That afternoon, D.J., Stephanie and Michelle took the bus home together. When they got home, they were surprised to see all the adults looking grave.
"Girls," said Danny, "we have some sad news for you. Please sit down."
Stephanie, Michelle and D.J. sat on the sofa, wondering what on earth was going on.
"We watched the news this morning," said Becky, "and we learnt that there was a plane crash. As it happened, the Donaldsons were on that plane."
"Were they okay?" D.J. asked.
"I'm afraid Dick and Donna were killed, this time for real," said Joey.
"Did anybody survive?" Michelle asked.
"Only three people: Debbie, Darla and Danielle," said Jesse. The girls were incredulous at first, but the event was shown again that night at seven o'clock. Much to their surprise, even they were sympathetic. "To lose their parents twice... oh Mylanta, that's just terrible," said D.J., who was almost in tears.
"I think they knew their parents were still alive the first time they 'died'," said Stephanie. "When the grown-ups weren't around, they used to act like they didn't care about their parents and said really mean stuff about them. Now I think I know why they were acting like this."
"Well, that's possible, Steph," said Jesse. Just then, the phone rang, and Becky answered it. It was her mother, Nedra, to say that the Donaldson girls would be staying with them in Nebraska. "This time, they know it's for real," said Becky, as she hung up. "It would be just silly, faking your death over and over again - it'll turn out like the boy who cried wolf."

Soon afterwards, there was a call from Nebraska to say that the Tanners were invited to visit. After some thought, Becky and the family agreed to go. However there was one problem: since Danny had been away for so long, there was no-one to start his car and something had happened to the engine. As it was now being repaired in the garage, they had to sort transport out. "I have the perfect idea," said Jesse, went to the phone, and called somebody. That somebody, as it turned out, was Boyce Brody, who soon turned up in Dick's old SUV. "Going to Nebraska, eh?" he said. "Well, I want to sympathise with Dick's family, so I'll come too, if it's okay with you."
"Even though they didn't treat you well?" Joey asked.
"An eye for an eye, says Gandhi, and the whole world goes blind," reasoned Boyce. "Jump in, I'll take you there."
So Danny and his daughters got into the SUV, while Joey, Jesse, Becky and the twins followed in their car. Both Danny and D.J. bonded with Boyce, who told them stories about his family. Eventually, they got to Kenneth and Nedra's house in Nebraska. Boyce offered his condolences to Becky's parents, asked them to pass his wishes on to Debbie, Darla and Danielle, and left. After about an hour or so, the Tanner sisters were ready to see the Donaldson sisters. After asking Nedra if it was okay to do so, they went into the guest room. D.J. knocked.
"Come in," sniffled a voice. Stephanie opened the door, to see Danielle Donaldson lying face down on the bed, with Debbie and Darla sitting beside her. Their faces were streaked with tears. Michelle spoke first.
"I'm sorry about your parents," she said, directly to Darla. She wondered what Darla was going to say next. There was a minute of silence, then Darla threw herself into Michelle's arms. D.J. hugged Debbie, and Stephanie hugged Danielle.
"We kinda know how you feel," Stephanie said to Danielle. "When we were kids, we lost our mum. She died in an accident, too.
"How old were you?" Danielle asked, through tears.
"I was five, D.J. - that's our eldest sister, by the way - she was ten, and Michelle was a baby," said Stephanie. "But you know what? Our dad told us that even though our mum died, we could get through this, because we're a family and we were here for each other. And you can get through this too, you know."
"Why?" asked Danielle.
"Because we are a family, related by blood or not," said D.J. empathetically.
"And we're here for you," reassured Michelle.
"Thanks, you guys," said Debbie. The six of them shared a group hug.
Stephanie and Michelle knew that bygones were going to be bygones, and that they could bond with the Donaldsons after all.

THE END