He shook his head. "I was the last baby my mother had, and her only son. I was born early and they didn't know if I would live, but I did. Since I was smaller than other kids at first, they all coddled me. I shared a room with the Elis and Asher all of my life. At night I still expect to hear them breathing. One day my dad will step down as the Elder for my family and one of the Elis will have to step up, or maybe both of them. They're identical twins, and they've always been pretty much inseparable. Except they'll be married off soon, and they'll have their own wives and families. But they're the eldest boys. And I can't imagine them doing... if they had a child born a joker, I can't imagine them having to..." He shook his head again. "I don't want that to be their lives, just because they don't know any different."