The morning sun shone through the colorful glass windows of the Filavandrel manor, filling the nursery with bright patterns. Shaun lay in his crib, staring at the mobile spinning above him. He gripped the crib's bars and sighed in his mind.
"Another day stuck in baby jail," he thought. "I used to complain about boring college classes, but at least I could walk and talk. Now I can't even feed myself."
Frustrated, he kicked his legs, making the mobile spin faster. The swirling colors reminded him of his old life—sitting in class, half-asleep while a professor talked about something he didn't care about. The thought made him smile, but it also made him sad.
"Did anyone even notice I was gone?" he wondered. "Probably not. I was just another face in the crowd. But here, everyone expects me to be special. If only they knew the truth."
The door opened, and his mother walked in, her long hair flowing down her back. She smiled warmly and lifted him into her arms.
"Good morning, my little prince," she said gently. "Did you sleep well?"
Shaun made baby noises, pretending to be innocent. "If only you knew," he thought. "Your little prince is actually a grown man who's watched too much anime to be okay with this."
His mother carried him to the window, showing him the beautiful gardens outside. Flowers glowed with magical light, and birds with golden feathers flew through the air, singing like tiny bells.
"Okay, I'll admit it," Shaun thought. "This world is amazing. But being a baby still sucks."
Later, Shaun lay on a blanket surrounded by toys. His mother had stepped out, giving him a chance to test something. He reached for a stuffed dragon, his tiny fingers brushing against its soft fur.
"If I'm supposed to be special, maybe I can use magic," he thought.
He focused hard, willing the toy to move. At first, nothing happened. But then, its eyes glowed faintly, and it floated into the air.
"It worked!" Shaun thought excitedly. "I'm actually using magic!"
But then, the dragon spun faster and faster. The glow became blinding, and before Shaun could stop it—BOOM! The toy exploded in a flash of light, shaking the room.
Shaun landed on his back, staring at the ceiling in shock. The nursery was a mess—scattered toys, burnt walls, and cracked windows.
"Uh-oh," he thought. "That's not what I meant to do."
The door flew open, and his mother rushed in, her face pale. "Shaun! Are you okay? What happened?"
Shaun babbled, trying to look innocent. "Please don't punish me. I'm too young for that."
His mother held him close, looking around in shock. "How did this happen?"
Shaun felt guilty. "I didn't mean to scare her. I was just trying to figure things out."
That evening, Shaun's father, Aldric, returned home. He looked at the destroyed nursery and immediately called his advisor, Geralt.
"What do you mean, he caused an explosion?" Aldric asked. "He's just a baby!"
Geralt shook his head. "The suppression spell should have significantly limited his magic. Most four year olds can't even muster enough mana to cause this kind of damage."
Aldric sighed, rubbing his face. "This is exactly what I feared. First the astral scale and now this."
Shaun, lying in his crib down the hall, overheard them. His tiny ears caught bits of their conversation, and his mind raced.
Suppression spell? They're already holding my power back? And if they find out I'm stronger than they thought, they'll restrict me even more? No way. I can't let that happen."
He clenched his tiny fists, "I'll figure out how to control this power on my own. But for now, I need to keep it hidden. No more accidents. No more explosions. I'll play the part of the perfect baby until I'm ready."
The next morning, Shaun's mother carried him to the garden, where the sun bathed the estate in golden light. She set him down on a soft blanket, surrounded by toys, and began to hum a gentle tune as she tended to the flowers.
Shaun watched her for a moment, then turned his attention to the task at hand. He rolled onto his stomach, his tiny arms trembling as he pushed himself up. It was harder than he expected—his infant body was weak and uncoordinated—but he refused to give up.
"Come on, Shaun," he thought, gritting his teeth. "If you're going to pull this off, you need to get stronger. No more lying around like a helpless baby."
He managed to lift his chest off the ground, his arms shaking with the effort. His mother noticed and gasped in delight.
"Look at you!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands. "You're trying to crawl! Oh, my little prince is growing up so fast!"
Shaun forced a smile, babbling innocently. "That's right, Mom. Just a normal baby, doing normal baby things. Nothing to see here."
Over the next few days, Shaun continued to "practice" his physical abilities, much to his parents' delight. He rolled over, sat up, and even attempted to crawl, all while secretly testing the limits of his suppressed magic and physical abilities.
One evening, after a long and tiring training session, Shaun lay in his crib. His body was sore, but he felt excited. He had lifted the toy dragon again—this time for a whole minute without messing up.
"I'm improving," he thought with a small smile. "Soon, I'll be ready to try something even harder."
He lay in his crib, his small hands curled into fists. The path ahead wouldn't be easy, but he was ready. He had a plan, and he wouldn't let anyone—not his parents, the council, or even the suppression spell—stop him.
"This is only the start," he thought. "I'll learn to harness my magic, then nothing will be beyond my reach. Nothing at all." Just imagining the possibilities filled him with determination.