Kitty was just taking a walk. Perhaps pick up some things in town, though she had nothing in particular in mind. She wanted to walk and get out a little. She found herself wandering towards the church she had tried to work for. She had a disappointed frown as she stared at it and leaned on the stick she used to help her walk when her back bothered her some. 

"For the best, I suppose." She still didn't look satisfied or content. It had been her dream when she came to town, though dreams sometimes change and she was happy. One would think God liked the imperfect to fix and mold, but obviously the people in the church didn't agree, at least when it came to Kitty. 

The memories of her departure made her tighten her lips in a small frown and her eyes harden as she tried to not let it get to her. She turned on her toes to walk away, wanting to put the unpleasantness behind her.

During a quiet moment of the day, Gabriel had been sitting in one of the pews, reflecting on all he had seen during the morning. There was a rosary in his hand and his fingers were slowly moving over the beads. Sometimes he found the rosary the most boring thing in the world, and he just couldn't get himself to pray it. But at other moments it gave him the sense of a pleasant childhood familiarity and safety. And at other moments, he felt like the simple prayers, uttered by all the faithful, and not just the priests, could somehow connect him more closely to the suffering people he had encountered, and help them carry their cross.

His head turned when he heard someone enter. A young woman stood in the doorway and looked in for a moment. He did not know her. But then again, he did not know a lot of people in the parish, even those who would be faithful congregants, because he had only been here for a week. His predecessor, that curious fellow Father Kemble, had tried to introduce him as well as possible, but starting in a new place was never easy, and Gabriel was still worried he would fail to remember names and faces, and cause offence. He had already realized that most of the working classes stayed away on Sunday morning. The last thing he wanted was to alienate more people.

When the woman turned around, Gabriel got up and approached her, black cassock rustling as it flowed around his skinny frame. "Miss?!" he called out.

Kitty was surprised he spoke to her instead of yelling at her to leave, as if her very presence would taint the sanctity of the church. She paused and turned slowly to look at him. 

"You're not Father Kemble?" She was honestly surprised and wondered where the bastards had gone to. This man was about her age if she had to guess. Where she was tough and hard he looked wispy as if a strong breeze would do him in.

Her head turned side to side then back at him. "I was just popping in. Didn't mean to bother."

He stopped when he was near her. "Father Kemble has moved parish. I'm Father Richards, the new parish priest. If you were looking for Father Kemble, maybe I can be of service to you, ma'm?" He gestured to invite her further into the church.

"Sorry, but I haveta say that he is the last man I would be wanting to see. I'm glad he's gone. " Kitty wasn't going to be foolish and believe this man would be kinder to her. Kemble had made her believe she wanting to be a nun, or even a part of the church was blasphemous. It had left quite a sour taste in her mouth. She sighed heavily and looked around the place, remembering when she was allowed to work at night sweeping and lighting candles. Basically keeping the place looking nice and clean.

"Who are you? Father...." She let her voice trail off in hopes he would fill in the blank. She was ready to turn and go but felt it would be rude to leave without giving him his god given chance to throw her out.

"Richards..." he repeated. "I'm sorry to hear you didn't get along with Father Kemble." In the one week he had been here, she was not the first to make comments of this nature either. But who was he to judge a man he barely knew? He gestured again. "I hope it doesn't stop you from coming to this church."

"Sorry." Kitty realized she had missed it, maybe her pregnancy was getting to her brain.

His invite to the church made her eyes widen. She began to laugh, so much she had to put her hands to her belly to contain herself before it started to hurt. Finally she calmed enough, the woman looked at him and shook her head. "I reckon Kembledidn't tell ya. Or I suppose whoever chose ya? I was not liked. And I was not.. a part of the church like others. I was sort a a nun in training. Very long story. To give you the short of it... I am a bit stuck in my sinful ways. I wanted ta better myself. He was not the patient sort to help. Threw me out like I was the whore of babylon herself. Are you gonna do it too now?"

She folded her arms and looked as if wanting to see him try. She was ready to leave on her own anyway.

He looked at her confused as she started laughing, but then when the story came out, Gabriel sighed lightly. She was the ex-nun. Father Kemble had spent about twenty minutes of his introduction complaining about her - which had made Gabriel more suspicious of Kemble than of the nun, despite her sins. "Look miss... Calamity, isn't it?..." He had wondered if that was her real name, but he hadn't wanted to ask the priest, afraid of another twenty minutes wasted. "Religious life is a special vocation, and very few of us are truly called to it, or have what it takes. So many are sent away before they take vows. But nobody can be thrown out of the church, not even by us priests." And the last thing Gabriel wanted was to make her feel unwelcome, whatever her sins. He was determined to lead sheep into the fold, not chase them away.

"You can just call me Kitty..."

She then furrowed her brow looking very unconvinced. "I don't think it's very fair. Just because someone is a bit rough around the edges, they can't go serving god. But you are different from Kemble. He acted like me just being there might ruin the church. "

She then gave the priest a curious look though still very unhappy. "Hey. You priests and nuns normally chose to when you're little right ? Or you all grew up church going? So you never lived a rough or sinful life so it was nothing to give up?"

Gabriel sighed and gestured in again. "Come sit, Kitty, please. It is not for me to question the judgement of the mother superior, or whoever sent you away for whatever reason. But even if you are not a nun, you are still a baptised Christian and that in itself in a vocation to serve God, just in a different form." Not all priests would be comfortable with this way of looking at it. It might undermine the status of the religious life. But as a parish priest, working with the laity most of the time, Gabriel was convinced there needed to be more attention to the vocation of all believers.

He wouldn't tell the bishop.