After getting Ashton settled in, Niles knew that he couldn't keep the faerie's transformation a secret anymore. So, he placed a call to the Board for the Wellness, Research, and Treatment of Faeries to let them know what had happened.

The head of the board, Dr. Jones, was shocked to learn that Ashton had become human. She insisted that Niles bring him into the office immediately for an emergency meeting. Niles explained the whole thing to Ashton, and though he looked uncomfortable, he agreed to go with him. So, the next morning, the two of them set off for the city to meet with the board.

Ashton was quiet in the elevator up to the meeting room, watching the different floor numbers light up as they passed each one. Niles couldn't help but feel nervous for him. Ashton had already met a couple board members before, and he had not been a fan.

At least his meetings with Dr. Jones had gone okay, though poor Ashton had been on the cusp of hyperventilating the whole time. Niles wondered how he would react to a whole room of humans scrutinizing him.

"They're not going to take me away from you, right?" Ashton asked suddenly.

Niles turned to him in surprise. That's what he was worried about? It was Deja vu to the first time he had taken Ashton to meet Dr. Jones. Though this time, Niles wasn't sure if he'd be able to keep Ashton with him.

"I don't know," he admitted. "I hope not."

Ashton bit his lip and nodded. Niles noticed that his hands shook a little as he stuffed them in his jacket pocket, and he felt conflicted.

Maybe I shouldn't have called the board, he thought to himself. Hasn't he been through enough already?

But then the elevator dinged, and the doors opened, and they were there. Niles tilted his head toward the elevator door. "Let's go," he said to a reluctant Ashton.

Dr. Jones herself was waiting for them right outside the meeting room.

"Hello, Ashton," she greeted him warmly. She looked up into his face, unable to contain her curiosity. "My, you're certainly... taller than the last time I saw you." She let out a good-natured chuckle, and Ashton smiled weakly in response.

"Here, come on in," she said, gesturing for them to enter the conference room. "We'd like to have a chat with both of you and then one on one."

Ashton blanched at that and whipped his head around to look at Niles. Niles put his hand on his arm to steady him and turned to Dr. Jones.

"Ah, sorry, Dr. Jones, but would it be alright if we stayed together, actually?"

"Oh?" Dr. Jones raised her eyebrows but nodded. "I suppose that should be alright."

She looked Ashton up and down again. Though the tall sprite was no longer a tiny, shaking waif, he was unnaturally still, his hazel eyes wary. Anyone could tell that he was nervous. Her eyes softened, probably remembering him during their first encounter.

"Don't worry, Ashton," she assured him. "I know you don't like meeting with humans, but none of us here want to hurt you."

"Or take me from Niles?" Ashton blurted out, and Dr. Jones laughed a little.

"We don't currently have any plans to do so," she said. "We just want to figure out what's going on and see what we should do moving forward."

Ashton didn't seem too convinced, but as Dr. Jones ushered them into the meeting room, he let Niles tug him along. 

The whole board was waiting inside, seven scientists turning to stare at Niles and Ashton as they walked in.

Niles was well acquainted with each of the board members, having worked with them as a teenager during the early days of faerie discovery. And once he had completed his own studies, he had formally joined them, making him the youngest and newest member.

But despite his age, he still had the most experience with faeries out of all of them, and he knew the board all respected his judgment as both a doctor and a faerie expert. 

Niles just hoped his good standing would be enough to protect Ashton and keep the faerie-turned-human with him.

Dr. Jones took a seat in the middle of the conference table, gesturing for Ashton and Niles to have a seat opposite.

"Ashton, Dr. Howton, it's wonderful to see you both," she began. "Before we get started, I just want to clarify that the purposes of this meeting are to have Ashton explain how and why he changed sizes and to allow Dr. Howton to share his own medical findings regarding this shift. We are here to collect information for the ELCoF so that they can be made aware of the situation and make a decision moving forward."

She looked around the room. "We are not here to make any legal decisions on our own. Does everyone understand?"

The board all nodded in assent, and Dr. Jones continued. "Just to refresh everyone's memory, Ashton was a patient of Dr. Howton's nearly four years ago. Dr. Howton treated him for a wing amputation for ten months before Ashton returned to his clan."

She gestured to Ashton. "Perhaps you can fill in the gaps for us," she suggested. "What happened since you left Dr. Howton's, and how and why are you here like this now?"

Ashton still looked nervous, but he began his tale, repeating the same story he had shared with Niles. Niles looked at him the whole time, nodding encouragingly whenever Ashton glanced at him for support.

When he was finished, the whole room was silent, trying to digest the information. Finally, Dr. Jones spoke up.

"This is unprecedented," she sighed. "A faerie turned human or rather... almost human." She looked at Ashton. "And why have you chosen to become human?"

"After everything that happened, it was hard to go back to my old life," Ashton explained. "I tried for over three years, but nothing clicked until I was offered the chance to become human. That was the only thing that felt right."

Dr. Jones looked confused. "And what do you hope to accomplish as a human?"

Ashton glanced at Niles before turning back to the panel. "I'm still figuring that out," he said, and Niles blinked. Had he imagined the longing look that flashed in Ashton's eyes just now?

"Alright, thank you, Ashton," Dr. Jones said. She turned to Niles next, and he straightened up. "Dr. Howton," she began. "I went over your preliminary notes about Ashton and his most recent physical since returning to you. Can you please walk us through your findings?"

Niles nodded. "Of course."

He gestured to the papers on the table, where Dr. Jones had printed out his report.

"As you can see from my report, it appears that this change only affected Ashton's size, magical properties, and the rate at which he ages. Otherwise, he retained the physical attributes of a water sprite, including his gills, teeth, and talons."

"He's rather on the large scale even for a human, wouldn't you say?" one doctor interrupted. "Your notes say he is..." she looked down at the paper, and her eyes widened. "6'5"?"

"Well, yes," Niles explained. "Ashton is half water sprite. As the largest faerie subspecies, it makes sense that his size would translate over into being human."

"Half water sprite?" the doctor repeated. "And half what?"

"Woodlands," Ashton answered, before Niles could say anything. "On my mother's side."

Niles nodded. "Aside from those sprite characteristics, the only inhuman thing besides his fae anatomy is his strength and endurance."

Dr. Jones leaned forward, looking curious. "Please expound on that, doctor."

"As you know, faeries don't have the same size to strength ratio that humans have," Niles began, remembering Ashton in the gym just a few days before. "They are able lift objects that would be impossible for humans to carry at the same size, and their bodies are more durable in general. Ashton still has those fae characteristics."

A different scientist looked confused. "The only differences he has from humans are physical differences?" he asked. "What about his magic?"

Niles was a little annoyed that he hadn't been paying attention when Ashton had explained how he lost his magic.

"Ashton doesn't have any magic," Niles corrected. "As he said, he gave it up to become human. His clan's stored magic wasn't enough. He's completely stripped of even his magical charge."

A few scientists looked skeptical, so Niles continued. "The science supports this," he added. "I sequenced his genome, and he lacks the marker for magic retention and transference. In terms of magic, he really is no longer a magical species."

"Did he even have magic before?" the same scientist asked. "Since he's half water sprite?"

Ashton nodded, but he didn't say anything.

Niles quickly explained. "From his woodlands side," he said. "He could store magic in his wings."

He neglected to mention that Ashton was able to access magic even after his wings were gone, relying on a closely guarded water sprite technique. It was information that would help the scientific community better understand the reclusive water sprites, but Niles had promised Ashton and Svernin that he wouldn't publish those findings.

The board all nodded, a few members rifling through Niles' report, a few others staring at Ashton with open fascination. Niles looked at Ashton, worried that the faerie might be uncomfortable with so much human attention. And while Ashton was pale and clearly digging the nails of one hand into his palm, he wasn't shaking.

Niles winced a little as he stared at Ashton's hand. He had accidentally been on the receiving end of Ashton's talons before, and he hoped Ashton wasn't pressing hard enough to draw blood this time.

Dr. Bruning, who had been silent throughout the meeting, spoke up. "So, that's all well and good that your patient is doing better, Dr. Howton, but you're... what, just planning to integrate this faerie into human society? Just because he wants to? Seems irresponsible to me."

Niles bristled a little. He saw Ashton flinch a little and instinctively reached for him, resting his hand on the faerie's shoulder briefly.

Damn it, Dr. Bruning, Niles thought. He was doing so well before you said anything.

Niles had been hoping that Dr. Bruning would remain silent the whole meeting, since Ashton had once been terrified of the human scientist. But Dr. Bruning was a frank man, so Niles really should have expected this.

"That is the idea," Niles said. "He can no longer live among faeries like this. His only option is to live as a human now."

Dr. Bruning, of course, had an opinion on that. "Well, that doesn't seem very safe. Having a 6'5" water sprite with inhuman strength and the teeth and claws of a wild animal rove amongst humans, as if he was one."

"Ashton is not dangerous," Niles insisted, trying not to let his temper show as he ignored the animal part of Dr. Bruning's remarks. "I was his personal doctor for ten months. I can attest to his character and peaceful nature."

"That may be so, but that was, what, four years ago, was it not?" Dr. Bruning countered. "And he was the size of your average water sprite back then. Hardly a threat."

"What threat?" Niles demanded. "Look at him! He's harmless!"

Ashton nodded earnestly. All the scientists just stared back at him.

Another scientist spoke up. "I agree with Dr. Bruning. This changes things. If faeries can become human, what does this mean for us?"

"It might not mean anything," Niles protested. "I think this is an isolated case. According to Ashton, it took over three years and more than 80 woodlands faeries to harvest and store enough magical energy to turn him into a human. And even then, he had to sacrifice his own innate magical essence and half of his lifespan. It seems like most faeries have neither the magical means nor the desire to change species as Ashton has done."

"Can he even be classified as a human, though?" someone else pointed out as they stared at Niles' report. "His genes look more like a chimera's than anything else."

"I don't know," another person said. "Is he human because he lacks magic, is the same size as us, and has the same lifespan? Or is he faerie because he has faerie strength and physical traits?"

Dr. Jones swiftly interrupted before things could escalate.

"Remember, we are not here to make any final decisions regarding any legal classifications right now," she reminded everyone. "We are just here for, well, the wellness, research, and treatment of faeries. And though Ashton appears to be mostly human now, I think he retains enough faerie traits to fall under our care."

She turned to Niles, and he caught his breath. She just smiled warmly at him.

"Dr. Howton, as you are a leading scientist studying faeries and are already well-acquainted with Ashton, we'll put you in charge of this case. If Ashton has chosen to become human through magical means, then we will have you monitor him as we pass on your findings to the ELCoF."

Niles let out the breath he had been holding in relief. Ashton whipped his head around to look at him, hazel eyes lighting up hopefully. Niles smiled back at him.

"Can Ashton accompany me on errands or to the clinic and university?" Niles asked. "I'd hate to keep him on house arrest until we get a ruling from the ELCoF."

"That video of his has already made the rounds, unfortunately," Dr. Jones began. "People are wondering what he is. The ELCoF will make a decision quickly, don't worry. For now, keep him in your home. Expect a call from the ELCoF in a few days and a formal ruling a week after that."

Niles nodded, and Dr. Jones closed out the meeting and dismissed them. Once alone with Niles in the elevator, Ashton sagged against the wall.

"I thought they were going to take me from you," he breathed out. "That was terrifying."

Niles laughed, giddy with relief. "Even if they had wanted to," he said, "I wouldn't have let them."

Ashton looked at him with shining eyes, and suddenly, Niles felt himself swept up into a fierce hug, Ashton's long arms crushing Niles against him.

Niles stumbled a bit at the sudden weight draped over him, but he just smiled and hugged the faerie back, feeling Ashton's heart beat against his own chest.

Thank goodness, Niles thought, surprised by how relieved he felt. Thank goodness I get to keep him. 

_____________________________________________________________

A/N: This meeting had the same energy as five-year-old Niles asking his parents if he could keep the stray dog he found on the street. They made him share a PowerPoint presentation to convince them. They still said no. 

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