Chapter 44: Discovery awakened the wolf

In the early morning, before the sun had risen, Xavier gently patted Sage's shoulder, waking her up from a deep sleep.

“Huh!” Sage sat up, rubbing her eyes. “Is it morning already?”

“Yes. There’s something I want to show you,” Xavier said, his voice filled with quiet urgency. He had spent the night thinking of ways to convince Sage that supernatural beings were real. He had talked with his brother Ian, who suggested showing her instead of just telling her and hoping she would believe.

It was cold outside, so Xavier passed Sage a black hoodie. Her legs were still exposed, but he didn’t think it would be a problem.

“Let’s go,” Xavier said, guiding her down the stairs. She was still sleepy, and he didn’t want her to miss her steps.

As they stepped out of the alpha's house, Sage’s eyes widened. The morning was calm, with birds chirping in the trees, and the sky was a serene shade of blue. She liked the tranquility but shivered from the cold. Her upper body was covered, but her legs were bare, making her acutely aware of the chilly air.

The area Xavier was heading to was behind the alpha’s house. There were no other buildings, just an open field with a few large trees.

Behind the building, waiting there were Ian, Leo, Red, and Valarie. Sage knew these faces, but she didn’t know why Xavier would bring her out here to meet with his friends. The only person missing was Edward, who was still asleep. He had been called out but refused to show up, saying he battled a strong demon yesterday and needed his hero's rest.

“Xavier, what’s going on?” Sage inquired. Ian had explained to everyone present what Xavier wanted them to do; only Sage wasn’t aware of what the gathering was for.

“Remember what we talked about last night? About mystical creatures? We are here to prove that to you.”

“I’ll go first,” Ian said, stepping in front of the group. He stared intensely at Sage, who stood beside Xavier. “Just promise not to hurt me with a twig,” he added with a smile.

Right before Sage’s eyes, Ian’s body began to change. Hair sprouted from his skin, his back arched, and his fingers elongated into claws. Ian purposely slowed down the transformation, allowing Sage to witness every detail.

Sage watched in awe and fear, her eyes wide and unblinking. As Ian completed his transformation into a large wolf, he groaned softly and took a step towards her. Instinctively, Sage took shelter behind Xavier.

Ian used his claws to push Xavier away from Sage. Xavier rolled his eyes as he skidded on the floor.

With Xavier out of the way, Ian’s lips moved up to the side as if he was smirking.

Sage stood still, frozen. Twice she had encountered such a creature in the woods, and one time she almost lost her life.

‘Did he just turn into an animal!’ Sage freaked out in her head. There was a sense of déjà vu for Sage; she felt like she had met this particular wolf before.

‘I’ll go first. Just don’t hurt me with a twig.’ Sage recalled Ian’s words before he morphed. “A twig.” Sage remembered vividly her first encounter with such a creature. She had threatened it with a twig.

“Was that you?” Sage inquired as she finally let her body relax. The only thing Ian’s wolf did in response to her question was rub its head against her right side.

He had shown her what he wanted to; he could morph back to human now, but he wouldn’t have any clothes on, and he didn’t want to traumatize her with that. He walked back to the others and lay on his stomach.

The next person to step forward was Red. Red was reluctant to do this; she didn’t care if Sage believed or not that supernatural creatures existed.

When she stepped forward, the only thing she did was transform her fingers into sharp claws. Sage’s eyes widened as she looked at Xavier.

When she fought against the possessed demon, her fingers had also changed into claws.

Valarie was next to show what she was capable of doing. She was not a werewolf, but she took pride in her ability as a young witch.

She gave a confident smile to Sage before taking out a small pouch from her trousers. The pouch hovered in the air before she sent it at Ian, who was still on the floor. When the pouch made contact with him, he transformed back into a human with new clothes on.

Sage was at a loss for words at what everyone displayed. Her mouth was wide open from everything she just witnessed.

“I’m not a werewolf like them, but I’m a witch,” Valarie stated, adjusting her short bob hair.

“Do you believe now?” Xavier asked as he came back to Sage’s side. Sage nodded her head lightly, still in shock. “There are other things you need to know about, especially about yourself. But we’ll leave that for another day.”

Out of everyone present, Leo didn’t show his abilities. When everyone left, it left Sage curious as to what kind of supernatural being he was.

Ian, Xavier, and Sage returned to the alpha’s house. Sage breathed a sigh of relief as the warmth of the room enveloped her skin. The werewolves had some form of resistance to cold. Sage, given that her hybrid energy had been unlocked, was supposed to have resistance to the cold, but right now, she had the bracelet Penny placed on her wrist. She wouldn’t be able to perform any sort of supernatural activities.

On her way to the alpha house, Sage thought about everything she had seen and what Xavier had told her. From the time she met him, she knew there was something strange about him and his group of friends. Sage wasn’t frightened anymore; if anything, she wanted to learn more about the supernatural world. She didn’t have to live the same boring life as before.

“You seem to have a lot going on in your head,” Xavier smiled at Sage as he closed the door behind them.

“Yeah… like you said, it’s a lot to take in. But I want to know more,” Sage said, her eyes showing how excited she was to explore the supernatural.

Xavier couldn’t help but chuckle at the look of excitement on Sage’s face. “You have no idea how much relief you accepting the fact that the supernatural exists has brought to me.” Xavier had ticked convincing Sage off his to-do list, and now the hard part would be to inform her of who she was and the duty she had to perform.

‘When she finally understands what the hybrid means and signifies, I’ll proceed to help her harness her powers. Then, Soren, I’ll come for you and make you pay for the pain you caused.’

Sage smiled when she saw Xavier chuckle. She had to admit, she was indeed attracted to him. However, she didn’t know how to go about her feelings for him. She watched as his eyes grew cold, just like always. It was like there was something holding on to his happiness, and she felt sad for him.