Happy Friday!

So...as you can all tell, I had a really good time with last week's chapter. And it sounded like some of you did too. Thanks for everyone sharing your reactions...I really enjoyed reading them!

darling spider: lol! As much as I'm a romance writer, I think it's worth pointing out that I'm sort of a realist when it comes to relationships. Sometimes I think maybe it's not as bad as I make it out to be, but then again...look around. I'm sure you've seen plenty of people do things that they shouldn't.

I have a friend IRL who fell for a guy she met on the internet. After exchanging a few cutesy Facebook messages and a couple of photographs, she bought a plane ticket to see him (and didn't tell anybody). Not smart. She wanted to be with him so badly that she sponsored his visa and brought him home to live with her. After that, he basically freeloaded off her for three years. I guess she was sort of infatuated at the time, but in hindsight, she was said it was one of the dumbest things she had ever done. So...maybe my pessimism around fluffy-feelings is justified, lol. :) If you're wondering what happened after, my friend eventually told this guy that if he wanted to stick around, they need to get married and he needed stop freeloading and actually get a job, otherwise she was kicking him out.

If there's a moral to this story, it's don't do that. Don't randomly up and leave the country to visit random people you met online. Things that seem like a good idea when you're under the influence of strong emotions (infatuation, jealousy, anger) may not actually be a great idea. You may end up having some guy freeload off you for three years...

Or you may end up accidentally impaling your best friend (ahem, Erza...) Side-note: Edgar who is the other half of R011ingThunder says that it's technically 'skewering' and not 'impaling,' but I think my point stands. :)

Anyways, I'm rambling. I super-loved this chapter (I mean, who doesn't love beating up on Gray?) and I hope you do too. ;)

- K. Chandler

The bow fell from Erza's fingers, landing in the grass with a soft crunch.

"Gray!" she gasped, rushing to his side. She fell to her knees next to him, anxiously peering into his face.

"Well, that didn't… go as planned. Nice shot," he groaned. "So, this is what happens… when you challenge… the great Titania, huh?" He attempted a smirk, but it looked more like a grimace.

"That's not funny," she said, biting her lip. "We have to get you back to the guild right away."

Gray nodded. "Yeah," he breathed, voice tight with pain. "Good call."

She was so stupid! How could she have let this happen? Her incompetence had failed her once again and another one of her friends had gotten hurt.

This was just like Azure Wing all over again. Except this time... Erza pressed her lips together. This time, Gray wouldn't be able to save them from her failure.

No. Because she'd shot him.

She'd almost killed one of her best friends. The realization weighed heavy in her chest.

"I don't know if it's safe to move you," Erza mumbled anxiously to herself, her brow furrowed. "Maybe I should bring help to you? I can't tell if I hit anything important—"

"Erza. Calm down."

"Calm down?! I just shot you!" she cried, her voice rising shrilly.

"Yeah. I noticed," he ground out. "Look, it's fine. Just…just help me up, okay?"

"It's not fine! Don't try to tell me it's fine!" cried Erza.

"Erza!" Gray barked, startling her into silence. "Not helping."

"Sorry." She swallowed at the lump in her throat, looking away. She couldn't fall apart like this.

"Deep breath," he coached.

Erza nodded, filling her lungs slowly and steeling herself. She had taken first-aid training with Lucy and Levy last year, so she should know how to handle a situation like this. What was the rule for arrow injuries?

"Right. We're going back to the guild, okay?" Erza eyed the shaft protruding from Gray's side, frowning. It didn't look very deep, so hopefully she didn't hit anything important, but they wouldn't be able to deal with it until she got him back to the guild. "We'll have to leave that in there for now. If we remove it, you'll bleed out."

"I know," said Gray. He was breathing hard, sucking rapid, shallow breaths from between his teeth.

"If anything changes— breathing, heart-rate, anything— I need you to tell me," she said sternly.

"Got it."

"I'm serious. Don't you dare try to down play this, Gray Fullbuster."

"Yeah, yeah. I got it, okay?" said Gray, scowling. "Would you hurry it up?"

"…Sorry." Erza cringed, guilt gnawing at her stomach.

"Didn't mean it that way," he mumbled.

"Don't worry about it. Come on," said Erza, slinging Gray's arm over her shoulders. She didn't like how clammy his hand felt. She wrapped her own arms around his waist to support him, careful to avoid jostling the shaft of the arrow. "On three, okay?"

Gray bit back a groan as Erza hauled him to his feet, swearing under his breath. Erza didn't have the heart to scold him. Erza started to pull him in the direction of the guild hall, but Gray stopped short.

"Hold up." Gray shut his eyes, bowing his head.

"What's the matter?" asked Erza.

"Dizzy… gimme a sec," he breathed.

"You okay?" Erza frowned worriedly. She tried to peer into his face, but he had turned his head away.

"Yeah," he muttered weakly, his response soft and clipped.

"Gray?" asked Erza in a small voice. She knew he didn't mean anything by it, but his stubbornness only made her feel more useless. "Tell me how to help."

"…I'm good now. Let's go."

"But—"

"I'm okay. Just stood up too fast," he mumbled. "Come on."

Erza helped Gray stagger back towards the Fairy Tail Guild Hall. He was breathing hard and leaning heavily against her. Erza had never realized how far away their makeshift archery range was from the guild hall.

"Maybe I should just carry you," she said. "I could probably manage if I—"

"God, no!" huffed Gray, his steel eyes meeting hers. "You are not—"

"It'd be faster," she said, "and I think—"

"Leave me some dignity, would ya?" he snorted.

"Dignity? I think we've got other things to worry about right now!" snapped Erza.

"Drop it, Erza. Keep walking. We're almost there."

Erza complied with a huff, still debating the merits of honoring his request. Surely, he'd forgive her for going against his wishes. He obviously wasn't thinking clearly, after all. But Gray's expression was set into that stubborn scowl that made arguing with him pointless.

Finally, finally, they arrived back at the guild.

Erza flung the doors open. "Where's Wendy?" she demanded.

The normally busy guild hall fell silent.

"Just had to go and draw attention to us, huh?" muttered Gray.

"Oh, my goodness!" chirped Mira, hiking up her skirts and rushing over. "Is he all right?"

"Gray, darling!" wailed Juvia, her eyes welling with tears as she ran to them. She looked like she wanted to throw herself at him.

"Hey, Mira, Juvia," muttered Gray. "It's fine. Oh, please don't cry."

Juvia nodded, biting her quivering lip. "What on earth happened?" Juvia asked, sniffling.

"I'll bet the Ice Princess, here, did something stupid, huh?" said Natsu.

Erza started to scold him, but Gray cut her off. "Yeah, let's go with that."

"You can be a real idiot sometimes," growled Natsu. He still sounded disdainful, but his expression shifted into a worried frown.

Erza shook her head. "I was the one who—" she stared to say.

"It was just a training accident," interrupted Gray tersely. "Can we quit making a big deal about it?"

"You'd think someone with the Ice Pervert's experience would know to be more careful," said Gajeel.

"Gajeel! That was uncalled for," said Pantherlilly sternly.

"I'm just pointing out the facts," Gajeel said, entirely unapologetic.

Even though Gajeel's comment wasn't directed at her, Erza cringed. She should have known better. This was her fault.

"Wendy and Charle went to Margaret Town for the day," said Mira. "They should be back later."

"Help me get him to the infirmary, Mira," said Erza. "At the very least we can get the arrow out of him and dress the wound while we wait for Wendy's return."

Mira nodded, supporting Gray from the other side.

"Juvia wants to help!" the Water Mage piped up.

"You're just going to get in the way, Sprinkler," said Gajeel.

"Juvia won't be any trouble. Juvia just wants to be there for her darling."

"What Gajeel means is you might want to give them some space," suggested Pantherlilly. "They'll need room to work."

Juvia looked crestfallen.

"Well, actually, Juvia. Do you think you can get a hold of Wendy?" asked Mira. "If you really want to help, that would be the best way."

The Water Mage's face brightened. "Right! Juvia can—I can do that," she promised, her left hand forming a determined fist. "You said Margaret Town, right? That's where the Lamia Scale Guild is. I'll call Lyon and see if he's seen her."

So, it looks like Gray has successfully cured Erza of her fangirling phase. Guilt is a fantastic way to put a damper on quite a few things...

Who likes Gray nonchalantly trying to cover up for Erza's mistake in front of the others? I headcanon that that's a common thing between them.

Next time, in the final chapter of [Mazeverse] The Problem with Ranged Weapons, Gray coaxes out the whole story: "Now. What's this really about?" asked Gray, his voice soft. "I know something's been bothering you for a while."

Stop back next Friday for the next installment, or just follow me, Karine of R011ingThunder.