Hey everyone. This is my first Doctor Who fanfic. It will be based off the novels Carrie and The Shining, so if you have any questions about what I'm writing or anything I change about the characters, feel free to ask. I hope you all enjoy this story.

Disclaimer: I own none of the works mentioned above.

Part One: The Dangerous Power of Innocence

London, 1992

In a warm day in September, as many parents stood outside of Rockwell Primary School and embraced their excited children as they were about to start a new school year, one young woman named Jackie Tyler remained in the safety of her used car as she was about to let her five- year-old daughter Rose off to start school.

Jackie wore a dark blue blouse, black trousers, dark sunglasses that fully concealed her blue eyes, and had her blonde hair tied up into a sloppy ponytail. She reserved her weary smile for her daughter, but maintained a serious expression as she scanned all the adults who were gathered around the school, trying to see if there was anyone she knew there or if anyone was starting in at her with those nosy expressions which she despised.

Rose, on the other hand, was all smiles and giggles, as she was just as excited as all the children outside, and had been begging her mother to get out of the car with her so they she could give her a proper goodbye. Since her mother kept declining her request, she devoted her time to having one last chat with her imaginary friend, whom she liked to call John Smith.

"Mummy, John Smith says that all parents should step out of the car when they say goodbye to their kids on their first day of school just to be on the safe side," Rose once again said in a last attempt to convince her mother. Jackie had already turned off the radio, which kept playing the same popular dance music which Rose loved but which Jackie couldn't stand, which was an early sign for the child that she wasn't in a good mood, but being so young, she chose to ignore this and remain cheerful.

Jackie laughed. "Well then, tell John Smith that he probably doesn't believe in full independence for big girls. You're growing up more every day, Rosie, and big girls don't need to have their mothers taking them everywhere."

"But Mummy…"

"That's enough, sweetheart. You're getting out of this car on your own and that's final. One day, you'll thank me for this."

Rose sighed, but she understood that this would be her mother's final word on the matter. She reached out from the back seat and gave her mother a kiss in the cheek, and Jackie managed to put her arms around her daughter's shoulders.

"I love you, Mummy."

"I love you too, Rose. Good luck in school, and make sure that you always behave."

"John Smith says that he cares deeply about you as well."

"Tell John Smith that I appreciate it, but that he should leave you alone while you're at school. In here, not all kids are as nice as the ones you met at nursery school."

Rose nodded. Then she slowly opened the door and took her time as she stepped out. She gave her mother a slightly sad glance before she finally headed off to the school.

Jackie sighed, removed her sunglasses, and covered her face with her hand. There were so many things she wished she could do for Rose, as well as many others which she wanted to do for herself. If it wasn't stepping out of the car with her, then it was getting herself a new car. If it wasn't being able to find friends for Rose outside of her nursery school class, then it was trying to get away from her annoying coworkers at the preschool where she worked as an aid (which was where Rose had attended as well). If it wasn't finally getting that novel which she'd been working on for the past year published, then it was being able to get her act together and quit drinking for good. If it wasn't trying to understand why Rose was so intuitive, then it was wishing that Pete were alive again.

But of course, she probably wasn't going to get any of this anytime soon.

...

Looking around her, it wasn't hard for Rose to see why her mother didn't want to step out of the car. A lot of the kids out there had both their mummies and daddies with them, and many of them were smiling and laughing as they tried to say goodbye. Although some looked a little sad, none of them seemed to show any serious signs of what her mummy called stress. Even the mummies that were crying were chuckling and saying things like "Oh my, Roger! Can't you believe how fast Max is growing up?"

Rose didn't have a father, since her mummy told her that he had died not long after she was born, and although her mummy laughed and smiled quite often, it was also very common for her to get stressed, and when this happened, she would often yell at other people, including Rose, and get into a rage, often hurting other people, or she would stay alone for hours in a room and cry, and for some reason, this scared Rose more than when she got angry.

One of the causes behind this stress seemed to occur when she drank that liquid that came from either bottles or cans which she called alcohol. Rose always wondered how a drink could cause someone to get such strong feelings, and for that matter, why her mummy wanted it if it caused her so much problems. How many of the grownups here could possibly have the same problems as her mummy, she kept thinking to herself, and were there any kids here who both loved and feared their parents, just as she sometimes did?

That was when the chorus of voices in her head began:

I work eight hours a week, and what's my reward? A bloody man who can never speak to me or spend any bloody time with the kids!

Where's my credit card? I swear I put it in my wallet as soon as I left home, but I now I can't find it anywhere! Why do I have to be so forgetful?

A second year student. It feels like just yesterday that I was holding Max in my arms as I walked out of the hospital. Why is it that time can't slow down once in a while and let us have our kids as they are now?

Everything changes so fast. I used to run around playing ball with my friends and had everything that was necessary for school and work. Now with all these new gadgets, kids are spending more time indoors with their movies and video games, and working folks are more behind the times than ever.

It was so strange. Rose never heard anybody she knew saying that they could hear what other people were thinking in their own minds, and yet she could hear it all the time. The friend which her mother thought was imaginary, John Smith, was the person whose voice she heard the most often, usually to either warn her about something or reassure her that everything was okay. He'd spoken to her in the car, advising her to get her mother to go out with her, and now Rose could feel that he was trying to reach her again:

Rose, get away from there!

John Smith, you promised to stay away from me during school. Mummy says you have to.

Your mummy should have listened to my advice. Now you're about to walk into trouble. Run away now.

Why, John Smith? Can't you explain?

"Hey you over there! Who are you talking to?" It was the kid whose name was Max.

"I think she's crazy," said another boy, who was one of Max's companions.

It didn't take long for Rose to realize that they were bullies. She usually managed to speak to John Smith inside her head when she was with anyone other than mummy, but it got out of hand sometimes and other people would hear her, believing that she was just talking to herself, and therefore, thinking she was crazy.

There were now four boys gathered around her, and nearly all the parents were leaving.

"Let's get her!" the tallest one declared, and one of them got a hold of one of her pigtails.

Rose, run!

She took off, with the red rubber band that tied up part of her hair coming off. A crowd of kids was now gathered, and they were all laughing and pointing at her, shouting "Get her! Get her!"

As she was running, she turned around to get a glimpse of the bullies, and one of them seemed as if he was being shoved, even though no one was next to him. He screamed as he was knocked to the ground, landing on mud and getting his school uniform all dirty. Some of the kids were frightened by this and left the scene, but many others stayed, waiting to see Rose's fate.

Then the tallest one came down. One of his shoelaces got untied and he stepped on it, resulting in him landing on the sidewalk. His pants ripped at the part covering his right knee, which started bleeding very badly.

The other two, which included Max and his first companion, finally caught up to Rose. Max got a hold on her remaining pigtail, and his friend grabbed her by the collar of her white school shirt.

"You thought you could run away from us, you crazy girl?" Max asked in a menacing tone.

"Crazy people don't have any friends at this school," Max's friend said, forming his right hand into a fist.

This was it. There was no way Rose could get away...

"Hey! Leave her alone!" A tall dark boy, who had been a part of the crowd, had stepped up and gotten a hold of both Max and his friend. He punched Max twice on the head, causing his eye to turn black and his nose to bleed. He gave up, crying as he ran away. Then he shoved Max's friend. He was not hurt, but was completely terrified. The boy who rescued Rose then shouted out, "If any of you try to hurt that girl again, I'll get you again, and that is a promise!" The crowd which surrounded them was left speechless.

He then walked up to Rose, who was kneeling on the grass with her blonde hair looking very unruly and her school uniform all covered in dirt. "Are you all right?" he asked her as he helped her get up.

"I think so. Thanks for saving me. My name is Rose Tyler," Rose replied in a soft voice. She was starting to get a headache, and her face was red on account of her fear, but she managed to avoid crying, which she took as a sign that she was going to be able to handle this, and even she couldn't, this boy might be able to help her again.

"My name is Smith. Mickey Smith, and I'll be looking out for you for now on, " the boy replied in a voice that reminded Rose of the princes that appeared in many of her favorite movies, which she saw as another good sign. He and Rose held hands as they walked into the building, with many other students watching them in wonder.

And Mickey would always keep his promise to Rose.