Klaus and Ester paused outside the station, so that Ester could explain to a busker all the ways in which he was annoying her. Max waited for them behind a statue of a man-on-a-horse (it turned out that even in this strange new country, miles away from her own, all the statues were still of a man-on-a-horse), and while she waited she put on Great-Aunt Elodie’s hat. It was warm and heavy, and when she tucked her plaits up inside it, it felt a bit like a disguise.

Then they were on their way, the busker left weeping into his violin behind them.

(Kind-hearted readers need not be too upset about the busker. He went home and put away his violin, which he never played again; but he took up gardening instead. He turned out to be very good, and won a lot of prizes. He even created a new kind of rose, and he called it domine irasceris, which is Latin for “angry lady”, because he was so grateful to the woman who had terrified him into finding a new hobby.

His name was Erik, if you were wondering. Erik Filep.

But that is quite enough about Erik Filep. Ester and Klaus must not be let out of our sight: and they were, as I said, on their way.)

They set off down a busy main road. It was lined with buildings that looked to Max like huge fondant fancies – each a different pastel colour, and covered in curling stonework. They were beautiful. Surprisingly, they all had very ordinary shops on the ground floors, with lit-up flashing signs.

Klaus thought it was all very lovely, and kept exclaiming at everything, while Ester retreated further and further inside her furs in high grump. It was easy enough for Max to slip along behind them, blending in to the crowd, a shadow in a bobble hat. Ester could scuttle along surprisingly fast, but it helped that Klaus was about a foot taller than everyone else, so Max never really had to worry about losing them.

Things got trickier when they turned right, down a residential street. The pavement was empty, apart from a line of leafless trees, silver and silent. Max was neither silver nor silent (although she was leafless, I suppose), so the trees weren’t much use for blending-in purposes. She hung back at the corner of the street, not wanting to get too close.

Her quarry came to a halt outside one of a terraced row of town houses. Klaus rang a doorbell. Ester rang it four more times, just to make sure, then banged on the door for good measure.

Max had to think quickly. Should she try and slip in behind them? But there was no way that she could do that unseen. She would have to try and talk her way in afterwards. Although, of course, she didn’t speak any Hungarian.

The door opened, and Ester and Klaus vanished inside.