Elena held her breath as the final whispers of Damon disspeared from her mind and she was left in a world all of her own. Her surroundings looked just like the small troubled town that she had left behind but in a dream state, everything held slightly less colour and nothing was quite in focus. She had assumed that once she had said her goodbyes, she would drift off into sleep until it was time to wake up, but it would seem that she was destined to watch the world go on without her, to watch Damon live on without her. She let out a sigh, hell she couldn't very well hold her breath for the next 60 years now could she. She saw the lights flicker from the distant town and turned her back from it, heading further along the path that led into the woods, intent on needing some time alone to comprehend things before heading back to town to watch her loved ones live their lives without her.

As she followed the moonlit path, she was disturbed by a figure following her, one that she had noticed tailing her as it began to block the moonlight from the otherwise unlit path. Who could it be? Elena had been under the impression that this world would be hers and hers alone until it was time for her to return to the land of the living, who could possibly be here with her? She turned quickly but was surprised to be greeting with nothing but the cold air that blew down the gravel path. She shrugged her shoulders, she was obviously not as comfortable with the idea of being alone in this familiar yet alien place than she had thought. She let out a small chuckle and took a step forward and stopped suddenly, she could hear an echo of her laugh but, it didn't sound quite right, something was off. Elena had no idea what to do, she was trapped here alone with whatever this was with no one to help her should she need it. Not only that, she was human now, she didn't have any of her vampire abilities and was completely vulnerable.

Elena turned quickly again, hoping to catch out whatever it was that was tailing her and again she was greeted by dim moonlight on gravel and nothing else. She let out another sigh - she was being ridiculous and paranoid, there was no way that there could be anyone here with her. She spun around on her heel and let out a scream - there on the path in front of her stood a very familiar face - her own.

'Hello Elena' her own face said to her. Elena was not sure what to make of what was going on, this was, after all, a dreamland, was this all part of the dream process, was she somehow working through things in her own mind or was this...no it wasn't possible...she was...

'Dead' she heard her thoughts come to life through her own voice.

'Katherine' she questioned

'In the flesh' Katherine replied with a smirk 'Well, not quite yet' she added 'but I've got someone working on that.

'Everyone has been through this' Elena remarked with a smug tone to her voice 'there is no way out of this without...Bonnie' she began to worry, there was one way to wake her body and that was through Bonnie

'Don't worry' Katherine interrupted Elena's train of thought 'no one is going to hurt poor old Bon-Bon'. Katherine paced slowly to a nearby tree stump and perched down, she gestured her hand out to invite Elena over to join her but Elena stood firmly with a stern look on her face.

'There's no other way' Elena said triumphantly

'See, that's where you're wrong' Katherine said through a grin 'Kai tied Bonnie's lifeforce to yours. there's the loophole - your lifeforce. not your body - so you stay here and I can borrow it for a little while, just until you need it again' Katherine said innocently.

'How are you even here' Elena said angrily 'You're dead'

'Oh, you should know by now that death isn't an infinite, we all just disappear to different places' Katherine gestured around herself at Elena's dreamworld 'My dream world was just a little more...violent' A look of pain crossed through Katherine's eyes as she mentioned where she had been for the time that she had been lost to the world of the living. She quickly snapped out of it and grinned as she looked around her surroundings, the wind had picked up now and Elena's hair whipped wildly around her face. She heard an all too familiar mystical language whisper on the wind from a familiar voice

'Bonnie' Elena said, her voice filled with worry and suspicion

'Not quite' Katherine said as she stood and straightened her clothes 'See, the thing is, we have to dampen both life-forces in order for this to work, so...'

'Elena!' Elena spun around and was greeted by the face of her best friend, Bonnie Bennett

'Bonnie, what are you doing here!' Elena shouted back, trying hard to be heard over the wind that was now howling through the gravel path and throwing grit past her face and making it almost impossible to make out what was going on.

'I don't know' Bonnie remarked, I was lying in bed, I closed my eyes and the next thing I know, I'm here talking to you - Am I dreaming' Bonnie asked Elena

'I'm afraid not' Katherine remarked. 'I'm going to let you two catch up, toodloo' Katherine flicked her hand up in a waving gesture and a look of pure rage crossed Bonnie's face, but as she lept forward to strike Katherine, she was greeted by only thin air, she turned around and looked at Elena.

Elsewhere, in a deserted family crypt in the middle of Mystic Falls, Elena's body opened her hazel eyes although it was not Elena who inhabited it, she sat up and was greeted by the face of Bonnie Bennett.

'Celeste' Katherine greeted her aid as she helped her out from the coffin in which she lay 'What took so long?' she said as she looked down at the dust that had begun to gather on her clothes 'How long have I been like this?' she questioned.

'Around six months'

'Six months! We'll we had better get to work then'. The two women smiled triumphantly as they strode from the crypt and made their way to Mystic Falls.