'Has she been good?' he asked. 'Oh! she always is at grandmother's; she's afraid of being scolded. But now, you see, she wants to have her revenge.' When the young woman had managed to reseat the child on her lap again, she inquired of her husband: 'What is it you want to tell me?' 'Something which I did not previously speak to you about, as I had not made up my mind. I am offered the post of schoolmaster here, at Maillebois, and I am going to accept it. What do you think of it?' She looked at him in amazement, at first unable to reply. And for a moment in her eyes he plainly detected a gleam of joyous surprise, followed, however, by increasing anxiety. 'Yes, what do you think of it?' he repeated. 'I think, my friend, that it is advancement, such as you did not expect so soon--only, the position will not be an easy one here, amid such exasperated passions--your opinions, too, being known to everybody.' 'No doubt. I thought of that, but it would be cowardly to refuse the fight.' 'But to speak quite plainly, my friend, I very much fear that if you accept the post it will lead to a complete rupture with grandmother. With mother we might still get on. But, as you know, grandmother is intractable; she will imagine that you have come here to do the work of Antichrist. It means certain rupture.' A pause, full of embarrassment, followed. Then Marc resumed: 'So you advise me to refuse? You also would disapprove of it: you would not be pleased if I came here?' She again raised her eyes to his, and with an impulse of great sincerity replied: 'Disapprove of what you do? You grieve me, my friend: why do you say that? Act as your conscience bids, do your duty as you understand it. You are the only good judge, and whatever you do will be well done.' But, though she spoke those words, he could detect that her voice was trembling, as if with fear of some unconfessed peril which she felt to be near at hand. There came a fresh pause, during which her husband took hold of her hands and caressed them lovingly in order to reassure her. 'So you have quite made up your mind?' she asked. 'Yes, quite: I feel that I should be acting wrongly if I acted otherwise.' 'Well, as we still have an hour and a half to wait for our train, I think we ought to return to grandmother's at once, to acquaint her with your decision.... I want you to behave frankly with her, not as if you were hiding things.' The young woman was still looking at her husband, and at that moment all that he read in her glance was a great deal of loyalty mingled with a little sadness. 'You are right, my darling,' he answered; 'let us go to grandmother's at once.'