Chapter Forty Nine: The Reckoning

Mystic Falls High School

The school is empty. Matt is training when he hears a noise. He gets up and walks through the school. He finally enters a classroom, it's dark inside, when he steps inside he sets off mouse traps that had been placed there. He turns on the light and sees Tyler, Caroline, Elena, and Bonnie.

"Ohh! Oh, come on! Seriously?!" Caroline groans. "Do you know how long it took for us to set all this up?!"

"Forgot about senior prank night, huh?" Tyler asks.

Matt looks at them. "Clearly."

"How could you forget?" Caroline asks. "We've only been waiting for this since like freshman year."

Elena nods. "Yeah, Matt. If I'm doing this, you're doing this."

"I'm kind of surprised any of you are doing this." He says.

"Caroline's making us." Bonnie tells him.

"We're about to be seniors. These are the memories that will stay with us forever, and if we don't…" Caroline trails off.

"And if we don't create these memories now, then what's the point of it all?" Elena finishes.

"Go ahead and make fun, I don't care."

"You're all lame. And I've got ten more classrooms to prank." Tyler grabs his bag and walks out of the room. Elena goes to leave too.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Bonnie asks.

"To superglue Alaric's desk shut. I'm making memories." She smiles.

"I love you!" Caroline smiles.


Elena walks out of the classroom and sees Tyler giving instructions to other students.

"Get the faculty toilet seats, and Dana needs bodies in the gym." He orders. "Let's go."

Elena laughs and opens the double doors only to see Klaus.

"There's my girl." He smirks.

"Klaus!" She tries to run but he grabs her.

"You are supposed to be dead. What are we going to do about that?"


Damon drives down a road with Katherine.

"Are you hungry?" She asks. "Let's stop for a bite. A truck stop. Or a trucker."

He rolls his eyes. "Oh, stop being cute."

"It's not possible."

"We've been driving around aimlessly for hours. Where are we going?"

"Far enough away so that you can't go running back."

"Not to worry. Mystic Falls and I are on a bit of a break."

"You and Mystic Falls, or you and Elena?"

"Let's just say Elena and I are having a bit of difference of opinion on how I should behave."

"Ooh. Let me guess…Elena wants you to be the hero, and you don't like playing pretend."

"Something like that."

"Her loss." She says, making Damon look at her.

"Don't think I haven't noticed your mood." He says. "What's the matter with you?"

"I got dumped. It sucks."

"Trinity?" He says. "Ooh. Let me guess…she hates you for backstabbing her and trying to get her friends killed; only she can't really hate you because she still loves you. Now she's stuck with some hybrid freak and her ripper best friend."

"Something like that."


Stefan wakes up in the truck.

"Oh, he lives." He hears.

He turns and sees Rebekah. "What happened?" He looks around, and sees Trinity knocked out in the corner of the truck.

"You took a beating. My brother's been breaking your neck all afternoon. He knocks her out any time she comes to. Quite the temper."

"Why did he bring us back to Mystic Falls?"

"You can stop playing dumb now. It didn't take him long to figure out what you've been hiding."

"I'm not hiding anything. I've done everything Klaus has asked me to. We both have."

"No, you just failed to mention that the doppelgänger's still alive.

He looks shocked. "Where is Klaus now?"

"With any luck, ripping that cow's bloody head off."

He rushes at her and they fall outside the truck. "Where is she?" He growls.

She looks at him. "You really do love her, don't you?" She gets up and pushes him against the truck, picking up a crowbar while she's at it. She wraps a hand around his neck. "Consider me jealous." She drives the crowbar through his stomach.


Klaus keeps a tight grip on Elena's arm as her drags her through the school. "You put a rather large kink in my plans, sweetheart. The whole point of breaking the curse and becoming a hybrid was to make more hybrids. I haven't been able to do that. Now my bet is, it has something to do with the fact that you're still breathing."

"If you're going to kill me, just do it!" She says.

"Not until I know I'm right. But I do have ways of making you suffer." They walk into the gym where students are setting up pranks. "Attention, seniors. You have officially been busted. Prank night is over. Head on home." He says with an American accent. He sees Dana and another student. He gets closer to them and speaks with his normal voice. "You two. I remember you."

"I'm sorry. Who are you?" Dana asks.

"Oh, don't worry, I wasn't in my right head last time we met." He compels her. "Lift your foot up, please, Dana." He looks at the boy. "If she drops her foot, Chad, I want you to beat her to death. Understood?"

"Don't, Klaus. You don't have to hurt anybody." Elena pleads.

"Oh, come on, love. Of course I do." He smiles.


In the middle of nowhere, Damon stops the car and they get out.

"Why are we stopping?" Katherine asks him.

"I thought we might want to stretch our legs. Take a break from the sexual tension. I'm tired of driving. It's your turn."

"Fine." She reaches for the keys but he throws them into the field. "Hey! I…"

"We're not going anywhere until you spill your guts."

"Fine." She takes Elena's necklace out of her pocket. "Do you recognize this, hmm? A little birdy told me that Klaus wants to get his hands on it."

"Why would Klaus want Elena's necklace?"

"Does it matter? He wants it, and I have it. It's leverage, Damon. Always stay one step ahead of your enemy."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"But more importantly, when I stole the necklace from Bonnie, I found out something else…something better."

"Oh, yeah? What's that?"

"Are you willing to do whatever it takes to stop Klaus? No turning back?"

"I'm not turning back."

"Good. Because this isn't going to win you any points at home." She opens the trunk, revealing Jeremy's unconscious body.

Damon looks between the two. "Jeremy? Really?"


Caroline and Tyler are in the hallway. She goes to put honey on the lockers when he kisses her.

"Do you think Matt's going to be ok?" She asks.

He looks at her. "I'm kissing you and you're wondering about your ex-boyfriend?"

"I'm asking you if you think our friend, who we both love, is ok."

"I think he probably doesn't have a lot of people to talk to anymore. I think he's struggling more than he lets on. I think that I love how big your heart is."

She smiles. "I just want this school year to be great, you know? I just want everyone to be happy. Even in the midst of all the crazy unhappy bits."

"I'm happy." He kisses her again.

Rebekah walks up to them. "You two are adorable."

They pull apart and look at her. "Uh, do we know you?" Caroline asks.

"You're Caroline, Elena's friend, which makes you Tyler. The werewolf."

"And who are you?"

"I'm the new girl." Her face changes.

"Caroline!" Tyler shouts when Rebekah flashes over to her.


Matt and Bonnie are putting toilet paper in the pool. "This is fun, right?" She smiles.

He shakes his head. "You sound like Caroline."

"Come on, I am embracing her philosophy. You should be more into this."

"I know. Where's Jeremy tonight?"

"I haven't talked to him all day. We're having, um…he, uh, he told me about seeing Vicki."

"Ohh." He says. "Good, I'm glad that you know."

"I'm sorry. Is it weird talking about your sister like this?"

"No, I…I just kind of want to see her myself, you know? I mean, I never got to say goodbye to her." He sighs. "Do you realize that just last summer, you and I were lifeguards at the pool? And the only two problems I had in my life were that Elena was breaking up with me and I sucked at CPR."

"Everything was so different then."

"Yeah. Now Elena's dating a vampire, you're a witch, my sister's a ghost, and…I'm…I'm just a guy who's wondering how life got so screwed up."

"It's crazy, Matt. I…I can't imagine what it must be like for you."

"It just, uh, kind of explains why I'm not that into senior prank night. I'll go grab a couple more rolls. Then we'll hit the gym."


Matt is in the bathroom. He grabs some paper rolls in the stalls. One of the doors opens by itself. He enters the stall, sees a graffiti that says 'RIP Vicki' and then closes the door.

Vicki appears behind him. "I'm here, Matt. I can help you." She says but he doesn't hear her.


Dana is still on one foot.

"Keep it up." Klaus says.

"Where's Stefan and Trinity?" Elena asks. "What did you do to them?"

"They're on a time out." He tells her. The doors open and Matt and Bonnie walk in.

"Bonnie, get out of here!" Elena yells.

"Ah." Klaus sigh. "I was wondering when you'd show up. Now we can get started." He looks at Dana. "Ah, Dana, why don't you relax? You and Chad sit tight." He looks at Bonnie. "I assume you're the reason Elena's still walking around alive?

Bonnie looks at him. "That's right. If you want to blame someone, blame me."

"Oh, there's no need for blame, love. Just your witchy interference seems to have caused some undesirable side effects. And since you caused the problem, I'm going to have you find the fix."

Rebekah enters with Tyler. "Get off of me!" He yells, struggling against her grip.

"Hush now." She says.

"I'd like you all to meet my sister Rebekah." Klaus introduces. "Word of warning…she can be quite mean."

"Don't be an ass." She throws Tyler into Klaus' arms.

"Leave him alone!" Elena yells.

Klaus looks at her. "I'm going to make this very simple…every time I attempt to turn a werewolf into a vampire hybrid, they die during the transition. It's quite horrible, actually." He bites his wrist and makes Tyler drink his blood. "I need you to find a way to save my hybrids, Bonnie. And for Tyler's sake…you better hurry." He snaps Tyler's neck. Elena, Bonnie, and Matt watch on in shock, making him smile.


Stefan is in the parking lot and has the crowbar in his stomach. He wakes up and pulls it out. He gets back into to the truck and rushes towards Trinity. "Trinity." He shakes her. "Trinity!"

She groans. "Stefan?" She sits up, holing her head. "What happened?"

"We're in Mystic Falls."

"What?!"

"Klaus knows that Elena's alive."

She looks at him in shock.


Dana and Chad are sitting on the floor.

Matt is next to Tyler's body. "He killed him."

Elena shakes her head. "He's not dead. Klaus's blood will turn him into a vampire."

"And if Bonnie's successful, he'll live through his transition." Klaus says. "Go on, then. Go and fetch your grimoire's, and enchantments and what-not. I'll hold on to Elena…for safe keeping." He grabs Elena's arm and looks at her. Elena looks at Bonnie and motions for her to leave. Bonnie nods and takes Matt with her.

Rebekah looks at Elena. "So this is the latest doppelgänger. The original one was much prettier."

"Enough, Rebekah." Klaus sighs. "Take the wolf boy elsewhere, would you?" Rebekah takes Tyler and leaves with him. Klaus looks at Elena. "Just ignore her. Petty little thing."


Matt and Bonnie walk down the hallway. "What are you going to do?" He asks.

"I have no idea. The curse he's talking about is a thousand years old. My grimoire's don't go back that far." She says.

"Can you ask those dead witches that helped you before?"

"I don't have contact with them anymore…they cut me off when I brought Jeremy back to life. That's it! I can't contact the dead. Jeremy can."


Katherine and Damon are sitting on a picnic table. Jeremy's still unconscious.

"I'm listening." Damon says.

"What if I told you there was a way to kill Klaus?" She asks. "And not Dagger dead. Dead dead."

"I'd say you were desperate and lying. Or drunk. Or desperate, lying and drunk."

"Do you remember my friend Pearl?"

"Vividly."

"Centuries ago, she told me about a vampire who knew how to kill Klaus. Then she wouldn't tell me any more."

"Well, why not?"

"Because it was her leverage. She knew it was valuable information, and wouldn't share it with me."

"Well, this is all great…but she's dead."

"Which is why I never brought it up. Because she only ever told one other person."

"Who?"

"Her daughter. Anna."

"Also dead."

"Which brings us right back around to…"

"To me." Jeremy says, now awake. "Back around to me."


Elena is comforting Dana when she sees Stefan and Trinity walk in. "Stefan…" She looks at the two.

"Klaus." Stefan says.

"Come to save your damsel, mate?" He asks.

"Trinity had nothing to do with my deception. I came to ask for your forgiveness. And pledge my loyalty."

"Well, you broke that pledge once already."

"Elena means nothing to me anymore. And whatever you ask of me…I will do."

"Fair enough. Let's drink on it. Kill them." He points to Dana and Chad. Stefan hesitates. "What are you waiting for? Kill them."

"No! Stefan, don't. He's not going to hurt me." Elena says. "He already said-" Klaus backhands her and she falls to the floor. Stefan rushes over to Klaus, his fangs out. Trinity rushes over as well.

Klaus grabs him by the throat and smacks Trinity, sending her across the room. "She means nothing to you? Your lies just keep piling up."

"Let her go! I'll do whatever you want, you have my word!"

"Your word doesn't mean much. I lived by your word all summer, during which time I never had to resort to this…stop fighting." He compels him.

"Don't do this, don't do this." Stefan begs.

"I didn't want to. All I wanted was your allegiance. Now I'm going to have to take it."

"Don't…don't."

"You will do exactly as I say when I say it. You will not run, you will not hide, you will simply just obey." Klaus continues.

"No. Stefan!" Elena yells.

"Now kill them. Ripper."

Stefan's face changes and he flashes over to Dana, tearing into her neck.

Klaus walks over to Trinity, who struggles to get up from the floor. Roughly grabbing her by her hair, he pulls her head back and looks into her eyes. "You feel no loyalty to Stefan." He says. "Only me."

"No!" Elena shouts.

"Only you." Trinity repeats, making Klaus smirk.


"This isn't going to work." Jeremy sighs.

A cellphone vibrates. Katherine looks at it and sees a message from Bonnie. "I think that your witchy girlfriend's worried that you've run away with your ghostly lover."

"Stop with the teeny bopper drama." Damon says. "Focus."

Jeremy focuses and Anna appears. "I'm not helping them." She tells him.

He shakes his head. "No, it's ok to help." Katherine and Damon share a look, not seeing anything. "They're looking for a way to stop Klaus."

"I don't care. Katherine is not a friend to you. Neither of them are."

"What's she saying?" Damon asks him.

"Well, she doesn't want to help you."

Katherine whispers to Damon. "My advice? If you want to make an omelet, you have to break a few eggs."

Damon steps closer to Jeremy. "Jeremy, I just want you to know, it's nothing personal." He takes Jeremy head and slams it against the table.

"Ow! What the hell?!"

"Jeremy!" Anna shouts.

Damon looks up, his eyes scanning the area in front of them. "Anna, I know you can hear me. Tell us what you know. The sooner, the better for your little boyfriend here."

"They're looking for Mikael." She reveals.

"Mikael!" Jeremy yells.

"Mikael." Katherine says. "Is that his name?"

"Who's Mikael?" Damon asks.

"The vampire who hunts vampires. You don't want to wake him. He will kill all of you." Anna warns him.

"What's she saying?" Damon asks.

"Hello!" Katherine shouts when Jeremy doesn't answer.

"He's a vampire and a Hunter, and you guys would be idiots to wake him." He looks at Anna. "What do you mean, wake him?"

Damon lets him go. "It's time to go find the keys."

"Mm-hmm." Katherine nods.


Caroline wakes up and sees that Rebekah has her phone.

"We didn't have mobile telephones in my day. Would have made life a whole lot easier, I suppose." She takes a picture of herself.

"Where's Tyler?" Caroline asks.

"He's dead…ish."

Caroline sees him. "What did you do to him?"

"Think of it as he's having a nap. When he wakes up, he'll be a hybrid." She scrolls the pictures and sees one of Stefan and Elena. "Ugh. Vomit." Suddenly she sees the necklace around Elena's neck. "Is that my neck…" She zooms in on the necklace. "Why is that doppelgänger bitch wearing my necklace?!"


Stefan is feeding on Chad.

"It's always nice to see a vampire in his true element. The species has become such a broody lot." Klaus smiles.

Elena glares at him. "No. You did this to him."

"I invited him to the party, love. He's the one dancing on the table."

Rebekah enters and rushes toward Elena. "Where is it?! Where's my necklace?

"What are you talking about?" Klaus asks.

"She has my necklace. Look." She gives him the phone so he can see the picture.

"Well, well. More lies."

Rebekah glares menacingly at her. "Where. Is. It?"

"I don't have it anymore." Elena says.

"You're lying!" Her face changes and she bites her.

Klaus pulls her off. "Knock it off!"

"Make her tell me where it is, Nik!"

Klaus looks at Elena, who holds a hand to her neck. "Where's the necklace, sweetheart? Be honest."

"I'm telling the truth. Katherine stole it."

"Katerina. Of course." He sighs. "Well, that's unfortunate. If we had the necklace it would make things a whole lot easier for your witch, but since we're doing this the hard way, let's put a clock on it, shall we?" He turns on the clock and a buzzer sounds. He turns to Stefan. "20 minutes. If Bonnie hasn't found a solution by then, I want you to feed again. Only this time, I want you to feed on Elena. You know you want to."

"No, Klaus! Don't do this to him!" Elena yells.

"No one leaves. If she tries to run, fracture her spine." He goes over to Trinity and whispers into her ear. "Make sure that he doesn't kill her."

Rebekah looks at them and leaves with Klaus.


Matt is in the weight room, talking on the phone with Bonnie. "Did you find Jeremy?"

"No! I called him like 20 times."

"All right, I'll grab my keys, we'll head to his house."

"Ok. I'll meet you by your truck."

He hangs up and sees that is stuff has been thrown all over the room. "What the hell?" He looks in his bag and sees that his keys are missing. He walks out and sees that they are in the bottom of the pool. "You've got to be kidding me!" He takes his jacket off and removes his shoes.

Vicki appears behind him. "Matt! I can help, Matty, but I need you to hear me." She kicks one of his shoes into the pool. Matt just sees the shoe going in the water. He looks at his phone and sees a text from an unknown.

"Whoa! Vicki?" He looks around before calling Bonnie.


"What is taking so long?" Bonnie asks.

Matt carries and iron belt and a weight. "This is going to sound crazy, but I think Vicki's trying to reach out to me."

"What?"

"I think she can help us save Tyler."

"No, Jeremy can help us save Tyler."

"We can't find Jeremy. We need to try something else. I have an idea but I'm going to need your help. Meet me at the pool."

"I don't understand."

"Jeremy can see ghosts because you brought him back from the dead. I need you to do that for me."

"What?! No, Matt, that's crazy!"

"This is going to work, trust me."

"No, Matt, I can't do that kind of magic anymore."

"You don't need magic, Bonnie. You just have to be better than I was at CPR." He puts the belt down and attaches the weight to it so when he jumps in the water he stays at the bottom.


Bonnie runs and enters the pool area. She sees Matt unconscious in the pool and jumps in, removing the belt and taking him out of the water.


Jeremy's eyes begin to droop close.

"Don't fall asleep, Jer. You might have a concussion." Damon tells him.

His eyes snap open. "Thanks for the concern, dick."

"Oh, stop pouting." Katherine says. "He took one for the team. Everyone back home will thank you once Klaus is dead."

"Where's my phone?" Damon asks her.

"Do you need to check in with Elena? Make sure it's ok you pummeled her little baby bro?" She teases.

"I know you have it."

"What can I say? I needed you present here and now."

"Katherine, phone, now." She sighs and gives it to him; he looks at it. "Bonnie's been texting me."

"What is it?" Jeremy asks.

"It's Klaus."

Katherine shakes her head. "No turning back, Damon."

"Shut up, Katherine."

"Hey, look at the big picture. The best shot at taking out Klaus is by finding Mikael."

Damon looks at Jeremy and gives him the keys. "Stay with her so Anna can guide you. I'm going back."

"You're going to get yourself killed. The Damon I remember wouldn't have been that stupid." Katherine says.

"I wouldn't have done it for you."


Bonnie is trying to save Matt. "Matt, please! I can't do this. There's nothing else I can do!"


Matt watches the scene and sees Vicki.

"Matt. Matt!" She calls.

He looks at her in awe. "Vicki?"

"Matt. Please!"

"I can see you."

"I need you to listen to me very carefully. I don't have much time."

"Why, what's happening? Where are we?"

"It doesn't matter. I need you to give Bonnie a message."


He wakes up and coughs up water.

Bonnie sits him upright. "It's ok. You're ok."


Elena, Stefan, and Trinity are still in the gym. There's 6 minutes left on the clock.

"Caroline's dad! Stefan, he was able to resist compulsion. I don't know how, but he did it. Maybe it's possible." Elena says.

"Yeah, yeah." He nods. "Maybe it's just mind control, right? Maybe it just takes some focus, a couple decades of training. No big deal."

"Stefan, you can control this. When that buzzer goes off, just…just drink from me."

"You don't get it. I can't stop, Elena! I'm a ripper!" He yells. "A ripper doesn't stop! I listen to the words that come out of your mouth, and all I hear is the sound of your heart pumping blood through your body. And when that clock ticks down…I'm going to have to feed on you. And you want to know what's worse? I'm not going to be able to stop."

She shakes her head. "I don't believe that. You can fight it. You just have to want it bad enough."

"Why, because I love you?"

"Yeah! That's right, Stefan. Because you love me. You'll fight because after everything that we've been through, you owe me that!"

"You know what, you're right. You're right. I owe you everything. Because through all of this, you are the one thing that has kept me from giving up; from turning it all off. But I can't help what I am, Elena. The more blood that I get, the more I want, and if I get so much as near yours…you are dead."


Caroline, Tyler and Rebekah are in a classroom.

Tyler wakes up. "Where am I? What happened?"

"Tyler." Caroline rushes over and takes him into her arms.

"Don't be shy about it." Rebekah rolls her eyes.

"What's going on?" He asks.

"Klaus is turning you into a vampire. A hybrid. You're in transition." Caroline tells him.

"Don't leave out the hard part, sweets." Rebekah says. "You'll only survive if your witch is successful. If not…you're pretty much dead."

Caroline ignores her. "You're going to be ok. Ok? It's going to be ok."

"I wonder how she's doing." She looks at the clock on the phone. "Tick tock goes the gym clock."


Matt and Bonnie are in the hallway. "As soon as you're feeling better, I'm going to kill you." She tells him.

"It worked. I saw her, I saw Vicki." He says.

She looks at him. "You did?"

"She said she had a message for you."

"For me?"

"From the witch that put the hybrid curse on Klaus. She said that Elena shouldn't have survived Klaus' ritual. The hybrids can't transition because Elena's still alive."

"Tyler…"

"He's going to die, isn't he?"

"I wouldn't be too sure about that." Klaus says from behind him, leaning against the wall. "Given the choice, doppelgänger or a hybrid, I go hybrid every time."


There's only a few seconds left on the clock.

"Elena, you're going to have run." Stefan says.

"But Klaus said that if I run…"

"I know what he said, but if you stay, it won't matter. Elena, please, please, please. Elena, there's no other way."

"There is another way, Stefan. It's for you to fight." She tells him. The buzzer sounds; times up. "Stefan…I love you. Fight, Stefan. Don't give up."

"I can't hold it." His face changes.

Suddenly Trinity tackles him to the ground. "Elena, run! Go!" She yells. "I can't hold him off for long!"

Elena rushes out of the gym.

Stefan fights with Trinity. "How are you doing this?!" He asks. "Klaus compelled you." He throws her into the wall and tries to run to the door but she stops him.

"It didn't work!" She grunts as she throws him to the ground. Stefan recovers quickly and flashes over to her, knocking her out.

He quickly makes his way out of the gym.


Elena opens a door and runs into Klaus.

"We've got to stop meeting like this." He smirks.


Stefan enters the cafeteria. He breaks off a piece of wood and drives it through his body.

Klaus enters with Elena. "Now this is fascinating. I've never seen this before." He says. "The only thing stronger than your craving for blood is your love for this one girl. Why don't you turn it off?"

"No!" Stefan yells.

"Come on. Your humanity is killing you. All the guilt must be exhausting. Turn it off."

"No!"

"Stefan…" Elena says.

"You're strong." He removes the stake from Stefan's body. "But you're not that strong. Turn. It. Off."

"No!" He pushes Klaus away.

Klaus slams him against the wall, looking into his eyes. "Turn it off!" He yells.

The emotion leaves Stefan's face and he stares blankly ahead.

Elena watches in horror. "What did you do?"

Klaus steps back and smiles at her. "I fixed him. But I think a test is in order, don't you?" He goes behind Elena and looks at Stefan. "Ripper…perhaps you'd like a drink…from the doppelgängers neck?"

Stefan's face changes and he rushes over to Elena, biting into her neck. She screams in pain.


Klaus enters the classroom Rebekah, Tyler and Caroline are in. "Well, the verdict's in. The original witch says the doppelgänger should be dead."

Rebekah stands with a pleased look on her face. "Does that mean we can kill her?"

"No, I'm fairly certain it means the opposite."

"What?!"

"Call it a hunch…" He holds up a vial of blood to Tyler. Rebekah holds Caroline so she can't move. "Elena's blood. Drink it."

"No!" Caroline yells. "No, no, no, Tyler, don't!"

"If he doesn't feed, he'll die anyway, love. Consider this an experiment." He says. Tyler struggles but eventually gives in, drinking the blood. "There we go. Good boy." Tyler screams in pain. He falls to the floor, groaning and writhes. He holds his head and his eyes glow yellow, fangs and veins appearing as well. "Well, that's a good sign." Klaus smiles.


Elena wakes up in a hospital bed and sees a nurse. "Where am I?"

"In the hospital, sweetie. You suffered through a terrible ordeal." The nurse says.

"I have to get out of here."

"Ah. Not an option. You've lost a lot of blood."

Elena sees a blood bag next to her. "Wait…you're taking my blood?"

"Of course. It's very important for your friend Klaus." Elena begins to panic but the nurse injects her with a sedative. "Don't fight it, sweetie. He told me you need plenty of rest."

Elena passes out.


Klaus and Rebekah are in front of the hospital.

"So the doppelgänger isn't the problem. Her blood is the solution." She says.

"Seems so." He nods.

"How did you know?"

"Well, you know how much the original witch hated me. Do you honestly think I would do anything other than the opposite of what she says?"

"A thousand years in the grave and she's still screwing with you."

"Well, it makes sense if you think about it from her perspective. It was her failsafe in case I ever broke the hybrid curse. The doppelgänger had to die in order for me to become a hybrid, but if she was dead…"

"Then you couldn't use her blood to sire yourself a new species."

"Leaving me alone for all time."

She looks at him. "Is that what this is about? Your obsession with hybrids. You just don't want to be alone?"

"What I want is to take my girl, take my shapeshifter, and my hybrid the hell out of this one pony town. You know, why don't you, uh, why don't you get the truck? I'll get Elena." He watches her leave and sees Damon walk up. "Well, look who finally decided to show up to the party."

"Where is she?" He asks.

"Elena? Ah, she's making a donation to a greater cause."

Damon goes toward the hospital but Klaus stops him. "I'm afraid I can't let you interfere, mate."

"You'll have to kill me."

"Oh, I would love to kill you, but I made a pledge to your brother, and unlike him, I keep my word. Although, you know what, thinking about it now, he probably doesn't care that much anymore." He pushes Damon against a car and is ready to kill him.

"Don't you want to know about your friend Mikael?" Damon asks.

Klaus looks at him. "What do you know about Mikael?"

"Just that he knows you're here."

"You're bluffing."

"Katherine and I found him. Consider it our leverage." He says. Klaus throws him to the ground. When he gets up, Klaus has disappeared. He walks towards the hospital.


Damon is in the hallway, looking for Elena. He finally finds her. She's asleep; he looks at her and pulls out the tube in Elena's arm. He looks at the tubes which were pumping out her blood and she wakes up.

"Damon…" She says weakly.

"Hey." He takes her into his arms and carries her out.


Mystic Falls High School

Caroline and Tyler are in the hallway. "Are you sure you're ok?" She asks.

He smiles. "I'm great, Caroline. I mean, like, phenomenal. It's a rush. I wish I could explain it. Everything's just…better." He takes her in his arms and spins her around, making her laugh. He presses a kiss to her lips. "This is going to be an amazing year." He embraces her, not seeing the worried look on her face.


Bonnie rejoins Matt in the weight room. "Hey. You ready?" She asks him. "I could still use a ride over to Jeremy's."

"Yeah, just a sec." He says.

"Listen to me. I know you want to help, and I know you miss your sister. But what you did was reckless and stupid."

"I know. Bonnie. I know. But it worked. It was worth it."

"You don't want to be a part of all this, Matt. You are the only one of us who actually gets to live your life like a normal person, no matter how lost you feel. Don't forget that."

"I get it, Bonnie. I'll be out in a minute, ok? Vicki's here. Watching me, and I just, uh, I just need a minute to say goodbye, ok?" She leaves but somebody's behind him. He thinks it's Bonnie. "Bon, seriously, I'm not going to do anything stupid, I just…" He turns his head and sees Vicki. "Vicki?"

She sits down next to him. "Hi, Matty."


At the boarding house, Damon gives Elena a glass of scotch. "Hey, have some bourbon. It'll help you forget." He watches as she takes a drink and scrunches her face at the taste. "Yeah, it's strong. You know I can help you forget, too. At least the memories you don't want to keep."

She shakes her head. "No. No compulsion. I need to remember. All of it."

He pulls out her necklace. "I stole it back for you."

"He's really gone this time. I watched it happen. After everything that we went through to get…to help him. Now he's just…gone. Where were you, Damon?"

He puts his hand on her leg. "I shouldn't have left. I promise you…I will never leave you again." They look at each other.

"Well, isn't this cozy?" Stefan asks, leaning against the entrance of the room.

They both look at him, surprised.. Damon gets up. "What are you doing here, brother?"

"Last I checked, I live here. Klaus is gone, but he's asked me to keep watch on you until he returns." He looks at Elena. "From now on, you're under my protection. He was kinda pissed that his compulsion didn't work on Trinity though. Hmm." He shrugs. "By all means, carry on." He leaves.

Damon and Elena look at each other.

A few minutes later, Trinity enters the house; her hands filled with bags. She sets them down. "Of all the events today, someone was thoughtful enough to pack my candy. I would say that's a plus." She sets down her bags and looks at Elena, smiling. "Miss me?"

Elena rushes forward and hugs her. "You're okay."

"Maybe." She says. "Even with my healing, I've been knocked out a lot in one day…I may have a concussion." She teases.

Elena gives a teary laugh. "I missed you." She pulls back.

"I missed you too." Trinity smiles. She motions to the bags. "I official broke up with Katherine. Do you wanna help me eat my grief candy?"


Katherine and Jeremy stand in front of a crypt.

"How do you know that Anna wasn't tricking you?" She asks.

"This is the place. It's the oldest wing of the largest cemetery in Charlotte. She said that a witch entombed him here in the nineties." They look through the door and see a tomb. "Look there."

Katherine opens the double doors. She looks at the tomb and opens it. Mikael is in it, desiccated and chained up. As soon as the tomb is opened, he opens his eyes.