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Koudelka, Kareen:

The fourth daughter of Clement and Ludmilla Koudelka, she is a vivacious eighteen-year-old with short, loose, ash-blond curls, electric blue eyes, and a passionate drive. She plans to study at Beta Colony, courtesy of Cordelia Vorkosigan. Mark meets her at the Emperor's Birthday Celebration, then promises her a dance at Winterfair, if he returns alive from his mission to rescue Miles.

After her first year at Beta Colony, she is in an exclusive relationship with Mark, although she cannot bring herself to tell her parents. She wants to go back to school on Beta, but her family is not wealthy, and asks her to consider attending college in Vorbarr Sultana. To earn money, she accepts shares in Mark's butter bug company, first to keep tabs on Doctor Borgos, then becoming the head of marketing. Her parents disapprove of Mark as a suitor, and Kareen is upset at the limited choices she has as a woman on Barrayar. She prefers life on Beta Colony, but does not want to give up her family either. With Cordelia's help, she works out a mutual option between Mark and herself, and brokers an understanding that her parents can accept. Along with her sister Martya, Kareen helps save Doctor Borgos from the Escobaran parole officers. (CC, MD)

Koudelka, Ludmilla Droushnakovi:

When first assigned to Cordelia, she is the servant of the Inner Chamber in the Imperial Residence, and Princess Kareen's personal bodyguard. She is alert, tall, and heavily muscled, with gold-blond hair and blue eyes. At the time of Vordarian's Pretendership, both of her parents are still alive, and she has three older brothers, all in the military along with her father, and a younger sister. She is instrumental in getting Cordelia and Bothari inside the Imperial Residence using hidden tunnels under the compound that Captain Negri showed to her. After Koudelka deflowered her on the night of Aral's assassination attempt, she works through the guilt of not being officially on duty at the time, and eventually makes up with and marries him. She and Kou have four daughters, Delia, Kareen, Olivia, and Martya, planning to marry them off to the surfeit of Barrayaran Vor males that are being born at the same time. She is one of the first ladies on Barrayar to use a uterine replicator for her two youngest daughters. She feels the same as her husband does about Mark and Kareen, but comes to an understanding on the relationship after Cordelia talks to both of them at Kareen's request. She takes over Alys Vorpatril's duties while Alys is on Komarr playing Baba for Gregor's upcoming wedding to Laisa. She and her husband attend Miles's wedding. (B, CC, M, WG)

Koudelka, Martya:

Another of the Koudelkas' four daughters. Ivan escorts her to the Imperial State dinner. Younger, shorter, and tawnier than her sister Delia, Martya is also more acerbic and direct. After Delia turns down Ivan's marriage proposal, he panics and asks Martya to marry him, but her reply is a succinct, "anyone but you." One of the guests at Miles's dinner party, afterward she is assigned to keep an eye on Kareen, and becomes her sister's go-between with Pym, and also good friends with Ekaterin. When Kareen is banned from working in Vorkosigan House, Martya gets in on the butter bug scheme, where she also meets Doctor Borgos, whom she finds quite interesting. She was to be Ekaterin's Second during the wedding ceremony, but stepped aside to give Taura the honor as a reward for stopping the assassination plot. She also kisses Roic on the cheek for saving them all from the terror Miles would have become if Ekaterin had died. (CC, M, WG)

Koudelka, Olivia:

One of the four tall, blond Koudelka sisters, she has an independent streak, and accompanies Martya to help cheer up Tatya Vorbretten during the Cetagandan bloodline scandal. Later she falls in love and gets engaged to Lord Dono Vorrutyer. She always wanted to be a countess, and will have her chance when Dono wins his petition to inherit his brother's District. She attends Miles's wedding. (CC, M)

Kshatryan Foreign Legion: