Disclaimer: I do not own Girls Und Panzer, nor its characters. I just like to play around a bit.

A/N: So this is a thing. I haven't had much to do with this fandom before, but enjoy the show well enough. For my first time writing these characters, this is really a way to stretch my characterization writing along with my love for writing yuri smut. Truthfully, I really wanted to write smut in a tank. Which I haven't seen much of, sadly. Please forgive me if my terms or characters are slightly off, as I am pretty new to this fandom. If you have any suggestions as to how I can improve the characters or the writing, feel free to drop me a line and let me know (politely, plz), and you will have my gratitude. The next chapter (full of tasty yuri) will be out soon.

Until then,

Enjoy.

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Oil, Sweat and Gunpowder

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It was a hot day. It was one of those days so deep in the summer that even the cicadas found time to rest quietly in the shade, not wanting to be disturbed; simply building their strength for cooler, nicer days. It was one of those sweltering, sweaty days that one would be perfectly happy to lay on the floor of your house, dressed in nothing but your underwear, the fan on full blast and occasionally sipping at a cool drink until the sun settled behind the horizon, until is was finally smarter to venture outside.

It was the kind of day that, if you had to perform some menial, repetitive task, made even worse in the oven-like confines of a large steel war machine of destruction, any smart person would stand up and say 'No! This is not right! We shouldn't be allowed to do this!'.

But let it never be said that Akiyama Yukari wasn't smart. She was - her grades were steady and she never missed a day of class - but she also loved tanks. She loved tanks more than anything. She loved them enough to readily accept being stuck with cleaning duty and instrument maintenance on the Panzer IV. When Miho Nishizumi, the commander of their team, had come to her an hour ago, shoulders hunched in the way she did when preparing to ask something she thought to be too much of another, and asked if Yukari would be okay with assisting her with their tank, she all but jumped at the chance.

"Okay!" She chirped happily from her desk, her heart already pounding with the idea of spending time with their beloved tank and commander. Miho wilted with relief at the girl's enthusiasm, smiling bashfully as she followed her exuberant teammate out of the school grounds and towards the hanger. Along the way, Yukari was practically vibrating with excitement, facts and numbers flying through her head with all the power of a gale-force whirlwind.

300 horsepower Maybatch HL 120TRM engine!

SSG 75 transmission with 6 and 1 forward / reverse gears!

A top speed of forty-two kilometers per hour!

A 30 millimeters-thick glacis plate with 20 millimeter sideplates for defense!

A reinforced 35 millimeter thick internal gun mantlet for more efficient firing power!

And the coup-de-gras… a 75 millimeter gun - based on the 5 centimeter Pak 38 anti-tank gun - made specifically for the Aufs. D variation Panzer IV…

Yukari shuddered. It was enough to make a girl wet, truth be told, and not with the sweat beading down to the small of her back.

Whoa! Down, girl!

Slapping her hands on her cheeks in an effort to stifle the urge to skip and yell and holler with the sheer joy she felt as getting to not only work with an actual Panzer IV, but with a living legend herself, Miho Nishizumi, she schooled her emotions and steadied her pace beside her classmate. After all, it wouldn't do to pass out from overindulgence and heat exhaustion before even starting to work on the tank.

"You seem pretty excited today, Yukari-chan." Miho observed from beside her.

"Of course, Nishizumi-dono!" Yukari grinned widely. "It's not every day we can spend the afternoon working on the Panzer, after all."

Miho's smile turned rueful, "Actually, it kind of is everyday for us…" She trailed off with a roll of her eyes. "Anyway, I'm sorry again for dragging you out here today. I'm sure there are lots of other things you'd rather be doing."

"N-not at all!" Yukari shook her head as if to back up her claim. "It's so boring at home. I'd much rather help you, Nishizumi-dono!"

"Even if it's a hundred and ten degrees out here?" Miho cocked an amused eyebrow. "And bound to be like an oven in the Panzer?"

Yukari pumped her fist in the air. "Sweating it out in the Panzer builds character!" She declared loudly, insistently. "We don't have the luxury of waiting our day away in an air conditioned room during a battle! So we must prepare ourselves accordingly!"

Heaving a heavy sigh, Miho just shook her head in exasperation. "Whatever you say, Yukari-chan… whatever you say…"

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The inside of the tank was as hot as Yukari had expected and Miho had warned. The moment she opened the hatch on the top Yukari felt the hair on her arms stand on end, the short but powerful blast of heat almost stealing her breath away. She had the briefest idea of grinning tiredly at Miho and asking if the girl wanted to bail and hit the pool instead, but she came to her senses quickly enough when her commander grunted, sliding the bottom of her skirt across the hot metal of the tank and dropping into the cockpit.

Well, there goes that idea…

Shrugging to herself, Yukari followed Miho's lead by hefting the bucket of cleaning supplies down to her and dropping down herself.

Her lungs took a few moments to adjust, sucking in the sweltering heat from the inside of the tank and pushing it back out again. Breathing in hot air was, at times, even worse than breathing in freezing air. It was just as hard on your lungs and each breath felt like you used so much more muscles with the sheer effort to breathe normally.

The cramped confines of the tank itself - The small alcoves where the driver and radio operator sat to the left and right, the small spaces for the gunner and loader just above that, and the commander's seat at the very top - didn't really help with the feeling of stifling claustrophobia that threatened to set in every time Yukari found herself in the giant war machine. It was a small hesitance, not nearly enough to offset her love of Tankery or the machines themselves, and the small touches the other girls added to the inside of the tank helped a bit. A few pillows and blankets, some pictures of the group and their rooms and favorite things, and a working clip-on fan that they took turns with depending on the day of the week; all of it doing their part in making their Panzer a home-away-from-home.

But it was still cramped. And hot.

Groaning slightly to herself, Yukari slipped down into the driver's seat and flashed a grin up at Miho, who had taken her place on the commander's seat at the top with a rag and cleaning solution, already wiping away the dust that had accumulated from a week's worth of disuse. It was amazing how much dust and rust would accumulate simply from sitting in the hanger. Of course, this was nothing compared to the cleaning job they had suffered through when they first found their small fleet of tanks; that had taken the entire day to clean, and their entire group of four girls' strong - at the time - and make serviceable. Not to mention they had to rope in the automotive club to work on the engines after hours…

Pursing her lips slightly, Yukari paused in wiping down the pedals and transmission valves to the side and looked back up towards Miho, "Ne… Nishizumi-dono?"

"Mmm?" The girl hummed, slowing in her cleaning of the porthole seal and the area around her, but not stopping.

"Where are the others, anyway? I mean, I'm not complaining that they aren't helping - I'm just curious."

"Saori-chan and Hana-chan said they had to both meet their parents today." Miho replied, her tone telling Yukari that even though she was sad they others couldn't help, she understood about the obligations of family.

"Ah. And Reizei-san?"

This time Miho shrugged, "She said something about needed to take a makeup class this afternoon." She chuckled softly, and then fell silent again. "I was going to postpone the maintenance for another day or two so the others could help, but then I remembered that exams were coming up and we wouldn't have time to-"

"Say no more, Nishizumi-dono!" Yukari chirped, even as she felt a bead of sweat trickle down her brow. She lifted her forearm to her forehead to wipe it away. "Like I said, I don't mind helping at all!"

"Thank you, Yukari-chan! I can always count on you." Miho flashed Yukari a beatific smile, and Yukari felt her cheek heat in embarrassment. No. No. It was the heat. It was really hot in the tank, and it made her warm. That was all.

"N-no problem." She mumbled softly, turning back to her work at the transmission.

Why… why was it that every time she was alone with Miho, she felt her heart speed up? It was a similar feeling as though she were riding in the tank itself, the machinery clunking and whirring around her, her small seat vibrating with such intensity she could feel her teeth chattering if she wasn't careful. It was all such a rush, such a thrill when she dropped down into the machine that she felt her blood rush in her ears and her heart pound with excitement each and every time.

It was just the same whenever Miho smiled at her like that.

Of course, Yukari knew what it was. At least… she thought she knew. She wasn't a naïve little girl, after all. She knew how things worked. Hell, she had spent the majority of her earlier teen years convinced she was 'tank-sexual' and would never feel any sort of attractiveness for anything other than her beloved tanks.

Boy? No thanks. Girls? Eh. Cute, but not nearly as cute as the T-38 Amphibious Scout Tank as it peeked its little turret out of the water.

Kyaa! Yukari wiggled in her seat, clenching her thighs together at the mere thought of the mechanical war machine rumbling past her.

But still, even though Yukari had been sure - so sure - with herself and how she viewed her sexuality… or lack thereof... there was something about the way Miho looked at her, and how she felt every time the other girl did.

It didn't happen often; Most of the time they were surrounded by the others and Miho was busy with them. But every now and again, when the two of them were alone, like now, Miho would smile at her just a little more than she would the others, even more than Saori and Hana - her two best friends - and make Yukari's heart race and butterflies flutter around inside her stomach.

"- Yukari-chan?"

Yukari jumped in her seat at Miho's soft voice, snapping her head around to stare up at the girl, "W-what?" She asked, slightly ashamed for not listening to the other girl. "Sorry… I was thinking."

Miho blinked slowly. "Really? What were you thinking about?" She tilted her head to the side. Her chin-length auburn hair, heavy and dark with sweat, stuck slightly to her cheek.

Swallowing slightly, Yukari shook her head. "N-nothing." She muttered. "What, uh, what did you say just now?"

Miho's eyebrows creased as though trying to decipher a difficult problem. She watched Yukari for a long moment, making the girl shift slightly in her seat, her fingers clenching the cleaning rag in her hands tightly. After a few seconds, Miho shrugged, "I was just wondering how long you were going to clean the same panel. If you wipe it any more, the paint will come off."

Yukari blanched, blinking rapidly as she pulled her hand away. Indeed, while lost in her thoughts she had been cleaning the same panel far more than was necessary. It was quite possibly the cleanest part of the tank at the moment. Yukari flushed, mumbling an apology under her breath while moving onto the other side of the drivers seat.

She continued to clean the driver's alcove in silence, simply concentrating on her task and the heat building in her chest and stomach. Good God it was hot. Her hair was heavy with sweat, and her legs and underarms were sticky. She was thirsty, but didn't want to take a break until Miho did. She could do that much, at least.

After a while, Yukari sat back, pleased that she had at least finished in cleaning the driver's alcove. Mako would appreciate it… in her own way, at least. Rolling her eyes at her perpetually catatonic friend, she wiped her hands clean on her skirt and pushed herself up, watching that she didn't catch her head on the top of the alcove. She glanced over to make sure Miho was still working away at her area - the girl had moved onto the gunner's position just above her and was wiping down the internal gun mantlet - and was about to cross over to the radio operator's seat when something caught her eye.

From how Miho sat just above the driver's seat, and how Yukari clambered up to maneuver her way from alcove to alcove, she found herself at just the right angle to catch the barest glimpse of the pale white of Miho's underwear.

Yukari froze, her eyes going wide as she stared. Miho's legs were straight, not parted indecently but also not pressed together uncomfortably, simply just there, a solid two inches of space between her knees, allowing Yukari a clear view of creamy thighs and white panties, hidden only partially by skirt and shadow.

She swallowed, unable to look away. A girl's panties shouldn't have been such a big deal to her. Hell, she saw her own underwear every day. For that matter, she had seen Miho in her underwear before, even mostly nude during their infrequent group bathing sessions with the others. It should have been no big deal; just a quick glance and muttered apology, and that was that. Easy.

So why did this time make her heart race and her stomach churn? Why did it make her palms sweatier than they already were and her mouth dry? Why did, even though her mind screamed at her to look away, to say something - anything - to her friend, or better yet, pretend she never saw a thing and continue with their work on the tank, she was unable to move? Why was she hardly able to breath?

Why could she not just look away?

Miho's legs shifted ever so slightly as her body moved with her head, and Yukari heard the sharp intake of breath from above her. She flinched, shoulders hunching in shame, as she forced herself to lift her eyes from her friend's underwear, up her skirt and uniform shirt, to her face, properly cowed and prepared for any angry remarks she was sure to receive.

Miho's eyes were wide, Yukari noticed, but not with anger or fear. She was surprised, her eyebrows high in her bangs and her lips parted, as if to speak but unable to form the words she wanted. She blinked a few times, slowly, processing what Yukari had just done, and the girl could practically see her commander's thoughts work their way through her head, making some sort of sense out of the situation.

Desperate to head her friend off before any further damage could be done, Yukari forced a laugh through her throat. "Hah~ ah, wow. It's hot in here, yea?" She said, wincing inwardly at the poor attempt to change the subject. When Miho simply started at her blankly, she tried again. "I mean, I'm sweating so much my clothes are soaked. What about you?"

Grimacing slightly, Yukari dropped her chin to her chest, averting her eyes from her commander. Shit. She messed up. Now there was nothing to do but wait and accept the inevitable. She swallowed, simply listening to the sounds of their breathing and the dead silence of the inactive tank. There was no one - nothing around for at least a mile, everyone else likely enjoying the air conditioning of their homes, or the school's pool. There was no one else to save Yukari from whatever Miho wanted to say or do.

No one at all.

"Well…" Miho finally said, her voice barely above a whisper. Something in the girl's tone caused Yukari to look up, blinking in surprise. Something in her friend's eyes, usually so determined and in control - at least, when Tankery was concerned -, was different. Something was new. Something… that caught Yukari's attention and made her heart beat just a little bit faster.

"Well," Miho said again, her tongue flicking out to sweep across her lips. Yukari was ashamed to admit that her eyes followed the movement of her tongue much closer than she felt she should have. "We… we could take them off." When Yukari's eyes widened, her brows lifting to her bangs, Miho looked away, her cheeks a bright pink.

"Our clothes, I mean." She continued softly. "We could take them off. Since it's so hot." Her eyes flicked back to Yukari, watching her carefully. "...If you like."

Yukari stared at Miho, her lips parting slightly in shock. Really, there was nothing… weird… about her idea. They had done so before - taking off their clothes when the temperature had gotten too hot, or they were cleaning so they wouldn't get their uniform dirty - but something about the way Miho had thrown the idea out there, her cheeks dusted with a bright pink, her hands on her lap and her knees pressing together as if to ward off embarrassment, that caught her ear. Something about her tone, soft and slightly meek in the way she murmured her words, that pulled all of Yukari's focus towards her.

Something that screamed to Yukari that this was something much, much more than a simple way to cool down and keep their clothes clean.

Swallowing heavily, Yukari wiped the sweat of her palms on her skirt. "I…" She muttered softly, eyes darting from her friend, blushing but still looking back squarely into her eyes, to the small confines of their tank.

"Okay…" She finally said, her gaze returning to Miho and locking eyes with the other girl. "Okay. That sounds good."

Hands trembling, fingers slick with sweat, and eyes roaming over the swell of her chest, the inside of the Panzer IV never seemed hotter than it did at that moment to Yukari.

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To be continued...

A/N: Let me know what you all think as my first foray into this fandom. Not too bad, in my opinion, but then again I'm biased. Hah.

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