Down the Rabbit Hole/Transcript

ON THE ISLAND

[Vaughn has Damon tied up to a tree with ropes soaked in vervain. Vaughn crouches over a campfire while Damon struggles against his bonds, groaning in pain.]

Vaughn: Something botherin' you?

Damon: Would you believe me if I said mosquitoes?

Vaughn: Aye, I would. How does it feel when a relentless eating machine is draining the blood from your veins?

Damon: Itchy.

Vaughn: Your friends from Mystic Falls think you're funny, Damon?

Damon: You obviously know who I am and where I'm from. Have you been spying on me?

Vaughn: Aye, I have. [gets up] You and Stefan, Elena, your witch, Bonnie. Do you need her to cast the spell written on your pal, Jeremy's hunter's mark... [sits down again] ...the tattoo that looks exactly like this?

[Damon looks at Vaughn's tattoo.]

Damon: You wanna know something, just ask.

Vaughn: I've been killing vampires my entire life. Still, this thing refused to reveal itself to me. That was, until three days ago and it just magically completed for no apparent reason.

Damon: Come on, man. Do I look like I know anything about tattoos? Look at my skin. It's flawless.

Vaughn: Ah! You're not taking me seriously. [walks over to Damon] I don't blame ya. You don't know me. [He holds up a pointy wooden stick that he's been holding over the fire] So let me introduce myself. [he stabs Damon's neck with it] My name is Galen Vaughn, and you'd better start talkin'.

[Cue title card and opening credits]

THE ISLAND

[Elena, Stefan, and Rebekah are on the beach. Elena is on the phone with Caroline.]

Caroline: [over the phone] Tell me you're not serious.

Elena: I wish I weren't.

[Cut to the Gilbert house, where Caroline is on the phone while Klaus remains trapped in the living room. The shots alternate between Caroline in the Gilbert house and Elena on the island throughout their conversation.]

Elena: [over the phone] When we got back from looking for Jeremy, Shane and Bonnie were gone too. [on the beach] Shane needs Bonnie to cast a spell on Jeremy’s tattoo in order to find the cure, and he managed to sneak them both out from under our noses.

Caroline: Well, where's Damon in all this?

Elena: [over the phone] We had an argument. [on the beach] I thought he was just taking a walk, but then when we went to the beach, we saw signs of a struggle.

Caroline: Meaning what?

Elena: Meaning somebody probably jumped him and then grabbed him!

Caroline: Do you think Shane took him?

Elena: No, I mean, he’s not strong enough to take Damon on, even with the element of surprise. He must have someone, or at least a few someones helping him.

Caroline: I’m so sorry. I wish I was there to help.

Elena: Well, maybe there’s something you can do from home.

Caroline: Anything. Tell me.

Elena: So Shane’s looking for the cure. We think we can find him. We have pictures of Jeremy’s tattoo, but we just can’t translate the map.

Caroline: Unless you get the Hunter’s Sword from Klaus.

Elena: [over the phone] Exactly.

Rebekah: He’ll never give up the sword.

Stefan: Yeah, but if anyone’s gonna get him to give it up, it’s Caroline.

Rebekah: He will never give up the sword, not even for Caroline. He’s terrified we’ll use the cure against him to make him mortal, and even if he wasn’t, he wouldn’t want any of us to derive a moment’s worth of happiness from being human.

Stefan: Well, maybe he doesn’t have to give it up. I mean, Klaus is stuck in Elena’s house by Bonnie’s spell. He can’t go anywhere. There's only so many places you can hide a three-foot piece of metal.

Caroline: I’ll find it, don’t worry. Just e-mail me photos of Jeremy’s tattoo. I’ll find the sword, and I’ll call you back.

Elena: Thank you, Caroline.

Caroline: Bye. [she hangs up]

Klaus: [smirking] Need my help with anything, love?

Caroline: Nope.

[Caroline strides out of the house without looking at Klaus, leaving him looking slightly amused.]

ON THE ISLAND

[Shane, Bonnie, Jeremy, and Massak are walking towards the cave entrance, Shane leading the way. Inside, they reach the hole they have to climb down into.]

Massak: This is as far as I go.

Shane: We're on the brink of a monumental event in human history. We're going to raise the most powerful immortal creature that ever was. Come on, our work's not done yet.

Massak: Mine is. You said get the kid and the witch. I did. I wanna get paid now.

[Shane opens his bag and pulls out the tombstone. He walks over and hands it to Massak. Massak looks over at Bonnie and Jeremy.]

Massak: I'll say a prayer for your souls.

[Massak leaves quickly, and Bonnie turns to Shane.]

Bonnie: [angrily] That's what the tombstone was for? To pay off a mercenary?

Shane: The core of that tombstone is made up of Qetsiyah's calcified blood. In some witch circles, that stone's more valuable than the Hope Diamond. So... so who wants to go down first?

GILBERT HOUSE

[Caroline and Tyler walk into the house. Caroline has a laptop in her hands while Tyler has the sword wrapped in a blanket. Klaus is sitting on the coffee table.]

Klaus: Well, if it isn't little orphan Lockwood. Come to show how laughably impotent you are against me?

Tyler: I'm just trying to help my friends find the cure.

[Caroline sits on the couch, and Tyler reveals the sword from the blanket.]

Tyler: Found this in your attic.

Klaus: And you think finding the sword brings you closer to the cure?

Tyler: You tell me. I was playing around with the handle on the ride over, and I found this.

[Tyler unwraps the leather on the top of the sword, revealing some sort of turning device. Klaus gets up and walks over to Tyler.]

Klaus: And what do you think 'this' is?

Caroline: [gets up] It's called a cryptex. [Tyler looks at her.] I've seen The da Vinci Code. You turn the different sides to the different symbols to get the translation on the other side. [turning to the table] And with the magic of the internet, Elena sent over these. [She holds up print-outs of Jeremy's tattoo.] So now all we have to do is cryptex away. [sits down again] If you happened to want to help, we wouldn't stop you.

Klaus: Right. Well, might I suggest using the magic of the internet to purchase an Aramaic-to-English dictionary from your nearest retailer. [Klaus smirks.]

Tyler: [turning to Caroline] What's Aramaic?

Caroline: It's a dead language. It hasn't been used since, like, biblical times.

Klaus: Qetsiyah's native tongue, I'm guessing. You know, even if you had the best dictionary in the world, it could take days to translate. [sits down] Perhaps weeks. "In bas so-teen-too ara-ma-eet."

Caroline: What does that mean?

Klaus: [grinning] "If only you spoke Aramaic."

ON THE BEACH

[Rebekah is raising her cellphone in the air but gets only a busy signal and gives up. Elena and Stefan are sitting and talking.]

Elena: And once again, everyone's life is in danger looking for this cure because poor Elena can't deal with being a vampire.

Stefan: No. Everyone's here because they want to be. Not just for you, but for themselves too.

Elena: Stefan, why didn't you tell me that you wanted the cure for yourself?

Stefan: I mean, why wouldn't I want to take it? I've seen every side of vampirism there is. The power... the misery, the guilt. In the long run, even the good parts kind of suck, too.

Elena: Yeah, I mean, I know why you would want to take it, but what I'm saying is... why didn't you tell me?

Stefan: Because it had nothing to do with you. I mean, you know how much I wanted a human life with you. Being human myself, being normal -- that's something I've wanted since long before I met you.

Elena: Well, I'm glad you told me now.

Stefan: Yeah, what's a deeply buried personal secret between friends, right?

Elena: Between friends? I like that.

[Elena smiles at Stefan and reaches for his hand as Rebekah watches from a few yards away.]

SOMEWHERE IN THE WOODS

[Damon is still bound by the vervained ropes, leaving him no choice but to walk with Vaughn through the forest.]

Damon: Mind telling me where we're going?

Vaughn: At the wishing well lies an entrance to a crypt. In the crypt lies Silas. And with Silas lies the cure, which will allow me to kill Silas, bring the mission of the brotherhood of the Five to an end. You're my leverage, Damon; I use you to get your witch friend to open the passage to Silas' crypt for me.

Damon: What a minute, you're using me to get to Bonnie Bennett? Whoa, brother, ha! You picked the wrong vampire.

Vaughn: I guess we'll see about that.

Damon: Here's the deal, Shrek. My witch friend will open the passage for you. No leverage necessary. We don't care about Silas. All we want is the cure, so you cut us in on your share, and we'll get out of your hair.

Vaughn: You really don't understand, do you?

GILBERT HOUSE

[Caroline has the pictures of Jeremy's tattoo and index cards of the Aramaic symbols lying on the table. She has her computer open and is sitting with Tyler.]

Caroline: Okay, this is it. We've translated all the symbols on the tattoo. [she reads the translation] "Passage inside... requires a young senator, and a pretty flower." [irritated] Okay, none of this makes sense!

IN THE WOODS

Damon: [in a slight accent mocking Vaughn's] No, I don't understand, so why don't you explain it?

Vaughn: Silas is immortal. I have to cram the cure down his throat in order to kill him.

Damon: Yeah, what does that have to do with me and my friends?

GILBERT HOUSE

Klaus: [speaks Aramaic, then the English translation] "Requires a powerful witch and a hunter in full bloom."

Tyler: What are you doing?

Klaus: I don't need to tell you my reasons. Caroline. Bring my sword over here.

IN THE WOODS

Vaughn: I need to use the cure against Silas. Your friends, they can't exactly have it, now, can they?

Damon: So you use it on Silas, and we'll use it for whoever wants to use it.

GILBERT HOUSE

[Caroline has brought the sword close enough for Klaus to read the cryptex.]

Klaus: "Silas rests on the far side, the means of his destruction at hand." [He glances at the pictures of Jeremy's tattoo on the computer screen.] Turn the cryptex to the right. [Caroline obliges] Stop. The top of the hilt reveals a key to a nautical map. Turn it to the left. [she turns it] Now turn the other piece. [she does] There's something else.

IN THE WOODS

Damon: You don't want to share it with us?

Vaughn: Even if I wanted to, I couldnae.

Damon: And why can't you share it?

Vaughn: So it is written.

GILBERT HOUSE

Klaus: [speaks Aramaic]

Caroline: What does it mean? [Klaus smiles at her] Klaus, what does it mean?

IN THE WOODS

Vaughn: There is only one dose.

THE CAVE

[Bonnie is lowering herself down into the lower chamber of the cave in a harness attached to a rope. Suddenly she loses her grip and falls the rest of the way down, landing painfully on her hand. Jeremy, already down, rushes over to her.]

Jeremy: You okay?

Bonnie. Yeah, I just slipped. [She lifts her hand and groans; her glove is torn and bloody. Jeremy rips off a strip of his T-shirt and helps Bonnie pull off her glove. Her hand is bleeding profusely. He uses the fabric to make a quick tourniquet for her hand.]

Jeremy: It's okay.

Bonnie: Thanks. [She chuckles as Jeremy helps her up; she unhooks the rope for her harness.]

Shane: [from above the hole's opening] Hey, guys, I'm coming down.

Jeremy: [quietly] Hey, Bon. What do you think's gonna happen once you cast a spell on my tattoo and there's nothing in between Shane and Silas?

Bonnie: Do you trust me?

Jeremy: Yeah, of course.

Bonnie: Then trust me when I promise I won't let Shane raise Silas.

Jeremy: [looks up briefly as they hear noises from above, lowers his voice even further] Just don't do anything stupid. If your Expression gets out of hand, Shane is the only one that could help you keep it in control.

Bonnie: Don't worry about me. I'm fine. But if Shane tries to lift a finger on his hand to hurt either one of us... I'll kill him myself.

[They prepare to keep moving. The camera zooms in on the spot where Bonnie landed, where her blood has soaked the floor of the cave. It seeps through a crack in the floor, dripping down to a chamber below, into the mouth of a figure that resembles a sarcophogus.]

THE ISLAND

[Rebekah is still on the beach when her phone rings.]

Rebekah: Hello?

Caroline: [over the phone] Hey, it's Caroline. We have the translation of the tattoo. [cut to the Gilbert house] We're emailing you pictures of the map and instructions right now.

[cut back to the beach; Rebekah checks her phone and receives the email.]

Rebekah: Got it. Thanks.

Klaus: [over the phone] Actually, it was me.

Rebekah: [cut to the Gilbert house; over the phone] Nik, you helped?

Klaus: You sound so surprised, little sister.

Rebekah: [on the beach] Shouldn't I be? I mean, you don't want me to be human. You don't want any of us to be human. Why would you help us find the cure?

Klaus: [at the Gilbert house] Maybe I finally realized the longer I stand in the way of what you want, the longer you'll continue to hate me. Perhaps I want my sister to finally know happiness.

Rebekah: [on the beach] Fool me once, shame on you; fool me a hundred times--

Klaus: [at the Gilbert house] No more fooling. No more games. I hope you get to live, and die, as you wish.

Rebekah: [nodding] So do I.

Klaus: [at the Gilbert house] There is one more thing, Rebekah. [Caroline and Tyler look up; Klaus speaks quickly] There is only one dose of the cure. You need to find it first and take it. It's the only way you'll-- [Tyler rushes to end the call]

Rebekah: [on the beach] Nik. Nik!

IN THE WOODS

[Damon is still walking ahead of Vaughn, who gives him a little shove.]

Damon: You touch me again--

Vaughn: And you'll what? Threaten me? Sorry if you're upset about the cure, Damon, but we've got road to cover.

Damon: I don't care about the cure. In fact, I don't know why anyone wouldn't want to be a vampire. You know what? If I wasn't a vampire, then I wouldn't be able to do 9 of the things I'm gonna do to you when I'm free. [Vaughn shoves Damon again] Make that 10.

Vaughn: Right.

Damon: All right, I admit, okay? My friends want the cure, and I want them to have it, and I get very upset when I can't provide for my loved ones. But tell me something, Vaughn, if all you're worried about is Bonnie the teenage witch, then why'd you save Jeremy and Elena yesterday?

Vaughn: How did I do that?

Damon: Big guy. White paint all over him. You stuck a hatchet in his spine.

Vaughn: I don't remember doing such a thing.

[Vaughn pulls on the rope but Damon resists, refusing to walk]

Damon: We're on a remote island. There's you, me, and a bunch of unpleasant locals. You expect me to believe that someone else took out that monster truck of a human being that went after Jeremy and Elena?

Vaughn: I'm telling you, it wasnae me.

[Vaughn shoves Damon forward again, but they stumble upon a body - Massak, clearly dead with his throat slashed.]

Damon: Was that you?

Vaughn: No. You?

Damon: No.

Vaughn: [looking around] Well, I reckon there really is someone else on this island.

THE CAVE

[Shane joins Bonnie and Jeremy in the new chamber, all of them holding flashlights.]

Shane: It's just amazing, isn't it? Once we raise Silas, all of our sacrifices will have been worthwhile; we'll all have what we want.

Bonnie: Or he'll kill us all.

Shane: Listen, you're going to see I'm right. Just so you don't get any ideas, remember, anything happens to me, something a lot worse will happen to you.

Jeremy: All right, where is this stupid magic passage she needs to open?

Shane: Just look for anything that looks out of place, all right? Anything not occurring in nature like a - like a drawing or an inscription or a... geometrically perfect circle!

[Shane crouches to the ground and brushes away dirt and debris to reveal a circle carved into the ground.]

Shane: [slapping the ground] This is it! This is the spot.

[Jeremy and Bonnie share a look.]

ON THE ISLAND

[Rebekah, Elena, and Stefan are walking.]

Elena: What did Caroline say?

Rebekah: I don't know. We lost the signal. Come on, this way.

[They come to the edge of a cliff and stop.]

Rebekah: [holding up the phone]  We need to get down and across. Advantage, vampires: all we have to do is jump.

Elena: Wait, wait. Um... maybe you should leave the map behind. In case you fall, you don't want anything to happen to the phone.

Rebekah: Are we doing this again? I thought we were a team?

Stefan: [interrupting] Guys, we don't have time for this. Elena, you go first. We'll be right behind you.

[Elena hesitates before she takes a running leap off the edge. After falling a huge distance, she lands on her feet, stumbling only slightly. She looks back up the cliff. Stefan is about to jump when Rebekah throws out her arm and stops him.]

Rebekah: There's something you should know about the cure.

THE CAVE

[Bonnie has her hand on Jeremy's bare chest where the tattoo is. Her other hand is in Jeremy's. Her eyes are closed.]

Shane: You're doing it, just breathe, all right? Focus on what you can do. Don't be afraid of what you can't.

Jeremy: You can do this. Remember, just like you taught me. You're in control.

[Bonnie nods, reassured]

Shane: That's it. It's just like drawing breath. Now just pull the power into you.

[Bonnie and Jeremy breathe deeply as his tattoo begins to fade away.]

IN THE WOODS

[Vaughn is still pulling Damon along. They come to a stop as Vaughn's tattoo begins to disappear.]

Vaughn: Looks like your witch is casting her spell.

THE CAVE

[Bonnie looks at Jeremy before closing her eyes again. Rocks begin to rain down around them as the ground shakes. Shane runs off, ducking for cover.]

AT THE CLIFF

[Elena is still waiting for Stefan and Rebekah to jump down.]

Stefan: So you're sure that Klaus is telling the truth? That there's only one dose of the cure?

[Rebekah gently nods.]

Stefan: Well, I guess that's what happens when you're dumb enough to hold out hope.

Rebekah: There's still hope for one of us. But even if I felt pity for you, if I wanted to ease your pain so I gave you the cure to take for yourself, you'd give it to Elena, wouldn't you?

[Stefan doesn't reply, tacitly revealing his answer]

Rebekah: That's what I thought. Well, I'm sorry that it couldn't work out the way that we all wanted it to.

[Stefan looks confused, and Rebekah snaps his neck and his body falls to the ground. Elena watches in horror from the bottom of the cliff.]

THE CAVE - LOWER CHAMBER

[Jeremy gets up as dust and debris continue to fall.]

Jeremy: Bonnie! Bonnie!

Bonnie: [from behind a rock] I'm fine. [smiles] I'm here. Look! It worked!

[They look over to see that a new passage has been revealed.]

Jeremy: [grabbing his shirt] You did it.

Bonnie: We did it.

[Jeremy puts on his shirt and they move to continue on when Shane grunts in pain.]

Shane: [breathlessly] Hey, guys, I need a hand. My leg's broken.

Bonnie: Best to stay off it, then.

Shane: Bonnie. Wait, wait. Don't-- Come on. Bonnie! Help me! Come on, please! Help me!

[Jeremy and Bonnie ignore his pleas as they head into the tunnel.]

THE CAVE - UPPER CHAMBER

[Damon, still tied up, staggers into the cave with Vaughn behind him. They see the ropes that Shane, Bonnie and Jeremy had used to go down into the lower chamber.]

Damon: Well, here we are. Looks like someone beat us to the punch.

Vaughn: That's a shame, Damon. I have no use for you anymore. Hate to kill ya.

Damon: Ditto. You know, that pesky hunter's curse and all. [Vaughn nods] All right. How do you want to do this?

Vaughn: I'll make it quick and painless.

[He pulls on the rope tied to Damon's neck. Damon resists and grabs onto the rope; the vervain in it sears his skin.]

Damon: Wish I could make the same promise.

[Vaughn cuts the rope at his end and flings it toward Damon. Damon pulls the rope off his neck, groaning in pain, and pulls off the ones tied to his wrists. Vaughn prepares a gun.]

Damon: I'm gonna kill you. And then I'm gonna get to that damn cure, and I'm gonna give it to the girl that I love.

Vaughn: Your attachment to your friends will be the end of you.

[They hear footsteps from the cave entrance.]

Damon: [smiling] You don't know my friends... [Rebekah appears] Or my enemies.

AT THE CLIFF

[Elena has rejoined Stefan at the top of the cliff. He's lying down drinking a blood bag while Elena sits next to him.]

Elena: There's only one cure? [Stefan nods] I can't take it. I mean, not above everyone else who deserves it just as much as I do. [sighing] It's over.

Stefan: I'm sorry.

Elena: Don't be. Maybe it's a blessing in disguise.

Stefan: How so?

Elena: Things changed the minute that I went off that bridge, Stefan. Even if I could be human again, I wouldn't be the person that I was. [Stefan nods slowly] So it's about time that I accept the person that I am now and figure out a way... to start living the rest of my life.

Stefan: The rest of your life... sired to Damon.

Elena: I guess we'll have to deal with that when I get home. [her face changes as she realizes something] Oh my god... Home. Klaus. Bonnie's spell isn't gonna hold him.

Stefan: And after what we did to Kol, if we don't ram that cure down his throat, he'll kill us all.

Elena: Pity party over. We have to go.

GILBERT HOUSE

[Tyler walks out onto the front porch, Caroline behind him. He seems really stressed out.]

Tyler: Every time I think I have him, that son of a b*tch gets the upper hand.

Caroline: We won't let him hurt you. Stefan and Elena will bring back the cure.

Tyler: If they get to it first! And if they don't, Klaus kills me. [starting to get hysterical] I need to get out of town to figure out how I'm gonna stay alive--

Caroline: Wait, hang on, okay? Gosh! Before you get all doomsday, just-- At least let me try and talk to him.

Tyler: He's got nothing to lose, Care. His brother's dead, his hybrids are gone. All he wants right now is blood, starting with mine.

Caroline: I'm not gonna say goodbye to you again, do you understand me? Let me fix this. [Tyler nods at her and she nods back.]

THE CAVE - UPPER CHAMBER

[Damon and Rebekah stand on one side of the cave, Vaughn on the other training his gun on them.]

Damon: Are we gonna dance or are we gonna play?

Rebekah: You know he can't hurt me, Damon, unless he's got the white oak stake.

Vaughn: Oh, he doesn't, but he's got other toys.

[Vaughn shoots Rebekah 3 times. She vamp-speeds at him and grabs his throat, but Vaughn sticks something into her chest: it's a grenade with wooden spikes protruding from it. Rebekah looks down at it, Vaughn holds up the fuse that he's pulled out, and the grenade detonates, sending the wooden spikes into her body, all the way through to her back. She falls down, neutralized. Damon vamp-speeds at Vaughn, engaging him in hand-to-hand combat. Vaughn withdraws another weapon and fires it at Damon; this time it throws a lasso-like device covered in vervain, which secures Damon by the neck to a pole behind him. He groans and makes choking noises.]

Stefan: [in the distance] Damon!

[Vaughn grabs onto a rope going down the shaft, slides down it quickly and disappears. Elena and Stefan enter the chamber just in time to hear Vaughn reach the bottom. Stefan tries to get the rope off of Damon's neck while Damon groans in pain; very difficult as the vervain burns Stefan's fingers as well.]

Damon: You're wasting time. Just get the cure. Go.

Elena: We're not gonna leave you.

Stefan: No, we aren't. [to Elena] You need to go ahead. We'll be right behind you. [Elena hesitates] Go.

[Elena looks at both of them for a moment longer before she jumps down into the shaft.]

THE CAVE - LOWER CHAMBER

[Bonnie and Jeremy are walking along a passage, their flashlights held aloft.]

Bonnie: Look at us. [scoffs] A newbie hunter and a witch who needs adult supervision. How are we the ones that made it this far?

Jeremy: I'm glad we're here together.

Bonnie: Me, too.

Jeremy: [after sharing a moment with Bonnie he raises his flashlight] Where is "here," exactly?

Bonnie: This way.

Jeremy: How do you know?

Bonnie: I just know.

[Sheila Bennett appears in a small chamber.]

Sheila: Hello, Bonnie.

Bonnie: [torn between smiling and crying] Hi, Grams.

[Jeremy turns his flashlight towards the place Bonnie is looking at, but doesn't see anybody.]

Bonnie: What are you doing here, Grams?

Sheila: This place allows the living to talk to the dead.

Jeremy: Bonnie, what's going on?

Bonnie: [ignoring Jeremy] I am so sorry about what happened.

Sheila: It's okay. You're here now. And you are this close to bringing me back to life for good.

Bonnie: How?

Sheila: Silas can do it. All you have to do is reach him and feed him, and everything will go back to the way it was.

[Sheila starts to lead Bonnie into the chamber. Jeremy drops his flashlight and rushes after her.]

Jeremy: Bonnie, stop! [he grabs her and turns her around] Hey, you're not seeing your grams. If she were here, I'd be able to see her, and I can't. It's not her ghost. It's a hallucination. [he holds her face in his hands] What you're seeing isn't real. It's me. Your grams isn't here. I'm here. I'm real, okay?

[Bonnie, visibly upset, stares at Jeremy. There's a whooshing sound, she looks around and her grams is gone.]

Bonnie: What happened?

Jeremy: Silas. He was in your head. He was trying to control you.

Bonnie: And Shane. Illusions of his wife. That's how Silas controls him.

Jeremy: You need to block him out of your mind. Close your eyes. [she does] Listen to my voice and only my voice. [Bonnie breathes deeply and grabs Jeremy's hands] I'm gonna get us there. [Holding Bonnie's hand, he leads her further down the passage.]

GILBERT HOUSE

[Klaus is sitting in an armchair in the Gilberts' living room. The front door opens and Caroline walks in. She's the opposite of aggressive or angry, and instead is calmly sad.]

Caroline: [softly] You can't kill Tyler.

Klaus: Not only can I, I have to. I have a reputation to uphold. Moreover, I want to.

Caroline: I'm not asking you to forgive him. All I'm asking is that you let him live, somewhere far from here.

Klaus: So he gets to live a happy life after he turned all my hybrids against me, after he tried to kill me, after he made it his life's mission to find the cure so he could use it against me--

Caroline: [defensively] We all want the cure.

Klaus: Do we? [Caroline stares mutely at him] Do you?

Caroline: It doesn't matter. There's only one, so it's not like I'm gonna get it anyway.

Klaus: But if you could... you wouldn't, would you? [She is silent but her face gives away her answer] You prefer who you are now to the girl you once were. You like being strong, ageless, fearless. [Klaus takes a step closer to her] We're the same, Caroline.

Caroline: Then show me. You know how much I love Tyler. You can see how scared I am to lose him. If you and I are so similar, then show me your compassion. Show him the mercy that I would show you.

Klaus: Mercy... for Tyler. Very well. Tell him to leave town immediately. [He starts walking away but turns back] And tell him to run and hide in a place I will never find him.

Caroline: Of course. [She turns and walks away, grabbing her jacket]

Klaus: Tell him that this is the mercy I extend for your sake... that I will give him a head start before I kill him.

[Caroline's face falls as she turns back to Klaus]

THE CAVE - UPPER CHAMBER

[Stefan finally manages to free Damon from the rope and Damon falls to the ground.]

Stefan: All right, come on. We have to catch up.

Damon: [breathlessly] No, it's okay. I just need a minute. I'm only gonna slow you down. Go. She only needs one of us.

Stefan: And what? You don't care to be that one anymore? You finally decided it was easier to just walk away?

Damon: There's only one dose of the cure, Stefan. She wants to take it, you want her to. I don't. Just do what makes her happy, Stefan.

Stefan: Things have changed. It's not that easy anymore.

Damon: [loudly] It is right now. Get your a** down the well. Help Elena get the damn thing. [Stefan still hesitates] Come on.

[Stefan finally decides and jumps down the well, while Damon sits and watches him go.]

THE CAVE - LOWER CHAMBER

[Elena is running through a passage, looking around for any sign of Jeremy or Bonnie. Suddenly she hears a rock fall in the distance and she looks around wildly.]

Elena: Stefan? [Her voice echoes. She hears another rock thud to the ground.] Hello? [echoes]

Woman: [an unseen voice] Elena. [echoes]

[She hears the whoosh sound of a vampire speed-running. She walks a few steps, then turns around and sees whoever said her name.]

Elena: [growling angrily] No.

[The person attacks her and the screen goes black.]

GILBERT HOUSE

[Caroline is sitting with Tyler on the porch swing.]

Caroline: How many times are we gonna have to say goodbye?

Tyler: At least this time we have a minute to do it the right way.

Caroline: [her face crumpling, she starts crying] There isn't a right way.

Tyler: This isn't goodbye. This is... until we find a way. We're immortal, remember? We will find a way.

Caroline: What if we don't? [Tyler doesn't respond] Tell me that you'll never think of me again. Tell me that you'll forget about me, tell me that you are gonna go on and live a full and happy life without me.

Tyler: [He looks at her sadly, his eyes glistening. When he speaks, he seems to mean the opposite of what he is saying.] I will live a happy life without you. I will forget all about you. And I will never, ever, think about you again.

[Caroline continues to cry when Tyler leans in and kisses her. They hold onto one another even after they break away.]

Caroline: Until we find a way. [Tyler nods and kisses her forehead. Caroline's face breaks in despair, and she gasps for breath as she lets go of him. He gets up and walks away, leaving Caroline on the swing.]

THE CAVE - LOWER CHAMBER

[Stefan finds Shane still lying on the ground.]

Shane: Hey, I don't suppose you'd want to share a little of that vampire blood.

Stefan: Where are Jeremy and Bonnie?

Shane: I have no idea.

Stefan: [grabbing Shane by the collar] Stop lying!

Shane: [gasping] I'm not lying... But if you help me, I will take you the rest of the way, I promise.

Stefan: [pushing Shane against the rock he's leaning up against] Did you know this whole time that there was only one cure?

Shane: [weakly] What? No. How could I? I've never seen it. [Stefan lets go of him and backs off] Look, everything I ever said and did was just to bring back my family, I swear.

Stefan: [nodding] Well, then you know what it's like to have hope, and now you know what it feels like to lose it. [He gets up and walks away.]

Shane: Come on. Come on!

[Whispering fills the cave and the apparition of his wife appears.]

Shane: Caitlin. I'm sorry, Caitlin. I failed you.

Caitlin: No. You didn't.

Shane: I'm sorry. I tried.

Caitlin: [crouching down next to him] Shh. You did everything I asked you to. Everything is going to be just fine.

[Cut to wide shot of Shane, alone in the cave.]

SILAS'S TOMB

[Bonnie and Jeremy approach a side chamber containing Silas's tomb. It is shaped like a human figure lying on a table, covered in vine-like decoration. Its hands are holding a small box on its chest.]

Jeremy: [seeing the small box] Is this it? This is the cure? How is that supposed to cure every vampire in the world?

Bonnie: I don't think it is, Jer.

[Jeremy starts trying to wrest the box out of the figure's hands.]

Jeremy: It's stuck. Help me move it.

[She joins him and they both pull as hard as they can.]

Bonnie: It's, like, fossilized in place. It's like trying to bend stone. [They give up. Bonnie realizes something.] Oh, my god.

Jeremy: What? [Bonnie backs away, looking at the entombed figure] What, Bonnie?

Bonnie: He's been frozen like a vampire statue for 2,000 years. There's only one way we're gonna get the statue to unfreeze.

Jeremy: How's that?

Bonnie: We have to feed him our blood. [Jeremy turns around to look at her] If we want to get the cure out of his hands, we... we have to wake him up.

THE CAVE - UPPER CHAMBER

[Damon has pulled himself over to Rebekah's body and is pulling the wooden spikes out of her. After the last one is out, she coughs and starts to wake up, groaning as she rolls onto her back.]

Rebekah: You're alive.

Damon: Yeah.

Rebekah: Why didn't you go with them?

Damon: Needed a siesta.

Rebekah: You gave up, didn't you?

Damon: [groaning as he tries to sit up] I didn't give up. I just realized... you can't control everything... no matter how hard you try. Let's just say I made peace with that fact.

Rebekah: [sitting up] Peace? You love Elena. You always will. If she becomes human, she may not feel the same way about you. You'll never know peace.

Damon: Life sucks. Get a helmet.

Rebekah: [smiling] You did something selfless, Damon. If I didn't know better, I'd say you were becoming a halfway decent person.

SILAS'S TOMB

[Jeremy violently strikes the tomb with a rock.]

Jeremy: Ah, come on!

Bonnie: There's got to be a way to do this without raising him. [Jeremy nods and continues to strike the tomb] We'll find a way--

[Bonnie is cut off short as Vaughn drives a knife into her back. She falls to the ground.]

Vaughn: Don't listen to the witch, boy. We have to raise Silas, and we have to do it now.

Jeremy: Bonnie! [He runs over to her. Vaughn heads towards the tomb and slices open his hand with a knife.] What are you doing?

Vaughn: What you shoulda done already. I'm gonna raise Silas... [he drips his blood into the figure's mouth] Then I'm gonna kill him.

[Jeremy attempts to attack Vaughn from behind but Vaughn throws him off easily. They engage in hand-to-hand combat. Vaughn gets Jeremy into a choke-hold.]

Vaughn: You're a bit confused, Mr. Gilbert. We're on the same team here.

[Jabbing Vaughn and breaking his hold on him, Jeremy manages to get a grip on Vaughn from behind.]

Jeremy: You stabbed my friend!

[They tussle a bit more and Vaughn throws Jeremy over his head.]

Vaughn: I don't mess around with witches.

Jeremy: [crouched on the ground] You can't use the cure on Silas.

Vaughn: It's what it's meant for!

[They combat hand-to-hand some more until Vaughn downs Jeremy, who falls to the ground groaning in pain.]

Vaughn: What else would you use it for? [He retrieves his knife from the ground and nods knowingly.] Your friends... Your sister... Sorry, lad. It wasnae meant for that. Nothing personal. [He bends down toward Jeremy but suddenly Elena swoops in and attacks Vaughn, about to go for his jugular.]

Jeremy: Don't! The hunter's curse!

[Elena pauses and instead throws Vaughn to the ground, apparently unconscious. She helps Jeremy up.]

Elena: You okay?

[Jeremy nods weakly.]

GILBERT HOUSE

[Caroline is still sitting on the porch swing. The front door opens and Klaus comes outside; the spell keeping him inside has worn off.]

Caroline: How did you get out?

Klaus: I fear something awful has befallen your friend Bonnie. [He starts to approach her and Caroline tenses reflexively.] Don't worry, love. You know I'd never hurt you.

Caroline: You've done enough.

Klaus: I've done more than enough. I've shown kindness, forgiveness, pity... because of you, Caroline. It was all for you.

[Caroline says nothing. They stare at each other for a moment, then Klaus nods his head and leaves.]

THE CAVE - LOWER CHAMBER

[Stefan is walking through the passage, flashlight aloft. He finds a wall glistening with blood, then sees Elena sitting against a wall, her head bloodied up.]

Stefan: Elena. What happened?

Elena: [whimpering] She's here!

Stefan: Who?

SILAS'S TOMB

[Katherine, who Jeremy thinks is Elena, gazes at Silas's tomb before turning round to look at Jeremy, crouching over Bonnie.]

Jeremy: Elena's here now, okay? Everything's gonna be all right.

Bonnie: [weakly] We did it.

Katherine: Come on. We gotta get you up.

Jeremy: [standing] You have to help Bonnie. The hunter stabbed her. You have to feed her.

Katherine: Okay. I just need to make sure that you're okay first.

Jeremy: I'm fine. What are you doing?

Katherine: [gesturing at the tomb behind her] The cure. Jeremy, after everything we've been through, it's right there.

Jeremy: It'll be there after we help Bonnie. [He crouches down to Bonnie again.]

Katherine: God, I forgot what a brat you were.

Jeremy: [looking back up at her] What?

Katherine: I'm done playing nice.

[She grabs Jeremy and vamp-speeds him over to the tomb, slices open his wrist and holds it over the stone figure's mouth.]

Jeremy: Katherine.

Katherine: It's been too long, little Gilbert. [The figure starts to move.] Sorry. Family reunion is gonna have to be cut short.

[She pulls him up again and sinks her fangs into his neck, then forces a screaming Jeremy down again, his bleeding neck over the figure's mouth. The figure's arm swings up and holds Jeremy in place. Katherine sees the box containing the cure, freed from the figure's grasp, and takes it, vamp-running out of the chamber. The figure grabs Jeremy throat, strangling him before it snaps his neck. He falls to the floor, apparently dead. Bonnie lies nearby, unable to move.]