A/N: This fic is heavily based off of the Disney movie 'Tangled', and has been written for Caryn's (stanissqueen's) birthday! Happy birthday, love! And the beautiful cover (if it's showing up yet!) was kindly made by Chelsey (mikaelshake) on Tumblr.

Just as a little background, 'Tangled' is believed to be set in either the 1830's or 1840's, so I've taken costume and food from the 1840's (because I like the clothes a little more), but still kept the language modern, like the film. There are sets up for this first instalment (of three) up on my Polyvore (link on my profile) so check those out. And please bear in mind that this is based on a Disney movie, and some parts are so unrealistic it made me laugh while writing them. But, magic hair!

Happy reading!

…

This is the story of how I died. Don't worry this actually a very fun story, and the truth is, it isn't actually mine. This is the story of a girl called Caroline. And it starts with the sun.

Once upon a time, a single drop of sunlight fell from the heavens, and from this small drop of sunlight, grew a magical, golden, flower. It had the ability to heal the sick, and injured. Centuries passed, and a hop, skip and a boat ride away there grew a kingdom, ruled by a beloved king and queen. And the queen, well, she was about to have a baby, but she got sick, really sick, and she was running out of time. And that's when people usually start looking for a miracle, or in this case, a magic golden flower. Instead of sharing the suns gift, a woman called Katherine hoarded it's healing powers and used it to keep herself young for hundreds of years. And all she had to do was sing a special song.

"Flower gleam and glow, let your power shine, make the clock reverse, bring back what once was mine, what once was mine."

So you get the gist, she sings to it and she gets young, creepy, right? The magic of the golden flower healed the queen, and a healthy baby girl was born, with beautiful golden hair. I'll give you a hint, that's Caroline. To celebrate her birth the king and queen launched a flying lantern into the sky, and for that one moment everything was perfect. And then that moment ended.

Katherine broke into the castle and stole the child, and just like that, gone. The kingdom searched and searched but they could not find the princess. For deep within the forest, in a hidden tower, Katherine raised the child as her own.

Katherine had found her new magic flower, but this time she was determined to keep it hidden. But the walls of that tower could not hide everything. Each year on her birthday, the king and queen released thousands of lanterns, in the hope that one-day, their lost princess would return.

…

It was 8:30 in the morning, and Caroline had already cooked breakfast, done her chores for the day, and finished the book she was reading. She sighed looking round her tower, immaculately kept, partly due to there being nothing much else to do, and partly due to her mother's strict rules. She perked up a little when she realised she still had some work to do on her birthday dress. She had found some old offcuts of some of her mother's material, likely taken from her seamstress, and Caroline had decided to make herself a dress for her birthday. Of course, she wouldn't be leaving her tower, but that didn't mean she couldn't look nice! She had become so handy with a thread and needle her mother had stopped going to her seamstress and got Caroline to make her dresses for her. She didn't mind as there wasn't much else to fill Caroline's days.

See, as much as she desperately wanted to, Caroline couldn't leave her tower. It sat high up, with the living quarters at the very top, and no visible stairs or entryway to the top. It was hidden in a small area of land, concealed from the typical footpaths that travellers took, and far away enough from civilisation so no nosy villagers spotted the tower and began to ask questions.

You see, Caroline had a gift. She had beautiful, bright golden hair that was metres and metres long, and a part from its extensive growth, it did something very special. Her hair could heal the wounded or sick, or even reverse aging, which is what Caroline's mother used it for, as long as she sung a special song. But despite her hair having such special abilities, her mother hid her away, as when she was a baby, people tried to cut it, and use her gift for their own selfish means. And so Caroline couldn't leave her tower, and her mother kept her hidden away for her daughter's own protection.

Caroline nervously tapped her foot as she continued stitching the hem on her dress, eyeing the window and only area she had to the outside world. It was also her mother's only way in. She had decided that seeing as her birthday was coming up, she would ask her mother for something she had never asked for before. She wanted to see the floating lights. Every year on the day of her birthday, since Caroline could remember, there were hundreds if not thousands of floating lights that drifted throughout the night sky, creating an amazing spectacle. But from where her tower was, she could only see them from very far away. And so, she wanted to leave her tower to see the floating lights.

"Oh, Caroline! Let down your hair!" Caroline shot up, recognising her mother's call, hastily putting the needle and the dress down to rush to the window. Gathering armfuls of her long hair, she threw it out the window, hooking it over the looped iron bar above the window, and she started pulling, the strain on her hair and the weight telling her that her mother was almost there.

And sure enough, through the window hopped a cloaked woman. Pushing the hood back, stood Katherine, Caroline's mother. She had long, chestnut ringlets that reached her waist, wide, cold eyes, and a svelte figure that made Caroline feel plain in comparison to.

"Oh, Caroline, my dear! Pulling me through that window every day must be such a feat, I don't know how you do it!" Katherine said, placing a hand fondly on her daughter's cheek,

"Oh really, Mother, it's nothing." Caroline said smiling, feeling a little pleased at the compliment.

"Then I don't know why it takes so long!" She sang, pinching Caroline's cheek, "Oh darling, I'm just joking, you're adorable." She said quickly as she saw Caroline's face fall. Katherine immediately went over to the mirror by the wall and began preening, and checking her appearance for the first signs of aging.

Caroline took a deep breath, bracing herself and twisting her hands together, "Mother, I want to talk to you about something."

"Yes, dear? Is it going to take very long?" Katherine asked, frowning at her appearance. She had fine lines beginning to appear in the corners of her eyes, and slight bags, also her normally glossy hair was beginning to tinge with grey, and had lost some of it's normal lustre.

She bounced on the balls of her feet, hardly able to contain her excitement, "No, no, it's just, well-"

Katherine turned to her daughter, "Dear, can this wait? Mother needs a little pick me up."

Caroline nodded and quickly gathered a brush and a chair for her mother to sit, practically shoving the woman into the seat and handing her the brush, "Flower gleam and glow let your power shine make the clock reverse, bring back what once was mine what once was mine." She sang practically in one breath, hardly giving her mother a chance to brush.

"Caroline!" She exclaimed, shocked at the rushed routine.

She turned to look at Katherine, "Look, Mother, I don't know if you remember, but, well, tomorrow it's my birthday!" She chirped brightly with a smile.

"No, no, that's impossible. I distinctly remember that was last year." Katherine said matter-of-factly, picking at her dress,

"Mother." Caroline said exasperatedly,

Katherine sighed, "Yes, yes, I know, they're an annual thing."

"Well I think I know what I want for my birthday!" She said brightly, crossing her fingers and toes that this would go smoothly,

Katherine stood and walked over to the pantry to see what needing stocking up, "And what's that?" She asked disinterestedly,

"Every year on my birthday, like clockwork, there are these floating lights! And I was hoping you would take me to go and see them." Caroline said hopefully, waiting with baited breath.

Katherine froze before speaking, "Oh, you mean the stars."

"Well that's the funny thing, I've mapped all of the stars since I was young, and none of them match with what I see each year on my birthday!" She said, gesturing behind her to the folder where all of her drawings and notes were neatly stored, "And, I just feel like I need to go and see them, like they're meant for me."

"Oh, Caroline, you want to go outside? I don't think that's a very good idea, dear." Said Katherine walking to where Caroline stood, a ball of disappointment, circling her slowly, "You're as fragile as a flower. And still so young, you know why we stay up in this tower." She said calmly, pushing some of Caroline's hair over her shoulder,

"I know, but-!"

"That's right, to keep you safe. Do you know what's out there, Caroline?"

"Well, no."

"Ruffians, Poison Ivy, quick sand, even the plague!" At Caroline's shocked gasp she continued, "Cannibals, and don't forget the men with pointy teeth! Plus, look at you Caroline! You're sloppy, underdressed," Katherine signalled to Caroline's bare feet with an eyebrow, "Immature, clumsy, you trip over your feet most days! You're ditzy, and a bit, well, vague. Plus I think you're getting kind of chubby. How do you expect me to believe you'll fare well out there?"

Caroline tried not to let her mother's words affect her, having gotten use to the disparaging remarks in her eighteen years, "Well, that's why I need you to come with me Mother! You go outside all the time!"

"Because no one is interested in me!" She said, pointing to her daughters hair, "You go outside, and all those horrible, selfish people will be after you! Trying to use you for your powers!" Katherine opened her arms for her daughter, Caroline stiffly going into them, enveloped in her mother's arms, Katherine stroked her hair, "Caroline?"

The blonde pulled back, "Yes Mother?"

"Never ask to leave this tower again." She said, her voice full of steel, leaving no room for disagreement.

Caroline's head dropped in defeat, "Yes Mother."

Katherine tilted her daughters head up, giving her an unusually tender look, "I love you, very much dear."

Caroline smiled, "I love you more."

"I love you most." Katherine said, finishing their ritual since Caroline was a child, placing a kiss on top of her head, having to go on her tip toes these days to reach.

As Katherine turned away from her, Caroline let her face fall. Katherine headed for the window, throwing out an armful of hair for her way down. As she was sliding down the tower she called her goodbyes, "Goodbye, my flower! I'll see you in a bit!"

"I'll be here." Caroline huffed.

…

Meanwhile, across the kingdom, Klaus stood taking in the view of the city from the palace's roof, "I could get use to this." He sighed.

"Let's go and get this over with." Damon Salvatore said irately, holding one of the Great Hall's roof panels open, ready and waiting for him. Klaus paid him no mind,

"I've made up my mind, lads. I want a castle."

"If you move your arse and finish this job you might be able to buy a bloody castle with your share." Enzo, Damon's partner in crime hissed. Klaus sighed and walked towards them, and before he knew it, he was trussed up in rope like a Christmas turkey and was being dangled through the ceiling panel by the aforementioned rope.

Slowly but surely he was lowered towards his goal: the lost Princesses tiara. The gems glittered at him begging to be touched, and he could almost reach out and grab it, right out from the noses from a circle of guards who all had their back to him. Just a little more, and his fingers carefully enclosed round the tiara, and he felt his heart skip a beat in joy. One of the guards sneezed then, and Klaus couldn't help himself, "Hay fever, mate?"

"Yeah," The guard replied in a knowing voice, before doing a double take just as Klaus was being pulled back up, "Hey, wait!" Called the guard hopelessly, alerting all the other guards to the situation. But the trio were too fast. Klaus had the satchel over his shoulder containing the tiara, with the two dopes running behind him, and with their little shortcuts and dodging the guards a little they fled the city.

"Can't you picture me in a castle of my own? I certainly can! With a lovely blonde at my side! All of this and it's only nine in the morning!" Klaus called to his companions.

Soon enough they were racing through the forest, and Klaus stopped to look at the wanted posters plastered to a tree, "Jeez, look at this, they just can't get my nose right!" Klaus pointed at the poster, meant to be him, with an oversized, almost comical nose,

"Now isn't the time, Klaus!" Damon snapped, Klaus holding his key to his future riches,

"That's easy for you to say! You guys look amazing!" He said, gesturing to the joint poster Damon and Enzo shared, "Well, as amazing as those mugs could look." Just as Enzo was about to say something, they heard the thumping of the palace horses, springing them back into action. Klaus yanked his wanted poster down, stuffing it in his satchel, and they raced through the forest once more and came to an abrupt halt when they realised they were trapped in a ditch of sorts, and needed to get fifteen feet up to get back onto the flat ground of the forest.

"Okay, you guys stand on each others shoulders, boost me up, then I'll help you up." Klaus said confidently,

Damon and Enzo looked at each other, "Give us the satchel first." Enzo voiced,

"Seriously? You choose now to be insecure bitches?"

"The satchel, Klaus." Damon reiterated firmly.

"Fine." Klaus muttered, slinging the satchel at them, "Okay, boys, give me a boost." Klaus said, and obligingly, somehow, Damon managed to get onto Enzo's shoulders, with Klaus climbing over the pair. He scrambled onto the flat ground, and gave a sigh of relief.

"Now help us up!" Damon called.

"Sorry lads, I've got my hands full!" Klaus said smugly, dangling the satchel right in front of them, darting off as he heard the sound of hooves once more. He could hear his partners in crime yelling and cursing his name and chuckled to himself as he sought a place to hide.

But before he knew it the guards were on his tail again, narrowly avoiding several arrows to the back as he skidded and swerved through the dark forest. Once guard in particular with a stark white horse was catching up to him, so much so he could feel the horse's breath on his neck. The horse's mouth then clamped down onto the satchel and Klaus half ran and was half dragged as he fought with the horse for the bag, the rider also trying to grab the satchel in the process. Too many arms were in the mix, and Klaus eventually ended up accidentally flinging the satchel over a cliff. He felt his heart drop, despair almost flooding him, until he realised the satchel had caught on a branch of the tree that was hanging cumbersomely off of the cliff.

Klaus looked to the guard then back to the cliff, and made a split second decision, diving onto the tree trunk, scrabbling for the satchel. He could hear the heavy footsteps of the guard behind him, which only made Klaus fumble faster, trying to concentrate on the satchel instead of how precariously he was dangling off a cliff. And just as his hand closed around the strap of the satchel he heard a giant 'CRACK'!

He looked back to the equally shocked guard with wide eyes and suddenly they were flying through the air, both of them screaming, but they hit the ground quite quickly, rolling down a mountainous hill until they both tumbled onto a flat, grassy knoll. He looked at his hand, and still clutched in his grip was the satchel. Klaus let out a sigh of relief, his head shooting up as he looked for the guard that fell with him. Luckily for him the guard was about thirty feet away, so he stumbled to his feet, swaying slightly as he got his equilibrium back and ducked into a small tunnelled area, stumbling through it until he came to a clearing. In front of him was a huge, ancient, tall tower. The perfect escape. He ran around the spherical base looking for a door or ladder, or any way up really, but found nothing. He faced the tower, knowing the only thing he would be able to do was climb it.

So he slung the satchel securely over him and rubbed his hands together, jumping to the first available handhold. He made his way up slowly but surely, the building's old exterior meaning he had a few good hand and foot holds to heave him up the tower. Klaus could feel every muscle in his bruised and battered body screaming in protest, but he continued anyway, his own castle hovering in the forefront of his mind.

Soon enough he was hopping through the open window at the top, and collapsing against the nearest wall. He scuttled to pull the satchel off of him, hoping against all odds the tiara would be inside. He opened it hesitantly, breathing a sigh of relief to find it glittering inside the dark bag, "Ah, alone at last, my love." He murmured, not even noticing the petrified blonde approaching him from behind and hitting him over the head with a frying pan. He collapsed to the floor unceremoniously, immediately knocked out cold.

Caroline squeaked and hopped away from his falling body as he fell face first to the floor. She stood frozen for a second, still wielding her frying pan as a weapon. Seeing that he wasn't moving she was suddenly worried for a second. What if she'd killed him? She gingerly took a step forward, and leant over him, poking him in the cheek with her frying pan and leaping back. He didn't move, or even grunt. She stepped forward again, and this time turned his head to the side to see his face. Wow. He was actually very good looking for a man. Not that she had anything to compare it to; she'd never actually seen a man before, or anyone really, only mother. A thought crossed her mind and she carefully pushed his lip up using her frying pan, and gave a sigh of relief when she saw his teeth weren't pointy like mother had warned her.

Now she had to decide what to do with him. Her mother would be back very soon with provisions, and would surely go insane if there was another person in the tower with Caroline. Even if he was unconscious. A thought struck her mind then; surely this was proof to her mother that she could handle herself! Maybe if she saw what her daughter was capable of, she would let her go outside! Caroline clapped her hands excitedly, looking at the man on her floor, and tried to figure out what to do with him. Maybe if she hid him first, she might be able to talk her mother round without giving her a heart attack in the form of a six foot blond man.

She looked around the room, and her eyes landed on her closet. It took her half an hour to stuff the strange man into her closet, and with the amount of times he fell on his face, Caroline knew he'd be sore when he woke up. Just as she was brushing herself off, she noticed a satchel near where she had knocked the stranger out. Walking over she picked it up, and cautiously looked inside she pulled out a beautiful, silver and jewel encrusted circle. She held it delicately in her hands, turning it from every angle, trying to decide upon its use. She went to stand in front of the mirror to get a better look. She tried slipped her wrist through it, but it was far too big. She tried putting both of her wrists through it, but almost ended up dropping it on the floor. She sighed, and looked at her neck, maybe it was a necklace! She looked for a clasp, but couldn't find one, so she tried slipping it over her head. It wouldn't slip over her head, but it sat perfectly on the crown of her head. A thought sparked in Caroline's mind, this was a tiara! She remembered reading about them in the princess fairy-tale book that her mother didn't like her reading. She preened a little, the crown's colours perfectly matching her colouring, the turquoise stones emphasising the blue of her eyes and the diamonds reflecting off of the paleness of her hair.

Suddenly, she heard a distinct voice call, "Caroline! Let down your hair!" She jolted into action, leaping over to her bed to hide the tiara under her pillow, throwing a look over her shoulder at her closet to check it wasn't shaking from a conscious body. She quickly set up her hair and began pulling her mother up the tower, "I have a surprise for you!" Katherine called,

"I do too, Mother!" Caroline called excitedly, heart hammering as her mother popped in through the window,

"Well, I'm certain my surprise is better. I've gotten a hold of some cinnamon and ground sugar to make cinnamon buns, your favourite!"

"Oh, thank you, Mother." Caroline mumbled, a little shocked, her mother never did anything nice on a whim.

"You know I just hate leaving you after we've had a disagreement, especially over such a silly thing." Caroline suddenly understood. Katherine walked over to their kitchen area and began unpacking her basket, pulling out a fresh loaf of bread,

"Well, you know, Mother, I think I'm much more capable than you think! I-"

"I hope you aren't still interested in the stars, Caroline." Katherine said, her voice cooling.

Caroline could feel her newfound hopes dimming a little, and edged over to the wardrobe, "I know you think I can't protect myself-"

"Because I really thought we had fully discussed the topic, flower." Katherine cut in, hardly taking in her daughter's words,

Caroline wailed in annoyance, "But I can protect myself!" She insisted, stomping her foot,

"Oh, I know you can't handle yourself, dear." She tittered,

"But if you just listen to me!" Caroline almost shouted back in annoyance, considering just opening her closet already to shock her mother into silence,

"No, I'm done talking about this." Katherine replied sternly, turning to face her daughter, expression set to stone.

"I know what you think-"

"No, Caroline."

"But I can protect myself-"

"Caroline."

"Just today, I-"

"Caroline, you are not leaving this tower, EVER!" Katherine screamed, her patience torn to threads. Caroline flinched, shoulders slumping, caving in on herself as she hung her head in disappointment, tears clouding her eyes in frustration. She watched her daughter's reaction and felt guilt seep into her, "So now I'm the bad guy." Katherine huffed, crossing her arms.

Caroline stayed silent for a moment and looked to her closet. A thought suddenly struck her, and she tried to seem downtrodden, "All I was going to ask mother, is if you could go to that little village, and get me some of that special golden thread for my birthday? Like you did a few years ago? I thought it was a better idea than the… stars."

Katherine looked to her with a sigh, "Caroline, that's a long trip. Three days time. I'll miss your birthday!"

"I know, I just thought it was a better idea than me leaving the tower." That seemed to placate Katherine somewhat, and she nodded.

"Okay, I'll get you the thread for your birthday." Caroline felt the butterflies in her stomach move back into a full frenzy. She packed her mother's basket with enough food to last her three days, and they said their farewells. Once she'd let her mother down the tower, Katherine stopped and turned to wave at the tower from the hidden pathway. Caroline waved back, nerves suddenly attacking her as she realised what she'd have to do next. Time to wake up the mystery man.

…

Klaus woke groggily, his head pounding, and his entire body sore as if he'd not only rolled down a mountain, but been thrown around a room by a 300 pound man. His head lolled to the side as his vision blurred slightly, struggling to come back to his senses. He attempted to move his limbs but found them bound with something. Something that was definitely not rope.

"Struggling is pointless! You'll never escape!" Came a distinctly female voice from the darkened shadows of the tower,

"Wha-?" He mumbled, fighting to focus his eyes,

"I know why you're here! And you should know I'm not afraid of you!" She spoke again, and he could steadily make out the form of a woman approaching from the shadows brandishing a – was that a frying pan? He looked down at himself and gave a startled shout. He was tied up in hair, blonde, human hair, that was at least twenty feet long. He let out another alarmed noise and tried to get free.

"I told you not to struggle! What do you want with my hair? To cut it? Sell it? Steal me?"

"The only thing I want to do with your bloody hair is get out of it!" He shouted, still struggling to get free. The woman moved completely out of the shadows then, and Klaus looked up instinctually. He felt like he'd been winded, and he was pretty sure it wasn't the hair. Stood in front of him was a gorgeous, blonde woman. Indeed, the hair was freakishly attached to her, but for just a moment he let himself take in her dainty features, drawn into what he was sure was meant to be an intimidating look. He took in her lithe figure, hinting at a few luscious curves under the loose fabric of her dress, ankles peeking out the bottom from where she'd obviously grown out of it. Then he met her eyes, her expression seemed slightly confused then, as the blue of his eyes met her own. He gave her his best, panty-dropping smile, "Hi, the name's Klaus."

That seemed to infuriate her even more and she raised the frying pan fractionally, hinting at a threat, but he didn't let himself get defeated, "How's your day going? This is certainly a new one for me." He said, rocking in the chair slightly to test his restraints once more,

"Well, Klaus, who else knows where I am? Why are you here?" She asked, brandishing her frying pan in front of his face,

"Look here, love-"

"Caroline." She growled,

"Nice. I have no idea what you're on about. I was being chased, and I saw this lovely tower here and climbed it for safety. I don't care about your odd hair- oh, oh" He suddenly started looking round the tower and struggling against his bonds in earnest, "Where's my satchel?"

She flipped the frying pan to rest on her shoulder, looking very pleased with herself, "I've hidden it. And you'll never find it." She said smarmily, and Klaus kept on looking around, glaring at her when he realised there were no obvious hiding spaces. She changed her stance then, brandishing her pan and attempting to look intimidating like she'd read in her books, "So what do you want with me? To use me for my hair?" She asked suspiciously,

"No, I told you! The only thing I want with your hair is to get out of the bloody fucking stuff!" Caroline straightened at the expletive, feeling a little stunned, "So you don't want my hair?"

"As I've already told you, love, no!" He exclaimed. She hummed; mulling her thoughts over, and Klaus ground his teeth, eyes flicking around, still in search of his satchel. She tugged the chair in the direction of a table, moving over to it and holding up a coloured drawing,

"Do you know what these are?"

"What, the lanterns?" Klaus said boredly. At this point he wasn't sure if being with those two bozos Damon and Enzo was better than this mild mannered interrogation. At least she, no, Caroline, was much nicer to look at.

"Lanterns! It makes so much sense!" She said more to herself than anyone, "Well, tomorrow night, these 'lanterns' are going to be lit, and if you ever want to see your tiara again, you are going to take me there, and bring me back." She said firmly, and Klaus looked at her blankly.

"That's all you want? To see the lanterns for the lost princess?"

"Yes."

"And then you'll give me my tiara?" He asked, and she hummed and nodded her head in agreement, "And you won't just give it back to me now?" He asked, making his voice low and gravelly. Once again he only seemed to irritate her,

"Absolutely not!"

"I must warn you, love, the kingdom and I aren't on the best of terms right now. I have guards chasing me." He told her trying to put off her very strange idea,

"I'm sure you can avoid them for the sake of your precious tiara." Caroline immediately replied, looking to her frying pan interestedly.

"Ugh, fine." He agreed begrudgingly, and Caroline let out a squeal of excitement, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"Wonderful! Let me pack." Klaus rolled his eyes, if this woman was anything like Rebekah, she'd be the death of him, but he couldn't help but feel he'd enjoy every moment of it.

…

Klaus climbed down the tower, careful of his footing, just as Caroline had finished packing, glad to have his limbs back, still a little freaked out by the woman's crazily long hair. He almost lost his footing, slamming himself back towards the tower as a large tapestry bag and frying pan barely missed his head, "Jesus fucking Christ, Blondie! Watch where you throw that thing!" He shouted up to the tower where Caroline was peeking out of the window.

"Oops, sorry!" She called. Klaus grumbled and continued climbing down, making it midway, but still high enough that he definitely didn't want to fall.

Caroline looked down at the ground, taking a deep breath. She'd thought about going outside so many times, but had only dreamt of it being an actual reality, "Here goes nothing." She mumbled to herself, hooking her hair over the wrought iron pole like she did with her mother, throwing the rest of the hair out the window and climbing up onto the windowsill. She took another deep breath, and before she knew it, using the grip on her hair she was gliding down the tower and straight past Klaus, giggling the entire way. She yanked herself to a stop, her feet just inches from the lush green grass. She waited a moment, heart hammering, before gingerly reaching her toes down to the floor. She laughed at the sensation of the blades of grass tickling her bare feet, slowly sinking down so both feet were flat on the ground.

Klaus watched from the side of the tower as she laughed and danced in the grass, the woman taking no notice as her hair wrapped around her ankles, skipping out of the loops. She looked up at the sky in amazement, toes digging into the grass as she raised her head and closed her eyes, feeling the summer sun on her skin. He watched her in amazement, she looked, well; he didn't think he'd ever seen something so adorable in his life. And Klaus didn't do adorable. She stopped skipping and dancing then, and looked to him, hand shielding her eyes from the sun, "Are you coming or what, slow poke?" She called with a smile. Klaus rolled his eyes and continued climbing down the tower, and within a minute, he jumped steadily to the ground. He looked at her feet, "Why aren't you wearing shoes?"

She looked at her feet with a frown, "I don't have any." She told him simply, and Klaus gaped at her in shock. Even though her dress was tatty, and about six inches shy of floor length, everything in the tower seemed well taken care of, and like there was at least a decent flow of money. She didn't remind him at all of the children whose orphanages couldn't afford shoes for them.

"Why?"

"I've never left the tower, I didn't need them." She said with a shrug, a sudden flash of anguish passed her face, "I left my tower." Klaus looked at her blankly, "Mother will be furious." Klaus groaned and started trekking towards the opening to the forest, "Hey, wait for me!" She called, "Klaus!" That got him to stop and turn to her, only to find the carpetbag fly at his face once more. He automatically grabbed it, holding it with incredulous eyes, "Thank you." She said sweetly, holding her frying pan, and skipping to the opening. Klaus grumbled as he followed her.

For the next thirty minutes on their trek to the kingdom, Caroline's emotions ranged from ecstatic happiness and wonder, to heartbroken dread, flip flopping between the two every two minutes. Klaus stood and watched her as she stood leaning her head face forward into a tree, "I'm a terrible daughter." She groaned for the hundredth time. A plan started forming in his head, and he smirked then, approaching Caroline.

He cleared his throat to get her attention, but she stayed in her troubled position, "So, I've noticed you're a little at war with yourself, love."

"What?" Caroline sniffled, still not facing him,

"You know, overprotective, slightly abusive mother, keeping you in that tower all your life, forbidding you from leaving. And I can see you're obviously upset with this forbidden road trip." That got her attention, and she stood straight, turning to face him, eyes red from where she'd been crying.

"But let me reassure you, this is a part of growing up! I mean is it going to devastate your mother, and rip her heart to tiny pieces? Of course, but hey, at least you've been outside now."

"Rip her heart to tiny pieces?" Caroline repeated with wide eyes,

"Might as well just tear it out." Klaus agreed,

"She would be heartbroken, you're right." Caroline agreed in a small voice,

"I am, aren't I? Well, I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'll take you back to your tower, grab my satchel and be on my way, your mother never has to know." He said, looping an arm around her shoulders and guiding her back in the direction of the tower, except Caroline suddenly stopped moving and shoved him,

"No! I am seeing those lanterns, I have to! There's no way you're getting out of this deal, Klaus! Unless you never want to see your tiara again." She finished with narrowed eyes, realising this was exactly what he wanted.

"I just want my bloody satchel back!"

Caroline raised her frying pan to his face, "I will use this." She said threateningly. Just then, there was a rummaging noise in the trees and in a flash, Caroline was behind Klaus, her arms wrapped around his shoulders, using him as a human shield, waving her frying pan about, "Is it ruffians? Thugs? They've found me!" She cried.

Just then, a fluffy grey rabbit hopped out of the bush, stopping in front of the humans and looking up at them curiously, "Be careful," Klaus said wryly, "It can probably smell fear." He felt her let go of his shoulders, and he turned to face her, finding the most delightful blush spreading from her cheeks down her chest. He had to make a conscious effort to draw his eyes away from her chest.

"Sorry." She mumbled with a grin, offering him an embarrassed smile,

"So we should steer clear of ruffians and thugs, then?" Klaus said, another plan to get rid of her emerging,

She gave a nervous laugh, "Yes, that would be best!"

"Are you hungry? I'm hungry." He suddenly asked, "I know the perfect place!"

…

Katherine walked through the forest at an even pace, making sure not to tire herself out before nightfall. Then, all of a sudden, a palace horse jumped out from behind some bushes whinnying at her. She jumped, dropping her basket her hands flying up in fright.

"Oh, a palace horse." She breathed, giving the horse a glare. A shock of cold ran down her spine then, "Where's your rider?" She muttered, eyes wide, "Caroline!" She breathed, and immediately turned on her heel racing back to the tower.

As soon as she reached it, she raggedly called "Caroline, let down your hair!" And waited, but there was no hair or reply. She called out again and waited, with still no reply, heart still thumping frantically, she ran to the side of the tower, ripping away the ivy that had been growing up the stone wall to revel a doorway, revealing a staircase to the top of the tower she hadn't used since her daughter was a child. She sprinted up the stairs emerging into the tower from a floor slab, finding it completely dark. She called out for her daughter, manically lighting a candle as she ran around the tower, shouting Caroline's name.

Realising her daughter wasn't there she dropped the candle onto the table and frantically dragged her fingers through her hair, mind racing, panting from physical exertion. A light reflected in her face then, and Katherine instinctually jerked back, eyes heading in the direction of the reflecting object. She saw something twinkling under the stairs, the candlelight refracting off of it. She stalked towards the item, noticing it was hidden underneath the loose step in the staircase she'd been meaning to fix for years. She yanked the loose plank of wood back, revealing an open satchel. She grabbed it, yanking out the contents, diamonds glittered coldly in the candlelight and Katherine threw the item aside as if it'd burned her.

The Lost Princesses Tiara. Caroline's tiara. Her heart sank into her stomach then, like a block of lead as the possible implications flooded her mind. She noticed something else in the satchel and pulled out a piece of parchment, a wanted poster with an image of a man named 'Klaus' on it. She realised then that this must be the man that had her daughter.

She went to the cabinet beside the stairs, opening a drawer and pulling out the false bottom, revealing a dagger. Her fingers closed around the cold metal as she began coming up with a scheme.

…

From the outside, 'The Hart Inn' looked like a well-maintained country pub, and Caroline grinned at Klaus, looking forward to her first dining experience outside the tower. He smiled back, but not for the reasons she thought.

Klaus opened the door for her, guiding her inside by a forcible hand on her back, "Alan, your finest table please!" He called. Upon entering she gasped, trying to escape but found Klaus' body in the way. The pub was full of ruffians, gnarled, scarred faces stared back at her, some men in various forms of shabby armour, most with various weapons, and one man was even polishing the hook that had replaced his hand. Caroline wielded her frying pan in front of her, breath quickening, "Breathe that in, love. Can you smell that? What are you getting? Because I'm getting bad man smell, and really bad man smell!" He said, forcibly pushing her through the crowd of thugs, Caroline grunting and trying to escape the entire time.

She stopped, head yanking back as someone took a hold of her hair, "That's a lot of hair." A squat man with animal skulls for shoulder pads grunted, letting the hair slide through his hands as Caroline gathered it up running towards the back of the inn where it was less crowded.

"I say sir, is that blood in your moustache?" Klaus asked, "Hey Caroline, he has blood in his moustache!" Klaus crowed victoriously. He approached her where she was huddling by the fireplace, hair in one hand, skillet in the other, "Hey, love, you don't look so good. Maybe you should go home. This is the best eating establishment you'll ever get!" Klaus said, guiding her back towards the door. She gasped as the door was slammed shut by a seven foot, lumbering man, who was pointing to a wanted poster on the door,

"Is this you?" He asked, voice gravelly as his beady eyes narrowed on Klaus.

Klaus swore, throwing his hands up in the air, "They just can't get my nose right!"

"You're right, it's him! Jim, go find some guards!" Another gruff voice called from beside them, and Caroline huddled into Klaus as the men started gathering around them, "That reward will buy me a new hook." The man said, grabbing Klaus by his shirt and holding aforementioned hook a little too close to Klaus' eye for comfort.

"What about me? I'm broke!"

"I need money too, I made some bad investments!"

"I need it more, my mistress is pregnant!"

The group gathered tighter around the pair, jostling them as fighting broke out, various hands grabbing at Klaus, shoving Caroline aside to the outside of the circle, "Please stop, leave him alone!" She called, trying to worm into the group, batting at beefy shoulders as she tried to reach for him. Klaus tried to calm the men down, grimacing in pain as they pawed at his already sore body, brawny hands pulling him in every direction.

Caroline then started whacking people with her frying pan, "Ruffians, give me back my guide! I need him!" The group had Klaus by the arms, and just as hook-man was rearing back to punch Klaus with his good hand, Caroline hit him with her pan as hard as she could over the head, the 'clang' reverberating around the room, making everyone stock still, "Put him down!" She cried. But instead of the man crumpling to the floor like Caroline expected, he turned to face her, completely unaffected.

"Caroline, run!" Klaus called, not wanting the sweet girl to get dragged into his bullshit.

She ignored him. "Okay, please listen to me, I need him because I don't know where I am, and I need him to take me to the lanterns! I've been dreaming about them my entire life, find your humanity! Haven't any of you ever had a dream?"

The men stared at her for a moment, and the giant man that had a hold of Klaus hung him off a deer antler by his shirt, leaving him hanging eight feet in the air. Hook-man started stalking towards Caroline then, making her back away until her back hit the wall.

"You're right, I do have a dream. I may look mean and deadly, but really all I've ever wanted to be is a concert pianist." Caroline watched disbelievingly as the man lumbered over to a dilapidated looking stage where a cheap piano sat, and watched with her mouth open as he began playing, impressively using his hook to create a complicated melody. Caroline sat beside him, wonderment lighting up her face as she watched him work, as a man wearing a Viking helmet approached, reaching out for the piano. Hook-man flew an arm out hitting the approaching man in the face without even looking, not disrupting his melody in the slightest. The man in the helmet flew onto his back beside where Caroline sat, sitting up woozily, he turned to her.

"I have something here that oozes," He said pointing under his arm, "But despite my extra toes, all I really want is a woman who loves me! That's my dream!" He said dopily, dragging himself off the stage, Caroline frowning at his bizarre behaviour. All the men in the pub seemed to be enjoying hook-man's music, heads bouncing and feet tapping, Klaus watching with disbelief from his spot.

"Axel wants to quit being a hit-man and be a florist," Hook-man continued, the man in question making a floral arrangement out of some lilies and a couple of skulls, making Caroline clap,

"Kristoff does interior design!" Someone else called from the crowd, a man adjusting a hanging picture on a wall next to a chair made out of a bear,

"Franz's cooking is sublime!" Someone else shouted, a cinnamon bun being shoved in front of Caroline's face, a man in a full metal helmet with horns offering it to her. She took it immediately, grinning at him as she said, "Thank you so much!" Accepting the bun, feeling it was still warm.

"Torsten knits!" A ruffian said, pointing to a chubby man sewing what looked to be a pair of baby booties,

"Lars sews!" And Caroline noticed with wide eyes that the man pointed out as Lars was stitching up a deep gash in his arm with a smile.

"And Vladimir collects porcelain unicorns," Hook-man said, Vladimir being the seven foot man, who was holding a pair of tiny unicorns with a simple smile.

"What about you?" Vladimir asked Klaus from where he hung, hooking a meaty hand into his shirt and letting him down with an expectant look.

"Sorry boys, not into the touchy feely stuff," Klaus refused, hands raised. He soon changed his mind when the sword of every man near him was in his face, "Okay, okay! I have dreams just like you, normally somewhere warm and sunny. Maybe with a hot blonde," He winked at Caroline then, making her stop eating her bun, gaping at him, "Normally surrounded by piles and piles of money." He finished and all the men rolled their eyes turning back to hook-man and Caroline.

Seeing their reactions, Caroline tried to take their attention away from Klaus, not wanting them to hurt him, she turned to hook-man, "It's so great you all have dreams! With every hour, I'm so happy that I left my tower, and like all you lovely folks, I have a dream!"

Just then, the man named Jim burst through the door of the inn, panting, "I found the guards." Everyone froze, and Klaus snuck up to Caroline and grabbed her hand, pulling her to him and behind Vladimir just as the guards burst in.

"Where's Klaus?" He called, "Turn this place upside down!" He ordered his comrades.

A hook on his shoulder grabbed Klaus' attention and hook-man tilted his head, pulling them to follow him. He pulled a lever and a gap in the floor opened to a tunnel, hook-man ushered them to it, "Go, live your dream."

Klaus nodded, "I will."

Hook-man scowled, "Your dream sucks, I was talking to her." He said tilting his head to Caroline who grinned,

"Thank you." She said simply, leaning up and pressing a kiss to the man's cheek, making him blush and give her a smile. Klaus pulled her into the tunnel and Caroline was glad to notice he had managed to grab her bag from where she dropped it. Frying pan in hand she followed Klaus into the tunnel, waving over her shoulder before the passage closed behind them.

…

Vladimir pushed a tiny old man with long white hair in front of the guards, he staggered obviously inebriated, "I believe this is the man you're looking for." Vladimir told the guards.

"You've got me." The old man slurred, holding his hands out as if he were expecting to be manacled, a drunken grin on his face, the guard sullen in annoyance, the man obviously not Klaus.

The door to the tavern banged open, the ragged guard who had chased Klaus standing in the doorway, "Stefan!" The guard called in greeting to his lieutenant. Stefan stalked through the inn, shoving men aside, taking in his surroundings carefully. He pushed hook-man out of the way and pulled the lever, revealing the secret passage.

"Come on men." Stefan ordered, waving them men into the passage, "Cartwright, guard Salvatore and Augustine!" He called to a young guard, the man in question standing imposingly in front of Damon and Enzo, who took no notice of him. Damon head-butted him hard, knocking him out cold, Enzo grabbing the man's sword as he fell, setting to forcing their manacles open.

Once his wrists were freed Damon rubbed them before tackling Enzo's, "Come on, let's go get the tiara." He said, the pair disappearing into the passage way too.

…

Caroline and Klaus trekked through the tunnel, Caroline huddling into Klaus' side in the dimly lit area, the sound of rats scuttling making her heart pound, "I've got to say, I didn't think you had it in you." Klaus said conversationally,

"I know!" She said excitedly, voice reverberating off the walls, "Mother thought I didn't have it in me, but in the situation, I was just like 'bam!' over poor Ludwig's head!"

Klaus smiled humorously, "Bam?"

"BAM!" She cried, holding her frying pan up, making Klaus chuckle, "Soooo, Klaus, where are you from?" She asked inquisitively,

"Oh no, calm down there, love. I don't do backstories."

"Come on, Klaus!" She whined, trailing after him as he sped up,

"No. But I am however, becoming interested in yours. I know I'm not mean to mention the hair,"

"Nope."

"Or the mother," Klaus continued,

"Uh uh."

"And frankly I don't quite want to know about the shoe thing," He said pointing to her feet, which by this point were filthy in the dirt tunnel, "But here is my question, if you wanted to see these bloody lanterns so badly, why haven't you gone before?"

"Uhh…" Caroline trailed off, stopping when she noticed the tunnel begin to shake around them, "Klaus?" She questioned with wide eyes, looking behind her to where footsteps were approaching, and the guards came into view.

"Run!" Klaus shouted, putting himself between Caroline and the guards as she gathered up her hair and began to run. They ran towards the bright light they could see at an opening and sped through it, into what looked like a water canyon. Klaus bodily grabbed Caroline and dragged her into him as she almost tripped off a cliff. They looked into the canyon desperately, and they both noticed Damon and Enzo burst through a tunnel entrance on the floor on the canyon, spotting the pair on the cliff side.

"Who's that?" Caroline asked with wide eyes as the men started towards them.

"They don't like me." Klaus said, just as the guards made it through the exit of the tunnel, Stefan glaring at Klaus as they stopped.

"Who are they?!" Caroline asked,

"Look, lets just assume that nobody here likes me, okay?" Klaus said irritated.

Caroline growled, gathering her hair and throwing it over the canyon, where it cleverly wrapped itself around a wooden beam, holding up one side of the canyon, "Wait here." She said, slamming her frying pan into his chest, winding him, she took her bag from him, hooking her arm through it and pulled her hair taught, jumping off the cliff with an exhilarated cry, flying through the air by her hair until she landed on a ledge the opposite side of the canyon.

Klaus watched in shock, but he heard the guards approaching, and turned to face them, he looked to them, then the frying pan in his hand, and set out dispatching each guard, hitting each one somewhere vital. "Holy, fuck, I've got to get one of these!" He cried triumphantly.

The guard that had chased him over the mountaintop faced him then, and Klaus' smile dropped as they squared up to each other. Fighting him was a lot more difficult than the previous guards. He blocked all of Stefan's swipes with his frying pan, until Stefan got the upper hand smacking the frying pan out of Klaus' hand, sending it flying over the cliff top. They both stared at each other in shock, Klaus' hands coming up in surrender.

"Klaus, hang on!" Caroline called across the canyon, and she gathered her hair once more, and tossed it over the canyon, Klaus swiftly grabbing it as it flew towards him and he jumped off the cliff, out of Stefan's reach.

Klaus flew through the canyon, Caroline calling "Klaus, look out!" as Damon and Enzo ran along the floor of the canyon, swiping at him with their swords, lifting his feet out of the way, just in time. He landed on some man made steps, below where Caroline stood and he called for her and she immediately hurried down the steps, bag in tow as she grabbed armfuls of her hair to make it easier to run. She reached Klaus and sped in front of him, hopping down the rest of the steps as Klaus gathered the rest of her hair.

She headed straight for another tunnel entry, a sudden cracking noise and a flood of water rushing towards them could be heard as Stefan and his guards broke down part of the water dam in the canyon, immediately flooding the area. Huge thirty-foot waves sped towards the couple, making them run even faster. They just made it into the tunnel in time, Klaus managing to grab the frying pan from the floor just before a huge stone pillar fell from the force of the water, effectively blocking the entryway. Klaus and Caroline watched in horror as water flooded into the space, the pair scrambling further back into the tunnel only to find it completely blocked off where the ceiling had caved in at that end too. They were trapped.

They looked at each other; fear reflected in each other's eyes. Klaus gave Caroline the pan, then began diving under the water, looking for a nook or cranny that would make the blocked off wall crumble. Caroline began hitting and pushing the stones with the skillet, hoping the force would push them aside, but nothing seemed to be moving.

Klaus emerged from the water repeatedly for breaths, continuing to dive until he decided it was useless. He ran out of the rapidly filling water and went to where Caroline was beating the walls, he leapt up to what looked like a loose rock above them, but wasn't strong enough to pull it free, and slipped, slicing a deep cut into his palm. He hissed in pain, clutching the hand to him as he landed, but just dove into the water again. Caroline continued hitting at the walls, trying to knock something loose, when Klaus broke the surface of the water with a gasp.

"It's no use," He panted, "We're trapped." Caroline looked at him with a panicked expression and took a deep breath, tensing as if she were about to dive into the water, Klaus grabbing her just as her face went under the water, dragging her back up. "There's no point, it's pitch black down there." He told her, hands cupping her face, pushing aside a long lock of hair that was obscuring her face.

She whimpered, backing into the wall, Klaus following suit, the water now rising above waist height, "This is all my fault." She said brokenly, "She was right all along, I never should have done this." She sniffed as she started crying, "I'm so sorry Klaus." She told him tearfully, earning her a sympathetic look from Klaus.

"Niklaus." He told her in an attempt to distract her, "My real name is Niklaus Mikaelson. Or, well, my sister calls me Nik." He said leaning close to her.

"Hmm," She said, wiping her wet cheeks, eyes flicking across his face, "I like that name." She leant closer impulsively, not quite understanding what was going on, the water rising to her chest, "I have magical hair that glows when I sing." She returned, and thinking she was speaking gibberish from the stress and that they were about to die, Klaus did what he'd wanted to do all day; he kissed her.

Caroline let out a squeak against his mouth before melting into him, closing her eyes and following his lead into her first kiss. His lips were soft against her own, and he wound an arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him, and tangling the fingers of his free hand with hers.

Her eyes were still shut when Klaus pulled away, "What do you mean your hair glows?"

"I have magical hair that glows when I sing!" Caroline said, realising she had the answer to the problem all along. Klaus looked at her as if she were crazy, and Caroline took a deep breath the water reaching her chin, "Flower gleam and glow, let you power, shine," She sung quickly her hair beginning to glow, she handed Klaus the pan and dove underneath the water her hair lighting the way. Klaus swore in surprise before the water completely engulfed him, Caroline's hand grabbing his pulling him though a gap in the wall she'd managed to make. Klaus blindly followed, his eyes concentrating on the glowing hair.

They swam through the tunnel, and just at their vision started dimming at the edges, they saw sky at the top of the water. They broke the surface, falling onto a river embankment, the pair of them spluttering and coughing as Caroline threw her water sodden bag onto the grass.

"We made it," Caroline croaked.

"Her hair glows." He said, holding the skillet to his chest.

"We're alive." She said triumphantly, dragging herself out of the river,

"I didn't see that coming."

"Niklaus." She said, trying to get his attention.

"Her hair actually glows."

"Nik!" That got his attention, his eyes shooting to hers, where she stood ringing her hair out, "It doesn't just glow."

"Oh God, what's that meant to mean?"

"Come on, let's set up camp for the night. I'll explain everything."

…

A/N: I hope you enjoyed the first instalment; all three parts should be up within the week! Let me know what you think.