The year of the Monkey: Fruits Basket ch.87

January 21, 2004 | 11 Comments

For those of you who are interested, this particular chapter of Fruits Basket manga can be found inside Hana to Yume issue 4/2004. Included with this chapter is a 2-pages color spread of Hiro (the Sheep) and Ritsu (the Monkey) trying out their New Year celebration clothing. I assume this is because we're closing in to the Lunar New Year, where the year of the Sheep will be replaced by the year of the Monkey in the Lunar calendar. So Happy New Year to those of you who celebrate it.

The chapter starts with the play rehearsal for Tohru's school play, which is Cinderella. However, due to the inappropriate casting choices, this is one Cinderella play rehearsal from hell. To begin with, Tohru is completely not fit to play the role of the evil step sister because she ends up bursting into tears everytime she gets to say some nasty lines to Cinderella (who's played by Hanajima). On top of things, Cinderella doesn't seem to be afraid of her step sister and instead ended up comforting the step sister who's been crying endlessly. Meanwhile the Prince himself, Kyou, refused to show up in the rehearsal, throwing everything into chaos. It doesn't take long before the play committee starts to consider of changing the story of 'Cinderella' so that it'll fit the personalities of those involved in the play.

We also get to see a flashback, where Ayame and his assistant, Mine, showed up at the school, ready to take measurements and design the dresses for the play. At one point Ayame thought that Yuki gets to play the Prince role and tell his brother with a lot of affection that Yuki will make a fine Prince. The truth is, Yuki is supposed to play the fairy godmother. So of course, this conversation upsets Kyou, who's supposed to play the Prince role and who already thinks that he doesn't fit the role to begin with. Meanwhile, Mine, who apparently is still obsessed with dressing girls in pretty dresses, have been having fun coming up with ideas and agreeing with Hanajima who wants her Cinderella to dress up in black. Well, I did warn you that this is the play rehearsal from hell.

Anyway, back to the present, Tohru is a bit worried of the no-show Kyou and because of this, Yuki decides to search for the baka neko and finds the guy in question sulking in the school ground. Of course being rivals and not exactly friends, Yuki ends up provoking Kyou by telling him that his sulking makes everyone, especially Tohru, miserable. Kyou, who's already pissed off to begin with finally explodes, telling Yuki that he has the audacity of saying that because he can afford it. Unlike Kyou, Yuki has parents, people who loves him and looks up to him for advice and guidance. Meanwhile Kyou is just a nobody that never gets to have any wish that he may have. The conversation becomes worse and ends up with Kyou punching one of the school windows and leaving Yuki alone.

After this incident, Yuki becomes a bit contemplative, looking at the trail of blood that came out of Kyou's hand which was injured while he was punching the window. However, his reflective mood was interrupted when another student and Machi come up to him. Yuki and the other student are then involved in a conversation where the other student ends up praising Yuki and tells him how he should have been the Prince in the play. Machi, who's been quiet the whole time all of a sudden interrupts and say that Yuki is not a Prince whatsoever. This pissess off the other student. Machi who feels that she's not welcome decides to walk away. Yuki, however, seems to be impressed by what Machi has said and looks at her in certain kind of awe.