When Duty Calls/Transcript

There is a snowstorm in the arctic. A zeppelin hovers over a lighted tent. Inside, Vern (Fern) helps Lafawna (Ladonna) into a thick jacket. Vern addresses the camera.

Vern: When expLaurieng a strange new land, you need the right clothes….   

She hands Lafawna mittens.   

Vern: …a trusty compass…    

She hands Lafawna a compass. Lafawna opens the tent and snow blows in.

Lafawna: (shivers)   I gotta go out there?   

Vern pats her on the back and hands her a rope, which Lafawna attaches to her belt and leaves the tent.

Vern: But most of all, you need to stay connected. A new frontier isn’t so scary, if you’re tied to something solid and familiar.    

She is about to tie the end of the rope to a heavy chest inside the tent.

Lafawna (outside): (screams)

Vern: Huh? (gasps)  

The rope slips from her hands. She goes outside and sees Lafawna drifting away on an ice floe.

Vern: Oh no!

Lafawna: The rope! Hold on to the rope!       

Vern jumps at the rope but it slips into the water.

Vern: Oof!    No!!!

~~~

Title Card: Ladonna and Fern on bridge

~~~

Muffy reads a self-written story in the Computer Oasis at the library. Brain, Fern, Ladonna, Arthur, Buster and Sue Ellen are listening.

Muffy: “Then I ran the rest of the way, but when I arrived, the mall was closed.”

She is reading from an electronic tablet. She presses a button and a scream is heard. The others clap. Fern goes to the podium.

Fern: And that was ‘A Thanksgiving Tragedy’ by Muffy Crosswire. Nice sound effects. And, closing out our last Fiction Friday before summer break, yours truly and Ladonna Compson.

Arthur: Oh. My favorite.

Fern: We were inspired by Buster and Arthur when they wrote a story together.

Buster: Our book was legendary.

Fern: ‘The Dirigible’s Daughters’ – the tale of two orphan girls who inherit a blimp. Last week, the chapter I wrote left Lafawna stranded on an ice floe, floating alone towards certain doom. Now Ladonna’s chapter will reveal how Lafawna's sister Vern rescues her.

Ladonna takes the podium and takes a piece of paper out of her pocket.

Ladonna: A-hem. “Chapter 12. The water carried Lafawna far, far away and Vern never saw her again.”

Fern: Hh! That’s it??

Ladonna: Oh, not quite. “The end.”

Arthur+Buster: Hh!

Buster: Our stories were better.

Fern: What do you mean “they never saw each other again”?

Ladonna: I just thought it would be better to end the book now, ‘cause I won’t be working on it anymore.

Fern: Why not??

Ladonna: Didn’t I mention? The army is transferring my dad to Oregon. We’re moving next week. For good.    

The others look shocked.

Arthur: You are what??

Buster: No way!

Ladonna: Sorry, folks. That’s life in a military family. It’s the fourth time I’ve moved.   

She starts leaving.   

Ladonna: Whoo! I’ve got more packing to do than Santa Clause on Christmas eve. You want this, Fern?   

She hands Fern the one-page chapter and leaves. Ladonna acts nonchalantly, but everybody else stares at her in horror.

Buster: That was the most depressing story ending ever.

Ladonna: She doesn’t even seem upset. Isn’t Ladonna going to miss us at all??

~~~

Bud and D.W. stand in D.W.’s room. But pats her chair.

Bud: See you, D.W.’s chair. Adieu, juice stain I made on her rug. So long, D.W. Thanks for being such a good friend.    

He puts Rapty on a table and holds out his hand. D.W. folds her arms.

D.W.: You’re not leaving for another week!

Bud: I don’t want to forget to say goodbye. Every time we move, I forget something.    

He glances at Rapty and takes D.W. aside.    

Bud: My first move, I left Rapty behind. Never saw him again.

D.W.: But he’s right there!

Bud: Shh! That’s Rapty Two. He doesn’t know Rapty One is still in my old bedroom in Guam.

~~~

D.W. walks down the stairs with an indifferent look and Bud follows. Mr. Read is in the hallway with a laundry basket.

Bud: Yep, whatever you leave behind is gone for good. Hi, Mr. Read. Thank you for being D.W.’s dad.  

His lip trembles.    

Bud: Goodbye.  Forever.    

He leaves. D.W. stands there with her arms folded.

Mr. Read: Bud sure is sad about moving. How are you doing?

D.W.: Me? Phh! I’m fine. He’s just being a big old crybaby. He even said that when you’re gone… (sniffles) …you’re gone for good. Isn’t that… (sniffles) …silly?    (cries)   

She runs into her dad’s arms.   

D.W.: I’m gonna miss him so much!

Mr. Read: I know. But you can call him. Or write letters.     

D.W. breaks away.

D.W.: How can I write him letters? I don’t even know how to write!  (cries)   

She runs away.

~~~

Arthur, Buster, Muffy and Fern are in the treehouse. Fern paces while Muffy looks at her tablet.

Fern: There must be some explanation. Do you think Ladonna is hiding the fact that she’s really gonna miss us?

Arthur: Maybe it just hasn’t hit her yet.

Buster: Yeah, like when you first bite some super-cold ice-cream. You don’t have a headache at first…

Arthur: …but then…

Arthur+Buster: (shiver)        

Ladonna comes up.

Ladonna: Hi, guys.

Fern: Ladonna!

Ladonna: I’m so glad you’re all in one place. Here’s the stuff I borrowed from y’all.    

She takes a scarf out of a bag.   

Ladonna: Here’s your scarf, Muffy.

Muffy: Keep it. It’ll keep you warm in Oregon.

Ladonna: Nah, I’ve got more scarves than a penguin with a cold.   

She gives back more things.   

Ladonna: Arthur’s glove.   Buster, your book on UFOs.

Buster: That was a gift!

Ladonna: I don’t think I’ve got room in my suitcase. But thanks anyway.    Okay, catch you later.    

She leaves.

Buster: Okay, she is definitely acting weird. This book is priceless.

Arthur: Does she not like us at all?

Muffy: That’s impossible! Everybody likes us.

Buster: (sighs)  If only we could talk to someone. Someone who had experience leaving all their friends behind.   

The others stare at him.   

Buster: Oh yeah. That’s me.

~~~

Buster, Arthur, Fern and Muffy sit at the counter in the Powers’ ice-cream shop.

Buster: I’m telling you, I don’t remember what I was feeling right before I went away with my dad.

Fern: That’s why we’re going to try a sense-memory experiment.

Muffy: What’s sense-memory?

Brain: Sense-memory is what happens when you smell or taste something from long ago.

Fern: And it can bring you back to how you felt when you first smelled or tasted it. I read about it in a mystery.

Arthur: So, if Buster tastes the ice-cream he ate right before he left…

Buster: …I’ll remember what I felt then? Well, okay! Any experiment involving ice-cream is fine by me.     

Brain takes out a big book.

Brain: Good thing I keep a written record of everyone’s flavors over the last few years. Let’s see…  Ah! Your favorite flavor back then was Butterripple Toffee Swirl.

Buster: (sighs)   I was so innocent back then.

Brain: Coming right up.      

He presses a button on a machine.

Arthur: Wait! That doesn’t sound right. Butterripple Toffee Swirl was what you were eating the week of the solar eclipse. I remember because you thought aliens were coming and might take away all of that flavor.

Buster: Oh yeah.

Arthur: But the following week, when you left, your favorite flavor was actually… Pickles and Peppermints.    

Brain checks his book.

Brain: You’re right! How did you remember that?

Arthur: I just remember the whole week really well. Maybe ‘cause I was upset.

The machine emits dark green ice-cream. Brain puts it in front of Buster.

Fern: Now, eat up and tell us what you were feeling right before you moved away.

Buster eats a spoonful.

Buster: Mm…   (smacks lips)    Hh! Oh! I remember! I was afraid… my friends would forget me. But you didn’t, did you, old pal?    

He hugs Arthur. Muffy takes a picture with her tablet.

Arthur: Never, best friend.

Fern: So that’s why Ladonna’s acting so strange. She thinks we’ll forget her.

Arthur: How do we show her we won’t?

Fern: We could… write down all our favorite Ladonna memories in a book.

Arthur+Buster+Brain: Mm. I like it.

Muffy: A book?? Guys, it’s the twenty-first century! Let’s make a video! I’ll interview you all and then we’ll show it to her at a big going-away-party.

Fern: Okay. But nothing too fancy, Muffy. I want it to be honest, heartfelt

Muffy: Trust me. Ladonna will love it.

~~~

Mr. Read sits on the living room couch taking notes while D.W. paces and dictates a letter.

D.W.: “Dear Bud.”  No, no, no.  How about “Hey, Bud. It’s me.”  No, he knows it’s me. Who else would be writing him a letter?  Okay, let’s go to what we had before. That one was better. Can you read it back to me?

Mr. Read: “Dear Bud.”

D.W.: And…

Mr. Read: That’s it.

D.W.: But I’ve been talking forever! I need a good opening.

Mr. Read: How about “How are you?”

D.W.: I can’t say that. I’ve never said “How are you” to Bud. He’ll know you’re writing it. (sighs)  Thanks, Dad, but I think this is just something I’ve got to do myself.    

She takes the letter and leaves.

~~~

That evening, Mr. Read fills jambalaya into a tupper can in the kitchen. D.W. pushes up a chair and climbs on it to see better. She has a piece of paper and an envelope with her.

Mr. Read: The Compsons will love our goodbye gift. Bud’s favorite: jambalaya.

D.W.: If I can’t write something, maybe I’ll just send Bud something he likes.     

She fills a spoonful of jambalaya into the envelope, which immediately gets soggy.  

D.W.: Eww!!

~~~

In her room, D.W. traces her outline on a sheet of cardboard.

D.W.: Who needs to write a letter when you can just send yourself.

She folds up the cardboard and tries to put in in an envelope, but it is much too big.

D.W.: (strains)   Too big!

~~~

Muffy films Arthur who is holding his caveman diorama from “Arthur and the Whole Truth”.

Arthur: I’ll never forget that surprise rainstorm we had. I was carrying home my diorama from school and you rushed out of the house with an umbrella.

Muffy: Cut! That was great! Now let’s get some shots of Pal. I’m sure he’ll miss Ladonna too. (whistles)  Here, Pal! Let’s bark for the camera!     

Pal barks.

~~~

Muffy films Buster who is sitting at a table behind the school.

Buster: Hi, Ladonna. I’ll never forget you were telling me one of your stories and I laughed so hard that milk shot out of my nose.

~~~

Muffy films Brain on the soccer field. He is juggling a ball with his knees.

Brain: I’ll never forget the time it was a tied game with Mighty Mountain and you scored the winning goal.

Muffy: Cut! That’s great! Oh, Brain, I have a science question for you. What is this fruit?    

She takes half an onion out of her backpack and holds it under Brain’s nose.       

Muffy: It smells so interesting.

Brain: Ahh! It’s an onion! Isn’t that obvious?

Muffy: Oh. Right you are. Silly me.      

She films Brain whose eyes are watering.

Brain: (sniffs)

~~~

Ladonna, Arthur, Buster, Binky, Fern, Muffy, Brain, Francine and Sue Ellen are in the TV room at the Crosswire Mansion. There is cake and Ladonna has General Higgins on her lap.

Ladonna: Ohh… Thanks for throwing me this goodbye party.

Fern: Our pleasure.

Ladonna: But I promised General Higgins I’d take him on a tour of all his old favorite places. He’s real sentimental that way.  Um… we should go.

Fern: Oh, Ladonna. Before you go, we wanted you to know how much we’ll all remember you. So, here’s… um…

Muffy: …a film we made.

Muffy starts the film.

Muffy (on video): One question haunts Elwood City: Who will remember Ladonna?

Arthur (on video): I’ll never forget that surprise rainstorm we had.

Arthur holding the diorama is followed by footage of a flooded house during a storm.

Arthur (on video): And you rushed out of the house with an umbrella.

Arthur: Um… it wasn’t that bad a storm.

Buster (on video): I’ll never forget you were telling me one of your stories and I laughed so hard that milk shot out of my nose.   

In the real world, Buster and Ladonna smile at each other. The video shows drops and crying faces come out of Buster’s nose.

Fern+Ladonna: Hh!     

Fern covers her eyes. The video combines Brain’s interview with onion aftermath.

Brain (on video): I’ll never forget…      (sniffs) You’re not filming this, are you?

Brain: It was the onion.

The video shows a picture of Ladonna and the group selfie from “The Longest Eleven Minutes”.

Muffy (on video): You will never be forgotten. Never be forgotten.

The video shows Pal howling.

Arthur: That was just because Muffy was dangling a pork chop over him.

Ladonna: Uh… That was really… something. Thanks, but… er… General Higgins really has to go.

Muffy: But it’s not over yet. There are the outtakes.

Ladonna wipes away tears and walks away.

Fern: Cut it!    

Muffy stops the video. Fern runs after Ladonna.

Fern: Ladonna, I know that film was a little…

Muffy: Fabulous.       

Fern gives her an annoyed look.

Fern: …but can’t you see, we’ll never forget the happy times we shared with you?

Ladonna: But that’s not what I’m afraid of at all.    

She hurries out.

Fern: But… er… I don’t understand.  Ladonna!    

She hurries after Ladonna with tears in her eyes.

Muffy: Not a dry eye in the house. It’s a hit!    

The others stare at her.

~~~

Shortly afterwards at the park, General Higgins looks at his reflection in the stream. Ladonna sits beside him. Her bicycle stands on a nearby bridge.

Ladonna: Don’t worry, General Higgins. Dad says they’ve got streams in Oregon too.   

The rat squeaks.    

Ladonna: I know. Not like this one.         

Fern arrives on the bridge on her bike.

Fern: Ladonna? Are you down there?

Ladonna: Hh!  It’s Fern. Act happy.

Fern leans her bike against the bridge railing and looks around. Ladonna comes up to her.

Fern: Hi. You left the party fast. You okay?

Ladonna: Sure, never been better.      

General Higgins gives her a reproachful look and squeaks.    

Ladonna: General Higgins is a little upset. I keep telling him they’ve got streams in Oregon. But he’s just a rat, he doesn’t understand about moving.

Fern: But you do.

Ladonna: Oh, yeah. I’m an expert. This is my…

Fern: …fourth move. You told me. Ladonna, why are you acting like you don’t care that you’re leaving?

Ladonna: I don’t know what you’re talking about.       

She walks to the railing and looks into the stream.

Fern: I can tell something’s wrong. Did we do something? Did I?

Ladonna: No. I mean… not you. It was…

Fern: Who?    

She puts an arm on Ladonna’s shoulder.    

Fern: You can tell me. I’m one of your best friends.

Ladonna: It was Tony Arnoni.

Fern: Who’s Tony Arnoni?

Ladonna: Also one of my best friends. In Guam.

Ladonna’s reflection in the water turns into that of a boy.

Ladonna: We were living on a military base. Tony’s family was too.  (sighs)  For a year we did everything together. And then, when we had to move, he threw me a party, just like y’all did today.    

A party hat appears on Tony’s head.

Tony’s reflection: (giggles)

Fern: We promised we’d be pen pals for life. After I left, I wrote Tony three letters, but he never wrote back once.

Tony’s reflection: (giggles)    

Ladonna drops a rock on Tony’s reflection. It disappears and is replaced by Ladonna’s.

Ladonna: My mom says people get busy and I shouldn’t take it personally. But ever since, I just feel like I’m leaving my friends for good.

Fern: Well, I don’t know Tony, but we’re not like that. I’m not.

Ladonna: Really? Think about it, Fern. That video you made was all about what we did together. Not what we’re going to do.

Fern: Yeah, but…

Ladonna: It’s okay. I don’t expect you to stay in touch.     

She picks up General Higgins.     

Ladonna: That’s why I’ve got General Higgins. No matter where I am, he’s the one person I know who’ll always be there.   

She pets the rat.    

Ladonna: Even if you’re not actually a person.  (chuckles)  

She goes to her bike without looking at Fern.    

Ladonna: Come on, Higgins. We need some cheese for the road.   So long, Fern.     

She bikes away. Fern looks after her.

Fern: I am not Tony Arnoni!!

~~~

At 9:30 that night, Arthur lies awake in bed and telephones with Buster, who is lying in his bed.

Arthur: After that movie we showed her, Ladonna must know we’re not going to forget her. So what’s bothering her?

Buster: I don’t know. But maybe it’s different when you’re moving away for good. I came back.

Arthur: I’m sure glad you did.

Buster: Did I? Or was I replaced by an alien in a Buster skinsuit?  (laughs)

Arthur: (chuckles)   Good night, alien.

Buster: Good night, Pal.        

Both hang up. Arthur puts his glasses on the nightstand and sees D.W. standing beside his bed.

Arthur: Augh! What are you doing?!

D.W.: You can’t go to sleep yet. I need your help.     

She holds a pen and a piece of paper.

~~~

Meanwhile, Fern lies in her bed and looks at Ladonna’s last chapter. She turns off the light and goes to sleep. In her dream, Vern tries in vain to catch Lafawna’s safety rope.

Vern: Ladonna!! No!!!

Lafawna: It’s okay! I’m used to saying goodbye!

Vern looks at the zeppelin hovering over the tent.

Vern: Not this time!

Lafawna sits on the ice floe looking sad. General Higgins comes out of her suit.     

Lafawna: Don’t fret, General Higgins. I’m sure we’ll make new friends wherever we wind up.     She looks ahead and sees that the floe is heading towards a waterfall.     

Lafawna: Hh!  (gulps)  Or not.    

Higgins crawls back into the suit.

Vern: You’ve still got one old friend! Up here!     

The zeppelin hovers above Lafawna. Vern throws down a rope.

Lafawna: Fern?

Vern: Grab this rope and I’ll lift you to safety!    

Lafawna tries to grab the rope.     

Lafawna: No! You’ll let go, just like Tony Arnoni!

Vern: Oh yeah?! Well, I – am – not – Tony Arnoni! I am not letting go!    

She ties the rope around her waist.

Lafawna: Hh!    

The floe comes closer to the waterfall. At the last moment, both Higgins and Lafawna jump for the rope.    

Lafawna:Whoa!  (strains)   Yes! Yahoo! 

The zeppelin carries them away.

The dream ends. Fern smiles in her sleep.

Fern: Yahoo!    

She looks around and sees where she is. Day is dawning outside the window. Fern picks up her phone.

Fern: Hello, Arthur? Get everyone to the treehouse! I know how to help Ladonna!

Arthur: (yawns)  Okay. But I’ll be late. I’m helping D.W. write a letter to Bud.

Fern: How long could that take?       

D.W. takes the phone from Arthur.

D.W.: He’s gotta teach me how to read and write first.     

She hangs up. They are in Arthur’s bedroom and the alphabet is hanging on the wall.      

D.W.: Back to work, professor.    

She sits down at Arthur’s desk.

Arthur: D.W., for the last time, I can’t teach you to read and write in a day. Just copy these shapes.    

He starts writing on a clipboard.

~~~

Later, Arthur climbs up to the treehouse and joins Fern, Buster, Brain and Muffy.

Fern: So I figured out what’s bothering Ladonna and how to solve it. It’s not that she’s afraid we’ll forget her, she’s afraid we won’t be in her life in the future.

Buster: But she’ll be so far away.

Arthur: We can write letters.

Fern: Or…   

She picks up Muffy’s notebook.    

Fern: …we use technology.

Muffy: Hh! Are we making another movie?

Fern: Sorry, Muffy, I have a different plan. But we’re going to have to hurry. The Compsons move tomorrow. Here is what we’ll do…  (whispers)

~~~

Ladonna’s room is full of boxes labelled with colored stickers. Ladonna puts a sticker on Platy. She realizes that she is out of stickers.

Ladonna: Wait a minute! Where are all the rest of the dot stickers?!!     

Bud comes in with Rapty, who is covered with stickers.

Bud: We must have run out.

Ladonna: Bud! You used them all. Now how are Mom and Dad gonna know which toys to take along and which to give to charity?

Bud: Hey, I’m making sure we don’t leave Rapty behind again.

Ladonna: Dad!!

Mr. Compson is downstairs.

Mr. Read: If you need more stickers, go to the store!

Ladonna: Ugh!     

Bud takes a sticker off Rapty and puts it on Ladonna’s nose.

Bud: I wanna take you along too.

~~~

Ladonna walks down a street with General Higgins on her shoulder. She passes Fern who is weeding the Reads’ garden while Arthur takes out the trash.

Ladonna: Hey, guys!  You know we’re moving today.

Arthur: Oh, right.

Fern: See you later.

Ladonna walks on. Mr. Read comes out and gives Arthur and Fern money.

~~~

Ladonna passes the Baxters’ condominium. Buster is outside washing the car.

Ladonna: Hey, Buster! You know I’m leaving today, right?    

Buster waves with his sponge and goes on working. When Ladonna is gone, Mrs. Baxter comes out and gives Buster money. The Crosswire limousine stops and Fern waves from the backseat. Buster gets inside. He, Arthur, Fern, Brain and Muffy all hold money.

~~~

Ladonna reaches Vanessa’s Craft Supplies. The limousine stops at the Computer Fun store right next door.

Fern: Hurry!      

The kids run into the computer store.

Buster: We would have finished faster if Brain had helped with the yardwork.

Brain: What?! I was doing the hard work on the computer. I’ve created a thing of beauty.

Shortly afterwards, Ladonna comes out of the craft store with two packs of stickers. She sees her friends rushing into the limousine.

Buster: Okay, okay, you helped!

Ladonna: Hi, guys! You know this is my last…     

The limousine drives off. Ladonna loos disappointed.   

Ladonna: Well… I guess they’re getting an early start forgetting me.    

General Higgins squeaks.    

Ladonna: What do you know? You’re just a rat!    

She walks home.

~~~

At the Compson house, the family is loading stuff into a Move ‘n Go trailer which is hooked up to the camper.

Mr. Compson: Okay, Compsons. Duty calls and Oregon awaits! Time to bid Elwood City goodbye.   

Ladonna looks sad.

Ladonna: That’s okay. I’ve said my goodbyes.

The limousine stops beside the camper.

Fern: Wait! Don’t go yet!

Ladonna: Fern? What are y’all doing here?     

Fern, Arthur, Brain, Buster and Muffy come out of the limousine.

Fern: We came to send you off. With this.

Arthur and Buster put a large box in the trailer.

Buster: Open it! Open it!

Ladonna: Wow! Thanks. But first, I gotta say something. I’ve been acting like moving wasn’t a big deal to me, but the truth is, it’s a huge deal. It’s huger than my great-aunt Olivia’s alligator which grew to be so long that when the school bus got a flat tire, all the kids rode him to school.

Buster: Whoa.

Arthur: What are we gonna do without your stories?

Ladonna: Hh. What am I gonna do without you all?    

She wipes away tears.

Fern: Open the box already!

Ladonna: Okay.   

She opens the box and throws out lots of packing material. At the bottom of the box is a piece of paper.    

Ladonna: It just says: w-w-w-dot… It’s a website?

Fern: A website we all made. Well, Brain made it.

Brain: I just did the computer stuff. Which was a lot of work.    

He looks at Buster.

Buster: (nervous chuckle)

Arthur: It’s so we can send messages back and forth. And post pictures.

Fern: And we keep writing ‘The Dirigible’s Daughters’, no matter how far apart we are.   

She gives Ladonna the one-page chapter.

Buster: Plus, the site has video chat, so you can see us life anytime you want.

Ladonna: Wow, that’s…  I don’t have words. And you know I always have words.     

Muffy hands Ladonna another box.

Muffy: And this is so we’ll always be connected.

Fern: We all worked some extra jobs and pitched in.

Ladonna: Hh!

Muffy: It’s a brand new tablet. Top of the line.

Ladonna: I… you… really are all gonna stay in touch, aren’t you.

Fern: Just try to get rid of us.      

Muffy, Fern and Ladonna hug each other. Arthur, Buster and Brain join in.

Bud: Aww…     

He hugs Rapty. D.W. taps him on the back.    

Bud: Huh?

D.W.: I’ve got something for you too, Bud. But it’s not a computer or anything.   

She gives him a card with drawings of Bud’s and D.W.’s heads and a heart.

Bud: Is it… a letter?

D.W.: I wrote it myself.

Bud: I never got a letter before. I mean, other than birthday cards from my grandma. You know, I’m not so good at reading.

D.W.: I’m not so good at writing.

Bud: “Dear Bud, I will miss you. Love, D.W.” That is… spectacular.

D.W.: Really?       

Bud hugs her. She hugs him back.

Bud: Goodbye.

~~~

Shortly afterwards, The Compsons stand in front of the camper and wave goodbye. Mr. Ratburn’s whole class has gathered, as well as D.W., Mr. and Mrs. Read and Mrs. Baxter.

All: (Goodbye!  See ya!   Bye!)

The Compsons get in the camper and drive off. Ladonna and Bud wave from the camper window.

Ladonna: See you soon!

The kids start dispersing. D.W. notices that Rapty is still sitting on the sidewalk.

D.W.: Hh!   Uh oh.    

The camper disappears. D.W. hugs Rapty.

In the camper, Ladonna and Bud sit down on a bed.

Ladonna: You left Rapty behind.

Bud: So D.W. will have to write to me.

Ladonna: Smart move.    

She looks at the chapter while Bud looks at his letter. The camper passes the Walters house.

~~~

The view of the Walters house changes to winter. In Fern’s room, Ladonna’s face is seen on a laptop.

Ladonna: Fern! Come in, Fern. It’s Ladonna, calling you from the planet Oregon.

Fern: Ladonna, how was your Tuesday.

Ladonna: Great! Hey, remember my next-door neighbor I told you about last months?

Fern nods. A girl holding a ferret steps into the screen with Ladonna.

Laurie: Hi, Fern. I’m Laurie. And this is Chester. Say hello.       

Fern waves at the screen.

Ladonna: Mind if Laurie listens in on the next chapter of ‘The Dirigible’s Daughters’?

Fern: Sure.

Ladonna: So. In my latest chapter, Lafawna and Vern find themselves trapped in a cave with a polar bear. Get comfortable, it’s a long one.

Fern: Can’t wait.

Fern+Ladonna+Laurie: (laughing)