Since the day of the ogres' attack, Damia's room had been a revolving door for healers, apothecaries, and maids. Despite all of their efforts, nothing could awaken her from her coma.
Adi continued staying by Damia's side day after day, hoping she would recover soon.
Sitting in a chair he kept beside her bed and holding her hand, Adi spoke to Damia as though she could hear him. "I wonder if you'll keep that level of power when you return. Minus all the possession of course. How could you be so foolish? Even if you couldn't use your full powers before, you knew about how shifter magic works. Shifting into demons requires an exorbitant amount of control. Losing control results in exactly what happened out there... your soul can't fill your body and it becomes a vessel for a lingering demon soul. I can't even begin to imagine what would have happened if you had transformed into-"
Adi's thoughts were derailed by a knock at the door. He was so accustomed to the staff just letting themselves in that he wasn't sure who would be knocking, but he stood and opened the door all the same.
"Marquis Xerxes? I'm surprised to see you here. What can I do for you, Most Honorable?"
Xerxes cringed hearing Adi address him as Marquis. "That title was recently given to me and I'm not fond of it. I wanted to see if there was any change in the princess' condition."
Adi stepped to the side and extended an arm, prompting Xerxes to step through.
"I'm afraid there has been no change as of yet. As you can see, she is still very much unconscious and no one has been able to identify what is keeping her in this state."
Xerxes stepped closer to the bed and reached out to brush a strand of hair behind her ear. Adi felt uneasy with the thought of someone other than the staff touching Damia and moved to try and stop him, but as soon as Xerxes touched her, Damia's eyelids fluttered, as though she were trying to open them.
"Is... is she waking up?" Hope filled Adi's heart as he rushed to the opposite side of where Xerxes stood and kneeled on the floor next to Damia, holding her hand. "Milady, I'm right here. Can you hear me?"
Damia's hand twitched in Adi's as he held it, but there was no further response.
"You seem to care for her quite a bit. More than I would expect from a servant." Xerxes observed Adi as he kneeled by her side and took the seat Adi had next to Damia's bed.
Adi did not divert his attention from Damia, but explained, "She and I have been together since the beginning. My mother was her mother's lady-in-waiting and they gave birth on the same day. I was born just a few hours before Damia, but we grew up together."
"If that's the case, how is it possible for her to think you're a female?"
This got Adi's attention and he blushed. This wasn't a story he generally shared, but as soon as he looked at Xerxes, he felt compelled to tell him everything between him and Damia. "Fairies, be they male or female, generally have the same small frame so it's easy for one to pass as the other. Damia's mother had hoped that I would be born a female so that I could be made her daughter's lady-in-waiting. She thought it would be splendid for her daughter's companion to be the daughter of her companion, but since I was born male, it didn't work out for her."
Adi hesitated, but continued his story. "The late Queen once told me she hadn't given up hope on her dream right away. She thought that my mother could bear a child again and that it would surely be a female next, but the next day after my birth, my mother passed. Other than the Queen and the midwives that had been present, no one knew I had been born a male, so my mother's dying wish to the Queen had been to let me stay by Damia's side as her companion.
"The late Queen really did care for my mother, so she did as she wished. The midwives had been sworn to secrecy about my gender and the Queen made the necessary arrangements to appoint me as Damia's companion. The Queen was as wise as she was beautiful. She always used the term "companion" with me, never lady-in-waiting.
"Shortly after the Queen passed, the truth about my identity was discovered by the prince and I was brought in front of the King and Grandmaster Niklaus to explain. The King immediately called for my execution, but the grandmaster spoke up on my behalf, pointing out that I was not in violation of my position as the companion title I was given did not specify the need for me to be a female. He also pointed out that removing me from my position could put Damia in danger due to her lack of power and not being assigned any guards. I was the only member of her staff with magic so there would be no one left to protect her.
"As much as the King hated it, he let me live under the condition that I accept a new position in conjunction to companion, which is how I became head servant. I think that part was really just to demote me as much as possible, while retaining enough status to still be called upon by him."
Xerxes' expression while listening to Adi's story had not changed. He was intrigued by the events, but still wondered how Damia hadn't figured any of this out.
"If you're wondering about Damia, she's innocent. By which I'm politely stating she's naïve. I never stay in the room when she dresses, and she assumes it's because I'm shy. I always wear masculine clothing, which she assumes is because it's my uniform. Anything I do that she should question, she doesn't because she doesn't question me. We've fallen into this routine of 'don't ask, don't tell' and maybe one day she'll decide she needs to know, but for now, she wants me to stay as Adi, her female companion, and I'm willing to do that for as long as she wants it."
A smile spread across Adi's face as he concluded the story, and from what Xerxes had seen of Damia, he had no trouble believing that this fairy was more important to her than knowing the truth.
Xerxes rose from his seat and walked towards the door. "Don't worry, fairy. If you mean that much to her, she'll come back to you. Just give her time."
Adi wished he could be as certain, but an uneasy feeling began to fill his heart. Unable to find his words, he just nodded and continued looking at Damia's face, hoping she would make another reaction. Xerxes looked back at Damia's face one last time, and then stepped out of the room.
As he walked out, a maid walked in to change Damia.
"Adi, dear, I'm here to change Damia. Will you be stepping out?"
Adi looked up at the maid that walked in. Paulina had been coming regularly to freshen up Damia during this time. All the staff knew about Adi by this point, but they played along as if they were unaware. Probably believing Damia would figure it out on her own.
"Yes, Paulina. I'll be just outside the door as always," and he stepped out.
With the door shut, Damia opened her eyes slowly.
"Hi Paulina. I think I want to sit up. Could you help me?"
Paulina froze in shock.
"Please don't scream, Paulina. Adi will think something's wrong and rush back in here, worried."
Speaking as low as she could manage, "Oh milady, I'm so happy to see you're finally awake. Of course, I'll help you!"
As Paulina helped her sit up, Damia thought to herself, "Adi, you fool. Why did you have to talk so much...?"