What have you thought about Rebekah's storyline this season?

I feel really lucky as an actor because I get to go a lot of places with Rebekah. I get to explore her vulnerable side, I get to explore the mean girl/catty side of her and there's that inner conflict about whether she wants to be human or a vampire. I just love it all and am so grateful to the writers for giving me so much.

I think you've touched on one of the reasons fans love her so much: Rebekah struggles with being an eternal but having very human desires. Absolutely. That provides a huge amount of inner turmoil for her because she loves parts of being a vampire -- the power, being able to control situations -- but she also wants to be a real girl and to have those experiences of going to a dance and being loved by a boy. She wants those things, and you really see that in tonight's episode when the dance gets cancelled and Stefan finds a charming way to make up for it. What he does really means a lot to her.

What did you think when Julie Plec told you "Stebekah" would be revisited?

Listen, I love working with Paul Wesley. He's such a fine actor and such a fine human, so any time our characters get to interact, I'm happy. I'm always a little scared of the Stelena shippers, but I think it's fun. I always enjoyed the Ripper Stefan and I loved the dynamic they had in the 1920's episode. I think it brings out good things in both Stefan and Rebekah.

It has to be exciting for Rebekah to finally have him come to her since she's wanted this for a long time.
It's definitely exciting for her -- Rebekah loves to get her way, so having Stefan come to her was definitely fun for her. But deep down she knows whatever is going on right now is a mutually beneficial relationship -- they're hooking up, having fun, but they have a common goal. She's been in Mystic Falls for a while, she knows what's going on. We'll see if it really leads anywhere, but I think the fans have liked it.

Sounds like Claire Holt might be a Rebekah/Matt 'shipper at heart...
[laughs] I'm a Rebekah anyone shipper. I'll hook up with anyone in Mystic Falls, because, I don't know if you've seen those guys, but they're pretty gorgeous. Listen, I like the idea of her and Matt -- I think it would have given her a more human experience, but she tried to kill him, so I'm not sure that's going to happen any time soon. I'd like to have someone love her. I think it's important.

A moment ago you referenced the fans -- you've now been a part of TV's two most social shows (TVD and Pretty Little Liars). What's it been like to have such an in-depth relationship with your fans?
It's been amazing. I never had any concept of it before because I worked in Australia and the Twitter world didn't exist. Being on those shows and seeing the online support has been mind-blowing. It's a lot easier for us to feel personal connections with the fans, and vice versa -- plus, it's a lot easier to Tweet than respond to fan mail. I'm so grateful for all the fan support.

Whether or not she decides to take the cure, how important is it to Rebekah to be the one to find it so she has the option whether to take the cute or not?
Very important. It's what is driving her at the moment. She'd convinced herself that she was a vampire and she'd never have the experiences she really wants of love and a family. So to now see this as an option is so important. I don't think Rebekah knows what she wants, but she wants to find it and she won't let anyone get in her way.

What are you excited for fans to see in the coming weeks?

The dynamics between some of the characters is going to change. Especially with Rebekah, there's less of the mean girl dynamic as she shares more of a common goal with the other characters. I'm excited for the episodes where they go in search of the cure because a lot of the actors are together in those scenes -- there's lots of conflict but also a lot of getting along, which I think will be an interesting sight for the fans. As important as it is to have separate storylines, these upcoming episodes have us all on the hunt for the cure, and it's really fun to all be together like that.

You may all be together, but it looks like your and Phoebe Tonkin made it through her guest arc without ever sharing a scene together! What's up with that?
I know! What is up with that? [laughs] I was devastated that we shared no scenes together, but I'm campaigning for us to get something together in the future. It's all about story on the show, so I don't know if Haley and Rebekah will ever cross paths, but I'll keep holding out hope!