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Major spoilers for HBO's The Last of Us follow.

It's been over a week since The Last of Us season 2, episode 2, which killed off Pedro Pascal's beloved Joel in a brutal fashion. If you've been online at all, you know that fans of the series that didn't play the game are in a cloud of shock and dismay right now, even after the airing of the subsequent episode. In fact, some of those fans have even wished that they did play the game beforehand, so that they could prepare for the emotional turmoil coming to them.

And that, my friends, is where Popverse comes in.

In order to make the rest of the season a little bit easier on your poor, broken hearts, Popverse has created The Last of Us, Part II ending explained to guide you through the major events coming to the HBO series. Obviously, it should go without saying that we are getting into heavy spoiler territory for the show (which adapts the game pretty faithfully), and not juist in terms of season 2. What you're about to read will very likely factor into The Last of Us, season 3 as well.

Still here? Alright, don't say we didn't warn ya. Let's start thing this by asking...

How does The Last of Us Part II end?

As you know by now, the driving story behind much of The Last of Us's sequel is the death of Joel Miller at the hands of Abby Anderson, a cruel act she committed to get revenge for her father, whom Joel killed. But her action kicks off their own vengeance quest, with Ellie dedicating much of her storyline to getting back at Abby. That puts her on a quest to Seattle, where Elli encounters the warring factions of the Washington Liberation Front and the cultists known as the Seraphites. 

Previously embedded in the WLF ranks, Abby herself gets on their bad side, and after much bloodshed and leadership changes within the violent militia, Abby realizes she must escape. However, Ellie catches up to her before she can make a break for it, and the pair have a bloody knockout match in a Seattle theater before the WLF is ostensibly defeated by Seraphite forces. Both Abby and Ellie survive the events in Seattle, with Abby starting off on a new life for herself and Ellie returning to Jackson, where she begins building a home with her romantic partner Dina.

Where did Ellie go at the end of The Last of Us Part II?

More than a year later, Ellie and Dina have built a life for themselves, jointly raising Dina's baby (the father of whom is, of course, Jesse, who is tragically killed on the way to Seattle with Ellie). But while things are fine on the surface, Ellie still suffers major PTSD from watching Joel die. So when news comes to Jackson of a woman matching Abby's description having been seen in the area, Ellie sets out again to have her revenge.

But first, Dina informs her that she will not stand by and watch Ellie prioritize her revenge over her new family. Dina tells Ellie that, if she leaves, she will not find her or their baby if and when she returns. But the pain of Joel's death is too great for Ellie, and she turns away from the love of her life, throwing away her current family over the pain of losing her first one.

Meanwhile, Abby has built a life for herself as well, albeit not in a stationary place. She has connected with a former member of the Seraphite cult, Lev, and has dedicated herself to his protection (the Joel and Ellie parallels between them are strong). However, the Serpahites and WLF weren't the end of evil organizations in the Pacific Northwest - a new group of slavers called the Rattlers catches up with the duo of Abby and Lev, forcing them into servitude. But their imprisonment doesn't last forever.

Months after Lev and Abby fall into a Rattler trap, Ellie has the same misfortune. However, Ellie manages to not only break free, but also slaughter their captors. After she frees the object of her revenge, Ellie forces a reluctant Abby (who is trying to escape by boat) to fight her by threatening to kill Lev if she doesn't. 

Like in Seattle, the pair go at it, a mixture of hatred, fear, and loss fueling them both. In the course of the struggle, Abby bites off two of Ellie's fingers, though eventually, Ellie gets the upper hand. She holds her arch-nemesis under the water over which Abby was just trying to escape, but before Abby draws the water into her lungs, a devastated Ellie lets her go. Defeated but alive, Abby makes her way back into the boat, taking herself and Lev far away as Ellie watches them go.

Why did Ellie let Abby live at the end of The Last of Us Part II?

As the brutal fight was going on, the flashbacks of Joel's death gave way in Ellie's mind to happier memories between the pair. Though the game never explicitly says why Ellie receives these exact flashbacks when she does, they are enough to stave away her murderous instincts. In a game that's seen Ellie grow from a child to an angry young adult, it's here that she fully matures, either realizing Abby's humanity via her protection of Lev or remembering that Joel wanted a better life for her than his own violent one. 

Where did Dina go at the end of The Last of Us Part II?

However, Ellie's maturation through her experience in sparing Abby does come at a cost. True to her word, Dina has taken their baby away from Jackson, leaving Ellie an empty home, which used to belong to Joel, when she returns. As the credits begin to roll and The Last of Us Part 2 wraps its bittersweet end, Ellie attempts to play Joel's guitar, the same one that she saw in the happy flashbacks of him during her fight with Abby.

But because of her missing fingers, she cannot.

Is The Last of Us Part 3 coming out?

Unfortunately, that's a certainty we can't provide you with, though if you played the original games, it's one you've been hoping for for years now. The Last of Us director Neil Druckmann gave comments in a recent interview that amounted to the idea that original production studio Naughty Dog has not ruled a Last of Us Part III out, but that it would be a long time coming, as the studio is working on the massive Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet project right now.

In the meantime, we'll just have to wait and see if the folks at Naughty Dog are planning on returning to the property. Sure, the viral success of the HBO adaptation might influence that decision, but even if they decide to return to Ellie's story, it will still be a very, very long time until we are able to play through it.

And that, loyal readers, is emotional distress that no 'ending explained' article will be able to protect you from.

You don't need to beat the game to prepare for the next one—here are all the major new and upcoming games coming our way.