Author's Note: Hey guys. So - finished 'The Last Of Us' the other day - and basically, it blew my freaking mind. I loved it. And the game inspired me to write. Now, there were a lot of stand-out moments for me in the game, but the scene between Ellie and David in the restaurant really stuck with me - like, it was so disturbing and raw…and real, I guess. You have infected walking around everywhere, but here Ellie - a young girl - is tormented and stalked by another human being and is very almost killed by him. Pheew. It just made an impact on me. So, I wanted to write the scene.

I guess people have different opinions on the David character. As with everything in 'The Last Of Us' nothing is plainly black and white, it's all grey and I think that is also true with David. He's a survivor and I don't think that he's an entirely evil guy - I don't think that anyone in 'The Last Of Us' is "evil" - it's not that straight-forward - but clearly he has some issues and clearly he's a little disturbed (and yes, perhaps he might like little girls. I'm still not sure) And it seems that what he does to Ellie he's done to others, as she is described as 'his newest pet.' I'm still not entirely sure what David was exactly planning for Ellie once he'd pinned her down…I don't know if he just wanted to kill her or more, but either way that scene was creepy and David had far too much interest in Ellie for my liking. So yeah, with that in mind, let's go. I've written this story in two parts - one from Ellie's POV and one from David's (which was an interesting writing challenge!) And I've tried to stick to the scene as faithfully as possible.

Disclaimer: Own nothing except my words.

David

Ellie stared up into the eyes of her tormentor and found them pitiless. Every fibre of her being screamed at her to buck or squirm - to fight for her life…but she was so very tired, and he was just too strong.

"You can try beggin'," he rasped, his breath close to her ear.

She fought down the waves of revulsion. "Fuck you," she spat, pleased with how fierce her voice sounded. No one would call Ellie a coward. If she was going to die, then it would be with some fucking dignity.

She felt him shift above her and drag her shoulder round so that she lay on her back. His face had darkened. He hadn't liked her talking back, or maybe he had - maybe the fight in her got him going. Ellie didn't know. She just wanted to be away from this place - away from David and all of his cannibal cronies. She didn't want to die. Ellie only wanted to be safe again with Joel. …Joel. Where was he now? Would he survive without her? Absently, Ellie wondered if he'd find her body before the damn fire took hold, or would he just stumble onto her charred remains? If he even got to her that was. …Would he search? How would he know where she even was?

Rough hands laced across her throat. David's face loomed above - crazed. Her vision fuzzed horribly. She felt sick.

"You think you know me? Huh?" David suddenly demanded, spittle flying from his lips.

Ellie didn't know him. Maybe if she did then this wouldn't be happening to her.

"Well, let me tell you somethin'," he continued.

Her breathing was coming in harsh gasps now, but David's hold only tightened, notching up like a noose, as he leaned into her. Ellie saw spots blur into her vision, her heart booming wildly in panic…but through the haze, her fingers found something - a handle. They closed around it.

"You have no idea what I'm capable of."

The words made Ellie's blood run cold. Instinct told her that they promised more than just death.

Ellie brought the machete up without hesitation, the point biting into David's left arm. He screamed horribly and rolled off of her. Ellie leapt onto him like a thing possessed, straddling his waist as he had hers but seconds before. The balance of power had suddenly shifted. She raised the blade - already slick with David's blood. His hands came up, futilely trying to shield himself, and he let out a strangled scream. His eyes flashed with terror and they pleaded with her to let him live, but Ellie was far removed from mercy. The fourteen-year-old - at an age where she should be discovering boys and fashion and the general trivialities of being teenager - had become an unstoppable killer in that moment.

The machete rose and fell as if it had a mind of its own - singing its song of gory death - and David's face soon became a bloody mush under the relentless slashing. His screams had been quickly cut off and all that could be heard against the backdrop of the steadily spreading fire was the sickening wet thud that resembled a butcher's cleaver hacking into the flesh and bone and gristle of a fresh carcass. Ellie didn't stop. She barely even noticed the streams of blood that covered her hands and splattered up her arms, as each downwards cut was punctuated by her thoughts.

Sick. Sick. Sick. Fuck. You. Sick. Fucking. Fuck.

She was going to make sure that he was dead - the bastard. The fucking sick bastard.

Through the red mist of her mind, Ellie became dimly aware that someone might be calling her name, but she dared not stop.

Arms suddenly grabbed her from behind and she struggled violently against them, dropping the machete as she did. Ellie fought to regain the weapon, but the arms around her were stronger and dragged her up, away from David's mangled corpse. She thrashed, possessed by a terrible need to escape. She would not go back.

"Don't fucking touch me! No!" she screamed.

"It's okay," said the voice. "It's me. It's me."

"It's me. Look. Look."

Hands steadied her head, and finally she understood. It was Joel who stared back at her - his eyes filled with tenderness and concern. "It's me," he said again.

She stared, breathing heavily. Joel had come for her.

"He tried to -"

Her words faltered. She couldn't finish them. The blood lust fell from Ellie like sheets of rain, and she collapsed forwards into Joel's waiting arms, exhausted.

"Oh, baby girl. It's okay. It's okay."

"Joel." Her voice was tiny and cracked with all the strain of the last few days. She had been so alone. Ellie, such a capable young woman, was but a child in Joel's arms - willing him to comfort her and protect her against the monsters that existed all around them.

"It's okay now," he soothed. Joel held her close and rocked back and forth, as Ellie sobbed against his chest. She cried for what she'd lost - for what she had become...and for what so easily could have been.

And with the building burning around them, the pair shared that one moment together, both knowing that their relationship had changed forever.