‘Vampire Diaries’ Season 6 Finale Theories: How Will Elena Leave? 8 Possible Story Lines For Nina Dobrev's Exit

“The Vampire Diaries” Season 6 finale has a lot of loose ends to tie up. We have to figure out who is dead, how Kai (Chris Wood) escaped the prison world and the gang has to defeat him. However, the real issue in the finale is one fans have been speculating about for weeks now: How will Elena (Nina Dobrev) leave? The actress announced her departure from the CW series last month, but the show still hasn’t made it clear how the leading lady will be written out. We’ve come up with a few different options for her, ranging from death to happily ever after. Here are eight theories on how we think Elena will leave in the Season 6 finale:

1. She died at the wedding. Elena was knocked unconscious in episode 21, so it’s entirely possible that she won’t ever get up again.

2. Kai will viciously kill her. That witch loves dramatics. If he didn’t already kill Elena, he might have another plan to make sure she is tortured before she dies.

3. The Salvatores mercy kill her. Kai may leave Elena with her friends, but she could be injured to the point that they know she won’t ever be the same. Basically, a magical “pulling the plug” could happen. Having Stefan (Paul Wesley) or Damon (Ian Somerhalder) kill the girl they love is tragic and heartbreaking enough that it totally seems like something “The Vampire Diaries” writers would do.

4. She’ll run away. Elena might wake up after the wedding and realize Mystic Falls is too dangerous for her. She’ll have to leave her hometown behind.

5. Damon will compel her. If she doesn’t realize staying home is dangerous, Damon will. The vampire could decide that he can’t force Elena to choose vampirism again. However, he also can’t let her stay in Mystic Falls as a human who could easily be killed. He’ll compel her to leave town and forget about all of her friends and even their epic romance.

6. She’ll get trapped in a prison world. Kai is vicious. Perhaps he’ll send Bonnie’s (Kat Graham) best friend back to 1903 for revenge. Since Bonnie destroyed the ascendant, she’ll have no way of saving her friend.

7. Matt will kidnap her. Now that Matt (Zach Roerig) hates vampires, he might force Elena to make the most out of her human life. He could take her out of town and convince her never to return.

8. Medical school. Throughout “The Vampire Diaries” Season 6, Elena has made it clear that she has big dreams of becoming a doctor. Perhaps she will simply transfer schools to go live in the big city, just as she always imagined. It's a boring exit, but it would be unexpected.

Elena’s end likely won’t be a happy one, but fans will have to watch the finale to see just how tragic her final episode will be.

“The Vampire Diaries” Season 6 finale will air Thursday at 8 p.m. EDT on the CW. How do you think Elena will be written off? Share your theories in the comments section below!