Recapper: Not now, you two. This is serious business! Scram.

So yeah, they pay homage to Buffy and Angel (and Darla and Liam) and blah blee bloo. Stefan closes his eyes but for a second, and when he opens them, Elena and Satan Klaus are gone. He stands there forlorn and helpless. And I can't help but think of something Veronica Mars once said about Duncan Kane. I can't remember if I've used it in a recap before so I'm declaring it fair game, this time. "You stand idly by." I mean, Stefan, what the hell? I know you respect her, but why didn't you try to keep her from him, or argue with her more? Ugh. Don't make me go 100% Team Damon. I like being Bi-Bro. It's a thing. I respect your respect, but it's frustrating the hell out of me. Do something, damn it.

Ooh, I think he hears me. By the time he's inside, he's raring to go. He finds Alaric and calls Damon, revealing Klaus took Elena. And okay, maybe this is my frustration with Stefan in this storyline. Whether he'll ever admit it to himself or not, Damon was totally right when he told Stefan that by force-feeding blood, he did what Stefan only wishes he had the cojones to do. Because look at Stefan's eyes when he's on the phone with big bro, y'all. They are desperate. He is calling Damon because he knows that Damon will save Elena despite the fact she doesn't want to be saved. So while he pays a whole lot of lip service to respecting her choices, it's almost two-faced, because all he has to do is let Damon know what's going on, and then sit back and be all -- well, I respected your choices, but Damon, you know him? He's incorrigible. I don't mean that as harsh as it sounds. When I take myself out of the story I like this touch. I like that he's conflicted. I like that Stefan wants to abide by Elena's wishes. And I like that part of the reason he can do it is because he knows he can count on Damon to interfere, regardless of what Elena wants. Do you read me? Stefan fans, am I being too hard on the boy? Anyhow, Damon's already "saving the day" as he puts it, so he tells Stefan he'll take care of it.