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Pay It Forward (Grishaverse, Nina & Zoya)
Title: Pay It Forward
Fandom: Grishaverse (Nikolai Series & Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo)
Characters: Nina Zenik & Zoya Nazyalensky
Rating: General Audiences
Word Count: 629
Additional Tags: Missing Scene, Comfort Food
Challenge: Written for![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
no_true_pair's 2023 Eight-Character Challenge
Prompt: September Three - Zoya & Nina with the title "Pay It Forward"
Summary: Zoya brings Nina waffles. Nina wonders what's wrong with Zoya.
Notes: Set between the end of Crooked Kingdom and the beginning of King of Scars, before Nina goes to Fjerda.
Read on AO3.
A plate of waffles appears on the table in front of Nina. Normally Nina wouldn’t complain about this, but considering she’s in a library in Ravka, it’s somewhat unexpected. Looking up, she’s even more surprised to see her mysterious waffle-bringer is none other than Zoya Nazyalensky.
“Have I done something…” Nina trails off, unsure whether to finish that sentence with a ‘good’ or not. “Or are you going to eat those while I watch, as some sort of cruel and unusual punishment?”
Zoya scoffs and sits down in an empty chair, pushing the plate closer to Nina. “They’re for you.”
Still skeptical but not willing to pass up an opportunity for waffles when she gets one, Nina sets aside the book she’d been flipping through and picks up a waffle instead, tearing a piece off with her teeth.
“To what do I owe the honor?” she asks after she’s finished chewing. She hasn’t spoken with Zoya for a few days, both of them extra busy ever since Nina got the assignment that will take her undercover into Fjerda in a few weeks’ time. Given how much work Zoya and the others have been doing, she didn’t think she’d be able to talk to any of them before she left, other than Genya who was set to start Tailoring her soon.
“Can’t a commander bring her subordinate a…snack?” Zoya replies, ignoring the obvious expression of disbelief on Nina’s face.
“You don’t strike me as the snacking type,” Nina says, taking another bite of waffle. She studies Zoya, the way she’s looking at Nina’s research–all the books about Fjerda and Djel and intelligence reports from operatives already in Fjerda. “You’re worried about me.”
“Of course not,” Zoya says without hesitation, her gaze lifting from the papers to meet Nina’s eyes. If Nina was a weaker person she would probably shy away from a glower like that, but she’d spent months handling similar looks from Kaz.
“You don’t have to worry about me,” she says blithely. “I might not be a Heartrender anymore but I can certainly still take care of myself.”
Zoya shrugs a shoulder. “That wasn’t in question.”
Nina decides not press the topic, focusing on eating another waffle. They’re not quite up to Ketterdam standard but Nina isn’t about to say that to Zoya. Waffles would end up getting banned from Os Alta.
Finishing the last waffle on the plate, Nina licks her fingertips, then settles back in her chair. “Thanks. Even though this was weird.”
“Don’t thank me, just…” Zoya shifts uncomfortably in her seat. It’s the first time Nina thinks she’s ever seen Zoya look like that. “Do better than I did.”
Nina blinks in surprise at the admittance that Zoya has ever done something less than perfectly. This is all even more confounding than the waffles. Then it all clicks. The way Zoya keeps looking at the information on Fjerda. Bringing her waffles. The uncharacteristic guilt. Zoya blames herself for Nina getting caught by the drüskelle in the Wandering Isle.
Nina opens her mouth to speak. Then for once in her life she closes it without saying a word.
There’s a brief silence, then Zoya stands up, smoothing out the already unwrinkled lines of her kefta.
“I’ll leave you to your research,” she says, like the last five minutes hadn’t even happened.
Happy to pretend the same, Nina replies, “It’s mostly just a review. I’m already something of an expert.”
Zoya leaves, and the smile fades from Nina’s face. She looks at the empty plate that held the waffles, a memory surfacing, unbidden, of the first time she made Matthias try waffles. Everyone’s been treating her with kid gloves since she returned to Ravka. She doesn’t know what she’d do if Zoya did too.
Fandom: Grishaverse (Nikolai Series & Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo)
Characters: Nina Zenik & Zoya Nazyalensky
Rating: General Audiences
Word Count: 629
Additional Tags: Missing Scene, Comfort Food
Challenge: Written for
no_true_pair's 2023 Eight-Character ChallengePrompt: September Three - Zoya & Nina with the title "Pay It Forward"
Summary: Zoya brings Nina waffles. Nina wonders what's wrong with Zoya.
Notes: Set between the end of Crooked Kingdom and the beginning of King of Scars, before Nina goes to Fjerda.
Read on AO3.
A plate of waffles appears on the table in front of Nina. Normally Nina wouldn’t complain about this, but considering she’s in a library in Ravka, it’s somewhat unexpected. Looking up, she’s even more surprised to see her mysterious waffle-bringer is none other than Zoya Nazyalensky.
“Have I done something…” Nina trails off, unsure whether to finish that sentence with a ‘good’ or not. “Or are you going to eat those while I watch, as some sort of cruel and unusual punishment?”
Zoya scoffs and sits down in an empty chair, pushing the plate closer to Nina. “They’re for you.”
Still skeptical but not willing to pass up an opportunity for waffles when she gets one, Nina sets aside the book she’d been flipping through and picks up a waffle instead, tearing a piece off with her teeth.
“To what do I owe the honor?” she asks after she’s finished chewing. She hasn’t spoken with Zoya for a few days, both of them extra busy ever since Nina got the assignment that will take her undercover into Fjerda in a few weeks’ time. Given how much work Zoya and the others have been doing, she didn’t think she’d be able to talk to any of them before she left, other than Genya who was set to start Tailoring her soon.
“Can’t a commander bring her subordinate a…snack?” Zoya replies, ignoring the obvious expression of disbelief on Nina’s face.
“You don’t strike me as the snacking type,” Nina says, taking another bite of waffle. She studies Zoya, the way she’s looking at Nina’s research–all the books about Fjerda and Djel and intelligence reports from operatives already in Fjerda. “You’re worried about me.”
“Of course not,” Zoya says without hesitation, her gaze lifting from the papers to meet Nina’s eyes. If Nina was a weaker person she would probably shy away from a glower like that, but she’d spent months handling similar looks from Kaz.
“You don’t have to worry about me,” she says blithely. “I might not be a Heartrender anymore but I can certainly still take care of myself.”
Zoya shrugs a shoulder. “That wasn’t in question.”
Nina decides not press the topic, focusing on eating another waffle. They’re not quite up to Ketterdam standard but Nina isn’t about to say that to Zoya. Waffles would end up getting banned from Os Alta.
Finishing the last waffle on the plate, Nina licks her fingertips, then settles back in her chair. “Thanks. Even though this was weird.”
“Don’t thank me, just…” Zoya shifts uncomfortably in her seat. It’s the first time Nina thinks she’s ever seen Zoya look like that. “Do better than I did.”
Nina blinks in surprise at the admittance that Zoya has ever done something less than perfectly. This is all even more confounding than the waffles. Then it all clicks. The way Zoya keeps looking at the information on Fjerda. Bringing her waffles. The uncharacteristic guilt. Zoya blames herself for Nina getting caught by the drüskelle in the Wandering Isle.
Nina opens her mouth to speak. Then for once in her life she closes it without saying a word.
There’s a brief silence, then Zoya stands up, smoothing out the already unwrinkled lines of her kefta.
“I’ll leave you to your research,” she says, like the last five minutes hadn’t even happened.
Happy to pretend the same, Nina replies, “It’s mostly just a review. I’m already something of an expert.”
Zoya leaves, and the smile fades from Nina’s face. She looks at the empty plate that held the waffles, a memory surfacing, unbidden, of the first time she made Matthias try waffles. Everyone’s been treating her with kid gloves since she returned to Ravka. She doesn’t know what she’d do if Zoya did too.
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