Plus, which brother — or should I say brother(s) — did Elena find herself in bed with?

Our girl Elena (Nina Dobrev) is going through some changes, and I’m not talking about the birds and the bees — unless those birds and bees happen to come installed with off-the-wall emotions and an unquenchable thirst for blood. The Oct. 25 episode of The Vampire Diaries found Elena struggling to control her urges, while simultaneously deciding whether Stefan (Paul Wesley) or Damon (Ian Somerhalder) is the key to her salvation. And isn’t that what it always comes down to?

But things really got interesting when Elena hit the sheets. Just as she and Stefan were ready to fang out and bang out, she began hallucinating — and I’ll give you one guess who she imaged she was really having sex with! Even though Elena’s visions were a result of the werewolf venom she didn’t know she ingested, one’s hallucinations are always telling of their true feelings. (Anyone remember Rose and her horses? I rest my case.)

Damon and Elena had a second encounter, this time for real, when she lost control at the end of the episode while feeding on Matt (Zach Roerig). If Damon hadn’t stepped in and stopped her, she might have drained Matt completely, thus destroying my faith in love and unicorns and happiness. (Seriously, if Matt ever dies, I’m going with him. No questions.)

Matt & Rebekah — A Ship Is Born:

While Rebekah (Claire Holt) was her usual bitchy self to Elena — she managed to mock Alaric’s death and tempt Elena with a bleeding student in a matter of five minutes — she was nothing but sunshine and rainbow-farts during her scenes with Matt.

“I never wanted to hurt you,” she told him. (Rebekah with emotions? I’m sorry, when did this become Opposite Day?) Sadly, Matt didn’t exactly return her affections; When Connor pressured Matt to tell him which of his friends has been nomming on his arm, he threw Rebekah right under the bus.

But that didn’t get Matt off Rebekah’s mind, as she later hallucinated that he visited her during her party. It was one of those fun visions that began with him telling her what a miserable sack of crap she is, then ended with her ripping his heart out.

Whatever, I’m still shipping them. Hard.

Jeremy Gilbert & The Huntsman:

I figured Connor would eventually coax Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen) over to the dark side — but I had no idea it was going to happen this soon! Taking the young Gilbert under his proverbial wing, Connor took him to the hospital to hunt some vampires, but the bald baddie got way more than he bargained for when he was suddenly ambushed by Damon and Klaus (Joseph Morgan).

Though they were able to keep him at bay for a few minutes, Damon and Klaus were stunned to learn that Connor is one of “The Five” (whatever the fudge that is), and he managed to escape. Even stranger, Klaus paid Connor a visit at the end of the episode to let him know he’ll be protecting him!

Going back to Jeremy for a minute, I may have spoken too soon. Once all the dust settled — and I mean that literally, since they decided to blow up the hospital — Elena’s little bro revealed he’d only been working “with” Connor to help Damon and Klaus trap him. (Adorable AND clever? I forgot how much I love Jeremy.)

Tyler’s Love Triangle… Becomes A Square:

This week’s episode also featured the highly anticipated arrival of Tyler’s (Michael Trevino) new werewolf BFF Hayley, played to perfection by The Secret Circle‘s Phoebe Tonkin. Was it just a coincidence that The Lumineers‘ “Ho Hey” was playing in the background during their first scene? Those lyrics (“I belong with you / You belong with me”) can’t be a good sign for Caroline (Candice Accola)!

As I suspected, it was no coincidence. Through much charming British exposition — thanks Klaus! — we learned that things got pretty hot and heavy between Tyler and Hayley when they were together in the Appalachian Mountains. And as expected, Klaus made it clear he doesn’t mind using that information to his advantage.

Let the games begin!

And speaking of games, let’s see how Teams Stelena and Delena fared in this week’s competition:

It was pretty cute the way Stefan escorted Elena to Rebekah’s party. (+5 points) x Then came Elena and Stefan’s sexy little motorcycle ride. I’m not sure why they needed helmets, but whatever. (+15 points) xx  And then the hot vamp-on-vamp sex begins… (+40 points) ss TOTAL: 60 points		“Yours is better than Stefan’s.” Even out of context, you knew what she was talking about. (+10 points) x Elena totally glanced down at Damon’s peeper while he was undressing in front of her. You all saw it. (+5 points)x x Who else gasped when Elena suddenly imagined she was having sex with Damon? Oh, everyone? (+40 points) xx “Part of you knows you’re a lot more like me than you are like him.” Preach, Damon! (+10 points) x “I’m going to teach you.” And touch your hair, apparently! (+10 points) x TOTAL: 75 points

x

This week’s race was close, but I’m going to have to give it to Team Delena — and judging by the promos for next week’s episode, I have a feeling Delena fans are already preparing another victory party.

What did you think of this week’s episode? Are you loving Elena as a vampire as much as I am? Do you ship Matt and Rebekah? How do you hope Tyler’s situation with Hayley plays out? Drop me a comment with your thoughts and theories!

— Andy Swift

Follow @AndySwift

More Vampire Diaries season 4:

1. ‘Vampire Diaries’ Video: Damon & Stefan’s New Fight Over Elena
2. ‘Vampire Diaries’ Pics: Damon & Elena Bond At A Halloween Party
3. ‘Vampire Diaries’ Breakup: Which Couple Is Calling It Quits In Season 4?