#constantly advocating for people's inner potential even if they themselves don't realize it/believe in it

[guujikaroko]

I went to read Ratio's messages again and:

He encourages Stelle to enroll on Veritas Prime, a.k.a his very own alma mater, for REALSIES. Not only that, but:

He's willing to personally recommend her. P e r s o n a l l y.

And that's kinda surprising, in a good way. Like, I know Ratio isn't a condescending prick that thinks himself above others (or, well... There's a lot more to him than the condescension, is what I mean to say), but he looked at Stelle and saw potential in her. Veritas Ratio, the man who'd rather wear a fucking plaster head in front of his students because he's allergic to dumbassery, looked at Stelle, our resident unhinged raccoon, and saw enough potential to personally encourage and oversee her pursuit of knowledge.

Look at this! He's genuinely interested in her worldview and her opinions! He doesn't consider a waste of time to discuss topics with her! He spent the entirety of this message batch simulating a debate with her and sharing knowledge on the subject!

Again, it's not like I thought Ratio was incapable of any of this, but I never imagined that he'd be like that with the Trailblazer either. It's surprising, but in a very pleasant way? Like, "wow, I wasn't expecting this dynamic to be so genuine but it is and I like it". Honestly, I'll never not be impressed by Ratio and his particular ways of showcasing kindness to others/seeking companionship. He's such a compelling character.

Oh, and this is my favorite message batch of his. He feels tired by the monotony of his projects and he decides to relax by... Humoring Stelle? He goes and says "Hey, think of something you want and I'll make up a project" and Stelle, huge dork that she is, goes "Make me a cool weapon!" and "Make the Express move forever!" and he just... Does it? Sends a project of transforming the Express into a mecha?? Says he wants to disassemble the Express to figure it out???

It feels like I'm rambling for nothing but this is truly disarming to me. It's easy to dismiss Stelle as a goofball (and she very much IS a goofball) but Ratio actually takes her seriously and seeks to nurture her progress. Beyond that, he honestly likes to entertain her ideas and thinks that hearing her out is a positive thing.

If I had to describe their relationship, I'd say it's all very cute, in a pure and wholesome way, and I cannot believe I'm using these words to describe Veritas freaking Ratio out of all characters. This gotta be a new kind of brainworm.

[cinderella-ish]

Fruits Basket Personality Types Part 13: Hiro Sohma

I really love Hiro's growth over the course of Fruits Basket. He's the youngest of the main and secondary characters, so it makes sense that he's the most immature at first. I love how important it is to him to be a good big brother. I love how he starts off as a contrarian brat and ends up as a brave and conscientious friend (and boyfriend!). I love that he works so hard to grow and to be the kind of person he wants to be.

I also love that he ends up back at Kisa's side, even though his love for her was the reason Akito gave for attacking Kisa. He'll have a big part to play in the climax of Bloom Within Us for that reason!

Here's how I see his personality!

Hiro Sohma's Enneagram

Wound: His parents are shown to be very loving, and we don't know much about his pre-canon life, so his wound might be that he told Akito about his feelings for Kisa which caused Kisa to get hurt, though wounds typically happen at a younger age.

Wounding message: (If the wound above is correct) You'll only cause the people you love to get hurt. You shouldn't express your desires. Mistakes can have huge consequences.

Core desire: To be the best version of himself, to be with Kisa without causing her any more harm.

Core fear: Not doing the right thing, causing others to be harmed

Defense mechanism: Assert superiority over others

Strengths: Hiro grows to be quite principled and brave. He's clever, understands what makes people tick (for better or worse), intensely loyal to his people, constantly trying to improve himself, and very family-oriented.

Challenges: Hiro is bratty at first. He's hurtful, rigid, critical, pessimistic, emotionally dishonest, insensitive and he knows just where to poke so it'll hurt the most.

When healthy: Hiro is more relationship-oriented, emotionally honest, principled, brave, relaxed, and friendly.

When unhealthy: Hiro is vindictive, mean, rigid, critical of himself and others, resentful, and argumentative.

Looking at all of this, here's what connects when I go back to the Enneagram post:

Wound: closest matches are 1, 6, and 8

Wounding message: 1, 3, 8, or 9

Core desire: 1

Core fear: 1 or 3

Defense mechanism: 1

Strengths: 1 or 8

Challenges: 1, 3, or 8

When healthy: 3, 4, or 8

When unhealthy: 1, 2, or 7

Um. So as a One myself, I did not expect Hiro to be a One. At all. But... it actually does fit him quite well. I'd argue that his greatest strength is his drive for self-improvement and how principled he can be, both classic One qualities. And his greatest weakness is probably the resentment and criticism (both of himself and others) that's typical of Ones. I actually can't believe I didn't think of One for him before beginning this post! 😅

Ones live in the Gut center, and tend to repress anger. Here's the full description of how Ones relate to the three core emotions, from Personality Path:

Anger is typically repressed by Type 1s. Type 1s try hard not to express anger as they associate it as a “bad” emotion. Instead, they report a lot of irritation. Interestingly, when their anger is eventually expressed, it can be intense, with a laser focus. Shame or Sadness can get triggered when they realize they made a mistake or if they feel they have behaved inappropriately.   Fear enters the picture when they feel a loss of control or anxiety over potential errors, mistakes, and missteps in the future. A harsh inner voice dictating rigid internal standards is often at the bottom of each of the three core emotions for Type 1s.

Wing

Hiro is very clearly not the peace-making type (1w9, "The Idealist") so I suspect he's a 1w2, sometimes called "The Advocate" (like me!).

Truity describes 1w2s like this:

[1w2s] are more focused on the livelihoods of other people, and champion causes focused on meeting people’s needs. They may appear overly controlling or critical of other people in an effort to help them become the “best version” of themselves. Like the Type Two, this type wants to help and feel appreciated. 1w2s are drawn to careers in medicine, law, religion and social justice.

I know I'm not the only person who sees Hiro as a future lawyer!

Subtype

I don't think Hiro has a strong expression of his subtype yet, but most of his energy seems to be aimed at his own self-improvement. For that reason, I think he's a SP 1w2 (also like me!).

Enneagram Explained describes SP Ones like this:

SP 1s are the more stereotypical perfectionists of the 1s and are more likely to deal with worry and anxiety (over being correct/right) than other type 1s. However, they are also often the more warm and friendly of the 1 subtypes.

Tritype

I actually think Hiro's Tritype is more obvious than his Enneagram. He strikes me as a very clear example of a 3-6-1 ("The Taskmaster")

This tritype is described on Katherine Fauvre's website:

If you are a 136, you are diligent, ambitious, and inquisitive. You want to be ethical, efficient, and dutiful. Highly industrious and responsible, you are focused on achievement. You feel obligated to be orderly and create a successful image as dictated by society. You emulate people you admire and cultivate values that others respect. Most importantly, you focus on your duty and commonly accepted ways of doing things to feel confident and at ease.

Hiro Sohma's MBTI

I liked focusing on Type Dynamics first for Rin, so I'll continue that for Hiro.

Type Dynamics:

Thinking: I see Hiro's Dominant function as Extroverted Thinking. He has concern for external laws and rules, and seeks consistency in the outside world.

Sensing: I think Hiro's Auxiliary function is Introverted Sensing. He prefers routine, and compares present facts and information to past sensory details.

iNtuiting: This would make Hiro's Tertiary function Extroverted Intuiting. He does tend to brainstorm aloud, making connections and asking questions that others wouldn't ask (like the implications of Kyo's feelings for Tohru given his impending confinement).

Feeling: Hiro guards his feelings and works from an internal system of values.

This makes him Te Si Ne Fi

I also want to share what The Myers & Briggs Foundation says about Fi as an inferior function in times of stress:

hypersensitive to emotions, feel emotional but try to control it, afraid of feeling strong emotions and try to hide it

Hiro hides his strong emotions by needling at others and trying to make them feel inferior.

Te Si Ne Fi is the type dynamic of ESTJ, which is often called "The Supervisor."

Here's how the Myers & Briggs Foundation describes ESTJ:

ESTJ: Practical, realistic, matter-of-fact. Decisive, quickly move to implement decisions. Organize projects and people to get things done, focus on getting results in the most efficient way possible. Take care of routine details. Have a clear set of logical standards, systematically follow them and want others to also. Forceful in implementing their plans.

So, to summarize:

Enneagram: SP 1w2 (The Reformer/The Advocate)

Tritype: 3-6-1 (The Taskmaster)

MBTI: ESTJ (The Supervisor)

It's funny; I had Hiro take on a bit of a Taskmaster/Supervisor role in some of the early chapters of Bloom Within Us, though we didn't see that side of him much in canon. I'm kind of excited that I recognized his leadership and organizational qualities, and I've landed on those qualities once again in this series!

What do you think? Did I get it right or wrong? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Next up: Ritsu!

Fruits Basket Personality Types: Enneagram | MBTI | Tohru | Akito | Kyo | Yuki | Haru | Kisa | Momiji | Hatori | Ayame | Rin | Ritsu | Kureno | Shigure | Kagura | Kazuma | Saki | Arisa | Machi | Kakeru | The Hondas | Kaibara Students