Part.
The letter to the neighbor brought it to her lunch time.
-They 've put in my mailbox by mistake. Who knows what else will mess together, said before leaving by looking at the sender.
Lui se la rigirò fra le mani per un paio di minuti: veniva dalla Amministrazione comunale di Karlsruhe e dentro poteva esserci una specie di sentenza. Quando si decise ad aprirla ne stracciò la busta con un gesto violento.
Gli veniva comunicato che era stato assunto come operaio generico per la manutenzione dello Zoo comunale. Che si presentasse il prossimo lunedì mattina alle sette al dirigente dell'Ufficio del personale dello Zoo. Fine.
Begli amici che ho, pensò. Ma non poteva prendersela con Filippo, perché aveva mantenuto la parola. Lo aveva convinto a firmare una richiesta di lavoro al Comune, promettendogli che ci avrebbe pensato lui a farla camminare.
"I'll see you system, from the mayor aldermen are all regular customers at my restaurant."
So he began to look into an office warm in a jacket and tie, while a colleague in a miniskirt and cute smile brought him a coffee.
-My name is Marco Vittori, said the manager on Monday morning, and I have a classical education.
-This is not the will, "replied the man who had a face like a horse. Looking Frau Müller upstairs, she is his boss.
His boss then was a woman, and had a face like a rat. Perhaps we become so here in after a bit 'of time, thought Marco. Hopefully I will be a baboon head.
-She is available for any work:'ll have to mow grass, repair the plaster of a wall, painting a door, but his main task will be to clean and wash the cages Cats, felines to be clear, he added, seeing him make a strange face, will clean the cages of cats when the animals are in stables, and clean the stables where the animals are in cages. Do not worry, doors and gates are automatically operated from the outside and no incident has never happened.
he took him to see what was parlando, cioè le stalle, chiuse al pubblico, dove gli animali pernottavano, e la serie di stanzoni corrispondenti alle gabbie esterne, che avevano tutti una larga parete costituita da una vetrata a prova d'urto. Tutte le vetrate davano su una galleria semi ovale dove sostava il pubblico quando c'era cattivo tempo.
-Gli animali sporcano quotidianamente, ma non amano stare nello sporco, spiegò Frau Müller con voce monotona; poi c'è da considerare la puzza, quindi la pulizia deve essere fatta due volte al giorno, mattino e pomeriggio. Per la prima settimana la lascerò insieme a una operaia già esperta che le insegnerà tutto quel che deve sapere.
was called Mary and was neither good nor bad, but unremarkable as its name. He studied zoology at the University. He did not talk much, indeed very little, saying only the essential things and that was fine because his breath was bad. Had any face, but resembled the nose of any animal, and this comforted not a little Marco.
-First you have to shovel the bulk, then take away everything that stays on the ground with a jet of boiling water. Not only do the droppings but also the remains of food and the straw is too old and wet. Our guests are very spoiled, he concluded, like a malignancy.
That first day Mary trailed behind her on purpose to learn and work full steam ahead without even a break to make him feel at once the tone of the music. They started from the stables, and during visiting hours were empty, shoveling and washing unabated. Towards the end of the day Mark had broken bones and muscles as hard as stones. The public was now displacing the exits and the two of them walked around for a last check.
passed by the elephants' enclosure to that of the buffalo, crocodiles in the tank with aquarium with seals and penguins, they turned everything around the large aviary, climbed up to the den of polar bears, and then go and check all the stations monkeys, and finally descended into the underground tunnel where they spent reviewing the windows of the big cats, a black panther, two leopards, a lion adult well-fed and lying quietly on one side and two lionesses very young and very restless.
Mary stood before the last window.
-You're always very careful tenant of this room, curala especially if you want to hold you dear Frau Müller.
Mark craned his neck for what could be peering into every corner of that last room.
-Ma is empty.
-always comes last. Do not you know you always wait for the prima donna?
He went into that moment with regal gait. Mark had seen on TV a couple of animals like her, looking like a tiger, but it was almost white.
-Meet Dagmar, our Empress, Maria said.
-What animal is it?
-Siberian tiger is a beautiful three years old, born in Berlin Zoo. Frau Müller spat blood to bring it over here: it is the only specimen born in Germany, and they do not breed in captivity ever.
-A rare thing, in fact.
-Of course! Frau Müller adores her. Look at her: beautiful, whimsical and intelligent. Do not you think he understands what we're saying?
Dagmar had come in front of the glass and sat on its hind legs like the cats looked at Mark with his head slightly cocked to one side.
The six-liked, just look at you.
-You are probably thinking it would be nice to nibble on.
The tiger yawned.
-laughing, "said Marco. How the hell did you understand my joke?
-stain, is yawning.
-To me it seemed a laugh.
-Are you crazy? Be smart it is, but not until this point, and then the tigers do not laugh, no animal laughs.
-Can you tell me why, zoologist?
-Why not have the appropriate muscles. But when I'm glad you do understand. This, for example purr like a kitten.
Before exiting the tunnel, Mark turned to look at what he did Dagmar. Had sat and stretched out her neck until it touches the glass with his head to be able to see again. He yawned again and this time it seemed that he really smile, but if you kept it to himself otherwise Mary would have taken for stupid.
For the rest of the week did not see Mark Dagmar. He does not ever happened to cross the gardens in front of the outdoor cages or to enter the underground tunnel, because it was near the arrival of Japanese monkeys and needed to renovate a deserted old fence from time, to redo a roof and dredge the bottom of a filthy pond. The left just enough time to breathe with Mary, who was pulling him to and fro coma is a locomotive.
It seemed, however, feel that some of my colleagues complain about how he became a restless feline, but he had grabbed in which we will refer. On Saturday night in the locker room while changing her clothes, she felt a Guardian older say that the tiger would have been better if she had stayed in Berlin.
-has always been moody, but a bit 'of time is nervous and arrogant roars, snorts and blows, so that you go near her cage is the goose bumps. Who knows that is taken.
-Maybe it's getting crazy, "said another, I have heard that sometimes happens with such delicate animals.
-I say instead that there should be a good boy to calm her down, added a third.
had become a big laugh and seemed to end there. Marco, however, that night he slept badly. He could not think to the white tiger, panting and nervous.
On Monday morning, put on overalls, grabbed a shovel and went to the stables, knowing that those of the cats were already empty. Split water more quickly as he could, then told colleagues he was going to refurbish the rooms of the gallery.
-'s already drizzling, and certainly the weather worsen. Before long they will return the cats, I'd better hurry.
The rooms were empty, he knew well. Frau Müller needed permission to let in animals, but he had come the impulse to get as close as possible to the tiger.
typed on the computer Sealing gates that separated the room from each corresponding outer cage, as Mary had taught him, then pressed while the control key and F4 by snapping the lock of the security door of the room by Dagmar. He had been advised never to enter into one of the rooms without a colleague who was near the computer, but he was not care about all the safety devices. Yet it was a lion-hearted, far from it. He did not like the risk, why had not wanted to learn to swim and had never ridden a motorcycle, was not even a bicycle, and now had entered the room of a Siberian tiger in three years, two meters long without counting the tail. But it was in a trance.
-Where are you? murmured
breathed hard with the flaring nostrils, noisily, and smell him just before he arrived to see her. Had emerged from nowhere and was now quiet property in less than four feet away, behind the gate, with the meaning thesis. Marco felt the enormous power of the animal, similar to his.
"Run!" they cried in a surge of lucidity, but when it moves not jumped out of the security door, walked slowly to the gate instead. It was now less than three feet, much less than three meters. The tiger stood up on its hind legs resting those on the front crossbar of the gate: the nose came close to the vertical bars as if he were trying to get through, but his head was too big and the bars too close together. But did not give up, and kept his nose stopped between the two bars as if waiting for him to come close.
And Mark took a step. If the tiger had now stretched a paw would hit, grabbed, torn.
"Go!" they shouted in again, but again took a step forward. Now he saw the enormous yellow eyes (I'm curious eyes, those eyes are happy) and the fine mustache and bushy on the sides of the mouth (fauci! are those jaws, great god!).
Mark's heart was in my throat, but he was not afraid. He saw the huge chest of the animal in half and spread his thick hair rising and falling fast.
-What is your heart, he said, flying as fast as mine, your heart beats with mine.
sniffed again with strength and inhaled the scent of her, the scent of a tiger.
"All animals stink, but she smells," he thought.
was no more than half a meter could touch her, had a great desire to touch, a huge need to touch it. He raised his arm and put his hand on the muzzle of the beast. It seemed that the long whiskers vibrate and yellow eyes are half closed for a couple of millimeters. He stood with his hand a few inches from snout to Dagmar for a second and for eternity.
Suddenly he turned and flew out of the front door. The closed forcefully slamming, typed frantically on computer keys, and as soon as he heard the click of the lock slid to the ground in a sweat.
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