The Sorceress had woken Adam up in the middle of the night, calling for He-Man to come to Grayskull. He had expected to find the forbidding castle under siege again when he arrived, but had found the place pleasantly peaceful.
It had turned out that She-Ra had needed to consult with him through the stone in her sword and hadn't realized how late it was on Eternia. They spoke at length, however, and hammered out a plan. He would head to Etheria to help with the final phase in three days time.
Now, however, it was just after dawn and He-Man was heading home to the palace to change back into Prince Adam and get some much-needed sleep. He could barely keep his eyes open as he rode Battle-Cat through the forest.
It was probably because he was so tired that he didn't hear the pounding footsteps until the runner was almost upon them. Whoever it was, it sounded like they were running fast.
"Stop, Cat," He-Man murmured softly as he watched for the runner to emerge from the trees. Battle-Cat obediently stopped in the center of the clearing.
He-Man started, instantly alarmed, when Teela came bursting out of the trees heading right towards him. His mind instantly switched into panic mode. What had frightened her? Who was she running from? Had Skeletor attacked while he was away? But then what he was seeing fully registered with his brain. She didn't look afraid. She looked thoughtful and content, the way she always looked when she simply went running. He was so tired that he'd miss-read a sight he'd seen a thousand times.
At least Teela didn't seem to have noticed him or Battle-Cat, he thought with a smile as she skidded to a stop barely inches from Battle-Cat's shoulder.
"Good morning, Teela," he greeted her, trying to reign in his pleasure and amusement at seeing her.
"Good morning," she replied with a wide smile.
It dawned on him that it was a good morning. Very good, indeed.