Vampire Diaries Stars Promise "Jam-Packed, Full of Blood" Finale Tonight!

Ian Somerhalder and Nina Dobrev dish on what's ahead on our favorite vampy series

We just caught up Vampire Diaries stars Nina Dobrev and Ian Somerhalder, who promised a bloody good finale—including "people dying, new vampires, shocks and cliffhangers." Perfect! That's just how we wanted to start our Thursday morning.

It's not all gloom and doom, though—especially for you Vampire Diaries shippers out there...

The always lovely Nina and Ian were nice enough to breakdown all things ahead on our favorite hour of vampy goodness (sorry, True Blood!), so we'll let them take it away:

Finale Freak-Out: Things are not looking too peachy for the Mystic Falls folks going into tonight's first-season finale. "It is so unbelievably jam-packed, so much happens," says Nina. "Every episode ends with a massive cliffhanger." But, Ian tells us, "the finale has seven or eight 'oh my god' moments--cliffhangers. People are going to die, there are going to be more vampires in town. It will not disappoint, but it will upset some. And some characters are going to step out of their comfort zones and do things that are normally uncharacteristic of themselves."

Like, oh, the brothers Salvatore working together to protect sweet Elena? "There's a lot of relationships being forged," says Ian. "Elena has this band of brothers who are not going to let anything happen to her. They are hell-bent on protecting her and working as team."

Which team are you on?

Stefan and Elena: According to Nina, "They're trying to figure it out. They're trying to go day by day, and Elena is definitely behind him 100 percent." But, she says, pointing at Ian, "This one is in the picture, and Elena's developed a friendship with him. She's starting to realize he's not completely evil, that he's doing everything that he does for love, for Katherine, this woman that he truly cared about."

Damon and Elena: These two are hopeful for a Dalena (?) hookup, but nothing huge to report yet. "[Show runner] Kevin Williamson was discussing a bit of next season and they have a pretty good idea of what they're doing up until the first half," Ian tells us. "There is some cool stuff." "Then again," adds Nina, "everything always changes." 

Damon and Stefan: When Nina poses the question of whether or not Damon really loves his brother or if this is all a game, Ian is quick to explain: "Damon loves his brother! Of course he does. Just like Stefan. Stefan could have let Damon die five times. But it will be interesting to see the varying degrees of that love when you mix the love of a woman with the love of a brother--things get a little hairy." Did Ian just say Damon loves Elena? We're choosing to believe, yes!

Damon and Alaric?! Matt Davis is returning for more vampire-hunting fun next season, and Ian, for one, is thrilled. "He just came into this group and fit right in. Matt's just as crazy of a degenerate as all of us are. So organic." Couldn't agree more!