Playing around with my Sam Vimes backstory fic, and my current headcanon is that Vimes' mother used to call him Sammy, and so when he finds out they're using that name for the coppers that trained under him and went to other cities, it briefly knocks him sideways.
Because he's not heard that name since she died, and maybe it had always been said with a hint of worry about her boy, who she loved but who she knew was a bit too fond of the drink and friendly with the gutters. But now he's a knight and a duke and he has a family he adores, and he's making a difference not just to people in the city but across the Disc.
And the name is a reminder that she's not here to see what he's become; she'll never get to experience the relief of knowing that she didn't need to worry quite so much anymore.
