#TLOU episode 5 spoilers

[readerconfused]

if you hear someone crying it's me

THE LAST OF US | 1x05 & 1x08

[dyingroses]

The scene where Joel is trying to talk Henry out of shooting himself is so much more emotional now after the last episode!

[warpbud]

"Its ok babygirl, I got you"

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOUUUUUUUUGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

[thepascalofus]

honestly kathleen could’ve easily killed henry or had people run and find him, but she had to have her dumbass monologue

[tzulv]

"She woulda liked you." I am on the floor sobbing i hate this stupid show

[sotvtaughtmehowtofeel]

Nothing Bad Here - Part 2

Joel sat at the table long after Ellie had gone to bed. The trip back from Salt Lake City had been short, shorter than they were used to. Less trouble than usual, too. But he’d been on edge that whole time, unsure if they’d make it back to Jackson. And now that they were back… He ran a hand through his hair, finally standing. He reached to his hip, expecting to find a pistol there, but flexed his hand. No weapons inside the commune. Didn’t seem right, the way the world was now. Joel patroled the entire downstairs, checked the locks and windows, pulled all the curtains. No one was out this late except the guards. Guards. He shook his head again. She was safe.   He still considered pulling furniture in front of the doors. Habit.   Joel trekked up the stairs slowly, his knees protesting. He opened the door to Ellie’s room silently, looking inside. She was asleep on the bed. He released breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. She was safe. He closed her door and went back into his room to sleep. -  Joel woke with a start, Ellie’s scream echoing in his ear. His heart pounded as he pushed off the covers and lurched upright, looking around the room. She wasn’t here, where was she? He stood up, listening, reaching for a weapon at his hip that wasn’t there. He looked around, grabbed a lamp, and ripped it out of the wall as he crossed the room quickly and quietly. He crossed the hall to open her door, raising the lamp next to his head. Ellie was asleep in her bed. She was still asleep. She was safe. Had she screamed? He shook his head, standing in her doorway, looking down at her. It was still dark outside. She was safe. He huffed out a breath, closing her door again, going back to bed. It took him a while to fall back asleep. -   Blood. Cage. Fire. Screams. Hers? Blood. Cannibal. Predator. Murderer. BLOOD. Ellie jumped awake, looking around the room frantically. There was a man standing over her bed. She cried out, striking at him. He crashed to the floor, and her brain finally registered. Not a man. A lamp. On a table. Could have been a man. A short man. Fuck. Ellie sat up in her bed, drawing her knees to herself and putting her head in her hands. The dream hadn’t been coherent, just images flashing. Her heart was still pounding. She looked around the room. Joel- where the fuck was Joel?!   Joel was in the next room. It was weird, waking up without him near her. He was always within sight. Ellie rolled off the bed, stepping around the pieces of the lamp. She crossed the hall quietly, opening the door to Joel’s room. He was there, asleep in the bed. She drew in a deep breath, her heart starting to calm down. He was sleeping on his left ear. He wouldn’t hear her come in. Ellie closed the door behind her and laid down on the window seat across the room from Joel. It took her a while to fall back asleep. - It was light out when Joel woke up next. He scanned the room for Ellie immediately. She was curled up on the window seat. He sighed, and his eyes softened. He was glad to see her, but she wasn’t supposed to be in here. She had her own room. When had she come in? He ran a hand down his face, yawning, then stood. He took the blanket from his bed and spread it over her. It’s too cold in Wyoming to be sleeping without a blanket, especially near a window.   Ellie stirred when Joel lowered himself back into his bed. She blinked, looking around.   “Morning,” Joel said quietly.   Ellie didn’t respond, just sat up in the window seat, rubbing her eyes.   “When’d you come in here?” he asked.   She grimaced. “Sorry. I’m-”   “It’s ok,” he said immediately, softly. “Are you all right?”   She flushed, starting to get up. “Yeah, I won’t-”   Joel interrupted her, raising his eyebrows slightly as he spoke to her. “You come in here whenever you need to, all right? You wake me up, if you need to.”   “How? You can’t fuckin’ hear anything,” She wasn’t looking at him, and her quiet, flat tone belied the sarcasm.   Joel watched her for a moment. She was not ok. He got up and headed for the door. “Come on, kiddo, I’ll make you breakfast.”

[itsketo-voyaging]

The Last of Us (2023) | Season, 1 Episode 5

[actual-changeling]

Hi, you can call me Alex or whatever variation of my username you'd like. <3

I'm in my early twenties, use mainly they/them pronouns, and there is a lot wrong with my brain (both affectionately and in a decidedly not fun way). I have memory issues, so I can and will forget things, including replying to messages. You are ALWAYS invited to send me a reminder—please, please do, I will not be offended, pinky promise.

This blog is 90% fandom, 5% personal shit and 5% misc posts that I like. My DMs are open, so feel free to message me and interact however you like! Asks are tentatively being opened again. If there's something you want me to see, I don't mind getting tagged in posts either.

Please don't be an asshole. I'm incredibly bad at judging my own tone, so if I come across as overly intense or upset, chances are I am actually not—I'm just passionate about the things I enjoy.

Agatha all along is the lesbian dream plus Scully has also taken over my brain and body, and I don't think they will leave me alone ever again.

I will be tagging spoilers for any newly released shows and episodes. If there is something you would like me to tag spoilers for, just shoot me an ask or dm!

Currently following and tagging for:

Agatha All Along: alex watches agatha all along

The X Files: alex watches x files

Doctor Who: alex watches doctor who, dw spoilers

(PJO The Series: pjo spoilers) show is on hiatus

The Magnus Protocols: alex listens to tmagp, tmagp spoilers

I write fanfiction both here on tumblr and on ao3 under actualchangeling. Requests or ideas are fine, though I cannot make any promises.

Wanna chat with other people about good omens? I have a discord you can join, mostly angelfish focused but we talk about all our beloved idiots.

My other misc current active special interests are Doctor Who and Good Omens, but I dabble in a lot of other fandoms, too. Among those are Marvel/Iron Man, Lucifer, TLOU, The Magnus Archives, Welcome to Night Vale, Prospect (2018), and many more.

My tag system for original posts applies to all fandoms I am currently actively engaging with and follows the same patterns. I tag spoilers when I remember to for about a week, so consider this blog to be very much NOT spoiler free.

alex talks x -> meta, analysis, interpretation, or opinion posts

alex writes x -> either self-promotion or tumblr specific ficlets, without any fandom addition it's original writing of some kind

Any personal posts that are not fandom related are tagged as following; feel free to block them if you're just here for the fandom madness!! I really do not mind.

alex yells at the void -> misc personal stuff

alex gets personal -> potentially triggering discussions of my trauma or mental health, vent posts

Last but not least, the tag for my queue is I’ll follow queue anywhere you go. It's a TLOU reference for those who are curious.

[our-future-is-up-to-us-2]

The Day Of The Jackal Fic Masterlist

Hey everyone!!

So my obsession with The Day Of The Jackal is running on overtime like OH MY GOODNESS!! This show has taken over my life atp. The cinematography, the characters, the tension, the EVERYTHING.

I have been and will continue to write fics for the show. I have decided to make this comprehensive masterlist, which will be updated with the more I write <33

Request fic ideas, prompts, and whatever else you'd like, over here!

Please be aware of spoilers if you're a spoilerphobe! But I'll make those clear either way.

~ Read the list under the cut ~

1 - The Jackal

Summary:

The Jackal lives in secret. He hides from everyone and everything.

Relationships: Charles "The Jackal" Calthrop/Nuria

Spoilers/Episode Content: Episodes 1-5

On Tumblr | On AO3

2 - Good People

Summary:

It’s only been a day or two since Charles stopped texting and calling Nuria back.

And yet, she’s here, telling her daughter things she can’t bear to hear.

Relationships: Charles "The Jackal" Calthrop/Nuria, Charles "The Jackal" Calthrop/Rasmus

Spoilers/Episode Content: Primarily Episodes 6 & 7

On Tumblr | On AO3

3 - Instincts

Summary:

Screaming, screaming, screaming!

A TLOU/TDOTJ crossover, where Bianca is Ellie's saviour at Silver Lake.

Relationships: Joel Miller & Ellie (TLOU), Joel Miller & Bianca Pullman, Ellie & Bianca Pullman

Spoilers/Episode Content: Nothing from The Day Of The Jackal, but covering TLOU's David incident at Silver Lake

On Tumblr | On AO3

4 - all of these are the prettiest things

Summary:

It’s always the quiet moments that draw them in. Peter sits about, examining blueprints, mulls over documents on his computer or phone, while Rasmus takes to watching him, or making some food.

At least, that’s when they’re not entangled in work, or each other.

Relationships: Charles "The Jackal" Calthrop/Rasmus

Spoilers/Episode Content: Based around Episodes 6 & 7

On Tumblr | On AO3

5 - Chain Reaction

Summary:

“Hey, hey– Bianca. Listen to me. Listen to me, I swear to god, you’re ok!”

Relationships: Bianca Pullman & Vincent Pyne

Spoilers/Episode Content: Episode 8 (this is a darker fic, and is canon-compliant to the darker themes of the episode)

On Tumblr | On AO3

6 - The Blueprint On My Mind

Summary:

“You’re kidding, right?”

The Jackal looks up from his bowl of cereal, met with Rasmus’ surprisingly stern gaze.

“I don’t kid about anything.”

Relationships: Charles "The Jackal" Calthrop/Rasmus

Spoilers/Episode Content: Loose canon compliance to Episodes 6 & 7

On Tumblr | On AO3

7 - Mirror

Summary:

The Jackal’s breath is soft and slow as he walks through the spaciousness of his own home.

Relationships: Charles "The Jackal" Calthrop/Nuria

Spoilers/Episode Content: Episode 9

On Tumblr | On AO3

8 - 'Cause You're A Brand-New Species

Summary:

The boat chase is highly exhilarating, if the Jackal says so himself.

Relationships: Bianca Pullman & Charles "The Jackal" Calthrop, Bianca Pullman & Vincent Pyne

Spoilers/Episode Content: Episode 9 (a what-if scenario situated post Episode 9), sprinklings of details from Episode 8 and Episode 10/Season 1 Finale

On Tumblr | On AO3

9 - Community Service

Summary:

Blue and red, mixed with black. It’s what she wants him to be bleeding.

What if Episode 10 turned out differently, as Bianca seeks to take The Jackal alive? What if she has a plan up her sleeve that is risky, seriously boring, and exhilarating all at once?

Relationships: Bianca Pullman & Charles "The Jackal" Calthrop, Bianca Pullman & Vincent Pyne, Charles "The Jackal" Calthrop/Rasmus

Spoilers/Episode Content: Episode 10, aka the Season 1 finale. You will be spoiled on that episode in the very first chapter!

This is a multichapter fic, with canon divergence within that first chapter as well.

On AO3 | (Won't be posting this one to Tumblr, so please read it over there!)

[strmborns]

TLOU: Look for the light

The Last of Us episode 9 spoilers bellow

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Ashley!

The switchblade!!

I like that we kind of see how Ellie became immune, but it wasn’t like stated that that was the reason why she is immune

We know that Marlene has known Ellie since forever, but it’s nice to see how long she has known her

Joel is so talkative and he wants to teach his baby girl to play guitar

Joel giving Ellie a boost and having her drop him a latter is so game I love this

THE FUCKING GIRAFFES I’m so happy they put this on the show. Ellie’s giggles, Joel looking at her, it was such a heartfelt moment, I needed this before the storm

This show keeps giving us visuals for days

It’s not for nothing baby girl it’s for your life

Joel’s story about the medical camp

“It wasn’t time that did it,” MY FUCKING HEART

Spoiler alert, I don’t think this cure would have worked

Marlene literally just told Joel she doesn’t know how he survived what most didn’t, and she made the mistake of telling him they would kill Ellie

I understand Marlene, but her not giving Ellie a choice show us how she was not willing to give Ellie a choice

Loved the focus on the doctor, we know where that will take us

I like that they didn’t make Joel tell Ellie she wasn’t special, he just says the tests didn’t work

HOLY SHIT I CANT BELIEVE THEY ENDED IT LIKE THIS

This episode felt like 5 minutes to me

[reginaphalange2403]

omg you’re watching tlou??!? get ready for PAIN 😭😭😭

I am😭. I finally caught up to the trend. I’m on episode 5, so no spoilers anyone😤

[becuzmdsaidineededpersonality]

Let’s Play An Ask Game: The Last Of Us version

⚠️Potential spoilers ahead for both the game and show⚠️

Send an ask, give an answer, get an ask: 

1. Do you just watch the games or do you watch the show as well? 

2. What changes has the show made from the game you liked? 

3. What changes has the show made from the game you disliked?

4. What are you looking forward to seeing in the next episode/next season? 

5. What infected was hardest for you to beat and how did you do it? 

6. Do you do all the collectibles? What was your favorite thing to collect? 

7. Favorite Ellie joke? 

8. Favorite song from the soundtrack? 

9. What emotional scene hit you the hardest? 

10. Was there any easter eggs from the game in the show you noticed? 

11. Do you have any fan casting ideas for season 2? 

12. Who is your favorite character?

13. Who is your least favorite character? 

14. Favorite issue of the American Dreams comic?

15. If you were in the Last of Us apocalypse, which of the gangs/militias/groups would you be a part of? 

16. Do you have any skills you think would help you survive? 

17. Favorite Ellie entry? 

18. Opinions on the Seraphite prophet? 

19. Favorite place in the games to explore. 

20. Got any Savage Starlight headcanons? 

21. Was there any character you would have liked to have seen more of in the games? 

22. Favorite animal companion. 

23. Do you have any TLOU memes or funny moments from the game? 

24. Do you play TLOU Factions? Were you a hunter or a firefly? 

25. Free space. Ask the tumblr user anything! 

[sb25p]

Warning: THE LAST OF US SPOILERS: EPISODE 5!!! IF YOU HAVE NOT WATCHED EP 5, PLEASE SCROLL PAST!!!!!

Also this an essay!! 🥴 tbh I write these more for myself than anything else…my Tumblr is my mf journal.

I normally don’t like to write posts that involve spoilers for current series/movies etc but TLOU episode 5 affected me in such a powerful way, I feel like I just need to vent it for a min.

Can we talk about the final scene? How hopeful Ellie is when she wakes up only to find out Sam has unfortunately become infected. Sam then attacking Ellie for Joel and Henry to realise what’s happening and Henry to raise the gun to Joel.

The actor, Lamar Johnson, absolutely killed that role (no pun intended…too soon?)

Like we see his face go from confused to protective yet terrified, shocked, panicked, regretful, devastated, remorseful, angry and numb.

I could go on and on about the diversity of emotions that Lamar portrayed in that moment to capture the reaction of Henry losing Sam. The one person he loves more than anything and has sacrificed everything for only to lose at what he believes to be his own hands but as we know is due to being infected.

It was never Henry’s fault. Henry didn’t kill Sam. Sam was already dead. The infection took him. Henry actually saved Ellie from being harmed by Sam. He’s still a hero regardless of what he’s done. He continued to protect others but without Sam, what is his purpose? Sam to Henry is purpose. He always has been. Now that Sam is gone, Henry doesn’t feel any purpose and ultimately that causes him to take his own life without any hesitation.

Then we have the other parallel of Pedro Pascal in that situation playing the role of Joel Miller.

We see Joel (not for the first time) jumping in ultimately to protect Ellie. He’s terrified. He’s seeing her at risk and scared and she’s calling out to him in that moment for help.

Joel talks earlier to Henry about being relied on. He says that it’s easier for kids because no one is relying on them but that’s not really true is it? Because although Sam relied on Henry for protection, Henry relied on Sam for purpose. He loved him. He lived for him because he had Sam by his side.

What really got me in that moment after Henry shoots Sam, is Joel. The way his face turns into a realisation. An understanding.

It doesn’t happen right away.

I feel if you watch Joel’s face just after Sam dies, he’s asking for the gun because he’s afraid Henry will turn on the both of them, pin a blame on them maybe that Sam got infected because of them but when Henry says “what did I do?” You can see that Joel’s face falls. He goes from appearing assertive and protective of Ellie to becoming understanding and gentle towards Henry.

I think that is because Joel recognises that feeling all too well. It’s not hard to think that Joel would have had a time after Sarah’s death where he must have thought that life wasn’t worth living anymore. That his purpose in life has been ripped from him so abruptly and if his sole purpose now is merely to survive, what kind of life does he have anyway?

It’s why I always saw Joel to be one of the strongest characters in the whole of the TLOU universe. He was a father to an only child who was taken from him during the time the world was falling apart anyway. Not only was his own beautiful little world ended in that split second, the one he shared with his daughter, the whole planet was being ripped apart.

What motivated him to keep on living? We could say Tommy but a parents love like Joel’s is so incredibly powerful. Even my own parents once said to me (and I’m one of four children) that if I ever took my own life, they couldn’t go on themselves without me. The true love of a parent is absolutely infinitely one of the most powerful things in this world. Pedro absolutely portrayed that emotion in the moment when he’s trying to talk Henry down. It’s like he’s mentally saying “look at me, I understand, PLEASE, I understand”. Joel knows they’re not at risk to Henry at that moment, Henry is at risk to himself.

Not only that but Joel asks Ellie if she’s okay shortly after Sam dies and even tries to go to her but is stopped by Henry raising the gun to him.

We see Joel becoming softer and more of a father figure to Ellie in this situation. His usual hardened expression drops when he has just witnessed a serious threat to Ellie’s life. He can see the distress in her. He’s just watched her bond with a child over a period of time that she clearly felt very strongly for very quickly. He also has strong feelings about Ellie watching others die due to the discussion he has with her when she shoots the man in the previous episode to protect Joel.

“You’re just a kid. You shouldn’t know what it means to…” to kill someone he means.

He doesn’t want her to witness this world. He wants to protect her from it and we’re seeing so much more of that in these newer episodes. The paternal feelings he’s developing for her are slowly but surely finding their way out into the open.

And finally the note that Ellie leaves on Sam’s grave.

“I’m sorry.”

We see Joel realising when he reads this, that this young girl feels a lot more than she’s giving out. That Joel is starting to come to terms with how much of a weight is sitting on Ellie’s shoulders by being treat like a possible cure. That the thought of her feeling as though it’s her fault that she couldn’t save Sam from infection, ultimately has Joel feeling even more responsible for ensuring she doesn’t feel that way and that she understands how important she is in herself rather than to the rest of the crumbling world.

I really look forward to seeing how their relationship develops. Particularly, how Joel’s feelings develop further towards Ellie. I also look forward to seeing more vulnerability from Ellie. Joel walks around with this hardened expression but Ellie doesn’t need to do anything like that. We know from how she admits to Sam that she fears being left alone, that she has a lot of emotion she is holding back. She needs that someone to be vulnerable with and I can’t wait for her to let it all go for Joel.

[sporesnsonnets]

TLOU EPISODE 5 SPOILERS:

I can’t stop thinking about how much worse they made poor Henry’s story.

He sold out someone he admired and because of it the resistance was left with a violent, extreme, callous leader. How responsible for the carnage that followed did he feel? It clearly weighed heavily on him.

And he did all of it for Sam; to keep Sam healthy - to keep Sam alive. He did so much, endured so much… all for Sam. To know that it was ultimately for nothing? That he couldn’t keep him safe despite it all? To have to kill him himself after all that?

Absolutely heartbreaking.

Do you think he heard Kathleen’s voice in the end? Telling him that Sam was destined to die?

It wasn’t enough for him to shoulder the burden of failing his brother. He also had to shoulder the burden of feeling responsible for everything that went down, only for it to be for nothing in the end.

[readerconfused]

Spoilers The last of us

I already knew it was going to happen because of the game, but of course the series made the whole situation sadder

Henry and Sam are younger than they are in the game and are in a totally different situation. In the series they are more vulnerable, Henry says with all the words that he needs Joel to escape. The two did things they regret to survive and protect those they loved. Ellie allowed herself to be a kid again with Sam, to have hope, a bit of innocence that things were going to be different.

Joel also had that hope, it is clear when they go to the Hotel that he had agreed to take care of the three. That he had thought "maybe the road doesn't have to be so lonely, maybe we can take care of each other" so when everything goes wrong the next day it's like it breaks him

Not only could he not take care of them, Ellie feels it too and he knows that girl who was having fun with puns was shake

I think Ellie hit the "it's just the two of us from here to the end" moment.

[the-reason-to-believe]

Quiet | missing scene - episode 5

Summary:  "The after" of THE scene in episode 5. Or: Joel should have given that girl a hug after what she just witnessed! (But also: Of course it's not that easy ...) Fix-it / Missing scene (spoilers episode 5)

POV: Joel

Also posted on my AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/45054883

Length: 698

Static.

That’s all Joel hears when Henry’s body hits the ground.

A minute ago, they were making plans. They were gonna be a group instead of a duo. Ellie was gonna have a friend. A person to talk to. A person who could show his affection. Who would have made her feel less alone. And a little bit more like a kid. Like she was supposed to feel.

He closes his eyes just for a second, tries to hold it together, takes a deep, painful breath.

This shouldn’t have happened. They shouldn’t have left them in there on their own. They should have checked for wounds. That’s what you do. You get close with the clickers; you check everybody involved. No questions asked.

Joel knows that. That’s how you ensure everybody survives.

He presses his hands to tight fists.

How could he have forgotten?

His stomach twists.

Doesn’t matter. What is done is done. Death was always part of life. Now death just comes a little more frequently. You get used to it.

That’s how you survive.

Only he would give everything to spare Ellie this pain.

When he finally looks at her, it rips his heart right out of his chest.

She’s barely breathing. Tears are running down her cheeks, which she’s supposed to wipe away. That’s what she does. Only, now she doesn’t.

She just stares.

Like her whole world has just crashed into itself. And it might as well have.

She is quiet. So quiet, it freaks him out. Ellie isn’t quiet. That’s not her. It’s like this girl in front of him has been switched out with a fake version of her.

She won’t look at him. Her eyes are glued to Henry’s unmoving body. The horror of it all being erased with numbness that’s slowly but visibly creeping up on her. Death is catching up to her.

Joel swallows, tries to gather words in his mouth that make any kind of sense in a moment in which nothing makes sense. Nothing at all.

If he could just …

He’s so bad at this. He hasn’t done this in so long. 20 years. And even back then he wasn’t gonna win any Father Of The Year awards.

So he takes another breath, lets the automation take over.

“We should-”

Ellie flinches at his voice. Her eyes meet his, hold on to him as if she is looking for a lifeline. For anything to make this moment pass. To press on pause, then on rewind, make this all go away. Make it all better. Make everything okay.

But it’s all overtaken by hopelessness. Deep and utter hopelessness.

She still doesn’t wipe the tears away. She still doesn’t say a word. Doesn’t make a sound. Quiet. Seems to be lost in the attack, the first gunshot, then the second. Like it’s repeating, repeating, repeating in her head.

And he can’t do anything about it. He’s about to ask her if she’s okay. But that’s a stupid thing to ask. So he doesn’t. He doesn’t say anything. There are no words.

Instead, he does the only thing that seems to come to mind. The only thing that makes sense.

Even though it’s gonna rip his heart a little further out of his chest. Make her pain his pain. That’s what he’s gotta do. That’s what he would do for Sarah. So now, this is what he’s gotta do for Ellie instead. That’s what he owes her.  

He walks over and sinks to the floor next to her. Holds his breath when he reaches for her. Gently. As gently as he can. Puts an arm around her. Slowly, reassuring. Waits. Until she leans in, puts her head against his chest. Closes her eyes. Lets the pain flood out of her. Joel hugs her head against his chest, closes his eyes, breathes steadily, while her body is shaking. He has to be strong for her. Has to keep her safe. Has to show her she’s safe. He should have done it sooner. Just didn’t know how to.

He rubs her back. Doesn’t let go. She stays quiet. Joel too. Just waits.

For as long as she needs him to.