Well here it is folks, the last chapter. I'd just like to thank everyone who has reviewed, read, favourited or alerted this fic, I am genuinely blown away with the response I've had, I never expected it from my first fic. Just would like to say, there will be no sequal to this one, but there is another fic on the way, it's very different to this one so keep your eye out for it.

Hope you enjoy the last installment and thank you to Elekat for reviewing the last chapter.

Chapter 12

"'E's in bed asleep." Nellie whispered as she closed Toby's bedroom door behind her and walked straight over and into the barber's waiting arms, "'E knows something's going on, 'e's not stupid." She added, sighing happily as Mr. Todd's hands ran lazily up and down her back.

"We'll have to leave early tomorrow morning." He said, pulling away so he could look at her, "Are you packed?" She shook her head, "Go and do it." He replied, his voice commanding but not threatening. She simply nodded, leaving his embrace reluctantly and making her way to her room.

He'd give her a few minutes but he wasn't sure how much longer he could wait. Before all this happened, before the judge came after Nellie, before he realised he loved her, he was waiting to spend the night with her, but now, now there was nothing to wait for. He paced quietly up and down the parlour. Tonight he was going to make her his forever.

A large carpet bag was all Mrs. Lovett could find to pack her things in. She sighed, it would have to do. Slowly, she went round her room, running her fingers over all her little keepsakes and trinkets, things that had always been around her, things that she would have to leave behind; even the sentimental in her knew they could only take what was necessary.

Turning back to the task in hand, she began folding various items of clothing neatly and laying them in the bag, methodically running her morning routine through her head as she went to assure nothing was forgotten. Only when she was certain she'd packed all the necessary undergarments did she start on packing her dresses. She sighed as she opened the wardrobe doors; how she wished dresses were smaller, she may have been able to take a few more then.

Still in the dark about their destination, she decided to cover all eventualities, packing both a lightweight summer and a heavier winter dress, as well as two of her everyday dresses.

Turning back to her bursting bag she tried to close it, reluctantly deciding she couldn't fit anything else in; her other dresses would have to stay along with the rest of her possessions. Groaning through gritted teeth, she yanked the edges of the bag closer to each other, desperately trying to draw the button and loop closer together. Pausing, she took a breath, only to find one side of the bag slipped from her grasp, causing the gap to be wide open again. Growling in frustration, she pushed the bag off the bed, the top dress bulging out as it bounced on the floor, coming to rest on its side. She stared at the bag for a moment, eyes filling up.

She didn't want to leave, not really; this place held too many memories, admittedly not all good but parts of her life all the same. She'd spent more of her life here than she had anywhere else.

Totally absorbed in her thoughts, she didn't hear the door open and close behind her and the footsteps approach her form behind. Slowly, two strong arms wrapped themselves round her waist, pulling her backwards until she was leaning up against someone. She smiled, no biting this time.

Before she had time to speak, lips descended on her neck, kissing and sucking gently, moving slowly up towards her jaw. "Mr. T." Nellie sighed, turning her head to see the barber stood behind her. Quickly, he span her round, his mouth crashing against hers as he kissed her hungrily.

Despite the initial shock, Nellie wrapped her arms tightly round his neck, pulling him closer to her and returning the kiss with equal passion. Slowly, he trailed his hands down her sides before moving to her back where they started to undo the laces of her dress.

To her surprise, he had her dress undone and pooling round her ankles in seconds, allowing her to step out, his mouth never once leaving hers. Desperate to feel his skin under her hands, she quickly untied his necktie, throwing it behind her before raking her fingers down his chest and beginning to unbutton his shirt from the bottom. Despite her trembling fingers, she make quick work , slowly running her hands up his now bare chest and pushing his shirt of his shoulders, loving the feel of his toned muscles under her hands.

Her corset and bloomers quickly followed her dress, the barber's hands roaming her now exposed flesh. His mouth left hers, trailing open mouthed kisses over her jaw and down her neck, his lips finishing over her collarbone where he began sucking and biting, removing his trousers and underwear as he did so.

Slowly, he pushed her backwards until her knees hit the edge of the bed, sending her flying backwards onto the covers. The barber followed, looming over her body sprawled out underneath him. For a moment, he held still, staring deeply into her eyes as she brought her arms up to rest round his neck. With a slow kiss on her parted lips, be finally broke the barriers between them that had held them apart for so long, claiming her as his for eternity.

-x-

Mrs. Lovett could remember her nightmares, each and every one of them. She'd found it funny in a dark kind of way how the human mind readily forgot about the happy places it visited while it's body rested, yet when death, torture, pain, longing sadness or grief entered the subconscious, it was only too happy to remember each and every detail.

Today was different however. If she had had a nightmare, her mind had forgotten it. All she could remember as she stirred in her sleep was the dream where Mr. Todd had entered her room and taken her on her bed. Bits of the dream were blurry; she couldn't remember why he was there or what she'd been doing in her room beforehand. It also seemed strange to her as she rolled over in bed that rays of dusky sunlight where blanketing her naked body. Looking down, she noticed the covers thrown widely about, wrapped partially around her middle and over her feet but the rest of her was bare. She frowned; it must still be reasonably early.

It was only as she sat up in bed that she caught sight of the bag on the floor, stuffed full but closed. A smile grew rapidly across her lips as brought the covers up over herself. It wasn't a dream; Mr. Todd had entered her room and taken her on her bed. Her smile faded quickly however as she realised he wasn't still in the bed next to her. Now she thought about it, she remembered him falling asleep next to her with his arms wrapped tightly around her waist. She frowned, pulling the covers up to her chin as a sudden chill washed over her. What if he regretted it? What if he'd woken up and gone without her? No, he wouldn't have, he'd repacked her bag for her after she'd thrown it off the bed, he wouldn't have done that if he wasn't taking her with him. Would he?

Rising slowly, she bent down and picked up her nightdress off the floor, pulling it over her head as she made her way to her bedroom door. As she reached out to open the door, it surprised her by opening itself. Stepping back just in time to avoid it swinging into her, she couldn't help herself but to smile as she saw who it was that walked into her room. She watched as his eyes scanned the room before coming to settle on her stood behind the door.

They stood staring at each other for a few moments, neither one daring to speak. The silence was eventually broken by Mr. Todd as he stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. "I left you sleeping, I had some things finish up before we left." He said, swooping down and picking up her bag off the floor. "Get dressed, we're almost ready to leave." He said, turning to leave but pausing before he walked out the door. He turned back to her again, seeing the lost look in her eyes. The corner of his lip twitched and his eyes softened as he leaned in and kissed her lightly on the cheek. "Be quick." He whispered in her ear before he turned and left.

The warmth that she felt when she remembered last night wasn't a dream quickly spread through her again as his lips touched her cheek. She smiled as he left the room with her bag before turning back to her room and quickly dressing. After a few moments stood at her wardrobe debating which dress to wear to start their new life together, it suddenly twigged there was only one dress that would be appropriate. Carefully, she pulled out the heavy dress and slipped it on. Wondering over to her mirror, she examined her reflection. Perfect. It was the dress that she was wearing all those months ago when Mr. Todd had first come into the shop. The one that she had been wearing the first time her life had been altered by this man, and it seemed only right that it saw her through another huge change.

-x-

"Nellie, we have to go pet." He said gently, taking her hand and guiding her towards the cab waiting patiently on the street where Anthony and Joanna's had been only hours before. Even though she was walking away from the shop, her eyes never left it, watching as she was pulled away from the one place she'd called home for so many years.

Mr. Todd had to practically lift her into the cab before he could climb in after her and close the door. She sat next to the window, face almost to the glass, and watched her shop fade away from her as the cab began its long journey to their first stop. Due to the distance of the destination, the cab driver had told Mr. Todd they would have to make two stops on the way to switch cabs, each taking them further south.

After a few minutes, Mr. Todd heard stifled sobs coming from Mrs. Lovett's direction. Carefully, he slipped his hand round her and pulled her away from the window and to his side, wrapping his arms properly around her as she buried her head in the crook of his neck.

-x-

In the end the journey took three days. It had been hard to keep Toby still in the cab for three days but Mr. Todd had done it. It had been hard to stop Mrs. Lovett's sobs on the first day but he'd done it. On the second day she'd slept most of the journey due to not sleeping in the inn that night, and on the third day she'd sat quietly most of the way. Mr. Todd had found himself longing for her to say something, to speak. This would have amused him if not for the fact that he was worried about her.

By the time they reached the small village, he noticed her eyes were tired as he watched her stretch her stiff aching body. The long ride in the cab hadn't been kind on his body either, he noted as he limped slightly due to the stiffness in his leg.

The first thing he noticed about their new home town was the quietness of it. The air was still and clean. There were very few people and the ones that were out and about smiled and tipped their hats at the three of them but did not speak. Taking in a deep breath, the barber noticed the familiar smell of salt water.

Slowly, he reached into his trouser pocket and pulled out a small folded piece of paper with the address of their new house on. Unfolding it, he reread the words before looking round with a frown on his face. He had no clue where the house was.

His lost look must have been obvious because not long after pulling the paper out of his pocket, a young girl of no more than about 17 wondered up to him with a welcoming smile on her face. She stopped in front of him before looking him up and down and making a humphing noise in the back of her throat.

"Ya must be the ones from London." She said in a soft country accent. Her smile grew as he nodded, lighting up her sparkling brown eyes, "Follow me." She added, turning on the spot and walking down a small alley between two houses.

Without any other option, Mr. Todd and Toby collected up the bags before following after the girl, Mrs. Lovett trailing after them with slightly renewed curiosity.

The alley was steep and cobbled but not long. At the bottom was another line of houses, they were small two story houses in a long line along the sea front. Lucky for Mr. Todd and his planned surprise, the girl led the group up to theirs from the back, obscuring the sea from Mrs. Lovett's view.

"This is it." She said, taking one of the bags off Mr. Todd so he could fetch the key out of his pocket. Once the door was unlocked and the bags deposited in the empty hallway, the girl who introduced herself as Cora left them to settle in. Mr. Todd had other ideas however. After sending Toby off to explore, he untied his necktie and placed it over Mrs. Lovett's eyes, tying it carefully at the back of her head.

"I have a surprise for you." He whispered softly in her ear, his hot breath tickling her neck. Gently, he pushed her away from the house and down the street to a gap in the houses. His instinct was right, the little alley led straight onto the beach. About half way down, he ordered her to take her boots off, which she did.

The cold floor on her bare feet made her gasp as he pushed her forward again. Step by step they neared the sand until the baker finally stepped on it, her small feet sinking in immediately. He felt her shoulders tense slightly under his hands as he pushed her further down onto the beach. He wondered if she realised she was currently walking further and further towards the sea.

Like he'd planned, only once the chilly water was lapping at her toes did he lower his necktie from her eyes. She blinked several times before her eyes swept over the horizon and the sea in front of her. Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked up and down the long stretch of beach before her.

At first Mr. Todd thought he'd done the wrong thing bringing her here, until she finally turned to face him, tears rolling down her cheeks and a smile on her face that spoke a hundred words. Her smile reached his heart like nothing ever had done before, one of pure unashamed gratitude, and he couldn't help but return it, an open and honest smile like she hadn't seen since he'd returned to England.

In that instant she flung herself at him so quickly he couldn't keep his balance and the pair of them went sprawling backwards across the floor, laughing as they landed in the soft sand. Mr. Todd wrapped his arms round her and pulled her to him once their breath returned to them, resting his head against hers.

Snuggled into his chest on the beach in front of their very own house, Nellie Lovett could truly say she hadn't felt happiness like it all her life. There had been several times in her life when she thought she had been happy, but now, she knew they were all false, she knew now until that point, she'd never really been happy. She sighed contentedly, the sounds she loved surrounding her, overwhelming her senses; the gentle whistle of the breeze, the lapping of the sea on the sand, and Mr. Todd's heartbeat. Shifting so she could look up at her barber, she smiled before softly whispering, "I love ya." Slowly, she brought one hand up to rest on his cheek, "I love ya." She repeated, a little louder this time.

For a moment that seemed to drag out so it felt like minutes, Mr. Todd just stared at her. Mrs. Lovett feared she'd said the wrong thing. Her worries were proved wrong however as he leaned slowly down and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. She smiled against his lips, causing him to pull away and rest his forehead against hers.

"I love you to." He whispered, theirs noses touching and eyes closed. Nellie's heart skipped a beat at those four words, a smile spreading across her face again.

Once again, Mrs. Lovett's life had proved her mind wrong. This was happiness, the words from the barber's lips still lingering in the air, gently mingling with the sea air blanketing the couple curled up on the sand together. Yes, this was happiness, her Mr. Todd's love and a life by the sea.

Hope you enjoy ...