Outfits in the external link 

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

Cristian: (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 6.04 "Black Hole Sun", in the prison world's boarding house, Damon, Kacie, Bonnie and Kai were talking.

"To get home, we'll harness the power of the eclipse using a mystical relic," Kai told them. "It's called an Ascendant."

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in Tory's House, Lindsey and Tory seemed to feel something from the necklaces.

"What the hell was that?" Tory asked.

Lindsey looked up with a glimmer of hope. "Bonnie. And if Bonnie's alive, doesn't it make sense that..."

Tory looked at Lindsey hopefully. "Damon and Kacie are, too."

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in the prison world's underground tunnels, Kacie rushed toward them, forcing the Ascendant into Damon's hands, pushing him into the light.

Damon looked at Bonnie and Kacie. "No!"

Damon was brought up into the light. With a bright flash, he was gone.

The only thing left was the Ascendant, falling to the ground, shattering.

Kai kicked Kacie in the side, making her roll onto her back.

The arrow was forced further into her back, making Kacie breathe heavily in pain, glaring up at Kai.

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

Bonnie watched in horror. "Kacie!" 

From 6.04 "Black Hole Sun", in the warehouse, 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. And I'm gonna get him to name all his vampire buddies."

Matt was worried, but held onto his composure.

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in the street, Ivy turned toward Tripp, transforming, rushing forward to bite him.

Tripp held a tranquilizer gun, shooting Ivy twice in her chest. Ivy fell unconscious into his arms. Tripp drug her toward his car, dumping her inside. 

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

Nicola closed her eyes, covering the man's nose and mouth to keep him from breathing. The man struggled to breathe.

"What are you doing, Nicola?" Tyler asked.

Nicola opened her eyes, tears in her eyes, holding tightly, watching as the light left the man's eyes.

He was dead.

Nicola slowly took her hands away from the man.

Tyler looked at Nicola in shock.

"You didn't kill him, Tyler," Nicola told him. She looked at Tyler sadly. "I did."

From 6.05 "The World Has Turned and Left Me Here", in the Salvatore Mausoleum, Stefan, Kaylin and Nicola were talking.

"I'm not doing so great without you," Stefan told them. "I can't get anywhere. Because I'm lost."

"You've had Tyler watch out for me since you left without so much as a goodbye," Nicola told him. "And he's been the one to keep me from falling off the edge. I did the one thing that I never wanted to do, to save him. To repay him."

Kaylin, Stefan and Nicola looked at Damon in shock, not quite believing what was happening.

"Damon?" Kaylin asked hopefully.

"It's a hell of a long story, but... I'm back," Damon told them. Kaylin looked as if she was about to cry, pulling all of them into a tight embrace. Damon wrapped his arms around them. "I'm back."

Nicola started to cry in relief, wrapping her arms around them.

Stefan wrapped his arms around them, closing his eyes in relief, repressing emotion. 

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

Day One

Night - Just Outside Of Mystic Falls - Tripp's Van

Tripp drove down the dark winding road toward Mystic Falls.

There were three vampires in the back of his van, chained to the walls.

Ivy was one of them, panicking, crying and begging for her release. "Please just let me go!"

"I know this may seem a little barbaric," Tripp told them calmly. Ivy cried desperately, pulling on the chains. "I promise you it's nothing personal."

The other two vampires, both males, also tried to free themselves.

"Why are you doing this?" Ivy asked.

"It's a longer story than we have time for, but trust me, you don't want this life," Tripp told her. "If you even call it that."

Tripp turned the radio on.

(Song:) Why Don't You Love Me? - Hank Williams 

"Come on," Ivy told him. "Come on." She pulled at the chains uselessly. "Come on, come on!" 

The chains loosened, but time had run out.

Tripp's van passed the sign reading: Welcome to Mystic Falls 

The vampires were immediately effected by the anti-magic spell.

One vampire's throat was slashed, blood dripping from his mouth, grabbing frantically at his throat, reliving his death. 

"What is happening?" Ivy cried, panicking. She screamed in horror. "What is happening?"

The other vampire suddenly had a bullet hole through the middle of his forehead, dead. 

Ivy screamed in terror. After a moment, her neck snapped, her head hanging low, dead.

Tripp closed the partition, continuing to drive through Mystic Falls with three dead vampires.

(Song Ends)

------

Worlds Colliding (The Vampire Diaries)

------

Day Two

Morning - Mystic Falls Cemetery - Salvatore Mausoleum 

The Salvatore were embraced.

"I missed you, too, guys," Damon told them.

"I can't believe it," Kaylin told him, all of them pulling back. "I have searched every possible lead there was, and I didn't do it this time. You're here."

"Which is more than I can say for myself," Stefan told them. He looked at Damon in guilt and shame. "I lost my faith."

Nicola wiped her tears away, smiling guiltily. "I nearly lost mine. I thought you were gone."

"Well, you didn't think I was gone-gone, Nikki," Damon told her. "I promised Stefan an eternity of misery." 

Damon smiled.

Nicola sighed. "I have to tell them. Someone. Anyone." She turned toward the door, but stopped, looking at her broken phone in her hand. She looked at them. "Kaylin, can I use your phone?"

Kaylin smiled.

------

Whitmore College - The Girls' Dorm Room 

Alex, Elena, Caroline and Eliza were in the room.

Alex and Caroline were sitting on their separate beds.

Elena was pacing, crossing her arms over her chest. 

Eliza was on her phone, having it on speaker.

"He's back?" Alex asked.

Nicola was standing outside of the mausoleum, smiling in relief. "Yeah."

"How?" Caroline asked. 

"I don't know," Nicola told them. "Honestly, everything Damon said is kind of a blur."

Eliza was hopeful. "What about Bonnie and Kacie?" 

------

Mystic Falls Cemetery - Salvatore Mausoleum 

Stefan, Damon and Kaylin were talking.

"They sacrificed themselves so I could come back, but I don't want anyone to know," Damon told them. "No sense making this harder than it already is." He looked toward the exit, making sure Nicola was too busy speaking on her phone to listen. "Especially Nikki. With Nikki dating Kacie's brother, and her already feeling guilty about Kacie as it is, and after what happened last night..."

"Yeah, we should just keep the fact that her boyfriend's sister died over there in the prison world because she already thinks it's her fault for Kacie being over there anyway," Kaylin told them sarcastically. "As if we're not already keeping something from her."

There was a long moment of silence. 

Stefan broke through the quiet. "What are we going to tell people?"

------

Outside 

Nicola was still on the phone, her voice sympathetic and quiet. "He said they weren't over there."

In the dorm room, Alex, Elena, Caroline and Eliza exchanged a look, sad. 

Elena broke through the silence. "Where is there, exactly?"

------

Mystic Falls Cemetery - Salvatore Mausoleum 

Stefan, Damon and Kaylin were talking.

Kaylin was confused. "Mystic Falls? 1992?" 

"I know," Damon told them. "A bunch of witches were going to get together and create some space time purgatory, you'd think they'd pick a better year than the one Clinton was elected for President. The whole thing was just very depressing." 

Damon took a drink of the bourbon.

"So how did you get back?" Stefan asked.

"Long story, big flash of light," Damon told them. "Two decades worth of jet lag. I will explain all of my adventures in that flannel hell scape, but first, there's someone I got to go see." 

Damon gripped their shoulders, walking past them.

------

Whitmore College - Alaric's Office 

Jeremy, Elena, Alex, Liv and Alaric were talking. 

"I don't want to see him," Elena told them.

Alex sighed. "I get it, but that's how you feel now, Elena. If you thought there was even a chance you'd see Damon again, you would have never asked Ric to compel away your memories of loving him."

------

Mystic Falls Cemetery - Salvatore Mausoleum 

Damon stopped in front of the doors of the mausoleum, turning to face Stefan and Kaylin, shocked. "She did what?" 

Kaylin looked from Stefan to Damon. "She had Alaric do it."

------

Whitmore College - Alaric's Office 

Jeremy, Liv, Elena, Alex and Alaric were talking.

"Damon is going to kill me," Alaric told them.

"You're unkillable," Liv told him calmly.

"Doesn't mean he won't try," Jeremy told them.

Alaric held his hand toward Jeremy.

Elena hesitated, looking at Alex. "What do you think is going to happen when I do see him?"

Alex raised her eyebrows, shaking her head. 

------

Mystic Falls Cemetery - Salvatore Mausoleum 

Stefan, Damon and Kaylin were talking.

"I just need to see her," Damon told them. "Our eyes will meet, fireworks will go off, and the balance of nature will be restored. She loves me."

------

Whitmore College - Alaric's Office 

Jeremy, Liv, Elena, Alex and Alaric were talking.

"He's a psychotic killer," Elena told them.

"You only feel that way because you had Ric erase all the good parts," Alex told her. 

"I don't see anything that could balance out the bad," Elena told them. She looked at Alaric. "Promise me you won't lift the compulsion." Alaric sighed. "Promise me."

"I won't, okay?" Alaric asked. "Not until you ask me to."

"Thank you," Elena told him.

"But, Elena, I hope you ask him," Liv told her.

"I have to go," Elena told them. "I have a shift at the hospital."

"Since when?" Liv asked.

"Since Damon came back and I'm trying desperately to avoid him," Elena answered.

"Fine, but if you're avoiding people, add Jo to your list," Alaric told them. They looked at him in confusion. "I compelled her to forget our date the other night, and it didn't take."

"What do you mean, it didn't take?" Jeremy asked.

"Well, either she's on vervain, or there's some other reason, but she can't be compelled," Alaric told them. He looked at Elena. "So see if you can find out why."

"Okay," Elena told him. "I will."

------

The Girls' Dorm Room 

Caroline and Eliza were still speaking to Nicola over speaker phone.

"Are you sure they're really gone?" Caroline asked.

"I don't know," Nicola told them, putting a hand to her head. "I don't want to think so. Not after how many times Bonnie saved our lives, or what happened to Kacie."

"You know that it's not your fault, right?" Eliza asked.

"Yeah, but it still feels like it," Nicola told them. "You know, the last thing Kacie said to me right before she took off to find Julian so we could bring Tyler back was, 'If this works, and if you like him as much as he likes you, then you should tell him'." She sighed, shaking her head. "You have no idea how many times I've thought about that."

"I'm so sorry," Eliza told her. 

"So am I," Nicola told them. "Kacie and Bonnie were two of your best friends." She took a deep breath. "Will one of you call Tyler? I had to tell him about his sister over the phone, after I killed someone for him last night. You can imagine how that went."

Nicola hung up, sighing in guilt. 

Kaylin was standing in the entryway to the mausoleum, looking down in guilt. 

Nicola turned toward her. 

Kaylin took in a deep breath. "Has anybody called Matt?"

------

Warehouse 

Enzo sat on the floor, still chained up.

Matt opened the door, walking inside. 

"Oh," Enzo told him. "Tripp's errand boy returns."

Matt laughed sarcastically, walking toward Enzo with a cup of blood, kneeling down in front of him, purposely spilling some of the blood from the small glass to the floor. "Ooh, my bad."

Enzo chuckled without humor. "That's all right, mate. Just lean in and I'll take it right from the tap."

Matt handed him the glass. "I'll pass."

Enzo drank the blood. "Yeah. Come on, I'm gonna need my strength back for when you help me escape."

"Sorry," Matt told him. "If Stefan turned you in, I'm guessing you deserved it."

"When did Stefan's moral compass become the new true north?" Enzo asked. "Wasn't he the one who scurried off to some poxy, little town while he let everyone believe he was still searching for his brother, abandoning his sister and their distant niece they treat as one? Not exactly the hero move, if you ask me."

"Still, I think the general population is safer with you in here," Matt told him.

"Yeah," Enzo agreed. "Probably right. Well, except for the Gilbert Girls, the Salvatores, Caroline Forbes, Cristian Hunter, Luke Thompson... You. What do you think would happen if I were to tell your boss about known vampires and their... groupies like you and Eliza Forbes? Not to mention werewolves or witches." Matt looked at Enzo coldly. "What do you think your boss would do to Tory Donovan, Lindsey Davis or Ryan Thompson?"

The door opened.

Matt turned to see Tripp walking in. 

"Well, Savannah was a waste of gas," Tripp told them. He looked at Enzo. "Minus a few blood bags, the house you told us about was empty."

"Odd," Enzo told him. "Must have smelled you coming."

"Hmm," Tripp hummed sarcastically. "Would have been a total bust, except I happened upon a girl that fit the description that you gave me. That was near Whitmore. 500 miles from where you said she was gonna be." He pulled out a phone, showing Enzo a picture of Ivy. "Is this Ivy?"

"That's the one," Enzo answered.

"So I give you today to conjure up the location of your vampire friends, or you and I gonna go sightseeing in Mystic Falls," Tripp told him, turning around, walking out of the warehouse.

Enzo glared at Matt.

Matt turned away from him, following Tripp out, closing the door behind him.

------

Whitmore College - Alaric's Office 

Alaric was standing behind his desk. 

Matt was sitting in a chair across from him. 

Kaylin and Alex stood in the room with them. 

Kaylin was in a change of clothing instead of the the clothes she had been in since the night before. She looked at Matt. "Why didn't you tell us Enzo has been locked up this whole time?" 

"Honestly, other than you, I didn't know anybody was missing him," Matt told her.

"Matt!" Kaylin told him. 

"I'm sorry," Matt told her. "I was confused about which vampires we like and which ones we don't."

"Okay," Alex told them. "Well, what about Ivy? Is she there, too?" 

"Tripp drove her and two others across the border last night," Matt told them.

Alex sighed. "Oh, God."

"Well, do you know where Tripp is now?" Alaric asked.

Alex sat down next to Matt.

"He's running down another lead, but he didn't tell me what it was," Matt told them.

"Well, can you find out?" Alaric asked. "We need to know who his next target is."

"If Enzo talks, it'll be you guys," Matt told them.

"Well, that's not going to happen, because we're busting him out, right?" Kaylin asked. "And if for no other reason than so I can kill him for getting caught in the first place."

Alex looked at Matt. "You have any idea how he managed to get his hands on him?" 

Stefan walked into the office. "He didn't." Kaylin turned to face him. Stefan looked at Kaylin. "I turned him in."

Alex and Alaric looked at Stefan, disbelieving. 

Kaylin scoffed, nodding. "I should've seen that one coming."

"Look, Kaylin, I'm sor--" Stefan started.

Kaylin punched Stefan in the face, making him fall.

Stefan caught himself against a file cabinet. 

Alex stood in surprise. 

"Damn," Matt told them. 

Stefan looked at Kaylin as if he had expected that. 

"I had to do that," Kaylin told him. "For Enzo. If you help me get him out, that's the last time you'll hear about it from me."

Kaylin pushed past Stefan, walking out of the room. 

Stefan sighed, looking at the others.

Alex looked at Stefan incredulously, shaking her head. 

------

Whitmore College - The Girls' Dorm Room 

Elena was getting her bad ready for the hospital, putting her red shirt in the bag.

There was a knock on the door.

Elena turned around, walking toward the door, her hand on the door knob. "Who is it?"

Damon's voice was on the other side. "Hey, it's me." Elena pulled her hand away from the door. "I just wanted to talk."

Damon stood on the other side, leaning forward against it. 

"I can't," Elena told him. "Not now."

Damon sighed. "Look. I know why you did what you did. It's not real. You know what's real? The way you felt for me. You once told me it was the most real thing you ever felt in your life."

"Those feelings are gone," Elena told him.

"Oh, come on," Damon told her. "You've compelled enough people to know it's just a way of covering the truth, and no matter how badly you want it done, it doesn't make it any less of a lie. You know." Elena slowly reached for the door knob, hesitating. Thinking better of it, she sighed, putting her hand on the door. Damon heard the movement, putting his hand on the door, in the same spot hers was. "Just open the door. Everything can go back to the way it was." Elena pulled her hand away. Damon jiggled the door knob. "Just--" He sighed, leaning his head against the door. "Just open the door, please. Or at the very least, step aside, because I'm gonna kick this door in."

Elena hesitated, unlocking the door.

Damon heard the click, turning the knob.

Elena stood there for a moment. 

Damon pushed the door open.

Elena had disappeared.

Damon looked around the empty room, looking toward the window.

The white curtains were blowing in the breeze coming in through the open window.

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

Outside - Campus 

Eliza was on the phone. "You seriously jumped out of a window? What if somebody saw you?" 

Elena was in the medical center. "I know, I know. I panicked. I don't know." 

"Look, he's been trapped over there alone for months," Eliza told her. "He just wants to see you."

"Look, I get how I'm supposed to feel, but I know how I actually feel, and I'm happy now," Elena told her. "What if I look at him, and my old feelings break through the compulsion?" 

"Well, they won't, but even if they did, is that such a bad thing?" Eliza asked. 

Elena sighed. "Yeah. I started over, okay? I made a smart choice for myself, and for my future. Eliza, I kissed Liam last night." 

Eliza groaned. "Oh, please forget that you told me that, and definitely do not tell Damon that."

"Because he's gonna kill him, right?" Elena asked. "Just like he killed my brother, slash your boyfriend, and Nicola's father, and so many other people."

"I was gonna say, 'Because he'll be heartbroken'," Eliza told her. "Listen, what do you want to do? I mean, you have to see him eventually."

"I know, but I just don't think eventually can be today, all right?" Elena asked. She saw Jo walking forward, putting her cup of coffee on a cart just outside a hospital. "I'm not--I'm just not... ready." Jo looked at some X-rays, entering the room. "I got to go."

------

Whitmore Medical Center - Hallway

Elena hung up, putting her phone in her pocket, quickly walking toward the cart. She lifted the lid off the coffee, taking a sip. She was surprised to find that there was no vervain in it.

Jo walked out of the room.

Elena quickly put the coffee back.

"Elena," Jo told her.

"Hey," Elena told her.

"I didn't think you were here today," Jo told her.

"Yeah," Elena told her. "No. I changed my schedule around."

Jo took a sip of her coffee. "Okay. Follow me."

Jo led Elena down the hall.

------

Tripp's Office 

Matt sat at Tripp's desk, using his computer. He typed the word 'vampires' into the search bar.

No Files Found. 

Matt tried again with 'Mystic Falls Deaths'.

No Files Found. 

Matt sighed, giving up. He seemed depressed, as if someone had told him about Kacie. There were a few moments of utter silence until he began to cry, leaning his head against the desk in sadness.

The door suddenly opened.

Matt looked up, no longer crying, startled, trying to hide what he was doing on the computer.

Sarah walked in.

"Sarah?" Matt asked, surprised, his voice slightly thick. He cleared his throat, wiping his cheeks. "What are you doing?"

"Could ask you the same question," Sarah told him. "Were you just crying?"

"Yeah, I just found out that the girl that I loved can never come back," Matt told her, closing the computer lid. "You can't be in here."

"I'm sorry about your girl, but from the look on your face, you're downloading porn or you're not supposed to be here, either," Sarah told him. "What are you doing in Tripp's office?" 

"What do you want?" Matt asked.

"Information on some people who used to live here," Sarah answered, looking at some of the cabinets. "You know anything about the Salvatores?" 

"Not really," Matt told her.

"Well, according to Jeremy and Eliza, Zach Salvatore was my dad," Sarah told him. Matt was surprised. "He supposedly died from an animal attack, and coincidentally, so did my mom, but I've been paying attention. I know what that's code for, and your boss seems to know a lot about homicidal wildlife, so..."

"So you thought breaking in here was a good idea," Matt finished.

"Guess we have that in common," Sarah replied. "Now, either you help me, or start coming up with a good lie when I tell your boss you were snooping."

Matt gestured to a cabinet behind her. "Animal attacks are filed over there."

------

Whitmore College - Alaric's Office

(Song:) Lucille - John the Conqueror 

Alaric walked into his office.

Damon was sitting in his chair, having his feet propped up on his desk, a bottle of bourbon and two glasses in front of him. "Professor Saltzman. What, you couldn't compel yourself a PhD?" 

Damon poured a glass of bourbon.

Alaric smiled. "I can't believe you're back."

"I am," Damon told him, sliding the glass toward Alaric.

Alaric sat the chair across from Damon. "So... how the hell are you?" 

"Well, let's see, Ric," Damon told him. "I clawed my way out of some retro pocket universe only to find that I needed to compel myself a new change of clothes because this anti-magic hamster ball is keeping me from going home, and then I find out that my best friend would rather than doing anything about it decided that it was the best use of his time to compel my beautiful and lovely girlfriend to forget that she ever loved me. Heh. I'm great, Ric. Thanks for asking."

Damon took a drink.

"Look, Damon--" Alaric started.

"I know she was a train wreck without me, but a full mind erase?" Damon asked. "Seriously?" 

"She loved you too much, and it was killing her," Alaric told him.

"Well, I'm flattered, but I'm back," Damon told him, lowering his feet to the floor, leaning toward Alaric. "So let's get this uncompulsion on the books, huh?"

"Fine," Alaric told him. "As soon as Elena tells me that's what she wants."

"Right," Damon told him. "Here's the thing. She's not gonna want to be compelled." He stood, walking toward Alaric. "If she can't remember why she'd want to be compelled. Mm-mm." He held his glass of bourbon in one hand, nothing in the other, weighing the options. "Chicken, egg."

"I know, and I'm sorry," Alaric told him.

"Sorry?" Damon repeated. "She won't even see me, Ric." 

"I get it, Damon, but she's happy, and I'm not gonna take that away from her until she asks me to," Alaric told him.

"It's not like I don't want her to be happy," Damon told him, finishing his bourbon. "I just want her to be happy with me." He pointed at himself. Alaric didn't react. "Right."

Damon slammed the glass down on the table, walking past Alaric, stopping. He went back for the bottle of bourbon, walking out of the office.

(Song Ends)

------

Woods 

Stefan and Alex walked toward Tripp's warehouse.

"Look, Enzo wasn't being careful," Stefan told her. "Tripp would've caught him eventually, and that meant danger for all of us."

"Right, so you handed Enzo over so we wouldn't be targeted, and now you're rescuing him so we won't be targeted," Alex told him sarcastically. "Way to go."

"Well, I thought Tripp was gonna kill him," Stefan told her. "I didn't think he was gonna keep him alive for information."

"Oh, well, in that case, sounds like you were just being practical," Alex told him sarcastically. "So did you rat out Ivy, too?" 

"What?" Stefan asked.

"Well, you didn't want to deal with her anymore, you wanted her gone, and now she is," Alex told him. "You know what? You really should write Tripp a thank-you note."

"Hold on a second," Stefan told her. "Enzo turns Ivy, right? A hunter kills her, and yet I'm the bad guy? I'm not the one threatening to turn in other vampires to save his own skin."

"The only one who turned in other vampires is you, Stefan," Alex told him. "That's why you're helping. Guilt for getting Damon's friend, and Kaylin's boyfriend captured, somehow thinking that this can make it up to Nicola, too."

Alex saw the warehouse a short distance in front of them.

"Yeah," Stefan answered. "Damon is my brother, and I gave up on him first. Enzo didn't. Kaylin is my sister, and I probably hurt her the most here recently, by abandoning her and turning her boyfriend into a vampire hunter, besides Nikki, abandoning her when she needed me the most, too. So, if rescuing this idiot is gonna somehow make it up to them, that's exactly what I'm gonna do."

"Great," Alex told him. "Good for you." She turned to face Stefan. "Let me know when you figure out how you're gonna make everything up to me." 

They heard a door open.

Stefan looked behind Alex, grabbing her, rushing them into a hiding place behind a crate in the yard.

Two men walked out of the warehouse, looking around suspiciously, locking the door, leaving. 

Alex looked at Stefan, breathing a little heavily. 

"How was that for a start on making it up to you?" Stefan asked.

Alex couldn't help a smile, shaking her head, looking away. "Let's just get in there." They stood, walking toward the entrance, breaking their way inside, only to find it empty. "Well, where the hell is he?" 

------

Whitmore College - Medical Center 

Elena followed Jo down the hallway. "I like your bracelet. What is it made of?" 

Elena went to touch the bracelet. 

Jo moved her hand away, grabbing a chart. "No idea." Elena pulled her hand back, reaching behind her neck awkwardly. "While you're here, can I get your opinion on something?" 

"Sure," Elena answered. "Yeah."

"Female patient," Jo told her. "Blunt force trauma to the head, massive internal hemorrhaging, multiple bone fractures." She opened the door to a patient room. "She was a victim at the corn maze."

The room was empty.

"Where is she?" Elena asked.

"Probably Freshman Lit," Jo answered.

"I don't get it," Elena told her.

"Neither do I," Jo told her. "See, the patient was never admitted, even with such extensive injuries. Liam said you treated her at the scene. That's a pretty good save for someone with half a semester of Pre-Med." 

"Yeah, you know, um, I think Liam was exaggerating how bad off she was," Elena told her. "It was dark, and, yeah, there was a lot of blood, but--"

"Don't," Jo told her. "I know what Alaric is. I know what your sisters Alex and Liv are. I know what you are. If any more blood bags go missing, I know who to come to."

Jo closed the door, walking away.

Elena looked into the room, confused and nervous.

------

The Girls' Dorm Room 

Damon was standing inside, highly annoyed, looking around the room. There were several framed photos on the dress and her desk, of all her friends, a picture of Elena, Alex, Liv and Jeremy, but nothing of Damon. "Well, somebody was thorough." There was a picture of Tory, Liv and Lindsey. Damon took a drink from a bottle of bourbon, flipping down the photo of Caroline, Alex, Bonnie, Kacie, Elena and Eliza. "No pictures of Damon anywhere." He picked up the photo of Elena at graduation. "Huh." He grabbed a black sharpie off her desk, getting comfortable on Elena's bed. "Ooh." He drew a stick figure of himself next to her. He knew someone was there without looking up. "It's kind of creepy, you just standing there all hulky, human and broody."

Tyler was standing in the doorway. "Says the freak who's stalking Elena, hanging out in my best friends' dorm room."

Damon finished his stick figure with two eyes, a smile and two fangs. "Technically, I'm lying in wait."

Tyler walked in. "Why didn't Bonnie and Kacie come back?" Damon didn't answer. "Why didn't they come back?" 

"Because they weren't there," Damon told him. "It was just me."

Tyler sat next to Damon. "You know, I paid Kace's cell bill, so I could hear her voice and her laugh every day?" 

"Sounds good," Damon told him. "I'll give it a call."

"Why?" Tyler asked. "She loathed you."

Damon hesitated. "Kacie wasn't there with me, Tyler, because she found peace. She and Bonnie both did. They're in a better place." Tyler looked away, looking to be numb. "And while I know that this will probably be pretty hard for you, I just wanted to thank you for what you did for Nikki." 

Tyler looked at him. "I couldn't let her deal with it on her own." Damon looked slightly guilty. "She killed someone for me last night." 

"The things that people will do to repay you," Damon said.

Damon and Tyler didn't say another word, both looking guilty and numb.

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

Medical Center - Hallway

Jo handed some files to another nurse. 

The nurse walked away.

Elena approached Jo. "How did you know?" 

"Besides not believing that you closed a penetrating abdominal trauma without so much as a first aid kit?" Jo asked. "Pretty sure you weren't looking for stevia in my coffee. I couldn't be sure about Alex and Liv since I haven't met with them personally, but I did see Liv and her boyfriend Cristian and friend Luke giving their blood to victims to heal them, which is good enough for me, and if you and Liv were vampires, I was sure that Alex was too." Elena nodded. "With Alaric, I wasn't 100% sure. He tried to compel me, but then I remembered I have really crappy luck in my love life, so of course, my hot, new teacher crush would be a vampire."

"So what are you?" Elena asked.

"Busy," Jo answered. "If you want to stick around..." She walked past Elena, down the hall. "There's food trays on the third floor that need clearing."

Elena followed her. "That's it? You're gonna let me stay?"

"You saved that girl instead of feeding on her," Jo told her. "That's good enough for me."

"You're not even afraid, not even fazed, for that matter," Elena told her. "There's only one thing that can resist compulsion without needing vervain, and that's a witch." Jo nodded a barely noticeable nod. Elena looked at her in realization. "You're a witch."

"How about I make you a deal?" Jo asked. "You don't ask questions about me, and I won't ask questions about you."

"Deal," Elena told her.

"Oh, and you can tell Alaric if he wants to avoid a complicated relationship, he doesn't have to hide behind compulsion to do it," Jo told her, walking through a corridor, leaving Elena.

Elena watched her go in confusion.

------

The Girls' Dorm Room 

Tyler was gone, leaving Damon alone.

Damon was sitting in Elena's dorm room at the college. 

Tory stood in the doorway.

"Ah," Damon told her. "Little Willow. The last person I'd expect would come pay me a visit the first full day I've been back from the dead." 

"I'm not here for you," Tory told him. "I'm here for Bonnie and Kacie."

Damon took a moment to respond. "I told you guys that they're dead, that--"

"I know you're lying, Damon," Tory told him. 

Damon gave her a look. "You're getting a little too good at using your wolf powers."

"It has nothing to do with wolf powers," Tory told him. "I just had the strangest urge yesterday, to go through all of the witch stuff at the house, and guess what I found. The two bone necklaces that Shane gave me and Lindsey, the same two necklaces that were identical to the one that he gave Bonnie."

Damon sighed. "I knew there was a reason I didn't like that thing."

"She's over there, and she has her necklace," Tory told him. "She used it to connect her magic to me and Lindsey so she could borrow it to have enough strength to send your ass back over here, which means that Kacie is over there, too. Why didn't they come with?" 

"Because the guy that was over there, Kai?" Damon asked. "He was a complete psychopath who killed most of his family, and when we tried to leave without him, he killed Bonnie and Kacie before they could come with. Well, the more correct term is that they sacrificed themselves for me." 

Tory scoffed, tears in her eyes. "Kacie hated you, and she still saved you?" Damon didn't answer, looking down. "And Bonnie always sacrifices herself for us, and what good does it do to her? In what way does it benefit her? They died for us, Damon, and they just willingly let themselves die to save you."

"I know, Tory," Damon told her. "And I hate it. And I'm sorry. You lost your sister and one of your best friends. And I'm sorry."

Tory looked at him curiously, sadly. "You mean that. Don't you?" 

Damon hesitated a long moment before answering. "Yeah. I do."

Tory averted her gaze, tilting her head down, tears in her eyes. 

------

Tripp's Office 

Sarah was going through Tripp's files of all the animal attacks, showing some gruesome photos. "Maybe it was a good thing I didn't grow up here."

"So where do you come from?" Matt asked.

"Give me the year, and I'll give you the town and foster home," Sarah told him, trying to open a drawer on Tripp's desk, but it was locked. "Oh, good. Wonder what's in here."

"It's locked," Matt told her.

"Locked means important," Sarah told him, breaking into the drawer.

Matt's cell phone vibrated. He picked it up, answering. "Hey, Alex, did you get him?" 

Alex was still in the warehouse with Stefan. "No. Enzo is not here. Any idea where Tripp might have taken him?" Sarah opened the drawer. "Besides the very obvious one?" 

The drawer contained several wallets, some credit cards.

Sarah took out a cell phone. 

"Hang on," Matt told her, taking the cell phone. "Let me see that." He turned the phone on, revealing a picture of Ivy on the wallpaper. He touched the recent calls icon, which showed a call to Caroline Forbes and a missed call from Alex Gilbert. "Alex, we have another problem. Tripp has Ivy's phone." 

"And?" Alex asked. "I mean, the guy is a murderer. Petty theft isn't much of a stretch."

"Yeah, but your and Caroline's names are at the top of the recent dialed list," Matt told her. 

Alex looked at Stefan in worried realization. "Oh, my God. He knows what Caroline and I are." 

Stefan looked at her worriedly. 

Matt exhaled. "I'm guessing he knows where to find both of you." 

------

Whitmore College - The Girls' Dorm Room

(Song:) Last Summer - David Gray 

Damon was alone once again, picking up a framed picture of Bonnie and Kacie on the nightstand beside one of the beds, both smiling. He took out his phone, dialing a number, sitting down on the bed, looking at the picture, listening to the line ring once before going to voicemail.

Kacie: (voicemail) "Hello?" 

Damon looked surprised for a second. "Kacie?" 

Kacie: (voicemail) (laughs) "Uh, yeah, got you." Damon chuckled at his own foolishness. "It's Kacie. Leave me a message." 

"That's your outgoing message?" Damon asked. "Really? I mean, the one time I'm actively seeking the sound of your voice, and you're still a trickster from beyond the grave. Perfect. Hmm... Anyway, I'm in your room, which is a lot less weird than it sounds, but I just wanted to say that because of what you and Bonnie did for me, today is the day I get to see Elena. So thank you. And I'm sorry. Other than that, I don't know what else to say, or what I'm supposed to say except that, defying all possible global scenarios, I might miss you two a little bit." His phone beeped, suggesting he was getting another call. "Ooh, hey, I got to go." He switched over to his other call. "So you didn't forget my number. That's a good start."

Elena was walking down the street. "Yeah. I figured that I'd press the Damon button and see what happened."

"And what is happening?" Damon asked.

"I don't know," Elena admitted. "I don't even know what I'm doing. I just--I'm thinking we should meet face to face. I can't run from you forever, so can you come by my dorm?"

"Yeah," Damon answered. "Yeah, I'll be here--there. I'll be there. Absolutely in a little bit. See you in a little bit."

"Okay," Elena told him, hanging up.

Damon stood, putting the picture back on the nightstand, cleaning up a little bit behind himself. He looked into the mirror, fixing his hair. 

(Song Ends)

The door opened.

"Well, that was fast," Damon told himself, turning toward the door. Tripp was standing there with a vervain gun. Damon transformed. Tripp shot at Damon. Damon caught the vervain dart in between his fingers, throwing it into Tripp's knee, making him groan in pain and fall to the floor. Tripp threw a stake at Damon. Damon caught it, rushing behind Tripp, holding him by the neck with the stake against his jaw. "Who are you?" 

From behind Damon, a dart gun fired into his back a couple of times, making him groan in pain, releasing Tripp to see two guys who had shot him, collapsing to the floor, falling unconscious.

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

Later 

Elena walked down the hallway toward her dorm room, but became suspicious when she arrived to see the door partially opened. She pushed the door open slowly. 

The room was empty.

Damon's phone was on the floor, a few droplets of blood next to it.

Elena looked around. "No...." 

------

Skull Bar

(Song:) I Don't Wanna Be In Love - Dark Waves

Eliza sat at the bar alone, having a drink. 

Caroline sat next to Eliza. "I thought you were getting better."

"I spent the last four months in a dark, emotionless, drinking state," Eliza told her. "A few talks with Jeremy over the past few weeks and breaking is not gonna magically make everything go back to normal."

"I know that, Eliza," Caroline told her.

"Especially when we just found out that Bonnie and Kacie are gone, and they are never coming back," Eliza told her.

Caroline sighed. "On second thought, I'll take one of these."

Caroline took a shot. 

Eliza's phone vibrated. She answered. "Hello?" There was a response on the other line. "What? Whoa, Elena, slow down. Calm down." Caroline looked at Eliza in confusion. Eliza looked at Caroline worriedly. "Oh, no."

(Song Ends)

------

Alaric's Classroom 

Alaric was in his empty classroom, packing up his bag, talking on the phone. "Hey, calm down. Just find the girls and get to Old Miller Road. We'll get him back."

Alaric hung up, walking out of his classroom, locking the doors behind him, turning to walk down the hall.

------

Hallway

Jo walked toward Alaric, having her arms crossed over her chest. "I had an interesting conversation with Elena."

"Yeah, and I want to hear all about it, just not right now," Alaric told her.

"What's the rush?" Jo asked. "Occult Studies emergency?"

"Yeah, I have someplace I need to be, so if you don't mind..." Alaric trailed off, trying to walk past her.

Jo stepped in his way. "Why don't you just compel me out of the way?" Alaric sighed. "Look, don't you think it's about time we level with each other?" 

"Okay," Alaric told her. "How's this? My best friend, he just came back from the dead, but now I have to save him from a vampire hunter before he is driven across an anti-magic border and killed again. So here's some friendly advice. It's probably a good idea to stay as far away from me as possible."

Alaric walked past her, leaving.

Jo thought about what he had said.

------

On the Road - Tripp's Van 

Damon woke up in the back of Tripp's van, coming face to face with Enzo, both of them who were chained to the walls. 

Damon groaned.

"Morning, sunshine," Enzo told him.

"Enzo," Damon told him, looking to see the chains on their hands. "Well, this brings back memories."

"I'm glad to see you found a way back, mate," Enzo told him. "Afraid it's going to be a short reunion, though. We're headed for Mystic Falls, known for it's bridges, quaint, small town charm, and a really big vampire bug zapper."

Damon pulled at the chains. "Stefan, Kaylin and Nikki could've told me there was a hunter in town."

"It probably slipped their minds," Enzo told him. "Kaylin has been busy trying to save you and the other two, Nicola has had an unbearable four months, and Stefan is responsible for my return to incarceration."

"Why would he do that?" Damon asked.

"Probably jealous of my accent," Enzo told him. "Eh. Maybe he did it because I killed his new girlfriend."

"Yeah," Damon told him. "That'll do it."

"And, also, he might have wanted Kaylin off of his back," Enzo added.

"Kaylin?" Damon repeated. "Why would Kaylin care--?" 

They hit a bump in the road, continuing to drive toward Mystic Falls.

------

Road To Mystic Falls 1 

Tory, Lindsey and Liv were waiting in the road outside the town City Limit. 

Elena drove toward them, the tires screeching as the car came to a sudden stop right in front of them.

"Whoa!" Lindsey told them. 

Alex was in the passenger seat next to Elena. Caroline and Eliza were in the back. 

Eliza was on the phone. "Sorry, Mom. Elena is auditioning for 'Top Gear'." They got out of the car. "Yeah. Okay, bye." Eliza hung up. "So Mom is shutting down Route 13. Tripp will have to double back and there's only two other ways across the border."

Elena wasn't really paying attention. She was facing opposite of them, staring straight ahead.

"Do you have a preference?" Lindsey asked. "Front, back?" Elena leaned against the car, still staring straight ahead. Lindsey looked at the others. "No?" They didn't respond. "Okay." Lindsey raised her hand toward the left back tire, using magic to make it pop. The air exploded out of the rubber, making the car sink down. Elena turned to face them. "I think this sells a spinout." 

Elena turned back again toward the dark road.

Liv looked at Tory and Lindsey. "So what's the plan?"

"The plan is that Lindsey and I pull a Lucas and Olivia again, making Tripp stop the van," Tory answered. "You guys get Damon and Enzo out, and if Tripp fights back, one of you... takes care of him."

"Perfect last-minute plan," Alex told them. "And one that's not bad. That's if he even shows up here." She looked at Elena. "What do you think? Elena?" 

"I want my memories back," Elena told them.

"Wait," Caroline told her. "What?" 

Elena turned to face them. "I made up my mind. If Damon survives this, then I want Alaric to uncompel me. I mean, I can't imagine ever loving him, but I also can't ignore the parts I don't like just to avoid the truth. I mean, how could I make any decisions if I only know half the story?"

Liv and Alex stood on either side of Elena, looking at her sympathetically, nodding understandingly. 

The girls turned to face the road ahead of them, waiting for Tripp's possible arrival.

------

Road To Mystic Falls 2 

Alaric, Stefan, Cristian and Kaylin had their car parked in the middle of the road just outside of Mystic Falls. 

The sign by the car read: You Are Now Leaving Mystic Falls, Come Again Soon 

They were pretending to have car trouble, waiting for Tripp. 

Stefan popped the hood open, pulling out pieces of the engine out. 

"You don't have to take apart the whole engine," Cristian told him. "We just need to lure Tripp in so we can grab him."

Stefan continued taking the engine apart.

"You know, it's not your fault," Kaylin told him. 

"We both know that you're just saying that because you're feeling guilty about punching me in the face," Stefan told her. "Twice."

"You deserved it," Kaylin told him. "Both times."

"I know that, Kaylin," Stefan told her.

"Look, you're not the only one who gave up," Alaric told him. "You know, every second for the last four months, all I could think about was when I'm gonna get my next sip of blood, when am I gonna screw up and hurt somebody, why did I come back to life just to be this thing? That I used to hunt vampires, and suddenly, I was one. Searching for Damon was the only thing that could take my mind off of it, but I was basically going through the motions as a distraction, because, honestly, I'd given up, too." 

Cristian saw headlights approaching. "There." 

Stefan, Kaylin and Alaric turned. 

"That's him," Stefan told them.

"You should stay in the car," Cristian told him. "He knows what you look like." 

"He thinks I'm on his side, Cristian," Stefan told him.

"Yeah, unless Enzo told him different," Cristian told him. "Go tell Alex he's here."

Stefan got into the car.

Tripp slowed to a stop. 

Alaric approached Tripp's van, waving his arms, whistling. "Evening." Tripp rolled his window down partially. "I tried to get my friends here to a wedding, and our car just stopped. You think you can, uh, help us out?" 

"Oh, don't know anything about cars," Tripp told him.

"Yeah?" Alaric asked. "Oh, well. Maybe you could give us a ride, then?" 

------

Tripp's Van 

Enzo and Damon heard Alaric's voice.

 "Who's that?" Enzo asked.

"Ric," Damon answered. "He's up to something. Better be something good. Bastard owes me." 

------

Outside

Alaric and Tripp were talking.

"Sorry, in a bit of a hurry," Tripp told him. 

"Yeah," Alaric told him. "So are we." 

Alaric punched through the glass of the window, shattering it, making Tripp turn his head away, groaning. Alaric grabbed Tripp by the collar, punching him in the face. Tripp grabbed his vervain gun, shooting Alaric in the shoulder with it. Alaric held onto the side of the vehicle. Tripp slammed down on the gas, heading straight for the car, Stefan, Kaylin and Cristian. Stefan, on his cell phone, looked up in just enough time to see them coming, rushing out of the car, away. Kaylin and Cristian rushed to the other side of the road. Tripp's van crashed into the car, flipping it over, flying through the car, crashing over the Mystic Falls sign, landing upside down. Alaric was thrown off the vehicle, groaning, landing on the ground within Mystic Falls. 

Stefan, Kaylin and Cristian stood next to each other, overlooking the scene in shock and terror. Stefan's phone was still in hand. 

 ------~------

Tripp's Van 

Damon groaned as the gunshot wound appeared, his shirt soaked with blood. 

Enzo began to cough and wheeze on his blood. 

------

Outside

Stefan, Kaylin and Cristian were still outside the border.

Stefan was still on the phone.

 Alex's voice was on the other line. "Stefan? Stefan, what's happening?" 

"Damon and Alaric are across the border," Stefan told her. "I got to go." 

Stefan hung up.

Alex was still on the other road with the other girls. "Oh, my God." 

On the ground, Alaric was coughing up blood, a large wound appearing on his chest from when he had been staked in the heart, blood staining his shirt. 

Stefan and Cristian exchanged a look, looking at the Welcome to Mystic Falls sign, then straight ahead at the overturned van. They looked at each other, nodding. 

Kaylin tried to step into Mystic Falls.

Cristian held her back. "No. Kaylin."

"Cristian, listen, Damon and Enzo--" Kaylin started.

"We'll get them," Cristian told her. 

Stefan walked across the border. He leaned forward, holding his stomach, where his gunshot wound was, groaning in pain. 

Cristian walked across the border. He started to cough, wheezing on his own blood. 

Breathing heavily in pain, they both walked forward to the van. Stefan was weak from the gun shot wound, and Cristian was weak from becoming sick all over again, and the more they were past the border, the more they felt the spell trying to take away their vampirism and kill them. They walked to the van.

-------

Tripp's Van 

Damon and Enzo were also suffering the effects of the anti-magic spell.

"I came back for this?" Damon asked. 

"Consumption wasn't much fun the first time around either," Enzo told him. 

Cristian started to break into the back of Tripp's van.

------

Outside 

On the grass, Alaric was dying.

Jo came running over, kneeling next to Alaric, applying pressure to his chest wound. "It's okay. I'm here. I followed you like a crazy stalker. Not one of my finer moments." 

Stefan and Cristian had gotten the doors open.

Stefan went to help Damon.

"No, no," Damon told him. "Get him!" 

Stefan used a crow bar to get Enzo loose from the chains that were attached to the top of the van. 

Cristian broke Damon free from his chains.

Tripp came out of the front of his van, bleeding on his head, running away.

On the edge of the border, Kaylin saw him, becoming angry instantly, trying to step into the border to follow him. She felt the pain of the spear of her father's gun piercing through her abdomen, stepping back. 

Stefan helped Damon out of the van. 

Cristian helped Enzo out of the van. 

On the grass, Alaric gasped, breathing heavily, spitting up blood. "You have to get me across the border." Jo was using her first aid knowledge to help him. "It's stripping away the magic. I'll die." 

"You'll die if I move you," Jo told him. "I have to stop the bleeding. You nicked your descending aorta." 

"I know," Alaric told her. "That's what killed me." 

Jo held up a package. "And you didn't have me back then, did you?" She ripped it open with her teeth. "And you didn't have hemostatic gauze." 

The guys struggled out of the van.

"Get up, come on, get up," Stefan told them. 

Stefan helped Damon, and Cristian helped Enzo, toward the border, bleeding, holding wounds, breathing heavily or coughing up blood, finally reaching outside of Mystic Falls, out of the border. 

Enzo and Damon fell to the ground, coughing, breathing heavily, groaning, trying to catch their breaths as their wounds healed.

Kaylin knelt next to them in relief. 

"Ah," Enzo told her. "Hello, gorgeous."

"Get a new catch phrase," Kaylin told him. "I told you that if you got caught, I would find you and kill you. Is that now?" 

Enzo smirked.

Damon looked at them in confusion. 

Stefan and Cristian turned back to Mystic Falls, toward Alaric, wanting to help him, but knowing they couldn't. 

"What's happening?" Alaric asked.

"You still with me?" Jo asked. "While I'm sealing this wound..." She applied gauze to his bleeding chest, her hand covered in his blood. "I want you to think about how you tried to compel one of the smartest women on campus to forget about her date with you. The date where I single handedly saved dozens of lives without smearing my makeup." She worked quickly. Alaric gasped. "Alaric? Hang on! Stay with me. Come on." Jo started pumping on his chest. "Gonna get that heart pumping." Alaric gasped. "You don't get to have the last word with me. Alaric." Alaric stopped moving, his eyes now closed. "Alaric!" 

Jo continued to pump his chest.

Alaric remained still.

Kaylin watched helplessly. "No."

Damon and Enzo were still kneeling on the ground.

Damon ripped his hands free from the chains, looking toward them in horror. 

Stefan and Cristian watched in shock. 

Jo continued to pump on Alaric's chest, refusing to give up. "Stay with me. Come on!"

Alaric gasped for air, looking up, opening his eyes. 

Kaylin sighed in relief. 

Alaric looked around, confused and shaken. "So--so--something's wrong."

Jo placed a hand on his cheek. "Don't move." 

"No, something's wrong," Alaric told her. "I'm not supposed to be alive." 

"There's no reason you shouldn't be," Jo told him. "I sealed the wound. We just have to get you to the hospital."

Alaric breathed heavily, resting his head back on the ground.

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

Road To Mystic Falls 1 

The girls were still on the road.

Alex stood on the dark road just outside of Mystic Falls, on the phone. "Yeah, we'll tell her. Thanks." 

Alex hung up. 

Elena rushed up to the other girls. "I was just on Route 9, and there was a crash, but they weren't there."

"Yeah, we know," Caroline told her. "They had to get out of there."

"What happened?" Elena asked.

Alex sighed. "Uh, Stefan said that, um..."

Alex looked at Elena, unable to find the words.

"What, Alex?" Elena asked nervously. "What?" 

"Ric crossed the border, but Jo was there, and she saved him," Liv told her.

"So he's okay," Elena told her in relief. No one answered. "That means he's okay, right, Liv?" 

Lindsey and Caroline looked away. 

"Yeah, Elena, he's okay," Eliza answered.

"Then why do all of you have those looks on your faces?" Elena asked. "What happened, Eliza?" 

Eliza didn't answer.

"All the magic stripped away, but Jo saved him just before he died," Lindsey told her.

"What?" Elena asked in confusion. "I don't know what that means, Lindsey. Tory?"

No one answered. 

Tory sighed impatiently, deciding to be blunt. "Alaric is not a vampire anymore, Elena. He's human."

Elena was shocked and troubled by this news, knowing what it meant.

------

Salvatore Boarding House - Living Room 

Matt and Sarah walked into the house.

"Thanks for the ride," Sarah told him.

Matt closed the door behind him. "Yeah. I thought I'd save you the trouble of having to boost another car."

Sarah smiled. "That was almost funny. Promise for you yet, Donovan."

"If I told you I knew about your family, promise to take a little friendly advice," Matt told her.

"Hang on," Sarah told him. "You know who my family is?"

"If you want to know about the oldest relatives you have, read any history book about this town's founding members," Matt told her. "Three of the four people that lived in this house are Stefan, Kaylin and Damon Salvatore. And then, your immediate family, your sister, her name is Nicola."

"Why are you just telling me this now?" Sarah asked.

"Because... they're all vampires, and wherever they go, death and pain always follow," Matt answered. "When Nicola was human, they would do anything to protect her, but Damon is the one that turned her into a vampire just a few months ago, and it is still destroying her. If you don't want to end up like her, then... do yourself a favor and get as far away from this place as you can. Because the only one that you should really get the chance to meet is Nicola. And I will try to help you meet her."

Sarah smiled in shock. "You will?" 

Matt nodded. "Just give me some time, and give her some time. We're all going through a hard time right now, and this could change everything for her."

Sarah nodded. "I've waited my whole life to meet my real family. I can wait a little while longer to meet my sister." Matt nodded, turning away, toward the door. "Wait, Matt." Matt turned to face her. "I'm sorry about Kacie."

"So am I," Matt told her.

"It sounds like you really loved her," Sarah told him.

Matt hesitated, sad. "I did."

Matt opened the door, walking out of the house, closing the door behind him.

------

Whitmore College - Tyler's Dorm Room

Tyler was standing at his dresser, looking at his phone, typing a pin number. 

Nicola walked in. "Hey, Ty, I was just wanting to know if you'd like to, um, catch up with everyone at a diner later." Tyler seemed frustrated yet sad. "Tyler?" 

"I keep trying to cancel Kacie's phone, but I can't without her pin," Tyler told her. "Why can't I remember her pin?" 

Tyler angrily slammed the phone to the dresser, smashing it into pieces. He held up his cut, bleeding hand, shaking slightly. He smashed his hand through a bottle of alcohol that was sitting on the dresser, shattering it, glass falling everywhere. He slammed his fist over and over again on the dresser. 

Nicola pulled him away. "Tyler!" Tyler breathed heavily in anger and pain. Nicola turned him toward her, guilty and desperate. "Ty! It's gonna be okay." 

"No, it's not," Tyler told her. "She's gone. Kacie's gone." 

Nicola had tears in her eyes, guilt and sympathy, wrapping her arms around Tyler. "I'm sorry." Tyler slowly began to calm down, holding her, tears of anger, guilt and pain in his eyes. "I'm so sorry."

------

Mystic Falls Hospital - Alaric's Hospital Room

Alaric was on the phone, lying in a hospital bed in a hospital robe.

Elena's voice was on the other line. "Jo's a keeper. How does it feel?" 

"Oh, it hurts a lot," Alaric answered.

Elena was in the dorm room. "Well, it's too bad there aren't any vampires in Mystic Falls to help heal you."

"Well, I think they got me on a morphine drip," Alaric told her. "It's the next best thing." There was a moment of silence. "Elena, I'm so sorry."

"No, no, no, Alaric," Elena told him. "I'm just glad that you're okay. I mean, up until an hour ago, I didn't even want my memories to return. I was the one who made the choice to lose them. Now, I have to live with the fact that you can't give them back to me. I know how much you hated being a vampire, so I'm just glad one of us got what we wanted."

"And what is it that you want?" Alaric asked.

"To be able to look Damon in the eye, knowing all that I know, and all that I don't, and see how I feel about him," Elena answered. "I want to trust how I feel."

"I wish you can," Alaric told her. "Good luck, okay?" 

They hung up. 

Jo walked into the room. "The hospital sucks. I can't believe anyone even makes it out of here alive."

"They usually don't," Alaric told her. "Nicola was a rare exception, no thanks to me."

"I'm having you transferred to Whitmore ASAP," Jo told him.

"Thank you," Alaric told her. 

Jo smiled. "Just doing my job."

"Hey," Alaric told her, taking Jo's hand in his. "You did more than that. You gave me back my life. Thank you."

------

Whitmore College - Skull Bar

(Song:) Last Night of Summer - The Garden District  

Stefan, Damon, Kaylin and Nicola were sitting at a table together.

Nicola was distracted, thoughtful, taking a drink of her bourbon.

Kaylin noticed. "You okay?" 

"Just thinking about what happened," Nicola answered. "Tyler hates himself right now, and I can't help but feel bad about what happened to Kacie. And right now, all he wants is to be left alone."

Kaylin sighed. "Well, hey, you're not the only one that's having relationship problems out of this family. Stefan screwed up his with Alex."

"I didn't screw it up," Stefan told them.

"And Elena compelled herself to forget about Damon," Kaylin went on.

"Hey, at least it's better than not having a relationship at all," Damon told her. Kaylin, Nicola and Stefan smirked, exchanging a knowing look. "And I was this close. This close to getting her back." 

"I know," Nicola told him. "I'm sorry."

"Oh, I got it," Damon told her. "Everybody's sorry." He looked at Stefan. "You're sorry you gave up on me, sorry you turned Enzo into that hunter guy." He looked at Nicola. "You're sorry you almost gave up on me, sorry that you killed someone, sorry that I died when you and I were not on the best of terms, sorry for letting Kacie going after Julian on her own, leaving you to feel guilty for something that you didn't do for the next four months. Kaylin's sorry that you didn't snap Stefan's neck sooner and drag him and Nikki to the family crypt sooner so you could renew their faith. Ric's sorry for the compulsion. I'm sure if Elena could remember anything, she'd be sorry, too."

Damon took a drink. 

"You got to understand how hard it was for her," Stefan told him.

"I am so tired of hearing how hard it was for her," Damon told them. "It was hard for me as well." 

"At least you knew you had a home to come back to," Stefan told him. "She didn't have anything. To her, you were just gone." 

"Guess I still am," Damon told them. "Ric said she's happy without me since she's erased me. You know what? I don't want her to be happy. I want her to be miserable, just like I am." 

Kaylin looked at Damon in amusement. "You done?" 

"Yeah," Damon answered. "I'm done." 

"Good," Nicola told him. "Now quit stalling. There's a girl you need to go see." 

"What if it doesn't work?" Damon asked. "What if what we had isn't strong enough to break the compulsion?" 

"You're not going to find out just sitting there, are you?" Kaylin asked.

Damon took a moment to think about it, finishing his drink. "Here goes everything." 

Damon stood, walking out of the restaurant. 

Stefan sighed, looking at Kaylin and Nicola. "You know, I'm sorry about the way I treated you. Both of you." He looked at Kaylin. "I'm sorry that I'm the reason that your newest, half-psychotic boyfriend nearly got killed. Not only did I put his life in danger. I put yours in danger too, because you went in to save him." He looked at Nicola. "And I just wanted you to have a life here you didn't have the three evil vampires who destroyed your life."

"It's already destroyed," Nicola told them. "Why not destroy it more?" 

Kaylin smiled at the sarcasm. "Right. This family is toxic, Stefan. The only thing that comes from it is pain and death, but you can't help but love it." There was a beat of silence. "But you're not fully forgiven."

"I know that," Stefan told them. "But you're not the only ones that I need to apologize to about the way that I was treating them." 

Nicola looked out of the window to see Alex walking down the street. "Then quit stalling. There's a girl you need to go see." 

Stefan looked at Nicola in confusion.

Nicola nodded to the window. 

(Song Ends)

Stefan followed her gaze to Alex. He looked at Kaylin and Nicola for a moment, standing, walking out of the bar, across the street to Alex.

Kaylin and Nicola watched them through the bar window, listening as they drank their bourbon.

------

Outside

(Song:) Unbreakable - Jamie Scott 

Stefan walked toward Alex, catching up to her. "Hey."

Alex turned to face him. "Hey." She smiled a small smile. "So, am I your last stop on the Stefan Salvatore Apology Tour?" 

"Could we just get past this, please?" Stefan asked.

"I'm trying to," Alex told him.

"Look, Alex," Stefan told her. "What do you want me to do, huh? Stop making me guess, and tell me so we can go back to being..." 

"Being together?" Alex suggested. "I'm sorry, Stefan, but after everything that you did, it's gonna require a little more work than that. You didn't just break my heart. You broke my trust. And you, above anyone else, know how well I deal with that." 

Alex turned around, walking away. 

Stefan sighed, putting his hands in his pockets, looking guilty and defeated, looking toward the bar window to see Nicola and Kaylin.

Nicola and Kaylin looked away, drinking bourbon, pretending like they hadn't been listening.

------

The Girls' Dorm Room 

Damon walked down the hallway toward the room.

Elena went through the box of Damon's things, pulling out her diary, which held the strip of the photo book pictures of the two of them together. She pulled it out, looking at them.

Damon continued to walk toward the room.

Elena pulled out Damon's black leather jacket.

Damon reached the door, knocking.

Elena took a deep breath, hesitating.

Damon waited anxiously at the door.

Elena hesitantly walked toward the door, reaching for the door knob, slowly opening the door to face Damon after four months of him being dead.

The two of them looked at each other for a long moment, waiting for something to happen, their eyes meeting at last. 

(Song Ends)

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

6.07 "Do You Remember The First Time?" Trailer

(Song:) Supreme - Mandeville 

From 6.07 "Do You Remember The First Time?", at a fundraiser, Jo and Alaric arrived.

Damon arrived.

Jo looked at Alaric. "Who invited him?"

"He sort of invited himself, mostly to stalk Elena," Alaric answered.

Elena walked in.

Damon smiled.

Liam walked in next to Elena.

Damon let his smile fade. "Who's that?"

"Looks like he's Elena's date," Jo told him.

WHAT'S SCARIER?

Damon and Elena were talking.

"I don't remember us," Elena told him.

From 6.07 "Do You Remember The First Time?", on campus, Elena and Liam kissed.

THAN A JEALOUS VAMPIRE?

From 6.07 "Do You Remember The First Time?", at the fundraiser, Damon and Elena were talking.

"I do," Damon told her.

Liam walked closer.

STANDING UP TO ONE

Damon looked at Liam. "So, the ex meets the new guy."

"I think I can take you," Liam told him.

Damon looked at Elena. "Confident. Pfft. Sexy."

From 6.07 "Do You Remember The First Time?", outside Tory's House, Tyler and Tory were talking.

Tory was sitting on a swing.

WHAT'S WORSE 

"I guess I just needed to talk to my sister," Tyler told her.

THAN THINKING YOUR SISTER'S DEAD?

Tory smiled sadly, sliding over to give him room. "That's good. 'Cause I needed to talk to my brother."

Tyler sat next to her. "Where do you think she is?"

From 6.07 "Do You Remember The First Time?", in the prison world's boarding house, Kacie was lying unconscious on a couch. There was a messily stitched, bleeding line around her neck. Her hair was mangled and unevenly cut from when Kai had cut her head off.

THINKING SHE'S DEAD

Kai grabbed Bonnie, taking her magic aggressively.

Kacie rushed up behind Kai, feeding ravenously, letting his temporarily dead body fall to the floor. "That's about enough of that."

WHEN SHE ISN'T.

From 6.07 "Do You Remember The First Time?", in the prison world's underground tunnels, Kacie, Bonnie and Kai were talking.

"Let's just go home," Bonnie told them.

From 6.07 "Do You Remember The First Time?", in the cemetery, Tory, Liv and Lindsey ran into the cemetery, looking around.

"Kacie?" Liv called

"Bonnie!" Lindsey called.

From 6.07 "Do You Remember The First Time?", in the warehouse, Stefan, Kaylin, Nicola and Enzo stood with Tripp. 

Kaylin smiled, tilting her head. "You ain't seen nothing yet."

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.