Cotton Candy Bingo: "Hartlines"

[ysabetwordsmith]

In hopes of attracting some new readers, I am participating in cottoncandy_bingo, a fest devoted to light-hearted creativity. You can view my bingo card here. I'm filling the prompts from my poetic series and shared worlds, so they kind of blur the lines between original and fandom content. If you like my poetry, check out my Poetry Fishbowl project, because once a month you have a chance to give me prompts for the kind of poetry you want to read.

The following poem belongs to my Hart's Farm series, which is historic fantasy set in Sweden ~1850. This is my most popular feelgood series, and such a good match for cottoncandy_bingo that it ultimately enticed me to take part in the fest. Hart's Farm is what I write to remind people that it's possible to have work you love and happy, healthy relationships of diverse types. It's where I turn when I get tired of the cruddy art imitating cruddy life that fills so much of the mainstream. This series has over a dozen poems already linked on the Serial Poetry page if you want to read more.

Fandom: Original (Hart's Farm)
Prompt: Family
Medium: Poetry
Summary: Auduna and Arnvid discuss the family dynamics on Hart's Farm and some of the different kinds of romantic relationships that people have.
Content Notes: Hart's Farm has an unusual structure, kind of like a moiety system but also with aspects resembling line marriage. People are free to make whatever romantic connections they want, or none.


Hartlines


Auduna sat in her rocker,
quietly watching the snowflakes
flutter against the windowpane.
Her daughter Dagny suckled at her breast,
pink fist pushing against Auduna's skin.

Arnvid watched them together
as he assembled a mobile from wires and string,
hung with horses that he had carved
and Finlo had painted a cheerful red.
He had wood shavings caught in his short blond hair.

"I'm glad that you chose me
to be Dagny's farm-father,"
Arnvid said to Auduna.

"I'm glad that Frida finally remembered
to explain to me that I could pick someone
to do the father things for her," Auduna said.
"It's a clever custom, but I didn't grow up here
and I still don't know all the customs of Hart's Farm."

"I'm an outsider too," said Arnvid.
"Don't worry, you'll get used to things."
"So much is different," she said.
"I don't know how you keep it all straight,
who's an outsider, who's farmborn ..."

"Well, the farmborn belong to the Hart family.
Cavan Hart and his wife Inghild founded the family,
and they had a son named Refr.
Old man Olaf and his daughter Gudrun founded the farm,
and Gudrun had a daughter named Jorunn.
It all came together when Refr and Jorunn married,"
Arnvid explained. He tied another horse in place.
"Everybody with a farmborn parent is farmborn too."

"What about the outsiders?" Auduna asked.
"Everybody who isn't related to the Hart Family
counts as an outsider," Arnvid said.
"Most of us are alone, but a few outsiders
have relatives, like Karin and her daughter Klara.
I have my cousin Sómi in town."

"I know most people on the farm don't get married,"
Auduna said. "So how in the world
do they figure out partners?"

Arnvid smiled, snipping a piece of string.
"Well, the farmborn only choose outsiders.
Outsiders can choose each other, or farmborn,"
he said to Auduna.
"Children who have outsider parents
but grow up on the farm usually choose outsiders,
because they feel a lot like farmborn
even though they aren't related by blood."

"It seems like a good place to grow up,"
Auduna said, looking down at Dagny.
"I think so," said Arnvid. "I was so happy
when Lia and I made Astrid together.
We keep hoping for such joy with Svanhilda too."

Auduna had had such mixed feelings
about her own pregnancy, it was hard
to imagine being wholly joyful,
but she liked the idea at least.
"You and Svanhilda are both outsiders,"
she said, "and Lia is farmborn.
Do Lia and Svanhilda ...?"

Arnvid smirked at Auduna's blush
and finished, "... enjoy each other's company
when I'm not in the bed with them?
Yes, they do. We're flexible."

Auduna sighed. "Your life seems so full,
it's a wonder you agreed to help with Dagny,"
she said, draping the baby over her shoulder to burp.
"Karin says that you're a wonderful lover, but ..."

"There's always room for one more,"
Arnvid said softly. "You could choose me,
or someone else, or no one at all."
He tied the last horse in place,
then went to hang the mobile over the cradle.
"We've learned how to get along
with different kinds of relationships.
Just look around to see what might appeal to you."

"I'm still thinking about it," Auduna said
as she settled Dagny into the cradle.
Arnvid stood behind Auduna,
gently resting his chin on her shoulder.
"Take your time," he suggested.
"Family isn't like a race to the finish line.
It's like a walk along the lakeshore.
You want to go slowly and watch for treasures."

Auduna had had more than her share
of young men who pestered her for attention
and girls who wanted her to do favors for them.
She had gotten herself into trouble, and then
suddenly no one wanted anything to do with her.
Life wasn't easy for a woman with a baby and no husband,
but here at Hart's Farm, it wasn't even an issue.

Now she thought about Karin and Frida,
who shared their home without expecting any more
than Auduna doing her fair share of the work;
and Arnvid who seemed content to make friends
without worrying whether or not it might come to more;
and Vendel who clearly wanted nothing more than friendship
because he preferred to cuddle with other men.

She thought about the book she'd seen once,
in the hands of Ola the matriarch,
brown leather embossed with gold letters
spelling Hartlines down the spine,
a record of the people who lived on the farm.

"In the spring," said Auduna
as she watched the red horses
slowly prance through the air
as Dagny fell asleep beneath them,
"perhaps I will walk along the lakeshore."

"In the spring," said Arnvid,
"I would be happy to walk with you,
if you decide that you'd like some company."