Pregnant!?! (The Last Of Us Fanfic)

Hunting and Dancing

Joel POV

I need to see Ellie. I haven't seen her for weeks and there's a party tonight. Maybe I'll be able to find her.

"Joel, let's go,"

I have been working alongside Rick and Wade for these past weeks. I watched Clara kill a young boy for not following the rules, with no hesitation. I think she was trying to prove a point to me if I ever tried anything. Rick and I talk every night about rules and other things. Wade is indifferent towards me right now. He can't make up his mind if he wants to be my friend or my enemy, he's leaning more towards the friend part as of now but who knows. He may be using me like I'm using him, but we will find out soon.

"I'm coming. Getting up in the mornings isn't my forte," I say to Rick who is putting on his shoes.

"We're strengthening the West Wall today. There was a lot of heavy snowfall last night...and wind. You know the drill," Rick says to me, tying his last shoe.

"Are you going to the party tonight?" I ask him.

"Hell, if I even didn't want to, I wouldn't have a choice! It's always too hot and muggy, no one likes to go. Clara told me if I didn't go, she'd kill me. It's a status thing, I need to be the 'good example'," Rick tells me as he uses air quotes. I laugh at his humor and he laughs with me.

"Well, I'm going cause I need to see Ellie," I tell him as I finish tying my shoes.

"Good luck finding her. She will be overrun by the other men here. A young, healthy female whose strong and witty? Yeah, she's been the talk of the community," He tells me.

"Isn't it forbidden to have relationships?" I ask.

"No, not really. It's confusing here, but you're only allowed a wife if you're on the council. When guys or gals want to marry they can challenge one of the Elders. It's very rare that someone lives through the challenge, the Elders are the best of the best," He says.

"What about those women, who don't have a husband but are pregnant?" I ask, looking at him. Rick doesn't look up.

"In some circumstances, women are made to breed against their will...they are used as experiments and their children too. We have medicine that we're testing against the sickness to see if we're getting anywhere close. The closest was three days, that a little boy survived before he turned," Rick says, looking up at me.

"What happens if they screw around and become pregnant?" I ask. Rick takes a deep breath and exhales slowly.

"They will either be used for some of our more extensive testings or will be burned at the stake immediately after giving birth, or both. Most women don't survive through the testing, but those who do will have their children used as more experiments or workers...that's why were low on women," He pauses, "Women are smarter than men, you know," Rick says, giving me a slight punch to the arm.

"What will happen to Ellie?" I ask.

"She will either be asked to wife by someone and they challenge an Elder or will be forced to bear a child for testing, or she may couple with that Finn man. He recently lost his wife, but didn't seem to have a hard time with it-"

"Ellie isn't old enough to be doing stuff like that," I say to Rick, almost threateningly.

"Women are bred as young as their first period, whether that be 15 or 8. We have to survive," Rick says to me.

"She's on the hunting group, they won't make her do anything if she's working and giving to the community, would they?" I ask.

"Honestly Joel, she's the first woman to be hunting with the group. I don't know what her fate will decide, but whatever it is, you may not see her anymore," Rick says, looking at me.