A/N: Alright, guys. I will admit- Last chapter was not one of my best. I went back and read it, due to some... not-so-stellar reviews. I realized, I was so excited about actually writing a chapter, that I really didn't care about the quality. You probably already know this, but this story has been really hard for me. I started with just an idea; I lost any notes I had; I basically started with nothing. I've been making up each chapter as I go. And it shows! In the beginning, we started out with talk about Loki's abuse. But slowly, the story transitioned to be almost entirely about Tony being Loki's father.

It's not quite where I expected it to go, to be honest. But I actually love it. A lot. I spent a bit of time on this chapter, making sure it wasn't just written well, but that it was how I wanted the story to end. So I hope you enjoy!

[Epilogue]

"Look, you don't have to decide anything right now, and we don't want to pressure you into anything you don't want, but-" Tony took a deep breath and quickly stepped forward again. He paced for a few circuits. "-but I still... you're still my kid. And I-I care about you..." He shuddered. "A lot. I'm very emotionally invested, you see, which isn't a very common thing so you should feel very special, really-"

"Tony," Pepper stressed the name fondly. She shook her head; soft, strawberry-blonde locks shifted like water over her shoulders.

"Right, right, no chattering. But really, Pep, chattering is what I do best-" The man cut himself off. He took another fortifying breath. "I just- We just think it might be best, for everyone, if you... continued living in the tower."

"Ah," Loki nodded. A charming smile came to his lips, and Tony could cry for the complete lack of similarities between him and his younger self. "Did your Man of Fury give you this request, or did you master such a thing as this yourself?"

"Loki," Tony's face crumpled slightly, and the god's face went suddenly blank. "I would never take orders from Nicky bear. And I... I can't go back to the way things were... I know, now that you're an adult again you think we have to be enemies and fight in the streets but- Loki, that's not what forgiveness means. We're not just going to kick you out on your as-"

"Tony," Pepper intoned.

"He's not seven anymore, Pep!" The billionaire protested. He rolled his eyes at her heated glared. "Ugh. Fine. We're not just going to kick you out on your... butt all alone! We're... We're family now... Doesn't that... Doesn't it mean anything?"

"I've had so-called 'family' before, Stark," Loki scowled. "Don't think you can-"

"Don't you do this," Tony snapped. "Don't try and act like you don't want this. Three days ago you were a child, and you were with us everyday for over a year. We were your family, and you could depend on us more than anyone else. Being an adult doesn't change any of that." The brunette huffed and resumed pacing. "Look, we don't want you here out of some- some twisted revenge, or to keep an eye on you, or anything like that."

"Then what do you want me for!" Loki growled.

"How many times do I gotta say it! You are my kid! My son! I-I... I love you! I watched your for a year. I read you bedtimes stories and played with you and watched you grow. I don't want you out there, all alone again! I've been where you are!" Tony threw his hands up. "And I've messed up before! Big time! But you know what? Somehow, I still ended up here, saving the day and helping people."

Loki turned his face away.

"You don't have to be the bad guy anymore," Tony pleaded. Like a switch had been flipped, Loki's eyes flooded with tears. He wiped them away quickly, but the man had already seen. "Look, we forgave you, right? Why on earth- Midgard- whatever- would we kick you out? We want you here. We all do. Even Clint. We want to keep you close, because you're already close and we don't want you to leave."

Loki buried his face in his hands, shoulders shaking.

"I can't stay," he declared, voice cracking and hitching. "My children- I-I... I made a deal- I have to- I need..."

"Look, whatever it is," Tony knelt in front of him, carefully taking Loki's hands in his. "We can work it out." Loki shook his head, but Tony nodded. "You don't have to do this by yourself. We can help you. We can't do everything for you, you're an adult now, c'mon. But! We'll always be here for you. We're always gonna help you. And, your kids, which apparently makes me a grandpa now- I feel old- We're gonna help them too. But you have to let us."

The room was silent for a moment.

Sunlight filtered in through the windows, shining across Tony's equipment and tools. Large, fluffy clouds drifted over the New York skyline. Pedestrians walked by Avengers Tower on the sidewalk, peacefully going about their daily lives.

Cars honked, hot dogs were sold, kids played in Central Park. An angry man on a screen yelled out over the city about a 'menace to their society'. A friendly neighborhood spider swung through the urban jungle.

"I'll stay," Loki finally committed. He slowly brought his eyes up to Tony's. "And I'm... I'm willing to try, if you are. But it will not be easy, Star- Anthony. There is someone of great power after me, about the deal I made. I cannot face him alone, and with him in my way, I will never be able to aid my children."

"We'll save your kids, Loki," Tony promised. "And we'll kick that guys as-"

"Tony," Loki smirked. The billionaire cuffed him upside the head.

"We'll get everything worked out," the brunette said instead. His honeyed brown eyes shown with sincerity and integrity.

Loki inclined his head.

"I do not doubt it."

A/N: Everyone, thank you so much for reading this, and for sticking with me through my issues. I know, there were long periods where I didn't update for months. Or times when I updated with short, choppy chapters. But this is the first story I've written, where I just started and went from there. Even with Fallen and Pueri Perierat, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them and where they were going. I have similar plans for Reversal, which will (hopefully) be done soon.

I guess I really just want to thank you guys for staying with me, and following this story, even when it was starting to crash. It means a lot to me. And I'm thinking about going back and revising the last chapter, to make up for it originally sucking.

If you want to read a similar story to this one, check out Furious Daddy Fury! I started that, much like this one, with a half-formed idea! I've been making it up as I go along, and now I'm having my readers decide how I'll end it. I could really use votes in either direction. *shameless self-promotion*

QUESTION OF THE UPDATE: Whew, that was a long and emotionally-challenging Author's Note! And I have no idea what to do for a question... Um... HOW ABOUT: What is your ending for this story? I tried to leave it very open-ended (not because I'm lazy!). I know I haven't been the best with updating, and I wasn't going to start a sequel. SO I wanted to give you guys a chance, to decide how it ends for yourselves! Does Tony help Loki and his children? Do they defeat Thanos? Do the other movies eventually tie into this fic?