#✦ thread: a sprite meets a robot (phee parnassus & tony stark)

[normaltothemax]

@impossibleormerelyfantastic

Wings folded carefully against her back, she poked her head out from behind a large tree. Dirt was streaked across her face from where she’d wiped away frightened tears, but her eyes were dry now. Sharp as they took in her surroundings, since it was finally quiet again.

Well, mostly quiet. She could still hear gunshots and fighting a little ways away.

The men with guns were laying on the ground, unmoving bodies spread out around the robot man. Were they dead? Or just unconscious? Phee couldn’t be sure, nor was she sure which option she’d prefer. Killing was bad, but it would be something of a relief to know that they could never threaten her or the forest she currently called her home ever again. Did that make her a bad person?

The robot man turned suddenly, just about looked right at her, and she quickly ducked back behind the tree trunk, breathing hard. Just because he’d stopped those bad guys, didn’t mean he was a good guy. Robot. Whatever. She covered her mouth with one hand, trying to quiet her breathing as she hid, back pressed against the tree. Toes dug into the dirt as she tried to keep herself from panicking. Maybe, if she was quiet and still enough, he would go away. Yeah. Yeah, that would probably work, right?

[normaltothemax]

Dubiously, her eyes trailed from his face down his body, taking in the glinting red and gold metal. Human? He certainly didn’t look human. Not all of him, at least. “…You’re not a robot?” Was he sure about that? Because Phee definitely wasn’t. Did robots even know they were robots, or did they all think they were actually humans?

She glanced at his outstretched hand, teeth worrying her lip. She wasn’t all that sure it was safe to go with him. Sure, it probably wasn’t safe to stay where she was either, but at least Phee knew the forest.

The forest which was telling her some very concerning things.

More men are coming, whispered blades of grass in the light breeze. Panic seized her, head whipping around, Phee searching for any sign of them. She couldn’t see anyone else yet, but it put her in a tough place. Left her feeling incredibly conflicted.

Did she run? Try and escape the men on her own? Or did she take her chances and go with the not-robot-man?

She looked at him, clearly afraid and unsure. Looked back out into the forest, before back at the man once more. Not knowing what else to do, she nodded, forced herself to move away from the tree, and placed one trembling hand in his.

One could hear a pin drop with how quiet the forest suddenly stood still as he waited for the little one to respond. Friday already told him her specs. Height, weight, wing span, approximate age. He was certain those that combed through the trees had spooked her enough and he didn't want to force her into responding and make matters worse. So instead, patience was key.

"Tony, there are five men starting to surround us" Friday's voice echoed through his ears. The HUD showed him five little red dots that began to fan around the two black dots in the middle.

"One thing at a time." he murmured

She peered her little head around the trunk of the tree. Sweat bedding down her face with her hair matted. He kept the soft smile on his lips but there was a pang that hit his chest. What were these assholes doing to this little girl?

He chuckled at her words. "That's because I am human." he paused a beat. "At least technically still human." He shrugged, holding his hand out to her. "Would you like to get outta here?"

[normaltothemax]

He wasn’t going away.

No, instead of doing what Phee had hoped he would, the robot man came closer to the tree she was using as a hiding place. He spoke to her. He…didn’t sound much like a robot, come to think of it. Rather, he sounded like a regular human person. How strange. Phee wasn’t sure if that was better or worse than sounding like a robot.

Whatever the case, he wasn’t leaving and Phee didn’t know what to do. Did she stay where she was in the hopes that he would get tired and leave eventually? Did she try running and hope he didn’t come after her? Or did she gather what little courage she had and come out and face him? Chewing on her lip, she stayed where she was, stayed quiet, for a little bit longer, just in case.

When that still didn’t have the desired effect, she spun carefully around so that her front was pressed against the tree trunk, fingers digging into the bark. Carefully, cautiously, she poked her head out to peer warily at him. The instant her eyes landed on him, she blinked in surprise, wings twitching with a suppressed curiosity that had her half wanting to get closer to inspect the strange being in front of her. “You have a human face,” she whispered after a moment of staring.

The shouts of people as they combed through the forest caught his attention, but not as much as the panicked cries of the little girl they were after. He didn't know what they were after but it didn't matter.

With calculated precision, darts flew from the gauntlets, dropping the mercenaries like flies. He drifted down through the trees, peering curiously at the little girl as her wings glistened like a rainbow against the sunshine.

Tony pulled his faceplate up, taking in the fresh air all around him before kneeling down in front of the tree she hid behind. "Hey kid, you gonna stay behind that tree all day?" he asked, his voice light and melodic as he smiled softly.