Patrice Deveraux

"Before the Emancipation Proclamation, if you were black in this country, there was always someone trying to take your freedom away. Literally, I mean; figuratively, it never stops. After I became a vampire, I didn't have to put up with that anymore."

Patrice Deveraux is a vampire student at Evernight Academy. She is one of the "Evernight types", but is revealed to be far kinder and less shallow than most of the popular students in the school, and later becomes a friend to Bianca Olivier. Patrice is also Bianca's roommate during her first year at Evernight.

Background
Patrice was born in the South of America, some time before the Civil War broke out. Patrice was part African-American, part Caucasian, and was born a slave - she states she attended "octoroon balls", with "octoroon" being an archaic term (that is now regarded as offensive) for a person who is one-eighth African-American. Because Patrice had very light skin compared to most black people, she was regarded as being 'attractive enough' to sell to wealthy white men as a sort of concubine. When she was still a girl, Patrice was sent to New Orleans, in Louisiana, where, along with many other slave girls like her, she was trained to be a 'proper young lady' and prepared for what was essentially a life of prostitution. Patrice and the other girls were to be displayed to potential buyers at octoroon balls once they were considered to be 'old enough'.

The night before Patrice's first ball, she was changed into a vampire. Patrice took advantage of her station in life to get blood easily; drinking from the men who bought her for their pleasure. As Patrice puts it "They thought they would use me, but I used them instead." Patrice went through an entire social season, living off her buyers. She fed more than once on an obese man named Beauregard, who could "lose two pints and not even feel it, which came in handy." On the last night of the social season, Beauregard fell from his horse and broke his neck; Patrice states that it could've been light-headedness from blood-loss, or he could just have been drunk. Patrice expressed no real remorse over his fate as it was. Following the end of the social season, Patrice ran away from her owners, and never looked back. Shortly after becoming a vampire, Patrice met a supernatural expert named Marie Leveau, to ask for advice on bringing the spirits of the dead back to this world. Patrice had previously formed an attachment to a man named Amos, who'd died, and longed to see him again. Marie taught her how to bring spirits back as wraiths and then trap the wraith in a mirror. Patrice was successful in bringing the man back, but he was extremely unhappy as a wraith, having been torn from a peaceful afterlife. Eventually, Patrice couldn't bear his misery any longer and broke the mirror, setting him free.

Afterwards, Patrice spent a lot of time travelling and seeing the world, something she would never have had the opportunity to do when she was a slave. She also learnt how to release wraiths from mirrors without breaking them, as she considered it to be "such a pain, replacing them." Patrice was occasionally forced to kill people who attempted to enslave her, prior to the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863. She met and befriended several vampires from Evernight during her travels; she met a girl named Vidette in Paris, and a spent a summer with another student named Genevieve in either the Caribbean or Jamaica. She also met Courtney whilst on a skiing trip in Switzerland, in 2007, a year before she decided to attend Evernight Academy herself.

Evernight
Bianca first meets Patrice in their new room on the first day of school. Patrice greets Bianca nicely enough and lays out some 'ground rules', offering to help Bianca with subjects she's good at in exchange for help with subjects she's not strong in, and saying that Bianca can borrow her clothes. Courtney comes into the room and talks with Patrice, discussing upcoming parties. Patrice spends some time with Bianca on their second day, but mostly leaves her alone to hang out with the other 'Evernight types'. She tries to reassure Bianca that she'll fit in soon enough and expresses admiration for Bianca's mother, who teaches her history class. Patrice sneaks out with Bianca to a late-night party on the school grounds. She gets caught when the teachers bust the party and is frogmarched back to her room by Mrs Bethany, who lectures her on the importance of the school rules. Patrice mentions that she saw Bianca with Balthazar More and thinks he would be a good boyfriend for Bianca, though she states that, personally, he isn't her "type".

Patrice helps Bianca get ready for her date with Lucas Ross, lending her a sweater and doing her hair for her. She begins dieting in the weeks leading up to the Autumn Ball so she'll look her best. She is very excited about the occasion, telling Bianca she's lucky, as most places don't throw balls like these anymore. At the Ball, Patrice sees Bianca dancing with Balthazar whilst waltzing with her own partner and gives her an approving smile. Later, during a rare moment of intimacy, Patrice reveals details about her past to Bianca, including how she used to be a slave and was to be prostituted out at octoroon balls. However, she quickly shuts down the discussion, asking Bianca her opinion on a shade of nail varnish. Towards the end of the school year, Patrice is studying with Bianca, Balthazar and Lucas in the Oliviers' apartment when Lucas is revealed to be a spy for Black Cross. Patrice is terrified when a fight breaks out between Lucas and Balthazar and Adrian, clinging to Bianca and screaming. After Lucas flees the school and Bianca returns after being 'kidnapped', she is surprised when Patrice - unlike most of the Evernight types - takes her side, comforting her and saying that "no girl could be blamed for her first love".

Stargazer
Patrice does not appear in the second book, with Bianca believing she decided to skip out on school this year and stay in Switzerland - where she had been vacationing - due to meeting a man there.

Afterlife
Patrice returns to the Academy in Afterlife, her new relationship having not worked out, and is shocked when she captures Bianca - now a wraith - in her pocket mirror whilst wandering the Academy grounds. Patrice releases Bianca and the two catch up briefly, although Bianca states she has to leave urgently, as her father is danger from a malevolent wraith. Patrice helps Bianca save Adrian. Surprisingly, Patrice expresses no fear of Bianca, though she is very surprised that she has become a wraith, and regards the reaction the recent hauntings at the Academy as an overreaction.

Patrice agrees to help Bianca and her friends find out what Mrs Bethany is doing with the wraiths. She also goes shopping with Bianca and fights off a Black Cross cell, taking Kate Ross one-on-one, to protect the now-vampiric Lucas from them. Patrice teaches Bianca how to trap wraiths in mirrors. Upon learning that Mrs Bethany is using the wraiths as a part of a spell that turn vampires human again, Patrice is initially in shock due to this being unprecedented. However, she quickly states that she would never consider using the spell herself, saying that she "found out the hard way" (referencing her lost love, Amos) that "once someone's dead [...] it's best to leave things as they are". She helps Bianca and her allies to find and dismantle Mrs Bethany's wraith traps and fights alongside them against Mrs Bethany's followers. Patrice survives the battle and the second burning of Evernight.

Physical Appearance
Patrice appears to be in her late teens, although being a vampire, she is in fact far older. She is very beautiful and elegant-looking, like most of the vampire students at Evernight. Patrice has light brown skin, described by Bianca as being "the coolest, softest brown", curly hair and a slim neck. She has "perfectly manicured" nails and tends to wear expensive and fashionable clothes and jewelry, when she isn't wearing the Evernight uniform (which she has had tailored to flatter her figure). She is of mixed ethnicity, specifically describing herself as being "part white and part black".

Personality
Patrice is initially shown to be somewhat shallow and self-absorbed, and pays a lot of attention to her appearance. However, as the series progresses, she is revealed to be much more benevolent than the majority of the other "Evernight types". She is not entirely selfish and is not cruel or malicious. She is actually quite kind to Bianca and tries to give her advice so she'll fit in better, though she clearly thinks of her as being quite immature at first.

Patrice doesn't seem to like talking about her past much, especially the more painful aspects of it, and rarely opens up about her feelings. She tends to be somewhat melodramatic and finicky about trivial things like out-dated clothes and dirt. Patrice has been known to be kind and generous, letting Bianca borrow her clothes, doing her hair and make-up for her, and also defending her over the incident with Lucas, saying that no girl could be blamed for her first love (which also implies she is something of a hopeless romantic). She also helps Bianca and her friends stop Mrs Bethany in Afterlife, putting her own life at risk in the process.

Unlike most vampires, Patrice is not afraid of wraiths and regards the reaction to the hauntings at Evernight as being "a lot of silliness", most likely due to her being more knowledgeable about them. Patrice also does not seem terribly enthusiastic about killing people - although she did kill slave owners and "redneck sheriffs" back in the 1800's with little remorse, she points out that they'd been attempting to enslave her again and that, if she can help it, she prefers not to kill people.

Powers and Abilities
As a vampire, Patrice is much stronger and faster than the average human. She is revealed to be a surprisingly effective fighter, being able to hold her own against Kate, a highly trained Black Cross hunter. Patrice alo knows a great deal about wraiths, including how to trap them in mirrors and release them as well.

Appearances

 * Evernight
 * Stargazer (mentioned only)
 * Hourglass (mentioned only)
 * Afterlife

Quotes from Patrice:

 * "I hear Evernight is a wonderful place to meet men."
 * (Patrice) "You can borrow my perfume but not my jewelry or clothes...I plan to do most of my studying in the library, but if you want to work here, let me know and I'll talk with my friends somewhere else. Help with the assignments you're good at, and I'll do the same for you. I'm sure we can learn a lot from each other. Sound fair?" (Bianca) "Definitely." (Patrice) "All right. We'll get along."
 * "Individual tailoring makes a world of difference. No woman should neglect it."
 * "I found out the hard way - once someone's dead, in whatever way they happen to be dead, it's best to leave things as they are."
 * "Before the Emancipation Proclamation, if you were black in this country, there was always someone trying to take your freedom away. Literally, I mean; figuratively, it never stops. After I became a vampire, I didn't have to put up with that anymore."
 * "I don't tend to make friends with Black Cross hunters, unlike some people. Though I guess Lucas isn't with them anymore. So backing him up is basically the same as giving Black Cross the finger."

Quotes about Patrice:

 * "She was the total embodiment of the Evernight type." - Bianca
 * "I could already tell that she liked giving advice, showing off how worldly and smart she was. This would have annoyed me if she hadn't been so obviously right." - Bianca

Trivia

 * The name 'Patrice' means regal, noble or patrician.
 * The name 'Deveraux' or 'Devereux', is a surname of Norman origins, originating from d'Evreux, meaning 'from Evreux' - a town in Normandy, France.