"Mala noche nos espera" - is this really intransitive?

[Cifi]

The sentence is an example from RAE:

Dicho de una cosa: Ser inminente o inmediata. Mala noche nos espera. (https://dle.rae.es/esperar)

I think I understand it, but what I don't understand yet is that they classify this usage as intransitive. I would have taken Mala noche for the subject, and nos for the direct object. Is it indirect instead?

[gmads]

The sentence is an example from RAE:

Dicho de una cosa: Ser inminente o inmediata. Mala noche nos espera. (https://dle.rae.es/esperar)

I think I understand it, but what I don't understand yet is that they classify this usage as intransitive. I would have taken Mala noche for the subject, and nos for the direct object. Is it indirect instead?

Yes, the "nos" is indirect as it means "a nosotros" ("to us").

A very classic example to see this can be taken from our experience when we were children. If we (our brothers and oneself) misbehaved all afternoon our mother would usually say, "esperen a que llegue su papá... ¡la que les espera!" ("wait until your father arrives/wait for your father to arrive"... "you have it coming!").

The hidden parts of "la que les espera" part can be made visible like so:

• puedo imaginar la { regañiza, paliza, situación } que les espera [a ustedes]
  meaning: "I can imagine the { scolding, beating, situation } that awaits you"

Our mother's warning can be rephrased as:

• les espera [a ustedes] una regañiza
• una regañiza les espera [a ustedes]

Making us then fear:

• nos espera [a nosotros] una regañiza
• una regañiza nos espera [a nosotros]

Therefore, RAE's sentence means:

• Mala noche nos espera [a nosotros]

Not really explained, but just mentioned: https://www.rae.es/dpd/esperar

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