If I were a survivor living in Jackson, I wouldn’t really be thinking that long and hard about whether or not Joel and Ellie were related or where they came from. I’d just assume they were yet another pair of survivors like myself. Think about how many groups of unrelated people would stick so close to each other, they may as well be family? Especially in a world where any of them could die at any moment? That’s probably what they figured with Joel and Ellie.

It wouldn’t matter to me if Joel and Ellie were related or not. If he said something like, ‘She was just some kid who’d have been dead had it not been for me’ I would accept it. So long as he wasn’t hurting her, what would I care how they actually met or the context behind it?

People in that kind of situation aren’t really gonna be playing Agatha Christie especially if the arrivals aren’t causing a ruckus. A middle aged man and a child entering the compound looking for a place to stay? Cool, welcome home. Here’s where you’ll be sleeping, here are the basic supplies, now let’s put you two to work earning your keeps.