You can wield & attack with two weapons without any special class feature or feat.
Like most contests, however, some restrictions may apply. From the PHB, p195 (emphasis mine):
Two-Weapon Fighting
When you take the Attack action and attack with a light melee weapon that you're holding in one hand, you can use a bonus action to attack with a different light melee weapon that you're holding in the other hand. You don't add your ability modifier to the damage of the bonus attack, unless that modifier is negative.
As long as both weapons are light weapons, you can attack with both at the cost of an action for the first attack, as normal, and then a bonus action for the second attack. The second attack does not receive your ability modifier as a bonus to damage the way attacks normally would.
Fighters & some other classes have an option for their Fighting Style class feature which is also called, confusingly, Two-Weapon Fighting. This feature is not required to attack with two weapons as described above; the benefit it gives is to allow you to add your ability modifier to the second attack's damage.
The Dual Wielder feat is likewise not required to attack with two weapons as described above; it instead provides additional benefits and removes other restrictions/penalties when you choose to do so.
Dual Wielder and the Two-Weapon Fighting style make you better at fighting with a weapon in each hand, but are not required to do so.
You’re missing the two-weapon fighting combat option rules. Without those, the feat et al. won’t make very much sense.
The two-weapon fighting combat option allows you to get an extra attack when you full attack, but all of your attacks in that full attack take a penalty. The extra attack has to be with a different weapon from your regular attack (“offhand” weapon), and the penalties you take depend on whether or not that offhand weapon is light or not.
The Two-Weapon Fighting feat reduces those penalties to a point that this option is actually usable.
Another key thing to realize is that having two weapons in hand does not automatically mean you are using the two-weapon fighting option. You have to choose to use it, to get an extra attack and take an attack penalty.
As for the +6/+1 thing, that’s called an iterative attack, and that’s free just for having BAB that high. It is separate from, and can be combined with, the two-weapon fighting option. So, assuming you have the Two-Weapon Fighting feat and a light weapon in the offhand (the only case in which the two-weapon fighting option is a good idea), with +6/+1 BAB you could attack normally, for +6/+1, or you could choose to use two-weapon fighting, taking a −2 penalty. Then your attacks would be +4/+4/−1, where the second +4 attack has to be with the offhand weapon. If you take the Improved Two-Weapon Fighting feat, that becomes +4/+4/−1/−1, because Improved Two-Weapon Fighting gives you a second bonus attack with the offhand weapon, at −5 (matching the penalty on the iterative attack).
Best Answer
Two weapon penalties are mitigated by use of the two weapon fighting feat and if the weapon is light.
Rapiers are not light weapons, however you can use your dexterity for the attack modifier instead of strength if you have the weapon finesse feat, even though the weapon isn't light.
Two weapon fighting gives you one extra attack per round with your secondary weapon, modified from the primary attack bonus.
Improved Two Weapon fighting adds a second attack for their offhand weapon at -5, again modified by their primary attack bonus (and any other TWC modifiers)
So; running through the numbers;
The characters base attack is +13/+9.
The two weapon fighting feat gives a penalty to the primary attack of -4. Main attack is now +9/+5.
Two weapon fighting extra attack is at +9 as per main attack (ie the same -4 modifier), this gives +9/+9/+5.
Improved two weapon fighting adds an additional (Second) attack for the secondary weapon (currently at +9) at -5, (ie in addition to existing -4 penalty for the second weapon)
So this makes +9/+9/+5/+4 (Or +9/+9/+4/+4 if their attack mod is actually +13/+8)
With a light offhand weapon these modifiers would be:
+11/+11/+7/+6 (Or +11/+11/+6/+6 if their attack mod is actually +13/+8)
Quite the chainsaw.