"Pilot" Vampire Diaries Episode Guide From The TV MegaSite

Vampire Diaries Episode Guides Pages

"Pilot"

Detailed summary by Katya!

OAD: September 10, 2009

Teleplay by: Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec

Directed by: Marcos Siega

Fog and mist swirl around trees and ruins on a dark night. A young man's voice over says that he has lived in secret for over a century, alone, until now, and that he is a vampire and that this is his story.

A young couple drive down a dark and deserted highway. A man's shadowy figure appears out of nowhere in the road in front of them and the car hits him, then spins around. Terrified, the driver tells his girlfriend to call for help and then gets out of the car to check on the victim, who is lying in the middle of the road. He sees that the man is wearing a large antique ring.

The victim leaps up and bites the driver. The girlfriend gets out of the car, saying that there is no signal for her cell phone. Her boyfriend and the victim are nowhere to be seen. Then, suddenly, her boyfriend's body drops on the hood of the car and she sees that his neck has been ripped open. Horrified, she runs away, only to be snatched up by the predator who has targeted them.

The next morning, at dawn, the vampire who is telling his story, Stefan Salvatore, says that he knows he shouldn't have come home and that he knows the risks, but that he had no choice... he has to know her. Meanwhile, the girl that he is talking about, Elena Gilbert, writes in her diary that today will be different and that she will no longer be the sad girl who lost her parents in a car accident a few months ago. She goes downstairs, where her aunt, Jenna, wants to make breakfast for the first day of school, but is unprepared to take care of Elena and her younger brother, Jeremy. Elena, worried about Jeremy, asks him if he is okay, and he tells her not to start. Elena drinks her coffee, not seeing the report on the TV morning news about the young couple who were attacked the night before.

Elena rides to school with her girlfriend, Bonnie. Bonnie says that her grandmother told her that she has psychic powers and that their family came from Salem, Massachusetts. Bonnie says that she doesn't believe any of that, while Elena is distracted as they drive past a cemetery. Something hits the windshield of the car and Bonnie swerves and stops, saying that it was a bird or something and asks Elena if she is okay. Elena says that she is fine and that she can't be freaked out by cars. Elena challenges Bonnie to predict something, if she really is psychic. Bonnie predicts that the dark and sad times are over and that it will be a great year for them. As they drive away, a large black crow sits on top of a street sign for their town of Mystic Falls.

At the high school, Elena and Bonnie see Matt at his locker and he still seems mad at Elena for breaking up with him. Their exuberant friend, Caroline, hugs Elena and asks how she is. Elena assures her that she is fine. Meanwhile, Jeremy gives pills to Matt's sister, Vicki, just before her boyfriend, Tyler, arrives and gives Jeremy a hard time.

Elena and Bonnie see Stefan in the school office, registering for classes. The registrar says that he does not have the proper transcripts, but Stefan looks into her eyes and compels her to change her mind and she agrees with him that she has everything she needs. Elena sees Jeremy going into the boy's bathroom and follows him, where she confronts him about his drug use. He leaves, angry.

When Stefan leaves the school office, Bonnie and Caroline can't help staring at him because he is so cute. Stefan goes toward the bathroom, where he runs into Elena as she comes out. Their first meeting is awkward until he steps aside to let her go past. Later, in history class, Matt sees Elena glance shyly at Stefan and smile. Bonnie sends a text to Elena that Stefan is staring at her.

After school, Elena walks to be Mystic Falls Cemetery, where she writes in her diary about making it through her first day back at school after her parents' death. The black crow re-appears and lands on top of her parents' tombstone, just as a sudden fog begins to drift all around her. Elena shoos the crow away but she becomes frightened and runs. She falls and, when she gets up, she finds herself face-to-face with Stefan.

Suspicious at first about why Stefan is at the cemetery, Elena asks if he is following her. He says that he is visiting because he has family buried there. They introduce themselves and Elena notices Stefan's family ring, which is just like the one of the vampire that attacked the young couple. Then Stefan, sensing bloodf, asks her if she hurt herself when she fell. She turns up the leg of her jeans and sees that she has cut herself. Stefan turns away, and his eyes turn red. When Elena looks back, Stefan has disappeared. That night, in his room, Stefan writes in his journal that he lost control that day and "vamped out" because he cannot resist Elena.

Meanwhile, at the Mystic Grill restaurant, Jeremy asks Vicki why she is ignoring him now after they hooked up over the summer. Vicki tells him to leave her alone or he could ruin her chances with Tyler. Caroline tells Bonnie about Stefan and that she found out that he lives with his uncle at the Salvatore Boarding House.

Elena is leaving her house to meet Bonnie when she is surprised by Stefan at her front door. He returns her diary that she dropped in the cemetery and apologizes for disappearing earlier. Elena says that he doesn't have to wait on the porch but, as a vampire, he can't come into her house without a clear invitation. She invites him to come with her to the Grill.

At the Grill, Matt asks Bonnie how Elena is doing and Bonnie says that she needs more time. At that moment, Elena walks in with Stefan, and Matt sees that she has moved on. Caroline, Bonnie, Elena and Stefan talk and Stefan says that he is living with his uncle because his parents passed away. Elena feels a connection with him because of that and asks if he has any siblings. Stefan says none that he talks to. Caroline mentions a party the next night at the Falls. Later, Stefan is confronted by his "uncle," Zack, who is really a descendent of his, and who is angry about the couple that was killed the night before. Confused, Stefan claims that he had nothing to do with it but Zack says that it was a mistake for Stefan to come back to Mystic Falls, because it will only stir things up again and that there are people there who remember things that have happened before. Stefan takes out a picture dated 1864 of Katherine, a woman who looks just like Elena.

The next day, in history class, Stefan corrects the teacher about a Civil War battle, showing that he knows more about the history of Mystic Falls than anyone. That night, Stefan and Elena meet at the party at the Falls, where she tells him about her parents' death and he promises her that she won't be sad forever. Vicki is attacked by a creature in the woods. Jeremy and Elena find her later and carry her back to the party for help, while Stefan watches, horrified. He runs back home, where he finds his brother, Damon, who is also a vampire.

Stefan asks Damon why he is in Mystic Falls and why did he kill that couple? He also says that Damon left Vicki alive after he attacked her and Damon says that that could be a problem for Stefan. Damon says that he knows why Stefan has come home and that Elena is a dead ringer for Katherine. Damon and Stefan fight when Damon says they should attack Elena. Damon win the fight easily because Stefan no longer drinks human blood and is not as strong as Damon. Stefan loses his ring and Damon returns it, saying that if he doesn't have it, he will burn in the sunlight. Damon tells Stefan that he promised to make Stefan's life miserable and he is there to keep that promise.

Paramedics take Vicki to the hospital while Elena tells Jeremy to stop drinking because there are police nearby. She tells him that no one cares anymore that their parents died. At the Grill, Caroline tells Bonnie that she can never get the guys that she wants and that they always choose Elena. Bonnie tells her that it is not a competition but Caroline says that it is.

Matt sits at Vicki's hospital bedside. She wakes up and can only manage to say the word, "vampire."

Elena writes in her diary that she was wrong in thinking that she could pretend everything was okay, while Stefan looks at the picture of Katherine, thinking that he only wanted to make a new life for himself with someone who was alive. Jenna worries about Jeremy, while Caroline, at the Grill, sees Damon for the first time and smiles at him.

Stefan comes to Elena's door to ask if she is okay and she invites him inside the house so they can talk.