Adam visited a few days later. Teela gave him an enthusiastic hug, determined to start fresh with him and get past the distance she had sensed between them. "I'm so glad you came to visit!" she exclaimed.

Adam returned the hug. "I have to admit, Teela, the palace isn't the same without you," he said warmly.

"What's the matter, no one to order you to get training?" she teased with a grin.

Adam grimaced. "I wish. My father named Saul Captain of the Guard."

Teela felt a twinge at being replaced, but she pushed it aside. She wasn't going to go back anyway. She tilted her head, focusing on Adam's tone. "That's a good choice. He's a loyal soldier, with a good head on his shoulders. So what's the matter?"

Adam quirked an eyebrow at her. "You trained him too well, Teela. I didn't think it was possible, but he's on my case even more than you were." He blew out a breath, missing the chagrin on her face. "I'm thirty-one years old, for crying out loud, and I still have people treating me like I'm sixteen."

Teela had been training with the Sorceress on her empathetic abilities, and she was surprised that in spite of his words, she couldn't sense how Adam was feeling. She could see it and hear it, but not sense it. She shook her head slightly, figuring she must need more practice.

"Is that the only problem?" she asked, concerned for him. Strictly because she grew up with him and because the welfare of Grayskull's champion was supposed to her concern, of course.

Adam shook his head with a small smile. "No. I have my own bodyguard, too. Jason. Apparently Father decided that it would take two people to do what you did." His smile widened, but it didn't quite reach his eyes.

"You're having trouble escaping to change into He-Man, aren't you?" Teela asked intuitively.

The grimace sneaked across Adam's face again. "He's ten years younger than I am, Teela, and a trained runner. I can't always get away from him," he admitted, disgust with himself evident in his tone.

"That could present a serious problem," the Sorceress chimed in as she entered the room.

Adam sighed. "I know. But short of telling my father why I keep disappearing at crucial times, I don't really have any options here."

Teela's brow furrowed as she tried to think of a solution. Telling Randor wasn't a choice, she knew. A few years ago Skeletor had decided that the king probably knew all about He-Man, including his weaknesses. The villain had kidnapped the king and used his magic to get Randor to talk. Fortunately, the king hadn't had anything to tell him, and He-Man had rescued him before anything else could happen to him. Teela knew without asking that because of that, Adam would never tell his father the truth about his identity.

"So how did you get here without him?" she asked suddenly.

Adam flushed slightly. "I didn't. He's outside. I told him I had personal business to attend to, and that I was quite sure the Sorceress and He-Man would make sure nothing happened to me inside Grayskull." A touch of sarcasm laced his words.

Teela stretched out with her developing powers and sensed an annoyed young man outside. "Ah, yes, I can sense a familiar frustration with a certain prince." Opening her eyes, she grinned at Adam, and he returned the smile. For a second, everything was normal between them, and she felt a brief connection, but then it disappeared, as if someone had shut the door on it.

Teela cleared her throat. "Look, Adam…I really am sorry for all the things I said about you not taking responsibility, and being lazy…" her voice trailed off. Her mouth was turned down at the corners, her face reflecting the depth of her sorrow.

"It's okay, Teela," he assured her, reaching out to ruffle her hair as he had when they were kids. She ducked and looked into his blue eyes. There was only friendliness and forgiveness reflected there, but something still seemed off to her. She couldn't place it.

Adam bid the two of them good-bye, knowing he had to get back to the palace. Teela watched him go with a saddened heart, then turned to her mother.

"I can't sense his feelings like I can others," she said, confused. "Why?"

The Sorceress' eyes widened. "I don't know, Teela." Unless…she frowned as the only possible answer occurred to her, but said nothing more to Teela.

"How do you do this?" Teela demanded of the Sorceress. "How do you sit in here and just…watch, when people are in danger?"

"I do all I can with the limitations placed on me," the Sorceress replied calmly. "Being Grayskull's guardian comes at a price. I have very little power outside the castle."

Teela's fists clenched as she watched the view screen. Skeletor had attacked the Widgets in another attempt to gain their coridite for himself. He-Man and Battle Cat had gone to their aid, but they were really outnumbered this time. Skeletor seemed to have called in all the recruits for this one: Whiplash, Kobra Khan, Beast Man, Trap Jaw, Evil-Lyn, Clawful, Merman, and Spikor were all there.

"No!" Teela cried out as Whiplash caught He-Man in the back, knocking him to the ground. The Sorceress' eyes narrowed thoughtfully as she observed Teela. She had known her daughter's feelings for Adam were strong, but she had thought they were those of a sister for a brother. Perhaps she had been wrong.

Teela breathed a sigh of relief as Battle Cat jumped into the fray, giving He-Man enough time to get back on his feet. Just as quickly, though, she gasped in dismay. Kobra Khan was using his sleep gas from behind He-Man. The hero didn't realize he was breathing it in until it was too late. He and Battle Cat collapsed before their eyes.

"Now what do we do?" Teela snapped at her mother. Every part of her being was screaming to go to He-Man's side. She trembled with the effort of staying in the castle where her new duties lay, and her eyes didn't leave the view screen, which showed He-Man and Battle Cat lying motionless and Skeletor laughing with glee.

"Your father is already on his way there with Fisto, Ram-Man, and several of the guards," the Sorceress pointed out.

"I should be there," Teela hissed.

"No, you should be here," the Sorceress replied. "You cannot allow your personal feelings to get in the way of your duty, Teela."

Teela bit her lip. She knew that. "But for the last fifteen years, my duty has been to protect Adam and his parents," she explained softly, still watching the screen. Duncan and the others arrived and forced their way to He-Man's side. Skeletor laughed again and disappeared, taking his allies with him.

"Where did they go?" Teela asked, frustrated and relieved at the same time. At least He-Man was safe.

"Where did they go?" the Sorceress challenged back. Teela sighed in annoyance and refocused her attention on the view screen, making it locate Skeletor. Her eyes widened.

"Oh no! He's outside of Grayskull!"

"And now you understand," the Sorceress said, unruffled.

"What do we do?" Teela asked frantically. He-Man wouldn't be able to save them this time.

"Stand firm, and call for help."

Duncan and the others were loading He-Man and Battle Cat onto a wind raider as the Sorceress reached out.

I hear you, Duncan replied back to her. We're on our way. He glanced at He-Man. They were an hour from Grayskull. Hopefully the hero would wake up by the time they got there.

Teela watched worriedly as the Sorceress concentrated her powers on maintaining the castle's defenses. Skeletor had put the coridite in some sort of machine that was draining the Sorceress's strength. After nearly an hour of battling it, the older woman was just about done in.

"Teela," she gasped. "You must use Grayskull's powers to wake up He-Man when they arrive. We cannot defeat Skeletor without him." With that, she sank to the ground.

"Mother!" Teela cried out. She glanced out the window and saw Skeletor's minions using a grappling hook to lower the jawbridge. She quickly hefted the Sorceress over her shoulders and carried her into a nearby room that was hidden from sight. At least she would be safe.

The whine of the wind raider's engine reached Teela's ears just before the jawbridge lowered with a crash.

"At last!" Skeletor cried. He turned to his followers. "Keep those do-gooders busy while I claim Grayskull's power! Evil-Lyn, come with me!"

Teela was torn between heading down to confront them and waking He-Man as her mother had told her to do. She wasn't sure she had enough control to do it. Her battle skills might be of more use. Teela took a few hesitant steps towards the staircase, then stopped. This was wrong. She had to wake him. She knew it with absolute certainty.

Closing her eyes, Teela was able to see outside the castle walls. She closed herself off from the fighting that was already in full swing, and focused on He-Man and Battle Cat. She forced the castle's magic into them physically to reduce Kobra Khan's sleep effects, and at the same time touched He-Man's mind gently. Wake up! He-Man, Grayskull is in danger! You must wake up!

Something was wrong. He-Man could feel it. He wasn't supposed to be sleeping. He was supposed to be protecting something, someone. His body began to lose the weighted feeling of sleep; his muscles began twitching in urgency. Suddenly he heard Teela's voice in his mind, and his eyes snapped open.

Inside Grayskull, Evil-Lyn paused. "Skeletor, someone inside the castle is using magic."

"I thought that woman was defeated!" he snarled.

"Maybe you didn't count on me," Teela called from the bottom of the stairwell. She had shed the Sorceress' garb and was back in her normal armor.

"Teela! What are you doing here?" Evil-Lyn snapped.

"Just picking up a few new tricks," the redhead replied with a smirk. She raised her hands and tried to stun the two of them with the little magic she knew. They leaped out of the way just in time. Evil-Lyn retaliated with magical bonds that fastened Teela's arms to her side.

"So, the woman has some latent abilities," Skeletor mused. "We could use her powers to supplement our own, Evil-Lyn."

The witch's smile grew nasty as they advanced on Teela, who swallowed hard. "With the right spell, we could," she agreed.

"Stop right there, you two," commanded He-Man's voice from behind them. The two villains whirled around. He-Man promised Teela with his eyes that he'd have her free in a minute as he stepped forward, sword drawn.

"Blast it, how did you wake up so soon?" Skeletor cried out.

He-Man grinned. "Well, bonehead, I'm a lot younger than you. I don't need much sleep."

"Don't move, He-Man, or I'll make Teela my personal slave for all eternity!" Evil-Lyn ordered.

He-Man's grin grew. "Evil-Lyn, I'd love to see you try." Teela's mouth dropped open, and he winked at her. Her heart lifted of its own accord.

"With pleasure," the witch growled. She turned back to Teela, and He-Man took advantage of her distraction to throw his sword just right. The flat of the blade hit Teela's bonds, freeing her.

"Foolish move, He-Man," Skeletor muttered, raising his hands. He lowered them as Duncan appeared beside He-Man, followed by Ram-Man.

"Blast it," he muttered. "Those idiots couldn't even keep the others busy!" He glanced at Evil-Lyn, who was sneering at Teela. "I think we've worn out our welcome."

"Only as soon as you arrived," Teela retorted. Skeletor raised his hands and was gone, taking his minions with him.

"Are you all right?" He-Man asked Teela. She searched his face with her calm green eyes, trying to ascertain the reason she could sense no feeling from him. Duncan was relieved, and she could feel his love. Ram-Man was glad to see her. But from He-Man, there was nothing. Yet his face, his voice, his eyes…they were the same they always had been, friendly and concerned.

What was going on?

"You seem troubled, Teela," the Sorceress said later that day. "Did the battle today upset you?" Her green eyes assessed her daughter's tension.

Teela felt a rush of warmth. The best part of this entire mess had been getting to know her mother, and feeling her mother's love on a regular basis.

"No, Adam did," she admitted. The Sorceress raised a questioning eyebrow. "Mother, after it was over, I could sense everyone's feelings but his. I could tell Father was relieved, Ram-Man was glad it was over and I was safe, Fisto was frustrated that they escaped again…but even though He-Man sounded and looked like himself, I couldn't get a sense of what he was feeling." Teela bit her lip, then continued. "I grew up with him. We've both been given an incredible responsibility. We should be closer now than ever, but in spite of the fact that he came to visit, and everything seemed normal…" Teela's eyes filled with tears. "I don't think he cares for me at all anymore, Mother. I feel like I've lost something precious."

The Sorceress laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Teela, I need you to try something for me…"

Adam walked down the hall, Jason's footsteps echoing his. His frustration mounted at the guard's persistence.

Adam?

Sorceress? Is everything all right?

Perhaps. Go to Duncan's lab, please. Alone.

Adam whirled around to face the soldier.

"Look, Jason, I appreciate your diligence, but I don't think you need to follow me around inside the palace," Adam said, trying to sound friendly when he really felt like yelling.

"I'm sorry, Prince Adam, but King Randor ordered me to be with you at all times," the young guard replied with a mixture of nervousness and agitation. His brown eyes darted around constantly, as if he expected Skeletor himself to leap out and attack.

Adam sighed. "Well, I need to talk with Man-at-Arms. Privately. So we're going to have to figure out something that will give me a little room without getting you in trouble." He bit back a grin. "How about I hit you and you pretend it knocked you out?"

"What?" The slimmer man took a step back, alarm filling his face.

Adam chuckled, knowing Jason wouldn't want to be known as the soldier the "cowardly prince" had taken down. "Just kidding. Look, give me an hour to meet you back here. If I'm not back, you can come drag me out of Duncan's workshop yourself. Okay?"

Jason nodded reluctantly. Adam frowned as he continued down the hall. He was going to have to do something about his father's order.

"What's up, Duncan?" Adam asked as he entered the workshop.

"It seems I should be asking you that," Duncan answered soberly. "Have a seat, lad." Zoar perched on a pipe above them, silently observing without revealing her presence to the prince.

Adam did so, his brow furrowed. "I don't understand. What's the matter?"

"You know that with Teela's training, she has learned to sense the feelings of other people," Duncan said, watching the younger man carefully. Adam stiffened ever so slightly; Duncan was probably the only person who would have caught it.

"Yes," Adam responded casually, his brow still furrowed. Duncan decided not to beat around the bush.

"She hasn't been able to sense anything from you, either as Adam or He-Man," Duncan said. His own brow was creased as he studied Adam. "She can't even contact you through telepathy, because you've closed yourself off from her so completely. Teela thinks you don't care about her at all, that maybe you're mad at her or even dislike her, and hiding it."

The two men stared at each other for several minutes. Zoar could sense great turmoil within Adam as he wrestled with whether to tell the truth. Adam finally looked away, pressing his lips together for a few seconds. "I do care, Duncan," he finally confessed, his voice hoarse with emotion. "I care too much."

Duncan shook his head. "Adam, that doesn't mean you can't work with her, and let her in enough to at least communicate with you. The Sorceress has to be able to contact He-Man when he's needed."

Adam blew out a breath. "I know. But I need some more time to get my feelings under control."

Zoar, in tune with Adam at the moment, understood immediately. Oh, no, she thought in dismay. Man-at-Arms' face reflected his confusion. "Adam, how is this any different than communicating with Adora?"

There was another short silence as Adam swallowed hard, then slowly met his mentor's perplexed gaze. "What I feel for Teela is way beyond a brother-sister relationship, Duncan. It has been for years now."

Duncan's jaw dropped. "You mean-"

Adam nodded, only his eyes reflecting his sorrow. "I love her, and if I weren't destined to become king, and she to be the Sorceress, I would have told her five years ago when I realized how important she'd become to me." He took a deep breath and got himself under control. "That's why I've closed her out, Duncan. If she could sense what I'm feeling…" He ran a hand through his hair. "It would only cause us both pain, and ruin the friendship we've had all these years. I just can't do it."

Duncan regarded him sympathetically. "But Adam, you're risking that friendship by shutting her out."

Adam shrugged helplessly. "I don't know what else to do."