Growling softly as she faced the Pale Orc, Faline held her sword in front of her protectively. Her gaze flickered to the man quickly, relief flooding her veins as she saw him standing tall next to her. "You shall not have us, monster." Those were the last words she spoke before slashing her sword and losing herself in the battle. Suddenly the Pale Orc came running at her, a vicious snarl on his face. She didn't have enough time to raise her sword to defend herself as his mace came swinging at her face.

"No!" Faline screamed, sitting up ramrod straight. Looking around, she realized that it was just another nightmare. She was with the Company and she was safe. They had escaped the thunder battle that was happening outside by taking shelter in a cave. They had settled down to sleep and Bofur was the only person awake. "Sorry, bad dream." The Dwarf nodded and smiled slightly before running his eyes over the rest of the Company to make sure none of them had woken up. They didn't like this woman though neither Bofur nor Bilbo could figure out why.

Rolling back onto her side, Faline sighed softly and thought over her "adventure" so far. She was only here because she owed the Wizard a favor. This company of Dwarves had treated her horribly since she had joined them. Half of them treated her like she was a fragile piece of glass while the others treated her as if she were dirt. She couldn't understand why. It wasn't like she hadn't helped at all; she also hadn't told them her secret. They had no reason to fear her or her safety.

Faline knew what they would do if they knew her secret. They would hate her even more. Shape changer, that is what they called people like her. Though her kind were very similar to skin changers, Faline could change into any animal she needed; any bird, fish, or mammal that was known to her. It was very helpful as she stayed in her own mind as she did so. Most people feared her and what she could do. While the shape changers knew what they were doing in their animal forms, they were always close to shifting when human. This made them more ferocious and wary to the other races in Middle Earth. Others, the more sadistic ones, would kill her people and keep a body part as a prize. Once killed, their bodies would go through an intense shifting trying to protect itself. They would change into every animal they had ever been and would continue to do so for many many years after their death. Some found it entertaining. Faline had avoided changing while she had been with the Company. Only Gandalf knew what she was and they both knew it was a good idea to keep it a secret.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Faline tried to go back to sleep and avoid the nightmares. Azog the Defiler had killed her entire family and kept their hands as prizes. He wanted to find her and complete his collection but she had done a wonderful job of avoiding him. He still haunted her dreams and kept her awake at night though. Her musing was interrupted by the sound of Bilbo talking to Bofur about leaving to go back home. Faline felt the guilt rush through her. She could have been more kind to him, said more encouraging things. "You couldn't have stopped that idiot king's words to him" the small voice in her head chimed in. She was about to sit up to confront the hobbit when she heard the sound of gears moving and her eyes snapped open. "Wake up. Wake up!" Thorin calls out before the floor suddenly drops from beneath them. The Dwarves and Bilbo fall into the hole in the floor and no one notices the small, yellow canary now flying around the empty cave.

A.N. Any reviews would be appreciated! Please and thank you :)