UTC (link)

"Entirely right you are on that." He said to the first.

And to the second, he looked away, and down the road to Fleet Street. "It's my way of getting away from all that's bothered me, all that haunts me and makes me feel weighted down. Dancing is so close to flying, so weightless and light and easy to do, that when I do, it's as if I'm somewhere else, someone else, just for that moment."

He nodded towards his street, "My home and shop are just down there, would you join me in a dance, Miss Yamamura?"

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 09:21 am UTC (link)

Sadako listened to him, smiling a bit. The way he described dancing - maybe if she'd had something like that in her life, she would have been contented with simple resurrection and not taken up revenge. And she was trying to focus on simply being alive.

"I'd love to," she laughed, moving to throw away the remnants of her ice cream. She idly licked a sticky finger, another oddly girlish act that betrayed how old she was. Once satisfied, she took Mister Todd's arm again, sighing. "You may have to remind me of the steps. I've likely grown a bit rusty."

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fleetstbarber
2008-06-04 09:31 am UTC (link)

He nodded. "Of course." And he started towards his home. And it was the same home as he'd had his whole adult life, even as Benjamin Barker. There was only one true home for him, and it was four blocks in on Fleet Street.

He walked up the little walkway to the door that was led to from the street and fished out his keys from his pocket, and unlocked it, opening it and leaning in to turn on the lights before allowing her through first. The inside of the place was what once was a bakery (which once was a home even before that), that was turned back into a home once again. The inside was warm and inviting, with a long couch and two plush chairs with wooden arms and legs. On the far side from the front door was the kitchen area, separated only by a half-wall and some counters, and to the far right were two tall shelves full of books and the television. But there was ample space just inside the door to dance.

He stepped in behind her and closed the door, first hanging up the keys on a hook and then his jacket on the coat rack. "My first and only home, Miss Yamamura." He said with a slight tone of amusement. "My acquaintance, Miss LeBeau taught me how to work the... whatsit... The stereo? I believe that's the word." He said as he approached it. It was a small little deal, set up on the half wall, and turned it on. It was classical just at the moment, though he'd been trying to get into the more modern music (And failing miserably.)

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 09:37 am UTC (link)

Sadako walked in, looking around with curiosity. Even though she couldn't get psychic missives from rooms, it was obvious to her that there was love here. Sometimes places had echoes - sort of like the one she'd left where she'd spent thirty years dying. Only this place had some sort of love to it.

She couldn't help smiling at how he searched for the correct word for the stereo. One of the advantages of not being able to really ever die was being able to continue learning things. He'd simply been brought to the future; she'd never really left.

"Your home is lovely, Mister Todd." Sadako was being sincere, and she reached out to place a hand on his to illustrate the fact. Words meant very little to her. Actions were where the truth hid.

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fleetstbarber
2008-06-04 09:43 am UTC (link)

Again with the smile that was from the heart. Two times in one day, something MUST be broken!

He turned to her and slid his hand to hold hers, stepping away from the half-wall. "Thank you, Miss Yamamura. A lot of memories were made in these walls. Some good, some bad. And all are beautiful to me." He then went serious, nodding to her feet. "Right. This is the perfect song for a waltz. Watch my feet and when my foot goes forward, yours goes back. when mine goes backward, yours goes forward." He taught her as best he could, the steps and timing, and then nodded, "Good. Now, to speed it up to the song itself, think you can do it?"

There were few things he had patience for, but when it came to things he enjoyed, he had unlimited patience for teaching them to others.

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 09:48 am UTC (link)

"Memories are important." Sadako couldn't help but think of her mother before her illness had set in, the happy times they'd spent swimming and playing, as normal mothers and daughters. Her lips were quirked into a smile when he pointed out her feet.

She was rusty for a few minutes, but then she closed her eyes and pretended she was Juliet again. The words lost their rhythm when put into Japanese, but she murmured them to herself anyway, getting back into the role. She'd always been lauded as an actress, and soon she was smiling up at him, speeding up her footwork. "Like this?"

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fleetstbarber
2008-06-04 09:55 am UTC (link)

Sweeney nodded to her footwork then looked back to her, the slight smile still lingering on his lips. "Precisely." And with that, they started off, a true waltz, easy and graceful and just as light footed as he had ever been.

And it was almost true what he said about it being like flying to him and how it changed him. His demeanor changed drastically when he danced, as if he were still that young man who'd never lost his love, who'd never been scorned. He was almost happy. The ghosts couldn't catch up to him when he was in 3/4 step with his hand on Sadako's waist and his other holding hers. And for someone who deemed herself rusty, she was doing very well.

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 10:02 am UTC (link)

Sadako felt as light and happy and free as she'd ever felt, and she was surprised to find a genuine smile on her own lips. She wasn't accustomed to being treated as normal - to feeling normal - and she couldn't help a small giggle from escaping from her lips.

She looked up at him, almost breathless, and chose to communicate with her mind. Few people understood or were comfortable with her doing so, but Mister Todd seemed to have a curious fascination with it. I know what you meant now.

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fleetstbarber
2008-06-04 10:07 am UTC (link)

The barber smiled even further at the giggle, and gave a light chuckle, himself. He looked down to her, with a relatively relaxed expression, "Do you?" He asked. He didn't seem too bothered at all by it. Surely, it was odd, but it was no more odd than monologuing or humming all the time to himself, or wishing the whole world dead by his own hand, or any of his usual thoughts.

"Are you free?" He followed up, a few steps later. Because he certainly felt it.

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 10:11 am UTC (link)

She couldn't help but wonder what Mister Todd would have looked like before his tragedy, how pink and rosy his cheeks. Smiles would have come easily to that man. But they wouldn't have felt like they did to Sadako right then, like hardwon treasures.

Sadako twirled gracefully, finding a few more of the steps from her long ago performance coming fresh to her mind. "For the first time in a long time. Yes." She looked back up at him. "You are too."

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fleetstbarber
2008-06-04 10:20 am UTC (link)

And to Sweeney, Sadako seemed so much more than her powers and her looks, there was something far greater in her dancing and her having acted before, to him. He was always a fan of the theater, and even though her powers were very impressive and surprising to him, the knowledge that she stood on stage and was able to provide an entertaining performance was a delight.

The knowledge that she also felt free lightened his burdens just that much more and once the song drew to an end, he gave her a bow, stepping out of the dance. "Miss Yamamura, it is a great honor to have danced with you, then."

He came up from his low bow and looked to her, the smile on his face still lingering. It was a rush and high from which he'd be settled and content for hours. Unless, of course, he was jolted out of it by any unforeseeable circumstance.

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wheniamqueen
2008-06-04 10:26 am UTC (link)

Sadako remembered to curtsey after a dance, dipping her legs so that her knee touched the ground as she did so. She'd always been lithe, and was glad that she hadn't lost any of that over time. "Thank you for the instruction and the song, Mister Todd. I'm grateful."

She was still smiling as well, standing and humming faintly. She was seldom unsure of herself, but she almost didn't want to move, lest she break Mister Todd's good mood.

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	fleetstbarber 2008-06-04 10:30 am UTC (link)
	It wasn't broken, even as he hummed to himself and set to turning the stereo down. "Would you like some tea, Miss Yamamura?" He offered, "It's always good to have something to drink after that." He wandered off into the kitchen area, smiling, "Or milk, if you'd prefer. I have brandy, but it's a bit late for liquor." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	wheniamqueen 2008-06-04 10:34 am UTC (link)
	"Tea would be lovely." She'd been surprised to find black teas in shops and in her own cupboard, but she'd quickly gotten used to them. She figured it could have been worse and there could have been no tea at all. She followed him, finding a chair and settling down to watch him boil water. "Would you like help?" (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)