It felt like days had passed since Aponi and Serach had ended their patrol. Had he known what would have happened, he might have tried to warn his companion off of her decision to challenge Spieden then and there. But he didn't, and instead he had stood there in silent shock as Spieden lashed out at both of them. He had seen members of the Bend start to gather along the periphery of his vision, but his focus had been on Spieden and Aponi. His muscles tense, he watched for any sign of serious damage. He had almost interfered when blood was drawn, going so far as to take a few steps towards the action. Despite every fiber of his being telling him to throw himself into the fray to break the two women apart, instinct would not let him. This was not his fight - no matter what Spieden might think, he had not put Aponi up to this and he would not help her win.

Instead he had watched, frozen in agitation but unable to do anything about it. Only when Spieden had submitted and Aponi determined the victor did he begin to move. Slowly, he approached the pair, keenly aware of the surrounding eyes upon them. "Spieden...," he said cautiously as he approached. Something wasn't right. The frightened tone of voice and the struggle to get away reminded Serach of an animal being hunted, but nobody was chasing. "It's going to be alright...we don't want to fight. We just wanted the chance to lead together is all." That was the crux of the matter. The challenge would have happened no matter who had been leading. Flicking his eyes as the pale form of his father appeared amongst those gathered, he wondered for a moment if he would have done the same if the roles had been reversed and he had been the one challenging for a place at Aponi's side. I would, he thought, looking back to Spieden. In his gut he knew that whether it had been Triell or Drestig or Ice, Serach would have attempted the challenge. 

"We'd still like you to be an advisor. We still respect you - that has never changed."

They all converged around Spieden, but they were wary. Despite the concern on their faces and in their words, Spieden was a wounded, frightened animal, and she was acting like it. Their words were falling on deaf ears, and the fallen leader remained silent and looking for a retreat. Serach looked to Aponi, silently questioning what they should do and how they could help. But in the end, it didn't matter. Spieden found the retreat that she was looking for, and took it. Bolting like a frightened deer, the Coho woman ran. "Spieden!" Serach called after her, but it made no difference; she was already gone.

In his peripheral vision, he could see the shadows of other wolves begin to slink off. He wasn't sure how many followed Spieden into the woods, but it was too many to make him comfortable. His gut lurched and he looked around at the assembled group, unsure of what to do or say. Truth be told, he wanted to follow Spieden's lead and turn tail and bolt as the realization of what was happening hit him. She would not be here in the morning, and he doubted very much that the wolves who followed her into the woods would be either.

Weak in the legs, he turned to Aponi. She was bleeding from her muzzle, but otherwise seemed physically fine. The fight had gone remarkably well for her, despite being smaller in size. "I think you should go find Kyna and Lila, before they find out what happened from somebody else," he told her, his voice quiet but anxious. "I'm going to follow her," he added, although as they parted ways, Serach wasn't entirely sure where he would end up going. Slipping away, he let his paws guide him wherever they thought was best.