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"I can protect you."
Ellie shivered at the words, echoing through her mind like a gunshot. All she could think about was getting away. Getting up on Callus and patting him on the side with her feet until he galloped far, far away from that place. From those strange people.
She was frightened when that man had told her that he knew who she was. That he knew they were the ones who killed all those men - his men, back at the university. She thought he was going to kill her right there. Put one between her eyes, like she'd threatened just a few hours before… but for some reason unbeknownst to her, he let her go.
If it had been up to Buddy-boy, she'd be dead. And that would mean Joel was dead as well...
But it's fine now, Ellie tried to reassure herself, tightening her grip on Callus's reins until her fingers whitened. Everything's fine. I got the medicine. We're good.
She was still on edge even as she reached the clearing where their hideout resided. She hadn't looked around much throughout her journey home, mostly out of fear that those men were following her. But as she turned around to pull the garage door down, the coast seemed definitively clear.
Joel was still sleeping when she entered the room - well, sleeping was the kindest way of phrasing it. In actuality he was likely unconscious, passing in and out from the intense fever and infection coursing through his weakened body… but the antibiotics would help. She knew about as much about medicine as anyone her age did. So not much. But she was at least competent enough to fill up a syringe and shove it into Joel's torso, hoping that it would do whatever it was supposed to and fix him up.
Ellie talked to him even though by this point, she was pretty much positive he couldn't hear her. She liked to think maybe he just couldn't focus enough to listen, but the very presence of her voice comforted him. Motivated him, even. And it was better than keeping all those stupid thoughts to herself, anyways.
Alone. She felt alone, but she wasn't.
Joel looked dead, but he was alive.
"You're gonna make it," Ellie said out loud, cringing at the lack of confidence within her tone. She wasn't quite sure how much of that statement was for Joel. Somehow, it felt like the only person she was trying to convince was herself.
…
"Oh, fuck. They tracked me," Ellie murmured to herself, glancing over at Joel's still form. He was still deathly pale, his living condition only ascertainable by the muted rise and fall of his chest.
He wouldn't make it if she took him with her. He had to stay, had to rest, had to let the antibiotics do their job…
"I'm gonna draw them away from here," she said, swallowing the large lump in her throat as she gazed at the wide open terrority. There were probably dozens of men crawling around, looking for them, looking for her… It's okay. You got this. You can do it. "I'll come back for you."
Minutes later, Ellie was carefully lowering the garage door. She was mumbling to herself as usual whenever her nerves spiked, lowering the heavy steel silently to meet the floor. She let out a small breath of relief, moving to turn around and get up on Callus when she heard them.
"Put your hands up, kid." The voice was rather familiar, but she couldn't entirely trace it.
Ellie cursed underneath her breath, eyes still trained on the garage door. "And if I don't?"
"Just put your hands up and no one has to get hurt," it was the same voice as that man's from yesterday; she could remember it clearly now. "Do it now, kid, or else we're gonna have to put a bullet in you and whoever's that house."
If they kill me, they'll kill Joel, too. With an aggravated sigh, Ellie raised her arms in the air above her head. "There. Fucking happy now?"
Her blood boiled. She wanted to fight, but it wasn't safe with Joel so close… if they were going to kill her, wouldn't they have done it already? They must want… or need her for something.
"Not quite," the man, David, said with a chuckle. She could hear his footsteps approaching her. "I'm going to take off your backpack, and check to see if you have any other weapons on you."
Or maybe they would just loot her and then shoot her.
Ellie remained silent as he shrugged the backpack off her slim shoulders, hearing the audible thump as it fell to the ground. His large hands trailed down the sides of her body, disappearing once they discovered nothing unusual.
"Put your hands behind your back," David instructed. "I'm gonna have to restrain you 'til I can trust you."
Why would you trust me? Ellie thought to herself, noticeably hesitating before she obliged. She could feel the rope tugging against her skin, her shoulder blades bent into an uncomfortable position. "Ow," she complained.
Maybe this guy could be manipulated. He was rather blithe when giving her those antibiotics yesterday, after all. Maybe if Ellie just played nice for a bit, she could convince him to leave them alone...
David spun her around so she was now facing him, a peculiar smile upon his face. "Sorry, kid, but we can't be taking any chances with you. Not after that stunt at the university, and not after I saw you handle yourself yesterday."
Ellie scrunched up her face. She didn't like the way this guy talked to her. He was always patronizing in such an annoying way, but constantly took time away to praise her nonetheless.
David raised an eyebrow at Ellie's lack of response, then shifted his focus to his lackey off a few feet away, the one she called Buddy-boy. "James, go inside the house and get her friend."
"Hey, no!" Ellie cried out, causing David to lock his arm around her neck, pressing lightly as he covered her mouth with his hand.
"Don't yell, kid, we're trying to keep you alive here," he said, nodding to his friend as he began quietly raising the garage door.
That sounds like complete bullshit, Ellie thought to herself grimly.
"You see these men all around?" David said, guiding her in a small circle to gaze at their surroundings. "They would kill you without a second thought. I'm keeping you safe from them."
"You should be grateful," Buddy-boy hissed at her as he returned, Joel in tow, tied to the makeshift gurney that Ellie had crafted weeks ago. He turned his attention to David. "Looks like this thing can be attached to the horse."
Ellie's eyes widened as she saw Joel being tugged around by that stupid fucker - she absolutely wouldn't allow it. She wouldn't let them take him.
"Good. Hook it up, then," David instructed, loosening his grip around Ellie's throat. "The girl and I will go on ahead."
She began struggling, trying her best to slip out from under David's bicep, kicking and flailing her legs around in an attempt to gain traction on the ground.
"Hey, no. None of that," David said to her sternly, like he was disciplining some unruly child. Ellie continued to thrash around, and even as the hold on her neck tightened she wouldn't let up. Her vision went hazy, then pitch black completely as her eyes eventually fluttered shut.
…
When Ellie came to, she didn't like what she saw.
Her eyes blinked drowsily a few times, then widened as she realized she was looking down at a snowy pathway. A trail of footprints led down a slope, where in the distance she spied Buddy-boy riding atop Callus.
Her body felt too light - she was being carried. David had slung her over his shoulder like a corpse.
"Hey!" she growled, moving to pound on his back with her fists before realizing that she was still restrained. She settled for trying to headbutt him in the back from her increasingly awkward angle. "Let me go!"
"Cut it out." the man ordered with a gruff sigh, seemingly irritated by her struggles. "You really ought to learn to be more appreciative, kid. You and your friend wouldn't have made it another week out there. I'm trying to help you. I just wish you would let me."
Ellie continued her battery as she conversed, spitting her words out at him like a venom. "Help us how exactly? By sending people out to kill us? By choking me till I pass out? By - ''
Ellie's words were interrupted by a sudden flash of movement, and then an impact that quite literally knocked all the breath out of her body. Her hands, still fastened tightly behind her back, made an unsettling cracking noise as they braced all of her weight. She lay flat on her back, spikes of pain shooting up her spine like a lightning bolt as she wheezed, unable to move or think or do much at all.
David perched himself over her body, pressing down on her shoulders in case she tried to move. "You would've died sooner or later out there. From infection or hunger or the cold - I don't know, but believe me, it would have happened. What you need is a community, people who can protect you and help your friend get back on his feet. We have food, and water, and doctors who can help. So, please, just cooperate."
Ellie's eyes narrowed in suspicion, her uneven breaths coming out in the form of discomforted gasps. She still couldn't quite speak, but David could easily gauge her expression.
He continued, "My community can provide for you. But you have to convince them you're not some wild girl, so the people will be more forthcoming. I've talked to them already myself, told them how you can come around and it would be better to have you as a friend than an enemy. You're mighty dangerous out there with a gun, after all." He stroked the side of her arm, not failing to notice the bruises already manifesting themselves on various parts of her visible body. "But not everyone is convinced. Some people still want to kill you and your friend, have you guys hung up front or slaughtered in some other gruesome way."
Ellie shuddered at the thought.
David told her, "I'm fighting for you, can't you see? I'm on your side. I need your help to convince everyone that we should give your friend the medical attention he needs, but if we fail then the others will kill the both of you without a second thought. Is that what you want?"
Ellie was quiet. She didn't want to give in, but…
"Tell me, yes or no. Is that what you want? For you and your friend to die?" He repeated himself, articulating every word as he gazed into her eyes.
She didn't want to die. She didn't want Joel to die.
"No," she finally answered.
"Good. Because that's not what I want, either," David said with a smile, removing himself from his position on top of her. He offered the young girl a hand, but she declined as she rose on her own, rather unsteadily at that.
"If helping us is really all you want to do, then you'll let us go as soon as… he gets fixed up," Ellie spoke somberly, nudging her head backwards where Joel was slewn along by Buddy-boy and Callus. She still wasn't at all happy about their predicament. She didn't like this guy, and she sure as hell didn't like this 'community' he kept talking about. They all sound like shitheads.
David placed his hands on her shoulders, a serene expression on his face as he chose to accept her temporary complacence as a victory. "You have my word."
And what the fuck is that worth?
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Inspired by the fic Everything Happens For a Reason by GhostChilli