History Heartwarming / VorkosiganSaga

* Cordelia is in no mood to appreciate it but the fact her crew of divas voted unanimously to rescue her from 'The Butcher of Komarr' ''is'' rather touching. Pity she didn't need rescuing...

* Any part of ''Memory'' with Simon learning how to [[BecomeARealBoy live a normal life.]] Thirty years of playing the bland, colorless [[TheSpymaster Spymaster]] [[CursedWithAwesome thanks to his]] [[PhotographicMemory memory chip]]... he's got a ''lot'' of living to do. Lucky he's got a ''lot'' of [[{{Nakama}} awesome friends]] to help him catch up.

* Ethan Urquhart of ''Ethan of Athos'' giving genetically-engineered telepath Terrence Cee the first real acceptance he's ever known, without thinking twice about it:
-->'''Terrence''': What am I to you, then, if not a monster?
-->'''Ethan''': We all remain children of the Father, however we may otherwise be orphaned. You are my brother, of course.
-->'''Terrence''': Of course...? Damn it, I'm the ultimate weapon, the super agent. I survived it all. How can you make me weep now?

* Cordelia tends to be a walking, talking [=CMoH=] but this quote is a brilliant example:
-->"Welcome to Barrayar, son. Here you go; have a world of wealth and poverty, wrenching change and rooted history. Have a birth; have two. Have a name. Miles means "soldier", but don't let the power of suggestion overwhelm you. Have a twisted form in a society that loathes and fears the mutations that have been its deepest agony. Have a title, wealth, power, and all the envy and hatred they will draw. Have your body ripped apart and rearranged. Inherit an array of friends and enemies you never made. Have a grandfather from hell. Endure pain, find joy, and make your own meaning, because the universe certainly isn't going to supply it. Always be a moving target. Live. Live. Live."

* ''Barrayar''. Cordelia and Aral are discussing the psychopathic Sergeant Bothari, a sadistic abuse victim who, in the past book, nearly raped Cordelia before she turned the tables on him, convincing him to rescue her instead. Cordelia wonders why Bothari seems to idolize her so much. Aral's response:

-->''I love you. But I lust after and covet so much more than your body. I wanted to possess the power of your eyes, the way they see form and beauty that isn't even there yet and draw it up out of nothing into the solid world. I wanted to own the honor of your heart, unbowed in the vilest horrors of those bleak hours on Komarr. I wanted your courage and your will, your caution and serenity. I wanted, I suppose, your soul, and that was too much to want. I wanted to give you a victory. But by their essential nature triumphs can't be given. They must be taken, and the worse the odds and the fiercer the resistance, the greater the honor. Victories can't be gifts. But gifts can be victories, can't they. It's what you said. The garden could have been your gift, a dowry of talent, skill, and vision. I know it's too late now, but I just wanted to say, it would have been a victory most worthy of our House.''

* The final scene of ''Mirror Dance'' where Miles reels off his list of exes, and Ekaterin asks if she can get in line. And his response.

** To elaborate - [[spoiler: Mark is a clone of Miles created by enemies of the family to kill and replace Miles in order to get at Aral. Mark rebels and at the age of 21 or so is adopted into the family, well...yeah. In this scene, just two years later, a friend of Aral's starts complaining about "your son," and Aral's first reaction is to ask "which one?"]]

* Any part of ''Memory'' with Simon learning how to [[BecomeARealBoy live a normal life.]] Thirty years of playing the bland, colorless [[TheSpymaster Spymaster]] [[CursedWithAwesome thanks to his]] [[PhotgraphicMemory memory chip]]... he's got a ''lot'' of living to do. Lucky he's got a ''lot'' of [[{{Nakama}} awesome friends]] to help him catch up.

** Also in ''The Vor Game'' is the description of how big, powerful, dangerous Admiral Count Aral Vorkosigan, back when he was Lord Regent (and absolute ruler) of the Barrayaran Empire, would take a two-hour lunch every day--short of any crisis less serious than actual war--race home, spend five minutes bolting down a sandwich, then spend an hour-and-a-half down on the floor with his little crippled son who couldn't walk yet, talking and playing games and reading out loud.
** Not only Miles, though. The moment in ''A Civil Campaign'' where Aral quite casually asserts Mark's status as his son is breathtaking.
*** To elaborate - [[spoiler: Mark is a clone of Miles created by enemies of the family to kill and replace Miles in order to get at Aral. Mark rebels and at the age of 21 or so is adopted into the family, well...yeah. In this scene, just two years later, a friend of Aral's starts complaining about "your son," and Aral's first reaction is to ask "which one?"]]
*** Another magnificent thing about that scene is that Miles, in the midst of his own problems, still cares enough about his brother to be pleased that Mark had the chance to hear Aral say that.
** ''The Vor Game'' is good, but for my money, ''The Warrior's Apprentice'' has the killer line. After Miles talks about wanting to make his life "an offering fit to lay at my father's feet":
---> '''Aral Vorkosigan:''' [[SoProudOfYou Clay, boy. Only clay. Not fit to receive so golden a sacrifice]].
** ''Barrayar''. Cordelia and Aral are discussing the psychopathic Sergeant Bothari, a sadistic abuse victim who, in the past book, nearly raped Cordelia before she turned the tables on him, convincing him to rescue her instead. Cordelia wonders why Bothari seems to idolize her so much. Aral's response:
---> '''Aral Vorkosigan:''' "[Bothari] becomes whatever is required of him. Not a conscious process, I don't think. Piotr expects a loyal retainer, and Bothari plays the part, deadpan as you please. Vorrutyer wanted a monster, and Bothari became his torturer. And victim. I demanded a good soldier, and he became one for me. You . . ." his voice softened, "you are the only person I know who looks at Bothari and sees a hero. So he becomes one for you. He clings to you because you create him a greater man than he ever dreamed of being."
*** Years later, Bothari reminds Miles that he has been promised a grave next to Cordelia's...at her feet, for he has been her faithful dog. And to Bothari, being ''accepted'' as Cordelia's dog is the greatest honor.
*** Considering at least some of Bothari's issues stem from his childhood raised among prostitutes, his abuse at Vorrutyer's hands, and his ''work'' as a rapist/torturer, the fact that he eagerly devotes himself to this woman, and is even able to be a decent father to his daughter makes his entire character development arc fit this trope.
** For this troper, it's about a page after Aral's quote above, where Cordelia first sees her newly-born (and heavily fought-for) son Miles:
--->'''Cordelia''': Welcome to Barrayar, son. Here you go; have a world of wealth and poverty, wrenching change and rooted history. Have a birth; have two. Have a name. Miles means "soldier", but don't let the power of suggestion overwhelm you. Have a twisted form in a society that loathes and fears the mutations that have been its deepest agony. Have a title, wealth, power, and all the envy and hatred they will draw. Have your body ripped apart and rearranged. Inherit an array of friends and enemies you never made. Have a grandfather from hell. Endure pain, find joy, and make your own meaning, because the universe certainly isn't going to supply it. Always be a moving target. Live. Live. Live.
** Heartwarming or Awesome, it's a toss-up: In "The Mountains of Mourning," after disinterring an infant to confirm that she'd been murdered, Miles realizes he doesn't have anything with him to burn as the customary small sacrifice at a burial. He thinks: ''Peace to you, small lady, after our rude invasions. I will give you a better sacrifice, [[IGaveMyWord I swear by my word as Vorkosigan]]. And the smoke of that burning will rise and be seen from one end of these mountains to the other.'' He makes good on the promise.
*** Even better is when Miles returns to the same village years later and finds that the poverty-stricken backwater has been transformed into a thriving community, and the mother of the murdered infant is now a teacher at the newly-built school.
** Any part of ''A Civil Campaign'' that's not CrowningMomentOfFunny is Heartwarming. Oddly enough, this troper was most affected by [[CloningBlues Mark]]'s stumbling towards his shot at happiness with Kareen... [[EarnYourHappyEnding and making it]].
** The ending of ''Mirror Dance'', especially Cordelia's maternal smile of greed, since [[spoiler: she and Aral had the second child she'd always wanted but could never have had because of Miles' condition; a second male would have put "mutie" Miles in danger, since plots to make his ''brother'' the heir apparent to Vorkosigan House.]]
--->The Countess attached herself to her husband's arm. "Lead on, love. Vorkosigans Victorious."
--->Vorkosigans Convalescent, was more like it, Miles reflected, following. ''But you should see what the other guys look like.''
** Miles' efforts to get Elena Visconti to acknowledge and meet her daughter, who was the product of rape. Visconti first regards Miles' pleads with suspicion and disgust, but his heartfelt offers finally melt her.
--->"Would it be so difficult, to do a few days-even a few minutes-of acting? I'm going to have to dip some Dendarii funds anyway to pay for a dead ship, and buy a lady a new face. I could make it worth your time."
--->He regretted his words immediately at the loathing that flashed across her face, but the look she finally gave him was ironically thoughtful. "You really care about that girl, don't you?"
*** By ''Memory'', the relationship had improved so much that some of the inherent burden the younger Elena had felt had vanished.

*** To elaborate - [[spoiler: Mark is a clone of Miles created by enemies of the family to kill and replace Miles in order to get at Aral. Mark rebels and at the age of 21 or so is adopted into the family, well...yeah. In this scene, just two years later, a friend of Aral's starts complaing about "your son," and Aral's first reaction is to ask "which one?"]]