"It's my room, too," Brian replied. He knocked again, more insistent.

Sean hopped up and unlocked the door, then flopped back down on the bed. "You don't have to be such a pest."

"I can come in if I want. You can't keep me out of my own room."

"Suit yourself," Sean muttered. "But I don't have to talk to you."

Brian sat on the end of Sean's bed and crossed his arms over his chest. "You know, you shouldn't be mad. After all, you are a Mighty Quinn. We all know Mighty Quinns aren't supposed to like girls. Da says they're dangerous. Falling in love with girls will destroy us. Just suck the strength right out of us."

Sean laughed derisively. He'd heard the Mighty Quinn stories for as long as he could remember and recognized them for what they were. "Yeah, well, if you believe all that crap Da feeds us, then you're dumber than two piles of dirt."

The stories had become a part of their family history, stories of strong and clever and brave Quinn ancestors who had slain dragons and fought ogres and rescued fair maidens. Though he'd enjoyed the tales when he was younger, he soon saw them for what they were-elaborate lies, filled with his father's hidden warnings about the evils of the opposite sex.

"Remember that story about our long-ago cousin Ronan Quinn?" Brian slid a little closer.

"I don't want to hear a story," Sean insisted.

But Brian wouldn't be deterred. He loved the stories. "Ronan was from a poor family who lived ink a little cottage at the edge of a huge forest. His father was always away and his mother struggled to feed a family of six. When the last potato was eaten and the last bit of flour gone, Ronan knew they were in a desperate state."

"I don't want to hear a damn story!" Sean insisted.

"Yes, you do," Brian said. "It will make you feel better."

"So he decided to take his club and dagger and go deep into the woods to hunt the wolf," a hesitant voice continued. Sean and Brian glanced over at the door to see Liam peeking in, adding his own part of the story. He waited, expectantly, hopefully, and when Brian nodded, Liam raced into the room and threw himself on the bed between them.