Relationship Recap: The Battle for Stefan on The Vampire Diaries 

Everyone wants a piece of Stefan in “Disturbing Behavior.” I mean, I feel like a battle royale is going down for Stefan’s affections. Even though he told Elena he doesn’t want to be with her, she can’t help but think about him. It took the necklace burning her for Elena to take it off. Rebekah knows Stefan’s history with Elena and she wants him back. She’s still in love with him but her priority – for now – is to remain loyal to Klaus and she knows Stefan’s hiding something. Klaus wants things to go back to the way they were the last time he and Stefan were in Chicago together: he wants them to be like brothers. And even though Stefan is trying his best to act like he’s now with Stefan willingly, he isn’t doing the best job of convincing anyone of that. And then there’s Katherine. You have to admire that she’s always looking out for number one. She wants in on Stefan’s plan to find the vampire hunter but Stefan doesn’t want her as a partner. Even the witch wants to be in Stefan’s good graces – until she’s not – to learn what piece of valuable information he’s trying to hide from Klaus. And then there’s Damon. Let’s break it down.

Stefan and Elena. The witch was able to work her voodoo and get a lot of information about Elena from an unwilling Stefan. Even though we’ve seen him banish Elena from his life, we still know how he feels about her. But we also know how long it’ll take Stefan to forgive himself for what he’s done. Stefan doesn’t feel like he deserves Elena but he’ll do everything he can to protect her. So even though she doesn’t know it, Elena still has a very powerful hold over him.

Stefan and Rebekah. They used to be young(er) and in love back in the day. Nick was surprised when Rebekah fell in love with Stefan all those years ago and even more surprised when she tried to pick Stefan over him. Now that she’s awake again, Rebekah wants Stefan back. But the one advantage she’ll always have over everyone else when it comes to Stefan is that she can tell when he’s lying. And it gets him into a world of trouble.

Stefan and Katherine. I have to admit I wasn’t that excited to see Katherine in last week’s episode, but I’m warming up to her brand of mischief. I like that she’s got Stefan’s back because God knows he needed it in this episode. I also love that she wants to be part of any plan that’ll take Klaus down. She gets Stefan to trust her enough to tell her that Klaus is afraid of a vampire hunter, which is strange considering he can’t die. Katherine knows what she needs to do next and she goes to Mystic Falls for that necklace and an accomplice.

Stefan and Gloria. That necklace belonged to the original witch (I can’t wait to find out who that is) and it has it’s own magic, which Bonnie discovers. Not only does Gloria want it, but she’s not above torturing Stefan to get it. Too bad she doesn’t know Katherine’s got Stefan’s back, whether or not he wants her to.

Stefan and Klaus. I have to admit Klaus is really growing on me. I see how much he longs to be around his family, and on some level he thinks he’s found a long lost brother in Stefan. He admires that Stefan is so selfless when it comes to those he loves. But Klaus has been blinded by his own hopes for a renewed camaraderie with Stefan and it’s clouded his judgment. He wasn’t able to see Stefan was hiding something from him  and flew into a rage. Now he’s got Stefan back in Mystic Falls to find out, once and for all what Stefan is trying so hard to hide. I’m scared about what he’ll do but I can’t wait to find out.

Stefan and Damon. This is the longest and most important relationship of Stefan’s life. They’ve been through it all together – and apart – but at the end of the day they’re blood. Nothing will break this bond, even though Stefan is trying damn hard. Even though Damon protests that he’s not Stefan, I’m not sure there’s not a moment that goes by when he’s not thinking about him. Even though he’d never admit it, Damon jumped at the chance to be Katherine’s partner in crime to help save his brother. For me, that makes it truly hard to hate him.

Who do you think will ultimately win the battle for Stefan? Who do you want to see win?

The Vampire Diaries airs Thursdays at 8/7 c.