Outfits in the external link 

From 1.01 "Pilot", night in the woods, over the fog-covered forest floor.

Damon: (voice over) "Previously on Worlds Colliding (The Vampire Diaries)"

From 5.22 "Home", on the Other Side, The Other Side came crashing down, overrun by chaotic winds.

Bonnie: (voice over from 5.21 Promised Land) "The Other Side is collapsing, and everyone in it is going away."

From 5.22 "Home", in the Salvatore Mausoleum, Luke and Ryan woke Tory and Lindsey up.

Luke looked between them in regret. "Damon and Kacie didn't make it through."

From 6.02 "Yellow Ledbetter", in the girls' dorm room, Elena and Liv were talking.

"Alaric will compel away any memories, and then make me forget that I had him do it," Elena told her.

From 6.02 "Yellow Ledbetter", in the girls' dorm room, Elena, Liv and Alaric were talking.

Alaric compelled Elena. "Who is Damon Salvatore?"

"He was a monster," Elena told them.

From 6.03 "Welcome to Paradise", in Dean's garage, Stefan opened the trunk to reveal Ivy's body. "This is my girlfriend, Ivy. My sister's boyfriend killed her last night right in front of me."

From 6.03 "Welcome to Paradise", in the woods, Stefan and Kaylin were arguing.

"He hates me, I hate him, and you're stuck in the middle," Stefan told her. "You're always stuck in the middle."

"You think that if you kill Enzo, I will hate you again, so you can just leave and go start over like you want?" Kaylin asked.

From 6.03 "Welcome to Paradise", in the diner, Two stakes were shot through Enzo's back, missing his heart.

Enzo let go of Tripp weakly, falling to the floor, unconscious.

Stefan was the one who had shot him, having the gun he had taken from Jay.

"I have my own way I like them to die," Tripp told him.

From 6.02 "Yellow Ledbetter", in the Lockwood Mansion, Jeremy, Eliza and Matt were talking.

"Liza, this isn't you," Matt told her.

"I know, Matt, and I'm working on it," Eliza told him.

Eliza walked out of the room, leaving.

"I'll talk to her, okay?" Jeremy asked.

From 6.02 "Yellow Ledbetter", in the living room of the Lockwood Mansion, Jeremy and Eliza were talking.

"You're my family," Eliza told him. "All of you are. And it feels like I'm losing everyone."

"I just need you to talk to me, to get you through this phase, and then everything will be okay," Jeremy told her. "You talk to me when you're ready to talk to me, okay?"

Eliza nodded, sighing, leaning her head against Jeremy's shoulder, just relaxing in his arms.

From 6.01 "I'll Remember", just outside Mystic Falls, Caroline, Eliza and Liz were having a picnic.

"Vampires can't get into Mystic Falls," Eliza told them.

"They can lurk around the borders," Liz told them.

From 6.01 "I'll Remember", on the road, Elena transformed, biting Sarah on the neck, feeding.

Cristian: (voice over from 6.03 Welcome to Paradise) "Sarah, the girl Elena attacked in front of you, and I compelled..."

From 6.03 "Welcome to Paradise", in the swimming hole, Liv, Cristian, Lindsey and Tory were talking.

Liv took a deep breath of realization and horror. "Knows what we are."

From 6.03 "Welcome to Paradise", in the living room of the boarding house, Jeremy, Eliza and Sarah were talking.

"My mom lived in Mystic Falls for years before she had me," Sarah told them. "Somebody had to knock her up."

From 4.09 "O Come, All Ye Faithful", in the library of the boarding house, Stefan, Kaylin and Nicola were talking.

Nicola was sitting on the couch.

Stefan and Kaylin were leaning against the back of the couch behind her.

Nicola looked at a picture of her father Zach Salvatore and a pregnant woman. She looked at Stefan and Kaylin. "This picture was taken in 1992. It was before my dad met my mom and had me. You have any ideas?"

Kaylin shook her head. "Nope. None."

Stefan didn't answer, looking pensive.

From 6.02 "Yellow Ledbetter", in the other world's Town Square, Kacie, Bonnie and Damon were in the street.

"Where the hell are we?" Damon asked.

From 6.02 "Yellow Ledbetter", in the other world, outside the Gilbert House, Damon showed them the date on the newspaper.

"1992," Bonnie told them. 

They watched the eclipse.

Damon: (voice over from 6.02 Yellow Ledbetter) "My own hell."

From 6.03 "Welcome to Paradise", in the other world, outside the small store, Damon, Kacie and Bonnie were talking.

"We're never getting out," Damon told them.

From 6.03 "Welcome to Paradise", in the other world, in the small store, Kai was lounged in a chair, eating pork rinds.

Bonnie: (voice over from 6.02 Yellow Ledbetter) "There's someone else here."

Kai swung the broken stake at the shelf, smashing all of the bottles on the shelf, making all of the contents spray on and around Kacie, making her skin burn violently.

Kacie fell to the floor, screaming, gasping.

Kai pulled out a meat cleaver from the shelf.

Damon appeared behind Kacie. "Stay away from her."

Damon and Kacie rushed out of the way of the alcohol.

Kacie fell back on the chair Kai had been sitting in weakly, still healing.

"Phesmatos incendia," Bonnie chanted, using magic to turn the alcohol surrounding Kai into flames.

From 6.03 "Welcome to Paradise", in the other world, in the boarding house, Kai was tied up.

Bonnie, Kacie and Damon stood in front of him.

"We're on the same team," Kai told them.

"Do you always try and kill your team mates?" Bonnie asked.

"The important thing is that you have your magic," Kai told her. "Because your magic is the key to getting the hell out of here."

Bonnie, Kacie and Damon looked on, effected by this revelation.

------~------

Other World

Day One

Morning - Salvatore Boarding House - Living Room 

Kai was still tied to the chair in front of the fireplace with duct tape, talking to Damon and Kacie nonstop. "And, of course, I broke into the Oval Office, and took a picture of myself at the window looking all JFK. But then, I was, like, 'Wha--How am I going to get these photos developed'--"

"Oh, my God, just answer the damn question," Kacie told him in annoyance. "How are we going to get out of this Twilight Zone?" 

Damon was sitting across from Kai on the couch.

Kai looked at Damon. "I got a question for you, first. Why do you think we're stuck on a repeating loop of May 10th, 1992?" Damon raised his eyebrows as if to say, I don't know. "Doomed to relive a solar eclipse forever and ever and ever." 

"How the hell should I know?" Damon asked, taking a sip of his bourbon.

"Well, I heard you tell Bonnie and Kacie this place was your own personal hell," Kai told him. "I'm curious why."

Kacie looked at Damon.

Damon averted his gaze.

Bonnie walked into the room, looking at Kai. "I found everything you asked for. Can opener, shower drain, grinding wheel, jam, pocket knife, volume 'O' of the Encyclopedia, a nail and a black marker." She walked over to the table in front of the couch Damon was on, pouring the things over it. "Now what?" 

"Can't show you with my hands taped," Kai told them.

Kacie grabbed the knife, walking closer to Kai.

"Kacie..." Bonnie trailed off in warning.

Kacie cut off one of the taped binds on Kai's hand.

"Thank you," Kai told her. He looked between them. "You know what your guys' relationship reminds me of?" He looked at Damon and Bonnie. "The bickering, old married couple." He looked at Kacie. "And the defiant, argumentative kid." 

Kacie pressed the knife against Kai's throat. "You've already tried to kill me, and you've been a little slow on sharing the answers we want, so don't give me another reason to kill you. You got it?" 

"Got it," Kai answered.

Kacie cut off the other binding. "Now, how is this pile of crap going to get us out of here?" 

Kai rubbed his wrists. "I'll explain..." He looked at Damon. "As soon as you tell me what you did on May 10th, 1992." 

"What difference does it make?" Damon asked, frustrated.

"Let me put it this way," Kai told him. "Bonnie's magic is one part of the equation. My as-yet undisclosed knowledge is the other. Which means you would be hitching a ride home for free. And, unlike Kacie, you seem murderous of anyone, not just people who have tried to kill her." Kacie nodded sarcastically. "I just want to know if you deserve to come along." 

Damon took the pocket knife from Kacie, lifting Kai up to put the knife against his throat. "Or I could just torture you until you say something useful." 

Kai looked confused, speaking slowly. "If you torture me, I'll get mad, and then I won't want to help you." He looked at Kacie and Bonnie. "What kind of person needs to have that explained to them?" 

Bonnie took the knife from Damon.

Damon roughly let go of Kai.

Kai laughed. 

"Play nice," Bonnie told them. She looked at Kacie. "All of you." 

"Stop trying to impress the new guy," Kacie told her. She looked at Damon. "Why don't you just tell him your story?" 

"Maybe because I don't want to talk about the worst thing I ever did, Kacie," Damon answered.

Kai opened the jam, smiling. "Ooh, now I'm listening." 

(Song:) Wild Ones - Jessarae 

Kai scooped out some jam from the jar with his hand, eating it. 

------

Worlds Colliding (The Vampire Diaries)

------

Flashback 1 - 1992

Mystic Falls, Virginia

Day - Salvatore Boarding House - Outside

 Damon had just rang the doorbell, having his back to the front door. 

The door opened.

Damon turned to see Stefan inside, holding up a newspaper. "Ready for some bad news?" The newspaper's front page had an article about Bill Clinton being elected for president. Stefan leaned against the door.  Damon chuckled, taking a step forward to get into the house, only to be stopped by an invisible barrier in the threshold. "Barely seen you in fifty years, Stefan. You could invite a brother in."

"Give me one good reason why," Stefan told him.

"Check your answering machine," Damon told him. "I'm trying to turn over a new leaf."

"Oh, I heard your message," Stefan told him. "I also heard you sent Lexi some flowers, seventeen years after you left her to burn to death on a rooftop."

"Well..." Damon trailed off.

"It's a little late, but I see you're trying to make amends," Stefan told him. "I just want to know why."

"Uh, well, I can tell you this, Stefan," Damon told him. "I'm tired of tearing up New York City. And, maybe it's the partying, or maybe it's my conscious--"

"Well, I believe that would require one," Stefan told him.

Damon ignored him, going on as if he hadn't spoken. "And then, I had this moment of clarity, and I said, 'Wouldn't it be great if I just woke up in my own bed and could have a fresh start?'"

Zach Salvatore appeared behind Stefan. "You must be Damon." 

Damon saluted him.

"Damon, this is, uh, Zach Salvatore," Stefan told him. "He owns the house now, he knows the family history, and I told him if you got out of line, I'd take care of you myself."

"Why are you always expecting the worst out of me, Stefan?" Damon asked.

"Oh, I don't," Stefan told him. "Otherwise, I wouldn't allow this."

Damon looked around in confusion.

Stefan nodded to Zach.

"Come on in, Damon," Zach told him.

Damon stepped inside. "Huh. Thanks."

Kaylin appeared in the doorway behind them. "Forgetting someone?" 

Damon turned to look at his sister in complete shock. "Kaylin."

"Hello, brothers," Kaylin told them.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Damon asked.

"Oh, so you're the only one who can ask for a do-over?" Kaylin asked.

"You're not the one who asked for the do-over," Stefan told her. He looked at Damon. "Since you called, I started to track Kaylin down and asked her to come. I figured that this could be a new Salvatore era." Damon nodded, satisfied. Stefan looked at Zach, nodding to Kaylin. "Go on."

"Come on in, Kaylin," Zach told her.

Kaylin smiled, taking a step inside. "Thanks." 

"You guys ready to start over?" Stefan asked. 

"Hell, yeah," Kaylin answered.

Stefan closed the front door. 

(Song Ends)

------

Now 

Day - Outside Of Mystic Falls 

Stefan was sitting on his motorcycle. His cell phone vibrated. He took off his helmet, looking at the Caller ID, answering. "Hello. Any sign of our runaway girl?" 

Elena was in the woods on the other line. "No. Eliza, Caroline, Alex and I combed the border of Mystic Falls three times already, and so have Cristian, Luke and Ryan. We're talking Nicola and Kaylin to help, and Tory and Lindsey cast a locator spell, but there's no sign of Sarah."

"She's not on any of the roads, which means she's probably in Mystic Falls," Stefan told her.

"This is bad," Elena told him. "Her compulsion went away as soon as she crossed the border. She knows that Cristian, Liv and I are vampires."

"Listen, I gotta go," Stefan told her. "I'll, uh, talk to you later."

Stefan hung up, turning the key in the ignition of his bike. 

Elena appeared in front of him. "Where do you think you're going?" 

Stefan chuckled. "Uh, I'm going home."

"Savannah is not your home," Elena told him. "It's an escape, a hiding place. This is your home."

Elena pointed to the Mystic Falls sign.

"No, it was my home," Stefan told her. "But, I can no longer enter its border, therefore, I have a new home."

Elena raised her eyebrows. "So, you're just going to throw in the towel and go back to your fake new life?"

"Look, my fake new life ended when Enzo decided to kill my not-so-fake girlfriend, Ivy," Stefan told her. "So, I'm going to go home, pack up and start over. Again."

"By pretending like your life here never existed?" Elena asked.

"You'd be surprised how easy it is to forget the past," Stefan told her.

"But I'm not buying it," Elena told him. "You lost your brother. You pissed off Nicola and Kaylin, the only remainder of your family, so now they hate you for the time being until you decide to apologize. There's no way that you're fine."

Stefan sighed, reaching down for the keys.

Elena held up the keys, smiling.

"You do not have to worry about me," Stefan told her. "It's not like I haven't done this before. I have a system."

"Show me," Elena told him. "Prove to me that your system works. If I believe that you actually are happy, then I'll let you go. But, if I don't buy it, which I probably won't, I will keep harassing you until you come home. And I'm talking about, like, Enzo-sized harassment. Deal?" 

Stefan held his hand out for the keys. "Sure." Elena dropped the keys into his hand. "And what about our runaway girl, Sarah?" 

Elena got behind him on the motorcycle, putting the helmet on. "Well, we can't step foot into Mystic Falls. So, now, it's up to Matt, Jeremy, Lindsey and Eliza." 

------

Salvatore Boarding House - Living Room 

Eliza was looking through the trashed room, on the phone. "What happened to you helping us look for Sarah?"

Matt was walking through Town Square. "I'm checking out a lead of my own."

"Listen, what about your vampire-hating neighborhood watch guy?" Eliza asked. "If Sarah goes to him for help, that's a problem."

"I'm on my way to Tripp's office now," Matt told her. "I think I can get him to trust me and tell me what he knows." 

"Be safe," Eliza stressed, hanging up.

Jeremy walked into the room. "I checked every room. Sarah is gone."

Eliza walked toward the door. "Then we have to keep looking for her." She sighed, shaking her head. "This is my fault."

Jeremy walked after her. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. How do you figure that?" 

"Because--" Eliza started. 

"Eliza, the compulsion lifted the second she walked back into Mystic Falls," Jeremy told her. "That's way before she met you. So, no, there is no way that this is your fault." Eliza sighed, looking away. Jeremy looked at her in realization. "Oh, my God." Eliza looked at him in confusion. "That's why you changed so much after Bonnie and Kacie died. You think it's your fault." 

Eliza sighed, shaking her head, obviously not wanting to talk about it, opening the door. "Jer, we have to find Sarah--"

"No," Jeremy told her, closing the door, standing between the door and Eliza. "Matt and Lindsey are on the look out as of right now. We have enough time for you to tell me how the hell you feel responsible for Bonnie and Kacie dying." 

Eliza looked up at him, sighing.

------

Tripp's Office 

Matt walked down the hall, stopping at the door.

Tripp was on the phone. "I know, and I'm sorry, Karen. Jay was a good kid." He saw Matt in the hallway, gesturing for him to come in. Matt walked in, sitting across the desk from him. "I promise, you'll be the first one to know, okay?"

Tripp hung up, sitting back in the chair, sighing.

"Tripp, are you okay?" Matt asked.

Tripp leaned forward. "No. No, I just told Jay's parents that I was the one who found their son dead in the woods last night."

Matt tried to hide his guilt. "I heard. Do you know what happened?"

"You tell me," Tripp told him. Matt looked at him expressionlessly. "He went to the party with you."

"I--I don't know," Matt told him, upset. "He was drunk. I offered to give him a ride home, and he said he'd walk. I should have driven him home."

"Okay," Tripp told him. "I'm gonna give the Sheriff my statement." He stood, gesturing around. "And try to make sense of what happened to Jay."

Matt stood. "Wait. Maybe I should go with you. I mean, I might have been the last person to see Jay alive."

Tripp took a moment to respond. "Okay. All right. Let's take a ride."

They walked out of the office together.

------

Other World 

Salvatore Boarding House - Living Room 

Kai picked up the can opener. 

Bonnie and Kacie were standing in front of the windows, several feet away from each other.

Damon was standing in front of the fireplace, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration.

Kai laid on the couch, screwing open another jam can with the can opener. "I need to be entertained while I work. Hell story, please." 

Damon looked at Bonnie and Kacie. "Remind me not to kill him."

"Maybe telling him your story will take your mind off of it," Bonnie told him.

"Whose side are you on?" Damon asked.

"The side where we get to go home to the people we love," Bonnie answered.

"Please go on, Damon," Kacie told him. "I'm actually starting to get interested in this story." 

Kai held a hand toward Kacie. "See? It's not only me." 

Damon hesitated. "Fine." He turned to Kai. "On May 10th, 1992, I was living here. I'd come home to walk the straight and narrow. And, since I wanted to start fresh with Stefan, he wanted a fresh start with all of us, so he'd called Kaylin, tracked her down, and she came back too. At first, everything was going great."

------

Flashback 2 - 1992

Day - Salvatore Boarding House - Outside

(Song:) Fell On Black Days - Soundgarden

Damon, Stefan and Kaylin were standing next to Damon's blue Camaro, shining it with rags, polishing it. 

Kaylin was bored, looking around.

Stefan was drinking from a flask.

Damon walked over to him. "Can I have a sip of that? I'm starving."

Stefan smirked. "Sure."

Stefan handed Damon the flask.

Damon took it. "Whew."

Damon unscrewed the cap, taking a drink.

"Mm," Stefan hummed smugly. Damon pulled the flask from his mouth quickly, going pale. He looked at it in disgust, his mouth still closed. "It's good, right?" 

Kaylin looked at them in confusion. 

Damon made a face, shaking his head, holding the blood in his mouth even though it was disgusting, his lips contorted. "Mm-mm."

Kaylin looked at Stefan. "Did you give him Bambi blood?" 

"Oh, yeah," Stefan answered. Kaylin smirked. "I can't remember if that squirrel was roadkill, or one I caught in the rat trap." Damon shook his head, narrowing his eyes, revolted. "Better wish it was roadkill, though, because the rat trap was full of rat droppings."

Kaylin had to keep from laughing.

Damon continued to grow pale, disgusted.

Kaylin rubbed her fingers and thumb together teasingly. "Swish your tongue around. Does it feel like hair, or is it more of a grainy pellet?" 

Damon finally managed to swallow it. "Ugh."

Damon looked relieved to be done with it.

Kaylin chuckled.

Stefan took the flask, holding it toward Kaylin. "Want some?"

Kaylin shook her head. "No, thank you."

Stefan smirked, taking a drink.

Zach arrived home with a paper brown bag full of blood, waving to them as he walked toward the house. 

"How's it going, Zach?" Kaylin asked. "What's up with all the grocery trips?" 

"Oh, uh, one of the boarders is craving blueberry pancakes," Zach answered, walking away to the house, walking up onto the front step.

Damon messed around with the rag he had used to polish his car. "You know, maybe I should run the Salvatore Boarding House."

Zach walked up to the woman standing in the doorway.

The woman he was talking to was pregnant. She was the same woman from the picture that Nicola had showed to Stefan and Kaylin in 4.09 O' Come, All Ye Faithful. She smiled at Zach. "Hi."

"Take over for Zach, get in good with Gail..." Damon trailed off.

"She's on vervain," Stefan told him. "So is Zach, which means hands off."

Damon pursed his lips petulantly.

(Song Ends)

------

Now 

Other World 

Day - Salvatore Boarding House - Living Room 

Kai was snoring on the couch.

Damon, Kacie and Bonnie stood nearby.

"Perfect," Kacie told them sarcastically. "Our savior's insane and narcoleptic." 

Kai opened his eyes. "No, no, no, I'm awake." Kacie walked over to Bonnie with a glass of bourbon in hand. Kai looked at Damon. "Let me guess. You killed the pregnant woman." 

"Shut up, Kai," Damon told him. "You weren't listening." 

"I was listening in my sleep," Kai told him. "You were hanging out with your distant nephew Zach, who you called 'Uncle Zach', because that's not confusing. Plus pregnant lady Gail, who had a big bulls eye on her chest. Got it." 

"Wait, if Gail was with Zach, then..." Kacie trailed off, turning to face Damon. "If you killed Gail, then that also means you killed Nicola's unborn sibling." Damon looked guilty. "And Stefan and Kaylin know about this, but after everything you did to Nicola, she would hate you for this. I mean, you killed Zach, you're the reason she had gotten sick, and you're the one who turned her into a vampire. This would be the last straw."

"I know that, Kacie," Damon told her in annoyance.

"And that's why she has no idea," Kacie realized. "Because you don't want Nicola to hate you, or Stefan or Kaylin. Tell me that you didn't kill Nicola's unborn sibling and then kept it a secret from her this entire time."

"Oh, that's totally the case," Kai told them. "Why else would today be his personal hell?" 

Damon got angry.

"Oh, here we go," Kacie told them.

Damon knelt in front of the table to face Kai. "The only reason that you're alive right now is because I thought you could get us out of here and you could help us, but you don't have any answers. You're just a man child." He picked up an empty jam can. "With jam on your fingers." 

Damon tossed the can to the side.

"Okay, then, to get home, we'll harness the power of the eclipse using a mystical relic," Kai told them. "It's called an Ascendant, and it looks like this." He picked up something round. "The last time we had it, was in the pacific north west." He set it down, opening a book. "Oregon." 

"We?" Kacie repeated.

"It belonged to my family," Kai explained, picking up the pocket knife. "So, here's a little blood to get you started." He slit the top of his finger. "Now, all we need is a locator spell." He stood, looking at Bonnie. "To pinpoint its whereabouts."

Damon stood slowly.

"Think you can find our ticket out of here, Bon-Bon?" Kacie asked.

Bonnie was unfazed. "Hell. Yeah." 

Kacie smiled.

------~------

Just Outside of Mystic Falls

(Song:) Harlem - Cathedrals 

Kaylin and Nicola were walking together aside the anti-magic border, looking for Sarah. 

"I still don't see her," Kaylin told her. "Do you?" 

"No," Nicola answered. "And I'm about to just give up."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Kaylin told her. "Sarah has to be somewhere in Mystic Falls, and we can't get into town."

"I wasn't just talking about looking for Sarah, Kaylin," Nicola told her. "I'm talking about..."

Kaylin turned to face Nicola, making her stop. "I know what you meant, Nikki, and don't make me kick your ass so that you can get your hope back about getting Damon, Kacie and Bonnie back, and I will not give up until I do, because if we get them back, then we get Stefan back, too. Does that sound good to you?" 

"Yeah, it does," Nicola answered, starting to walk again. "And I'm sure that your encouraging, unofficial boyfriend has done nothing but assure that your hope to get your brother and our friends back never fades."

Kaylin smirked, following Nicola. "If you think that everything is fine between Enzo and me, then you haven't been paying attention. I've been avoiding him ever since I found out that he killed Ivy. But usually, being avoided makes him feel left out and he harasses you until you start paying attention to him again."

"And he's not?" Nicola asked.

"Not this time," Kaylin answered.

"So how did you two even come to be?" Nicola asked. "I mean, before you left, you hated him."

"Well, he had spent the whole summer helping me look for ways to find Damon, Kacie and Bonnie," Kaylin answered. "Every day for the last four months, we would find contacts, and either split up to which ones we went to, or we went to them together. Then, one night, when we had stayed up late looking for new contacts, he kissed me out of the blue, and, well..." Nicola smirked, shaking her head. There was a moment of silence. "I have to ask you a question. You asked me a question, so it's my turn to ask you a question." 

"By the look on your face, I don't think I'm gonna like the question," Nicola told her.

"It's just that..." Kaylin trailed off. "Stefan asked Tyler to help you, and Tyler helped you."

"Yeah, Tyler helped me a lot," Nicola told her. 

"But you're pushing him away because you're feeling guilty about what happened to Kacie, and you think it's your fault that she went after Julian in the first place," Kaylin told her.

"That doesn't sound like a question to me," Nicola told her.

Kaylin grabbed Nicola by the arm, making her stop. "I know you like him, Nikki, and it's so obvious that he likes you." Nicola sighed, turning to face her. "And you should know that this isolated guilt thing is irrational. We both know that Kacie would have gone after Tyler anyway. But don't you get lonely, pushing people away like that? Why do you keep doing it?" 

"So I don't have to worry about falling for him," Nicola answered.

"But why?" Kaylin stressed.

"No matter what happens, no matter who it is, whoever falls for someone in our family, they always pay for it, or they end up dead," Nicola told her. "You've seen it. You've been through it, Kay. Just yesterday, Stefan wanted to kill Enzo because he knew that would make you hate him, and make me so angry at him because he hurt you. I don't want that to happen to Tyler."

"Okay, you're right, it is dangerous to be in love with a Salvatore," Kaylin told her. Nicola nodded. "But that doesn't mean that it will always happen. Just give it a chance, at least. Nikki, just let yourself come out of this misery cycle. That's the tragedy of you. You never get any happiness whatsoever, and most of the time, it's because either someone takes it away from you, or you push it away. Just let the walls come down, okay?"

Nicola seemed to be thinking about it, nodding after a moment. "Okay." Kaylin smiled. "We should go before this girl outs Cristian, Elena and Liv."

They continued to walk down the side of the border.

(Song Ends)

------

Savannah, Georgia

Dean's Garage 

Elena was looking at a picture of Stefan and Ivy. "She's cute."

"Was cute," Stefan told her.

"I'm sorry," Elena told him.

"Me, too," Stefan told her. "But, what's done is done. So, after taxes, and Social Security, and heath insurance, I'm left with $206.03 to spend for the week. Do you wanna get drunk?"

Stefan held up his paycheck.

"Health insurance?" Elena asked skeptically.

"Yeah," Stefan answered. "Point is to start over. Pretend to be as human as possible."

"Ah, okay," Elena told him. "So, no vampire privileges, no baggage, nothing from our old lives whatsoever, huh?" She pointed at Stefan's red, old car, clearing her throat dramatically. "What's this?" 

"You got me there," Stefan told her. "Kaylin isn't around calling it granny-mobile, so..."

"Yeah, Kaylin really does love to torture people with nicknames," Elena told him. "And just plain torture people. But, then, like everyone else, she has that sweet side that's willing to kill and die for the people she cares about. Even though she hated me and Alex, she still ended up saving us repeatedly because you and your brother cared."

"Yeah, that's one way to put it," Stefan told her. 

"So..." Elena trailed off.

"I'm not gonna be able to apologize to Kaylin right now, because if I go in a five-mile radius right now, she'd probably kill me herself," Stefan told her. "I just got to let her have some time to calm down before I see her or Nikki again."

"Okay," Elena told him. "So, your system for moving on requires both burning bridges and a dead-end job."

"We haven't even gone for the fun part," Stefan told her.

"Paying your utilities?" Elena asked.

"No," Stefan answered. "Deciding who you wanna be for the next thirty years. You wanna be an astronaut? You wanna be an Olympic athlete? You wanna skip med school? Boom, you're a doctor. Go ahead, challenge me. I'll show you how it's done."

"All right," Elena told him. "Let's see what you got."

Stefan smiled a small smile. "Okay."

------

Salvatore Boarding House - Living Room

(Song:) The Power of Love - Gabrielle Aplin 

Jeremy and Eliza were sitting together on the couch, having drinks in hand, talking.

"I know that Bonnie's... death... was inevitable," Eliza told him. "But Kacie and Damon... I know that they didn't die because of me, but they were stuck on the Other Side because of me."

"Why would you think that?" Jeremy asked.

Eliza sighed. "Because they were at the Grill when I needed help with my mom. She was trapped under a beam, and I couldn't get her out. I didn't see anyone, but I knew it was Damon and Kacie. I knew it, I could feel it. The reason that they were too late to go home. Because they were helping me save my mother's life." There was a long moment of silence. Eliza sighed. "Can we go now? That girl's not just gonna magically pop up, knowing that your sisters and Cristian are vampires, but not knowing that mine is, too."

Jeremy shook his head, pouring bourbon into her glass. "Tory and Lindsey are doing a locator spell, and they said that they would call when they found her."

"Why do you want me to talk?" Eliza asked. "Why does anyone care? It's not really gonna change anything."

"See, that is exactly why I want you to talk to me," Jeremy told her.

"What do you mean?" Eliza asked.

"You've changed, Eliza, and you keep changing, and it's for the worse," Jeremy told her. "I mean, you're still you, but this new attitude that you have, the 'It's not really gonna change anything' attitude, the drinking... It's like you've given up faith, not just for Bonnie, Damon and Kacie, but for you, Eliza."

"Maybe I have," Eliza told him. "I mean, what's the point of living this life it it's just gonna end up with all of us dying?" 

"But that's my point," Jeremy told her. "I know you're hurt, and I know you're grieving, but... God, I don't know how to explain it, but I just need you to talk to me."

"I don't want to talk about it, Jeremy," Eliza told him. "I can't."

"Yes, you can," Jeremy told her. "Now, you can either keep talking willingly, or I am gonna keep applying you with alcohol, and we'll see how much you talk then."

Eliza sighed, drinking the glass in one sip. "Jer, I am tired of the pain. I've been compelled to forget vampires trying to kill me, my will taken away from me, finding out my sister is one of them, lost you more times than I can count, was nearly killed by my Occult Studies professor, who killed my dad, and I had to watch Daddy die again, I've been told to keep secrets numerous times, I've been killed just to be brought back by CPR, I lost Lindsey, Bonnie and Kacie so many freaking times, and I broke, okay? I broke. I'm broken." 

Jeremy poured her another drink. "You are not alone, Eliza. And I believe in you. I believe that you can overcome this and come back stronger. I believe that you can come back to the girl that you once were. Now you need to believe, too. Being broken means that you can be fixed. So, tell me what the problem is so that we can fix it, and so that we can fix you."

"My problem is that everyone thinks I shouldn't have one," Eliza told him. "Everyone thinks that I am above this kind of behavior, this kind of grieving, but I'm not. They think that I should just bounce back from this, like I have bounced back from everything, but it's too much this time. You guys think it's just so easy for me to be so 'delusionally happy', and I'm sorry, but that kind of happiness faltered when Bonnie died, again, and when Kacie died, again. Bonnie died to keep Alex and Elena alive, and she, Lindsey and Tory died to bring you and Liv back from the dead, and then she died when the Other Side went down, along with Kacie, who was just trying to save her brother's life from an infiltrator. And when Bonnie and Lindsey died, Tory and I had to be the ones who knew about it, who had to keep it a secret from all of you, or this last time, I'm the one that had to get Bonnie's last minute goodbye because she didn't want to put Lindsey through any more pain and because she didn't want to damper her mood after she had nearly died doing the spell to bring everyone back, including Ryan, right after she told me that Kacie was dead and she couldn't come back, and right before she died along with her. I have a right to feel like this, Jeremy. How...? Bonnie and Kacie are dead. Two of my best friends are dead, and one of them knew it as gonna happen, but she didn't tell anyone. She kept it a secret so we wouldn't worry, and she said goodbye over the phone. And Kacie's only dead because she was willing to risk her life against the Traveler inside of her brother's body to save him. They sacrificed themselves, Jer. And Bonnie's always sacrificed herself, over and over again. She saved everyone but herself--multiple times." Eliza started to cry, placing her drink on the table in front of them. "I just can't believe that they're both dead. We've always figured out a way around this. You came back from the dead. Alaric came back from the dead. Elena came back from the dead. Tyler came back from the dead. Stefan came back from the dead. Enzo came back from the dead. Liv came back from the dead. Lindsey came back from the dead. Ryan came back from the dead. Tory came back from the dead. Everyone but Kacie, Damon and Bonnie." Jeremy looked at her sadly, taking her hand, looking like he wanted to do something, but he didn't know what to do. "There has to be a way to find them, to bring them back. Because hope that I can't let go of for them to come back is the only thing that's keeping me going, Jer."

Jeremy wrapped his arms around Eliza, holding her. Eliza cried in his arms, wrapping his arms around him, leaning her head against his chest. Jeremy smoothed back her hair, letting her cry, looking guilty yet relieved that Eliza had finally opened up and let herself feel again. 

(Song Ends)

------

Savannah, Georgia 

Bar

(Song:) St. Louis Who - The Lexingtons 

Stefan and Elena were having a couple beers at a table.

Elena checked her phone. "Alex's laying low at the dorm. Luke, Ryan, Cristian, Liv, Caroline, Kaylin and Nicola have been looking for Sarah, and there's no sign of her, which means she's either hiding out, or she's planning her Nightly News exclusive to out me, Cristian and Liv."

"Well, if she does out you, then you start your life over somewhere else," Stefan told her. "Free of all the supernatural drama."

"Right," Elena told him. "But I don't think we have to worry about that right now. Tory and Lindsey are doing a locator spell, which means that they will find Sarah by the end of the hour."

"So, you're ready to see the system in action?" Stefan asked.

"Ready," Elena answered, taking a shot.

"All right," Stefan told her. "Hand over your ring."

"What?" Elena asked. 

"Your ring," Stefan told her. 

"Okay," Elena told him, moving so she was out of the sunlight, taking off her daylight ring, handing it to Stefan.

Stefan knelt in front of Elena, holding the ring toward her, raising his voice so that the rest of the bar would hear him. "Elena Williams..." 

Elena took the hint, playing along. "Stefan Cooper, what are you doing?" 

"We've known each other for a very long time now," Stefan told her. "You've always been my best friend. I have always loved you. And, I wanna spend the rest of my life with you. Will you--"

"Wait," Elena told him. "You're not just proposing to me because I'm pregnant, are you?" 

The crowd, who was watching Stefan's "proposal", started to murmur softly. 

Stefan looked amused. "No. No, I--I'm proposing to you because you are my rock, okay? You have stood by my side through the multiple rehabs, the jail time, the bull-fighting injury. I mean, you have brought me back from the edge. And, sweetheart, this baby is the best thing that ever happened to us. Will you marry me?" 

Elena had fake tears of joy in her eyes. "Yes." 

The people in the bar applauded.

Stefan put the ring on Elena's left ring finger, wrapping his arms around her, whispering into her ear. "See that? New identities, new lives... It's easy." He addressed the bar patrons. "Thank you all so much!" 

(Song Ends)

------

Other World 

Mystic Falls, Virginia

Salvatore Boarding House - Living Room 

Damon, Bonnie, Kacie and Kai were gathered.

Bonnie was doing the locator spell. "It doesn't feel right. Maybe I need a bigger map."

"Maybe since you started practicing, you suck at magic now," Damon told her. "Or you could take that creepy bone necklace, borrow some of Tory and Lindsey's magic, and then do the locator spell."

"I don't wanna do that," Bonnie told him. "I want to see if I can do it by myself."

"Then we're never finding that damn thing," Damon told her.

"Ignore him, Bonnie," Kai told her. "Pretend he's a white noise machine. That's how I used to survive my siblings. I grew up with a lot of little sisters and brothers, you know, all of them constantly yammering." He walked closer to Bonnie. "But it taught me how to focus." 

Kai looked as if he was about to kiss Bonnie.

"Easy there, big brother," Kacie told him. "She doesn't know you. At least buy her a drink."

------

Flashback - May 10th, 1992

Day - Salvatore Boarding House - Living Room 

Zach was throwing an eclipse party inside. 

Damon was talking to a younger Liz with long, blonde hair, barely pregnant, looking at a picture of a baby Caroline.

"May I call you Liz?" Damon asked.

"Sure," Liz answered.

"Your daughter is so adorable," Damon told her. 

Liz giggled. "Yeah. Caroline's high maintenance, but she's worth it." She placed a hand on her stomach. "I don't know if this is a girl or boy yet, but if it's a girl, I'm thinking of naming this one Eliza, or, uh... if it's a boy, I'm thinking of..."

Nearby, Zach was taking a Polaroid picture of Gail.

"I'm so getting rid of that photo," Gail told him. She looked at Kaylin. "Kaylin, come, take a picture of Zach and me."

"Sure," Kaylin told her. 

"Thanks, Kaylin," Zach told her. 

Kaylin took the camera from Zach, taking a picture of the two of them together.

"And now, back to my cravings," Gail told them, grabbing a cupcake off of a table, peeling the wrapper off.

Zach went to go mingle with the rest of the guests.

Kaylin noticed two distinct puncture wounds on Gail's wrist. "Hey, what happened to your wrist?" 

Gail was confused. "I don't know."

Damon was still talking to Liz nearby.

Kaylin looked toward them, realizing Damon fed on Gail and compelled her to forget. 

Liz was holding a device in her hand. "So, how does this thing help us watch the eclipse?" 

Damon took it from her. "You put it in between you and the thing that is too hot to look at." He put it between Liz and himself. "Ah, it works."

Liz laughed. "My husband would get a kick out of you. We should invited you over to dinner sometime."

Kaylin walked closer. "Damon? What did you do to Gail?" 

"Is everything okay?" Liz asked.

"Looks like the jig is up," Damon told them. He looked at Liz. "Hey, look at me." Liz looked at him. Damon compelled her. "Go home. Forget you ever met us." 

Liz walked away, leaving.

Kaylin took Damon by the arm, pulling him away from the others to where no one could see or hear them, stopping next to Stefan by the table. "How the hell did you feed on Gail?" Stefan looked at them in confused surprise. "She's on vervain."

Damon scoffed. "Yeah, in her coffee. I swapped it out last week. Same for Zach."

"These people are my friends," Stefan told him. "Zach is family. They trust me."

"And they'll trust all of us," Damon told them. "Look, no feeding inside the house, right? Snatch, eat, erase. It's all completely functional. I told you, it's a new start."

Damon turned to walk away.

Stefan snapped Damon's neck before he could leave, letting his body fall to the floor.

Kaylin looked at Stefan in surprise. "Wha--"

"I told Zach that if Damon got out of line, I would handle him myself," Stefan told her. "Now, you can either deal with it, or forget about this and leave. But, Kaylin, I wish you help me and stay."

Kaylin looked at him, debating it.

------

Now 

Other World 

Day - Salvatore Boarding House - Living Room 

Damon, Kacie, Bonnie and Kai were gathered.

Bonnie had gotten a map with all of the states, doing the locator spell.

"The spell's leading to South Virginia," Kai told them. "That can't be right." 

"Mm-mm, the spell's working," Bonnie told them. "Showing we're in Mystic Falls. It feels so close." The candle light flared. Bonnie turned to Kai. "It's right here." 

Bonnie placed her hand over Kai's chest pocket.

The candles went out. 

"Very good," Kai told her.

Bonnie pulled a circular object out of his pocket. "That's the Ascendant?" 

"The one and only," Kai answered.

"Thanks for the mind games, jack ass," Kacie told him.

"It was just another little test," Kai told them. "To make sure Bonnie's magic was precise enough for the spell. This spell is powerful, so you may have to use your magic necklace to contact your witch friends."

Bonnie nodded. "No problem."

"Then I do believe you're ready," Kai told her. He looked between her, Damon and Kacie. "Pack your bags. We're going home." 

Kacie smirked.

------~------

Flashback - May 10th, 1992

Day - Salvatore Boarding House - Shed 

Damon awoke on the floor of the shed. He looked around.

Stefan stood in the room with him.

Kaylin was leaning against the doorway. 

Damon groaned.

"So, here's what I don't get, Damon," Stefan told him. "Why'd you insinuate yourself back into our lives and then cheat, and lie, and break all the rules?" 

"Well, one, because I knew you'd be mad," Damon answered. "Believe it or not, I like being here, Stefan." He stood, staggering toward them. When he stepped into the sunlight, his hand started to burn. "Ow." 

Damon groaned, backing away from the sunlight.

Kaylin held up his daylight ring. "You know the rules. Bad boys don't get nice things." She smirked, lowering her hand to her side. "Now, answer the question. Why did you come back here?" 

"Because I missed my brother and sister," Damon answered. "I want to have a connection to my humanity, Kaylin. I wanted to feel something again. And when I decided to come back home, it all came rushing back, just like I wished it would."

"Oh, congrats," Kaylin told him. "Now what?" 

"Come on, guys," Damon told them. "Let's just hit the road, just us, huh? Kay, I'll let you drive my car. Stef, I'll get you off this vegan diet, teach you how to feed again. It'll be great. Huh? What do you say?" They didn't answer. Stefan wasn't affected. Kaylin was debating it. "Come on. Trust me." 

"Yeah, I can imagine a road trip with you," Stefan told him. "I can imagine you feeding on innocent people, and, uh, leaving a trail of bodies behind. I can imagine you turning Kaylin back into the torture queen. I can imagine you making me drink human blood, and laughing at me while I suffer."

Kaylin rolled her eyes. "Way to be an optimist, Stefan." 

"Just looking at the facts, Kaylin," Stefan told her. "1912, because of that immortal Rosalita, he convinced both of us to drink human blood again, which is why I became a Ripper, and you became the Queen of Chicago, and which is why we met up in Chicago in 1922 and became an inseparable team. In 1942, he almost pushed me off the rails again because he was so damn needy. 1977, he left Lexi to die after I sent her to come help him." Kaylin looked at Damon in slight surprise. Stefan looked at Damon. "And now, I'm finally happy. I have a new life, I'm doing well, I even got close to Kaylin again when you couldn't, and you just can't handle that, can you, Damon?" 

"I'm not trying to screw up your dumb new life," Damon told him.

"You don't have to try, Damon," Stefan told him. "All you have to do is exist. Because no matter what I do, or where I go, you will be with me forever, trying to destroy every single thing that I've built. I don't know why I thought this time would be any different. I wanted it to be different. You just keep failing."

"That's a little harsh," Kaylin told him. 

"That's the truth," Stefan told her. 

"Guess that's a no on the road trip, huh?" Damon asked.

"That's a no on the road trip," Stefan answered, walking out of the shed.

Kaylin looked at Damon thoughtfully for a moment. 

Damon didn't react to the gaze.

Kaylin turned around, walking out of the shed. 

------

Now 

Savannah, Georgia

Day - Bar

(Song:) Black Is The Color - Lucette

Stefan and Elena were sitting at their table.

Elena checked her phone. "So, according to Liv, Tory and Lindsey did the spell, and they found Sarah. They just have to send Eliza and Jeremy there to get her and convince her to keep me, Cristian and Liv a secret." 

Elena was about to take a sip of her beer.

"Uh-uh," Stefan told her. "Pregnant, remember?" 

"Dumbest lie I've ever told," Elena told him. "Can I just take that one back?"

"No," Stefan answered. "But you'll have to reinvent yourself in thirty years. If you don't, people will start asking why you're not getting any older."

"But, when I first met you, you said you'd been away from Mystic Falls for 16 years," Elena told him. "What made you come back ahead of schedule?" 

"You said it yourself," Stefan told her. "I met you. You know, since 1864, I have been a carpenter, an ambulance driver, migrant worker, high school student..."

"So, then why auto mechanic for 200 bucks a week?" Elena asked.

"No reason," Stefan told her.

"Yeah," Elena told him, unconvinced. "It must be hard. All that change without a constant in your life." There was a beat of silence. "We talked about Kaylin and Nicola, but we haven't talked about your brother."

"It's a little weird to, uh, hear you refer to Damon as just my brother," Stefan told her.

Elena was confused. "What else would I call him? Alex's ex-boyfriend?" 

Stefan sighed. "I don't even know anymore."

"Anymore?" Elena repeated. "What does that mean?" 

"You know, it's, uh... it's not important," Stefan told her. "Things change, right?" He raised his beer. "To change."

"Who cares what people think, right?" Elena asked, raising her beer. "To change."

They clinked their bottles together, drinking.

(Song Ends)

------

Other World

Mystic Falls, Virginia

Salvatore Boarding House - Outside 

Kai led the way on the grounds of the Salvatore Boarding House.

Damon, Kacie and Bonnie followed him.

"You are wondering like a crazy person," Kacie told him. "Why?" 

"Looking for the exact right spot," Kai told them. "We need to find where the power of the eclipse is focused." 

"You know, you could have just shown us the Ascendant to begin with," Bonnie told him.

"Yeah, but I wanted to feel your hand on my chest," Kai told her.

Bonnie looked at Damon and Kacie. "There's something not right about him."

"You're just not used to guys hitting on you," Damon told her. 

"You know, I can't wait to get out of here and talk to somebody else," Kacie told him.

"Can we just have a few lasting seconds of peace while this idiot uses that thing to get the stars to align?" Damon asked, walking ahead of them, leaving the girls to talk alone. Bonnie picked up one of the paper planes, unfolding it, reading it skeptically. Damon looked at Kai. "Hey, what's up with the nature walk?" 

"I used the Ascendant to figure out where we need to be standing during the eclipse," Kai told them.

"Great," Kacie told him. "Let's do some magic and get the hell out of here." 

"Oregon," Bonnie whispered.

"What?" Kacie asked.

"I read this paper, like, a thousand times, and something's in it about Oregon," Bonnie told her, her voice low enough so Kai wouldn't hear.

"What about it?" Kacie asked.

"You know how Kai said he had all these brothers and sisters?" Bonnie asked.

"Mm-hmm," Kacie answered.

Bonnie read from the paper. "'Family massacred in Portland. The only one missing was the oldest boy, 22 year old name Malakai.'"

Kai was listening. "Who names a kid Malakai? It's like they expected me to be evil."

"All these kids were murdered," Bonnie told him.

Kai turned to face them. "Hello. Not everyone died. I had a soft spot for one of my sisters. 'Cause otherwise, I would've cut her lungs out, and not just her spleen." 

"What?" Kacie asked skeptically.

"You can survive without a spleen," Kai told them.

"Something tells me you're not speaking hypothetically," Damon told him.

Kai took the paper. "Well, these two, I, uh, hung off a stairwell railing. Then I put a hunting knife in her abdomen. And him, I drowned in the pool. He kept fighting me. I was like, 'I saved you for last, you ungrateful little...' Anyway, that was that." 

"You just killed your whole family?" Kacie asked.

"Coven, to be precise," Kai told them. "Oh, you know, family of witches." 

"You're making Bonnie jump through hoops, and you're a witch," Kacie told him.

"Sort of, yeah," Kai answered. "No powers, obviously. Oh, and of course, the Gemini Coven did not take it too well, what I did in Portland. So they banished me here." 

Bonnie looked at Kacie and Damon. "This place is a prison." She looked at Kai. "They created it for you."

"Yep," Kai answered. "This place isn't your hell, Damon. It's mine." 

------~------

Real World 

Sunset - Just Outside Of Mystic Falls

(Song:) Compass - Zella Day 

Ryan was standing outside of the anti-magic border, looking as if he was thinking about walking inside, but thinking better of it, turning away.

Lindsey was standing in front of him.

"Hey," Ryan told her awkwardly. "How long have you been there?"

"Long enough to know that you were debating on stepping inside the no-magic border to get rid of the wolf thing," Lindsey answered. Ryan nodded barely, looking away. Lindsey looked at him curiously. "Ryan, why don't you go in?" Ryan looked at Lindsey in confusion. Lindsey made a confused gesture. "I mean, this werewolf thing... It's a curse. I'd think that you'd want to go in and get rid of it once and for all." 

"I do," Ryan told her. "I mean, I would want to get rid of it, but...."

"But?" Lindsey asked.

"But I'd be just like Tyler," Ryan answered. "I'd worry about my anger, and my tolerance, and when was the next time I'd have to worry about triggering the curse all over again, Lindsey. I mean, is that really worth having to go through all of that rather than go through agony one night a month?" 

Lindsey nodded thoughtfully. "Understandable. Still, you'd think that the spell would take away the gene altogether, you know? Just take away the thing that makes you live in fear, instead of worrying about if you'll ever happen again. Or how many times it will happen." She stepped around him, turning to face him. "I'm sorry, Ryan." Ryan turned to face Lindsey. "I'd hate to have to do that. Have two options in your life, but you can't choose because you're trying to figure out which one sucks more."

Ryan shrugged slightly. "It's not like I ever really had a choice, Lindsey. I was born into it. Guess that means I'm stuck with it. For life." 

Lindsey gave him a small, sad smile. "But it's not all that bad. I mean, this way, you have the strength to defend yourself, and you're cool-headed, and relaxed, and, well... You." Ryan smiled. "I'm just so happy to have you back, Ryan. I mean, I came back from the Other Side, and I could see you, but I couldn't feel you. And then, it started to fall apart, and I could feel you again, but I had to worry if you were about to get swept away into oblivion like everyone else." Ryan stepped closer until he stood in front of her. "And now..." Lindsey smiled happily, tears in her eyes. "You're here."

"I'm here," Ryan told her.

Ryan kissed Lindsey slowly, sweetly, yet passionately. After a moment, they pulled away, standing there in each other's arms, having their eyes still closed, leaning their heads against the other, smiling small smiles.

(Song Ends)

------

Savannah, Georgia 

Bar

(Song:) 100 Days, 100 Nights - Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings

Stefan and Elena walked toward the exit. 

Elena noticed her daylight ring was still on her left hand, taking it off to put it back on her right. "So, if we were to run into each other in some random town in thirty years, do we pretend like we're strangers?"

"I'm avoiding Kaylin and Nikki, not you," Stefan told her. "We can talk, we can visit. And, if you ever need a car repair, I will give you the parts at cost."

Elena smiled a small smile. "I'm not so sure. It wouldn't be fair to..."

Stefan looked guilty. "To Alex."

"Yeah," Elena agreed, wrapping her arms around him. A man at the bar was watching them, scowling, looking tense. Elena pulled away. "Bye."

"Bye," Stefan told her. Elena walked out of the bar. Stefan approached the man who had been watching them, taking a shot. "Hey, man. Noticed you weren't celebrating my engagement. How come?" 

"Hard to be happy for the guy who put my brother in the hospital," the man told him.

"Oh, right, right, right, okay," Stefan told him. "Hey, remind me, which guy was it? Broken nose or fractured arm? I was kinda drunk. Still waiting for the congrats on my engagement." He grabbed the man's cheeks to make it seem like he was speaking. "'I'm really happy for you.'" The man grabbed a glass from the bar, shattering it over Stefan's head. Stefan laughed. "Is that all you got? Come on, man! Come on!" 

The man stood, punching Stefan in the face repeatedly, making him back away further into the bar. He kicked him down to the floor.

Stefan laughed, continuing to laugh as if he had wanted this reaction.

"You're freaking enjoying this?" the man asked. "You sick freak."

Elena appeared, compelling the man. "Go home, clean up, and forget this ever happened." She looked at Stefan. "What the hell are you doing?" 

Stefan, still on the floor, breathed heavily, looking guilty.

(Song Ends)

------

Other World 

Mystic Falls, Virginia

Salvatore Boarding House - Foyer 

Bonnie led the way inside the house, with Damon, Kacie and Kai following. "I'm not letting Kai out of here, okay? He just said, he's a serial killer." 

"I don't care," Damon told them. "I wanna get out of here."

"How can you not care?" Kacie asked. "Maybe because of the horrible things you have done? Maybe 'cause killing a bunch of kids is not a big deal to someone who has murdered a pregnant woman? Am I wrong?"

------

Flashback - May 10th, 1992

Day - Salvatore Boarding House - Foyer 

Kaylin walked in. She saw that the door was wide open. 

------

Hallway

Kaylin walked down the hall in confusion, seeing Zach. "Did you leave the door open?" 

"No," Zach answered. "Why?" 

Suddenly, they heard screaming, and the sound of breaking glass in the next room.

Stefan met they from down the hall.

------

Library

Stefan, Kaylin and Zach ran into the library to find multiple bodies lying around the room.

Damon held a scared Gail in a headlock. "This eclipse party blows. I didn't see the sun at all when I crossed the yard." Stefan, Kaylin and Zach looked at him in horror. "I forgot how much stronger we are when we drink human blood."

Gail was horrified. "Zach." 

"Damon, please don't hurt her," Zach told him.

"I want my ring back, Kaylin," Damon told her. Kaylin tossed the ring to Damon. Damon caught it. "There's a good girl." 

"I'm never gonna be rid of you, am I?" Stefan asked.

"No, you're not," Damon answered. "'Cause in 1912, thanks to Rosalita, I showed both of you who you were. In 1942, I gave you your freedom, and in 1977, I almost killed your best friend because it should have been you there to help me, Stefan." He looked at Kaylin. "And you. I know that we ruined you back in 1864, and it's taken you this long to forgive us enough just to stand to be in the same house with your humanity in check, Kaylin. You both owe me, and it'll take you an eternity to pay me back." He fed on Gail until she died. Stefan, Kaylin and Zach watched in horror. Damon let Gail's body fall to the floor. "An eternity of misery. Just like I promised."

Damon rushed out of the room, leaving.

Zach fell to his knees next to Gail, finding her dead, looking to be completely in agony. 

Stefan and Kaylin looked at Zach in complete guilt.

------~------

Now 

Other World 

Day - Salvatore Boarding House - Living Room 

Damon, Kacie, Bonnie and Kai were talking.

"Ouch," Kai told them. "Poor nephew-uncle Zach. and niece-cousin Nicola."

"Kaylin compelled Uncle Zach to forget about the girlfriend and the baby, and the fact that any of us even returned home in 1992," Damon told them. "She even made sure that Zach moved on so he wouldn't be left alone. Nikki's mom, Monica. But Kaylin and Stefan couldn't cover up all those murders. Founder's Council was restarted and they took off, left Mystic Falls for about 16 years. We all did. And when I saw Uncle Zach again, I couldn't look at him without remembering that I ruined everything. So it was a relief when I got to kill him."

"What do you mean, it was a relief to kill him?" Bonnie asked.

"After many times of saving each others' lives, I began to feel guilt for what I did to Nikki," Damon told them. "And for that guilt, usually, I would've killed her to make it go away. But Stefan and Kaylin protected her with their lives, and the fight that I saw in Nikki just made me want to let her live. So I did."

"But you got her sick and turned her into a vampire," Kai told him in confusion.

Damon looked down in guilt. "Yeah. Because turning her was worse for her than death."

"And you, Kaylin and Stefan just kept Gail and the baby, Nicola's unborn, dead baby brother or sister a secret from her her whole life," Kacie told him incredulously. 

"There wasn't any need to bring in more pain in her life than there already was," Damon told them. "At first, I didn't care. Then I didn't want her to know because we knew it would destroy her and she'd hate us."

"And your guilt toward Nicola is why you think this place was your personal hell?" Kacie asked.

"Yeah," Damon answered. There was a long moment of silence. Kacie and Bonnie looked at Damon as if they had seen the good in that story instead of the bad. "Can we go back now?" 

"Oh, come on, Bonnie," Kai told her. "You wanna go home to your friends, I wanna go back and give the rest of the Gemini Coven an excruciating death. Win-win." 

"Look, Bonnie, I gotta get back," Damon told her. "Not just Elena, but for Stefan, Kaylin and Nikki."

"Sorry, Damon," Bonnie told him. 

"Sorry doesn't work for me," Kai told her, about to grab Bonnie.

Kacie rushed toward Kai, pushing him against the wall. "We may be having a bit of a disagreement, but don't ever lay a hand on her." 

"Kind of a non-issue now," Kai told them. "The eclipse is over. Rain check for tomorrow?" 

Bonnie looked at them expressionlessly. "No."

------

Real World

On the Road - Tripp's Car 

Tripp was driving.

Matt was in the passenger seat. He looked at Tripp. "You and the sheriff don't seem to get along."

"Uh, Liz and my wife were high school rivals," Tripp explained. "Some issue about who was captain of the field hockey team."

"You're married?" Matt asked.

"I was," Tripp answered. "Yeah, Christina died in a car accident."

"Sorry," Matt told him.

"It's all right," Tripp told him. "It's why I left Mystic Falls. Too many memories." He looked at Matt knowingly. "I'm sure it's nothing that you're not going through right now."

Matt took a moment to respond, looking sadly thoughtful, changing the subject. "So, what did you tell the sheriff about Jay?"

"Oh, just what I saw," Tripp told him. "Uh, tons of blood. Probably a mountain lion."

Matt sighed skeptically. "Just another animal attack, huh?"

Tripp looked at Matt suspiciously. "You sound doubtful."

"This is gonna sound weird," Matt told him. "But last night, Jay told me that he was tracking a vampire. I mean, that's crazy, right?" 

Tripp took a moment to respond. "I'm gonna show you something."

------

Whitmore College - The Girls' Dorm Room 

Alex sat in the dorm room, on her bed, flipping through a magazine. 

Elena walked in. 

"How was your day with Stefan?" Alex asked half-bitterly. 

"Good... until he decided to let somebody kick his ass so that he could feel," Elena answered.

Alex looked up in confusion. "What?" 

"Yeah," Elena answered. "I mean, who does that? I mean, at least you, you don't let go. You keep some form of reminder of the people that we lost. But what is his deal?"

"You are the last person who should be lecturing anybody on coping mechanisms," Alex told her. 

"I don't know why either of you think that you're alone in your grief, Alex," Elena told her. "I lost Bonnie and Kacie, too, and he and Kaylin lost their brother, who is also family to Nicola, but I fought through it."

"Yeah?" Alex asked sarcastically. "All by yourself?" 

Elena was oblivious. "Yes, and it was hard. You should know this. You were with me through everything. I know that you're pushing me away because I never liked the other brother, and I'm sorry that I'm judging you about falling in love with a--"

"Believe me, that's not what it is," Alex told her. 

"I know that you loved him, I get it," Elena told her. "I mean, I don't know how you could ever love him, but I get that you did." Alex looked away, slowly growing more angry and agitated at the hypocrisy, closing her magazine, sitting forward. "But why linger in the grieving process for such a hateful person? He doesn't deserve your grief. I mean, there's gotta be another way that you and everybody else can move on." 

Alex stood, turning away from her. "I'm sorry that I can't just forget him like you, Elena."

"No one's forgetting him," Elena told her.

Alex turned to face Elena, having enough. "You are. You erased him."

"What are you talking about?" Elena asked.

"You had Ric compel you to forget every good thing that Damon ever did, even though Liv, yes, even Liv, tried to talk you out of it, and you know how much she hated him," Alex told her. "You made him a monster in your own mind because you couldn't handle the grief of losing him."

"I don't believe anything that you're saying," Elena told her. "Why would I do that?" 

"Because you were in love with him, and he was in love with you," Alex answered. "You fell in love with each other while you were still with Stefan and he was still with me, and not even two days after you broke up with Stefan, you were with Damon, and you put us through hell. And when Damon died, a part of you died, too."

"Wow," Elena told her, still in disbelief. "Oh, God, what? No. No. Alex, how can I possibly love him enough to hurt you two that much pain?" 

"Believe me, I asked myself that for a very long time," Alex told her. "And eventually, I saw it. Damon inspired you. He pushed you to own the darkest part of yourself. And, when you died, he was the only one that could make you feel alive again. And you made him feel human. You loved Damon for the same reasons that I loved Damon. Because in spite of every single thing that he did, we couldn't live without him. And now, you don't have to, but everyone else does. I may not be in love with him anymore, but I still cared about him. So, the next time you want to criticize my love choices, why don't you go look at your own?" 

Alex walked out of the room without looking back.

Elena looked forward in shock.

------~------

Night - Woods  

Tripp had brought Matt to a warehouse.

"What is this place?" Matt asked.

"A secret," Tripp answered. "A secret I only share with people I trust. You remember the gas leak in town over the summer? When I came back to make sure my grandmother was okay, first time I've been back in years... When I crossed the town border, something changed. Memories came flooding back." He pulled a key out of a box. "And, I realized that my wife didn't die in a car accident. She was murdered. Drained of her blood right in front of me. And the killer made me believe I was responsible. Then, I find out what kind of monster could do all that." 

Tripp opened the door to the building, leading the way inside. Matt followed. 

------

Inside 

Tripp and Matt walked inside.

Enzo was sitting on the floor, his wrists and ankles chained to the wall. 

Matt and Enzo exchanged a knowing look. 

Matt kept his expression blank. 

Tripp looked at Matt. "Vampires. They are real. And one murdered my wife. But this is the one who murdered Jay. And I'm gonna get him to name all his vampire buddies, starting with the one who bit your friend, Sarah, and the one who made her forget that she had been bitten."

Matt was worried, but held onto his composure.

------

Salvatore Boarding House - Library 

Jeremy and Eliza walked into the room.

"Sarah, we know you're here," Eliza told her. "Let's just say that we have a few friends who found you without finding you."

Sarah stepped out into view, looking scared but defiant, holding a picture. 

Jeremy stepped toward her. "Sarah..."

Sarah took a step back. "You try anything, and I call 911 and out your vampire sisters and Cristian to the world."

Jeremy held up his hands in a harmless gesture. "Hey, just take it easy. What do you want?" 

Sarah approached them. "Answers. I found this when I was tossing the house last night." She showed them the picture. "That's my mom. And the reason I know this is because I've had this..." She showed them another. "Since I was a baby. My mom was a Jane Doe. Her body was still warm when they dumped it at the hospital six months pregnant. The nurses thought I was DOA, too, but one doctor did an emergency C-section, and I survived. I lived three months in an incubator. They didn't know who my dad was, and neither did I. But then, I found this."

Sarah showed them the first photo.

The picture was the one that Kaylin had taken of Zach and Gail in 1992, the same picture that Nicola had showed Stefan and Kaylin.

Jeremy and Eliza recognized the man, completely shocked. They exchanged a look.

Jeremy looked at Sarah. "Your dad is Zach Salvatore."

"He had another daughter, not much younger than you," Eliza told her. "So, Sarah... You have a sister."

Sarah was surprised to hear this, laughing once in shock, smiling weakly.

------

Whitmore College - Alaric's Office

(Song:) So In Love - Sublab 

Elena, Liv and Alaric were talking.

Elena looked at Alaric. "How could you obliterate an entire chapter of my life?" 

Liv sighed. "Because you asked him to."

"I what?" Elena asked.

"Look, as much as I'd like to think that I am full of wisdom, I think it's time we stop pretending that I actually know what's best, okay?" Alaric asked. "Look, I've got my own issues to sort out right now."

Liv handed Elena the journal that she had bought to replace her old one. "I think that this will explain it much better than we can."

Elena saw the bookmarked page with a strip of photo booth pictures of her and Damon, opening it, reading aloud. "'Dear me, if you're reading this, then somebody spilled the beans about your selective memory loss. My money is on Alex or Liv.'" 

"Hey," Liv told her. "I didn't tell you. You just made me an innocent victim."

Elena smiled, shaking her head, continuing on. "'Yes, you loved Damon.'" She looked surprised. "'You loved him with a passion that consumed you. And then, when he died, the void he filled was too deep, too dark. Facing an eternity without your soul mate, you went off the deep end. You turned into someone that you weren't. A monster. Alaric can restore your lost memories. All you have to do is ask. But, I wish that you don't. I tried it the other way, and I didn't see an end to the pain. I want you to rediscover yourself in the absence of who defined you. If you feel any faith for the future at all, then you're already better off. You've been given a chance to start over. I want you to take it. I want you to be happy'."

"So, what do you want me to do?" Alaric asked. 

Elena handed Liv her journal. "Can you hold on to that? And keep it safe, in case I ever need to read it again?" 

Liv nodded, putting the journal back into the box of Damon's things that Elena had packed up.

(Song Ends)

------

Other World 

Night - Salvatore Boarding House - Kitchen 

Bonnie, Damon and Kacie were in the kitchen, eating.

"Shame eating?" Damon asked.

"Thinking about that pregnant lady," Kacie told him. "She had a thing for pancakes." 

"That's what you remember?" Damon asked skeptically.

"You remember it, don't you?" Kacie replied. "You make pancakes every day." 

"'Cause I'm bored," Damon told them.

"No," Bonnie told him. "'Cause you're punishing yourself."

"You killed the mother of Nicola's sibling, and the guilt that you feel toward her about doing it and lying to her about it all this time after you killed her father and turned her into a vampire and everything bad that has ever happened to her because of you, Stefan and Kaylin, is so bad that you call this place your hell, and it makes you feel remorse," Kacie told him. "That makes you different from Kai. There is hope for you." 

"Look, we must still get outta here, guys," Damon told them. "We must steal that Ascendant contraption, find out what Kai knows and kill him. Because he ain't got powers anyway." 

Kai suddenly appeared in the doorway. "Actually, it's not that simple." 

"You gotta stop doing that," Kacie told him. "It's creepy." 

"Here's the thing," Kai told them. "I have a killer effect on magic. I can't generate it myself. But I can consume it from others temporarily. My family called me an abomination. That hurt my feelings." 

Kai took Bonnie's wrist, taking her power, making her gasp in pain.

Damon and Kacie took a step forward.

Kai held a hand toward them, using magic to inflict pain on them.

The stove caught fire.

"Okay, we get it!" Kacie told him.

Kai let go of Bonnie, making everything stop. "You can see why my coven and I didn't get along."

"I smell an ultimatum," Damon told them.

"If I consume all of Bonnie's magic, I'm just gonna end up killing her," Kai told them. "But if we work together, we can all go home as friends. Or I can develop her magic, kill you all, and go home alone. What's it gonna be?" 

Kai sat down at the table, starting to eat pancakes.

Bonnie, Damon and Kacie exchanged a look.

------

Real World

Savannah, Georgia 

Dean's Garage 

Stefan stood in the garage alone, in between two cars. One of them was Damon's blue Camaro, which had been destroyed in activating the bomb in 5.22 "Home", nearly restored. The other was Kaylin's black Vanquish, which had been totaled in showing off to her brothers while Stefan had had amnesia in 5.04 "For Whom the Bell Tolls", completely restored. He went to work on the Camaro. After a moment, he sensed someone watching him. 

Stefan turned around, but didn't see anyone. "Hello?" He shrugged off the feeling, continuing on with his repairs. Someone entered the garage from behind him. Stefan turned around, this time seeing Ivy standing behind him, her face covered in blood. Stefan was shocked. "Ivy."

"Stefan, I don't feel so good," Ivy told him. "Your friend Enzo made me drink his blood, and now... I'm so thirsty."

Ivy transformed hungrily.

Stefan looked at her in shocked horror. 

------~------

6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here" Trailer 

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in Alaric's classroom, Alaric was delivering a lecture. "Who knows the supernatural origin of tonight's homecoming party?"

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in a corn maze, a girl held up a torch, running through the maze, screaming hysterically.

Nicola: (voice over from 6.05 The World Has Turned and Left Me Here) "A Halloween Homecoming corn maze?"

A NIGHT OF TERROR

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in Cristian's House's study, Cristian was sitting in a chair. Liv smirked, sitting on his lap, kissing him.

PASSION

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", on campus, Ivy transformed, biting a man on the neck, feeding, looking as if she would kill him.

Alex: (voice over from 6.05 The World Has Turned and Left Me Here) "Every dead sorority girl..."

DEATH

Alex: (voice over from 6.05 The World Has Turned and Left Me Here) "Tonight is..."

 From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in the corn maze, Eliza laid on the ground, waking up, looking around frantically.

Jeremy helped Eliza stand.

Alex: (voice over from 6.05 The World Has Turned and Left Me Here) "Officially..."

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in Tory's House, Lindsey and Tory were holding their necklaces in one hand, holding their free hands together, chanting.

Alex: (voice over from 6.05 The World Has Turned and Left Me Here) "On you."

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in an underground cave in the prison world, Damon, Kacie and Bonnie stood together with the Ascendant.

An arrow zipped between Damon and Kacie, catching Bonnie in her stomach, forcing her back several feet, making her scream.

TURNS INTO...

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in the street, Stefan looked at Kaylin in slight guilty, starting to walk toward his car. 

Kaylin turned after him, snapping his neck. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in the corn maze, Nicola was on the phone. "There are injured people everywhere."

MAYHEM

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in a ditch, Tyler and Nicola were kneeling next to man.

"If he dies, I'm a werewolf all over again," Tyler told her.

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in the corn maze, Luke turned to see Ryan slowly sitting up in pain. He held a hand toward Ryan. Ryan took it, letting him help him up.

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in the prison world's woods, Bonnie raised her arm toward Kai.

An ax soared through the air, burying itself into Kai's chest.

Kacie was impressed, patting Bonnie on the shoulder, being half-sarcastic. "Great work, Bonnie."

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in the prison's world, underground tunnels, Damon was brought up into the light.

Kai furiously raised the ax above Kacie's head, lowering it with a yell of rage.

Bonnie watched in horror. "Kacie!"

WORLDS COLLIDING (THE VAMPIRE DIARIES)

Elena and Alex were sitting on a bench in black dresses. Kaylin and Nicola were sitting in two chairs on either side of them in black dresses. Stefan and Damon stood behind them, wearing black suits.