Loki emitted a terse little mmmph at Bucky's first statement. Rockhead. It was a crude name to Loki's ear, and usually one reserved for those that lived outside Two. He still remembered the first time the name had been uttered to describe his brother -- casually, in the high, condescending tone of Capitol fusspot. He remembered how the fingers of his right hand and curled into a fist. Too obvious, now; he was trained better than that, he knew better. But he was drunk enough for the discontent to land. Even his own brother, golden boy that he was, would fall under the weight of enough alcohol. Loki knew. He'd seen it. How many times had he held Thor's hair back for him, or fed him ipacac so Loki could be sure he wouldn't succumb to alcohol poisoning in the middle of the night?
Surely, his guest was having similar thoughts of his own. Best friends from Eight. If Loki had known, he'd have made sure to play up that angle more, when it was (supposed to have been) Rogers' turn on the chopping block. It might have made him even mildly more sympathetic. Not that he could ever be made sympathetic now, and Loki certainly wasn't going to try. Ironically, it had been his own suggestion to avoid specifically targeting Rogers with traps (much as it would please him to pull the trigger himself on the self-righteous numbskull who would cost him his mother). Better build an arc that lead to his former friends turning on him. Better for him to die in the fray, as he should have all those years ago.
Perhaps that was Bucky's real purpose here, to ask for mercy. Not that Loki could give him any.
But instead of telling him, Bucky chose to turn the question back on him, and Loki slammed the spraybottle down harder than he meant to, so hard it surprised even him, the force of it rattling up his arm, shaking the metal table so hard that the flowerpots vibrated a little. Loki reached out a hand to steady the table, and didn't look at Bucky. "They'll include me in the interview, I'm sure," Loki said, his voice quiet, but full of venom. "That's the smart move. It's what I'd do."