Donatello sighed as his eyes strained painfully in the darkness of the room. He rubbed them roughly and fireworks exploded beneath his eyelids, making him regret the action immediately as a wave of dizziness washed over him. After it passed he continued gazing at his computer screen. It'd been a week since the 'incident', in which he'd ran as soon as the woman screamed. Out of paranoia, the next night he returned to the surface around ten and kept watch from the rooftops near the junkyard manhole until a little after one. Trudging back he was too tired to be upset about nobody commenting on his late night adventure. Don noticed Leo had stopped questioning his outings about a few months ago, one day worried and the next...

Shaking his head Don continued to fast forward the video footage, watching the passing time at the corner of the screen with his peripherals. After his failed reconnaissance Don decided to go about it an easier way by installing cameras at key points on the fire escapes and the chain linked fence of the junkyard. It took a bit longer to do since Mikey wanted to tag along, so Don only had about three days of footage. It was all he needed though to realize he wouldn't be running into this woman ever again. It was only by pure chance that they'd encountered, for the woman always passed the manhole precisely at five thirty and never returned until seven o'clock in the morning. It seemed to be the path she took going to and from work, which apparently wasn't too far away since she obviously walked there. In fact one of his cameras revealed she lived only two apartment buildings down the street from the manhole.

Donny rubbed his chin in thought as he watched the footage of the woman crossing the street, pausing a moment at the manhole before running quickly to avoid an oncoming car. The video was in black and white, but Don could remember vividly the flaming shade of red that was her hair and the stormy shade of gray that even in the dark had stood out in her eyes. Take away the light splatter of freckles and she would look almost exactly like April. They could have been sisters had Don not known April was an only child. Which reminded him, he had to gather a little information about this woman to make sure she wasn't a threat before he completely dropped the subject. First he needed her name, then occupation, and lastly her criminal record. A little bit of her personal record wouldn't hurt either.

It was just a precaution.

XxXxXxXxX

Jennifer pulled off her gloves and disposed of them properly with disgust. Who the hell would believe that not brushing your teeth would prevent them from all falling out? Apparently this last patient did, and she cringed at the memory of his plaque build up. She'd had to literally chip away the food remnants because the years had solidified it like cement!

"Thanks again Jen," said her boss as he shyly took the finished paperwork from her. He didn't notice her eye twitch in annoyance at the nickname

"No problem Josh. I'm going to head out now-"

"H-hang on a sec!" he blurted before she could leave the office. Jennifer rolled her eyes. She knew what he was going to ask, just like all the other times.

"Do you want to go grab a drink later on?" he began almost nervously, like a teenaged boy asking out his crush since middle school. "I know this great bar down-"

"Sorry Josh, not today," she refused gently, then added a bit sharply, "My fiance and I are going out to dinner tonight."

Josh deflated and nodded his understanding. Jennifer gathered her stuff quickly and left before the atmosphere could get any more awkward. Josh, her boss and chief dentist, obviously had a thing for her. Everybody at the office knew that. But besides the fact that she was engaged, he just wasn't her type. He had brown eyes for one thing, a shallow pet peeve she admitted was normally a deal breaker for dating. Secondly his body wasn't necessarily up to par, a bit chunky and too soft for her taste. But that wasn't to say she liked muscular men either. Jen was more into the lanky look. She had no idea why, but never dwelled on it. It was a waste of time to try and trace the source of her odd taste in bodily features, but she did have time to make a checklist.

Jennifer Wilkinson's perfect man contained: blue eyes, a thin body, thick black hair, a predictable personality, straight teeth, and the ability to never ever surprise her.

She loathed surprises more than anything in the world. They always messed up her plans.

Sean Stephens, her fiance, was all of those things. They had dated all through high school and he had finally popped the question after she graduated from college. Now after being engaged for nearly two years Jennifer was finally ready to begin planning the wedding. She had known she would marry Sean after graduating high school and accepted that fact. After all it seemed the obvious choice to take him instead of starting all over again with someone else. He was all she wanted in a relationship, predictable and safe. He would never break her heart by cheating and she would never stray from her carefully planned life. After getting married they would move to the country and have kids. Sean would continue his job as a professional photographer and she as a dental assistant. They would grow old together and frequently sit quietly on their front porch, rocking back and forth on their chairs as they lived out the rest of their lives in peace.

Yep, that was her plan.

Jennifer paused in the street as she came close to the manhole.

After screaming and apparently scaring the creature back from where it came she'd ran home so fast she broke the heel off her favorite pair of shoes. The rest of the night had been filled with near hysterical drinking and worried questioning from Sean. He had quietly listened as she retold her encounter with the strange green man and in the end suggested maybe the dark had played tricks on her sight. After a bit more wine Jennifer had calmed enough to accept that he was probably right. Perhaps it was an alligator or some other sort of animal that were often rumored to be nesting in New York's sewers. The thought made her shiver. That seemed pretty dangerous, and to have one so near her home was even more terrifying.

A car honking startled Jennifer and made her dash quickly to the sidewalk. The heavy grocery bag swung crazily by her side and she gripped it harder so it wouldn't slap against her thigh. She grimaced at the item it held, dreading what she had to do with it.

But an alligator near her home made her stomach twist with nerves. She only hoped she had enough drugs...

XxXxXxXxX

Donatello slowly made his way to the lab, wincing at his sore muscles. Today they'd practiced sparring and it was just his luck to have been paired up with Raph. The big brute was just as unkind as ever, and not even his brother's cries of mercy lessened the beating. Settling into his chair Don immediately booted up the computer. The live feed from the cameras popped up and he sat for a moment to watch the stillness of the area. Cars never came down the street at this time of night which had always made it the perfect time to go topside and raid the junkyard. His eyes glazed a bit as they stared aimlessly. There was no need for this anymore. The woman (which he now knew was named Jennifer Wilkinson) was as harmless as a fly. She graduated after only two years of college and settled for a certificate rather than a full fledged degree. She worked only a few blocks away where the apartment strip ended and the stores began, and she was engaged to a man she'd known since high school.

No history of ever being involved with the purple dragons.

No trouble whatsoever.

Not even a parking ticket.

Booooriiing...

Blinking Donny suddenly jumped as the object of his thoughts appeared on the screen. With a bit of embarrassment Don realized she'd been there for quite a while now and he hadn't even noticed. Curiously he watched her twist her head violently from side to side before dropping something in front of the manhole and darting away. Alert now Don made sure she'd gotten back to her apartment before running out of the lair and through the sewers. When he reached the manhole he paused and caught his breath. What in the world did she drop? Was it a bomb? No, it had looked more like a blob than a definite shape, and it jiggled a little when it met the ground. Cautiously he lifted the manhole and immediately recoiled. The strange object he feared was right in front of him and emitting one of the most foul smells. Wrinkling his snout Don stared at the blob before finally poking it.

"Ew!" he exclaimed as the object gave into the pressure with sickening 'squish' sound. Bringing back his finger he shook off what felt like slime.

Disgusted but equally curious Donatello reached out and (whilst chanting "Ew, ew, ew!") grabbed the object and dropped back into the manhole.

"What the-?"

Staring in disbelief Donatello could only gape in confusion as words failed.

It was...meat? And a very sizable chunk too. Shifting it to his other hand Don gasped as the tender meat practically fell apart in his hand and tiny white pills clattered to the sewer floor. Panicking he scattered and tried to catch the rolling pills before they were lost to the current. This only resulted in tripping himself and falling face first into the storm water.

Cold, wet, and grumpy Don slouched all the way home with the remaining pills and meat with the sole intention of analyzing and piecing together this new puzzle.

XxXxXxXxX

Michelangelo yawned and scratched his plastron as he made his late nightly trip to the bathroom. He blinked confusedly at the lights in Don's lab. Why was he still up? Ah well. The nerdy turtle was probably just inventing again. Mikey continued on, having planned to dismiss it but a sudden burst of guffaws shook his senses awake. Curiously Mikey changed his course and tiptoed to the cracked door of Don's lab. Peering inside Mikey's brow furrowed as he watched his brother gasp for air and hold his stomach. Tears pricked his eyes and he nearly fell into the wall with the force of his laughter.

"Oh god she thinks I'm gonna eat her!" he exclaimed and about choked on his lack of oxygen.

Mikey jaw dropped and his confusion escalated. Quietly he continued to watch...

XxXxXxXxX

Donatello wiped his leaking eyes and flinched at the pain in his cheeks from grinning. He just couldn't believe it! The pills, after a close inspection, revealed themselves to be Valium, a pill used to relax patients before an oral procedure (well that's what she used them for). He estimated roughly an average person would need to ingest about 20 to 30 milligrams for it to knock them out. The meat however had contained nearly 100 milligrams, enough to knock out a very large animal!

Which was exactly what she'd been planning.

After calming down a bit more he also found small traces of propofol, an anesthetic put in IV's to put patients asleep. He frowned at this. Ingestion of it would probably kill someone, and if not it would most definitely make them extremely sick. Don figured she just put it in there as a precaution. There really wasn't much, but even some would at least make a large animal such as an alligator a little sick and sluggish.

So, she thought he was an alligator? He chuckled a bit more before stretching and switching off his lab light. He yawned and scratched his plastron in thought, not noticing Mikey's retreating footsteps. Well, what was he going to do now? The obvious choice would be to just leave well enough alone. There was no need to draw attention to himself. But what if she saw the meat missing and thought an alligator really had eaten it? And what if she thought now that it had found food it would hang around? What if she called animal control and they searched the sewers?!

Don jerked his head and took a breath. He was over thinking it. Animal control wouldn't even so much as lift a finger unless multiple complaints were brought to attention. And maybe this Jennifer would also come up with more than one reason for the meat to disappear. Like hobos, or cats. But something still bothered him. He couldn't just leave her hanging without an answer, even if it was a false one. So what to do...

Don laid in his bed now, staring through the darkness at his ceiling. He knew Jennifer wasn't a threat and she didn't have any ties to anything even remotely risky to his family's safety. So...what if he contacted her? It wouldn't hurt...right?

Getting frustrated he rolled and snuggled his pillow. That would probably be more trouble than it was worth. She would end up with more questions and he would be on the receiving end of Leo's rage if he was caught. But he couldn't just leave her hanging like that. She seriously thought she was in danger, and he couldn't let himself be that cause of a constant fear. But if Leo found out...

Don's eyes narrowed and face reddened with anger.

Leo, Leo, Leo! It was always about him! Why was it always about pleasing him? Sure, he was the leader. Sure, he usually knew best. But this constant tiptoeing around his emotions was getting ridiculous! Why should he let Leo control his life by cowering before his authority? He may have been the leader, but they were still brothers, equals, and Don should not allow his actions to rely solely on what Leo thought was right. He was his own person, and it was time he started reminding everybody about that fact.

Tomorrow he would end Jennifer's fearful suspicion.

Even if it meant future complications.

XxXxXxXxX

Jennifer sat in her work's break room staring at a crinkled slip of paper. Nothing moved, no sound was heard, and Jennifer wasn't even sure if she was breathing. All she could do was stare in silent shock at the chicken scratch just barely legible from the smudging of tire tracks. She'd woken up a bit earlier that morning so she'd be able to analyze the area around the manhole for any traces of a large animal coming to the surface. Her heart had stopped about twenty feet away when she'd noticed the meat was missing. It hadn't been hit by a car because it was not scattered or smeared on the pavement, but it seemed to have not been chewed either, for no scraps were left behind. It looked to have been picked up. As she got closer she noticed a yellow splotch on the normally charcoal black manhole cover. Jennifer was surprised to see it was a note, taped down carefully so it would not have blown away in the wind or torn to shreds by cars.

Now she sat with that same piece of paper, reading and re-reading the same, short message that had nearly made her faint. It wasn't the wording per say, but the fact that the green...thing had actually tried to contact her.

"Hey."

Jennifer jumped slightly but did not turn at the sound of her boss's voice. She could feel Josh pause over her shoulder as he took a second to read the message.

"'I'm not an alligator.' What does that suppose to mean?"

Jennifer closed her eyes and sighed, annoyed now that her morning was completely ruined.

"It means," she began, standing and stuffing the note into her scrubs pocket. "That I need a drink."

A/N: Well, not too happy with this chapter, but it is what it is. It was tough writing Don's emotions about being a coward up against Leo. Believe me, I'm not bashing Leo, but right now Donny just needs someone to blame. I'm finally getting to Don/Jen scenes, so don't quit reading yet folks!