A/N:

Hey All! So if you're like me than you are totally obsessed with The Last of Us. You've played through it a million times and cry harder and harder every time you play it. This is probably my favorite video game of all time and I've had the idea for this story for a while now. It is a family/friendship/romance story with NO JOELxELLIE WHATSOEVER. It is eventually going to be a JoelxOC story with possible ElliexOC but I haven't decided yet. It picks up right where the game left off and will take off from there. It will basically follow Joel and Ellie's transition from living in a place that is as close to what the world used to be before the outbreak rather than living in a quarantine zone or as a hunter. So let's begin the journey shall we!

Disclaimer: Everyting from The Last of Us belongs to Naughty Dog. I only own my OCs and original ideas

OOOOO

SPRING

"Okay."

But Ellie knew. She knew that Joel was lying to her. Her whole life she's been able to tell when people were being honest with her or hiding the truth and Joel was most definitely hiding the truth. She didn't know what the truth about the Fireflies was and maybe she'd never get to know, but what Joel told her wasn't it. She was in a hospital gown, she was under anesthesia, and then she was in the back of a car leaving Salt Lake City. The only thing she remembered prior to waking up in the car was drowning in the tunnel. That was the only vivid memory she had at least. There were several images of blurry ceiling and muttered chatter around her in the hospital but she was so tired she just kept falling back into a deep slumber. What happened while she was asleep? Were there others like her? Did the Fireflies really stop looking for a cure? She didn't believe the last part. The Fireflies wanted to reclaim the world again more than anyone, especially Marlene. They wouldn't just give up. Would they?

"Come on." Joel said as he began to turn towards the settlement. "We better get on with it."

Ellie began walking again and then realized during this entire journey, she was willing to do anything to help find a cure because she had nothing to lose. Even if she didn't make the trip, at least she would have died trying. She never had any parents around and her best friend died meaning there'd be no one around to miss her if she never came back. If she had nothing to lose, she wanted to give anything she could to feel some sort of peace for not dying when she should have. She didn't lose her mind with Riley, she didn't lose her mind like Tess refused to and Sam did by concealing his bite… the guilt of those deaths consumed her. Although Henry wasn't bitten, he killed himself because his brother was, making some guilt sit on Ellie's shoulders. All that death plus the millions more who died and experienced loss due to the Cordyceps outbreak because there was no cure. Ellie would have done anything for that cure because she had nothing to lose and no one to miss her.

Until now.

Now she had someone she cared about and cared for her. For the first time, in a long time, she had something-someone-to live for.

Even though Joel lied to her about whatever what went down with the Fireflies back in Salt Lake City, she was able to put it in the back of her mind. He was her reason to live. He was her reason to fight. Whether it's two minutes or two days…we don't give that up.

Riley's words echoed in Ellie's brain and she let out a sad breath as she walked. She may not ever forgive Joel for taking away Ellie's possibility to find peace, she knew she could it behind them now. They were only a few yards away from a new beginning. A new life. A new home.

"Stop right there." an unfamiliar voice sounded from behind.

Ellie and Joel both stopped in their tracks. All Ellie could think was "Are you kidding me?" They were about to break through the tree line to where the gates to the settlement were and now they were being held up. They just could not catch a break.

"Put your hands up and turn around slowly." the voice commanded.

Ellie and Joel both obeyed the orders and turned around, their hands in the air. When they turned, they came face to face with a woman holding a shotgun. The woman looked to be in her early to mid-forties based on the lines that accented her face and graying of her brown hair. She was dressed in blue jeans with a knife strapped to hip and a misbuttoned dirty white button up. Since she was standing with her body facing them, Ellie was able to see she had a what most would describe as an average body. She wasn't thin like the girl on the poster back in Pittsburg but she wasn't overweight either. (Like Bill) She was an average height, probably around the five seven, five eight ballpark.

When both Joel and Ellie had turned around, the woman lowered her gun a tad as her eyes landed on Joel. Both he and Ellie noticed this. It was as if this woman knew who Joel was when the look of recognition spread across her face. Only Joel has never seen this woman before in his life.

"Are you Tommy's brother?" the woman questioned.

"Yes." Joel answered. "How'd you know?"

The woman lowered her gun completely, allowing Ellie and Joel to lower their hands. "He has a few photos of you and him in him and Maria's living room." the woman explained as she took a few steps closer to them. "Sorry about that. There were some bandits lurking around here about two weeks ago and the place is still a bit cautious."

The woman stopped when she was only a couple of feet from where Joel and Ellie stood. "I'm Sadie. Sadie Hickman. And I am going to assume that you are here to join our settlement here in the wonderful Jackson County, Wyomming."

"That assumption would be correct, ma'am." Joel replied.

Sadie rested her shotgun on her shoulder. "Well then you two can follow me. I'm on my way back in anyhow."

Sadie led the duo to the gate which stood tall with two patrol towers on either side of the doors. "Who's that with you Sadie?" a voice called out from the left one.

"It's Tommy's brother, Joel. You'd think I'd just bring anyone in here, Josh?" Sadie responded. "Now open the door, Marty!"

Marty opened the gate from the inside and let them through. Sadie led Joel and Ellie through the gates, Marty closing the gate behind them. Marty looked to be in his mid-thirties and had his black hair cut in a buzz cut. He was pretty buff and looked like he could handle himself pretty well, probably why he was a patrol. Young and fit.

"Thanks, man." Sadie said.

"No problem." Marty replied before looking at Joel and Ellie.

Ellie stuck close to Joel now that she was getting surrounded by more and more unfamiliar people. She looked around and just from what she saw right at the entrance of the settlement she was shocked. There were houses all around with small gardens in the front and back of them all growing some sort of food. She could see a few homes with pens full of chickens and others with a couple of goats chewing on some grass. Ellie remembered Maria talking about the livestock the settlement had and smiled. This place really was all she had said. The growing food, the livestock, the homes…it seemed so normal and abnormal at the same time. Normal in the sense that there were no soldiers patrolling the streets all but harassing people and the awful stench of the city floating in the air. Abnormal in the sense that that Ellie had never lived in a place like this. Normal used to be a military boarding school in Boston. Not anymore.

"Where's Tommy?" Joel asked Sadie as she led them away from the gate and deeper into the settlement. "He around?"

"He and Maria are actually back at the dam." Sadie informed him. "We have men there at all times that work in shifts and apparently one of them finally cleaned up the one turbine and may be on the way to get it working. Another turbine means more electricity and power for this place."

"Any idea of when they'll be back?"

"They left the day before yesterday and I doubt they'll be gone longer than another day or two. I can take you to the plant tomorrow if you'd like though. I understand if you're anxious to see your brother again."

Joel shook his head. "No that's quite alright. If he'll only be a day or two I can wait."

"Well alright."

Sadie led the two to a house a short walk from the gate. It was two floors from what Joel could tell with a small garden in front of it. There were steps that led up to a porch with two chairs and a table between them. "You probably already took notice, but every house has a garden in the front and back that grows crops. Some places have livestock, but most of the livestock is taken care of on the other side of the settlement by a couple of residents who farmed before the world went downhill." Sadie explained to them before turning to face them. "This is your house. We have a few vacant houses set aside for people, but Tommy set this one aside just for you two. Two bedrooms, one bathroom, a living room, and a kitchen."

"Are you and Tommy friends?" Joel asked Sadie as she led them up the porch steps.

"Close ones. So I know about your visit this past fall. Sad to see there's no cure for humanity."

Ellie glanced at Joel as his lie to her returned to the front of her head. She wanted to see his reaction to Sadie's statement. "It is a shame." he was all he said as they followed Sadie into the house. . When they entered the house, all the thoughts about Joel, his lie, and the Fireflies left her mind as she took in the home. There was a hallway that led down to what Ellie guessed was the kitchen, but there was an empty doorway directly to the right that led to the living room. She walked into it and looked around. The living room was fully furnished with a couch, recliner, coffee table, a shelf full of VCR tapes and small TV. There was another empty doorway on the other side of the room that led into the kitchen so when you were in the living room, you could still see the kitchen. All the furniture was facing the opposite direction as the entrance Ellie came in and faced the TV.

"We don't have cable, but we do have tape players. Tommy had all your favorite movies stocked in here a while back." Sadie told Joel as she gravitated towards the kitchen. "There are a few sets of clean clothes if both bedrooms and the kitchen has a week's worth of food in it. We have a type of ration system where we give each home enough food that will support the family for a week. Then at the end of the week, there's a food pick up at the settlement hall."

Ellie looked around the living room and set her backpack down on the couch. She hadn't even seen the rest of the house, but she loved it already. It felt like home.

Joel wandered into the kitchen and looked around. There was a sink on the far side of the room, a small fridge of to the left and the oven/stove to the right. There was a counter in the middle of room with cabinets and drawers where Joel guessed the dishes were stored. Finally, there was a small window above the sink that allowed you to see the backyard.

"This is quite the set up." Joel commented as he looked around the kitchen.

"It is ain't it?" Sadie responded as he looked back at Ellie who was looking at their movie collection.

"Other than the homes, we have the settlement hall where we give out the food and have the occasional town dinner where we have also have music and dancing. They normally happen once a month or so. There's also an infirmary which is three doors down from here. We're lucky to have not one but two doctors living in town. We have an armory, but only certain people have access to it. Other than that…that's pretty much it." Sadie told Joel and Ellie. "I'd offer to take you on a tour, but you two look like you could use some time to clean up and rest."

Joel stopped wandering around the kitchen and looked at Sadie. She was standing in the doorway between the kitchen and living room. "Any questions?" she asked.

"Not at the moment. Still kind of speechless from the whole set up here."

Sadie laughed a small laugh. "Understandable. I can stop by tomorrow morning and take you on the grand tour and answer any questions you might muster up tonight."

"Sounds like a plan." Joel told her as he held out a hand. Sadie smiled and shook it. "Then I will see you two in the morning."

She let go of his hand and headed to the door, but stopped when she reached for the doorknob. "Oh and if there's anything wrong with anything, I live on the far side of the settlement." she told them.

"Thank you." Joel said as he joined Ellie in the living room.

Sadie simply nodded before leaving the house. Once she closed the door, Joel turned towards Ellie. "So whadda you think, kiddo?" he asked.

Ellie looked around the room again and smiled before looking back at Joel. "I think we'll be happy here."

Joel smiled. "Well let's go check out the upstairs, yeah?"

"Yeah."

The upstairs was only the two bedrooms and the bathroom with a tiny hallway leading to them. Ellie poked her head in the first door to the left and knew it was the bedroom intended for her based on the bed's dark purple comforter with black floral print. "Safe to say this one is mine." Ellie told Joel as she stepped into it. Besides the bed, there was a small desk on the far side of the room with a small window above it. There was a small stack of books on top of it along with a couple of notebooks as well. There was a bedside table with a lamp on it, a closet on the right wall and that was it. Small, simple, and just enough. Ellie sat on the bed and felt let her hands rub the comforter for a moment, feeling its softness. She smiled to herself.

Joel's room was a tad bigger with a dark green comforter on the large bed and a book shelf against the wall opposite to the bed. Joel could already see some of his favorite books on it. There was a desk with a stack of maps and pens and pencils in separate cups. He also had a dresser rather than a closet like Ellie had in hers. He walked over to it and opened the drawers, finding some jeans, t-shirts, a few button ups, clothes to sleep in, and a handful of socks and underwear. There were also two pairs of boots sitting next to the dresser on the floor. He made a mental note to ask Sadie about the deal with laundry tomorrow. Joel set his backpack down against the dresser and that's when he noticed it. A guitar sitting in the corner. He walked over to it and picked it up, strumming it twice and smiling. He set it down again and remembered he told Ellie he'd teach her to play. He set his backpack on the floor and went over to the bed, sitting down on it and then laying back. He smiled to himself.

OOOOO

That night Joel and Ellie had the luxury of taking a shower, Ellie letting Joel go first so he could make dinner for the both of them and it be done when Ellie got out from her shower. The hot water felt so good against Joel's skin. It seemed like it's been age since he had a proper washing, let alone one with soap and hot water. He didn't take long and was in and out of the shower within five minutes. He brushed his teeth at the sink and then his eyes fell on the razor and shaving cream inside the medicine cabinet. After a moment of internal debate, he grabbed them both and got to work. Within ten minutes, his beard was gone. Once he was done in the bathroom he went to his room and got changed into a pair of black sweatpants and a dark red long sleeved shirt before heading downstairs. By then the water was starting up again upstairs signaling Ellie got in the shower.

Ellie came downstairs just as Joel was pulling out plates and silverware. She was in a pair of purple and white sleep pants and a black long sleeved shirt, her wet hair down for once rather than in a ponytail so it could dry.

"Holy shit Joel." she said when she noticed his clean shaved face. "You shaved."

Joel chuckled as he scooped some noodles onto a plate for Ellie. There was pasta and alfredo sauce in the pantry so that's what he made as their first meal in their new home. "Sure did. Been meaning too."

Joel slid Ellie her plate and told her to pick out a movie for them to watch while they ate and get it set up. She smiled. "You got it." she said and took her plate before going into the living room. She set her plate of food down and went over to the shelf of movies. There was a bunch and didn't know where to start. Rather than overthink it she closed her eyes, waved her hands around, and the stuck her finger on a random one. They'd be watching Gran Torino with Clint Eastwood. She pulled it out and set it up in the TV just as Joel sat down on the couch with his plate.

"What did you pick out, kiddo?" he asked.

"Gran Torino." Ellie told him as she saw down and grabbed her plate.

"Ah great movie. With one of Hollywood's most notable actors."

The two ate and watched the movie and within thirty minutes Ellie was Clint Eastwood's newest fan even though he was long gone. So when the movie ended with his character's death, she went nuts. "He was the main character!" she exclaimed. "How could they kill him?"

Joel just chuckled at the girl's reaction. "That's Hollywood, kiddo."

"Holly what?"

Joel laughed again. "Come on. You can continue the rant while you help me clean up dinner."

Ellie and Joel cleaned up the kitchen from dinner and Ellie continued to go on about the movie's ending. I mean the guy reading the will was funny and all, but the main character! How?!"

Joel didn't say anything and just smiled.

Once the kitchen was cleaned the sun had been down for a while and both of them were exhausted. They turned off the lights and TV before heading upstairs. Ellie walked into her room and Joel went into his. "Night Joel." Ellie said when she realized this would be the first time she and Joel would be in different rooms to sleep in for the first time since they began their journey almost a year ago.

"Night Ellie." Joel replied as he walked into his room. He turned and looked at her for a moment before closing the door. Ellie closed hers as well.

"The main character!" she said aloud to herself, but Joel heard her and laughed.

This place…he had a good feeling about it.