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Noticing Adam: The Uprising Chapter 13
Randor watched Adam continuously as they walked to camp. It was obvious his son still didn't trust them completely. He stayed several feet away from everyone, including She-Ra, and when anyone got even an inch closer to him, he moved in the opposite direction away from the person to keep his distance. The king narrowed his eyes angrily but tried to keep his emotions in check. He didn't want to show the murderous rage he was feeling right now, because he was afraid Adam might think it was directed towards him.
It was really meant for Hordak. He wanted the pleasure of strangling the monster at that very moment for putting his son through all of this! Even though he knew Adam was ready to fight at any given moment and could probably win instantly against any of them, he also knew his son was nervous and perhaps a bit intimidated by everything going on around him: first, his supposed adopted father and benefactor abandoned him and left him with the supposed enemy and now, he was going to his enemy's camp. He probably thought he was going to be kept prisoner…and perhaps he needed to be to a certain extent.
He looked over at She-Ra, who also watched Adam constantly as they walked, and whispered, "Adora, come here."
She looked in his direction and moved closely to his side. They both noticed that Adam was aware of their actions, because he turned his head to blatantly stare at them for a few seconds before he turned away again. "Don't call me that in this form, King Randor," she whispered. "Someone might hear you."
He nodded and didn't get upset at her words—he knew he shouldn't have called her that as soon as he had said it. "I'm sorry," he replied softly. "It's just that when I see you, I see her, if you know what I mean. It's hard, but I'll adjust."
She grinned slightly and nodded before asking, "So, why did you call me over?"
He gestured his head towards Adam. "We haven't discussed what we're going to do about him."
She raised an eyebrow inquisitively. "What do you mean? We're going to help him regain his memory, so everything will go back to normal."
"Yes, but how long will that take? And, where are you going to keep him? Something tells me that camp is not the ideal location. He could easily slip away and go back to the Fright Zone."
She turned to look at Adam and questioned, "Do you really think he would go back there after they left him?"
He shook his head. "I don't know, but it is possible. Is there some place where we can go that has actual rooms? I'm not saying we should lock him up, but I think we need to make his possible escape a little harder than simply lifting the edge of a tent up and making a run for it."
She-Ra seemed to think for a moment and then suggested, "We could always take him to Bright Moon. I'm sure Queen Angella wouldn't mind our staying there until Adam regained his memory. We could even take him to Mystacore. Queen Castaspella has a huge crush on Adam, so I'm sure she would be willing to let him stay for a while." She paused as she glanced over at Teela, who was on the other side of Adam at a distance and watching him intently. "But maybe that's not a good idea. I have a feeling Teela is going to be more protective and territorial than normal."
"Like the rest of us, I bet," Randor agreed. He then groaned as he looked back at Adam. "I hate this! I hope he regains his memory soon, because I can't stand worrying him like this! I also can't stand that he thinks of us as the enemy and that Hordak is his father!"
She-Ra patted his arm sympathetically. "We'll convince him of the truth faster than you think," she said with a wink and then turned to look at her brother hopefully.
=)=)=)
Adam walked with the Rebels cautiously and kept all of them in his sights, especially the ones who claimed to be close to him. He didn't know what to think of the red-head Teela. Everyone claimed that she was his girlfriend. He looked towards her out of his peripheral vision and admired her form. He couldn't deny that she was a beautiful woman and he was definitely attracted to her, but that didn't mean she or the others were telling the truth.
The person who made him wonder and question everything the most was She-Ra. The woman looked like his sister and he felt connected to her, even now, like he usually felt with Adora. "And, of course, that voice told me She-Ra was Adora," he thought to himself. The feelings he was getting and his own eyesight, which he knew where not playing tricks on him, told him that something was definitely going on that he was unaware of. He just hadn't figured out what it was for sure, so he had willingly gone with the Rebels. He was willing to believe that She-Ra and Adora were the same person. He had always trusted his instincts when it came to his sister, but he wondered if this new persona was a result of some kind of magical influence the Rebels had conjured up somehow…or maybe they were telling the truth!
He didn't know.
Then, his thoughts turned to the man beside her. "Who did She-Ra call him again?" he asked himself. "Oh, yeah. King Randor." The man had tried almost desperately to convince him that he was his father. As much as Adam had wanted to deny the king's claims outright, he hadn't been able to do it and he still couldn't. It was possible this man was his father; in fact, looking at him, he found that it was probable. He moved a hand to his face and traced his cheekbones and his chin and then stared at Randor. They definitely had similar features.
It was at that moment that he noticed both She-Ra and Randor were staring right at him and grinning. He knew they were aware of what he was doing. He dropped his hand to his side quickly and faced forward again. He noticed with a quick glance to the side that they were making their way towards him. He stepped away but stopped when he realized it was only bringing him closer to Teela.
He sighed as She-Ra walked around him to the other side as Randor reach him.
"Are you here to tie me up now?" he asked, almost resentfully. Ahead, he could see tents and people in the distance. He figured they would want to protect everyone from the "Horde intruder."
"What?" Randor gasped. "No, son, we're not going to tie you up. What gave you that idea?"
He shrugged and didn't answer. He sped up a little to get ahead of them, but they quickly matched his speed. He sighed and then stopped abruptly. They did, as well. He studied each of them quickly and then Teela, who also walked up.
"What's going on?" she asked, but he ignored her question.
Instead, he said, "Let's just get everything out in the open! Why am I here? Why do you want me so badly?" He then looked at She-Ra intently and asked, "And, are you my sister?"
He watched as the three Rebels looked at each other worriedly. She-Ra stepped forward, touched his arm lightly, and whispered, "Yes, I'm your sister and I hope you keep that knowledge to yourself and not say it so loudly next time. It's a secret and only a few people know…you're one of them."
Then, Randor responded, "And, as for why you're here and why we want you, you're my son. I couldn't allow Hordak to brainwash you and make you think that I had abandoned you when you were a toddler. I raised you. You've lived with me your entire life. I love you and I had to get you back. It's as simple as that. If you remembered everything that we have been through recently, you wouldn't question our actions at all."
Adam couldn't deny that there were true emotions behind the king's words. He heard it in his voice and saw it in his eyes, which glistened with unshed tears.
"If you are telling the truth, I wish I could remember," he mumbled softly. And, he honestly meant that. Part of him did feel like he knew these people. He simply couldn't bring forth any proof in his memory and that was what kept him so hesitant.
"ADAM!" a voice interrupted his thoughts. He looked around and saw in the not-so-far distance a green and yellow tiger running towards him. He gasped and backed up abruptly. He tried to turn to run, but he wasn't quick enough. The tiger pounced on him as Adam cried out in terror and fell to the ground.
"Cringer!" he heard everyone yell as he covered his face with his arms. That's when he felt his hands being licked by a rough tongue. The animal wasn't trying to hurt him. Then, he realized that the tiger was talking to him. "Adam, are you all right? I was so worried."
"Cringer," he heard She-Ra say sharply, "get off of him! He doesn't remember you!"
But before the tiger complied, Adam brought his hands down a little and peeked over his fingertips. When he saw the tiger look at him with a worried expression, he dropped his hands completely and swallowed the hard knot in his throat. He then reached out hesitantly and scratched the side of the tiger's face.
When he felt the tiger purr and lean into his hand affectionately, he breathed a sigh of relief and sat up a little. The tiger then settled itself firmly on his legs and then stretched his neck up to kick Adam's chin.
Adam laughed and asked calmly, "And, who are you?"
The tiger looked at the others before looking back at him with a sad expression. "I'm your b-b-best friend. You named me: I'm Cringer."
Adam smiled and reached his hand out to stroke the animal down his back. The action felt familiar to him, especially when he stroked back up his back and scratched the tiger behind his left ear. He then looked up at the others and saw their smiles and what might be tears of joy.
She-Ra knelt beside him and said, "You always scratch Cringer behind his ears like that." She laughed as Cringer leaned his head into Adam's palm to increase the contact. She looked back at Adam and questioned, "You remember him, don't you?"
He looked back at the tiger and admitted, "I have a…feeling. I don't know. It's vague, but it feels like I've done this before, like you said. The animal clearly knows me somehow."
The tiger stared at him intently and questioned sadly, "You really have forgotten me, Adam?"
Adam felt tears rush to his eyes suddenly. He didn't know why, but he felt so horrible for upsetting this animal. He brushed at a tear that slipped down his cheek and whispered, "I'm sorry, Cringer." He scooted out from underneath the feline and got to his feet quickly.
He looked at the others and said, "I'm tired. Is that camp in the distance? Maybe I could lie down for a while."
She-Ra smiled at him and said, "Actually, we've decided we're going to take you to Bright Moon, but…" She noticed that other Rebels were walking by and rushing to camp. When she was sure no one was around besides those in the know, she leaned closely to him and whispered, "I want to try something first, something that just might give you your memory back."
Adam watched as She-Ra walked towards several large bushes and hid behind them. A few seconds later, Adora appeared and headed towards him, carrying a sword.
He gasped. "Adora?" he questioned, clearly startled.
She grinned and stood in front of him. "Yes, it's me, brother. I'm glad you, at least, remember me."
He stared at her and then looked down at the sword she carried. She grinned and held it up for him to get a closer look at it. It was a beautiful sword with a large gem in the middle of it.
"It's the Sword of Protection," she whispered. "You're the one who gave it to me."
He frowned. He didn't remember giving her anything of the kind. He watched as his sister reached behind her. He didn't know what she was doing until he saw another sword appear out of thin air. His mouth dropped open as he moved to the side, so he could see if Adora had a scabbard anywhere on her back. When he realized she didn't, he looked at her face intently and asked, "How…how did you do that?"
She grinned and answered simply, "It's one of the secrets of Castle Grayskull, a place you have sworn to protect, a place that has given us a lot of powers."
He stared at her as she slipped her sword behind her and it disappeared. She then held up the other that she had pulled from her back a moment before. This sword looked just like hers except it didn't have a stone in the middle of it. She held it out with both of her hands and said, "This is the Sword of Power. It's yours. Take it."
Adam examined the sword carefully in her hands and actually felt a strange pull exuding from it. It was almost like the weapon was calling to him. He then turned to look at the others and observed them. Teela, King Randor, and Cringer looked very hopeful…a little too hopeful.
He backed up and shook his head slowly. "I'd rather not," he replied softly.
Adora's mouth dropped open. "But, Adam, you must!" she exclaimed. "You have to take it! It's yours!"
Despite the fact that he felt drawn to the sword, he decided that he couldn't take it. He felt nervous, it was like he knew for certain that the thing would become a part of him and takeover his very mind if he held it in his hands. He felt that knowledge intensely and he didn't doubt it for a second. If Hordak was right and these people were really the enemy, he knew the sword was the instrument of how they would brainwash him, and if Hordak was lying, well, he would have to discover that another way. For right now, he couldn't take the risk…