There were only two ways she knew of to stop a spider from attacking a village of elves. The first was to kill the spider. The second was to discover why it was attacking in the first place, and stop the reason.
She was trying both.
She knew the woods well, a mental map poured into her blood over thousands of years, which told her where she could find the prey she sought. She could tell where her spiders were as well, more strongly, but she sought out the black spiders, hiding herself in the trees with her cloak, grateful their eyes were not as good as hers as she slipped among them.
She lifted her hand to fell the first one she came across for her night's work, but a sound from the ground made her pause. She retreated to the cleft between branches to listen as the voice lifted more than any spider's ever would.
"So, they thought they could escape me," the voice hissed. "So wrong they were! I've got them now. Dead, poor dears. The dear little princess and the weakling prince are dead, my darlings!" A chorus of pleased hisses spread through the trees.
Nenya shivered and remained silent, unable to see the elf who spoke to them. She could guess, but guesses weren't enough, and even if she was right about who it was, the elf below could see her if she moved from her place enough to see him.
"Poor, poor little elves. Gone to be with their mother at last, killed in the same way. Knocked from their horses and bitten before they knew what happened, I'd wager."
Nenya let a dark smile escape as relief she wasn't expecting flooded through her. She wasn't expecting it, because she wasn't aware she had been concerned for Legolas and Eirthriel. From their horses? I wouldn't bet on that one.
An enraged hiss came from below her, screaming curses about the dear little elves that had died. The spiders hated Legolas because he hunted them. Not that they really needed a reason to hate any elf.
Something nudged at her periphery senses, so she slowly eased herself away, soon hearing an enraged screech. She smiled again, knowing the spiders had come back to inform their master the dear little elves still lived.
But do the horses?
Nenya's smile faded away as she slid away as quickly as she could without being noticed.