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( CLEAN SLATE )

ALARIC'S HOUSE
[ ☼ ]

        "The more we talk, the more you'll relax and open your mind to me." Alaric stops compelling her and settles back. "We're going to be searching through memories that are deeply embedded, and each significant memory that we hit which is connected to Dean I will help you modify." He says. "And this should eventually lead us to the signature memory which once erased will create a positive domino effect through all your other memories."

        "Can't you just compel me to forget everything at once?" Elena asks.

        "I am supernaturally rewiring ten years of your memories. If it were that easy, I wouldn't be so terrifying." Alaric says. Elena nods, she looks sad. He places his hand on her knee, he looks at her again. "I have some questions. Answer them honestly."

       "I will answer everything honestly." Elena says.

       "Do you have doubts about this?"

        "Yes. But I know I have to do this." She says with tears in her eyes.

        "Are you afraid?" Alaric asks.

        "More sad than afraid."

        "Why sad?" He asks.

        "Because I don't want to stop loving him." Elena says.

       "Do you trust me, to be digging around in your mind?"

        "I trust you completely." Elena says.

       "Okay. Well then let's... let's get started... Who is Dean Winchester?"

       "He was my boyfriend, I loved him and he died." Elena says.

       "And when did you first meet him?"

       "I was looking for Sam. I found him instead." Elena says.

FLASHBACK

STANFORD UNIVERSITY
[ ☾]

        "Who are you? Oh, you're a girl." Dean says.

       "You can't leave." Elena says.

       "Look, girl. You're cute and all, but I don't have time for this."

END FLASHBACK

       "And what was he like?" Alaric asks.

       "There was something different about him, dangerous. But not in a way that scared me. He was exciting."

        "And how did he make you feel?" Alaric asks.

       "Like anything was possible."

        Alaric looks her in the eyes, compelling her again. "You had a nice moment in the road with a stranger. But that's all he was, a stranger." He says.

       "Stranger, two people passing in the night." Elena says.

       "Are you okay?" Alaric asks.

      "Hmm, yeah let's just keep going."

       Alaric and Elena are still sitting across from each other in chairs, Elena's eyes are shut. "There was another time. Tell me about this moment." Alaric says.

FLASHBACK

PORCH
[ ☾]

        "No, you know what? If I'm going to feel guilty about something, I'm going to feel guilty about this." Dean storms over to her and kisses her.

       "He kissed me. I mean, I shouldn't have let him. Not after what happened with Lisa. I knew that he was still in love with me, and even though Sam and I were on the outs, I shouldn't have let him."

END FLASHBACK

        Alaric leans forward, looking into her eyes, compelling her. "He kissed you, you thought it was inappropriate. You told him so." He says.

       "I told him it was wrong." Elena says.

       "Who is Dean Winchester?"

       "He was my boyfriend." Elena says and Alaric looks down in disappointment. "I loved him, and... he... he died."

       "You know, why don't we... why don't we take a little break, okay?" Alaric asks.

OUTSIDE ALARIC'S HOUSE
[ ☼ ]

       "You're the last person I think would object to me erasing positive memories of Dean from my head." Elena says.

       "Yeah, but Sam is literally chasing a lead. W-what if he finds something out?" Stefan asks. "Yeah, you know what if Dean returns home and everything returns back to normal? And you're just sitting there all confused and weird?"

       "Then Alaric will bring back my memories." Elena says.

       "But—"

       "But what? Go ahead, Stefan, say what you need to say. I don't want to... pressure you into agreeing." Elena says.

       "I... don't know what to say, I was actually trying to think of what Dean would say."

       Elena sighs and walks to a tree, she begins to kick it softly with her shoe. "And?" She asks.

       "And...he'd say that you should do what's best for you."

       "Look, I think it's great that you still have hope, I really do but... for my own survival I need to let him go." She says.

ALARIC'S HOUSE
[ ☼ ]

       "It was when I found out Sam slept with Ruby." Elena says to Alaric.

FLASHBACK

ROAD
[ ☾]

        Dean lifts Elena off of the ground and carries her to his car. Later he puts his coat around her and they smile at each other

END FLASHBACK

        "Dean found me." Elena is smiling as she stares out the window. "He saved me from being killed. He picked me up at the hospital and carried me all the way to the motel. I remember that was the first time, I felt it."

      "Felt what?" Alaric asks.

        Elena turns to him. "How sexy he was. I'd never let myself notice until then, I mean obviously I knew he was attractive but... I didn't want to see him that way." She says.

        Alaric walks toward her, looking in her eyes, compelling her. "You drove down the road and crashed. No one was there." He says.

       "I was hurt but I got over it." Elena says.

       "Who is Dean Winchester?"

       "He was my boyfriend, I loved him and he died." Elena puts her hands on her head in frustration. "I hate this. I mean, wha—? How much longer is it going to take?"

        "Until we find that signature moment." Alaric says. "The moment you knew you loved him."

        "Well, that's easy. It was the time he confessed his feelings for me the second time at the motel." Elena says.

        Alaric stares into her eyes, compelling her. "Okay, your feelings weren't real, who is Dean Winchester?" He asks.

       "He was my boyfriend—"

       "That's not it. You gotta dig deeper, Elena."

       "I-I- I don't know, okay I... maybe it was when we spent the night at the motel together, I wasn't back together with Sam yet and—" Elena starts.

FLASHBACK

MOTEL ROOM
[ ☾]

       Elena and Dean are lying in bed beside each other, Dean touching Elena's hand.

       "And all I could think about was kissing him. I wanted to kiss him so badly."

END FLASHBACK

       Alaric looks in her eyes, compelling her. "You didn't want to kiss him, who is Dean Winchester?" He asks.

       "He was my boyfriend—"

       "That's not it, next." Alaric says.

       "I don't know!"

        "Well think about it, Elena! Think about that moment where you knew this person was somebody you had feelings for." Alaric says. "That you loved, that you could see those feelings going on forever. Trust me, you never forget."

        "Maybe we should just forget about this entire thing, it was a stupid idea, okay I-I can't do this anymore, alright? I'm done. I'm sorry." Elena walks out of the room.

CAROLINE'S HOUSE
[ ☾]

        Caroline is sitting on her steps with her cell phone in her hand, she gets up. "Hey, this is really not a good time." She says.

        "I'm sorry, I-I've just really hit a wall with Elena. I just need some insight." Alaric says.

       "Okay, what's the wall?"

        "I'm trying to get her to figure out when she first fell in love with Dean but she... can't seem to get there."Alaric is sitting on his bed.

        "Yeah, because she doesn't want to admit what everyone already knows." Caroline says. "That she fell in love with Dean while she was still with Sam."

LIVING ROOM
[ ☾]

        Elena is on the phone trying to get a hold of Luke. "The receiver: ...is not available, please leave a message." It says.

       "Luke, where are you? I need more of that stuff like... now, I'm starting to go—" She pauses when Alaric is standing by the door. "I don't want to hear it, okay? We tried, it didn't work. It's over."

        "It didn't work because you weren't being honest." Alaric says.

        "I wasn't... are you crazy? I was being completely honest." Elena says. "Do you think I want to talk to you about my romantic life?"

      "You weren't being honest with yourself." He says. "Look, I want to hear all the Dean stuff... while you were still with Sam."

        Elena looks up at him, incredulously. "No, I was completely faithful to Sam, even when we were fighting." She says.

        "Of course you were—"

        "I did everything—" Elena starts.

        "I know—" Alaric starts.

        "I stuck with him, even when he lost his soul—" Elena starts.

        "I know you di—"

        "After he let Lucifer in, I fought for him." She says.

         "I know you did, Elena, you don't want to admit it because you feel like you're betraying Sam but this won't work until you do."

        "No, I loved Sam. The entire time, I never would have hurt him." She's staring at the framed photos of her and Dean, her back turned to Alaric.

      "Elena, you've been lucky enough to love two people this deeply, in your young life." Elena says. "There's nothing wrong with that. It's okay."

        Elena smirks without amusement. "It's okay to love them both. That's what Caroline used to say." There are tears in her eyes, as she slowly sits on the bed. "How sad is it that my own best friend was smarter than me?"

        Alaric grabs a chair and sits in front of her, a tear slips from her eye. "It's okay, Elena you can tell me, tell me the moment you knew you loved him." He says.

      Elena is teary eyed and reassured. "It was my birthday. Sam and I spent the entire day goofing off. And I was putting on a good face because Jenna was throwing this party for me." She says.

FLASHBACK

JENNA'S HOUSE
[ ☼ ]

        Elena is in front of the mirror wearing the white dress, she's admiring herself.

END FLASHBACK

       "I was two seconds from deciding that I wasn't going to go, I wasn't going to leave the room." Elena says. "Until Dean walked in to give me my second...birthday gift."

FLASHBACK

        Elena turns when she sees Dean, and smiles. Dean approaches Elena with a small box and he opens it. It's a locket necklace.

       "And Dean knew what the necklace meant to me."

FLASHBACK

        "It's beautiful." Elena says.

END FLASHBACK

        "What it meant about my feelings for my parents. Even though they died." Elena says.

FLASHBACK

        Elena picks up her hair so Dean can put the necklace on.

        "He gave me the one thing that represented hope."

END FLASHBACK

       "It was... the most selfless that he's ever been, and in that moment... I loved him. I didn't want to, I mean, I... It terrified me but, for that moment I loved him. Do it." Elena grabs Alaric's hands desperately. "It's okay, I'm ready."

        "I need you to be sure. Are you sure?" Alaric asks.

        "I'm sure, just take it away, please." Elena says as tears are streaming down her face. "All of it. If I want to be happy, it all has to go away."

       Alaric leans forward, compelling her. "Dean never came into the room, he never gave you the necklace." He says and sighs. "You never went to that Halloween party at Stanford. Elena, who is Dean Winchester?"

       "Who?"