I like the idea of Mekaneck being a surrogate big brother to Adam. So I wrote a story about it!
Five chapters. All in one day. On four hours of sleep.
My apologies for any mistakes that slipped through.

Bushes didn't cry.

So when Mekaneck heard sniffling from a nearby shrub, he knew something was up. He parted the branches to reveal a scruffy blond head. "Prince Adam?

Adam looked up sharply. He hastily swiped a hand across his face, but Mekaneck could still see the tears. "Hey, Mekaneck…"

"What's wrong, kiddo?" It wasn't like Adam to cry. For that matter, it wasn't like him to be away from Man-at-Arm's daughter. Despite their sibling-like squabbling, the children were almost always together. "Where's Teela?

Adam scowled and turned away. "I don't know and I don't care."

Ah. "You guys had a fight, huh?" Adam nodded. "…You wanna come out and talk about it? I can't fit back there."

Adam was silent for a moment before crawling out of the bush. Mekaneck seated himself next to the distraught child. "So what happened?"

"She thinks she's so much better than me!" Adam exploded. "She's bossy and she beats me every time we play soldiers, and she acts like she knows everything!"

"That is frustrating."

Adam glared at the dirt. "I don't ever want to see her again. I hate her."

Silence fell over the pair. The words were familiar to Mekaneck, though Adam had never spoken them before. The soldier rubbed the child's back gently. "I know exactly how you feel. I felt the same way about my brothers."

Adam stared in surprise. "You have brothers?"

"I had six of them." Mekaneck smirked at the prince's gaping expression. "And all of them were older than me. If I had a nickel for every noogie, wet willy, and cruel jibe I got as a kid, I'd be richer than King Randor."

"Wow."

"Yep." Mekaneck laughed softly. "To be honest, that's one of the reasons I joined the army. They all enlisted before I did and they were so stuck up about it. They rubbed it in my face that they were helping the nation and I wasn't. But I'd show them. I'd be the best soldier ever and prove that I could do anything as well as they could, or better.

"And now you're in the Royal Guard!" Adam declared. "And they're not. I bet they're jealous."

Mekaneck's smile faded. "They might be…if they'd survived the war."

Adam was stunned. Mekaneck went on, not meeting his gaze. "Their platoons were on the losing side of a skirmish in the Sands of Time. I didn't even find out until a week after. I hadn't seen any of them in over a year when they died.

Mekaneck sighed. "Looking back…all our squabbles seemed so petty. They might've been bossy and irritating, but they were still my family. They loved me. I loved them. I wish I could've said goodbye." The soldier finally turned to Adam. "If Teela left tomorrow and never came back, do you think you'd miss her?"

"…Yeah," the prince whispered.

"Do you really hate her?"

Adam's lip quivered. "No…" He burst into tears. Mekaneck wrapped an arm around him and he leaned into the embrace. He looked up the soldier with teary eyes. "D-do you think she'd miss me?"

"Of course she would. You're her best friend; she'd be devastated if she lost you." Mekaneck wiped the young prince's tears away and gave him a smile. "Why don't you go find her and make up?"

Adam nodded. He scrambled to his feet, pausing only briefly to give the solider a tight hug. "Thanks, Mekaneck."

"Anytime, kiddo." Mekaneck ruffled his hair before shooing him on his way. His smile turned melancholy as he watched Adam hurry away. In his mind's eye, he could see six other children scurrying around a farm, being loud and rambunctious and wonderfully full of life.

"Miss you guys…" he murmured.