(no subject)

Nepeta’s paws were shaking, they were always shaking nowadays. Her age weary nerves and muscles were just too weak to keep them still anymore. It made doing simple, every day quite difficult for her, but she was still trying her very best to make Equius his morning cup of herbal tea, just as she always had. Equius could see the effort she was putting into it, the way her muscles strained and her brow furrowed as she focused on keeping the old clay pot steady while she poured its contents into a fine china cup. She’d had that teapot since they were only a few sweeps old, Equius could remember when she’d bought it. He remembered how precious it had been to her, and how he had struggled to maintain his strength while handling it, terrified by its delicate nature. The first time he had tried to pour himself a cup of tea from that pot Nepeta had taken one look at the beads of respiration starting to rain down from his face before wresting it from his hands.
“Here” she had said, “I’ll pawr it for you, then you won’t need to worry so much about breaking it silly.”
Equius had since learned to handle his strength. Though he still did break things on occasion, most of the time he could handle a piece of fine glass or china as easily as the next troll. But Nepeta still poured his tea for him, it had become a ritual for them, something they did every morning no matter what else was going else in the world or their lives.
Nepeta’s hand gave a particularly sharp jolt and the pot slipped from her fingers, tumbling towards the floor. She yelped and reached out for it, but she wasn’t quick enough to catch it. Equius, however, was, and the pot landed squarely in the palm of his hand, just a few inches before it hit the floor.
“Oh Equius thank you! I can’t believe I was that clumsy.” She giggled slightly, and reached out to take the pot from him, but Equius moved away, pulling the pot out of her reach.
“Nepeta, perhaps, today it would be best if I poured the tea.” Nepeta frowned, and opened her mouth to argue with him, just as she always had, but then she looked down at her shaking hands and closed it, choosing instead to give him a quiet nod before settling herself down across the table from him. Equius shot her a pitying look before he resumed pouring the tea in her stead. His hands, still strong and smooth with youth, did not shake once as he filled their cups with Nepeta’s special blend of herbal tea.
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“You knoooooooow Equius, the great thing about alcohol is that keeps pretty darn well, it’s not going to spoil if you don’t drink it all right this minute.”
“Miss Sekret, how much I drink is really none of your concern, so long as I continue to pay for the drinks I order.”
Vriska rolled her eyes at him. “Only you would still manage to sound like pompous stiff after drinking…” she paused to count the number of glasses that had accumulated around him, “Forty-two Astroturfs! You are aware that that would have killed have killed a brown-blood by now right?”
“Only a brown-blood? Clearly I have not yet had enough. Bring me another.”
Vriska scowled at him. “No way! We’re not having a repeat of what happened after Medigo broke up with you. I’m calling up Leijon, she’ll come sort you out.”
Equius flinched at Nepeta’s name, an action that did not go unnoticed by the bartender.
“You’re kidding me; all of this drinking is over that kitty-cat? Are you telling me she actually got some sense in her after all these years and dumped your sorry ass?” Despite her sarcastic tone, Vriska looked suitably astonished, anyone who knew Equius would be. Nepeta had been his moirail since they were both wrigglers, the two were inseparable.
Equius glared blearily at Vriska, struggling a bit to keep her face in focus, he might not be as drunk as he wished to be, but he was certainly drunk. “No, she has not ‘dumped my sorry ass’ as you so eloquently put it, our relationship is quite as strong as ever thank you very much.”
“Then what’s got you all tied up in knots over the mere mention of her?” Vriska asked, her arms crossing over themselves as she fixed him with a suspicious stare.
Equius was a quite sure he did not want Vriska Sekret of all people knowing what had him all “tied up in knots” as it were. But talking, however briefly, about his relationship with Nepeta, had resurfaced the scourge of emotions he’d been trying to drink down, and he was just too drunk to handle them himself at the moment.
“How do I put this…? Have you, by any chance noticed, that her age seems to be catching up to her lately?”
Vriska raised her eyes to the ceiling and stroked her chin pensively, contemplating his statement. “I guess I can kiiiiiiiinda see your point, she certainly doesn’t seem quite as spry as she used to be. But really it makes sense when you think about it. She’s getting on in sweeps for a green-blood.” Vriska frowned a bit. “To think the Matchmaker might be meeting her match pretty soon. How is this town of morons gonna work their way around the quadrants without her to lead them around by their horns? I can still remember when she hooked me up with Terezi, best thing someone ever did for me. If it weren’t for her I would have ended up with Ampora as my kismesis. Can you imagine how miserable that would have been?”
Equius nodded, his eyes cast downwards towards the counter. He had grown used to stories like this; nearly everyone in town had Nepeta to thank for at least one of their quadrants. She’d made it her life’s work to help those struggling to find their proper quadrantmates get together with the right trolls.
“All her life” Equius thought to himself, “Making sure everyone around her gets their ‘happily ever afters’ and yet, she’s never filled any of her other quadrants. I’ve had relationships before, perhaps not good ones but I’ve had them. But for as long as I can remember, I’ve been her one and only quadrantmate. How is that fair? How is this a thing that can be allowed to happen!” Equius slammed his fist down on the bar’s countertop, causing a crack to appear in the woodwork.
“Wow, wow, wow! Easy there blue-boy!” Vriska said, quickly clearing away the glasses around Equius before he had a chance to break those as well. “Listen, I know you’re upset about losing your little kitty-pet, but don’t take it out on my bar!”
Equius didn’t pay her any mind. “She can’t just go like this! There’s still things she hasn’t done, things she needs to do!” He slammed his fist on the counter again, the crack widened, as did Vriska’s eyes. “I’m a doctor and high-blood, it’s my duty to take care of people, to make sure they live the best and longest lives they possibly can. There has to be something I can do…something to stop this. How can I be expected to just…”live without her. Oh gog, she was going to die. Maybe not this sweep, maybe not next sweep, but soon, and he was going to continue living for dozens, maybe hundreds of more sweeps after that. How was he going to make it that long without her? Equius slumped against the bar, and placed his face in his hands. “What am I going to do?” He whispered to nobody in particular.
Vriska, realizing that Equius’s rampage against her bar was apparently over, sighed and rubbed her temple. “I can’t believe I’m suggesting this, but you could always enter the Empress’s Tournament.”
Equius raised his head from his hands to look at her. “The Empress’s Tournament?”
“Yeah, you know, that one Empress Feferi holds every sweep? Where trolls fight each other to the death for a chance to have a single wish granted by her? Well you know how the empress is rumored to be able to extend a troll’s life? If you enter the tournament and win it, you can wish for her to do that for Nepeta.”
“I was under the impression that that was merely an urban legend.” Equius said, trying his best not to sound too hopeful.
Vriska shrugged. “There’s actually some pretty good evidence that she can do it. Anyway, it doesn’t really matter, the idea’s completely insane anyways. The death rate for that thing is like 99%, the empress’s staff makes sure it stays high to scare anyone who hasn’t got something actually important to wish for. Entering that thing is practically suicide.”
“Yes, of course. The idea is completely ludicrous.” Equius said, only half believing what he was saying.
Vriska nodded, “Of course it is. Why don’t you go home now and spend some time with your meowrail, gotta get in as much times as you can with her, seeing as how it’s looking pretty limited right about now.” And with that she turned away to serve another customer, satisfied that Equius wasn’t going to do something stupid or destroy more of her bar.
Equius however, was not yet done contemplating the idea. Yes, entering the tournament was almost a surefire way to get oneself killed, but to Equius the thought of losing Nepeta was pretty much akin to dying anyways. If there was the slightest chance that he could use this tournament to save her life…
By the time Equius got home that night, his mind had been made up.
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The roar of the crowds was deafening from Equius’s place under the arena, a constant reminder of his current situation. In five minutes, the announcer would call his name and he would be lead through the open archway into the dirt pit that would serve as the terrain for a one on one combat with his first designated opponent.
Equius pulled at the glove adorning his right hand. Attached to its knuckles was a set of four long metallic claws, a rather begrudging gift from Nepeta. She hadn’t been happy when she had heard his plans to join the tournament. Actually, she’d been furious.
“You can’t just decide things like this by yourself!” She had said. “I know I’m getting all wrinkly but I still have a few good sweeps on me! What’s going to happen if you die in the tournament? I’ll be all alone without a meowrail, and you can’t pawssibly expect me to go filling quadrants at my age. It’s awfully selfish of you to try to do this Equius.”
“Nepeta please,” Equius had begged. “Don’t make this any more difficult than it has to be. If I die in this tournament you’ll only have a few sweeps to live without me. But if I just let you die of old age, I’ll have decades, possibly centuries to live without you.”
Nepeta’s shoulders had sagged when he said that, and her tone lost most of its bite. “I’m really sorry Equiqui, but that’s just how things are. Low-bloods just don’t live as long as high-bloods. We’re not the first meowrails for this to happen to; other trolls have been in your place and made it alright.”
“I’m not other trolls.” Equius had said. “I’m not going to live without you, I simply cannot do it. I’m sorry you don’t like my decision, but I must inform you that you have no real say in the matter. I am joining the tournament, whether you want me to or not.”
There had been more arguing after that, but in the end Nepeta had been forced to accept that Equius was not backing down. The day he had left for the tournament she had stopped him at the door to their hive and presented him with a clawed glove, her weapon of choice, adapted to fit his hand size, grumbling something along the lines of “I know you’re going to use your stupid bow and arrow during the tournament, even though you’re a really bad archer, so take this for backup when you inevitably break that thing.”
Equius had given her a small, quiet smile as he took the glove before pulling her into a cautious embrace. She’d felt so frail, so breakable, just like that old clay pot, but when she returned his hug, he could still feel some of that fighting strength she used to take down giant clawbeasts with in her youth.
“Take care of yourself” she had whispered into his ear. And with those final words, he had left.
“Equius Zahhak!” Equius started when his name was called, those five minutes had gone by awfully quickly.
“Here” he said, cautiously raising his hand.
“You’re up kid.” The supervising seadweller said, motioning towards the entrance of the arena.
Equius nodded solemnly and walked towards the direction the seadweller was pointing, pausing to take one finale breath, before stepping out into the light of the arena. On the other side of the pit he could make out a jade-blooded troll wielding a chainsaw, glaring at him with a look of pure determination before a loud buzzer sounded overhead, indicating the start of the fight.
The jade-blood charged towards him at full speed while Equius fumbled to arm his bow in time. He’d just managed to notch the arrow into its proper position before both the bow and arrow were knocked clear out of his hands by the flat end of the chainsaw.
“Too slow” the Jade-blood hissed, redirecting her swing towards Equius’s gut. He managed to dodge just in time and lunged towards his attacker, wrapping his left hand around her slim wrists. There was a sickening crunch, and the other troll yelped in pain, releasing the chainsaw. Still holding onto his opponent’s broken wrists, Equius raised his right hand, curling it into a first and pointing the claws at her heart.
“Anything you’d like to say before you die?” He asked. “You have my word that I will pass the message on to the intended recipient.”
“No,” she said, “Not anything I’d want my killer knowing.”
“Very well,” Equius said before driving Nepeta’s iron claws through her heart.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The tournament was over, a single blue-blooded troll stood victorious. Equius sweated profusely as he was escorted to the empress’s thrown room, feeling both nervous and giddy at the same time.
The empress herself was already waiting for him, flanked one either side by two of her royal guards. She grinned at him as he entered the chamber and clapped her hands together in glee.
“Ah Equius Zahhak! The tournament winner! This is so glubbing exciting! I was routing for you, you know. So tell me, tell me, what your wish is. It can be anyfin. I will make it happen.”
Equius bowed his low. “Your highness, excuse me for my intrusiveness, but I have heard you have the capability to extend the life of a troll, please, can you confirm the accuracy of this statement.”
The empress giggled. “Ah yes yes! It’s completely true! We’d been trying to keep that little secret all netted up, but I guess it was inevitable that it would leak to the public. Extending a troll’s life, so long as they still have a drop of life left in them, is something I can definitely do. Is that your wish then? Do you want to have your life extended? Or maybe matesprite’s?”
“My…moirail, Nepeta.” Equius murmured, his heart thudding against his chest. He was so close…
“Very well then, I shall arrange to have her brought he-“
“Your highness,” A brown-blooded troll appeared from behind Equius, and gave the empress a graceful, though brief, bow. “Urgent message for tournament winner Equius Zahhak.”
“For me?” Equius said. Wondering what could possibly be so urgent to justify interrupting him at a time like this.
“Well, let’s hear it then!” Feferi said, gesturing for the servant to continue. “Make it quick! This is a very important moment for this troll!”
All eyes in the room turned towards the brown-blooded troll, who’s own eyes never flickered away from the empress. “Matchmaker Nepeta Leijon, after a rather unexpected stroke two hours ago, has just passed away at the Vantas-Makora Medical Center.”
Equius’s heart froze. Nepeta was… after all of this she had…”
The silence that penetrated room was suffocating. At last Empress Feferi coughed, breaking the silence.
“You may go,” she said, gesturing to the servant. She then turned to Equius, who was gazing blankly at the wall somewhere behind her thrown. She gave him the most pitying looking before coughing into her hand again.
“Ummm, Mr. Zahhak…Is there, perhaps, another wish, you’d like to make?”
Equius’s eyes slowly moved to focus on the empress’s royal trident. It looked quite sharp, very sharp actually. Anything impaled by that thing would surely die rather quickly.
“Yes.” He said. “I think there is.”