FFF-I have never hated school so much before! This is the first time I've been able to SIT DOWN and type in two weeks. *went through computer withdrawal* but enough of my complaining. I watched the PAX PRIME gameplay for the last of us…and fangirled all over the floor. I own nothing
Joel was very aware how little Ellie knew about the world before the apocalypse; she had spent her time in a quarantine zone from birth to teens. She was never educated on how the world had its issues, but good people could still be found. All she knew was the abandoned emptiness and loneliness of what their few supervisors described. That's why he embraced her curiosity the best he could. He answered her questions the best of his abilities and felt a strange swell of emotion whenever her eyes lit up with purpose at his words. Her questions were never linked to on another, exposing her innocence that was hard to uncover.
'What's the difference between pop and rock?' Rock was good, pop had its moments.
'Why were there so many car companies?' Because all had something different.
'Was barbeque any good?' the best.
Always something random, always something only a child would be willing to learn. Her maturity and wisdom was useful for their situation, but those moments where she shows how much knowledge she lacked of how America was meant to be seen were when Joel felt a flicker of warmth in his stomach. Because it reminded him of something…something suppressed that he couldn't reach. He found these long forgotten emotions surfaced more and more often, his protectiveness of the teenager reaching something beyond a mere promise to a friend.
But those emotions were smeared away when danger came upon them, pulling up defenses and being ready for anything. Joel flinched as a bullet nearly skimmed his arm as he dove through a well-worn door and charged at a hunter, hesitation nonexistent when he drove his elbow in the unnamed man's nose and hijacked what little ammo he had. His heart never failed to race when he performed this sort of behavior, no matter how many times he heard the shouts of his opponents, adrenaline never dissipated until it was all over.
A fleeing figure caught the corner of his eye. He whipped around and pulled out his pistol, but the figure was gone. Joel snarled and gave chase in fear the figure was perusing Ellie. He caught it again jumping through a window. "There you are…" he growled, the pistol failing to be used as his target made away again. Frustration and the smallest hints of panic had him hurrying after through the same window, his prey nowhere in sight. He stayed alert, his eyes flitting through every corner, ears perking at every sound and muscles tense.
He was ready to attack. To defend. He walked into a hallway, ransacked suitcases and the same absolute sad looking-once brand new-hotel materials strewn across the moldy floor. His muscles tensed when the light thunk of a suit case being jostled. Joel turned around and this time, his opponent was right there-right for the taking. The twisted satisfaction in his gut was normal.
"I got you now asshole." He practically boasted, taking aim of the cautious man. He fired.
Blazing heat graced across his right side as the hunter chucked a Molotov at him, the curve of the throw saving him from direct contact. But Goddamnit it still burned! The man gave a sort war cry and charged as Joel hurriedly swiped away the alcohol induced flames. He shot once, got the man in the shoulder man him stumble to the floor, the flames licking at his boots and igniting his dirty pants.
Second shot. The bullet throws the man's skull into fragments, releasing brains and blood. He falls into a heap on the filthy carpet, a flame still dancing on his pant leg. The adrenaline slowly seeped out of middle aged joints, Joel hesitantly placing his revolver back into his belt. With a slightly breathless voice he called; "Ellie!" There was always those few seconds of barely audible dread when she didn't answer-those seconds where Joel felt compelled to search for her.
But of course she came back. He would hear her abused shoes softly pad against the carpet and there she would be; childish face and pocket knife in hand-completely unharmed.
"Im here…I'm here." She mumbled- her all seeing eyes catching the mutilated body still lightly burning on the floor. A flash of disgust and pity crossed her face, that upturned nose scrunching up as she covered her mouth and muttered a soft, "Oh… God." There it was; that flicker of innocence that always snapped Joel back into reality, back into himself and no longer the cold killer that had evolved over so long. He didn't want to realize how big of an effect the teenager had on him. He pursed his lips and with a curt nod said;
"C'mon." Without a word their shortcut through the hotel started again. They climbed through an elevator designed into a living space, climbing through the upper door into the shaft, the cables miraculously still holding the untouched machinery. He glanced at Ellie through the corner of his eyes as she slammed the shaft door closed, making the cables flex to the force. She stands there, her eyes on him in preparation for whatever his plan was. Never doubtful. The unintentional openness of the gaze had Joel tearing his wise eyes away, noticing the ajar entrance on the other side of the separation gate.
"Over there." He sucked in his fairly flat stomach and shuffled through an open space of the fence.
"S'gonna be a tight fit but…" he called to Ellie, showing it was alright to follow. He moved his feet side to side until he was in the middle of the slim edge, readying his feet for the short jump, the shock of his feet making the cables flex and give a strange 'twang' from the recoil. He stiffened as Ellie did the same thing, the 'twang' repeating itself under her less amount of weight as well. He pointed to Ellie as he crouched, the girl immediately moving over to him and setting her small foot into the palms of his hands.
"Now you find me somethin to climb on." She gave a quiet 'alright' and scrabble up, the assistance of Joel enabling her to make all the way. But there was that disturbing twang again. The entire elevator box dropping a few inches along with it. It was the only warning Joel had before the cables gave way completely, the male plummeting to the unknown abyss of the shaft. Before his weight seemed to fall from underneath him, he caught Ellies' horrified gaze. For a split second, the only thing strumming through his body was dread.
"OOH SHI-" he never got to finish the sentence when his arm slammed into the elevator that had been lost under his feet a moment ago, pain shooting up from elbow to shoulder. Then ice cold water was engulfing him. Oh God! The teeth chattering liquid made his muscles and nerves absolutely lock in one mass of shock. He clutched onto his throbbing arm and vigorously kicked his legs to the surface, taking in a lungful of air.
"Joel? Joel!" Ellies' panicked voice reached his water clogged ears. Blowing water out form between his lips. He hurriedly turned on his flashlight and gave a few weak strokes through the water.
"I'm alright!" He answered, feeling a heavy pit in his stomach when he noticed how far up she was. "Are you ok?" he added on, paddling a bit through the bitter cold water.
"No! You scared the shit out of me!" ok, no physical damage. That was a good sign. He clenched his teeth and forced himself to move a bit faster through the icy water.
"I-I'm gonna climb down there-"Ellie assured, moving to begin the careful scale down until Joel's startlingly distraught outburst stopped her.
"No! Just stay there. I'll come up to you." to emphasize his point, he began moving a little harder-His flashlight illuminating the way through all the rubbish and destroyed metal. There was a moment of silence before Ellie gave him a curt, but shaken answer.
"Don't do anything stupid." For some reason, those words made Joel's chest constrict in a way that had nothing to do with temperature shock. He glanced at Ellies' tiny figure, and then back at the way he had chosen to get out.
"…I'll try." And for once, he meant it.
FUCK YES, GOT SOMETHING DONE! I'll try to get an update on Sully's secret soon, but I got the Last of Us bug and that's be there for bit. Bye!