DISCLAIMER: Characters of The West Wing, any recognizable dialogue, and the canon events of their storyline belong to Aaron Sorkin.

A/N: As a fan of The West Wing (and really almost anything that Sorkin has done), I have of course thought about doing a fic with those characters. I have played with several ideas for my favorite couples, but never put them on paper. Here's a little notion that came to me … who knows where it might lead. Definitely a fun-filled night with the girls. Maybe an ongoing fic of missing scenes from seasons 3-7 … perhaps, the ladies in their own "walk and talk" scenes. After all, they are really the ones who keep the place running. What would their bosses do without them?

This fic begins approx. 10/17/2001. After S3 Ep 3 – Manchester Part II, when President Bartlet announces he is running for re-election.

Chapter 1

Donna had spent some time while they were in Manchester thinking about – well, everything. Her life. How she ended up working at the White House. Current events and the state of the world. And the fact that, although she spent countless hours with her coworkers, she did not really know them very well at all.

Her quirky personality seemed to put some people off. So, over the years, she had found it difficult to develop close friendships with people. But she really wanted to have a few friends – a small circle, at least – with whom she could share things, the deeper more important things in life. Or at least more than the shallow everyday chitchat and water-cooler small talk. You know, like if she happened to get a boyfriend – or even a date. She might want to talk it over with a girlfriend. Goodness knows, she could never talk to Josh about stuff like that – and he was really the only person she talked to on a regular basis. Unless you count the phone calls to her parents back home. And her elderly neighbor with the five cats.

But everyone's daily schedule is too busy for long chats like she used to have with friends at slumber parties as a teen or on coffee breaks during all-night study sessions in college.

But in Manchester or at Camp David or on other trips, sometimes people did have those chats – while taking a walk, sitting around a campfire, sipping wine while staring at the stars, sipping coffee while watching the sun rise. There just seemed to be more time in the day when they were away from the White House. More time to breathe. More time to talk and laugh. More time for life.

She got thinking about it her last night there, while taking a bath – a luxury she did not usually allow herself at home (there's simply not enough time in the day). She thought about it while traveling back to D.C. She thought about it while unpacking and doing laundry – not looking forward to returning to the daily grind. She decided to make herself a cup of tea and soak her feet (not quite as luxurious as a bath, but still an indulgence), while she caught up reading news on her laptop.

After she got herself settled, she decided to look at email instead. There was a short note from Eileen, a friend at home who was wondering if she would be home anytime soon – with suggestions of how they could celebrate her birthday or maybe see each other at the holidays. She and "E" had not seen each other in almost two years – exchanging Christmas and birthday gifts via the US Postal Service.

Donna was feeling melancholy and could not decide which wanted more: to be able to see Eileen or to develop close friendships with a few females here in D.C.

And then it hit her! She would throw herself a birthday party. It would have to be soon – even though it wouldn't really be her birthday. Because everyone was about to dive into campaign mode and there were rumors of subpoenas. But she missed having friends and family to hang out with. She occasionally thought about the empty feeling of not having companionship, but then would get busy again and soon forget – but a crisis will put things into perspective. Sometimes, it is a natural disaster or a neighborhood tragedy, like a house fire or an accidental shooting. But right now, with the ever-present threat of terrorism, the whole nation was going through this. It was bringing people together in small towns and in large cities. Neighbors were talking to neighbors, checking on each other, helping one another, sharing resources, shouldering the load together. In other words, neighbors were actually being neighborly.

Although these news stories gave her hope, she felt like she was watching much of this revival of neighborliness from afar. She felt insulated by the building where she worked and the hectic schedule she was forced to keep. Would that ever change? Probably not unless she changed it herself.

She wanted to know her neighbors – or at least her coworkers – to know them well enough to lean on in a crisis, to trust them in times of stress and trial, to trust them with her secrets or at least her dreams. But there was never time outside of work to spend getting to know one another. She decided that it was time to change that.

Then it came to her – "I have the most scathingly brilliant idea" as Hayley Mills's character in The Trouble With Angels had said. Inspired by her brilliance, Donna immediately started writing an email.

[

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TO: [she left this blank for now]

SUBJECT: un-birthday party

Hey there, Ladies –

I've been thinking a lot lately about the fact that we should really spend more time together and get to know each other better. So I'm inviting you to help celebrate my un-birthday – really just a flimsy excuse for an old-fashioned sleepover (or slumber party, if you prefer).

Although my birthday is coming up in the not-too-distant future, do NOT buy me a present – but if you would be so kind as to join me at my apartment next Friday evening, I'd be delighted.

Here are some instructions:

Bring with you (for show and tell) – your favorite book, favorite movie, favorite CD, and a photo album (childhood, family vacation, high school or college scrapbook, whatever you want to share).

Bring one of the following (new/unopened) for us to have a spa night: your favorite skin care product, nail polish, or hair product.

If your birthday is in an even numbered month, bring food (snack, appetizer, dessert). If your birthday is in an odd numbered month, bring a bottle of wine or other adult beverage. I'll provide popcorn, pizza, soft drinks (soda/pop, as well as coffee and tea), and paper products.

We'll do facials, manicures, deep condition our hair – eat and drink – and maybe watch a movie or two.

But definitely, lots of girl talk! And more than likely, very little sleep. ;)

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Donna added the email addresses of several females she knew at work – mostly assistants, but a few others that she felt comfortable inviting. With a giddy smile on her face, she hit send. Then, she printed out a few copies, in case she bumped into anyone at work whose email address she did not have.

As the water was cooling off, she quickly jotted down a shopping list. Then, after drying off her now pruney toes, pouring out the water from soaking her feet, and plugging in her laptop to charge, she climbed into bed.

As she drifted off the sleep, childhood memories of slumber parties merged with the guest list for her un-birthday party. She could only hope that the actual party was as fun as the dream she had that night.

A/N: In future chapters: the list of RSVPs and the party itself. After that, future Donna randomness as the inspiration hits - most likely a series of missing scenes, maybe the contents of her diary. I see a West Wing rewatch in my future, which does not in any way make me sad.

~Jen