A/N: Huh. I'm kinda on a oneshot role. Well, anyway, this is what I think Don could've been thinking when Mikey was underwater working on the passageway in "What a Croc!" I really don't know where exactly this came from - probably from watching to many eps of TMNT in a row. This is my first real attempt at getting a first person POV, so let me know how I did and if I got Don in character... if you would be so kind... anyway, enjoy!

Disclaimer: If they are mine, then that pig is really flying outside my window.

Donatello

I wince in pain as I nail my thumb with the hammer. Sucking on the wounded finger, I set the hammer down and move over to the computer with a sigh. Normally, building a support for the underwater access way wouldn't be such a problem, but right now, it's different.

I glance over at the two cords lying on the ground that led into the water. One is an air hose; the other is a metal cable. Both are hooked to my baby brother, Mikey. After checking a few readings on the pump, I look around for something to do when I am assured that he is still getting plenty of air.

Call me paranoid if you want, but whenever one of my brothers is in any kind of situation that could have the smallest probability of them getting hurt (or worse), my imagination goes into overdrive. I blame it on the brother in me.

Like right now, for instance. Mikey's under roughly thirty yards of water or so, welding a cross brace onto the new access way to help with the stability. A simple task, even for Mikey. Yet I'm silently freaking out up here. I'm trying to work on other parts of the access way or the Shell Sub as a distraction, but it's not working. My mind is constantly coming up with different worst-case scenarios - Mikey burns himself badly with the acetylene torch, a piece of the support falls off and pins Mikey down, Mikey somehow manages to sever his air hose - that sort of thing.

You could call me a control freak, too. Leo may be the leader, but I always freak out if I can't be in control of everything that's going on, even if it is only internally. Raph and Leo don't really know that. I manage to keep myself locked in my room most of the time. They think it's just because I'm obsessed with mechanical stuff, but that's only partly true. In my lab, I can control what happens. I control how much oil I need to add to the Sewer Slider, I control what needs immediate fixing and what can be fixed later, I control all of my experiments - you get the idea.

I think Mikey knows, though. Half the time, I would forget to eat if Mikey didn't come into the lab in his not-so-subtle way demanding that I take a break. Mikey's always been able to tell when one of us is having an off day. He knows when I'm freaked out over not having control of a situation. He knows that he can't always help me with that, but he knows that he without him, I'd probably never see the light of day.

That's the other reason why I'm freaked out right now. Not only is one of my brothers in a potentially life-threatening situation, but that brother is Mikey. My little brother. The annoyingly sweet brother who knows just what to do to make my day a little better - shell, to make all of our days a little better. Mikey provides the sanity to our family, which is kind of weird when you think about it, since he's always acting insane. But it's true. Without Mikey, Leo would be way too serious, Raph would have killed himself by now out of anger, and I… well, I would probably have rotted away in my lab long ago. We're nothing without each other, but we're especially nothing without Mikey. There's just something about him, I guess. He is the glue that keeps this family together. Leo and Raph would have probably killed each other thirty times over by now if Mikey hadn't stepped in between them to poke fun at them as a distraction. He just has this way of making a dark situation a little lighter.

And it's kind of weird, because even he's the most easily distracted one out of all of us, he is easily the most natural ninja. If he had Leo's focus, he'd probably be ten times better than Leo. But he's not Leo - he's Mikey. And I love him for that. Heaven knows we don't need another Leo. I love my older brother, but sometimes-

I hear the water start to bubble and whirl to face the pool again. The surface is very agitated, like something's thrashing around. Mikey, most likely, doing something half annoying, half amusing… I hope. "What's that goob doing now?" I mutter.

I wait for a moment, trying to ignore the panic in my stomach. He's fine, he's fine, you're just being paranoid… No. No way. Something's wrong - there's no way Mikey could make that many bubbles in such a steady stream. The only way that could happen is… "My guess is, that he's drowning!" I exclaim aloud, rushing over towards the winch. "Hang on, Mikey!" I cry as I push the button. There's a mechanical whine as the winch starts up.

I wait for a tense moment, silently urging the machine to run faster. Please be okay, please be okay, please…

Finally I see the dark outline of Mikey's body getting close to the surface. He doesn't seem to be moving. For a brief moment, I fear the worst. But then he breaks the surface and pulls the helmet off. Water gushes out of the helmet and drips off of his face as he coughs. I sigh in relief. "Get the others! You guys aren't gonna believe this!" he exclaims excitedly.

I rush over, helping him out of the harness, breathing a silent prayer of thanks. I don't care what kind of crazy story he's going to be spouting out in about five minutes - he's okay, and for right now, that's all that matters.

A/N: Yeah, a little shorter than I thought. But let me know what you think... I've got one planned for both Leo and Raph. Thanks for reading, and don't forget to review!

moogsthewriter