| Sawa Mitoma | |
|---|---|
| |
| Kanji | 三苫 彩葉 |
| Rōmaji | Mitoma Sawa |
| Also known as | Sawacchi (by Sora) |
| Description | |
| Gender | Female |
| Age | 16 |
| Hair Color | Dark Brown |
| Eye Color | Maroon |
| Professional Status | |
| Occupation | Student |
| Affiliation | Kaibara Municipal High School |
| Relatives | |
| Parents | Unnamed Father Unnamed Mother |
| Debut | |
| Manga | Another Chapter 1 |
| “ | There are so many things I can never get back. So much pain. So many tears. So, so much. I’ve had things stolen from me. I’ve been hurt. It feels so unbelievably unfair. I can never, ever forgive her. But… but even so… I’m tired of always looking down and missing what’s important. | ” |
—Sawa Mitoma | ||
Sawa Mitoma (三苫 彩葉, Mitoma Sawa) is the main protagonist of the Fruits Basket Another series.
Sawa is a first-year student at Kaibara Municipal High School. She is an extremely apologetic, awkward, and skittish girl who struggles with a multitude of issues, from an abusive mother and lonely household, to serious self-esteem and anxiety problems. She also prefers minimal human contact, as people that were once her friends started to push her away. With no emotional support or help from her mother, she began her first year convinced that she would be a burden to everyone.
When she meets Hajime and Mutsuki Sohma, who invite her to join the student council, Sawa starts to grapple with her demons, make friends, and break out of her shell with the help of her new-found support in the Sohma family. Eventually, after secrets are revealed and confrontations are resolved, Sawa develops a budding romance with Shiki Sohma.
Appearance[]
Sawa is a fair-skinned teenage girl of an average build and a rather short stature with maroon-colored eyes. She has straight, shoulder-length brown hair which she wears in different styles throughout the manga: she either leaves it untied, in two loose pigtails laid on her shoulders, or in a low ponytail. However, she eventually begins leaving her hair loose more often, which is implied due to Sawa moving away from being bound to her mother's control. Her bangs mainly cover her forehead, and she has a small cowlick sticking up from the top of her head.
Sawa's school uniform is a classic naval-styled Japanese school uniform. The uniform has a blue mini-skirt with pleats and ruffles at the hem, and a white and blue top with a jacket. She wears blue socks that go up to mid-shin, and brown slip-on shoes. This is the outfit she is most commonly seen in, although she is known for wearing blouses and shorts.
Personality[]
Sawa is a very fragile girl who has severe self-esteem issues; constantly overthinking her every move and wishing to be avoided as much as possible. She is very anxious and sensitive to the opinions of the people around her and tries not to stand out, having internalized the idea that she is worthless and a problem to the people around her. She absolutely hates asking for help or favors, is often very apologetic about what she says, and has a tendency to stutter whenever she speaks. This stems from her past, as her friends suddenly cast her aside when they apparently grew tired of her, and wanted her to figure out what was wrong with herself, and does not wants to deal with her mother, who badmouths them. As a result, she often jumps to conclusions and expects the worst possible outcome in every situation. This has also lead her to blame herself for the things she is not even responsible for, such as her mother’s abuse. It is for these reasons, that Sawa mainly spends her days wallowing in self-hatred.[1]
However, as she starts becomes friends with the Sohma family and two girls in her class and feels the embrace of family and friendship for the first time, it helps her to be less self-deprecating and build her self-esteem. Sawa starts to apologize less and thank more— allowing herself to smile and enjoy life which she felt unworthy of doing before.[2] Sawa’s interactions improve also, having clear lines of dialogue between stutters and opening up more about her life to the Sohmas. She also learns to live life the way she wants to and refuses to forgive her mother.[3] Although she wishes to become a girl who can always smile, Sawa decides to take it easy by embracing her past and her present self while going forward.[4]
Despite her painfully awkward personality and tendency to flail around a lot, Sawa is an incredibly kind, polite, and caring girl who can’t watch by when someone is struggling.[5] Shiki Sohma once mentioned that Sawa is very similar to what is implied to be Tohru Honda.[6] She is also humble, selfless, and rarely asks for more than she has, but thanks to the influence of those around her, Sawa learns to make self-serving requests once in a while.[7] As time goes on, Sawa becomes a much social, honest, and open person, and although she has a tendency to hide her worries about a smile, she has no problem asking for help when she needs it. After realizing that she had received so much support from the Sohmas, particularly Shiki, Sawa yearns to cherish those who cherish her, as well as change herself into a person who can give back as much as she receives.[8]
History[]
Sawa’s parents got divorced when she was very young, leaving her mother to raise her alone. However, her mother paid little attention to her and sometimes neglected her, instead focusing on romance and work. One day, her mother made the suggestion that the two of them could go shopping and eat out together. Sawa was extremely happy to hear that from her mother who almost never spent time with her. However, as they were on their way, her mother got a call from her one of her many lovers and decided to meet up with him. She told Sawa that she had some “important business”, and asked her to wait for her until she returned.
An unconscious Sawa found by Shiki.
Even though Sawa was told her mother would return in about two hours, she was left alone near some stairs for about six hours. Sawa, who had been crying the whole time, felt hopeless and knowing her mother wouldn’t return, slipped down the stairs and suffered a broken arm and leg. As she laid unconscious in the snow, a young Shiki Sohma found her. Before asking his father to call the ambulance, Shiki gently told her that she would be alright.
This incident, however, prompted Sawa’s mother to use it as a chance to sue the Sohma’s for money, and claimed Shiki had pushed Sawa. However, there were no witnesses to confirm this accusation; Sawa couldn’t remember herself as she had hit her head incredibly hard and Shiki stayed silent throughout the court. However, the lawsuit and everything was eventually resolved neatly and tidily. Although Sawa didn’t remember the boy who “saved” her, Shiki has always been thinking about her since that day.[9]
When Sawa attended grade school, she had many friends who enjoyed playing with her. However, one day, all of her friends suddenly outcast Sawa, claiming that being around with her was annoying and a pain. Sawa was traumatized by this incident and developed major trust, self-esteem, and anxiety issues. However, unbeknownst to Sawa, it was her mother who had been driving off her friends by harshly insulting and criticizing them and their parents.[10] From then on, Sawa tried to avoid human contact as much as possible, and her mother's abuse and neglect only amplified her issues, so much that she couldn't function 'normally' in social settings.[1]
Story Overview[]
Before Summer Vacation[]
She meets Mutsuki Sohma after running late for a class and then quickly finds herself a member of the student council and slowly becomes more confident and determined.[1] Mutsuki Sohma used his previlage as Yuki's child so Makoto would go easier on her. When she entered the council, she accidently stepped on Hajime Sohma, who was sleeping by the entrance. Later, he overhears Sawa's conservation with Sawa. She admitted that she wishes her mother wasn't there, and he comforted her, telling that he dislikes his grandfather.
During Summer Vacation[]
She was invited to a beachhouse with the Sohmas. Such activity would not be allowed by her mother, so she used a forged school permission slip by Mutsuki. She befriends the Sohmas, and also seems to start a bit of a romance with Shiki, when they went to the aquariam and talked about her past, when her mother abandoned her on the stairs for many hours.
After Summer Vacation[]
Fall Picnic Arc[]
Appellation[]
| Image | Name | What they call Sawa | What Sawa calls them |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Sawa's Mother | Sawa-chan | Mom (お母さん, Okā-san) |
| Image | Name | What they call Sawa | What Sawa calls them |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Amane | Sawa-chan | Amane-chan |
 |
Mito | Mitoma-san | Mito-chan |
 |
Michi Manabe | Mitoma-chan | Manabe-senpai |
 |
Chiaki Hasada | Mitoma-san | Chiaki-senpai |
 |
Mio Hasegawa | Sawa-chan | Mio-senpai |
 |
Rio Mosca | Sawa-san | Rio-kun |
 |
Ruriko Kageyama | Mitoma-san | Kageyama-senpai |
| Image | Name | What they call Sawa | What Sawa calls them |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Shiki Sohma | Mitoma-san Sawa-san (from Another Chapter 13) |
Shiki-kun |
 |
Mutsuki Sohma | Mitoma-san | Mutsuki-senpai |
 |
Hajime Sohma | Mitoma | Hajime-senpai |
 |
Riku Sohma | Mitoma | Sohma-kun (once) Riku-kun |
 |
Sora Sohma | Sawacchi | Sora-chan |
 |
Chizuru Sohma | Mitoma-san | Chizuru-kun |
 |
Kinu Sohma | Sawa-san | Kinu-san |
 |
Mina Sohma | Sawa | Mii-chan |
 |
Hibika Sohma | Sawa-Sawa | Hibika-san |
| Image | Name | What they call Sawa | What Sawa calls them |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Megumi Hanajima | Mitoma-san | Hanajima-sensei |
Etymology[]
- The name Sawa means 沢 "mountain stream" or "marsh, swamp; wetlands” and Mitoma 三 meaning three./ 笘 meaning whip, cane, wooden writing slate.
Trivia[]
- She as a habit of looking at her feet when she is nervous.
- She once hurt her elbow after a certain incident, and it now grows numb from time to time.
- Sawa tends to be late to school, thanks to her landlord stopping her to ask about Sawa's mother paying the rent.
- As she will very likely ended up marrying Shiki and becoming part of the Sohma family, Sawa has a happier future ahead of her .
- As the sequel heroine, Sawa is the opposite of Tohru in many ways.
- She is mistreated by her single mother
- Any friends she had were driven away by her mother
- She avoids being around others to avoid troubling them; feeling like shes a burden.
- The one who loves her is from the head of the Sohma family's bloodline, not someone from the regular part of the family.
- She is always frowning and depressed, unable to feel joy or hope.
References[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Fruits Basket Another: Vol 1, Chapter 1
- ↑ Fruits Basket Another: Vol 1, Chapter 4
- ↑ Fruits Basket Another: Vol 3, Chapter 11
- ↑ Fruits Basket Another: Vol 3, Chapter 12
- ↑ Fruits Basket Another: Vol 2, Chapter 5
- ↑ Fruits Basket Another: Vol 2, Chapter 6
- ↑ Fruits Basket Another: Vol 2, Chapter 8
- ↑ Fruits Basket Another: Chapter 13
- ↑ Fruits Basket Another: Vol 3, Chapter 11
- ↑ Fruits Basket Another: Vol 3, Chapter 10