Mendacious

Summary: She knew he was lying.

Authors Note: Spoken dialog does not belong to me, it rightfully belongs to Naughty Dog.

Mendacious

Adj: Not telling the truth; lying.

"Swear to me."

"… I swear."

She knew he was lying the moment he told her about the events of what had happened with the Fireflies. She may have been unconscious for the whole ordeal, but she was no fool.

"Turns out there's a whole lot more like you, Ellie. People who are immune… There's dozens actually."

But was there really? She wasn't so sure.

"They've actually st- They've stopped looking for a cure… I'm sorry."

"Have they only stopped looking because you left them no other option?" She thought to herself, as she sat in the backseat of the truck quietly. She wasn't sure what exactly had happened while she was out cold. Joel wouldn't say. However she knew the Fireflies would not have given her up without a fight.

That was the ONE thing she was sure of: a most likely vicious fight had taken place while she was unconscious. With Joel; there was no other possible solution. From what she could guess, he had most likely fought with the Fireflies in a deadly battle that had probably left many dead in the afterglow.

How many had he killed? Were there even any still alive? What happened to Marlene?

They were questions that would have to remain unanswered, as she knew full well that Joel would not tell her, much less admit to his actions, she only knew that they were severe if he was directly lying to her about them. Ellie doubted that she would ever know the details of what had happened at that hospital.

"Well, I guess we're walking."

They were back in Jacksonville, the truck that Joel had "found" had broken down, pushed far past its limits in its old and rusted age. Thankfully, Tommy's settlement wasn't far away, making the walk there blissfully short.

The whole walk back to the settlement, Ellie could only stare at the discolored, ugly scar on her forearm, Joel's voice becoming white noise in the background. It was a painful reminder of what she was, how special she was, how important she was to finding a cure for the disease that had ravaged the world before she was born.

It also served as a reminder of all the people she had lost along the way, and who had died, trying to get her to the lab in Salt Lake City. First Riley, then Tess, Henry… Sam… Ellie shook her head violently, the corners of her vision blurring. She stared at the back of Joel's head, as he jumped up on a fallen log to hoist himself up on the cliff face overlooking the settlement.

"Why won't you tell me?" She asked him silently, as he reached back down to help her up. "What did you do Joel? Why won't you telling me the truth? Have they really stopped searching for a cure? I doubt Marlene hast given up. Or have they given up because you left them no other alternative?"

Joel hoisted her up on to the cliff top beside him and began to head down the slope to the settlement in the distance. "Hey." Ellie paused, uncertain, as Joel turned around to face her, slight confusion etched on his face. "Listen," she tried again. If she was going to find out the truth about what had happened at the hospital, it would have to be now or never. Ellie knew he would never come out and say it directly, but maybe, just maybe, if she was honest with him, he would be honest with her in turn. She took a deep breath and began.

"Back in Boston... Back when I was bitten... I wasn't alone. My best friend was there. And she got bit too."

Ellie paused. Joel was looking at her with mixed emotions crossing over his features; she had never told him the full story, only briefly alluded to it here and there. Maybe she would make him understand this way.

"We didn't know what to do. So... She says... "Let's just wait it out. Y'know, we can be all poetic and just lose our minds together."

Her bitten arm almost seemed to ripple with pain as the thought of the memory tore through her.

"I'm still waiting for my turn." She finished after a pause.

"Ellie…"

Joel moved toward her, concern evident on his face, but Ellie kept going, interrupting the older man from finishing.

"Her name was Riley and she was the first to die. And then it was Tess... And then Sam."

Pain was tearing though her forearm as she remembered the people who had sacrificed themselves or died on her journey across the ruins of America with Joel. Her chest ached, and she wished again that they were still with them, to prove that the entire journey that she and Joel had endured wasn't for nothing. The guilt she constantly felt associated with them was flaring up again, only a thousand times worse.

"None of that is on you."

Joel quietly told her, though it was apparent that he felt the same pain as her when she listed off the names again, especially Tess's.

"No, you don't understand."

Ellie tried again, only to be cut off by the older male, as he began speaking in his low, southern Texan drawl, absentmindedly toying with his broken watch the whole time.

"I struggled for a long time with survivin'. And you— ..No matter what... you keep finding something to fight for. Now, I know that's not what you want to hear right now, but it's—"

"Swear to me."

The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them. More followed soon after the statement.

"Swear to me that everything you said about the Fireflies is true."

She watched him as he paused, never once looking away from her, or breaking her gaze. She inwardly saw the turmoil that was going through him, though he hid it well.

He was silent for a moment more, before his gaze hardened, and he stood with more certainty before her, as he looked her in the eyes and responded:

"I swear."

Ellie hesitated. She took a step back and looked down at her feet. He would never tell her. He would never tell her what had happened to the Fireflies, the medical team, or what had happened to Marlene. But despite everything, she knew she wouldn't leave him. He was the father she never had, and she cared too much about him to just leave. They had both suffered enough. She would follow him… even if her trust in him was broken.

He lied.

Finally, after a long pause, Ellie looked up at Joel, nodded her head, and with all the hesitation in the world, she met his gaze and said quietly,

"Okay."

She knew he was lying.