Origin of a Smug Philosopher

Nathan Lambert was a promising young scholar and a well-respected member of the famed society of intellectuals known as the Seekers. The Gnorbu had a great desire to share the knowledge he was acquiring with all of Neopia and hoped to one day have a career in teaching. Presently he had the honor of being the apprentice to the leader of the Seekers, and with the way things were going, he guessed it wouldn't be all that long before he would become Professor Nathan Lambert. Professor Lambert—he liked the sound of that.

      But today his mind was on other things. Right now he was on his way to the Brightvale bookshop. He had been sent on an errand to buy a new book for the Seekers' extensive library. They had a copy of every book in Neopia in their collection and when new ones were published, they quickly obtained them.

      Nathan was often sent on errands like this. He didn't mind because he knew that even these small tasks greatly benefitted the society. No, he certainly didn't mind buying the Seekers' books. Sorting them... well, that was another matter! He was grateful that Professor Hindley, his mentor, usually did the book and scroll sorting himself.

      As Nathan approached the bookshop, he noticed three tough-looking kids—a red Grarrl, a blue Eyrie, and an orange Krawk—surrounding a scrawny yellow Gelert boy. He looked to be about ten years old and had unusually fair features. The most remarkable of them was his thick mop of unruly pale blond hair, so long that it completely obscured his eyes.

      Nathan watched the scene in front of him with growing concern. The Gelert was backing away from the kids who were closing in on him, holding something as tightly as he could under his arm. Squinting, Nathan saw that it was a book.

      The Grarrl easily managed to grab the book from the little Gelert, and if the boy hadn't been forced to let go, he would have been lifted along with it. Flipping through the pages, the Grarrl briefly evaluated the book's contents.

      "Isn't this book a little... advanced... for someone your age?" he asked.

      The Eyrie snickered. "How's he gonna read it anyway with all that hair in his face?"

      "I can see!" said the Gelert boy indignantly.

      The Krawk tugged on the Gelert's shock of hair and he yelped. "Yeah, your hair, at least! Haven't you ever heard of cutting it?"

      "Hey, if you can see so well," said the Grarrl, handing the book to one of his companions, "Why don't you tell me who's got your book now?"

      The bullies began tossing the book to each other, repeatedly demanding that the Gelert identify which of them was holding it. Though he could indeed see well enough through his hair to identify them, the Gelert scowled and refused to answer.

      "Ha!" they cackled. "You don't know, do you? 'Cause you can't see!"

      An outraged Nathan was preparing to intervene when, to his surprise, the boy managed to figure a way out of the situation on his own.

      While the three kids were still tossing the book to each other, the Gelert took advantage of their distraction and darted between them.

      "Hey!" shouted one of them. "He's gettin' away!"

      The bullies reacted quickly, scrambling to try to grab the Gelert, but in their haste they ended up bumping into each other. They all lost their balance and fell to the ground in a heap.

      Standing a short distance away, the Gelert smiled rather smugly at his own quick thinking. Then his face fell—he had forgotten his book. He could only watch as it went flying through the air and, with a big splash, landed right in the middle of a nearby puddle of mud. The boy gasped in dismay.

      Meanwhile, the bullies were picking themselves up off the ground. With a sneer, one grabbed the soaked book and shoved it into the Gelert's hands.

      "You forgot your book!"

      The three kids roared with laughter. So amused were they by the Gelert's misfortune that they decided that there was no need for revenge for their previous humiliation and simply walked away.

      The Gelert boy stood in stunned silence. He wasn't sure what horrified him the most—what had happened to the book or the fact that his hands were now covered in mud. Tentatively, he opened the book's cover and sighed upon seeing the damage done to it. The pages were so soaked with mud that they could not be pulled apart. Even if they could have been pulled apart, it wouldn't have mattered anyway; it was obvious that the ink had run so much that the text would have been entirely illegible.

      "Such a pity," said a voice behind him.

      The Gelert jumped in alarm. At first he thought one of the bullies had returned, but no—this voice sounded sincere, not sarcastic. He looked around and was surprised to see a kindly-looking red Gnorbu with wavy auburn hair staring down at him.

      "But although your book didn't survive the ordeal," the Gnorbu continued, "I must say I admire the overall manner with which you handled those bullies. You were able to outwit them, and without resorting to violence. Well done."

      "T-thank you," the Gelert mumbled, still a bit in shock.

      "I'm Nathan Lambert of the Seekers," said the Gnorbu. He reached out to shake the Gelert boy's hand but thought better of it when he realized how muddy it was.

      Seeing Nathan shamefacedly draw his hand back, the Gelert gave an understanding chuckle. "My name is Alessandro Bloom, but that's quite a mouthful, isn't it? I prefer to be called Sandro." He paused as the significance of what the Gnorbu had just said dawned on him. Then he found himself babbling excitedly, "You're a member of the Seekers? I've heard so much about them. You know, I read all the time, mostly about war strategy, and I think I..." His voice trailed off and he stared at the ground sheepishly.

      "What?" asked a curious Nathan.

      "Well, I'd really like to join the Seekers. But that's silly of me, isn't it? To think I might qualify as a member of the Seekers, I mean. You probably have to take classes for years at the most prestigious Neopian schools before you're ever considered smart enough to be a Seeker."

      "Not necessarily," Nathan replied. "The Seekers value those with natural genius as much as they do well-educated scholars. In fact, I know of quite a few members who are children like you. The goal of the Seekers is to learn new things all the time. That's why we're called the Seekers—we constantly seek knowledge. We don't judge Neopets by how much or how little they already know. To be a Seeker, one simply needs to have a willingness to learn. Even the wisest of scholars still have much they can learn. Did you know King Hagan himself sometimes asks for our advice?"

      Sandro gaped in surprise. "No... really?"

      Nathan nodded. "It's true." He looked thoughtful for a moment and then asked, "So, you have an interest in war strategy, do you?"

      "In a way, yes," replied Sandro, a bit hesitantly. He couldn't tell if the Gnorbu considered his interest to be a good or bad thing, so he added quickly, "But please understand, I'm not an aggressive Neopet. I don't go picking fights or anything like that."

      "Oh, don't worry. I don't think that at all." Nathan couldn't resist a small smile. He doubted that anyone could ever take the mild-mannered, scrawny little Gelert boy in front of him for an aggressive Neopet.

      "You see," explained Sandro, "I'm an orphan and have lived on my own for several years. My interest in warfare came about as a result of having to learn to defend myself against bullies. I believe that even peace-loving Neopets should learn how to defend themselves because, unfortunately, there may be times when they are forced into conflict, even if they try to avoid it."

      Nathan nodded at the truth of the boy's words.

      "Some would suggest training," Sandro continued, "but I've no interest in that sort of thing. I have a theory that you don't need great physical strength to win a fight. You just need to have a good strategy. That's worked well for me so far..." The Gelert regarded the ruined book in his hands. "But I guess this time I made a bit of a miscalculation."

      "Well," said Nathan, "at least it was a learning experience for you. You can learn something from all experiences in life, good or bad. That's what my mentor, Professor Hindley, always says."

      "You're right," agreed Sandro. "This was a learning experience... I just wish it hadn't been such a costly one. You see, I make most of my neopoints by doing little jobs for the shopkeepers here in Brightvale. Usually I only have enough for necessities, but sometimes there's a little left over for me to buy a book with." He sighed. "I was really looking forward to reading this one."

      Nathan shook his head and tutted sadly, looking down at the mud-stained cover of the book. The sight of it suddenly reminded him of the errand he still had to do. "I almost forgot... I have a book to buy, myself." He pulled his pocket watch from his waistcoat and glanced at it. "I told Professor Hindley I'd be back in half an hour. I'd better get a move on. Would you wait here a moment? I won't be long."

      He pushed open the door of the bookshop and walked inside. A few minutes later he emerged, carrying the book he had been sent to get.

      "Wisdom in Warfare!" exclaimed Sandro. "That's the same book I bought!"

      "Indeed it is," said Nathan with a grin. "You're welcome to read it if you like."

      "I would like to read it... but that copy is for the Seekers, isn't it?"

      "Yes," Nathan replied. "It is. But what good would the Seekers' library be if members of our society couldn't read the books in it?"

      The Gelert boy gaped and—although it wasn't visible through his hair—his eyes widened in surprise. "You mean you're letting me join the Seekers?"

      "Well, technically it's not my decision," admitted Nathan, "but I don't think Professor Hindley will have any objections. Come along with me. You can wash up and then we'll talk to him."

     ***

      "I've got the book, Professor Hindley!" Nathan announced as he walked into the office of the leader of the Seekers.

      Professor Hindley, an aging brown Kougra with tousled dark hair, looked up from the pile of papers he was grading as his young Gnorbu assistant approached.

      "And that's not all you've brought with you, I see," he said with an amused smile.

      "Hmm?" Nathan was momentarily confused. Then he realized that Hindley was referring to Sandro. "Oh, yes," he said, clearing his throat. "This little fellow is Alessandro—or Sandro—Bloom. I met him on the way to the bookshop. He has quite a brilliant mind, especially for a boy his age. He is particularly interested in the strategic side of war and would like to become a Seeker. He's an orphan and hasn't had much formal schooling, so I think he'll need someone to guide him... to tutor him... as well. I was hoping that, perhaps, you might take him on as a student."

      "I see," said Hindley, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. He addressed the small Gelert in front of him. "My boy, as peaceful scholars, fighting is not something we encourage, but at times there is no way to avoid it. We have a need for scholars of war who can study battle plans and strategies to help us decide on the best courses of action in those situations. It sounds to me like you have the makings of a great scholar of war... if that's what you would like to be."

      "Oh, I would love to be a scholar of war!" Sandro exclaimed. "I shall write about my strategies and theories, and I'll have a library of my own with hundreds—no, thousands—of books, and..." He stopped, realizing with embarrassment that he was babbling again.

      "Enthusiastic, aren't you?" Hindley chortled.

      The Gelert blushed.

      "It's all right," Hindley assured him. "I like to see enthusiasm in members of our society. I welcome you to the Seekers, Sandro."

      Hindley turned back to his assistant. "But Nathan, you know full well that I have no room for another student. My classes always have long waiting lists." Seeing the disappointed looks on both Nathan and Sandro's faces, he added, "However, I believe I know of someone else who would be up to the task of tutoring this young lad."

      "Who?" Nathan asked. He could think of no one who could be nearly as good of a tutor as his mentor.

      "Why, you, of course."

      "Me, sir?!" exclaimed Nathan. The suggestion took him entirely by surprise. Sure, he had dreams of becoming a teacher, but he wasn't expecting to become one this soon! The young Gnorbu began to run his fingers through his auburn waves, a nervous habit of his. "But I'm just... I'm not nearly..."

      "You're more qualified right now than you think you are, my boy," said Hindley with a warm smile. "You've been my apprentice for several years and I've watched you become a very fine scholar indeed. It's high time you put your talent to use. I'm sure Sandro here will learn a lot from you."

      "Well," Nathan managed finally, "I certainly trust your judgement, so I suppose I could try..." His voice trailed off as a thought occurred to him. "But what about my other obligations? I am still your apprentice, after all."

      "Don't worry. Should you choose to tutor Sandro, I will no longer require your assistance in running errands and helping me in the classroom. In fact," added the Kougra professor with a grin, "why don't you consider this a long-term assignment from me—a way to demonstrate the skills you've learned as my apprentice? You could, of course, continue to help me if you have the time and wish to do so, but it would not be necessary. There are other Seekers who will be eager to assist me, I'm sure."

      Nathan considered all this for a few moments and then turned to the small Gelert at his side. "What do you think, Sandro? Would you like to be my first student?"

      Sandro nodded eagerly, causing his mop of hair to bounce up and down in a rather comical fashion.

      "All right, then. I'll do my best," Nathan said with a fairly confident smile. He realized with some amusement that he and little Sandro had something in common—the two of them had just been placed in new and exciting positions, ones they had long dreamed of. And it would be a learning experience for them both.

The End