Antoinette Deveraux never liked parties.

She most certainly was not what you would call a party person. The only reason she went to the party that night was because Marcel Gerard asked her to.

"Come on, Nettie," he had said. "You might now realize it now, but you need to get out more, try to have fun."

She looked up at him. "Do you not know me at all? I am not that kind of person, Marcel. I don't think I ever have been."

He raised his eyebrows. "Never? You never used to go out to parties and enjoy yourself?"

"You know how long ago that was," she snapped. "I didn't think you would bring it up like that." She got up and turned away from him, and began to leave the room.

"Wait, Nettie." He sighed. "Look, I'm sorry. I know what you went through, but that was years ago now, and staying up here in your apartment alone all the time is not healthy. So, please come with me tonight."

Antoinette turned around again. "I'll go," she said, "But don't you leave me alone for too long. You know I'll get nervous."

Marcel nodded. "You know I won't."

~~~~~~

Now she was at a party in a place she knew was the Mikaelson home. It was strange; she thought Marcel didn't like them. Or perhaps he had changed his mind.

"Just stick with me," Marcel said. "Everything will be fine, I promise."

She looped her arm through his and let him led her through the crowd.

"Who are we looking for?" she asked.

Before he could give her an answer, she heard, "Ah, Marcellus. I was wondering if you would show up. And you brought a friend."

"Nettie, This is Klaus Mikaelson," Marcel said to Antoinette, gesturing to the blond man now standing before them. "Klaus, this Antoinette Deveraux, a friend of mine."

Klaus Mikaelson gave her a charming smile, which made her feel uneasy. "Very happy to meet you, Ms. Deveraux. Would you mind if I borrow Marcel for a few minutes? There's something I wanted to discuss with him."

She glanced at Marcel.

"Just a few minutes," he promised.

She nodded. "All right. I'll wait here."

Antoinette looked around the party, wondering what she should do next. She knew she probably shouldn't be standing in the middle of the floor like that for the next five minutes if she didn't want to draw attention to herself. She went over to the table and poured herself a drink. This was her first time at a public party in quite a while, but she didn't feel as nervous as she thought she would.

"Hey. Are you okay?"

Antoinette looked to her right, a little startled by the voice. Standing next to her was a blonde woman with a friendly face and bright eyes.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Um, your hand."

Antoinette looked down, and realized the hand she holding her glass with was shaking very visibly. She quickly put the glass down and clasped her hands together.

"I'm fine, thank you," she said. "I...don't think we've ever met."

"No, I don't think so," the woman said. "It's Cami. I saw you come in with Marcel Gerard."

"Oh. Yes. Do you know him?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I guess he and I are friends, too. He did get me to go on a date with him last week, and we actually had fun together. And I don't think he likes that I'm friends with Klaus Mikaelson."

Antoinette nodded. "It does seem like he's not fond of them, despite their past."

"Yeah, it does, doesn't it?" Cami sighed. "I guess the struggle to be King of the Quarter can do that to you."

"What struggle?" Antoinette asked.

"Nettie," Marcel said, appearing at the table and startling her. "I'm sorry. That took a little longer than I thought it would." He smiled at Cami. "Hey. I wasn't sure if you were gonna be here."

She shrugged. "Klaus convinced me it would be fun. I was just talking to your friend here...Nettie?"

"Yeah, this is my friend, Antoinette Deveraux," Marcel said. "Nettie, this is Camille O'Connell, also a friend."

"It's nice to formally meet you, Antoinette," Cami said with a smile.

"Ah, Camille." Klaus Mikaelson came up behind them. "I'm very glad you decided to come."

"I think I am, too," Cami said, still smiling. "I'll see you around, Marcel. You too, Antoinette."

"Just a friend, huh?" Antoinette said as Cami walked off, chatting with Klaus. "Why didn't you tell me you'd started dating someone?"

"It was one date," Marcel said. "And it's going to be hard to get any further with Klaus around. Hey, do you want to just go home? This isn't really exciting, anyway."

"Yes, definitely," Antoinette replied. She assumed whatever Marcel and Klaus were discussing had soured his mood, and seeing Cami with Klaus soured it even further.