*General POV*

After Lucy entered the house, she was promptly tackled by Natsu, who was giggling and scrambling away from Gray, apparently they were mid-tickle war. "Luce! Help!" Natsu cried as he and Lucy plummeted to the floor as Gray pounced on top of the person pile, tickling both Lucy and Natsu, who were both crawling at the floor trying to crawl away from the menace that was Gray. She was quickly distracted from her inner turmoil.

After about two minutes both Natsu and Lucy were bucking and gasping, trying to escape Gray's wrath in order to breathe. Finally, Gray's fingers cramped up and he got up, going to sit on the couch to catch his breath from all the energy it took to keep both Lucy and Natsu down.

Lucy and Natsu were left panting and heaving on the floor, Natsu on his back and Lucy lying on her side, both looking like they had just run a marathon. Just then, Gajeel shoved the side door open stomping into the hallway and tripping over Natsu's long legs. "Hurg-!?" Gajeel grunted as he fell to the floor, landing on something soft and warm.

"What the fuck, flame brain?!" Gajeel muttered as he pushed himself up with his hands, opening his eyes quickly, before realizing what was really going on.

Gajeel had tripped over Natsu's legs and fallen partially on to Lucy, his head was just above her breasts... Which meant he had originally landed on them... Which meant he was in big trouble... He flinched and looked up at Lucy, she didn't look angry at all, in fact, she looked almost like she was enjoying herself. Though Gajeel was unaware her sheen of sweat and blush was from the tickle mayhem she'd just survived.

Lucy was still panting and heavily blushing, though she was not 100% aware of Gajeel's predicament. Of course she had felt him fall on her, but in her state of dazed fatigue, she wasn't totally sure where he had fallen. Gajeel, unaware that Lucy had been fatigued before his misstep, blushed deeply and sat up, unintentionally straddling Lucy.

"Bunny girl, what's up, why you so winded?" He nonchalantly asked, hoping maybe she'd react in some way to let him know if she wanted him the way he wanted her.

"Gray..." She slowly wheezed "What?" Gajeel was caught off guard, 'What the hell happened when I was outside?' He thought to himself.

"Gray... Tickled me.. To death." Lucy whispered, she could feel her breath coming back to her, "Fuck you, Gray!" She whisper yelled from her place on the floor in the hall, he chuckled from his spot on the couch.

"Sorry, Lucy, I'm taken." He grinned as he leered over at Natsu.

"Damn right." Natsu groaned as he pushed himself up onto his elbows, got up, and stumbled to the couch.

Lucy giggled as she watched Natsu sit on Gray and start to cuddle him, she looked back up at Gajeel and noticed the position they were currently in. Gajeel, was still frozen in place, staring at Lucy's chest with glazed eyes. He was so distracted he didn't even register that Rogue hadn't followed him inside.

Lucy quickly realized just how intense the look in his eyes was and sat up, pushing him off her briskly.

"What gives, bunny?" Gajeel teased, Lucy shot him a mild glare.

"I sure don't." She smirked, reveling in the dazed look on Gajeel's face. Lucy sat back, propping herself up on her hands and straightening her legs out in front of her. Licking her lips slowly she hissed "don't fuck with me, Gajeel."

She knew exactly what she was doing to him, and honestly Lucy found it incredibly entertaining and a little hot. He stared at her with an almost dumbstruck look on his face, Lucy decided she had had enough fun, and stood up quickly, walking to the kitchen to open and heat up some canned soup for herself.

"I CALL NOT MAKING DINNER TODAY! Every man for themselves!" Lucy hollered, making sure her voice carried through the house, as she grabbed her now heated soup and a spoon from the kitchen, rubbing the spoon on her sweatpants to ensure its cleanliness. Natsu, Gray, Gajeel, Mira, Levy, and Wendy all groaned their resentments from their different places in the house and stumbled over to the kitchen.

"Wait-" Natsu froze as he began heating his own soup in his hands, he turned his head to the side door and put the soup down carefully but quickly.

"What is it?" Lucy asked, only to be shushed by the three dragonslayers present.

"They're outside!" Wendy urgently whispered. Everyone ran outside to where Rogue, Sting, Yukino, Laxus, Cana, and Cobra were positioned.

"It's bad, not a herd, but not just a few!" Laxus shouted to the group. Lucy summoned Loke and Virgo to help the others hold off the lurkers, and Gemini to become another Laxus to carry Mira, who was growing stronger slowly, but still wouldn't be able to run so hard for so long.

"Oh shit..." Gajeel contributed before joining the fight as Lucy, Wendy, and Levy ran back inside to grab supplies. Levy ran straight to the kitchen, grabbing some reusable grocery bags from under the sink and roughly collecting cans of soup and dropping them into the two reusable bags she had found, avoiding the pasta, since they'd need water in order to be cooked, while the soup could simply be heated by Natsu.

Wendy had run to the bathroom to find medical supplies they might need, rummaging through the cabinets, grabbing aspirin, bandages, and other basic supplies, just incase she couldn't heal someone, due to her death or excessive weakness. Lucy was running through the house, checking the rooms for possibly important items her friends might've left behind.

"All good! Let's go!" Levy's voice rang through the house.

"Kay!" Wendy replied. Lucy paused, finding Natsu's scarf folded up neatly on the pillow on the bunk he'd slept in, grabbing it swiftly before sprinting out the house behind Levy and Wendy.

Lucy closed Loke and Virgo's gates, but left Gemini's open in order for them(as Laxus) to carry Mira as the pack ran.

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*Wendy POV*

I should've been able to hear them earlier. I should have been able to help sooner, I can't make the same mistakes next time. I'll just have to move on and learn from my mistakes. I suppose I had been too distracted to hear the zombies outside.

We've only been running for about an hour, but it feels like it's been years. Lucy's obviously hauling more ass than she can carry, so to speak, since she still has Gemini carrying Mira, who should actually be well enough to start running long distance on her own soon, maybe a week.

I look back for a split second to see Lucy, sweat sliding down her face, legs pumping, pushing herself to keep running, and Gemini next to her, doing the same. She's definitely exerting more magical and physical energy than she seems to have at the moment, she did had three golden celestial keys open for a while earlier.

"We need to stop!" I call to Natsu, he quickly signals to the pack as we regroup. "Where are we headed? Do we have a goal right now or are we free falling? Some of us need to rest. Like right now." I said, Lucy couldn't keep going like this, but now that I said it, Gray and Laxus look like hell.

00000

*Gray POV*

I feel like there are razor blades stuck in the inside of my throat, every breath of cold air is fucking torture. What the hell is wrong with me? Do I have a cold? Is this strep? What if it's some disease we can't get meds for and Wendy can't fix it and I die!?

Wendy's looking at me, can she tell I'm dying? Oh god, what will Natsu do without me? Will he move on? Maybe he and Rogue will hit it off when I'm dead. And I'll be a vengeful spirit and come back as a zombie, and bite them both. Fuck them. I turn to Natsu "Fuck you." I groan, shit I sound wasted. The world is tipping over, the colors are dimming. Am I dying?

00000

*General POV*

Gray had been muttering to himself for all of 39 seconds before he'd turned to his boyfriend and said "Fuck you." He then proceeded to pass out.

"What the fuck?" Gajeel said as he caught Gray's limp body.

"Was he delirious? Does he have a fever?" Natsu asked worriedly, Wendy checked Gray's vitals with her magic.

"Yeah he's got a cold. Just a regular cold that's been stressed by all the running." She calmly replied.

"Is there a place nearby we can stay?" Yukino let go of Cobra's hand to bite her pinky fingernail.

"I can check really quick. I can survey the area faster than Natsu can run around it." Wendy volunteered herself before using her magic to boost her self into a nearby tree and continuing to boost her jumps until she reached the top of the tree. The view was as it should've been, green, leafy, natural, Wendy was not particularly impressed. She spotted a hunting cabin roughly 2 kilometers northwest of the group.

"That way" She said as she pointed in the direction of the cabin. Lucy gave a tired smile before taking one of Gray's arms and slinging it around her shoulder to help Gajeel support the weight, as the pack trekked through the forest to the cabin that was even smaller than the farmhouse.