Sweet Home Alaska
A wolf/German shepherd mix with silver eyes is sitting on the roof of the General Store, something to which he found himself doing quite often. He is two years old and already he felt like he was ten.
When he arrived, he felt like he would be under fire, being that he had been attacked for it before, so he told everyone a little lie. They all think he is from Germany… but in reality, he's from the United States.
As he's watching the road, he spots three females walking by. He had been in Nome for a while now so he could name nearly all the dogs by name. The white Siberian husky is Sarah, named because they thought of some European queen… though he didn't know any queens named Sarah.
The brown German shepherd is named Elisabeth, named after the English queen Elisabeth… or perhaps the Spanish queen Isabella… one of those.
And the last one was a mix of two. She had been named after some islands off the coast of Alaska; the Aleutian Islands. She makes yearly visits here, this being her second trip back home.
As the three girls are walking, Sarah, a white Siberian husky, spots the mix on the roof of the General Store and says, "You know, that Alex seemed alright till he said he was from Germany. I don't have a problem with Germans, but that accent… that accent is just freaky."
Elisabeth, the brown German shepherd, rolls her eyes. "Well thanks for the load of confidence. And Alex isn't that bad. He's just… He's just rather antisocial. He isn't that bad when you start to know him more."
Sarah shakes her head. "No, the guy is a creep. He sits up there and just watches as people and dogs walk on by. He's a freak."
"Well that's not nice," states Aleu. "Maybe he just doesn't have that many friends. Perhaps if people were nicer to him, he'd come down more and mingle with the populace."
Sarah turns towards Aleu, nearly glaring, and exclaims, "Well, then how about you go up there and talk to him. I mean, you obviously like to think he is nice and all so… go on up there and treat him like a friend."
"Me? Um… well… alright then."
Aleu separates from the duo and makes her way around the back. Once she is behind the General Store, she climbs onto some boxes before jumping onto the roof, pushing herself up the rest of the way with her back legs.
Alex had watched Aleu split off from the others, though to where she was heading he did not know nor did he have the interest in knowing.
As he's watching the road, the noise drowned out the sound of claws scraping against wood as Aleu pushed her way onto the roof.
"Hi there."
He nearly jumped out of his skin as he twists around, facing the female who had startled him. Once he regained his composure, he sits down and acts as if nothing happened.
"Well I'll be. I wasn't expecting a lil lady like you to be up here."
"Yeah, well I was in the neighborhood and… wait… I thought you were German. What kind of accent is that?"
As though caught in a trap, Alex's mind scrambles to come up with what just happened. A solution came to him so, smiling, he says, "Yes it is. It's a German accent."
"No… I've heard the German accent. That sounded nothing like it. So… what is it?"
"It's a German-"
"Tell me the truth or I'll bite you," Aleu threatens, making sure she made eye contact with him at all times.
"Fine, fine, I'll tell you, but you must keep it a secret, ya hear? Okay, I ain't from Germany. I'm… I was born and raised in Alabama. I told everyone I was from Germany because I felt like all y'all would gang up on… What are you doing there?"
Aleu, not even realizing she was leaning closer to him, shakes her head and, looking into his eyes, chuckles slightly. "Oh… sorry about that. I just never talked to a dog from the United States before, let alone from the south."
"Oh… well it seems Southern folks up here are as scarce as hen's teeth."
Aleu cocks her head and says, though frowning at him, "Um… ok I guess."
Alex chuckles and returns to his original position, as if watching the town as some guardian angel. "Yeah, well not go in half-cocked, but aren't you supposed to be walking with your friends?"
Shaking her head proudly, she says, "Nope, I came here to talk to you. So, come back over here and talk to me."
"Wow… you sure are pushy, ya know?"
Aleu simply laughs and says, "Yeah and you are really stubborn. So get over here and talk."
Reluctantly, Alex turns and sulks back to her, irritating her already. "Oh lighten up. I'm not that scary."
"Scary? You don't scare me. I'm just unsure if you are going to turn on me like the others have."
Aleu rolls her eyes again. "See, this is why they make fun of you. That southern drawl you have is cute, but when you talk like you're from Europe, you make me want to hit you. So talk normal you jerk."
Alex shakes his head, annoyed by Aleu already, and says, "Jesus, you sure are fit to be tied, ya know. And you sure are riling me up."
"You see? That southern drawl you have is… well… I don't know the right word for it, but it really works for you."
"Really? You think so?"
"I am absolutely positive. Now go out there and be yourself."
Alex smiles and says, "Ya know, you sure nussed by self-esteem so… I owe ya one."
He then turns and jumps off the roof, leaving Aleu on top of the General Store.