Attracted by the fire and explosion people were coming out on the street. It was dark and he was glad he couldn’t see their faces. He tried to make himself as inconspicuous as possible. He went by a group under a street light. A little boy stopped in front of him, gazing up. “Mommy, what’s the matter with him?” shrieked the child, pointing to Talbot’s face. The woman looked too. “Hush,” she said, jerking her son back. “You know it’s bad manners to point.” “But what’s the _matter_ with him?” persisted the child. Talbot walked on. His clothing was disheveled, but not burned. He felt light-headed, unsteady on his feet. He was not surprised that the woman had pulled the child away. He had done his best. He had tried desperately to save Frescura from his misplaced guilt feelings. Now he was going home to Randy. He had thought his return would be more triumphant than this. He was nearing the apartment when he caught sight of himself in a shop mirror. He went past, then came back, and looked again. Finally he looked away. Into his mind had washed a torrent of terror. His eyes seemed empty and hueless. His cheeks sagged. His face was _Between_. His empathy had been shattered by shock and fear. He could close the gulf between Soleri and himself because they had been very much alike to begin with. But Frescura was different, incomprehensible. He could never have succeeded in understanding Frescura. He had caught the last shreds of Frescura’s consciousness, and it was that terrifying awareness which had sent him sprawling just before the concussion. The obscure forces of his mind tried always to put him in another’s place. In times of extreme mental reaction the force became much stronger. But it couldn’t span the emotional gulf between himself and the scientist. What it had done was to force out the lingering hold Soleri’s personality still had on him. He was no longer Soleri. But by the same token he was not yet himself. He was reverting. And his face was Between. It was a visible indication of what he was becoming. He couldn’t ever hope to pass as Soleri again. And that meant that Randy would be lost to him forever. He turned and walked away from the apartment. His thoughts were dull and blank. He walked on until his body rebelled. He stared about him. His wandering hadn’t been haphazard. Subconsciously his steps had taken him to his old apartment. He was standing in front of the building where he had lived as Hal Talbot. Wearily he climbed two flights of stairs and let himself in with a key which he had never discarded. He fell on the bed. It was Talbot who went to sleep. VIII In the morning he avoided shaving. He didn’t want to look in the mirror. He ate, slept again, and listened to newscasts.