Serach was too preoccupied with the coyotes impending arrival to even notice that his question might have been interpreted for something other than what it was meant to be. After a moment, Nalda joined him, her bristling hackles mirroring his own. Together, the pair looked into the woods, where the shadows were beginning to take form into concrete shapes. There were three of them, with narrow muzzles and large ears, and the same golden-brown eyes. If they felt any hesitancy at approaching the wolves, their slow, determined approach did not show it. Even when Serach began to snarl at them and barred his teeth, they only paused for a moment before resuming their approach.

Stepping a few steps forward, Serach put his body between the approaching coyotes and Nalda. He had expected the vermin to run when he snarled and snapped his teeth in their direction, but they were not deterred. And even though he was larger than them, this was not a fight he could afford to have, especially not when his only potential help was a very pregnant Nalda. But he was going to stick to his word, to the extent that he could. Taking another step forward, the Bend leader snapped his teeth at the air in another attempt to ward the coyotes away. There was a little more hesitation now that they were closer, but Serach couldn't see the fear in their eyes that he was hoping for.

"Nalda, get out of here. Back towards the Bend," he instructed, never turning his gaze away from the trio. They weren't that far, and surely the closer they got to the pack's borders, the less aggressive the coyotes would be, right? It wasn't a foolproof plan by any means, but it was the best Serach could come up with. But he remained firm in his stance, continuing to snarl and snap his teeth, hoping that once the coyotes realized that the wolves would not be easy targets, they would give up.