Perfection Exception

End

Annabelle

I found myself growing more and more depressed and sad as time passed by. I wasn't entirely sure if it was because I was trapped inside the glass container or if it was because I had started to miss all of the friends I had made while at the Institute and Uglyville. Lou had noticed my decreasing happiness, and he had used a watch that Moxy had given him to open a portal back home.

We stepped through the portal together, and I was greeted by the blinding light of the button sun in Uglyville. I held my hand up to block the sunlight, having spent so long inside a room lit by a lightbulb and kept away from the natural sunlight.

"No way! Annabelle!" A voice yelled.

I was suddenly ambushed by several dolls. I laughed at the amount of hugs I had gotten.

"Okay! Okay!" I giggled. "Calm down!"

"We've missed you!" Moxy yelled, and she looked at Lou. "Both of you!"

"What happened while you were in the Big World?!" Mandy asked, grabbing my hands excitedly.

"We were in a toy museum. They had us in some kind of display, and so many kids came by to see us every day." I explained. "The room was full of prototype toys, and there were posters of us on every wall!"

"Really?"

"Yes!"

Moxy grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the center of Uglyville. Lou chuckled as he followed behind us.

"Lou and Annabelle have returned!" Moxy cheered as dolls started gathering around us.

The three of us stood on the stage in the middle of Uglyville, and the dolls that gathered around cheered. I looked at Lou as I smiled, and we both bowed in unison. Ox stepped up onto the stage and very proudly motioned to me with his hands.

"The mayor of Perfection!" He cheered.

"Co-mayor." I corrected him, taking Lou's hand. "He's changed, and he's earned it."

The surprised look on Lou's face made me giggle, and he smiled as he tightened his grip on my hand. I pulled him closer and kissed his cheek.

"Perform for us!" Someone begged.

"Please? It's been so long since we've heard your voices!" Another yelled.

I smiled as I looked at Lou. "What do you say?"

He chuckled. "I say give them what they want."

He let go of my hand, and he cleared his throat as he stepped toward the edge of the stage. I smiled slightly when he started singing.

'Now I've heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
But you don't really care for music, do you?
It goes like this, the fourth, the fifth
The minor fall, the major lift
The baffled king composing Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah'

Lou looked at me over his shoulder, and I smiled as I walked until I stood beside him.

'Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
She tied you to a kitchen chair
She broke your throne, and she cut your hair
And from your lips she drew the Hallelujah'

'Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah'

'Baby, I've been here before
I know this room
I've walked this floor
I used to live alone before I knew you
I've seen your flag on the marble arch
Love is not a victory march, it's a cold and broken Hallelujah'

'Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah'

'I did my best, it wasn't much
I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch
I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you
And even though it all went wrong
I'll stand before the Lord of Song
With nothing on my tongue but Hallelujah'

'Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Hallelujah, Hallelujah
Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Hallelujah'

They all screamed when we were done singing, and I took Lou's hand. He raised our arms up above our heads, and we both bowed when he swung them down.

~

"Are you sure this is the right thing? They still hate me for what I've done in the past."

"You've changed, Lou."

Lou sat on our bed, his head in his hands. He had expressed his doubts about being co-mayor with me simply because of how cruel they had once been because of his behaviour. I fixed the headband I was wearing before turning to face him. He looked up at me when I took his hands.

"Cheer up! They love you now. Sure, they love me more, but you still have a place in their hearts." I said.

"I hate how you always cheer me up." He chuckled.

"Well, get over it."

~

"Look! Lou's not wearing a suit!"

"He makes anything look hot!"

I had somehow convinced Lou to wear more casually clothing, and he ended up wearing a tank top, tracksuit pants, and a jacket tied around his waist. He also had put on a pair of sneakers for the first time ever. I was wearing a similar outfit, only I wore short shorts and boots.

I skipped down the stairs, Lou following closely behind. He laughed as I did a side flip over the last five steps, landing perfectly on my feet. I smiled at Lou before running to the end of the cat walk, waving with both hands to the dolls that gathered around the stage. Lou stood beside me, and I felt him hit the button on my back as he waved to one of the dolls who screamed his name. We both stood apart as a song started playing from the speakers in the area, and Lou sang along perfectly with me despite singing in Japanese as we performed.

~Performance starts at 1:05~

I giggled as the song ended, and Lou wrapped his arm around my waist when he stood beside me. We were both out of breath from moving around so much.

"This is better than being stuck in some glass display." I giggled.

"It sure is." He replied.

He looked down at me after waving to yet another doll who yelled his name, and he smiled just before he leaned down and kissed me.

We were made for each other, and we would stay at each other's side as long as we could.

~

And that's it! This is the end of Annabelle's story! Thank you all so much for commenting, voting, and following these two even during the hard times! Until next time!

-Hanzo_The_Archer