Mostly Normal: Our Path

Chapter Two: Cherry Tree

Madeline woke Fred up with the sound of bacon popping on the stove. This made the son of Athena smile as he thought about how well she treated him.

Madeline, who was already wearing a toga for the senate meeting, noticed Fred was awake and grinned. "Hey," she said, "Breakfast's almost ready."

"Alright thanks," yawned Fred, "I'm guessing we don't have to train today?"

"Well, you don't," said Maddie, "Have you forgotten, dear?"

"Forgotten what?"

Madeline stared at him as if he was crazy. "It's your birthday, Fred. You're twenty-three now."

"Wow, already?" Fred was stunned. "The year went by so fast."

Madeline laughed and leaned over to kiss her soon-to-be husband's nose, "I love you so much." Fred moved up so that he could kiss his girlfriend's lips, they stayed like that till a large popping noise from the bacon startled them apart.

Madeline giggled and adjusted her toga. "That'll be our breakfast," she said, taking the bacon off the stove, "Happy birthday. Oh, and by the way, I think some of the kids from the Fifth Cohort are baking you a cake. Don't tell them I told you though." she winked her hazel eye at him with another giggle and handed him a plate of eggs and bacon. He took it gratefully.

"Thanks," he said, kissing his fiance again. She smiled at him and left for the senate meeting, leaving Fred to his thoughts.

He hummed for a moment as he began to devour his food, he thought about the strange visions that he had had the night before. His mother had been so happy when she found him, even it did mean letting go of his other mother.

When he finished inhaling his food, he moved back to his and Maddie's room, searching through his chest of drawers for his toga. When he found it, he noticed that it was nowhere near where the belt to tie it together would be.

He sighed and then reached for his cord, tying on his toga rather messily, though he knew Madeline would fix it when he got to the senate meeting.

Fred ran his fingers through his blond hair, trying to decide whether he should comb it or not. He finally decided not to and put on his sneakers, exiting the dormitories kind of nervously.

When he reached the Senate House, he looked around for his fiance and finally found her. Madeline met his eye and smirked at his messy toga, then beckoned him over so she could fix it.

As he moved over to his fiance, he bore a big grin on his face. Madeline shook her head with a small smile and adjusted the toga, pressing back on the older male's shoulder as she saw that he was wearing a T-shirt underneath his toga.

When they had finally all arrived and had sat down, Reyna Ramirez-Arellano and Frank Zhang sat in the center of the room, waiting for everyone to quiet down enough for the meeting to commence.

When everyone was finally settled down, Reyna stood. "Head strategist, tell me what they have decided the issue of Camp Half-Blood."

Fred stood, taking a deep breath he said, "We have decided to send the following, Joe and Marvin, from the Third Cohort, Annabelle, and Molli, from the Fifth Cohort and I was going to take Madeline with me as well, with your permission of course."

Frank cleared his throat and looked over at Reyna, who nodded at the child of Athena's choices.

Fred grinned. "Then we're all set," he said, "Permission to pack?"