noon
It also happened that , though they were a little jostled among groups of people in the vicinity of the church , they passed this somewhat prominent edifice without being aware of their proximity to it , and they had gone an incredible number of blocks beyond it before they discovered their error . However , feeling that they might be embarrassingly late if they returned , they decided that a walk would make them as good . It was a windless winter morning , with an inch of crisp snow over the ground . So they walked , and for the most part they were silent , but on their way home , after they had turned back at noon , they began to be talkative again . `` Mary , '' said Bibbs , after a time , `` am I a sleep-walker ? '' She laughed a little , then looked grave . `` Does your father say you are ? ''