Sequoia Coast Off the beaten path

The fox introduced himself then asked after Floki's well-being. That was something of a loaded question; the short answer would be, "fine, just fine," but the long response involved quite a bit of tragedy. Floki's father was dead; his mother was withdrawn and often absent, both physically and mentally; his twin brother had been swept out to sea; his pack was dwindling in numbers; and now he couldn't find Charon.

These thoughts swirled in the pup's mind, but he quickly pushed them away. This was a skill that he was perfecting: hiding his feelings and pretending that everything was hunky dory. "I've been good," he answered after a hesitation, looking down and drawing his forepaw through the sand. When he glanced up again, he had another query for Hiraku. "What are you doing on the beach? I didn't know foxes liked the sand."