When they caught sight of the flying blue thing, Gajeel pulled out his telescope and looked through it. However even with the telescope's more advanced lens he still couldn't make out what this "bird" really looked like because of how far away it was.
"What is it?" Elfman asked him.
"It's a large blue bird. Probably the largest one I've ever seen."
"Give me it!" Elfman said jerking the telescope.
"I wanna see!" Sting said jerking it too.
"No it's mine!" Gajeel argued.
"Don't be greedy! Share!" Rogue said.
"Get off me!" Gajeel demanded. "You know the rules! When Gray's away I'm in charge. So I get to look through the telescope."
"Who made you co captain?" Sting asked. "I don't remember taking a vote on that."
"Yeah." Elfman and Rogue added.
"We didn't vote on it because obviously I'm more suited for the position." Gajeel explained. "I'm the oldest, the toughest, and the smartest out all of you. So put a sock in it you bunch of whiners!"
Gajeel looked back into it only for Meredy to suddenly appear and flash her light into the lens.
"Ahhh! My God I've gone blind! I'm blind!" He shouted with his hand over his eyes.
"I'm blind! I'm blind! I'm blind!" The other children mocked while laughing and thinking it served him right for being so bossy.
"Don't laugh you idiots! She's blinded me!"
After teasing him they turned to speak with Meredy. Much like Gray they too had learned the language of the fairies due to being around them for so long which meant they would be able to understand what Meredy would have to say.
"Hello Meredy." They greeted.
"Any news from Gray?" Elfman asked.
Meredy looked down at the bows and arrows in their hands and began to think of an idea. A very low, under handed, and dreadful idea. Now Meredy was not all bad. Sometimes she was all good but fairies are so small that they only have room for one emotion at a time. Not to mention that reason did not come easy to fairies either so you could say that considering the consequences of one's actions was a foreign concept to Meredy. Right now she was being completely ruled by her emotions of jealousy which also dominated her sense of reason. This would drive her to make two mistakes that she would regret for the rest of her life.
She flew up to Elfman's ear and began to talk to him.
"She says that the bird is called a Juvia." Elfman said. "And that Gray wants us to shoot it down."
"Shoot a bird?" Rogue said confused. "That's odd. He's never asked us to shoot anything except pirates and wild beasts that we use for dinner. Why on earth would he want us to shoot a bluebird?"
"Maybe he's craving bluebird for supper?" Sting suggested.
"But those smaller birds aren't common for eating. Pigeons perhaps or maybe an occasional dove, but a bluebird?"
"A trophy then?"
"Sting you know he doesn't believe in hunting for sport. He views it as senseless murder."
"What does it matter? We have our orders." Gajeel said. "Shoot the Juvia bird."
"Aye-aye!" The other three boys said and they prepared their weapons.
"Hey guys you think I might be able to hit it?" Elfman asked. "Imagine how impressed Gray would be if I did?"
"Doubtful." Rogue said. "You have poor aim."
"And every time you shoot you get knocked back by the force." Sting added. "You're so weak."
"You two always pick on me. Stop it!" Elfman said.
"Not our fault you're weak." Sting said.
"And helpless." Rogue said.
"I am not!"
"Are to!" They both said.
"Am not!"
"Are to!"
"Am not!"
"Are to!"
"Shut up you morons! Here it comes!" Gajeel ordered.
Juvia flew in closer, looking around for Gray or her brothers but she suddenly became frozen with fear when she saw the four hunters down below aiming their bows and arrows at her.
"Ready, aim, fire!"
They shot their arrows one by one, the first three missing their target but the fourth one fired by Elfman was a direct hit and Juvia fluttered to the ground.
"I got it!" Elfman cheered with enthusiasm.
The boys ran excitedly to where their prey had fallen only for their excitement to change to horror when they saw a girl lying in place of the supposed bird.
"That is no bird." Gajeel said.
"It is a lady." Sting said.
"And Elfman has killed her." Rogue said.
They all whipped off their caps but only three of them could remain standing. Poor Elfman fell a-trembling.
"I...I didn't know." He said mournfully. "I swear I didn't know. I...Oh what have I done?"
"I'm responsible too." Gajeel said. "I had the telescope, I should have recognized that she was a lady."
"She sure was pretty." Rogue said. "Such a shame."
"Oh boy what are we going to tell Gray?" Sting asked. "You know how he feels about killing innocents, especially when it's a girl. If he finds out about this we're so dead."
"Uh-oh speak of the devil." Gajeel said.
At that moment the boys saw Gray flying their way. They quickly gathered around Juvia to hide her from his view. They knew it wouldn't work for long but hopefully it would give them just enough time to think of a proper way to break this to him.
"Hello boys." Gray said landing. "I've got great news for you all."
"What news?" Gajeel asked nervously.
"I heard the ending of the story Cinderella. She defeated the pirates in an all out battle and lived happily ever after with her prince."
"What's happily ever after mean?" Sting asked.
"Not entirely sure but she said it meant that they got married."
"She?" Gajeel inquired. "As in a lady?"
"Oh yeah! That's the best part! I brought you the one who told the story. She has plenty more to tell you all and I'm hoping that she'll be the mother of our little family."
"So she's here?" Elfman asked while trying to contain his terror. "On Tendrou Island?"
"Yes."
"And by any chance was she wearing a white dress and had blue hair?" Rogue asked.
"Yes. Have you seen her?"
The boys all gulped and their faces became pasty with guilt and remorse with they heard this.
"Alright what did you do?" Gray asked suspiciously.
"What do you mean?" Gajeel asked.
"Well the only time you all get huddle together is when it's snowing or if you've done something wrong and you're trying to hide it from me. Now I don't see any snow around so what did you do?"
"Technically it's what Elfman did." Sting said.
"Huh?"
Gray turned his gaze to Elfman who was the most guilt-ridden and ashamed. After a moment of silence he finally dropped to his knees and proceeded to grovel.
"It's my fault! Forgive me! I'm a murderer! I don't deserve to live!" He cried out with tears.
"What are you talking about?" Gray asked confused.
Gajeel, Sting, and Rogue then stepped aside to reveal the blue haired girl lying on the ground with an arrow in her chest. Gray felt himself become speechless in horror and for a few seconds did not know what to do or think next.
"She is dead." Gajeel said uncomfortably. "It was an accident. We thought she was a bird."
Gray did not respond but he took the arrow from her heart and faced the boys, his eyes singling out Elfman who bared his chest with no a sign of resistance.
"Strike Gray." He said. "Strike true."
Gray raised the arrow to use it as a dagger but in the end he couldn't bring himself to do it no matter how horrified and angered he was by her demise. But he would discover that there was no reason to feel as he did because when he dropped the arrow, Rogue saw Juvia's chest rise.
"Look she's breathing." He pointed out.
The boys looked over Juvia's body and saw that she was indeed still breathing.
"She's alive." Gray said in relief.
"But how?" Sting asked.
Gray knelt beside her and checked her chest for a wound. But he saw that the arrow didn't hit her chest, it hit the acorn button she wore around her neck and close to her heart.
"It's my kiss. My kiss saved her." Gray realized taking the pendent into his hand.
"I remember kisses." Gajeel said. "Let me see it."
Gray handed it to Gajeel who observed it.
"Aye that is a kiss. A powerful thing."
"I guess she must've fainted from shock." Rogue said.
"Let's carry her down to the house." Sting suggested.
"Hands." Gray said knowing that it would not be sufficiently respectful to touch a lady with filthy mitts. So they all looked down at the palms of their hands which had mud and dirt smeared on them.
"They're a bit dirty." Elfman said.
"She must stay here and die." Sting declared.
"No!" Gray objected.
"Oh, how could I have thought that? Stupid. Sorry."
Gray thought for a moment and then idea came to him.
"We'll build a house around her."
At once the boys left to get what they needed to pull this off. Gray stayed behind and he was begging Juvia to get better quickly. Of course she could not answer yet, being still in a frightful faint. But from overhead came a wailing note. It was Meredy who was wailing and when Rogue saw her he remembered just whose idea it was to shoot Juvia in the first place.
"You know Gray." He said. "We really didn't mean to hurt her but Meredy told us that she was a bird and that you wanted us to shoot her down."
"She what?!" He said looking as angry that he had ever seen him. "Meredy come here!"
Meredy came down from the tree she was perched in and flew toward the boy while trying to look as innocent as possible.
"Yes?" She squeaked.
"Is he telling me the truth?" He asked sternly. "Did you try to kill her?"
"Me? Oh no. I would never."
But Gray was no fool and he could tell by Meredy's eyes that she had intentionally caused Juvia's near death experience.
"I am your friend no more!" He declared angrily before grabbing her and throwing her to the side.She flew on to his shoulder and pleaded, but he brushed her off causing the fairy to fly away in tears.
Now remember when I said that Meredy's jealousy would cause her to make two mistakes that she would regret? Well this was the first and the second would come later because you see not only do fairies have trouble controlling their emotions they also have trouble taking responsibility for their actions. In other words Meredy failed to acknowledge what she did wrong and blamed Juvia for her banishment. So now she was more determined than ever to get rid of the girl, little did she realize that this way of thinking would only make things worse. For her and for Gray.