Sohma Kyou x Honda Tohru
| Pairing | |
|---|---|
| Pairing: | Sohma Kyou x Honda Tohru |
| Alternative name(s): | Kyohru |
| Gender category: | m/f |
| Fandom: | Fruits Basket |
| Canonical?: | Yes |
| Prevalence: | Very popular |
| Archives: | |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Sohma Kyou x Honda Tohru is the main couple of the manga series Fruits Basket.
Background
Honda Touhru is the protagonist of Fruits Basket, while Sohma Kyou is one of two characters initially presented as romantic options for her (with the other being Sohma Yuki). Tohru, Yuki, and Kyou all live together in the same house for most of the series.
Kyou is the Sohma cursed with the spirit of the cat from the Zodiac legend, and Tohru is the only person outside the Sohma to know about the curse. Tohru is initially drawn to Kyou's awkward kindness, while he is drawn to her as a person from outside the Sohma family who doesn't reject him for his curse. They become much closer after Kyou's teacher conspires to reveal the cat spirit's monstrous true form to Tohru and she continues accepting him.
In the latter half of the manga and the second Fruits Basket anime, Tohru realizes her feelings for Kyou and struggles with the feeling that falling for him means leaving her late mother behind. She admits to herself that her desire to end the Sohma curse is centered on him, and after she convinces the head of the family to let the curse go, the two begin dating. In the epilogue they are an old married couple with children and a granddaughter.
Reception and Popularity
The main rival ship is Sohma Yuki x Honda Tohru. These ships were initially presented in the manga as equally likely possibilities, and most who dislike Kyou/Tohru were people who had hoped for Yuki/Tohru.
Fanon and Tropes
- Following canon, fanworks often focus on hugging, and on the workarounds used by Tohru and Kyou to embrace prior to the breaking of the curse, such as hugging with a sheet between them.
- Tohru's friends Hanajima and Uotani took a while to warm up to Kyou, a fact that is played for both humor and drama.
- Their housemate Sohma Shigure encouraged their romance in canon for his own purposes, and as such often plays a role in fanworks.
- Kyou's distant cousin Kagura initially presented herself as having a tsundere version of a crush on Kyou, although their relationship was actually more complex than that. Thus, Kagura involving herself in the romance in one way or another is a fixture of Kyou/Tohru fanworks.
- Kyou's ability to transform into either a housecat or a monster under different circumstances is also popular in fanworks.
Example Fanworks
| Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples. |
Fanart
Tohru and Kyon by sanuKi (2011)
Fruits Basket - Kyo x Tohru by urara (2017)
The first of a collection I've been planning! by ShadowLeafTeddy (2022)
Valentine date by eldesu (2023)
Fanfiction
- Hold On by Danyu - "Kyou has accepted his fate as the cat. Relationships change and the bond between he and Tohru is cemented forever. But he leaves something behind, something precious enough to give everyone the strength to hold on." - AU, pregnancy fic, angst, kid fic, posted 2005-2006
- A Warm Hand by blissfire - "Kyou doesn't need comfort, he just needs honesty." - emotional hurt/comfort, posted 2007
- Hot Summer Nights by Iron_Angel - "Kyou accidentally peeks in through Tohru's window one night." - oneshot, accidental voyeurism, posted 2015
- and therefore is winged cupid painted blind by cinnamondove - "Tohru, a young princess looking desperately for a husband, finds herself caught in a feud between two powerful gods: one who wants her dead, and one who wants her heart." - Mythologys AU, incomplete, posted 2019
- i really (really really) like you by alpacas - "'Do you think they've done it yet?' Haru asks." - implied sex, humor, posted 2018
- Water Cycles by akaparalian - "Kyo, in the aftermath." - character study, oneshot, posted 2019
Fanvids
- Everything - Kyo x Tohru by Ephemeral - MMV, audio from "Everything" by Lifehouse, posted 2008
- Fruit Basket Tohru x Kyo by Red Lily Spider - AMV, audio from "So Magical" by A Touch of Class, posted 2009
- Someone you loved [AMV] - Fruits Basket by Yuuki. - AMV, audio from "Someone You Loved" covered by Teddy Swims, posted 2019
- [Fruits Basket AMV] - Ama no Jaku - - Akie秋絵 - Tohru x Kyo - Wing-sama by WhiteFangZ - AMV, audio from Akie and Wing-sama's cover of "Ama no Jaku" by 164, posted 2020
- Kyo & Tohru | All Too Well by sincerestpumpkins - AMV, audio from "All Too Well" by Taylor Swift, posted 2021
Cosplay
KyoxTohru by defiantallie (2011)
Kyo x Tohru: OKAY, FINE!!! by II2DII (2014)
勝手に寄ってくんだよ (I will come to you of my own accord) by TomoruCosplay (2022)
- @blanketninja by fraggle_cos, video, posted 2022
- Fruits Basket by N1ghtm4reCosplays, video, posted 2023
Meta
- Kyo/Tohru Ship Manifesto: Let's Stay Together Always, Archived version by sari15, posted 2006
- one thing i love is that kyo never wanted tohru to "fix" him., Archived version by kagurazuki, posted 2020
- My Theory on a Certain Kyo/Tohru Moment from the Manga - Major Manga Spoilers, Archived version by Tessaclareend, posted 2021
- god it’s about feeling tohru’s visceral heartbreak when..., Archived version by lesbian-kyoru, posted 2021
External Links
Fan Communities and Archives
- FanFiction.Net (FFN): Fruits Basket stories featuring [Kyo S., Tohru H.]
- DeviantArt (DA): Kyoru, Kyo and Tohru
- Archive of Our Own (AO3): Honda Tohru/Sohma Kyou
- Tumblr: Kyoru, Kyo/Tohru
- Pixiv: Kyoru
Fan Pages
Resources
- Shipping Wiki at Fandom, Inc.: Kyohru