"i told you to stay away from me. what are you doing here?" caroline asked him.
"i made a mistake. i'm here to convince you to marry me. nah. honestly, i'm just here because, when you killed me last night, cade and i had a little chat, and it turns out hell needs more souls then i've been providing. and it's time for damon to do his part. just wake damon up so he can earn his keep, and we're good." stefan said as he poured himself a drink.
"we are trying." caroline told him.
"more like failing. you do know what he's doing, right? damon's humanity is on, which means that he's all emo and afraid of owning up to what he did when it was off. when we were kids, he used to hide out every time we did something wrong, until i'd find him and tell him everything was gonna be okay. so, all you need to do is find out where he's hiding in there, and do the exact same thing. by the way, why are you helping them?" stefan asked sybil.
"i need the maxwell bell before my sister uses it against me. so i'm willing to play ball with whoever can deliver it." sybil told him.
"well, i'll see what i can do. in the meantime, fix this." stefan said before leaving.
"all right, you heard the man." sybil said before the girls went back in his subconscious.
when they got back in there, they opened their eyes and they were in the grill.
"well, he's not at his favorite bar stool drinking imaginary bourbon to wash his guilt away, so now what?" caroline asked.
"damon's in here, all right. if this is his subconscious, that means he's responsible for everything that happens, including..." bonnie said as she grabbed a news paper.
"this animal attack. all we have to do is follow the clues, and they should lead us right to him." bonnie explained.
"at which point we do what? just blindly forgive him for all the hideous things he's done to us over the years?" caroline asked.
"i forgave him before. i could do it again." bonnie said.
"say that once more, with feeling." caroline said.
"yeah, bonnie." may egged on.
they were interrupted when they saw vicki donovan walking up to them.
"hey, guys." vicki said.
"vicki donovan?" caroline said in a confused tone.
"yeah, caroline forbes. last time i checked, that's my name. are you guys here for lunch? follow me." vicki said.
may noticed that vicki had a bandage on her neck.
"that's... creepy." bonnie said.
"but on the bright side, damon bit vicki in that exact spot, you remember?" caroline asked her.
"uh huh." bonnie said as may nodded.
"follow the clues." caroline said.
before may could follow the girls to the table, she saw lexi was over by the pool table. she was in the same outfit she wore when damon killed her.
"lexi." may said as she felt teary eyed.
"go talk to her." caroline told her.
"no, we're on a mission, and besides... she's not real." may said in a sad tone.
"maybe not, but if i were you, i'd still have some things to say." bonnie told her as may smiled at them.
she went over to the pool table to go talk to lexi, she was just as beautiful as she remembered.
lexi looked up at her and she smiled, she was happy that even in damon's mind, she still recognized her.
"may! i've been wondering when you'd show up. let's get a drink." lexi said as she grabbed her hand and the two of them went to the bar.
"lexi, you have no idea how good it is to see you." may replied as lexi hugged her.
"it's good to see you too, you look like you have something on your mind." lexi said as they sat down, pouring drinks for the two of them.
"uh, i'm looking for someone... damon salvatore, you seen him?" may asked her.
may could tell by the look on lexi's face that she had no idea who she was talking about.
"i actually have no idea who damon is, is he related to stefan?" lexi asked her.
"he's stefan's brother. and i know this makes no sense to you, but i need to find him." may explained.
"may, stefan doesn't have a brother, i think i would know." lexi replied as may let out a sigh.
"look, damon killed you, lexi. you and i went to mystic falls for stefan's birthday and damon staked you. it was one of the worst things i've ever gone through... because i loved you." may said as lexi placed a hand on top of hers.
"i love you, may, but what are you talking about?" lexi asked with a chuckle.
"i loved you, lexi. more than just a friend." may said before she felt the moment fading away from her.
when may's eyes finally opened the mumbled out lexi's name. she saw she was back in the living room with caroline, bonnie and sybil.
"may, what happened?" caroline asked her.
may wiped some blood away from her nose and she saw bonnie was still in damon's head.
"i don't know, i couldn't find him." may said.
they now had to wait to see if bonnie could find him. after 20 minutes, bonnie finally came back and she opened her eyes.
"bonnie." may said looking at her.
"hey, you okay?" caroline asked her.
"you need to get stefan back here." bonnie told them.
"stefan?" may asked.
"why?" caroline asked her.
"because in damon's mind, he lived and died as a human being. he never became a vampire. it's the only way he can imagine keeping the people that he loves safe." bonnie explained to them.
"so what?" sybil asked her.
"so our forgiveness isn't what matters. damon needs to talk to stefan." bonnie said again.
-
they finally got stefan to come over and when he walked in the door, they were relieved he showed up.
"just so we're clear, you calling me isn't why i'm here. i'm on a tight schedule, so please, no talking." stefan told them.
"any luck with that bell?" sybil asked him.
"work in progress. any luck with my brother?" stefan asked her.
"work in progress." she repeated back.
stefan walked over to damon, snapping his fingers in his face.
"this is some kind of trick." stefan said.
"don't worry. all you're gonna find in there is the truth." bonnie told him.
stefan closed his eyes, going into stefan's subconscious. now they waited to see if he would be able to bring damon back.
