16

Chapter 16: Part XVINotes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Disclaimer: I own nothing, just borrowing for a while.

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"I might like the outcome of treason but I have little positive to say of traitors."

Joffrey Augustus

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The Red Keep - King's Landing – 298 AL

"Don't try and be clever Lancel, it's not your forte" Octavian told the squire who was now chained to a wall in one of the many cells to be found in the Red Keep.

"You said it in front of scores of people" Renly pointed out, looking angry enough to beat Lancel to death personally right then and there. While Eddard Stark was attempting to maintain order in both the Red Keep and the city beyond Renly had taken the job of interrogating Lancel personally, with his young nephew insistent on tagging along. One of the Kingsguard also stood inside the cell, standing ready by the closed door, two more of them guarding it from the outside.

Lancel turned back to Octavian as if looking for a cue on what to say. "When I said I wanted you to tell the truth, not what you think I want you to say, I meant it Lancel" Octavian told him in exasperation.

"Let's try this again" Renly said after taking a deep breath. "Did you know that the cup contained poison?" he asked.

"No, of course not" Lancel replied honestly.

"So you don't know what poison was used?" Renly checked.

Lancel shook his head. "No" he confirmed.

"The Maesters will tell us that, and I gave an instruction to have their findings double-checked by the Alchemist's Guild" Octavian informed Renly before looking back to the squire. "Why did you say that Queen Cersei was responsible?" he wanted to know.

"I… didn't" Lancel replied awkwardly.

"We were both right there and there were a hundred other witnesses you cretin" Renly retorted.

"Perhaps I misspoke?" Lancel tried again, once more looking to Octavian for prompting on how he should answer.

Octavian narrowed his eyes. "Lancel if you don't start talking, and talking truthfully, I'm going to get someone to cut off your thumbs" he told him.

Renly raised his eyebrows. "His thumbs?" he queried.

"Improvised torture technique, works well, don't ask how I know" Octavian explained, at least in part. "I'm willing to believe you didn't deliberately poison the King, even a complete moron wouldn't do that personally in the throne-room in front of that many people, and besides which you looked as surprised as anyone else" Octavian told Lancel. "But we need to know why you said the queen was responsible and we need to know now before the situation spirals into chaos."

Lancel paled. "You'll kill me" he responded, trembling with fear.

"Maybe we will, maybe we won't, but I promise that if you don't talk you'll die very slowly" Renly vowed. "Don't think your family's money and influence can get you out of this because they can't."

Lancel looked back to Octavian once again, an imploring expression on his face. "I meant it when I said I'd have somebody cut off your thumbs" Octavian told him honestly, unmoved by any appeal to their supposed familial bond. "Why did you say that Queen Cersei was responsible?" he asked again.

The Kingsguard by the door drew his dagger, the squire's face blanching even more.

"Because she tried to get me to kill King Robert before" Lancel replied quietly.

Renly and Octavian looked at each other. "Shit" Octavian uncharacteristically swore.

Thirty minutes later Octavian and Renly found Ned Stark in the Small Council Chamber, Lord Varys offering him advice and Petyr Baelish apparently discussing poisons with Grand Maester Pycelle. "This could get even worse" Renly stated, taking his seat as Octavian chose to stand himself, expression extremely grim.

"What did you learn?" Stark asked.

"Lancel didn't know he was giving my brother poison, someone else must have been responsible for placing it in either the wine or the cup itself, but according to the boy Queen Cersei did attempt to get him to indirectly assassinate Robert on a previous occasion."

Stark grimaced. "With poison?" he asked.

"No, by getting him very drunk when he went on his last hunting trip, hoping that some kind of accident would see an end to him" Lord Renly replied. "It very nearly worked as I'm sure you all remember."

"And you believe Lancel?" Baelish inquired.

Renly nodded. "Yes, but assuming Cersei denies the accusation, which any sane person would, it would be his word against hers" he replied.

"Lannister soldiers have fortified the Royal Apartments" Stark told the newcomers. "I hope you don't mind Lord Renly but I called in reinforcements from the City Watch in your name and put them under the command of Ser Barristan" he told him.

"No objections whatsoever, I've also ordered that any Baratheon soldiers in King's Landing be made ready to support the Kingsguard myself anyway" Renly announced.

Octavian frowned. "You might find that not all of the Kingsguard and City Watch are entirely reliable in a situation where they might potentially face off against Lannister troops" he said. "Thanks to the deep pockets of my grandfather Tywin my mother's influence is extensive unfortunately" he explain regretfully.

"This must be awkward for you, Your Grace" Varys addressed Joffrey in a sympathetic tone. "Divided family loyalties I mean."

"My house name is Baratheon not Lannister, Lord Varys" Octavian replied curtly. "But in any case whether or not my mother did, or did not, plot my father's death on a previous occasion I would be astonished if she was responsible for his actual assassination earlier today" he stated.

"Why?" Ned Stark queried.

"Because she wouldn't have been stupid enough to get Lancel to hand the king the poison given the likelihood he would implicate her immediately" Octavian explained. "If somebody else wanted the Lannister family blamed, and the queen in particular if they knew of the previous plot, then that's what they would do" he said, crossing his arms in front of him.

Varys smiled. "I would have to agree" he said. "For my part I have already heard whispers that Cersei is blaming the death on King Robert on you Lord Stark" he announced.

"Me?" Stark responded nonplussed.

"Under the terms of King Robert's recent will you are now effectively the ruler of Westeros, at least until Joffrey comes of age" Varys explained. "Before that happens, your daughter will already be wed to King Joffrey and thus you can continue to be the power behind the throne through her."

"To be fair, as regards your daughter Lord Stark, it's what Tywin sought to do himself through Cersei" Baelish pointed out.

"A scheme which failed miserably because my parents couldn't stand each other" Octavian wryly observed. "I didn't think she would try and kill him though, simply outliving him to see me on the throne would have been enough I thought" he said, arms still crossed. "For the record Lord Stark, while I doubt my mother poisoned my father I still think that's more likely than you having done it."

"Whether Cersei did it or not, and I'm not quite so quick to remove her from the top of the list of suspects as my nephew is, she still tried to kill my brother before and justice demands a quick response and firm resolve" Renly insisted.

"We have no proof beyond Lancel's word and if she demands her name be cleared in a trial by combat where does that leave us?" Octavian asked rhetorically. "If she picked my Uncle Jamie as her champion, or even Ser Gregor Glegane as a sworn Lannister vassal, how many knights would enter that fight confident of still being alive at the end?"

"Not many these days, perhaps Ser Barristan ten or more years ago, or the late Ser Arthur Dayne in the past, but not today" Ned Stark responded, Renly reluctantly nodding his agreement.

Varys pursed his lips. "Lord Renly raised an interesting point as regards the list of suspects" he said. "Putting aside Queen Cersei for now, and the laughable notion of Lord Stark's guilt, who else might have sought the death of King Robert, especially in a manner that implicates the Lannisters?" he asked.

"Targaryen loyalists" Octavian suggested. "They would not only hate my father for leading the rebellion but also the Lannister family for switching sides" he said. "Moreover if they seek to return to power driving a wedge between the Baratheons and Lannisters would serve their cause well."

"The Martell's aren't exactly on good terms with either house and the Dornish do have a reputation of a fondness for using poisons," Petyr Baelish suggested, "particularly Oberyn who swore vengeance for the death of his sister and her children" he said.

Octavian frowned. "Dorne sided with the Targaryens to the end" he noted. "If Viserys could land his Dothraki army in Dorne unopposed, gaining local logistical support plus infantry to aid his cavalry army that would be very bad, particularly if the other kingdoms were at each other's throats already" he said. "Of course that is merely wild speculation on my part" he admitted.

"Disquieting speculation however" Grand Maester Pycelle observed.

Renly leaned forward in his chair, hands meshed together on the table in front of him. "I can think of a few husbands with less than faithful wives, before or after marriage, that might have wanted Robert dead but I can't see any of them going through with it" he said.

"I'm a suspect too of course" Octavian announced dispassionately. "Based on motive I did inherit my father's crown" he reminded the Small Council.

"I'm going to assume you aren't about to admit guilt, Your Grace" Baelish responded, unable to resist a smile.

"No, but then I wouldn't even if I was guilty" Octavian replied. "Do we know what poison was used yet?" he asked.

"Not for certain as yet, but based on the description my assumption would be that it was a poison known as "The Strangler" that is rare but known to be used by several groups including the Faceless Men of Braavos" Grand Maester Pycelle spoke up, not mentioning that the Maesters used it as well.

"Assassins that will work for anybody with the money to pay them" Ned Stark observed with distaste.

Something else was bothering Renly. "Forgive me for asking this, but as Robert's brother I must" he said, addressing his nephew. "Why did you tell him that you would rule well when he was dying rather than vowing vengeance on whoever slayed him?" he wanted to know.

"You're not taking the idea that Joffrey murdered his father seriously are you?" Ned Stark queried.

"No, but for my own piece of mind it did seem an odd thing to say" Renly replied honestly.

Octavian sighed. "Because Uncle Renly, a sincere promise made to a dying man must always be kept and since I didn't know who killed him at the time, still don't for certain, and conceivably never will, I couldn't honestly make that vow" he explained. "Ruling well is something is a promise I can keep, and it's something my father would want me to do, so I will rule the Seven Kingdoms well" he declared.

"Well said, Your Grace" Grand Maester Pycelle praised him.

"If I might interject we may have drifted off the subject at hand" Varys observed. "What do we do as regards Lancel Lannister and the accusation he made against the queen?"

"As long as he is kept alive and secure Lancel is leverage against my mother, for the good of the realm we should use that leverage to get her away from the Red Keep back to Casterly Rock where she can't cause any trouble" Octavian advised. "Or at least only cause less trouble" he corrected himself. "Half of King's Landing will have heard the story that she had my father killed by now, whether it's believed or not, so persuading her she should seek safety in the Westerlands shouldn't be a hard sell."

Ned Stark regarded the boy curiously. "You talk of banishing your mother very easily" he remarked in surprise. "Especially if you don't believe she poisoned Robert" he added. Stark had thought them closer than this.

"She'll be safer in Casterly Rock and the whole of Westeros will be safer with her there too, less chance of friction between Lannister and Baratheon vassals and supporters triggering large scale violence" Octavian responded. "I can contact my grandfather by raven and ask him to help persuade her to leave gracefully without making too much of a fuss."

"Without making too much of a fuss?" Renly repeated, rolling his eyes. "Have you met your mother?" he asked sardonically. "If she really believes Lord Stark is responsible for my brother's death, or even if she doesn't and it's only attempted misdirection to steer blame away from herself, she will definitely make a fuss" he declared.

Ned Stark nodded. "Just as long as we can get her out of here without triggering a Civil War in the process" he said before looking to the new king of Westeros. "Putting the politics aside are you alright?" he asked. "You haven't had the chance to mourn your father" he continued. "I was full-grown when I lost mine and it still cut deep" he told the boy.

"If we manage to get through the next week without the Seven Kingdoms fracturing into a maelstrom of rival factions, recriminations and conspiracy theories heading for the Civil War you fear I'll mourn him then" Octavian replied evenly.

He's taking on too much responsibility for a lad his age, Ned Stark thought to himself sadly, but he's already more mature than Robert ever was.

Notes:

Note from the author:

The Alchemist's Guild are rivals of a sort to the Maesters and the other organisation in Westeros with a scientific background. Since Octavian doesn't trust anybody he wants the Maester's findings double-checked.

The Strangler was the poison used to kill Joffrey in GoT episode 4.02 The Lion and the Rose.