As soon as Loki was able to walk around the room, he disappeared. Sigyn finally lied to Tony about what had happened. Since she'd actually felt the pain of losing him, acting like it was real was rather easy. Tony was extremely sweet about it, offering to charter another boat for him, but Sigyn politely declined. It was rude to hold a funeral for someone who still lived.

Sleipnir didn't understand at all. Loki had instructed her to make it out as if he was dead to everyone, their children included. Sleepy thought Loki had gone on some sort of trip, and would always be asking when he'd return. "Where Faver, Mover? Where Faver?" She'd pipe. Sigyn's heart would break every time. "He's not coming back, Sweetheart."

"Not?" Sleepy would blink, not understanding at all. "Otay!" And she would run off to play.

As her child grew within her, Sigyn found herself missing her husband more than ever before. She would lie awake at night, sometimes, hugging his pillows to her chest. If she closed her eyes, and breathed in the scent they still retained, she could almost pretend he was sleeping beside her. A cynical, annoying part of her mind pointed out that Loki did not have nearly the same texture as a pillow. She stuck her tongue out at that part of her mind, and ignored it, but it still wasn't the same. At all. She wondered how he would react to her earlier days of pregnancy, as he'd only ever seen the last two months of her previous term.

He'd promised her that he'd return. He'd never broken a promise to her, so she believed it. But as the weeks turned to months, and the months started piling up, it started getting harder to believe. He'd left his phone with her, so there wasn't any way at all to contact him.

When she was six months into her pregnancy, she started missing him enough to forget, sometimes, that he was even coming back. She didn't pack up any of his things, but she sorted through the papers on his desk. To keep from thinking, mainly, but also, because a small seed of doubt had sown itself in her heart. Time passed much quicker on Midgard than on Asgard. What if by the time he considered her again, she was already dead? Yes, he'd come back, but… when? Before her funeral? So, she tried to keep herself from thinking. It was rather funny, the kind of things she found on his desk. Mostly research papers, a few short stories, but there was also the occasional distracted slip of paper covered in doodles.

There was one with a rather hilarious caricature of Steve, frozen into a literal popsicle inside a freezer. Tony, using a sharpie to color his moustache on. Thor, sticking his finger into an electrical socket. And about three pages of the words, "Loki and Sigyn" written in different fonts, different sizes, different colored pens, some with hearts around them, some without. It was amusing to Sigyn that, despite how chivalrously he treated her, and how much he doted on her, he could really act like a teenager with a crush, sometimes.

She missed him. Time crept on, and every day started appearing the same, to her. They were slowly running out of the readily available money, too. Loki had been in charge of finances, and had only allowed a fraction of his actual paycheck into their checking account. Most of the money was stored away in a savings account in a Swiss bank, under a fake name. Only Loki had the password. Sigyn couldn't access it, but if she could, she wouldn't have to work another day in her life.

She thought about getting employed, herself, but she realized getting a day job would leave Sleipnir, and eventually, her son, unattended. She couldn't bear the thought of handing them over to a nursery, or a preschool while she worked. That would be handing the task of mothering them to someone else, in her opinion. She'd miss her little boy's first steps, his first words, his first teeth. She wouldn't be the one to teach Sleipnir how to read, how to spell out her name. No, handing her children to the childcare system was out of the question, for her. She couldn't get a job until her son was born, since nobody would hire a woman so close to requiring maternity leave. Would the money last the remaining three months? What if it didn't?

Tony was extremely kind to her, every weekend she visited the tower. He was her only friend she trusted herself around, seeing as the enormous secret of Loki's absolutely not-deadness was a bit obvious in the way she thought and spoke. She was keeping in touch with her family, back in Alfheim, but they really couldn't help her. None of them even knew she was pregnant.

Just when she had almost given up hope, when her son within her was only a month from arriving, he returned. In the dead of night, as she read a book, half-curled on the couch, he suddenly materialized beside her.

"Hello…" He spoke up softly, scaring her out of her skin.

"LOKI?!" She screamed, dropping the book in her shock. "Where did you come from?"

He shrugged one shoulder, giving her a soft, mischievous smile. "Jotunheim."

"I thought…" She gasped, throwing herself into his arms. "I thought you weren't coming back!" She bit back a sob, clinging desperately to his chest. "I missed you so much…"

"I told you I'd return." He ran his fingers through her hair. "Did you forget?"

Sigyn shook her head. "No… I just wasn't sure… when."

He chuckled lightly, cupping her face in his hands. "Two weeks isn't such a long time, is it, Beloved?"

She stared at him in shock. "Two weeks?"

He didn't appear to understand. "Yes…"

Sigyn glanced down at her pregnant belly. "Do I look like it's been only two weeks?"

"No…" Loki admitted. "But I wasn't going to point that out. It's been longer, here, hasn't it? How long was I gone?"

Sigyn's lips trembled, and when she spoke, her voice cracked. "Melleth… It's been six months."

"Six…" Loki breathed, his eyes widening guiltily. "Oh, Sigyn, I'm so sorry! If I'd have known, I would have come back far sooner. I thought two weeks to be quite the stretch, but… six months…"

Sigyn leaned her head against his collarbone, unable to keep her tears back any longer. "I thought…" She sniffled. "Something had happened, again. Or perhaps… you'd forgotten about me."

"Forgotten? You?" Loki laughed, wrapping his arms around her. "Dearest, I would never forget you. Never. You are the light of my eyes, and the reason I live, I'm not going to just… forget you." He gently tilted her face up to look at him, wiping away her tears. "Please don't cry Sig, I can't bear it."

Sigyn gulped back her tears, drawing back to look him over. "Sorry. You look tired."

"I am, a bit." He admitted. 'You don't happen to have some food, around here, somewhere?"

"Yeah, I'll get it." Sigyn said, starting to hoist herself to her feet.

Loki jumped up, gently pressing her against the back of the couch. "No, no, don't bother! I can get it!"

Sigyn pouted. "But I want to talk to you! I haven't even seen you in forever!"

Loki smiled, creating an illusion of himself on the couch. "Talk to me." The illusion prompted. "I don't need food to survive."

Sigyn smiled, and leaned against the back of the couch contentedly. "Alright. On your way back, real Loki, who I know can totally hear me, could you fetch me my purse?"

"Yes, of course." The illusion agreed, leaning forward eagerly. "So how have you been? Besides lonely, as you've already said."

"Lonely." Sigyn reiterated. "And melancholy. Despondent. Depressed. Sad. Upset."

"It can't have been all bad, can it?" He laughed nervously, scooting closer. "Tell me you were happy, at least some of the time."

Sigyn nodded. "Yes. I was. A bit. When I was asleep, and dreaming of you."

He gave her an unimpressed look. "Honestly, you weren't happy at all? The entire time? Don't tell me I have to force happy thoughts into your head, do I?"

Sigyn grinned mischievously. "Alright, yes. I was happy, on Christmas. Sleepy and I had a sleepover at the tower, and I snuck blue dye into the plumbing, so everyone who took a shower the next morning was blue. It was hilarious. And the coffee turned this strange, purple color, and the dishes were stained when people washed them, and Clint ran a load of laundry, and the entire thing came out blue. It was glorious."

"That's my girl!" Loki cheered, walking into the room with a plate of fish and her purse. "Here you go, Beloved."

She eagerly dug through it, (the purse, not the fish) until she found what she was looking for. Triumphantly, she handed three small slips of thick paper to Loki.

"What's this?" He asked, sitting on the couch next to her as the illusion fizzled away.

She smiled in excitement. "Anthony called them 'ultrasounds'. They're pictures of the baby, made with sound waves."

"Oh…" Loki's eyes lit up as he flipped through them. "He's beautiful… wait, is it a he, this time? It's been a he in my own mind for a while, now."

"It's a he." Sigyn confirmed.

"Named?" Loki asked eagerly, grinning like a child at the three images, the fish completely forgotten in his lap.

Sigyn hesitated. She… hadn't… named him. She always referred to him as "Loki's baby", or simply "Baby". Loki had named Sleipnir, so it was only fair for her to name this child, but, she honestly hadn't even considered a name. "I… don't know. You have anything in mind?"

"Jormungandir?" Loki asked.

"Bless you." Sigyn replied promptly.

Loki gave a snort of laughter. "No, that's what I want to call him."

"Quite a mouthful, isn't it?" Sigyn asked skeptically. "You want to saddle your son with a beast of a name like that?"

"You can shorten it." Loki immediately replied. "Or… I could always think of something else. If you don't like it."

"No, no, your child, you name him what you want. Jor… Jormungandir, you said? How do you spell that?"

"Erm… J-O-R-M-U-N-G-A-N-D-I-R?" Loki smiled nervously.

Sigyn tapped her chin. "Seems like I've heard that name, somewhere…"

"It's the name of the Midgard Serpent." Loki volunteered. "It died many centuries ago, but when it was alive, it could wrap around the whole realm."

Sigyn nodded, somewhat understanding. "So, you want to name your child after a mighty beast, in hopes that he'll be a mighty warrior, himself?"

"Something like that…" Loki awkwardly scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Of course, it doesn't particularly matter to me, if he wishes to be something besides a warrior…"

"Naturally." Sigyn agreed. "Jormungandir… I like it, actually. Still long, but I like it. What would I call him…?"

"You know who Mahatma Gandhi was?" Loki asked mischievously.

Sigyn nodded. "Midgardian spiritual leader from India, did ground-breaking work for peaceful protests and pacifist counter-measures against injustice?"

Loki inclined his head. "You could call him Gandhi…"

Sigyn snorted in laughter. "That's actually…. Perfect. He can be a mighty peacemaker!"

Loki nodded in agreement, opting to say nothing, merely stared in fascination at the ultrasounds in his hand.

"Whatcha thinking?" Sigyn asked, leaning over his shoulder to stare at the already-familiar pictures.

"I wonder, will he have green eyes, or brown?" Loki quietly mused.

"My bet's on green." Sigyn said. "It's prettier."

"Doesn't make it more likely." Loki pointed out. "I'd say brown, because, first of all, we already have a green-eyed child. Plus, brown is the dominant gene."

"Oh, do you have to make everything so science-y?" Sigyn scoffed. "Did you notice how his ears are pointed?"

"That they are." Loki grinned. "I'd say he looks more elf than Aiser."

Sigyn gave him a look. "He's not Aiser."

"Oh… That's right." Loki's cheerful mood crumbled. "I'd forgotten."

Sigyn didn't know what to say. Loki gently handed back the ultrasounds, and dropped his face into his hands.

"Sorry…" Sigyn whispered, resting a hand on his shoulder. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"It's fine." He mumbled, glancing at her from between his fingers. "It's… getting easier for me to… accept. But… the lies… it still hurts, you know?"

Sigyn nodded understandingly, fumbling through her brain for a less awkward topic. "So… how's Odin?"

Loki immediately cheered at that, a wicked grin appearing on his face. "He didn't even remember his name. It was great. I never have to think about him, again! I don't think anyone's even noticed anything off at all, and Thor, for certain, doesn't suspect a thing."

Sigyn rolled her eyes. "Oh, great… I honestly don't know if that's a good thing, or not."

"Um… and… Svartalfheim gave a formal apology for Malekith's… behavior, and we're well on our way to a peace treaty." Loki quickly offered. Sigyn glanced at his timid, hopeful face. He was worried. About… what? He seemed to be walking on eggshells around her.

"What's wrong, Melleth?" She asked.

"Nothing's wrong." Loki tilted his head in confusion. "Are… are you alright? Are you upset with me? Why do you ask?"

Sigyn narrowed her eyes. "You're nervous."

"Nervous? Me? No!" Loki smirked nervously. "I'm not… nervous… what's to be nervous about?"

"You're afraid of what I'm thinking of you." Sigyn spoke. "You're worried that I'm mad at you."

The Trickster hung his head. "Well, maybe a little. It's just… I love you, Princess Ziggy. I don't want you to be upset with me."

"I'm not upset." She quickly assured him. "I'm just happy you're back. How long can you stay?"

Loki winced. "I really ought to be back in Asgard by tomorrow. But I'll try to make it home before… Gandhi's born. Is that alright?"

"Yeah. It shouldn't be too long." Sigyn took his hand. "Have you heard from Vali?"

Loki nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, he knows about my being Odin." Loki traced her palm tenderly. "He's… doing fine, and I'm trying to find a way to discreetly allow him an apprenticeship under Eir."

"Well, good luck with that." Sigyn laughed. Odin had always hated Vali and Narfi, and there was really no in-character reason for him to start liking them, now, let alone do them favors.

"And your wound?" Sigyn asked, gently touching where she knew it to be, under his tunic. He winced. "Don't touch it, please. Still hurts."

"All the time, or just when it's touched?" She wondered.

Loki pressed his lips together, debating on whether or not to answer. Sigyn already knew. "Thalionen, I can always heal it." She sighed, offering for what seemed the ninety-third time.

"But I don't want you to exert yourself." Loki countered. "I know how exhausting healing magic is. Besides, I can bear it."

Sigyn gave him an unimpressed look. "You look beat."

"I feel it." He admitted, finally taking a bite of his fish. "In fact, I feel as if I've been digested twice over by a lindworm."

"Well that was rather specific." Sigyn grinned. "How do you know what that feels like?"

"Don't ask." Loki laughed, snarfing down the remainder of his fish as if it was the only thing he'd eaten that day. "I could sleep for a week." He announced, flopping bonelessly onto her arm.

She fondly stroked his hair for a few minutes, waiting for him to make the next remark. They were silent for a while, until Loki let out a soft snore. Sigyn glanced down at him. Sound asleep.

Poor guy… she thought to herself. It must be exhausting, running a realm. Suddenly, his eyes flew open. "What was that? I'm awake." He insisted, sitting up and rubbing at his eyes.

"Fake news." Sigyn proclaimed. "You're dead on your feet."

"Perhaps." He chuckled softly, before scooping her up into his arms, and carrying her back to their bedroom.

The next morning, his side of the bed was cold and empty, and Sigyn wasn't sure if he'd ever returned at all, or if it had been a dream. Well, until she noticed his phone, and one of the three ultrasound pictures were missing.

For him, he arrived exactly three days later, but for her, it was a little over a month. He'd missed Jormungandir's birth by fourteen days. Sigyn was sitting at the counter, reading a book, when Loki materialized behind her. She didn't notice he was there, so he quietly snuck up behind her, and gently laid a hand on her shoulder. She screamed shrilly, whirled around, and, before she realizing who he was, kneed him twice in the groin.

Loki collapsed on the floor, groaning in pain.

That was when Sigyn realized who he was. "Oh, my word, Thalionen, I'm so sorry!"

"Ow…" Was all Loki could manage. "Ow…" He wheezed She knelt down beside him, wringing her hands anxiously. "Are you okay?"

"Ow…" He glanced at her in bewilderment. "What… was that for?"

Sigyn smiled embarrassedly. "I didn't know… I thought it was some weird Hydra dude…"

"Oh…" Loki breathed. "That's alright, then. I'm not Hydra."

'You're okay, though, right?" She asked nervously, helping him back to his feet.

"Mildly dead, but I'll live." Loki smiled down at her. "Hasn't Hydra been extinct since Cap went under?"

Sigyn winced. "Actually… about that… They've been co-existing? No, more like a parasite off of SHIELD since Red Skull died. This I know, because Steve told me, last week."

"Ah." Loki acknowledged. "Inconvenient, that."

"Yep." Sigyn agreed. "That, and, his friend, you know, the one that supposedly died back in the forties? Well, apparently, he's not dead, only brainwashed by Hydra, and killing people for them."

"Hm." Loki nodded, sitting on the counter. "Go on."

"Urm… Tony got the arc reactor out of his chest, I don't know if I told you that, last time."

"No, you didn't." Loki agreed. "He got the shrapnel removed, as well, or is he just extremely dead?"

Sigyn laughed, sitting on the bar stool she'd been on, earlier. "Shrapnel, too. Oh, and Fury died. But he's not actually dead."

Loki raised an eyebrow. "I… see."

"Mm-hm." Sigyn smiled. "Steve has a new friend, Sam Wilson, he has fake wings, and he can fly with them."

Loki raised his eyebrows in confusion, but Sigyn went on, undeterred. "Let me think, what else is news… We got a lead on the scepter, and we'll most likely have it back within three months."

"Good, good." Loki nodded. "I've been meaning to have it back."

"We're not giving it to you, of course." Sigyn laughed. "it will be solely under the custody of the Avengers." She hesitated. "Not that you aren't an Avenger…" She back-tracked, noting the mildly hurt expression his face. "You're just… you're technically dead."

Loki shrugged. "I didn't really want it, anyway." He mumbled. "The closer I get to it, the better the Master can track me, because of the bond my mind has with it."

Sigyn was about to say something, but was cut off by a loud wail from their bedroom. "Oh, yeah. I had the baby!"

Loki grinned. "I noticed. May I see him?"

"Of course!" Sigyn jumped up, taking Loki's hand, and leading him down the hall. The small baby was lying in the crib at the foot of the bed, wailing his lungs out, and kicking his feet in the air.

Loki's eyes widened as Sigyn left him at the doorway, and scooped her small (Well, not exactly small for a two-week old baby, but smaller than Sigyn) son, and cradled him to her chest. "Hey, Gandhi!" She crooned, rocking to quiet him. "Who's my hungry little boy?"

"NYAAAH! NYAAAH!" Gandhi wept, without shedding any actual tears. Sigyn slipped out of her shirt, and guided Gandhi's mouth to her breast, where he sucked greedily. Loki's eyes were as big as saucers as Sigyn sat down on the bed, leaning against the bedpost as her son ate.

Loki quietly crept forward, timidly sitting beside them on the bed, his eyes never once leaving the small bundle in Sigyn's arms.

"Whatcha thinking?" Sigyn spoke up.

Loki opened his mouth to speak, but found there were no words to say. After a bit of fish-gaping, he finally came up with words. "He's… he's beautiful, Sig. How old?"

"Only two weeks." Sigyn smiled, brushing the dark hair from her son's eyes as he fed.

"He's enormous!" Loki blurted. "I'd say he looks more like a three-month-old!"

Sigyn glanced up at his face, hoping she wouldn't have to be the one to remind him, again. To her surprise, he was already in his Jotun form, for some reason.

"I really need to get used to giant babies." He muttered, reaching hesitantly for Gandhi's waving fist. Tiny pale fingers curled around long blue ones, and held tight. Loki's crimson eyes filled with tears. "Oh, he's so precious…" He whispered, as the blue hue spread down Gandhi's skin, disappearing under the hem of his onesie sleeve, and reappearing on his tiny face, staining his entire form blue, curious, yet sleepy red eyes blinking in fascination at the world. Sigyn jumped, startled. "Gah, he's cold!" She breathed.

"Sorry." Loki quickly pulled his hand away. "I didn't mean…"

"It's fine, Loki." Sigyn assured him, switching Gandhi from one breast to the other. "Just startled me, that's all."

Loki flashed her a grateful smile, and scooted closer. "When… once you're done, may I hold him? Please?"

"Yeah, sure." Sigyn smiled. "But, in the meantime…"

"Hm?"

"I told you about what's going on, on Midgard. What's going on in the golden realm?" Sigyn asked eagerly.

Loki smirked. "I held my funeral, yesterday."

"And you didn't invite me?!" Sigyn gasped. "Rude!"

Loki shrugged. "Yes, I suppose so. But I thought you'd laugh too much, and possibly give me away."

Sigyn nodded. "One hundred percent, I would certainly laugh at your funeral."

"Not what I meant…" Loki rolled his eyes. "But, yes, that would be what it would look like. That you were laughing at my funeral. And that's extremely OoC."

"OoC?" Sigyn asked.

"Out of character." He explained. "I've been coerced into reading too much fanfiction."

"By Tony, naturally." Sigyn smirked.

"Naturally." Loki agreed. "Regardless. Out of character. You. Laughing at my funeral."

Sigyn lifted her chin. "And how would you know this, sir? You've never been to your funeral, you don't know!"

"Correction." Loki held up a blue finger. "I attended my own funeral, just yesterday. And, had you been there, you would have laughed. A lot."

Sigyn giggled. "Alright, you win. But if it were the real thing, I promise you, I would never laugh."

"I'm honored." Loki smiled, leaning against the footrest beside her. "And bored."

Sigyn detached Gandhi from herself, and handed him to Loki. "Significantly less bored, now." Loki breathed, cradling his son tenderly. "I don't know who's my firstborn son, anymore…"

"What do you mean?"

Loki glanced up at her. "Technically, Narfi came out of the incubator first, but Va's older, about half a year, because he's spent more time on Midgard, where time goes faster. And now, this little one… he's the first to come from our union… do I have three firstborn sons?"

"And a firstborn daughter." Sigyn smirked.

"Of course. We mustn't forget Sleepy." Loki laughed, stroking his fingers down Gandhi's cheek. "Our family is hilariously complicated."

"But awesome." Sigyn smiled, slipping her shirt back over her head.

"Little, and broken." Loki agreed, a yawn almost splitting his head in half. "But still good."

"Yeah." Sigyn snuggled in to his side. "Still good."

Yay, Lilo and Stitch references!

TheOnlyHuman.