Romeo, Benvolio, and their friend Mercutio arrive at the Capulet party in style. Romeo tells his friends that he doesn’t plan on dancing tonight — he’s too sad. Plus, he had a dream the night before that gave him a bad feeling about the party. Mercutio teasingly thinks his dream is the result of a visit from Queen Mab. She’s the miniature “fairies' midwife,” who visits people in their sleep and fulfills their desires (however good or bad) in dreams. After his speech, Mercutio points out to Romeo that dreams are “nothing but vain fantasy.” As they head into the party, Romeo says he has a strange feeling that what happens next will lead to his untimely death, but he’s ready to accept whatever fate brings.