Peter Nimble And His Fantastic Eyes Quotes
"Now, for those of you who know anything about blind children, you are aware that they make the very best thieves."
"Of course, the age of great thievery has long since passed; today there are few child-thieves left, blind or otherwise."
"Their fingers are small enough to slip right through keyholes, and their ears keen enough to detect the faintest clicks and clacks of every moving part inside even the most complicated lock."
"Though the magistrates had no use for a blind infant, a local bylaw required them to at least give the boy a name."
"For the first while, he was nursed on the milk of a wounded mother-cat, whom he met after crawling beneath the local alehouse."
"Using his skillful fingers to untie the knot on that bag marked the beginning of Peter’s career."
"Despite being blind, young Peter had no trouble sniffing out fruit stands and vegetable carts to steal from."
"One problem with a life of crime is that it lowers your chances of social advancement."
"A beggarmonger, as you might imagine, is someone who deals in beggars."
"The man had built up a business of adopting orphans, maiming them good and proper, and then sending them out into the streets to beg for coins."
"Peter was five years old when the beggarmonger first spied him beside a fruit stand in the market."
"Mr. Seamus leaned closer for a better look at him. It was his experience that blind children made especially successful beggars."
"The boy had stolen the apple not from the top of the stack, but from somewhere deep in the middle, leaving the outside completely untouched."
"Peter didn’t actually mind the cellar all that much. Being blind, he didn’t care about the lack of light."
"And so it went for Peter Nimble. He was miserable, mistreated, and forced to commit misdemeanors—day after day, season after season, year after year—until one very special, very rainy afternoon, when he met a stranger who would change his life forever."
"Peter considered the man’s words as he loaded his burgle-sack. The boy found himself half wishing such magical places really did exist—they would certainly be more appealing than his port town."
"Peter tried to get a sense of his surroundings. To his right was the Haberdasher, who smelled of wet wool mixed with a tinge of regret."
"Peter’s pulse quickened. If there was one thing he loved most about his job, it was picking locks."
"The boy ran his fingers over the dead bolt, which was slick with rain. It was tempered steel, the sort of material used for guarding only the most valuable secrets."
"The entire carriage was covered with locks of every shape and size."
"When the Haberdasher finished the last lock, he opened his carriage and leaned inside. The moment the door swung past Peter’s nose, his pulse quickened."
"While the man stashed his takings, Peter put his senses to work, absorbing every detail he could about the carriage: how large the cabin, how firm the floor, how great the plunder."
"Those are some reflexes you have there. With a touch like that, who needs eyes?"
"He tossed out a small coin, which Peter caught midair."
"When the townspeople finally dispersed—all of them wearing cheap leather caps and sniffing themselves—the Haberdasher returned to Peter’s side."
"There was no mansion. There were no riches, servants, or feasts. Killer was real enough, but he was missing a leg and quite old—and like most old things, he hated children."
"But of course no one actually saw him: they only saw the open safes and empty jewelry boxes that he left behind."
"Every morning as he curled up to sleep on the damp cellar floor, he would pretend that he could sneak past Killer, break into Mr. Seamus’s great treasure room, and return all of the stolen goods to their rightful owners."
"He coughed and spit it back into the broken eggshell. This was no ordinary egg yolk."
"I know that smell from somewhere, he murmured to himself. But where?"
"Of course I’m a knight," Sir Tode shot back. "We’re not all steeds and flashing armor, you know . . . not anymore, at least."
"I am a human knight," Sir Tode corrected, "who has been trapped inside the body of a cat . . . and a horse."
"This is far preferable. I don’t think I could have planned it better myself."
"In my experience, heroes are no more good than you or I."
"You probably hoped they might be getting on a bit better, eh, sir?"
"A boy your age should know better than to consider anything impossible."
"I had to make certain you were the boy I had in mind."
"I don’t think you’re listening," Sir Tode insisted. "We couldn’t have been washed ashore because there is no shore. There’s just sand—miles and miles of it."
"The Just Deserts," the man repeated smugly. "S’where rotten thieves and troublemakers get just what they desert."
"My name’s Officer Trolley. I’m royal warden of this here prison. S’my job to welcome newcomers and guard the coast, such as it is."
"Goodness, Peter, it appears we’re not the first ship he’s grounded."
"Under Authority Of His True Majesty Lord Incarnadine This Humble Servant Hereby Pronounces You Traitors To The True Crown."
"I see to each ’n’ every vessel that comes in here. Otherwise, you lot might try to sneak off on us."
"Tell you honest, s’been a while since I had the pleasure."
"We knights have many virtues, but patience is not one of them."
"Whatever we find, I’m sure it will answer at least some of our questions."
"We're alone for now, and we need all the rest we can get if we plan to survive that sun tomorrow."
"You watch yourself, little one. There ain't no shelter in a den o' thieves!"
"A perfect end to a perfect day. We love our king—hip-hip hooray!"
"Who would make a door that locks on both sides?"
"This must be the yard where Mrs. Molasses found me."
"Only a stranger may bring relief, but darkness will reign, unless he's... a thief."
"The only thing to do was keep very still and hope they lost interest."
"If you beg real pathetic-like, we might make it quick."
"The king is my uncle. He stole the throne from my father after I was born."
"The only option. I threw the note into the giant pit surrounding the palace, hoping it would find its way to one of the surviving prisoners in the Just Deserts."
"During the years of construction, Lord Incarnadine became consumed with jealousy."
"Year after year, King Hazelgood invited his brother to come build at his side, and year after year the offer was rejected."
"As the towers grew, so too did Lord Incarnadine’s bitterness."
"No one knows where he traveled in those years, but it was whispered that he went in search of dark magic."
"Our captain and his troop caught the thieves and attacked them while they were still trying to sail to safety."
"He declared that so long as Incarnadine reigned, HazelPort’s shores would never meet the sea."
"The big pit surrounding the palace is too wide to cross, even for Simon."
"I think you’ve ‘helped’ enough for one day," Peg said, standing with her back to him.
"There’s no reasoning with a grown-up," she sighed, limping ahead.
"You clearly know your way around a pair of shackles," she said.
"The art of scaling smooth surfaces may seem a complete mystery. It is, in fact, one of the most difficult skills for a thief to master."
"Sir Tode looked out of the bag and described what he saw. 'It's a stockpile. They've got cannons, powder casks, harpoons... Why, they could take the kingdom ten times over with an arsenal this size.'"
"No person alive could ever hope to smuggle those brats past my sea serpents."
"It never hurts to have an army of sunburned maniacs at your beck and call."
"There's always the mutt's noggin. The safest flea is on the mutt's noggin."
"I watched the enemy kill my brothers and my king. Once Mordecai escaped with the infant prince, I was completely alone."
"There are times when Justice demands from us more than we would give."
"The pain was incredible, but Simon did not falter."
"Ravens are coal-born beasts. They do not burn as easily as most living things."
"The ocean would be coming to drown them all."
"I DON’T WANT TO EAT YOU! I’M JUST LOOKING FOR GOOD OL’ FREDERICK!"
"Soon every corner of the map will learn to fear my name."
"He had sailed over seas, trekked across sands, survived thieves, apes, and even dragons—all with the confidence that when the moment was right, the Fantastic Eyes would be just what he needed."
"Without the emerald eyes, Peter was forced to acknowledge the truth: they were doomed."
"You may never have to peer into a looking glass, Peter, but I will. And I don’t want to see a coward staring back at me."
"Peter knew that to give up was to turn his back on destiny. His destiny."
"We don’t need to build a barrier, the king’s got one ready-made for us!"
"The princess tried to flee, but her uncle was ready. 'Enough running!' He gave her a sharp cut across the Achilles tendon that hobbled her instantly."
"My name is Peter Nimble. True heir to the throne of HazelPort."
"Peter tried to block the assault with his crumpled fishhook, but the weapon was useless otherwise."
"Only a coward would hide behind plate mail to fight someone half his size!"
"The story of Peter Nimble and his Fantastic Eyes was handed down to each generation—the tale of the prince who became a thief to become a king."