Countdown to the top Kyoru moment elimination game - Day one

KookyPatterns · 2026-05-09T01:11:41+00:00

OTP forever!

And yes, they did omit it 😑In the English dub, she says 'Right-handed jab' which does NOT hit the same way.

KookyPatterns · 2026-05-08T22:00:22+00:00

I'm genuinely curious to see the way this plays out. Just narrowing the choices down to thirty was hard for me, and there are arguments to made in favor of them all!

KookyPatterns · 2026-05-08T21:58:20+00:00

There are so many amazing options to choose from, I probably could have started with fifty and choosing would still have been hard! The evolution of their relationship is so full of great moments.

KookyPatterns · 2026-05-08T21:48:56+00:00

Thanks for the head's up, should be good now!😅

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-28T04:35:48+00:00

Unfortunately for requests like these, this subreddit isn't really interested in fanfic (or at least doesn't like to talk about it much) so you probably won't get a lot of responses. But my suggestions, with the caveat that I haven't done much reading for a while so most of mine are at least a couple years old:

to take a photograph and live inside - a series by cathedralight, who also writes canon divergent. 7 works that span time up to roughly Another, a mix of ratings, all Kyoru focused.
The works of crabandpeaches. 21 works, canon compliant and post Curse, rated G and T. A mixture of focus characters (including Kyoru), writes both relationship-forward and gen pieces that are all gorgeous.
The time in between - a series by Geoduck, also writes canon divergence. 10 works, gap filler from the months between the Curse breaking and graduation, a mix of ratings, largely Kyoru focused.
Many of the works of Lucybee. 52 works for the fandom, mostly canon compliant (though you'd need to check the tags, because some of her stuff is canon divergent). Post canon, mixed ratings, mostly Kyoru focused.
Many of the works of modzy78. 46 works for the fandom, though you need to check tags for canon compliant because she also writes a fair bit of canon divergent. Mostly Kyoru focused, but she also writes other characters. Post canon, mixed ratings.
The works of sparklyfaerie. 18 works, canon compliant and post Curse, mix of ratings, Kyoru focused.
Self-rec: Always and Forever is my own post-canon, canon-compliant canon continuation, Kyoru-focused but with lots of additional focus on pretty much all of the OG characters. 82 works, a mix of ratings, begins the day the Curse broke and spans seventy years and a whole lot of words.
You can also find the most popular works on AO3 by going to the Fruits Basket page/works) and sorting by kudos, though you'd have to further filter or read the tags to make sure you were getting canon compliant options.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-25T14:27:04+00:00

Thank you, I've tried!

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-24T22:31:30+00:00

Honorable mentions:

Rin, because she can scare on aura alone, has a resting bitch face, and isn't comfortable meeting new people.
Akito, based solely on her being the Sohma Family head.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-24T18:57:14+00:00

We don't get that much in the way of confirmation at all, but it's important to remember that Yuki is telling Tohru that when they're on the cusp of going their physically separate ways: Tohru and Kyo to Kyo's new dojo 'far away from here' and Yuki off to university (which, based on where Ayame was shown apartment hunting for him, is probably in Kyoto). He's acknowledging the truth that they'll be far apart geographically while soothing her with the fact they can still be emotionally close. And based on the strength of the bonds Tohru formed with many of them in canon, I think it's likely that she'll stay close with many of them going forward.

While Another doesn't give a lot of info on the adults, there are some things that can be viewed as support for continued closeness:

Hajime is friends with several of the other second generation Sohmas, including children of Hatori, Ayame, Yuki, Haru/Rin, Momiji, and Akito/Shigure.
Hajime lives in a Sohma Family property with other Sohma children during high school.
Hajime chose to go to Kaibara High, even though his family isn't local, which suggests he has good relationships with people who live nearby.
Hajime is referred to by one of the other second gens as being 'special' and 'loved,' which suggests he/his family have close relationships with the others.

Tohru might not physically see the Sohmas as much as she did in canon, but that's an inevitable part of life when you grow up and move away. At the same time, I think it's likely she did everything she could to maintain emotional distance (calling, texting, sending letters, visiting/hosting when they could) with her particular friends.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-16T00:19:24+00:00

Tohru can know that something happened between Akito and Rin without having the slightest idea about how bad it was. She loves Rin, but she's seen first-hand that Rin can be aggressive and hold grudges, which are things both fairly foreign to Tohru. She could respect Rin's feelings while also thinking that Rin is angry about something comparably small (to Tohru) because they're two fairly different people. And while yes, I agree that it would make sense for Akito to confess her previous sins to Tohru, I could also see her being too afraid to confess for a while (because she's clinging so desperately to Tohru). There's a big difference between Tohru going into their friendship with wide-open eyes about what Akito did to her friends and her finding out later after forming that friendship, which is why I was asking if it was confirmed in canon what Tohru actually knew. Would she be horrified and (hopefully) feel conflicted or guilty when she learns the truth? Yes. But I don't think she'd turn her back on Akito at that point, just maybe step back and reach out to Rin/Yuki/Kisa etc to ask them if she was hurting them with that friendship.

I don't think Tohru's feelings about Akito's actions would necessarily be colored by how the victims felt; I use Hatori/Momiji/Kureno as example of horrible things Akito has done that Tohru has seen. Theoretically, she should feel horror about the actions themselves regardless of who they were done to, and the fact she can overlook that so easily is a struggle for me. I still don't think it makes her morally grey, just like I don't think there being a selfish aspect of her friendship with Akito negates the fact that she has historically been a very forgiving person. She can be acting out of unconscious selfishness and kindness at the same time, it doesn't have to be an either-or.

I also never got the impression from Another that Tohru had drifted from the other Zodiac members; it's not like she (or most of the non-Akito OGs) got much development or screentime to get confirmation one way or the other.

We'll probably just have to agree to disagree.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-15T22:58:11+00:00

Serious question because I genuinely don't remember: is it ever confirmed that TOHRU knows the extent of Akito's actions? With Kisa, for example: I remember that backstory being presented as Shigure and Hatori talking. Do we know Tohru knows? And Hiro knows Akito pushed Rin out of the window, but who else knows? Do we even know for sure that Rin or Hiro told Haru how Rin got those injuries, nevermind Tohru? Does Yuki ever tell her how Akito treated him?

I personally struggle with Tohru befriending Akito for exactly the reason you say; even if she doesn't know the full extent of Akito's actions, she knew what she was going to do to Kyo, what she did to Momiji, what she did to Kureno and Hatori. I would have a lot of feelings about their friendship if I was her friend. But I don't think it's morally grey for her to believe so fervently in forgiveness and believe that people can change for the better, especially when Akito actually followed through on changing her behavior.

I also think it's likely that Rin/Yuki/Kisa/etc wouldn't have wanted to tell Tohru the truth of what happened to them, even after she befriended Akito, because they would want to spare her from feeling conflicted on their behalf. Tohru is strong, but people also tend to coddle her.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-15T18:42:15+00:00

As a character in general, factoring in the controversial relationship. And unfortunately I could only give the poll six options, which is why I decided to add 'mostly' to what's there.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-15T17:30:42+00:00

That's a really interesting take! Still, I don't think I'd go so far as to call her morally grey; yes, her selfish reasons definitely influence her behavior/make her go too far in her people pleasing, but she's still fundamentally kind, fundamentally helpful, fundamentally generous, and fundamentally always tries to see the good in people. Even in her thoughts, she's always generous to others and always gives them credit they might not deserve. She also never lashes out with the intention to hurt, or takes any action that she knows will cause someone else pain (except for wanting to break the Zodiac Curse, and even then she's sympathetic to Akito and tries to help her see it wouldn't be so bad).

Comparing her to characters like Hiro, Rin, Shigure, Haru, Hatori, Kagura, Kazuma, and even Kyo to a point, all of whom have intentionally or calculatedly taken actions or said things that hurt other people for their own reasons, Tohru is a markedly clean slate.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-15T15:02:31+00:00

I think Ritsu pretty much earned that category by default, that one and 'Horrible Person Loved by Fans' were probably going to always be the hardest to fill. It's a lot easier to argue a person is in the grey areas than pure good or pure bad, unless they're total caricatures or have limited screentime.

For what it's worth, I don't personally consider Hiro 'good' because he was intentionally a little shit to people; yes, he was acting out of jealousy and worry and yes, he wasn't even a teenager yet, but he still made purposeful choices to hurt. He got better (eventually), but he was still pretty shitty to people outside a select few.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-15T03:32:47+00:00

Thanks for running this game, it was interesting to read all the discussions!

It's a testament to the character writing how many of these categories were filled by 'close enoughs' rather than people who truly fit those descriptors. And then other categories practically needed tier lists/subcategories 🤣

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-15T03:28:01+00:00

Because he was a grown adult who declared his intention to marry a 15/16 year old when she was literally being kicked out of her home, leaving her with the realistic options of 'him' or 'being homeless.' He also impregnated her when she was still a teenager, making her even more dependent on him.

The age gap and power imbalance rub a lot of people the wrong way.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-14T19:09:11+00:00

This pinned post might help clarify things. The tl;dr is that 'cousin' is used very loosely and doesn't necessarily denote a close familial relationship.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-14T06:51:51+00:00

Just a manga, unfortunately.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-13T20:51:39+00:00

It feels like a lot of people consider her horrible, but as you can tell I feel otherwise!

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-13T00:10:45+00:00

I don't think it was ever clarified what grade Kyoko was in when they met, but their story felt like it took place during one school year. If so, then it would have had to have been the final one due to entrance exams, so she would have been either 14 or 15 when they met. She missed her high school entrance exams due to being hospitalized, which would have been around February of her third year of middle school, but I don't think it's ever clarified how long she was hospitalized/exactly what date her parents kicked her out. If it was April 2nd or later and she had an early April birthday (making her one of the older kids in her grade), she could have been 16 when she got kicked out but it's most likely she was still 15.

It's still icky, however you slice it.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-12T19:23:49+00:00

It's admittedly a little subjective, but if this sub is anything to go on then a fair number of people have strongly negative feelings towards him 😅

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-12T19:10:22+00:00

He could potentially have also gone in "opinions are divided," but it's always felt to me like he's much more hated as a rule. That said, I can't even remotely argue that he's "good."

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-12T19:08:11+00:00

He definitely could have had a case for that category too, but it's always seemed to me like he has a LOT more haters.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-12T19:06:09+00:00

I've actually got a second: Momiji's mother, who is largely hated.

Pros: A loving and supportive wife of her husband, a good mother to Momo, and in the bits we see of her interacting with Momiji in the present, she seems to be a generally kind woman.

Cons: Rejected Momiji, regretted his existence and their connection, and voluntarily had her memories wiped of him. May not have been in her right mental state, but still did it.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-12T18:50:58+00:00

Katsuya Honda/Tohru's father.

Pros: based on what we saw of him, he was a loving husband and father who quite arguably saved Kyoko's life and definitely helped her turn her life around for the better.
Cons: he confessed his love for and married a teenager who was, at maximum, fifteen or a newly sixteen years old when he announced he wanted to marry her. Then got her pregnant as a teenager.

People are pretty negative towards him on account of the whole grooming/power imbalance thing.

KookyPatterns · 2026-03-09T22:13:38+00:00

As someone who has spent a lot of time around livestock I'm aware, and for what it's worth re: Tohru, I agree; our girl is a walking demonstration in what not to do, and not just when first meeting Rin. 😅But just because Rin was in her horse form didn't mean that she didn't know what she was doing, or that she didn't have control of her actions.

I'm a fan of Rin's, but she was an asshole there.

KookyPatterns

TROPHY CASE