A/N So recently I finished watching Girls Und Panzer, the OVA's, and the movie, and I thought all were remarkable in some way. My favorite character is Mika and I felt like writing some one-shots that come to my mind, hope you enjoy. Dunno how long anything is going to be.
*Yes I understand all the girls are actually japanese but i call them by their countries to make it easier to differentiate them.
Disclaimer: I do not own Girls Und Panzer
Don't like then don't read.
Student Council Room
"Mika right? From Jatkosota High?" Momo asked staring intently at her clipboard and glanced up to look at said girl.
Mika's response was to have her eyes closed as she merely nodded her head and fiddled with her kantele.
"And what would be your reason for being at Ooarai today?"
"No reason, I was merely carried here by the wind." Mika said with her trademark smile on her face.
"Carried here by the wind?" Momo repeated in exasperation. "You're telling me that the wind carried you off your carrier and landed you on Ooarai's?"
Mika said nothing as she began playing a tune not answering Momo's question.
"Why you…!" Momo started as she took a step forward to get in Mika's face.
"Momo you're taking too long let me talk to her." Anzu said as she crossed her arms stepping forward and looking up at the taller girl.
Mika popped open her right eye watching Anzu slowly as she walked around her, still playing her kantele.
"How in the world did this girl even get into school without Midoriko informing me?" Anzu asked aloud to Momo.
"It probably played out like this…" Momo recalled.
Flashback
"Hold it!" Midoriko said as she held out her arm in front of a girl wearing a blue and white school uniform with what appeared to be a cut in half beach ball on her head as a hat.
Mika stopped, her kantele in her left hand as she waited for her to continue.
"That is not an Ooarai school uniform and on top of that you are already one hour late to class along with wearing a ridiculous beach ball on you head!" Midoriko exclaimed.
"My apologies, I'll be sure to remember that the next time I come here, I won't do it again." Mika said apologetically as she walked past the Public Morals Committee Leader.
"Hey! Hey! I'm not done with you!" Midoriko yelled as she was now talking to the girl's back as she was facing away from her causing her to stop.
"Explain why you are here, and I might let you go without having to speak to the student council."
Just as she finished her sentence she heard a dreary voice behind her.
"Neh, Sodoko do you have to be so loud this early in the morning?" Mako mumbled out as she was being carried by Miho on her left and Saori on her right.
"Grrr, Reizei-san! Stop calling me by that name I won't ever like it no matter how many times you say it." Midoriko now dubbed 'Sodoko' said.
"Eh? But Sodoko is Sodoko, I think it fits well. Also your name is too long to say normally anyways." Mako pointed out as she thanked her friends for their help and rubbed her eyes.
"Besides you never had a problem with me calling you Sodoko anyways during senshado."
"So? You shouldn't even be talking to me anyways during senshado. Aren't you the driver and Saori is the radio operator?" Sodoko responded.
"Second class radio operator actually!" Saori responded bubbly waving at Sodoko along with Miho.
"Takabe-san, Nishizumi-san didn't I tell you to leave Mako alone if she won't get to school on time? I wiped all her tardies and absences and yet she just keeps adding more." Sodoko said irritated at Mako's ungratefulness.
"Well I couldn't just leave our trusty driver alone sleeping on the sidewalk, we need her for senshado practice today!" Miho said animatedly.
"Oi Sodoko, weren't you talking to some other girl before we got here?"
"Yes, I was…" Midoriko trailed off her eyes widening her eyes as said girl was now nowhere to be seen.
"MAKO!" Sodoko screamed grabbing Mako's uniform and lifting her up.
"Neh? Why is it my fault that you lost her? And where are the other twins that look like you aren't they supposed to be helping you out?" Mako asked quickly as she tried to pry Sodoko's hands off her, but due to her low blood pressure it was no use.
"Shut up Mako! They are monitoring other parts of the school right now. You on the other hand better help me look for this girl whether you like it or not. I didn't even get her name to report to the student council!" Sodoko ordered her eyes silently saying that she would not take no for an answer.
"What? Hell no am I helping you that would make me like part of the stupid morals committee you are in." Mako exclaimed as she tried to pull Sodoko's fingers off one by one.
"If you don't I'll revert all your absences and tardies." Sodoko said seriously.
"What?! You can't be serious, right? I thought you can't change it once it's done?" Mako asked her face one of pure fear.
Miho and Saori both watched on as they sweat dropped with Miho tilting her head to the side and laughing at their antics.
Flashback End
"Right…" Anzu said before stopping in front of Mika again who had halted her song and looked at Anzu.
"My subordinates don't realize it yet, but it is obvious why you are here."
"Hey, I take offense to being called your subordinate when me and Yuzu do far more work than you have ever done!" Momo interrupted.
Anzu ignored her comment as she continued her interrogation of the Finnish girl.
"Oh? Have you figured out the meaning behind the wind that carried me here?" Mika said mischievously.
Her smile only served to piss off Momo even more and cause Yuzu to smile half-heartedly as she sweat dropped.
"It's easy." Anzu stated grinning victoriously. "You wanted to know what makes our team so good."
"While your team has persevered time and time again, Jatkosota isn't exactly a weak school either." Mika answered.
"Did you want to join us for senshado practice Mika-san?" Yuzu asked.
"It would prove an entertaining affair." Mika said, which Anzu seemed to take as her version of yes.
"Whatever let's go!" Anzu exclaimed as Mika left the room first with her, Momo, and Yuzu following shortly.
"Eh Momo?" Anzu called out as she checked her pockets.
"What's the matter prez you lose something?" Yuzu asked stopping along with Momo.
"Yeah, I can't find my dried potatoes I usually have them on me, did you see them back in the office?" Anzu asked as she finished searching her pockets.
"No, I don't think so, can't you just get more anyways?" Momo asked irritated at her lazy president.
"No! I swear I had a bag on me! I was eating them just before we met with Mika!" Anzu yelled as she ran back into the club room.
"Just forget about it now prez, we're going to be late to practice anyways." Yuzu pointed out.
"Errrrrr, fine." Anzu relented as they continued down the hallway.
Ahead of them Mika only smiled silently to herself as she chewed on said missing bag of dried potatoes as she traversed through the school.
Ooarai Senshado Practice Ground
"Oi! Nishizumi!" Anzu called out from behind Mika as she approached with Yuzu and Momo.
As the group of four approached, Anzu's voice cause all the girls' heads to turn as they were lined up waiting for the arrival of their president to say a few words and then begin practice.
"Hey isn't that the Jatkosota girls uniform?" Taeko, from the volleyball club said.
"Yeah it is! I remember them back when they were helping us in the match vs the University girls." Noriko said crossing her arms as she sized the girl up.
"Isn't that Jatkosota's commander? Why is she here with the president?" Shinobu, the volleyball club's trusty driver, asked.
"What was her name again?" Akebi questioned, looking every part of the dumb blonde as she tilted her head trying to remember.
"I don't ever remember her telling us her name… didn't we ask the Jatkosota girl's their names when we needed backup against the Karl?" Noriko wondered, trying to recall the girl's name.
"Anzu! Is there something you need before practice?" Miho asked waving at her as she stood next to Saori, Hana, and Yukari."
"Yes actually! And it has to do with our new friend here." Anzu proclaimed as the girls became silent as she walked between them facing the front with Mika by herself on the right as she stood with Yuzu and Momo.
Miho stepped forward from her position in line standing arm's length away from the girl before holding out her hand her eyes bright as Mika glanced at her outstretched hand while she strummed her kantele softly.
"Mika-san from Jatkosota high, right?" Miho asked as Mika nodded her head and strummed her kantele which Miho interpreted as her version of 'yes'.
"I remember you guys! Everyone! Mika is the commander of Jatkosota high who helped us in the University All-Stars match. I remember they managed to take out 3 Pershings with only their single tank!" Miho announced.
Mika watched on amused, curtseying as the girls who were now silent began to talk among themselves.
"Oh yeah! While we were launching Anchovy on our tank I remember the Jatkosota tank was distracting the enemy so we weren't being fired upon, but I didn't get to see how they took out 3 Pershings." Noriko said, finally remembering who they were.
Rabbit Team
"Wow so that's Jatkosota's commander? What's with that weird hat on her head?" Karina asked, intrigued by her sense of fashion.
"Dunno, but doesn't she look like Nonna from Pravda?" Ayumi pointed out.
"What? Nonna from Pravda? No No, from her demeanor she acts a lot like Miho's sister." Aya said, bringing up a picture of Maho on her phone and showing it to the rest of rabbit team.
"No way! She doesn't even look remotely similar to Maho. You can't compare them when Maho never smiles and Mika looks like she is always smiling." Yuuki argued, her short black hair moving with her head.
"Must be something in the water at Jatkosota, I mean look at her chest." Aya said glancing at her enviously.
"Well, I mean there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with the water here." Ayumi said as she pointed at Saori and Hana.
"Hmph." was all Aya responded with as she went back to looking at her phone.
"Alice." Saki whispered, loud enough for the six of them to hear.
"Huh what did you say Saki?" Karina asked not hearing her the first time.
Azusa widened her eyes at the similarities as she took in what Saki said. "Saki said she looks like Alice's big sister! They look so similar when you actually think about it!"
"Your right!" Aya exclaimed, as she brought up a picture of Alice on her phone to compare.
"Wow do you really think they are related?" Yuuki said shocked.
"No way…" Azusa trailed off, as she waited for Anzu to start practice.
Volleyball
"Think she would be interested in the volleyball club?" Noriko asked glancing at the rest of her club members.
"Noriko, we don't even have a club here at Ooarai remember?" Shinobu said offhandedly.
"Oh right." Noriko said scratching the back of her head.
"But that doesn't mean she won't like volleyball, right?" Taeko added, smiling as she looked at her teammates.
"How can she play when she has that instrument in her hands?" Akebi posed, as she pondered where she would put such a thing if that was her playing.
"I don't know, put it somewhere?" Taeko responded.
"It looks expensive, though she sounds really good at it." Shinobu observed as Anzu finished her pre-practice speech.
"Hey Mika, right?" Noriko asked as the rest of the girls dispersed into the tank hanger leaving Mika by herself.
Mika who had begun walking toward the hanger, turned around halting her playing as she nodded her head at the girls.
"What kind of instrument is that if you don't mind me asking? It sounds really elegant." Akebi asked giving Mika a smile along with the rest of Duck team.
If anything, Mika's smile seemed to grow as she displayed her instrument with pride.
"It's called a kantele, it's a traditional instrument in Finland." Mika stated brightly.
"Wow do you really carry that with you all day? Isn't it really heavy?" Taeko asked.
Mika only smiled and extended her arms out with the kantele as she let her hold the instrument while she let Mika hold her volleyball.
"Wow it's really light!" Shinobu said as the other members of the lost volleyball club crowded around her to inspect the instrument.
Mika on the other hand was standing a bit awkwardly as she inspected the volleyball in her hands with an intrigued look on her face.
"Ah Mika-san!" Noriko said causing Mika to look up.
"Do you like volleyball Mika?"
Mika only handed the volleyball back to her as she took her kantele back into her hands.
"Does it matter if I like volleyball or not?" Mika asked cryptically strumming her kantele.
"Yeah of course it does! You have to enjoy something if you're going to be doing it!" Noriko pressed enthusiastically.
"Oh? So I'm already going to be doing volleyball then?" Mika responded with a small smile on her face.
Noriko blushed a little, "Well hopefully yes…"
Mika only laughed in response as she played a slow tune of Säkkijärven Polkka and began walking into the hanger.
"Beat me in senshado today and I may consider your offer." Mika proposed. "After all everything in life can be learned through senshado."
The volleyball girls clenched their fists tightly as they accepted Mika's challenge.
"Yatta! Okay guys let's give it our all today! And in the end, we will get a new member of the club!" Noriko announced.
"But the club is…" Shinobu began.
"Shut up!" Noriko snapped.
Inside the hanger with Anglerfish
"Mika what brings you here to Ooarai though don't you still have school right now?" Miho asked as Mika approached them.
"School… is there a point to school?" Mika asked Miho strumming her kantele once.
"Ummm… Yeah I guess? It allows us to practice senshado after all with all of our friends!" Miho responded a little weirded out by Mika's aloofness.
"Do you not think senshado teaches us more than what school does? Every stage of life can be conveyed through senshado."
"And stop." Anzu said as she stepped in between Mika and Miho, with Mika closing her eyes her soft smile seemingly plastered onto her face as Anzu talked to Miho.
"See when we found her this morning wandering the hallways we questioned her why she was here and she gave us the same cryptic responses." Anzu explained.
"Ah I see…" Miho said as she scratched the back of her head.
"Anyways… Ooarai!" Anzu began as she addressed the girls how practice will play out. "Today Mika will be joining us during senshado practice so I want everybody to get in their tanks we will be playing Annihilation."
"Hai!" the rest of the girls echoed as Anzu faced Mika and Anglerfish.
"Miho are you okay with Mika being Commander and you as driver since Mako is out right now?" Anzu asked.
"Uh yeah I'd be happy to! Hana do you know where Mako is?"
"Last time I saw them she was still with Sodoko-san looking for our temporary commander." Hana responded.
Saori giggled at that. "Well it looks like we found her without even having to do anything!"
"Mika-san! Mika-san!" Yukari said excitedly as she approached the aloof girl.
Mika tilted her head in response waiting for her question.
"Is it true that your guys' BT-42 took our 3 Pershings all on its own?" Yukari asked.
Mika nodded her head and strummed on her kantele as Yukari squealed in surprise.
"Oh my god really? That's so cool! And in a BT-42 as well! I can't believe such a small tank was able to take out three Pershings, one hit by them and the BT-42 is a goner!" Yukari stated excitedly.
"You guys probably used your superior mobility to flank the enemies, right? Oh, I wished I was there to see it so badly… But then you must have an ace driver and shooter to be able to accomplish all of this! Wow did you happen to-"
"Alright Yukari that's enough…" Miho stated as she covered Yukari's mouth with her hand briefly.
"Gomen! Nishizumi-dono, sorry I got a little too excited." Yukari said as she fidgeted, touching her lips as she blushed slightly.
"Sorry about Yukari Mika-san, she is sort of a tank otaku eheh." Miho explained to Mika.
"Anyways you already know me and Yukari. This here is Hana our gunner."
"Nice to meet you Mika-san." Hana said waving at her.
"And this is Saori, she is our radio operator."
"Second class radio operator if I may add!" Saora said bubbly flashing the V sign with her hands at Mika.
"Our tank is this one, the Panzer IV. It's a little bit bigger and not as fast as the BT-42, but it's our home." Miho explained with a fond look on her face.
"Home huh?" Mika said softly as the girls began entering the tank with Mika entering last sitting in the Commander spot.
"You miss home or something Mika?" Miho asked inquisitively. The Jatkosota commander was a mystery to her still, as she remembered Mika from her time at Black Forest, her probably being the reason their school could compete with the top level high schools.
Mika stayed silent as she strummed her kantele closing her eyes as she listened closely to her instrument. After a few minutes, she opened her eyes.
"For me home, is where this feeling is. The bond that I share with my comrades as we enjoy senshado together." Mika finally said.
"Wow that's so cool Mika-san!" Saori said impressed by her words.
"Are you here by yourself? What about the other girls from your tank?" Miho asked, she was used to new people from other schools coming to talk to her in groups, but hardly any came by themselves.
"I gave them the day off today or to practice if they so choose, because I would be absent from practice."
"Really you cancelled practice so you could visit another school?" Saori asked incredulously.
"I'm sure Mika-san has her reasons, Saori. She'll tell us eventually." Miho assured not getting a reaction from Mika.
Everyone soon began climbing into the tank with everybody taking their normal positions except for Miho who was the driver and Mika who was the commander. Everybody who was sitting patiently waited for Mika to finish her playing for a few moments as she finally opened her eyes.
"Let's go." Mika ordered.
Miho released the clutch and hit the accelerator as the Panzer IV began moving.
"Mika do you know where we are going?" Miho asked worried that Mika would not know the location very well compared to the rest of the Ooarai girls.
"Keep going straight are starting point is 245 here on the map." Mika called out, with Miho nodding her head at her orders.
"So, Mika do you happen to have a boyfriend by any chance?" Saori asked curiously, breaking the silence.
Mika who had begun strumming her kantele once again glanced at Saori.
"I think matters about lovers should stay between lovers no?" Mika asked back.
"Yes of course… But I was just wondering if you were seeing anyone. I mean just look at you." Saori said motioning her hands around Mika.
"You're so pretty! How are you not seeing anybody?"
Mika stopped her playing for a second taking her hat off for a moment and brushing her hair a bit which only served to prove Saori's point.
"I'm flattered really. Somebody once said, "Love is a game that two can play and both can win". Do you know what that means Saori-san?" Mika asked as she put her hat back on.
"No what does that mean?" Saori asked confused.
"No idea." Mika said smiling as she strummed her kantele.
Saori pouted and was about to respond to her temporary commander before she was interrupted by Miho.
"Mika we've arrived at point 245." Miho called out from the driver's seat.
"You may begin!" Anzu's voice was heard throughout the forest from the intercom.
Mika gave no orders to move as she was tuning her instrument slowly closing her eyes.
"Umm Miho should we be moving right now? I don't see any of the other tanks in sight right now but they could team up against us like the first time." Hana whispered to Miho.
Miho was about to respond until Mika's voice was heard throughout the tank.
"Miho how good do you think your driving skills are?"
"Uhm… they are fairly decent. I had to practice all the positions back when I was at Black Forest but Mako is far better at driving at I."
Mika opened her eyes and nodded her head at Miho. "Let's go then."
Mika began playing Säkkijärven Polkka on her kantele as the tank began moving forward with Mika glancing outside occasionally. Yukari began moving her head back and forth to Mika's tune causing Saori to notice.
"The Finnish really do know how to set a mood don't they?" Saori asked.
"It's elegant like flower arrangement." Hana added as she looked through the scope for enemies.
The Panzer IV continued moving throughout the forest in a straight line, and while Mika was continuously playing her kantele Miho was worried that the others hadn't found them yet nor had they heard any tank shots.
"Mika do you have an idea of where you are going?" Miho asked her temporary commander.
Mika who was still plucking away at her kantele looked at her driver and smiled before responding.
"Sometimes it is not about the destination but the journey."
Miho sighed at her response. "I really do wish you would stop with the cryptic responses…"
"Commander! Enemy tank spotted at 12'o clock!" Saori called out.
"Miho evasive maneuvers. Hana prepare to fire." Mika ordered as she crescendoed her polka.
"Mika! It's Leopon's Porsche Tiger, our arsenal's strongest cannon, one hit by that and we are goners." Miho responded as she began weaving the tank in several feints.
"Don't worry the battle has just begun."
The automobile team immediately fired off a round as soon as the Panzer IV began accelerating toward them, which missed due to Miho's evasive maneuvers. Mika poked her head out slightly her hat almost flying off her head as she assessed the situation.
"Ready up!" Mika called out smiling as she wasn't even looking at her kantele to play the next part.
"First round loaded!" Yukari announced.
"Fire!" Mika yelled, a few seconds later Hana pulled the trigger and watched as their round simply bounced off the Porsche's superior armor.
"Oh dear." Mika said surprised as out of the woods Rabbit team emerged in their M3 Lee from their right and Anteater team in their Type 3 Chi-Nu from the left.
"I believe a tactical retreat is in order." Mika said smiling sheepishly as Miho immediately put the tank into reverse as the three tanks now in front of them began their chase firing rounds at them.
As they reversed Hana fired another shot at the automobile club's Porsche Tiger and watched as it bounced off their frontal armor again.
"No good Hana. The Porsche Tiger's armor is too strong for our shells we'd have to be at almost point-blank range to penetrate it." Yukari pointed out as she reloaded another shot quickly.
"Yukari is right, we should aim at either the freshman girls' M3 Lee or Anteater's Type 3 Chi-Nu if we want a kill while retreating." Miho added as she added in feints to her reversal not as good as Mako, but feints nonetheless.
"N-Nishizumi-dono praised me!" Yukari immediately thought as Miho finished her sentence.
"Acknowledged. Hana aim for Rabbit's M3 Lee, I'll call for Miho to immediately brake so you have a clear shot so don't worry about the tank moving." Mika issued out as she paused her polka.
The three tanks in front of them continued chasing up until the point where all three tanks fired at the same time with Miho being able to miraculously dodge all the shots, which weren't all that accurate since they were moving.
"Brake now!" Mika shouted out smiling as she continued her polka.
Miho immediately braked, in which Hana fired off a shot which hit the M3 Lee on its right side causing it to barrel into Leopon's Porsche Tiger halting it's advance as it turned to its right to avoid getting hit as Rabbit Team's white flag went up.
"Forward!" Mika shouted out as Miho drove into the opening on their right as Anteater u-turned and continued their chase.
"How many tanks left?" Mika asked as she poked her head out of the Panzer to scout how far Anteater team is and if there were any other tanks in the vicinity.
"Should be about six teams left. Anteater team currently chasing us, Automobile clubs Porsche Tiger which is incapacitated for now, Turtle team which is the student council's tank, Duck team the volleyball club, Hippo team the history fanatics, and Mallard team which is the Public Morals Committee." Miho recalled as she counted with her fingers.
"Didn't Sodoko go off with Mako though Miporin?" Saori asked remembering the events from this morning.
"Oh yeah you're right, most likely five tanks then since Mallard team only has two members and Mako and Sodoko are out looking for you right now…" Miho said awkwardly to Mika.
Mika smiled at her response and peeked through one of the tanks peepholes.
Anteater team was currently firing shots at them with most of them missing as one of the shells grazed the Panzer IV's rear armor briefly.
"It will be hard to shake the Type 3 Chi-Nu," Yukari pointed out as she reloaded another shell for Hana. "Their top speed is very close to ours so they can chase us until our fuel runs out."
Soon Anglerfish plus Mika reached a fork in the road in which Mika poked her head out for a brief second and called for Miho to take the left.
"Miho, brake so we are right in front of Anteater make sure you do it right after they have fired a shell." Mika ordered.
"Are you sure Mika?" Hana asked unsure if she was supposed to fire or not. She's dealt with Miho's ridiculous tactics that somehow come through in the end, but Mika was an enigma that she nor anyone else in the tank knew that well.
"Nobody is ever sure, Hana, let's just call it intuition." Mika replied laughing slightly.
And sure enough right as Anteater fired off another round which missed only barely, Miho immediately braked staying right in front of Anteater for a few seconds.
"Miho, Left!" Mika said calmly.
Miho jerked the Panzer to its left as immediately Anteater team was shot in the front, it's front armor being pierced as it slowed down and came to a stop with its white flag being raised.
"Hippo team spotted hiding as a bush up ahead! Their StuG III managed to take out Anteater out with one shell as it was aiming for us." Yukari called out looking through her peephole as the StuG began chasing them off road as they diverged.
"Mika keep going off road, the Panzer is faster than the StuG off-road so it will be easy to lose them." Miho advised.
"Wouldn't it be easier to face the StuG head on?" Hana asked. "We could easily outmaneuver them since they can't rotate their turret."
"Not all battles are ones to be fought." Mika said sagely. "And besides I don't want to put our new driver in such a pressure situation already."
Miho smiled at Mika in thanks as they continued forward slowly losing the StuG III as it continued firing rounds at them on the move.
"It seems as if the cavalry has arrived." Mika said calmly watching as Duck Team's Type 89B appeared from the right and began firing its machine gun at Hippo team forcing them left as Duck team pursued them.
"Wow and I felt like everybody was ganging up on us just like the first time." Saori said laughing as she blew out a breath she was holding.
Everybody in tank smiled slightly at Saori's words as Mika was plucking on her kantele again slowly as Miho positioned the tank hidden between a few trees as they took a short respite.
"So, Mika what's the real reason you went to visit Ooarai today?" Saori asked as she got up close to Mika's face since she was the radio operator, she was literally right next to Mika.
The other three girls watched on as Mika calmly backed up a bit before responding to Saori.
"Is there something wrong with me wanting to visit Saori-san?" Mika asked.
"No there isn't, but while you do have good commander skills all you have been doing so far is dodging all of our questions or giving cryptic responses!" Saori replied still irritated from earlier where Mika wouldn't answer if she was dating or not.
"Well after the match against the University All-Stars I felt it was rude that me along with my crew members left so suddenly." Mika began.
"Oh yeah!" Yukari remembered. "A lot of people were wondering where you guys went after the match, since we had a big celebration after!"
"Aki, my gunner was actually quite displeased she didn't get to socialize with everyone so I apologize on Jatkosota's behalf." Mika finished.
"It's fine really Mika, but where did you guys go after the match?" Miho asked curiously.
"We went camping of course."
"Camping?" Yukari repeated her eyes bright, "Like with tents and stuff?"
"Precisely." Mika responded.
Saori immediately cut in giving Mika no room to escape as she once again forced Mika to one side of the tank as she pushed both her hands out on either side of her. Mika was surprised at her sudden action and stopped her kantele playing briefly as Saori was inches from her face.
"Saori! What in the world are you doing?" Hana exclaimed, differing from her usual calm and cool personality.
"I need to know." Saori announced to the entire tank crew.
"Know what Saori?" Miho asked worried about Mika feeling uncomfortable.
"You have to tell me now if you're in a relationship or not Mika. There's no running away this time." Saori smirked triumphantly and the slight flustered look on Mika's face.
"Well you see…" Mika started before being interrupted by Hana who was looking in her scope intently before finding an enemy.
"Commander! Hetzer spotted coming from the trees to our flank!" Hana yelled out.
This was all the distraction that Mika needed as she quickly grabbed Saori's left arm giving her enough room to poke her head out of the Panzer IV. Saori pouted, irritated at getting interrupted yet again from finding out whether he temporary commander had a love life or not and quickly went back to her original position relaying Mika's orders to the rest of the crew members.
Like how Miho passed Anchovy in the Anzio battle, this time it was Anzu who passed the Panzer IV when Mika popped her head out. At this exact moment Anzu grinned victoriously as she reached her arm out and managed to snatch Mika's hat from her head as their tank whizzed by before u-turning and facing Anglerfish team.
Anzu put the hat on her own head before grinning at a surprised Mika whose eyes had darkened slightly with her usual smile gone from her face.
"This'll teach you to take MY dried potatoes from right under my nose!" Anzu yelled out.
"Yuzu-chan CHARGE!"
As turtle team began accelerating toward them Mika lowered herself for a second to tell her team the battle plan.
"Miho circle around and make sure the Hetzer is forced to continuously turn its turret to aim at us. Yukari, rotate the turret so it is facing our flank I will give the call for Hana to give a clear shot." Mika ordered coldly, the cheerful look gone from her face as she clenched the sides of the hatch she was peeking out of.
Everybody gave a "Roger" in response to her order, as the Panzer IV began circling the Hetzer. Mika without her hat brushed her hair to the side quickly to avoid it getting in her eyes as Saori turned to her noticing her hat was gone.
"Mika what happened to your hat?" Saori asked, surprised at how out of place her head looked without her signature hat on it.
"Don't worry about it." Mika responded her brown eyes no longer playful, but serious.
The Hetzer eventually began closing the gap as its superior speed was eventually bringing itself closer and closer to the Panzer IV, but with Momo's accuracy it wasn't a surprise all the shots fired were off target.
"Momo-chan move I'm shooting this one." Anzu said grinning as she shoved Momo aside and took aim at the back port of the Panzer.
"Don't call me Momo-chan prez!"
"Yeah, yeah." Anzu stated as she licked her lips, "You know this hat is quite comfortable I think I'll keep it for myself."
As if Mika heard her, the Panzer IV immediately braked causing the Hetzer to come dangerously close to ramming the Panzer's rear. However, Yuzu predicted such a move as they witnessed Mika pull the same move earlier against Rabbit team who they witnessed get taken out from their hiding spot.
As Hana's shot missed, Yuzu immediately swerved the tank to the side and to a stop giving them a chance to fire back. Anzu fired her shell at the Panzer's front which should've been a kill but instead it hit their machine gun making it unusable as it bent into an awkward angle.
"Tch I missed, Momo take over!" Anzu ordered as she once again poked her head out as the two tanks diverged from each other and took a jousting position on opposite sides of the field.
It was quiet for a few seconds as both tank Commanders stared at each other with Anzu having a cocky grin on her face and Mika watching her closely.
Both tanks began accelerating in a straight line toward each other, firing shots as it clanked off their frontal armor. As they met in the middle Miho swerved the tank a bit to the left as Mika ordered.
This was a move Anzu did not expect and watched in surprise as Mika reached her hand out to grab the hat from her head, and due to her short stature, she was unable to retrieve it as it slipped through her fingertips. Anzu's last view of Mika was her putting her hat back on her head as she smiled before driving past them.
"AFTER THEM YUZU!" Anzu yelled inside the tank, annoyed that Mika managed to take her hat back.
Inside the Panzer IV, Mika crouched down as Miho drove forward.
"Miho continue going straight according to the map there should be a-"
"Open dirt road, right?" Miho finished for Mika who smiled nodding her head.
"How comfortable do you feel about drifting?" Mika asked the smile back on her face as she readjusted her hat.
"Um…"
"Commander two tanks to our front they seem to be fighting each other!" Yukari said.
Mika poked her head out of the hatch and saw Duck Teams Type 89B going at it with Hippo team's StuG III.
"Wow they are still fighting each other from earlier?" Saori asked rhetorically surprised that the history team and the volleyball team were still in such a prolonged engagement.
Currently Duck's Type 89B was chasing Hippo team's StuG in a circle, not allowing the history team to fire because their turret was locked in place and Duck team not being able to penetrate the StuG's armor because either their tank was moving or because they were not close enough to make a lethal shot.
"What a perfect opportunity!" Mika said laughing excitedly "Drive straight into them!"
Hana, Miho, and Yukari, Saori all exchanged looks for a few seconds wondering if they heard their Commander correctly, but shrugged as they had done crazier things in the past.
Mika began playing her Säkkijärven Polkka again as they zig zagged to avoid getting shot from the Hetzer that was still chasing them. The Panzer IV eventually crossed into the middle of the circle coming from the trees so both tanks were rather surprised at them coming from literally nowhere.
Suddenly a shot was fired out from outside the circle which was aimed at the Panzer IV, but hit Hippo team's StuG III causing its white flag to be raised. However, the same tank which fired the shot which was the damaged Porsche Tiger from earlier revealed itself hidden in some bushes, but smoke soon erupted from the tank as their white flag raised from being damaged earlier and their tank's erratic nature as well.
Mika's melodious laughter echoed throughout the tank as everybody else could only smile as Mika's Polkka continued. "That went even better than I expected!"
Miho immediately turned right as the Hetzer was still on them, with Volleyball team now chasing the Hetzer as it became a three-way chase.
"Momo can you please land a shot?" Anzu asked biting her dried potatoes, still pissed that the Finnish girl managed to steal her hat back.
"I'm sorry prez! It's hard to hit a shot when both of our tanks are moving." Momo said.
"You can't hit a shot when the tank is standing still anyways." Anzu deadpanned.
"What is that supposed to mean?!" Momo asked angrily as her face began turning red.
"It's fine, let me shoot for now I have a plan…" Anzu said as she grinned.
Shells were fired as the chase continued throughout the forest with the three tanks staying in a moderately straight line, using feints and swerves to not get hit. The student council expected Mika and Miho to pull the same maneuver a third time so when they braked suddenly and paused for a shot at them, Anzu retaliated with her own shot as she ordered Yuzu to brake at the same time as well.
Anzu's shot would have hit the Panzer IV, but due to Duck team ramming them and firing their own shot at point blank range their shell went askew as they were hit from both the Type 89B and the Panzer IV, which caused Turtle team's white flag to be raised.
Anzu peaked out of their tanks hatch as the Type 89B zoomed by them to pursue Anglerfish team and Anzu could swear that she saw Mika wave at them as they drove away.
"Damn Finnish!" Anzu cursed, as she realized Mika got back at her from earlier.
"Momo, Yuzu prepare to drag the tank back to the hanger!"
"What about you?" Yuzu asked.
"I'm gonna lay here and eat these dried potatoes." Anzu replied as she leaned back in her seat inside the tank.
"President…" Momo began as she leaned over Anzu, a tick mark already prevalent on her head.
With Duck Team
"Nice shot Akebi!" Noriko told her blonde-haired gunner.
"One tank left Commander, it's Anglerfish team with Mika." Taeko announced.
"Finally! This is our moment team! Every single battle we've been in, we always get taken out or we get chased and never get to go on the offensive, this time we will win!" Noriko yelled, hyping up her teammates.
"Shinobu stay on Anglerfish's tail, we're going to stay on them and spike them until they are down!" Noriko called out to her driver.
"Are you sure Commander? They might pull one of those sudden brake maneuvers they used to take out other tanks earlier." Shinobu asked worried, because in the past Anglerfish has always been very clutch in situations such as this.
"Don't worry Shinobu! I have faith in our commander to bring in another member to our club." Taeko said one of her hands on her headset as she put a hand on Shinobu's shoulder to comfort her.
"Their machine gun turret isn't functional from damage earlier so we only need to worry about their main battery." Noriko recalled.
Akebi backed off from her scope for a second to address her captain. "So what's the plan Commander?"
"Just follow my lead…"
With Mika
"Mika should we pull one of those brake plays and go for a quick shot?" Saori asked her temporary commander.
"No, I have a feeling that they are going to expect a play like that." Miho called out as she increased the speed on the Panzer.
"Sometimes, the enemy will expect the unexpected." Mika calmly said as she reached the second part of her Polkka.
Anglerfish eventually circled around avoiding shells fired from the Volleyball team and launching their own shells back as returning fire. Once they reached the dirt road again Miho braked the Panzer IV for a second causing the Volleyball team to think they were going for another quick shot so they swerved left.
"It was a fake, watch out! Get ready to fire!" Noriko called out.
"Let's Go!" Mika called out laughing heartily.
The Panzer IV began making a curved beeline for the halted Type 89B whose turret was following them closely, suddenly they pulled into a drift attempting to out speed the rotation of their turret as they pulled in on their right side for a shot.
Two shells resounded out as everybody who was taken out had gotten back to the hanger with their tanks as they watched the final duel on a television.
As the smoke cleared, the Panzer IV had its white flag raised with the Type 89B missing one of its tracks, but still intact.
"Yes! We won!" Noriko yelled excitedly causing the rest of their tank to erupt in cheers as they began climbing out of the hatch.
"Sorry Mika, I lost control of the tank near the end, probably why it caused Hana to miss." Miho apologized sighing as she sat back in the driver's seat.
Mika who had halted her Polkka once they came to a halt, smiled back at the Anglerfish crew.
"The journey was fun though was it not?" Mika said as she strummed her kantele.
There was a resounding 'yes it was' from the crew as everyone began exiting the tank.
"Winner by elimination Duck team!" Anzu's voice announced throughout the forest.
Mika who had gotten out first since she was the commander, was immediately confronted by the volleyball team as she was slightly disheveled by their tanks drifting maneuver.
Noriko approached Mika first a hand on her hip as she glanced at the Finnish girl smugly as she stuck her hand out.
"Good game." Noriko said simply, as Mika nodded her head holding her kantele in her left hand as she shook Noriko's right.
"So…" Noriko started before transitioning into a full-blown smile along with the rest of the volleyball team.
"Will you join the lost volleyball team of Ooarai now Mika?" Noriko asked, glancing at the rest of her team making sure they heard her use the word lost.
"Hmm…" Mika closed her eyes, a ghost of a smile on her face as she strummed her kantele once.
"I would have to decline."
As Mika finished her sentence it took a good few seconds for Duck team to comprehend her response.
"Wait what? What do you mean you decline?" Akebi shouted out.
"You said you would join if we beat you in senshado? Would you really go back on your word?" Noriko questioned, recalling the Finnish girl's words from earlier.
Mika smiled at her impulsive response, she looked up at Shinobu who was quite a bit taller than herself.
"You know what I meant right, Shinobu-san?"
"What? Shinobu did you talk to Mika earlier without us?" Taeko said in surprise.
This caused the three volleyball girls to stare at Shinobu intensely as she backed up a few steps and put her hands up in surrender.
"No, no its nothing like that jeez." Shinobu started exhaling a breath. "Well, Mika did say that she would consider our offer."
Noriko widened her eyes at this remembering. "Oh yeah she did say that…"
"How come you didn't tell us this earlier Shinobu?" Taeko asked, a little disappointed they wouldn't be getting a new member for their club.
Shinobu sighed to herself. "I felt like it would be like the Pravda match, we wouldn't give it our all if we knew she wouldn't join in the first place, just like when the school was closing down."
"But you all gave your all did you not?" Mika asked the volleyball team.
Each of them nodded their heads in response as Mika strummed her kantele.
"The spoils of war are not about treasure and wealth, but they are about the taste of victory and the journey it took to get there." Mika said as she began walking away back to Anglerfish team.
"Maybe the winds entail a game of volleyball in the future."
Noriko and the rest of team watched as she walked away stopping and turning her head one more time.
"Lupaus. It's a promise." Mika spoke softly.
The volleyball girls squealed in delight saying their goodbyes to Mika and promised the next time they meet it would be on the volleyball court.
Anglerfish Team
"What were you talking to the volleyball team about Mika?" Miho questioned to the Finnish girl.
"Oh nothing, just trivial matters." Mika responded.
"So, Mika…" Saori began as again walked right next to Mika grabbing her free arm that wasn't holding her kantele.
"Here we go again." Hana said sarcastically which caused Yukari to giggle and Miho to scratch the back of her head.
"Please PLEASE tell me if you have a boyfriend. Why keep the secrets to getting one all to yourself?" Saori asked almost desperately.
"What does a secret entail Saori?" Mika began using her free hand to strum her kantele once.
"I DON'T CARE WHAT A SECRET ENTAILS. I JUST WANT TO KNOW IF-"
"THERE SHE IS!" A loud voice said from outside the hangar that cut off Saori's yell.
"Are you serious right now…" Saori muttered to herself as Mika was forced to step back from the finger that was pointing into her chest.
"You know I have LITERALLY lost tooth and nail looking for you." Sodoko said as she stared at Mika intently shoving her finger into her chest and giving her an intimidating look.
"Yo, what did I miss Miho." Mako said as she arrived right behind Sodoko giving Anglerfish team a small wave.
"I think that's a story best left for another time Mako…" Miho trailed off reminiscing on the day's events in her head.
"Woo hoo story time at Miho's apartment?" Yukari asked getting nods from all the other girls.
"Well you see…" Mika started as Anzu immediately came between the two of them giving Mika a slightly prolonged look as she stepped back.
"It's fine Midoriko, she hasn't caused any trouble so don't worry about her." Anzu drawled looking at the short-black haired girl.
"You on the other hand along with Mako missed senshado practice today."
Sodoko whose anger toward Mika dissolved only rose back up as Anzu berated her.
"So, what? Do you want me to ignore a random girl trespassing into our school? How did she even get on the boat anyways?" Sodoko asked rhetorically.
"That doesn't matter right now. Both Mallard team and Anglerfish will get punished for your actions. You will have to attend supplementary practice here at 6am on Saturday."
"WAIT WHAT?" surprisingly this was not Sodoko's voice who said the same thing but was overshadowed by the look of shock on Mako's face.
"I was just following her around do I really need to wake up at 6 am?" Mako begged toward Anzu who only crossed her arms.
"Well Mako, practice starts at 6 so you would have to get up at 5…" Saori corrected.
This only caused Mako who was begging toward Anzu to eye her childhood friend, and grabbing her shoulders started shaking her violently.
"SAORI YOU NEED TO LEARN TO SHUT UP!" Mako yelled as she continued shaking Saori until her low-blood pressure kicked in causing her to fall over and lay on the floor.
"Fine I'll be sure to tell my team to be there at 6." Sodoko said as she walked away dismayed.
Anzu then approached Mika who had said nothing the whole time and held her hand out toward the taller girl.
"Sorry for taking your hat earlier." Anzu stuttered out, not used to admitting to being wrong.
"My apologies for eating your dried potatoes. They were quite delicious if I may add." Mika responded as she strummed her kantele and smiled at Anzu.
"They are quite good, aren't they?" Anzu said smiling.
As the Ooarai girls finished cleaning up the hanger and organizing their tanks for the end of practice, the sun reached the horizon as everyone began bidding farewell.
Rabbit team was currently walking home as they caught a glance of Mika walking away by herself as the sun began setting.
"Look its Mika-san!" Karina said. "We should ask her if Alice is really her sister or not!"
"Are you sure Karina? It might be a sensitive topic for her." Yuuki said yawning at the long day.
"Don't worry I'll ask her!" Aya announced running ahead of the other girls.
"Aya wait up!" Azusa said as she ran to try and catch up with Aya.
"Mika! Mika!" Aya yelled causing her to stop and turn her head.
"Are you related to Alice Shimada by any chance?" Aya yelled as she stopped and looked at the Finnish girl for a reaction.
And a reaction it was as Aya swore she saw a sad smile appear on Mika's face for a few seconds as she turned around and walked away disappearing as the sun went down.
"Aya! Jeez when did you become so fast?" Ayumi said as the rest of Rabbit team finally caught up with her.
"So, was it true?" Karina asked as she looked around if Mika was nearby.
Aya caught everyone looking at her and surprisingly Saki was the first to speak up.
"She is." Saki whispered.
"No way!" Karina yelled out in shock.
"What are you serious?" Azusa blurted out. "Aya did she say so?"
"No, but I swore the look on her face was really sad. She didn't say anything to me." Aya confessed pushing her glasses back in place.
"Saki are you sure?" Aya asked the quiet girl.
The five of them waited for Saki to make a reaction as she finally nodded her head and began walking away leading the girls home.
The next day, Jatkosota High School
"I'm telling you Mikko, I will never go camping with Mika ever again." Aki said to the red headed driver.
"She always eats the best food and doesn't help us get any for ourselves!"
"C'mon Aki, that's our Commander though. I'm sure she has her reasons for it." Mikko replied as she put her hands behind her head as she walked to school with Aki.
"And speaking of Mika." Mikko said pointing at the girl about a block ahead of them.
"Oi Mika!" Aki yelled as Mika turned around and waited for them to catch up to her as she waved at them.
"So, care to explain why senshado practice was cancelled yesterday?" Aki asked raising her eyebrow giving Mika a look.
"Yeah! I wanted to try driving the BT-42 with one set of wheels again." Mikko said grinning at her Commander.
"Well you could have practiced on your own, right?" Mika asked back in response as they resumed walking.
"Eh? It's more fun when you're there though." Aki said.
Mika smiled at her and began playing a slow version of Säkkijärven Polkka on her kantele.
"So where did you go?" Mikko asked curiously.
"Nowhere important." Mika replied simply.
"Well did you bring anything?" Aki asked already used to her Commander's Kleptomania.
Mika ruffled around in her backpack for a few seconds before pulling out three bags of dried potatoes and handed one of them each of the girls.
"Wow these are really tasty Mika! Where did you get them from?" Mikko managed to blurt out as she was stuffing her mouth with the snacks.
"The wind must have blown them to me." Mika said.
"Oh, please not the wind again." Aki complained as Mikko laughed, while they headed to school.
A/N
Phew and done, Sorry if some characters felt out of character and if the tank battles were not up to par/facts were not correct. Tried to keep it as accurate and in character to the best of my abilities.
Mika was and will be obviously a bit OOC because she got so little screentime in Der Film so it is a blast writing her though not everyone may like how I portray her.
*Lupaus = finnish word for promise.
And finally, yes if you can't already tell I am a fan of the Mika Shimada fan theory. I think it is so great and if it WAS canon it would give Mika so much more to her character (not that she needs it because she's already great). I'm planning to do some sort of interaction with her, Alice, and Alice's mom in the future just not sure when but I have it planned.
Thank you so much for reading, if you guys are feeling generous tell me what you think in a review and what I can do better/what I am doing wrong.
PS. To my Gladius readers… I am sorry for not updating in like a month lol, I've been busy with college starting… a new apartment I sincerely apologize. I have not abandoned that story so just keep waiting please! Lmao. Also, been sidetracked with this fandom. But new chapter out in 1-2-3 weeks ish lol.
Until next time.