Author's note: Thank you so much for all of the reviews you've been sending me lately! Especially to one of my favorite reviewers, TigerArrowgirl, who is rereading my catalogue of stories — I really appreciate your support!

This chapter is loosely based on Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream (and bits of Klaus' sonnets are from Shakespeare.)


Caroline is a perfectly respectable fairy who faithfully serves her king. But she's caught the eye of a celebrated playwright who's arrogant, stubborn, and doesn't care about her people's rules. Fortunately, her mischievous king has a 'puckish' sense of humor...


"Lord, what fools these mortals be!"
― William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream


Act I

Humans were silly creatures. Silly, frivolous creatures who write a few plays and get a stupid nickname and achieve a tiny bit of notoriety in the human realm and suddenly they think they know everything. Impatiently flicking her wings, Caroline said, "I told you this cannot be, Klaus. You're mortal. And a famous one at that! My people cannot be dragged into this recklessness just because we're overcome with lust."

With a devious smirk, Klaus replied, "I was just the helpless victim, out for a stroll in my woods, when I was seduced by a powerful fairy."

"You seduced me, you impudent rogue! You chased me about the woods, shouting your insipid sonnets at me."

He grinned foolishly, his voice lightly teasing, "But I do so love comparing 'thee to a summer's day'." He pulled her to his familiar embrace, kissing her soundly.

It was unfair that her mortal lover moved with the grace of the fae, and she allowed herself the briefest of moments to close her eyes and pretend that her people would allow such a union. With a hopeless sigh, Caroline broke free, gazing at Klaus once more. "We can't do this anymore. It's forbidden for my people to sport with mortals." She shimmered away, unable to bear the look of despair on his handsome face.


Act II

"Dew-gathering by moonlight seemed glamorous when we were barely a century," Caroline complained, watching Bonnie morosely drain the petals into her enchanted jar.

"Many things seemed glamorous back then," Bonnie sighed, laying back on the bed of soft clover.

This was about Kol. Again. Caroline squeezed her friend's hand sympathetically. Kol was Klaus' mischievous, womanizing jackass of a brother. Always quick with a lusty flirt, his wandering eye broke many a maiden's heart. And Bonnie was completely infatuated with him. She ran a hand carelessly through the clover, a bittersweet smile on her face as she saw how the dark green heads turned into four leaves. Lucky four-leaf clover. Pity they didn't work on her kind.

"You pine for a faithless man and I one who's blinded by his faith. And none of it matters because our king has forbidden the unnatural love between fae and mortal."

It was with heavy hearts that the women returned to their task, wings drooping under the weight of their heartache.


Act III

Enzo toyed with his crown of branches, lazily spinning it between his talons as he observed his devoted fairies through the enchanted well. Unhappy fairies in his realm just would not do — especially when he was inordinately fond of these two fairies. He did enjoy a rebellious streak in his subjects.

"Forbidden is too strong a word. Frowned upon, mayhap," he mused. "All love is unnaturally natural, and naturally, unnatural love is the love to which we all aspire. So, let love those who love most ardently."

Enzo lovingly stroked the intricate knot tattoo along his forearm, the warm glow indicating Katherine had heard his summons.

She slithered through the bark of the sacred oak, pausing to affectionately tickle a branch. "Yes, my king," she asked, her half-bow both a tempting peek down her vine corset and a cheeky insult.

"Attend me, my dear," he said with a knowing grin, snapping his fingers so that she'd grant him the prettiest of scowls.

"Do you need help removing your head from your ass?"

Enzo chuckled, plucking a delicate water lily from the enchanted well and tucking it among her dark curls. "Finish your task early, and we'll take turns removing all sorts of marvelous things." Snatching a glass bottle from the air, he removed the cork, sniffing at the glittering purple contents as he told her, "Take this sap from the love-in-idleness flower, and spread it over the sleeping eyelids of the irksome Mikaelson mortals whom the fair Caroline and Bonnie have become enamored."

With a wicked smile, Katherine clutched the bottle tightly, bestowing upon her king a marvelously filthy kiss. "I'm always enamored with a bit of devilry."


Act IV

This is what turns a fairy's head? Katherine perched on a delicate yew branch, looking down at the human loudly snoring on moss-covered rocks. Kol drunkenly had wandered into the forest before passing out, and she'd mistake him for attractive if it weren't for his drool-soaked doublet and odd braying noise he made with every breath.

She carefully unstopped the bottle, tipping the glass until a thin stream of sap coated his fluttering eyelids. Once the human awoke, he'd fall in love with the first person he laid eyes upon, and from the flutter of wings overhead, it sounded like Bonnie would be along any moment. Perfect. Kol stirred, smacking his lips as he emitted another disjointed honking noise. Apparently, Bonnie was infatuated with a drunken donkey.

Suddenly, his boyish face began to elongate, a hairy muzzle springing forth along with tall, pointed ears. A jackass head to go with his jackass personality, Katherine mused as her lips curled into a pleased grin. She flitted away with a delighted giggle, wondering if Bonnie would be able to tell the difference.


Act V

Caroline's lover slumbered fitfully, having exhausted himself roaming the forest trying to find her. Klaus' brow furrowed, his dreams filled with visions of Caroline rejecting him again and again. If only he could rip away this mortality to please her. She was light and sweetness with the touch of the devil and he'd spend lifetimes worshipping her if she'd allow.

Suddenly, a cool breeze touched his eyelids, confounding him with its sudden warmth that spread throughout his body. Scuffling noises overhead roused him from his slumber, and a tinkling laugh followed by muffled cursing had him squinting up at the tall oak. Shaking his head in irritation, he dusted himself off, having no interest in whatever nonsense drunken revelers in the woods had found. He needed to find Caroline. His Caroline. With her ethereal beauty and kisses that tasted of silken ambrosia. Caroline

Klaus paused in mid-thought as a man clumsily fell from the tree, cursing and grumbling. And what a man he was. He'd never stopped to truly ponder the beauty that was man, but standing before this magnificent, dreamlike god made flesh, he was consumed by desire. He fell to his knees, calling out to his one true love, "My lord, my god, my everything! How have I survived on this mortal coil without your sacred touch?"

"Bloody hell," the exquisite stranger spoke, glaring up at the branches once more before focusing on Klaus. He raised his hands in a placating gesture, telling him, "Things got a bit cocked up, mate. But no worries, we'll set you right shortly."

Klaus swayed on his feet, dazzled by the man's sensual words. "Pray tell me your name, dearest one, so that I may bless the angels for naming you so perfectly."

The man performed a complicated movement with his hands, and then frowned when it didn't have the effect that he expected. "Damn it, Katherine," he grumbled under his breath. Flicking his dark gaze back to Klaus he said, "I'm Enzo. And you're...Caroline's human."

Klaus batted away the name of Caroline, the syllables muffled and insignificant. Enzo. "My king, you've a name that dances upon the tongue." He boldly stepped forward, telling his love, "I'm Klaus. Please, just whisper my name once so that I can be assured the beauteous vision before me is real."

It was vexing how Enzo kept backing away. Flashing a seductive smile, Klaus eagerly looked forward to this merry chase.


Act VI

That was a hideous donkey mask. Caroline let out a bark of laughter as she watched Kol drunkenly stumble after Bonnie through the underbrush, singing off-key, "Oh, there's my lady fairy, bouncing her bosoms so, with lips and tongue we'll make merry..." he trailed off, a long ear twitching at a firefly that buzzed too closely.

Wait. That wasn't a donkey mask. Someone gave Kol a donkey's head?! However, Bonnie looked more irritated than horrified as she shoved past him, muttering under her breath, "Keep your merry donkey tongue to yourself."

"How you wound me, my love, my fair lady fairy! Come frolic with me —" his lusty comment was interrupted by an involuntary braying noise, causing both of them to look alarmed.

"You also declared your undying devotion to me while asking if we could enjoy a quick romp in the forest with your maids Alexia and Josette." With an irritated growl, Bonnie took to the sky, with Kol lumbering after her, snorting and braying in between his foolish claims of conditional devotion.

Caroline started to follow them, curious to see if Kol eventually would turn all the way into a jackass so that his outside matched his inside, but then she heard Klaus' hoarse shout and grew concerned.

"Enzo! You mustn't run from the truth of us! This connection cannot be torn from our breasts," he bellowed, barreling through forest.

Caroline frowned, realizing he seemed to be chasing after...Enzo?! Her king looked decidedly disheveled, his normally lustrous black hair was in knots and littered with bits of leaves. He rudely pushed past Caroline, paying her no mind in his quest to hide from her lover.

Klaus burst into the clearing, a triumphant gleam in his gray eyes as he seductively crooned, "If I should think of love, I'd think of you; your arms uplifted, tying your hair in plaits above."

At first, Caroline felt herself warm at his flirtatious sonnet, but then she noticed he was addressing the space over her shoulder. Turning around, she glared at Enzo, who at least had the good grace to appear sheepish. That should've been her sonnet.

"Apologies, fair Caroline," Enzo huffed, ineffectively ducking behind her to hide from Klaus' greedy gaze. "Your lover is quite...vigorous."

She loathed the way Klaus' eyes were clouded over with wanton lust for her king. First Kol's (likely deserved) transformation and now this — she could sense the devilry wafting in the night breeze. "And pray tell, why might that be?"

Klaus impatiently circled Caroline, trying to get to Enzo, who still cowering behind her. "With my love's picture then my eye doth feast, and to the painted banquet bids my heart."

"Those sonnets are supposed to be for me," she hissed at Enzo, indignant that her king had started to climb on her shoulders to escape Klaus' lingering touches.

"I assure you, I'm aware," Enzo muttered, leaning back as Klaus started to pet his tangled locks lovingly. "And you are welcome to his sonnets once we attend to this confusion."

As an idea struck her, she kept her tone casual as she claimed, "Why bother? My people forbid such a joining and I've no interest in pretty words meant for my king."

Enzo hastily raised his voice over the lusty kissing noises Klaus made, telling Caroline desperately, "Let it be known my decree is to let love flow where it will."

Klaus' smile was blinding in its cheer. "Oh yes, my Enzo! And my love will flow and yours will flow and together we'll drown in our exquisite passion."

Rolling her eyes (and doing her best to tamp down her jealousy), she bartered with her king once more. "But my love's love is tragically mortal; what use do I have for such impermanence?"

"As it pleases you, fair Caroline," Enzo said through gritted teeth, "I will grant Klaus entrance to our kingdom; his immortality is within your capable hands once you settle this unfortunate chaos around us."

"Good." With a teasing smile, she shimmered away, chuckling at the sight of Klaus trying to braid Enzo's tangled locks.


Act VII

Bonnie and Katherine were arguing at the enchanted well when Caroline arrived, the waters bubbling over with their ill temper. "You turned Kol into a donkey," Bonnie bit out, crushing the belladonna berries and mixing them with dried thyme.

"A jackass is a jackass no matter the form," Katherine replied with a careless shrug, tossing the lily from her curls into the well. Glancing over her shoulder she nodded at Caroline, "Did Enzo send you to help unmake this magic?"

Twitching her wings irritably, Caroline replied, "The magic you and our king caused."

With an impish wink, Katherine replied, "A bit of harmless mischief, nothing more." Glancing at Bonnie, she slyly revealed, "My king has promised to grant Klaus immortality to show his contrition. I could convince him to do the same for your Kol if you wish. You'll find I can be exceedingly convincing."

Lifting the delicate blue smoke into the night air with a flutter of her wings, Bonnie snorted derisively, "My Kol was never mine. He was everyone's. He's a womanizing jackass now — just imagine what immortality would stir within him. One Zeus is more than enough!" Tossing back her dark hair, she mused, "Return Kol to his true form and send him on his merry way. Besides, I happened to notice a handsome farmer in the village square the other day..."


Act VIII

"Pluck out my tongue, for its lies have wronged you," Klaus said with a groan, rubbing his temples and wincing.

Caroline kissed away his grimace, toying with his curls as he lay his head in her lap. "It was my king who made those lies settle so sweetly upon your tongue."

"Now he's my king too," he replied, clearly still dazed by the thrum of immortality that now surged through his veins.

With a devious grin, she confessed, "And while my heart is gladdened by the fact, Bonnie and I still plot our revenge. When he wakes, his tattoo will brand him as a cuckold and a three-inch fool."

He rose up to kiss her soundly. "None less than Enzo deserves, although you may have been too generous in your measure of our king."

She mused, "Perhaps the evening's events are best remembered as a dream?"

Flashing Caroline a dimpled smirk, Klaus replied, "Actually, these amusing events have given me an idea for a new play."