The 35th of May, part two

And here we go again. The second part of the first chapter.

Negro Caballo laughed neighingly. And then they walked back inside to play Authors. The horse won the whole time. He knew all the classical names and works by heart. Uncle Ringelhuth on the other hand was a complete failure. As a pharmacist he knew which diseases the poets had and how they were cured or from what they died. But he had no idea about their novels or dramas.
It was unbelievable. He thought Schiller's „Song of the Bell“ was by Goethe!
Suddenly, Konrad jumped up, threw his cards away and ran to the bookcase. He took a heavy book from the the top shelf, sat down on the carpet and started to browse.
„We don't want to be intrusive, but maybe you could explain to us what you are doing? Why do you leave the game?“, asked the uncle. „By the way, I am still missing a comedy by Gotthold Ephraim Lessing. I just know that his wife, a certain Eva König, died shortly after giving birth. The child died a day later and Lessing himself didn't have that much longer to live afterwards either.“
„What you are telling us does not sound like a comedy to me“, said the horse. Then he whispered to uncle Ringelhuth: „Minna of Barnhelm.“
„No! Her name was Eva König, not Minna of Bornholm!“, the uncle shouted angrily.
„Heavens!“, murmured the horse. „Minna of Barnhelm was not Lessing's wife, but the name of the comedy!“
„Ah!“, said Ringelhuth. „Why didn't you say so before? Konrad, hand over the Minna of Bornholm!“
Konrad sat on the carpet, browsed the book and said nothing.
„Would you please kick my nephew awake?“, asked Ringelhuth his four-legged guest. The horse trotted over to Konrad, took him by the collar and lifted him into the air with his teeth. But Konrad did not take any notice of this. He just browsed and browsed the book, even though the horse had lifted him into the air. He looked worried.
„I can't find it, uncle“, he said suddenly.
„What?“ Ringelhuth asked. „Minna of Bornholm?“
„The South Seas“, said Konrad.
„The South Seas?“ asked the surprised horse. Since he had to open his mouth to speak, Konrad fell onto the floor. Noisily.
„We're lucky that Mühlenbergs' chandelier is already broken“, said the uncle and rubbed his hands with glee. „But what are we supposed to do with the blasted Sotuh Sea?“ He turned to the horse. „My nephew has to write an essay on the South Sea for school“
„Because I'm good at math“, Konrad explained. He was annoyed.

The horse thought on this for a moment. Then he asked the uncle whether he had the afternoon off.
„Sure“, said Ringelhuth, „I always work the night shift in the pharmacy on thursdays.“
„Great!“, exclaimed Negro Caballo, „then we can just go there!“
„To the pharmacy?“ Konrad and his uncle asked as one.
„No“, said the horse, „to the South Seas of course.“ And then he asked whetehr he could use the telephone. Uncle Ringelhuth nodded and the horse loped over to the phone. He took the receiver, dialed a number and said: „Hello, is this the travel agency for circus horses? I want to talk to the Big Nag personally! Oh, its you. How are you? The mane grays? Well we all are not the youngest anymore, aren't we? Can you tell me how to get to the South Seas in the quickest possible manner? I want to be back by dinner. A problem? Big Nag, stop messing around! Where am I? At a friend's place, a certain Ringelhuth. Johann Mayer Street 13. What? Now that's what I call good news. Thank you very much!“

He neighed three times into the receiver as a good-bye and turned around and asked: „Mister Ringelhuth, do you own an old wardrobe in your corridor? It is supposed to be from the 15th century.“
„Even if that was the case, what has my wardrobe to do with the South Seas and your Big Nag?“, Ringelhuth asked back.
„We are supposed to go into the wardrobe and then straight o. In about two hours we should arrive at the South Seas.“, the horse explained.
„Pardon? Stop fooling around“, Uncle Ringelhuth said. Konrad however ran into the corridor, opened the jarring door of the old wardrobe, clambered into it and out of view.
„Konrad!“, the uncle called. But the boy did not answer. „I'll be damned, why doesn't he answer?“
„He is probably already on his way“, said the horse.
Now Ringelhuth lost all restraints. He ran over to the wardrobe, looked into it and cried: „It's true! It has no back wall!“
The horse, who had followed him said reproachfully: "How could you doubt that? Just get into it"
"After you, please", said Uncle Ringelhuth, "after all, this is my home."
The horse stepped into the wardrobe with his front hooves. Ringehuth pushed with all force, until Caballo was inside the wardrobe. Then he clambered into it himself.
"Now doesn't this look promising", he said in desperation.