Chapter 10: Sweet Shop Secrecy

"Let's face it, a nice creamy chocolate cake does a lot for a lot of people; it does for me."

Actress Audrey Hepburn

Ami was waiting for the team as it rolled back to the hangars, glaring from under her cap. Her foot tapped the dirt with a quick tempo, arms crossed as if to keep them from reaching out for someone's neck.

"This is bad," Yukari whispered, hiding behind Hana as the dragon wagons brought the disabled tanks back. "Should we play sick? Act like we all have concussions?"

"I don't think she would believe it in your case," Saori said, tapping on Yukari's helmet. "Miporin, what do we do?"

Miho stood up as straight as she could. "I'm the commander, I'll take the responsibility for our loss. Everyone else, begin work on the tanks."

"Good luck Miho," Hana whispered. Miho nodded, jumping off the trailer as it slowed down. Walking over to Ami, Miho stood as straight and tall as she could, ready for impact.

"What happened out there?" Ami said. There was no rage, no anger that many people might have expected from a trained soldier who just saw their trainees fail. No, Miho could see it in Ami's eyes. It was a tranquil fury, the kind of anger that people see when they've gotten arrested and their parents ask, "What were you thinking?"

"The American team had better intelligence than we expected- "

"Tell me something the team can use, Nishizumi," Ami said, voice starting to border on a growl. Miho whimpered a little, but Ami broke right past it. "You lost control of the team, how did Anzio make a move like that without you knowing about it? Or how your teammates didn't think that maybe the Chaffee and 97 were something to worry about. How about the biggest of all, the fact that you didn't plan for failure."

Miho was about to answer, but the sound barely made it out when she saw her mother standing in front of the hangar the Tiger was parked in, watching dispassionately as her youngest was dressed down for her actions. Miho's heart started to pound again, her eyes going wide. If she could think, she would have known her body was preparing to run, and run hard and fast away from the threat.

Ami bared her teeth. "The next match is going to be a flag battle," Ami said turning away. "I expect better."

Miho didn't answer as Ami walked away, her eyes were locked on her mother, and her mother's eyes were locked on Miho. Miho watched as her vision narrowed, blocking out the action around her. She lost sight of the American team pulling into their hangars, or her teammates trying to smile past the loss. Her eyes centered on the glare her mother was sending at her. Miho tried to say something, to squeak out some reason, but there was only dead air coming out of her mouth.

"Miho?" Snapped back to focus, Miho spun around to see Anchovy standing behind her, face down and sullen. Carpaccio and Pepperoni stood behind her, heads bowed. "I want to apologize. We might have had a better chance following your plan. I hadn't expected the Americans to react in time. It was my fault we lost, not yours."

Miho started to crawl out of her mind's trap, giving a weak smile to Anchovy. "No, I understand why you did it. Just tell me next time, that way we can work it out together."

"And maybe next time we communicate a little better?" Katyusha said, again astride Nonna. Glaring down at Miho, she looked like a wrathful judge trying to pass sentence on an innocent defendant. "There was barely any communication at all during that fight, there was no way of knowing what our own tanks were planning before they did it. It was like there were six separate teams out there."

Miho nodded. "Agreed. We should work on our communications next practice, for now we need to make sure the tanks are in working order."

"Hey, Nihsizumi!" Turning, Miho saw Katherine and Hawks walking over, Katherine holding her helmet in hand as she walked. "That was a pretty good first match for you guys." Holding out her hand, Katherine smiled gently. "Don't worry, you still have eight matches to go after all."

Miho smiled, nodding as she shook Katherine's hand. "Of course, thanks. Say, how did you manage to navigate the city so effectively?"

Hawks shook her head. "No dice, that's op-sec territory."

Katherine nodded. "She's right, we'd be giving away one of our biggest advantages if we did. Also, you should be getting ready for tonight." Katherine turned to her right, looking skyward as if she was deep in thought. "After our first win, I think we should celebrate with some nice, delicious chocolate cake, hmmm?"

Miho cringed a little, suddenly feeling a pinch in her wallet. "Well, I guess we did make the agreement, though…"

"It's settled then," Hawks said, smiling conservatively compared to Katherine's beaming face. "We'll meet you all at the school ship at 1800 tonight. Since we have two days before the next match, that should be plenty of time for you all to get ready."

Sighing, Miho shook what she could off, walking over to her team. "So, how did it go?" Assam asked, watching Miho shuffle under the hangar roof.

"We're treating them to dinner tonight apparently," Miho said, looking the Churchill over. A massive blast pattern was on the rear of the turret, scorched black by a powerful impact. "I guess it was the T30 wasn't it."

"Clearly all of the American tanks have been modified in respect to their speed," Darjeeling said, nodding as she walked over from behind the tank. "We need to start taking that into consideration during our battle planning."

"Well the next match is going to be a flag battle," Miho said, climbing onto the Churchill for a closer look. The round had clearly obliterated the rear turret armor on the Churchill, and the tank would probably need a new turret before the next match. "That 155mm, we need to find a way to take it out."

"I don't know how we can," Nilgiri said, Orange Pekoe nodding sadly. "That tank has armor and armament, we'd be lucky to score a hit on that thing at its maximum range, either that or surround and bombard them into defeat."

"Then we just need to be smarter," Miho said, smiling down at her teammates. "Now, where did the M6 hit you?"

As Miho spoke with her teammates, Ami walked over to Shiho. "Something definitely went wrong. Reizei is one of the team's best, here she was too far off her game for it to be normal."

Shiho shifted her gaze over to her daughter's team. "Mechanically, nothing is wrong with any of the tanks. The Americans can see it clearly, the biggest threat to the team's success are the crews."

Looking back to the girls, Ami saw what Shiho was talking about. Reizei was curled up in the driver's seat, almost catlike as she slept. Ami knew that the girl wasn't much of a morning person, but if she had fallen asleep in the middle of a match, something had gone out of her girls' control. "I'll look into it instructor."

"I recommend being cautious though," Shiho said, glaring beyond Ami. "You never know who might decide to get involved."

Turning, Ami saw Armstrong and Taylor walking over, Taylor dressed in light blue button-up shirt and slacks. "Well that was quite a way to kick things off," Taylor said, still smiling congenially. "I've never seen the Easy Eight teams take so long to feel an opponent's style over."

"Agreed, typically a match like this would have ended far more quickly," Armstrong mused, stroking his chin. "I think it's safe to say the cadets see your girls as a very interesting group of opponents Ami."

"Yeah, that's just swell and dandy," Ami said, looking up at Armstrong. "The spotter was at the top of the Marine Tower, wasn't she?"

"Again, I don't know what the team's plans are," Armstrong said, looking down at Ami from half her height above her. "All I can say is that it is certainly the tallest structure in the area, isn't it."

Shiho watched dispassionately as Ami and Armstrong went back and forth about the match, Ami's attempts to ferret something useful out of Armstrong deflected by Armstrong's continuing assertion that he was nothing more than an observer to the actions of the Easy Eight. More interesting was Taylor's behavior during the back and forth. He watched, still smiling, but Shiho saw that his eyes were glazing over, looking towards the hangars instead of the argument. Following his gaze, she saw him staring at the Japanese tanks.

"Excuse me," Shiho said, turning back to Armstrong. "But something is troubling me. As foolhardy as Anzio's decision was, why did they not fire when they were at the bunker?"

Ami and Armstrong stopped their argument and looked at each other, realizing that Anzio's P 40 could have actually won the match, but didn't actually fire so close to the bunker. Spinning towards the hangars, Ami and Armstrong stormed over to the P 40, Taylor and Shiho trailing behind, two smaller ships in the wake of the real muscle.

Anchovy was helping Carpaccio take the rounds out of the turret when she saw Ami and Armstrong coming over. Whimpering, Anchovy ducked into the turret, barely keeping her eyes visible.

"Anzai, why didn't you fire?" Ami barked, drawing the attention of the entire Japanese team. "You had a clear shot and more than enough time, but you didn't fire. Why?"

"Well, you see, it's a little complicated," Anchovy whispered, trying to shrink into the turret to avoid Ami's wrath. The other teams were already cowering behind their tanks, except for Miho, Carpaccio, and Caesar.

"I've got time, believe me," Ami growled, Armstrong looking sideways at her but saying nothing. "Why didn't you take the shot?"

Anchovy looked at Armstrong, it was quick but everyone saw it. Nodding, Armstrong left the bay, Taylor staying with concern written on his face. Taking a deep breath, Anchovy stuck the rest of her head out of the turret. "Inside the bunker, it looked like there was someone inside," Anchovy whispered. "But after we were taken out, I got a better look. It was a CPR practice dummy, someone had stuck it inside the bunker."

Ami facepalmed, growling towards the Americans. "A dummy, anyone trying to fire up close would hesitate if they saw what looked like a person inside."

"Something they can't use again," Shiho mentioned, glancing at Miho. The young captain quickly ducked behind the Churchill, peeking out like Anchovy, trying to avoid the full impact. "That's all I wanted to know, captain. Mr. Taylor." Nodding, Shiho walked out, looking at Armstrong for a second before disappearing from view around the corner of the hangar.

"It's okay Duce, you did the right thing," Carpaccio said, patting Anchovy gently. "You didn't want anyone getting hurt, that's what matters."

"It's still a rotten trick," Saori said, the team slowly starting to come out of cover. "If this is what PSYOPs are, it's just plain rotten."

"But something you girls can turn to your advantage." Grinning, Ami walked out of the hangar too, smiling evilly at Armstrong as she left.

Taylor shook his head. "I'm so sorry girls, truly." Leaning against the P 40, he smiled softly at Anchovy. "I had really hoped the American teams wouldn't sink to tricks like this to win. I guess I was being a little too naïve."

"No, it was their decision," Miho said, smiling up at Taylor. "You can't control what their strategies are after all. I'm honestly kind of happy, they could've done something worse to us."

Taylor smiled back at Miho. "Well, you aren't wrong." A buzzing sound alerted Taylor to his phone. Grabbing it, he nodded at whatever he saw. "Excuse me girls, I have to take a call." Quickly walking out of the hangar, Taylor put the phone to his ear and disappeared around the corner, leaving the girls alone again.

"Ah, Ms. Reizei!" Yukari said, suddenly remembering that Mako was still asleep in the tank. Jumping out of her seat, she clambered over the turret to the driver's seat, gently trying to shake Mako awake. "Ms. Reizei, can you wake up please? The match is over."

Mako pulled away from Yukari, curling up even tighter in her seat as Yukari sighed. "I guess she didn't get enough sleep last night."

"Not getting enough sleep is one thing," Momo said, Turtle team walking over as Anzu kicked forlornly at the ground. Hana noticed she didn't have any food on her. "She fell asleep in the middle of a match, that doesn't just happen. Something either kept her up too late last night, or put her to sleep today."

"No, tankery rules state that interfering with another team's tanks or team members physically is strictly forbidden," Miho said, looking towards the American team. "They probably did something last night to affect her sleep."

"And that doesn't count?" Kei said, walking over. "That's still interference, they were going after one of the team."

"The rules just won't see it that way I'm afraid," Darjeeling said. "Ms. Reizei is physically unharmed after all. So long as the Americans don't directly interfere with ourselves or the tanks, they can act with almost complete immunity."

"Then we'll need to start thinking outside the box as well," Kei said, grinning. "Anyway, let's get ready for tonight huh? I'm gonna bet we'll need a lot of cakes to keep the Americans under control."

Taiga finished her papers on the special report, satisfied that the facts were accurate. Trying to navigate the rules for gaining access to files from the GSDF was probably the toughest part, but she'd managed to find them all just in time for the first loss.

"You don't think she'll come after us?" Taiga's cameragirl said, looking over the pictures they planned to use along with the information. "I mean, you aren't scared at all?"

"It's our job to give people information they might need," Taiga said, getting up to stretch. "We still have an hour to the broadcast, I'm gonna get changed into my uniform."

The camergirl nodded, flipping to the end of the pictures. "I just can't get over how happy she looks," she mused, looking at the picture of a young Ami Chouno smiling atop a Kuromorimine Panzer II.

Miho and the other commanders waited at the docks, watching as the sky slowly started to darken as the seconds ticked by. Miho had noticed everyone looked so different out of their uniforms. Kei wore a bright white and red t-shirt with denim shorts, compared to Darjeeling's respectable blue skirt and white shirt combo. Anchovy wore a short black skirt and gray top, while Maho wore a loose t-shirt with slacks. The team were mostly finished with the repairs, but the Auto Club and Kei's team had decided to stay longer to make sure they hadn't missed anything Ami would come after everyone about. Kei and Darjeeling talked idly, as Miho stood silently behind them all. Katyusha had gone to her room, saying she needed her sleep to, "Be at my utmost best for tomorrow's planning session!" Anchovy just sat on a bench, numbly staring down at the concrete.

"Maybe I should say something," Miho thought aloud, watching as Anchovy traced shapes in the cement with her shoe. "She's taking it harder than I thought."

"Anchovy is a leader, being told so suddenly to follow orders instead of give them isn't something she can just turn off," Darjeeling said, Kei nodding. "Where the rest of us were tank crew before becoming team commanders, Anchovy was a team commander almost immediately because of the fact that most of her tankery class was graduating when she was a first year."

"Wow, I had no idea Anzio Academy had such a rotation," Miho said. "Does that mean most of the team now are first years?"

"For the most part, yeah," Kei said, leaning against a light post. "Anchovy, Carpaccio, and Pepperoni are the most senior members on that team, and even they still have a lot of learning to do. They're the most experienced crew Anzio has though, so it's safe to say they aren't going anywhere for now."

Miho turned to her sister, realizing that Maho was probably in a worse place. Anchovy was teaching herself and team as she went, where Maho was expected to know the best means of winning no matter what. If anything, Maho was probably burying her fear and disappointment so deep that it wouldn't show to anyone, even her own sister.

"Hey, glad you guys decided to show." Turning, Miho saw the Americans walking over, dressed so differently from their uniforms that Miho almost thought they were different people. Katherine wore a bright pink dress and small light blue jacket, blond hair trailing down to the middle of her back. Hawks had let her hair down as well, though she had on a simple black skirt and tan jacket with an undershirt. Catalina wore a tight turtleneck and black pants, as Ross came over in a light jacket, t-shirt, and dark blue cargo pants. "We wanted to make sure we could talk to you all about a few things away from Taylor, is that okay?"

"Sure, whatever you need," Miho said, the commanders following the crew of the Dark Dame to Café LeClerc. Walking in, Miho was surprised to see the majority of the tables were taken by the American team, two left open for Miho and her friends and the Dark Dame crew.

If Miho had thought the West Point cadets looked different, it was nothing compared to the other teams. Out of uniform, they looked mismatched to the point of lunacy. Cadet Rockbell wore a white top and black pleated miniskirt with combat boots, which was almost puritan compared to the pink tank top and green miniskirt Eda Langley was wearing, "Just Do It" stenciled across Eda's chest, but downright risqué compared to the shirt/vest/dress combo Cadet Mizuno wore. The distant smell of tobacco lingered around some of the Americans, but they all had the distinct smell of oil and steel. "Wow, it's hard to believe this is all the same team," Miho said, sliding into a booth.

"The military only requires uniformity when on-duty," Catalina said, sliding in across from Miho. "When they let you off for a bit, well, you can tell that you're still allowed to be yourself."

Miho nodded, not bothering to look at the menu. She and her friends had been to the café enough that Miho had a decent idea of what she wanted to order, so she quietly sat back in her chair as the others looked things over and talked to themselves. Kei and Darjeeling slid into the same booth as Miho, Anchovy and Maho sitting right behind the Japanese commander.

"So, I'm gonna be honest," Katherine said, sitting next to Miho. "We all feel like we went too hard on your team, and we actually feel kinda bad about it."

"I'll say," Kei grumbled. "That was a dirty trick you pulled on us, and so early in the running too?"

"Look, we figured that you'd be ready all things considered," Ross said, speaking from the other booth. "Especially since your commander fights Philly style."

"Philly style?" Miho asked, Katherine smiling at the younger tanker.

"It means that you don't waste time on tradition or looking good," Katherine said, nodding to a passing waitress over the dull roar of the American team. "The first tankery teams in the Philadelphia area played that way, it became famous after the '76 match against the Soviet Army team."

Miho looked down, humbled by the…compliment? Insult? The '76 match between the Philadelphia Belles and Soviet Army team was legendary in tankery, but only because the Russians maintained to today that the Belles had played dirty.

"What we're trying to say is that we know tankery for you isn't what it is to us," Katherine said, smiling gently, patting Miho on the back. "We can play it like it isn't a military drill, you just give us the word."

Maho nearly choked on her water behind Miho, hacking up half a lung as Anchovy dodged the spilled glass. The conversation almost seemed to get louder at the same time, Miho picking up bits and pieces.

"I already told you, I just want to hit one good bar while we're here," Cadet Xìhú growled, dressed in a black t-shirt and cut-off denim shorts, glaring across the table at Cadet Pavlovena. "What's one night drinking gonna hurt us?"

"And then, it turns out he thinks tankery is supposed to desensitize the people 'against neo-con warmongering'," Cadet Weber grunted, angrily taking a chunk out of her cheesecake. "It was like he didn't even notice the globe and anchor on my shirt."

"So we're gonna have the BBQ next week," Lita said, Mina devouring her strawberry shortcake. "I've got ribs, stuffed burgers and peppers, what else?"

"You okay Nishizumi?" Hawks asked, patting Maho on the back.

"You're hiding all this from someone," Darjeeling whispered, Kei looking at her opposite like she'd just been hit by a thunderbolt. "All they know is that there's a debt being repaid, but not that you're offering us an easy alternative."

Ross nodded. "If Capt. Armstrong or Mr. Taylor heard about this, we wouldn't even be able to talk to you guys at all for the rest of the exhibition."

Miho looked down, arms crossed and held close to her body. "Sorry, we shouldn't be making you talk to us about this."

"It's alright, really," Katherine said, gently putting a hand on Miho's shoulder. "We know tankery is different for both our teams. We shouldn't be forcing you to treat this like it's a military exercise."

"Your whole team is okay with this?" Kei asked, Catalina tapping the tank for the waitress.

"We talked about it, and we agreed the exhibition would be over long before it should if we played our usual way," Katherine said, turning to the waitress as she walked over.

"Ladies, welcome to Café LeClerc," the waitress said, smiling like all waitresses; politely, calmly, but clearly waiting for her shift to end. "What are your orders?" The Japanese girls quickly rattled off their orders, leaving the cadets.

"I'll have a lemon meringue pie," Ross said.

"An angel food cake with strawberries," Catalina said.

"A vanilla cake please," Hawks said.

"I'll have two of the chocolate cakes, a side of vanilla ice cream, two fruit bowls, and a diet soda please." Smiling, Katherine turned to Miho to see the younger commander staring wide eyed as the waitress walked off. Katherine grinned and winked. "I'll burn it all off in PT, don't worry."

"You all seem to be operating on the presumption that we'll automatically accept your offer," Maho said, breaking straight through the chatter. "What would you say if we refused your offer, decided to play you as equals."

"Then we would accept it," Katherine said, her smile shrinking as she talked to Maho, though Miho made a note that she didn't turn around to face her sister. "We wouldn't like it, but if that would be your team's decision, then there's little to do about it is there?"

"And it's a generous offer we will definitely consider," Darjeeling said, nodding. "In the meantime, why don't we all enjoy the delicious cakes here? From what Nishizumi has said, Café LeClerc has the best anywhere."

Miho smiled, glad to dodge the sudden uncomfortable air that surrounded the discussion. "Right, it really is."

The food came quickly, the mini-Dragon Wagons rolling out with Ōarai academy flags attached to the cab. Three were needed for Katherine, but she practically devoured her sides so fast Miho needed to check her watch to make sure she wasn't hallucinating.

"Gotta admit, the background sound in this café really doesn't quite capture the sound of actual tankery," Hawks observed, as a muffled blast erupted from the ceiling. "It's too quiet, no engines or metal on metal."

"Then why don't we change the tune?" Kora laughed, tossing up an MP3 player, catching it as it came down. "Unless anyone objects."

"Nothing too explicit," Katherine said, shooting a warning glare at Kora. Nodding, Kora jumped up and went to the nearest waitress, holding the player out.

"I'm curious, do you use music to intimidate all your opponents?" Anchovy asked. "Because it can't work on every team you face."

"You'd be surprised," Ross said, taking her time with her snack. "Some teams lose focus from it, they're trying to switch from paying attention to the match and trying to hear the lyrics."

"So it must've been a surprise when the Lee and Char didn't fall for the intimidation," Kei said, grinning. "How'd you know they were the greenest teams we had?"

Hawks grinned. "We do our homework."

The sound system in the café suddenly erupted into a guitar riff, followed seconds later by a wailing scream. The beat was fast and lively, and when they heard it the American team started slamming their fists on the tables and banging their heads.

"I guess we shouldn't be surprised that it's mostly rock," Kei said, shouting a little to make sure she was heard. "But what's the wailing noise?"

"A bagpipe," Katherine said, slamming her fist down with the beat. "Wouldn't be the Murphys without one."

"The who?" Miho asked, before a screaming man started to sing. At least, that's what Miho guessed it was. Katherine thankfully started singing too, Miho focusing on her instead of the singer.

"Well it's all gone to hell now/Wimps have gangs/Pop punk tough guys with neck tattoos!"

"Are they trying to intimidate us again?" Anchovy asked, covering her ears to try and block out the pipes.

"No, they're doing this for some other purpose," Maho said, staring at the Americans. Miho saw the wheels turning behind her sister's eyes, trying to puzzle out the reason for the display. Was it a psychological tactic of some kind? Some display to cow their opponents? Miho smiled a little, and turned to Katherine.

"This song sounds really catchy," Miho said, bouncing a little with the tune. The other commanders stared at Miho, Kei with half-eaten cake hanging off her lips. "They sound really passionate, like how most of our team is about tankery."

"Hey, you're catching on," Katherine said. She probably thought that she was patting Miho on the back, but to Miho it was like a hammer slamming her into the table. "Honestly, Taylor wants us to keep up impressions. We're glad you understand though."

"That still doesn't explain the bagpipes," Anchovy grumbled, rubbing at her ears.

"Call it tradition," Hawks said, finishing off her cake. "So, what will your answer be Nishizumi?"

Miho straightened out, clearing her throat quietly as the song ended. "I'll need to talk with my team about it, privately. I'll make sure to let you know tomorrow morning."

Katherine nodded, holding out a hand. "Then it's a deal."

Shaking, Miho felt reassured by Katherine's smile. It was warm, not hiding anything behind it. A sincere honest smile that seemed to brighten up the table.

"Don't think this gets you out of paying for the food though," Catalina said, Ross snickering as Kei and Darjeeling sighed, pulling out their wallets.

Armstrong leaned back in his chair, nodding as his CO spoke about the first match. "Yes sir, they did perform well. No, no, I'd imagine the Japanese team went in fully aware of what they were facing. Of course sir, no problems reported." Armstrong's office was a Spartan affair, just a desk with a laptop, various uniforms hanging on the wall in case they were needed. It would probably surprise anyone who had heard of the Armstrong family that their oldest son didn't have a most ostentatious room, but then those people didn't really know the Armstrong family.

"Yes sir, Capt. Chouno has been more than helpful in ensuring the event goes as smoothly as possible," Armstrong said, turning to the one other accoutrement in the room, a small flatscreen mounted on the wall, tuned to the local network off the school ship, showing…

"Sir, can you please hold for just one moment?" Armstrong said, eyes locked on the screen. Muting the phone, he grabbed at the remote and turned up the volume.

A small girl with glasses and short pig tails was sitting behind a small desk, looking at the camera like a professional anchor. "-And today, we have a short special on Ōarai's tankery instructor, Capt. Ami Chouno." A small headshot of Chouno faded onto the screen, one from when she was a child. It was strange, looking at Ami Chouno as a little girl playing with a stuffed doll, not as a trained tank commander.

Armstrong grabbed the phone again. "Sir, I believe something has come up, I will call you back the earliest I can." Hanging up, Armstrong glued his eyes to the TV and watched like his career depended on it.

"Capt. Chouno eventually enrolled in Kuromorimine Womens Academy, becoming part of their tankery class. Records indicate that Chouno was an excellent student with good marks and a passion for tankery under then-commander, Shiho Nishizumi." A picture of Ami in tankery appeared next to Taiga, young and smiling next to a stern-faced and young short-haired Shiho. "The driver of a Panzer II commanded by Shiho Nishizumi, Chouno accompanied the team into two championships, though she backed out her senior year before enlisting in the GSDF. The reason why has not been found in any files from Kuromorimine or the SDF, though her actions immediately after taking the position and the announcement of the exhibition match appear to be worlds apart."

Armstrong cringed as the camera cut to footage of Ami ranting at the team in the time before the exhibition. Shouting down at a small Pravda girl in an ushanka for not loading fast enough, the girl shaking with fear. Ordering the girls of Anzio to give pushups for failing to maintain their tracks properly, as the girls struggled to keep up with the pace Ami was setting. Armstrong shook his head as he watched Ami ordering the Kuromorimine team to repaint their Tiger, though the Kuromorimine girls had no problem following her orders succinctly. Armstrong groaned as he covered his eyes, knowing the results would not be pretty when the parents of the girls involved saw the footage.

"We have contacted Kuromorimine for her student records, and have asked Ōarai's administration for information on Capt. Chouno's background, yet no records have come to our offices." Pausing, Taiga adjusted her glasses for a moment, then went to looking right at the viewer. "Capt. Chouno has essentially locked our news crews out of Ōarai's practices before the exhibition, leading to a simple question; what does Capt. Chouno have to hide?"

Armstrong muted the TV and grabbed his phone, dialing up Ami's number before Taylor could push her further. The line rang, but when Chouno picked up all Armstrong could hear was angry breathing. Hoping she would speak first, Armstrong eventually broke the silence. "Ami-"

"Right from the start and they're throwing me under the train," Ami growled on the other end, her voice hard-edged to try and keep out the despair creeping in at the edges. "You know why I kept the school reporter out, it had to be done, and dammit it failed anyway-"

"Ami, slow down," Armstrong said firmly, trying to head off an emotionally-charged rash decision. "You knew that locking the school's press club out of the practices for such a major event would draw them into investigating things."

"Not about me, not about my past," Ami barked, Armstrong able to hear the phone in her hand trying to stand up against her tightening grip. "This is nothing Alex, nothing compared to what I went through in Kuromorimine, I'm going easy on them, dammit!"

"Maybe, but now you have to explain this to the girls," Armstrong said, trying to maneuver through Ami's emotions as carefully as humanly possible. "They need to know why you're acting this way, especially now that this report is out."

Ami breathed for a few minutes over the phone, her mind trying to work out a way to try and put off telling her charges what had happened so long ago, but Armstrong knew that the incoming barrage of questions would force her hand. "Fine, I'll do it," she said, finally relenting. "Two conditions; the American team isn't involved, and you're there to explain everything else, got it?"

Armstrong let out a breath of relief. "Yes, I can make sure of it. When?"

"Tomorrow morning," Ami growled. "And Armstrong? He doesn't show up either."

"Of course." Hanging up, Armstrong leaned back on his desk, staring at the muted TV going on about Ami's spotless military record. "Like that will help at this point," he thought.

"Well, that's gonna come back to bite me," Ross said, stretching out as she left the café. The Americans were split up into groups, talking and walking with each other like any group of friends out for the night. The Yellow Rose and Ice Queen teams talked about practicing something later on, as the crews of the Mother Superior and Buckeye Brawler took out cigarettes and cigars to puff away on.

"In all seriousness Miho, I hope you consider what we offered carefully," Katherine said, stopping close to the school ship. "Remember, we're here to have fun too. We don't want to make this exhibition miserable for anyone."

Miho smiled at Katherine's kindness. "Thank you, it really means a lot," she said, bowing a little.

"Hey, c'mon now, we're not your seniors," Katherine said, trying to wave off Miho's politeness. "You just tell your team our offer, and we'll accept whatever you come back with. Okay?"

Miho nodded. "Right, see you tomorrow." Smiling cheerfully, Miho jogged to the other team leaders, as the Americans went for their hotel.

"Even if they're showy, they know what they're doing on the field," Darjeeling said. "We should take them up on the offer, it could be our only way to last in the competition."

"No, we can't afford to show weakness," Maho said firmly, glaring at Darjeeling like she'd just cursed the Nishizumi school. "We should tell them not to pull any punches and face us as equals."

"But we're not equals," Anchovy argued, standing next to Darjeeling. "They're training for actual combat, this is as much a sport to them as shooting is to a sniper. It might keep some of their skills sharp, but at the end of the day they'll easily outclass us."

"And give up our tankery?" Maho argued, surrounded by the other commanders. "They have made a mistake, giving us a chance to force them to step their tankery down."

"So why not take it?" Kei said, grinning diabolically. "The rules of tankery don't say anything about teams actions as individuals, just about tank modifications."

"Because it would be admitting a weakness in our abilities, and our opponents knowing it would be admitting that we can be defeated," Maho said, calm façade starting to shift before Miho's eyes. "We should never take an easier option, not unless we're willing to admit that we don't deserve to face them as a team."

"Maho?" Miho nearly stepped back at Maho's burning gaze, but stood as firm as she could. "Would you like to have dinner at my room? I have some things Saori left behind the last time she cooked, I could make something quick if you want."

Maho's intensity derailed when Miho mentioned leaving the group. Nodding, Maho became quiet as Miho talked to the other commanders.

"I think they're being really generous honestly," Miho said, fiddling with her hands. "They are being really militarily minded about his after all, so maybe we should take the offer."

"Agreed, it's just for fun after all," Kei said, nodding. "I say we treat this as a big practice match, it'll help us get ready for the next season."

"Of course we'll still play at our best," Anchovy said, smiling proudly again. "I'll contact you with my team's decision Miho, goodnight."

As the commanders said goodbye, Maho stared into an empty void, trying to rationalize what had just happened. The Americans weren't willing to play at their absolute best? "Perhaps they're trying to lure us into a false sense of security," Maho though. "That has to be it, a ploy to trick us into letting our guard down. If we accept, they'll annihilate us for the rest of the exhibition."

"Sister?" Maho snapped out of her trance to see Miho walking back over, smiling despite the looming threat.

"Miho, we can't accept their offer," Maho said, glaring at her little sister. "The Americans obviously want us to let our guard down for our next match, we should be prepared for a betrayal."

Miho blinked, taken aback by her sister's sudden stern nature. "But they're trying to be nice to us? Shouldn't we at least talk with our teams about this?"

"You already know what our answer will be," Maho said, Miho nodding. They both knew that the Nishizumi school did not accept weakness from its practitioners. Maho and her teammates accepting the American offer would be a deviation they could not live with.

"I know, but the others might decide differently, and we need to say together as a team." Miho's voice didn't waver, when Maho knew that before Miho would've quaked with fear over the idea of standing firm on a decision like this. "I want to make sure we work together on this, no matter what."

Maho nodded. "You're the commander Miho. No matter what you decide, we'll follow you."

"I know," Miho said, smiling again. "Would you still like to eat something?"

Maho shook her head, giving a small smile. "I need to at least tell my team what to expect tomorrow morning. They have a right to know after all."

"Right, see you then," Miho said, walking back to the ship. Away from her sister though, Miho's face fell. "Is this the right thing to do?" she thought, climbing to the deck and her room.

"So do you think she'll take the deal?" Eda said, the Ohio State team gathered in a small pub near their hotel. "I mean, they had to know Kuromorimine wouldn't even think about it."

"Who cares, we're gonna win this either way," Rebecca said, downing her third sake. "Taylor just did this for the attention remember? He doesn't give a damn about how outclassed those punks are."

"Hey, how much do we have left?" Shenua groaned, dejectedly looking at her empty cup. "I'm not leaving until I'm at least a little buzzed."

"Quit your moaning already," Rebecca said, shoving Shenua her enough that she hit Eda. "Hey, barkeep, another round here!" she shouted in Japanese. Getting a nod, Rebecca turned back to the table. "So, are we go for another round of PSYOP?"

"On two different targets in the city this time," Pavlovena said, sipping her water. Someone had to have their wits about them after all. "The radio operator in the IV, but we'll be switching things up with the gunner."

"She doesn't spook easily does she," Rosarita said, finishing her second round of black label. "Is there a line between recon and sabotage when it comes to personnel?"

"Only the persons themselves, the rules don't say anything about their homes," Pavlovena said, grinning as she lifted her drink. "And I checked. They don't have any security systems."

"It's so nice having you home for the summer break," Yuri said, finishing a bowl of ice cream with Hana. Shinzaburo had excused himself for the night, saying he needed time to practice his arrangements. "Don't worry about the first match either. You still have eight to go after all."

"Thanks mother," Hana said, smiling as she finished her own bowl. Of course, for the Isuzu women, what was a normal bowl of ice cream was closer to a mixing bowl full for anyone else. "I've already gotten some interesting new arrangements in mind, hopefully I'll be able to make them before the summer break is over."

"I'll be expecting them to be some of the best you've ever made Hana," Yuri said, smiling as she got up and went to the sink. "Tell me, what do you think of the American team?"

"They seem quite passionate about their own tankery style," Hana said, as her mother washed out the bowl. "It's not like how Miho does tankery either. It's very forceful and direct, like they're willing to charge straight through a wall to gain victory. But they don't sacrifice their tactics to do so, it's quite a sight to watch them in action."

"I can only imagine," Yuri said, putting the bowl out to dry next to the sink. "Truth be told, I had to finish an arrangement today, so I only saw the match after your tank was taken out."

"I know, it was a poor performance," Hana said, glumly staring into her ice cream. "I should have been able to take their Type 97, but it just moved so fast."

"Hana, you know better than to dwell on mistakes," Yuri said, kneeling down next to her daughter, putting a reassuring hand on her back. "I don't know much about tankery, but I know enough to realize that one mistake isn't enough to condemn you.

Hana smiled, hugging her mother. "I'm so glad you didn't stop me from doing tankery mother."

"I couldn't bear to have my daughter be miserable for the rest of her life because she couldn't be with her friends," Yuri said. "I'm thankful you forgave me for being so obstinate."

Hana smiled, but couldn't hold back a massive yawn. "I think it's time I went to be," she laughed, her mother covering her mouth as she laughed too. "Goodnight mother."

As Yuri watched her daughter walk to her room, Yuri felt a deep sense of contentment as she put her daughter's bowl in the sink. When she was a girl, she hadn't believed that tankery really refined a young girl into a woman. Tanks, coarse and ungainly weapons, had no place in her world where girls became women.

"Thank goodness I saw before it was too late," she thought, shutting off the light and leaving the kitchen, quietly shuffling towards her own bedroom. "Who knew that tankery and flower arrangement could go hand in hand?"

Changed into her pajamas and settled into her bed, Yuri slowly let sleep come and take her away, small pictures flitting before her closed eyes. A sudden noise outside made her shoot up out of bed, but she quickly calmed down. "He's still trying to get rid of those rats," Yuri thought, smiling as she lay back down. "Goodnight Shinzaburo."

The team froze, waiting for a light to come on inside the house. Hopping the fence had been hard enough, they didn't need to get busted for (technically) trespassing. Satisfied that no one was waking up, the girls quietly waltzed through the yard, finding the best bushes around the house and spraying, knowing that their intelligence had been right about everything so far. The terrified face on the radio operator had been satisfying proof of that.

Ami was still awake, staring up at the ceiling trying to force her mind to stop racing. The face was that now her career was on the line. It was certainly one thing to be a DI to military personnel. It was a completely different one to be one towards girls in tankery. And the fact that she knew it made it cut worse into her.

"It'll probably be a non-judicial punishment," Ami thought, not caring at the open window letting the A/C out. "A transfer, out of Fiji to wherever I'll do the least damage for the rest of my career." The idea rolled around in her head like a tempest, slamming back and forth against her skull until her head started to roll with it. Shaking herself, Ami rolled over onto her side to try and ignore it to no success. The fact that he career was in jeopardy wound up keeping her awake long into the night.

Sorry to all of you who've been following this story, life likes it's little derailments. Please, give me a review to let me know what you think of the story so far, and I'll get chapter 11 to you as soon as possible.