The Snowy White Dream

(第一章 玄夜の白雪, Daiisshō gen'yoru no shirayuki) is the first episode of Hakuōki: Sekkaroku that is meant to be an extension of the main plot of Hakuōki: Shinsengumi Kitan. This episode is focused on Souji Okita.
==Plot==
Okita's and Saitou's units are patrolling the city when some of their subordinates notice that Okita is always on Saitou's right side when they walk next to each other. They assume that it is a sign of respect and some sort of acceptance of Saitou's prevailing strength, however, these assumptions are made invalid right when the Shinsengumi get attacked, and Okita and Saitou defend themselves in a convenient way due to the fact that Okita is right-handed while Saitou is left-handed. 
When they come back to the headquarters, Okita suggests taking off their uniform before walking in to avoid scaring Chizuru with the sight of blood. He also makes a witty remark teasing Hijikata behind his back.
Next morning Souji is followed by a bunch of children who want him to play with them. Chizuru witnesses it, and he decides to do as they ask. When Chizuru mentions that all the Shinsengumi members are usually busy, the children claim that they do not do any real work, which amuses Souji, however, when one of the children proceeds to blabber about Kondou, Souji gets furious and takes that as an insult, so he takes up the child and pretends to play with him. Even though it seems like a game in the beginning, the child quickly realizes that Souji is mad, so he asks him to put him down, but Souji does not, which scares all the children, and the one in the air starts crying. Eventually, Souji puts him down due to Chizuru's scolding, and all the children run away. Okita explains to Chizuru that he did it for what they said about Kondou.
When Okita and Chizuru go on patrol to the city, they meet Osen-chan, who informs them about a rumor that some rogue samurai have been frequenting the Sumiya (a teahouse in Shimabara) and they are planning to attack the Shinsengumi headquarters. Okita comes up with a plan to find out the details and asks Chizuru to help with putting surveillance in Shimabara. He voices the plan to the other Shinsengumi members, and they come to an agreement. Other Shinsengumi members including Heisuke, Sano, Shinpachi, Yamazaki and Saitou join the operation to ensure Chizuru's safety.
Souji stays in the headquarters due to his worsening illness and witnesses Hijikata bringing Chizuru back from the job. He makes a point to tease Hijikata with his presence and make him uncomfortable about being caught alone with Chizuru.
Next day the captains are gathered drinking, and Okita mentions that Chizuru was a big help according to the rumors. Everyone agrees that she looked cute. Saitou mentions something unexpected that Yamazaki did as well, but Okita does not know about it, and others do not wish to tell. When Shinpachi mentions that Itou has invited him and Saitou to have a drink at New Year, Okita wonders why the invitation did not include him (due to him being the Captain of the 1st unit while the other two are of the 2nd and 3rd respectfully), but Shinpachi jokes that the reason must be Souji's certain attempt to say "I'll kill you". And Souji agrees that he would definitely kill Itou.
On their way back a group of rogue samurai pick a fight with Shinpachi, and Okita tells Chizuru to leave and not worry about Shinpachi because this is how he has fun. Saitou promises to bring him back home, and Okita and Chizuru leave.
On the way back Okita jokes that when Shinpachi is alone it is not too bad, but if Heisuke and Sano were with him, it would have been a riot. Laughing at his own joke, he starts coughing blood but tells Chizuru not to approach him. When Chizuru does anyway, his cough subsides, and he pretends to have been joking about it. Chizuru gets mad and leaves. Souji calls for her saying that she will miss "the treat" if she runs away, and when she slows down it starts snowing beautifully.
Next morning Chizuru and Kondou come to bring Souji breakfast that Kondou has made himself. It turns out to be a rice porridge with scallions (type of onion). Chizuru mentions that Kondou cut them by himself, and Kondou confirms that scallions help with colds, so Okita eats with gratitude complimenting the dish. However, when Kondou is not in the room, Souji confesses that he hates scallions and asks Chizuru to keep it a secret from Kondou.
The episode ends with Souji's narrative that he is still able to fight.
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Category:OVA