Zhenya Fire

Zhenya’s family once owned a splendid violin, passed down through 18 generations of Koslovs. The violin once belonged to Vasili Koslov, who was a musician by trade. One day he returned from lunch to find his house on fire. He immediately tried to put it out, but being unable decided to save what he could. All he could save was his violin. So now he was left on the street with nothing to his name but the clothes on his back and his trusty violin. The very next day he was given an opportunity to play for some high ranking members of government. He played like he had never played before and they were so impressed that he was given a position to play for them permanently, with wages ten times what he used to earn along with accommodations. Thanking his luck and praising his violin, he took care of it to the end of his days and passed it down to his eldest son, making him promise to take care of it no matter what. His son agreed and took care of it well and passed it down to his eldest son, who passed it down to his eldest son and so on. Every son that possessed it had something they loved consumed by fire, and then had themselves buoyed to new heights. After a time, the violin became associated with ‘Trial by fire’, bitter and sweet.
Time passed and the Violin eventually made it’s way to Zhenya’s father, Sanya Koslov, who didn’t buy into all this stupid superstition and truly didn’t give a fuck about violins, but kept it safe out of respect for his family. Zhenya however loved it at first sight and from a young age wanted to learn how to use it. Her father obliged her and gave her the best instruction the now substantial family wealth could buy. Zhenya grew and became a fine young lady and wonderful violinist. The one day, the family mansion caught fire. Sanya, after getting everyone out of the house, decided to go back and save the violin, when he noticed Zhenya was missing. He decided, fuck this stupid instrument and went back in to save his daughter, who he found crying in her room. He bundled her up in hastily wetted blankets and plunged through the flaming house to get her outside. Shortly after the house burned down, reducing everything left inside to ashes. Sanya fell ill and died 1 week later from complications in his heart and brain. While getting his affairs in order, it was discovered that the family accountant was embezzling funds, and doing so poorly, and what was supposed to be a significantly wealthy family, found themselves penniless and homeless.
Doctors say that Sanya died from overexposure to smoke and burns. The elder Koslov says that the family was ruined because he did not save the violin, but Zhenya secretly believes that she was the one that should have saved the Violin and her father died not because he decided to save her instead, but because she was too afraid of the fire to do what she should have.