The noise of the bell seemed to come from elsewhere. But they stopped at a spireless chapel that hardly distinguishable in shape and size from the houses it lined up with, although its windows were long and tall and its walls whitewashed. There was a door to the side. Tobias jumped down. "Wait a moment, I'll help you down," he told Iris. He tied the horses and then moved to her side to help her down.

"Mornin', Tobias!" A man in a simple suit called out. He was accompanied by a gracious dark haired woman in a plain mauve dress and three girls. They stopped close by.
"We heard t' bairn was born, is this her?" said the woman, stretching her neck to get a look at Emma. The three girls gathered round.
"Aye, and this is Mrs. Carpenter. The wetnurse. Alice is still poorly, I'm afraid." Tobias said.

Iris kept her face neutral, afraid that they might think her overprotective of someone else's child. She dutifully showed the babe to, and seemed to shrink into herself a bit at the nearness of the others. She was like a doe caught unawares, her eyes riveted to a spot on the ground. Then she remembered that she had manners and bleated out a shy, "How do you do?" And then a slight dip of her head. Then she shot a sidelong glance toward Tobias.

Other people had joined or stopped close by and were watching and listening.
"Oh I'm sorry to hear it. Nice to meet you, Mrs. Carpenter. Josephine Morgan, and this is my husband Paul and our daughters, Susan, Ellen, and Irene." The young girls made little sounds of delight while watching the baby.

Tobias remembered how people had watched and introduced themselves to Alice on her first day, and whispered at a distance, the way he saw some people do now, and how she had been upset after church and refused to go back. And so he broke in now. "We better go in and find a quiet spot so t' bairn doesn't wake up durin' t' service," he said, and he gestured for Iris to go ahead.

She was grateful when he said something about going and finding their seats. She ave a wan smile to all involved and then followed him into the church toward whatever pew they would be sitting in. She made sure to keep a respectable distance between them when the time came to sit. She rocked Emma in the meantime.

Tobias took of his hat, and entered the church. "The Morgans are good people," he told Iris while he directed her to a pew somewhat in the back. There their rest didn't last long. The minister who had done the baptism approached them.

"Good to see you, Mrs. Carpenter. How are you?" he said, holding out his hand.

She took hold of his hand and wrapped her fingers around, squeezing gently upon the minister's appendage. "Minister," she murmured and gave another wan smile. She tilted her head, "It is good to see you, sir. I am well, thank you," though it was a half lie, she didn't want the attention.

The minister looked at her for a bit too long, then said "Good to hear," shook Tobias' hand and moved away to greet other people.

Tobias picked up a bible and read a little to avoid having to talk to anyone.

Then the service began: A word of welcome, a particular public welcome to Mrs. Carpenter, and the announcement of the birth and baptism of Mr. and Mrs. Appleton's daughter.

Perhaps sitting in the back was a bad idea, for now all heads turned to look at them. Tobias was grateful when the first hymn was announced and all picked up their hymnbooks and rose.

Having everyone stare made her squirm inwardly. She avoided eye contact. In fact, when it came time for hymnals, she also buried her nose in a tome. Except... well... She had the voice of an angel. Hopefully nobody noticed it was her that made such lovely noise.

Tobias was plodding through the words in a low, monotonous voice. He glanced sideways. Then focused on the hymn again.

When it was over, they sat down, and there was a Bible passage read. Tobias found it hard to concentrate. It had been such a chaotic week, and his mind was still at home, wondering whether his wife would ever be normal, and how they were going to raise a child together. He didn't notice it when the reading turned into a sermon. He sat entangling and disentangling his fingers while looking at them.

With Emma being a small baby, she wondered how the little girl could sleep through the singing. She was grateful for that little bit of quiet, as the attention was not drawn to her. She glanced over toward Tobias in a side long way and studied the profile of his face. He seemed as uncomfortable as she was.