Title: Sensha-dō for Beginners
Summary: Have you ever wondered how Jagdpanther-chan came to like sensha-dō? Well, this is my take on it.
Disclaimer: I do not own Girls und Panzer, characters thereof, character designs or tanks. They all belong to their respective owners, Actas and Mizushima Tsutomu.
Four days. Just four more days and my books will finally arrive. Then my life in this new exile of mine will finally start to get better. I guess this is how Edmond Dantès must have felt. Prison: check; education: check; now way out for the next years: check! Although at least I know I will be here for three years only. He didn't even know he would get out someday and had to stay for eight years to finally find a way out.
Ok, that sounded far more depressing than I thought. Lying flat on your bed in your new, unlit dorm room after a whole day of cleaning, moving in, unpacking, scouring the area and generally being tired and sore does not seem to improve one's mood; especially after finding only one bookstore and not a single library in the vicinity. I must admit I'm not entirely happy with this situation, but I guess I shouldn't paint it that dark.
To clear up those ramblings a little bit: Right now I'm enrolled here at Kuromorimine Girls High School. This is a well-respected school sitting on a giant ship that looks like a massive aircraft carrier of sorts. I was quite shocked when I arrived here yesterday with the shuttle ship that took me out to sea. I expected something like a cruise liner but nothing with these dimensions. For some reason someone decided to build a ship large enough to house a small town. Not just the amount of people, but actually the whole town; streets, houses, cars, parks and everything. I even saw some low, forested hills in the distance. On the deck of a ship. Truly a strange feeling. This is a highly impressive place. Not necessarily nice, just impressive. I didn't figure out why this all was deemed necessary though. I will have to read that up later.
The reason why I'm here is actually the wish of my parents, not my own choice. I would have been quite happy to stay at my old school near Kawagoe. It had separate junior high and high school sections, a nice and cosy library and my parent's home not too far away. But for some reason my parents thought that my interest in literature was not enough to prepare me for the harsh reality of life. Supposedly being a certified bookworm does not automatically makes one a successful person after school. And I'm not kidding about the certified part; a grade school teacher actually knocked together a certificate for me. Not that I would ever tell anyone.
So they came up with their plan to enrol me in a high school with the possibility of taking sensha-dō classes as my electives; with the express aim of my participation in said classes. Lucky me. Mom was part of a sensha-dō club in high-school and she very much liked it. Nowadays she is a well-respected lawyer and married to my father, another lawyer. Our neighbours, the shop owners and her colleagues like her and value her highly. Exactly the sort of polite, dignified, respected and successful person in life and business that sensha-dō reputedly shapes. My guess about this: as stubborn and smart as she is, she would have been successful as a lawyer even if she took gardening classes, so I personally don't see the connection between siting in a noisy, dirty box and being successful in life. But mom firmly believes in this connection, dad believes in his wife, and after several discussions my fate was sealed. I'm now officially stuck with sensha-dō.
Please, don't get me wrong, I really love my parents and I'm sure they did this for what they see as my benefit. They didn't enrol me in a small school but in a school that would be considered prestigious even without its famous sensha-dō team, paid for my move and rent and sent me too a school too far away to visit them every day or even every weekend. That will most likely reduce our family time to next to nothing, considering that even before the times when we were all home together were quite rare and therefore highly valued by all of us. So they did go to great lengths just to get me into a very good school with an outstanding sensha-dō team. And I will thank them for that sometime later. Much later if you ask me now. But right now I do not enjoy being bossed around like this and I certainly don't like the idea of participating in a club like that. This is most likely something like a sports club dialled up to eleven: full of competitive people screaming at each other and severely cutting into my quality time with literature. Just think about it: the most likely people to join a club about tank warfare are either axe-crazy psychopaths loving to blow stuff up or military otakus crazy about the idea to play soldier with real tanks. I personally would rather join the literature club. That would mean a lot of quiet time to read, normal and sensible people to discuss nice books with and simply being able to enjoy some of the greatest works of some of the greatest authors that ever had the good grace to enrich our culture. Did I mention that I'm not entirely happy?
But I should stop getting distracted by my own thoughts and get ready for tomorrow. I think I'll skip dinner, too much of a hassle right now. Just prepare the books I'll need and lay out my new school uniform. Perhaps read a bit. Luckily I remembered to pack an emergency ration of books. I guess I'll settle for 'Hornblower and the Hotspur'. At least it is war-themed, that should help me prepare for my new required non-elective. Perhaps I should reread 'War and Peace' sometime later; although that's perhaps a bit too philosophical for useful hints.
Three o'clock at night. I guess I was somewhat absorbed in my book. Sleeping now.
That alarm clock rings much too early; it doesn't feel like I have slept at all. That's probably why I take much too long washing up and searching for my school uniform. As I walk by the mirror in my bathroom some of the massive changes slowly start to sink in. Right now I'm standing in my own bathroom, in my own dorm room, no mom in sight trying to cut in into our shower schedule, no dad around to ask the same old question of "Who wants coffee for breakfast?" and getting the same old answer "Everyone!" every day, just me and silence; and for a short moment I actually have problems in realising that the person in the mirror is actually me. The short brown hair is still the same as usual, but because I ditched my old, round glasses for contacts my eyes seem to stand out more. Now one can actually tell they are grey. That sort of matches my new uniform. With the medium grey jacket, a dark grey, almost black pleated skirt and matching black shoes and socks it looks a bit like an army uniform, but that's most likely intended; although I never had much time to research my newfound place of exile, one thing was immediately clear: Kuromorimine was a German-themed school, so those martial-minded types would probably not have much place for fun and games, and almost surely I would have to eat sausages and sauerkraut on a regular basis. I wonder how those actually taste, since I never had the chance to try some. And with that thought my stomach reminds me of the fact I didn't eat since yesterday's lunch and simultaneously my clock tells me that it is high time to go to school. I guess I will have to pick up a snack for breakfast and my lunch somewhere on the way. In hindsight I really should have checked for convenience stores and bakeries.
On my way to school I have a streak of luck: I find a bakery where I buy a croissant for breakfast, a convenience store selling packed lunches and several girls in Kuromorimine uniforms headed for school, so I won't get lost. Sadly I realise that most of the other girls are jogging or simply running and a quick check of my watch tells me why: it's almost time for the first period. Or rather one of those well-intentioned but horribly long-winded welcome-speeches by our schools headmaster, since today is the first day all the first-year students will come to school. Another downside about a school pretending to be German is that they are probably pretty strict about being on time for classes, so I better hurry up.
A gruelling seven minutes of jogging later the school's main gate crawls into view; just in time for me to see it slowly closing. Great, now I'm late on my first day of school and the short, black haired girl standing in front of the almost closed gate already noticed me. I guess there's no escaping this accusing glare, so I surrender to my fate and approach her, hoping that she'll let this one slide.
"You're late! What's your name and class?" she barks out while brandishing a tablet.
What a nice and pleasant person. Even if she is on the disciplinary committee, as her armband indicates, she could have been a bit more civilised. 'What? You can't be serious! The bell rung only seconds ago!' is what I want to say, but sadly I'm currently unable to. As I try to collect enough breath to answer her without excessive wheezing, her eyes suddenly snap open wide and she becomes slack-jawed as she stares in surprise past me. Damn, if I start laughing about her face now, this will only be the first of many more demerit marks I will collect. To hide my sudden attack of amusement I promptly turn around to see what caught her of guard and immediately understand her astonishment. I can see a fast moving whirl of short brown hair and grey uniform flashing by in front of me and realise this is a fellow schoolmate vaulting the main gate with all the grace of a professional high jumper. The girl lands easily on the other side of the gate, casually grabbing her shoulder bag out of the air; all while sending a cheery smirk in our direction. Then she simply turns around and dashes off towards the main gymnasium. Since the disciplinary committee member is currently sputtering incomprehensibly in the rough direction of a fast retreating sports ace, I use her state of distraction and slip past her back onto the school grounds and quickly set off towards safety. I just hope she can't leave the gate unattended.
A piece of advice for tomorrow: leave home earlier and try to enter the school in a larger crowd; I don't want her to spot me immediately.
Entering the gymnasium I realise the headmaster is just about to make his way towards the podium. So technically, while I might not be punctual, I'm still in time. The hall is quite crowded with what must be hundreds of girls. I guess not just the first-years are attending this presentation. The speeches held by the headmaster, a guidance teacher and the student council president are probably what you would expect, but the general sentiment strikes me as surprisingly cordial and congenial. I expected a somewhat more austere and demanding atmosphere. Following the end of the speeches we are send off to our class rooms, in my case 1-C.
On my way over to the main buildings I find myself at the receiving end of a hard pat on the shoulder. Startled I turn around, fearing the dreaded and probably livid disciplinary committee caught up with me, and stare directly into someone's chest. Looking up, I see a vaguely familiar grin framed by brown hair only slightly longer than my own. This is actually the girl whose demonstration of athletic capability facilitated my escape.
"Yo, Grumpy. How did yer meet with the dragon end? Could ya give her the slip?"
For a second I simply stare blankly at the huge schoolgirl in front of me before the first thought that bubbles up makes its escape "What are out talking about? Grumpy? I'm not looking that depressed!"
"Come on, girlie. Ya ain't exactly looking like a ball of sunshine. Guess ya got nabbed after all."
"Well, actually no. The disciplinary committee member was pretty dumbstruck, so I could walk right past her. I don't think she appreciated your little stunt, though, since she looked a bit upset."
I choose to ignore the 'girlie' and 'sunshine' bit of her comment. She seems nice enough and I don't want to offend her in case my supposed temper should actually exist. Some of my friends did comment on that occasionally, and sometimes I think they might actually possibly perhaps be right; at least a little bit.
"Nice, but don't worry about small stuff like that; it'll just ruin yer fun. Simply relax and move on. Everything else creates too much grey hair; and I'm way too young for that."
"As nice as that sounds, we should really move on. I doubt I'll have the good fortune to escape my demerit marks twice in a single day. What is your classroom?"
"1-C, but I got no clue where that is precisely. Right now I'm just following the horde. Takao Mai 's the name, by the way."
"My name is Nakajima Akemi, and it appears we are classmates. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Takao-san."
"Likewise, just do me a favour and stuff that Takao-san-business, just stick to Mai. Otherwise I always think my ol' man is around."
"I'll keep that in mind Mai-san, but we really should get going, since almost everyone else has left."
"Hopeless case, eh? Let's get cracking then."
Arriving at our classroom I realise my lucky streak is still around since our teacher didn't arrive yet. My new acquaintance steers me towards the back of the classroom where she spotted two empty seats next to each other. I mind neither the placement nor her company. Walking slowly behind her I can't help but notice how tall she actually is. My height is about average but she seems to easily tower over the rest of our new class. Luckily her laid-back attitude and her jovial half-smile prevent her from being intimidating. As I said, she seems nice, perhaps a bit overly familiar, but she doesn't immediately try to pry into someone else's past and wasn't aggravating during our short conversation on the way over, so I'll keep her company for the time being. For a new friend I could do a lot worse. A short look around reveals no one else strange besides Mai-san, so I lean back and relax a bit. Shortly after we settled down, our teacher arrived and regular school-business took over.
After conclusion of today's classes we are told to reassemble in the main gymnasium for a short introduction and presentation concerning our required electives. On our way we can see a lot of upperclassmen putting the finishing touches on several displays and booths of clubs and teams. The presentation featured representatives of all clubs giving a short summary of their club activities. Some of these were actually quite elaborate; athletic teams displaying their respective sports, a slideshow from the flower-arrangement club, a polite and graceful invitation from tea-ceremony club members dressed in kimonos, and a completely silent demonstration by the calligraphy-club practising their art on a large screen. But as expected the sensha-dō team tried to top everyone by showing a short film presenting the advantages and benefits of their club, styled to look like an old newsreel film. And I still don't buy their ridiculous misconception of how being thrown around in what must be one of the noisiest inventions of humankind, will make you a better person. A short time later we were dismissed and free to explore the school grounds with its many displays.
"Did ya already decide on a club or are ya still browsing for one? I could go for that tankery bit. It's been ages since I last did martial arts; was on the track team in middle school and did a bit of swimming on the side. And it doesn't look like they've some sort of mountain-biking club. Aah, I can't wait for a trip through the countryside with those tanks."
I should have guessed she would select a sport-oriented club, but I still don't see how this is a martial art; or even a sport. Well, I think I should consider myself lucky, since I won't have to do this on my own. It's always reassuring to have a familiar face around.
"I'll have to take up sensha-dō; it's basically the reason why I'm here at Kuromorimine. My parents' wish. So, I'll just have to make the best out of it and hope it works out somehow."
"Ya'll do fine; just remember the film; that was tons of fun. Let's find that club and sign up before the lists are full."
"Oh, I doubt that will happen. Clubs are always willing to enlist more members, and with such a famous team they'll probably have space for dozens of members."
A short while later we walk onto an open sports ground of sorts and then the soundtrack of Armageddon was upon us: loud rumbling, cracking and clattering ended with a high pitched screech. The sensha-dō club has positioned two gigantic tanks on both sides of a small stage, and in the background waits another smaller tank. The mutterings of the crowd identify the large tanks either as something called a 'Königstiger', 'Royal Tiger' or 'King Tiger'. The last idea they had was 'Tiger II'. At least I'm not the only one without knowledge. When not even those interested in sensha-dō can properly identify these tanks, I can feel a bit better. Then an extremely loud crack echoes over the place. As I jump in surprise, I realise that the third tank just shot. The large crowd in front of the stage is immediately silent. Nice trick. During this commotion three people in identical uniforms climbed the stage. The uniform is most likely the club uniform, since it too resembles an army uniform. It consists of a dark grey, almost black jacket with red highlights, a pleated red skirt, a small black cap and matching black boots. So they ride their tanks in short skirts. These girls have some strange ideas, since almost all other forms of regular clothing I can think of are probably better suited to the task. The girl in the middle of the stage takes up a microphone and starts to address the crowd.
"Hello everyone. My name is Hirogawa Eri, a third year and the president of the sensha-dō club. I'm delighted to see you all here. It is always a pleasure to meet people with an interest in tankery and I hope we will have a fantastic time together in our club. I think I'll spare you a long speech since you heard most of the information in the promotional movie we have shown during the lecture on required electives. " She has her brown hair up in a long ponytail and seems quite confident in speaking to such a large group. It must be more than sixty people; and that is not counting those with the club's uniform; all in all around hundred to hundred and twenty people. I couldn't do that. Seriously.
"The biggest news is that our club had the good fortune to gain several more tanks. That's why we had to reshuffle all our existing crews. Right now the second and third years in the club took over the tank commander positions, so that every tank has an experienced commander. We have done this to simplify your integration into the team. Everyone joining now can be integrated in a new crew, learn everything that is required and perhaps take command of an own tank later. This teambuilding is important because sensha-dō heavily relies on teamwork not just within the crews of individual vehicles but also as a team that has to work closely together to win; because it really is as the old proverb says: 'A well-coordinated team is invincible, a single tank is just a target.'
So, before we start with the formation of the crews, I would like to introduce two special members of our club. The first one would be Itsumi Erika, a member of the renowned Nishizumi School of Tankery and our vice commander." She gestures towards a girl with long and open silvery grey hair wearing a stern expression. Itsumi-san makes a small step forward and bows stiffly before she steps back. She seems like a really strict and unfriendly person. I hope I won't have to deal with her too much.
"The other person is Nishizumi Maho, the heir of the Nishizumi School of Tankery. She has led us through many matches and towards many victories, so her position as our commander is a boon to all of us in the tankery club." While she talks, a girl slightly taller than the other one, with chin-length cut dark brown hair steps forward and where Itsumi-san seemed stern and unfriendly, Nishizumi-san looks downright cold and emotionless. She gives off the very image of a professional soldier and a battle-hardened veteran. Since she is the commander and the club has quite a good reputation, she is probably highly capable. I have never heard of this Nishizumi School but since she is the heir of a school her performance is probably on a completely different level than that of a normal high school club. But her gaze is really disquieting. And now she takes over the microphone.
"I welcome you all to our sensha-dō club. As a commander of the team I'll give my best to implement the teachings of the Nishizumi Ryu in this club during training as well as in matches. Not only teamwork is essential but also self-control. The Nishizumi Ryu emphasises to never give up and to always find a way forward; if you keep this in mind you will be successful in the art of sensha-dō." She nods sharply and hands the microphone back to our president, Hirogawa-san. Well, scratch that 'disquieting' bit, now she downright scares me. She sounds as though she really is some kind of general shortly before an important battle; and I have the distinct impression she sees it exactly like that. Serious business indeed.
"Now, after we got to know us all a bit better, we can start the formation of the new tank crews. For that I'll call up a single tank commander searching for new crewmembers. She will give you a short introduction and tell you which crewmembers she is looking for. For those who are not completely familiar with tankery, let me remind you of a few basic facts. Our tanks usually have four to six crewmembers, but five is the most common number. A typical crew of five consists of the commander, the radio operator, the driver, the gunner and the loader. Crews consisting of less than five persons usually combine two of these positions, while crews of six usually have two loaders. But that should be enough for now, because I know you all want to start. So here is our first commander in search for crewmembers." She hands the microphone to a girl coming onto the stage. She has long blond hair in two pigtails and shows a friendly smile.
"Hi everyone, I'm Aridagawa Harumi and command a Jagdpanzer IV. I'm looking for a gunner and a loader. My driver is one of the second years and that's about it. The Jagdpanzer only has a crew of four. So everyone who is interested in joining a small but fun tank destroyer crew should come to the front so we can meet up. Thanks everyone." With that she gave a cheery wave and hoped down. That didn't sound so bad and since I had no intention to wait much longer I turn to Mai-san, but before I can even open my mouth to ask if she would join this crew too, she curtly declares her rejection.
"Hell no, she is way to bossy. I know her type and I'm not joining her crew." And that was that. But since there is a large group of what I presume to be tank commanders I am not worried.
"Too whiny."
"Too bitchy."
"No guts."
"Is clueless."
With that and other selected arguments she shot down each and every commander presenting themselves. It seems Mai-san is either a very good judge of character or perhaps a bit hasty in her judgement. Now I'm getting worried, because the crowd in front of the stage and the group of commanders is quickly getting smaller.
"Too rash."
"Too shy."
Ok, that comment was unexpected. Too bad this was the last one. The crowd is gone and we and a few others are the last ones. After the last group leaves, the president gets hold of the microphone again and addresses the last remnants of the crowd.
"I'm very sorry, but I have to confess that all our currently fielded tanks are fully crewed. But if you are interested in tankery you can join anyway, because since our club is rather large we always have need for managers and additional repair crews. If you are interested in behind-the scenes work, you are more than welcome to join. You would be considered a substitute, so every time the need for further crewmembers should arise you could step in." This proposition doesn't seem to convince many, because several of the remaining girls start to leave.
"Hell no, I don't want to become a desk jockey! Don't ya have some sort of spare tank? Or an old one or stuff?" Mai-san, in her usual subtle way, tries her best to get us into a tank.
"Yes, you said that all fielded tanks are crewed. That sounds like there are more. Do you really want to lose several good team members just because of a fixed roster?" That is a girl of average height that originally stood in the front part of the crowd. Even from behind I can tell she is quite pretty. She wears her very long black hair in a high ponytail similar to the president and she is the first person I see that makes this austere school uniform look fashionable. After a short consideration Hirogawa-san, who by now has abandoned the microphone and stage and has joined our little group on the ground, sways her head from left to right and makes a proposal.
"Well, actually there is another tank. Our latest acquisition of tanks included an old museum display. The problem is this tank will need a bit of work before it is back in working order. Plus, you five", she looks around and I notice that we are indeed down to five new members. The other two are actually classmates of Mai-san and me, "would have no experienced member in your crew."
"Don't worry about that, pres! We'll manage somehow." Mai-san's optimism is admirable but not entirely convincing, I fear.
"I think so too, Hirogawa-san. I firmly believe that we will be able to overcome these obstacles and grow into a fine tank crew." Whoa, I didn't expect that. The other two girls are a bit of an odd couple, one is shorter than me, has long, dark brown hair in a braid, wears glasses and gives of the aura of a geek. That is supported by her always playing with her smartphone or some other gadgets. But none the less, she seems to be genuinely friendly and cheerful. The other one appears to be her friend. I can rather imagine this girl with her long brown hair in a loose knot, who is slightly taller than me, but nowhere near the towering height of Mai-san, in the tea-ceremony or flower arrangement club. If anything she looks rather gentle and elegant, like a proper lady. And the last comment, that was actually her. It seems she is a bit more outspoken or passionate than I expected. And our combined good will seems to be enough to sway the president, because after a short discussion she agrees to let us try our hand at working on this mysterious tank.
On our way over towards the tank hangar we resort to a quick round of introductions. The pretty girl with long dark hair is a first year from class 1-A, and her name is Kisaragi Misaki-san. The elegant one is called Kashihara Naoko-san and her smaller friend is named Mikuma Yumi-san. Then there's Takao Mai-san, our tall resident sports ace and myself, Nakajima Akemi. I think we should get used to each other because, as it seems to be, we are now a complete tank crew. But I think it is probably easier than I suspected, because right now it seems that these people don't seem to be as aggravating as I feared. I must admit, things are looking up right now.
Author's Notes: This story is the result of a discussion gone sideways, and my first attempt at writing a story. So if anyone should have advice or criticism, I would appreciate your opinion.