Chapter 10: Fujoshi… Fudanshi…

"Goodbye, Rodya!"

Viktor fought back tears and smiled at his brother as he waved his arm. Inside the carriage for their journey home were Mikhail, Anna, and Viktor, while Rodion stood outside, bidding them farewell. Katerina, Dmitry, and Leonid were with him, all waving goodbye as well.

"Take care both of you, tell your parents our regards as well. Come visit us more often; you are welcome to come here anytime."

The carriage began to move, its elongated shadow stretching ahead as the setting sun sank in the west. Rodion missed his siblings already, but he distracted himself and decided to enter the house first and left the others.

Mikhail wasn't able to tell me anything. There's no doubt he sensed it and knew something's wrong with his friend, I'll make sure to make him talk next time. Tsk.

Arriving at his study room, he instantly settled on the sofa and picked up the papers on the table to see if they were valuable. However, he didn't find anything that consisted of letters; the papers were all attempts to draw and unfinished drawings. Nonetheless, he wasn't disappointed. He examined the drawings and, as he had expected, they were of the same model as the painting that hung on his wall. But the drawings didn't differ from the one on his wall; the man was still on his back.

He decided to keep and arrange them on the table before placing a book on top. A deep sigh escaped from him; it was obvious he was restless. While slumped on the sofa, his face glanced over the window. The sun was on the verge of disappearing. After a moment of contemplation, he decided to get up and go straight to the washroom for a cold bath.

*

The next day.

 Rodion hurriedly ran downstairs and was already dressed.

"Good morning, Young Master. You seem to be in a hurry. Are you going somewhere?"

"Good morning, Mitya. Yes, I'm going to meet a friend up in town."

"Should you eat first?"

Leonid's question made him stop and glance at the table full of food. This made him change his mind and hurriedly sit next to him. He joined the family for another hearty breakfast before he finally went off on his journey to the town with his horse. 

Clad in a black cloak, he returned to the town once more. Swiftly dismounting his horse, he walked alongside it on the sidewalk, retracing the path he had taken the other day. He made his way to the café to meet the members of the Secret Society he had recently joined.

"Young Master, you're here!" Rodion glanced in the direction of the voice and saw Irina Vladimirovna in the distance, making her way towards the café.

"Good morning…uh," I forgot her name!

Irina Vladimirovna smiled at him when she arrived near him, "Call me Ira, Young Master."

"Good morning, Ira."

"Good morning to you, too, Young Master."

"Just call me Rodya, I like it better."

Irina Vladimirovna's face lit up and adjusted her thick-framed glasses, happy to call him on his short name. "Alright, Rodya."

The café's door had the sign "Close" but Rodion opened it and let Irina Vladimirovna in before he followed behind inside.

It was the day of their gathering, the day before the full moon. The café was owned by Ira's family, and it had been the place for the secret gathering for their group. As the only daughter, she could do whatever she wanted, and her parents never mingled with her interests and hobbies. Rodion had no idea what they were supposed to do at the gathering, but he didn't think much about it. What he was most eager to do was talk to the leader of the group.

As they entered the café, they found the entire place dimly lit, the curtains drawn to shield them from prying eyes outside during their gathering.

"It's a good thing that you wear a cloak, Rodya. It's perfect to hide your identity, only one thing will complete your disguise…we need to find you a mask."

The gathering usually starts at 1 P.M in the afternoon, but it was discussed before that he had to come earlier for preparation. He was a new member and the leader needed to speak to him before introducing him to the others. Irina Vladimirovna was happy to help him before the gathering started.

After an hour, a few members started to arrive. Although it was mentioned to him that a mask was needed to hide their identity for security, the members who had arrived weren't wearing any masks or any disguises.

Rodion, who was already wearing a mask, felt a little embarrassed at his appearance, but he didn't remove it. He sat at the empty table alone, a frappé in front of him. He watched Irina excitedly chitchat with the few members that had arrived. Most of them were young girls.

He leaned back into his seat, sighing in a slight dismay, realizing he had expected so much from the group.

I guess it's not what I've expected. Regardless, I just need to talk to the leader. I mean, it's not a group of revolutionists, it's a mere group of fans of homosexuals…what did I expect?

There were two staff members present. One was taking in orders for snacks while the other was on the counter responsible for making drinks. Irina made her way back in Rodion's direction, "Rodya, would it be better if you used a nickname? It'd be safe for you, too." She whispered to him. 

How considerate…  

"Hmm, how about Fudanshi? Yeah, I'll go with Fudanshi."

Irina repeated the name to herself before a wide smile tugged at her lips, "That has the same sounds as the leader's nickname. Fujoshi…Fudanshi…"

But before Rodion could speak, she signaled to the other members she had been talking to, to come to his table when suddenly the door swung open. A figure appeared almost instantly: a man in a loose white long-sleeve shirt paired with high-waisted trousers. His short, hazy blonde hair was tied back, with a few strands slipping free on either side of his head, and a white mask adorned his face.

The girl gasped in delight.

"Mr. Fujoshi, you're early today!"

The girls hurriedly crowded the person who had just arrived. Irina smiled and excitedly ran towards the entrance to welcome their leader, leaving Rodion on his own. The door opened again and Tatiana Pavlovna together with Nadeshda Igorevna and Daria Makarovna entered the café.