Little Spiders in the Woods by LadyBrooke

Chapter 1

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“They are coming ever closer to our villages, Father.” Nurwë stood near him, clasping her spear in one hand and reaching down to pet her wolf’s head as she spoke. “They grow bolder.”

“The Valar have let him go free again, and his followers seek to return to him.” Morwë stepped forward, plucking his arrows from the orcs’ bodies and wiping them clean on the grass. “You knew this day would come.”

She snorted. “I knew it would come, but I thought the Valar would have the sense to keep him locked up for longer than it took Denethor to decide to roam west and send little word back for Lenwë to hear.”

He shook his head. “You mean, send little word back for you. You’ve never been good with being left behind.”

“Can you blame me? My brother decides to disappear off on a fool’s journey to Valinor, along with half our people, and we never hear from him again. Forgive me for being doubtful when elves disappear into the West that they’ll manage to send word back,” she said.

“The Valar likely forbid them from contacting anyone,” he said. “And your brother wouldn’t have argued with them about that. He believed in them far more than you, your sisters, or I ever would have.” He moved to the next orc, carefully removing an arrowhead from it and discarding the broken shaft.

“Those that forbid contact deserve no trust. The Dark One captures us and keeps us from fleeing, I would not trust his brother to know any better.” She knelt down and began to pull arrows from the orcs as well. “You know, if you used a spear, we wouldn’t have to do this every time we run into orcs.”

“But if I used a spear, you would no longer be able to claim to be the best at using one,” her father answered, laughing when she threw a stick towards him.

“I will always be better than you with a spear.” She dumped a collection of arrows next to him. “Perhaps it is better you stick with a bow. We wouldn’t want you to have to get close to them and let them knock down your confidence.”

He started to reply, and then glanced at where Nurwë’s wolf had bared his fangs towards the forest. Nurwë tensed next to him, shifting to grab her spear and taking a defensive stance.

Morwë grabbed an arrow from the pile, releasing it almost as soon as it had touched his bow.

Nothing appeared from the woods, and Nurwë looked towards where the faint glow on the horizon normally was.

It was gone, and the spiders were appearing from the woods.

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Chapter End Notes

Aka, what Finwë's family was doing while he was being murdered and the trees destroyed. 

Most of the characters we have gender for in the books whose names end with -wë are male. Elenwë is an exception. I've chosen to interpret that as an ending for leaders, which Nurwë definitely is, even if scholars in Valinor among the Noldor  assume she's male because of that fact.

(This relates to a great deal of underlying politics where the Vanyar and Noldor allow inheritence only along the male line, but the others are more accepting of inheritence along the female line - see Dior inheriting in Doriath. It gets more boring and adminstrative from there, but does explain in my stories why Earwen and Finarfin lived with the Teleri, aside from the troubles with the Noldor. Elenwë is just an odd ball out in terms of not being in a line of succession and I don't have any proof in universe for my logic about her name, though I do have some internally.)