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Evan first realized it when he’d just got done eating dinner one night when everyone was joined at the large seemingly forever growing table. The seats might have been a tight fit against one another (since there was an ever diminishing list of people who joined them), and everyone was practically touching elbows, but judging by the looks on the faces all around when they came together for a great tasting meal, no one cared or minded.
He went back to his room in preparation for bed. It was a late dinner since they’d worked hard and long all day on different construction projects and arrangements for new citizens to come into the town (Evan jotting notes down on what everyone was requiring for that to happen), and he felt positively exhausted. Floyd had once again demonstrated his flourishing cooking skills and whipped them up another great dinner from a recipe he discovered in Goldpaw, happy to see all the positive reactions from everyone who ate and took notes for the next time he made an attempt at it. It left a rather large craving for another helping of it, so Evan made sure to give encouragement that one night in the future he should definitely cook it again.
Evan wasn’t necessarily stressed . It was true that building a kingdom, keeping it steady, and have it grow all at once were not easy tasks to take on all at once, but it wasn’t making him dread another second of the work. It did, however, have its tolls to take every now and then. And it hit him earlier on that day around late noon that he did have some concerns about their future advances, and almost instantly it seemed Roland picked up on that when Evan froze in the midst of writing something down, pen gripped tightly within his fingers as he closed his eyes, brows going up in worry and ears folding flat against his hair as it rushed all through his head at once.
“Are you okay?” Roland asked. And when he didn’t receive a response, it was clear as day that there was no need for one. With a calm breath, Roland came closer.
“Tell me what’s wrong,” Roland said, “and let’s think it out together. Okay?”
Evan was hesitant. It wasn’t a good example to set for his people that they should see their king worried, yet even acknowledging that after a moment of refusal, Evan finally spilled. He confessed to worrying that he wasn’t doing a good job, and that he felt like his citizens might turn out to be disappointed in him, and the other little things that seemed to matter not a bit but still stuck with him.
He didn’t quite so much ramble about everything frustrating him, but Roland didn't need for him to. He clearly fully understood everything Evan was getting caught up in.
Roland sighed, a calm smile on his face, then took the paper and pen out of Evan’s hands.
“I think you need a short break, Your Majesty.”
Evan was puzzled, not sure why he didn’t reply to anything he had said, but took the advice and watched as the things he’d been writing down were taken out of his sight. He slouched back (perfect posture could ache after a while) in the large comfy chair he was almost too small for, and gladly accepted the cup of icy water that Roland had brought him to drink. He gulped it down and let his shoulders lose their tension, the water refreshing him (he hadn’t realized it’d been a while since he last had anything to drink). It hadn’t dawned on him how much of that he was keeping pent up, and the small rant he let out made him feel just a little better.
When Evan was done with the cup, Roland took it from his hand, then came to stand in front of him again. There was reassurance in his expression, albeit it was also austere.
“Do you remember what we talked about one time? About taking care of yourself?”
His ears perked up finally. Evan recalled that conversation very well actually. Roland had surprisingly been very stern throughout that discussion, making sure Evan knew fully well what he was saying. It was very unusual of him, but it reminded him so much of a exchange he once had before; an exchange that happened just before his father had died, when Evan was still within Ding Dong Dell.
“...Yeah.” Evan had mumbled, not meeting his eyes.
“I’m serious about that, Evan. You need to be sure you’re feeling your best. And I told you before, but anytime you think there’s something that’s making you upset, you can always talk to me about it.”
Roland paused, then corrected himself.
“You can talk to any of us about that. You’re not alone, Evan. As long as you have us around, you’ve got people that will protect you at every corner.”
The words at the time hadn’t settled in Evan’s mind, and they’d crossed his thoughts a few more times throughout the rest of the day, but now that he was alone in his room, gazing out at the stars, he let them sink in with the sincere weight they carried.
It was true . Evan wasn’t alone anymore. After his father had died, then Nella, he almost felt like the world was closing in on him. Every star in the sky seemed fake and his entire life was falling apart within just minutes. He threw a fit at Roland when he was dragged away after Nella passed, yelled at him out of frustration, then cried himself to sleep from the anger and exhaustion. Those emotions were always semi-present with him when he thought about her - what had happened to her - and he would clench his fists with revived sadness, feel that grief come back with a bite, before it faded away again.
Roland had still stuck by him though. When he saw Evan was down, he’d ask if everything was okay and offer an outlet. Sometimes that would lead to them having deep and somewhat sadder conversations, like things about his father, Nella, and the coup. And when Evan was done laying out his thoughts about it all, about everything, he’d reach out and reassure him, always, that he was not alone. He’d said it so many times and only now did he finally get that he was right .
There was not only Roland, but also Tani. She could be a little troublemaker, but all in good fun, and at the end of the day Evan’s smile broadened just that much further when she came running up to him at some point with her arms out and up wide in the air, hugging him on the shoulders, shouting a greeting that was too loud to be necessary but also hearty and full of passion. She was happy to be alive, and always ready to take Evan on a little adventure should she see it fit to get him in on one of her little schemes. Her friendship was one of the most important ones he’s made yet.
Then there was Batu. For as stern as the man seemed when Evan first met him, he’s never met another person with more honor within them. Batu was ready to stand between Evan and a foe without a moment’s worth of hesitation and protect him when Evan was caught off guard. He was extremely passionate about a whole lot more things than Evan would have ever guessed, and always made the room laugh just a little harder when he was in one of his joshing moods.
Leander was there too. He was a rather quiet man, who kept to himself a lot of the time and spent a good chunk of his days when they weren’t busy hanging about in the small library that Evermore had to offer. Sometimes, Evan would find himself in there with him when he needed to pull books from the shelves, and those were the times the two of them engaged in fascinating and wide discussions about all kinds of different topics. Leander was knowledgeable in a lot of areas, so he without hesitation would teach Evan all about a subject and be done with it before the night was over. He was very friendly underneath the outwardly stern expression.
Bracken was an amazingly smart, strong, talented person. She’s rearing to go from the moment she wakes up in the morning and is out the door with a vibrant zest to keep working on the projects she had planned out for the day. Evan always liked how friendly she was, with her kind smile and giddiness to talk about all of her work. Evan loved to listen to her and all about her mechanisms and gadgets she was building, and even would go so far as to teach Evan how it all worked once it was put together. Evan was learning so much from her, and he almost felt like he was capable enough now that if he wanted to start a small project of something silly for fun, he could do it because of her.
All of those thoughts made his heart tremble slightly, and he reached a hand up to clutch at his chest as it ached with overwhelming emotion. His shoulders shook as the realization sank within him just that much further. His eyes became blurry, and his other hand flew up to cover his mouth to muffle up a sob that came out.
He wasn’t alone anymore. There were so many people around him that made him happy, that helped put him back on his feet after such a far set back that seemed almost impossible to bounce back from, and he was okay. He was going to be okay.
He let a few tears roll over his cheeks, and he wiped them away slowly as a final thought finally lifted all woe from him.
Evan had a family again.