Summary: Tony didn't have a good childhood. It was filled with constant worry that his father would find out about his curse: he was a mutant. When Tony is put under extreme circumstances, he is forced to use his gift. How do the Avengers take it? This does include scenes from Tony's childhood (including meeting Pepper) and the X-men.
Rating: T because of 'hidden' mentions of child abuse and torture (Afghanistan), some strong language later on, and because I'm paranoid.
Disclaimer: I do not own ANYTHING. This includes the DC, Marvel comics, and movies mentioned.
A/N: So a lot of people have been doing this idea because of a post (?) and I decided to get in on the action. I love the idea and I'm hoping, by starting at the very beginning, that it's logical. Enjoy and please review!
And before anyone asks I did censored some of the words. I don't like cussing in real life and I don't want to do it in my stories. Sorry if this takes away to dramatics of it. But, come one, who could write Tony without his swears?
#Life History #
Prologue
The first time he remembered having an 'accident,' he was fourteen...
Flashback*
"Tony! Tony! What do you plan to be when you grow up?"
Tony quickly spun around and out of his father's horribly tight grasp. God, it felt amazing to have an excuse to get away from his father for two seconds. Like the complete fourteen year old he was, he replied, "I want to be just like my father!"
Almost all the women swooned. Tony played the role perfectly. He gave them a big toothy smile. He had been practicing his entire life after all; be the perfect family in the spotlight... when at home, be the worst.
It hurt so much. He could feel the hate boiling up inside of him every time his father dares to put a hand on him. It's infuriating how calm he can be in front of all these people who don't give a flying you know what. They just want the big juicy gossip. They want every single bad thing about the Stark family. If Tony did reveal anything about what really happens in his large, empty home... he feared his father, his own father, would kill him in his drunken rage.
Anthony Stark turned one last time in front of the camera, with his father's hand on his shoulder. He made the biggest smile he could muster. The reported smiled hungrily at him and clicked about a thousand pictures. By the end of it, all Tony could see were millions of white flashing lights.
Sometimes, Tony thought darkly as he was shoved into the limo, you just have to sit back, stop caring about what other people think of you, and start living the life you want to live. But sometimes... sometimes that's not enough. Sometimes you just have to give the crowd a nice, funny, fake smile. Because, in the end, it's hard to tell who really wants to figure out all those dark secrets and who seriously cares. It's hard to open up. It's hard to find friends you can trust. Sometimes... it's better just to live in your own little world where everything is perfect and nice and has people who actually care what you think.
He stared out the window, absently mindedly thinking. Well, not really thinking. He was trying to stay as far away from Howard as possible. The tense awkward silence was driving him up the wall. He couldn't deal with it; the cold, calculating look, his rough hands with iron hard fists, and the harsh words… all of it was overwhelming.
When they finally pulled up in front of the mansion, Tony quickly rushed passed his butler Jarvis and to his room. His room was probably the only place he could work in peace. It was filled to the brim with unorganized plans and designs, pictures of old schematics that his father rejected, and Captain America merchandise from when he was younger.
. . . And it was all his. Even his mother didn't even know what exactly was in his own little workshop/bedroom. It was great.
While putting some ideas down on paper, he thought about how much he cared about his mom. She was kind to his father and never seemed to get upset when he does get drunk. She's always there for him when his father goes into one of his rages. She even taught him piano. Maria Stark never gets any credit but she never complains. She's the perfect mother.
After ten whole minutes of staring at all of his master pieces and trying to get his mother out of his mind, he decided to work on his almost complete robot dog. He had always wanted a pet; someone to keep him company. His mother was a god send but she too had to deal with his father. He just needed someone to talk to.
After nearly four hours filled with wires and circuits, Tony had just the last red video cable to connect to its eyes. Tony closed his eyes tight, hoping and praying that this one invention would finally work. It had to be something his dad could finally appreciate.
Before he could move in with his tweezers, a spasm of pain blinded him. His head throbbed beyond the point of imagination. It was like someone was poking a red hot iron behind his eyes! He couldn't move, couldn't breathe, and couldn't think!
And then it was gone.
As quick and sudden as the pain came, it disappeared. The entire experience only lasted about two seconds.
"Breathe," He said softly to himself, "Breathe, it was nothing. It's just a random pain." It took him about five minutes to calm down enough to actually open his eyes all the way. What he saw shocked him to the core.
The dog was alive! His tail was wagging slowly back and forth; body moving in motion with it. His LCD eyes followed his movements perfectly and even managed to look more excited when Tony looked at him.
Most shocking was the red wire connected exactly where he needed it to go. Looking more closely, he realized that it was actually molded perfectly to the dog's eyes. His hands couldn't have done a better job.
It took him a few minutes to actually process what had happened:
Mind working frantically, he realized with some sort of horrible excitement that he had moved the cable with his mind! There was absolutely no other explanation. He had got a glance at his watch before he connected the wire; there was no way he had somehow blacked out before it happened.
"Oh god." He whispered, finally releasing the implications of what he had done. The dread that filled his stomach was almost enough to make him start sobbing on the floor.
He was a mutant! He could move things with his mind!
He had read about some of his Father's encounters with the strange people - Mind readers, shape shifters, people who could fly - the science behind it was insane. Some people had actually evolved already! It was incredible! When Tony was younger, he had thought Captain America was a mutant... until his father strictly told him that Captain America was not a freakin' mutant and he shouldn't talk about things he would never understand.
His father thought mutants were inhumane. Tony assumed that was why his father, the biggest Captain America fan, hated him saying that Steve Rogers was a mutant. His father thought that a person with a strange ability was not supposed to be alive. According to Howard, either all people should have a different ability or none. Mutants were to be killed.
It hit Tony like a ton of bricks. Would his father kick him out? Would he send him to a lonely orphanage? Would he kill him for being a mutant?
"Oh god!" He said yet again, a little louder and more panicked, "Oh god, oh god, oh god!"
In blind fear, he struck out at his robot dog. He knocked it to the floor and then smashed it with his foot... Over and over again.
"If there's no proof, it didn't happen. Nothing happened. Nothing..."
End Flashback
It happened again exactly one year later...
Flashback
Tony watched in silent wonder as his father moved from project to project. He was completely absorbed in his work, whatever that may be, and his motions were done with practiced grace. He didn't let anything bother him. Tony had never seen him so focused.
Tony tried to quietly walk away. He had wanted to sneak his new design for an AI into his father's desk – it was the best way for him to get parts without talking to him – when he saw how absorbed his father was in his work. He would go later.
Just before Tony was out of the door way, his foot caught on the table. Tony saw it in slow motion. The large tool box that was on the corner of the table and, thanks to his own clumsiness, it was about to tumble to the ground and alert his father, most likely making him angrier than a bull.
A millisecond later, the box froze two inches from the ground. It was literally hovering in place! Shocked that it was happening ten feet from his father, he panicked. He spun around and ran out of the door, nearly tripping on his own two feet.
Only when he was in his room did he notice that he had a slight headache. Right when he realized it, it disappeared. A second later, he heard the loud cusses from his father.
End Flashback
It took him six whole months at MIT to realize that he couldn't just wish away this abnormality. It was impossible. Every time he had a spike of adrenaline or powerful emotion, something would always happen. He couldn't control it. And Tony Stark's most hated thing was not knowing something.
After two months of researching, he came upon a god send: Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.
Flashback
It took two fake ID's, three train rides, and four cabs to get him to New York. He made sure that it would be impossible for anyone, including his parents, to track him. He just needed to get help. He needed to control it. Otherwise, it was like an incurable disease. He might as well write his will if Xavier can't help him.
The first site of the mansion took him by surprise. It was larger than expected. Heck, it was larger than the Stark Manor! The enormous front doors were almost as grand as his own. Swallowing his fear, he raised his arm to the door and knocked.
The door opened almost immediately. A girl with brown, curly hair answered it. She was younger than Tony – about ten years old - with adorable chocolate brown eyes.
"He's expecting you." She said, giving him a friendly smile.
Tony blinked. "What?"
"He's expecting you!" She repeated again, more cheerful, "He's been dying to meet you."
Tony backed up a couple steps. He narrowed his eyes at her. "Who has?"
She rolled her eyes at him like the answer was obvious. "The Professor! He's known about the famous Anthony Stark for forever! No, not from your family silly!-"
"W-What!" Tony was now seriously scared out of his mind now. How did this girl know that he thought she meant through Stark industries? Maybe this was a bad idea. Were all the people here like this? If so, he should leave now. Like run -without -looking -back leave. How did the Professor know he was coming? Tony knew he was a telepath but how could one be that powerful?
Oh, he was so looking that up later!
"Miss. Drew, though your ability is much improving, do you think it is wise to use them on a guest?
The girl slid aside to reveal Professor CharlesXavier. Though Tony has seen him in photos before, it was different. His presence meant – not demanded - respect. Though he was in a wheelchair, Tony had a feeling he could crush him without moving a finger.
"Hello, Anthony, it is a pleasure to meet you."
"I..." It took him a moment to comprehend everything that was going on. "I don't understand. How do you and the girl know me if it's not through my family?
The Professor smiled at him. "We all have special abilities Anthony. Some are just easier to see than others."
Tony would have agreed with him if he wasn't so preoccupied with trying not to panic. The man was in his mind! He had spoken in his head! Even though he had read it, it was something totally different to exactly see it in action.
"Do come in, Anthony. I have much to show you."
End Flashback
Let's just say that Tony and the Professor had made a... plan. Tony would sneak in once every other week until he was out of school. They would figure it out after that.
And, no, the Professor never did tell him exactly how he knew him. It's been driving him crazy still to this day.
Each lesson brought him closer and closer to understanding his potential. After only eight lessons, he could easily control two things at a time and hover in place. It was pretty cool if he said so himself. He no longer moved things when he was upset and his father knew nothing. It was perfect.
But, like all good things that happen to him, it came to a horrible end. His father did figure it out eventually. Of course, he was with the Professor the day it happened...
Flashback
Tony was sitting across from some of the two strangest people ever. He was positive they were insane.
Man, he loved his friends.
"So I was kind of thinking about doing a prank on-" Scott Summers began. His sunglasses flickered in the bright sun. His messy brown hair was all over the place. His thin frame was leaning casually against the wall.
Jean Grey groaned, putting her face in her hands. Jean was completely different than the wild Scott. With her fiery red hair and slim body that made any guy turn his head, she could have easily taken any boyfriend she wanted. She, of course, would never do that. She was neat and organized, which was something that you would never expect of a girl like her. She was definitely not a girly girl, thank god, but she had an amazing personality.
"You're going to get me in so much trouble." She muttered.
Tony laughed. "When have you guys not gotten in trouble?"
They looked at each other. "But without trouble, there's no fun!" They said in union.
Suddenly, Tony's phone rang. He picked it up without looking at the caller ID. "Hello?"
"Tony, it's Rhodey. I..." Rhodey took a deep breath. "I need you to turn the TV on channel five. Don't panic, okay. You'll... You'll be fine."
Hearing the conversation, Jean walked over to the living room and commanded the kids to change the channel. Tony could hear her yelling from three rooms away.
"The news, Rhodey? Why would I care about that? What's so important that I need to-?"
"Tony!" Jean's alarmed cry stopped him from questioning his friend. He ran as fast as he could down the hallway and to Jean. What the hell was going on?
About fifteen kids were staring at the screen, mouth open in shock. Some had tears in their eyes. Jean was in front of them all, turning pale at what she was seeing. Scott was holding her hand.
Tony pushed his way through the crowd. He couldn't describe the feeling he had in the pit of his stomach. Was it a feeling of forewarning? Did something horrible happen? Was it about mutants?
"This just in," Tony heard the lady say, "A terrible car crash in Howard Stark's private car. It is unconfirmed if their son, Anthony Stark, was with them but... Howard and Maria –Mr. Stark's wife - were most definitely in the car during the explosion. According to Stark's personal assistant, he was heading over to see his son in New York. It happened about two hours ago..."
Tony didn't hear anymore, nor did he want to. Everything was numb and disconnected. His world was literally crashing down around him. Memories came rushing to him:
His father was smiling, handing him his first Christmas present.
His father teaching him how a computer ran.
His father curled up next him, listening to his nightmare.
Drinking, throwing, hurting...
Hugging, dancing, laughing, smiling...
He didn't even realize he had fallen to his knees, eyes glued to the picture of the burning car. Tears were running down his face. He was sobbing now. Hands were reaching out to him, whispering soft, slow words that Tony didn't even bother to understand.
It was over.
End Flashback
The Professor had told him what exactly had happened. It was a bomb. It was a bomb planted by a mutant. After that day, Tony had packed his bags, said emotionless goodbyes to his friends, and refused to think about his double life.
He returned with Obadiah, finished his years at MIT, and thought about weapon designs. He was the leading man even though Obadiah was running the show. He came up with the ideas, sorted out who was on the team, who was an idiot... etc.
And while all that was going on, he was growing bitter. Days turned into weeks, and weeks quickly turned into months. No one showed up. His so-called friends from The School never called. Life moved on.
But he was stuck in the past. He couldn't move on. He no longer used his power. It was just too painful.
When it was the first anniversary of his parents' death, he had re-watched the televised death of the Starks. It was then that he noticed where he parents were heading. They were going to New York, not Massachusetts. Not to MIT. There was an eighty seven percent chance that they had figured out his little secret.
What would they have done if they found out about his abnormality?
He didn't dwell on it. Nor did he tell anyone else about his other life. Why bother? No one cared anyway.
And then, to his great happiness, Virginia "Pepper" Potts came into his life.
Flashback
"I don't want the responsibility! I don't need it! I just turned twenty one! Besides, I have plenty of things to do at home; plenty of things to invent for my company! Isn't that what this is about? The reputation of the company?"
Virginia listened with wide eyes at the exchange between the young Stark and his guardian. Though she was a simple assistant to the accounting side of Stark Industries, she occasionally got to see Mrs. Stane walking in the halls. But to see the legendary Tony Stark was something else entirely.
Virginia was about to quietly sneak away when she heard the door slam open. In all his glory, Anthony Stark himself rushed out of the office and straight down the hall... only to see her wide eyed and clutching a folder so tight that her hand was white.
"Are you alright?" He asked, stopping at staring at her with large brown eyes that made her heart miss a beat.
Her mouth dropped open in shock and she dropped the folder in surprise. The papers went flying! About five hundred neatly organized invoices scattered across the hallway thanks to the large fan in the ceiling.
"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry!" She squeaked, turning a bright red color. She bent down to start picking up the mess, but he smiled at her and gently grabbed her arm.
"Don't worry about it. I'll get it." He said. After only five seconds of awkwardly standing there watching him pick up her mess, she blurted out: "Why were you fighting?"
Mister Stark looked up at her in surprise. "You heard that? How long were you standing there?"
"For about a minute." She was surprised at how well she was able to keep a conversation with a famous person. Not to mention an incredibly sexy one! "I was going to my office to fix this really simple accounting mistake when-"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold up. An accounting mistake? Like what?"
"Oh, well it was a simple mistake. Someone just forgot the carry the two over. This lost nearly two hundred dollars. I was going to alert my boss."
He had collected all the papers. "Well Miss..."
"Potts! Virginia Potts, Mister Stark."
"It would appear that you came to the right place. You see, I have done this exact accounting with my own hand. There is no way I screwed up on something so..."
He was staring at the one page where there was the mistake. Highlighted in red and put in big bold letters were the correct numbers.
"-So simple," He muttered, "huh."
She turned pale. "I didn't mean offence! I didn't know you- I'll make sure I never saw it!" She seriously needed this job! How else was she going to pay her bills?
"Whoa hold up there!" He said, smiling. She dumbly took the outstretched folder from his hand. "I'm not angry. I'm actually quite glad. I always needed someone who could look over my work. You would make a great assistant. Yes actually, that's a brilliant idea!"
Feeling extremely dazed and confused, she shook her head. "Um, what exactly would be a good idea?"
"You being my personal assistant! It's perfect! You would get to look over my math, my bills, be in charge of meetings. Not to mention that you would get paid way better. You're hired!"
Mouth open in astonishment, she stared at him like he was crazy. "Mister Stark, I just can't leave my job and work for you. It's- it's too much! I'm not ready to-"
"Of course you can! It's nothing! Here..." He took at his wallet and wrote on a card. When he handed it to her, it had a little picture of the Stark Logo on the top right while in the middle Tony Stark was neatly printed in black letters at the top. It had a phone number written on with pen on the front.
"Call me when you accept it's the best decision of your life Miss. Potts!" And with that, he strolled away. He was out the door before Virginia could give a proper response. She looked at the card more closely.
'Virginia is such a boring name,' it read on the back. 'How about Pepper?"
"Pepper?" She muttered, confused. Why Pepper? It was then her hand grazed the pocket of her dress. Inside was a small pepper packet. She had gone to McDonald's before to get some lunch.
"How in the world did he see it?"
When she looked down, two little pepper packets had fallen to the floor. On both of them was a 'P'.
"P.P? What in the..." It dawned on her. "Miss. Pepper Potts. Oh dear lord..."
End Flashback
Miss. 'Pepper' Potts had called him only a day afterward. She played the role perfectly. She let him invent things at his will and she went to all his meetings for him. It was a win- win situation. Especially since Obadiah didn't complain.
It made Tony feel like he was needed in the world again. It eased the pain of having no one there for him when he needed them. After only a little more than a month, Pepper and Tony could be considered best friends. Both of them needed each other more than they cared to admit.
It was a nice feeling.
They never tried to get closer to each other. It was just too painfully awkward. The consequences of it were very... extreme. The press, rumors, stock prices; no thanks! He was good!
He wasn't going to lie to himself though. He wanted Pepper bad. She was the forbidden fruit and it hurt! He didn't ask for this game. Hell, Anthony Stark didn't ask for this life! Everything was a math equation and, in his equation, he was useless. He was always useless.
So he slept with other woman. It wasn't for the sake of himself or anything, no, it was for the sake of his relationship with his assistant. Maybe, deep down, Tony knew it was to make her jealous, but he didn't want to admit to that. And he wouldn't.
So neither of them commented on it, and it drove Tony insane.
...And then Afghanistan came and changed his poor outlook on life.
Flashback
He really wished someone would turn the damn lights on. The very thought of once again waking up in the darkness of the cave made his stomach churn.
But that thought was pretty useless in itself. Maybe it made him feel better to think of something so mundane.
How messed up was he to be thinking about lights instead of torture, cables, and weapons?
He stared menacingly at the one dangling light above him, the only light in the room. He thought about his life before, with his father, The School, Pepper, and how bad he had messed up. What had he accomplished besides being a total jerk his entire life? What did he give to the world besides weapons of destruction?
He really was the Merchant of Death. He deserved that title.
So when the men came back again, taking him roughly by the arms and pushing him into a painfully lite room, with the Doctor's pity filled eyes watching him, he didn't struggle all too much. He deserved everything he got.
That did not mean that he was giving in.
God, did he try to use his powers. He was just too weak. He was always too weak. With his strength, all he could do was move a paperclip.
Anthony Stark never gave up. He was going to find a way out. He was going to get the man that saved his life out of this hell hole; out of this torture chamber.
So he refused to build the Jericho. He botched up on a lot things in his life. This was not something he was going to mess up on. But as the water painfully slid down his throat and the cables shocked him beyond imagination; it was hard not to say no.
And they did it day after day; hour after hour. Eventually, Tony assumed they were just doing it now to make him suffer. The sadistic bastards.
The doctor would never say much when they would throw him back into their 'room'. He would walk over to him, help him get up off the ground, ask if he's okay, then sit back down, writing on a piece of paper that he didn't even bother to ask about.
"You're going to die from it eventually." The Doctor said one time only after five minutes of Tony being back.
Tony, who was coughing violently from the water in his lungs, suddenly stopped moving. He tensed. "I know," he wheezed out, "but I'm not building that thing."
"Then don't." The way the doctor had said it you would have thought he was talking about the weather.
Tony looked over at him with bloodshot eyes. "Don't what. Just give up? Just like that? After everything you did for me?"
"Whoever said anything about giving up?"
XxXxXxXxXxXx
Sweat was rolling down his face in rivers. He was pounding hard on the hot metal, cutting his hands to shreds in the process. The pain didn't register though. The thought of getting out of here was over whelming. The hope building in his chest was almost too much.
"Stark, you have to stop! At this rate you're going to kill yourself!"
"Can't, have to finish." He muttered more to himself then his friend.
Smiling morbidly, he dipped the metal in to the water. Steam rose around him, making it incredibly uncomfortable. He grabbed it a second later and brought it over the Yinsen.
Tony let it go on the table, directly in front of him. The iron mask in front of him sparkled meanly in the light.
All of this was almost over.
XxXxXxXxXxXx
He watched in disgusted delight as the men burn with his weapons.
He didn't feel anything about it. He was killing people, in cold blood, shouldn't he have felt something? Remorse, anger, disgust... anything? He couldn't help how he felt though. These men had stolen his weapons, tortured him, and killed Yinsen. He could handle himself being hurt (it meant that someone he knew wasn't being hurt) but his friend was killed right in front of him. He saw red.
As every weapon burned along with each man, he started his ascend to freedom.
He was finally going home.
XxXxXxXxXxXx
He realized a lot of things while on the plane ride home. He was going home. No, not back to the empty tower, he was going to go back to Xavier. He was going back to where he belongs; to where he was meant to be.
And then he realized something very stupid. He wasn't welcomed there. Not anymore. They had left him, not the other way around. They didn't want him back. Not his friends, not anyone.
The Professor abandoned him to rot in the cave. He could have sent someone to help him. Then maybe Yinsen wouldn't have died.
The thought made him incredibly angry and upset. When he went back to the tower with Pepper after the little announcement of him shutting down the weapons manufacturing, he just sat there for a whole day, staring at the black piece of paper that was normally aligned with thousands of ideas for inventions.
Was that what he wanted; to build a suit of indestructible metal? It wasn't a weapon though. It was going to help people. That was it.
He kept telling himself that.
So when it was finally complete, he didn't feel anything. Because of what he was, because he was a mutant, was building something like this against who he was? He could have used his powers to help people, not this suit. He didn't need it.
He should have been training his mind again; to getting his power back.
After all, that was the reason Yinsen died; because he didn't have enough practice or energy to save him.
He would learn to balance his power and his genius. He could have the suit and telekinesis. It was the only thing he could think of that felt right.
Only after three weeks did he gain his full ability back. It drove Pepper crazy to see random things move when she turned around. Boy was it fun to watch her face when a paper he didn't want to sign randomly fall from the table and right into an air vent.
End Flashback
It had been about a year and a half since he had that thought: A year and a half of betrayal and defeat. He still didn't believe how Stane (he refused to call him anything else now) had done that to him. Even with all the training he was doing, he was unable to use his mutation because of being paralyzed (Something about it effecting his focus) and it was something he didn't want to go through again.
By now, he could lift an entire wall without much struggle. Heck, he could lift two walls without much struggle. Tony didn't realize how much power he had inside of himself. If he had to classify himself at this point, he would label himself a level three and a half on the mutant scale.
And the suit? The suit was faster and better than he ever expected. Virtually indestructible, almost nothing could penetrant its steel or non-palladium power core. It was perfect. Whether it was just flying or destroying evil (stupid) Hammer Tech robots, it could withstand anything.
Tony was quite proud of this fact; increasingly so when he met the famous Captain America. He was cocky and ignorant, never expecting the good Captain to call him those titles. What hurt most though was that he was correct. He wasn't a hero. He never did save anyone, only himself.
And that was what hurt the most. He shouldn't be on this team of freaks. He should be inventing things for good people, not pretending to be a hero. He wasn't Captain America.
But before he could continue the argument, the whole place exploded into a blaze of light. He tried to stop the wall from crushing Rushman – dammit Romanoff – and Bruce. He was pretty sure he succeeded.
There wasn't any time though. He had to go fix the engine with Captain Icicle.
The thought of fighting alongside the Captain was... exciting. Now was the time to experiment if his father was right; was Steve Rogers a mutant or a man made from science. Watching in wonder as the Captain easily took at three guards (thank god he couldn't see his face under the mask) he couldn't help but think about whether Rogers believed in equality between all people. If he were ever to trust all these crazy people, would they accept him for who he really was? Was it worth going through all that pain?
Apparently, he didn't have to think about it long. With Banner coming to his house and the rest of the team going wherever, it was hard to think about another mission. Would they get along this time? Would it be another horrible argument after argument?
Could they even trust each other?
It only took two months before the next mission. It was a shock to everyone that it was so soon.
It was a shock to Anthony Stark that it was the X-men who needed help.
A/N Good, bad? Please review and tell me!
Anyway, the next chapter will be in 3rd person present tense form like 'normal' stories. I just had to get past the 'filling you in' part! I can't wait to hear what you think!
School is starting and I have a horrible habit of never finishing stories. I'm really sorry if I don't once again.
PLEASE REVIEW! IT REALLY HELPS ME WRITE!