If one were to ask the Lady Sigyn what her thought were of Loki when she were younger, she would have told you that he is not to be trusted. Secretly though, she found the trickster god to be very attractive. In the few times they had conversed while her mother was visiting with Lady Frigga, she found his mind to be quite astounding. Loki was far more clever than anyone she had met before. He also did something that no one had done since her father's passing: he made her laugh.
Loki was similarly entranced by the young woman. She was very loyal to her mother and sister, perhaps stronger than that of Thor's own loyalty to the royal family. Sigyn made him want to be a better person than the rumors that were spread throughout the Nine Realms. She also stirs something within him, a sort of yearning for a person that he never felt with the imbeciles that always surrounded him (with the exception of his mother and brother). It was only after one of the many times they met that Loki realized that he wished to have her as his own. He knew that he could never go to Odin about such things, so he turned to his mother for advice. Frigga was rather pleased at Loki's choice of a bride. There was the complication of Theoric wishing to marry Sigyn as well, but with a few well-placed tricks, Loki and Frigga managed to trick Odin into marrying him to his love.
In their bed chambers later that evening (after much yelling from Odin), Loki found Sigyn on their bed sobbing. His heart clenched at the sight, fearing that he finally overstepped. But when she looked at his, she was smiling, a wide smile that spoke of joy. Sigyn rushed over to her husband, throwing her arms around him in a tight embrace. She pulled away slightly to pepper his face with kisses while mumbling thank you and I love you into the cool skin she found. Sigyn had always know on some level that she loved Loki, not fully realizing it until she saw him change forms at their wedding. Sigyn did not wish to spend eternity being some housewife to a brute, and now she had the chance to be herself. Just as she always had been with Loki.
That first night they spend together was just the beginning of a love that would define them both.
~*Asgard*~
The next few hundred years were spent raising their children Alvis, Åsa and Guðríðr. Alvis and Åsa were twins of immense fighting skills while Guðríðr preferred the art of magic much like her father. Things weren't easy, what with the relationship between Loki and Odin, and Sigyn and her mother, but they managed to make it together. Nothing could tear them apart... until it was revealed of Loki's true heritage and why Odin brought him to Asgard. Loki didn't want his resentment of Odin to cloud his children, so he fled to Midgard. It was there he found Thanos. Loki was tortured and brain-washed with the aide of the Mind Gem, turning him into something that the legends described him as: a monster. It was only the thought of Sigyn and his children that kept him from completely forgetting who he truly was. He couldn't let Thanos know how much control he had over himself again, so he attacked Midgard as planned.
The only thing was, he let the team of heroes defeated him.
Loki was too clever to be easily defeated, though he still would have had trouble with the Stark girl no matter the situation. He knew if he put up just enough resistance, Thanos would be none the wiser and his family would remain safe. The trickster god wasn't expecting Stark to be able to handle the power of the Mind Stone, but she helped to wipe the remaining traces of the Gem from his mind, a deed that he would one day have to return the favor for.
But first, he had to return to those he loved.
~*Asgard*~
"Hey, Big Guy," Toni called when she saw Thor enter the living space. She raised an eyebrow when Loki walked in, but she just took that in stride. "Hey, Loki," she called to him. He came over and sat next to her at the kitchen counter. Suddenly a woman walked in that reminded Toni of Charlize Theron, towing three children with her. "Oh dear God there's more of you," she said.
Loki rolled his eyes at the mortal's comment. "Guðríðr is the only one that uses magic like I, but do not underestimate Alvis and Åsa. They share their mother's fighting prowess," the trickster god told her, pride in his eyes as he looked at his children.
Toni smiled as the youngest one walked up to her, pulling on the cuff of her jeans. Figuring that the squirt wanted to sit on her lap, Toni picked the youngest up and placed her on her thigh, unconsciously bouncing her leg. The child in Toni's lap was a perfect combination of Loki and who Toni assumed was Sigyn, blonde hair wavy and grey eyes sharp. "What's your name?" Toni asked the child.
"Guðríðr. And you're the Midgardian who can battle an Infinity Stone," Guðríðr said bluntly.
Toni blinked at the girl before smiling. "Well it wasn't that great of a battle. I just basically told it that I wasn't in the mood to do its bidding."
"You're never in the mood to do anyone's bidding," Clint commented from where he was sitting on the couch with Bruce, Steve and Thor.
The genius girl hummed. "Never for SHIELD," she corrects, "which stands for Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division," Toni clarifies for Guðríðr. Suddenly a bright smile lights up her face. "C'mon. I wanna show you something cool." Toni got up, holding Guðríðr close as she made her way to the elevator. "I always love showing off, especially with this."
"What is it?" the other girl asked. Åsa, Toni thinks her name is.
"'It' is my pride and joy," Toni replied, entering the elevator with the children and their parents. She shrugged when the others didn't move an inch from the couch. Clint will probably stream the event to the TV, Toni thought. They exited the elevator to the training floor, a huge heavily-plated room in a sort of bowl shape. Toni had a hell of a time mixing steel and a synthetic vibranium alloy, but in the end it worked out, especially when Hulk wanted to stretch his legs. "J, bring out Marks III-V please." A moment later three Iron Man suits entered the training floor, circling around the room twice before landing a few feet away from the group. The children looked in awe, their eyes wide at viewing a new magic. Toni smiled, setting Guðríðr down next to her siblings. "Go ahead. You can touch. You can even talk to them if you want. Just don't break them please," Toni cautioned, and the children scrambled to play with them, Alvis climbing the Mark IV like it was a jungle gym. Toni laughed. Even though there was no possibility of Toni ever having kids of her own, she liked spending time with them. Give them the childhood she only rarely got to experience. If Toni could be someone's Jarvis or Peggy, she'd do it in a heartbeat.
"I was under the assumption that you were apprehensive around children," Loki said.
Toni smirks. "SHIELD doesn't get everything right. You never let your enemy know all the cards in your hand so you can always have the chance of catching them off guard," she replied.
Loki nodded in approval, watching his children. "I am being forced to do penance for 100 years for my actions against Midgard. I have to protect what I nearly destroyed." Sigyn wrapped an arm around Loki's, intertwining their fingers and giving them a squeeze. Loki squeezed back, his eyes speaking of his gratitude for his wife's support.
Fuck, Toni thought. Now she felt bad for Loki, knowing it wasn't any of his fault. Then a thought popped into her head. In hindsight it was pretty obvious, causing Toni to chuckle under her breath. "I think I know where you can serve your sentence and have fun..."
~*Asgard*~
"Alright. You guys can head out to Westchester whenever you're ready. The Professor's really excited to get to know you," Toni told the demigod couple a few hours later in the kitchen (after playtime, naptime, and actually getting around to making the call).
Sigyn came over to Toni and embraced her fiercely. "Thank you so much, Lady Natasha," she said, pulling back but her hands going to grasp Toni's shoulders. "Your kindness to me and my family will not be forgotten."
Toni shrugged. "'s not a problem. Just call if you need anything."
The squirts gathered around Toni, hugging her legs. "Will we see you again?" Alvis asked, his lower lip trembling slightly.
Toni smiled, kneeling down to let them properly assault-hug her. "I visit the Institute so often that you'll grow tired of me pretty quickly."
"No!" they all shouted at the tops of their little lungs. "I'll learn a new trick for you for when you visit," Guðríðr promised, eyes too solemn for someone so young. They sadly reminded Toni of her own eyes when she was younger, a look that would never fully go away, no matter how much time passed. "As long as you enjoy learning it, I'll be very happy to watch," Toni promised, earning three radiant smiles before they were being escorted out of the building by their parents and uncle. Thor decided to go with them before heading off to New Mexico to see Dr. Foster. Alvis, Åsa and Guðríðr were gonna be hyper until they got to the institute, but the Professor arranged for Scott to pick them up in a few minutes, so Toni wasn't too worried.
"You're surprisingly good with children," Bruce said from behind her.
Toni turned around, meeting the other scientist's eye before shrugging. "Not my fault that they're cute as shit." Her stomach grumbled, causing Toni to frown. "I'm hungry," she whimpered, pounting. Bruce rolled his eyes before walking to the fridge. Toni smiled, fist pumping the air. Children and not having to cook? Fuck yeah!