Valhalla High (A Magnus Chase Fanfic)

Malleable As Clay

To my surprise, Halfborn was in my next class too. He invited me to sit with his friends whom he introduced me to. The first one was Mallory. She had curly red hair, freckles, and liked to curse in Gaelic. "I met this idiot on the wrestling team," she told me.

     I raised my eyebrows. Mallory called Halfborn an idiot so often that I was sure she had a crush on him. Before Halfborn could tell me his name, TJ introduced himself. He was a tall black boy who was wearing navy slacks and a Union shirt. "I'm the president of the History club if you'd like to join."

      "TJ is obsessed with Civil War re-enactments," Mallory whisper-shouted.

TJ looked affronted. "The Civil War is a very important part of our country's history. Even today, you can still see the effects in how the North and South talk about the war."

"We all have our own interests," I said amiably. "I'd be interested in going to a meeting, TJ."

I couldn't believe that less then two hours after I vowed to not make friends, I was sitting down and chatting with them. The bell rung and our teacher stepped into the room. Her hair was a golden blonde and cascaded over her back in a long braid. She wore an apron over her dress and smiled at us. "My name is Mrs. Gunderson," she said, "but do call me Sif."

It was strange how the teachers here were acting like college professors, but at least that meant they wouldn't feel sassed when I sent them an email and forgot to put the right title before their name. Sif continued speaking. "In this class we will be making ceramics. We'll have four different units before the final project: pinch pots, coil pots, slab pots, and using a pottery wheel. Any questions?"

     Someone raised their hand. "Are we only making pots?"

    "And your name is?" Sif asked.

     "Alex," she said, "and I prefer you to call me she or her unless I specify otherwise."

     I was staring at Alex like the biggest idiot in the world. She had cropped hair that was dyed green and was wearing pink paperbag waist pants with a green top. Her eyes were gorgeous — one was brown and the other was amber. Even from across the room, I could see something on her nape. Was that a tattoo?

I blinked. Sif was speaking again. "And for the final project, you can do whatever you like."

Alex didn't seem happy about that, but Sif continued lecturing on about how to use clay. Most of the stuff went over my head and when she brought out some clay for us to use, Halfborn had to wave his hand before my eyes. He was smirking. "Is something distracting you?" he teased.

"What?" I said, my face burning. "No."

"It's okay to feel attraction," TJ said, patting me on the shoulder. "There's nothing to be ashamed of."

"You guys have it all wrong," I said.

To prove my point, I began shaping the clay. I was trying to make a pot, but it ended up looking more like a blob. I heard a voice behind me. "Would you like help?"

I turned. It was Alex. She looked even more beautiful up close and I could smell some perfume (or was it cologne?) on her that reminded me of basil and mint. "Uhhh," I said in an extremely suave tone.

    "That's a yes from him," TJ said, looking up from the clay soldier he was molding.

    Alex smirked and sat down beside me. I had to stop myself from scooting farther away. Sitting next to Alex was like logging into a streaming service when a new season of your favorite show comes out. I felt excited, but also nervous. What if everything went wrong?

      Alex took the clay from me and began manipulating it almost like a reverse-kneading. Her lithe arms were stronger then they looked and she showed me how to shape clay into a pot. "There are many techniques," she said, "but a pinch pot is probably the best for a beginner like you."

     I found my voice. "I'm not a beginner."

    Alex crossed her arms over her chest and raised one eyebrow. "And what do you call the shape you made?"

     "A blobfish," I said.

     Alex started laughing, her sharp features lighting up. "You are funny. An idiot, but funny."

     "I'm not an idiot," I protested, though I felt like the biggest one in the world.

    Alex met my gaze and her gaze softened. "No, you're not."

     She showed me how to roll the clay into a ball. Then, she inserted a finger into the middle of the pot and began pinching it to expend it farther out. As her fingers nimbly worked, the pot began to take shape.

     "You have a tattoo on your neck," I observed.

     Alex set down the pinch pot I was supposed to be making. "And you have all-seeing eyes."

    I flushed. "I've never seen one like that before."

    The tattoo on the back of her neck depicted a snake. "It's a symbol of Loki," Alex said, her expression hardening like clay after it's been fired in a kiln.

"I like it," I offered.

"Thanks," Alex said. "It reminds me that I am not defined by how people see me. I can change and be as fluid as I like."

"That's deep," Halfborn said.

Mallory snorted. "You wouldn't know deep if you looked it up in the dictionary."

"Women," Halfborn grumbled. "Am I right?"

Alex crossed her arms over her chest. "Just because I sometimes identify as a guy, doesn't mean you can put down another gender."

I blinked, trying to comprehend this. I felt no judgement — just the confusion and curiosity one has when they learn a new piece of information. Alex stood up to leave.

"I didn't mean to offend you," Halfborn said.

"Yeah, he meant to annoy me," Mallory snorted as Alex walked away.

"That's not true!" Halfborn protested.

The two bantered until the bell rang, but I wasn't thinking about either of them.