A Secret Paradise
Tecna stared, concentrating on the algorithms and codes that captured her fascination for as long as she could remember. She was so enthralled in her computer screen that she barely heard the rest of the Winx girls heading out the door.
"Tecna, we're going to a movie in Magix, do you want to join us?" Bloom asked, but the tech savvy fairy did not look away from her laptop.
"No thank you, Bloom, I'm really not in the mood." She admitted dully.
"Suit yourself, we'll catch up with you later." Stella piped in, dragging Bloom by the arm. The Solarian Princess was excited to see a new chick flick that just got released. That was the thing that Tecna was not enjoying about being a part of the Winx Club, quite recently Bloom and Stella had been making most of the decisions for the group. What they were going to do, what their clothes looked like, what movie they were going to see, Tecna was beginning to feel more like a clone than an individual. The only unique thing she had left was her short hair, and if Stella dared spell it while she was asleep, the technology fairy would full on quit the group altogether. Being lost in her world of logic and technology was her only sense of comfort as she was losing more and more of her individuality as time goes by.
Timmy rode his Wind Rider towards Alfea's wing shaped gates as the Winx girls were just about to leave for their movie. He looked around to notice that his girlfriend was not with them.
"Hey girls, where's Tecna?" He asked, "I wanted to come see her, is she feeling okay?"
"She looked kind of down in the dumps when we left," Flora told him, "Maybe you could be able to cheer her up."
"What do you mean, do you know why she's upset?" Timmy wanted to probe just a bit more, to get as much information as possible before going to talk to his beloved.
"No, she was just stuck in her own little world of her codes and algora-thingies." Stella answered insensitively, and Timmy was beginning to understand why Tecna must be feeling the way she was.
"Algorithms," he mumbled irritably under his breath, then shook it off, "Okay girls, I'll go talk to her, you just enjoy your movie."
"Thanks Timmy, see you later!" Musa called as they left Alfea's grounds, and the ginger haired Specialist headed up towards the dormitories to give his beloved Cupcake a surprise visit.
By now, the magenta haired fairy of technology had closed her laptop and was looking blankly out of the balcony window into the starry night sky. Letting out a deep sigh, it wasn't the fact that the girls didn't offer to bring her along, they did, but when she told them that she wasn't in the mood, they didn't even ask why or offer to stay in with her. No consideration for her feelings at all, not that Tecna was one to openly express her emotions, but just asking her would've been nice. That was another thing about being in a group that Tecna didn't like, she had always felt pushed to the side, and the only thing the girls would come to her for was 'technical support.' Even if she wasn't the most openly emotional, the rest of the girls seemed to forget that she did have feelings too. Entranced in her thoughts, she was startled by a knock on the door, and instantly rushed to answer it. To her complete happiness, it was Timmy.
"Timmy, what a pleasant surprise, what are you doing here?" she asked with the brightest smile on her face.
"I wanted to come visit you, but the rest of the girls were going out to a movie. They said you weren't feeling well." He told her, entering the Winx' dormitory and sitting down with her on the couch.
"I don't know what gave them that idea, I'm feeling just fine." She insisted, "I'm not sick or anything."
"You know I can sense your emotional vibes, Tecna," Timmy pressed, looking into her teal eyes, "You might not be physically sick, but I can tell that you aren't feeling well."
"You seem to be the only one that gets me Timmy," Tecna sighed, "I just feel like I'm losing my individuality. I know Bloom is supposed to be the leader, but she has let Stella make all the decisions for the group, they don't even ask the rest of us what we want to do. I don't mind Stella's fashion sense, but all the outfits she's made for us all look the same. When I first got into the group I had my own style that reflected who I am, and now I just feel like their clone. I didn't even want to go to the movies tonight because I knew that Stella was going to automatically pick that new chick flick she was dying to see, and because she's Bloom's best friend and Bloom's word trumps every one else's...!"
"Take a deep breath, Cupcake," Timmy replied calmly, stopping Tecna before she could ramble on any longer, "I figured what was going on the moment that Stella told me they didn't even ask you why you were upset." And with that, he pulled her closer to him as she rested her head on his chest. Timmy immediately began sliding his fingers through her short magenta hair.
"I know I can always be myself when I'm with you." She whispered, "Rather I'm being logical or if my emotions are driving me to the point of insanity."
"Tecna.., there is something I want to share with you and I wanted to wait until the perfect time, but I guess now is as good a time as ever, and it might make you feel better."
"Oh really," the tech savvy fairy looked up into her loving boyfriend's eyes, "what would that be?"
"You'll just have to follow me to find out." He chuckled, taking her hand and leading her out the door, down the hallway and out to Alfea's quad where his Wind Rider was parked.
They rode deep into the forest near Alfea, and because it was dark outside, Tecna became a little skeptical of where Timmy was taking her, although she knew he would put his life on the line for her safety.
"Where are you taking me, Timmy?" She asked him over the loud winds as they passed by trees at a fast pace.
"Don't worry, Cupcake, I would never take you anywhere dangerous. In fact, this is quite the opposite." He told her with a reassuring smile. Finally they reached their destination, and Timmy helped Tecna off of his Wind Rider and took her hand again. There was a narrow trail with low branches, and he guided her along in the darkness."Watch your head." He warned her as she ducked from a low branch, with his arms around her waist and his comforting voice in her ear, she felt like nothing could harm her. They came to a large tree, which puzzled Tecna.
"I'm getting a little confused, but I'm very intrigued and excited to see what you have to show me." She admitted.
"You won't have to be confused for long, just hold your excitement in for a bit more." He laughed lightly, knowing exactly why she would be confused. Being the fairy of technology, she would expect him to take her to a place where there were high tech gadgets and the latest video games and electronics, but this was the complete opposite of that, something she didn't need at the moment. However she gave him the benefit of the doubt, because deep down inside, she trusted him more than anybody else. He told her to stay still, as he walked over to the tree and tore off a few pieces of bark to reveal a button, and pressed it. Suddenly an opening appeared at the base of the tree, and it was pitch black down there. Timmy took a flashlight from his pocket, and once again took his beloved's hand.
"Timmy?" Tecna swallowed the lump in her throat, not being able to see a thing in front of her was terrifying, and he could sense her fear.
"It's okay, Tecna," he reassured her soothingly, "I would never let anything happen to you, I'll be your eyes." He turned to face her, the dim light allowed her to see his face, and he wrapped his arms protectively around her, she just sank deeper into his embrace.
"You're so good to me." She whispered.
"Someone has to be, if no one else will, then it's all up to me." He whispered back, and then they continued to venture out into the dark unknown. Not too long later, they could see a light, and it got closer as they walked further. Turns out it was a handprint detector. Timmy placed Tecna's hand on the pad, and a green light filled the screen, granting her access to what lies ahead. The screen then displayed a photo of her and her name.
"Will it give you access too?" She inquired.
"Yeah, but I wanted to make sure it worked with you. I've never tried it." They laughed together for a minute before Tecna looked at him skeptically.
"How were you able to get some of my DNA?" She asked him, " That access pad had to have some kind of database."
"Do you remember the last time you got a bad scrape on your knee?" He asked.
"Yes, it bled so much and hurt so bad," She replied as she envisioned the memory, "and when you came to my aide, you were crying hysterically seeing the wound."
"I worried about you, I can't stand to see you hurt." his cheeks turned tomato red, remembering how he broke down in tears when he saw how deep her wound was, "Anyway, when I was cleaning up your wound, I collected some of your blood for this to detect your DNA."
"Timmy!" Tecna was astonished, she didn't know what to say.
"This is for your protection." He hinted, unaware that he had said too much until it was too late.
"What do you mean?" She questioned him, had her trusted boyfriend lost his mind?
"Let's just keep going." Timmy insisted hastily, taking Tecna by the hand once more. This time, the hallway was made of steel with lights on either side of the walls. At the end of the hallway was another pad in which to enter a code.
"The access code is 121689, your birthday and year. In month, day and year." He explained.
"Timmy, you're surprising me more and more with every passing moment." She replied in a gasp, and once the door was open, it revealed an enormous room that lit up instantly when they entered. In the center of the room was a large platform that could be reached with a set of winding stairs, and on top of that platform was a gigantic canopy bed covered by a soft purple duvet and a matching pillow set. In one corner of the room, there was an enormous entertainment centre with the latest game console, the most recent TV model and the best surround sound system that the Magical Dimension could buy. There was also a huge assortment of games that hadn't even been released yet. Across from the entertainment center was a long U couch, perfect for late night movie snuggles, and a white marble coffee table. Tecna walked over to the area in the corner of the endless room and gasped in total amazement at all the luxuries that Timmy had acquired for her
"Timmy this is.., how were you able to get access to all of these things? These games aren't going to be released until two months from now, and they won't even hit the shelves until even half a month later!" She inquired, nearly speechless.
"Well, you know that my dad is a CEO of a major electronics company in my home realm," Timmy explained, "because of his position, he was able to pull some strings and get us all of the most high tech equipment in the Magical Dimension, there is even some stuff from Zenith if you look around." Tecna turned around to see a spacious work area with all the tools and equipment they could ever need to modify and create their inventions. It even had a two screen computer and plenty of storage space. This time the technology fairy was definitely wordless with glee, she couldn't hold back any longer and flung her arms around her loving boyfriend's neck.
"This is not what I expected at all!" She squealed joyously, and Timmy knew that his surprise did in fact make her feel better.
"I'm so glad you like it, Tecna," he told her with a wide smile, " There is just one more thing I want to show you." Then, he led her the third corner of the room, where a dining area was set up with two chairs, however, there was no kitchen, just a huge machine.
"What are you craving most in the whole wide world right now?" He asked her with a grin on his face.
"Umm, for some reason I could really go for pizza, and Bloom was the one who introduced us to it." Tecna froze and then sighed, "I really am turning into one of their clones. This was exactly what I needed, thank you Timmy."
"That doesn't matter, if you're craving pizza, then that's what you're going to have." He powered up the machine, and the screen flickered to life, showing a menu of breakfast, lunch and dinner options. Timmy tapped the dinner option on the touchscreen, and there was an assortment of dishes to choose from. Tecna was astonished and watched him work the huge wall mounted device.
"There, it should be ready in about forty five minutes, why don't we watch a movie while we wait." Timmy suggested.
"So, I can get any meal from anywhere in the Magical Dimension, and it'll prepare and cook it for me?" Tecna inquired with great mesmerization.
"Yep, it'll even tell you when one of the ingredients in the inventory is low, and I can go and stock it up." He told her, seeing the absolute pleasure of the expression on her face watching the machine do its job.
"And this, all of this.., is for me?" Tecna thought it was too good to be true, that she had maybe fallen asleep with her palmtop in her hands and this was all just a dream.
"Nothing is too good for my Cupcake," Timmy replied sweetly, "now let me get some of that icing."he pulled her in close, and began giving her gentle kisses behind her ear as she continued to squeal joyfully. Then he scooped her up in his arms, carrying her bridal style, and collapsed on the couch, being careful not to hit her head on the back of it.
"Oh Timmy, this is so perfect, there is nothing more I could ever ask for." Tecna sighed as he began cuddling her and playing with her hair.
"Consider this your home away from home, if you ever feel that you're under appreciated, just come here and all your worries will disappear." He told her in a whisper.
"I wouldn't dream of coming here without you, you're what makes this whole thing complete."
"Tecna.., if, Great Dragon forbid, the battles you face become too much for you, and.., there would be a chance that I could lose you..." Timmy was struggling to force the image to the back of his mind, "I'm going to take you here, we can live here until we can figure out an escape plan to get to Zenith or something."
"Is that what this is all about?" Tecna asked with a concerned look on her face, "I know you can never get over my sacrifice, but you have to remember that I'm the Guardian Fairy of Zenith, and a member of the Winx Club. I have a sworn duty to fight for the good of the Magical Dimension and if that puts my life at risk, then so be it. The rest of the girls are in the same boat."
"It's not just that, Cupcake, it's.., the villains you face on every mission get more and more dangerous, pretty soon the Trix are going to figure out a way to destroy Magix and there would be nothing that can stop them, not even Bloom. I'm just afraid you're going to get hurt, I've felt what it's like to be told that I've lost you.., and I don't ever want to go through that again."
"Timmy, you must be the sweetest boyfriend in the entire Magical Dimension, you've got your dad to get all these luxuries for me, just so I can be in a place where I can be protected during the destruction of the realm, I have no idea what to say."
"You don't have to say a thing, just know that you are my everything, my life would be empty without you." He whispered softly. The couple enjoyed part of a movie before getting their pizza, and after the move they had fallen fast asleep on the couch, Tecna safe and sound in her loving boyfriend's arms. It only took Timmy waking up for the two lovers to relocate to the bed and continue their peaceful dreams in paradise. Before Timmy fell asleep again, he gave Musa a text, letting her know that Tecna was safe with him, in fact, she felt safest when she was with him.