Adam paced restlessly. In the two weeks since Teela had left, he hadn't heard a peep from either her or the Sorceress. He had grown up with Teela, and her absence caused a hole in his life.
"Adam, you're going to wear the rug out," Duncan chided him as he entered the library. "You've been wound up for days. Why don't you go for a run?"
It was something Teela would say. Adam gave Duncan an unsteady smile. "I didn't expect it to be quite this hard, Duncan."
Man-at-Arms didn't pretend ignorance, nor did he offer any sympathy to his charge. "You're doing it to yourself, lad. If you want to see her, go see her." He grinned. "In fact, you can run there."
Adam pulled a face at him, but before he could comment, the Sorceress reached out to him.
Adam, He-Man is needed at Grayskull!
"Looks like I have an excuse after all," he commented grimly to Duncan, drawing his sword.
"What's going on?" Duncan asked after Adam completed his transformation.
"I don't know," He-Man replied. "The Sorceress just said I was needed."
"Want some company?" Duncan offered.
"I'd love some," He-Man responded with a grin.
Skeletor laughed as Teela attempted to focus her magic, not realizing she wasn't the Sorceress.
"What's the matter, bird woman, getting too old for this?" he taunted her.
"Ignore him, Teela," the Sorceress said from behind her. "Concentrate on maintaining the castle's forcefield until He-Man arrives."
"How do we know he will?" Teela asked, a trace of doubt in her voice. She had been a bit down that day, the Sorceress had noted. She seemed disappointed that two of the most important men in her life hadn't come around during the last two weeks.
"I've called for him," the Sorceress said calmly. "He will come. Now concentrate."
Skeletor and Evil-Lyn joined hands and focused their magic into one concentrated beam, aiming to burn through the forcefield and hit the Sorceress.
"You'll never stand against us!" Skeletor cried. "Give up while you still can, old woman!"
"That's sort of the pot calling the kettle black, isn't it?" a deep voice asked from behind him.
Skeletor whirled around. "He-Man!"
"After all, Skeletor, you're what, twice my age?" the hero continued, tossing his sword from hand to hand. "I would think you'd have gotten tired of this after fifteen years of losing."
"You muscle-bound moron, I'll show you," Skeletor muttered. He raised his hands and fired at He-Man, who blocked the rays easily.
"You'll have to do better than that," he grinned.
"How's this?" Skeletor snapped, and directed rays at Man-at-Arms.
He-Man shoved his mentor out of the way and blocked the shots simultaneously, forcing Skeletor to jump back. Evil-Lyn began muttering a spell, and He-Man quickly ran at her.
"I'll take that," he said, grabbing her crystal wand. He heaved it in the direction of Snake Mountain. Duncan opened fire on Skeletor, and the Sorceress took advantage of everyone's distraction to transport Skeletor and Evil-Lyn back to Snake Mountain. He-Man grinned and waved his thanks.
Teela misses you. Come inside, the Sorceress told him.
He-Man's grin faded as the jawbridge lowered. He had a feeling Teela still didn't know the truth. That feeling was confirmed by her greeting. She gave her father a hug first, seeming awkward in the unfamiliar outfit of the Sorceress, then turned to him.
"Hello, He-Man," she said, her voice friendly but somewhat reserved. Her eyes seemed to bore into his. He-Man guarded his thoughts carefully, not sure how much she had learned during the last two weeks.
"Hello, Teela," he answered, outwardly seeming at ease. "How are you liking your new post?"
Teela smiled bravely, but he could see the lingering sadness in her eyes. "Well, it's a challenge, and you know I love a challenge," she said. She bit her lip.
"Yes, you do," he agreed. "And I'm sure you're doing well at it. You managed to hold off Skeletor until I got here."
"The Sorceress helped," she admitted honestly. She hesitated, then asked, "Did you know I was to be the next Sorceress?"
He-Man nodded, his eyes drinking in the sight of her. He had missed her even more than he had realized. "Yes, I did."
"Oh." Teela felt uncomfortable around him for some reason she couldn't name. She'd always harbored secret feelings for him, but she had chalked it up to a sort of hero-worship. She had never been able to picture He-Man with a woman. His duty to protect Grayskull and all of Eternia came first, and in spite of their warm feelings for each other, she had known better than to take it seriously. But now, it felt as if she were closer to him than ever, yet…she felt as if she were missing something important. She cleared her throat. "I was surprised that I haven't seen you in the last two weeks. The Sorceress said you usually come by a lot."
"Skeletor's been focusing on the palace," He-Man answered, shifting his weight uncomfortably. It was the truth, but he still felt guilty now for staying away. Teela probably could have used his friendship during this transition. "It's kept me a little busy."
"Is everyone all right?" Teela asked immediately, her eyes flashing with the frustration of not being able to be there. A knot formed in her chest. She knew that protecting Grayskull was important, but it was hard not to be around her father and the royal family when trouble hit.
"Everyone's fine," He-Man hastened to assure her. He noted dryly that the Sorceress and Duncan had retreated to the far side of the room and were holding their own conversation, with glances occasionally thrown in his or Teela's direction.
"I suppose those attacks kept Adam away, too," Teela said, her voice betraying a mix of sarcasm and anger. "After all, he's such a big help when trouble-" She stopped short. It wasn't anything she hadn't said before, to Adam, her father, or even He-Man. Yet for some reason, it suddenly felt wrong to be criticizing Adam.
"Actually, Adam was on his way here to see you when Skeletor attacked," He-Man said, tensing slightly. I hope this is the right time to tell her. Had he been looking at the Sorceress, he would have seen her nodding her approval.
Teela's face brightened for a few seconds, then she scowled. "I guess he took off when he saw there was danger."
He-Man hesitated and looked towards the Sorceress and Duncan, who were now staring in his direction expectantly. He took a deep breath to steady himself. "No, Teela, I didn't."
Confused by his word choice, Teela stared at him. "Not you. Adam." She scrunched her brow as he shook his head and raised his sword in the air. What's he doing? she wondered.
"Let the power return," he called out. There was a small flash of light as Grayskull's power left him, and Adam stood before her.
Teela's jaw dropped open, then closed, then opened again. "Adam?" she squeaked. "You're He-Man?"
Adam swallowed nervously as he nodded. He had managed to keep this a secret from everyone for fifteen years. Only Duncan, Orko, the Sorceress, and a few individuals on Etheria knew the secret. Even his own parents didn't know—although he sometimes suspected his mother had some sort of idea. But he had never actually revealed the truth before, and in spite of the fact that this was Teela, his lifelong friend and the next Sorceress, he suddenly felt incredibly exposed and vulnerable.
"That's not possible," Teela said in disbelief. "You always run when there's trouble."
"To become He-Man," Adam explained, holding her gaze.
"You hated your combat lessons. You could never master anything I tried to teach you," Teela argued again. It didn't matter that she'd just seen him transform. She still couldn't believe it.
Adam looked away for a few seconds, feeling guilty at deceiving her. "I couldn't let anyone know that I could fight," he said, meeting her eyes again. "I had to be as different from He-Man as I could."
"But why?" Teela demanded. Her face started to turn red as hurt and anger flooded her.
The Sorceress intervened. "Teela, remember the exercise we did last week?" Adam tossed her a grateful look.
Unhappy with the interruption, Teela reluctantly turned to her mother. "Which one?"
"Focusing on an event and foreseeing possible outcomes."
"Ye-es," Teela said, drawing the word out.
"Close your eyes. I want you to concentrate on the idea that all of Eternia knows that Adam is He-Man," the Sorceress urged.
Teela sighed impatiently, but did as she was told.
"Let go of your anger, Teela," the Sorceress said calmly. "It will cloud your vision."
Teela focused on putting her anger and confusion outside of her for a moment. She then turned her attention on Adam being He-Man, and imagined that all of Eternia had learned the truth. At first all she saw was the joy and pride on the faces of the king and queen, and the celebration of the people as they found their hero and prince were one and the same. Then she saw Skeletor and his evil warriors storm the palace and reach Adam's parents before he could transform. Skeletor killed them, and Adam, distraught with grief and overwhelmed by the added responsibilities of the crown, surrendered his sword back to Grayskull. Skeletor approached the castle, and no one but the Sorceress was there to defend it. Teela's eyes snapped open.
"Oh," she said softly. She met Adam's eyes. "Here I thought you had a cushy life, fishing and napping all those times I couldn't find you. And you were actually out fighting Skeletor." She shook her head, thinking of how exhausted she had been after such battles, and how tiring it had been trying to learn to master Grayskull's magic the last few weeks. Her face flushed again, but from embarrassment this time. "I guess I owe you an apology."
Adam shrugged carelessly, but he was visibly relieved. "Only if you'll accept my apology for misleading you all these years." He raised his eyebrows questioningly.
Teela smiled uncertainly. "Of course."
Adam cleared his throat. "Father's expecting me soon. I'd better get back." He inclined his head to the Sorceress, then to Teela. "Good-bye, ladies."
Teela watched him go, hating the distance that was suddenly between them. Once the jawbridge had pulled back up, she wandered into a room to sit down, trying to come to grips with what she had just learned. She wanted to cry out against it and demand to know why she hadn't been told, but she already knew the reason. Her temper had always gotten the better of her. She wouldn't have been able to keep his secret.
"Are you all right, Teela?" her mother asked softly.
"How could I not see it?" Teela asked her miserably. "I grew up with him. I knew that something had changed with him. How did could I have been so blind?"
"Simply put, Grayskull's magic protects him from being discovered," the Sorceress explained. "The similarities, the coincidences…all are forgotten because of Grayskull's power."
A few tears rolled down Teela's face. "I was awful to him," she confessed.
"He understood, Teela," the Sorceress comforted her, giving her a hug. "He always understood."
Of course he did, Teela thought. He's Adam.