Start-up aid polarized – Consequences?

Hello together… the following has happened… I needed starting aid today… because the “+” cap was on the “-” pole in the donor vehicle. However, both cables were connected to the poles of the batteries and not as usual at the car / contact point on the engine block. If I have no mistake in thinking then means that the short circuit is only “available” in the cable between the two batteries and thus the risk of damage to other parts of the vehicle. I have changed the defective battery today and everything is running without any errors. But I don’t know about the “donor vehicle” yet… it hasn’t driven since. So it’s still going to show up. What’s your assessment?