"Oof!" Blair grunted as he bumped into Jim's solid form. He froze as the big man shot an arm out, holding him back. The anthropologist was about to ask what was wrong, when his partner provided the answer.

"Motion sensor," Ellison muttered. Holstering his gun, he swung a long leg up and over the railing and climbed down to the next flight of stairs. He moved with the grace and skill of the panther that was his Spirit Animal.

Blair, on the other hand, was about as graceful as a lemming throwing itself off a cliff when it came to climbing. He watched his partner with dread, knowing it would soon be his turn. Sure enough, Jim landed silently, then reached up to beckon to him, urging him to follow.

With a brief gesture of helplessness, Blair climbed over the railing, praying he wouldn't embarrass himself. At first, all went well. He rested both feet on tiny ledge beyond the railing, and kept his arms hooked over the bar at chest level. Then all of sudden he caught sight of the drop. His fear of heights kicked in, and he froze.

"Blair?" Jim whispered from below. "Chief, what are you doing? Come on." He tugged gently at Blair's trouser leg, trying to see what was holding the young man up.

Sandburg shook his head, clinging tighter to the railing and closing his eyes. "I can't!" he hissed in a stage whisper. "I'm sorry Jim, I can't do this! Go on without me!" He pulled his leg away as he felt Jim take hold of his ankle.

"What? Without....Sandburg COME ON!" Ellison was getting angry, but he remembered to keep his voice down a harsh whisper. He tugged again on Blair's cuff. "Sandburg, I can't just leave you here. What if they come to check this area?" At a loss, Jim climbed back up onto the ledge and moved close to his partner. All his anger dissolved when he saw Blair's pale face, and felt the frightened tremors shaking the young man. "Chief?" he inquired gently, laying a supporting hand on the small of his Guide's back.

Blair just shook his head, eyes still closed. He half wished Jim would just take out his gun and shoot him at this point. God knew he would never live this one down. He could picture his partner gleefully telling the men at the station all about the little hippie that was afraid of heights. He'd never hear the end of it.

"Jim, please," he begged softly, not looking at the big man beside him. "Please, I'll be fine. Just go on without me, OK?" He tightened his grip on the banister as he felt Jim's arm slip around his shoulders, supporting him.

"You're afraid of heights, aren't you?" Ellison asked softly. He began to rub his hand slowly up and down Blair's back, comforting him.

The teaching fellow nodded, his face going red with shame. The detective would think he was such a coward, a big baby. "I'm sorry," Blair whispered again. This time, he opened his eyes and turned his head to glance at Jim. He had expected to see amusement or disgust. Instead, he saw eyes full of caring sympathy. As he watched, the sentinel patted him on the back once and climbed back down.

"All right, Sandburg," Jim murmured gently, "It's OK, I understand." He got his footing on the stairs below and glanced around, weighing his options. He knew he couldn't leave Blair behind when he went to save the reporters. He'd end up worrying about the kid, become distracted and probably get them all killed. Making a decision, he reached up and grabbed Blair's ankle.

"Jim, leggo!" Blair said sharply.

"Shhhh!" Ellison hissed, listening for the sound of approaching footsteps. There were none, and he breathed a sigh of relief. "Chief, I can't leave you here. I can't. Now just relax and let me help you, OK?"

"Jim...," Blair whined.

"OK?" Ellison repeated firmly. When his partner sighed and nodded, the sentinel seized his pants cuff and tugged down. "OK, now just sort of kneel down, and grab the lowest bar you can reach." The detective watched his Guide like a hawk, keeping hold on Blair's ankle as the young man did as he was told.

Blair closed his eyes as he slowly dropped into a crouch, letting his leg hang down, guided by Jim. He felt his foot touch the banister below, and gave a sigh of relief. It was good to have something solid to stand on. He walked his hands down the bars of the railing, like rungs on a ladder, until he was clutching the lowermost one with white knuckles. He stopped to rest.

"Chief?" Jim called quietly from below.

"I'm OK," Blair replied, glancing down to smile at his partner. He immediately regretted it when he saw the sharp edges of the stairs below. With a groan, the young man closed his eyes and clung to the railing, suddenly dizzy. He knew it was only a few feet down to the next flight, but to an acrophobe, it seemed like a few thousand.

Ellison heard his Guide's heart begin to race, and gently patted Blair's leg. "Easy, easy there," he soothed. "It's OK, you're fine. Just don't look down, all right?" The curly head bobbed faintly. Jim grinned, and stretched upward to grasp his friend's sleeve. As he pulled down, Sandburg gasped and tightened his grip on the railing again. "No, no, it's all right," the sentinel reassured, not releasing his hold. "I want you to slide sideways off the ledge now. I'll catch you."

"What?" Blair hissed in disbelief. "You want me to WHAT?"

"Let go, and slide off," Ellison answered, breathing a deep sigh of impatience. At this rate Wendy would die of old age before they got around to rescuing her. "OK, on three. Ready?"

"No!"

"One.... Two.... THREE!" Jim tugged with all his might just as Blair let go of the railing. With a startled gasp, the young anthropologist dropped off the ledge and safely into the larger man's arms. Ellison teetered for a moment from the impact, then quickly carried his friend down the rest of the flight. When they were on the ground again, he gently eased his Guide onto his feet, grinning at the way Sandburg continued to cling to him.

"There we go," Ellison said softly. "That wasn't so bad, was it?" He smiled at the look of venom that Blair shot him as the young man stepped back, letting go of the his neck. When he was sure the observer was steady, Jim released him and turned to head down the corridor. As the sentinel began to hunt his prey, his sensitive ears picked up the voice of the young man on his heels.

"This is for that Rich Little joke, isn't it?"

THE END