I'M NO SLAVE!

"... Give me one good reason why I shouldn't accept a fellow monster into my family?"

That mumbled phrase left Baloo's lips, hardly audible under Diona's wrathful voice and the cracks of her whip.

"What did you say?! Ogre!" Diona roared. A wisp of fire sprayed out with her words. "You dare speak back? To me?"

Baloo didn't reply. He didn't speak again. But Baloo did stare back at Diona, leering through his orange-yellow eyes while his reptilian jaw stretched back into a frown. 

A mad smile appeared on Dionas face as she finally got what she wanted from the ogre. "Go on. Speak, lizard! Freddy isn't here, because Freddy was too easy on you. I'll teach you the lessons you'll never forget. So speak up! Or shut up and get back to work!" 

Two twitches of the tongue. A slow wag of the tail. Baloo's fingers pressed against the cement pillar as he stared back at Diona with no fear.