Filed to story: Luna Riannon and Alpha Brayden Novel
He settled in to wait in the secret cave he had discovered years ago, with the perfect view of the river that fell into the sea. This was where Joran used to sneak into Asgard for them to meet.
Still angry, Fenrir kicked a rock on the ground, realising he had missed his brother, and now he would have to wait another month to see him. Other than lessons with Tyr, it was the only thing that brought him joy, and he always looked forward to this day.
Tonight he’d deprived himself of the opportunity. Jormungandr had to be careful in these lands.
The sky was clear tonight, and Fenrir gazed at the blanket of stars stretched above his head, glimmering like diamonds, one more beautiful than the other. The full moon glowed, kissing the surface of the calm river. He noticed movement in the water, a smile curling on his lips instantly.
“Jor!”
The young wolf breathed out in relief, seeing the Serpent’s scales glide through the water. A wave crashed over a massive boulder in front of him. A familiar broad-shouldered figure walked out of it, wearing his usual tunic, embroidered by their mother back in the day, with pants and boots, only the moonlight illuminating his features in the darkness.
“Rir!”
Jormungandr smiled as they gave each other a warm brotherly hug.
“I thought you forgot about me!”
“Never!”
Fenrir chuckled,
“I was distracted today, but– Nevermind! We are both here, and that’s all that matters now.”
“True,”
Joran agreed and hit his shoulder in a friendly manner.
Fenrir was excited to see his sibling. Jor was the only one who could travel between the nine realms and meet both him and their sister if he was careful enough. When Odin tore them away from their home, he threw Hel into Nilfhelm, the underworld realm, and released Jor into the sea, binding him in his serpent form. Only Fenrir was accepted to live with the rest of the deities in Asgard but was never told why.
His life was… tolerable. Living in Asgard had many perks, but his father was rarely there, his mother and siblings weren’t allowed inside, and the other gods weren’t his biggest fans. He was different. This was something undeniable, something he’d learned to live with and accept.
He didn’t look like them, he didn’t behave like them, he didn’t have the same powers they had. He couldn’t wield any kind of magic and was therefore considered a lesser god.
The only thing he could offer them was his physical strength. This was his domain, where he had no rivals.
However, that didn’t exactly help him find friends. Tyr was the only one who paid him any mind, because he respected strength and was initially curious about the young wolf. In many ways, he was Fenrir’s one and only friend.
That being said, Fenrir was working on fixing that.
“Father told me about the guests,”
Jor mentioned the matter casually as they walked inside the cave to hide in case anyone passed by. No one was supposed to know about these meetings.
“Who could have thought that our realms would finally find something in common!”
An unexpected wave of jealousy rippled through Fenrir. Their father barely spoke to him. Especially in public. He travelled a lot and, thanks to that, could see Jor more often than anyone else; the Serpent loved to follow him on his many quests. While Fenrir had to stay behind and behave, representing their family branch.
He suppressed the ugly feeling quickly. All of that wasn’t important. The important thing was that no matter how far they travelled together, Jor made an effort every month to come back to Asgard and meet him. This was more than anyone else ever did for him and he appreciated it.
In return, Fenrir always made sure to bring his brother Asgardian mead. The drink of the gods and the only thing that could help the dragon to sustain his power and grow. Each time they saw each other, his serpent dragon form was getting bigger and bigger.
“I wonder why they let them in,”
Joran muttered as he sat on a rock with the flask his brother brought for him, taking his first gulp and enjoying the taste.
“I heard they want some kind of alliance with us,”
Fenrir shrugged.
“You know what happened to them, right? Most of their pantheon was wiped out.”
“Not much of a loss if you ask me!”
Jor huffed a laugh.
“More world and power for us!”
“Not everything is about power,”
Fenrir leaned against the same boulder, chuckling.
“Yeah, sure!”
Jor scoffed.
“Easy for you to say. Living here takes your fighting spirit away.”
“My fighting spirit is fine, in case you want to test it!”
the wolf deity teased with a snarl. They loved friendly sparring.
They stared at each other for a few seconds before bursting out laughing.
Fenrir missed this. His biggest hope was that one day he would prove to Asgardians, he was one of them, and they would let their family reunite.
“They still didn’t notice you stealing this?”
Jor sneered, shaking the flask. The mead didn’t have much effect on him, although a regular Asgardian would be properly drunk after a full flask.
“It’s not like they are looking. No one expects this–”
Fenrir confessed, averting his gaze.
“You know what they expect,”
Joran’s playful tone was gone. This was a topic that never ended well.
“They are just– worried,”
Fenrir sighed heavily, a familiar unpleasant feeling building in the pit of his stomach.
“And for good reason.”
“Of course,”
Joran sneered,
“when the end of days come, they will have to go, and we will stay and rule. I’d be afraid of that day, too, if I was in their place.”
“You still talk about this–”
“It’s not like I have a choice, do I? No one invited me to live in Asgard with the gods and their faithful servants. They threw me into the sea, hoping never to see me again. Just shifting back into human form took me decades!”
“Yet here you are–”
“Here I am,”
Jor smirked, locking eyes with his brother.
“Together with you. Same blood. Same essence. Maybe you like your life in Asgard, but deep inside, you know it will never be… it. You are not one of them, Fenrir; you will never be one of them. But you will always be one of us.”
“You know very well there is no one I care about more than you and Hel. I am doing my best to fix everything,”
Fenrir tried to explain.
“If I earn their trust, they will let you back in and then–”
“It will never happen, brother,”
Joran placed his palm on his shoulder and squeezed it tightly.
“The only way for us to move forward is to destroy them. Think of it when they shun you again and deprive you, me, Hel and Father of the respect and life we deserve.”
Fenrir wanted to retort, to make his brother see reason, but a strange glow filled the space outside the cave, and both of their heads snapped in its direction.
Someone was approaching them, and Fenrir recognised the ethereal shimmering almost instantly.
Asgard Part II
~ASGARD~
“What’s that?”
Joran hopped off the rock, finishing his flask in a hurry and ready to shift back and run. Or worse – fight.
“Were you followed today?”
he demanded.
“Wait!”
Fenrir stopped him, stepping forward and poking his head out of the cave to confirm his suspicions.
“I think I know who that is.”
“Can we kill him?”
was the first thing Jormungandr asked, and his brother elbowed him as they tried to see what was happening outside.
Fenrir couldn’t believe his own eyes. Of all people, it had to be her. What was she even doing here?
A slender figure of a woman in an elaborate white dress with long sleeves blown by the wind stood by the riverbank, watching the water flow before her eyes. Her silvery hair glowed like the stars in the night sky, each curl dancing to its own rhythm in the breeze, but what shocked him the most were the glowing dragonflies fluttering around her. Those belonged to another goddess and never liked anyone else. Yet tonight, they had a different favourite…
He still couldn’t see her face, but even from this angle, she was mesmerising.
“Who is that?”
Joran asked, his voice gruffer than usual.
“She is–”
For the first time ever, his brother couldn’t find the right words, and Fenrir didn’t care enough to mock him about it.
“Dragonfly,”
Fenrir muttered, unable to take his eyes off the magnificent woman.
“Who?”
Jor repeated with more interest and enthusiasm in his voice, which for some reason, irked his sibling.
“Someone we can’t let see us together,”
the wolf responded, and after a long pause, added,
“Or touch.”
“She is one of the guests, isn’t she?”
Jormungandr was excited. He rarely got to see Asgardians, let alone deities from other pantheons.
“Yes, but remember–”
Fenrir didn’t get to finish his words as the woman in question shrugged her shoulders and slipped her dress off in one swift move, letting it pool at her feet and stepping out of it.
They both forgot how to breathe. Her long silky hair covered everything, but at the same time, the outlines of her soft curves made their imaginations go places.
It was probably the most enticing thing they both had ever witnessed.