The Vampire Diaries Preview: Flashbacks, New Orleans and the Return of Lexi

Elena and Damon grew closer in this week's episode of The Vampire Diaries, although Damon seemed rather preoccupied with shady Professor Shane than Elena's attraction to him in the beginning.  He did reveal to the professor that he was a vampire and Shane told him that even if he found the location of the cure, it was locked away with a spell that could only be undone by Bonnie.  We also got a little surprise at the end when it was revealed that Hayley is in cahoots with Professor Shane.  And Caroline put forward the theory that Elena is sired to Damon, which is giving him unknown control over her.

Meanwhile, Jeremy continued to be affected by his new hunter's mark, particularly after Stefan forced him to kill a vampire in an attempt to reveal more of the map.  This drive to kill vampires even led him to attack Elena, prompting him to move out of the house since he was a threat to his sister now.

In next week's episode, we're flashing back to 1940s New Orleans when the Salvatore brothers head to the modern day city in the hopes that someone will remember their last visit there.  Back home in Mystic Falls, Elena, Caroline and Bonnie have a girls' night in, but some bad news from Elena puts a damper on the evening.

Watch a preview below for the December 6th episode of The Vampire Diaries.  Browse through photos for the episode here.

Keep an eye on our Vampire Diaries page for spoilers, photos, review, sneak peeks and more.