"Let us stop here," said Peredonov. "This needs to be thoroughly understood. There's an allegory concealed here. Wolves go in pairs, that is, the wolf with his hungry mate. The wolf is fed, but she is hungry. The wife should always eat after the husband. The wife should be subject to the husband in everything."
Pilnikov was in a cheerful mood, he smiled and looked at Peredonov with his elusively fine, dark eyes. Sasha's face annoyed and yet attracted Peredonov. The cursed boy bewitched him with his artful smile.
Was it really a boy? Or perhaps there were two of them: a brother and a sister. But it was difficult to tell who was there. Or perhaps it was even possible for him to change himself from a boy into a girl. There must be some reason for his being so clean—when he changed his form he splashed in magical waters—otherwise how could he transform himself? And he always smelt of scents.
"What have you scented yourself with, Pilnikov?" asked Peredonov. "Was it patchkouli?"[1]
The boys laughed. Sasha grew red at the insult, but said nothing.
Peredonov could not understand the disinterested desire to please, not to be repulsive to others. Every such manifestation, even on the part of a boy, he considered a design against himself. He who was neatly dressed evidently was trying to gain Peredonov's favour. Otherwise, why should he go to so much trouble? Neatness and cleanliness were repulsive to Peredonov. Perfumes seemed to him to be bad smells. He preferred the stink of a manured field—which he considered good for the health—to all the perfumes of the world. To be neatly dressed, washed, clean, all this required time and labour; and the thought of labour depressed and dejected Peredonov. How good it would be to do nothing, and only eat, drink and sleep!
Sasha's companions teased him about his scenting himself with "patchkouli" and about Liudmillotchka's being in love with him. This angered him, and he replied hotly that it was not true, she was not in love with him—that it was all an invention of Peredonov, who had paid court to Liudmilla and had been snubbed; this was why he was angry with her and was spreading all sorts of evil rumours about her. His companions believed him—they knew Peredonov—but they did not stop teasing Sasha; it was such a pleasure to tease someone.
Peredonov persisted in telling everyone about Pilnikov's viciousness.
"He's got himself mixed up badly with Liudmillka," he said.
The townspeople gossiped of Liudmilla's affection for the schoolboy in a greatly exaggerated way, and with stupid, unseemly details. But there were only a few who believed this: Peredonov had overdone it. Ill-natured people—of whom there are not a few in our town—asked Liudmilla: