@Ethan pointing out that Nepeta clearly doesn't "dread being with" her moirail is missing the point: many of the world's unhealthy relationships - quite possibly most of them! - consist of one or more people who don't know that what they're going through isn't normal. Or worse, they don't realise something is wrong because what they're going through IS normal; society tells them that relationships are SUPPOSED to be like that, so they never consider anything could or should be different! And given that the entire social purpose of a moirallegience is for one troll to look after and make sure the other troll doesn't go unstable, I think it's fair to say a lot of Equius' shoddy behaviour is quite normalised in troll society.

It's also disingenuous to the concept of emotional labour to suggest that Equius being, what, occasionally bemused by Nepeta's behaviour? is in any way equivalent to the straight-up emotional job Nepeta has keeping that guy in line. Again, this is the entire point of moirallegience, so I don't think it's unfair to say that the load of effort is pretty unidirectional in that couple.

I would also point out that ""emotional labour"" as we (mis)understand it today is overwhelmingly something women are made to perform for men, and I have reasons to guess maybe that was something that was on Hussie's mind when they came up with the whole moirails idea (cough. Eridan). But I digress for now