Girls und Panzer: Hope Dies
is, as the name implies, a Girls und Panzer fanfic by ShinHyuga90. On the eve of the final match against Kuromorimine, an unknown assailant enters Miho's apartment and murders her. As Oarai searches for its commander's murderer, a series of tragedies ensue, and things quickly get out of hand.
The fic has been completed.
Girls und Panzer: Hope Dies provides examples of:
- Age Lift: Miho, despite being a second-year in high school (junior/11th grader in America), who would ordinarily be 16 or 17, is 18 at the time of her death.
- Ain't Too Proud to Beg: Despite initially clashing with Miho's friends, Shiho begs to be allowed to stay at Miho's funeral and say goodbye to her daughter.
- Author Vocabulary Calendar: On several occasions, when Character A responds to something Character B said to them, B will be described as A's "interlocutor." It's especially noticeable considering the author's poor command of the English language.
- Best Served Cold: Arisa is expelled from Saunders senshadou team after a failed coup attempt to dethtrone the newly appointed captain, Naomi. Turns out Arisa spends six months in hiding and does not even bother coming to school to wait for a chance to assassinate Naomi. On her second attempt, she succeeds.
- Big "NO!": Yukari lets off one after finding Miho's body.
- Clueless Mystery: There are no clues that conclusively point to the identity of Miho's killer. The culprit pretends to be shocked at Miho's death, lies to conceal her motive and isn't even suspected until she comes forward.
- Dark Fic: Since no one dies, let alone gets murdered, in Girls und Panzer, it's only natural that this is Darker and Edgier than canon.
- Death Fic: The fic begins with Miho's murder and explores the consequences of it.
- Downer Beginning: The fic begins with Miho being murdered, and doesn't get any better from there.
- Downer Ending: Not only is Miho murdered, but Erika is tortured, Oarai enters a brief war with Kuromorimine that results in many deaths, most of those involved with Erika's torture get 10-20 years in prison, Yukari is hanged for Miho's murder, Oarai shuts down, Anzu goes insane and Arisa apparently murders Naomi. It's not especially surprising because of the Tragedy genre.
- Dramatic Drop: Darjeeling drops her tea cup after hearing about Miho's death.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Shiho may not be a very nice person, but she's heartbroken to lose her younger daughter.
- Fauxshadow: The early chapters appear to imply that Erika is Miho's murderer. In addition to her canonical Jerkass personality and hostility toward Miho, she's suspiciously late to return on the night of Miho's death, and expresses the hope that Miho won't make it to the match (before Miho's body is discovered). Erika also clashes with Miho's friends at the funeral, and throws out wild accusations. However, the real culprit is Yukari, of all people.
- From Bad to Worse: Miho being murdered is bad enough, but it quickly escalates to torturing an apparent culprit, a tank attack on Oarai meant to rescue said culprit, the true killer coming forward, and various characters being imprisoned or even executed for their crimes.
- If I Can't Have You…: Yukari's motive for murdering Miho is due to Miho choosing to fall in love with Erika instead.
- Interrogated for Nothing: Erika is brutally tortured in order to force her to confess to killing Miho, but she was not actually guilty.
- Jerkass Façade: Erika was publicly hostile to Miho to help conceal the fact that they were in a romantic relationship.
- Love Triangle: Type 4. Miho and Erika love each other, but Yukari's love for Miho is unrequited.
- Mood Whiplash: Shiho's apparent death is followed by Caesar and Carpaccio having sex, which is then followed by Erika being abducted. To quote one review:miho's mom died
...(10 seconds later)
... hot lesbian sex...
congratulations you just threw me off course - Noodle Incident: Apparently, not long after the final match of 63rd National High School Senshadou Tournament between Ooarai and Kuromorimine, Arisa is expelled from Saunders senshadou team. The event is not thoroughly shown, but it is possibly caused by Arisa being jealous of the newly appointed captain and her unsuccessful coup attempt.
- Obligatory Swearing: The characters swear like sailors, often with very little provocation.
- Plot-Triggering Death: Miho is murdered at the start of the fic.
- Red Herring: Erika is blatantly set up as the prime suspect for Miho's murder, due to her animosity toward Miho, having an apparent motive (sabotaging Oarai before the finals) and not having an alibi for the murder. The actual culprit is Yukari, who also had a motive (albeit not one that was known at the time).
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Erwin's hope of Ooarai winning the tournament goes slimmer after Miho's death, and she decides to ditch Ooarai after half of Ooarai's tank crews are either arrested or killed in a skirmish against Kuromorimine crews. Saemonza and Caesar both try to talk Erwin into changing her mind, to no avail.
- Secret Relationship: Miho had one with Erika, from Kuromorimine. The relationship had to be kept secret, less because of social disapproval of same-sex relationships, but because of fears that one party might leak information to the other's school.
- Shout-Out:Two of the investigators are named Haruka and Michiru, after Sailors Uranus and Neptune.
- Spit Take: Katyusha spits out her tea after being informed of Miho's death.
- Spiteful Spit: Hana spits in Shiho's face, thinking that Shiho is responsible for Miho's murder.
- Spoiler Title: Chapter 12's title, "Unrequited Love" spoils the motive of Miho's killer.
- The Stool Pigeon: Kinuyo sells out the other members of the plot to kidnap and torture Erika and gets the lightest sentence.
- Wham Line:
- Chapter 11 has Yukari insist that Erika is not Miho's killer, before saying "It was me!"
- Chapter 12 has a similar exchange when it's revealed that Miho had a secret relationship.
Hana: One moment! Who is it that Miho loved in secret?
Erika: Me! - "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue: The last chapter shows what the surviving cast members are up to. Some of them are trying to move on with their lives, others are in prison for kidnapping and torturing Erika, and Yukari was convicted of Miho's murder and executed.
- You Are in Command Now: After the commanders of Oarai's former opponents are arrested for their roles in the torture plot, their deputies take over their teams.
