Everything from mistakes to Recasts to Recalls to new stuff. I got most of this information from thevampirediaries.wikia.com WARNING THERE ARE SPOILERS!!!!!!! I want to know if people want stuff about the book series too. Please comment and tell m...
"When they drank the immortality elixir, they violated the natural law that all living things must die, so nature found a balance by creating mortal shadow selves" — Qetsiyah in
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Doppelgängers, also known as Shadow-Selves or Mortal Shadow Selves, are a supernatural occurrence that were created by Nature as a result of Silas and Amara becoming true immortals after consuming Qetsiyah's immortality elixir. The purpose of this supernatural species is to maintain the natural balance by dying in place of their immortal progenitors. For this reason, doppelgängers have existed for at least 1,000 years during which time they have been born and died in the place of Silas and Amara, who, as true immortals, were invulnerable to any conventional weapon.
There are two known doppelgänger lines which stem from Silas and Amara, respectively. Known doppelgängers of Silas are Stefan Salvatore and Tom Avery, and known doppelgängers of Amara are Tatia, Katherine Pierce and Elena Gilbert.
As of Season Seven, Stefan Salvatore and Elena Gilbert are the last remaining doppelgängers.
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Creation
The phenomenon of the shadow-self occurs to counterbalance a disruption to Nature's law that all living things must die. Qetsiyah, one of the most powerful witches and member of a very gifted people called the Travelers, created a spell for immortality with the intention that she and Silas would drink it together at their wedding. However, Silas stole the immortality elixir and used it on himself and his lover, Amara, who was Qetsiyah's handmaiden, so that the two could be together for eternity. Disrupting the balance of Nature when they became truly immortal, Nature eventually began to create copies of Silas and Amara that could die to counter the balance that was disrupted by these new immortals. With Silas and Amara now both dead, it is unknown if Nature will continue to spawn more doppelgängers.
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Introduction of the Doppelgänger
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The first doppelgängers introduced in this universe were Elena Gilbert and Katherine Pierce (also known as Katerina Petrova), but they were initially believed to exist due to Elena being one of Katherine's descendants. However, it was later revealed that, while doppelgängers do have a bloodline connection, they are not simply a supernatural species like werewolves—they are actually mystically occurring beings who are loopholes to the creation of the Immortality Spell by Qetsiyah in the 1st century BCE. Because Nature decreed that all living things must die, the Immortality Spell disrupted the balance Nature had created, which forced Nature to counter it by creating living "shadow-selves" of the immortal Silas and Amara who could die in their place. These doppelgängers are believed to either be direct descendants of Silas and Amara's respective bloodlines, or descendants of one of their siblings, who would be the closest genetic match to continue their lineage.
