[Ren, for his part, decides to start with a cantrip this time, but he does have a spell in mind for if things get a bit tangled and the pack just tries to come at them like last time.]

If you can't do the plant thing again, I have something I could try to keep them occupied...we'll have to see how it goes, though.

[Hard to tell if it's going to be viable before the pack attacks, so he leaves his crossbow over his shoulder for now. If he ends up really needing to quickly grab for a weapon, he still has his daggers.]