Fruits Basket Character Profiles

[Kyoki]

Tohru Honda

Name: Honda Tooru
Age: 16 - 17
Height: 156.7
Weight: 46 kg
Bloodtype: O
Hair color: Brown
Eye color: Brown
Sign: Taurus
Character Symbol: Onigiri
Occupation: Sophomore at Kaibara High School, cleaning woman at he job

Tooru understands full well that her mother had to make a lot of sacrifices for her as she was growing up. And so now her big (not to mention her only) goal in life is to graduate from high school no matter what. She has a part time job cleaning Momiji's dad's building after school, and so with that money she pays for her own tuition, clothes, etc. (although Shigure seems to enjoy buying her things, like *ahem* that nice bed... ^^; )! It's interesting to note that Tooru's only goal in life was to graduate from high school. She never really thought about what would happen after that. In vol. 8(?) of the manga, when Mayuko-sensei asks her students to write an essay about their plans for the future, Tooru was struck by the fact that she didn't really have any long term goals for her life other than graduating from high school.

Tragic Loss: When Tooru was still a toddler, Mr. Honda apparently died from a cold-related illness, which was probably something serious like pneumonia. Until she was a freshman in high school, Tooru was raised single handedly by her mom who was killed one day in a tragic traffic accident. Tooru holds a lot of guilt about that day because it was the only time that she ever neglected to say "goodbye" to her mom in the morning... Kyouko's wish was that her daughter would one day go on to high school and have the life that she never had. Getting into a good high school in Japan is difficult because you have to take a rigid entrance exam to get in. Kyouko no doubt worked very hard, scrimped and saved just to pay for her daughter's education, study aids, uniforms, etc.

Family Background: Tooru's mom, Kyouko, and her dad, Katsuya Honda, met each other some time after Kyouko became a member of the "Ladies," which is the female equivalent of Yankees, or japanese street gangs. Kyouko Honda was in the gang for most of junior high school and was never able to go on to high school, this was something that she always regretted... After she joined the gang (or it could have been after she left it?), she met Katsuya Honda, they feel in love and got married. Personally, I tend to believe that Kyouko and Katsuya married when they were still quite young.

It seems that both Tooru's family on her mom and her dad's side (with the exception of her paternal grandfather) want nothing to do with her. After Kyoko's death (in fact at Kyouko's funeral), they all argued over who would have to take Tooru in! No one wanted to take responsibility for her, save her grandad who loved his son and cared for Kyouko too. I think that Kyouko's side of the family probably disowned her because of her past as a Yankee. There's also a rumour floating around that Kyouko or Katsuya are actually distant members of the Souma clan! I think that this *is* possible, but there's simply not enough info yet to make a determination. In vol. 7, that picture of Katsuya looked a lot like Kyou though, hmmmm... Speaking of Katsuya Honda, Tooru gets her polite way of speaking or "keigo" from her father ^_^

The Mysterious Baseball Cap Boy: When Tooru was in grade school she was picked on *a lot* by the little boys at school and in her neighborhood. One day, when a whole group of them were walking in her direction, Tooru became scared and ran away. Unfortunately, she ran a little too far and got lost. For a whole day, Tooru stayed hidden in a little alleyway, afraid that those little boys would find her... The next day, after she had worn herself out with crying, she looked up to find a little boy in a baseball cap watching her. She followed the boy and everytime she thought she'd lost him, he would wait for her to catch up. In the end, he led her straight to her front door! Tooru never got to see the boy's face because the cap covered up most of his face. Before she could even thank him, he put his cap on her head and vanished! Who this boy is, where he is now is all a mystery. The reason why this is even important is because that little boy was probably Tooru's first love. A lot of people seemed to believe that it was Kyou, but according to Ch. 53 of the manga, the boy in the cap was in fact Yuki! ; There are a lot of theories flying around and many believe that Yuki stole Kyou's clothes, etc.,...the truth is that no one really knows the circumstances surrounding the events of that day and why Yuki was outside the Main House in the first place. It seems clear, however, that Yuki snuck out the day Tooru got lost and now he's trying to decide whether or not he should tell Tooru that he was the boy that rescued her. However, one huge question that arises from this incident is how did he know where Tooru lived?! Did he know Kyouko Honda and is she really a Souma? Check out my Theories section.

Mother Complex: In vol. 10, Ch. 55 Hiro comments on what everyone in Fruits Basket already knows - that Tooru has a deep, desperate attachment to her late mother, or a Mother Complex. Even those of us that have seen the anime and/or read the manga realize that Tooru refers to her Mom in everyday speech as though she were still alive. It's only been a little over a year since Kyouko passed on, so it's only natural that Tooru would still be grieving for her, but it really seems as though Tooru has a very hard time coping with the fact that she's dead. She takes her mothers' picture with her everywhere she goes ( even into a hot spring! ), she sometimes speaks to the picture as though her mother could hear her, and in all her conversations, she invariably mentions that her mom always said this or that often in the present tense. It's as though she refuses to accept her death and I really think that this inability to let go makes her just as emotionally messed up as the juunishi. (And you thought that Yuki and Kyou had problems?! ^_~ )

But seriously, if we really examine Tooru's life before the Souma's it all makes sense in a way. The only person that Tooru had in her life was her mom. Sure she had Hana and Uo, but her friendship with them happened later on in junior high school and until then, the center of her universe was her mother. That tight bond between them coupled with her feelings of guilt over not saying goodbye to her on the morning of her death have made Tooru into the person she is today i.e. someone unwilling or rather unable to let go of the past and move on. Even though it seems as though Tooru is helping the juunishi with their problems, I think that they are in turn really helping her to face her own unresolved issues...

I got this info from: www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Kyou Sohma

Name: Souma Kyou
Age: 16 - 17
Height: 171.3
Weight: 56 kg
Bloodtype: A
Hair color: Orange
Eye color: Reddish-brown
Sign: Capricorn
Character Symbol: Cat
Occupation: Sophomore at Kaibara High School

Kyou is the black sheep of the Souma clan. Other than transforming into a cat, Kyou's other transformation (aka the "true form" of those possessed by the cat) is this big, alien-looking, cat-lizard-like thing that smells bad... To keep this transformation under control, Kyou wears a bracelet on his wrist that his mom gave him. This bracelet is actually a buddhist rosary made up of colored beads. In the anime, it's colored black and white, however in the manga, it is actually suppose to be red/orangey and white (explained in Ch. 61). According to legend, the bracelet is made up of human blood and bones!

When Kyou was a kid, his mom would keep him at home and wouldn't let him go outside. Although she always said that this was to protect him, it was really done out of shame - she didn't want anyone to see him. From what I can tell, she did love him, but under the pressure of having a child who is cursed by the cat, she emotionally wasted away and eventually committed suicide (there's more to this story though...). In vol. 9, Ch. 52 of the manga, we actually get to see Kyou's father for the first time. He's this really bitter, angry-looking man who, like everyone else in the family (this does not include the juunishi), blames his son for his wife's death.

Shishou: On the day of his mother's funeral, Kyou was taken in by Souma Kazuma (the "shishou" or "master" of a martial arts dojo). Kazuma volunteered to raise Kyou because he wanted to make amends for the terrible way he treated his own grandfather, who had also been cursed by the cat. His grandfather died alone, isolated from everyone else in a dark room, and so Kazuma didn't want Kyou to suffer the same terrible fate. Kyou and Kazuma grew to love each other and eventually their love developed into something of a real father-son relationship. Unfortunately, neither one of them really talked about it and one day when Kyou was reprimanded at school, Kazuma overheard Kyou saying that he (Kazuma) was not his father. Although Kazuma never mentioned the incident to Kyou, he was really hurt... The truth is that Kyou really *does* see Kazuma as a father figure, however, he doesn't want him to be ridiculed and scorned by the other Soumas because of their relationship (all the Soumas' fear and despise those possessed by the cat). Kyou wants Kazuma to be his father, however he's too insecure and doesn't deem himself worthy enough to be his son. Kyou's dream is to be a Karate Shishou (or master) like Kazuma when he grows up. He hopes to take over Kazuma's dojo one day, but realizes that the other Souma's would probably never allow such a thing to happen.

Yuki: Kyou sees Yuki as being the root of all his problems. He has always been blinded by the pain that the curse brought into his life and so he just decided to take the easy way out and blame Yuki for everything. If it weren't for the deception of the mouse, the cat could have made it to the enkai and been inducted as a juunishi. However, now that he's living with Yuki, Tooru and Shigure, I think that his feelings towards Yuki are changing. There's this deep-rooted hatred he has for the "Prince," but at the same time, they both seem to think in the same way and they even share some of the same emotions too... Their attachment to Tooru is forcing them to spend time together, so Kyou finds himself having to see Yuki as more than just the mouse and his enemy. The revelation that Yuki isn't such a bad guy probably has something to do with why he's always so angry around Yuki. When you're determined to hate someone, it's difficult to suddenly change how you feel. And so, just as Yuki is envious of Kyou, I think that Kyou is equally envious of Yuki.

The Legacy of the Cat: Well, from recent chapters of Hana to Yume, I'm beginning to piece together the fate of those cursed by the cat. It seems that they are forced to live alone in complete darkness for the rest of their lives. They are allowed their freedom until they graduate from high school, at which point they are locked away from society until they die. In Kyou's case, he only has only one year left before this happens to him. In a bet made with the devil, er, um, Akito ^^;, Akito agrees to release Kyou from the fate that has befallen generations before him IF he can defeat Yuki in a fight. THIS is why Kyou works out so much and why he spent all those months training in the mountains. Yuki is an exceptional martial artist and Kyou's life hangs on whether or not he can defeat him. No wonder he doesn't want to be friends with Yuki. If his future and his freedom is dependent on his defeat of Yuki, then hating him would make things a lot easier. It is interesting to note that the person cursed by the cat before Kyou (Kazuma's grandfather) was locked up inspite of the fact that he was married and had a family...



Info from: www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Yuki Sohma

Name: Souma Yuki
Age: 16 - 17
Height: 170.5
Weight: 54 kg
Bloodtype: A
Hair color: Purple/silver
Eye Color: Purple
Sign: Virgo
Character Symbol: Mouse
Occupation: Sophomore at Kaibara High School

Yuki was mentally and physically abused as a child by his mother who couldn't handle the fact that both of her children were cursed. In addition to this, Akito took particular delight in tormenting Yuki by locking him up for long periods of time in a dark, narrow, empty room. This treatment would leave deep emotional scars that have yet to heal. Apparently all of the juunishi knew about the abuse, but they didn't, or rather, couldn't do anything. For some time, Yuki went through a phase where he just wouldn't talk to anybody (just like Kisa). It is due to all the emotional, physical and mental abuse he suffered while growing up, that Yuki has a hard time interacting with people. According to the Fruits Basket Character book, " Yuki just can't open his heart up to people...," but thanks to Tooru and her support, he's starting to over come this hurdle by trusting people more, showing his emotions and believing in himself.

The Prince: Yuki does an *excellent* job of ignoring all the ravenous fangirls that make up his personal fan club at Kaibara High School (The L-O-V-E-M-E-Y-U-K-I Girls). However, despite being insanely popular among his classmates, Yuki is extremely insecure. He doesn't see himself in the same light that others see him. He's ashamed of how weak he was when Akito locked him up in that room and he's self-conscious over how feminine he looks... Before Tooru entered his life, Yuki hated himself, but now, little by little, he's starting to regain his self-confidence. Before he left the Main House at "Souma Central," Akito brainwashed him into thinking that he was abnormal and that no one would even want to be near him if they found out that he was a juunishi. This fear of having others find out about his secret and of being ostracized as a result made Yuki into the introvert that he is now. With Tooru in his life, however, this is all changing.

Have you noticed that Tooru is the only one around whom Yuki actually acts like a prince? ^_^ Like the time he tried to save her when she fell down that hill and that Valentine's day present he gave her. What was the deal with him kissing that ribbon?! @_@ WOW. In recent chapters of the manga, Yuki has been trying to opening show his affection for Tooru...but he *still* can't bring himself to call her "Tooru." (Note: Throughout the anime and the manga, Yuki politely calls Tooru by her last name, "Honda." In Japanese culture, one shows his/her intimacy with someone by calling them by their FIRST name...it seems that Yuki is too shy to do this. )

Brotherly love: His relationship with his older brother, Ayame, is rather strained due to the fact that they were not raised together, and personality-wise, they're polar opposites! Yuki is a lot younger than his older brother and at that time in Ayame's life, he wasmore interested in himself than a little brother he hardly ever saw. There is really more to this...I think that Ayame may have been abused by their mother too, and was afraid to step in when he saw her abusing him. It's sad really, because now Ayame desperately wants to reconcile with his little brother, but Yuki still has a lot of emotional baggage he has to deal with before he can make the effort to meet Ayame "half-way" on a reconciliation. It's doesn't help that Ayame's tactics aren't too well thought out either...DUDE, you're not going to get Yuki to like you any better if you keep annoying him! Oh well ^_~ ...

Kyou: Yuki and Kyou simply don't get along. This is probably due in part to the fact that as the mouse and the cat of the juunishi, they just aren't suppose to be friends. While this is a big reason behind their rift, Yuki also dislikes Kyou for other reasons as well. For one, while Yuki is really calm and has a good grasp over his emotions, Kyou is rash and hot-headed. It also doesn't help that Kyou's one mission in life is to beat Yuki in battle. In Kyou, Yuki also has a rival for Tooru's affections. While I don't see this as being the main reason for his dislike of Kyou, it probably doesn't help any. More than anything, I think that Yuki dislikes Kyou because he's envious of him. Kyou may be an outsider in the Souma family, but unlike Yuki and some of the other juunishi, he seems to have an easier time of getting along with people, making friends and, well, just being normal. While Yuki is reserved and shy about his feelings, Kyou is pretty open and more often than not he's very blunt about how he feels. Yuki dislikes Kyou because he's jealous of him.

The Mysterious Baseball Cap Boy: According to Ch. 53 of the manga, the boy in the cap that saved Tooru when she was younger was actually Yuki!! ; There are a lot of theories flying around and many believe that Yuki stole Kyou's clothes, etc., but the truth is that no one really knows the circumstances surrounding the events of that day and the reason why Yuki was outside the Main House in the first place. It seems clear, however, that Yuki snuck out the day he saved Tooru and now he's trying to decide whether or not he should tell her that he was the boy who rescued her.

Background on the Hat Boy and Tooru: When Tooru was in grade school she was picked on *a lot* by the little boys at her school and in her neighborhood. One day, when a whole group of them were walking in her direction, Tooru got really scared and ran away. Unfortunately, she ran a little too far and became lost. For a whole day, Tooru stayed hidden in a little alley way, afraid that those little boys would find her... The next day, after she had worn herself out with crying, she looked up to find a little boy in a baseball cap watching her. She followed this boy and even though she lost him several times, he always waited for her and eventually, he led her straight to her front door! Tooru never found out who this little boy was, but he was probably her first love. Although Yuki completely forgot about the incident, it wasn't until he saw the hat again that his memories of that day began to rush back. One huge question that arises from this incident however, is how did Yuki know where Tooru lived?! Did he know Kyouko Honda?! Was she a Souma?

...After some thought, it occurred to me that Yuki knew where Tooru lived because this wasn't the first time he snuck out of the Main House. Maybe, he'd seen Tooru and her mom before? Also, if Tooru was missing for a whole day, doesn't it make sense that Kyoko probably called the cops and organized a search party to find her daughter? Maybe there were cop cars in front of Tooru's house and that's why Yuki led her right to her house? It seems that Yuki is just starting to remember the events of that day, so there's definitely more to this story... Also, I think that Kyou probably knows something about the hat. He overheard Tooru telling Hana and Uo about the baseball cap boy, but in a chapter or two, Kyou has acted as though he's actually seen the hat before... Check out my Theories section where I talk a little more about this ^_^.

Info from: www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Shigure Sohma

Name: Souma Shigure
Age: 27
Height: 178
Weight: 68.5 kg
Bloodtype: AB
Sign: Scorpio
Character Symbol: Dog
Occupation: Novelist

Although he seems really happy-go-lucky on the surface, Shigure is really one of the more complex characters in Fruits Basket - you just don't know what he's planning! He appears to have some ulterior motive in mind and it seems to involve Tooru... Also, of all the Souma's, Shigure seems to be the only one that visits Akito on a regular basis and he doesn't seem to be as afraid of him as the others are....

Shigure's love life: Well, I'm pretty sure he's not gay. Shigure has dated women in the past (ex. Tooru, Yuki and Kyou's homeroom teacher, Mayuko-sensei) and if anything, he's kinda of a perv (the guy definitely has a lolita comlex ^_~). I know he flirts with Ayame, but they seem to do that just to freak everyone out. I think they were both in the drama club in high school, so this is just their way of joking around.

Kiritani Noa: is the pen name that Shigure uses when he writes romance novels. Shigure normally writes "high-brow" novels...so I guess his real-life equivalent would be someone like John Grisham or Toni Morrison. The name of he high-brow novel he wrote (the one we actually get to see in the manga) is called "Heartbeat." The romance novel is called "Natsu iro no toiki" or "Summer's Sigh." Unfortunately we don't know what the novel is about. The only people who've read it is Hatori (he said he felt sick afterwards ^^) and Hana-chan (I think she found it at least mildly interesting).

Info from: www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Ritsu Sohma

Name: Souma Ritsu
Age: 20 - 21
Height: 174.3
Weight: 59 kg
Bloodtype: AB
Sign: Capricorn
Character Symbol: Monkey
Occupation: Junior at a University

[Kyoki]

Kagura Sohma

Name: Souma Kagura
Age: 18 - 19
Height: 150.5
Weight: 51 kg
Bloodtype: B
Hair color: Brown
Eye color: Brown
Sign: Cancer
Character Symbol: Boar
Occupation: Freshman at a Womens College

Kagura is really girlish for her age. She's feminine, but her style is more Hello Kitty than it is Donna Karan. We don't know too much about her because she's only ocassionally featured in the manga.

Kyou: Kagura is head over heels in love with Kyou. She's obsessed with him, so she carries around an orange cat backpack that she made herself in honor of her beloved ^^; For some reason, when it comes to Kyou, Kagura has a split personality very much like Haru's. If she's angry or irritated at something that Kyou has done or said, she'll beat him into a bloody pulp. She trained under Souma Kazuma in karate, so trust me, she can kick ass. We don't know too much about the origins about Kagura's attachment to Kyou. But what we *do* know is that Kagura and Kyou played togther when they were children. Kyou can't remember their relationship when they were younger, so he has problems relating to her now. And plus he likes Tooru. IF Kagura and Kyou did hook up, that would be the ideal juunishi relationship because only cursed members can hug one another and not turn into animals.

Kagura and Tooru: Even though Kagura must realize by now that Kyou likes Tooru (at least after vol. 6), she refuses to give up on him. But her relationship with Tooru (her "rival") is actually pretty good. They're both around the same age and they're both very feminine so they share many similar interests.

Home Life: We get to see Kagura's mom for the first time in Ch. 60! It seems that Kagura does in fact live at home within the confines of "Souma Central ^_~ ." I don't know if Kagura's dad is still around, but it's apparent that her mom plays an active role in her life and that she cares very deeply for her. In this chapter, we also find out that of all the juunishi women, Kagura is the only one that Akito has not physically harmed (maybe he's afraid that she'll kick his ass?). Kagura's mom worries about her and, like Shigure, has gotten used to Kagura's lack of anger management skills and the habitual destruction of her home.

And one again, this info is from: www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Momiji Sohma

Name: Souma Momiji
Age: 15 - 16
Height: 155.8
Weight: 47.5 kg
Bloodtype: O \
Hair color: Blond
Eye color: Brown
Sign: Pisces
Character Symbol: Bunny
Occupation: Freshman at Kaibara High School

Momiji looks and acts like a child, however he's really one of the more mature characters in the manga.

Tragic Past: When Momiji was born, his mother (not a Souma) couldn't accept the fact that her son was cursed. She was constantly hysterical and angry, and in time it seems that she grew to despise her son. In one of the saddest scenes in the manga and the anime, Momiji's dad, out of desperation, asks Momiji to save his mother. His dad realized that the only way he could get his wife back to normal was to have her memory of Momiji completely erased.

Before erasing her memory, Hatori asks Momiji's mom if she's absolutely sure she wants to forget about her son. He asks her if she'll regret it. In the manga, Momiji's mom looks surprised by the question and then answers that her only regret in life was giving birth to him. ( ;_; ) Unfortunately, when they were having this conversation, Momiji was eavesdropping on them and heard the whole thing ( ;_; ). After her memory was erased, she got better and was able to live a normal life with Momiji's dad (It seems that Momiji lives away from his parents in the Souma family compound). In time, they even had another child - a girl named Momo.

So, from a far, Momiji watches after his family. He still has contact with his father, but his mom and his sister think that he's the son of someone else in the family. He hangs out with Tooru at work not just because he enjoys helping her, but because he hopes to catch a glimpse of his mother and sister when they come to pick his father up.I suppose he has to secretly watch them because his dad is afraid that his wife might remember something and get hysterical again. I think that Momo probably feels some connection to Momiji. They're siblings and so although she doesn't know that he's her older brother, I think she feels that there's a bond between them. This applies to his mom as well. In her mind, she believes that he's the son of someone else, but in her heart she must be feeling something more. I think this is why Momiji is forbidden by his father to have contact with her. Also, the resemblance between them is remarkable. Momiji looks exactly like his mother! I mean how many half german, half japanese children are there in the Souma clan?!


Although the situation regarding his mother and sister hurts him, Momiji refuses to just forget about them and move on. He truly believes that there aren't any memories that should be forgotten. By remaining strong against this painful memory, he hopes to one day overcome it so that it doesn't hurt anymore. Therefore, Momiji believes that his mother actually wanted to be strong and not give in to her pain, but in the end she just couldn't handle it anymore... For a translation of this chapter (vol. 4, Ch. 23), go to my translations page ^_^.

The World's Stupidest Traveller: This is the story that Momiji tells Kyou, Yuki and Shigure in vol. 3 when they find out that Tooru spent all of her money on buying them chocolates for Valentine's Day. Kyou gets really angry at her and comments that Tooru is foolish to put others before herself when Momiji butts in and tells them all a story that he heard at school the day before.

Story: There was once a traveller who was so naive he was easily decieved by people. He believed everything people told him til one day he gave away the last of his posessions and wound up completely naked. He hid in the woods to hide his nakedness, but even there he was taken advantage of. The beasts of the forest lied to him, and begged for food. The traveller gladly gave up his hands, legs, etc. until all that was left of him was his head. The last beast to decieve him ate his eyes, but before he left he told the traveller that he would give him a present to thank him for his kindness...but this too was a lie. The beast wrote the word "baka" (stupid) on a scrap of paper and dropped it in front of what was left of the traveller. Though blind, bodiless and completely alone, the traveller cried tears of joy as he said " Thank you Thank you! This is the first time anyone has ever given me anything. I'm so happy! Thank You! Thank You!" And so, as happy tears flowed from his sightless eyes, the traveller died.( ;_; )

Momiji goes on to tell them that at school all of his classmates made fun of the traveller, but to him, the traveller's actions weren't stupid or foolish. The traveller believed that there was no point in worrying about his pain and troubles. In Momiji's opinion, that kind of thinking isn't something that should be ridiculed, it should be applauded. Kyou, Yuki and Shigure are really moved by the story and of course the next day Kyou tells Tooru that he's going to go with her and the others to the Souma family Onzen *^_^*

Momiji and the other cursed Souma's: Of all the Souma's, Momiji seems to be the most well-liked. With perhaps the exception of Hiro and Akito, Momiji gets along with just about everyone in the family. I think he has a stronger relationship with Hatori (probably because they both suffered the loss of someone they loved), Haru (they're the same age) and Kyou. Although Kyou acts like he finds Momiji to be *really* annoying, you can tell that he actually really likes him. I think he enjoys bullying him, but he would never seriously hurt him. He treats Momiji the same way a big brother would treat his younger sibling.

Info is from: www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Hatsuharu Sohma

Name: Souma Hatsuharu, "Haru"
Age: 15 - 16
Height: 170.2
Weight: 57.5 kg
Bloodtype: O
Hair color: White on top, black on bottom
Eye color: Greyish
Sign: Cancer
Character Symbol: Cow
Occupation: Freshman at Kaibara High School

One minute Haru is quiet, calm and really spacey (a.k.a White Haru), the next he's loud, violent and brash (a.k.a Black Haru). Haru's regular persona is White Haru, so most of the time he's *really* mellow...sometimes a little too mellow. But, when he's angry, annoyed, upset or unhappy this essentially triggers his transformation into Black Haru and his personality completely changes! This is primarily due to, you guessed it, the traumatic childhood Haru suffered as a juunishi...

Trauma: According to the manga's version of the Japanese Zodiac legend, the mouse arrived at the "enkai" by secretly riding on the back of the ox. The clever mouse basically made a total fool out of the slow-witted ox, so when Haru was growing up the adults around him used to make fun of him by comparing him to the ox (i.e. they would imply that Haru was also stupid and foolish). They were probably just joking, but Haru really took the ribbing to heart and felt as though they were personally attacking his intelligence. Because he felt like everyone was laughing at him, Haru was angry all the time. He would get angry very easily and he was always in a bad mood. He blamed everything on the mouse and even though he never spoke to Yuki and only saw him once a year at the annual Juunishi New Year's ceremony, he felt a lot of resentment against him when they were young.

It was during this time that Haru's other personality, "Black Haru," was created. To help him vent his anger, his parents had him take martial arts lessons. Haru studied with Kyou at Kazuma's dojo, and although he found martial arts to be a lot of fun, it didn't help him control his anger. He still felt like everyone was laughing at him. And then one day, he accidentally confronted the person who he thought was the cause of all his problems: Yuki.

This was the very first time that Haru had ever spoken to Yuki and he really let him have it! Shaking with anger, he told Yuki that he hated him and that eveything was the his (the mouse's) fault. It was because of the mouse that the ox was stupid and foolish. After listening to Haru, Yuki asked him if it was true...that he (Haru) was really stupid. All at once, Haru stopped shaking. With his head hanging down, he said that it wasn't true, he wasn't stupid. Yuki smiled at him and told him that it was ok then, he understood that he wasn't stupid. Ever since that encounter with Yuki, Haru's anger has subsided. He still gets angry once in a while, but Yuki's words that day helped release his heart from all the shame and anger he felt.

Yuki: Well, I don't really think Haru's gay (sorry ^^; ). In fact, he seems to admire Yuki in much the same way that Ayame admires Hatori, but that doesn't mean that he wants to have a, er...physical relationship with him. Haru simply cares very deeply for Yuki. That's why he's always trying to get Yuki to come clean about his feelings for Tooru. He realizes that Yuki likes her and so he wants him to open up to her. For ex., unlike Kyou, Yuki has a hard time calling her "Tooru" instead of "Honda-san" even though she calls him "Yuki-kun." He wants Yuki to own up to his feelings and show his affection for Tooru by openly calling her by her first name.

Rin Souma: Rin is one of the newest characters in the manga. In recent issues of Hana to Yume, it's been confirmed that she is in fact the horse of the zodiac. We don't know too much about her yet, but she and Haru were a couple once and her real first name is "Isuzu." Apparently, Akito beat her up very badly one day and she wound up in the hospital. Rin was hospitalized for an undisclosed period of time and it was while she was still recuperating that Haru went by to see her. Quite abruptly and with really no explanation at all, she broke up with him. She told him that she didn't need him anymore and that was that. Haru was, of course, really hurt and confused by Rin's rejection. In Ch. 43 of vol. 8, he completely trashes a classroom because he got pissed off when he thought about his breakup with Rin. The truth is that Haru still cares very deeply for her. He doesn't think that Rin realizes just how much he cares for her, so he vows not to give up on their relationship.

Info is from: www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Ayame Sohma

Name: Souma Ayame
Age: 27
Height: 175
Weight: 63 kg
Bloodtype: O
Hair color: Whitish-silver
Eye Color: Yellow
Sign: Sagittarius
Character Symbol: Snake
Occupation: Tailor and Store owner

Ayame is the drama queen of the Souma family. Egotistical (he LOVES to hear himself talk...), loud and often times clueless, Ayame is one of my favorite characters in the manga. Aya runs his own clothing store, (of course called "Ayame") with his assistant Mine. There seems to be some confusion regarding what kind of clothes he makes and for whom he makes them for... Aya makes made-to-order clothing. Whatever the customer wants - he'll make it for men OR for women. Remember that little maid uniform Shigure had for Tooru at the end of vol. 5? Guess where he bought it? That's right, it was from Aya's store ^_^ It's unclear as to whether or not men actually wear his creations (maybe a few of them do...?), but I tend to think that Aya's store caters to men who want to buy "romantic" ( maybe even etchi ^^ ) clothing for their wives, girlfriends, etc. Along with maid uniforms, Ayame makes wedding dresses, nurse uniforms and sailor fukus (like the ones in Sailor Moon. lol).

Ayame's love life: Well, afer rereading some of the manga, I've come to the conclusion that Aya is...probably......not gay. Yeah, he dresses and looks like a chick, but that doesn't necessarily mean that's he's gay. Aya is a fashion designer and so he's flashy. And as far as his fashion sense goes...well, he dresses like Yuki. They both wear Chinese-influenced clothing. Plus, I have a feeling that Aya may have a thing for his assistant, Mine. I'm also not convinced that he's in love with Hatori. Hatori, Shigure and him are more like brothers than they are cousins. They've grown up together. Aya admires Hatori for being everything that he isn't. Plus, if he had a thing for him, he wouldn't have tried to get Hatori to steal Kana back ^^. Unfortunately, we don't know enough about Aya's everyday life to really tell...

Brothers: Ayame and Yuki have a strained relationship. They weren't raised together and they have a 10 year age difference between them. When they were younger, because Aya rarely saw Yuki, he felt as though he didn't even have a brother. Now that he's older, Aya wants to somehow bridge that gap between his brother and himself. Years later, he regrets neglecting him. He's not expecting Yuki to forget and forgive everything that he's done.... He's just happy if Yuki listens to him and tries to understand who he is and where he's coming from... Ganbare Ayame!

I also got this info from: www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Hatori Sohma

Name: Souma Hatori
Age: 27
Height: 182
Weight: 69 kg
Bloodtype: A
Hair color: Brown
Eye color: Brown
Sign: Cancer
Character Symbol: Seahorse
Occupation: Doctor

Hatori is the great dragon of the zodiac...unfortunately his transformation is that of an 8 cm seahorse! To add to this, Hatori is really one of the more tragic figures in Fruits Basket....

Lost Love: The love of Hatori's life was Kana, who worked as his assistant at the Souma family compound. Despite being (or rather trying to be) distant towards her, Hatori was drawn to Kana's warmth and kindness and eventually fell in love with her. She fell in love with him too and for a while things were pretty good...except for the fact that Hatori is a juunishi and he can't have physical contact with non-juunishi women! One day, Kana embraced him and *poof* Hatori turned into a seahorse. There's a really funny scene where Kana is freaking out and asking if she should put him in fresh or sea water ^_^. Anywho, this curse isn't enough to stop Kana from loving Hatori and so their relationship progresses to the point where they decide to marry each other.

Because Akito is the head of the family, Hatori went to ask for his permission to marry Kana. Instead of giving them his blessing, however, Akito freaked out and savagely blinded Hatori in his left eye! As Hatori was bent over in pain, Akito screamed at Kana and accused *her* of causing his injury. Despite her love for Hatori, Kana just couldn't forgive herself for what happened (although it wasn't even her fault...), and so she wasted away and became emotionally and physically ill. In vol. 10 of the manga, you get a better sense of why Kana became so emotionally unstable after Hatori's injury. It seems that she just couldn't forgive herself for not being able to protect Hatori that day. Even though she was right there next to him, she was unable to stop Akito from blinding him. The idea that she wasn't able to protect someone she loved so much preyed on her conscience to the point where Hatori felt that he had no choice but to erase her memory of him and of their love for each other. He didn't want her to suffer anymore and I think that to a certain degree Kana herself didn't want to go on carrying this burden of guilt with her either.

When Kana recovered, she had absolutely no memory of her relationship with Hatori. And so, ever since then, Hatori has endured his pain alone, although the other juunishi, Tooru and Mayuko-sensei have helped to lighten this load a little. A lot of people seem to believe that he and Kana will eventually get back together....I'm sorry, but I don't think it will ever happen. Kana married some other guy and Hatori is on the mend. There's no fairy tale ending here folks, Hatori just wants Kana to be happy. He would never risk hurting her again even if it means throwing away and forgetting the love they shared (boy do I sound cheesy ^^; ) . Hatori feels as though he's had his chance to experience true love and happiness and now all he wants to do is watch over Kyou, Yuki and Tooru.

A New Love?: This is probably a bit premature, but Hatori has a possible love interest in Shiraki Mayuko-sensei! She is Tooru's, Yuki's and Kyou's teacher at Kaibara High School and the woman that Shigure went out with! According to good 'ol vol. 10 of the manga ^_^ , it seems that Mayuko has ALWAYS been in love with Hatori. She met him and the other members of the "Three Musketeers" through Kana and from their very first meeting she's been hopelessly in love with him. Even though Mayuko tried to suppress her love for Hatori, she just couldn't stop the way she felt. She went through HELL watching Hatori and Kana so happy and in love, but although she loved Hatori, she realized that he was in love with Kana and as Kana is her best friend, she kept her feelings for him under wraps. Shigure, however, noticed that Mayu felt something for Hatori, so he volunteered to go out with her just so she wouldn't be so lonely, but their relationship didn't work out. It was a relationship of convenience and Mayuko couldn't rid herself of her feelings for Hatori... She still loves Hatori and it looks like she's willing to wait as long as it takes for him to come around. For his part, Hatori doesn't look like he feels weird about visiting Mayuko, but as of now he just sees her as a friend. Don't give up Mayu! ^_^

Unwanted Power: Hatori is currently the only Souma that has the ability to erase people's memories. In the past he has used this power on the following (that I know of): Momiji's mom, Kana, and a group of children that Yuki played with when he was a kid (one of the girls hugged him and he tuned in to a mouse). It seems that when Hatori erases someone's memory, it's chiefly the memory of that person witnessing one of the juunishi transforming into an animal, but I guess it's really done on a case by case basis. To be on the safe side, however, I suppose that Hatori must erase that person's memory of the juunishi in it's entirety to make sure that that person never stumbles upon the secret again. So, in the case of those kids that found out about Yuki's secret and had their memories erased, it wasn't just the memory of seeing Yuki turn into a mouse, it was all their memories of him ( er, I think...) . In Kana's case, Hatori erased all her memories having to do with their relationship, but she *still* remembers who he is and in Momiji's mom's case, she wanted all of her memories of Momiji to be erased, so now she only sees him as the child of some other Souma family member.

This info is from: www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Hiro Sohma

Name: Souma Hiro
Age: 11 - 12
Height: 150
Weight: 38 kg
Bloodtype: AB
Hair color: Blond
Eye color: Brown
Sign: Leo
Character Symbol: Sheep
Occupation: 6th grader in Elementary School

Hiro is really precocious for his age. He tries very hard to be as grown-up as possible, however, in the end, he just winds up being really obnoxious...

Attitude Problem: Hiro has a HUGE complex about his age. Out of all the junishi, he's the youngest and it really bugs him that Kisa (whom he has a crush on) is older than him. So Hiro walks around criticizing people (especially those older than him) in an attempt to seem more adult. He'll do this to the point where his "opponent" is speechless (I mean who expects a kid THIS cute to be so mean?) and I think that gives him the most satisfaction - to see adults squirm.

A Secret Love: Hiro's arrogant exterior and his need to act like an adult really stems from an incident involving Akito and Kisa. Hiro has always had a crush on Kisa, so he decided to tell Akito that he loved her. Akito was so angered by this news that he severely beat Kisa and it took her two weeks to fully recuperate from her injuries! When Hiro went to see her after the incident, Kisa told him that she didn't know why Akito was so angry with her and she wondered if she did anything wrong to provoke him. After hearing this, Hiro blamed himself for the incident and he hated himself for causing Kisa all that physical and mental anguish. He couldn't tell her the reason why Akito was so angry, so he kept it a secret and to protect her he decided to stay away from her.

They were both really close in elementary school, but after this, Hiro forced himself to act cold and distant towards her. This secret has been eating away at him ever since. So even though Hiro talks a big game, in all actuality, he's really a very insecure kid who hates himself ;_; . He feels that he ran away by keeping it all a secret... He hates the fact that he couldn't and still can't own up to the truth. He's scared to death to tell Kisa that he was behind what Akito did to her, and so that's why he takes so much pleasure in badmouthing and demeaning people that are older then him. This is something he has complete control over - his words actually allow him to be powerful and important and not just some little kid. BTW, Kisa is still unaware of the circumstances behind Akito's attack. But, she's even more puzzled and hurt by what she considers to be Hiro's sudden change in behavior towards her ;_; .

Rivals: Even though he talks big, Hiro is still at heart a possessive, selfish little kid ^_~. He views Tooru as his rival for Kisa's affections and is jealous at how much attention Kisa gives her. In vol. 6, he was *really* hurt when Kisa watched the anime tape he lent her with Tooru instead of him (even though he told Kisa he didn't want to watch it...). This is why he treated Tooru so badly when he first met her - he's jealous of her. By vol. 7, however, after that "little talk" he had with Tooru (she told him he was Kisa's prince ^_^ ), he seems to tolerate her a little better now.

Onee-sama?!: I think that it's possible that Rin and Hiro are siblings. Why? Well, he did visit her in the hospital...it makes you wonder why Takaya-sensei would have Hiro visit Rin in that scene and not someone else. Also, there's a scene in Ch. 54 where Hiro sees Rin walking away and watches her. You get the feeling that he's really worried about her and from what I've seen in the manga, Hiro only cares about Kisa. Why would he be concerned about Rin if she wasn't someone special to him? In any event, Hiro will soon be an "Onii-sama" because his mom is pregnant ^_^.

More family info: For such a sour kid, it's hard to imagine that Hiro's mom, Satsuki, is actually a very loving parent! According to Haru, Satsuki never felt any animosity or resentment for her son because she LOVES sheep! And you can tell that Hiro cares very deeply about her because when he found out that she was pregnant, he wanted to go home right away to make sure that she wouldn't fall down or something (Hiro found out his mom was pregnant when he was at the Souma's summer house).

I got his info from:http://www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Kisa Sohma

Name: Souma Kisa
Age: 12 - 13
Height: 145
Weight: 32 kg
Bloodtype: A
Hair color: Light orange
Eye color: Brown
Sign: Pisces
Character Symbol: Tiger
Occupation: Freshman in Junior High School

You can't really tell by the picture, but Kisa apparently has light orange hair and brown/green/orangey eyes (ok, so I'm not exactly sure what color they are, but I imagine they're similar to a tiger's...). She's the tiger of the zodiac, so like Yuki, Kyou, Haru, etc., she looks a little bit like the animal she's posessed by. The fact that her appearance is so striking has caused her a lot of pain and suffering at school...

Bullies Suck: When she entered junior high school, Kisa was constantly bullied and made fun of by the other students. She hated herself and was ashamed of being so weak. Too embarassed to tell her mother about her problems, she kept it to herself and became withdrawn from everybody until finally she simply refused to speak. It got to the point where she stopped going to school and one rainy day, she tried to run away from home. In vol. 5, Ch. 27, Haru finds her and brings her to Shigure's house.

Tooru: Tooru was also bullied when she was a kid, so she can relate to Kisa's feelings of shame at not being able to defend herself. In Tooru, Kisa found someone who understood her and who still loved her despite her weaknesses...I think that's why she's so attached to her. In vol. 5, when Kisa's mom asks her (Kisa) why she won't talk to her, Tooru explains that it's because she feels ashamed of her inability to solve her problems by herself. Kisa felt that she had to keep the bullying a secret and so she isolated herself from others. And also, a part of you feels that it's your own fault for being bullied. If you were just strong enough, you could ignore it, but as someone who was bullied myself when I was in elementary school (;_; kids can be so mean), often times you just can't ignore the taunts and it eventually gets to you. You grow to despise yourself and in Kisa's case, because Tooru liked Kisa the way that she was, that gave Kisa the motivation to like herself too. ^_^



Akito: This is a Hiro and Kisa spoiler... Out of all the junishi, Kisa seems to have bonded the most with Hiro. They're only one year apart, so when they were "younger" (lol), they often played together. Hiro has a crush on Kisa so one day, when Kisa was still in elementary school, he told Akito that he loved her. Apparently Akito *really* didn't approve of this because he beat her up! In the anime, when Kisa and Hiro were walking by Akito in a hallway, Akito slammed her against the wall. She was so badly hurt, it took two weeks for her to completely heal. I'm not exactly sure how long Akito bullied her and whether it's still going on, but this combined with the bullying at school all led to her low self esteem and her withdrawal from others. It's important to note that Kisa doesn't know why Akito hit her.


Home life: It seems that Kisa lives and has a pretty good relationship with her mom. Unlike many of the other Junishi mothers (Kyou's mom and Momiji's mom for example), Kisa's mom genuinely seems to love her daughter. She seems frustrated by the fact that her daughter is cursed (who wouldn't be?!), but her frustration isn't about her own welfare, she seems frustrated by the problems her daughter is having. Compared to the other moms, Kisa's mom has really grown to accept her daughter the way she is. In the character book, it says that person she worries about the most in this world is Kisa.

This info is from: www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Akito Sohma

Name: Souma Akito
Age: 16 - 19?
Height: 163.8
Weight: 43 kg
Bloodtype: AB
Sign: Cancer
Character Symbol: doesn't really have one
Occupation: Head of the Souma family

[Kyoki]

Isuzu Sohma

Name: Souma Isuzu, "Rin"
Age: ?
Height: ?
Weight: ? kg
Bloodtype: ?
Sign: ?
Character Symbol: Will probably be a horse
Occupation: She's a student at the high school that Kagura attended.

Rin is the latest confirmed juunishi (the horse). She first made an appearance in vol. 8 Ch. 43 of the manga in a flashback and has only made a few appearances since then. Very little is known about her and her past.

Haru: What is known is that Rin was Haru's ex-girlfriend. They dated in secret for a while, but then something happened and Rin wound up in the hospital. I'm not sure of exactly what happened, but it seems likely that Rin was beat up by Akito just as Kisa was. It was when Haru went to visit Rin at the hospital that she broke up with him. Haru still cares very deeply for Rin and he can't understand her sudden rejection of him. I don't really think that Haru knows the circumstances behind Rin's hospitalization. I wonder if Akito beat her up because he found out about her relationship with Haru?... Perhaps she did what Hiro did and confessed her love for Haru and that's why he hurt her? I've been trying to figure out why she decided to follow the others to the summer house in the first place. Could it be that she was there to watch over and protect Haru from Akito? ?_?

Tooru: Well, it seems as though Rin hates Tooru, but I'm not entirely convinced that this is true... In Chapter 61 (towards the end) Rin's actions make it appear as though she hates Tooru (note: Rin totally goes medieval on the sand castle that Tooru and Kyou were working on !). But, it seems to me that Rin's anger really stemmed more from her surprise over seeing how nice and caring Tooru really is. I think that prior to meeting Tooru, Rin had already decided that she hated her, so when she finally reluctantly meets Tooru, her conviction towards hating her wavered and that is what made her so angry. She strikes me as the kind of person who hates to be wrong...and it looks like she was wrong about Tooru.

Shigure: Rin seems to have some sort of a "relationship" with Shigure. What kind of a relationship that is, I can't say. I think that they're planning something or know about something that the other juunishi aren't aware of. The way they act around each other makes it seem like they're conspiring to do something... I don't really think that Rin has a crush on Shigure or vice-versa. If anything Shigure seems turned off by Rin, he seems uncomfortable around her. And as for Rin, I think that Rin is acting the way that she is around Shigure because she seeks his help... *argh* I wish I knew what it was!

Miscellaneous info: I think that Rin is going to the same high school that Kagura went to. In Ch. 43 we see a flashback of Rin and Haru together and Rin is wearing the same school uniform that Kagura wears on the cover or vol. 5. ... Oh, and I also believe that it's possible that Rin and Hiro are siblings. Why? Well, he did visit her in the hospital...it makes you wonder why Takaya-sensei would have Hiro visit Rin in that scene and not someone else. Also, there's a scene in Ch. 54 where Hiro sees Rin walking away from the Main House. You get the feeling that he's really worried about her and from what I've seen in the manga, the only person cares about besides himself is Kisa. Why would he be concerned about Rin if she wasn't someone special to him?

I got that info from: www.geocities.com/ai_no_hyde/Fruits_Basket.html

[Kyoki]

Hanajima Saki

Name: Hanajima, Saki, "Hana-chan"
Age: 16 - 17
Height: 162
Weight: 52kg
Bloodtype: AB
Sign: Aries
Character Symbol: Purple flower
Occupation: Sophomore at Kaibara High School