It was an unusual call with an unusual request. Well, the request itself wasn't so far-fetched. Niles accepted in-home patients all the time. No, what made the call unusual was the caller and the patient.

"Hi, Niles," came the voice on the other line. "Been a while, hasn't it?"

"James?" Niles asked incredulously. "Is that you?"

The man let out a low chuckle that crackled like static over the phone. "The one and only."

Niles couldn't help but grin. He hadn't seen his rival in a couple of years, not since they had both completed residency.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" he asked.

"I have a referral for you," came the surprising answer.

"A referral?" Niles repeated. "Don't you live up in Scarletville?"

"I do," James replied, "and normally I would refer a patient to a closer doctor, but well..." his voice trailed off, and he gave an embarrassed little cough. "I think you're the only one I can trust with this case."

Niles leaned back in his desk chair, a satisfied smile spreading across his face.

"Wipe that smirk off your face," James groused.

Niles laughed and twirled the pen in his hand. "How did you know?"

"I've known you all throughout undergrad, med school, and residency, you idiot. I know how stupidly pleased you would be at a referral from the great James McPherson."

"Yes, yes, you've caught me," Niles said. He tugged a memo pad towards him and pressed the pen tip to the paper. "Alright, so what've you got for me?"

It was silent on the other end of the line. For a moment, Niles wondered if the call had dropped. "James?" he asked. "Are you still there?"

"Ah, yes, sorry," James said. He sighed. "Sorry, it's just... it's not a pleasant case."

Niles sat up straighter at the sudden shift in James' tone. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I don't know if you've seen it, but it's all over the news here. Really gruesome tale, to be honest."

Niles furrowed his brows. "James, what are you talking about?"

"It's a recent case involving a human and a kidnapped faerie. Local authorities caught the man with the faerie a few hours over from me. The faerie was... in pretty bad shape. Based on the captor's records, they estimate he had been imprisoned for five months before he was found."

"Is this... is this the case that I think it is?" Niles asked softly. "They put you in charge of it?"

"Yes," James affirmed. Niles could only remember two other occasions on which James had sounded so grave.

Niles pulled off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. He knew exactly what James was talking about. It had taken place about a month ago. He had been working overtime at the clinic, with just a lukewarm cup of coffee and the soft buzz from the television to keep him company.

When the news story had popped up, Niles had been so shocked that he dropped his mug, spilling coffee all over a stack of papers. He then spent the rest of the night copying over the ruined sheets and trying to shake the horrific images from his head. 

The TV anchor hadn't actually shown images of the mutilated faerie, as those would have been too graphic for a televised news story. But the description of the faerie's condition had been clear enough. And it had left Niles wondering how any human could have done something so monstrous, especially with all the laws protecting fae since their discovery nearly twenty years ago and subsequent labeling as a protected species.

"How on earth did you get put in charge of such a big case?" Niles asked.

"Ouch," James said, a bit of his old humor returning. "Need I remind you that I was the only one in med school who could match your grades?"

"Yes, you're very smart," Niles assured him, rolling his eyes. "Now, the case?"

"Right. The case. Well, after the faerie's emergency treatments and surgeries, they released him to me for rehabilitation and outpatient care. I've had him for a couple of days, but I've recently been hired on as an adjunct faculty at Charolette University. His condition requires constant attention, and I can't do both. So, I thought of you. I know you work mostly at the clinic, but you also take on special cases, right? I've talked to Dr. Jones on your research team, and she recommended you. Said you could take time off from the clinic to work on this case."

Niles bit his lip. While it was true that he did a lot of one-on-one rehab work outside of the government-sponsored faerie clinic, a case like this sounded out of his depth. His residency had been in emergency medicine for faeries, but he later discovered his passion for helping patients after the crisis was over, leading him to go back to school for a degree in physical therapy. 

He now worked at the nearby faerie clinic, doing a combination of general, emergency, and therapy treatments. So, while he was well-equipped to help this patient rehabilitate his broken body, there was no way he would be able to tackle the complex mental and emotional trauma that this faerie's imprisonment had surely inflicted on him.

But even a lack of confidence in that field couldn't stop him from asking for more information.

"Alright, let's say that I can take him. What exactly would I be working with if I did?"

James cleared his throat, and Niles heard the rustling of papers. "The faerie's name is Ashton. He's still quite young, probably early or mid-twenties in human years, so I don't think he's undergone the geant yet. Seems to be a hybrid— part woodlands, part water sprite from the looks of it."

"Oh," Niles interrupted. "That's an unusual combination." Humans knew of three main faerie subspecies: woodlands faeries, water sprites, and pixies, with the last grouping split further into meadow and garden pixies. 

Faeries rarely formed relationships with those outside their own group, mainly because they lived in different ecosystems. Pixies and woodlands were known to marry occasionally, but Niles had never met a faerie who was a mixed sprite.

"I know," James agreed. "He has the gills, teeth, talons, and height of a water sprite, but the coloring of a woodlands. Plus, he has... or rather had... wings."

"Hmm, how odd," Niles mused. "And his injuries? What are they, and what would I have to do to treat them?"

"Well, his wings are gone, for starters. They weren't removed very well, so a surgical team had to go back in and clean up the stumps and scarring once he was stable enough to handle the surgery. The amputation site is healing slowly, unfortunately. You'll have to change the dressing on the surgical site twice a day until he can get his stitches out."

"And then there are the compression bandages. Those need to be readjusted every four hours so that they apply consistent pressure to his remaining flight muscles. If he'll sit still long enough for you, you should also massage the surgical site when you adjust the compression bandages. That will hopefully help with phantom pain and scar mobilization."

James paused to take a breath, and Niles hurried to jot down the notes, feeling horrified that there was more.

"His left leg is also broken. It's been set in a cast, and he's due for a checkup in four weeks. Couple of cracked ribs, but those are old injuries, so they're mostly healed, and a dislocated shoulder that we think he managed to pop back into place. He has various other bruising, scarring, and even some burn marks, so you'll just have to handle him carefully until those are healed up." 

"And finally, he's severely underweight. He's practically skin and bones. The hospital had him for a month before handing him off to me, so the biggest danger with refeeding has mostly passed. I've already drafted a nutrition plan that you can follow, but you can tweak it, of course. He doesn't eat much, but he'll pick at both sprite and woodlands food if you leave him alone with it. I can't tell which he prefers."

This is a long list, Niles thought, staring at his notes. "How on earth is this faerie even still alive? Those injuries sound far too extensive for him to have survived."

"I have no idea," James answered. "He was found in a semi-hibernate state, so maybe that's how he could survive without food for so long. But these last five months have really taken a toll on him. He's healing rather slowly, even by human standards. We think it's because the magic stored up in his wings is gone. I'm sure the poor guy is having a hard time adjusting without any magic in his system."

It was a long shot, but Niles had to ask. "Are there no magic donors that can perform a healing spell to speed up the recovery process? Or transfer magic directly to him, even without his wings as a conduit?"

"Sadly, no," James said. "He's not compatible with anyone because he's a hybrid. It'd have to come from a member of his own family for it to work. And since water sprites don't have magic, it would have to come from a woodlands relative. Ashton has an intact clan crest, so we know that he's got a settlement somewhere, but he won't breathe a word about his clan or where we can take him. And his injuries are so extensive that we can't really hand him off to a known clan to nurse him back to health. So, that's why we're caring for him instead of taking him home."

"I see," Niles mused, jotting down James' comments. "Is he interacting with you at all? How's he doing with all this?"

"That's the hard part about this patient," James sighed. "It's like he's completely given up. There's no hostility; not even a lot of fear, strangely enough. Hasn't said a word aside from his name. He's very obedient— for most things. He'll eat if you tell him to, and he uses the washroom on his own, but otherwise he prefers to lay in total silence. And he absolutely hates being touched. Not that I can blame him for that."

Niles didn't say anything, mulling it over. This wasn't the type of case that he could say yes to lightly. A patient like Ashton would need a very consistent presence and care routine. Predictability. Stability. He definitely couldn't be passed around to other caregivers. Niles probably wouldn't be able to go into the clinic or take on other patients for the time being.

"Look, I called you because I knew you'd be his best chance," James explained quietly. Niles blinked back into focus. "No one knows fae better than you do, after all. But it's a big decision. So, call me tomorrow with your answer, ok? I'll send you the more detailed case file this afternoon."

"Alright," Niles agreed. They exchanged goodbyes and hung up. Niles put his phone down and leaned back in his desk chair with a sigh. Reaching up, he absentmindedly pulled his hair tie out and raked his fingers through the dark strands of hair that fell loose around his chin. 

He recalled the news story he had seen a few weeks ago, remembered the sick feeling in his stomach that someone could have been so cruel. And the fact that the faerie was still holding on a month later despite those injuries... No, he didn't think he needed until tomorrow to make this decision. If he could do anything to help this faerie, he would.

***

James arrived in the evening two days later with a cat carrier and bag in tow but no faerie in sight.

"Niles!" James greeted him with a big smile, his brown hair grayer at the temples than Niles remembered it.

"James!" Niles took his offered hand and shook it heartily. "It's been a while."

"It certainly has been," James agreed. Niles ushered him inside and led him down the hall and into his home office.

James put the cat carrier on the desk and took the seat Niles offered him. "Nice office," he commented, looking around. Niles looked around, too. He had modified it to be a miniature clinic of sorts. His desk doubled as an examination table, and he had a sink in the corner if he needed to wash his hands quickly to treat a patient. The large window by his desk overlooked his backyard garden and the wooded area beyond that, where most of his patients came from.

Niles pointed at the plastic carrier. "Is... is Ashton in there?" he asked hesitantly.

James raised an eyebrow. "You didn't think it was a cat, did you?"

"Well, no," Niles said, shrugging. "But why do you have him in a cat carrier?"

James shook his head ruefully. "He won't come out," he explained. "The hospital didn't have any proper fae transport carriers, so one of the nurses offered this. Ashton won't move on his own, and I feel bad trying to force him into a new environment when he seems so used to this." He reached out and quietly undid the latch to the carrier, swinging the door open for Niles. "See for yourself."

Niles ducked his head to peer into the dark space. He had to squint, but he could just make out a small shape in the tangle of blankets at the back of the carrier. "Is he asleep?" he wondered. James shrugged. "Hard to tell. He's practically comatose even when he's awake."

Niles started to frown at his crude choice of words until James pulled him aside and lowered his voice. "Niles... I've never seen anything like this. He's... really in a bad way. Completely unresponsive to everything around him. All he does is lay there. He won't talk, he barely eats. The only time he reacts is when you change his bandages."

Niles was almost too afraid to ask. "What happens when you change his bandages?"

James closed his eyes. "It's not pretty," he sighed. "He cries as soon as you touch him. He won't leave the carrier unless you pull him out yourself. It's... awful. We both hate it."

Niles stared at James. "Wait, why are you pulling him out of the carrier?" he asked. It was faerie treatment 101— you didn't touch faeries without permission, and you especially didn't pick them up if they didn't want you to.

James groaned. "The first time I had to change his bandages, I told him that morning. I said, 'hey, after lunch today, we'll have to change your bandages so that your wounds can heal properly.' Easy, right? Well, five minutes later, I bring him breakfast, and instead of being bundled in his blankets like usual, he's cowering in the corner of the carrier, looking absolutely terrified."

James sighed again. "It all went downhill from there. I tried to talk to him, calm him down, told him we could wait until after dinner so that he had more time to get used to the idea. But that just made things worse. He spent the whole day frozen in the corner of his carrier. He didn't eat, he didn't move. He wouldn't come out that night, so I told him we could wait until the next morning."

"And?" Niles asked. He turned to look at the cat carrier, starting to feel concerned. James hadn't mentioned this when they had talked on the phone.

James shook his head. "He was still shaking in the corner when I woke up. I don't think he slept a wink; he was that worked up. I couldn't let him spend another day and night like that, so I just picked him up and changed out the bandages. He collapsed and passed out as soon as the whole ordeal was over."

Niles stared at him, aghast, and James hurried to continue.

"I know, I know, you hate manhandling patients. I wouldn't suggest this if there was another way, but the bandages have to be changed. And if you don't get it over with right away, it just prolongs his fear and anxiety. The best thing to do is take him out, get him cleaned and bandaged, and put him back."

Niles stared at the cat carrier worriedly. "James, I really don't think I can do that."

"Well, try it your way first, then," James suggested, shrugging. He leaned back in his chair. "Who knows? Maybe your charm as the fae whisperer will work on him, and he'll come out on his own, no manhandling required."

Niles nudged James with his elbow. "Yeah, right. I'll see how it goes first, I guess."

James grinned. "Where's Lucy, by the way?" he asked. "I bet she could help Ashton adjust."

"Quarterly ELCoF conference," Niles explained. "She went with Will. They left a few days ago and should be back in a couple of weeks."

"Ah. Let's hope they draft some helpful laws for once," James said.

"They'll probably bring up Ashton's case," Niles said softly, and James nodded.

"I'm sure they will. It shocked everyone, honestly. Most people still haven't seen a faerie, let alone interacted with one. So, we surprisingly haven't really had situations like Ashton's come to light. It'll be interesting to see what comes of this whole thing."

Niles was silent for a moment until James cleared his throat and continued. "Anyway, let me show you what I have for him."

James reached down and put the bag he had been carrying on the desk next to the carrier. He unpacked it and walked Niles through everything, from the medicines, bandaging tools, nutrition plan, upcoming appointments, and doctors' phone numbers. Niles rifled through James' notes silently as James talked. 

He had already familiarized himself with the case file that James had sent over, reading and rereading it over the last two days. It really was a bleak case. He glanced over at the shadowy opening of the carrier, wondering what kind of faerie Ashton was to have been able to survive torture for that long.

James finally placed the last vial of medicine on the desk. "I think that's about it," he said. "Do you have any questions for me?"

Niles shook his head. "I can always call you if I do," he assured him.

"Good, good," James stood up and tapped the side of the cat carrier.

"Ashton," he called softly. "This is Dr. Niles Howton. He'll be taking care of you from now on. I'll call tomorrow to check in on you and make sure you're adjusting well, ok?"

There was no sound or sign of acknowledgement from the carrier, so James just nodded at Niles and pulled his car keys from his pocket. "Well, I'd better get going," he said. Niles looked out the window and saw that the sun was setting. "Ah, are you sure you want to drive back in the dark?" he asked. "You can just stay the night if you want."

James shook his head. "Thanks, but I'll be fine. It's just a two-hour drive, and I have a meeting in the morning."

Niles nodded and walked him to the door. "He probably won't say anything or even acknowledge you for a while," James reminded Niles on his way out. "Hopefully, he'll snap out of it, so keep me posted. I readjusted his compression bandages and made sure he ate before we came in, so you won't have to worry about that until tomorrow morning. He has both food and water in there in case he gets hungry, too." And then he was gone.

***

Niles hovered around the carrier all evening. He tried to tell himself that he only did so because James had placed the carrier in his home office, and he needed to get some work done, but the truth was, he just didn't know what to do with himself. He wanted to meet Ashton properly, but it seemed like his presence in the room was the very thing that made Ashton keep hiding in the carrier.

Niles couldn't help but peek inside the carrier every ten minutes. Just to make sure Ashton doesn't need anything, he told himself. Each time, all he could make out was a small lump in the blankets. Niles was starting to doubt anyone was even in the carrier and that James was just pulling his leg. That is, until a little after 9 pm, when he checked on Ashton again and saw that the faerie had turned over and was now facing the opening of the carrier.

Only his face was visible, as he had completely wrapped himself up in the blankets James had placed in there. And James had been right. His coloring was that of a woodlands faerie, but his features certainly weren't. They were the harsh, angular cuts of a water sprite rather than the soft, open curves of a woodlands. Niles couldn't see his teeth, but he assumed they were pointed, like the teeth of all water sprites. In fact, if it hadn't been for the soft, woodsy coloring of his eyes, hair, and skin, Niles would never have guessed that Ashton was anything but 100% water sprite.

He was a very striking-looking faerie, but his most unsettling features were his eyes. Ashton's eyes were the pretty hazel color that was common to most woodlands, but they looked absolutely dead, sunken into his face and glazed over. Niles had never seen such eyes before. They were empty of everything- hope, hostility, curiosity, fear, despair. Nothing behind them.

Niles swallowed but nodded at Ashton. The faerie didn't so much as blink. "Hi, Ashton," Niles greeted him. "My name is Niles. I'll be taking care of you from now on."

Ashton stared right past him. Does he even hear me? Niles wondered. He pressed on. "Anyway, the washroom is set up next to your carrier. If you need anything or have any questions, I'll always be nearby, so don't be afraid to get my attention."

Ashton's dead-eyed stare was starting to concern Niles, but James had said that unresponsiveness was Ashton's norm.

"I'll be in and out of the room," Niles finished lamely. "But here." He placed a small button near the mouth of the cat carrier. "Press this if you need me when I'm not around. It links to my watch, so I'll come back right away. And I'll come back to get you when it's time for bed."

And with that, Niles finally left, lost in thought and shaking his head at the jarring interaction. No matter what he did, he just couldn't get the image of Ashton's empty eyes out of his head. No living being had eyes like that. Just what was he supposed to do now?

***

The human was hovering, and Ashton knew it. Maybe if I just ignore him, he'll go away, he thought. 

He pulled his blanket up over his head and stared at the beige wall of the carrier unhappily. He still didn't know what day it was or where he had been taken. No one ever thought to tell him. When he had first been found and taken to that human hospital, it had been loud and chaotic, a whole flurry of humans spinning around him, saying a bunch of things he didn't understand and poking his arm with something sharp.

He didn't really know what happened after that, only that he hovered in and out of consciousness, a sharp prickly feeling in his arm, and strange hands relentlessly pushing bites of food into his mouth whenever he was awake enough to swallow.

The next thing he knew, he was waking up in a different room with suffocating bandages wrapped around his chest and a heavy cast on his leg. There were a couple human police officers there as well. They tried to talk with him about his condition and ask him what happened, but he didn't know what to tell them. So, he didn't say anything. His voice had dried up ages ago, anyway. Words were absolutely meaningless. No matter what you said, or how much you begged, humans did whatever they wanted to you anyway.

Ashton pressed the heels of his palms into his eyes. Sleep, let's just sleep, he thought. Maybe this time, I won't hear his voice or feel his fingers on my skin. He shuddered and rolled over. A tear slipped out, then another one, and he bit down on his knuckle to keep from crying out and alerting this new human doctor.

____________________________________________________________________

A/N: Hello, hi, welcome to my first published story! If you made it this far, congratulations. It's a gentle, slow-paced story where the main plot is focused on the healing of one character. There's some angst but plenty of fluff, and I think the relationships build up naturally. If you want a chill comfort read, give it a shot! 

Thanks for reading! Feel free to interact or leave any questions or comments if you want. See you in the next chapter!