Chapter 148 - In The Spirit Of Confessing (IV)

[TW: Slight Violence]

Madeline placed a hand on Xavier's arm, "You alright?" 

She had noticed Xavier had been spacing out a bit and began worrying about him. 

'What if he's uncomfortable? Or what if he doesn't want to be here?' Madeline wondered, beginning to overthink everything. 

It had been about three hours, and the sun had completely risen. 

A guttural growl came from the bushes. One Xavier recognised all too well. 

Xavier realised what had happened - well, not what happened, but what had been happening the entire time. 

A look of horror crossed the others' faces. They had been followed, and stalked. 

Any sudden movement they made, and they would pounce. One wrong move, and it was the end.

Who was 'they'? And why hadn't Xavier realised any sooner? 

Well, this 'they' were the ferals. 

Not just a group of ferals, but if Xavier's estimation was right, an army of them.

How did he know? And so fast? 

Had there been a few ferals, they would have just attacked on the spot. But that wasn't the case. 

That growl everyone had just heard? It wasn't just any growl. 

It was a warcry. A declaration of battle. 

They had come out of hiding, one by one, surrounding the four. 

Time seemed to have stopped as Xavier assessed the situation. His first priority was getting Madeline out of there, stat. But that wasn't possible. They were ferals, they had super speed too. And with about a hundred of them, if he brought her someplace else, they were bound to find her soon. So that removed the possibility of scooping Madeline up and whisking her away. 

Madeline looked at Xavier, who didn't look like he was panicking. In fact, he seemed quite calm as he rolled up his sleeves. 

Indiana and Briar exchanged a look. They were outnumbered.

They both thought the same thing, 'What about Madeline?' 

Indiana stared at Xavier, wondering what he was going to do. 

The ferals circled them. 

Madeline saw a flash of light before both Indiana and Briar were no longer. 

In their place, were two wolves, baring their fangs at the ferals. 

Yet, Xavier hadn't turned. It seemed like he was waiting for something. 

Was it the right moment? Maybe. 

Madeline looked at Xavier, desperately wanting to tell him something despite this being the worst time to tell him. In her heart, she felt a feeling of dread. She felt her heart beating in her ears. 

Xavier's eyes flashed red, before he turned into his wolf form. Larger than the rest of the ferals. 

That seemed to do it. 

One feral pounced on Indiana, clawing and slashing its way. 

One slash, and she would turn into one of them. That was all it took. 

And that was when Madeline witnessed her very first fight. Her friends were fighting for their lives around her, and she was left defenceless. 

As Briar and Indiana desperately tried not to get transformed into ferals themselves, all Madeline could do was defend herself. 

Xavier headbutted a feral, using its body to kill another feral. 

One by one, the ferals dissipated into greyish liquid. Madeline managed to kill a couple with her blasts. Aware that her friends could turn on her at any moment, Madeline persisted.

Briar and Indiana could have directed who they tried killing, but it was only a matter of time. 

Indiana bit into a feral before flinging it away.

Realising what would happen if he didn't do something, Xavier howled.

More growls were heard as more and more of the ferals were defeated. It took more strength and stamina to defeat them as they were unlike Xavier had ever seen. 

They were tougher, stronger, and smarter. Unlike the usual ferals he dealt with every full moon.

Something seemed to have changed, as the ferals seemed to hesitate. Like they were scared. 

A loud howl was heard minutes later, albeit it didn't come from Xavier this time. Madeline looked behind her to see a pack of wolves who had formed behind her. 

When Madeline had come to and realised what had actually happened, it was the ferals that were outnumbered. 

Madeline blasted another feral that was trying to sneak up on her, before glancing at Xavier. She could have been killed with all the times she had been checking up on him. What had been her trying to see if Xavier was alright had nearly ended her own life. 

However, her and everyone else's efforts were not for naught. The ferals' numbers had dwindled, and nearly none of them remained. The rest of them that were still standing were taken out. And then, there was no feral left… or so they thought. 

Indiana heaved and panted, exhausted. She was far away from where the battle had ensued and now back to her human form, laying on the ground. 

By then, Xavier had already returned to his human form, commanding the rest of the pack to return from whence they came. It was wrapped up, there was no need for them to stay any longer. They listened and left. No one dared disobey Xavier at that moment. 

And then it was just Madeline and Xavier left. Madeline realised that with everything that happened, she still hadn't done something. 

"Xavier, I need to tell you something. It's something I've been meaning to tell you," she said, trying not to seem nervous as she used her remaining strength to do this. 

There was no stalling or hiding anything now.

Xavier walked towards her, looking her up and down and heaving a relieved sigh once he saw she was alright. He kept quiet, waiting for her to continue. 

Madeline looked up and met his gaze, telling him the words she had always meant to tell him ever since she had fallen head over heels for him. 

"Xavier, I have feelings for you." 

Unaware if Xavier knew that she had a whole book of things she had wanted to tell him, Madeline was taken aback when… instead of replying, Xavier pulled her closer towards him. And finally, after what felt like forever, their lips met. 

There had been no moment of hesitation. 

Heat rose from Madeline's stomach. It took her a couple of seconds to realise Xavier's mouth was on hers. It was his way of telling her that… All this time, he had had feelings for her too. 

And then, they heard it. 

"INDIANA!"