Here is a new story that I have been working on for a while now.

There are plenty of chapters so it will be updated regularly.

Enjoy.

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The Shifter

Summary: Bilbo Baggins is a shifter. The only shifter known to have the creature he can shift into. For this, he is hated in the Shire and wanted gone even though he protects the Shire with the help of the rangers. Gandalf needs a burglar and recruits Bilbo without telling the dwarves he is a shifter. What happens when they find out? Will they understand why he kept it secret or try and kill him?

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Chapter 1

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Bilbo watched as Gandalf spoke with Thorin in a ruined house as he helped Balin unsaddle one of the ponies. Bilbo looked around the area that they were in and couldn't help but feel worried. There was a smell there that wasn't pleasant, but he didn't know what it was. It made him worry for their safety. Bilbo watched as Gandalf stormed away from Thorin.

"Where are you going?"

"To seek the company of the only one around here who's got any sense."

"And who's that?"

"My self, Mister Baggins!" Gandalf shouted before mumbling to himself. "I've had enough of dwarves for one day."

Bilbo winced and looked to Balin with a worried look. Bilbo cast one last look at the forest beside them before helping with setting up camp.

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Bilbo was giving Fili and Kili their evening meal when they discovered that two of the ponies were missing. Bilbo followed after them when Fili pointed out a light and they headed in to take a closer look.

"What is it?"

"Trolls." Kili sneered.

They continued in closer till they saw the troll's camp and decided to send Bilbo in unarmed. Bilbo unfortunately got caught and tried to talk his way out when Kili came in and sliced at one of the troll's legs. Bilbo yelped when he was tossed at Kili and landed on him.

"Bilbo, hide in the trees. We'll deal with the trolls." Kili said as he climbed to his feet.

Bilbo shuffled back towards the trees and watched wondering what he should do. He knew he could help but it would mean exposing what he was, and he wasn't sure he really wanted to.

Bilbo saw Thorin was holding his own but when he looked to the others, Ori was held in one of the troll's grip and he growled low.

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Thorin saw Ori held in one of the troll's grip and hurried over to free him when a brown blur shot out from the trees and latched onto the troll's arm. Thorin stood in shock for a second seeing the brown Warg, lighter than normal, sinking its teeth into the troll's arm that held Ori, making it release him. Thorin turned his attention to the Warg who let go of the troll's arm when Ori was released and looked at Thorin before darting slightly towards him. Thorin held tight of his sword ready to kill the warg, when it lunged beside him at a troll coming up behind him.

Thorin turned and went after a troll deciding that if the warg wanted to kill the trolls than it could, and he would kill it later. Thorin a minute later heard a yelp and turned to see the warg knocked into a tree by a troll and coming to rest on the ground unmoving. Thorin turned to see Ori being held in the grip of two trolls and very frightened.

"Ori!" Dori said and went to move forwards.

"Don't!" Thorin said stopping him.

"Lay down your arms or we'll rip his off." One trolls said.

Thorin glared at them as he stabbed his sword into the ground. Everyone followed as they put their weapons down as the troll that didn't have hold of Ori started stripping the dwarves down and stuffing them into sacks. When they finished, one turned to the Warg that was still lying unconscious by the tree.

"What should we do with this one?"

"We could train it. Could come in handy."

"Let's tie him up so we can deal with him later."

One troll grabbed some chain and wrapped it around the Warg's neck before securing him to the tree. The trolls turned back to the dwarves and started up the fire and started placing the dwarves on a spit.

Thorin struggled and stopped when he saw movement and saw the warg had woken up. It was shaking its head before growling seeing the trolls and stood and tried to lunge at them. It made a short distance before falling back when the chain reached its length and it slammed back into the ground. The trolls laughed.

"You will be trained later. You'll make a good amount of gold if you don't behave. Now we'll give you left overs."

The warg growled before looking towards the dwarves in the sacks. He could see the hatred in their eyes especially Thorin's and whine low and shrunk down slightly. Thorin frowned seeing this and Kili looked closely and saw that there was recognition in the warg's eyes and they looked familiar, especially since they were blue.

"Bilbo?" Kili whispered and the warg whined slightly louder. "Thorin, I think that's Bilbo."

"Don't be ridiculous. That hobbit ran off like the ponies. That is just a blood thirsty warg." Thorin said causing the warg to growl and stare down at Thorin.

"I think you just upset him." Kili said and Thorin scoffed.

"When we get free from these trolls and they are dead, the warg is next." Thorin said, not believing that the warg was Bilbo.

Bilbo turned to the trolls and started whining loudly and hoping that they would let him off the chain. The more stupid one of the trolls turned and moved in closer but not close enough.

"I think he's going to behave. I'm going to let you off it you do." Bilbo whined louder and laid down with his ears back and down.

"Don't, he's playing us for fools." One said from next to the spit.

The troll moved in closer and reached down and unwrapped the chain when Bilbo launched himself into the air and took the troll down and started to bite at its neck and anywhere he could reach. The other trolls left the dwarves and grabbed Bilbo and forced him off the troll and pinned him to the ground. Bilbo snarled at them trying to get them off.

"He's too much trouble. Too smart for a warg. Let's skin him. He'll make a nice pelt."

"You can't." Kili yelled.

"Watch us."

The larger troll grabbed his knife from his belt and reached for the underneath of the warg where the soft fur was and started to carefully cut down, not too deeply to kill it, he was wanting to prolong the pain for the injuries it had done to them. Bilbo howled in pain.

"The dawn will take you all." A voice called out.

The trolls stopped what they were doing and looked up seeing a tall man on a rock. Gandalf slammed his staff into the rock and broke in half, letting the morning light come through. The trolls cried out and started trying to move away from the light and as they tried to, one swung its arm out and hit Bilbo, who was climbing to his feet to get away, and he was tossed straight into the tree behind him. Bilbo let out a howl of pain and laid collapsed at the base of the tree.

Bilbo whined and tried to stand up before falling over onto his side and looked down at his front and started to lick at the injuries. Gandalf released the dwarves and they hurried to grab their weapons and pointed them at Bilbo. Bilbo whined and shrunk down to make himself seem small and none threatening, wincing when his injuries rubbed against the ground.

"Enough of this. Bilbo isn't your enemy." Gandalf stated.

"That's not Bilbo." Dwalin said. "That's a warg."

"Dwalin, Bilbo is a shifter and his shift is a warg." Gandalf explained.

"Dwalin keep watch of him, Nori fix the chain back over his head. If you are Master Baggins, then you will not attack him." Thorin said.

Dwalin kept his axe close, ready to use. Nori grabbed the chain and Bilbo just whine as he placed it back around his neck but did nothing. Some of the company disappeared on Thorin's order to pack up camp quickly. Now with less dwarves there, Bilbo looked down at his front and slowly started to try and clean the wound, licking at the top of his chest and making his way down.

"Bilbo, stop that." Oin said as he watched Bilbo try and clean his wounds. "You'll just make it worse. I have Ori collecting my bag, I'll clean that up."

Thorin moved in closer sword still in hand and Bilbo watched him, his head on the ground. Thorin stood close enough to be able to kill Bilbo if he wanted to.

"You would have gone through the whole quest and not told us, wouldn't you?" Thorin asked and Bilbo nodded his head slightly.

"Thorin, he is injured. Bilbo, will you let me look at you?" Oin said coming up beside him.

"Brother no." Gloin said putting a hand on his shoulder to stop him only to be brushed off.

Oin reached up and removed the chain from Bilbo's neck, ignoring Thorin's order for it to remain. Bilbo whined before laying back further for his underneath to be seen. The dwarves gasped, one for the fact that he would leave himself open like that and two for the look of the injury. Bilbo flinched when Oin pulled the fur aside to look closer and he whined.

"Can you shift back? It might be less painful that way."

Bilbo looked among the company before looking to Gandalf who grabbed his scarf and held it to Bilbo. Bilbo grabbed it and laid it down over his body and shifted back and quickly moved it around, so he covered up his waist and below.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you. But you would have likely killed me before I could explain." Bilbo said and Thorin glared.

"If you betray us, I will kill you."

Bilbo nodded and gasped as Oin slapped ointment over the cut that went from the top of his chest down to his stomach. Bilbo looked around seeing Thorin talking to Gandalf now with his clothes back on and weapon in hand still. Bilbo looked up seeing Kili and Fili walking over very slowly looking guilty. Bilbo saw his pack in Kili's hand and his bed roll in Fili's.

"Thank you, Fili, Kili."

"Sorry for sending you in there by yourself Bilbo. If we didn't you wouldn't be hurt."

"Now that's not true. This happened after you all arrived. None of you would have been able to prevent this as you were all captured."

Bilbo winced as Oin helped him to his feet as he kept Gandalf's scarf around his bottom, took his pack from Kili and went into the bushes to dress. By the time Bilbo dressed he was exhausted and the injury was starting to take its toll.

"Come Bilbo, looks like we are looking for the troll hoard." Fili said.

Kili took Bilbo's pack back and they followed the company as they went looking for the cave. The company soon found the cave, and a few went down, and the others set up watch waiting for them to come back out. Oin was fretting over him and Bilbo was doing up the buttons on his shirt when the others came back out and Gandalf called him over.

"Here." Gandalf said handing him a sword, as Bilbo hesitated in taking it. "This is about your size."

"I can't take this."

"The blade is of elvish make which means it will glow blue when Orcs or Goblins are nearby."

"I have never used a sword in my life. And besides the elves will not like me using their weapons and I doubt the company want me any more armed than I already am."

"I hope you never have to use this but remember that true courage is about knowing not when to take a life but when to spare one. As for the elves, that will not be able to do anything as you found this in a troll hoard. As for the company, you are here at my request and I wish you to have something in case you need it."

"Something's coming!" Thorin shouted.

After this they meant up with Radagast the Brown and then were running from Orc's and Warg's over the country side. Bilbo was struggling to keep up and when they finally got surrounded Bilbo was near Kili when he looked around and saw an Orc moving through grass behind Thorin. Bilbo changed in mid lunge and sailed over Thorin's head who turned sharply to see Bilbo take out the Orc and then turn to look at him. Thorin gave a slight nod and Bilbo smiled and turned and growled at the approaching Warg's and Orc's.

"Why are you defending them?" One warg asked as it stalked in.

"Join us and feast on their flesh there is plenty to go around."

"Never!" Bilbo growled back and leapt at another and started to battle with it.

Bilbo yelped falling to the ground and rolled away when the warg went for his throat and leapt onto its back.

"Kili! Shoot them!"

Kili shot at the wargs and had turned hearing Bilbo's yelp and saw him just climbing on the back of the warg and quickly shot it with an arrow making it easier for Bilbo to kill. Bilbo turned and moved back to the middle of the group ready to get the next that gets in too close.

"This way, you fools." Gandalf yells and Bilbo saw him disappear down into a hidden hole.

"Come on, move!" Thorin said moving to stand by the entrance. "Quickly! All of you!"

Bilbo turned and saw that with Thorin's back turned a warg was stalking forward and Bilbo quickly jumped in between the two as that was the only angle he could work with and the warg latched onto his neck. Bilbo let out a howl of pain and Thorin spun around and Bilbo almost thought he was going to take them both out but Thorin severed the neck of the warg that had Bilbo. Bilbo shook the warg off slowly turned around to the face out.

"Kili! Run!"

Bilbo watched and waited till the last second before jumping in after Thorin and Kili, still as a warg. He needed to make sure they would all be out of the way as he came down or risk landing on any of them. Bilbo ended up rolling down the incline and tripped Kili over who landed on his neck making Bilbo whimper.

"Sorry Bilbo."

Everyone looked up hearing a horn sound up top and Bilbo stood and moved to the back as the dwarves all gathered near the front and Bilbo changed back as Kili handed him his pack and kept Bilbo from sight while he dressed.

"Thank you Kili." Bilbo said as Kili nodded and moved back beside Thorin.

"Elves." Thorin said with distaste at the arrow sticking out of an orc that had fallen in.

"I cannot see where the pathway leads. Do we follow it or no?" Dwalin called out from where he was in the tunnel.

"Follow it, of course." Bofur said.

"I think that would be wise." Gandalf said.

Bilbo followed along after them all towards the back of the group. He was tiring and his injuries were still bleeding but thankfully slowly. Bilbo watched from the back when they came out from the tunnel and saw where they were. Bilbo winced remember the what would happen if he ever returned.

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Hope you all liked it. Please review.