This chapter is really about relationship development especially between Joel and Lara. ENjoy!
Lara, Joel and Ellie traveled to the university together riding on the deserted highways. When night would fall they would get off the highway and find some place more concealed to sleep. Lara and Joel would take shifts watching to make sure they weren't attacked by bandits or infected. Food was always scarce, as there were no animals to kill on the highways, so when they stopped off near a woodsy area, Lara saw it as a chance to hunt. The food would be reward enough for her, but if she got some food it might increase er favor with Joel. Even after being with them for days Lara could tell Joel wasn't sure whether he could trust her or not. "I'm going to go search through the area a bit, see if I can find something." she told them.
"Don't get lost out there." Joel said.
The woods here were like they were everywhere else, overgrown with large plants, and a green that was so vibrant it appeared fake. Lara had her bow equipped and was silently stalking through the trees looking for prey. She saw a squirrel sitting by the base of a tree trunk, gnawing at an acorn. Lara readied her bow, aimed and fired, taking it out without a sound. As she approached to retrieve the squirrel and her arrow, she heard a stick crack behind her. She spun around with her bow drawn, looking for the source of the noise. Elie was behind her, still crouched in her attempt to be stealthy. "Heh hey there!" she said.
Lara lowered her bow, "How long were you following me?"
"A little while, I was able to follow your footprints in the dirt."
Lara was impressed with this young girl. "Wow. I didn't even hear you at all."
Ellie's face lit up with a grin. "I know. I'm pretty good at being quiet. I wanted to watch you hunt and use that thing." she pointed to the bow.
"Have you ever used one before?"
"Well once or twice in the quarantine zone. One of the soldiers was nice to me and showed me how, but I haven't used one in ages."
"Want to try it?" Lara handed the bow out to Ellie.
Ellie took the bow in her hands and felt the wood carvings along it. She took an arrow from Lara and notched it in the bowstring, pulling it back to get a feel for the bow. "Can I shoot something with it?"
"Yeah, see if you can find something a little bit bigger than this squirrel." Lara said.
Together, Ellie and Lara crept through the forest, searching for more animals. Suddenly Lara put her arm in front of Ellie, holding her back. "Look over there." she whispered.
Lara pointed to a deer that was about 40 feet away from them. The deer was small, no more than 70 pounds at most. "Okay, breathe slowly and focus on the target." Lara said.
Ellie raised the bow, breathing in and out slowly, she pulled the arrow back, held it for a moment, then released, sending the arrow straight into the deer's upper chest. The animal went crashing down into the earth, flailing wildly on the ground, Lara and Ellie went to it quickly before it could rise, Ellie pulled back another arrow and shot the dying animal once more, putting it out of its pain. "Ellie that was incredible! This is gonna be more food than we can carry!"
Ellie released a long breath and smiled. Both girls carried the carcass back to where Joel had set up camp for the evening. "Holy shit. Who brought this thing down?"
"Ellie did it." Lara said, exhaling as she and Ellie lowered the beast to the ground.
"It was so cool Joel! I thought that I wouldn't be able to do it, but then Lara helped me out and told me to focus and stuff and it was awesome!"
Lara sat on the ground, resting for a moment before she would have to skin the animal and cut the meat from it. Carrying it back had proved very tiring. "I'll cut it up in a second. I just need to breathe."
"Don't worry. I can take care of it for ya." Joel said.
Joel prepared the animal, cooked it, and wrapped up what remained once they were done eating. He used pieces of cloth which he'd found to wrap it, it wouldn't stay fresh for long.
That night Joel offered to take first watch. Lara was exhausted, but found she couldn't sleep. Ellie was asleep the second she shut her eyes, and it was only Joel and Lara who were awake now, their faces lit by their small fire. "If you want to sleep I can take the first watch Joel. I can't fall asleep right now even if I tried."
"Hey, I just wanted to say that I'm sorry i didn't trust ya before. But with that girl and everything going on... I don't need anything to happen to her. She's important." Joel said.
"I understand. This world is full of people who want to hurt others. I understand why you were so apprehensive about me."
"Well not anymore. Now we're all together in this. We're gonna get to the fireflies, and then... Well I don't really know what then. I guess we'll just go our separate ways, seein' as you'll be joining them."
"Yes. I suppose so..."
"I think you should try and get some sleep, you look like you can barely keep your eyes open." Joel said.
Lara yawned, "I think you're right."
Her sleepiness finally was getting to her, and she needed to rest. She shut her eyes and drifted off.
