Work Text:
It was evening. Aleksandra Zaryanova was relaxing on the comfortably beaten-up couch, satisfied after a long day of triumphant fighting. She turned the page of her magazine just as an anxious round figure bounced into the room.
“Zarya, have you seen anything that might be an important part of a weather modification drone?”
Aleksandra stared blankly at Mei-Ling Zhou. While the Siberian bodybuilder tended to play up her accent for comedy, she did still have trouble with English. Mei’s accent didn’t help, and neither did the fact that the climatologist was distressingly adorable.
“Sorry, friend. If it is not under this couch, I doubt I can help you find it.”
Mei glanced at the couch. “Maybe it is under there, I haven’t checked.” She walked quickly over to Zarya’s spot and ducked her head down.
“Mei, if you wish I could lift this sofa for you?”
“Don’t worry about it… Ah-ha!”
Zarya felt the couch shift as Mei moved to retrieve the part. The bodybuilder moved to get up, afraid that her tiny friend would get hurt, but before she knew it the couch was back on the ground. Mei stood back up, clutching her computer part and beaming with triumph.
“Thank you Zarya!”
As the climatologist bounded off to her corner, Zarya was staring open-mouthed.
…
“Mei, did you perhaps do a lot of exercising during your time in the Watchpoint?”
“What? Oh, yes. It helps to keep the cold out, right?”
“I know this. What did you do?”
“Mostly cardio, although we would sometimes use crates as weight-lifts. I got pretty good at it.”
“How good?”
“I don’t know. Why?”
“Oh, no reason. Whoops I appear to have tripped would you be so kind as to catch me?”
Mei spun around and grabbed Zayla in the middle of the Siberian woman’s exaggerated slow-motion fall.
“Interesting. You know, it is not usual that someone can lift me.”
“Zayla, is there a point to all this?”
“Not particularly. But sometimes it is nice to be held, especially by a beautiful woman.”
Mei’s face went distress-beacon red as Zayla gracefully extricated herself from the climatologist’s arms. Her face stayed that way as the Siberian bodybuilder strutted out of the room, humming a cheerful tune. And that might have been the end of it, if she hadn’t then turned around and given Mei a huge wink, a massive grin, and mouthed something that might have been "Together, we are strong."