[1] hostility ▷ bucky barnes [✔]

[11]▷ wilting

THE girl sat with a disgusted look grazing her slinky features, her green-painted fingernails impatiently tapping on the arm rest of the swivel chair she sat in. Her green eyes watched the screen ahead of her like a predator to its prey. "Just look at her," She spat, raising a pale hand and slinging it at the screen in displeasure. The young man, — that just-so-happened to be her servant, — stood behind her, a smile gracing his menacingly good looking features.

"Oh, I am," He muttered with a smirk, and her head snapped towards him that exact instant, her eyes flaring a threatening green. "Excuse me?" She asked angrily, and his eyes widened only slightly as he looked at the ground to avoid her eye contact. He awkwardly cleared his throat before speaking, "I mean't - um, I mean't that she's not as beautiful as you, Ms. Wilson." "You're damn right." She said, eyeing him brutally as she brought her eyes back to the two running bodies on the screen, her fingers going back to their rapid tapping.

"One day, dear Arty," She whispered as she saw the brunette turn her head to look over her shoulder with wide, unbelieving eyes. "One day, I will have that pretty little head of yours on my trophy rack." She seethed, and her servant in the background,— who she never even knew the name to,— watched his highness with a spark lighting up in his eyes.

He always liked it when she got feisty.

◇

Once they had ran far enough into the vast woods to where they could no longer hear their attackers, Artemis came to abrupt stop and threw her hands on her knees with a loud, heaving breath. "Jesus Christ," She muttered, using the back of her hand to reach up and wipe the sweat from her forehead. "I don't think I've ever run that fast or long in my entire life." She said, and Bucky mimicked her position with a chuckle.

"Yeah, right." He said sarcastically, giving her a smile, making the both of them begin to laugh. She watched his eyes crinkle in amusement, and his lips morph into their perfect curved smile. She found safety in his voice, in him. She lov-

Wait. Nevermind. She can't do that.

"Well, shit." Artemis muttered, taking a tedious seat on the dirt and sticks under her. "All of our stuff was in there except for what I have on my back." She muttered, putting her hands through her hair in desperation. Bucky sighed, taking a close seat beside Artemis, resting his elbows on his knees.

She sighed as well, looking forward with thin lips. The air then fell completely silent, other than the nature surrounding them.

Her mind rambled on and on at incredible speeds, throwing what ifs and if you screw ups at her like a bully would throw a dodgeball at his smallest victim, and his mind did the same to him.

"You know what we're up against," Artemis whispered, her eyes finding a moving squirrel in the top of a green tree. Bucky shrugged, causing Artemis to eye him from the side. "Well, home sweet home is trying to take us back under the welcome mat, you know that for sure. But there's another, big bad mansion in the neighborhood and they want to have us all to themselves. Specifically me." She said, causing him to raise his eyebrows.

"Those men at the gas station," He inquired. "They worked for this new big bad mansion on the block?" He asked, and she smiled at his words that he took from her mouth. "Yep. They like to call themselves the Sane Ones." She said, reaching down to pick up a small stick and play around with it. He pulled a face full of confusion mixed with disgust, and she giggled at it. "Yeah, me too, Red October."

He smiled. "But why are they chasing us?" He asks. "What would they want with you?" "They've been rivals with Hydra since they were made which was in, like, the 1950s or some shit. So when I came along, they really wanted us. Plus they fucking hate me because I cut off their 'supreme leader's thumb and kept it as a play-thing." She shrugged nonchalantly as she picked a petal off of a small yellow flower she had found on the forest floor, giving a quick smile and throwing it at Bucky.

He laughed when it grazed his cheek, and he began to take a stand to his feet. "You know, Barnes," Artemis inquired, gazing up at Bucky with an emotion that he's always seen in her eyes, but never deciphered what it could be. "We should move to Paris." She finished, and he laughed, reaching his metal arm down to take her hand. "So then what? Are we gonna act like a couple there or somethin'?" "We don't have to act like a couple." She muttered, and his eyes widened, which made her's widen in response. "I mean,— to like,— go as... Friends..?" She stuttered, her voice going annoyingly pitchy when she finished off the statement with something that sounded more along the lines of a question.

Her cheeks tinted red with embarrassment and anger towards herself as the voices in her head mimicked her and laughed with sarcastic remarks of how dumb that was of her to do. 'You've got to be kidding me,' The low, monotone voice said in the farthest back part of her head. 'Won't you tell me about it!' The perky one inquired, and Artemis mentally rolled her eyes at herself.

Bucky smirked at her as he held her hand a little longer than he should have and she ripped it from his as nonchalantly as she could. She licked her lips as she began to walk away from him, her mouth wanting to speak but her brain telling her that maybe she should shut up for once.

Bucky watched her messy dark brown hair wiggle as she stomped forwards with a ghost of a smile grazing his lips. The sunlight above their heads shone ghastly through the green leaves atop the trees and down onto them below, and as Bucky watched Artemis from behind, he could have sworn when the sunlight hit her hair color just right, it was red.

(a/n: new update!! And I'm sorry, kind of crappy, but I'm introducing an extremely important character above. She won't be seen for a while again but if you want, you can guess on who you think she is! (It's kind of hard but I would still love to hear who you'd think it be!)

And also, I would like to dedicate this chapter to the dearest eternalbucky because I'm returning the favor, and they deserve it!!! Btw, go and check out their Bucky fic 'GRIM.' It puts mine to shame. ;)

Thanks for reading!

Much luv,
~KatXoXo