---Fenris' POV---

Nerves spread through my system, knowing that the first few contacts had been made.

Cain had been meticulous and extremely careful. Sending out a few invitations with old friends to come visit him.

And now, one of those had responded. Stating they were on their way. Such a simple statement yet I was extremely nervous.

Because if this went wrong, word would spread to the Norse Pantheon. Word that I had escaped would be presented to the very gods that were set on destroying me.

So much rode on the reaction of a single deity. But like Cain had pointed out, I had already met three who were not hostile towards me.

The twins who saved me, and Cain himself.

That made me feel a tiny bit better but still. Nibbling on my nails, I paced through the room, knowing that across the house sat a Deity that unknowingly, held my fate in their hands.

It all depended on how they reacted to the news. And I didn't even know if they would believe Cain.

For all intents and purposes, they could think that Cain was an accomplice. Wanting to start a war with the Norse pantheon.

The only thing working to our advantage, was that Cain was a Deity of Wisdom. They weren't inclined to start wars, simply because they knew better.

And thanks to his telepathic abilities, Cain would be able to snuff out any thought that might be dangerous.

A sound at the door made my heart thump in my chest. Surprise flooding over my system as I heard scratching noises followed by a plaintive whine.

Before I even knew it, my feet prowled towards the door and when it opened, revealed a few eager wolf pups.

Their chunky bodies squirming in joy at seeing me, paws reaching for my knees as I squatted. "Escaped your mom's attention again?" I questioned, already knowing the answer as their tails wagged behind them.

It wasn't too hard to recognize these twin trouble makers, after all. They had been among the few brave pups that had approached me during the hunt.

And the one thing that made them stand out among the rest of the pack, was their eyes. Both pups had heterochromia and looked as if they each had swapped one of their eyes with their twin.

Looking down at the pups, two sets of one golden, one blue eye looked up as they panted happily.

"C'mon. Let's find your mom before she panics and has to search the entire pack house for you two devils." I stated, grabbing hold of each pup and holding them against my chest.

They didn't seem to mind too much. In fact, they seemed to enjoy their elevated position, resting their paws on my shoulders to look around.

And of course, right as I turned the corner, I was face to face with Cain.

Behind him stood a rather attractive man eying me curiously. Taller than Cain with a wide, tanned chest visible from the deep neckline of his shirt.

His near golden eyes flitted over my body, fixating on the scars visible on my wrist. Squinting slightly as his lips narrowed in barely veiled disgust.

However, my attention was more aimed towards the more animalistic ears that peeked out of his thick mane of caramel curls, not to mention the majestic antlers that rose above him.

"Ah, I see that Luke and Tom have escaped their mom once again." Cain snickered as the pups yipped in greeting.

Motioning to the Deity beside him, Cain stated "Let me introduce you to a good friend of mine. Cernunnos, this is Fenris. Fenris, this is Cernunnos, the Celtic Deity of Animals, Fertility, Wilderness, Life, Death and Rebirth."

"A pleasure." Cernunnos spoke, voice deep and alluring, a sparkle in his eyes as they flitted towards my hands with an understanding, somewhat soft smile. "I would shake your hand but, I have a feeling my touch would not be appreciated."

I nodded warily, glad that this God seemed to be at least somewhat decent. Because I've had quite enough of gods not respecting personal boundaries and doing whatever the fuck they want.

So it was very refreshing to meet two Deities who were decent enough to keep their mitts to themselves.

Cernunnos snorted, the sound rather animalistic as he eyed me for a moment before shaking his head. "This is supposed to be the ender of the Norse Pantheon? Frigg must've been heavily intoxicated when she made that premonition."

His nostrils flared as he approached, slowly circling around my form as the two pups yipped curiously. "I don't smell a hint of malice coming from you. Not at all what I'd expect from a creature that supposedly will bathe in the blood of the gods."

As Cain took one of the pups from my hands, the other eagerly reached out to Cernunnos, who chuckled and poked the pup's twitching nose.

"I'm imagining that Odin doesn't know Fenris has escaped?" Cernunnos stated more than asked, eyes flitting over his shoulders as Cain shrugged.

"Presumably. Otherwise he and the others would've broken my door down already."

Cernunnos snorted once more, ears flicking to show his annoyance. He muttered something in Gaelic before scoffing with distaste.

Meanwhile, my heart which had been racing, slowly calmed down. It was clear that Cernunnos didn't care about this self-destroying prophecy, nor did he want to turn me in.

"So what do you think, Cernunnos?" Cain asked with a motion of his head towards me. "Any advice how to best approach this situation?"

At that, the antlered man shook his head with a deep sigh. "Avoid contacting most Deities of War, that's for certain. Though I feel perhaps Morrigan would be understanding of the situation. And if you have them behind your back, the Norse wouldn't be so quick as to attack you."

I shivered, as I only had limited knowledge of gods outside of my own Pantheon. But the Morrigan was definitely one I had heard about.

A trinity of sisters, shapeshifters, Goddesses of Death, War, Doom and Fate.

And then I blinked, understanding what Cernunnos was silently suggesting.

If Frigg had foreseen my attack on the Norse Pantheon, surely the Deities would pause and reconsider if another God with foresight was able to counter their prophecy.

Mimir was still our safest bet, but he was nigh impossible to reach. Given the fact that he was the direct councilor of Odin and never left the Allfather's vicinity, it would be suicidal to go over there.

However, if we were able to find multiple Deities with either Foresight or other prophetic powers, that could work in our advantage.

Because I knew enough of gods to know that not all Pantheons were friendly with one another. Some were even outright at war with one another.

If we wanted the Norse deities to believe in my innocence, we needed to find more deities. Preferably those who were at the very least Neutral with the Norse Pantheon.

A look at Cain already showed that I didn't need to tell him anything I had just thought about. Given that he was tuning in on Cernunnos' thoughts, he was already highly aware of what I was thinking.

Which also meant that Cain would know which Gods to contact. After all, who better to know the machinations of the Deities than a God himself?

Still, we needed to make sure to convince them of my innocence first and that would be the hardest task so far.

Just the thought made me look at Cernunnos, the question slipping from my lips before I even reconsidered it.

"Why did you believe Cain? Me?" I questioned before blinking and shaking my head "And why am I so relaxed around you?"

Cernunnos snorted with amusement, reaching forwards to gently take the pup from my hold. I let him, watching as the pup went willingly, eager for the gentle pets it received.

"To start with the easiest question ; I'm the God of the Wilds. I have a connection with all the animals and thus, all shifters and their animalistic side. You're more relaxed around me simply due to the fact that you know you have nothing to fear from me."

As if to prove his point, Cernunnos lifted his hands from the pup's hand and gently placed it on top of my head.

A gesture that felt oddly familiar.

I was used to feeling disgusted by the slightest touch, feeling phantom touches whenever someone pressed against me.

Yet now, I felt only comfort and warmth as Cernunnos patted my head before removing his hand. A gentle smile on his lips as a tear rolled down my face.

"Seeing how I'm especially connected to male animals," he motioned towards his antlers, "It's not that surprising that you feel warm. Comforted. Safe."

He looked at me with such warmth and kindness, I honestly felt as if he could've been my father. Only Loki had looked at me this way, almost every other Deity had looked at me with disgust, hatred or a mixture thereof.

"As for your first question, well..." Cernunnos allowed the pup to lick his throat as he scratched gently through its scruff.

"I had always found it bizarre that you would be the supposed end of the Norse Pantheon. No offense, but you were raised as a mortal."

A shiver darted down my spine, eyes widening as Cernunnos said that. Because nobody besides the Norse gods knew I was raised among mortals.

Tucking his fingers into his shirt, he pulled on a string, revealing a simple necklace with an intricate metal symbol.

At that point, I couldn't even feel my legs anymore. Eyes focused on my mortal father's handywork before shakily reaching out.

The Hunting Horn was one of his best works and as I recall, he had been paid handsomely for such a simple yet elegant piece.

"Gods know when they're in the presence of something supernatural. I had already seen you when you were just a boy."

Tucking the necklace away, he continued, "Wanting to satisfy my natural curiosity, I found an easy way to stick around longer. For a simple mortal, your dad was a master craftsman of his kind."

"Even back then, there was not a hint of danger or malice from you. Just wide eyed curiosity and respect for the world."

As Cernunnos said that, suddenly I had a vivid memory. Around the time that my human father had received this order, I had also found an injured sparrow and had tried to help it to the best of my childish abilities.

Crumbling up leftover bread in an attempt to feed it and applying a tiny splint to its crooked leg. Feeling helpless when the small bird laid panting in my hands.

And then, a gentle, large hand landed on top of my head. Making me look up into a handsome face as a golden eyed stranger smiled down at me.

"What do you have there, little one?" He questioned, making me open my cupped hands to show the bird.

"It's hurt and I'm trying to make it better." I stated, finger delicately tracing the back of the small bird before sighing. "But nothing's working."

The man hummed, crouching down so we were eyelevel, eyes flitting from the bird to my face. "Sometimes, all that we need is some warmth and magic."

With that, he removed the tiny splint, cupping his hands around mine, hiding the small bird from view before leaning forwards and breathing into our hands.

And when he pulled away, the sparrow twittered and flew up into the sky. Healthy, healed and free.

Looking back to the man it awe, he has smiled, winked and then tapped my forehead.

Making me forget about the unnatural event until now.