So much was different about the Renier that turned to face him now. It almost gave him cause to falter, and certainly he was not so quick to answer he might have been otherwise. The look in the other mans eyes, the inflection in that single word; the man didn't trust him. Sven had to wonder if perhaps he even disliked him. Somewhere inside of his chest, a dull pain began to throb. He'd liked Renier, he really did. The man had taught him just as much as his father had, been there for most of his life, come to his defense a few times even. Sven wasn't here because he was ungrateful.

Did this make him ungrateful?

Was it because he was onto what Sven wanted from him? Had Nicolo already whined about the challenge Sven had presented him, or had his motives really been that plain all along? Even worse to think, maybe this was all still because of the ordeal about Enoki. Maybe his and Renier's bond had been broken that simply. Sven couldn't help but scowl. This wasn't how he wanted any of it to go, but there was no turning back now. He needed that crown, and then he would show them all that he really did care, that he had their best intentions in mind, that he was capable and most of all, that he wasn't his father.

He'd wanted to be civil about it, considerate of Renier. To talk about the transition first. This coldness that he was greeted with, however, urged him to react bluntly instead.

"I challenged Nicolo for his rank, while you were gone, and won. Now I want yours. I want to lead the pack."

He wanted to leave it at that, to be cold, but dammit he still liked Renier and he couldn't help the rest of the words that tumbled from his mouth.

"I think you've done a good job. Better than any of the other them. But every time I trust someone with something, they let me down, and I'm sick of watching this pack fade away to nothing. I can't risk finding out if you're different or not. I need to take things into my own paws."

Please understand, he silently begged him. I don't want to lose you too.

Sven had been prepared for a lot of things. At this point particularly, with how... broken he personally felt things to be between himself and Renier, he expected anger, perhaps even a twisting of betrayal across the Lyall's features. Instead, he seemed... almost considerate of the idea. His silver eyes watched warily, muscles braced already for what might come. When Renier spoke, the teen's ears tipped forward to catch each word, and the whole of them caused his heart to leap.

Maybe this really would all work out.

Renier moved, and Sven was ready, but that didn't exactly help him at first. In a way, he knew how to fight. However Sven's instincts were to tear and maim, to incapacitate. He didn't want that here, just as he hadn't wanted to harm Nicolo. His wrestle with the eldest Archer was the first benign experience he'd had since his days of tussling with his father's big paws as a pup. So he was still, in all reality, a novice; but still a novice with a lot of raw strength beneath that off-white coat.

He tried to dodge, but the only thing he managed to do for his own benefit was to keep his muzzle out of Renier's grip. Unwittingly, he instead gave the man an opening for the loose skin at his neck, which the older man's jaws wrapped around. It jerked him back, and he retaliated by whipping round like a viper, his own fangs seeking purchase on Renier's nape. He was pretty confident that if it came down to a tug of war, he had the muscle to win.

Sven had to thank god that his jaws caught their quarry and he secured a grip on the loose skin at Renier's nape. He felt the pull of the alpha's own purchase and fought against it, broadening his stance and digging his paws into the broken snow beneath them. The calculation could be felt, the Lyall's own metaphorical drawn line in the sand perfectly aligned with his own. Would it be a stalemate, then? His legs locked as Renier continued to drag downward, ignoring the pressure and protesting of his nerves as his own skin pulled against his muscles.

The boy could have yanked in the opposite direction, pursued that earlier glimmer of an idea that this match would come down to tug-of-war between the two brutes. There was a smarter way to go about it, however, or so the pale Archer hoped. Suddenly, hopefully giving Renier little to no time to react accordingly, Sven shifted his weight and power. Rather than fighting the alpha's pull he threw himself into it, lifting his opposing forelimb to press against Renier's shoulder. The aim was to use the other man's own efforts against him to topple him sideways. Unless willing to relinquish it, he would still have a hold of Sven, but the younger wolf would effectively be on top if successful, barrel chest hovering overtop the Lyall and paw pinned down upon his upturned shoulder.

Rather than it working out the way the boy anticipated, Renier released him completely. Sven would have thought the man was about to pull a fast one, except his opponent's motion ceased nearly entirely and a stillness fell over their tussling, infecting the pale Archer. The admission of defeat perked his ears upward and encouraged him to relinquish his grip. Sven stepped back, eyes widened with surprise. That was it? His heart thumped loudly, the blood audible within his thickly furred ears. Had he really achieved it so easily?

A grin began to crack open his muzzle, as Renier went on to confirm this. He was alpha. He had earned it. Paws lifted as he wormed forward, but his chin was not lifted like a king. He attempted to approach as a friend, aiming to butt his skull against Renier's shoulder affectionately, but his predecessor spoke again and the words caused Sven to stop before the action could be completed.

What? Sven blinked at him a few times, tail waving slowly behind his hind legs. There was nothing more the man felt they needed to say, to discuss? Knowing Nimble's origin certainly was a big deal, but if it was so urgent then why had he waited hours after returning to seek them out? Until this very moment? The Archer was given the impression that maybe the import was more about getting away from him.

It occurred to him then, that he could tell Renier to stay. After all, he was the alpha. Instead, he simply nodded once.

"Find me, as soon as you're done. We've got more to talk about."