Does Bonnie die in ‘The Vampire Diaries?’

High schoolers encountering life and love in a small supernatural town has been a trope for a long time. From Buffy the Vampire Slayer to Teen Wolf, these fictional places are essential beacons for supernatural activity, and The CW’s The Vampire Diaries is no different.

In the show, Elena Gilbert (Nina Dobrev) must choose between two equally (but so different) hunky vampire brothers, and since the town of Mystic Falls is constantly plagued by vampires, it isn’t exactly a place you’d want to settle down in. Because of Elena’s affinity for bad romantic choices ⏤ i.e. getting together with Damon (Ian Somerhalder) ⏤ and her role as a doppelgänger, she constantly endangers her friends and family members to the point that everyone around her tends to die if they’re not dead already.

Elena’s closest friend and confidante, Bonnie Bennett (Kat Graham) is arguably the most powerful witch in the area, but even she has had brushes with death a time or two.

Does Bonnie die at the end of season 4?

Bonnie has been a long-suffering character since The Vampire Diaries’ first episode. As soon as she discovers that she’s a witch, she seems to always be volunteered for dirty work that lands her close to danger. One of the first instances of this is in season 2 when it appears that Original vampire, Klaus (Joseph Morgan) kills her while in Alaric’s (Matthew Davis’) body. Twist! She wasn’t dead, she just faked her death so she could surprise Klaus at the end of the season. But after too many close calls to count, Bonnie officially dies in the season 4 finale.

Similar to how her grandmother died, Bonnie’s excessive use of magic ultimately kills her. After multiple episodes of mourning the death of Elena’s brother, Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen), Bonnie communicates with the supernatural purgatory known as the Other Side and finds a way to reanimate her dead boyfriend. The strain is too much, however, and she essentially switches places with Jeremy. Jeremy can walk amongst the living again while Bonnie is resorted to the life of a ghost.

But since this is Mystic Falls we’re talking about, death doesn’t necessarily mean forever. There are tragic deaths like Elena’s aunt Jenna (Sara Canning), which is permanent, but where would the ragtag group of supernatural teenagers be without Bonnie? She’s too important to stay dead forever, but the question remains: how does she return to her close-knit group of friends? The answer is complicated.

How does Bonnie return after her death?

Bonnie’s will to live is strong, as is Jeremy’s wish to reunite with his girlfriend. Because Jeremy was once dead himself, he can speak to Bonnie when no one else can, but he is the only one she is in contact with. On the Other Side, supernatural creatures can’t interact with each other, so there is no hope in Bonnie seeing Grams (Jasmine Guy). It’s a lonely prospect that motivates the young witch even more to come back to life. Finally, she gets her chance, but it’s never easy. Bonnie can’t simply transport back into her decomposing body. Through a lot of trickery, the characters realize they can bring Bonnie back if she becomes the anchor to the Other Side.

The supernatural purgatory exists because the spell that holds it together is sealed by someone half in and half out of the world. This honor first went to Elena’s original doppelgänger, Amara, who eventually had enough of this job. Bonnie takes her place and becomes the thing that holds the Other Side together. The only issue? Bonnie has to experience the death of every supernatural being as they pass on to the ghostly plane. She feels what they feel at the moment of their death, and unfortunately, it seems that there are a lot more supernatural creatures than one might think. The other downside is that Bonnie can’t practice witchcraft anymore since her transformation into the anchor. Luckily, her fate doesn’t last forever. After the Other Side collapses, Bonnie regains her magic and thankfully remains alive.

This is only one tale of Bonnie’s that is full of tragedy. She probably suffers the most in the series, and all she wants to do is not be involved in the vampire business. Even after Dobrev left The Vampire Diaries, her character’s struggles continue, but at least she remains alive at the end of the series.