Everyone's Dressed Up. Shiori And Hikigaya Trapped?

A bit later, outside the entrance to the Year Shrine, Hikigaya waits with a slightly uncomfortable look on his face. His hair is done up and he is dressed nicely.

Hikigaya "I don't get why they kidnapped me just to dress me up. We never go to the Year Shrine, let alone look this nice…"

He says under his breath as it steams in the cold air. Then, Haru, Touma, Sugawara, Kitaro and Ryuji step towards Hikigaya.

Ryuji "Thanks for waiting for us."

Hikigaya "Yeah no problem."

He says, kind of irritated.

Hikigaya "Now can you tell me why we're here instead of at home where it's warm?"

Kitaro "Come on Hikigaya. Where's your New Year's spirit?"

Hikigaya sweats a bit.

Hikigaya "I don't think you of all people should be talking about spirit…"

Haru approaches him with two cups of hot chocolate in his hands.

Haru "This is gonna be fun, trust me. I also got these for you at the snack bar."

He hands him the two cups as Hikigaya looks at them confused.

Hikigaya "Thanks? But why are there two of them?"

Haru smiles as someone calls to them. They look over to see Chizuru waving at them with Hisana, Lucy and Shiori in tow. Lucy, now wearing the kimono with an embarrassed look. The two groups merge as they all smile happily.

Chizuru "It's so crazy to see you guys here! We should totally hit the shrine together!"

She says happily as Hikigaya looks at the two cups in his hands before getting an upset look.

Hikigaya 'Haru… He knew they would be here. This has got to be a set up.'

He thinks for a moment before being snapped out of his thoughts when Shiori steps towards him. She is blushing and looking away shyly. Hikigaya's eyes widen as he admires her done-up look. He blushes and sweats nervously. Shiori looks at him and scrunches her eyebrows a bit.

Shiori "What? Do I look weird?.."

She asks softly. Hikigaya shakes his head a bit.

Hikigaya "No! You look… beautiful."

He says softly as Shiori blushes.

Shiori "Thanks…"

Hikigaya then looks at the cups one more time.

Hikigaya 'Set up or not, I'll have to thank him for this later…'

He thinks as he lifts one of the hot chocolates towards her. Shiori is surprised but grabs the cup.

Hikigaya "I uh, thought you might get cold."

Shiori smiles warmly while holding the cup closer to her face.

Shiori "It's so warm… Thank you."

Hikigaya nods while looking away embarrassedly. Chizuru watches them as she elbows Touma excitedly, pointing at them happily but Touma pays no mind to Shiori and Hikigaya as he stares at Chizuru. He blushes and looks at her hair, her kimono, her eyes.

Touma 'She's so beautiful.'

Lucy steps next to Ryuji softly with an embarrassed look. Ryuji just smiles softly. Lucy looks at him and gets an upset look.

Lucy "What? Are you not going to say anything?"

Ryuji smiles at her before looking away.

Ryuji "You look beautiful."

He says calmly. Lucy sweats a bit and lowers her head a bit.

Lucy "You've never seen me in a kimono before and that's it..?"

She asks very softly, not entirely meaning to be heard. Ryuji looks at her again.

Ryuji "Chizuru sent me a picture earlier so I wouldn't freak out so much."

Lucy is shocked.

Lucy "But why? I wanted to see your first reaction…"

He blushes and leans closer to her, his mouth by her ear. He whispers something as Lucy blushes intensely before closing her eyes and gently shoving him away.

Lucy "No way you dumb jerk!"

He laughs softly as she gets flustered. Sugawara then happily jumps on the stairs leading up to the shrine.

Sugawara "Come on guys! Let's get to the shrine! New Year's is just around the corner!"

He says with a big smile on his face as the group begins to climb the stairs. Hisana steps next to Kitaro.

Hisana "What do you think, Kitaro? Don't I look gorgeous? I'm sure you'll want to be my boyfriend this year."

She says while pushing her chest together a bit in an attempt to allure him.

Kitaro "No thanks, I'll pass. You'll probably ask out three other people by the end of the night anyway, you flirt."

Hisana is shocked by his cold response. She droops a bit as they continue. Kitaro smiles softly as he looks at her out of the corner of his eye. Chizuru steps next to Haru.

Chizuru "You gave them the hot chocolates..?"

She whispers. Haru gives her a thumbs up.

Haru "Love Potion infused hot chocolates given…"

He whispers back with a smile as they look as Shiori and Hikigaya drink their hot chocolates.

Chizuru "Good. Time for phase two."

Lucy begins texting someone on her phone.

Lucy "You guys there yet?"

Suiyoubi "We're ready!"

She nods as they make it to the shrine. Many other people are there as the group splits a bit in the small area. They check out food stalls and fun games while people wait for their turns at the shrine. Eventually, Shiori and Hikigaya make their way to the shrine. They hold flat stones in their hands before tossing them into the deep rock fountain. They then clap their hands together and lower their heads.

Hikigaya/Shiori "May the Universe bring a great year."

They say before stepping away. Haru runs up to Sugawara, Touma and Chizuru with a happy look holding a few different prizes.

Haru "Guys! Check out what I won!"

Sugawara smiles at him as Chizuru looks a little frustrated.

Chizuru "Haru! We're not here to play games! Where are the others?"

Hikigaya "Who else is coming?"

She looks over surprised and sweats nervously a bit.

Chizuru "Oh! Uhh, you know-"

Ryuji "Alice and Suiyoubi."

They turn to see Ryuji and Lucy approach them.

Ryuji "We went to get them."

Alice and Suiyoubi then approach the group with big smiles.

Alice "Hey guys! Fancy seeing you here!"

Suiyoubi "I hope your night is going well."

Alice's eyes then turn to hearts as she looks at Shiori and Hikigaya.

Alice "Woah! Nobody told me you were both getting so dressed up!"

She says while drooling a bit. They sweat a bit as Hikigaya moves on.

Hikigaya "Glad to see you too... That means everyone is here. Are you going to hit the shrine?"

He asks the others.

Lucy "Nah, I've never been into that stuff."

Lucy then elbows Alice who looks surprised before remembering.

Alice "Oh, hey guys. I know a guy who is letting us use some space at the lodge a little ways away. Why don't we all head there to celebrate the new year? It's got a heckin great view of the fireworks show!"

Sugawara "That sounds like a great idea! Let's all go together."

He says happily as they all agree. They step into the large lodge as others mingle and chat.

Haru "Woah! This place is huge!"

Alice "Yep! He said we can get this patio all to ourselves if we wanted. Everything else is shared though."

Shiori "They better have some outdoor heaters or I'm gonna be pissed…"

Hikigaya looks at her for a moment as she holds herself tightly, obviously not enjoying the cold. He then wraps his jacket around her. Shiori is surprised and looks at him.

Shiori "Hikigaya? Why are you giving me your jacket?"

Hikigaya "You don't seem to be enjoying the cold very much so you'd probably make better use of it."

He says blushing a bit while looking away. Shiori smiles warmly at him as he blushes more.

Hikigaya "Don't think much about it. I just don't wanna hear you complaining the rest of the night."

He says embarrassedly. Shiori gets angry and punches him in the side.

Shiori "You don't get to talk about complaining!"

Hikigaya holds his side as Shiori stares at him angrily. Chizuru smiles awkwardly as Lucy sighs. They all step outside onto the dimly lit deck. Haru sits down next to Sugawara on one of the chairs and pulls him close before rubbing their foreheads together.

Kitaro "What time is it?"

Touma looks at his phone.

Touma "Ten minutes until midnight."

Kitaro sweats a bit.

Kitaro "We better hurry up."

He goes to Chizuru and whispers in her ear. She sweats a bit while nodding.

Chizuru "Isn't cold, Alice? Maybe we should light the fire pit to get some warmth out here."

Alice "Right, right, I think there's some starter wood in the little shed there. Why don't Shiori and Hikigaya get it?"

Lucy "That's a great idea."

They both sweat a bit while looking at them in disbelief.

Hikigaya "Both of us, huh?.."

Shiori "I don't think I'll be of much help in this kimono."

She says while looking at herself.

Lucy "Oh sure you'll be. Now go."

She says while pushing them both towards the little shed on the deck. As they get closer, Haru opens the door for them. Hikigaya and Shiori sweat as Lucy shoves them into the shed and Haru closes the door behind them. Lucy pats her hands together with an accomplished look.

Lucy "And there we go. Now we wait for the love potion to kick in."

She turns around to look at the others who smile and nod.

Chizuru "How long will it take for the potion to kick in?"

Suiyoubi "It shouldn't take very long."

Kitaro "We should probably give it a good minute though just in case."

As they speak, Haru is in the background locking the shed door with a keylock that was hanging on the handle.

Haru "Don't worry, I got it covered!"

He says with a proud smile. They look at him as Lucy and Sugawara instantly get shocked looks.

Sugawara "Haru! Why did you lock it??"

Haru "How else were they gonna stay in there?"

He says while sweating a bit with a confused smile.

Lucy "There are no handles on the inside! It was enough to simply close the doors!"

Haru "Oohhh well don't worry guys. Alice gave me a key for it."

They sigh in relief as he starts digging around in his pockets. Alice looks confused.

Alice "I don't have a key for it. This place belongs to the owner, not me."

They look shocked as Lucy glares at Haru. Haru looks at them confused before nervously laughing.

Haru "Ahha… Whoops!"