Ellie struggles
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Summary
The third time Ellie surprises him, as he’s looking through an abandoned office in Bill’s town, is when she starts sputtering air and he reaches for a weapon before realizing it’s just her.
“I’m trying to learn how to whistle,” she says, and goddamn, Joel thinks. This is going to be a long trip.
Or: An exploration of Joel and Ellie's relationship through the ways Ellie surprises Joel.
Series
- Part 1 of tomorrow will be kinder
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memories feel like weapons (i miss who i used to be) by BarlowGirl
Fandoms: The Last of Us (Video Games)
03 Mar 2023
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Summary
Joel pretends he doesn’t notice the toy robot go missing as soon as he and Henry look away. He ain’t going to interfere with Henry and Sam, but if Little Miss Sticky Fingers wants to give the stupid toy to Sam later, well, he’s not going to say anything either. The boy’s just a kid. They both are. And they don’t get to be just kids very often anymore.
Not his place to say anything, but he won’t stop Ellie either.
Or: Ellie steals stuff. Joel doesn't really care, but he notices. He also keeps giving her things. She spends a lot of time thinking about the things she owns.
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Summary
Ellie’s not afraid of Joel.
She’s seen Joel do a lot of things that should scare her. Back in Pittsburgh, a hunter tried to choke her and she watched Joel beat his face into nothing. She’s watched him take people apart with nothing but his fists. She knows that should scare her.
It doesn’t, though. She thinks at this point she couldn’t be afraid of him if she tried.
She doesn’t like the idea that she can hurt him.
Or: Ellie accidentally hurts Joel.
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don't call me kid, don't call me baby by BarlowGirl
Fandoms: The Last of Us (Video Games)
28 Jul 2023
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Summary
“Why don't you just take me back to Marlene?” she asks, since it seems so much like Joel wants to get her off his hands. It’d be nice to see a friendly face again and Marlene wouldn’t treat her like such a baby.
“If she was up to the task, why'd she drop you off on us?”
“Well, maybe she's better now.” She doesn’t really believe it, but she doesn’t want to agree with him.
He scoffs. “Kid, I don't mean to upset you, but your friend's chances of survival weren't too high to begin with.”
Oh, good, she’s “kid” again. And he’s being mean. Again.
Or: Joel calls Ellie a lot of weird names.
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all my bridges burn to the ground by BarlowGirl
Fandoms: The Last of Us (Video Games), The Last of Us (TV)
29 Sep 2023
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Summary
Ellie is good at hiding. Good at hiding things. Good at hiding herself. When they played hide and seek at school, she was almost always the last one found. It did kinda make the other kids stop wanting to play with her unless she let them win sometimes, but you know. That was their problem, not hers.
Or: The places and ways Ellie hides.
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Summary
Joel’s used to not getting enough to eat, with rations being the way they are. And he’s sometimes… not great… at remembering to eat, anyways. But Ellie’s just a kid. The schools have to be making sure they have enough food, right?
So why hasn’t she complained about being hungry?
Or: Joel makes sure Ellie gets enough to eat and also he loves her.
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all this starless night by BarlowGirl
Fandoms: The Last of Us (Video Games), The Last of Us (TV)
09 Feb 2024
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Summary
He wonders sometimes if someone is missing Ellie. Someone who thinks she’s safe at school, someone who doesn’t know she’s gone on this harebrained mission. He doesn’t really think it’s true, but it’s not really the point.
The point is this whole little road trip would be so much fucking easier if he could stop remembering that Ellie is somebody’s baby.
Or: The little pieces of herself Ellie leaves in Joel's life.
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this is me trying (at least i'm trying) by BarlowGirl
Fandoms: The Last of Us (Video Games), The Last of Us (TV)
17 May 2024
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Summary
It wouldn’t be so bad if she was alone in Jackson like she was in Boston. She’d figure out where she fit and she wouldn’t really care if people liked her. She’s done it before when they made her switch schools.
But she’s not. She’s here with Joel, and she doesn’t want him to be embarrassed by her. She doesn’t want him to regret this. To regret her.
OR: Ellie adjusts to living in Jackson.
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Summary
A foster AU because I’m such a sucker for those and I want to believe Ellie and Joel would have found each other in a non-apocalyptic world, just in a slightly different setting.
Written from both POVs and maybe from Tommy’s too, somewhere down the line.
Intro
Joel Miller’s routine hasn‘t changed greatly in four years.
He goes to work, mostly overseeing construction, he goes home and eats something microwavable, drinks a few cans of cheap beer and falls into bed half drunk and exhausted from a days work, desperate to feel as little as possible.
Then, most nights, the nightmares he tries to chase away with alcohol succeed in waking him anyway, so he takes some sleeping pills to fall into dull, dreamless darkness, only to be woken by the sound of his alarm.So, really, he could use a change.
He still fights it like a feral cat.
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Summary
“It’s okay. I will fix the lock tomorrow.”
Ellie gasped when she heard his voice, since she hadn’t been aware of his presence nor that he had been listening. Once again, she was looking up at him with those big eyes of hers and only in that moment Joel realized that Ellie didn’t only dislike him.
No, even worse. She was fucking scared of him.
That this was fear glistening in her innocent eyes, as she took a few steps backwards, hugging herself tightly in self-protection, her head hanging low like she was ducking, trying to make herself as small as possible and her eyes being focused on her socked feet.
Joel was looking at her, hating himself for spooking her like that and before he could come up with saying something to make her feel less tensed and more comfortable, Ellie turned around and hurried inside the safety of the guest room without taking a shower, like she had probably intended to do.
~~~
Or: Joel healing a little heart he hadn't broken.