Adam tore his lips from Teela, looked up to see who had walked in, and quickly gasped. Of all the people in his room, why did it have to be…him?

King Randor stood there completely immobilized for a moment. It was as if his brain were having trouble comprehending what he was seeing. After several passing seconds, the king finally shook himself and narrowed his eyes.

Teela, having seen Adam's look of dismay, turned around and blushed from her head to her toes as her eyes met the king's. She immediately stood and said frantically, "Forgive me, Your Majesty. I—I came to check on Adam and..." She trailed off. What excuse could she give for what he walked in on besides what it really was?

Randor stared at Teela and asked sarcastically, "Is that what you call checking on my son?"

Teela remained quiet and started rubbing her hands together in front of her nervously. There was no way she could answer that question, so she started bouncing from one foot to the other, waiting for the inevitable reprimand.

It didn't come. Instead Randor pursed his lips and said, "I think you should return to your room, Captain. You and I will address this in the morning after breakfast. As for you, Adam, the nurse is here to check your vitals."

Teela glanced back at Adam apologetically and quickly ran from the room. She felt completely mortified and knew she wasn't going to like her morning meeting with the king. The look he had given her—one of distaste and unfriendliness—had told her as much. Tears filled her eyes as she thought about what was to possibly come: demotion, unemployment, banishment. All were possible. Any would keep her from Adam and destroy her reputation.

As Teela fled the room, Adam got to his feet, feeling more than a little awkward at having been discovered kissing the Captain of the Guard, and walked to the king. "Father…"

Randor turned back to his son after watching Teela leave and asked in a deceptively calm manner, "How many secrets have you kept from me, Adam? I know and accept that you have some secrets you can't tell me, thanks to the Sorceress…but this? How long? How long have you and the Captain been cavorting behind my back?"

Adam winced at his father's tone and the fact that he had reduced Teela to her rank. He wasn't calling her by name. He knew why the king was doing it: doing so, reduced the situation to pure disobedience in protocol. A prince shouldn't be kissing a member of his guard, especially the captain and his bodyguard. Never mind that this was Teela, she was his best friend, and he had grown up with her. Adam knew he had to fix this quickly before the king saw Teela again, so he answered desperately, "We haven't been."

Randor scowled and shook his head slowly. "Adam," whispered Randor. He squeezed his eyes shut, continuing to shake his head. When he looked at his son again, he looked infinitely melancholic. "I know better than anyone that you and I have had a lot of misunderstandings recently, and the Ancients know I don't want us to start fighting again, but…surely you can't expect me to believe you. It's obvious Teela snuck in to see you and you came to the lavatory to be alone with her. You cannot deny that."

"I don't," agreed Adam. "But we didn't plan it. It just happened."

"It just happened," repeated Randor, cynically. "Do you know how cliché that phrase is when it comes to dealings between a man and a woman?"

Adam widened his eyes. "Teela and I are not in a relationship."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better about this?" snapped the king, raising his voice. "That makes it horribly worse!"

Adam shook his head and hands in frustration. "What I mean is that we haven't done anything! This…this…this was the first time we've ever kissed. It really did just happen. She was here to discuss…" He stopped when he realized he was about to go into a topic that he couldn't share with his father.

The king waited. Finally, he sighed and asked, "She was here to discuss what, Adam?"

As Adam was about to respond, the door opened again and Marlena walked inside hurriedly. "What's going on in here?" she asked. "I heard you yelling, Randor. You promised me and the doctor you would remain calm. And, was that Teela who ran from the room? She looked upset."

Randor breathed in deeply and replied composedly, "I'm not yelling."

At Marlena's look of disbelief, he turned back to Adam and said, "Go in there. The nurse wants to check you out. You and I will discuss this later."

Adam stood there for a second in defiance, but when his mother motioned with her head silently for him to go, he sighed and left the room.

As soon as they were alone, Marlena closed the door and asked worriedly, "What's wrong, Randor? What happened?"

=)=)=)

Teela ran through the halls with tears pouring from her eyes. Instead of going to her bedchambers, she could think of only one place to go. She threw the door to her father's bedroom open and watched as he sat up quickly.

When Duncan got a good look at who interrupted his sleep, he sprung from the bed and ran to her. "Teela?" he questioned. "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

Teela merely shook her head and buried her face into her father's chest. Man-at-Arms wrapped his arms around his daughter and held her tightly. He allowed her time to cry through her tears. He knew whatever had upset his daughter, it was huge. He hoped it was something he could easily fix, but he had a feeling that a precedent had already been set with recent problems—it would be insurmountable.

=)=)=)

Adam walked back into his infirmary room and went to his bed where Adora sat waiting for him. As soon as he sat beside her, a nurse, who was waiting by the door, came over and said, "Excuse me for interrupting you, Prince Adam. I need to get your readings."

The prince held out his arm so the nurse could take his blood pressure.

Adora could tell her brother was worried, but he also seemed a little annoyed. She scooted closer to him and whispered, "What happened in there?"

Adam turned to his sister and frowned.

At that moment, the nurse ran a thermometer over the prince's forehead to take his temperature. The nurse wrote down the results and asked, "Who's your mother?"

Adam answered, "Queen Marlena." Before the nurse could ask another question, he questioned exasperatedly, "Can we skip this for right now? I assure you that I'm fine, lucid, and remembering everything quiet well."

The nurse nodded and replied, "Of course, my prince." He bowed and left the room.

Adam turned to his sister and stated, "Father walked in at the most inopportune moment ever!" At Adora's questioning stare, he continued, "Teela snuck into the room and wanted me to follow her into the lavatory."

Adora raised her eyes in surprise but remained silent.

"Everything was going so well. We actually talked, sis. We hadn't been that open and honest in years, thanks to my secret. It was like she finally saw me again." He stared off into space.

"And?" prompted Adora.

"She kissed me," he whispered.

Adora didn't know what she had been expecting but she definitely hadn't been expecting that answer. "She kissed you?" she squeaked.

"Yeah, I know," continued Adam with a soft smile that quickly faded. "But Father walked in and ruined everything. He's angry, thinking we've been sneaking off behind his back and having an affair." He shook his head. "Are Father and I back to accusations and distrust again?"

Adora laid her head on her brother's shoulder as she wrapped an arm around his waist. "I think he might be worried," she whispered. "Things are changing so much around here. It has to be unsettling to our father. I'm sure he never thought of you and Teela as being anything more than friends. I think that would be a rather good assumption, don't you?"

"Yes," whispered Adam in agreement. "But that doesn't explain why he's so upset. I mean, yes, she's my bodyguard and the Captain of the Guard, but he knows her! He knows she's a wonderful person. She would never hurt me."

Adora lifted her head and asked abruptly, "Does he know that? I seem to recall our father making Teela leave the room earlier to make sure she didn't upset you! Not to mention, he has to question her motives. You are the Prince of Eternia, after all. Does she really care for you or is it your status?"

"Father knows better than that," stated the prince, firmly. "He knows Teela."

Adora pulled away from Adam and turned to face him completely. She sat cross-legged on the bed, shrugged, and informed him, "Truthfully, I have to question her actions, too."

Adam jumped a little, clearly startled at his sister's announcement. "What?" he questioned. He thought Adora would be the last person to speak against his potential union with Teela. She knew how he felt about her.

Adora shrugged and whispered, "She just found out you're He-Man. You told me she's always had a crush on him. I can't help but wonder if she kissed you because you're him. And, if that is the reason, what does that mean for the future? You and I both know that while He-Man and She-Ra are very much a part of us, we do not allow our true selves to show when we are them. If Teela is in love with He-Man and not Prince Adam, she's going to be disillusioned soon enough, and where will that leave you, brother? Brokenhearted, I'm afraid."

Adam shook his head and looked away from his sister. "She cares for Prince Adam. I know she does."

"I know she does, too. I know she loves them both, but who did she kiss? Prince Adam or He-Man?"

Prince Adam thought about the moment in question and answered confidently, "Both."

"Are you sure?" At Adam's frown, she said, "I'm not saying I believe one way or the other. I'm genuinely asking if you're sure."

Adam was about to nod but stopped himself. He wasn't one hundred percent sure. Teela and he hadn't talked about it. They had kissed and his father had interrupted it. The truth was he didn't know where he stood with Teela. He was getting prepared to fight his father and sister to have a relationship with her, but he now realized he had no idea if that's what she wanted. It was possible she was caught up in the moment and hadn't really meant to imply anything about their future relationship. He realized he might be projecting his own wants and interpretations onto Teela's actions.

He met his sister's eyes again and admitted, "I guess I'm not completely sure."

Adora hugged her brother tightly. "That's what I thought," she whispered. "I would feel better about this if she had kissed you before she found out you're He-Man, but…"

As Adam watched Adora shrug, he frowned when he realized he was now questioning her reasons for kissing him. The same question that had been nagging him since he received the Power Sword popped up again: who did she really want to be with? Adam or He-Man?

=)=)=)

Randor walked away from Marlena and farther into the bathroom. When he reached the sink, he turned around exasperatedly and announced, "I caught Adam and…the Captain of the Guard kissing."

Marlena widened her eyes. "Adam and Teela were kissing?" She smiled a little, but the expression quickly left as she watched her husband. He was shaking his head nonstop and looking around the room frantically. She knew his mind was all over the place. He did that when he was overanalyzing something that troubled him.

Randor, who was oblivious to his wife's reaction or observations of him, answered, "Yes, and I can tell you it was not how two friends kiss."

"I hadn't imagined it would be," Marlena replied as she walked to her husband and pulled him into her arms. "What's wrong, Randor? Please don't tell me you have a problem with Teela. She's Duncan's daughter and a very responsible young woman. I think if Adam chooses to make her his bride, she'd make a great princess and future Queen of Eternia."

The king's jaw dropped as he settled a startled gaze on her. "Who said anything about Adam taking her as his bride? He's not ready to…he's still just a boy."

Marlena smiled and laughed a little. "Oh, Randor, for quite a while now, you've been saying Adam is an adult and you want him to grow up. And now, when he finally starts doing it, you freak out. Maybe it's reminding you of how old you're getting."

Randor pulled away and said indigently, "I am not freaking out nor am I old. The truth is I'm upset with Adam and myself." He sat down on the toilet lid and shook his head again. Marlena walked to him and settled on her knees in front of him.

"Why are you upset?" she asked taking one of his hands.

The king stared into her eyes and said, "I don't like that Adam is keeping so much from me. I was just starting to accept that his behavior and secrecy wasn't his fault, but now I learn he's been keeping other secrets as well. Why would he not tell me about his relationship with Teela? I didn't even know he liked her…in that way."

Marlena squeezed her husband's hand and inquired, "What son do you know runs to his father to tell him he has a crush on a girl? I've certainly never met one."

"Maybe not, but we're not talking about a crush here. They were in here kissing in the middle of the night. That's a little beyond the crush phase. A prince must inform the king when he wants to court a young woman. There is a proper way of handling things to ensure that a scandal does not occur as well as hard feelings throughout the court. Adam has been hiding their relationship from me and I can't help but be upset about it. What else is he hiding from me that could have a number of large impacts on our lives?" Randor paused and looked down at his feet. "And, of course, I also have to question if my behavior in the past might be why he doesn't come to me about these things."

Marlena sighed as she stood and released Randor's hand. She walked toward the door but before she reached it, she turned around to face her husband. "I don't know how many secrets Adam is keeping from us," she said firmly. "And, I don't know why he keeps all of them. It may or may not have anything to do with you, but yelling about it isn't going to make him open up to you in the future. It will only make things worse."

The king frowned and said, "I know that, Marlena. I tried to hold in my reaction. The Ancients know I did, but it was difficult since it came as such a surprise. Not to mention, this is completely unprecedented. A prince courting his bodyguard?"

Marlena walked back to her husband and towered over him. Suddenly, she leaned down and kissed him on his forehead gently. "I don't think you have a right to complain about Adam doing anything unprecedented when it comes to courting, Randor," she said softly.

At his confused look, she leaned down again and whispered in his ear, "You are the one who married and had children with an alien, after all. Who are you to say Adam shouldn't court his bodyguard? At least she is an Eternian."

Startled, Randor pulled back and looked at his wife. "I didn't look at it that way," he realized.

"Obviously," the queen replied as she leaned down and kissed her husband softly. When she pulled away, Randor grabbed her by the waist and pulled her down to sit on his lap.

When they looked at each other again, Randor whispered, "But the fact still remains that Adam is still hiding things from me. And, I have to ask myself if it's appropriate for Teela to be Adam's bodyguard now that I know about their relationship. Also, there is the whole matter of Teela not coming to tell me herself. She was obligated to do so. She was ordered to tell us anything of significance when it came to Adam. It was one of her job descriptions. She knows that, and she willingly violated it."

Before Marlena could respond, Randor stood up and made sure she was on her feet before he released her waist. He then pulled her across the lavatory and said, "Let's check on Adam." The king was tired and there was nothing more that he wanted to do than fall back asleep before addressing this issue again in the morning, but first he had to make sure Adam was still in his room and behaving.

=)=)=)

The flow of Teela's tears had lessened significantly as Duncan held her in his arms and rubbed her back patiently. He didn't know what was wrong and the agony of watching her suffer without knowing were unparalleled.

When she finally pulled away from her father, Duncan reached a hand up and cupped her cheek. "What's wrong, my daughter?"

Teela sniffled a little and wiped the tears from her face. "I…I might have made a bad decision," she whispered.

"What did you do?"

Stepping away from her father and going to sit on the edge of his bed, she replied, "I went to Adam's room in the infirmary. I just had to talk to him, Father."

Man-at-Arms nodded. He hadn't expected her to do that after their talk, but it definitely didn't surprise him. "Why do you think that was a mistake? What happened?"

Teela looked down at her hands which were resting in her lap as he father sat beside her. "The king, queen, and Adora were in there, so I woke Adam up and told him to go into the lavatory with me. We talked, Father, about his secret and I was able to apologize about everything. Things were going so well."

"Until?" guessed Man-at-Arms.

Even though she was already looking down, Teela turned her head away from her father and whispered, "Until I kissed him."

"Until you kissed him?" repeated Duncan loudly.

Teela looked at him and nodded.

Man-at-Arms stood and walked away as he thought about her actions. Teela kissed Prince Adam? Now the question was why she was so upset. Had Adam refused her? That almost seemed unfathomable to him, because he was so sure the prince had feelings for his daughter. He had watched them together and knew just by the boy's mannerisms that he liked her more than just a friend, but he never addressed it, thinking they would find each other eventually. Could he have misread the situation that badly?

Duncan finally turned back to Teela and replied, "And, this has upset you, how?"

"The kiss didn't," explained Teela. "It's what happened during and after the kiss. The king caught us and you should have seen the look he gave me, Father. It was like he didn't even know me. It was almost like he was saying how dare I touch his son! He told me that he and I would discuss the matter after breakfast and to leave." She rushed to her father again and said, "Oh, Father, what if the king decides that he wants to send me away from the palace? I couldn't bear to never see you or Adam again. What do I do?"

Duncan held Teela by her arms and rubbed them comfortingly. "It depends on what you want to do and how you feel about Adam," he said.

Teela looked down and asked, "What do you mean?"

Duncan brought one hand to Teela's chin and made her look up at him again. "You have to make a decision about what you want concerning Adam to know what to do from here. It's obvious if you want to continue being Adam's bodyguard and the Captain of the Guard, you must put an end to any relationship you and Adam might be developing. But…if you want a romantic relationship with the prince, then you must be willing to lose your positions. You have to realize that's a probable possibility, especially losing your position as his bodyguard. That might happen regardless of whether you and he court or not."

Teela sighed as she thought about what she should do.

As Duncan watched his daughter for signs as to what she was thinking, he whispered, "Regardless of what you choose, I'll be behind you one hundred percent. You won't go through this alone. This decision is yours."