Fruits Basket – 40 – Daring to Meddle

It’s parent-teacher conference time, which means the inevitable re-reunion of Mayuko and Shigure. Tooru doesn’t know what the deal is with the “diamond dust”, but Mayuko impresses upon her the importance of not bearing everything by herself.

With Tooru’s folks passed she’s believed for a long time that her only path is to immediately join the workforce without further education. But she shouldn’t feel trapped on that path; there are still other possibilities.

After the conference, Tooru can’t fool Saki, who can detect her turbulent “waves”. Still, Tooru dismisses it as general anxiety they’re all feeling about the future. Arisa could model, but hasn’t really thought anything through, while Saki is taking baby steps: first she has to graduate, then she’ll go from there!

Meanwhile Kyou has his conference with Kazuma, and it’s notable for the fact that we never actually see it. Kazuma simply came to support Kyou, not to dictate to him what path he should choose. And while I’m confident Tooru, Kazuma, and others will be able to foil Akito’s plans to confine him, Kyou should still savor the peaceful present while it still exists.

That results in Tooru, Arisa, Hana, and Kyou having a somen party, but Yuki can’t have fun, because he’s on the phone with his mom asking if she could, ya know, actually show up. The next day he might wish he hadn’t urged her and simply had Shigure come for him, but the growth that comes out of their confrontation makes it worthwhile.

“Worthwhile” is not a word I’d used to describe Yuki’s mom. She embodies the soul of Gordon Gekko: “greed is good”, and sentiment is for losers. Yuki has always been a tool, and when Akito took a liking to him, his mom was all too happy to toss him into the abyss. I simply cannot stress enough how unforgivable this was, considering the psychological damage done to Yuki in that accursed estate.

Just hearing his mom on the phone or being in her presence is enough to not only return him to the dark and lonely, hopeless room of his childhood, but darken and sap of color the very room in which the conference is taking place. When Mayuko tries to interject, Yuki’s mom is ready with barbs about her unmarried status and silly school.

Then Ayame bursts through the door, resplendent in one of his handmade suits and bearing a huge bouquet of roses for his pal Hattori’s new squeeze. But more than anything, he’s there for his beloved little brother, who gave him a second chance even though he didn’t deserve it. He also blames his own failure to meet mom’s expectations, which made her shift them all to Yuki.

Yuki is shocked to see that their mother has no idea how to deal with Ayame, and eventually storms out in full retreat. Yuki decides not to squander the chance Ayame gave him, and proceeds to chase his mom down in the hall. It’s then that he notices, for the first time, how small and thin she is. Of course, his most vivid memory is of her towering over him, utterly ignoring his pleas for help with a placid, complacent smile.

Furuba doesn’t pretend that Yuki’s mom’s hardships weren’t real and considerable, but it doesn’t excuse what she did either. Yuki uses the simplest terms he can: he wants to live in the world, which requires effort he wants to put in.

Even if he fails, he’ll take pride in the effort. But to him, letting her decide what his life will be is no better than ending it altogether. Considering what she’s done to his life thus far, that’s not an exaggeration!

His mom leaves without responding, but perhaps maybe finally she heard his words. That’s the first step towards exploring what other times she hadn’t heard them, and the price he paid.

As with Ayame, she won’t get anywhere if she doesn’t reckon with what she did and didn’t do for Yuki when he needed love and protection her most. Unlike Ayame, she may ultimately be beyond saving. But hey, Yuki made the damn effort!

For that effort, Yuki gets to see Tooru in the hall just as the sun peeks back out of the clouds. Sakuragi grabs him for a StuCo emergency (Ayame has invaded the office and is considering re-taking command) but as he passes Tooru he smiles and they exchange the same words as family when leaving for the day: I’m off. Take Care.

Tooru’s “meddling” against Akito has barely begun, but it starts with little things that mean everything, like telling Yuki earlier in the episode that his path and future are his to choose, no matter what anyone else says, and being in that hall later, just when he needed her smile.

Read Crow’s episode 40/15 review here!

Fruits Basket – 27 (S2 02) – A Mountain of Laundry

After a Motoko-shaped tangeant, Furuba returns the focus to Tooru, Kyou and Yuki, along with Tooru’s BFFs Arisa and Saki. Career plans are due, which means there’s also a new focus on what exactly these kids will be doing with themselves after they graduate.

Tooru’s always imagined herself getting right to work in lieu of college, but her friends don’t rule out the fact she might get married. Heck, even Arisa doesn’t rule out getting married! Of course, Anyone would be lucky to have her.

Tooru is excited to accompany Kyou to his shishou/dad Kurama’s dojo for lunch, only to find Kurama can’t cook for shit. He also chopped off his luxiriously long hair, citing superstition.

Tooru also meets Kurama’s assistant Tomoda, who like Kurama has certain nuggets of Kyou’s childhood. Despite his zodiac’s reputation, he was a young lad like any other non-Souma kid: scared of things he isn’t now, but also of things he’s still grappling with.

Kurama is promptly called away to meet with Kyou’s real father, a man who clearly values his admittedly impressive vinyl collection over the fruit of his loins. He’s hoping Kurama will be on his side when the time comes to “confining” Kyou post-graduation.

It’s what’s always been done with the cat, but this prick doesn’t know how much progress Kyou has made, nor Kurama’s commitment to protect Kyou like his own son no matter who opposes him…even Akito. In this regard, you could say he chopped his hair as a sign he was choosing Kyou over cruel tradition.

Kurama eventually returns home, and enjoys a curry with Kyou and Tooru, not letting Kyou’s “real” dad rain on his parade. Later that evening, after Yuki has already retired to his room, Tooru and Kyou get to talking about their respective futures, and the possibility of suffering the same fate as previous Cats comes up.

In turn, so does Tooru’s plan to become independent, which was conceived for her mom’s sake when she was still around. What if circumstances allowed her to pursue other futures that don’t sacrifice her freedom? Not knowing which future is best or possible, Tooru ends up in a spiral of uneasiness and eventually anxiety, and asks Kyou not to notice when she’s “intentionally ignoring things” lest she “go all week.”

Shigure, inserting himself in a very close moment between Tooru and Kyou, has a very comforting talk at the ready (in part because he wants to eat some of the somen they made): Think of all the questions and problems of the future as a massive mountain of laundry. Worrying about whether and how to do it all only wastes precious time. Instead, simply wash what’s at your feet, little by little. The mountain will gradually shrink, and before you know it, it will be gone.

Shigure’s words are backed up by the sheer amount of progress made by Kyou, Yuki, and Tooru since episode one of the first season. They are now in the future of that time, and have been systematically cleaning one piece of laundry after another. They’re in a better place than their worries make them think.

Shigure’s other piece of advice is that whenever that uneasiness comes—and it will always come, as it should—don’t be afraid to take a pause and do something to distract you and make you happy, whether it’s watching anime or having a meal with loved ones. Sage advice, especially considering neither Kyou, Yuki, nor Tooru have to worry about facing their futures alone.

They have each other, Arisa and Saki, Kurama, Shigure (if he doesn’t turn on them) and many others who will continue to support them.