Note: This story is quite AU in the world and the fact that the characters are humanoid animals. Their human like, but with some animal details to them. For example, Julien still has lemur ears and tail.

He didn't belong here, that much Kowalski knew. For one thing it was entirely too hot in the jungle lands. Penguin humanoids were not made for this kind of heat. He was half sure the heat was why he wasn't able to think of a way out of his situation so far.

Never had he thought he end up captured by lemur humanoids and become an item in the slave trade. Thinking back on it, he realized how stupid and naive he had been when he was caught by the slavers. He had been the one to approach the covered slave wagon, not realizing what it was. It was him who helped the lemur humanoids fix the broken wagon wheel and made the mistake of speaking to them.

How was he to know that the humanoids of the Lemur kingdom were under the impression those from the snow lands were not capable of speech or reasonable thinking? He didn't know where they had gotten such a ridiculous idea. It had however served as a good way to keep the slavers from targeting his kind as they thought his kind was too stupid and barbaric to do anything useful. Kowalski had ruined those thoughts in a few words and one act.

So now, he sat on a hard, wooden bench in the wagon. His wrists were cuffed to the side of the bench, keeping him from getting up and attempting to somehow get through the bars blocking the exit of the wagon. He was the only one left in the wagon now, the other slaves having already been sold. In truth, he was unsure of why he had not been brought to the auction block like them. He frown when it occurred to him that they were saving him for something.

Though curious about that, he knew he wouldn't ask the slavers what exactly the plan was for him. He had messed things up enough by speaking to them and showing his skills. Besides, maybe if he did not speak to them again, they would feel they made a mistake. Not likely, but it was worth a shot. He didn't even look up when the wagon suddenly stopped and one of the slavers came into the back.

Looking over Kowalski, the slaver snorted.

"You can stop the act, you know. It's not as if we all imagined you spoke to us and fixed the cart wheel. So you might as well speak and react." the slaver said as he walked over to Kowalski with a set of manacles.

Kowalski still did not reply. He let the annoyed looking slaver uncuff his wrists from the bench, and then shackle them again with the manacles. Grabbing the chain between the manacles, the slaver pulled Kowalski to his feet violently.

"Look you, don't play this game with me. Not now. If you embarrass me in front of the king, you will be sorry." the slaver hissed as he pulled Kowalski along.

Still, Kowalski said nothing and made no expression. In his mind though, he was quite nervous. King? The slavers were bringing them to their kinds king? This did not bode well.

Despite trying not to make any reactions to anything, he couldn't help but grimace at the sudden sunlight assaulting his eyes after being in the dark wagon for some time. Plus the heat was even more unbearable now that he was out of any shade.

It took a moment, but Kowalski's eyes adjusted to the sunlight. Once that happened, he could see the grand palace. To anyone else it probably didn't look foreboding. However, the sight of the place made him nervous. He rather dreaded whatever was about to come in the next hour or so.

He kept his head down and walked silently down the long hall. The slaver seemed quite unhappy with the way Kowalski was behaving. Still, he pulled Kowalski into what Kowalski assumed was the throne room.

It turned out Kowalski was correct in that assumption as at the end of the room was a throne. The ring tailed lemur humanoid sleeping in the throne did not look very royal to Kowalski though. The snoring didn't help matters either.

"Umm, I'm here to offer something special to the king." the slaver said to another lemur standing next to the king's throne.

"I see. I'll wake him up then... though he probably won't be very happy." the lemur said.

With that, the lemur spoke into the king's long, erect ear.

"Your majesty, wake up." the lemur said.

"Five more minutes, Maurice." the king murmured.

Maurice sighed, use to this it seemed.

"Mort got into your smoothie stash again." Maurice said, stepping back away from the throne quickly after saying that.

Almost instantly the king jolted up in his throne, looking around franticly.

"What!? Where is he? I will be of the beating him black and purple...or is that black and blue? I am of the forgetting of how that phrase goes." the king said.

The slaver saw this as his chance to speak. He bowed his head to the king.

"King Julien, I come before you to offer you a gift and wonderful information." the slaver said.

Kowalski nearly choked on his own spit. He was a gift to their king? This was turning out worse then he had thought it would be. Still, he kept silent and his expression neutral.

"Oh, I am liking gifts! Information.. eh, so-so." Julien said.

"The information has to do with the gift. You see, me and my companions have learned that the beings from the snow lands are not as barbaric as we thought. They can speak and do simple tasks." the slaver said.

Kowalski nearly snorted. If fixing the wheel had been a simple job, why couldn't the slavers do it themselves. He would have loved to voice that little opinion, but didn't. He made no signs he was even comprehending what was going on in the room when Julien looked his way.

"He is not looking so useful to me." Julien said.

"That's because he is acting like he can't speak or understand us. But I can get him to at least speak." the slaver said as he pulled a knife from his belt.

Kowalski couldn't help it. His eyes widened at the sight of the large bladed knife. He was about to back away when the slaver swiped. It took Kowalski a moment to realize it wasn't him who had been cut by the knife but his shirt, which fell to the floor.

Julien couldn't help but stare a little at the bare chested penguin humanoid. Though Julien was not aware of the fact, each penguin humanoid feather patch pattern was different, he found the swirled feather patches on Kowalski's shoulders, neck, and stomach to be a work of art.

"You have one more chance to speak before I hurt you." the slaver said, unfurling a whip from his belt now.

Though not looking forward to being whipped, Kowalski still said nothing. His kind counted on his silence. He closed his eyes when the slaver pulled back to lash the whip.

"There is no need for that." Julien said suddenly, surprising both the slaver and Kowalski. "It's obvious that you were wrong about this... thing, and that it can't speak or do simple tasks. I am meaning, it's obviously an stupid creature."

At those words something snapped in Kowalski. He suddenly lifted his head to face Julien and yelled.

"Stupid? Do you know how many time I've heard that in the last few days? The answer is a lot. But let me tell you something you ring tailed oaf, I am anything but stupid!"

There was silence in the throne room now. It didn't take long for Kowalski to realize his error and he inwardly cursed himself. It had not been pain that made him make his kind a target now. It was his own pride in his intelligence that did it. Inside , Kowalski felt sick to his stomach.

The room was still silent for a moment long until Julien spoke.

"I am... thinking he is not stupid."