?
The sun was already high in the sky. Morning light slanted in through the window, turning Annie's house and the big bed she was curled up in a bright red.
"Woof~!"
"Woof! Woof~!!"
??????: Woof!
"..."
(?_?)
Before long, little Annie was woken by the commotion outside.
She seemed to have heard some kind of noise at the door first thing in the morning, followed by the sound of her disobedient little bear—read: dog—Tibbers barking wildly outside. If it wasn't acting up because it had a death wish, then something must have happened out there—or someone had thoughtlessly come to play at her ranch so early in the morning.
Of course, it was also possible that some annoying big sisters had come to visit, hoping to drag her off to the hot springs or something.
"Honestly, I helped Uncle Duke's family gather their last batch of grapes yesterday, but they complained that I ate too much and didn't even pay me..."
?(?′0`?)? Ah-oh~!
"How annoying! I should've eaten even more!"
(っ?-?)
Annie remembered how she'd taken a group of Dwarves to help out at Uncle Duke's vineyard yesterday—supervising, that is—and then had her pay docked. She hadn't lifted a finger and had just watched from the sidelines the whole time. And maybe she had eaten just a tiny bit too much—she'd probably eaten and taken home a dozen or so bunches—but Annie could guarantee the Dwarves had worked really hard and finished the job early. So refusing to pay them was just plain wrong, completely immoral, and worthy of her condemnation!
"Woof! Woof~!"
??????: Woof!
"Damn it!!"
(?????)
Barks continued to ring out from beyond the window. Little Annie had been thinking of sitting on the bed and dozing for a while, or even lying back down for another