Kyo Sohma of Fruits Basket

Bright orange hair, an athletic appearance, and an easily provoked temper; this is what makes up Kyo Sohma, one of the most beloved characters of the manga Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya. But there is more to him than meets the eye. In this popular manga, 13 characters are possessed by the Chinese zodiac, including the Cat spirit who was tricked out of the zodiac. Kyo Sohma is the one who contains the Cat spirit.
Most of the zodiac family has two forms; their human form, and an unusually cute version of the animal spirit they contain. When they are hugged by a member of the opposite gender, they transform into this animal form. For example, a female hugging Shigure Sohma would result in his transformation into a dog. Kyo Sohma also contains an animal form, and is transformed into an orange cat when he is hugged by a girl. However, he is the only Sohma with a third form. This third form is the vengeful Cat spirit, a grotesque monster smelling of death. His black and white bracelet is what stops him from transforming into the vengeful spirit.
His mother committed suicide when he was a child, and he was blamed because he was the Cat. She couldn't handle the fact that she had given birth to this spirit, and she could not handle the vengeful spirit form, which she and many others feared. Mothers of the zodiac spirits in general either become overly protective of their child, or they reject their child. Kyo's mother obviously took the second action. Though she always told him that she loved him and wasn't scared, he knew that it was a lie. She would constantly check to make sure his bracelet was on, and anyone would be scared of the Cat spirit. It was not until later in the story, when Tohru Honda saw him in his Cat form, that someone finally accepted him. At this point Tohru admitted she was scared but that she still wanted to be with him, which was the opposite reaction to his mother, and this is what calmed him down enough for him to return to a normal cat form.
We are now up to book 16, and we've learned much about Kyo; a hinted friendship with Tohru's deceased mother, the close relationship he has with his foster father, a jealousy of Yuki Sohma, and a crush on Tohru. But above all we've learned of his ability to persevere through life despite anything that is thrown at him. Go Kyo-kun!

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