#and aggressively raise you 'Elrond and Elros were loved and cherished by everyone at the Havens (including Elwing)'

[leandrafalconwing]

Fandom tends to portray Elwing as a single mother in over her head with parenting and leading the Havens of Sirion without any real support network (with or without a dose of jewel-sickness) but I was having Thoughts about Sirion today and let’s be real, she probably did have a support system. Do you really think the people who carried baby Elwing from the sack of Menegroth would just shrug and say “Eh, she’s apparently an adult now, she’s got this, we can leave her alone”? Would the Gondolindrim who doted on baby Earendil stand back and not have any interest in his sons? Elves treasure children, and so do a lot of humans.

Consider these possibilities instead: Elwing really needs to be at this meeting, but fortunately there’s a whole pack of honorary aunts and uncles absolutely delighted at the possibility of carrying little Elrond and Elros off to play with them for a couple of hours. Elwing needs to get back home to put the kids to bed? Well, it just happens to be the perfect time for a break, right everyone? They can pick the meeting back up when she gets back. Elwing is down at the beach helping her sons build sand castles but you really need to talk to her about something? Better be prepared to play in the sand too while you bring up your issue to her! Elwing didn’t get much sleep because the boys were trading off who had nightmares and she spent most of the night comforting them? Go take a nap, Elwing, we’ve got your kids and someone will handle the day’s duties.

In short, Elrond and Elros were the darlings of the Havens and everyone was willing to step in where needed, both in raising them and in supporting Elwing when her husband is away. We have so little detail in canon, it’s not like I can prove any of this, but it feels pretty plausible to me, and more plausible than Elwing being left to flounder despite being surrounded by people who love her and love her family. This means, of course, that when the Third Kinslaying occurred, Elrond and Elros didn’t just lose their mother; they lost playmates and [honorary] aunts, uncles, and grandparents.