Disclaimer: I don't own Donatello, or the Shredder. Sasha, I'll take responsibility for though.

Author's Notes: Another short chapter. Please please please, review. Even if it's just a short note. I would really like to know if anyone is even enjoying this.

The Aftermath – Part 4

Two-three weeks post-outbreak

"So… you're a turtle?" Sasha stared at Donatello with glazed over eyes.

"Yes, ma'am."

"Hmmm…" She picked up the little bottle of pills sitting in her lap and squinted hard at it in the twilight. With the added glow from the fire nearby she could just barely read the label. "Are you sure these aren't expired or something?"

"I'm pretty sure." Don was gently wrapping a fresh bandage around Sasha's calf, trying not to jostle her too much. The drugs they'd given her mostly deadened the pain, but it wasn't completely gone. She was propped up against the trunk of tree while Donatello checked her wound, but the way her upper body was starting to weave back and forth, he thought Sasha might need to lay down soon.

"Huh." Her head lolled to the side a bit as a night sound distracted her. She stared off into the distance for a while before somehow managing to pull her eyes back to the giant turtle kneeling in front of her. "If you're real… how do you pee?"

There was a snort of laughter from Saki who was busy stirring a can of beans near the fire. Donatello looked up at the young woman and cocked his head. "I think maybe you had one pill too many. No more for now." He plucked the painkillers from her hand and tucked them into a little medical bag. Sasha made a half-hearted lunge after the bottle, but Donatello held her in place. "No moving, no more pills. No more questions about how I do, or do not urinate. You need to sleep now."

"No, but seriously…" Sasha tilted to the side a little as she raised a hand to point at him. "I need to know… It's going to drive me… something." She started to tip over, but again Don was there to keep her upright.

"Definitely bed time." He very gently picked her up and moved her to a nearby sleeping bag.

"Oooooh, that's soft…" She closed her eyes and snuggled into the pillow, her red hair glinting like gold in the firelight.

"Not really," Donatello smiled as he tucked some blankets around her leg to help keep it stable during the night, "but you're as high as a kite right now, so I'm sure it seems like it."

"I miss kites…" She opened her eyes and frowned up at him in the dark. "Kites were so… pretty."

"Really? When was the last time you flew a kite?" He pulled the cover of the sleeping bag over her small frame and zipped it up to her hip.

"Oh… I've never flown a kite… but I miss them anyway." Sasha closed her eyes again and smiled sadly. "Now I'll never get the chance…"

"You do realize that kites pre-date electricity, right? We don't need to plug one in to get it to work." He brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face and felt a small tug at his heart. He'd barely known this woman a day and he was already looking at her much like a little sister. She was so sweet and silly and kind… although that was most likely just the drugs. But Donatello felt an overwhelming need to protect her for now. It was possible that she might take a turn for the worse if her leg became infected, and he was bound and determined to not let that happen. There had been too much death already.

"Right… kites are… are…" She inhaled deeply and wiggled a bit further down into the sleeping bag… "Um… yah…" Her train of thought derailed as the drugs pushed her closer to sleep.

"Goodnight, Sasha." He whispered softly and stood up, turning toward the fire. A muffled noise was his only reply as he stepped closer to the fire and took a seat next to his former mortal enemy. "Well. Looks like we're going to be stuck here for a few days at the very least."

Saki looked over at the sleeping woman and then down to his pack. "We have enough food for now, but one of us will probably have to go back to the little market we passed yesterday. I found a few cans of food in the store room of the filling station over there, but only enough for one meal; two if we really stretch it. She needs as much food as we can spare for her right now. We also need to stock up on some more water."

Donatello breathed out a heavy sigh and stared into the fire before answering. "You know… I think I've figured out what we need to do. In the long run, I mean."

Saki turned his dark eyes to his companion. "If you even think of suggesting that we need to begin repopulating the earth, then I place dibs on Sasha over there. I do not think you and I would make very good looking children."

"Heh…" The turtle picked up a stick and poked at the fire absently. "I have to say I agree with you there. But I was thinking more along the lines of where we should go. I think I've figured something out."

Donatello leaned over and reached into his pack, pulling out the road map he'd been meticulously marking and looking over every time they stopped walking. He opened it up and refolded it so that Saki could see the marks he'd been making. Pointing at a little red circle on the map, Don tapped it twice for emphasis.

"There. 165 miles northwest of where we are now, there's a small town named Riversaw. And when I say small, I mean small. Before the plague hit it had a population of about 1,500… give or take."

"It sounds cozy." Saki smirked, but nodded for Donatello to continue.

"Well, the town is only a perk. The actual destination is a small radio station a few miles outside of Riversaw. There's a small plant that supplies the power for the station and most of the town. If I can get the station up and running, we can try to contact other people and try to rebuild some semblance of a society." Don circled his finger around the surrounding land of Riversaw. "Also, this is very rich farmland. It wouldn't take much to get some good crops going over the next few years. We'll need to clear the town of bodies if we want to live there… but I think it's our best option. Unless you want to keep wandering through the amazingly depressing wilderness of the eastern United States.."

Sake pursed his lips and looked at the map for a few moments. "As much I love the male bonding, such as it is… I could do without all the walking. I think it sounds like a very good idea."

"Well… good." Don stared at the map for a few more seconds, then folded it back up the right way. He stuffed it back in his pack and took the can of beans that Saki was now offering him. He took a bite while looking thoughtfully at the fire. "Y'know… I'd kill for a pizza right about now."

The Japanese man chuckled lightly. "I'd kill for my wife's meatloaf. Such an odd thing… a greasy loaf of ground meat that looked more fit for a dog. In all honesty, it tasted that way too… but I'd give anything to have her make it for me again…" His smile faded as one of the logs cracked in the fire.

They sat there in the dying firelight, trying to pretend the canned beans were luxuries of days gone by. As flames died down leaving only glowing coals in the small circle of bricks and stones, Saki looked over to his companion and raised his fist. "So who gets to make the trek back for supplies tomorrow?"

Donatello sighed and set down the empty can. He raised his hand and on the count of three, they battled. Saki's scissors beat Donatello's paper. The turtle groaned and raised his hand again.

"Best two out of three?"

Author's Notes: Still trying to get back in the swing of things. This chapter came so much easier than Chapter 3. I hate to say it, but this story is actually more intriguing to me right now than Further Misadventures. That's the sucky thing about having more than one ongoing story. :) Oh well. Hope you enjoyed.