Three years later…
The course of three years changed Equius's opinion on mothers. He had no idea how hard children could be, especially trolls. Nepeta was a very wild child who loved the outdoors. Whenever she could she would sneak outside to climb the trees or to play in the mud. It had scared him at times the things she did, but the worst had to be when she had found a snake outside and tried to catch it.
Nepeta does not like snakes anymore.
Children were a tornado designed to make messes wherever they went. Their howling demands and pointless screaming filled the air at the most inconvenient time. Their fierce attitude was the strength that could break objects anywhere they went. Parents couldn't take shelter from them because they were the ones who had to clean it up or prevent it. A prime example would be when Equius decided to pour himself a glass of milk when he had put her down for her nap. Well, Nepeta decided that this was a 'purrfect' time for a sneak attack and silently creeped up on her caretaker.
She had seen the shiny reflection of the glass and tried to pull it down by tugging the table cloth down closer to her. Equius didn't even know that she was there until the glass shattered on the floor right next to Nepeta. He jumped, but the quick shock didn't compare to the fear that she had somehow gotten hurt. So, like any concerned guardian, he picked her up and checked her over. She didn't even get scared, she was just laughing and smiled.
"I did!" The young troll gloated to her confused, anxious caretaker. "Do again!"
He sighed. This troll was something, that's for sure.
And it didn't stop there. Over time as she explored more of the world that surrounded her, he began to worry. She was so pure and innocent. How could he let her go out into a world that judged them as they walked by purely by what she was? They couldn't even go to the store without being judged so harshly. She didn't notice it, but people would either be thrilled about meeting a real troll or give them disguised looks. He hoped the feeling would go away.
"It doesn't," Dave explained. "It gets better with time but every time you go out, you leave, they leave, it just gets worse." He shrugged. "At least I have the male trolls, you get to deal with the future boyfriends."
Equius decided that Nepeta was not allowed to date until she was thirty sweeps old, at the very least. No way was his little grub going to do anything of the sort until he decided she was ready.
And of course, Feferi thought that this was all very funny. She was the one who was helping Nepeta with her speech, the one who would watch her for a day or two if Equius got sick and couldn't get her sick or take care of her properly. It was his girlfriend that suited the mother role in Nepeta's life. And he couldn't love her more for that aspect. It was not possible. Lately they had been getting very close with each other, to the point where she had brought up marriage.
"I know it's usually the man who proposes, but we've been together for years now." They were sitting on his couch in the afternoon. Nepeta was in her room getting things ready for her sleepover with Karkat they were suppose to go to soon. Feferi had thought that while she had a free moment with Equius she could ask about it, he rarely had any free time now. "Do you want to get married, Equius?"
He sighed deeply and kissed her forehead. "You know that I love you more than anything, Feferi. But," he paused. "I don't know if I can right now."
She sat up with a knowing face. "Is it Nepeta?" When he nodded slightly, she caressed his head and pecked his lips. "You know that I'll gladly move in, or you could move into my house. I can help take care of her. We couldn't ever forget her, at all."
"It's not that. I'm just perturbed by how she will take the change."
"Does she not like me?"
"No, no, she loves you. I just don't know if she'll realize how she'll take it." He ran a hand through his hair.
"She's only what? A sweep?" Feferi asked. "Talk to her. She might not realize what's going on, but it could work out in our favor. Besides, with me around I can help take care of her. I'll be here to watch her when you're working, I can go shopping with her, we can do lots of things together."
He nodded and leaned his head on hers. "I'll talk to her when I pick her up from the Striders' residence tomorrow. I don't want to make her upset tonight."
Feferi nodded and hugged him back. "It'll be a yes from me, I hope you know."
Silence soon after filled Nepeta's sensitive ears as she sat on the steps with her overnight bag. She had been waiting for the two adult humans to finish their conversation like Equius had taught her was polite (whatever that meant) but now was worried. What was marriage? And why were they worried about her reaction to it? Her head tilted down with bad feelings filling her tummy. She wasn't looking forward to anything now.
Nepeta was getting along with her life fairly well. She got to see Karkat a lot, which was always great. Equius was doing well in his job, so he was usually in a good mood. Feferi was there at their home a lot, recently she had been coming over more than ever before. Weirdly enough, Nepeta was left with Dave and Bro more and more as well. And with what she heard earlier, she was getting worried, what if they were going to get rid of her?
She brought it up with Karkat that day.
They were in his room with the blanket pile already thrown quite literally together. He was friends with her easily and they both spilled their feelings about what was going on around them. Well, as much as a sweep (and three quarters) old and a two sweep old could. Mostly it was just venting about how much they hated how Dave was acting at times when 'it totally wasn't my fault,' or how Equius didn't let her say some words that the other did.
But today was different. Today was about how she was beginning to think that Equius and Feferi were planning on getting rid of her. It wasn't all that clear that they didn't want her, it was more so on how she was being left behind or how they had 'closed door moments' that she was not allowed to disturb, as past conversations had taught her. Feferi even stayed the nights over the times Nepeta wasn't allowed to! She didn't like it at all, but lately she was getting scared.
They were suppose to be asleep a long time ago, but she desperately begged him to stay up and talk to her. They whispered to each other quietly on their pile and often ended up falling asleep thinking about what all was said. They aged differently than humans, but one and two seemed too young to be worried about abandonment.
"What do you mean they don't want you anymore?" He asked with a concerned frown. "You still live with them, right?"
"Well, yeah," she admitted. "But I mean they keep dropping me off here fur sleepovers a lot." Her pronunciation had improved GREATLY over the two years, but she would still piss off Equius by slipping in cat puns that she loved to use. "And sometimes I hear them saying 'what about nep?' Like I'm not even there!" She hugged her white cat closer to her body and shut her eyes.
Karkat crossed his arms and scrunched his eyebrows together. "That's not very nice." They sat in silence for a minute or two before realization struck Karkat and he sat up with a gasp. "Where will you go if they DO get rid of you?"
The olive blood huffed. "I don't know. I was thinking about being like a wild kitty and living in the woods!"
Karkat frowned and shook his head. "I dunno if that's a good idea, Neppie."
They sat in silence. Nepeta was wearing her oversized plain white shirt and some small shorts underneath. She wasn't a fan of restricting clothes, which happened to be most of the girls' departments at almost every store. She couldn't stand them, which Feferi could not understand. Her tail had to have a hole in every pair of pants and was poking out right now. When she was uncomfortable, it would curl around her ankle. Currently it felt like it was going to chop it off from all the tight pressure it was under! Equius said it wouldn't, but he also didn't know all that much about trolls. She teased him about it a lot, but it was quickly becoming something that irritated him and forced him to check out books about trolls.
"Well, what should I do then?" She asked, clearly out of ideas. The sweep old only had so many ideas going through her wild head that she could actually do.
Karkat didn't respond. It seemed like a full minute in the dark room before any sound come out. It was a contained curse from the room next to Karkat's. Suddenly, Karkat had the solution to everything in the entire world. He shot up to his grey legs and stretched his hands to the ceiling in excitement. "I know, I know! We can talk to Mr. Purple!"
Nepeta tilted her head. "Why?"
"He's the bestest, smartest guy I knows! We can talk to him about your thing!" Karkat smiled at her and grabbed her hand. "We have to be quiet though. Dave and Bro are sleepin'."
Nepeta pursed her lips together. "Um….I guess."
They quietly made their way from his room to Cronus's across the hall. Tiny, grey hands reached up and managed to twist the handle, but weren't able to push the door open at the same time. The two of them were too short to be able to do that feat. Karkat grunted with effort and continued to try and to push the door open. The purple blood must've realized that somebody was at the door, because all of a sudden the wooden separator flung open and the two trolls fell into the room.
"What're you guys doin'?" Cronus asked with an eyebrow raised.
"Nep has trouble!" Karkat filled him in.
"Yeah? Well, so do lots of people. What makes it different?" He crossed his arms and his face advertised amusement. "Ain't you suppose to be 'n bed anyway?"
"We can't! Nep needs help!" Karkat pointed at his conflicted friend. "Now!"
Cronus watched the two of them for a second before sighing. "Fine. Get in an' we'll talk."
The three of them entered his room, one that was a bit unfamiliar to Nepeta, but she did recall playing in here when she was younger. She and Karkat sat down on his bed and he leaned against the wall, waiting for one of the two to start talking. "Well? What is it?"
Nepeta sighed and lowered her head. "He's gonna make me leave."
Cronus stood up in surprise. "What? Who is? Zahhak?"
Nepeta nodded her head. "He don't want me anymore."
Cronus couldn't understand this at all. He knew for a fact that Equius loved Nepeta more than anybody. "Why d'ya say that?"
"I heard him say so." Nepeta's tail curled around her ankle dangling off the bed and she pet the fur as a distraction. "He and Feferi are gonna get together and leave."
Confusion now filled the purple troll's face. He didn't know what Nepeta meant, he knew that Equius and Feferi were getting pretty serious. But he didn't know what she meant by her leaving. "Why do you think that they're gonna leave ya, darlin'?"
"Beclaws!" Nepeta sighed in frustration. "They says he don't know how I'll react or if I be okay. Plus they keep having doors closed and groaning and stuff! Why can't I be with them?" Tears rolled down her face and her cheeks turned green. She didn't understand why she couldn't go with them, were they groaning about her? Were they fighting?
Cronus rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. With a deep sigh he turned to the two kids and cursed. "Well," he began, slowly turning purple, "Zahhak and Fef are just havin' sex. It's an adult thing, so they ain't gonna include ya."
Nepeta looked down and sighed. "But why is it an adult thing anyway?"
"I uh...don't know."
"What do you do?" Karkat peeped up with his own question.
Cronus groaned. This is what he gets himself into. "Look, sex is when two people who love each other, actually no. Sometimes it's better that they don't," he smirked to himself as he looked around the room actually. "And they just enjoy the other's body." He coughed awkwardly. "Equius and Feferi are doin' that. That doesn't mean they don' want you, Nep."
She shrugged. "I dunno."
A few minutes passed with two males staring at the youngest member of their crew. "Tell ya what," Cronus got up and sat next to Nepeta. "If they do leave ya, I'll take ya in. Fact, I'll take the four trolls here and we can go. Travel the world, 'kay?"
She nodded. "'Kay."
Cronus rubbed her back. "Good. Now go on squirts, I wanna sleep sometime tonight."
Nepeta hugged Cronus and jumped off the bed before running to the door, threw that open, then raced back to Karkat's room. Karkat turned to Cronus and gave him a smile. "Thanks Mr. Purple!"
Just a few seconds later, Karkat knew how to make his friend happy again. "Nepeta, I have an idea!" Karkat called to her. "It'll make you feel better too!"
"What?" Nepeta tilted her head.
"Let's have sex!"
"Yeah!" Nepeta beamed at him before a thought arose. "How do you do sex?"
Karkat stopped before flopping into his pile. "Well, Mr. Purple said that you just enjoy their body. So come here!"
Nepeta came up and snuggled down next to him. As soon as she was a bit more comfortable, he wrapped his arms around her. She nuzzled his cheek with the top of her head like a cat would, despite her horns being a bit sharp against his chubby cheek. Both of their hearts were beating faster than ever before. Her tail flopped back and forth, it was too scary being an adult.
"We doing it right?" Nepeta whispered out in the dark.
"I think so." Is this it? Are they now adults?
The two snuggled with each other for a few minutes more before Nepeta sighed out in happiness. "Sex is nice." Maybe that's why Equius and Feferi were groaning. They didn't want to separate from this! It was pretty comfortable.
The rest of the night was spent with the two innocent trolls having 'sex,' not realizing that they were just cuddling in a pile of blankets and pillows. The young trolls fell asleep like that. The night was very peaceful for them. Nothing came to terrorize them in their slumber, no loud sounds to disturb them, not even Dave's alarm clock woke the two. In the end, it was Sollux who woke them up.
"Get up, guys!" He exclaimed, opening the door. "Breakfast is ready!"
Nepeta yawned and rolled over onto her back. She reached out her arms with a relaxed groan and sighed softly once she felt her muscles being stretched out. She got up and shook her head back and forth to shake out anymore sleep she had left. Her friend got up onto his feet and rubbed his tired eyes. He had a different way of waking up, but that's okay. Nepeta figured it just how he was raised or something. Even if he came off of the streets...
Karkat turned to Nepeta and smiled at her. "Are you doin' better?"
She smiled and nodded at him. "Yup, yup!" A pause occurred before the two of them before they caught wiff of the waffle scent coming from outside his room in the kitchen. Immediately the two raced out of the room to be able to devour the sweet breakfast meal that awaited them.
Once they got there, they couldn't reach it fast enough, they climbed up into a chair at the table. Bro and Dave were working in the kitchen while Cronus sat at the chair by the window. He seemed deep in thought about something on his mind and gave off waves of energy that easily could be read by two illiterate toddlers that said: 'Do not distrub.' Sollux was watching him from the other side of the table, Ipad in his lap that was turned off at the moment.
"Hey guys," Bro commented from the kitchen sink. "Doctor Z and Feferi will be here in a few. They're gonna eat with us."
"Which means no sharp objects flying around the kitchen, Sollux." Dave spoke up. "Even if Cronus gets more food than you." Of course, this sparked a defensive argument from Sollux, but was ignored by the two toddlers. They were concerned only with the food and the people around it.
Once Equius and Feferi arrived, the food was ready to eat and was set out onto the table for everybody to grab their filling. Nepeta watched anxiously across the table at Equius and Feferi. The two of them were sitting side by side and were talking about whatever they were to Dave and Bro at the human side of the table. She could feel her heart beat wildly, along with the circulation in her ankle to slow down by the tail habit. She could barely hear what anybody was saying until Karkat grabbed her hand. She looked up to see his concerned face.
Cronus next to her spoke up to voice their concerns. "Hey, Nep. You okay after last night?"
She nodded glumly. "Yeah, I'll be okay."
"What happened last night?" Dave asked, grabbing another waffle from the center of the plate.
"Nep had a problem," Karkat smiled. "And Cronus helped us!"
"Did his help work at all?" Feferi smiled gently over at the purple-blood. "Cronus is very smart."
She lifted herself up a bit at that and nodded. "Definitely! And then Karkitty and I listened to him!"
"Yeah? What'd you do?" Cronus sat up straighter. He expected any second now for her to spill out about she was wrong about being abandoned or something, how he was very helpful in her life, how he was right-
"Karkitty and I did sex!"
-about to be punched by Equius Zahhak.
Dave choked on his waffle, Bro watched on in silent shock, Feferi gasped and her hand went straight to her mouth, Sollux only blinked in confusion. But Equius, poor, strong, Equius was not at all amused.
"You told her to do WHAT?"
Cronus stood up quickly and backed up a few steps. He held up his hands in surrender and shook his head. "I didn't tell her nothing! I never said that!"
"But you said how Doctor Zack and Feferi do sex." Karkat piped up, missaying the vet's name accidentally. "And they enjoy the other's body. So we did." The two humans blushed heavily, Feferi covered her face and Equius put on his poker face from the embarrassment.
"What exactly did you say?" Bro chided him.
"Nevermind that, what did they do?" Feferi turned to the kids. "What did you guys do exactly?"
"We enjoyed each others body." Karkat muttered and furrowed his brows. "Did we do something bad?"
"Are we in trouble?" Nepeta joined him in worry of being punished.
"Just tell us what you did," Equius sighed, still glaring at Cronus.
"We sat in the pile and hugged each other." Karkat blinked. "And slept like that."
"Did you do anything except hug?"
"No," Nepeta sniffed. "I don't know what we did-"
"Nothing." Equius cut in. "But I would like to speak to Cronus for a moment in his room."
After everything was figured out, Feferi talked to Nepeta and Karkat about how sex is for adults only because it can be very tricky if kids do it too young and they'll learn much more about it later, but until then they shouldn't half to worry about it. Dave had apologized all over the place about what had happened and Bro had assured the two other humans that it would not happen again at all. However, because Cronus had reiterated what he had said, another problem arose for Equius and Feferi.
They had buckled Nepeta into the car and were on their way home. Nepeta felt awful and confused. Plus she didn't want anything to change and had a feeling that things were going to change very soon, regardless of what she wanted. Equius and Feferi hadn't said anything at all so far, which was a very bad sign that a talk was going to take place. To try and take her mind off of it, she watched the scenery blur by her window.
"Nepeta," Equius looked up in the mirror to glance at her for a second. "Cronus had said that you thought we were going to get rid of you. Is this true?"
Tears sprung to her eyes. She couldn't say anything. If she did, then she would start crying and she didn't know if she would be able to stop when that happened. Not with something like this.
Equius had figured that tears plus silence equals yes, so he went on. "Nepeta, do you know what marriage is? It is when two people love each other very much and want to spend their lives together. It is a ceremony for that occasion, it is very special to humans."
"Equius and I want to get married, Nepeta." Feferi said. "I will move in with you guys, or you guys might move in with me. But we are not going to get rid of you."
"We will never get rid of you," Equius promised. "I will sooner give up my practice license than even consider letting you out of my life."
Nepeta sobbed. Tears were streaming down her face and her heart was torn between feeling like it was in her gut and like it was flying from relief. "No change?"
"Well," Equius sighed. "There will be a little change, but not much. Feferi will be in our lives much more and live with us. Like how you live with me." He let there be a pause for her to think about this before asking her what she thought about it.
"That's okay." Nepeta shrugged. He did so much to make her happy, she can make him happy too, right?
Later that night, Equius had told Feferi that he needed to spend the night alone with Nepeta. She had completely understood and left a little after with no complaint whatsoever. He knew that Nepeta had watched Feferi leave, but from where he had no idea. It seemed as though Nepeta had more knowledge of what was going on around his house than he did himself.
"Nepeta," he called out. "Come on now. We have to go to bed. It is getting very late."
No response.
"Nepeta," he groaned. Why did it have to be like this so many nights? "Come on. Please. I'll let you sleep with me tonight and I'll read you any story you want."
It was when silence answered him again he began the search. He would usually look under tables or behind couches, but he could not find her for the life of him. She was good at hide and seek, but wasn't usually this good. "Nepeta?" He called. "Where are you?"
When silence responded for the third time, he went upstairs and saw her door closed. Concern filling his features, he gently walked down to her room and opened the door. Inside, on the floor, was a sweep old troll who was currently crying. She had her pajamas on and her white cat next to her as if it tried to offer any type of support it could give. Her back was to the door, but that still couldn't block the sobs wracking her frame. It broke his heart.
"Nepeta," Equius cooed and kneeled next to her. "What's wrong?"
She shook her head and turned away.
He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. She didn't shake it off or react to it, so he guessed that she sought out some form of comfort. For the thousandth time since he got caught up in all this troll business, he wished desperately for some way to be better with emotions. Sadly though, his wish was denied. Nepeta sobbed again and again his heart broke.
He scooped her up in his muscular arms and picked her up. She curled into him and pressed her face into his chest. It broke his heart to even know that something so precious to him could be in this much pain, especially at this age.
He took her to his room and gently placed her on his bed. He lied down next to her only to be glomped by tiny arms. Nepeta quickly buried her head into him, her horns poking his sides painfully. It hurt like a bitch, but Equius didn't say a word. He only rubbed her back comfortingly to let her cry this out. Once she had slowed down, he asked her again what was wrong.
At first, she said it so quietly he couldn't hear what she was saying. But after a minute, his ears finally caught what she was saying: "I don't wanna be furgotten."
"I already told you, we won't let you out of our lives. Why do you think that we will? Did I say something?" Oh if it was he something he said, he couldn't forgive himself. Not if it caused this big of a problem.
She shook her head no. He sighed out in relief. "Then what is it?"
It took a few seconds before she continued. "I'm scared that you won't love me anymore." At his confused and shocked look, she went on quickly. "Beclaws you'll love Fefuri more."
Equius shook his head and slightly tilted her head up so he could see more of the troll he loved most. "Nepeta, you could never put into words on how I feel for you. I will always love you in a very special way. No one, not even Feferi, could ever make that feeling go away."
"Even when you get marry?"
"Not even when we get married. Once we do, you'll stay with Karkat for a week, but I swear that as soon as I get back from that you and I will not be changed at all."
She held up at tiny finger. "Pinky purromise?"
He took it in his massive finger and curled his around hers. "Pinky promise."
They lied there comfortably for a few minutes, Nepeta finally feeling relief.
"Oh shoot. Nepeta, I must apologize, I forgot something." He whispered to her.
"What?" She whispered back.
"I forgot that I can't meet up with you once I get back," he pauses for effect. "if you can't breathe." He quickly reached his hand out to begin tickling her. She laughed and squirmed back, tears long forgotten.
She pushed on his back and kicked with her legs to try and get an advantage, but to no avail. His arm was much too long for her to get away from him in time. The two of them continued to tickle or be tickled for quite some time and by the end of it, they were both out of breath from laughing so much. Nepeta jumped onto his chest and looked down at him.
"Thank you, Equius."
He smiled and rubbed her head lovingly. "Of course. Now, let's sleep." She jumped down off of him only to turn right back around and snuggle up to his chest. He rested his arm around her protectively. "Goodnight, Nepeta."
"Night, Equius." She yawned and closed her eyes. It wasn't too long before the darkness reached her and she fell asleep deeply for the night.
