A/N: This story came to me suddenly and I wrote it all in a matter of days. I should be able to update often, but there is still a bit of editing to do as I go. If you are reading my other story, The Alternate Adventures of Rose Tyler, I haven't abandoned it and I will be updating that as well. I just needed to get this story out of my head.

Ok, quick rundown:
Donna is not in this fic because there is no place for her in this story, I just like the last name Noble and went with it. Now James, aka the Ninth Doctor, is a little prick and I hope you hate him at the beginning because I want you to. I don't want it to be easy for him later on, he needs to suffer later for the rest of the story to play out. Don't worry too much about the dates/years, they are just a minor reference because there will be gaps during the first few chapters. I made a chart for myself to hopefully keep it accurate but if there is a small flaw, I don't want it throwing anyone off.
So, please enjoy :)

February 1993

Rose crept through the garden of her friend Amy's house, trying to find where her best friend was hiding. They had been friends forever, at least that's what they told people. They were only eight years old and had only known each other for three years, but to them it was forever.

Behind a shrubbery, Rose spotted a head full of red hair that quickly ducked down, but not quick enough. Rose came running over and caught her friend as they both tumbled to the ground, laughing.

"Amelia, it's time to get going," her mother called out. Amy was the spitting image of her mother, red hair and all. Her father had brown hair and although he was from London, he met and married Amy's mother in Scotland three years before Amy was born. She spent her first five years growing up in Scotland, and had the accent to prove it. Then they moved to London where she met Rose while outside playing one afternoon, they had been inseparable ever since.

Rose frowned, "I'm gonna miss you."

Amy hugged her tightly, "I'm only gonna be gone for a week. Besides, you still have Mickey," she teased.

Rose made a face, "yuck."

"I bet you two are going to be married when you grow up," Amy sang teasingly.

"Eww, no," Rose said with a scrunched nose, "if that's true, then I bet you're going to marry Rory."

"No way," Amy said with a shake of her head, "I'm never getting married."

"Me either," Rose helped Amy to her feet, "who needs boys, we've got each other."

"That's right," Amy said and started walking toward her parent's car.

"So, your cousin is coming back with you?"

Amy nodded and looked down, "Dad said we are the only family he has left and that I can't ask him about his parents or the accident."

"So, he'll be like a brother," Rose said, hoping to cheer her friend up.

Amy shrugged, "yeah, I suppose, but I've never met him. He lives in Manchester and we never left Scotland before we moved here. He's older too, so he probably wouldn't like to play any of the games I do."

"At least you won't always be alone," Rose told her, "I always wanted a brother or a sister."

Amy wrapped her arm around Rose's shoulder as they walked, "then I'll be your sister."

That comment warmed Rose's heart, she just wished that were true. Amy said goodbye with one final hug and ran off to the car that her parents were waiting in.

Rose stood back and watched Amy get in the car and didn't start walking home until the car was out of sight.

Rose didn't live very far, but as she walked home Mickey spotted her and came running over, "what are you doing walking alone?" He stood tall beside her and puffed out his chest as if he would intimidate someone. He was only a year older than Rose, but he always acted like he was much older when he was around her.

"I'm aloud to walk home from Amy's," Rose snapped, "mum said it was ok as long as it's before dinner."

"Well, I don't think it's safe," Mickey said, "I'll walk with you."

"I'm fine Mickey," Rose argued and started walking faster. Mickey picked up the pace as well and soon they were both running. They reached the estate and Rose ran up the steps while laughing, forgetting why she was running in the first place. She got to her door and hurried in, leaving Mickey behind without a thought.

She didn't really hate Mickey. His family and Rose's had known each other for years and they've been together since they were in nappies. After hearing that Rose's father died when she was a baby, he promised Jackie that he would take care of Rose, which is why he was so protective of her. Rose just didn't like him always watching over her.

Rose found her mum in the kitchen, cooking spaghetti for dinner. She walked in and gave her a hug and Jackie patted her on the head, "Amelia left already?"

Rose nodded sadly with her head against Jackie's stomach.

"It's alright, sweetheart, she'll be back before you know it." She fixed two plates and carried them to the table. "When she does get back, I want you to be on your best behavior with her cousin. Heaven knows how he must be feeling, losing both of his parents like that and having to move away from home all within a matter of days."

Rose nodded and dug into her spaghetti, taking a big mouthful. She always worked up an appetite after a long day of playing. She listened to her mum talk to her about manners, what not to say to him and questions she shouldn't ask while she ate, but she was more worried that things were going to change between her and Amy with him around. By the end of dinner Rose was nodding off onto her plate and Jackie got up, chuckling at her daughter as she wiped the sauce off her face and helped her wash up for bed.

Just as Jackie said, the week went by quickly and when Rose got to school she saw her friend Amy waiting for her. Rose ran over and hugged her friend and they walked to their class together. She told Rose about the trip, the funeral, and all the people who came. Then she told her about her cousin who was now living with her in the room right next to hers.

"He's really quiet," Amy said, "Dad said to give him time but he's weird."

"Weird how," Rose asked.

Amy shrugged, "I don't know, he's there but he doesn't talk or look at anyone."

"He's probably sad," Rose said, "I get sad when I think about my dad even if I don't remember him. If I lost my mum too, I don't think I would want to talk either."

"Yeah, I guess," Amy sighed and they went to class.

That afternoon, Rose walked home with Amy and Amy's mother invited her in for a snack. Rose was happy to come in, she missed Amy and wanted to spend more time with her. They sat at the table snacking on apples and telling jokes when an older boy wandered into the room. He had brown, spiked hair, a slightly large nose, and big ears. He wore baggy jeans and a t-shirt with what Rose assumed to be some band, but she wasn't sure.

Both girls fell silent as he walked in, watching him as if an alien had just walked into the room. He gave them both a puzzled look but mainly focused on Rose, staring at her more perplexed. He grabbed an apple from the bowl and left, back to his room.

"Is that your cousin," Rose asked.

Amy nodded, I told you he's quiet.

"He's weird," Rose said with a scrunched face.

Amy giggled, "I told you."

May 1993

A few months went by and James became more vocal and seemed to be settling in fine. He still had mood swings, which was expected in his situation, but Amy's parents were pleased to see that he continued to work hard in school and seemed to be on the right path to becoming something great. Amy seemed to get along with him as well as any brother sister pair would, so there was still a lot of teasing, nagging, and crying, mostly on Amelia's end. Torturing Rose, however, seemed to become his favorite past time.

It started when Rose came over for another after school snack, Amy left the room for a moment and he came in, Rose slouched in her chair and stared at him as he poured a glass of milk. "Is there a problem," he snapped, giving her a dirty look.

Rose quickly shook her head no and sunk even lower. He gave her an evil smirk, seeing her fear made him feel some sort of empowerment. He didn't know why he enjoyed it, he just did.

He left the room without saying another word. When Amy came back, she saw Rose was bothered by something although she told her it was nothing.

For the next two weeks after that, James enjoyed making Rose flinch and cry by sneaking up on her or shooting her a glare that made her uncomfortable. He would even go into a room and sit down just to watch her squirm. After that came the insults, name calling, and taunting. It didn't take long for Rose to get a complex, as James often found ways of making her feel stupid, ugly, or worthless. She did all she could to avoid him but she didn't want to lose her friendship with Amy either. Even her mum told her he was just being a boy and he would grow out of it, Rose disagreed.

May 1994

Rose and Amy walked home from school one afternoon. Rose had her teddy bear with her that day because she had a class assignment which they had to talk about something that gave them pleasant memories, for Rose it was Mr. Tedopoulos. When they got closer to home, Amy asked Rose if she wanted to come over and play.

"At your house," Rose asked nervously.

Amy arched her eyebrow, "well, I can't go to your house unless your mum is home."

"Oh yeah," Rose sighed, "I don't know, I don't feel too good."

Amy could see the concern on her face, "is everything alright?"

Before Rose could answer, her toy got yanked from her hand. She spun around to see who the thief was and saw James holding it by the foot, dangling between his thumb and forefinger.

"What is this raggedy thing," he asked with his nose wrinkled in disgust.

Beside him, his friend Harold, who Rose thought looked like a weasel with bleached hair, cackled beside him. As bad as James was alone, when he teamed up with John, he was a nightmare.

Rose tried to grab her bear but James held it higher, just out of her reach, "give it back James," she demanded.

"Does the little baby want her teddy bear back," he teased again lifting the bear higher, using his height as an advantage.

Rose jumped to reach the bear but it was useless, James was nearly two feet taller than her and he just laughed harder at her attempts. "Look at you, jumping around like a monkey." He taunted her more by shaking the bear as she jumped, "come on little ape, get your toy."

Now Harold started making monkey noises behind Rose, teasing her while James kept the bear away.

Rose knew it was useless, but she had to try, she wouldn't let him have her bear and her memories. Tears began to form in her eyes, "come on, give it back!"

"Give it to her James," Amelia shouted, "or I'm telling my dad."

James sighed, "you two are no fun," and threw the bear as far as he could right into a puddle on the side of a road.

"Mr. Tedopoulos," Rose screamed as she took off running, hearing James and Harold howling with laughter behind her. She picked up the soggy bear with tears streaming down her cheeks and ran home, ignoring Amy who was calling for her to stop.

"I told you, this is just a phase," Jackie said as she handed Rose her the freshly cleaned and dried teddy bear. "He doesn't know how to control his emotions. I'll talk to Amelia's parents tomorrow."

Rose nodded and hugged her bear, knowing that talking to Amy's parents would be useless. One thing was for sure, she wasn't going to leave the house with Mr. Tedopolis again, he would be safer inside where James wasn't.

October 1997

Three years passed and things didn't get better, they just got worse as James found new ways to tease her and thought of many new names to call her. He seemed to find something wrong with her every day, whether it be her haircut, her clothing, or simply the way she looked. He was relentless, even forbidding Rose to walk past the house knowing it was her only way to school.

Although, all the adults considered James to be a responsible young man with a bright future, they never saw the way Rose was treated. Worst of all, he had them all fooled and they thought Rose was making the stories up. The only ones who knew the truth and believed her were Amy, Rory, and Mickey, who saw her mistreatment first hand.

James walked to the estate one afternoon to get Amy and found her with Rose, Rory, and Mickey while they sat outside, talking, and listening to music. He glanced up at the building Rose lived in as he approached them, "why would anyone want to live in this hell hole?"

Rose went silent and looked away, wishing she could just disappear.

"Be quiet James," Amy snapped, she wasn't afraid of him because he didn't terrorize her the way he did Rose.

"Or what," James grinned sinisterly, "is Ricky there going to come to defend her honor," then made kissy noises toward him.

Mickey scowled, "it's Mickey."

James nodded his head back, "oh, that's right, Mickey the idiot."

Mickey leapt to his feet, his hands balled in tight fists, which made James even more excited, "oh, so you do still have a spine. I'm surprised considering you let Rose walk all over you."

"Shut up James," Rose snapped, she was so tired of his tormenting.

He looked down at her, "or what are you gonna do about it? Run upstairs and tell your stupid mother on me again?" He leaned down, closer, "because it doesn't work."

Rose felt her chest heaving and she fought back tears while looking up into his horrendous eyes. Then she did the one thing she learned best from her mum, she slapped him right across the face.

Mickeys jaw went slack and Amy covered her mouth to stifle the gasp that escaped.

Rose felt the sting on her own hand as well and hoped that the pain in his cheek was far worse than that on her hand.

With his cheek still turned, a menacing smile spread across James' face. He looked back at Rose and by his expression, Rose knew he was about to say something vulgar. Before he could, Jackie's voice bellowed from above.

"Rose Marion Tyler, you get up her this instant!"

James laughed, never taking his eyes off Rose, "looks like you're in trouble." He turned to Amy, "let's go, your mother's waiting."

Amy looked at Rose apologetically, "I'll see you tomorrow?"

Rose nodded, then said goodbye to her friends before going upstairs to face her mum.

Rose hoped the slap would teach James to leave her alone, but that smile, that hideous smile he gave her made her think she may have made things worse. She realized she was right two weeks later when she got home and she encountered James on the stairs while headed up to her flat. She prepared herself for an insult or an argument, but he simply gave her a cruel grin then winked at her which Rose found repulsive. He hurried by, clutching his jacket closed, and was gone in an instant.

Rose watched her back all the way to her door and when she entered the flat she smelled freshly baked bread. She took a big whiff and her mum walked out of the kitchen, "Amelia's mother sent over some homemade bread. Go wash up, dinner will be ready soon."

That answered her question as to why James was there, but why was he so quiet and why the strange behavior? Rose carried her bag to her room and Jackie heard a blood curdling scream. She hurried to her room to see Rose on her floor crying uncontrollably as she held the headless body of Mr. Tedopolis.

The next day at school Amy found Rose and handed her the missing head of her teddy bear. "James had it mounted on his wall like a trophy. I told dad and he's in trouble."

"Probably not for long," Rose sniffed as she looked at her mutilated bear. "He always gets away with everything."

After school Rose brought the head of the bear home and did her best to sew it together but it was a poor job, she didn't even have the right color thread. With the head wobbly, she needed to prop the bear up against the wall to keep it in one piece. Her nights of cuddling her toy were over and all she could do was look at it as she laid in bed.

Jackie finally believed her after that and she realized how terrible James really was, feeling awful for not believing Rose all this time. She restricted Rose from going to Amy's house and began arguing with Amy's parents to defend her daughter. Her friendship with Amy held strong, but with their parents fighting, it was a hard friendship to maintain.

September 2000

James' last 2 years before he left for medical school were less nerve-wracking for Rose. He was too busy with his school work and planning his future to worry about tormenting her. She also hoped he was more mature now and realized it was beneath him to terrorize a young girl relentlessly, but still, she couldn't shake the feeling that he seriously hated her and she didn't know why.

She was fifteen when he finally left and when the family threw him a going away party, Rose and Mickey threw their own.

"Seven years of hell over," Rose exclaimed while jumping and hugging Mickey happily.

Mickey hugged Rose back, enjoying her embrace more than he remembered ever enjoying it, "yeah but he'll still be home on breaks."

"I don't care," Rose said, "it won't be like before. I spend time outside without having to look over my shoulder and hang around Amy without worrying about him showing up."

"So you're not going to say goodbye," Mickey joked.

Rose laughed, "only if it's to give him one last slap."

Mickey laughed while hugging her tighter and refused to let go.

June 2001

Nearly a year later James came home after finishing his first year with high marks, getting into medical school was no easy task and he wasn't going to ruin the opportunity by doing poorly. Rose was lucky to avoid him during his other visits, but this time he was back for a lot longer and it was inevitable.

She was in Amy's room and they were both sitting on her bed, reading magazines while Amy talked about her plans of being a model. James walked past the open door and when he caught a glimpse of Rose he quickly backtracked. He grew his hair out, it was longer, wavier, and hung around his face. Rose wished it were longer to cover his face completely, but she could still see his beady eyes. His style didn't change, he still wore jeans and t-shirts, and his smile was just as malicious as ever.

"You're still around," he asked with mock surprise, "I figured Amy would've grown tired of you by now."

Rose shook her head in annoyance and ignored him.

He grinned wider, "silent treatment, eh. Better than a smack I suppose."

"If you don't leave now, I'll refresh your memory," Rose snapped.

James straightened up, "I'd like to see you try..." and he was cut off by Amy pushing him back and slamming the door in his face.

Rose heard his dreadful laugh before he continued down the hall.

The next couple of years were about the same, life was fine and perfect while James was gone then when he came home Rose would have to go into hiding. She wondered if he would ever mature and although his teasing seemed much tamer than before, and even Amy said it was more playful than meant to be harmful, Rose still hated it. She never did anything to him to deserve the way he treated her and after all these years, Rose accepted the fact that he would never change. She just had to wait and hope that he would one day leave forever.

If Amy wasn't such a good friend, Rose wouldn't have come around at all, but a friend like that was worth the hell he put her through. She also found it sweet how Mickey tried to defend her still, but John grew up to be much larger in height and width, Mickey could only do so much and it showed that he was frightened of him.

The only time Rose felt comfortable around James was the one summer he came home with his new girlfriend, Jabe, and he was on his best behavior. Rose was thankful for that woman, but after she heard about the breakup Rose knew he would be back to his old ways. So, she prepared herself for the future when he would visit again and will probably try and make up for missed opportunities.