He says it just like that, with an exclamation mark at the end; Prin can hear it in his voice. Prin has been learning about exclamation marks in school. They can mean different things, she has learned, like they can mean someone is surprised or that they are excited or happy. Or sometimes it means that they are shouting, but Prin thinks this one is the happy/excited exclamation mark. Daddy is happy and excited about the visitor.

Jane seems nervous though. ‘I don’t like talking about things,’ she tells Prin. ‘I don’t like it when they ask me questions. It gives me bad dreams.’

Prin doesn’t really understand. She likes it when people want to know things from her. She thinks as well about what Daddy said, and about how Jane’s mouth tends to turn down. She doesn’t think that’s the best thing to show visitors. ‘Just tell them about all the fun we’re having,’ she suggests.

Prin’s house always looks nice, but on the day the visitor is due, Mum does an extra clean and goes on at Prin more than usual to put her toys away. Prin asks whether she can wear her pink dress again, but this time Daddy says no, that ordinary clothes would be best. So both Jane and Prin dress in ordinary outfits: a skirt and a yellow T-shirt for Prin, and a pair of jeans and a pink T-shirt for Jane. They both look nice.

When the doorbell rings, Prin runs straight to the door, determined to get there before anyone else, even though Mum is shouting her back from the kitchen. She is big enough and strong enough to undo the latch lock, and she pulls it down and tugs the door open. And you’d never guess, but it’s Fiona standing there on the doorstep! She is wearing the same badge on a string that she was wearing before, when they went to those other people’s house to fetch Jane.

‘Hello!’ says Prin, and her sentence has an exclamation at the end too, because now she is happy and excited about the visit, just like Daddy.

Fiona smiles down at her. ‘Hello again,’ she says. ‘How are you?’

Prin remembers what Daddy said this morning. ‘I am fine,’ she replies. ‘We are all doing extremely fine!’

Fiona’s smile slips a little bit, but then jumps back up. ‘Well,’ she says. ‘Is your mummy or your daddy in?’

‘Yes, of course,’ says Prin. ‘Come right through.’