Ghost

Ghost
Species Information
Status	Extinct (Collapse of the Other Side)
Related species	The Anchor (Only Amara and Bonnie) Medium Witch Vampire Werewolf Hybrid Supernatural Hunter Passenger Doppelgänger
Season(s)	The Vampire Diaries: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 The Originals: 1
Distinction	Souls of dead supernatural beings who have passed on to the Other Side.

“	Anna said it's like being here with all of us, only we can't see her or hear her, and she can't interact with anyone. She's all alone.	”
	— Jeremy Gilbert about ghosts in Ghost World

A Ghost, or Veiled Matter, was the soul of a deceased supernatural person that could, under certain circumstances, appear as a visible manifestation to the living from the Other Side. In even rarer circumstances, ghosts could physically interact with the living world. However, following the destruction of the Other Side in Home, the term is defunct.

Souls of supernatural beings can continue to linger for an indeterminate amount of time as spirits in the Space In-between until they find peace or move on to another afterlife.

Quick Answers

What circumstances allow a ghost to physically interact with the living world?

Ghosts can physically interact with the living world in a few ways. If a witch resurrects themselves using magic, they can create a link to that power, enabling interaction. Ghosts can also gain a physical foothold in the living world. If the veil to The Other Side breaks, it enables ghost domination and contact. Mediums, resurrected humans with special abilities, can provide a contact point with ghosts. Additionally, those who serve as an Anchor to the Other Side can interact with spirits, due to their dual existence in both dimensions.

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What is the Other Side in the context of a Ghost's existence?

The Other Side is a spiritual realm, created by the witch Qetsiyah, where the souls of deceased supernatural beings reside. It serves as a purgatory where these beings, including ghosts, are trapped and can observe their past life. Spirits on the Other Side maintain their magical abilities and can provide physical presence to other ghosts under specific conditions.

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How does the destruction of the Other Side impact a Ghost?

When the Other Side, a dimension for deceased supernatural beings, was obliterated by a spell, it affected ghosts profoundly. Unable to return to life, these ghosts were either drawn into a dark void or found peace. Interaction with the living is limited to mediums and witches, and ghosts are typically isolated. Post-destruction, supernatural beings' souls can linger as spirits in the Space In-between, until they attain peace or transition to a different afterlife.

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What is the difference between a ghost and a 'veiled matter'?

A Ghost or Veiled Matter is the soul of a deceased supernatural being, capable of appearing visibly to the living from the Other Side. They can occasionally interact physically with the living world. The term became obsolete after the Other Side's destruction. 'Veiled matter' refers to the rift between the material and immaterial Veil when a human essence reanimates its body. This rift can produce ghosts, benign or malignant, capable of traversing worlds and influencing the living's fate.

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What does it mean for a supernatural person to become a ghost?

When a supernatural entity becomes a ghost, they maintain their unique abilities but lose physical interaction with the living. They become visible only to specific humans, often those they had a strong bond with in life. Witches, even as ghosts, can perform magic impacting the living world. However, the lack of physical contact can cause isolation. Ghosts have the power to modify reality, shape-shift, communicate with each other, and merge into a single entity.

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Appearance

Ghosts do not appear any different dead than they did when they were alive. Whenever they appear to the living, they are usually seen dressed in the very same attire they were wearing at the time of their deaths. However, it's possible that ghosts can somehow change their appearance and manifest different clothing; Bonnie Bennett, Vicki Donovan and Lexi Branson were shown wearing different clothing on the Other Side than the outfits they originally died in.

Powers and Abilities

• Intangibility: Ghosts cannot physically feel nor can they be physically felt, unless they are given a physical foothold in the land of the living.
• Species-Specific Abilities: Should a supernatural being become a ghost, they will still possess their given supernatural abilities. In addition, witches can still perform feats of magic while on the Other Side to directly affect the living world.

Weaknesses

• Isolation: Ghosts can only interact with the living through mediums and witches. However, if the person chooses to isolate themselves from the ghost, they will be forced to vanish. With the exception of witches, ghosts are even isolated from one another and for all intent and purposes, alone.
• Witchcraft: Ghosts are susceptible to the forces of witchcraft. Since the Other Side was destroyed by a spell, all the ghosts who couldn't come back to life either got sucked into the dark void or found peace.

The Other Side

Main article: the Other Side

The Other Side was the mysterious dimension where the souls of dead supernatural beings reside. It was created by Qetsiyah in an attempt to imprison the immortal Silas. The spell ensured that every supernatural being that died would go to the Other Side, instead of the peaceful afterlife. While ghosts on the Other Side could, during moments where the Veil was down, manifest themselves and were able to interact with the living world, either to cause harm or to help.

Known Ghosts

Bonnie Bennett (Resurrected) Damon Salvatore (Resurrected) Stefan Salvatore (Resurrected) Elena Gilbert (Resurrected) Lucas Parker (Resurrected) Tyler Lockwood (Resurrected) Alaric Saltzman (Resurrected) Enzo (Resurrected) Jeremy Gilbert (Resurrected)

Pearl Rose Sheila Bennett Vicki Donovan Emily Bennett Vampires from the tomb Annabelle Frederick Lexi Branson Mason Lockwood Maria

Connor Jordan Alexander Kol Mikaelson Galen Vaughn Aja Aja's Coven Adrian Qetsiyah Jesse Silas Markos Mikael Esther Mikaelson

Gallery

Anna

Vicki

Bonnie and Emily

Alaric Saltzman

Damon talking to Ric on his graveyard.

Rose

Lexi

Mason

Pearl

Sheila

Kol

Jeremy

Elena embraces Jeremy

Ghosts-1

Trivia

• Qetsiyah was indirectly responsible for the existence of ghosts by creating the Other Side, preventing the souls of deceased supernatural beings from finding peace and trapping them in a sort of limbo.
• The ghosts of deceased witches known as The Spirits and are the only types of ghosts that are not bound to solitary and can interact with one another and retain their ability to influence the physical world through their magic. They are a collective force and known to carry out consequences on behalf of Nature before the collapse of the Other Side.
• Before the destruction of the Other Side, at least two ghosts were able to find peace Sheila Bennett and Lexi Branson. Conversely, several ghosts were sucked into a dark void; Silas, Markos, Maria, and Vicki Donovan. Katherine Pierce was sucked into the same dark void before passing through the Anchor.
• In A Closer Walk With Thee, Genevieve explains that ancestral witches are consecrated to the Earth after they die so their power can be used by their descendants. For this reason, they do not go to the Other Side, and instead are Ancestral Spirits that were held on the Ancestral Plane of New Orleans.