The subtext of that is noted, flagged, and filed away for a less pressing moment.

Because right now, as soon as that first rasping sentence left Ava's mouth, Trowa is doing his Batgirl-trained best to fling the invisible maybe-canine to one side, as hard as he can, and roll away.

He's not working too hard to keep the knife in his hand away from it, either. But that's not his primary intention; the knife might cut, might miss, might go right through the thing, and if it cuts it has equal odds of scaring the animal or making it madder. Or, from what Ava says, having no effect at all.