Page 27 of Kiln Me Softly

Cruelly, Chris had saved Aiden and Juniper till second-to-last, which meant Aiden had spent the last two hours trying to find ways to calm Juniper while they watched other pairs show off their research and exhibits.

It annoyed him more than it should have that he’d been unsuccessful.

Why was she so hard to get through to? Why didn’t she believe in them the way he did?

Now, he put a hand on the small of her back as they headed towards their display, still hidden beneath the cloth. Juniper tripped seemingly on nothing, and he steadied her before she ended up on the floor.

‘Dear me. Haven’t been drinking, have you, Jupiter?’ Chris commented.

A few of the visitors laughed. Not bloody helping.

Aiden knew part of his unease was because he’d never seen Juniper so unlike herself, lacking the witty, unfiltered spark that usually oozed from her.

He always wanted to take care of her, even when she was ruthless with her insults, but now especially, he didn’t know what to do.

He wasn’t him if she wasn’t her. They worked because they were opposite poles of the same magnet, and this was a side he was unfamiliar with.

‘Okay, North Force. Tell us about your project,’ said Chris, and then turned to the rest of the class with a smug grin. ‘Because they’re from the north, get it? I just made that up. How good is that?’

Aiden cleared his throat, getting his cue cards ready, but Chris lifted a hand to pause them. ‘You start, Jupiter, if you will.’

Juniper blinked like a deer in headlights, her face a sickly shade of white. She took her time in glancing at her cue cards.

‘Well, we’ve chosen to combine my love of mythology with Aiden’s love of classical art.

’ Her words quivered, but she lifted her chin, and finally, he saw a glimpse of her usual stoicism.

‘My interest is in mythological creatures, those supposedly considered monsters, and how, looking closer, it becomes clear that they’re only defined from the hero’s perspective.

That, maybe, we wouldn’t consider them monsters if the hero didn’t. ’

‘How so?’ Chris asked, looking genuinely intrigued now.

‘Monsters are often solitary. Reactive, just like all of us. In the same way a hero chases a quest, the monsters of ancient myths are usually seeking an answer to their problems after a period of suffering. Either that, or they’ve been pushed to the edge of society, left to fend for themselves without the same community most people rely on.

It’s rare they display inherent evilness.

’ She looked to Aiden for reassurance, and he nodded, urging her to continue.

‘Medusa is widely known to be the gorgon who turns people to stone, the one who Perseus ‘bravely’ beheads… but who decided she was a monster? The original stories don’t focus on her origin, not at least until Ovid’s version, and there’s no proof that she hurt anybody prior to the tale.

Therefore, we can assume that it was her nature alone that people rejected, something she had no control over.

In Norse mythology, the Midgard Serpent was cast out of Asgard by Odin because of a prophecy that determined he and his siblings would cause problems for the gods.

He was thrown into the ocean before he did anything wrong. Is it any wonder he became an enemy?’

Juniper took a breath, confidence tugging her posture a little taller.

‘My pieces explore how monsters aren’t born, but rather created by society, and how this also reflects in traditional art.

With the aid of Aiden’s classical art knowledge, we combine both ancient and modern ceramic techniques with painting styles, all of which were inspired by researching a range of art periods, to focus on representations of ‘the Other’ across history and how, in other people’s stories, we could all be represented as monsters given the chance. ’

Chris’s brows rose over the frames of his glasses.

Aiden didn’t want to jinx it, but he seemed impressed, as did the others.

As was he. He could have listened to Juniper talk all day about mythology, her intellect and passion radiating through every single word and expression.

In fact, he was so busy admiring her that he barely noticed when the room fell silent.

‘Are we boring you, Alex?’ Chris asked, clicking his fingers to get Aiden’s attention.

‘Sorry.’ Aiden shook his head and tried to pick up where Juniper had left off, which wasn’t easy when he heard Luc say, ‘He’s whipped,’ under their breath.

Beside Luc, Tilly muttered, ‘Tell me about it.’

After a glare in their direction, Aiden went on to describe how he had studied paintings that represented mythological stories and reframed them to better reflect the truth behind the creatures involved, focusing on their perspective rather than those of the heroes.

He passed the baton back to Juniper. During the lengthy explanation of their research, Juni did end up stumbling, but he meant what he’d said.

He was there to catch her, help her get back on track.

Finally, it was time to reveal their exhibit. Chris orchestrated a drum roll, and Juniper and Aiden took either end of the cloth to unveil their project. Her lips were red from chewing them, fingers trembling. She still didn’t know just how talented she was, but that was about to change.

A few sounds of wonderment echoed around the gallery as, finally, their pottery was revealed.

Aiden was just as pleased every time he looked at it: they’d focused on common Greek vessels that Aiden had thrown on the wheel, though most of them jutted out with three-dimensional creatures built by Juni.

His favourite was the amphora, with Medusa’s snakes curling around the handles and her stony eyes closed to evoke the peace she’d never been given in traditional stories.

It was his largest project to date and had left his arms aching for days, but he’d managed to throw the perfect the shape with her help.

On a marriage vase, Aiden had painted a scene inspired by The Great Wave , only a Kraken emerged from the water to snake its tentacles around the bulbous bowl.

A gold and grey kantharos took the shape of a harpy, the wings sculpted into handles and sinewy bird feet providing a solid base.

The Midgard Serpent curled around its own tail instead of swallowing it, granted freedom around a jug that would once have been used to store oil.

The three-headed Cerberus snarled out of their smallest piece.

Finally, his pride and joy: a wine jug on which he’d painted coppers and rich indigo storm clouds to evoke Ragnarok, being watched from above, from the perspective of the gods, to show their corrupt authority.

He’d used Rembrandt’s landscapes as inspiration, following the brush strokes wherever they’d taken him to evoke chaos and destruction.

It had been the first time in a while where he’d felt expressive in his art, allowed to paint imperfectly: because Juniper had convinced him to.

‘Well, aren’t these interesting?’ Chris stepped forward to peer more closely through his glasses, his hands locked behind his back. ‘Talk me through each one.’

They did, together, Aiden crediting Juniper for the gorgeous sculpting and she him for his throwing abilities.

‘I must say, the finishes on these pieces are extremely clean.’ Chris’s stubby finger hovered over the seamless join of the amphora. ‘I suppose that’s what you get for having an exceptional teacher.’

A few people laughed, Aiden included. Juniper still looked like she was going to pass out.

‘Very ambitious. Very ambitious indeed. Some of your technical skills could be improved here and there, but I’m very impressed by your creativity.’

As he jotted some notes and stepped aside for the others to admire the piece, Aiden finally nudging her playfully. ‘See? Told you we’d be great.’

‘Ambitious isn’t a compliment,’ she replied. ‘It just means we’ve coloured outside the lines. Or, at least, I have.’

He frowned, half-convinced he’d missed everything Chris had just said. ‘What are you talking about? He likes it! Everyone does!’

‘Uh, yeah,’ Tilly cut in, wrapping her arms around them both. Her height was somewhere in the middle of theirs, which meant she could reach his shoulders in a way Juniper would struggle to do. ‘It’s fecking epic. Are you kidding?’

‘It doesn’t fit in with the others,’ Juni said. ‘Tom and Amir were sniggering as though it was all just one big joke.’

‘Take no notice. They don’t get it. They’re just used to more classical pieces.’ Tilly squeezed Juniper’s arm.

Aiden had to admit, he might have been laughing with them if he hadn’t been the one to make it.

There was a divide between artists who studied more classical forms and those who worked outside the box – but it was the latter he always admired more, one of the many reasons why Elmington hadn’t challenged him much.

There’d been twenty or so Toms in his class, all of them talented but complacent, just like Aiden had been raised to be.

‘Fuck them. They don’t know anything about decent art.’ He was surprised at the anger in his own tone, surprised at how much he wanted to march over there and tell them both where to shove it. They’d upset his—

His what? Not his anything. She’d made that clear. And yet he still grew taut with the instinct to protect her, as though she could ever need his protection.

Since there was still one more presentation left, they fell back into their quiet, but Aiden still buzzed with annoyance. When he heard Amir and Tom tittering away, he parted from Juni and Tilly to join them. Unsurprisingly, they were making fun of Nomi and Tia’s presentation now.

‘Nice job, mate. Great exhibit,’ Tom started, lifting his arm for a high five. Aiden left him hanging, tucking his hands under his armpits.

‘Cheers. I heard you two had a lot to say about it.’

Tom and Amir exchanged a wide-eyed look, Amir saying, ‘Oh, we were just saying how good it was. Though it could have been better if you were paired with someone who matched your style, I reckon.’

‘And what’s my style?’ He leaned in close, feigning interest, though really, he already knew the answer. Whatever art his father bought.

‘Y’know…’ Tom’s smile was dithering. ‘Something a bit more refined.’

‘Hm.’ Aiden pretended to contemplate that, rocking on his heels in an effort to stay calm. ‘Interesting.’

Tom scratched the back of his neck, scrambling for something to say. Meanwhile, Amir was slowly drifting away from them both. Wise choice.

‘So, isn’t your dad here today? Maybe he can buy our pieces after we get our grades.’ A forced laugh. ‘Though I heard he usually sticks to paintings, doesn’t he?’

‘Yeah, he does. Refined ones.’ Aiden inched closer, and Tom had the sense to look intimidated. ‘I’m sure you’re used to putting people down, but next time you have something to say about Juniper’s work, or mine, how about you come to me?’

Tom paled, scratching at his lobe. ‘We didn’t mean anything by it, mate. You know I have a lot of respect for you.’

‘You have a lot of respect for my father,’ Aiden snapped, his chest tightening.

He was so sick of this, now more than ever.

Like hell was he going to let them upset Juni, too.

‘And like him, you think everyone’s art should look the same, and that’s why you’ll end up washed up and disappointed in a few years’ time, so you can shove your refinement up your arse.

We’re all here for the same reason. It takes some real insecurity to stand here and mock everybody else’s work.

Maybe that’s something you can work on, yeah? ’

He didn’t give Tom time to reply, sauntering back to his friends.

From the looks on their faces, Tilly wide-eyed and Juniper wary, they’d clearly heard enough.

‘Shite, now I kind of get why you fancy him,’ Tilly said.

Aiden took it as quite the compliment, all things considered.

Juniper, however, narrowed her eyes. ‘I don’t need you defending my honour.’

‘I wasn’t. I was defending mine.’ A lie, though it had felt good to finally set a boundary with someone like that. If nothing else, his connection to Juniper and even Tilly and Luc had taught him that he was more than just his father’s son, and he deserved to pave his own bloody path.

He turned back to the presentation so that she would stop burning a hole right into his soul, only to be surprised when her pinkie finger scraped his. ‘I can think of a lot of other things Tom should shove up his arse. Our Cerberus sculpture, for instance. All those spiky ears and sharp canines…’

He coughed to mask his laugh. ‘I’d like to see that.’

He knew that it was her way of saying thank you , even if she didn’t want to.

He relaxed, finally, and so did she, their final exhibit glowing under the spotlight at their side.

Fuck Tom, and fuck whatever Juni believed Chris had criticised.

They’d made something beautiful, and he wouldn’t let anyone take that from them.