Omake Week 2020, Day 3: I couldn't let an Omake Week pass by without Alys and Joss making an appearance. Joss really should have seen this one coming after their very first encounter...
~X X X~
No person, Alys Brangwin reflected, was without their weaknesses, and Motavia's most celebrated hunter was no exception. When she returned to the taproom at the Hunter's Guild bar after answering a call of nature (itself a reminder that no one was above biological limits), she saw Joss Howland waiting at the bar next to her drink. She could have simply turned around and left, but that would have meant abandoning a perfectly good beverage whose price in meseta Garn had already added to her tab.
And given the choice between comfort and money, Alys would take the cash every time.
Weaknesses.
"Good ambush strategy, Joss," she said, slipping up from the side he wasn't watching and grabbing her mug, then using his moment of spluttering surprise to fortify herself with a healthy swig.
Her typical reaction to an encounter with Joss was, "I could really use a drink," after all, so this was just making the process more efficient!
"Yo, Alys, babe!"
As a hunter, Joss's best trait was his perseverance. His ox-like frame gave him considerable stamina, and he had the willpower to keep on going even through pain and hardship. Unfortunately for Alys, he pursued his crush on her with the same relentless dedication, no matter the number of rejections or the amount of the medical bills.
"Waiting for me, were you?"
"Yup!" He beamed proudly at her. "Just finished a job; I've got a couple of thousand meseta and I figured that I could blow some of them on a night on the town for us both."
"No."
"Aw, c'mon, I'm talking about the real deal here. The best steaks at Marte's, a show afterwards, the works!"
Alys considered how long it would take Joss to run out of steam and decided to change her strategy.
"You know, I want to get back to my drink, so I'll tell you what, I'll flip you for it."
"Wha—? Really?"
"Really." She nodded. "Do you want heads or tails?"
"Uhhh…tails."
"All right."
She set down her drink, then reached out, grabbed him by the front of his shirt, and flipped him in a perfect hip throw. His head made a dull clunk when it hit Garn's fancy hardwood floor.
"He should have called heads," Garn noted, setting a refill down for Alys.
Alys shrugged.
"At least this way he can sleep off his bad luck."
