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This article is about Julian, a character from Season Seven. You may be looking for Julian, a character from Season Five, or Julian, a character from the Digital Comics.

Well, Lily was my touchstone. She was the very thing that tethered me to my sanity. And when I lost her? Well... that's when things really went off the rails.

Julian was a recurring character and major antagonist in the seventh season of The Vampire Diaries. He first appeared in the third episode of the season. He was a vampire who was turned in the early 1500's, and he has been the lover of Lillian Salvatore for over a century and a half. Julian was eventually killed by Rayna Cruz in 1903, and his soul was sealed in the Phoenix Stone in punishment until Lily and the Heretics were able to use the stone to resurrect him in I Carry Your Heart With Me. He is also the person who killed Stefan and Valerie's unborn child, and almost killed Valerie in the process.

After Lily died, Julian, who blamed the Salvatore brothers, kills Damon with the Phoenix Sword. After Damon and Stefan are brought back to life, Julian takes amusement in their torments from the Phoenix Stone. After being fed up of Julian and his past actions, Stefan uses Valerie to hold him down with magic, while Stefan then drives a stake through his heart, permanently killing Julian in revenge.

Early History[]

Julian was turned in the early 1500's by an unknown vampire and is over 475 years old. He lived in many towns in his life including Ridley Park, Old Saybrook, and Sunbury, befriending and turning many people into vampires along the way. He eventually met and fell in love with Lillian Salvatore, joining her with her family of Heretics.

1857[]

Julian attacked a village in Saint Malo, Louisiana. He was confronted by a vampire hunter and member of the Brotherhood of the Five named Vicente Cruz. Julian was initially unaware of his identity and prepared to kill him but was interrupted by Vicente's daughter, Rayna Cruz, who tried to convince Julian not to kill her father, telling him that he'd suffer from the Hunter's Curse if he did. Julian, amused by nearly falling victim to it, decided to avoid it by compelling Rayna to do the actual killing, forcing her to kill her own father.

1863[]

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Julian at the County Fair

Julian, along with Valerie Tulle, was sent to Mystic Falls on Lily Salvatore's orders, in order to check in on her son, Stefan, as she wanted to ensure his happiness and safety before their new family (comprised at the time of Lily, Julian, Valerie, and Oscar) left for Europe. During the Mystic Falls County Fair, Julian blended in by running a kissing booth where the profits would go to Confederate soldiers. Many women were taken aback by his charm and paid a penny for the opportunity to kiss him. He then saw Valerie sitting with Stefan and joking around with him. Julian approached them and interrupted their game. Stefan incorrectly assumed that Julian was Valerie's father before Julian pulled Valerie aside and reminded her that they were supposed to keep their distance from Stefan, only getting close enough to watch him without any direct interaction. Valerie, enjoying Stefan's company, assured him that she had everything under control.

However, Valerie continued to befriend Stefan, much to Julian's annoyance. When he tried to interrupt again, Valerie used a cloaking spell, fueled by the magic within an amulet intended for emergencies, to hide her and Stefan, allowing them to leave the fair and go into the woods to make love. That night, Julian tracked them down at Lily's grave, expecting Stefan would visit there at some point. Julian angrily took Valerie away, reminding both of them that the two of them were leaving for New York.

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Julian's lies are believed

On the day they were preparing to leave New York Harbor for Europe, Valerie tried to sneak away but was caught by Julian. Despite Valerie not wanting to leave, Julian told her that she had to since Lily wouldn't go anywhere without her orphans and that it was imperative that he leave the United States. Julian revealed that he could hear both of the heartbeats in Valerie, asking if Stefan knew that she was pregnant with his child. When she begged him not to tell Lily, he smugly said that she had her reasons for staying and he had his for leaving before slapping her across the face and then beating her senseless until she was nearly dead, killing the unborn child inside of her in the process. After Julian brought Valerie with him onto their ship to England, Julian told Lily that he had found Valerie left for dead in the streets after she had been robbed and beaten by criminals, Lily believed his lies and Julian was confident that Valerie wouldn't tell the truth of what happened because there was no way she could expose him without also exposing herself and her relationship/pregnancy with Stefan as well.

1864-1903[]

In 1897, Julian was responsible for what came to be known as the Black Sea Massacre, where he wiped out an entire coastline of people on Christmas Day. According to Valerie, Lily continued to love him blindly in spite of this excessive violence.

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Julian and the Heretics are ambushed

In 1903, while spending a night with some of the Heretics, they were ambushed by vampire huntress,  Rayna Cruz, who wanted revenge for when Julian forced her to kill her own father. She stabbed Beau in the throat and marked him with her enchanted sword. Julian tried to defend his friends and managed to temporarily overpower Rayna. He bought them enough time to flee, and prepared passage to flee Europe with Lily and the others. Julian came up with the idea to travel in boxes across the sea as it would be the least conspicuous, much to the Heretics' protests.  However, Rayna tracked them down using the mark her sword had made. Julian again tried to fight her and nearly killed her, stabbing her in the chest.

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Julian is killed and his soul is sucked into the Phoenix Stone

As he got back on the carriage to run with his friends, Rayna threw her sword at him, impaling him. Upon his death from her enchanted sword, his spirit was trapped inside of the Phoenix Stone in the sword's hilt. Afterward, the Heretics preserved his body with magic in hopes that they could someday regain the stone, and use it to bring him back to life. Unfortunately, when the Gemini Coven trapped Lily and the Heretics in a prison world upon landing in America, the stone was lost as it fell into the sea upon their ambush, and they were forced to put their plans to bring Julian back on hold for the time being. Julian's spirit, meanwhile, was suffering inside the hell-like world of the Phoenix Stone. While imprisoned in the stone, Julian was forced to kill Lily every day, after being given hope for escape, only to wake up and live the day over again for a century. Julian stated time loses meaning in the stone, and relieved his own hell for what felt like eternity.

Throughout The Vampire Diaries Series[]

Season Seven

In Age of Innocence, Oscar revealed to Valerie that after they had escaped the prison world, Lily sent him on the task of finding where Julian was so they could reunite with him. However, he decided to take some time off before telling her, wanting freedom more than anything else. Valerie realized that Oscar was going to leverage Julian's location for his own freedom, and after she referred to Julian as "the devil," she ripped Oscar's heart out, since she couldn't risk Oscar telling Lily where to find him.

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Julian is brought back by the Phoenix Stone

In Live Through This, Valerie informed the Salvatore brothers that Julian was actually dead and had been since 1903, after centuries of committing horrifying atrocities. She revealed that he needed to be brought back to life and refused to let let that happen, as he was the reason she lost her unborn child. After discovering his location, hidden away in a coffin, Valerie tried to destroy him by burning his body but was stopped by Lily and the other Heretics. His body was brought to the Salvatore house where he was brought back to life using the Phoenix Stone and a spell cast by Nora, Mary Louise and Beau.

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Julian practicing fencing

In Best Served Cold, Julian was practicing fencing with Beau in the Salvatore house when Lily requested that they practice outside rather than in the house and brought up Julian's particularly good mood, wondering if he should still be resting after his resurrection. Julian scoffed at her concern, happy to finally be back on his feet after having spent over a century trapped inside the Phoenix Stone. Lillian revealed that her sons were still alive, and he realized he had some catching up to do, prompting her to want to introduce him to the modern times.

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Lily presents Julian

At Julian's welcome home party, that Lily threw to try and calm the violence between her and her sons, Julian met Damon and reunited with Stefan, who now knew what Julian did to Valerie and his unborn child. Unknown to Julian, Stefan planned to kill him in revenge, while playing pool with him. Damon interrupted the attempt and Julian continued to enjoy the party, meeting and insulting Enzo, and convincing Mary Louise to loosen up a little. He also asked Beau to find Oscar's car for him, stressing that it was of great importance to him, as Oscar had something that made Julian nervous, and wanted the object in his possession.

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Julian tries to beat some "respect" into the Salvatore brothers

Shortly after, Stefan attempted to kill Julian, throwing him into the fireplace. Lily arrived while Julian threw off his burning jacket and healed, furious about the attack. After Damon and Stefan continued to disagree with Lily, Julian grew enraged at their disrespect, telling them of how he was tortured inside of the Phoenix Stone, being forced to live through killing Lillian everyday in his own private hell. Julian, being older than Damon and Stefan combined, brutally beat them into submission, nearly killing them before being stopped by Lily, who was shocked by his violent behavior. Later that night, she questioned Julian on what was wrong with him and he told her that she wasn't acting like the Lily he remembered, who had discarded her children. When Lily continued to show her concern, Julian conceded that it may have been him that had changed and wasn't the same as she remembered. He shared his concern that her sons wouldn't stop trying to kill him and they agreed to take measures to prevent that.

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Julian duels Enzo

In Mommie Dearest, Julian was greeted by Enzo at his door. After throwing some sarcastic taunts at Enzo, Enzo suggested his own feelings for Lily. Julian pinned him against a wall but had promised Lily he would shed no more blood in the house. They decided to take the fight outside, Julian bringing two sabers with him. When Enzo remained steadfast, Julian stuck the two swords into the ground, told Enzo that he'd at least give him an honorable death, and to choose his weapon. Without hesitation, Enzo grabbed one of the swords and attacked. Julian grabbed his own sword and a vicious duel began, Julian laughing at the competition. After being nicked in the neck by Enzo, Julian was caught by surprise when Enzo pulled out a small sword. Julian, clearly rattled by the sight of it, asked Enzo where he got the weapon, recognizing it. When Enzo came at him, Julian threw dirt in his face and disappeared in the trees. Shortly after, he ambushed Enzo and disarmed him of his saber and shortly after, the small sword, defeating Enzo in the duel.

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Julian prepares to finish off Damon

When Julian prepared to deliver the killing blow, Damon arrived, knocking Julian out against a tree. However, Julian quickly recovered and came at Damon from behind when Damon stabbed him with the small sword, having been told by Enzo that it may have been made for the specific purpose of killing Julian. Knowing that Julian's life was linked to Lily, Damon was happy to have killed him. Julian woke up, snapping Enzo's neck and threw the small sword into Damon's chest, pinning him to a tree. Julian then picked up his sword and saluted Damon before trying to remove his head but was stopped by the arrival of Stefan and Lily. Julian told Lily that Damon tried to kill her through her link with him, upsetting Lily, who asked Julian to take her home.

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Julian apologizes to Lily

Back at the house, Julian wanted to take a warm bath when Lily asked him what he had been doing in the woods with Enzo. Julian answered that he was never one to resist a sword fight, making Lily question why he would do that knowing that her life was connected with his. Julian reminded her that he didn't usually lose. Julian promised her that she was never in any real danger. Lily, having heard the story of Valerie's child from her sons, questioned Julian on if he had known that Valerie was once pregnant with Stefan's child. Julian denied it but Lily told him that her sons had told her the whole story. Julian swore that he would never have done anything so revolting as killing an unborn child. Julian asked for forgiveness for his fight with Enzo, telling her that he'd never hurt her. Lily, however, was unconvinced of this and realized that Damon and Stefan were right about him; That she traded one monster, her former husband Giuseppe Salvatore, for another.

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Julian's last dance with Lily

In Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me, while Lily planned on telling the Heretics the truth about Julian so they would unlink her from him, Julian proposed that they throw an anniversary party for Mary Louise and Nora. However, in actuality, Julian was using the party as a way to make Lily a Ripper again, stockpiling humans for weeks in preparation for the event. Julian brought all of the humans to the party, having compelled them all to be there and began to feast on them with Nora and Mary Louise. Lily initially condoned his actions but allowed it to try and keep Julian and the Heretics happy. Julian continued to win over the Heretics by offering Mary Louise a beautiful diamond ring to use in her proposal to Nora. Julian then danced with Lily, telling her how she wasn't indulging in the real fun and that she was afraid of rejoining their family completely. He then told her that she couldn't keep hoping that her sons would love her and that he and the Heretics were all of the love she needed. He told her to come back, and offered her a woman to feed on. Lily fed, wanting to keep up appearances.

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Julian watches Lily die

After the Heretics learned the truth about what Julian had done to Valerie, most of them sided against Julian while Damon and Stefan attacked Julian. Julian fought back ferociously but was subdued by them and tied up. They prepared to break the link between he and Lily so they could kill him, however, Mary Louise entered and rescued Julian, not wanting to believe the truth. Some time later, Lily entered and Julian revealed that he had bound Damon and Valerie and that Lily had to choose which one she wanted to live, to choose between her two families. Julian furiously told her she couldn't have both but Lily refused to give in to his demands, choosing to stake herself instead, believing her death would bring his because of their link. Unfortunately, as Lily lay dying, Julian revealed that he had already had Mary Louise unlink them, so was unaffected by the stake. When Stefan came, Julian fled, leaving his true love to die. Mary Louise later found him throwing a tantrum and destroying furniture in his grief. He told her about what happened to Lily, tearfully saying that she was gone.

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Julian and his friends are held at bay

In Cold as Ice, in the weeks following Lily's death, Julian traveled through many of the towns he had once lived and recruited his old vampire friends, wanting to find a new family now that he had been shunned from the Heretics. Grief-stricken and almost overtaken with madness, he went to Sunbury where a Santa Pub Crawl was taking place. Julian slaughtered an entire bar full of Santas before being discovered by Damon and Stefan. Julian wasn't concerned by their appearance, telling them that Lily was the only thing that kept the madness of the Phoenix Stone at bay. Julian also revealed that he was in possession of the Phoenix Stone and its shortsword, making the Phoenix Sword complete, explaining that the sword had been what trapped him inside of the stone for a hundred years, and the same would happen to them if he stabbed them with it in the heart. Julian then brought in some of his old friends to overwhelm them and the Salvatores were forced to flee, using fire to hold them off.

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Julian stabs Damon

To draw Julian out, Stefan took Mary Louise hostage, texting Julian to meet him at the Salvatore House. Julian texted Nora about Mary Louise's abduction, hoping that it would bring her back to his side. Julian then went to the house and discovered Damon, who wasn't aware of Stefan's plan. Stefan arrived and attacked Julian but Julian once again overpowered the brothers, stabbing Damon with the Phoenix Stone sword. Damon died, his soul being transported into the stone while Julian fled. Julian then gave the shortsword to Nora, who successfully used it on Stefan, trapping both brothers inside of the stone.

In Hell Is Other People, Julian was seen talking to Damon and then burns Stefan's body, but this turns out to be a hallucination caused by the effects of the stone.

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Julian threatens Stefan

In Things We Lost in the Fire, it was revealed that while Damon spent time in the Phoenix Stone, Julian had taken over Mystic Falls with his friends and infested it almost exclusively with vampires, permitting violence, street racing, and chaos. Upon learning of Damon and Stefan's returns from the Phoenix Stone, he empathized with them over the effects the stone had on their minds, having been through it himself and for much longer. Suffering from the hallucinations from the Phoenix Stone, Damon killed one of Julian's vampires, infuriating him. He found Stefan and told him that if either of the Salvatores harmed his friends again, he'd feed them each others' entrails.

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Julian burns the message from the Huntress

In Postcards from the Edge, Julian received a postcard from Valerie that signaled the coming of the Huntress that had originally killed Julian with the Phoenix Sword. Julian, having just gotten comfortable in his new home was visibly shaken by having to possibly flee again. Damon, on a suicidal bender after having accidentally killed Elena, arrived and murdered another of Julian's friends. Julian reminded Damon that he would kill him for harming his people and threatened to stake him with a pool stick. However, Julian, recognizing the traumatizing effects of the Phoenix Stone and how fragile Damon was, told him that Lily was his only tether to his own sanity and that when she died, was when he truly broke, so asked who Damon had lost. Damon admitted what he had done to Elena and Julian, relishing how shattered Damon was, took him to a vampire fighting ring they had set up in the town.

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Julian fights Damon

Julian convinced Damon to enter the ring and fight fellow vampires to the death as a way of dealing with his anger and grief. Damon accepted and threw himself into the combat with Julian's vampires. When Damon used a piece of wood that had been thrown into the ring to beat a particularly tough vampire, Julian was furious as they weren't supposed to use weapons in the ring. He told Damon that it was enough fighting for the day but when Damon persisted, Julian challenged him to fight him, one on one, knowing that his advanced age would easily give him the advantage. Damon, no longer caring about life and against Stefan's wishes, accepted, understanding that Julian would easily kill him being three times his age. Julian easily pummeled Damon once again and taunted him about what Stefan would do if he learned Damon killed Elena. Damon begged for death and Julian prepared to rip out his heart but was interrupted by the arrival of Valerie and Stefan. They fled while Julian told his vampire friends that if they came back to Mystic Falls, to kill them.

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Julian is staked by Stefan

Later, after Stefan had learned about Elena's death, he blamed Julian for shattering Damon's mind when he had sent him into the Phoenix Stone. This, added with Julian's murder of Stefan's unborn child, brought Stefan to a boiling point when he confronted Julian in the grill. Stefan attacked Julian, stabbing him in the hand. Julian told him it was unwise to attack him in front of all of his friends but with the arrival of Valerie, who magically choked Julian, Stefan explained that she was cloaking them, so Julian's friends didn't even know what was happening. Julian, helpless and choking, was held at bay by Valerie while Stefan drove a stake through his heart, killing him and avenging their unborn child. Despite surrounding himself with friends for fear of solitude, Stefan and Valerie insured Julian died alone, without the aid, or knowledge of his death, of his vampire friends in the bar.

Personality[]

It's unknown Julian's personality before turned into vampire. However, since vampirism is known for amplifying a human's personality and traits, it can be assumed he was a less-intense version of who he became as a vampire.

Described as a feared, storied immortal with a reputation for excelling in earthly pleasures. Julian was pure charisma or pure creep, depending on whom you ask. The one thing he fears was Rayna, an unlikely outcome given that he's perpetually on the run, leaving chaos in his wake, and attracting even more dangerous followers.

Julian's abusive, dominant, and violent behavior during his physical disciplinary beating of the Salvatore brothers eerily reminded them of their father, Giuseppe Salvatore. He had also demonstrated his willingness to do whatever it takes to get what he wants. An example of this temperament was when he purposely beat Valerie to the point of having a miscarriage in 1863 after she tried to leave the family, because he knew that Lily would be so worried about her that it would turn her attention away from him and would delay the business he needed to attend to in England. Another characteristic he has shown was a fondness for manipulating people with his charm, such as when he suggested that Mary Louise had "lost her swagger" and had begun to bore Nora as a result of this in order to goad her into feeding on a caterer with him.

Julian despised solitude, and as a result often made sure to surround himself with others to gratify himself. Initially, he did so by often turning people he met to be his friends and companions through his immortal life but after meeting and falling in love with Lily, he inserted himself into her "family" of Heretics. However, Julian always needed to be praised and admired by his peers, lashing out at anyone who disagreed or disrespected him. He felt the need to be in charge of whatever group he was with, using his charm and intimidation to bend people to his whim. Julian was very protective of those he considered his friends and family, not wanting to see any harm come to them unless they crossed him. His need to be in a group may have stemmed from him being an only child. Despite his fears, Stefan and Valerie made sure he died in isolation, where none of his friends could help him.

Julian prided himself on being a sportsman, thrill-seeker, and having a love of games. He used challenges and games to create some semblance of false order in his violent life. He enjoyed one on one competitions like fencing, pool, racing, and sparring to help settle decisions he made, though most of his games were fatal and only fuel for his own enjoyment. After taking over Mystic Falls, he and his friends would do nothing but play and revel in their own hedonism. Julian even used the fight club he created to decide who lived in which home in the town. However, Julian enforced rules to all of his games and was quick to anger when those rules were broken.

Despite being hostile and violent prior to his entrapment in the Phoenix Stone, he grew far more volatile once he had been revived. He could quickly go from calm and collected, to enraged, unable to restrain himself. Lily was said to be the only tether to his sanity and upon her death, his condition was made even worse, no longer caring about any consequences or having to hold back on any of his violence.

Julian was a spirit who had been trapped inside the Phoenix Stone since 1903. Since he retained most of his vampiric personality, it can be assumed he remained the same personality-wise as a vampiric spirit. However, Julian stated how horrified and scared he was to be in the stone, due to his hallucinations of killing Lily over and over again.

Physical Appearance[]

"A lot better-looking than our old man, I'll give Mom that."
Damon Salvatore about Julian's appearance in Live Through This

Julian was a handsome dirty blond-haired, blue-eyed man with a signature wicked grin who appeared to be in his mid-to-late 30s. Due to the formal dress that was characteristic of upper-class men in the centuries before his imprisonment, Julian was usually seen wearing a suit of some kind. A bore a scar in the shape of an "x" near his heart that he received from being stabbed by the Phoenix Sword.

Powers and Abilities[]

Julian possessed all the standard powers and abilities of a non-Original vampire. But being over 475 years old, Julian possessed more strength and speed than regular vampires such as the Salvatore brothers, who are only 166 and 173 years old, respectively. He was a fierce combatant, as evidenced when he gave into his rage and was unable to stop mercilessly beating Damon and Stefan after he effortlessly threw them both across the bar. He later easily overpowered Damon in a fistfight. He was incredibly proficient in swordplay, able to defeat Enzo in duel and being superior to Beau, who is also quite skilled.

Weaknesses[]

Julian had the typical weaknesses of a non-Original vampire.

Relationships[]

Appearances[]

Season Seven

Name[]

  • Julian is from a Latin origin and means "youthful" or "downy." It has an alternate spelling of Julien.[1]

Trivia[]

  • He was described as "a male in his early 30s who speaks with an English or Old World accent, was a feared, storied immortal, regarded as pure charisma or pure creep, depending on whom you ask. The one thing he fears was anonymity, an unlikely outcome given that he's perpetually on the run, leaving chaos in his wake, and attracting even more dangerous followers".
  • In the Showfax script, he describes himself as Vlad Dracula, which turns out to be false since he never described him as Dracula before his death.
  • Julian is quite skilled in swordplay, particularly fencing.
  • He is brought back to life with the help of the Phoenix Stone by Nora, Mary Louise and Beau in Live Through This.
  • He appears to be very close with Beau, Nora, and Mary Louise; upon hearing of Julian's return, Mary Louise stated that their lives were about to get fun again.
    • It is unknown what relationships he had with Malcolm and Oscar but it can be assumed that he had positive relationships with them too.
  • He mentioned that he is more than 475 years old, which makes him older than both of the Salvatore brothers put together.
    • It is unknown who turned him into a vampire or to whose sireline he belongs, but it can be assumed that he was turned in the mid-1500s.
  • According to Julian himself, he was an only child.
  • Julian described the century he spent trapped in the Phoenix Stone as being an endless hell, and he said that each day, he would awaken and attempt to escape, though this action would ultimately cause him be forced to stake and kill his true love, Lily.
  • Despite Lily's insistence that Julian is nothing like her former husband, Giuseppe Salvatore, both Stefan and Damon observed that they have uncannily similar personalities and traits.
  • Julian seemed to always need to surround himself with others, whether it be the Heretics or his vampire friends he had turned over the years.
    • Nora believed Julian hated solitude.
    • Despite this, Stefan insured Julian died utterly alone without his new friends with Valerie's help, cloaking themselves while he murdered Julian for revenge.
  • Julian nearly fell victim to the Hunter's Curse when he almost killed Vicente Cruz. Upon learning that Vicente was a member of The Five, he compelled Vicente's daughter to kill him instead, to save himself from being cursed and driven mad.
    • It was this act that directly led to the creation of Rayna Cruz becoming a supernatural vampire huntress, and her Phoenix Sword with the Phoenix Stone inside. To avenge her father, Rayna became the supernatural vampire huntress that imprisoned vampire's souls into the Phoenix Stone with her sword, ensuring the vampires would live in eternal hell. Her main objective was Julian and his Heretic family, and she has successfully killed Julian and Beau and imprisoned their souls in the stone, and marked Nora before she and Mary-Louise destroyed the sword and stone through their suicide.
  • With the Other Side's collapse and destruction of Hell, he either found peace or went to a dimension similar to Hell, if one exists.

Gallery[]

References[]

See also[]

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