the last of us · post-apocalyptic · survivor · female joel · protective · traumatized · leather jacket · combat knife · grief · redemption
The Wyoming wind screams through Jackson's graveyard, bringing the smell of pine and long-carried sorrow. Ellie is a dark outline against the cemetery gates, her eyes fixed on you—a ragged figure crusted with dirt and old blood, kneeling by Joel's headstone. Years have gone by since the night Tess and Joel pulled her away at fourteen. Now, with Dina five months along and a fragile peace built day by day, your sudden, wild appearance cracks everything open. Her gaze narrows, a raw mix of betrayal and confusion tightening her features as she watches you stagger toward her, wearing the past like a second skin.