JUDGE.  JURY.  EXECUTIONER.

𝚈𝙾𝚄  𝚆𝙴𝚁𝙴  𝚂𝚃𝙸𝙻𝙻   𝚃𝙷𝙴  𝙾𝙽𝙴  𝙷𝙾𝙻𝙳𝙸𝙽𝙶   𝚃𝙷𝙴  𝙺𝙽𝙸𝙵𝙴

[koimeteryon]

a multi-media based, modern retelling of sweeney todd. not minor friendly. heavily nsfw. by ash ( she / her / 26 ). misc info below the cut.

i. victorian barbers typically doubled as surgeons; this version of ben has worked as a pathologist / coroner, and utilises his understanding of human anatomy to carry out his crimes. ii. in all main verses, ben is at large. interactions, unless plotted otherwise, take place in a setting where he has not been arrested. iii. the original version of barker is slightly different from the musical's; instead of killing people in his workplace, he utilises the miles of catacombs running beneath london as both his preferred attack sites and his disposal grounds. he is discovered when the police open up an old crypt and discover that the bodies there are far fresher than they ought to be.

[koimeteryon]

relistening to the 2007 soundtrack and the pure rAGE in jdepp's voice will never not fuck me up.

[valtsv]

they call me "the thing in the catacombs that kills people" because i'm a thing in the catacombs and i kill people

[gloomglimmer]

›        FIRST   LINE   PROMPTS       

"You’re   not   on   the   list."

"Need   a   light?"

"You   dropped   this."

"Is   that   your   drink   or   mine?"

"You're   late."

"I   thought   you'd   be   taller."

"You   always   stare   like   that?"

"They   told   me   not   to   trust   you."

"I   wasn’t   expecting   you."

"You   clean   up   well."

"You   look   lost."

"Haven’t   we   met?"

"Not   what   I   imagined."

"Are   you   following   me?"

"You’re   not   from   around   here."

"You’ve   got   something   on   your   cheek."

"Mind   if   I   cut   in?"

"You're   sitting   in   my   seat."

"I   was   warned   about   you."

"That’s   a   dangerous   smile."

"This   seat   taken?"

"You're   the   distraction."

"Why   are   you   looking   at   me   like   that?"

"You're   early."

"You're   late   on   purpose."

"First   time   here?"

"Try   the   champagne."

"That   color   suits   you."

"You're   exactly   how   I   pictured   you."

"We’re   not   supposed   to   talk."

"We   shouldn’t   be   seen   together."

"Do   I   know   you?"

"That   watch   doesn’t   match   your   suit."

"You’re   not   very   good   at   hiding."

"Someone’s   been   asking   about   you."

"Thought   you’d   never   show."

"You   have   good   taste   in   music."

"Don't   turn   around."

"Guess   we’re   partners   now."

"You   shouldn’t   be   here."

"Do   you   believe   in   fate?"

"You’re   late.   I   almost   left."

"That’s   my   drink."

"I   think   you’re   in   the   wrong   place."

"Your   cover’s   slipping."

"Tell   me   that   wasn’t   on   purpose."

"Are   you   going   to   apologize?"

"Care   to   dance?"

"That’s   quite   an   entrance."

"You   always   this   bold?"

"I’ve   heard   of   you."

"You’re   not   easy   to   find."

"You   look   nervous."

"Sit.   Please."

"You   read   the   file?"

"You   shouldn’t   trust   me."

"Nice   aim."

"We   weren’t   supposed   to   meet   yet."

"You   took   your   time."

"So,   you’re   the   infamous   one."

"Someone's   been   watching   me."

"Your   timing’s   suspicious."

"You   look   like   trouble."

"That’s   a   nice   trick."

"I’ve   been   looking   for   you."

"Are   you   hurt?"

"They   didn’t   say   you’d   be   charming."

"You   always   arrive   like   this?"

"That’s   classified."

"Don’t   trust   the   bartender."

"You're   bleeding."

"You   have   five   minutes."

"Where’s   your   partner?"

"I   wasn’t   briefed   on   you."

"You   have   terrible   timing."

"I   wasn’t   expecting   company."

"I   thought   you   were   a   myth."

"You   look   bored."

"I   saw   you   watching   me."

"You're   not   like   the   others."

"So,   you're   the   backup?"

"Try   not   to   get   killed."

"That's   a   dangerous   dress."

"You   don't   belong   here."

"We   meet   at   last."

"That’s   not   your   real   name."

"You   weren’t   followed,   right?"

"We’ve   never   met.   Officially."

"Don’t   say   my   name."

"Is   this   seat   cursed   too?"

"No   sudden   moves."

"We’re   alone   now."

"Take   off   the   mask."

"I   know   what   you   did."

"Who   let   you   in?"

"You’re   prettier   in   person."

"You’re   not   what   I   expected."

"You   shouldn’t   smile   like   that."

"Don’t   flatter   yourself."

"What   took   you   so   long?"

[boingoalive1988]

if you ever feel safe please remember that im out there

[jbt7493]

“Before You Embark On A Journey Of Revenge, Dig Two Graves”. what a stupid fucking quote. I’m killing way more than two people idiot

[koimeteryon]

re-reading necropolis by catharine arnold & just remembered my theory that the og sweeney todd penny dreadful publication might've been based on smth that actually happened

[koimeteryon]

@andpale // continued

there  is  a  rat,   like  the  city-large  ones  grown  fat  on  run-off,   chewing  at  his  ribs.      twenty  years  ago,     he  might’ve  called  this  rat  panic.  ben   feels  her  tension,      &     without  thinking  extends  his  arm  across  the  table  separating  them  as  if  to  reach  for  her.      parental  instinct,     something  he  hasn’t  felt  since  she  was  small  enough  to  hold  in  the  cradle  of  an  arm.     

instead of touching her, ben   rests  his  wrist  on  the  table,     palm  open      &    plaintive.      begging.       take  my  hand,     i  promise  it  won’t  hurt  you.          

the  words  come  without  permission.  he  hates  them  before  he  says  them.   

❛      i  never  left  you.      ❜

yellow  hair  like  a  halo;     eyes  just  like  his  own.     his  throat  clenches.     she  haunts  him.      screams  at  him.      her  place  in  the  dark,     the  footboard  of  his  bed.     

❛     every  corner,      every  shadow      –      you  were  there.     ❜

[nepenthean-sleep]

when you’ve done the unforgivable

richard siken, the torn-up road // @fox-party // ashe vernon, buried // fall out boy, champion // clarice lispector, the hour of the star // lang leav, a betrayal // @argumate // lora mathis

[lemememeringue]

ngl I could do without experiencing the epic highs and lows of mental illness

[koimeteryon]

one of my favourite things about todd is that it's a proper tragedy. at every single turn you can see what could've been done to 'fix' or at least recover the situation. ben had literally right up to the eleventh hour to find some kind of redemption; like yeah, by that point people had died and been eaten, but he had his wife and daughter. right there. the entire reason for all this bloodshed and they were, all three of them, under the same roof alive. but he's so far gone at that point that he doesn't even recognise them. he kills lucy and very nearly kills jo (and i do think he definitely would have done had he not been interrupted). he could've gone to fogg's to collect johanna himself. he could've taken two seconds to really look at the beggar woman and realise whose face was looking back at him. if somebody had to die, it could've just been turpin and bamford. but it's just not that kind of story. and now there's a hundred other dads whose kids are never going to see them again.

[koimeteryon]

@andpale ♡'d

❛      can i walk you home ?     ❜

❛      -- dangerous people around.     ❜

[andpale]

stares up at the man, wide eyes unwavering and a suspiciousness held within them. books in her arms remind her of a shield. if she has to, could she brandish one and hit the stranger with it? ( that is always how her mind works: how fast can she get away? ) ❝ are you one of those dangerous people? ❞ johanna asks. no one has ever taught her who to properly deal with... a strange man offering to walk her home. these days, anthony is typically at her side. when she's away from her guardian, at least. but while her initial instinct is to run and find somewhere to hide because surely this man is a burglar of some sort or an abductor, there is something about him that... she isn't completely afraid of. ❝ why would you offer to walk me home? ❞

[koimeteryon]

❛       nevermind    —    ❜

benjamin  doesn’t  say  no,      because  it  would  be  a  lie.

he’s  scared  her,      he  realises.      that’s  fair.      this  whole  thing  had  been  stupid      &      dangerous.      should’ve  known,      realistically,      that  if  he  spent  enough  time  around  turpin  he’d  run  into  his  sins  eventually.     it  shouldn’t  be  like  this;      if  he  hadn’t  filthied  his  hands     –      if  there’d  been  any  other  way  out  which  didn’t  end  with  a  blade,      maybe  things  would  be  different.     

sometimes,       in  the  middle  of  the  night,      he  tells  himself  he  doesn’t  grieve  her  anymore.      this  is  a  lie.      she’d  hate  him  for  it  if  she  knew,      but  she’s  the  shape  of  the  anger  living  behind  his  heart.      johanna  had  looked  so  small,      and  the  sky  is  so  dark,      &      what  kind  of  person  would  he  be  if  he  hadn’t  offered? 

❛       i’m  sorry - are you gonna be alright ?      ❜

[rbhvleo]

it eats me alive.

[weltenwellen]

Ilya Kaminsky, from “A City Like a Guillotine Shivers on Its Way to the Neck”, Deaf Republic

[koimeteryon]

@andpale ♡'d

❛      can i walk you home ?     ❜

❛      -- dangerous people around.     ❜

[koimeteryon]

"They told me not to trust you."

@andpale

❛      i  know.      ❜

different  day,      same  miserable  life.

from the  corner  of  his  eye,      she’s  the  very  image  of  her  mother,      & it’s  painful.      as  much  as  she  looks  like  lucy,       johanna’s   so  like  his  daughter  that  he’d  be  able  to  read  her  hook,      line,      & sinker  if  he  could  just  bring  himself  to  look  her  in  the  face.

but  doing  so  feels dirty,  somehow,      like  he’d  sully  her  by  meeting  her eyes. the blood's drying, now, & it's time to talk. no matter how red or wet the dawn is.

❛      but you can,      johanna.      ❜

[koimeteryon]

i have reunited w. the best johanna (@andpale) and it's over for every single one of you.