# Borya — Short Fiction character guide > Borya in Short Fiction by Fyodor Sologub. **Role:** supporting **Also known as:** X Borya, Boris, Boryushka **First appearance:** 0001-short-fiction ## Snapshot A boy whose fragile imagination turns ordinary rooms into stages for dread, caught between the need to be loved and the fear of what love costs. ## Who they are Borya drifts through the adult world of Sologub's stories as a small, sensitive observer whose inner life is far richer than anyone around him suspects. He craves tenderness but recoils from the humiliations that come with it, and his loneliness sharpens into something stranger. His vulnerability makes him the emotional center of the early arc, the place where the ordinary and the uncanny meet. ## Relationships ### [Natasha Ozoreva](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/characters/natasha_ozoreva) _romantic_ Borya and Natasha are likely young lovers or sweethearts, with a tender and devoted relationship. ### [Natasha Ozoreva](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/characters/natasha_ozoreva) _romantic_ Borya and Natasha are likely young lovers or sweethearts, with a tender and devoted relationship. ### [Natasha Ozoreva](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/characters/natasha_ozoreva) _romantic_ Borya and Natasha are likely young lovers or sweethearts, with a tender and devoted relationship. ## In the story ### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/i) The deceased youngest family member, mourned by the women. ### [IX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/ix) Absent; Natasha recalls walking with him and her sisters. ### [X](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/x) Mentioned as X Borya, whose grandmother is Elena Kirillovna. ### [XII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xii) Elena Kirillovna's beloved grandson; his portrait hangs on the wall and she recalls his youth and love for the garden. ### [XVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xvi) Mentioned in Elena Kirillovna's prayer as one in prison and exile, for whom she seeks liberation and redemption. ### [XX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xx) Elena Kirillovna's beloved grandson, whose return she anticipates. ### [XXII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxii) Absent; Elena Kirillovna recalls seeing him in a half-dream and looks down the road toward the station for him. ### [XXIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxiii) The absent son whose expected return home drives Sofia Alexandrovna's anxious actions. ### [XXV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxv) Expected to return at any moment; Sofia prepares his favorite dishes and ensures his study is in order. ### [XXVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxvi) Expected by Sofia Alexandrovna, but does not appear. ### [XXVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxvii) Expected but not yet arrived; a fourth place is set for him at luncheon. ### [XXVIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxviii) Frequently mentioned by the women at the table; his absence is a source of anxiety. ### [The Morning Paper](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxx) Mentioned as having been hanged a full year ago, causing his mother's ongoing grief. ### [XXXI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxxi) Has died, leaving Natasha without hope. ### [XXXIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxxiii) A pale lad with dark circles under his eyes, he eagerly implores Mikhail Lvovich to sing and joins in the hymn. ### [XXXIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxxiv) Echoes Natasha's readiness, affirming they are prepared to do all that is necessary, even die. ### [XXXVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxxvii) Natasha's brother, remembered as a brown, slender boy gathering blue flowers in the rye. ### [XXXVIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxxviii) Boris gathers flowers for Natasha, his voice serious and quavering as he hints they may not meet again. He asks Natasha about her mission with Mikhail Lvovich, showing envy and gloom, but is calmed by her composure. ### [XXXIX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xxxix) Gathers cornflowers for Natasha, speaks of loving bigness and immoderation, and shares his intimate thought about giving oneself wholly to a thing. ### [XL](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xl) Mentioned as having been hanged; his death precipitates Natasha's abandonment of the revolutionary work. ### [XLI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xli) Remembered flying high on the giant-stride with Natasha. ### [XLII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xlii) Boris is studying his final term and leaves for another city under the pretense of visiting relatives, arousing Natasha's suspicion. ### [XLIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xliii) Has shot someone, arrested with comrades, faces military trial and death sentence. ### [XLIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xliv) Boris has been arrested and faces a military trial and hanging; Natasha imagines his death in vivid, horrifying detail. ### [XLVI](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xlvi) Has been sentenced to hang along with his comrades after a trial held that morning. ### [XLVII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xlvii) The condemned son for whom Sofia Alexandrovna pleads; referred to as a 'mere boy' and a conspirator. ### [XLVIII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xlviii) Boris is calm and distant during his last meeting, refusing a priest and the cross, and is hanged before daybreak. ### [XLIX](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/xlix) The hanged son whose absence haunts the family; his overcoat and memories trigger grief. ### [L](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/l) The three women await him, then remember he has been hanged. ### [LII](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/lii) Boris is mentioned as the one facing death, with Natasha and Sofia affirming that they are with him. ### [LIV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/liv) Referenced as having been hanged; his absence is the focus of the women's grief. ### [The Golden Post](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/chapters/the-golden-post) Bobby (Borya) threatens his papa and then tries to soften the threat by imagining a golden post. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/characters/borya - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_20_se/characters