10.

Tyra liked the park. Olivia liked to pretend that her life was normal. Loki liked to pretend that they were a family.

Crouching next to Tyra, he grinned and watched her explore the world around her. She was sitting on the grass, her tiny brow furrowed slightly as her hands clutched it, tugging. She looked like she was trying to work out a complex puzzle, unsure of what the grass was, and it was very amusing to watch.

Finally, Tyra pulled a handful of grass up and held it to Loki, looking very proud of herself. Smiling, Loki gently took it from her.

"Thank you," he said softly.

A butterfly fluttered past and Tyra stared at it with wide eyes, no longer interested in the grass. She leaned back so far that she almost fell over had Loki now caught her in time.

Laughing, Loki sat down and lifted Tyra onto his lap. She fidgeted slightly, trying to clutch the grass again.

Loki held his palm out and Tyra stared at it. The butterfly gently landed on his hand.

It stayed there for a few seconds before Tyra scared it with her cry of excitement, throwing herself forwards in a desperate attempt to catch it, and it flew away. Loki laughed, kissing the top of her head.

"You have to be patient, little one," he murmured in her ear.

Loving his daughter was the easiest thing Loki had ever done. He still marveled at the fact that Tyra, this tiny little baby girl, was his daughter, his flesh and blood. She was so beautiful and small and vulnerable, depending on him and Olivia for everything. A lesser man would've been afraid. Loki was honoured.

"She didn't eat any grass, did she?"

"No," Loki replied, looking up at Olivia. She sat down across from him, beaming at Tyra, and handed him his drink. "Thank you." Sipping the coffee, Loki grimaced slightly. It had been a long time since he drank Midgardian beverages.

"There's only one sugar," Olivia told him, sipping her own drink.

"You remembered."

"That you hate sweet tea almost as much as you hate tea," Olivia said with a small smile. "How could I forget?"

"I am just thankful it isn't that fizzy beverage . . . "

Olivia grinned at the memory. The face that Loki pulled when he first tasted Pepsi would be forever embedded in her mind.

Loki put Tyra in between them again, watching her tear up the grass and chuck it in the air, giggling as it tickled her face when it fell down. Her innocence was incredibly endearing.

Her legs crossed, Olivia began making a daisy chain. She put it around Tyra's neck and laughed at her daughter's look of confusion.

"It's a daisy chain," she told Tyra. Tyra responded by pulling on it so hard that it broke. Olivia sighed. "Well that's five minutes of my life that I won't get back."

Loki laughed quietly, his hand brushing the top of Tyra's head. Her dark hair was fluffy.

"We should probably try to get on from now on," Olivia said, sipping her drink.

"I agree."

"For Tyra's sake if nothing else. She can't have her parents being at each other's throats all the time, it isn't fair on her."

"You wish to be civil for our daughter's sake," Loki said.

"For an easy life, I guess."

Olivia always had been blunt. It made Loki frown sadly.

"I don't know what you were expecting," she said, seeing Loki's face.

Neither did Loki, if he was completely honest. He had been hoping for Olivia's forgiveness, but he hadn't been expecting anything.

"I love our daughter," he finally said, watching Tyra as her hand curled around his finger. "And I cannot deny that I still care for you, Olivia. If an easy life is what you wish for, then I shall do all I can to make it so."

"Great."

Neither of them said much else on the matter, rather focusing on their daughter.

Olivia didn't say anything, but she was hurting so much inside. Her stomach twisted uncomfortably and she was stubbornly fighting the tears she longed to cry; she'd missed Loki so much. She couldn't let him straight back into her life after everything he'd done, everything he'd said to her, even if it was only to protect her.

"Hey," she said brightly to Tyra. "Why don't we go visit the ducks?"

"May I?" Loki asked as Olivia stood up, picking Tyra up. She hesitated slightly before nodding.

Loki mimicked the way Olivia carried Tyra, holding her tightly against his hip and trying not to flinch as she tugged on his hair. She was strong for such a little one.

Pushing the buggy, Olivia shot the occasional glance at Loki. He seemed totally relaxed and at ease with Tyra.

"You're good with her," she commented, looking straight ahead.

"Thank you." Loki smiled, but she didn't see. "As are you."

Olivia snorted. "You haven't seen me on a bad day."

"Even on a bad day I am sure that you are a perfectly acceptable mother."

"I think there's a compliment in there somewhere."

Despite himself, Loki laughed.

At the pond, Tyra adored the ducks. She squealed and clapped her hands and kicked her chubby little legs when she saw them, laughing when Olivia mimicked the quacking noises they made. Keeping a firm grip on her, Loki crouched by the edge of the pond and let her slap her hands against the water.

"I told you she wasn't afraid," Olivia said smugly, laughing at Tyra.

"And I apologise for my mistake. I shouldn't have doubted our daughter."

Grinning, Olivia took her camera out, taking a few quick photos of Loki and Tyra before Tyra lost interest. Her grin faltered slightly when she looked back at the images.

"Is everything alright?" Loki asked her, standing up. Tyra screamed in protest.

"Yeah, yeah," Olivia said, grinning again. "Look, they're great."

The images were great. Loki couldn't help but smile at them.

"They're very nice," he said truthfully.

Olivia was about to ask Tyra wha she thought of them when she caught whiff of an unpleasant smell. Taking Tyra from Loki, she lifted her in the air and sniffed again.

"Oh dear, someone's done a stinky," she announced, grimacing. "I'd better go change her."

"I'll wait here."

It all felt very . . . domestic, taking their daughter on walks and discussing the contents of her diaper. It made Loki feel strange.

Even if he couldn't be part of Olivia's life, he was determined to be there for his daughter.

"Thank you for allowing me to accompany you," Loki said as he and Olivia strode into the tower.

"No problem. You're her dad, you have to do this sort of thing."

"I would like to do it on a regular basis if I may."

"Of course it'll be on a regular basis, we can't keep her cooped up inside," Olivia said in a tone that made Loki feel rather foolish. He expected her to tag on a 'duh' on the end but thankfully she didn't.

"I enjoyed myself."

"Yeah, so did I," Olivia admitted, smiling.

Their moment was only brief as it was interrupted by a fussing Tyra. Olivia rolled her eyes, looked down and continued to walk.

Loki followed her quickly. The elevator ride was silent other than Tyra's unintelligible babble; Olivia had insisted that she was talking to them.

Olivia didn't go to the lounge, as Loki had initially expected, but rather to her room, telling him that she needed to put Tyra down for a lap.

"I suppose you'll want to help," she said.

"If I may."

"Might as well get some practise."

Taking Tyra in his arms, Loki carried her into her nursery and helped Olivia change her.

"You could sing to her," Olivia suggested. "She likes that."

Smiling, Loki tightened his grip on Tyra and started to sing in a low voice in her ear, singing the same lullaby that Frigga had sung to him when he was a child. Tyra was as stubborn as her mother and fought sleep the best she could, but eventually succumbed. Her head lolled against Loki's chest and her chest rose as she breathed.

Kissing the top of her head, Loki handed her to Olivia, who gently lay Tyra in her cot.

They stood over the cot for a moment, both gazing at their daughter with complete love and adoration.

"I still haven't forgiven you, you know," Olivia said quietly, looking up at him with her big blue eyes.

"I understand."

"I don't think I'll ever properly forgive you either," she continued. "Not after what you did." She looked down at Tyra. "But we can be civil. For Tyra."

"Yes," Loki whispered. "For Tyra."

Thank you TheDoctor'sAmazingCompanion, IvyLinkin, Smileychamelon, Kassandra J, Junglecat9 and MissPadawan for reviewing!