A/N: Another oneshot, and this is a long time coming. A little backstory first. I've never seen any movie version of Carrie, but I have read the book. Same deal with Firestarter. I actually haven't read many of Stephen King's other works, but I want to. The movies, not so much. I have the Nostalgia Critic to thank for that. I've had this idea in my head ever since I found out about the ending of the 2002 Carrie, which admittedly is probably the worst adaptation, but I do wish that TV series had materialized. That would have been cool. For this fic, think the Sissy Spacek Carrie, but the ending comes from the 2002 film- she goes to Florida to try and start over. It's been a few years since then, and she's been traveling across the southern United States. Read and Review! Let's go!
"I hate bugs." That was the main thought on Carrie White's mind as she slapped another mosquito off her arm. She was currently somewhere in the more wooded areas of Texas, having managed to hitchhike this far. This was her life now, finding random jobs to do for a short time, and then moving on after a few months, hitchhiking or just flat out walking and camping to her destinations. It was rough, but after a few years making up new names, making a few friends, and constantly moving, it was something she was used to by now. Her powers were stronger than ever, and she had almost perfect control over them. As Carrie entered a clearing, she could sense she wasn't alone. Closing her eyes and reaching out telepathically, she scanned the area for any life signs. She found one.
Carrie's eyes snapped open and she dived for the ground as a ball of flame flew past her and exploded against a tree. The moist ground, fresh from a recent rain, made it unlikely for the flame to spread, so she wasn't worried about that. What she was worried about was where the fire had come from. That's when she noticed the little girl staring at her from across the clearing, having emerged from the trees shortly after the fireball. "So she's who I sensed." Carrie thought as she pushed herself to her feet. She took a stance, attempting to signal she meant no harm, when the girl's head twitched slightly and another fireball flew forward, just as hot as the last. Carrie just managed to avoid that one. She narrowed her eyes as she took a different stance, ready to defend herself. Playtime was officially over.
Watching closely, she noticed the girl twitch again and another fireball came flying. Carrie caught this one in her telekinesis and sent it soaring back. It detonated about halfway towards the girl, but seeing her projectile rebounded like that had obviously shaken her up. The girl raised her hands and screamed, and the clearing perimeter erupted in flames. Carrie's eyes widened and she recoiled in shock. "How the hell did she do that?" Carrie didn't have time to find out as another fireball flew by, and she couldn't completely dodge this one. She cried out in pain and collapsed to her knees, clutching her burned arm. The ball had only grazed her, but that was all it needed to hurt like hell. Angered, Carrie threw the next blast of flame back. Focusing her powers, Carrie tore a 3 foot thick cubic chunk out of the ground, flung it forward and ran towards her foe. The reversed flame detonated again, but the big chunk of earth was a little tougher. It took multiple fireballs to destroy it, and Carrie caught the shards in her telekinetic grip and sent them continuing on their course. This proved ineffective at actually damaging the girl, as the bits of shrapnel combusted upon getting within a foot of her. She couldn't stop all of them, though, and was rewarded with a scratch across her side from a lucky shot. Infuriated, the girl looked up and sent another fireball hurling in Carrie's direction. The older girl caught it telekinetically, spun around, and sent this one flying back as well. The rebounded fireball was destroyed by the firestarting girl's desperation shot, a gigantic fire star. Carrie's eyes widened and she thrust both arms forward, focusing all her powers on the star. Concentrating as hard as she could, Carrie forced the star to dissipate rather than explode in her face. Running forward, Carrie managed to grab the girl by the arm, figuring that she wouldn't dare fire at Carrie if she'd be hit too. Of course, that all depended on if the girl was fireproof or not… Carrie's hunch paid off. The girl squirmed and struggled, but she could not break Carrie's grip. As Carrie attempted to subdue the girl and calm her down, the squirming girl began to scream.
"I won't go back! I won't!"
"Will you calm down!? I don't know what you're talking about!"
"You're lying! I don't know how you found me, but I won't go back to the Shop!"
"I have no idea what the Shop is! Now calm down before you cook us both alive!"
The idea of both of them burning to death was quickly extinguished, along with the fire, when it began to rain. Carrie looked up and then created a telekinetic shield above them to block the rain, then sat the girl down. "I'm Carrie. I don't want to hurt you, and I don't know what 'the Shop' is. What I want to know is who you are, and why you attacked me. I'll let you go, but you have to promise not to run away or set me on fire the instant I do."
The girl looked up and nodded; a fearful look on her face. Carrie made good on her word and released the girl, then placed her hands on her knees and gestured for her to begin. The girl gulped and began. "M-my name's Charlie McGee." And from there the floodgates opened. The girl continued to talk about her parents, who had been subject to a government experiment. How her parents had both eventually died to protect her. How she had massacred the agents who had taken her parents from her and attempted to make her a weapon, and was now on the run attempting to reach a reputable publication to let the story get out, but with no sense of direction and no map, she was lost and scared. Carrie could draw some comparisons between their stories. She clenched a fist, angry at the people who had torn this girl's family apart, when she had done nothing to them at that point. Carrie looked back at Charlie, who was crying now. Carrie wrapped her arms around the sobbing girl and pulled her into a hug, running a hand down Charlie's back and letting her cry it all out. Eventually, Charlie calmed down and looked up at Carrie. "Wh-what am I gonna do?" She asked.
Carrie smiled at Charlie. "You can come with me. You said you were heading for the Rolling Stone office, right? Well, you really went the wrong way. Their office is in New York, and we're in Texas. Still, I think we can get there eventually. I have a road map, and while I do have some money, I think its best saved until we can get to a city or something. It's safer to catch a plane or take a bus rather than hitchhike."
"What if the Shop catches up to us? Then what do we do?" Charlie asked.
"Then we give them a taste of our power. You took out a lot of them with your rampage, and I leveled my hometown when I snapped. They won't stand a chance." Carrie said, smiling wryly. She stood up and helped Charlie to her feet too. "If we keep heading in this direction we should reach Houston within a few days. I should have enough food to last us both. From there, we should be able to find a way to at least start towards New York." Carrie took Charlie's hand and led her out of the clearing. She hadn't considered picking up a companion, but this girl had changed her mind. But now she was wondering-
What if there were others out there like them?
A/N: Aaand there we go. The ending is supposed to lead into the end of Firestarter, where Charlie enters the Rolling Stone office, and the premise of the failed Carrie TV series, where Carrie would have met others with powers like her. Now I wish that it had gone through. The thought of Carrie leading a number of superpowered people across the country makes me think of Maximum Ride, and anything that reminds me of that masterpiece is interesting to me. See you next time!
