Chapter Ten: This Is My Mission
Five days later, Timmy was called in to Mrs. Faragonda's office for some distressing news regarding her search for Mr. Err. Timmy sat across from the elderly woman with his hands clasped in his lap, anxiously playing with his thumbs.
"So, what do you find out?" He asked, "Anything?"
"We have specialized trackers for situations where the threats to our fairies' lives are still at large. They are the best hackers in the Magical Dimension and have connections to every record in every realm's government in order to trace even the most hidden of documents. So I can assure you this team is highly esteemed." Mrs. Faragonda began, "With that said, they have spent days and used every resource and skill they have at their disposal, but even they weren't able to track down the man of which Tecna has told you about."
"That can't be right." Timmy was distraught, even the best tracking team in the Magical Dimension couldn't find the one responsible for taking any possible shred of liveliness that Tecna could've had.
"I told you that if Mr. Err is as cunning as you said he was, that he would ensure that his tracks were covered without a trace." Mrs. Faragonda confirmed regretfully.
"Please Mrs. Faragonda, you can't let Tecna out into the world until we find him." Timmy pleaded, standing up and practically leaning over the desk with hands clasping in a begging gesture, "She won't be safe overwise, please promise me this."
"Timmy," The elderly woman heaved a deep sigh, "if our team of specialize trackers can't identify him, I can't guarantee that we can keep Tecna here for long. She needs to move on, provided we ready her for it."
"That's just it! Tecna won't be ready for it! She is always going to be haunted by this constant feeling of fear and worthlessness unless this psychopath is killed!" Timmy protested, his voice rising furiously.
"That's enough!" Mrs. Faragonda suddenly snapped, and Timmy sat back down in utter astonishment to her reaction. "I told you that there was nothing we can do until we have more information, and we were unable to obtain it. I'm sorry." Instead of insisting further, Timmy decided to leave the woman's office and head to his quarters to gain back his composure before going to tell Tecna the bad news. With Mrs. Faragonda's resources being a dead end, he vowed right then and there to do anything he could to track down Mr. Err himself. However, he was unaware that the specialized team at Alfea had access to records that would be illegal for Timmy to get a hold of. It didn't matter, the ginger haired man had deadly determination, and nothing was going to break it.
Timmy sat on Tecna's couch while he watched her slide her elegant fingers across the magical projection screens in from of her. She sat in the corner of the room in her fairy form, completely engrossed in her programming. Timmy couldn't help but stare wistfully at her as she worked, admiring her fairy form with its elegant wings. He considered the possibility that she never got a chance to use them, to fly free. With that saddening, angering thought rising, he clenched his fists and let out an agitated sigh. This caught Tecna's attention immediately, and she turned her head toward him.
"Timmy, is there something wrong?" She asked as the screens vanished from surrounding her. She de-transformed and sat beside Timmy on the couch.
"I…, might need your help with something." He was hesitant, the last thing he wanted was to frighten Tecna by letting her in on the fact that Mr. Err couldn't be detected by even the Magical Dimension's best trackers. However, Tecna trusted him above anybody else in the world, even Mrs. Faragonda. To betray that trust by keeping this information from her would be an act of injustice.
"What would that be?" She responded. Timmy took her hands in his and gave them a reassuring squeeze. He refused to let anything happen to her, not after she had confided in him, revealing the torture she was put through. Then, he took a deep breath, hoping that he would not hate himself for telling Tecna what he had been told from Mrs. Faragonda.
"Mrs. Faragonda had put the best trackers in the Magical Dimension on the hunt for Mr. Err. I had made it clear to her that you would not be safe to go out into the world until he was put to justice." Timmy explained in one huge string of words, "Unfortunately, even the best trackers weren't able to find him. But don't worry, I won't rest until I know he is behind bars, or better yet, killed for his crimes against you. So, if Mrs. Faragonda can't find him… I'm going to do it myself." With every rambling word, Tecna's mouth was left agape, and her eyes widened in disbelief and horror.
"Timmy, that's insane!" She protested frantically, "If he's been able to cover his tracks, there's no way you can find him. And even if you did, you're not going to face off against him alone, are you?" The thought of the last question brought Timmy's blood to a boil. If no one believed him after he'd gathered at least one sliver of evidence, he would boldly face that challenge. But Tecna would beg desperately for him not to, and he knew it.
"It may've been impossible for Alfea's specialized tracking team, but I know someone from the inside who witnessed everything." He continued, "When you were forced by Mr. Err to do all that programming, you must've remembered something about where you were. Better yet, you can use your technology powers to connect to the IP address of any network, so you can connect to the computer that you used to work on the programming. Then, we can track down his location and he'll be out of your life for good!"
"How did you think of that?" Tecna asked him, completely gob-smacked by the very thought of Timmy's plan, "And how do you know this will work? What will you do once we do find his location?" It was at that second that Timmy knew what she was scared of, and he rested reassuring hands on her shoulders.
"Tecna, I've said that nothing was going to hurt you, and now that you've told me the whole truth about what was done to you, I will fight for your freedom." He insisted softly.
"It's still hard for me to believe you care that much." She said in a strained voice. Tecna knew the point of being at the Alfea Transition Institute was so she could return to a better life after her trauma from the Omega Dimension, but in the beginning of it all, she wanted to slowly starve herself to death. She believed that no one wanted her, and now all that was turned on its head when this man came into her life. Timmy would fight tooth and nail so that she wouldn't feel so worthless again, and Great Dragon did it show. He was willing to face the man who deprived Tecna of everything she could've had, and possibly die doing it. Why was he going out of his way to change her life, to set her free?
"Because I love you." Timmy thought to himself, but he couldn't say it to her. It was for exactly this reason that he couldn't have Tecna. She needed to be free, and when Mr. Err was gone for good, he would set her free, even at his own expense.
"This is not just a job to me anymore, it's my mission." He told Tecna after a minute of silent contemplation on what he was going to say, "My mission is to set you free. You're like a butterfly that has been trapped in a net, tormented by the horrors of a cruel, unforgiving world." Timmy knew he had been spending more than enough time with Helia, he was beginning to talk like the poetry enthusiast. But he didn't care one bit, what he was saying was so true. Tecna was a trapped butterfly, her fairy form exemplified that. Oh Great Dragon, her fairy form. He suddenly gazed into her brilliant teal eyes, leaving her absolutely speechless. Eventually, Tecna agreed to help Timmy with his plan to track down Mr. Err, but still with some hesitance. She was once again reassured that she could trust Timmy to protect her, so she wasn't as worried as she originally had been.
This wasn't the only mission on Timmy's mind. He still had to meet Brandon and Stella for dancing lessons, and to look over the design for the dress that Stella was putting together for Tecna. Continuing to stare deeply into Tecna's eyes, he couldn't help but smile briefly at what he could imagine her reaction would be to his surprise. Oh how she deserved all the best experiences in the world, and with Mr. Err gone forever, her sky would be limitless, to fly endlessly. The very thought of how happy she would be that day brought him into complete and utter bliss.
After Timmy had spent the afternoon with Tecna, he went to see Stella and Brandon to begin his first dance lesson. Gulping nervously, he knocked on the glass of Stella's door, only for the Solarian princess herself to answer it.
"Brandon told me all about what you are planning for Tecna." She admitted, "I have the perfect gown that I have been working on for months on Solaria before…. Well, I don't want to think about that. What I do want is your opinion." The blonde ushered Timmy into her suite where Brandon was sitting on her couch. All the fairies' rooms had a similar layout; but were personalized to suit their tastes. Instead of the little seating area that Tecna had in her main room, Stella's was occupied by a mannequin and a wide assortment of fabrics and sewing equipment. Along with that, the latest fashion magazines were scattered all over the room. Stella picked up a huge sketchpad and showed it to Timmy. When he saw the design for the dress that she had in mind, his jaw dropped.
It was a finely fleshed out sketch, which must've taking the Solarian princess weeks to perfect. The top was a form fitting corset with lace straps that formed a low, yet dignified V-neck. Around the bottom, the same lace formed a V pattern around the hips, while the skirt cascaded in different lengths of waves until it looked as though it would sweep the floor. A part of the dress opened in a slit to reveal the right leg. Even though Timmy had no idea what colour the finished product would be, he did know that if he saw Tecna in this dress, his heart would burst. She was already so unbelievably beautiful in his eyes, so he couldn't imagine it could get any better than this.
"Since I'm dedicating this dress to Tecna, I'm thinking mostly green with accents of pink. But not a bright pink, a more sophisticated pink." Stella added as Timmy gazed mesmerized at her work.
"Is there such a thing as a sophisticated pink?" Brandon chimed in as he watched his friend's reaction. If Timmy was this stunned just by looking at the design, imagine his face when he saw Tecna wearing the real thing. Brandon was dead certain that Timmy would be completely powerless to resist.
"Shmoopy, don't question my fashion expertise." Stella warned him, "I know what I'm talking about."
"I wouldn't dream of it, Sunshine." Brandon said as let out a nervous laugh. Stella was the princess of Solaria and the fairy of the sun and moon. He knew that you did not get on her bad side, especially when it came to fashion.
"Shmoopy, Sunshine? You guys are a thing?" Timmy had to break away from gazing at Stella's sketch to engage in this interesting discovery. Helia had told him when they met that he had fallen in love with his previous client, Flora. Now, Flora was back at Lynphea and they kept in touch, calling each other every night. But this was different, Stella was still Brandon's assigned fairy. Was this acceptable?
"Indeed we are." Stella admitted without holding back, "All of Solaria knows about it."
"Does Mrs. Faragonda know, is she okay with this?" Timmy continued to ask. Timmy had admitted to Mrs. Faragonda that had gotten too invested in Tecna's case, so maybe Stella and Brandon's relationship was also kept discreet.
"Well, I kind of let it slip when she was seeing us one day," Brandon confessed, "but she's cool with it as long as it doesn't interfere with my job. So far, so good. Stella is ready to take back her throne pretty soon."
"Damn right!" Stella shouted with burning fury in her eyes, causing the ginger-haired man to step away nervously. "That Cassandra and her daughter are going to wish they never messed with Princess Stella of Solaria!"
"Stella, remember your temper." Brandon told her calmly, "You're the one who taught me that stress causes wrinkles."
"Right, thanks Honey." She said after a pause, looking at Timmy's slightly frightened expression, "Now, let's focus. We have two weeks to teach Timmy how to dance." Suddenly reminded of the main reason he was visiting Stella, Timmy let out another nervous gulp as he imagined slow dancing with the Solarian princess. It wasn't like Brandon was going to do it for him.
Timmy was lucky, though, at least Tecna wasn't likely to pass by Stella's suite to see Timmy slow dancing with another woman and get the wrong idea. That was how these things usually turned out. He knew that Tecna spent all her time in her own suite due to her trust issues, and she would text him first if she did need anything. So, Timmy knew that for the next few weeks, he would be in the clear to practice slow dancing without misleading her.