Lucy loved it best when Edmund danced.

Not that he would ever admit it, but Edmund was a fantastic dancer – he simply hated doing so in front of an audience. While Peter and Susan teased poor Edmund endless about his dancing skills, or lack thereof, Lucy knew the truth: it was Edmund alone who had mastered every court dance they have been taught in a single night.

She could still remember the first time she walked in on her brother. He had stopped dead at the sound of the door creaking open, and had refused to respond when she let out an elated cry of "Oh, Edmund… were you dancing?!"

It had taken her running to him, the huge smile on her face a perfect match for his awkward scowl, for him to even acknowledge her. They stood quiet for a few moments; her dearest brothers' face bright red with embarrassment. Then she dipped down low and held her hand out, waiting to be taken for a dance.

And oh, what a dance it was! In all of Narnia, she had never danced with someone as splendid as him! Nothing was awkward, not even that accursed first step. Lucy was sure that she had found a secret Edmund, one to be kept to her and not shown to the rest of the world. Her gangly, awkward older brother could dance.

The swinging, the dipping, and the dramatic twirls – all the things he claimed to have hated! It had crossed her mind that he must secretly love them, for the grace and ease in which he dipped her head back to the floor made her feel that he had spent hours practicing for that moment alone.

When they were done, Lucy's body ached and she felt as if she had been dancing for hours. But as she stepped away to check the sun she realized it had barely been more than one… and oh, she was exhausted! Every muscle in her body throbbed, filled with a deep ache that made her feel more alive in that moment than she had felt in years. She smiled wildly at her brother, who merely blushed.

"This is what you do when you run away from us for hours at a time, when poor Susan searches all of Cair for you, and Peter is near ready to send an army looking for you in his fit of worry?"

Edmund shrugged, a sheepish smile playing his lips.

"Oh, Edmund… how fantastic!"

A/N: Resubmitted the story, 'cause there were some typos and bits I didn't enjoy too much. It's still not something I'm 100 satisfied with, but oh well. Took out the bit about Edmund being embarassed despite the fact I really liked one of the lines in it. Oh bother.

thank you to all the people who reviewed and favorited the story! You make me feel all twitter-pated!