I don't own Fruits Basket or Stand and Deliver.
Note-this has a lot of canon divergence when it comes to ages etc, and some ooc-ness between in the characters.
According to Wikipedia, a High School Examination Certifcated seems to be the Japanese equivalent to A high school diploma/ American GED
As far as I know Tohru's grandfather doesn't have a first name so I name Taro because I googled the Japanese equivalent of John and Taro came up and I figured it was as good as any. However if his actual name is mention somewhere, or if I used the name wrong please let me know.
Thank you and enjoy the read.
Kyoko Honda's cheeks burned as she scowled at the pamphlet advertising an adult education course the father-in-law had just given her.
"Seriously, Taro, you called me here on my lunch break for this?"
"Maybe," Taro Honda answered as he slowly sipped his coffee. His face held a smug expression, knowing very well that his daughter-in-law couldn't argue about the current subject matter, at least not publicly. Despite this, deep down, he knew that she knew this 10-plus-year-old crusade of his had no malice. "I feel like now that Tohru's in high school, maybe you could look into furthering your formal education, too."
"I don't need to further my formal education, Taro." Kyoko scoffed, "In case you haven't noticed, I'm doing pretty well for myself and Tohru right now." While working in a call center for an office high-rise was hardly a dream career, it was still an upgrade from the previous types of jobs she had in the past. Instead of juggling two or three dead-end jobs at once to keep her and Tohru afloat, she only had to work this one stable job that could lead to many more.
A bored, disbelieving expression crossed Taro's face, but he knew better than to argue with his daughter-in-law. No, if he is going to accomplish what he felt to be his final mission in life, then he would have to try from her perspective.
"That may be true, Kyoko, but just last week, you were upset about being passed up for a promotion at work; this could help," Taro stated as he tapped the pamphlet.
Kyoko grimaced at the memory. One of the buildings' offices was looking for a new secretary and turned to the call center to see if anyone working there would be interested. The job was an upgrade from the building's call center, offering a pay increase and a promotion in status.
Both Kyoko and her coworker, Yamada-san, were recommended for the position. From every perspective, Kyoko should've gotten the promotion. Not only was she better at making/taking calls than Yamada-san was, but their work superiors made it clear that they liked Kyoko more because they found her easier to work with and willing to learn. In Contrast to the inflexible Yamada-san, who they found to, at 40, was a little too set in her ways.
Unfortunately, Yamada-san was promoted instead of Kyoko. As unfair as Kyoko found it, deep down, she knew why. The fact of the matter was that Yamada-san had not only the work experience that the promotion called for, but she also had an associate's degree in administrative management. Compared to Kyoko, who didn't even have a middle school graduation certificate, it was hard to argue with the logic behind that decision.
It wasn't a complete loss, though. Kyoko's manager made it clear he vouched for her. He also pulled some strings to get Tohru a job on the building's janitorial crew after he heard Kyoko talking about how her daughter was looking for work.
"That job was way above my skill level, and I heard everyone in that office is a bunch of bores. I would probably get demoted before I'd even started." Kyoko then leaned forward, cupping her mouth in a mock whisper. "Besides, I just heard that his boss has a son outside his marriage; I don't want to work for someone like that."
Now Taro was getting frustrated. "Kyoko, be serious; getting your high school diploma could open doors for you and get you further in life. This course could even improve circumstances for both you and Tohru."
A sour expression crossed Kyoko's face, and she turned away in annoyance. Taro suddenly regretted how he phrased his last statement.
Maybe he was being pushy about the issue, but he saw some of himself in Kyoko. He wasn't supposed to go to graduate high school, either.
As a teen, Taro was the oldest son in an impoverished family, so his father constantly pushed him to leave school and work full-time as a traveling laborer with him. Whenever Taro reminded his dad he didn't have the physical or mental strength for those jobs, nor did he want that kind of life, an argument would ensue and would usually end with Taro's father beating him.
The poverty and physical abuse he faced at home did not deter Taro from getting educated. If anything, it made him even more determined, but it wasn't like he could magically ignore his family's money problems.
So he worked during the day to support his parents and siblings and attended his high school's subpar night program. A fact that frustrated Taro throughout his high school years. Along with the street thugs, school bullies, and teachers who would CONSTANTLY mess with him at work and school.
Despite all the setbacks against him, it made him even more determined to stay in school.
Eventually, it paid off. Taro not only managed to be the first male in his family to graduate high school, with top marks no less, but he managed to get into Tokyo University on a full scholarship.
Flash forward decades later, and he had made a name for himself as a respectable teacher in a good district, but he needed a change. He'd recently heard about teachers going out of their way to work in rough school districts, inspiring Taro. Growing up, he wished he had somebody like that to guide him when he wanted to give up and drop out, which was often.
So, wanting to put his money where his mouth was, he applied for a job at an alternative middle school for kids in a poor area. He felt he could connect with those students because he had been in their position before.
He had some success with his new position. He was hardly Japan's answer to Jaime Escalante-sensei, but he empathized and worked well with the students who were willing to learn and even gave solid advice to those who were just there to slack off. So Taro felt like he was doing well with his new job.
That was until he met Kyoko Sawashiro.
Taro had taught at the alternative school for almost two years when Kyoko enrolled in his ninth-grade class via court order. Taro did his best to get through to her, just like he tried to get through to all his students, but Kyoko refused to cooperate.
After giving her a well-deserved poor grade, she and a few of her gang members each took turns denting his car. Then they spray-painted it with vulgar, misspelled language.
Naturally, this infuriated the usually calm Taro. He tried to have her expelled, but not only did he not have the power, but the school had a no-expulsion policy. So he brought his wayward son in to work with her and wiped his hands clean of the issue.
He thought his soon-to-be high school graduate son would be a good influence on Kyoko and that Kyoko would show Katsuya what could happen if he didn't take his education and life more seriously. Instead, the young teens fell in love with each other and gave him a granddaughter not long after.
He wished the teen couple had waited a little longer. He had hoped that Kyoko would go to high school and Katsuya go to college first, but he wouldn't trade his granddaughter for anything.
"Taro?" Kyoko asked, gently reaching out to touch his hand. Her father-in-law had been quiet for the past few minutes, and Kyoko wondered if her reaction to his last comment was harsh.
Kyoko knew he wanted what was best for her and her daughter, and his persistent, if a bit annoying, encouragement for her to get her high school diploma was part of that.
First, he tried to convince her to get her High School Examination certificate when she was pregnant with Tohru, but she didn't feel it wasn't the right time. Then, when Tohru started preschool when she was three, and he gave her the opportunity again, she seriously considered the opportunity. But before she could look into the course, Katsuya passed away. Taro tried again when Tohru started middle school, but Kyoko was too busy raising Tohru and couldn't go back to school then either.
Despite her father-in-law's persistent poor timing, she appreciated the encouragement. Apart from Katsuya, no one had ever been so encouraging to her, not even her parents. And maybe now was the time to continue with her education.
"Sorry, Kyoko, I was lost in thought." Taro refocused and resumed their conversation. "Getting your High School Examination Certificate will help you in the long run, Kyoko. You could even show up those who wrote you off." The older man added mischievously.
Kyoko snorted in agreement, but she did have a few legitimate concerns.
"I'm already so busy that I barely have time to think, much less take any courses. With Tohru also working, I barely have time to spend with my daughter, and I don't want to take any more time away from her."
"Yet, Tohru can work almost every night while simultaneously attending school full time."
A heavy silence fell between the two. If else anyone had said that Kyoko wouldn't have thrown something at them, but she knew he was right.
"I haven't been in school for over a decade and a half; there's so much I need to catch up on."
"They'll help you; this program was made specifically for people like you, some of whom left school earlier than you did."
Kyoko snorted, not believing that was possible.
"What about cost? If it is at Metro Kaibara Community College, probably expensive."
"I'll pay. I may not be able to pay for Tohrus high school tuition,
but I can pay for a six-month High School Examination Certificate program at MKCC."
"You're not going to let me say no, are you?" Kyoko asked with a light chuckle.
"Nope." The older answered, feeling not only proud but victorious too.
"Okay." Kyoko relented, "On one condition, we keep this a secret from Tohru. The last thing my daughter needs is another thing to worry about."
Taro nodded in agreement. As long as he could see Kyoko open the envelope that held her high school diploma before he passed away, he would agree to the conditions Kyoko had.
Except he would never see Kyoko open that envelope. Within the next week, one of them got into a bad accident. However, instead of Taro being the one to enter his grave, Kyoko would enter hers.
This is the first time writing a fruits basket fic and the first time writing anything this thorough in almost seven years so I apologies if it is a little rough. I am out of practice after all.
Besides wanting to get back into writing, I wrote this because I figured it strange that a teacher like tohrus Grandfather would want Kyoko to get her High school diploma. This idea was formed and this is the result.
Not Sawashiro is the last name of Kyoko's Japanese voice actress.
Fun Fact I took a lot of inspiration from the early 1970s music anime Sasurai no Taiyou also known as Wandering Sun/Nozomi in the Sun. The main character is promoted from night school to day school in the first episode. Tbh it doesn't have much barring on the plot, Its more about the Main character becoming a musician. Surprising online, Its semi-easy to find and I'd recommended it to anyone, if they can look past a semi-glaring issue. that I won't get into due to spoilers.
I made the Stand and Deliver/Jaime Escalante (RIP) reference because I felt like it fit the situation, and I think his name is catchy tbh
I honestly think the middle is a little long winded and rough, but I didn't know what to cut. Yes I know the boxing thing is random but I wanted to injust a bit of humor into this fic. YAY,MEH, BLEH, HIP-HIP HORRAY. Please let me know what you think So what do you think, including any errors I made.