Author's note: This was written for Klaroline AU Season 2021 - Week Six: April 21-27 - All Human. The Mikaelsons are spoiled, selfish snobs — and unfortunately are art student Caroline and her parents' main source of income. At least she only has to put up with them over her summer break...

"It is a land of snobbery and privilege, ruled largely by the old and silly."
― George Orwell, Why I Write

Caroline was looking at the ass end of a chicken hatching a nest of rattlesnakes. The longer she stared at the hideous painting, the more she was reminded of the proverb, "A fool and his money are soon parted." She'd added a lot of unflattering adjectives to her parents' employers over the years, and 'fools' was the kindest. The Mikaelsons were one of the founding families of Mystic Falls, and their vast estate perched on top of the hills that surrounded the town. Looking down on everyone else.

From firing ten different chefs in two months to timing the maids when they polish the silver, Caroline had heard ever horrifying story she could imagine about the Mikaelsons. She owed so much to her parents for having the fortitude to stay; their frugal ways enabled her to attend some of the best boarding schools in the country, and thanks to their generosity, she just wrapped up her second semester abroad studying art in Málaga.

"It's just such a textbook example of Erickson's preconventional morality," a blonde cooed, batting her eyelashes at Klaus, possibly the most self-centered of all the Mikaelson siblings, as she added sympathetically, "Your morality always has been externally controlled by your father, so it's understanding that's it's difficult for you to connect with people. I just want you to know that I'm here for you."

Repositioning the heavy tray of tarta malagueña mini cakes, Caroline rolled her eyes, discreetly side-stepping the clueless woman who had no idea that she was talking to a dimpled asshat who kept an ongoing scorecard with his equally moronic younger brother. Caroline only had interacted with Klaus a few times when she was younger, and while none of the experiences had gone well, to this day, she insisted that the black eye she gave him was totally worth her mom's lecture. (Her dad had slipped her a candy bar and a high-five.)

"That's good to know, love," Klaus smirked, nodding across the room toward the enormous ice sculpture bar. "Why don't you go fetch us some more champagne, Cindy?"

"It's Cami," she gushed, "but that's ok. It's just part of your healing process." She eagerly teetered away on what looked like sparkly stilts.

Shaking her head, Caroline fake-smiled at guests who impatiently flagged her over and scooped up several of the cakes from her tray. Mostly, she should be grateful she was out of Klaus' line of sight. If she had to listen to one more of his bad pickup lines, she might have to black his other eye.

"Well, you're certainly a radiant light at this dreadful soiree. Perhaps I could tempt you to join me for a nightcap later on? What do you think, love?"

Damn it. He managed to sneak up on her when she was busy trying to keep her tray from toppling into what looked like some very pricey cleavage. She slowly turned around, pleased to see the same flirty wink he'd thrown at Cami. Klaus didn't recognize her. "I think your armchair psychologist friend mixed up Kohlberg's levels of moral reasoning with Erickson's stages of psychosocial development," she coolly replied, shifting the weight of her tray to dodge yet another handsy guest.

As she swiftly weaved her way toward the veranda, she realized she'd picked up an annoying shadow, and unfortunately she wasn't allowed to hide among the marble sculptures.

Klaus chuckled, "Aren't you a clever thing?"

"It's not that deep — pretty much everyone took the same Intro to Psych elective freshman year."

Favoring her with a dimpled smirk, Klaus asked delightedly, "So you're a psychology major?"

"Nope." Realizing her brittleness was going to earn her a lecture from her mother, she softened her voice as she held her tray toward him. "Dessert?"

Gray eyes twinkling in amusement, he plucked one of the golden cakes with caramelized onions, taking a sensual bite. "Delicious. Ligurian olive oil cake at its finest. You know, I've spent some time on the Italian Riviera and did some amazing landscapes. Perhaps I could interest you in a private viewing, sweetheart?"

Seriously? "They're tarta malagueña cakes from Málaga, Spain," she corrected him in a saccharine tone, secretly pleased to see the slight flush creeping up his neck. As Klaus' date wandered back over and put her hand possessively on his arm, Caroline added sarcastically, "But I'm sure your date would enjoy an art lesson."

It always amazed Caroline how a family who had everything behaved as though they had nothing. Even tucked away in their gallery alcove of the east wing, she could hear Esther's shrill screeching about one of the maids using a store brand silver polish. Rolling her eyes, she bent her head back to the sketchpad, the feel of the charcoal pencil a familiar comfort.

"Fancy meeting you here."

"Seriously?! My break's over in about 10 minutes and I'd like to spend it sketching —not babysitting," she replied, smoothing out the bold curves of her Chagall study. Klaus favored her with an amused smile, and just as he started to reply, she cut him off with a warning, "And if you ruin what's left of my break with a cheesy pickup line, I swear I'll black your other eye." At his flabbergasted expression, she shrugged and added, "Or, maybe I'll just shove you in the pool again and hope I don't get grounded this time."

Gray eyes widened comically as he croaked, "Caroline Forbes? It's really you?" He rubbed the back of his neck as he added sheepishly, "As I recall, you ambushed me with that punch. And the impromptu swim."

"You started it! Did you honestly think you could track mud and hay all over your mother's Italian marble foyer and blame it on me?! And my mom had just cleaned! No way was I letting you get away with that."

"As feisty as ever, I see." Klaus craned his curly head to examine her work, murmuring, "Brilliant lines, sweetheart. It's nice to see someone in this house appreciates the Chagall. You wouldn't believe the uproar when the auction house delivered it."

Caroline rolled her eyes, lightly smudging one of the dancing figures. "Yeah, your family's latest acquisition involving the snakes motif with a chicken was...a choice."

Letting out an amused chuckle, Klaus replied, "The de Martel brother and sister duo thrive on shock value. Mad as hatters, I wouldn't recommend attending one of their installations. Their patrons are a bit...colorful. Harmless, but certainly more bizarre than quirky."

Casting an admiring glance at the dreamlike visions of the painting before them, she sighed happily. "That's why Chagall is an obsession of mine — he's the embodiment of an emotional aesthetic with whimsical figures that never strays into garish. I can't tell you how often I've sat in front of his works in Málaga."

His lips curved into a genuine smile as he uncharacteristically gushed, "You're studying art in Spain? I spent some time in Italy, but regretfully was summoned back home before I could properly tour along the Mediterranean." His voice grew hesitant as he asked, "Will you be returning soon?"

"I'm on summer break and working here with my parents to save up. Europe's ridiculously expensive if you aren't a Mikaelson, you know," she said wryly, noting with interest how flustered he'd suddenly grown.

Grumbling good-naturedly as he passed under the archway, Klaus briefly paused to tell her, "It's nice to have you here, Caroline. And don't hesitate to let me know if there's anything I can do to make your stay more comfortable."

"How about you stop doing stupid shit that makes me want to shove you in the pool?"

With a dimpled smirk, he replied, "I'll do my best, love. But that may be an arduous task as summer is quite long."

As Klaus sauntered off, Caroline inwardly groaned, realizing she was staring at his beautifully sculpted ass. Klaus was right — it was going to be a long summer.