AN: This is an AU within the AU. Probably going to continue this in sporadic order at some point.

"Zoë."

The aforementioned huntress turned around and she gasped as her lover limped to her.

Perseus had ichor splattered all over him and she didn't want to think that it was any of his, his limp not doing anything to help her imagination.

She was just within arms-length of him when he collapsed to his knees, head hung low with his hands trembling ever so slightly.

Zoë cupped his cheeks and looked him over, tears and worry in her eyes. "Is thou hurt?" she whispered, not caring about the ichor on his skin nor how she looked in front of her sisters.

"Nothing Apollo won't be able to fix." he muttered, wrapping his arms around her waist in an act of reassurance more for himself. Silence reigned as the other hunters tried to resume what they were doing before the god showed up but most of them kept an eye on the two in the centre of the camp.

"It's done. Zeus is dead." he whispered to her and she looked at him with sadness in her eyes.

"I'm sorry that it had to be done." she said and he shook his head.

"Don't be. I'm not. I'll miss who he was but he was a threat to you and Olympus." he said with finality. He looked up at the sky momentarily before sighing. "I should head back up there. There will need to be reconstitution done." he stated before he moved to stand up, Zoë moving with him.

"I am coming with thou." she declared with a look of determination on her face and Perseus opened his mouth in protest but his words died when Zoë spoke her next words much softer. "If I am to be thy queen, I should start becoming involved, no?", she explained as she stroked his cheeks with her thumbs.

Truth be told, Perseus needed her by his side, especially now. He felt exhausted and he knew that Zoë could see it clearly on his face. "My star-" he began but Zoë kissed him briefly but softly, his words dying once more.

"Together." her words promised and he took in a deep breath and nodded.

"Together."

Olympus

Lying in bed with his wife still asleep in his arms, Perseus thought that nothing could ever top this moment but he was happily proven wrong when out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a mop of black hair quickly approach the bed with an accompanying giggle and he quickly pretended to be still asleep.

He felt his side of the blankets get pulled on slightly and a pair of small hands mash against his cheek. He bit back a smile as he already had an idea of who the perpetrator was and continued to act like he was still sleeping when he heard one of two voices that he could never ignore.

"Daddy, wake up." Perseus felt a small body flop onto his chest and he let out a small exaggerated oomph as he pretended to let air escape his lungs. He opened his eyes slowly and immediately smiled as he was face to face with a pair of amethyst eyes just like his and belonged to someone who had him wrapped around their finger.

"Good morning, my little love." he quietly said to his daughter and seeing how his daughter's face lit up at hearing his voice made his heart almost burst.

"Hi, Daddy." Thalia beamed at her father, her hands full with her Cerberus and goldfish plushies gifted by two of her uncles.

Thalia had his eyes and complexion, but the rest were all the beautiful attributes of her mother. "You're full of energy this morning, aren't you?" he teased with an uncontainable smile.

When Zoë told him that she was pregnant, there was a space in his heart reserved for the birth of his child but he underestimated how much space Thalia would take up in the end.

He softly ran a hand through Thalia's tangled black hair and she tried shaking his hand out with a giggle, the sound filling the bedroom and a shuffle from next to him told him that his wife was awake though a part of him was aware that she was half awake the moment their daughter appeared in their bed.

Zoë's eyes twinkled with poorly hidden amusement as she watched her husband hold their daughter high above him like she was flying with her arms and feet dangling as she made grabbing motions for her parents, her plushies long deposited around the bed.

Thalia squealed as she saw that she had her mother's attention now and giggled even louder, making her parents laugh. Zoë pulled her arms out from underneath the comforter and held them out, gesturing for Thalia.

"Hmm, pass me my baby." she smiled when Perseus leaned over and pressed a kiss to her lips in greeting. No matter how long they've been married, every kiss always felt like the first one they had all those years ago when they first began courting. She pulled herself closer to him as she reveled in the kiss they shared.

"Good morning, my star." he whispered as he broke off the kiss. She smiled lovingly at her husband and cupped his cheek with her hand and leaned in again for another chaste kiss.

"My love." she greeted in return with her arms outstretched for her daughter as Perseus lowered her into her arms.

Zoë ran her hand through her daughter's locks and began untangling the knots, "Hello, my little star." she cooed to her daughter and kissed her forehead.

Thalia giggled and looked at her mother with a broad smile, "Hi, Mommy." she replied, wrapping her arms around her neck and Zoë relished in her daughter's love for her.

"Did you have good dreams last night?" Zoë asked her and felt happy when she nodded back as she played with the amethyst necklace that was around her neck like it always was. "That's good, otherwise, your father and I would have to have a talk with Hypnos, isn't that right?" she asked, looking at her husband with a sly smirk.

Perseus smirked back at her and propped his head up with his hand, "Oh most definitely. Can't have anyone terrorizing my little princess now, can I?" he remarked with a laugh at seeing how Thalia scrunched her nose up and stopped playing with the amethyst stone.

"Not a princess." Thalia muttered cutely.

"Well, if your mother is the queen of Olympus and I'm the king then that makes you the princess, right?" he asked and Thalia stubbornly shook her head.

"Nuh-uh." She uttered and poked him in the nose with her finger for good measure.

"Are you sure about that?" he asked with a mischievous grin that caught the attention of his wife.

"Uh-huh." Thalia nodded her head.

"Are you sure daddy can't convince you?" he asked and made a sad face at Thalia, making her laugh even more.

He pretended to be dejected, "Well then…" he said before a wide grin appeared on his face, "I guess the tickle monster can!" he exclaimed before launching into a relentless tickle assault on Thalia.

Thalia squirmed and squealed in laughter as her mother held her as her father tickled her in the ribs, her feet and hands swinging in the air.

"Mommy, help!" Thalia shrieked as it felt like she was being tickled for hours on end when only a few minutes passed.

Zoë raised an eyebrow and looked at her husband, "I don't know, should I help?"

"No!"

"Yes!"

Both her husband and her daughter exclaimed at the same time.

Zoë tapped her chin, pretending to be in thought before she smirked at her husband and unceremoniously kicked him off of the bed, stopping him from tickling Thalia anymore.

Perseus yelped as he felt Zoë dig her foot into his side and shoved him off the bed.

Thalia clapped her hands and laughed as her father fell off the bed, her face red from the amount she was laughing. She turned back to her mother and wrapped her arms around her neck again.

"Thank you, mommy."

"You're welcome, my little star and problem solved." Zoë stated proudly.

Perseus poked his head up over the edge and glared playfully, "That was unfair." he objected and was promptly met with Zoë snorting. He rolled his eyes back at her and heaved himself back up onto the bed, a smile beginning to appear on his face as he gazed upon his wife and daughter.

Thalia played with her mother's hair and her hand reached out for her father's and he happily gave it.

Zoë raised an eyebrow as she noticed the content look on her husband's face as he looked at them, "What?" she questioned with a slight blush on her face.

"What?" he repeated.

"You have a silly look on your face." Zoë commented before she looked at Thalia. "Is your daddy silly right now?" she asked in a fake whisper and Thalia whipped her head back to her father and looked at him as critically as she could.

"Daddy is very silly." Thalia answered, looking back at her mother.

"You think it's possible for us to just hideaway in here?" he joked, knowing that the chances were slim enough as it is with the rest of his family.

Zoë nuzzled her nose against his and chuckled, "You know that we would be sought out immediately. The others rather flock to you like birds at times." releasing Thalia so she could crawl over them.

"We should just disappear to the mortal realm for a day. Just the three of us." he suggested. "It's been a while since we've had a day as a family and even longer since you and I have had some alone time together." he added wistfully and Zoë smirked at him.

"We always have alone time together." she coyly reminded, their nights of passion bursting to the forefront of her mind.

"You know what I mean." he pointed out humorously and her gaze softened.

"I do and it would be nice. What are you thinking of?" she questioned as she scratched at his stubble before kissing him softly and being met with him smiling warmly at her.

"We go visit some mortal attractions, let Thalia have some fun. We could head away ftom Olympus for the day." he offered and Thalia stopped crawling around them at the mention of her name and moved in between her parents, cocking her head to the side in curiosity.

"What are we doing?"

Perseus bopped her on the nose playfully, "We are going to play one big game of hide and seek with your uncles and aunts but we're not going to tell anyone." his phrasing of the plan made Zoë laugh at how simple he made it as he explained to their daughter who listened intently.

Thalia's eyes widened in excitement, "YAY!" she exclaimed and started jumping up and down on the bed much to the amusement of her parents, the bed dipping ever so slightly under Thalia's motions.

Perseus looked at Zoë and grinned at her, "Just me, you and Thalia. No one else." he said, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

She threw her head back in laughter and lightheartedly slapped his chest before wrapping her arms around his neck, "How very scandalous, my dear husband. What would the others think of you when they find out that you left them to fend for themselves for a day?" she teased with a look that made him chuckle.

"Well, dear wife, guess we'll find out."

Zoë thought about it before she nodded her head, "Fine but at the very least, we tell Hestia. She should be able to come get us should something go horribly wrong." she requested and he conceded with a nod.

He leaned in for another kiss only to find Thalia smushing his cheek with her hand, stopping him from kissing her mother. "No being horndogs!" their daughter exclaimed and her outrageous statement sent her father into howling laughter, a stark contrast to how her mother reacted as she gasped.

Zoë's eyebrows shot up and she looked at her daughter with a faux-look of suspicion, "And which of your uncles taught you that word?" she wondered even as one specific name popped into her head.

"Uncle Apollo!" Thalia shouted proudly, happily throwing her uncle onto the path of her mother's ire and Zoë deadpan stared at her husband.

"He is not looking after Thalia ever again."

"Exactly how long will you be away for?"

Hestia happily held her niece on her lap as she talked with her brother and sister-in-law in her palace. She most certainly didn't expect to see Perseus and Zoë appear on her doorstep with their daughter since they were supposed to be seeing each other in a council meeting in a few hours anyway but she certainly was never one to turn away her family and certainly wasn't going to say no to spending any time she got with her niece.

In usual fashion, Zoë sat on her husband's lap as they talked. "I wouldn't imagine that we're gone for any longer than the remainder of today." she said, watching as Thalia attempted to balance herself on Hestia's knee, nearly falling off if Hestia hadn't put a hand on her back, stabilizing her.

"Is it safe to assume that you'll be taking your daughter with you?" Hestia clarified and both of them nodded.

"She's partly why we're doing this." Perseus explained and Hestia nodded in understanding.

Thalia tugged on Hestia's sleeve, catching her attention, "Down please." she asked.

"Of course." Hestia answered with a smile before setting her on the floor and watched as Thalia stumbled towards her parents before being scooped up by her mother.

Zoë snorted as she hugged her daughter to her while her husband ran a hand through Thalia's hair. "You should be glad he told you. His original plan had us leave without telling anyone." outing her husband's poorly thought-out plan.

"For all we know, it could've worked." Perseus defended and Hestia chuckled at how her brother almost bickered with his wife.

"I'm sure it would have." Zoë replied with a small grin, kissing his cheek to quiet him down.

"You know you can't keep doing that to win." Perseus muttered and he was met with her grinning.

"But it works so well." she answered laughingly.

Perseus just shook his head fondly before looking at his sister, "As much as I hate to say it today, should anything arise that you cannot deal with, get me."

Hestia simply laughed at how disappointed he sounded saying that, "I am sure there is nothing that the rest of us cannot handle without you, even if it is for just the day." she said.

Perseus snapped his head to his wife who laughed at his reaction. "Now we can go." she said, already knowing what his look was for and stood up from her spot on his lap.

Thalia's head perked up, "Hide and seek?" and both her parents and Hestia laughed.

Zoë kissed the top of her head, "Yes, my little star. We're going to play hide and seek now." she responded with a grin as Perseus took her free hand.

"Enjoy your day, brother." Hestia told him.

Perseus grinned, "Always." he said before melting away into the shadows with his wife and daughter.

The family of three walked through the gates of the amusement park, Thalia looking at all the mortals dressed as characters of some sort.

Dressed in dark blue jeans and a maroon henley, Perseus blended in quite well but his aviator-covered eyes were stuck to the form of his wife as always.

Zoë had a dark purple sundress on that ended just below her knees, clinging to her frame with her hair done in a messy ponytail and of course, the amethyst necklace he had given her all those years ago still around her neck like always, and currently the target of Thalia's hands as she was carried by her mother. Her black-lidded eyes fluttered over to his and he felt his breath catch and all he could do was smile, something she noticed.

"What?" she asked as she felt out of the loop.

Perseus slipped his hand into hers and smiled when she looked at him before looking at his daughter. "You excited to spend the day with your mommy and daddy?" he asked, watching Thalia's face light up in excitement.

"Yeah!" her response making her parents chuckle.

Zoë laughed at her daughter, "You're the absolute cutest." she said and kissed Thalia's forehead, her daughter beaming.

"Perseus and Zoë will be gone the entire day?" Poseidon made Hestia repeat.

Hestia nodded for what felt like the fiftieth time, "Yes, brother." she confirmed with several more nods in the event he still had trouble understanding, stifling a laugh when Poseidon threw his head back and groaned.

Hera snorted almost dismissively, "Of course, our dearest older brother leaves us again to be with his wife and daughter. In light of this, someone should be in charge while the two of them are away with their spawn." she suggested and everyone else had an idea of who she was clearly thinking about.

Hermes rolled his eyes as she spoke, "It's almost like Uncle Perseus cares for Zoë and Thalia like they're his family or something." he retorted. "Then again, you wouldn't know much about being considered family by him, would you?" throwing the fact that Perseus would never treat Hera like he treated his family. Too much had been done and it was by the sheer will of Chaos that Hera wasn't struck down.

"Don't forget about the beating that probably would occur once more when Zoë hears how you called her daughter 'spawn'. I would think that the first one was a stark reminder for you to watch your words." Apollo added with a glare as he was very protective of his niece, especially after the incident with Heracles.

"If this bickering is done?" Hades drawled even though he enjoyed seeing Hera being put in her proverbial place before looking out at the others. "It would be prudent for us to keep our problems to a minimum. The two of them have more than earned a day away and especially a day with their daughter." he further said, intent on making sure his older brother has his peace.

Mortal World

Thalia sat on her father's lap while her mother sat next to them and fed her bites from a sundae. The godly family of three was taking a break after exploring most of what the amusement park had to offer right as noon passed. Coincidentally enough, there was a parade float happening on the street where their little rest spot was so it seemed like the park never stopped.

Perseus fixed the small tiara that was on his daughter's head, the item being one of the few things that they actually bought as a memento. He bent his head down and kissed the top of Thalia's head, making her look up at him with a smile. "Do you want to stay here for a bit longer or go somewhere else?"

Thalia frowned at the question and looked confused, "I don't know." she replied in a small voice and her mother reached out a hand to brush some hair that fell in front of her face and gave a small smile.

"Well, then it's a good thing you can have as much time to decide then. Don't forget that daddy can give you as much time as you want." Zoë assured and gave a cheeky grin to her husband at that last part which he returned.

He hummed in agreement, "That's right. We have all day to do whatever you want." he said and Thalia seemed to calmed down after hearing it from her parents.

Zoë grabbed a napkin and wiped off the remaining ice cream around Thalia's mouth before she picked her daughter up and off of her husband's lap and placed her onto hers, swinging her daughter's arms as the motion made Thalia laugh.

The parade float was going by them at that moment and Thalia suddenly stopped laughing, causing concern from her parents and surprise when their little girl started glaring.

"Thalia, what's wrong?" Perseus asked, his body tense and on alert, his wife the same.

"And here comes the king and queen of the castle! Make sure to say hi!" the voice coming from the speakers said as a much larger float came passing by with two people dressed in elaborate costumes waving at the onlookers.

Thalia pointed a finger at the two mortals almost accusingly, "Not king and queen." she grumbled and Perseus and Zoë relaxed almost immediately and the two of them laughed as Thalia continued to glare as she felt like her parents were being offended. "Daddy is king and Mommy is queen." she corrected like the announcer would hear her.

Zoë tickled her daughter's sides briefly, making her burst out giggling and gaining her attention. "It's alright, my little star. Daddy and I aren't upset at the mortals."

Not seeming satisfied, Thalia grabbed her tiara and held it out for her mother to take but Zoë gently pushed it back with a grin. "Thank you, my little star, but I think your tiara is too small for Mommy." she told her daughter with a laugh.

"We could get one for you." her husband said with a smirk and moved his leg away from Zoë's kick.

"Then we're getting a crown for you as well." Zoë responded quickly with a knowing look and Perseus had to resist letting out a groan.

"Fine, I won't do that." he conceded to his wife before he noticed that Zoë briefly covered their daughter's ears with her hands.

Zoë leaned closer to him and whispered something in his ear, making his eyes widen and she had to resist laughing at seeing him exhale deeply.

Thalia tugged on her hand, "Daddy looks funny." and Zoë nodded along with her daughter.

Perseus shook himself off and just laughed.

Olympus

Perseus and Zoë appeared in their palace with the latter carrying their daughter. Thalia burrowed her face into her mother's neck, her eyelids drooping low as the day's activities seemed to finally catch up to her, and yawned to properly show her exhaustion.

Zoë ran her free hand up and down Thalia's back in a calming manner, "Sleepy?" she asked and Thalia nodded her head.

Perseus leaned over and pressed a kiss to Thalia's head, "Do we want to take her to our room?" he whispered to not disturb his daughter and the goddess nodded.

Entering the bedroom, Zoë snapped her fingers to change her clothes and did the same for Thalia before she gently slipped under the covers, careful not to jostle Thalia. Perseus propped up the pillows behind them and slid behind his wife, wrapping his arms around her as she leaned back against his chest with their daughter in her arms.

Zoë gave her daughter slow pats on the back and kissed her cheek, "You can sleep if you want. We have your daddy as a pillow." she said with a small laugh as she leaned her head back onto her husband's shoulder.

He smiled and gave her an affectionate squeeze, "I'm just the luckiest." and pressed his lips against hers. He opened an eye and broke off the kiss, a soft smile soon appeared on his face. "She's out." he quietly said as he observed the soft rise and fall of Thalia's chest.

Watching her daughter sleep, Zoë snuggled into her husband, and another smile appeared on her face, "We can tell her the news tomorrow."

AN: Couldn't help but throw that last part in.