Moonspear thanks, bathtub barracuda

Floki couldn't help but grin at Aesop's slip of the tongue. Truth be told, he didn't mind being called "kid" -- he knew that the older wolf meant no harm, and besides, he trusted him. He wouldn't have tolerated anything similar from Lazarus, for instance, but since this was someone who had known him since he was knee-high to a grasshopper -- well, he wouldn't protest any affectionate nicknames.

"It's okay," he replied quickly, then fell silent as Aesop began to regale him with a brief description of where he had been. To the north, he said, and Floki nodded as he continued to churn the earth with his paws. They were making slow but steady progress, only impeded by the mud that slid stubbornly down the slope. Still, it seemed that they were working faster than the rain could fall.

"What's to the north?" he asked, after a pause. "Is it cold there all the time?" Floki was a scout by trade, but his knowledge was limited to the Teekon Wilds -- and even then, mostly to the land surrounding Moonspear and extending to the coast. Someday, he hoped to become a real traveler and take a long-term expedition; but at this point, he wasn't yet ready to leave his family and his duties behind.