Looking Forward, Looking Back (Anchovy, Girls und Panzer)

A Fresh Start

"Time for something new..." Carlo muttered with a sigh as he got off of the train he was on.

He then proceeded to walk out of the station and onto the streets of a completely new place. He glanced all around him as he walked, taking note of the many different buildings and other structures around him.

After a short walk he found himself in a paved area which overlooked the ocean. He placed down his bag and looked off into the distance at the sun setting on the horizon.

As he watched it slowly begin to dip down tears formed in his eyes, his mind wandering back to the events that had led him here...

---Flashback---

"So what do you think?" Carlo asked, turning back expectantly towards the girl behind him.

"It's okay..." She muttered in reply, letting out a sigh.

"Yeah..." He muttered back, feeling a little disheartened at her lukewarm response.

"The sunset is beautiful though I have to admit" She added with a small smile, resting her arms on the railing of the overlook, staring out to sea as the sun set.

"I could say the same about you~" Carlo said tentatively, feeling his heart rate drastically increase.

"Thanks..."

He then took a deep breath and gripped the railing in front of him tightly.

"So uh... I w-wanted to ask you something..."

"Did you now?" She responded with a coy yet exasperated tone.

"Y-Yeah... I-It's just that I... Well I really like you and I've really enjoyed getting to know you better a-and I'd like to get to know you as... more than just friends..."

The girl let out a sigh as her eyes went wide.

"S-So...W-Would you go out with me?..."

"Look I like you too but I... I can't I'm sorry..." She muttered as she jogged away.

Carlo's hands shook in front of him and he felt a painful feeling in his heart. He didn't know what to say or do, so he just stood there, alone...

A few days after one of his friends told him that she'd talked to them, and that she didn't know what sort of Boyfriend he'd be, and that she didn't want to hurt him.

After hearing this, Carlo was hurt even more, leading to him avoiding almost all contact with her. Dreading even seeing her in the halls at school as it would be too much for him to handle.

This led to him choosing to take a school transfer which was on offer to complete his final year of school. It was to a school he'd never heard of, Anzio academy.

Despite his fear of the unknown, his past experiences meant that he was eager to start fresh, without the burdens of his past weighing him down...

---Flashback end---

After remembering what had occurred not long ago in a place very similar to the one he now found himself in, a small smile formed on Carlo's face as he wiped away his tears.

"A new begging will be nice" He muttered to himself as he glanced over at the large school she which was to become his new home and school.

The ship towered over the buildings in the port and town near it, but despite that it did look quite dilapidated and old.

"It's got... Character I guess~" He mused to himself jokingly as he headed through the port, heading towards the large gangway which was the entrance to the ship.

---Timeskip---

After boarding the ship and completing his sign in papers for the school, Carlo now found himself walking through unknown streets, trying to find his apartment.

While he did have a map, he still didn't really know where he was going. To compile this issue, he also kept smelling all sorts of different foods from the various stall that he passed, all of which made him consider stopping to get something to eat. Despite how much he wanted to eat he wanted to find his apartment by nightfall so he continued on.

As he continued to walk he heard the sound of an engine and Italian sounding music played behind him. He assumed it was a car, but when he turned he saw a small light brown tank pass him by with two girls sitting atop it.

As he watched the tank speed by he blinked his eyes repeatedly before he muttered, "Huh..."

A confused expression covered his face as he continued to talk down the street, his mind buzzing with questions as to why a tank was driving down the road like that.

This was compounded by the fact that as he rounded the corner in front of him, he saw another tank, one that was much larger than the first one which had a large crowd surrounding it.

His mind quickly searched through his knowledge of tanks ad deduced that it was a P40, a tank of Italian design.

(Carlo in head) "I'm seeing a pattern here..."

He was even more surprised when he saw a girl with long green hair in two tails hop up onto the tank. She had what appeared to be a school uniform on and had a riding crop in her hand.

"With this we will achieve victory this year!" She yelled with a smile, causing all of the crowd to chant...

"Duce! Duce! Duce!"

This led to the confused expression on Carlo's face to grow as more and more questions filled his mind.

(Carlo in head) "What the hell's going on?!"