He had been turned into a young black bear cub! Thomas shook himself and explored his body with nose and tongue. Everything smelled and tasted real. He realized with a start that he had examined himself the way a bear would. It seemed perfectly normal, at least until he thought about it. The fae were still flitting about, not as many as before. The voice in his had said "You are part of the forest now. We will make sure you are taken care of."
Thomas grunted and looked back towards the camp. He couldn't go back like this! He wasn't human anymore! Fear started to break through the wonder that he had felt at his transformation. He was an animal, a baby animal at that! How could he survive out here alone?
A loud grunt and animal call made him turn away from the camp and stare into the dark trees beyond the pool. There was a glow there, getting closer, and something dark moving under it. There was another call, the sound triggering a sudden relief that he did not quite understand. Thomas answered with a call of his own, and started running towards the shape. As he got close, he realized it was a huge brown bear. A female. She caught him up and hugged him close, snuffling his fur. As the fae swarmed around them both, Thomas knew this was his mother. That was strange, because he still remembered his real, human mother. But as he burrowed into the warm fur of this animal, there was no doubt, no question in his mind, and he was sure she felt the same intense bond. She pulled him up against her chest, and he found one of her thick teats and started to nurse.