Oh my god! The new version of Microsoft Edge won't let me copy and paste the chapter with all the formatting. So annoying! Had to upload the entire file.

Anyway, this is the final installment of this series.

The Omega Mission: Alternate Ending Pt. 4

Timmy had managed to fall into a dreamless sleep that night. Along with not having any dreams, he slept restlessly, tossing and turning fitfully. Every so often, he would wake up with his heart pounding in his chest. Then, he would look at his phone, hoping that he hadn't put it on vibrate and missed a critical call from Tecna. Around early morning, Timmy had finally calmed down enough to fall into a somewhat restful sleep, that is until the blaring sound of his cellphone shot him upright. His eyes widened as he grasped the object in his hand once again and saw the caller ID. He answered, trying to control his pulsing heart.

"Is this Timmy?" It was an unrecognizable female voice that asked, "This is Nurse Ofelia's assistant." In the background, Timmy could hear frightened screams that he identified all too well. Tecna.

"Yes, what's happening?" He asked breathlessly.

"The nurse is just tending to Tecna right now." The assistant told him, "We can't calm her down."

"Put me on holo-speaker." Timmy insisted, and took a pair of wireless earbuds from a desk drawer. Surely the screaming would no doubt wake up his roommates. Once he hooked up the earbuds, the assistant displayed a holographic image of herself, and faced the phone towards Nurse Ofelia, who was trying without success to wrap the warmer blankets around Tecna. Tecna, meanwhile, was still bracing her arms in order to prevent the nurse from aiding her. The assistant brought her phone closer to them, and as Timmy could clearly see what was going on, he began to worry.

Back at Alfea, Ofelia could clearly see the holographic image of Timmy displayed before her.

"Just let me talk to her." He insisted, and the assistant placed the cellphone on the table so that Tecna could hear Timmy as clearly as possible. "Tecna, Tecna can you hear me?" As soon as Timmy spoke, Tecna stopped flailing her arms and screaming.

"Tecna, I said I would find a way to be with you, even when I'm not right beside you. And here I am. I will get you through this, I will be the hero you need me to be. I just hope that… you heard everything I said on the Owl. And if for some reason, in all the trauma that is haunting you… that you have forgotten. I love you eternally." Timmy didn't even care that Nurse Ofelia and her assistant were listening to him, getting his message across to Tecna would more important than anything in the world to him at the moment.

"You complete me, you fill a void…, an emptiness that nothing else can. And I will be there for you no matter what, because I don't want to live a life full of regrets… Regrets that I could've been the man you deserve. I just… don't want to lose you again." Timmy continued softly, and Tecna began to sink down into the bed, letting his voice lull her into tranquility again. She continued to listen to Timmy as Nurse Ofelia finally managed to wrap the warm blanket around her, and she hid herself away within its comfort.

"Timmy…" Tecna murmured peacefully while the assistant was able to place the cold cloth on her forehead to help break the fever.

'Yes Tecna, I'm right here." Timmy responded. He was able to hear her say his name as she was finally calm. "I'll come by after classes tomorrow afternoon, okay." Even if Timmy's voice would no longer be heard, the reassurance that he would return to her was enough to chase away her fever dreams, and the warmth of the blanket shielded her away from the hallucinations of the frozen depths of the Omega Dimension.

"She's in good hands, Timmy," Nurse Ofelia reassured him, "Thank you."

"No, thank you." He said, "I could never forgive myself if I lost her. I would go on to think… it was my fault and I could've done her better."

"Tecna will be fine." Nurse Ofelia continued to reassure the ginger-haired Specialist, "You did everything you could, and are doing everything you can. Tecna knows you would do anything for her." All Timmy could do was heave a sigh over the holo-speaker. They all said their goodbyes as Nurse Ofelia's assistant continued to put pressure on Tecna's forehead with the cool cloth. After the call ended, Nurse Ofelia let out a heavy sigh of her own.

"That poor young man, he loves this fairy so much." She said.

'Young love is so beautiful, so pure." Her assistant agreed, "Purer than the purest magic in the universe. It saves lives." All Nurse Ofelia could do was nod in response.

The next afternoon, Timmy rode over to Alfea on his hoverbike and rushed without hesitation toward the infirmary. He ignored the curious looks of students as he raced by in the hallways. Once he reached the school infirmary, he saw the Winx just about to leave.

"Has… has Tecna woken up yet?" He asked as his heart started to pound in his chest again.

"She has." Flora hesitated; she didn't want to tell Timmy the whole thing. The nature fairy know it would break him.

"She's in pretty bad shape." Layla added, seeing the reluctance in her friend's tone.

"What do you mean, is she okay?" That, to Timmy, felt was a stupid question. He did not ask stupid questions. Of course Tecna wasn't okay, that was the whole point of 'pretty bad shape.'

"I think it's best if Nurse Ofelia fills you in." Bloom suggested.

"Yeah," Stella added, "We're just… too worried." At that, Timmy's face turned pale, and Stella knew she would instantly be eating her own foot. Musa, meanwhile, was too filled with concern to even speak. This was her roommate they were discussing, her closest confidant, aside from Layla. She couldn't lose Tecna the way she lost her mother.

"I have to see her." Timmy insisted as he continued to race past the girls and into the infirmary. There, he saw Nurse Ofelia's assistant looking over some paperwork.

"Timmy, there you are." She greeted him in a soft voice. It wasn't hurried, but it was filled with concern. Though, not too much concern that it came out as dread, her tone was just worried.

"Where is Nurse Ofelia?" He asked, he knew Tecna was relocated to the inpatient ward, and he was going to see her, but he needed to get some information from Ofelia first.

"She's off getting Tecna some stew from today's lunch… Although I fear Tecna might not be able to eat it." The assistant let the last part slip out, no realizing who she was saying this too. Without warning, Timmy headed for the door of the inpatient ward, not wanting to waste any more time. He had to get to his one and only, he had to know what condition she was in.

There, he saw her, laying there with her eyes open and barely moving in the bed. It was then that his heart shattered. Possibly less so, he admitted, than when he first saw her in Omega, but still it hurt him so.

"Tecna!" The cry was a breathless impulse as he ran to her side, kneeling down to look at her. His hand cupped her left cheek, caressing it gently. Then, he pulled himself closer, placing endless kisses on her forehead.

"Timmy?" It looked as is Tecna could barely keep her eyes open, but she struggled long enough to figure out who was there with her. "Timmy, I'm so cold." With those words, he instantly pulled the blanket up and wrapped it around her, cocooning her within it and his strong arms.

"Ssh, ssh, I'm right here now." He whispered to her, his voice soft and lulling, "You'll be okay." This was another one of those times when he was only telling himself this, to convince himself that he wasn't going to lose the love of his life. The room became silent as Timmy continued to cradle Tecna in his arms, kissing her on the forehead ever now and again. He could cry, but he had to be her hero, he promised he'd pull her through this. Suddenly, the door opened, snapping Timmy's gaze to Nurse Ofelia.

"My assistant said you were here." She said.

"Please, please tell you that Tecna's going to make it." Timmy pleaded, noticing Tecna begin to drift into sleep again as he turned back to her.

"Come on Tecna, stay with me."

"She is having some pretty severe hallucinations and she was running a fever last night." Nurse Ofelia informed him, "But I assure you, she will be fine. All Tecna needs is nutritious meals and lots of rest to replenish her positive magic." The nurse was rolling a cart with a tray of food over a silver serving cover. She took off the cover to reveal a warm bowl of stew from the school cafeteria. However, Tecna could barely keep her eyes open, let alone lift herself up to sit.

"If I can, I want to do anything to help." Timmy urged, "I have an idea…, but I'm going to need some privacy." He had something in mind, but it would feel awkward for him to go through with it while the nurse was watching.

"All right, if you insist." Nurse Ofelia agreed begrudgingly as she began to leave the inpatient ward. Once she was gone, Timmy lifted Tecna's arm over his shoulder and supported her entire body weight with his own to lift her into a sitting position.

"Come on Tecna, I got you." He encouraged her in another comforting whisper. She was so weak that she could barely keep herself upright. Timmy took a deep breath; this was something he couldn't even fathom doing before. Under normal circumstances, Tecna could definitely be able to take care of herself, but this was not normal circumstances, not by any stretch of the imagination. With his free hand, Timmy rolled the cart forward, pulling the bowl of stew as close to him as he could reach. Then, he took the spoon, ensuring that the stew was not too hot, and slowly inched it towards Tecna's mouth.

Realizing what was happening, Tecna did not resist, and allowed Timmy to do most of the work for her. The stew was warm and filling, revitalizing every muscle in her body and every bit of her magic energy. Once the bowl was empty, she felt herself slightly strengthen up, but not enough to overcome her exhaustion. Timmy went to wipe her face from the times he missed her mouth, blushing at the very idea that he was feeding her like a baby, and then lowered her back down to the bed.

"There, now you can get your strength back." He told her, surer of what he was saying than ever before. Now that Tecna had something nutritious and filling to eat, he was certain that would give her what her body needed. He wrapped the blanket around her again; and cradled her within his arms. Now, he was not scared to let her sleep at that moment, because he knew it was the best thing for her.

A little under a week had passed since Tecna was returned safety to Alfea and under the care of Nurse Ofelia and her assistant. Seeing how well Timmy's idea worked, Nurse Ofelia gave him special permission to come before classes to help Tecna with breakfast. Luckily, Tecna was strong enough to feed herself after four days, but she was still very weak.

Later in the week, Timmy went to visit Tecna after his classes. When he opened the door to the inpatient ward, he was thankful to see her sitting upright in the bed.

"Hey Cupcake." He greeted her while he sat next to her on the bed, unaware of the first time he had ever used that term of endearment toward her.

"Cupcake?" Tecna asked, catching Timmy off guard as he realized what he had said.

"Yeah." A pink tint came across his cheeks, but he brushed off his shyness. Staring at her now, he could finally see that smile he longed so much for, those eyes were wide open, slowly regaining that magnificent sparkle of curiosity they once had. He wanted to speak, to make sure Tecna knew the message he'd been trying to send to her.

"Tecna, I…" But he was cut off by her finger on his lips and a reassuring smile on her face.

"No need to reiterate what you said to me on the Owl a week ago." She told him with a knowing look.

"You heard everything I said?" He asked, equally relieved and astonished. He was grateful he didn't have to repeat every detail of his confession, but he it would've bothered him one bit if he did.

"Every word, even the things that sounded completely illogical." Tecna said with a slight giggle, knowing that logic had nothing to do with what he had confessed.

"Tecna…, no amount of logic could ever fill that void… that emptiness that you fill in my heart. I promised you I'd be a changed man and I've devoted every second to you." Timmy know that last statement was entirely irrational but couldn't care less.

"Timmy." Tecna gushed, a huge smile spreading across her features. That was the smile Timmy longed for, and suddenly he thrust forward, pulling Tecna into a tight embrace and resting her head on his chest so that she could hear his heartbeat.

"You had me so scared." He admitted in a hushed whisper, kissing her forehead, "I'm just so glad you're okay."

"Was there ever any doubt?" She asked him, slightly teasing. But she knew just how serious it was. She knew how scared for her life he had been.

"Yes, because I don't ever want to know what that void actually feels like, I couldn't live with knowing I could've saved you but didn't." He continued to confess, "And I said it before, I will cherish every second with you like I cherish every breath that I take." With those words, he cupped Tecna's chin up gently with his fingers, and kissed her with overwhelming passion. When their lips parted, Tecna just leaned into Timmy's chest, listening to his heartbeat, and sighed deeply.

From that point on, Tecna made a fully recovery, albeit with a few horrifying flashbacks very now and then. However, the fear she still had never held a candle to the love that Timmy had for her. Nurse Ofelia's assistant had been right, love in the purest magic, it saved Tecna's life.

I must admit, the spoon-feeding scene was equally awkward and adorable. These are my fantasies. :(

PS: I've been listening to "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" on freakin' repeat and just rocking out to it! Perfect song for these two lovers!