Drabble: Worship The Mountains As They Dissolve In Dust.

by Lanna Michaels (lannamichaels)

Summary:

And she must know a woman alone has no business raising a son.

Notes:

Written for philomytha's prompt on fic_promptly: Vorkosigan, Alys, a single mother has no business raising a son

The title is from Our Valley by Philip Levine.

Alys used to be amazed at the things people would say to her face. They don't anymore. Over the years, the ones who wanted a reaction started saying it quieter, and now they only say it to Ivan.

She prefers that openness; it can be countered equally openly. But the ones who forget who they're speaking to, those are the ones Alys wants to throw to Cordelia.

To tell her that she would inevitably fail: that's a battle she can fight. It's the battle she's won.

But to tell her that she's forgotten, that's the battle she must never lose.