"I can't help detesting my relations. I suppose it comes from the fact that none of us can stand other people having the same faults as ourselves." Oscar Wilde

Phryne was sleeping, quite peacefully it seemed- Jack had been reading to her from A Tale of Two Cities ("After all, Jack, Dickens is almost tolerable when you are the one reading it" had been her plea for entertainment) and had just gotten to the Bastille when he noticed she was snoring ever so lightly (it seemed snoring was yet another side effect of pregnancy, he had actually had to invest in a set of earplugs recently so he could get a few hours of sleep each night). There was a very light knock on the door that Jack hurried to open, not wanting anything to wake Phryne.

"Oh, Mr. Butler, what can I do for you?" Mr. Butler had been brought along to Mrs. Stanley's house to assist in preparations for the wedding, handle the bulk of the cooking, and to assist Phryne and Jack with whatever they may need.

"Excuse me Sir, but it seems your parents and sister, along with a group of children have arrived. Would you like me to show them to their rooms?"

"Not just yet, Mr. Butler, thank you. I'll come down with you to greet them. I assume Mrs. Stanley is already with them?"

"She is not, sir, I suggested to her that although as the Lady of the House she should probably greet them first, you may prefer a few minutes alone with your parents and your sister, so as to update them on Miss Fisher's condition? She agreed and has stepped out so as to give you a bit of time with them." Thank God for Mr. Butler, this man sould be the patron saint of household employees, discretion and mind-readers.

"You are a treasure, Mr. Butler."

"Thank you sir. If you don't mind, I've prepared a tray of tea and some foods, and I've put out cognac and whiskey in the parlour- will that suit or would you like me to open a bottle of wine? I'm afraid I didn't ask what your family prefers."

"I'm sure that will be more than fine, thank you." He followed Mr. Butler out of the room, double checking to see that Phryne was asleep. He knew she would want to go down and meet them, but he had a few things to discuss with his family first. He had written them a letter to explain the urgency of the wedding, but in light of the Chinatown case at work and Phryne falling ill, he had never actually gotten the chance to post it. All he had said over the phone was that they had decided they had waited long enough (his mother seemed more than a bit miffed he had kept the engagement from them for a month) and were anxious to take the plunge.

As he came down the stairs he couldn't help but break into a smile at the sight of his parents and his older sister Jenny. He hurried to his mother and gave her an enormous hug, breathing in her scent of lavender soap, Earl Grey tea and licorice candy. Even at almost 65 his mother was a very handsome woman with red hair that had only faded somewhat over time with a few strands of white hair woven in.

"Hello Mother." He kissed her on the cheek before turning to his father with a hearty handshake (his father not being the most demonstrative of men). "Father, it's wonderful to see you, I am so happy you were able to make it from Sydney- I hope the train ride wasn't too bad.?"

"It was perfectly comfortable and mercifully fast, considering we were traveling with all four of your sister's children in one car." Jack knew his father treasured being a granddad, the bulk of his seeming gruffness was really just a show.

"You really didn't have to take the Express, if it was inconvenient or difficult you could have arrived tomorrow."

"Well, after all, it isn't every day that a son calls his parents out of the blue inviting them to his wedding taking place in 9 days. Where is this woman who's so damned excited to run down the aisle you can't give your parents' proper notice?" His father was not a harsh man, not in the least, but he was a very direct man.

"Father, can you please wait to start on him until we are all in from the foyer? I for one wouldn't mind giving my baby brother a hug and have a cup of that delightful smelling tea that butler just brought through here. You're right, the trip was mercifully fast, but never easy with all of my children present."

Jack turned to hug his older sister Jenny. He hadn't seen her since Easter last year, more than a year and a half ago- he had intended to go home for Christmas that same year, but Phryne had been in the accident a few weeks earlier and he didn't have it in him to leave her for any amount of time. The 5'7" redhead before him actually seemed to grow more beautiful with every year and every child and he missed her terribly- she had always been a friend of his, through childhood, the war, losing Oliver- he really did hate himself for not being a more dutiful little brother and making the effort to see her more often.

He pulled her to him declaring, "It is so wonderful to see you, I have missed you!" While hugging her he whispered into her ear, "I'm going to need your support in a moment, please make sure Father's whiskey glass stays full and Mother only drinks tea- I really don't think right now I can handle either of them being…"

"Their normal selves?

"Precisely." He looked around him- "Where are the children?"

"They were distracted by some puppies across the way, Nathaniel has them, don't worry- they'll be in in no time at all, try to enjoy the calm before the storm. Shall we go have some tea?." She linked her arm through her brother's and allowed him to walk her into the parlour. He could tell his family was feeling a bit awed over the splendor of the house- he wished they could be at Wardlow instead, it was much less intimidating, but logistically it simply didn't make sense. Mr. Butler was in the room, ready to serve from either the bar or the tea tray, encouraging them to sit and relax after their long journey. As he poured drinks he let Jack know "Mr. Yates and Mr. Johnson are taking luggage up to your rooms, we've put you in the wing of the house with 's old nursery, so the children will have books and toys. I hope you don't mind, but I thought it best… under the circumstances." Jack nodded, knowing the man meant "in case they're loud and rambunctious little buggers, it shouldn't interfere with Phryne's rest."

"Thank you, Mr. Butler. I believe we are perfectly well set for the moment, I'm sure you have other things to attend to."

"Yes, thank you, Sir." and he left the room. Once the door was shut behind them, his mother pounced.

"So, Jackie, tell us, where is your lovely fiance? We are so excited to meet her, we had hoped she would be here to greet us. Is she terribly busy with preparations for this weekend?" His mother was very good at poking and prodding to get answers, perhaps this was how Jack had developed his skills for interrogation.

"Well, yes, about that. Unfortunately, right now, Phryne is quite ill, I've insisted that she stay upstairs and rest for the time being so she is in perfect shape for tonight's meal." His mother's eyes narrowed as she looked at him, Jack was certain she had a very strong suspicion as to what was going on, and she shared a rather knowing look with Jenny.

"I hope that it isn't anything that is catching, I would absolutely hate to expose the children to anything dangerous." His sister had grown up to be just like their mother, she wasn't actually shocked or worried, merely fishing. May as well just out with it, it isn't as though any of them will be all that shocked. Well, by the pregnancy, anyways, he wasn't sure if her illness was going to affect how much his father disapproved of this whole thing, although it most certainly would affect Jack's patience with his father's reaction.

"No, it isn't really that kind of illness." Deep breath, a large gulp of whiskey for courage and he barrelled on. "Actually, Phryne is expecting. Our child. It would seem that I am finally to become a father, early next year."

"Oh Jackie, that is wonderful news!" His sister put down her cup of tea and moved to him for a long hug, squeezing him tightly. She had seen the toll his and Rosie's lack of children had weighed on him all those years and was thrilled to see such a big smile on his face. He caught a glimpse of his mother who seemed to be tearing up, but smiling, so it was a happy thing for her, confirmed by her saying:

"Jack, congratulations, that is amazing news, we're so happy for you." He leaned down and kissed her on the cheek, she really was a wonderful mother- warm and non-judgmental. He snuck a peek at his father, sitting there quietly, holding his whiskey glass between his hands, eyeing Jack.

"Father, I'm sure this comes off more than a little, well, as though we placed the cart before the horse, but I hope you can find it in your heart to accept it and be happy for us. After all, it was unexpected, but it is not unwanted. And we are very much in love and committed to each other, I've wanted to marry her for well over a year now, I'm just lucky that she finally said yes."

His father was quiet. "Well, I suppose that explains a few things for me, doesn't it? I can't really say I'm shocked, I couldn't think of another reason why you were so twitchy to walk down the aisle, especially after how things worked out for you last time." Try to ignore him, Jack. He likes to push you on these things, do not take the bait. "Well," his father continued, "I suppose there is nothing to do but meet this woman, where is she did you say? Unwell? Surely she can make it down the stairs to join us for tea."

"Actually, Father, no she can't. Unfortunately, the pregnancy is not going quite as smoothly as one would hope- she was diagnosed with a rather serious condition this week and she is on strict orders to stay in bed as much as possible. She was able to fall asleep just a little while ago and I'm adamant that she will get as much sleep as she possibly can."

His mother and sister gasped quietly, his sister asking in a very concerned tone."Oh, Jack, no! I'm so sorry to hear that! Does that mean there won't be a wedding after all?"

"No, Jenny, we will be having this wedding, we're both fairly resolute about that one. We're making her rest as much as we possibly can between now and then, but even if I have to carry her down the aisle, she and I are simply tired of not being married any longer. Now, perhaps I should have Mr. Butler show each of you to your rooms? I know it's a long trip from Sydney and I'd like to go and check on Phryne." Somehow Mr. Butler had shown up right in the arched doorway as Jack said his name, as though he were conjured there. "Ah, Mr. Butler, if you could please show my family to their rooms, I'd like to check on Miss Fisher and perhaps go in search of my nieces and nephews before cocktails." He turned to address his parents and sister, "I believe Mrs. Stanley is currently out but she has planned cocktails and dinner for tonight and you can all become acquainted with Phryne then." He left the room trying to remind himself to stay calm and collected. He didn't want to feel as though he was ashamed of what happened with him and Phryne- it was not an ideal way of going about things, but different means to the same end was absolutely fine with him.
_

Knock. Knock. It was a light tap on the guest suite door, and when Phryne opened it, she was taken aback by the woman on the other side of it- a woman who looked so like Jack Robinson (only with red hair) that they could almost have been twins. She too was tall and thin, but not without some curves, and she had the same high cheekbones, the same beautiful brown eyes and the same semi-inscrutable expression on her face.

"Miss Fisher? I'm Jenny Martin, Jack's big sister. I know I should have waited for you to come down for cocktails, but I'm afraid Jack got all the patience in the family and I didn't want to wait. He told us that you're ill and I thought perhaps it was a good time to get to know each other a bit better… without the interference of my parents." She swept past Phryne, looking at the living quarters her generally ridiculously moral younger brother was clearly sharing with this flapper of a somewhat infamous reputation. As she moved to settle herself in the sitting area of the room.

"Well first of all, Jenny, as we're to be family I hope you can call me Phryne. Now, can I pour you a drink?" She motioned to the bar cart next to the sofa, "I have an excellent whiskey, or if you prefer, I make a mean gin martini. Unfortunately, I can't join you, the doctor has strictly forbidden me from drinking while I try to keep my blood pressure in check."

"Whiskey, neat please, if you don't mind." Phryne poured the amber liquid and handed it over, retrieving the cup of tea she had been drinking earlier, but thinking about how delicious that whiskey would taste right now.

"I hope that your trip wasn't too bad. I have to admit, it's been quite a while since I last did that journey by train- flying reduces the time by more than half and it's so much more fun. Although I suppose I won't be flying anywhere for a while."

"Well, perhaps you could come out for a visit after the baby comes. Maybe for Easter? I'm not sure you're going to be able to get Jack to fly, certainly not with a baby in tow… but we'd love to have you. We haven't seen Jack much for holidays in years, we miss him. Especially my parents."

"Well, perhaps we should wait and see about that. I get the impression things with them this afternoon did not go quite as well as Jack had hoped, I'm not sure how inclined they're going to be to have us over for a while."

Jenny just waved away that statement, taking another drink. "Mother is thrilled- her little Jackie," (Phryne was always going to have to stifle a laugh when someone called him 'Little Jackie', wasn't she?) "can truly do no wrong in her eyes, and the prospect of another grandchild is far too exciting for her to be truly upset. She has also always been a bit more modern and liberal than my father- to be honest, Jack wouldn't be the first Robinson child to walk down the aisle with a baby on the way." Jenny looked at Phryne, mouth agape.

"You mean…?"

"Well, we had been engaged for quite some time, it really only moved the date up by about six weeks. I remember having to confess to my mother when my wedding dress didn't fit quite right… she wasn't particularly shocked or upset, she's Scottish you know, so it wasn't so uncommon for the Highlanders to participate in a sort of handfasting, wherein no license or clergy was really necessary, that was just a detail to be remedied when you found a priest. But she kept my secret, she managed to convince my father that the rumblings of war had us so impatient we couldn't possibly wait until June. And of course, when young Eddie arrived about a month "early", it's possible my father pieced it all together, but I think he finds it easier to just believe what he wants to."

"Does Jack know?" Certainly he didn't know, he absolutely would have told her if he did.

"Well, you see, in many ways, they're two apples from the exact same tree- and sometimes things are easier not think about. Jack was always very good in school, I'm sure he could do the math on Eddie if he wanted to, but I'm also fairly certain he couldn't stand to think of his big sister having erred like that."

"So does it seem likely that your father will forgive Jack OUR indiscretion? I suppose we've made it awfully difficult to pretend nothing inappropriate happened."

"Papa is a wonderful man, and a good father and grandfather. But… his relationship with Jack has always been a bit strained, and only made worse since the war, and then the divorce… and now there is quite a lot for him to digest all at once. He's not particularly good on his feet like that- he generally needs time to think and digest and adjust. I suppose Mother and I could have done a better job, tried to prepare him a bit, we both thought we knew some of the story as to what was going on here- but we did not want to borrow trouble if we were wrong. A good part of their problem, Papa's and Jack's, is that they both put far too much pressure on themselves to be perfect, no matter the cost."

"How big of a problem is this going to be?" Phryne loathed the idea of coming between Jack and his father, she knew particularly well how terrible it could be, a troubled relationship with a parent.

"Jack is not going to be happy with me if he learns I sold him out for only one glass of whiskey."

"Would it help if I poured you a second?"

"I believe that would be far more excusable."

Jenny and Phryne settled into the couch, legs behind them, drinks refreshed, very comfortable for the story coming. Phryne knew so little about Jack's early days and his relationship with his family- it wasn't that he was tightlipped about it, or avoided the topic, but given both Phryne's and his less conventional relationships with their families, they simply didn't venture towards that conversation often.

"I suppose it began when Jack announced he and Rosie were getting married. They had only been together a very short time, maybe three months? In fact, ironically, at the time we were all convinced that things had gotten ahead of themselves, hence the short the end, since Rosie HAD to have this perfect day, honestly you would have thought she was a bloody princess, it ended up being months before the big day after all. Again, I wouldn't be surprised if she was stretching it all to keep Jack from enlisting- she knew he wouldn't leave until they were good and married. But really, they were madly in love and complete idiots. I'm sure you remember the early days of the war- the excitement was palpable, no one imagined it could last long, but it suddenly made everyone feeling like it was time to carpe diem."

"Fortunately for me, I was already a seize the day kind of girl." Phryne really did feel quite comfortable around Jack's sister, perhaps this explained why he took to her particularly brassy qualities so well.

"I did sense that about you… something of a kindred spirit, if you will." Jenny took the chance to clink her whiskey glass against Phryne's tea cup before she continued.

"Well, in 1914, our little brother Oliver enlisted. He was only 20 and my mother was devastated, that was her baby. Rosie had thus far convinced Jack to wait, his career was actually going quite well in the Force and they were newlyweds, all that. If I'm being honest, in my less charitable moments I'm convinced she was merely worried about getting a widow's pension. They managed to get married three days before Oliver left, April 1915. Jack finally got Rosie's blessing to ship out about six months later, and by the time he got to France, he was met with news of Oliver's death." Jenny teared up just a little, but a fairly controlled sadness, the kind when it's been long enough you can think of the person without the acrid taste of grief building up in your mouth and the back of your throat; when you can remember the good times and smile and miss the person, without feeling like your chest is about collapse in on your heart.

"Jack doesn't talk about Oliver. Believe me, I understand it, but it does seem odd that he never mentions him, not even happy memories."

"That's not surprising, I think he took it the hardest of anyone. I think, somehow my father started to blame him for Oliver's death- perhaps if they had only gone together, been stationed together, Jack could have saved his life. And I think Jack welcomed that guilt trip, he's the older brother, he should have done anything to keep his little brother safe, even if it meant he didn't return himself." Jenny got quiet for a minute, recalling things she hadn't put much thought to for years. "I don't think I'll ever know exactly what those boys faced over there. I did what I could here in Australia- I grew my garden, gave up my stockings, I spent every spare hour I had helping at nursing homes, widows homes, orphanages. But despite the harrowing things I saw while I was working in the slums, working in hospitals with men dying from gangrene or mustard gas- or not dying at all, but trapped in their own minds, shell shocked, I could never know what it was like, there in the trenches. And then, Ollie never came home, but Nathaniel and Jack did and were… well, they changed." They each sipped their drinks quietly, spending a moment thinking about those days.

"For three years he wouldn't talk about any of it, not at all. He wouldn't even tell us about seeing Paris afterwards. When he heard French or German in the streets or in a book, he would go gray in the face and quiet. And the more my father took out his anger and grief about Ollie on Jack, the further Jack retreated into himself. Rosie tried to get him to simply "forget about it" and move on. To preserve her innocence and such, he never wrote her about fighting, camp life, trenches, movements- none of that. Hard to imagine such a brilliant strategy didn't work, eh? Instead of nights spent dancing and at parties, Jack would stay home and read, or he would work. Then they had the idea that children would fix everything between them, she was convinced that a child would be exactly what he needed to snap out of his funk, and- to be fair to her- I'm guessing she was a bit desperate for some bare, open affection." She got up to pour one more glass of whiskey for herself- dinner was still almost two hours away, after all.

"When they first met, Jack couldn't keep his hands off her. I don't just mean that… although, I have my suspicions." She had the look of the older, wiser and exceptionally perceptive big sister. "But he was never more than a few inches away from her, holding her hand, or putting his hand in the small of her back as he lead her out of a room. After the war, I'm not sure I ever saw him touch her again. I knew he had moved into a separate bedroom about a year after he returned, his nightmares left him talking in his sleep- at least that's what he said when I asked. But he didn't like talking, even to me, he just kind of went quiet."

"Over time, he came around less and less and then Nathaniel was offered the promotion in Sydney and we thought it a good idea to move. Mother and Father saw no reason to stay in Melbourne if we were moving and Jack and Rosie didn't seem to be having children. We didn't know at that point that Rosie had moved in with her sister. I didn't find out until later she did that almost at exactly the same time as we moved to Sydney. Poor Jack. I wondered for the longest time if he would ever actually come back to us- he used to be so much fun!"

"Jack Robinson? Fun? MY Jack Robinson?"

"Oh, he was always the one around the house pulling pranks, getting up wild games of pirates and mermaids or cowboys and Indians. He loved music, always and could play the piano beautifully- he would wander about the house quoting the Bard or Oscar Wilde or singing. He went through a major rebellious phase and became obsessed with ragtime and Scott Joplin. Swore that all other music was too stodgy, but ragtime was about the soul, the chaos of revolution! I believe that may have been around the time he read Thoreau and considered taking off to find his own Walden Pond. When I asked if I could go with him, I was promptly told no- because in search of true transcendence, he would be foregoing all material possessions, including clothing- and that while he adored me, he had no desire to even imagine me in my smalls, much less bare to the world." Phryne was in absolute amazement. For a while she had suspected that there was much more to the Inspector than met the eye, he was a man of many talents and interests- but never in her life could she have imagined him to be this child his sister was describing- the man that felt underdressed wearing a sweater around the house, rather than his vest and suitcoat!

"I can't imagine your father handled that phase particularly well!"

"Oh, Papa was beside himself! Jack was always taking on the latest social cause- votes for women, child labor laws, aboriginal rights… all of which Papa was very supportive of, he's quite the flaming Liberal, you know. But as Jack started testing the limits, reading Marx and Emma Goldman… that is when Papa started to worry. Jack was so brilliant in school, I think we all hoped he would go on to University, maybe become a lawyer or or politician, or even a college professor."

"What changed?" How had the Jack Robinson who played ragtime and read Karl Marx become her Jack Robinson of the three piece suit and impeccably played Chopin Nocturnes?

"What always happens. There was a girl. Miranda Gillis." Phryne raised an eyebrow, her eyes sparkling. She had not heard of this girl from Jack- he had never uttered the name to her.

"Miranda was one of my best friends through school, we were… I suppose I was 18, so Jack was about 16? She and I were trouble. I've always felt bad because Jack was so constantly in trouble with my parents for doing things like playing ragtime or declaiming from some Anarchist's' manifesto, while I would skive off classes, smoke cigarettes, and drink cheap, truly terrible whiskey at social teas. I liked to subvert expectations and experiment a bit with the line between good and bad. But in fairly harmless ways, at least I thought so. But Miranda liked to shock people."

"She had this gorgeous blond hair, watery blue eyes, she was absolutely prettier than a china doll. Jack was besotted with her, writing some of the most terrible poetry I've ever heard in my life, buying her small gifts- chocolates or the evil chewing gum… she at some point noticed him and decided to test her powers of influence. Ultimately, Jack and she were found in a fairly compromising, but not truly damning, situation at some picnic for the school. My father had a series of very long, very serious talks with him, he was grounded for at least three months, and from then on he suddenly got very serious about school, about the law… all he did at that point really was study, play piano and occasionally go to footie games with Ollie and some other boys. I don't know that he even thought about another girl until Rosie came along."

You could have knocked Phryne over with a feather. She had no idea that Jack had ever been quite so… well, quite so much like her! Of course, it sounded like he was quite a bit more tame than Phryne had ever been, but clearly there was much more to her fiance than she had ever known. And Miranda Gillis? What exactly was the "compromising, but not truly damning" situation in which they had been found? While she was pretty sure she could get the answer from Jenny, she had to think about how much more fun it would be to interrogate him.

She heard the clock strike and she realized that they only had an hour until dinner, and Jenny having four kids, she assumed may need a good part of that time to get everyone ready.

"Before I let you go so you can prepare for dinner… do you have any advice for me on how to handle your parents? I'm afraid the idea of "in-laws" is a very new and different concept for me, I have no idea what to do or say, especially under the circumstances." She realized suddenly just how anxious she was to smoothe things over with her soon-to-be family.

"Mama really is going to do what she can to make it easier for you. She's been noticing for almost two years now that Jack has been… different. He's been happy, he's done a much more dutiful job sending letters, gifts, coming to visit. And when he's around he's smiling, he's playing music, he's quoting poetry… I think it's possible she knew his feelings for you before either of you had any clue- she's practically a witch or a mind reader, she's so perceptive." Phryne blushed, just a little bit, but happy to take the credit for his happiness. "And of course, the prospect of another grandchild is going to weigh very heavily in your favor tonight. She won't let anything come between her and her grandchildren, including my father's bad mood or annoyance towards the circumstances."

"And him?"

"Well, I have to admit, you are at a bit of a disadvantage with him- he doesn't much care for the idle aristocracy, flappers, or jazz music/culture. And, as I've said, he tends to be very hard on Jack- news of the divorce did not go well with him, that was a "failure" and Robinsons, as a general rule, do not fail; the saving grace was that Father was no great fan of Rosie either- he thought her a cold fish and a bit of a flibbertigibbet, he never understood why Jack married her in the first place. But, I think if there was someone who could win over my father in this impossible situation, it may just be you." She stood to leave, knowing she had quite a bit to do before dinner and wondering where her heathen monsters had gotten themselves off to in the last hour or so- it had been far too quiet to trust they were doing anything good. She leaned over to kiss Phryne on the cheek before going, and threw in one last comment. "Oh, and if I were you, I wouldn't bring up football. You can discuss politics, current events, religion… but football will only ensure the conversation ends in tears and shouts with him." She winked and left, pulling the door closed behind her.