Momiji Sohma

is one of the recurring characters of the Fruits Basket series. He is half-Japanese from his father's side and half-German from his mother's side.

He is the Rabbit of the Chinese Zodiac. Momiji is depicted as a cute, cheerful, and childlike boy, who is easily mistaken as an elementary school student when he, in reality, is as old as Hatsuharu Sohma and one year younger than Tohru Honda. He later begins attending Kaibara High along with Hatsuharu as first-year students.

Despite his cheerful attitude, he hides a sad family life behind his smile. He lives alone inside the Sohma house since his mother completely rejected him when she first held him. She regretted giving birth to Momiji and begged for Hatori to erase her memories. Because of this, his sister Momo is unaware he is her older brother.

In Fruits Basket Another, Momiji is the father of Mina Sohma.

Appearance
At the start of the series, Momiji is a very short boy with a small frame who is considered to be very cute. He has short, wavy blonde hair with messy bangs which frame his face, along with a pair of round light-brown goldenish eyes; all of these traits being inherited from his mother.

Momiji is initially seen wearing outfits with feminine patterns, frills, and cute accessories. He also wore the girls' uniform at school with shorts instead of a skirt. He has been seen with painted fingernails, and studs in his ears. Momiji also wears hats, and carries around his trademark rabbit backpack almost all the time.

When he enters his second year of high school, Momiji enters his growth spurts and in the process changes drastically. As noted by many people at school, Momiji has grown into a very handsome and tall young man, to the point where they couldn't recognize him at first. He also starts wearing the boys' uniform, and while he does look more mature and masculine, his love for cute things hasn't changed much. He is also seen to have slightly longer hair and messier bangs.

Personality
Momiji is an extremely bubbly, cheerful, and fun-loving boy who is always seen with a smile. He sometimes acts like a wild child since he has no real adult supervision aside from Hatori. But he is also shown to be a nice, caring, and helpful person who easily gets along with others. He is very affectionate, loves hugging people, and has little sense of personal space, especially towards Tohru, as his excitement at meeting a female outside of the zodiac has led him to hug her in public places, carefree to the fact that people might see his transformation.

At the same time, Momiji possesses great empathy and intuition about others. He is emotionally strong and wise beyond his years, evidenced when he told the story of the foolish traveler and about his family situation to Tohru. He occasionally displays seriousness, though it is usually quickly followed with childish antics. It is implied that he is more mature and somber than he looks, and puts on a cheerful, childish facade to hide the emotional turmoil he has over his mother rejecting him and his father essentially abandoning him in favor of his sister. He is also shown to be courageous and able to stand up for the people he loves. He was the only one who was able to defy Akito's wishes and stand up to her, even though he is afraid of her, when he thought that she was in the wrong. He even let himself receive a punch to the face as a means to protect Tohru.

When Momiji enters his growth spurt, he admits that he is happy that he grew up, since although he got to enjoy or get away with some things that he could only do when he was smaller, he is also a guy and wants to be taken seriously by Tohru― who he had fallen in love with. Momiji also grows more confident and sly, such as telling Kyo that if he doesn't confess to Tohru soon, he would take her for himself. He also took a photo of Kagura hugging Kyo while accusing him for cheating on Tohru. Momiji is shown to have become more emotionally strong and level-headed and can display coldness if needed; when he finds out his curse is broken, he immediately makes it clear that he will never let Akito control him anymore and that he won't stay by her side anymore, opting to find a bright life for himself in the future instead. However, he is kind-hearted and empathizing enough to 'forgive' Akito and even urges her to visit Tohru in the hospital by telling her the story of the foolish traveler.

History
When people cursed by the Zodiac are born, they are born two months prematurely. When Momiji was born two months early, his mother was very worried, and as soon as she held him, he turned into a rabbit. Following this event, she rejected Momiji with her entire body, and her mind went absolutely and completely splintered. She was unable to smile, would snap whenever she saw him, and even referred to him as "that thing".

It became so bad that Momiji's father convinced Hatori to erase her memory of giving birth to Momiji and him being her son. Momiji overheard when Hatori double-checked with Momiji's mother if she really wanted to go through with erasing Momiji from her mind, in which she fully consented, as her biggest regret in life had been giving birth to him. Although Momiji believes that a memory shouldn't be erased no matter how painful it is, he agreed to have Hatori erase his mother's memories in order to help her recover.

From then on, Momiji began living alone in the "inside" of the Sohma estate. A few years later, Momiji's father and mother had another child, Momo Sohma. Momiji unintentionally met with his mother and younger sister a few times, but his mother just thinks he is someone else's son from the Sohma family and treats him like an acquaintance. Momo, however, is curious and suspicious of Momiji, once even remarking to her mother that she looks just like him. Momiji's father has also forbidden Momiji from interacting with both his mother and younger sister Momo, in fears of destroying what he has built. Momiji agrees in watching his family from afar, not wanting to make things more complicated.

First Year Arc
Momiji is first seen in one of the working buildings his father owns, presumably waiting for someone. He meets Tohru Honda, who has just finished her part-time job as a cleaning lady, and excitedly greets her in German. Tohru is shocked, since she does not understand Momiji nor knows him at all. Before she is able to excuse herself, Momiji kisses her on the cheek, flustering her and making her dash out in embarrassment. Unbeknownst to her, she drops an ad for the upcoming school festival, which Momiji picks up.

Momiji later attends the school festival along with Hatori Sohma. He clings to Yuki and Tohru immediately recognizes him as the boy who kissed her days prior. As he is having fun at the festival and catching everyone's attention due to his energetic personality, he hugs Tohru behind the scenes. Thanks to Yuki distracting the students, Tohru is able to hide Momiji's bunny form and flee from the scene. Momiji later leaves the festival along with Hatori.

Tohru is later invited to Hatori's home. Momiji greets Tohru outside of the main estate and leads her to the house. Momiji explains Hatori's tragic past to Tohru, and as both start feeling sad about it, Momiji asks Tohru if she is glad he met him. Tohru replies that she absolutely does, which puts a smile to Momiji's face.

After the end-of-term tests, Momiji invites Tohru, Yuki, and a reluctant Kyo to a hot springs inn owned by the Sohma family for White Day. The next day, Tohru and the Sohma boys visit the inn and spend the night there. As the four continue with their fun activities, Momiji continues to show him affection to Tohru and even asks if they should sleep together, much to Yuki and Kyo's dismay. The next morning, Momiji reveals that he is a third-year middle schooler and that he and Hatsuharu will be joining her high school as first years. Tohru is more than shocked to realize that Momiji is only a year younger than her despite his young appearance.

Second Year Arc
The second school year begins with Tohru looking forward to meeting Hatsuharu and Momiji as first years, with Kyo reluctantly accompanying her. When Momiji is seen wearing a girl's uniform, the student council president, Makoto Takei, berates Momiji for wearing the girls uniform, which saddens Momiji. Hatsuharu aggressively defends Momiji by beating up Takei. Hatsuharu also tells two fellow student council members that Momiji will eventually grow up into a handsome young man, which is why they can let Momiji do as he wants for the time being. Momiji later informs the Sohma boys that Akito Sohma has arrived at the school, distressing all of them. At the end of the day, Momiji plays badminton with Tohru, her friends, and the other Sohmas.

During Tohru's shift at her part-time job, Momiji accompanies her and helps her out. Tohru begins wondering about Momiji's heritage to which Momiji tells her that he is half-German from his mother's side and shows a picture of her. Out of coincidence, Momiji's mother arrives with Momo at the building (since it is owned by Momiji's father), though they converse almost like strangers. Later, Momiji explains that his mother's memories of him were erased since she couldn't bear having a son that transformed into a rabbit. And as such, Momo does not know Momiji is her older brother, and his father does not want him to interact with them either. Although saddened, Momiji wants to embrace all of his memories and consider those memories precious. Tohru pulls Momiji into a hug and they comfort each other.

During summer vacation, Momiji invites the majority of the Cursed Sohmas and Tohru to a vacation at the Sohma's summer house. With Tohru and the Sohmas, Momiji has a fun time at the beach, and he and Tohru scavenge for beetles along with Hiro and Kisa as well. When Akito arrives at the beach, having been invited by Shigure, Momiji and the other Zodiacs are summoned (excluding Kyo) by her. Momiji doesn't seem to be bothered by it since he is aware that Akito dislikes him, but he is worried about Tohru being all alone and tries to make up for it by spending as much time with her as possible.

One day before their departure from the vacation, Momiji and Kyo talk about how they had obeyed Akito's orders in order to protect Tohru, which she overhears. Momiji also tells Kyo that he is selfish in his own way for wanting to create memories with her and for loving her so much, which brings Tohru to tears.

Later, during the night when everyone has gone to sleep, Momiji excitedly prepares for fireworks for the following day, but he suddenly notices Akito in front of their beach house. Akito tells Momiji that she wants to see Tohru, but Momiji refuses to let her do that, since he is afraid of Akito taking her anger out on Tohru. Akito consequently beats Momiji until Tohru steps in to protect him. Momiji is horrified when Akito begins berating and injuring Tohru, so he runs to get the adults' assistance. After Akito leaves, Momiji apologizes to Tohru for not being able to protect her while breaking down in tears, prompting Tohru to pull him into a hug. The next day, Momiji and Tohru explain that their injuries came from their own clumsiness.

After summer vacation, Momiji's younger sister, Momo, grows suspicious of his resemblance to their mother ever since they first met at their father's office building. His father immediately pulls him out of violin lessons, because Momo is going to the same teacher and she is becoming curious about him. When Tohru tries to find Kureno Sohma in the Sohma estate, she catches Momo sneaking into the Sohma grounds to watch Momiji play his violin. Tohru talks to her, and Momo reveals that she has been watching him from afar for a long time. She wants Momiji to act as her "big brother" and asks Tohru to tell Momiji that, and Tohru promises she will. When Tohru tells Momiji what happened, it brings him to tears because he is very happy that Momo thinks that way about him.

Third Year Arc
Momiji later enters his growth spurt and has grown very much, looks very mature and wears the boy's school uniform. However, he still retains his old personality and habits, such as wearing his rabbit backpack and being excited over ice cream. Most of their classmates are surprised when they see him, Tohru saying it's because he "grew so fast and became so handsome". Momiji gets excited when told this and goes on to say how being small was convenient at times but that it's good he grew because he is also a man. It is revealed that he has developed romantic feelings for Tohru, as he even tells Kyo that if he, Momiji, becomes more handsome and taller that Kyo, maybe then Tohru will accept when he proposes, going on to say that neither one of them should give up.

At some point, Momiji's curse is broken. When Akito realizes that his curse is broken, she begs him to stay. However, Momiji coldly tells her to go home and that he will come back the next day. At school, Haru, Yuki, and Kyo talks to Tohru about how they recognize that there is something 'different' about Momiji even though he was acting as his usual self. Momiji watches over them from a distance and sees how clearly Tohru is in love with Kyo, and naturally, Momiji feels pain that the person he loves is in love with someone else. When Kyo later finds him, Momiji tells him that his curse was broken, but that Tohru would be happier if Kyo's curse was broken.

After school, Momiji tells Akito that he cannot live by her side any longer. Akito slaps him and scolds him, saying that if he leaves, he will have nowhere else to go and call home. Momiji, however, doesn't let Akito's words budge him and swears to find his own happiness.

To add to his point, Momiji recalls how he recently gained the courage to visit his mother. She is surprised to see him since he doesn't usually take the route through her house to school, and since he had grown up so much. Momiji asks her about Momo, and she replies that she looking forward to their upcoming family trip. She asks Momiji if his family is going on a trip as well. Although he is a bit hesitant to answer, Momiji does eventually reply that his family will be going on a trip. Although Momiji is saddened by the fact that he can't be apart of their family, he decides to move forward and have hope in his future, regardless of the pain he is feeling from the many circumstances around him. Upon seeing his mother's smile as she tells him to take care, it proves his point and Momiji is excited to start his life anew.

Once all the Zodiacs' curse breaks, Momiji is invited to the final banquet of all by Akito. Momiji can be seen taking a picture of Kagura hugging Kyo out of frustration due to the new situation. Kyo asks if Momiji and Kagura are accomplices, yet is silently worried about him since Kyo and Tohru had gotten together even while he knew of Momiji's feelings towards Tohru. Despite this, Momiji smiles at Kyo, reassuring him that it's okay. Later, when Akito reveals herself to be a woman, Momiji is very shocked. Akito tries to apologize for everything she has done, but without success. However, she explains that she would now move forward, continue living as a Sohma and the head of the family, and that she would be giving all the Zodiacs their freedom to do whatever they want.

Towards the end, Momiji, Rin, and Haru are catching up in one another lives at Kazuma's house. Momiji and Hatsuharu are shocked by how everything managed to work out regarding the curse, and how mature they are in comparison to Shigure, who did use some dirty and manipulative tactics in order to break the curse. They also talk about Kyo and Tohru's eventual departure, and although Momiji is a bit jealous of Kyo, he explains that he has gotten a new dream thanks to him. Momiji now hopes to find his own love one day so he can show her off and show how happy they are. This is why he wishes for Tohru's happiness, too. The three of them lastly reminisce about the memories they share with Tohru.

The Three Musketeers Arc 2
While Shigure, Ayame, and Hatori are discussing recent events at the same place Kureno and Arisa had their first meal together, Momiji and Haru suddenly arrive, and Momiji immediately tells Shigure, who finds it weird that he is going to be viewed in an antagonistic light forever even when he has mellowed out, that he is only reaping what he sowed. Shigure is "hurt" by the criticism and asks them if they want to partake in their party. Momiji declines, as he and Haru are with Rin and are on their way to get lunch themselves, though Momiji does end up eating some soba from Shigure.

Fruits Basket Another
At some point, Momiji married a woman and had one daughter with her, named Mina Sohma. It is revealed by his daughter that Momiji has inherited his father's business and is now a very busy businessman who is always traveling. It is also revealed that his sister Momo now knows that Momiji is her older brother since she is his assistant, so one can assume that he has also reconciled with his mother or at least tolerate one another for Momo's sake.

The Rabbit of the Zodiac
Momiji is cursed by the spirit of the Rabbit of the Zodiac. Whenever he is hugged by the opposite sex, or if his body goes through a great deal of stress, Momiji transforms into his Chinese Zodiac form. Like all the Cursed Sohmas, their respective animals are drawn to them; and in Momiji's case, Rabbits. The Rabbit is the fourth of all Zodiac animals.

In Chinese culture, Rabbits are earnest with everything they do; they just ask that others treat them the same way, which applies to Momiji rather well.

When Momiji's curse broke, he was subconsciously aware of it, and immediately broke down in tears. Momiji realized that after his Curse broke, he was no longer bound to Akito and no longer felt the need to be by her side. Although his Curse broke, Momiji felt even lonelier, but swears to find his own happiness. Momiji's curse broke earlier than everyone else, and the overall second to break (after Kureno).

Trivia

 * According to the Fruits Basket Character Book:
 * Natsuki Takaya lets Momiji wear any clothes he wants, as long as they're "Loli-Loli".
 * Momiji has a lot of clothes, probably more than he could ever wear (Takaya also states that he doesn't even know what it all looks like anymore.
 * He loves pumpkin-shaped pants.
 * He occasionally has clothing made at Ayame's shops.
 * The name Momiji is derived from the ninth month, Momijitsuki or "Autumn leaves month", which is actually the month of the Rooster of the traditional Japanese calendar. This is due to a mix-up, as Momiji was originally intended to be named Kureno after Kurenoharu or "late spring", the month of the Rabbit. Takaya says that despite the mix-up she feels good about this, since the name Momiji fits him better.
 * In Japanese, his name, "Momiji", means "maple tree".
 * Momiji's appearance differs between the manga and the anime adaptions:
 * The manga and 2019 anime depict Momiji with purple eyes. The 2001 anime depicts him with green eyes.
 * Momiji's rabbit form in the 2001 anime, has red eyes, but is not completely white, because his fur color is influenced by his German descent. This means his rabbit form may be partially albino.
 * In the 2001 anime, he doesn't have a German accent.
 * In the 2001 anime, in Momiji's song he says "the birds and the bees sing Momiji", perhaps this line is referring to the English idiom, the birds and the bees.
 * The vision the girls in student council have of a more mature Momiji turns to out to be similar, if not identical, to the real grown-up Momiji.

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