He has no illusions when he's pulled out of his cell, his eyes and ears covered, or he thinks he has no illusions, anyway. Bucky's waiting for the firing squad at that point, prepared to lash out and defend himself to his dying breath the moment he gets the opportunity. Of course they're executing him. What else could be happening at a time like this?
"What else" is the Arena, naturally. It finally sinks in when he sees a stylist attaching emerald-studded leaf-shaped magnets to his left arm: he's not being killed here. He's being sent to do some killing instead.
The mix of relief and terrified disgust that washes over him brings bile to the back of his throat.
That relief is long gone by the time Steve starts speaking at the Cornucopia, and at that point, it's easily enough replaced by dread. He tenses on his podium, calculating how easily he can make it to Steve on ice skates (ice skates! Can the stylists' ideas get any stupider?) to protect him from the inevitable consequences of this act of rebellion.
As it turns out, though, there's no point to his calculations. The Gamemakers know Steve too well. They don't target him in revenge--they make others the victims, and Steve the target.
Bucky would curse violently at the sight of it, at seeing people he knows so instantly killed (when did Barton get here? Too late now to ask), but that would be a waste of time. Instead, he's kicking out a foot to propel himself backwards off the ice, where he can swiftly yank off the ice skates and regain his balance; he's assessing the situation around Steve Rogers, trying to figure out how best to defend the man.
After only a bare moment granted to himself to evaluate his next course of action, he rips the blades out of his skates and starts back towards the Cornucopia. He's not interested in the keys now, or the fact that he's wearing a brown leotard with glittery green sequins on it and a sparkly sash, or even the fact that he's already bruised and weary himself. He just wants to take cold metal to the throat of anyone who threatens Steve Rogers.
Bucky has taken two steps forward on this path when he catches Steve's eye. When Steve pointedly glances around him, to all the people dazed from the explosions--on top of existing injuries from torture and jailhouse beatings.
Bucky stops, then. He nods, just slightly. Steve's going to be busy dealing with the fallout of that speech, so someone else has to take on his job of helping.
He drops his makeshift knives and turns to see who needs a helping hand the most.
open;
"What else" is the Arena, naturally. It finally sinks in when he sees a stylist attaching emerald-studded leaf-shaped magnets to his left arm: he's not being killed here. He's being sent to do some killing instead.
The mix of relief and terrified disgust that washes over him brings bile to the back of his throat.
That relief is long gone by the time Steve starts speaking at the Cornucopia, and at that point, it's easily enough replaced by dread. He tenses on his podium, calculating how easily he can make it to Steve on ice skates (ice skates! Can the stylists' ideas get any stupider?) to protect him from the inevitable consequences of this act of rebellion.
As it turns out, though, there's no point to his calculations. The Gamemakers know Steve too well. They don't target him in revenge--they make others the victims, and Steve the target.
Bucky would curse violently at the sight of it, at seeing people he knows so instantly killed (when did Barton get here? Too late now to ask), but that would be a waste of time. Instead, he's kicking out a foot to propel himself backwards off the ice, where he can swiftly yank off the ice skates and regain his balance; he's assessing the situation around Steve Rogers, trying to figure out how best to defend the man.
After only a bare moment granted to himself to evaluate his next course of action, he rips the blades out of his skates and starts back towards the Cornucopia. He's not interested in the keys now, or the fact that he's wearing a brown leotard with glittery green sequins on it and a sparkly sash, or even the fact that he's already bruised and weary himself. He just wants to take cold metal to the throat of anyone who threatens Steve Rogers.
Bucky has taken two steps forward on this path when he catches Steve's eye. When Steve pointedly glances around him, to all the people dazed from the explosions--on top of existing injuries from torture and jailhouse beatings.
Bucky stops, then. He nods, just slightly. Steve's going to be busy dealing with the fallout of that speech, so someone else has to take on his job of helping.
He drops his makeshift knives and turns to see who needs a helping hand the most.