They'd been in the air for nearly an hour and, so far, things had gone smoothly. Once the plane had been fully boarded, the Carrie had been able to move Buck to the seats across the aisle from Ezra. Other than the two of them, there were only three others flying business class on the flight.

Ezra had spent most of the time dozing in his seat. As soon as he was able, he'd reclined it. Buck had come over to tuck the blanket from the lounge around him and gave him the pillow he'd been using there. He'd hoped it was how he could spend the entire flight. Unfortunately, all the water he'd been drinking decided it wasn't going to wait until they landed in Denver. Without his crutches, though, he'd need Buck's help to get to the restroom.

He'd no sooner raised the middle armrest and started to slide toward the aisle when Buck was suddenly at his side. "You need something, Ez."

Ezra couldn't hold back a quick smile and he wondered just how long Buck was going to feel guilty. Had he been feeling better, he might have started to catalog ways to use it to his advantage. "Just need the restroom. I really didn't want to bother you."

"No bother. Just let me get your crutches down for you."

Once he steadied himself on the crutches, Ezra started to make his way to the restroom. He'd taken a couple of steps up the aisle when he noticed Buck shadowing him. "I can assure you, Mr. Wilmington, this is something I've been doing on my own since I was a small child. I won't be needing assistance."

"Just want to make sure you get there ok, Hoss. Don't want you losing your balance if there's any turbulence."

Ezra stopped his forward progression and looked back over his shoulder. "I really must insist that I don't need assistance for this. Please, return to your seat. I'll be just fine."

Buck hesitated for a second but then stepped back to the row he was seated in. "Ok. But you just shout if you have any trouble."

"I sincerely doubt that's going to happen," Ezra mumbled under his breath. For a moment, he'd been convinced that Buck was going to follow him all the way into the restroom...and it was barely big enough for one person.

Buck didn't sit back down until he saw Ezra disappear through the door to the lavatory. He did so then with a sigh. He couldn't shake the guilty feeling that it was his fault Ezra was in the state he was in. He didn't really see any way he could have done anything different. There was no way he was going to let a man continue to harass a woman. Considering Ezra had followed him over, it was a safe bet his friend had felt the same way. Still, it was his fist that connected with Ezra's face and knocked him down the stairs. It was going to be a while before he'd be able to make that up to him. He was sure that if Ezra didn't feel as bad as he did, he'd probably be milking his injuries and playing on Buck's feelings of guilt.

He turned toward the partition that led to the rest of plane when he heard some kind of commotion and raised voices. The partition was pulled open and a flight attendant backed in. "Sir, you really need to return to your seat," she sated.

Buck was quickly out of his seat to see if there was something he could do to help. It almost didn't surprise him to see that the unruly and obviously intoxicated passenger was the man Ezra had identified as the one from the incident the day before. He shook his head slightly. Ezra might not believe in jinxes but there was just no denying the fact that, so far, today had turned into one continuing example of Murphy's Law. "Hey, buddy. Why don't you listen to the lady and go back to your seat," Buck suggested.

"You!" the drunk man said when he caught sight of Buck. "You think you can keep telling me what to do?" He pushed past the flight attendant and drew closer to Buck. "You just stay out of my business, you hear."

"Now I don't want to be involved in any business of yours," Buck tried to soothe. "I just think you should do what the lady's asking you to do."

"You just want to keep all the good stuff for yourself. That's why you and your buddy are here. Maybe you need to learn the same lesson he did."

Buck saw the man pull back his fist and quickly ducked. When he heard the fist connect with flesh, he spun around to see who the unfortunate person was. "Aw hell," he sighed when he saw Ezra tumbling back from the fist that had caught him high on his right cheekbone.

M7 M7 M7 M7 M7 M7 M7

Airplane lavatories were not something Ezra was fond of when he was able-bodied. Hampered as he was by the broken ankle and crutches, he detested them even more. He was bracing himself at the sink washing his hands when he faintly heard what sounded like raised voices coming from the body of the plane. "What now?" he asked his reflection and, much as he hated the cramped confines, he thought about staying right where he was for the remainder of the flight. "Best go see what's happening now," he told his reflection then reached for the door.

As soon as he stepped into the aisle, he saw several figures congregating where the partition separated business class from economy. If he wasn't mistaken, the back of one head looked suspiciously like Buck's. Taking a quick glance over to where Buck had been seated, he saw an empty space. "Good lord, what's he up to now?" he asked no one in particular.

Again, he thought about going back to the lavatory and waiting out the rest of the flight there but quickly dismissed the idea. Instead, he started to make his way back to his seat hoping he'd be able to avoid any kerfuffle that may be happening. As he got closer and everyone moved, he was able to see the man from the incident yesterday that Buck had dubbed the Jolly Green Giant. Ezra wasn't sure why Buck had felt the moniker worked for the man. He was anything but jolly although he would give that he seemed to be a giant

He saw the man push pass the flight attendant and knew it was not going to end well. Despite a strong need for self-preservation he still hastened to see if he could offer any aid. He was just behind Buck and was ready to ask what was going on when he saw his friend duck down. The next thing he knew, something impacted his right cheek and he was falling to the floor. Thanks to the narrow aisle, he managed to slam his chin into the arm rest of one of the seats on the way down and then the back of his head on the floor. To add insult to injury, the crutches ended up on top of him.

Stunned, he barely heard Buck's "aw hell." He lay in the aisle blinking up at the ceiling of plane. He could feel blood dripping from his chin and down his neck and knew he'd gashed his chin.

He heard exclamations from the other passengers in Business Class and then felt the crutches moved. "Are you ok," a feminine voice asked. He blinked up and saw Carrie kneeling behind him. He resisted the urge to ask her if she thought he looked all right. This day could not get any worse.

As he lay there, he wondered just who he must have pissed off that he kept ending up on the receiving end of the punches Buck and the giant decided to trade. "This is not fair. Not fair at all," he muttered.

M7 M7 M7 M7 M7 M7 M7

"Now look what you went and did," Buck said to current bane of his and Ezra's existence. "You really shouldn't have done that."

"Yeah? What are you going to do about it?" the man taunted.

Somehow, Buck fought against his gut instinct to knock the guy out. Instead, he reached into his back pocket, pulled out his ID, and flipped it open so the man could see it. "How 'bout I arrest you for causing a disturbance and assaulting a law enforcement officer? That sound good to you?"

For a few seconds, the man was stunned to silence then quickly said, "I didn't hit you. I hit him."

Again, Buck looked over his shoulder at Ezra and saw that Carrie was trying to help him. "Guess what? He's my partner. Now, unless you want me to knock you on your ass, you are going to shut your trap and you are going to sit in that seat." As he spoke, Buck got progressively louder and further into the man's personal space. He pointed to one of the seats in the last row of business class that was vacant. "Do you not understand me?" he shouted when the man continued to stand gaping at him. Finally, the man slunk down to the seat Buck had pointed to.

Once the man was seated, Buck looked over to the flight attendant who had been involved in the original altercation. "I don't suppose you have anything I can use to secure him to the seat, do you?"

The man regained his belligerence and surged up out of the seat while Buck was momentarily distracted. His re-found bravado came to a quick end when Buck turned quickly and knocked him down with one punch. "Now stay there," he yelled at him.

"Um...I think there's some duct tape in the galley," the flight attendant told him.

"That'll do." Making sure the man was staying put this time, he glanced back to Ezra. "He ok?"

"He's a bit shook up," Carrie told Buck. She was holding a towel to his chin. "He's got a nasty gash that's bleeding a lot and I think he hit his head."

"It's just not your day, Hoss."

Once the flight attendant returned with the roll of duct tape, Buck used it to secure the man to the seat. Sure that he wasn't going anywhere, he moved to where Ezra was still on floor. He took in Ezra's glazed eyes and sluggish movements. He looked over his shoulder at the flight attendant who'd brought him the tape. "You got a first aid kit...Pam?" he asked taking in her name tag.

"I'll get it," Pam said as she nodded.

Buck leaned over Ezra and held two fingers in front of his face. "How many fingers are you seeing?"

"If I tell you at least one and less than six, can we leave it at that?"

Buck huffed out a laugh. "Got your bell run pretty hard." He could already see the swelling and discoloration from what would be a nasty bruise appearing on Ezra's cheek. He accepted the first aid kit from Pam and set it down beside him then took over holding the towel to Ezra's bleeding chin. Before he had a chance to do anything about bandaging the gash, he saw Ezra convulsively swallowing and turning a decided shade of green. He grabbed an airsickness bag from pocket of the seat they were near just in time. When he was sure Ezra was done with it, he helped him lay back down. "Don't think there's any doubt you've got a concussion this time."

"I better let the Captain know what's happening and we'll need medical assistance," Carrie said as she got up.

"And now we'll get diverted," Ezra said on a sigh. He was beginning to wonder just how long it would be before he'd see his home again. He hissed as Buck used butterfly bandages from the first aid kit to close the gash on his chin and then taped a gauze pad over it.

"Sorry 'bout that." He ran his fingers over the back of Ezra's head. When he encountered a good sized bump, his friend hissed in pain again. "You think you're ready to get up from the floor?"

"I'd rather not continue down here making a spectacle of myself." Ezra started to push up to sit but stopped and let out a moan when his head swam. "Please, just help me up," he whispered once the dizzying merry-go-round feeling had lessened.

As gently as he could, Buck got Ezra up from floor and back to his seat. As he did, Pam came back to them. She handed Buck an ice pack she'd made in the galley and he held it to Ezra's chin. "We're going to divert to Chicago," she said just as the captain came on announcing the same. Once the announcement was finished, she continued, "they'll have an ambulance waiting when we get there."

"No," Ezra said adamantly. "I do not need an ambulance. We don't even need to land. Can't we just continue to Denver?"

"I'm sorry," Pam said with a sympathetic look. "The captain feels it's best if we divert."

Buck reached down and squeezed his friend's shoulder comfortingly. "At least let the medics check you when we land, Ez. It's better to be safe than sorry."

"Fine," Ezra huffed out on a sigh. His head was throbbing, he was still feeling slightly nauseated and everything around him kept spinning slightly. He didn't have it in him to argue. "But you're going to call Chris and let him know we're being delayed again."

Buck had to hold back a groan of his own. "Something to look forward to," he said with a weak grin.