Is Esther for Real? When Is Tyler Returning? Vampire Diaries Burning Questions Answered

Executive producer Julie Plec answers some burning questions.

Will Esther really eradicate her family?

She's planning to, that's for certain, but Plec says, "The fact that this isn't a done deal by minute 42 of the episode leaves a lot of potential for how it could all go very right or very wrong in the next episode. " But one thing Plec can say for sure? "Everyone drank [the champagne with Elena's blood]. I can put that to bed now. "

What will be the fallout from Elena finding out about Damon and Rebekah?

Word travels fast in Mystic Falls and Damon and Rebekah's tryst is no exception. "Elena is going to be pissed on multiple levels," Plec says. "The thing with Damon we've seen is that when he's hurt, he lashes out. In a way, this is both the most cruel way he could've lashed out, but also shows a peculiar evolution in him as a character because rather than take it out on an innocent human in the middle of the road, he's striking where it hurts the most [and] very specifically at Elena."

How will Caroline cope with her new situation?

The Caroline of Season 1 was desperate for affection, but the current Caroline may be tempted, but not giving into Klaus' passes. "The king of all evil vampires has plucked her from obscurity and said, 'I bestow upon you my affection and my gifts and my flirtation,' and our girl who has come so far is like, 'Talk to the hand, buddy.' So to see her take that stance against him and in defense of Tyler is a really big deal for her," Plec says.

When will Tyler be back?

Not until spring episodes, unfortunately. But when our favorite hybrid returns, expect his old anger issues to resurface. "There's nothing worse than going away and putting yourself through endless and eternal agony to break a bond to some guy and then when you come back to town you realize he's been putting the moves on your girl. I can't imagine that's going to go over well."

What are the Bennetts up to?

Bonnie and Abby were absent this week, but are very important come next episode, which takes place during a full moon. "We'll learn that like most of the heavy-duty witch spells, there needs to be some sort of recurring celestial event to attach to it," Plec says. "They are going to find themselves enlisted by Esther to help in this spell that would help eliminate Klaus. It's coming back to the bloodline that originated with Ayanna, and now Bonnie and her mom are the keys to being able to see it all the way through."

Elena and ... Elijah?

Since the introduction of Elijah, he and Elena have had an unexplainable connection and understanding for each other. Plec says it came completely by surprise. "When we decided there needed to be a big bad evil vampire in the middle of last season that paved the way for the introduction of Klaus, never in a million years would we have said that one day he'll have this magnificent and lovely friendship with Elena. And yet, that has evolved over the course of a season and a half. Next week is very much rooted in the foundation of this compassion that Elena has for Elijah and her concern in that maybe signing his death sentence she's made a mistake."

But wait, the series isn't ignoring Matt, right?

This week's episode demonstrated that despite a lack of prominent story line, Matt can easily get caught up in the battles (and be in grave danger) because of his friendships. "Screen time be damned, I think he is one of the most important characters on the show in what he represents: that guy just trying to get through life, maybe trying to get out of this town one day and have a normal life free of vampires and ghosts and supernatural."