Character Analysis
The Sassy Gay Friend
Damien's the only guy in Zoey's new group of friends, and he's openly gay. Zoey thinks he's cute, with his "smooth face that was totally zit free, and dark brown hair and eyes that reminded me of a baby deer" (9.19). So he's a cutie—though the baby deer image makes us think Damien's also a wee bit vulnerable.
But hold on, because this boy has got some major brainpower. He has a seriously huge vocabulary, which he uses without warning, tossing in words like "sycophants" (9.25) and "consuetudinary" (9.40) in normal conversation. He also knows his vampyre history, since when Zoey finally confesses that she feels an affinity with all five elements, he says: "I don't think there's a record of any High Priestess who has had an affinity with all five elements" (22.37). Think of him as the gay male vamp equivalent to Hermione Granger.
Not to play into stereotypes too much, but Damien can be a little catty and gossipy. Like when Zoey shows up to class swooning over Erik Night, Damien perks up and presses her for gossip, saying: "I feel a juicy tidbit coming on. Come on, Zoey. You were distracted becauuuuse?" (13.10). In fairness, we'd totally want to know, too.
Damien also has a sense of humor. When Zoey says that the loser kid Elliott has "poopie" for brains, Damien responds: "That's what I like about our Zoey […] She has such a way with vulgar language" (13.45). This is funny, of course, because poopie is only a bad word if you're six years old. Or Zoey, apparently.
Matching his wit, Damien's also quick with a sword. During fencing class, Dragon praises him as "one of the most focused fencers I've had the privilege to coach in decades" (14.9). That's pretty high praise, especially from someone who's essentially immortal.
Open-Minded and More
While we don't exactly see Damien getting picked on for being gay, there are hints that he's had trouble in the past with people judging him for his sexual orientation. As Stevie Rae tells Zoey, Damien's first roommate in the school "complained to Nefret and said he wasn't going to room with a fag" (10.60). Luckily Nefret gave Damien the option to move so that he wasn't stuck with a homophobe.
And Damien's parents don't accept their son's sexuality, either, which stinks. Damien mentions being ashamed of his cross-stitching hobby at one point, and how he wishes his dad thought it was an okay hobby for him to have (23.18). Poor kid can't catch a break. Also, pro tip: cross-stitching and being gay have nothing to do with each other. Anyone can be crafty, yo.
Even Damien's cat, Cameron, sometimes gets picked on by other cats since he's one of the smaller kitties around. But Damien doesn't want pity for himself or his feline companion—he just wants to fix things in the world.
When Zoey assigns Damien the role of air in the ritual circle, she tells him that his element will open the circle. He responds: "Kinda like I wish I could open people's minds" (23.32). So we're not going to waste much time feeling sorry for Damien—he's not one to dwell, so we won't either. Yes, he's had to deal with some crummy homophobic behavior, but he's a smart kid, and he has what it takes to succeed.