Percy waited anxiously for the arrival of his girls. To say he was nervous was an understatement. He was thoroughly wetting himself in both nervousness and excitement. The war was finally over and he couldn't wait to hold his daughter and this goddess baby-mother of his whom he found himself increasingly obsessed with.

Of course, there was the question of what exactly they were. There were a lot of questions, in fact. Would she help raise Selena? Was she even going to acknowledge her existence publicly? If so, how were they going to deal with the guaranteed backlash from all corners of their lives?

The more questions piled up in Percy's mind, the faster he began to pace on the spot. Then, as if the saving grace of a guardian angel, a bright light began to consume the area. More intelligent than an idiot, Percy closed his eyes the second he saw the very light he'd been waiting for. His vision was red from the combination of his shut eyelids as well as the supernova light being projected onto them from the outside.

As the light arrived to engulf the wooded area - they were in a less visible and less occupied section of Central Park - Percy's heart rate increased while his anxieties decreased in volume. His worries became replaced by his antsy to open his eyes and gaze upon them both once more.

When the light died down and his vision was black again, he opened his eyes and blinked a few times to get the illusion and staticy images that came with eyes squeezed shut to go away. His entire body cooled and calmed when he saw a natural redhead girl standing in her Greek outfit, the one she wore on Delos. A white chiton that ended halfway down the thighs and had a brown waist belt so it didn't billow everywhere. Golden sandals that ran midway up her slender calves matched the gold and silver bracelets she wore on each bicep. Her hair was braided behind her back and over her shoulder, held in place by hair ties and a crescent moon clip.

She smiled at him softly and moved her hand up ninety degrees, taking it away from the sea-green eyes she was shielding in her bosom. Selena winced at the sudden return of light while she relaxed in her mother's cradle, wearing a magenta onesie with her constellatory binkie in to pacify her.

Father and daughter locked eyes and the former smiled with tears brimming his eyes while the latter faintly recognized him as someone she'd met before. Her brain wasn't fully developed, so give her a break. It probably never even clicked in Selena's mind that Percy was her father. She had only met him once.

Percy grinned and stepped closer, close enough that he and Artemis were almost touching. Selena watched curiously as he reached up a hand to her and then giggled when he began tickling her cheek, or as best a giggle as she could with the pacifier in.

"Give Daddy a hug?" Artemis suggested to the baby. It felt weird saying that. She'd had her own anxieties, and part of that was the question of how they would refer to each other. Like Percy, she wasn't entirely sure of their current relationship status. Did she say 'go to daddy' or 'go to your father, Perseus'?

Despite the fact she likely didn't understand her mother's words, when Artemis held her out for him to take Selena did outstretch her arms as if reaching for a hug. Not one to turn down his baby daughter's affection, Percy placed a hand under her arms and lifted her from Artemis' arms. Remembering how to hold her, or rather having thought about holding her again so much now he basically had a degree in holding her, Percy pulled her close to cradle her much the same way Artemis had.

Selena made a little short crying noise once she separated from her mother, turning her head ninety degrees to try and see her again. Realizing she wanted to stick near her mom, Percy compromised by walking closer to Artemis, who got the hint and moved closer as well.

Whether by happy accident or by design, they got close enough to where they were basically embracing, and in a brave display of affection Percy leaned his head forward to rest against her forehead. Artemis smiled and didn't protest.

Now that Artemis was trailing her fingers down Selena's cheek while resting in Percy's semi-distant embrace, the baby calmed down. Secure in the hold of both parents, she settled for leaning into Percy in the cradled position, seeking warmth, shelter and security.

"I still can't believe it." Percy whispered, not intending to startle Selena by suddenly speaking loudly. The newborn looked almost tired, finding her dad's arms a very comfortable resting space.

Artemis raised her gaze up to him without moving her head from the bridge they currently formed together. Percy hadn't taken his eyes off of Selena, watching as she blinked every second or so, each one leaving her eyelids droopier. "How do you mean?" She asked the hero, continuing to nuzzle the baby with the back of her finger.

Percy lightly swayed Selena in his arms, beginning to rock her to sleep. As Artemis' touch was getting itchy to her now, Selena softly reached up without a noise and clamped her hand weakly around her mother's finger. The Son of Poseidon smiled as he cradled her, the baby gripping her mother's finger as if begging the two of them to stay connected, securing and protecting her. "Well, I've got a baby. My own baby girl. Uh, I guess our baby... girl." He stumbled towards the end, looking flustered at forgetting her in the equation.

Artemis reached her left arm around and rested her hand on his back, her right being preoccupied with an increasingly sleepy Daughter of Artemis. "She's yours, she's mine, she's ours, we're hers." She assured him, not wanting there to be confusion on how their parental dynamic would be. The message was clear enough, she wasn't abandoning them like any other God would.

"Then what..." He trailed off, so desperately wanting to ask then what am I to you? It got caught in his throat, and as though he were giving a speech and got stage fright, he suddenly grew too worried to continue. A thought left unspoken is a rejection left unmade.

Artemis perked up when he almost asked the exact words she'd imagined he would when she said that. The same words she'd practiced answers for, answers she couldn't spin into a proposal. Only if he asked could she bring herself to risk it and speak the words she wished she could speak.

But that day was not today, and Percy didn't catch the disappointed look she grew as he said nothing more and looked down. Selena had closed her eyes and her grip on Artemis' finger had waned, but Artemis kept hold of hers. If only out of some sort of mother bear instinct, Artemis didn't want to part from her cub right now. The mother and father were content to stand there providing comfort and security to their cub for as long as she, or deep down they, wanted.