“You're both made up and happy now, can you please keep it down...?”

 

Shawn mumbled, feeling like he was being weighed down by five-hundred pounds tied to his limbs. He felt terrible, his head was throbbing along every inch of his skull, his arms felt like they'd been singed, and he felt like he'd been rung out of every ounce of his energy. The tea had helped very slightly, but he still felt horrible.

 

“Shawn! You're awake!” Miles voice was the equivalent of a hammer to his head. Shawn winced and held his hand up as high as he could.

 

“Not so loud...” He groaned, squeezing his eyes even tighter shut, as if that would help keep the pain out of his aching noggin.

 

“Sorry.” Miles instantly quieted to a whisper. “Can I get you anything?” He muttered.

 

“The licorice tea he has should help.” Naomi whispered. Somehow, the Alpha was even better at whispering than Miles. He gave a small, thankful nod, then groaned when the bed shifted with Miles moving around to get the tea. “I'll help, it needs to be made a certain way.”

 

 

An hour later, Shawn's headache had diminished a little, enough for him to at least open his eyes. A little bit of his energy was back after another nap and two more cups of tea. That little burst of magic was just enough to completely sap him. Shawn sipped on his tea, thoughtfully, remembering the incident in the woods.

 

He'd been enraged when Nikolas had broken Miles' arm, his vision darkening at the edges with lightheadedness at the Alpha telling Miles he was useless. Shawn had felt like his blood was electrified. He hadn't even thought, moving automatically as Nikolas just barely stepped toward him. Shawn gathered the energy burgeoning in his chest and blasted it all into Nikolas' stupid, smirking face. He didn't get to see how far he'd thrown the man, as the next second he was crumpling to the ground like a puppet with its strings detached.

 

He'd really done that. It did suck away all of his energy, but he'd defended himself and Miles with his magic. Natalia really wasn't kidding when she said he had power. Though... he'd really like to not pass out or collapse every time he did any magic more than blowing up a desk.

 

“So.” Naomi started, and Shawn looked up to find Naomi staring at him curiously, Miles practically vibrating with excitement. “Care to share with us what you've discovered about yourself?”

 

And the cat was effectively out of the bag. Shawn sighed and scratched through his stubble. “I, uh, apparently am a mage. Or at least, I know magic.”

 

Miles gasped, his eyes lighting up like he'd just been told he'd won the lottery or something. “Really?! Can you do some magic n-OW!”

 

Shawn glared at Miles as Naomi slapped the older man upside the head. “I am not a magic show, you know.”

 

“Right, sorry.” Miles mumbled, then his face lit up again. “So, that blue light around you, it wasn't a hallucination?”

 

Shawn nodded, his glare shifting into a curious look. “You thought it was a hallucination?”

 

Miles shrugged. “I was in a lot of pain at the moment, so yes, I thought it was a hallucination.”

 

“How'd you find out?” Naomi interjected, looking over him with an expression Shawn couldn't quite interpret. He hoped it didn't mean running to the Council and getting him into any serious trouble.

 

“I... blew up my desk, and then my table, and that Shaman that you contracted, she came to help me understand what was happening.”

 

Naomi hummed, tapping her finger on her chin. “So, you didn't know about this before. Your magic was sealed, am I right?” Shawn reluctantly nodded and she sighed. “Which would explain why your scent was all wrong for a normal human.” She straightened up, her expression clearing. “Which would also explain why Nikolas wants you so bad!”

 

“Uh.” Miles started.

 

“What?” Shawn asked. “How does that explain that?”

 

Naomi looked between the two of them then leaned forward. “He wants to turn you. So, when someone who is an extraordinary human, like a mage, is turned, they become an incredibly powerful and dangerous creature known as a Hybrid. Hybrids are very, very illegal, and turning anyone that's more than human was the first ban put in place when the Council was formed. Hybrids are unhinged, the magic combined with the feral nature of werewolves overloads the brain and basically makes a rabid beast that's extremely hard to put down.”

 

Shawn stared at the Alpha, his mouth agape. “Really? So, that's why he was trying to turn me? To make some... super monster?”

 

Naomi nodded, humming. “I don't understand why, though. What purpose would someone like Nikolas have for a Hybrid? He had power, he had a position with the Council, so why would he create something like that?”

 

“For more power, maybe?” Shawn suggested. “If he had a Hybrid kill someone higher up than him and he put me down, then he'd gain that higher position, wouldn't he?”

 

Naomi shook her head, frowning. “That's the thing, killing for power only really works for a pack, not the Council. Council positions are debated for months between all members of the lead Council members. They need to make absolutely sure they're appointing the most responsible and restrained members of the community to ensure we're not discovered. The only reason I could think of to create a hybrid would be... to kill all of the Council, but that would cause chaos within the community, not to mention a hybrid wouldn't have the cognitive function to shift back and would be discovered by the human race in no time.” She breathed out shakily. “It'd be a sure way to start a war.”

 

“What use would he have for a war?” Miles asked, his excitement nowhere to be found. “What would he gain from it?”

 

Naomi thought for a moment, then sighed, standing up. “I'm not sure, but I have to report this to the Council.” She glanced to Shawn. “I'll have to let them know about you, but I'll make sure that you don't get in any trouble for anything. When this is over we'll have to take you in to get registered.” She sighed, running her hand through her messy hair as she pulled out her phone. “They'll probably put a lock down on the both of you, just to make sure he doesn't try to follow through with his plan.” She glanced back at them. “I'm sorry, but that means you'll have to miss your convention.”

 

Shawn waved her off. “It's fine, just worry about your case.” He looked up to Miles, who looked slightly disappointed, but understanding, thankfully. “I just want this guy taken care of. I'd rather not become a mindless, crazy, killing machine.”

 

Naomi's lips twitched into a smile, and she sighed, stepping outside as she tapped away on her phone.

 

Shawn sagged into the bed, setting down his tea with a huff. He felt sick all the sudden. “Think you could help me to the bathroom?” Shawn asked through the lump of apprehension in his throat.

 

“Yeah, here.” Miles gently tucked his arm under Shawn's shoulders, heaving him up onto his feet. Shawn had to close his eyes against the wave of nausea that overtook him, both from the unease he felt from realizing exactly why he'd been pursued for the past month, and his lingering headache.