First and important things first. This is dedicated to the absolutely amazing LaylaBinx. If I can write even half as well as she can, then TOR Books will definitely accept the book that I sent them.

Again, this was written for a prompt on suitsmeme at LJ.

I don't own any of the characters. USA Network does.

Taking a lot of liberties because there is so little known about the amazing Donna.

Five Times Mike Explains His Situation And The One Time Donna Makes Sure People Listen

It was a little known fact that Donna did not come from money, actually, only Harvey was aware of it. This was because, other than Jessica and Harvey, most of the people at Pearson-Harden, were scared of Donna. She scared the associates because even though they technically out-ranked her, all of them, Mike being the exception, knew that she could easily wipe the floor with them mentally, worried the partners, because they never knew exactly what she knew, and stunned the clients with her professionalism and looks. Donna, who prided herself on knowing nearly everything that happened at the firm, kept her own secrets close, knowing that this was a cutthroat world and that nearly anyone could turn something around to ruin her reputation. So, Donna terrorized the firm happily, knowing that nothing she did would result in losing her job, because her boss, who was, generally, a very similar type of person, secretly enjoyed it.

When Mike came along, Donna treated him exactly the same as all the other associates, coolly and rudely. Mike, unlike the others, never seemed to mind. He continued to treat her exactly the same as he always had, with nothing but respect. It surprised the redheaded woman that he never tried to talk down to her, or look over his shoulder at her. At first, Donna assumed that it was because she already knew Mike's biggest secret. So she shrugged it off with typical practicality, giving Mike only slightly more attention than the others, because, well, if Mike screwed up then Harvey's job would be on the line and that would mean that Donna would no longer have her blanket pass to act however she wished. As she kept her eyes on the goings on at the firm, it slowly dawned on her that she was starting to silently support Mike. It was the little things he did, bringing her coffee just the way she liked it, leaving an arrangement of iris', her favorite, at her desk on her birthday, and always taking an extra minute, no matter how late he was to ask her how her day was. She had always supported an underdog, and there were few that entered the building that could qualify as that. So she watched and listened, noting little things that Mike did that, to someone of a similar upbringing, practically screamed 'Hey, I'm poor.' Which stuck a cord with Donna, who remembered all to well what it was like to start out with nothing.

1: The first time Donna heard it, she was just leaving the ladies room and had to pass by the associates cubicles. Gregory and Kyle were again teasing Mike, only this time it was about shoes. Since Donna had no qualms about eavesdropping, she paused just behind the corner to listen.

"There is nothing wrong with my shoes." Mike was insisting, distractedly.

"Except that my sister had better looking barbie shoes." Gregory laughed. "Where did you find those anyway?"

"They can't be that old, Mikey." Kyle added, knowing how Mike hated being called that. "These are brown and the others were back and scuffed."

"Wow. It's amazing that you can't finish your work but you notice my shoes?" Mike replied sarcastically. "Do you have a complex with me that I need to know about?"

Greg laughed. "You wish, Mikey. Just wondering why your shoes suck. I mean you got that nice big signing bonus from Tom Keller, right?"

Donna could hear Mike's sigh, and poked her head around the corner. Mike was at his desk, head bent, working on his most recent stack of briefs, while Kyle and Greg were leaning on the small wall in front of him.

"My grandmother had to move to a new nursing home, and my bonus went to that. Satisfied? Can I keep working now?" Mike bit his lip at the other two associates laughed at his reason.

"That's pretty dumb, Mikey. No way it cost that much." Greg laughed again before reaching over and smacking Mike on the shoulder, hard, before moving back toward his desk, Kyle following while rolling his eyes.

Donna shook her head, unbidden sympathy growing for the kid. The redhead decided that it had to be because those two idiots had no idea what they were talking about.