When Julie Plec first revealed that Nina Dobrev would be guest-starring on The Originals as part of the highly anticipated Vampire Diaries and Originals crossover, I'm not gonna lie… I was pretty disappointed. Not only did it sufficiently nix our entire Klaroline reunion theory, but it also brought back the one story arc we thought we were done with for good: doppelgängers. That's right — Dobrev will play the original doppelgänger Tatia, who many diehard TVD fans may recall hearing whispers about during a certain dinner between the Salvatore and Mikaelson brothers way back in TVD Season 3. (Though if you found yourself too distracted from seeing so much attractiveness at one dinner table and therefore couldn't possibly sum up the brain power to process the actual conversation, that's totally understandable.)
Granted, there isn't too much we know about this Tatia character yet — though Monday night's "Red Door" episode of The Originals is guaranteed to shed some light on the situation. But in the meantime, it never hurts to take a step back and examine everything that we know do about her already. Because knowing Plec as we do, this storyline is bound to be more complicated than we think — giving ourselves a little refresher certainly won't hurt matters. And while this may not be the crossover that we wanted or expected, that doesn't mean we can't still find it intriguing despite ourselves. And here's why:
Tatia's Part of the Original Love Triangle
Given the fact that she's the very first doppelgänger and the originator of the Petrova line, it should come as no surprise that Tatia is also the source of a brother-centric love triangle. But instead of Stefan and Damon vying for Elena's attention, fans will see Klaus and Elijah attempting to woo Miss Tatia. Clearly, this is going to reopen some painful family wounds, wouldn't you say?
Her Presence Will Be Via Flashback Only
Just on the off chance the hair and clothing styles didn't give it away, Tatia's presence will be due to Esther, who forces Elijah to relive a particularly painful time in his life when Tatia was still around. You know, right before Esther killed her as a way to not only end the growing feud between her sons, but also to complete the spell that would prevent Klaus from becoming a hybrid. (Now that's what I call a bad break up, amirate?)
Klaus & Elijah Will Be Human
Unlike the whole Damon-Elena-Stefan romance, Tatia's interaction with the Mikaelson brothers will take place while they're still human, which, I'll admit, will be very interesting to see. So much of Klaus and Elijah's background is centered around their phenomenal supernatural powers, so it'll be nice to see more of what their adult versions of their human selves used to be like, especially while in love. (I'm betting Elijah charmed Tatia with poetry while Klaus wowed her with a little dancing.)
Tatia Has a Child
Elijah explained to Damon and Stefan in TVD's third season that Tatia had a child with another man before becoming involved with them. However, he never specified who this other guy was. Now, perhaps this little detail about her life won't surmount to anything important. OR it's the beginning of a very big plot twist. Otherwise, why go to the trouble of having Elijah mention the child at all?
I've already gone ahead and made the crazy prediction that Mikael was Tatia's former lover and therefore was the father of her child. Granted, I have absolutely no proof to back it up, but it does sound like something Plec would be more than capable of shocking us with. Not to mention that it would've given Esther even more motivation to do away with the girl for good. We may even get the chance to see the child throughout the flashbacks, and hopefully gain further insight into the Mikaelsons' complicated history.
Brace yourselves.
Images: Annette Brown/The CW (5); veronikanikol/Tumblr
