Dust Devils - A Girls Und Panzer Story

Chapter 1

Barstow, California

Friday October 19th, 2012

The winds of the desert echoed throughout the area. The moon had already sunk beneath the horizon, yet the sun had not yet awakened. Barstow was not a city one immediately thought of when thinking of California, yet it exemplified one of its most notable characteristics; the sweltering heat. Even in October, a ninety-degree day was not unusual in the slightest. Among the many homes coated in a fine layer of sand, one had a peculiarity. This modest home had a solitary window light, and within was a young teenage girl busily preparing for school. The oddity here was that Valarie Woodlin would still be fast asleep on any other day, only begrudgingly getting ready for class at the last possible moment.

Today was not a typical day.

For today was the final match of Japan's national Tankery tournament. Ooarai Girl's Academy and Kuromorimine Girl's Academy were about to wage battle. It would be tense! It would be action-packed! Ooarai would be fighting for its very survival! And Valarie is the only person in town who knows about it and gives a damn. Foreign tankery matches rarely got much attention outside their home country, if they got any at all. Valarie was already dressed in her school attire and, thanks to waking early enough, had managed to brush the rat's nest that was her hair. It was a rarity for Valarie to tame her hair as she seldom had the time to put care into it. Looking in her mirror, she gazed at her reflection. Standing at 5'8, she was nearly the height of it, with her black hair flowing just past her shoulders, and her skin pale. She didn't mind the fact that her summer tan had receded, and yet, in a way she did. Satisfied with her hair, she then opened her laptop and tapped away. Reaching a Japanese website and the foreign text one would expect, she let her browser translate it into something that, while not perfect, at least allowed her to get the gist of things

Ooarai v. Kuromorimine - 12 P.M.

12 P.M. for Japan. 7 P.M. for Valarie. She would have to get through the day, tempering her excitement. She peeked at her phone, checking the time.

5:55 A.M.

She still had some time to kill before the school bus arrived. She left her room and headed straight for the kitchen. From the window overlooking the sink, Valarie noticed the approaching rays of the rising sun. She didn't need to feel them, for in her bones, Valarie could already tell that today was going to be a hot one. Grabbing a slice of leftover pizza from the fridge, she plopped herself down on the couch and turned on the television. It was mostly to provide some background noise as she browsed her phone, only briefly interrupted by munching on her breakfast. Her phone then vibrated, as a notification appeared on her screen. A grin erupted on her face as she saw that her dad was calling her. It was promptly answered.

"Hey, dad!"

"Morning, sweetheart! You sound awfully awake."

"Yup. Having breakfast right now."

"Really? You woke early enough to have a meal? Never thought I'd see the day..."

"Real comedian aren't ya, dad? Anyway, where are you headed right now?"

"Huntsville. Just crossed into Alabama half an hour ago."

"Cool. Always good to hear your voice, dad. Love you lots!"

"Love you too. Have a good day!"

The call concluded. Valarie's dad was a trucker by trade, and the job demanded that he be on the road regularly. But whenever he was home, they made the most of this irregular free time. Hangouts. Walks. Trips. The occasional movie. Anything to spend time together. Her mother worked closer to home, having already left for work in the pitch black of the morning at a local welding shop. Welders and truckers normally made good money but that all depended on various factors, and for her parents, well, the cards weren't exactly in their favor. Their combined paychecks were only just enough to pay for their home and its associated necessities. Any surplus was put away for a rainy day, and it seemed that even in the desert, it rains more than Valarie's family would like. The aging family car was the most common culprit. The vehicle appeared to sense when the savings would get big enough, and demand an emergency repair. And when it wasn't the car, it was always something else. On the rare occasion when things held themselves together, the family could splurge a little, much like when they surprised Valarie with a smartphone the year prior and earlier this year, a laptop. Sure, each was the cheapest model available, but Valarie loved and cherished them, having given them both daily use and superb care ever since. She was far too aware that should either fail, a replacement might never arrive.