A/N: All righty folks. Who's ready for some shit to go down? I know I am, but I hope that it still catches you all by surprise ;) Enjoy!

Chapter 37: Shattered Glass

Myrcella was relieved to see Joffrey. She'd been looking for him since she arrived and was beginning to fear he wouldn't come. But there he was, standing between their Baratheon uncles.

And so long as he was here, he wasn't making trouble elsewhere.

He didn't look well though. Anyone with eyes could see as much. Even when Joffrey was the worst person on earth, he looked well doing it. Not now. He was pale and so much smaller than usual.

But she could not let him see her worries. Joffrey would shirk from pity or any sign that she saw weakness in him. So she put on a bright smile and glided over to their cluster, stepping up between her uncles opposite him.

"Good to see you made it," she said. "The manor is something amazing isn't it?"

Normal Joffrey would make a quip about their being too many flowers, or maybe mock Myrcella's enthusiasm. Today, he just nodded. "Yeah. Amazing."

"I'm glad you are enjoying yourself, Myrcella," Renly said. "Stannis was just expressing his disdain for the festivities for the one hundredth time."

"Only saying it was excessive," Stannis said.

"Well, uncle, that's what weddings are for," Myrcella said. "I think both families can afford it."

"They can," Renly said. "I assure you."

Myrcella flashed a smile and crossed to Joffrey, taking his arm. "Would you mind if I stole my brother for a moment?"

Renly and Stannis gave no protest. They were too busy bickering. Joffrey let himself be led toward the edge of the gardens, though she didn't miss how his eyes flicked about. As if he were watching for something. Waiting.

"You decided to make a late entrance, didn't you?" she asked. "Missed the ceremony and everything."

"I was busy," he said dismissively.

"I'm sure. Lucky for you, the Tyrells have an endless supply of wine." She glanced at him. "When did you get here?"

"Not long ago," Joffrey said, sipping nervously at his wine. "Came in through the back. That's probably how you missed me."

"Why did you come in through the back?" Myrcella asked. "And why do you keep looking around like someone is going to jump out of the bushes?"

"I'm not," Joffrey said, his green eyes snapping back to hers. It was an unconvincing lie.

"If you're worried about intruders, my bodyguard will fight them off," Myrcella said, gesturing to Beth. "Won't you Beth?"

"Yes, miss," Beth said in a cool, flat voice. She wasn't looking for intruders. Her eyes were fixed on Joffrey. She supposed Beth had never liked her older brother much, for understandable reasons. But there was something strange in her eyes as she watched him. A growing storm.

Joffrey barely gave her a passing glance. "I told you. There's nothing to worry about. Nothing you need to worry about anyway."

"You're my brother," Myrcella said. "Even though you're a complete ass, I'm going to worry about you. That's how family works."

His mouth twitched—the faintest hint of a nervous smile. He almost never gave her such looks, and to see it now made her chest tighten. She remembered his words on the phone.

I fucked up.

Then he looked up again, past the hedges. His expression stilled and he straightened, more his usual height. A breath left him. Then he rested a hand on Myrcella's shoulder.

"I've got to do something, Cella. I'll find you later."

His voice was strangely determined, but also far away. Far away from her at least. And as he walked away, she could not shake the sensation of dread. What should she do? Should she go to her mother? Her uncle Jaime? Her grandfather? Who could she—

"Miss," Beth's voice came close to her. "Would you like me to follow him?"

"What?" Myrcella asked.

"He seems off," she said. Her voice was steady, but just as far away as Joffrey's. "You said you worried he might be in trouble. Let me follow to see."

Myrcella nodded once. Joffrey wouldn't pay any mind to Beth. And she trusted her. "Can you…can you keep him out of trouble?"

"Of course, Myrcella," Beth said.

Myrcella swallowed hard. "All right. Follow him."

The Faceless men often told Arya that she could not hide herself. That even when she pretended to be no one, her true name was clear in her eyes. The Waif especially claimed she could always see Arya Stark, and that was why she would ultimately fail.

Arya often agreed with them, but even the Waif would be impressed by the way she stood by, watching Myrcella and Joffrey speak, without strangling the bastard. She was Beth, merely keeping an eye on a boy who had proved to be troublesome on more than one occasion. And deep inside her…Arya Stark waited for her moment.

Once Myrcella gave her permission, it did not take her long to find Joffrey again. She kept always at a distance, invisible in the garden as she followed him. She didn't tell anyone else about his arrival yet. She was sure someone see him. But before that…she wanted to see why exactly he had come to this wedding.

She had never really believed he only came to see his family, and his conversation with Myrcella confirmed it. Whoever was pulling his strings…they wanted him here. Why? Did they wish to speak with him in a crowd where making light conversation would not be suspicious?

Arya paused by the hedges as Joffrey scooped two drinks off a tray and took one over to Stannis. Her eyes narrowed as she considered the possibility of him being involved, but she dismissed it almost immediately. Stannis was not the sort to plot, and her father talked often about him being a hard but trustworthy man. She trusted her father's judgement on that front.

He's probably talking to multiple people, Arya thought. To disguise the one that matters.

She started to work her way a bit closer, wondering if she would be able to hear the contents of their conversation. But at that moment she noticed Jaime Lannister making his way through the crowd on the opposite side and she stilled. He'd seen Joffrey. He was making his move.

So what move would he make?

She watched as he settled a hand on Joffrey's shoulder. Watched Joffrey shrink beneath his hand. But he didn't try to run or fight him as Jaime smiled politely at Stannis and tugged him away, toward a stone wall at the edge of the garden.

Arya's eyes narrowed and she shifted forward. She needed to know what Jaime was saying to him. Was he following the plan, or diverging to help his nephew. His sister.

"—need to come with me, Joffrey." She heard him say. "Now."

"Where," Joffrey said.

"You know where," Jaime said. "And you know why. Don't make a scene. You know you can't talk your way out of this one, don't you?"

Joffrey glared at him for a long moment. Then his shoulders seemed to deflate. "They shouldn't have shot at you. I…didn't tell them to do that."

"Well, no harm done," Jaime said. "Not there at least. The woman they did hit survived. But you did a lot of harm in other places, and you have a lot of questions to answer."

"Are you a cop again then?"

"No. But I'm taking you to them," Jaime said. "Do you want the press to see me cuffing you or do you just want to go?"

Arya's shoulders relaxed. He was taking him in then. Really taking him in. Jaime didn't know she was watching, after all. If he planned to smuggle Joffrey away, he would say so now to get Joffrey to come with him.

But regardless, Joffrey didn't fight. He just nodded, his face grim. He knew he couldn't run. He must have known that from the moment he came to the wedding. So why had he? Did he want to be caught? Was he just tired of running and his paranoia was in thinking his puppet master would try to stop him? Hopefully that was one of the questions he could answer.

Jaime glanced past Joffrey, locking eyes with Arya for the first time. He gave her a little nod. She nodded in return as he started to move with Joffrey. She would follow them until she confirmed, but at the very least—

A commotion to the left caught her eye. A shattered glass. A little cry of surprise from a few guests. The sound of choking. She whipped around in time to see Stannis Baratheon clutching at the collar of his shirt, gasping for air.

It was his glass which had shattered on the ground, it's contents already soaking into the soil. And one look at him, Arya could tell he hadn't merely swallowed something wrong. He was turning purple, blood streaming from his nose.

Poison. The cup. Joffrey.

As the crowd all turned to look at Stannis as he dropped to his knees, she whirled back to look for Joffrey. Jaime had released his shoulder in surprise and Joffrey was staring at the scene wide eyed. Then, a jolt of panic went through him. He turned and he started running.

Arya vaulted over a shrub, blocking his path in an instant. Beth couldn't be further from her mind as she latched onto his collar and shoved him up against the stone wall. Her lips curled in a snarl and she could feel hot fury pulsing through her.

You little shit. You killed someone else to save yourself. You idiot, vicious motherfucker.

"Beth," Joffery choked out her name in surprise. But then, his face changed. His eyes widened and his face paled as if he was seeing a ghost. And a moment too late, Arya realized he was. "No. You're not…" He blinked rapidly. "Arya."

His recognition of her was a mistake. The fact that he saw Arya even past her disguise was a fatal error for a faceless man. But she couldn't deny the pleasure she felt when he said her name like that—terrified. Like a man who had just been condemned to die.

"You're…you're dead," Joffrey muttered.

"Like my father? Like Stannis?" Arya hissed. "You wish."

Joffrey shook his head rapidly, glancing back in the direction of Stannis. "I didn't… Not this time…I didn't."

Arya didn't want to listen to him. Didn't want to hear a single one of his excuses. But her training rose up within her, pressing through the anger. Her brow furrowed as she studied him.

"Say it again." She pressed him hard against the wall. "Look me in the eye. Say that again."

"I didn't know," he said.

And there was no lie in his eyes. Arya kept her grip on his shirt as she turned to look back in Stannis direction. He was fully on the ground now, no longer moving. There was a larger crowd than ever now, and many people were turning from his body to look at Joffrey. The boy who ran. They stared right through her to the obvious culprit.

Except for one. One young woman dressed as a waitress, gliding through the crowd. She was looking right at Arya, a smile on her face. The Waif.

A shiver went through Arya, as if her blood had turned to ice. What was happening. What the fuck was happening here?

"Beth?"

Myrcella's voice came to her from somewhere close and somewhere distant at the same time. Arya found she was trembling. She couldn't focus.

"Rivers."

That was Jaime Lannister. She turned and saw he had a hand on Joffrey's shoulder now. His face was a mix of shock and grim determination.

"I've got him. Let go."

Arya released the front of Joffrey's jacket, backing away from him. She instinctively grasped Myrcella's arm to pull her away from the scene as more and more began to gather. No one was looking at either of them. Just at Joffrey.

The garden was in chaos. There were people wailing. A wave of chattering the rose throughout the garden. And Arya knew that Joffrey hadn't just caused a scene. He had made front page news for the next month.

What a cruel irony that it was for something he hadn't even done.

On one hand, Catelyn Stark got exactly what she wanted—a situation where it was impossible to spirit Joffrey away or hide from his crimes. But when she had prayed for such a situation, she certainly had not meant this. Not another death of a good man.

She'd never liked Stannis Baratheon much. He was hard and cold and stubborn and he had a habit of ignoring her in favor of her husband or son when they were at business gatherings. But certainly she considered him trustworthy. Honorable. Just like Ned. And just like Ned, he was dead, presumably at Joffrey's hand.

That was the word throughout the remains of the wedding party. The rumors had caught at once and spread like a wildfire throughout the guests. The press was everywhere, and the police, taking statements from anyone they could find. One could almost forget that there had been a wedding that day.

Catelyn avoided the vultures at the papers by ducking into the house to catch her breath. Robb had agreed to speak for their family if anyone approached so that she didn't have to. Sansa too was hiding somewhere, knowing that her previous relationship with Joffrey would draw all manner of people to ask questions.

If anyone tries to corner her, Catelyn thought. I will grab the nearest vase and smash them over the head. I will.

She imagined she could do anything and still not make the front page. Not after this.

She could only imagine what everyone else at the party was going through. The guests who had merely expected a party were shaken enough. But her thoughts went to everyone else. Stannis' widow and his young daughter, Shireen who was Bran's age. The girl hadn't been at the wedding today. She didn't often go to public events on account of her condition. She would be getting the news soon about what happened, and she would mourn just as Catelyn's children had mourned. But she had no siblings to stand with her.

Margaery, who was meant to be the one everyone was talking about, who now was forced to share this day with a gruesome murder. Renly, who's second older brother had died. Olenna Tyrell who must be incensed by the sudden turn in publicity to Joffrey.

And she thought of course of her children. Robb, bravely fielding reporters, though he still did not know the truth about his father's killer. Sansa, hiding away somewhere on the grounds to avoid the press. And Arya. Gods, she hadn't seen Arya since everything had happened. Was she all right? At the very least she would easily dodge the reporters wouldn't she?

She even felt some sympathy for the Lannisters, despite all her distrust and, in some cases, fury at them. Cersei Lannister must be getting bombarded by the press if she hadn't already made her escape. Myrcella and Tommen would be in shock, also surrounded on all sides, unsure what to say about their brother. And Gods only knew how Tywin Lannister was dealing with this situation.

She was furious at Joffrey still and still angry with Cersei. But she wouldn't wish the media circus on any of the others. She had dealt with them too many times to do that.

She let an hour pass before she crept from one of the parlors and started making her way back to the front. She had to find her children now and leave this place. But halfway down the hall, she recognized someone standing in the hall. Tywin Lannister, drinking a rather full glass of whisky, his face hard as a stone.

She was tempted to avoid him. The man would be a storm of anger right now after everything he'd dealt with today. But then, she never wanted to give him the pleasure of seeing her flinch. Besides, she needed to know if anything about the situation was confirmed. He would know better than anyone.

So she steeled herself and approached. "You've escaped the press I see."

"For now," Tywin said. "Cersei managed to leave with Tommen and Myrcella. According to security, there are people already trying to get past the gates of the manor."

"We dealt with the same a few times," Catelyn said. "That won't last. They'll realize it's fruitless and give up in a few days."

"One can only hope," Tywin said. Beneath the anger, she could hear the exhaustion in voice.

"So. Do we know what happened? Officially?" she asked.

"Nothing is official yet, but it seems several eye witnesses share the same account," Tywin said flatly. Joffrey was the last one to speak with Stannis before he collapsed. Some people saw him bring his uncle a drink. Shortly after, Stannis collapsed. Joffrey tried to run. Someone stopped him. Some say by the staff. Some say by Jaime. I haven't gotten a chance to speak with him yet. He dealt with getting Joffrey to the police."

"So he is in custody."

"He is," Tywin said. "Does that satisfy you?"

"Another man is dead," Catelyn said. "Leaving a widow and a daughter behind. I am very far from satisfied, Mr. Lannister."

He inclined his head but did not reply. Simply took another sip of his drink.

"Why would he do it?" Catelyn asked.

"According to the press, he was making a play for the Baratheon company. Trying to get one uncle out of the way. Maybe target another," Tywin said.

"But we know that's not true," Catelyn said.

"Yes. Joffrey had no interest in the company," Tywin said. "Perhaps he was blackmailed again."

"And killed someone else in order to keep hiding his crimes," Catelyn muttered.

"It seems that way," Tywin said. "We'll learn the truth soon. Jaime will speak with him. So will I, when I get the chance."

"If Joffrey even knows the full truth," Catelyn murmured. She did not want to hope for answers. Not after everything that had happened.

Someone shifted in the hall just past them. Catelyn caught a flash of red hair and thought for a moment it might be Sansa. But she quickly recognized her other daughter's disguise.

"Arya." Catelyn let out a breath of relief. "You're here. Are you okay? I hadn't seen you since…"

"I'm fine," Arya said, in a voice that clearly said that she was not. Her grey eyes were wide. Shaken. Catelyn knew she had hoped for justice just as fiercely…but not for something like this. "I…had to calm down Myrcella. She was close when it happened." She looked to Tywin. "I needed to speak with you. Both of you I guess. I…" She blinked rapidly and Catelyn put a hand on her shoulder at once.

"Arya. Breathe. What is it?" she asked. "Were you there? When it happened."

"Stopped him from running," Arya said. "He tried. Right after Stannis started choking."

Foolish boy, Catelyn thought. He couldn't have expected to escape after that. He only condemned himself by trying.

"I suppose that's proof enough of guilt," she murmured.

"No," Arya said. "It's not."

"What do you mean?" Tywin asked.

"I mean that I talked to him. Just a few words. But…" Arya swallowed hard. "It wasn't him."

"Wasn't him," Catelyn repeated, not sure she had heard correctly.

"No," Arya said. "He didn't kill Stannis. Or at least…he didn't mean to kill him. He didn't know what he was doing. I saw his face. He was surprised." She looked up at Tywin. "This was a set up."

Tywin did not reply and neither did Catelyn. They only glanced between each other and Catelyn saw her surprise mirrored in his eyes.

They were both thinking the same thing, she knew. There was no one more willing to condemn Joffrey than Arya. No one who more wanted revenge for what he had done. No one who hated him quite so much.

If she believed him—if she said that he hadn't killed Stannis—then it must be true.

"All right then," Tywin said at last. "So what did happen?"

A/N: I know that it is expected for Joffrey to die at a wedding. But... he is still needed alive by this puppetmaster for obvious reasons. And of course, the Faceless men are also on the payroll here. We'll see why soon. Hope you guys enjoyed shit hitting the fan. Review, subscribe and I'll see you next time!