Scarlet looked around the menagerie and sighed. Now that Ryu was gone, there wasn't really much for her to do. After staring at the wall for a few minutes, Scarlet grabbed a branch from the nearby tree and began to break it into tiny pieces.
She had gone through four branches when an alarm sounded. Sirens flashed red all over the menagerie. Scarlet winced and covered her ears. That didn't stop her from wondering what the alarm meant, though. Had a an animal gotten loose? Was there a security breach? Her mind was swarming with questions when the door burst open. Figuring it was another Lunar, she morphed her face into nonchalance. But when her eyes locked with the visitor, her jaw dropped.
There was Wolf, looking like a puppy being backed into a corner. He was frantically looking around, as if he were searching for something. His gaze met hers and his eyes widened. He jumped over the wall and stood in front of of her before he fell to the ground. His eyes were brimming with tears.
Scarlet reached a hand out of her cage and smoothed back his disheveled hair. Wolf melted and grabbed her hand, holding it in place while he rubbed himself against it. Tears streamed down her cheeks. He was here.
"Scarlet," Wolf blinked a couple times before he ran a hand down his face. "Scarlet."
"Wolf, oh my stars, I'm so happ—"
"What did they do to you?" He interrupted.
Scarlet opened her mouth, but then closed it. She was pretty sure that if she told him that he'd probably kill someone. And now wasn't the time or place to do that.
"I'll tell you later." She said quietly. He could see his conflicted expression, but after a few moments he just shook his head and brought his face up to the bars of her cage.
"You're alright." He murmured. "You're perfectly safe."
"I know I'm safe when you're here." She said.
Wolf shook his head. "Don't say that." He said. "I failed you."
"What? No you didn't. You're here now, and—"
"I let her take you." He said, burying his head in his hands.
"Hey, that's not your fault. We were both being manipulated. It's not like you could do anything about it."
"I should've tried harder. I should've fought harder. I should've—"
"Wolf, stop. It's not your fault."
He took a deep breath, then continued talking. "You're my alpha, Scarlet. I'm supposed to protect you. But look at you," He gestured towards her cage. "Locked in a cage on the moon. I don't deserve you, Scarlet."
"Yes you do, Wolf. So what if I was taken to Luna by a crazy thamuturge." She brushed his cheek. "You're here now. That tells me all I need to know." She stroked his hair for a few minutes before she asked, "Now can you get me out of this cage? It's cramped in here."
Wolf stared at her for a minute before he nodded and broke the bars off the cage. He held his hand out to Scarlet and she grabbed it as he helped her out of the cage. As soon as she was completely out, Wolf picked her up bridal style and carried her out of the menagerie.
"You're safe." He said. "Safe and sound."
