Amnesia Girl Chapter 4

"Before we get into the city let me set a few rules," DaCosta began. Amarante looked up eagerly. I still don't understand why the Commander chose her…she's a little too eager to please. The Commander typically likes soldiers who think for themselves. She's nervous, timid and tries to be as unassuming as possible, DaCosta thought motioning her to follow with his head. "This way please. First, your name is Catalina DaCosta." She happily obliged following DaCosta like a young puppy after her master.

"What?" Amarante asked. Her pace slowed to a crawl. Amarante looked at her superior suspiciously. DaCosta casually looked back at her coming to a halt. Amarante grimaced slightly staring intensely at DaCosta. A strange feeling welled in her stomach, quickly washing over her body. "What's going on?" DaCosta raised his eyebrows in surprise, he wasn't used to Amarante questioning her superiors. He may have been too hasty with his assessment, perhaps they all were. Amarante dazzled them the night before with her courage and bravery unlike the meek young lady they had known off the battlefield.

"Catalina DaCosta," DaCosta answered. "This is your passport." He tossed her the small pamphlet. It bounced between her fingers before flopping clumsily to the floor. She picked it up with the sheepishness of a baby deer on ice. She flipped through it seeing the name 'Catalina DaCosta' next to her picture. "You are a natural from Spain and I am a natural from Portugal. You are my cousin and I've been taking care of you since your parents were killed in a car crash in France. You didn't know your parents very well because they were always away on business. You live a very privileged life, taking private lessons and attending private schools. I am a freelance photographer teaching you how to take pictures. Typically, when I go on an assignment, you live at home and wait for my return but since you are on vacation, you decided to accompany me. Are you getting this?"

"Ah y-yes, parents are dead, p-p-plane crash…fr-free-lance re-port-er," Amarante stuttered. Everything was going so fast. DaCosta glared at the young lady, she was too slow with information. She looked completely dumbfounded, her brow was furrowed and her eyes large like a doe staring down a car.

"No not a plane crash! A car crash!" DaCosta snapped. Amarante flinched, she looked down at her feet in her confused state. She knew her feet wouldn't give her the answer but they were the only things she could understand. Why was he doing this? It was all confusing, weren't they just heading out for the day? Why all the secrecy?

"Sir," Amarante muttered.

"What is it Catalina?" DaCosta asked. Amarante felt annoyed, this all felt unnecessary. The base was in this town, they should be able to move freely about the area.

"Why are we doing this?" Amarante asked.

"Because the townspeople do not need to know that Commander Waltfeld has a new pilot just yet," DaCosta replied. "So where are you from?" DaCosta looked at the young pilot, her face was contorted in confusion. She glanced to the right, trying to figure what the adjutant meant.

"France," Amarante answered. DaCosta sighed shaking his head. Amarante cocked her head. "I'm from France. I was born in France." He shook his head again. "France." He stopped the girl in her tracks. DaCosta placed his hands on her shoulders, looking sternly into her eyes. Amarante tensed, DaCosta was always very rigid, it was unlike him to reach out and touch her.

"Where. Are. You. From?" DaCosta repeated. Amarante flinched, was DaCosta mad?! She was born in Earth Forces controlled land, he knew that.

"France," a bewildered Amarante answered. DaCosta sighed again, his hands slouching off her shoulders. They stood in silence. Amarante looked left and right trying to figure out what he meant. Amarante's back slowly straightened as she finally figured out what he meant. "Spain." DaCosta gave her a single nod. His feet started moving again. He motioned Amarante to follow and she quickly obliged.

"And what's your name?" DaCosta spotted the Jeep up ahead, they were just going to take it across the base, driving it into the city would give them away.

"Catalina DaCosta," Amarante answered.

"Who am I to you?" DaCosta asked.

"My cousin, you've been raising me since my parents died," Amarante answered.

"I think we're ready to leave the base. I'll continue to quiz you until we get into the city," DaCosta answered.

"Where's Commander Waltfeld?" Amarante asked. "Is he coming with us?"

"He's busy with preparations for our next mission. He'll see us when we get back," DaCosta answered. Politely he opened the door for Amarante. The girl looked at DaCosta confused. Amarante went around to the driver's side opening the door. "Amarante you can't drive." Amarante stood there awkwardly, he was right, but he was her superior officer. "You're too young to drive."

"I…" Amarante answered.

"Come on Amarante," DaCosta sighed, "get in."

"But you're…" Amarante stammered, she shifted her feet uncomfortably. Amarante hated being treated like a child.

"Please just get in," DaCosta sighed. Amarante went around and sheepishly got into the car. "It's alright, you're too young to drive, I understand." Amarante nodded staring ahead of her. She felt the jeep teeter as DaCosta got in. They drove in silence. Amarante didn't mind, it was time to herself, to feel the warm air against her skin as her mind drifted off into fantasy. Getting into the city they ditched the jeep merging into the city life. Amarante was surprised at the bustling town, it was as if ZAFT was not an occupying force. As of right now, Amarante couldn't believe that the city was teeming with Guerillas. Amarante stopped at a table a string of jade beads catching her eye. She gasped excitedly, it was almost unreal.

"Wow! Look at these!" Amarante said amazed at the set of jewels. She was enjoying her time in the city. She was still a little shocked that Commander Waltfeld would give her the time off to explore the city she now lived in. It was about 1:00pm and the sun was bright and burning. Amarante looked around the busy shopping center at the different faces and sounds, it was so different from the areas she grew up in. Amarante let her feet guide her as she wandered away from DaCosta. She wanted to take in all the sights. Her eyes were large with awe. How could ZAFT occupy a place so beautiful? Amarante thought.

"Catalina," DaCosta mustered. She was looking too much like a tourist, she would draw too much attention. Amarante flinched looking back at DaCosta puzzled. She was getting used to her new code name slowly but surely. He motioned with his hand for her to come back.

"Yeah yeah," Amarante sighed, she dragged herself back to DaCosta. She wanted to explore the city organically but DaCosta kept steering her in different directions as if they were on a guided tour. DaCosta smiled softly as she followed him into the street. The streets were bustling and loud. There were many men and women laughing, arguing and talking. Children played and toyed with toys and each other.

"There's more to look at then just those beads," DaCosta answered.

"Oh yeah…I'm getting a little hungry. Do you want to eat something?" Catalina asked.

"Sure. There's a place not too far from here," DaCosta answered. They walked to the restaurant before sitting down at a table that could seat four. He sighed softly sitting down with a huff. Catalina giggled, it was rare for DaCosta to relax so much. She wondered if he would do this at the end of the day in his quarters.

"Your father is kinda rough on you," she said softly. "Father," was their code name for Commander Waltfeld.

"You can say that again. Don't tell him I said that," DaCosta answered. Catalina chuckled gently, giving DaCosta a reassuring smile. They fell silent as they looked over the menu. Soon the waiter, came by and took their orders. Catalina stared across at DaCosta, there was so much she wanted to ask him about, but she would give them away. DaCosta stared back with a sinking feeling in his heart, he was supposed to gather information about Amarante while they were out. Catalina cleared her throat, this staring contest was unnerving. I think she's a little awkward, DaCosta thought, she was shifting her eyes nervously. DaCosta casually glanced around the restaurant, her nervousness could give them away. The waiter brought their food before two men asked to sit at their table. The restaurant was full, so they agreed.

"You two look like foreigners. Where are you two from?" one of the men asked. Catalina carefully looked over the two without out causing suspicion, so did they. The one who spoke sat to her right, had bleach blonde hair, green eyes and peachy skin. The one to her right was ginger-haired, freckled and as pale as milk. He was already turning a little pink from the harsh sun.

"I hail from the lands of Spain. He's from Portugal," Catalina said cheerfully. The men look at each other with a smile as Amarante look up with an even more cheerful smile. DaCosta scowled, she was too young to realize the look they gave each other.

"Oh so what brings you to our fair city?" the freckled man asked. Catalina blinked twice, it wasn't rare for people to emigrate, but something didn't seem quite right. She glanced at DaCosta who looked even more stoic. DaCosta's eyes were trained on the blonde, the taller and larger one of the two.

"I'm a freelance photographer. I'm teaching her how to take professional pictures," DaCosta answered. He caught Catalina's glance, sensing the same unease from her. DaCosta had contacts in the city, "traitors" who looked for an upperhand rather than freedom, if these two had emigrated to Bandiya, DaCosta would have heard about it by now.

"So are you two dating?" the blonde man asked hoping that they weren't. He couldn't help but let out a little laugh. Catalina straightened her back slowly, trying to act naturally. Her stomach contorted inside her, couldn't they tell that she was only a child? Even if they couldn't…didn't they know better than to speak about her in such discreet sexual terms. Amarante noticed the blonde man's leg inching closer to hers. She quickly crossed hers, so they wouldn't touch. She stared at DaCosta for help, if she acted on her instincts she'd jeopardize their cover.

DaCosta's voice bellowed, "Oh no. She's my cousin. I've been taking care of her since her parents died." The man stopped inching his leg, it quickly retreated to its section of the table. Catalina continued to sit there stiffly, she didn't want to move her body, it seemed like any body movement was an "invitation" for the blonde to invade her personal space.

"Such a tragedy," the freckled man gasped. The man shook his head dismayed. Catalina let her guard drop slightly, the man did feel for her situation. She thought about her mother, wondering how would she advise her in this situation.

"Oh…It's alright. I never got to know them because they were always away," Catalina said softly. She bit her tongue, it was hard to think about her mother, it wasn't that long ago that she had passed away.

"So, what are your names?" the blonde man asked. He reached for Catalina's hand. She quickly took her water cup slamming it into his knuckles. He yelped withdrawing it. She was tired of his behavior, she was tired of pretending to be 'Catalina', she was tired of feeling afraid. All she wanted was to be Amarante and return to the base and put this day behind her.

"It's politer to give your name first before asking the name of others," Catalina snapped. DaCosta tensed at her behavior, it was odd, Amarante was always a shrinking violet. Amarante caught DaCosta's eye, she would have to be careful, it would be easy for her to reveal themselves in such a heightened state of emotion.

"Don't touch her," DaCosta snapped. The blonde frowned rolling his eyes. Her cousin was a lump on a log. The blonde couldn't help but laugh, DaCosta had a knife clutched tightly in his right hand, so tight his knuckles were as pale as the blonde's partner.

" My name is Amar and his is Namir," the Blond answered. His eyes traveled over to Catalina again, smiling he looked her up and down. She looked away trying to avoid his gaze but she could feel his judging eyes tracing every curve on her body.

Catalina answered robotically, "I'm Catalina."

"My name is Martin," DaCosta answered. DaCosta's eyes shifted to 'Namir', he was also looking Catalina up and down. DaCosta's hand quivered angrily.

"So, do you have a boyfriend?" Namir asked. Catalina looked at 'Namir' repulsed. Catalina reached for her cup. She would give him a bruise too! Namir laughed playfully moving Catalina's cup away from her.

"She's too young to date," DaCosta snapped. I know she hasn't had a chance to really eat, but it's time for us to leave, he thought before giving Catalina a signal. DaCosta stood up circling the table, he reached out to Catalina, which she happily obliged. Grabbing her backpack as she stood up, she quickly ducked behind DaCosta.

"Are you two going?" Amar asked agitated. He wanted the girl, and no defensive cousin was going to keep him from her.

"Yes. She has lessons to finish. Like her music lessons," DaCosta lied. DaCosta bit the front of his tongue, it was a bad lie, but they need to leave quickly or their cover would be blown.

"Oh, please show us. There is a piano in the corner," Amar answered. Oh boy…I hope she can play, DaCosta thought, he was getting them in too deep.

"Okay…I'll play," Catalina piped in, she attempted to move in front of DaCosta, only to be nudge back behind him. Looking over his shoulder, their eyes connected as he shook his head no.

"We really have to go," DaCosta answered.

"Catalina, why don't you play a tune for us while your cousin pays for the food," Namir answered. DaCosta nudged her softly for her to give an answer.

"Oh no but thank you. We really must be on our way. It was really nice to meet you two," Catalina answered. They made a beeline to the register, after a small argument between the owner and DaCosta he was able to pay for the food. She grumbled slightly, she could pay for her own food. "Cat!" DaCosta called out, she was staring into space in front of the cash register.

"Ah! Coming!" she answered running outside. He motioned her to follow with his head. He headed East, it was about time to head back to the base or else Waltfeld would kill him. Catalina was glad to be outside, it eased her swelling stomach. Amarante followed happily behind, without a care in the world. She looked so at peace, it was hard to imagine that she was trained to be a pilot, let alone trained to be a murderer. Oh no…it looks like we won't be able to shake them, DaCosta thought. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the two men casually following behind them, they didn't try to make their movements conspicuous. Soon enough they caught up with DaCosta and Catalina. Namir grabbed Catalina's backpack pulling her close. All of the uncomfortableness she felt at the restaurant came back.

"We thought we'd take you two back to your hotel," Namir offered ushering her towards a jeep. Amarante panicked swatting him in the crotch. He released her backpack quickly and in a flurry Catalina was behind DaCosta clutching his arm tightly.

"We'll walk but thanks for the kind offer," DaCosta responded. "And don't you touch my cousin." How can he remain so calm? Catalina thought, her legs trembled slightly. She felt so scared and defenseless, she wanted to fight back with the skills that she had learned at the Academy, but without knowing more about the people in the area, they would be at a disadvantage.

"It's fine. We'll just drop you off at the hotel," Amar answered. DaCosta pushed Amarante further behind him. He carefully watched the two of them.

"I promised that I'd let her do a little more shopping so we're going to stay out a little later. We don't want to trouble you, so we'll walk. Once again thanks for the offer," DaCosta answered. His lips plastered a smile.

"What about her music lessons?" Amar asked.

"I decided to postpone them until we get back to the hotel. We don't ever get a lot of time to just explore the cities we photograph. Most of the time, we find our subjects and move on. If I take her back to the hotel now, it would be lessons and then dinner and then bed." Amar raised an eyebrow deciding whether the story sounded believable. He casually looked over at Namir who shrugged in response. Catalina thought over her options carefully, she had to help out DaCosta.

"Yeah! I almost forgot!" Catalina whined. "You PROMISED! You said that in the LAST city and you didn't hold up your end of the bargain." She shoved his arm away in a huff. Crossing her arms Catalina pouted angrily.

"See my hands are tied, you know how teens are," DaCosta answered shrugging. "If I don't take her out, I'll be her least favorite person in the world." Catalina shot a dirty glare. Amar laughed, teen girls were unpredictable, especially when they were not appeased.

"Alright. Good luck on finding what you want," Namir answered watching the two of them walk away. Once they were out of the sight of the two men, DaCosta and Catalina let out sighs of relief.

"You noticed it too," DaCosta muttered coldly.

"Yeah…" DaCosta saw the soldier return to the teen's tiny frame. She was more like Commander Waltfeld than he thought. Perhaps this is what the commander saw in her.

"Members of the South African Union…puppets of the Atlantic Federation," DaCosta answered.

"What do you think they want?" Catalina asked.

"They probably want to information on the nearby ZAFT base," DaCosta said not trying to lure attention to them. Children ran by them giggling, they were probably playing tag. "Photographers are always stumbling into things, they're easy targets for the military." Catalina nodded staring at her feet. She looked up at DaCosta with a fiendish little smile, a small impish twinkle in her eye. DaCosta knew this look, Waltfeld gave it to him all the time. DaCosta gulped, that look always meant trouble, and normally trouble for him.

"HEY! You promised to take me shopping, " Catalina whined wrapping hers arms around his neck in a loving manner. DaCosta was taken aback for a minute, it was hard to imagine that the girl hugging him was the same girl who tried to blend into the background back at the base. The girl he thought he knew was meek and unconfident, but the girl he knew now, was courageous and outspoken.

"Alright. Alright, we'll get something and go," Martin chuckled wrapping his arms around the young maiden. He felt as if he was bonding with her as if they really were family.

"Da-Dac…Martin…they're following us," Catalina muttered twenty minutes later. The blonde and red-haired men stood out against the swarthy complexions in the crowds. It wasn't hard to miss them, especially the way they stared emotionlessly at the two ZAFT soldiers.

"I know. Do you like that?" Martin asked noticing the young girl stare at a glass orb.

"Oh, I'll be alright," Catalina responded with a smile.

"I promised to buy something for you," Martin answered. She continued to look around before finding something that reminded her of home. It was an unpainted statue of a girl with a beret and an umbrella sitting on a bridge. Her mother was originally from France and at a time, Amarante had lived there too.

"I'll take the statue," Martin told the man before Catalina came back to her senses. She looked up at him curiously now knowing that he was serious. She followed him away from the booth still in awe.

"You were serious?" She asked following him like a puppy dog.

"Yes. I promised, didn't I?" Martin answered before spotting the undercover Eurasian soldiers. They were watching Martin and Catalina from a jeep in a nearby alleyway.

"I didn't think you were THAT serious," Catalina sighed before taking the statue and placing it in her backpack. She grumbled quietly to herself as she zipped her backpack closed. The statue was heavy and they weren't heading to the base anytime soon. She should have told DaCosta to get her something towards the end of their day.

"Hey Martin!" Amar called out. Amar waved at them signaling that he wanted the two coordinators to come over. Amarante looked to Namir seeing the man staring "hungrily" at her. She shivered, his smile made her feel uncomfortable.

"Hello," DaCosta called back. DaCosta faked a smile and let out a sigh. "Great," he muttered to his young subordinate. "Don't worry, I'll handle this."

"Come here we want to show you something," Namir hollered to them, "especially, your young cousin."

"We have to get going, I finally appeased her. Remember she has her music lesson," DaCosta replied before grabbing Catalina's wrist before leading her away at a quick pace.

"Slow down," Catalina cried out.

"Woah slow down there. We just want to give you a ride back to your hotel," Namir said as they cut off the two in their jeep. Amar jumped out of the jeep casually circling the two. DaCosta held onto Amarante's wrist tightly.

"I told you we'll be fine," DaCosta barked. His gripped tightened on Amarante. He felt her squirm, his grip was too tight. Amarante hesitated as Amar approached, what was she supposed to do?! DaCosta wasn't giving any orders, he wasn't really paying any attention to her. Amar wrapped an arm around Amarante's waist pushing her into DaCosta. She saw Amar reach for his sidearm removing it from it holster.

"Come with us. We want to check your passports," Amar whispered into Catalina's ear pressing a gun into DaCosta's gut. "I'm assuming they're at the hotel." Amar pushed them towards the jeep. Amarante dug her heels into the ground trying to prevent her from going with them. She quickly began digging in her backpack, quickly grabbing onto the passports.

"Here they are," Catalina responded taking out two fake passports. Her left hand shook as it reached for the combat knife in her backpack. She jumped feeling a gentle nudge from DaCosta, they didn't have the upper hand in this instance.

"I guess they check out," Namir said flipping through them. He thrust them into Martin's hands before remembering about the camera.

"If you're a photographer then where's your camera?" Amar asked suspiciously. DaCosta eyed the Blond haired Amar watching his every move. Even if DaCosta did lie to him, Amar probably wouldn't believe him.

"It's at the hotel," DaCosta lied. Catalina nodded furiously.

"Yeah, I broke one of the lens on accident. He doesn't trust me with it right now," Catalina confirmed. She blushed kicking a rock with her shoe. "It was one of the really expensive ones." Amar laughed at the tiny teen, she was nothing but adorable. As his laughter subsided, he turned his attention back to DaCosta. The brown-haired red-skinned man was glaring at the two soldiers. Amar grumbled, there was no way Martin would allow them to get the teen.

"Well we'll hate to keep you waiting. Get going," Amar snapped.

"We'll be on our way," DaCosta answered. He grabbed Amarante's wrist pulling her away with haste. While these two are watching us, I don't think it will be possible to get back to the base. I guess it'll be best to report to the commander, he thought with a sigh. Catalina followed him to a phone booth where he made the call. Astonishingly Catalina snatched the phone from him. DaCosta could barely make out the words to stop her, this was not like the shy subordinate that DaCosta knew.

"Hi Uncle!" she said cheerfully as their Commander answered the phone.

"Uncle? Are you being insubordinate?" Waltfeld snapped. Less than one day out of the city, Amarante had transformed into a different young woman.

"It's been a unique day," Amarante said going back to her normal self. "Unique" was their code word for being followed. It was something DaCosta taught her as they rode over to the city.

"Really. Let me talk to DaCosta," Waltfeld sighed with annoyance.

"Okay! Bye Uncle! I love you!" Amarante said returning to her Catalina state. Commander Waltfeld thought it was odd to hear the words come out of her mouth. Amarante playfully handed DaCosta the phone. Annoyed he hissed at her as he brought the phone up to his head.

"Yes si-sir?" DaCosta muttered as Catalina giggled.

"Get a hotel room and stay the night," Waltfeld answered.

"Yes sir," DaCosta answered knowing that his commander was upset with him. Hanging up, DaCosta pushed Catalina out of the phone booth. She looked puzzled as he grabbed her wrist and led her away. "Come on there's more to see I guess." Catalina pulled her wrist away, she wasn't some child that needed to be led everywhere. "I did that for your own protection."

"I don't like that." She pouted angrily. "Everyone sees me as a child…I just want to be seen as a person…"

"What?" DaCosta asked, Amarante was looking at the floor.

"I know I'm young DaC…Martin, but I'm very capable so please see me," Catalina answered cryptically. DaCosta nodded, he wasn't sure what to say.

"She's already fast asleep. Well we did stay out all day long," DaCosta chuckled. She was strewn across the bed on her belly, she hadn't taken off her backpack. "Amarante, it's time to get up…you need to get dressed for bed." Se groaned slightly tossing her head to the right. "Amarante please get up." She sighed opening her green eyes sitting up. With a puzzled pout she blinked tiredly at her superior.

"I know Commander Waltfeld has tasked you with finding out everything about me…" Amarante mumbled stretching her arms. DaCosta flinched taking a few steps back. She was a red uniform, so it shouldn't surprise him so much, but Amarante was always so naïve and trusting. His eyes shifted to the objects in their hotel room. He thought about what she said as they left the phone booth, was this what she meant?

"Wh-What?! What makes you think that?!" He stammered.

"You always ask prodding questions…I thought it was strange. Then I always thought it was weird how you knew so much about me," she replied. "Then it dawned on me," she yawned tiredly, "you were spying on me. She carelessly took off her backpack. It fell against the bed with a gentle thud before sliding to the floor. She muttered to herself as she propped it up against the bed.

"Yes…Yes, I am," he replied.

"Would you rather I just tell you?" Amarante asked. She took off her coat, slipping into the bed, she didn't have any clothes to change into. Her eyes began to close, she hated staying up late, it always took so much out of her.

"No…If he knew that you knew…I'd get my ass kicked," DaCosta replied.

"Good night sir," she yawned as he pulled the blanket up to her shoulders. He sat down in a chair trying to stay awake. He yawned quietly before his eyes closed tiredly.

"Andy, where's Martin and Amarante?" Aisha asked sauntering into his office. It was about 10:30pm and she was getting worried about Amarante's safety. She was a mere child, barely even a soldier.

"They were being followed so I told them to stay the night," Waltfeld sighed out of annoyance. This was a real pain since DaCosta never got into this type of trouble.

"Andy, I don't think it's their fault. You know the Eurasian Federation has been snooping around lately. Two "foreigners" would cause for an alarm to them. They should leave before dawn," Aisha suggested.

"Yeah, DaCosta cut off all communication with us until they reached the base," Andy answered.

"I hope those two will be alright," Aisha sighed worriedly.

"DaCosta will keep her out of trouble," Andy answered placing a hand on Aisha's shoulder. He then pulled her into a deep hug holding her tightly. He kissed her velvet cheeks gently causing her, to give a sweet smile.

February 24, 2018 – Updates done to this chapter are complete! Sorry this took so long. Hopefully Chapter 5 won't take as long.