Disclaimer: I own nothing. Really. REALLY!

A/N: Well...Ohmigoosdness. Here it is. But, everyone, just a hint: I'm upadating every chapter. Seriously. I went back I read through some of them, and I just thought, "Man, that's choppy!", so you might notice a few words or changes.

Our move is over! Yay. SO, we officially have internet. Obviously.

Anyways, here you go...I'm not entirely sure on it, but I hope it's good!


Epilogue

Three days later:

It is the day of the Coronation has come and the Pevensies have been crowned the Royals of Narnia. Now the party ensues…

Laughing with each fumbled step, Peter kept his eyes on his feet, attempting, and failing miserably, to fake his way through the dance. Susan also shared his humor, having nearly given up on trying to coach Peter through each step, often being forced to twirl her feet to prevent her brother from stepping on them (accidentally, of course). She had managed to pick up the Narnian dances quite well, efficiently and gracefully floating through each one, as had Lucy. The High King paused a moment to glance at his younger sister, who was currently clasping the hands of Mr. Tumnus, who, Peter knew for a fact, that had already been dragged through four dances by the young Queen.

"Slower, Peter!" Susan giggled, slipping her grip from his for a moment to demonstrate before laying her hands once more in the poor King's grasp. He only watched, trying desperately to do his best, and managing to do a little better before the song ended. Peter breathed a sigh of relief, still laughing from the minutes of slight humiliation, before dropping into a small bow.

"T'was was a pleasure and, even more so, a miracle to dance with Your Highness," he announced in a mock, regal voice, earning him a good-natured smack on the shoulder.

"You were fine, Peter," she laughed, "You just need a little practice."

Peter rolled his eyes. "Oh, just lovely. Now I should attend dancing lessons?" He raised his head indignantly. "Besides, I was rather fine, if I do say so myself." But his grin showed otherwise. Susan only smiled and shook her head,

"Really, Peter; you are a brick." A melody began to trill through the air and Susan just about floated away to meet hands with a cheerful satyr. Peter watched her for a moment, grinning, before looking back at Lucy, who had managed to persuade Mr. Tumnus to dance once more, though it seemed the faun was sharing her bubbly attitude.

His gaze wandered through the crowded Throne Room, his sight passing over each creature, all of which who were having a simply delightful time.

But something had constantly nagged at him the past hour. Frowning slightly, he again watched his sisters; two of his siblings were here. A soft groan escaped the boy. 'Oh, Ed, where have you gotten to now?'

With a tad of difficulty, and many muttered, "excuse me"'s, Peter managed to edge himself from the festivities, which Edmund had obviously slipped away from awhile back without Peter's knowing. Though, the older boy was hardly alarmed by that fact; his brother had been acting a bit strange lately.

He leaned exasperatedly on the stone balcony, letting his gaze wander for any trace of his brother, before letting fall out on the dark, sandy beaches facing the endless Eastern Sea. Softly, he began to descend the enormous stairways, occasionally glancing back at the small figure standing amid the water's edge.

Edmund had managed to quietly leave the party, effectively at that; he had began to feel a bit out of place, even though each Narnian he had encountered had simply given him a smile and a few respectful words of greeting, which he had returned earnestly. There had been something he had finally understood as he had sat in his rightful Throne, crowed a King of Narnia…

Perhaps it was the weight of responsibility he simply wanted nothing to do with. The utmost trust on all of the Narnians' faces had disgusted him. Trust was the farthest possible feeling any being should have for him.

With a sigh, Edmund closed his fingers around a smooth rock, wiping the wet sand from it's face. It was of a midnight hue, faint traces of ivory threaded delicately through it. He began to raise his hand to fling it into the ocean's depths, then stopped. Lucy might fancy this. With that afterthought, he tightened his grasp on it, letting his hand fall by his side. He pulled his knees closer, resting his chin upon them as he stared dejectedly into the Sea's black waters reflecting the moon's glow.

His gaze flickered slightly, faintly alarmed by the sound of soft footfalls, but he was no fool. Daddy Peter or Mummy Susan wouldn't let him from sight for long. Sure enough, it was his brother who stopped by his side, falling silently beside Edmund.

"Ed?" Peter asked quietly; though he gazed at his brother, the brown orbs remained fixed on the soft waves. "What's up?"

The other boy blinked, as though returning from a daze, opened his mouth to reply, then stopped. Quickly, he muttered, "Nothing; Peter, you worry too much."

Peter blinked, slightly surprised, then began to snap, "Ed I do not-" but stopped as Edmund winced, clearly bracing himself for a so familiar rebuke. Before Peter had thought nothing of it, always continued on; the conversation had never ended well. Their voices would soon rise to yells before one or the other stalked from the room, or, though it had only happened twice, began to hit each other.

But now Peter faltered, hurt somewhat as his brother turned away from him. Maybe, just maybe, he did worry a bit much. Perhaps he had taken his father's advice to watch over the others a bit more forcefully than needed. Softy, he said, "I do, don't I?"

Edmund paused, momentarily alarmed by the break in Peter's scolding, and even more so at the words that followed the moment's silence. Opening his fist, he stared down at the smooth, round stone, choosing to remain silent for a moment. The thin traces of ivory had caught the moon's glow with a haunting note of light, shining innocently up at his face. Sighing heavily, he clenched his fist again, concealing the rock from sight before returning his locked gaze upon the rippling dark water.

"Sometimes," was his mumbled reply. Peter sighed raggedly, running a hand through his sun kissed hair.

"Ed…I'm sorry. I just…" He trailed off, slightly hesitant, before finally continuing. "Edmund, listen to me. I do worry over you." He clasped a hand on his brother's shoulder, causing Edmund's head to jerk up, staring at him. "I always worried because I was afraid that something would happen to you. I have Susan and Lucy, and I love them, but I have only one brother. But I worried over you to protect you from what happened…But it happened anyway because I worried too much." Listlessly, he dropped his gaze. "It's my fault you died."

Almost immediately, Edmund smacked Peter's hand away. Slamming his fist into the coarse sand, he gritted his teeth in hate. "Shut up, just shut up!" he snarled, anger leaping in his eyes. "Don't you ever blame yourself for what happened."

Shocked, Peter stared at his fuming brother, now glaring at the sky. Edmund focused on one single flickering star, folded deliberately in the midnight heavens. "For God's sake, Peter, shut up. I was the one who accepted Her and gave both your and the girls' lives; if I had had my way back then, you wouldn't have me, Su, Lu, or even yourself. I betrayed my family, Narnia, and Aslan-" He paused, ripping off the silver crown from his hair, scowling at it. "And yet I'm still crowned King of Narnia. It isn't fair, Peter! It's not fair that they trust me! It's not fair that you and Susan and Lucy trust me, let alone Aslan!"

"Edmund, Aslan said you were forgiven. We all did!" Peter hissed, almost annoyed. "You died, Ed, twice; yes, it was for just a second, but you left us on that battle field after Beruna. You would have died again; you would have left us for good. But, thank Aslan, Lucy saved you; and even though she did, you still would have gone, but you didn't because you were forgiven. Don't you understand?" he added exasperatedly.

Still, Edmund clenched his teeth, his grip on the crown tightening all the more until the sharp tips of two silver leaves cut into the palms of his hands. Small streams of crimson tarnished the precious metal, Edmund watching them, delirious to the small pain, until he finally caved, dropping the blood-stained figure on the ground. Sagging, he raised his palms, blinking at the pool of blood drenching the stone he still held, shifting it so it slipped through his fingers onto the beach.

"Edmund…" The boy made no movement at his name, only bracing himself for Peter's exclamation of fright and disapproval. Naturally, he gave a start of surprise when his older brother pulled him into a one arm hug. "Oh, Eddy, don't do this…I'm so worried about you, don't steep it…"

Edmund only closed his eyes, a single tear slipping from his lids. "Peter, I can't be King, I just can't."

"Edmund, you have to. Narnia is counting on you; Susan and Lucy are counting on you; Aslan's counting on you; I'm counting on you," came Peter's muffled reply. "Aslan crowned us Kings and Queens of Narnia because he knows all of us are needed to balance each other out." He pulled away, offering a small smile. "Magnificent, Gentle, Just, and Valiant; we're all needed Edmund…Meaning you're included."

Despite himself, he laughed quietly, shaking his head. "I don't deserve it."

"Ed, if you didn't deserve it, you wouldn't be here." Peter's voice had lost it's mirth; it was now both grave and firm.

Edmund blinked, recalling what Aslan had said- If he hadn't proven himself at the Battle of Beruna, he would have been condemned…Where She had gone…He shuddered, a chill taking over him…The same chill he had endured before…He could feel the binding, heavy shackles clasping his ankles, the sense of terror and numbness, the sting of the ropes at his wrists, the stab of the Stone Knife-

"Ouch." Edmund clutched his side, muttering hotly under his breath.

"Edmund?"

"I'm fine, Peter; there you go again," he snapped, but the tremor in his voice betrayed him.

"Ed…"

Edmund scowled, dropping his hand back down to the sand, letting his fingers search the ground before they finally clutched the fallen stone again. Fumbling with it a moment, he dragged out the silence, clearly in no hurry to answer. He shivered. "I…It's too hard to explain…Right now."

Peter opened his mouth to press his brother, but simply closed it again at the look of fright on Edmund's face. So, instead, he smiled softly in understanding, taking a hold of his brother's hands. "We should bandage these."

A loud snort came from Edmund. "Peter, they're punctures. I won't die."

Peter made a face at him as Edmund dropped his crown back on his head; it landed crooked. The elder raised an eyebrow, leaning over to adjust it, then stood, announcing, "We'd better get back."

"Yes, or else dear mummy Susan will worry," scoffed Edmund as he snatched the stone up before standing. "Daddy Peter already has." Peter scowled, reaching a hand over to tousle his brother's hair. Edmund ducked quickly, but the High King was no fool. With a flick of the wrist, Peter snatched the silver crown, causing his younger brother to look up in disdain. "Peter...!" With a snort of laughter, Peter took his opportunity to run his fingers through the dark hair, leaving it a mess. Edmund blinked, scowling good naturedly as Peter twirled the crown.

"Peter...Give it back," he demanded with a note of laughter as he lunged for it. Peter only raised it, spinning Edmund's crown between deft fingers. "Peter!"

Peter only laughed. "Please give it back," Edmund begged sweetly, ceasing his failing attempts to reach his crown to look up innocently at Peter. His brother raised an eyebrow, not falling for the pleading, and grinned. Edmund's eyes widened- "Peter...Peter you idiot!"

The High King had spun on his heels, taking off at a run back towards Cair Paravel, laughing triumphantly as he clutched the crown. Edmund growled, leaping after him, shouting, "You bambling idiot, get back here!"

"What, Ed; Too fast for you?" yelled Peter. Though, sooner than not, he was proved wrong as he was tackled to the ground with a yelp. Edmund pinned his brother to the ground, prying his crown from his brother's grasp.

"May- be smaller- and younger- but- still faster," chided Edmund between gasps as he waved his prize back and forth in front of his brother's face. Peter, still laughing, shoved Edmund off of him, propping himself up.

"Didn't this used to be swapped?" asked Peter presently. Edmund blinked, caught off guard by the question. Peter only grinned. "I caught you every time."

Edmund smiled smugly, narrowing his eyes. "Yes, but I was young."

"Are you not still?"

"I can't help that you're three years older than me," sniffed Edmund as he got to his feet, replacing his crown back upon his head. Peter followed suite, dusting sand from his tunic.

"Yes...But you are only twelve, Ed."

"And?"

Peter rolled his eyes, muttering between fits of laughter, "Just...Just never mind..."

"You're hopeless..." hissed Edmund.

---

"Edmund!"

The boy was still dusting sand from his tunic when he looked up to see a red faced, but clearly joyous, Lucy rushing up to meet him. Peter and Edmund shared slight smiles at their sister's state.

"There you are! And you, too, Peter...I've been looking for Edmund for awhile now."

"Well...Here I am, Lu."

She smiled. "Ed, will you dance with me?"

Edmund blinked, his cheeks flushing as Peter silently laughed behind him. Even at just those simple, six words, he felt his mouth go dry. His little sister wanted him, Edmund Joseph Pevensie, to dance?

'She's mad.'

"Well…Lu, I'm, erm, not that much of a dancer," he stuttered. Lucy's smile dropped a little, her eyes growing round with a look of self pity. 'I will not dance…Oh, curse those innocent looks of hers…I will not dance…'

"You had better, Ed," said Peter presently, as though reading his brother's thoughts. "She'll get you out there eventually. She's had me dancing several times already." Lucy blinked with sheepish pride. Edmund raised an eyebrow at her, taking half a step back; thus resulted in a slightly pushed out lower lip.

Edmund sighed in defeat, smiling slightly. "Fine, fine, Lucy, you win. But only one dance." The girl gave a toothy grin, slipping her hand in his extended one. The boy glanced back at his brother, who was smiling triumphantly. Edmund rolled his eyes, letting himself be guided into the middle of the room.

Now…for the challenge; dancing. Lucy gently coached him through each fumbled step while she herself displayed her talent. Edmund could not help but admire his sister's effortless grace through the dance, and no matter hard he tried, he could not match her. Soon the song ended, and, though he opposed the idea, he once again he found himself hand in hand with Lucy as the new melody played out.

Through two more dances she led him, and with each one he slowly began to learn the steps, the effort easing. "That's it, Ed!" cried Lucy at the end of the song, clapping her hands together. He grinned, panting slightly nonetheless;

"Oh, please, Lucy; that was nothing compared to you." And even though it was quite actually the truth, Lucy shook her head.

"Really, Edmund!" she laughed. Without hesitating, she stepped forward, throwing her arms around him; and for the first time in many years, he didn't edge away from her. Though, he was alarmed at first…but after a moment, he wrapped his arms around her, returning the embrace. She sighed, resting her head into his chest for a few moments until pulling away to gaze up at him; he was startled to see shining tears in those innocent eyes.

"Don't ever leave us again," she murmured. "Ed...I missed you so much."

Edmund's carefree features melted solemn, a slight guiltiness misting his gaze. Lucy's face was filled with hope; though, as he searched deeper, he caught the distinct scratch of past grief. He blinked with surprise; she had mourned him...She had missed him.

Perhaps...Perhaps Peter had been right. Perhaps he was needed...was, truly, purely, wanted. He had a place in Cair Paravel, seated in one of the Four Thrones as King Edmund the Just. Just perhaps...

He lifted his gaze for a moment, letting his eyes flit the room a moment before they caught sight of the familiar, china-blue eyes. Peter was smiling already, leaning contentedly against the wall as he watched them, arms folded over his chest. Already, there seemed to be something about his brother that made him seem so much more grown up, so much older. Maybe it was the crown resting amid the golden hair, or the royal dressings he was garbed in...Or maybe Peter had done a little bit of growing up. Maybe they all had. They all had grown up, leaving all of their old worries and fears behind them, save for the soft memory that taught them what was wrong and what was right.

Now it was Edmund's turn.

He smiled softly, brushing a stray lock of hair from her fair face. "I won't," he whispered. "I promise."

---

And so continued the fate of Narnia; blissful and wondrous, save for the slight uprisings of the remaining enemies of Narnia. Even so, the siblings remained close, aiding each other through each 'step' of each 'dance' they endured.

But even though Edmund somewhat understood what might have happened, he never would understand what would have happened, had Aslan not saved his soul that one fateful night.

Had he been lost from Narnia, Narnia itself would have been lost.

The day of the battle would be one of mourning. Peter, fending off enemy after enemy, tiring under heavy armour, refused to give in to the Witch's forces. Now facing two creatures, he felled one with a moment's difficulty, then turned to face the other. Raising his sword, he ran the beast through, pulling Rhindon from the slain creature. Whirling to face his next enemy, a pair of icy, cruel eyes filled his vision, causing him to falter in alarm. The Witch stood, both sword and wand raised-

And then there would a cry of pain…And then silence.

Susan; though she released each arrow accurately, another enemy took the slain soldier's place. Slowly, she and her ranks would be forced back, farther and farther from aid-

And then there would be an anguished scream…And then silence.

And as Lucy scoured the battlefields for her siblings, the Witch's army fled from sight as Aslan and the reinforcements rushed in upon them. But the girl would find them broken, slain cruelly in fate. And innocent little Lucy would fade in time, unable to strive without those who loved her.

And Aslan, the King of Kings, powerful Aslan, would weep for his country and his loss. With the prophecy shattered, he would gather those who were innocent and carry them to his Country Beyond the Sea. And Narnia, ungoverned and unwatched, would be corrupted by the remains of the Witch's followers, left in ruins until the stars fell from the sky, and all was silent.

And the lost, betrayed boy who had betrayed his family would be lost, condemned within anguish and torture, suffering. And though he cried and pleaded for forgiveness, it would echo soundlessly, silent to those with mercy.

But Aslan, merciful Aslan, saved him and the fate of his lovely country…And though we cannot know what would have happened…We can only imagine what could have happened.

Just like we can only imagine what could have happened to our world, had not one so-called lowly man given himself for us.

-FIN-


A/N: So there you have it. I reallllly hope this was good for my first, completed fan fiction. Please; review this! Also, be on the lookout for two new Narnia fics I'm working on!

I would really like to thank all my readers and reviewers. You all helped me so much! -smiles; bows out-