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supernovaslut · 2 years ago

Text

Track 1: RHIANNON

Joel Miller x OC

Word Count: 4.5k

Warnings: MDNI, cursing, canon typical violence, guns, minor character deaths, Joel being Joel

A.N. – This series will be based off the show to make my life easier, but you can imagine either Joel in the story. I'll be using gifs of them interchangeably. All chapter titles are based off of Fleetwood Mac songs that match the story, Joel and Rhia’s relationship, or both. Rhiannon is pronounced Ree-an-uhn. Rhia is pronounced Ree-uh.

Masterlist ~ Next Chapter

“She is like a cat in the dark And then she is to darkness She rules her life like a fine skylark And when the sky is starless All your life you've never seen Woman taken by the wind Would you stay if she promised you heaven? Will you ever win?”

The sun was setting. After a day’s trek through the forest, Joel and Ellie had finally gotten far enough for Joel to allow them to rest.

The pair sat against adjacent trees, not a word shared between them save for a “This way” or a “Shh” from Joel whenever he heard a strange noise. They were both still reeling from Tess’ sacrifice that morning.

“So who’s Rhia?” Ellie asked after a blissful 6 hours of silence.

“A friend,” Joel answered curtly.

“Tess said-” Ellie started.

“Don’t. Finish your sandwich, we’re almost there,” Joel said, shoving the rest of his measly protein bar in his mouth and standing. He checked his gun was loaded with the safety off for the 15th time that day, nerves shooting through him when so much as a twig snapped.

It wasn’t even fully because of Tess. No, he’d spent most of the day thinking about that and would probably spend the next month doing the same. Right now, though, right now he was nervous to see her again. They hadn’t seen each other in over a year and he knew she wouldn’t be keen to see him tonight, if she was even still alive. But he wasn’t anxious over her impending wrath, he was worried she may not be there at all. It had been so long without a word, but Joel knew that was his own fault.

A couple hours later, Joel spotted the house. It was more of a cottage in the middle of the woods, ivy overgrown, nature slowly reclaiming its fallen brothers, sticking to every inch of the wooden structure. The windows were all drawn shut, including the large circular one set as far up along the front wall as it could get. Joel paused, stopping Ellie beside him by simply sticking an arm out.

“What?”

“Shh,” he cut her off, pulling out his gun. He slowly walked to the front door, Ellie quietly following behind. For all of Ellie’s brashness, she knew when to shut up.

Joel knocked on the door. They waited. He knocked again. Nothing. He tried the handle and the door swung right open. Joel went into full defense mode, keeping Ellie behind him and holding his gun up and ready. They stepped into the house, Joel checking every nook and cranny, opening every door. They made their way through the living room and towards the kitchen.

As Joel stepped through the archway, he heard a gun cock and metal press to the side of his head. Ellie gasped, freezing in place. Joel’s eyes followed the gun down to pale, sun spotted hands up the arms and there she was.

The dusting of freckles across her soft nose, the round lips pointed up in the center, eyes brown as bark to match the fiery red hair loose over her shoulders, knots and twigs snagged in the bloody waves like she’d come straight from the forest. Their eyes met and the girl’s brows shot up, lip parting in shock until finally—

“Joel?”

· · ─────── ·⌖· ─────── · ·

*5 years ago*

“Joel?”

“Joel, you hear me?” Bill asked again, waving a hand in front of Joel’s face.

“Oh, I heard you. I just must’ve heard wrong, ’cause I thought you said you brought someone new for this run,” Joel said, arms crossed as he stood in front of Bill in his living room.

Frank and Tess were out in the garage, filling the truck with supplies for the short trip. They were headed a couple hours south to trade guns with some fireflies for food, medicine, and drugs … though medicine and drugs were often the same thing. “She’s good. Tested them myself when I watched ’em sneak in, take some food and a painting from the art shop down the road, and leave,” Bill said, smiling like a little shit.

“Oh, ’cause a thief is exactly what we need on a smuggling run,” Joel said sarcastically.

“What’s exactly what we need on a smuggling run?” Tess asked, wiping her hands on her pants as she walked into the house.

“Tess, you hear this shit? Bill’s having us bring some stranger with us,” Joel said, looking to Tess for backup.

“Yeah, I heard. It’ll be fun,” Tess said. Bill let out a chuckle he quickly masked as a cough when Joel snapped his head in his direction.

“We get backstabbed and killed, it’s on you,” Joel said, pointing at Bill before stalking off.

Joel walked out the front door, huffing as he made it down the front lawn to the middle of the street. He looked down the road to the only entrance or exit and saw a figure standing in front of it, covered in shadows from the backlit sun. Not behind it in the outside world, they were in front of it, inside the neighborhood.

Joel pulled out his gun, yelling down the road, “You move, I shoot. Who the hell are you?”

The figure put their hands up, walking forward. Joel didn’t shoot.

“Who the hell are you? Where’s Bill? He told me to come,” the figure called, Joel recognizing a woman’s voice. He kept the gun up as she approached.

“Joel, put the damn gun down,” he heard Tess call from the front lawn, Bill and Frank following close behind.

“Rhiannon! Welcome,” Frank called, waving at her. She waved back, close enough now so Joel could really see her. She was young, not a child, but not nearly as old as him or the rest of his group. Early-mid twenties, if he had to guess. She had long, bright red hair that burned a halo around her in the sunlight. She wore a white tank top, a bomber jacket over it to keep her warm from the late fall weather. She wore sunglasses and beat up high tops, pushing the former up her face and back into her hair as she came to a stop in front of Joel and the others, using it like a headband. Joel didn’t realize he had lowered his gun until that moment.

“Hi,” she said, looking at Bill and Frank.

“Rhiannon, this is Tess and Joel,” Frank said, politely. Joel tried his damndest to keep his eyes from rolling, settling for a deep sigh instead.

“Please,” she smiled, looking at Tess. Her eyes flicked to Joel’s, curiosity and suspicion swirling in her wood-colored eyes, “Call me Rhia.”

· · ─────── ·⌖· ─────── · ·

*Now*

“Rhia,” Joel grunted, waiting for her to put the gun down. Instead, she pressed it further against his head, brows dropping as her lip curled into a snarl.

“Joel,” she said, voice low, “What the fuck are you doing here?”

“I thought you said she was a friend,” the young girl frozen behind him said.

“Who’s the kid?” Rhia asked, motioning to her with her gun without pointing it at her.

“Cargo.” “I’m Ellie,” Joel and Ellie said at the same time.

“Can you put the gun down?” Joel asked exasperatedly.

“No,” Rhia said, tilting her head to the side, “Why are you here?”

“We need your help, apparently,” Ellie spoke up, gaining confidence and walking around the living room, examining the framed photos on the fireplace mantel. Rhia sighed and lowered the gun, resting it against the fridge. Joel relaxed as well, putting his gun back in its holster.

“Whatever it is, find someone else to do it. I’m busy,” Rhia said, walking past Joel and into the living room.

“What could you possibly be busy with?” Joel scoffed.

“Doing anything but helping you,” Rhia smiled, sitting on the couch. The house was cleaner than Ellie expected. From what the outside looked like, she expected the inside to be as dilapidated and abandoned, but this house looked lived in. The living room was clean, with plants growing on every surface. Odd knick knacks, like glittery rocks, a painting of a sad clown, or a nutcracker with a missing arm, filled the gaps.

“You have a cat?!” Ellie asked excitedly, holding up a bag of cat treats.

“Used to,” Rhia looked pointedly at Joel, “died a few months ago.” She looked back at Ellie, “One of the very few beings to live a full life nowadays.”

“How long have you lived here?” Ellie asked, running her finger along the ridges of a geode. Rhia looked back at her and huffed out a breath as she counted in her head.

“6, maybe 7 years now,” she finally said.

“You from around here?” Ellie asked.

“No. You ask a lot of questions, kid,” Rhia chuckled.

“She does,” Joel sighed. Rhia’s smile dropped hearing his voice, her head turning back to face him with a dark look in her eyes.

“I’m not gonna help. Whatever it is, I want nothing to do with it or you,” Rhia said, standing, “Ask Tess or somethin’.” Rhia began to walk away again when–

“Tess is dead,” Joel said, as if he were simply telling her the weather. Rhia froze midstep, her back to Joel. Ellie stopped playing with whatever tchotchke she’d found and looked somberly between Rhia and Joel.

“What happened?” Rhia asked, her voice barely above a whisper. Joel stood silently, unable to force the words out. Ellie spoke up for him, “She was bitten. She sacrificed herself so we could get away.”

Rhia took a deep breath, her back still facing the pair. Tears hung for dear life on the edges of her lashes as she took a deep breath, forcing herself back into composure. She spun around, facing Joel and Ellie who stood side by side by the fireplace.

“It’s dark out. You can stay for the night, but I want you both gone by morning,” Rhia said before spinning back around and heading up the stairs.

“Well, that went well,” Ellie said after a moment, “What’d you do to her, man?” Joel looked gruffly at Ellie, his eyes hardened.

“We leave at first light,” he said and then stalked off in the opposite direction of Rhia, leaving Ellie alone in the living room.

“Great. Cool. I’ll just sleep on the couch then, yeah?” Ellie called out to no one in particular.

“No.”

Ellie jumped, turning to see Rhia holding a pillow and blanket in her arms.

“Follow me,” she said and went back up the stairs. Ellie grabbed her backpack and followed her, no longer caring where Joel had gone. She wanted to follow the cool chick that put the moody, old man in his place.

She followed the woman down a hallway where she opened a closet. Ellie watched her fiddle with something on the ceiling and then a hatch opened, Rhia pulling a foldout ladder from the opening. She climbed up; Ellie followed suit.

When Ellie’s head popped through the hole, her eyes went wide. The attic was decorated as half a cozy bedroom and half a supply bunker. Stacks of canned food formed a castle, figurines placed on top and around like a living kingdom. Fairy lights were strung around the room, illuminating it in a soft glow. Two twin mattresses were pressed against each other by the window, forming one large bed. Rhia walked over and pulled the comforter back, pushing one twin mattress to the side and dropping the pillow and blanket she’d been holding onto it.

“You’ll sleep here. I’ll be right next to you. Not ’cause I don’t trust you, even though I really don’t, but because I don’t trust what’s out there. You’ll be safer up here,” Rhia said, gesturing to the bed.

“Where will Joel sleep?” Ellie asked.

“Down in the master bedroom. He can fend for himself,” Rhia shrugged, grabbing a can of vienna sausages and cracking it open. She popped one in her mouth.

“So, why do you hate him?” Ellie asked, putting her bag down by the makeshift bed and sitting on the mattress.

Rhia laughed, waving a sausage around, “God, where do I start?”

· · ─────── ·⌖· ─────── · ·

*5 Years Ago*

Joel sat in the driver’s seat of the car, one hand on the wheel watching the trees zoom past. Tess was knocked out in the backseat, having switched spots with Rhia when they stopped to fill the truck with gas. Rhia sat in the passenger seat, reading a book. Neither her or Joel had spoken a word to each other since getting in the car.

Rhia sighed, closing her book, and turned to Joel, “So how’d you meet Bill and Frank?”

Joel said nothing, didn’t even shift in his seat.

“Ya know, if we’re gonna work together, you’re gonna have to talk to me at some point.”

Still nothing.

“Ok, what’s your deal, man?”

Joel scoffed, “My deal is that Bill and Frank thought bringing a kid on this run was a good idea.”

“I’m not a kid,” Rhia huffed, crossing her arms, “I’m 24.”

Joel let out a humorless laugh, “Oh, yeah you really showed me!”

“Listen, grandpa, just cause my joints don’t creak when I stand up doesn’t mean I ain’t useful on the job,” Rhia said. Joel pursed his lips in annoyance at the “old man” comment.

“Listen,” Rhia started, turning her body towards Joel, “We got off on the wrong foot … or rather the wrong end of the gun. I-”

“Look, I don’t care to know a thing about you and you don’t need to know a thing about me. We do the job, we get back, and then we go our separate ways. Good? Good,” Joel said, leaving no room for conversation.

Rhia rolled her eyes, opening her book again, “Whatever, old man.”

· · ─────── ·⌖· ─────── · ·

*Now*

“He’s selfish. He’s standoffish. He’s rude. He doesn’t like bananas which is such a red flag. He-” Rhia sighs, wiping a hand down her face, “Look for all the shitty things he is, you’ve got a good bodyguard for wherever you guys are going. He’s deadly with any sort of weapon and protective of whoever he’s with. You’ll be safe with him.”

“You could come, too,” Ellie said.

Rhia shook her head, “It’s not a good idea … Where are you guys even headed? Why’s he lugging a kid along?”

Ellie was quiet for a long moment, debating whether to tell her. She looked up at the woman, face illuminated in the faint glow of the lights, her oversized shirt basically swallowing her. She knew deep down that she could trust her, especially if Joel was willing to ask her for help.

“I’m … special,” Ellie started, “Joel’s taking me to the Fireflies in Colorado.”

“Joel? Crossing the country with a kid for the Fireflies? You must be real fuckin’ special, kid,” Rhia shook her head, then paused. No, she thought, it wasn’t possible. She looked at Ellie who looked back at her as if to say, yes, it is.

“Show me,” Rhia said, sitting on the other mattress, facing Ellie.

Ellie hesitated before pulling back her right sleeve, revealing the gnarled scar of the Infected bite. Rhia froze, her breath caught in her throat and she felt like she could vomit. She reached a hand out and lightly traced a finger down the scar. She looked up wide-eyed at Ellie who looked back with equal parts fear and hope.

Rhia opened her mouth to speak, closed it, opened it again, “I’m thirsty. You thirsty? I’ll get us some water.”

“But there’s water bottles right-” Rhia was down the ladder before Ellie could finish.

· · ─────── ·⌖· ─────── · ·

*5 Years Ago*

Tess, Joel, and Rhia stood opposite six Fireflies, each group’s goods being checked by the receivers. Two men checked the guns Joel’s team had brought while Tess checked to make sure everything they ordered was there.

Rhia looked at one of the men guarding the two checking. He was tall, buff, and had a hand resting on his holstered gun. He looked between Joel and his men checking the boxes of guns.

“Do I know you?” Rhia asked, pointing at him. Joel stiffened beside her. God, what is this girl doing? he thought.

“No you don’t,” the man said, curtly, turning his attention back to the guns.

“Yeah. I do. God, where was it?” Rhia asked herself, putting a hand to her lips in thought. She knew she knew that face from somewhere. Somewhere bad.

“Rhia,” Joel warned from beside her.

“No, I definitely know you … Jersey QZ! Last spring, I think,” Rhia said, triumphantly. Joel noticed the men freeze.

“Yeah,” Rhia continued, “That’s where it was. You shot a dude in the face right after your buddies next to ya settled a deal. You’re not fireflies. You’re raiders.”

At Rhia’s words, everyone pulled their guns out, aiming for someone on the opposite team. Three guns were pointed at Joel, two at Tess, the last was the man Rhia had recognized, pointing his gun right between her eyes.

“Now, fellas, we don’t need to make a scene here,” Tess said before shooting the two front men.

Joel shot the man aiming for Rhia as Rhia shot two that aimed for Joel. The last one turned his gun on Rhia who was too busy making sure Tess and Joel were in the clear.

Joel noticed at the last second, yelling, “Rhia, down!” before shooting the man in the head, his gun firing as Rhia ducked to the side.

The bullet whizzed past, slicing her upper arm. She hit the ground with a thud, a hiss of pain leaving her lips as she clutched her arm.

“Joel, grab her and let’s get the fuck outta here,” Tess commanded, tossing the boxes of guns, food, and medicine into the bed of the truck.

Rhia sat up as Joel approached, holding a hand out for her to take. She looked between his hand and his face, before letting go of her bloody arm and grabbing his hand, letting him help pull her up.

“Thanks,” Rhia muttered, turning to one of the boxes of medicine to grab some gauze and wrap it around her arm. “Wouldn’t need to thank me if you weren’t so fucking reckless,” Joel accused.

“Excuse me?” Rhia asked incredulously, pausing her messy first aid attempt.

“You heard me. You put our lives at risk with your big mouth,” Joel doubled down, putting his hands on his hips like a disappointed father.

“Oh, I’m sorry? We’d be fucking dead if I hadn’t recognized that dude!” Rhia pointed out.

“If you hadn’t brazenly announced it, we could’ve had the upper hand!” Joel fought back.

“And how was I supposed to tell you guys? Fuckin’ foot tapping Morse code?!” Rhia yelled, fed up with this asshole.

“Hey!” Tess yelled from the truck, “Can you two shut the fuck up and get in the truck? There’s bound to be more of them on the way … and Joel, help her wrap that up. Bill will kill us if we get bloodstains on the seats.” “I don’t need his fucking help,” Rhia grumbled, using her teeth to tie the gauze. It was a messy fix, blood already seeping through the thin wrapping of gauze.

“Oh, yeah. I can see that,” Joel said, grabbing a bottle of rubbing alcohol and more gauze.

He grabbed her arm forcefully, pulling her close disregarding Rhia’s complaints. He unwrapped the haphazard gauze wrap, opened the rubbing alcohol bottle with his teeth, and poured some on the wound.

Rhia held in a yelp of pain and settled for a teeth clenched grunt. The last thing she wanted was to look even weaker in front of Joel than he already thought she was. Why she cared about what he thought, she didn’t know. She just knew she wanted to prove him wrong.

When Joel was done, she pulled her arm away and stomped off to the car, sliding into the backseat. Joel watched her walk off, the anger seeping away and leaving room for something else, something he didn’t recognize. He gets into the driver’s seat, Tess keeping a lookout from the passenger seat. He drove away, getting a view from the rearview mirror of Rhia splayed out across the seats, staring up at the ceiling.

· · ─────── ·⌖· ─────── · ·

*NOW*

Rhia stumbled down the stairs, the steps blurring as Rhia’s mind raced. She’d heard plenty of false alarms of a vaccine or a cure. For all she knew, Ellie just got lucky, or maybe Rhia would wake up tomorrow to a snarling infected Ellie chomping at her neck.

Her imagination didn't run too wild. As Rhia rounded the corner to the kitchen, she ran into Joel, coming from the living room. They stopped in the hallway, having no choice but to confront the roadblock.

“Rhia,” Joel started. “She’s immune,” Rhia said, looking at the ground.

Joel pursed his lips. He’d told Ellie not to tell anyone, but if she was going to blab at least it was to Rhia.

“She is,” Joel confirmed.

“You’re insane,” Rhia said, meeting his eyes, “What do you think you’re gonna find out there? What do you think the fuckin’ Fireflies are gonna be able to do?”

Joel sighed, “Marlene said-” Rhia laughed, “Oh, Marlene said? And since when do you do anything for Marlene?”

“I didn’t want to. Tess did,” Joel said simply.

Rhia stood straighter, looking past Joel’s shoulder down the dark hall. She bit her bottom lip, willing the tears to stay inside. Years later and she still wanted to look strong to him.

“Can you please move?” Rhia said, voice steady, eyes empty.

Joel hesitated, then stepped to the side, letting her pass. Rhia walked to the kitchen and opened the fridge. Bill had helped her set up the power and water in the house about a month after the first job.

She grabbed a water bottle, tossed the lid, and chugged the whole damn thing. She grabbed another and turned around, looking through the kitchen island window to see Joel laid out on the couch, one leg hanging off.

Rhia closed her eyes, sighed, opened them. She looked at Joel and reached a hand up to the familiar scar on the outside of her left arm.

She said, barely above a whisper, “You should sleep in the bedroom.”

Joel sat up, turning to face her.

Rhia nodded her head towards the stairs, “C’mon. ’Fore I change my mind.”

Joel stood, following her up the stairs and to the bedroom. She stepped in, walking to the dresser and leaning against it. Joel dropped his bag by the foot of the bed.

“You know,” Rhia started, Joel turning to face her, “I had just gotten used to the fact that I’d be alone here for whatever was left of my life … and then Bill recruited me. I thought it would be a one time kinda thing, but you were so fucking insufferable I wanted to come back just to press your buttons.”

Joel could do nothing but watch her. He’d shut down when Tess died. He couldn’t let himself feel it. He didn’t want to feel this, either.

“What do you want me to say, Rhiannon?” Joel asked, hands on his hips.

Rhia scoffed, shaking her head, “You left. Without a word. And you didn’t leave any piece of you behind except this,” she pulled a red plaid shirt out of the dresser and threw it at him. He caught it blindly.

“There. Now when you leave in the morning I can finally be rid of you,” she slammed the door as she left, leaving him alone in the darkness.

Rhia stormed down the hallway and up the ladder, stopping at the mouth of the attic to see Ellie asleep on the mattress, back facing her. Rhia tiptoed to her bed and turned off the lights. She stared up at the ceiling, tears welling in her eyes and she’d lost the strength to stop them.

“The last thing Tess said,” Ellie suddenly said, causing Rhia to turn her head, Ellie’s back still facing her, “The last thing she said was, ‘Find Rhia. Make things right. Save who you can save.’ I don’t know what he did, but I think that’s something worth trying.”

Rhia said nothing. She stared at Ellie’s back, watching the slow rise and fall of her breathing until she herself fell into slumber.

· · ─────── ·⌖· ─────── · ·

*5 Years ago*

“That’s the last of it,” Tess said as she placed a crate of guns on the dining table.

“Is it bad to say this was a good run? Ya know, we didn’t have to pay,” Frank said.

Tess smirked, “Yeah, well don’t go telling them that.” She nodded at Joel and Rhia ignoring each other in the front lawn.

“Other than the whole shootout, how’d she do? Think we can bring her on more deals?” Frank asked.

“She did fine to me. She’s young, but I can see she’s been in these kinds of situations before. Good luck convincing Joel, though,” Tess said, sighing at the end.

“He’ll do whatever you tell him to do,” Frank countered. Tess watched Rhia turn to Joel and offer him a cigarette. He took it, standing beside her to let her light it. She said something. He replied. She left.

“Not always,” Tess said, watching Joel watch Rhia leave.

· · ─────── ·⌖· ─────── · ·

Rhia stood across the lawn from Joel, smoking a cigarette. They had finished unloading the truck as the sun started to set.

“Rhia, you staying for dinner?” Bill called from the grill.

“No thanks, Bill. Got to get home. Got a cat to feed,” Rhia replied, smiling at him. She let her eyes wander to Joel who stood like a scarecrow on a field, watching the perimeters for any raiders that may have followed them back.

“Want a smoke?” Rhia asked, holding up the pack.

Joel looked between her and the box and said, “Sure.”

She handed him a cigarette and lit it for him. They now stood hardly a foot apart. Rhia inhaled the cigarette deeply and held it for a few seconds before letting it out, watching the smoke dance up to the sky.

“Well,” Rhia said, looking out at the horizon, “Hope I never see you again.”

Joel huffed humorously, “Likewise.”

Rhia nodded and walked away, her backpack bouncing with each step. Joel watched her leave, that strange feeling mingling with the smoke in his lungs.

· · ─────── ·⌖· ─────── · ·

*Now*

As the sun crept over the horizon the next morning, Ellie and Joel stocked up their bags with supplies. Rhia hadn’t left her room, opting to feign sleep as Ellie rose and gathered her stuff.

Ellie and Joel stood at the front door, ready to head off.

“Think she’ll come?” Ellie asked.

Joel sighed and shook his head, “No, I-”

Before he could finish, he looked through the door to see Rhia coming down the stairs, dressed and wearing her backpack. Ellie and Joel stared at her.

“What?” Rhia asked them, stepping out and closing the door.

“You’re coming?” Ellie asked hopefully.

Rhia smiled sadly, “Yeah, I- There’s nothing left for me here, anyways. Hasn’t been for a long time.” She looked at Joel.

He stared back, surprised at how relieved he was that she was coming.

“Well,” he started, “If we’re going, let’s go. We’re burning daylight.” He walked off.

Ellie and Rhia looked at each other as if to say This is gonna be a long trip. Oh, how little they knew. They stepped down the porch and followed Joel into the woods.

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