Waltfeld's Daughter Chapter 2

"ATHRUN! CAGA…LADY CAGALLI!" Amarante cried out hugging her best friend before throwing her arms around the Blonde.

"Hey Mare! What are you doing here?" Athrun asked.

"I just wanted to come by and say hello and good-bye. My Dad's taking me to visit the PLANTs. Also Athrun I'm going to visit Dearka and Yzak, is there anything you want to say to them?" Amarante chuckled.

"Ah…tell them hello," Athrun answered awkwardly.

"You know…Amarante you are right, Athrun can be pretty awkward," Cagalli teased. Amarante gasped, Cagalli made a joke about Athrun? She had been so seriously lately that Amarante had forgotten that Cagalli could be funny.

"HEY!" he snapped as the women giggled.

"So why are you going to the PLANTs?" Cagalli asked curiously.

"I'm going to visit my adoptive grandparents and to see where my Dad grew up. I think this'll be a thrill! Also I'm going to have lunch with Dearka and Yzak in a couple of days," Amarante answered cheerfully.

"That's great Mare! Don't get into trouble while you're there," Athrun ordered.

"I'll be fine Athrun," she groaned. He acted more like her Dad then a close personal friend.

"When's your flight leaving?" Cagalli asked.

"In about two and a half hours from now. My Dad told me that I could visit a few special friends before we left and I picked you guys," Amarante answered bashfully.

"Aren't you cute," Cagalli teased. "You're just like my LITTLE brother." But Cagalli there's a chance that Kira is the older one, Athrun thought, but that was an argument for another time.

"Heeyyyy!" Amarante whined.

"MARE! IT'S TIME TO GO!" Waltfeld called from their car.

"Bye!" Amarante squealed hugging her two friends before rushing off to be with her father.

"Are you ready?" Waltfeld asked.

"Of course!" Amarante giggled.

"You're gonna sleep the whole time aren't you?" Waltfeld chuckled opening the car door for her. She glared at him angrily before letting out a sigh. Sitting down in the passenger seat she watched her father switch sides getting in the car next to her.

"Not funny," Amarante growled.

"Well Maremare, what will you be doing on the flight?" Waltfeld asked curiously.

"I don't know, but I will NOT be sleeping!" Amarante snapped.

"You won't be sleeping eh?" Waltfeld chuckled looking at his daughter sleeping against the window. I wonder how Murrue is doing. She hasn't been answering my calls lately. She needs time to heal but she shouldn't do it by herself, Waltfeld thought rubbing Amarante's shoulder.

"She's a sweet girl," a flight attendant whispered to Waltfeld.

"Yeah, she's my little sweetheart," Waltfeld answered with a chuckle.

"Would you like something to drink?" she asked in a low voice.

"No, I'll be alright," Waltfeld nodded.

"Would your daughter like anything?" the woman asked kindly. He was still adjusting to calling Amarante his daughter. With new acquaintances he would sometimes refer to her as his subordinate and he always received strange stares. Explain their relationship was also very difficult to these people because they would shut themselves off to Waltfeld's explanation.

"She'll be fine," Waltfeld answered turning to his daughter. "Thank you." Amarante stirred slightly opening her eyes.

"I know what you're going to say, but I wasn't trying to fall asleep!" Amarante answered groggily.

"It's okay you're still my little fifteen year-old baby," Waltfeld chuckled.

"I'm not a baby," Amarante groaned.

"Only babies say that," Waltfeld laughed.

"I never win with you," the girl groaned.

"Well since I'm being so cruel, I'll take you shopping, how does that sound?" Waltfeld asked.

"Not today, I'm too tired," she answered with a yawn. The pilot of the spacecraft announced they would be landing soon.

"Okay baby," Waltfeld chuckled.

"DAD!" Amarante groaned loudly.

"Shush and fix your hair," he snapped playfully. Amarante gawked at the magnificent hourglass as they descended into its hangar. Waltfeld just smiled at her childlike wonder letting out a small sigh. This'll be the first time my parents have seen me like this, and to see their one and probably only grandchild, he thought tapping Amarante on her shoulder. Turning away from the window Amarante looked up at her father quizzically.

"Yes?" Amarante asked cocking her head.

"I'm just admiring how beautiful you are," Waltfeld cooed. Amarante blushed before letting out a deep regretful sighed. "What's wrong Cubby?"

"My real…no you're my real father, my biological father never told me something like that," Amarante answered. "AND he never gave me a loving nickname like Cubby." He shushed her gently pulling his daughter into a hug.

"You'll always be my little Cubby," Waltfeld said kissing the top of her head. The shuttle docked and there was a symphony of unbuckling seatbelts and sighing stretches. "Well come on my little baby." He stood up grabbing his briefcase before passing his daughter her backpack. Looking around Amarante frowned at the awkward stares at her father's missing arm. "Mare," her father called bringing her back to reality.

"Coming!" Amarante answered following her father off the shuttle. It felt strange that her father grew up in this artificial dome where everything was regulated and controlled. Rain showers were programmed instead of predicted. There were no natural disasters besides a possible stray asteroid but those were unlikely.

"Do you want to eat first?" Waltfeld asked his distracted daughter.

"I don't like how they're staring," Amarante grumbled.

"Leave it alone Mare," Waltfeld answered.

"BUT!"

"Leave it. Alone."

"Fine…I'm not that hungry," she groaned.

"Honey," Waltfeld began, "Don't get snappy on me!"

"I'm not trying to," Amarante answered plainly. Thinking about her new grandparents, Amarante tried to imagine what they would be like. Yet every image she imagined only made her fear the worse. Nervously she grabbed her father's amputated arm trying to comfort herself.

"Relax," Waltfeld cooed escorting her to baggage claim. "I'll tell you a story in the car."

"I'm handling the luggage!" Amarante blurted releasing her father's arm.

"Slow down Cubby, you don't need to be a macho man," Waltfeld chuckled.

"I'll do it! It'll be better this way!" Amarante demanded.

"Oh beautiful girl," Waltfeld laughed watching Amarante seize the first of their bags. I don't want her to get pulled along this thing. I wish she would see me as complete human instead of being disabled, Waltfeld though as she pulled the bag off the line.

"Only one more!" Amarante cheered resting it on the ground. She loved being helpful and her Dad needed all the help he could get.

"It's the bigger one. Let me get it," Waltfeld explained.

"NO! I got it!" Amarante whined running to the next bag. Checking the tag she confirmed that it belonged to their family. Grabbing it, Amarante struggled to pull it off but she managed. With pride and embarrassment, Amarante pulled the bag back to her father.

"Amarante, please don't do that again," Waltfeld ordered. As if she had been hardwired, Amarante stood at attention ready to bark "yes sir," at any given moment. "Stop that Mare we're not in the military anymore."

"No…we're not," Amarante sighed taking her father's briefcase so he could pull the larger suitcase. Grabbing the smaller one Amarante followed him outside. She could feel her fear welling up in her stomach again as they left the terminal.

"We'll be renting a car okay Mare?" Waltfeld answered. "Hey it's not like they're going to eat you alive." He couldn't believe his daughter's uncontrollable fear about meeting her new grandparents.

"I know…but, both my maternal and paternal grandparents scrutinized everything Mara and I did: our clothes, hair, manners, all had to perfect, we had to move in a timely fashion and since we never lived up to their expectations we had to take cotillion classes…which I never finished because I joined Z.A.F.T," Amarante explained.

"My parents, your grandparents aren't like that. Would you like to finish your classes?" Waltfeld inquired.

"Yes…and no. They were some of the worse classes in my life. Then again I do feel like it is my duty to finish them. Do you think I should take classes?" Amarante asked worriedly.

"Well if you want to. I think it would be great to dance with you at a formal party…but we can just do that at any old time," Waltfeld chuckled.

"Okay Daddy," Amarante sighed. "I'll take more classes."

"Woah, woah…I didn't say you had to take them!" Waltfeld explained as they walked into the car rental place.

"But…I have to finish them," Amarante answered robotically. "It's the only way to be cultured."

"No you don't," Waltfeld sighed going up to the counter. He motioned for his briefcase which Amarante gladly handed over. Ignoring the conversation her father was having with the sales clerk, Amarante looked out the window at the rows of cars. She was trying to keep her mind off of meeting her grandparents but it always seemed to slowly creep back in to her mind. What if they don't like me? What if they think I'm uncultured? What if I say something rude or inappropriate? I really hope they like me, Amarante thought wobbling back and forth.

"I think something's wrong with your daughter," the sales clerk said pointing at Amarante. Looking behind him Waltfeld noticed that his lovely daughter had turned incredibly pale. Her eyes were fixated on the ground as if she was expecting it to fall out from underneath her.

"Mare?" Waltfeld cooed. "Are you alright?" As she gave him a nod Amarante dropped to the floor. He couldn't believe his eyes as his daughter laid unconscious on the ground. He was speechless and without action as he replayed the scene in his mind. Shaking the thoughts away Waltfeld immediately lifted her legs in an effort to get blood back to her head. "You get some juice and you sir, call an ambulance."

"There's my little girl. I'm glad you're awake again," Waltfeld cooed rubbing Amarante's cold hands.

"Where am I?" Amarante groaned looking at her unfamiliar surroundings.

"You're in the hospital. I guess you don't really remember waking up in the car rental shop," Waltfeld answered.

"What?" Amarante gasped trying to sit up.

"Don't sit up to quickly Love. You'll pass out again. You passed out in the car rental shop. They believe that you suffered a concussion. This kind of reminds me of the few times you went into shock," Waltfeld chuckled solemnly.

"What's wrong Dad?" Amarante asked.

"I felt like I was losing you. You just fell over. When I saw that you bumped your head…I became terrified. I never want to lose you," Waltfeld answered.

"I'm sorry Daddy," Amarante groaned. She felt so ill and disoriented.

"My mom and dad are going to come visit us tomorrow," Waltfeld explained to his sweet daughter.

"I have to stay the night?" Amarante groaned.

"Unfortunately Cubby, you didn't come to until about 20 minutes after passing out. Also you hit your head…they just want to make sure you're okay, as do I," Waltfeld answered.

"Tell me a story," Amarante said with a yawn. She hated spending time in the hospital.

"You know Aisha and I were never the close pair that we were. I hated her with my gut when I met her. I once called her a bitch to her face…Yet I wanted her so badly," Waltfeld chuckled.

"Why Dad?" Amarante asked weakly.

"She was independent…and loved it. She didn't mind flirting with men because she knew that none of us could tame her. When I met Aisha she didn't want a relationship with any man, but I had to have her. I loved her flirtatious attitude and quick wit. She was also a tomboy interested in the military," Waltfeld answered.

Sorry for the cliffhanger! And sorry for being a bit…well neglect- and forget-ful. I hope to make a schedule I can stick too with this upcoming school season w

Sorry!

WoofumsPup

Dearest Drew,

Sorry if my lack of posting has displeased you but do realize I have a life outside of fanfiction. That life is filed with heavy college classes and performances with my school's band. This year has not been as easy as I thought it would be and that's why I haven't been posting. I have so little time to write and the time I do have, I spend it sleeping or trying to get ahead. So if you can't bare with me then I hope you can find another story to your liking.

I'm truly sorry,

WoofumsPup