Daniel tells Desmond how to find Penny, shows him quantum mechanics in journal

Desmond returns to the limo to have a drink after his discouraging conversation with Eloise Hawking. As he's telling Minkowski to just drive around, Daniel Faraday (known here as Daniel Widmore) knock on his window and asks for a talk.

First, Daniel asks Desmond if he believes in love at first sight and proceeds to tell him about the girl he saw at the museum with blue eyes who was eating a chocolate bar. Right away, we know he's talking about Charlotte. He says that when he saw her, it was like he already loved her.

He says that's when thing got weird and later that night he woke up and wrote a complex quantum mechanics equation in his journal. In this timeline, he's a musician, not a physicist, so he had to take it a friend to find out that only someone who had been studying physics their entire life could write the equations.

He then explains that if something terrible is about to happen and the only way to stop it would be to release a large amount of energy, like setting off a nuclear bomb. He says that what if their current life is not supposed to be their life and that somehow they changed things. He believes that he may have already set off a nuclear bomb.

Desmond is just confused and doesn't understand what any of this has to do with him until Daniel mentions Penny. Daniel tells Desmond that he felt love and that's why he's looking for Penny. He then reveals that Penny is his half-sister and can tell Desmond exactly when and where to find her.

So, Daniel seems to have had a fairly significant vision of the original timeline, though he doesn't discuss the specifics. But he is able to push Desmond into a direction which may push the two timelines closer together.

Eloise Hawking scolds Desmond for trying to find Penny

As he's leaving the hospital, Desmond is on the phone with Charles Widmore who berates him for letting Charlie get away. Since Desmond doesn't get what the big deal is, Widmore tells him that he should be the one to tell Mrs. Widmore the bad news.

Desmond arrives at the site of the charity event, and Minkowski wishes Desmond good luck meeting Charles' wife for the first time. We cut to Eloise Hawking, sporting some massive hair, who is scolding some of the catering staff about the placement of butter knives.

When Desmond approaches her, he passes by Daniel Faraday (or Daniel Widmore in this timeline). As Desmond introduces himself to Eloise, she looks flabbergasted, like he's not supposed to be there and this isn't supposed to happen. Desmond tells her that Drive Shaft isn't going to be able to perform and she completely understands and doesn't seem worried about it at all. She says "what happened, happened," one of Daniel's infamous lines from season 5.

As Desmond leaves, he hears two of the event coordinators calling out a list of guests who are attending and he stops cold when he hears the name Penny Milton. He asks to see the list, but Eloise angrily interferes telling him that the list is confidential.

Eloise pulls Desmond aside and tells him to stop what he is doing because someone has clearly affected his way of thinking which is a violation. She says that he needs to stop looking for whatever he is looking for (Penny) because he has what he has always wanted, Charles Widmore's approval. When he questions how she knows what he should do, she says "Because I bloody do." She says he can't see the list because he's "not ready yet."

So what exactly is Desmond not ready for yet and how does Eloise, even in this timeline, know what Desmond should and shouldn't do? Also, her still being alive and off of the island along with Charles in 2004 suggests that the island sank to the bottom of the ocean after the hydrogen bomb detonated since she and Charles were both on the island at the time it was detonated. So once again the question is posed, when and how did the island sink?

Eloise is pregnant, Jack, Kate and Richard prepare to go to the bomb

At the others/hostiles camp in 1977, Charles Widmore and Richard Alpert are crouched next to Daniel Faraday's body. Widmore says " Why is it that this man looks... familiar to me?" He apparently doesn't clearly remember him from 1954.

Eloise comes over and says that Richard and Erik are coming with her and she says that they can untie Jack and Kate. She asks for a moment with Daniel as she covers him with a blanket and closes his eyes. Eloise says that she's taking them to the bomb. The dialogue is quiet, but Widmore touches her mid-drift and says "I'm worried about you. Not in your condition."

Jack asks Richard who the man is and Richard says that he is Charles Widmore. He continues saying "He and Eloise are... well, let's just say love can be complicated." Jack and Kate share a look after that line. Eloise comes over and says "Let's move out."

We learn here that Eloise is presumably pregnant with Daniel at the time when she killed older Daniel. That's a bit of a weird, no?

Eloise looks through Daniel's journal, finds her note to him

Eloise is sitting next to Daniel's body flipping through his journal. There area a bunch of equations in there with one marked "Check out these theories!!! Might be onto something." Eloise comes to the first page where she wrote Daniel the note in his journal, only the younger Eloise hasn't actually written it yet.

Charles Widmore comes into the camp with Jack and Kate and asks what happened with Daniel. Richard tells her the situation and then asks where he found Jack and Kate. Widmore says the were "Crouched in the bushes like rats." Eloise asks Jack and Kate if they came here with Daniel and Jack says yes. Eloise tells the other others to put them in her tent. One of the others seen in the 12th shot is Erik, a recurring other.

Widmore akss Eloise why the Dharma Initiative seems to have declared war on them. Eloise says that these people are not part of the Dharma Initiative. Widmore asks "Then where the hell are they from?"

Kate seems pissed that Jack told Eloise that they came there with Daniel. She doesn't seem to like the idea of changing the events that have already happened.

Jack is beaten up by Charles Widmore, Kate and Jack captured

At the beginning of "Follow the Leader" we see the end of "The Variable" again, right before Daniel is killed. This time, we see it from Jack and Kate's point of view. Kate tells Jack that Daniel is crazy. Jack replies "What if this is why we're here? What if this is our once chance to put things back the way they were supposed to be?" They are both startled by the sound of a gunshot and look up to see Daniel fall to the ground.

Jack wants to go help Daniel but Kate pulls him away. Suddenly we see Charles Widmore riding towards Jack who promptly gets the butt of a shotgun to the head. Another other rides up on a horse and tells Kate not to move. Widmore gets off of his horse and kicks Jack in the face while down on the ground. Jack's face is bloodied as Widmore stands over him with a gun pointed at him and asks "Just who the bloody hell might you be?"

Eloise Hawing shoots Daniel Faraday at the others/hostiles camp

As Daniel, Kate and Jack get close to the others/hostiles camp, Kate tells Jack that what they are doing is a mistake and is insane because they are going to erase everything that's happened to them. Jack says that they disappeared off of an airplane and ended up in 1977, so he's getting used to insane.

They reach the others camp and Jack and Kate duck behind some plants. Daniel says "Wish me luck" and heads towards the camp. Jack begins to stop Daniel but Kate pulls him back. Daniel heads into the camp, gun in hand and fires two shots to keep one of the others from picking up his gun. Daniel tells everyone not to move and that he wants to see Eloise.

Daniel continues to ask to see Eloise until Richard Alpert comes out and says that she's not here. Richard looks at Daniel and asks "Do we know each other?" Daniels says that it doesn't matter and he needs to see Eloise. Richard again says that she not here and Daniel asks where the hydrogen bomb that they told them to bury is. Richard asks him to put the gun down but Daniel says that he has three seconds until he shoots. After he counts the number 2, a shot is heard and we see that Eloise has shot Daniel in the back. Richard is upset and asks her why she shot him. Richard tells her that Daniel wasn't going to shoot him.

As Daniel is lying on the ground dying, he looks up at Eloise and says "You knew. You always knew. You knew this was going to happen. You sent me here anyway." Eloise asks "Who are you?" Daniel says "I'm your son." Richard and Eloise are both stunned as Daniel draws his last breath.

So Eloise knew that when she sent Daniel to the island that she would end up killing him in 1977. What monumental event or events is she trying to make happen or not happen that she is willing to sacrifice her own son?