THE VAMPIRE DIARIES: Heart of Darkness

After a break that seemed like forever, The Vampires Diaries is back and brought Tyler back too! We also got a dose of Klaus, Jeremy, Stefan and a sexy bare-chested Damon!  Hotties Galore!  As always this episode was packed with yummy goodness so let’s get this party started.

Alaric is in the cellar waiting for his alter ego evil Alaric to show up (to find out where evil Alaric hid the stake that can kill an original). Elena brings him some essentials and books to keep him occupied while he is locked down there. Stefan stays to babysit Alaric while Damon and Elena are off to Denver to pick up Jeremy (now that Klaus knows where he is, it isn’t safe for him). Stefan wanted Elena to go with Damon on the road trip because he believes that she has unresolved feelings for him (ya think?).

It’s time for the decade dance at school and Rebekah has it set up for the roaring 20’s. The only problem is Caroline, the chair of the dance committee, wanted it to be a 70’s dance. Caroline asked Matt for his opinion and he agreed with Rebecca that the roaring 20’s theme seemed cooler. Caroline stormed off and Matt chased after her. We find out it was all part of her plan to keep Rebekah busy (nice job playing it off Caroline and Matt).

Damon and Elena find Jeremy playing baseball. They tell him how they need to find out who sired Rose. They want him to talk to Rose since he has the ability to communicate with ghosts. Kol, disguised as Jeremy’s friend, shows up and whacks Damon with a baseball bat. Damon picks up a piece of the broken bat and stakes Kol (which is only temporary since he is an original).

Elena, Damon and Jeremy go to a motel to hide from Kol and try to contact Rose. Before they start Damon shuts the shades and says to Jeremy “alright Whoopi what do you need… candles, incense, pottery wheel?” (Damon is seriously hilarious) Damon talks of Rose not fearing death and she appears on the bed. They find out that Rose was not sired by Klaus or an original, but by someone named Mary Porter (who Damon refers to as scary Mary). Rose doesn’t know where Mary is, but she plans to find out.

Caroline is in the woods and sees Tyler (welcome back Tyler, we have missed you)! They start making out and end up in a cave (now that is what I call a homecoming)! Matt gives Rebekah a ride home from school, and she finds Esther, her mother, when she walks in. In vampire speed Rebekah has her hand around her neck asking her why she shouldn’t kill her (this homecoming…not as much fun). Esther tells her that she is dying. She explains that when Abby died her bond with the Bennett family was broken and so was the spell preserving her body. She grabs Rebekah’s hands and apologizes before falling to the floor dead.

Stefan and Alaric are talking when Klaus comes in. He is impatient and wants to find out where the last stake that can kill an original is. Stefan tells him they are waiting for Alaric to pass out and evil Alaric to make an appearance.  Klaus doesn’t want to wait, so he knocks Alaric out for good. Thank goodness he had on his ring.

After their romp in the cave, Caroline catches Tyler up on everything. She told him that when an original dies, so does every vampire they ever turned. She warned him that if they find out Klaus is not in their bloodline, they will kill him, which means Tyler will die too since Klaus turned him. Yowza!

At the motel, Damon and Elena have a staring contest until Damon gets into bed with her. She asked him why he doesn’t let people see the good in him and he replied “when people see good, they expect good.”  The sexual tension between them grows and Elena can’t handle the heat so she steps outside. Damon follows her; she tries to fight it but can’t. They finally kissed and started making out! It was super hot until Jeremy interrupted them (boo…hiss) and told them that Rose found Mary Porter. So they are off to Kansas to find her.

Alaric wakes up and is still nice Alaric. He is sick of waiting for evil Alaric to come out so he takes off his ring. He wants Stefan to try to kill him with the hopes that evil Alaric will show up to put up a fight.  Stefan punches him in the face. Alaric isn’t impressed and wants him to use more force, so Stefan punches him again and he starts bleeding. Stefan really wants to back down now but Alaric won’t let him. He throws Alaric against the wall and voila! Evil Alaric shows up to the party. Stefan asked him where the stake is but he won’t say. Stefan starts punching him and threatens to kill him when evil Alaric finally admits that the stake is in the cave, where no vampire can get it. Mission accomplished.

Damon and Elena get to scary Mary’s house only to find her staked to the wall and Kol standing there with an evil grin. He knows all about their plan to find out what original their bloodline stems from and teases that it could have been him, Rebekah, Elijah or Klaus. He starts beating Damon with a baseball bat to get “even.” Kol left and Damon asked Elena what her deal was with kissing him. She tells him Stefan’s theory of her having feelings for him. He asked her if she did and she said she didn’t know (c’mon Elena, you know you want him). Well she better make up her mind because Damon isn’t going to make it easier for her by lashing out.

Tyler is at Caroline’s to spend the night (on the couch of course). He finds the drawing Klaus did for her and was not happy about it. He questioned her about it and she said it was nothing, but he couldn’t understand why she kept it from him, so he left upset.

Rebekah escorts Alaric to the cave to get the stake. He grabs the stake and tries to make a deal with her. If she helps him, he will see to it that the original killed with the stake is not her. Rebekah takes a step closer to Alaric (where vampires cannot enter) and says “Well I don’t want one original to die, I want them all to die!” Alaric asks her how she was able to enter and realizes she is not Rebekah. She says “My name is Esther and we have a great deal in common!” GASP! I did not see that coming!

So what do you think about this episode? What is going to happen with Esther and the Originals? Do you think Damon and Stefan stem from Klaus’ bloodline? Do you think Tyler and Caroline will work it out? Let me know your thoughts in the comment section below. I can’t wait for next week!

The Vampire Diaries airs on Thursday nights at 8/7c on the CW.