The two of them left, and Kailan was alone again. Alone... and yet not... It is believed that the brain has two distinct halves; the left, controlling logical thought and rationality, the right controlling artistic impulses and emotion. At times, one is in dominance; at other times, the other. Such is an inavoidable fact of life, which is not necessarily unfortunate. But should one half rise to dominance and carry itself too far, a great deal of harm or at least embarrassment can occur. A person may do or say things which he would by no means have done at any other time. Such a person says he lost control of himself... but can one ever truly lose control? When one is in an mindless frenzy of fury and rage, has the left brain simply shut down? No; rather, the person is simply no longer listening to it. But it is there... and it watches... {What the hell am I doing?} thought L-Kailan. Kailan crossed his legs, straightening the hem of his gown. He tossed his hair with a little sigh. *I wish they'd hurry,* Kailan thought. *How long can it take them to pick out a dress? Hmmph- well, I suppose, with figures like theirs, they have to work a little harder than me to find something that doesn't look absolutely revolting...* {What? Did I really just think that?} *Not everybody can look this good, I suppose...* Kailan smiled a little. {What am I saying? I'm a guy! Guys don't think like this!} (But girls do,) R-Kailan thought savagely at its other half. (Now fuck off!) *I wonder what sort of sash would look nice with this...* Kailan thought peacefully. L-Kailan staggered... well, inasmuch as it could. The force of the other Kailan's reprimand was powerful and overwhelming. {Deities above... what's happened to me?} *Maybe a nice ivory sash, with a blue ribbon down the middle...* L-Kailan thought back. {When I stepped out of the dressing room... it was like... I felt... new, somehow. Like seeing the same world through a different lens and noticing what I'd been missing all along. And I was happy, so happy to finally... {To finally know what it was like to be a woman...} *She's got nothing on me,* Kailan thought, glaring at a girl walking by. (You see?) R-Kailan's thought-voice was filled with total rapture. (Isn't it wonderful? So much glamour, so much beauty, so much light, so much life!) The voice changed abruptly to a mix of total dejection and pure wrath. (To think that we were denied this for so long...to think that we wasted our time in that other form, when we could have had this from the start!) The strength of the undiluted emotions radiating from R-Kailan was numbing. L-Kailan tried to regain control of itself as its thoughts swirled about in disarray. having lost interest in the conversation, the other half returned to its control of the body. *Plenty of cute guys in this city,* Kailan thought. *And they can't all be busy tonight...* L-Kailan frowned, thoughts still hazy. {Something's wrong... something's... not right...} It lost itself again in the wake of the ever-fluctuating intensity of the other half. Kailan stood, admiring himself in a nearby mirror. *I don't need those other two,* he thought suddenly. *I don't care what they had planned. I've got plans of my own now. I'm gonna find a nice-looking guy and enjoy myself for awhile. And after that, I'll find myself another guy... and another... and another...* L-Kailan's mind, such as it was, was clearing. {No, no... this isn't right...} (What the hell are you talking about?) R-Kailan was all rage and suspicion. L-Kailan marshalled itself against the force of that emotion. {This isn't how it's supposed to be... you're getting it wrong...} (I am not!) The bellow was deafening. (This is how they act!) {No.} Purpose was filling L-Kailan with the strength to resist. {This is how we've always wanted them to act... flirtatious, easily impressed, shallow-} (That's right! That's what they are!) {No! It's wrong! Can't you see that?} (It's how they are!) {Remember her? The one? Her?} There was a long pause. Finally, R-Kailan murmured, completely desolate, (Yes.) {She wasn't like that. We thought she was, but we were wrong. And we realized, then, that we'd been wrong all along-} (No! It's not true!) R-Kailan screamed. {It hurt, didn't it? To finally see just how awful we'd been to her... to all of them?} (No! Please!) R-Kailan was frantic. {To finally see ourselves from their eyes... and know what a bastard we were.} R-Kailan was wailing, inconsolable in its shame and grief. L-Kailan continued, quietly. {Women aren't like this, and you know it. Women aren't concerned with only fashion and sex. They're humans. They feel and think and live just like we do... they're complex, and to pretend that they're not is not only demeaning to them, but a blow to us as well. How do you expect us to win _her_ back if we haven't learned a thing in all this time? No... wait... that was wrong. She's not something to be won. She's not a thing at all, she's a person. How do you expect us to love her if we can't appreciate her? We said we loved her... it's time we stopped denying that. If we want to love her, and if we want her to love us, then we have to change.} It paused. R-Kailan was silent now. {It's up to you... you're in control now. Either we can stay a chauvinistic bastard- even as a woman- or we can change.} (You feel it, don't you?) R-Kailan asked softly. (Something changed when we stepped into this gown. I don't know how... or why... but we're not Kailan anymore. But we're not a woman either... we're inbetween...) L-Kailan thought a moment before answering. {I think we're being given a chance to see how the other half lives. So... let's open up. Let the old Kailan go. It's time to make ourselves anew.} R-Kailan remained silent. Finally, (Okay.) And... Kailan blinked. He rubbed his eyes. It was so bright all of a sudden... as if he'd just woken up. He gazed around, taking in the room. Memories of the recent past were playing gradually through his mind. His eyes widened when they came to- He wheeled abruptly to the mirror, staring at himself. For a long second, he met eyes with his reflection. Impossibly, for one fleeting moment, something was communicated between the two; something which Kailan was never able to name or describe. But it calmed him, and took himself in from head to toe with a deliberate gaze. "Oh," he said. "It's fine, Azel," Ryoko rolled her eyes as she stepped out of the dressing room, carrying the bag with Azel's dress inside. "Now let's go... we've got to find out what Kuno's up to." Azel crossed her arms as she saw Kailan. "Oh, God... are you preening youself again?" Kailan turned to her. "What-? Oh. No, no... just looking." Ryoko raised an eyebrow. "Looking? Okay... I really really hope you aren't getting a crush on newly feminine self, Kailan. I don't think I'd be able to handle that." Kailan smiled. "No, don't worry. Oh, by the way, you look nice." He gestured vaguely at her dress. She blinked. "Hey... what happened to 'that doesn't come close to outdoing my dress', Mister? Whoops... err... Miss?" "I'm sorry about that. I think your outfit suits you very well." "Oh." Ryoko felt a little taken aback. "Well, thanks." "Hey," Azel put in, grinning, "Does that mean you win the bet, Ryoko? Lucky you... now you've got a date with Kailan!" "No, no," Kailan waved a hand to stop her. "I'm withdrawing the bet. Ryoko, I doubt want to be seen in public on a date with a guy in a dress. I know how mortified I'd feel if I dated a girl wearing-" Kailan gasped ultra-melodramatically, "-pants." She smiled, shoving him playfully. "So I don't get any prize at all? You cheapskate." "Here..." Kailan patted his pockets. "Want some gum?" "Hey!" Azel extended her hand. "I want some gum too!" "Sure thing! Plenty of gum for everyone!" They all chewed in camaraderie and peace. "Well," Ryoko said, "To Kuno's, then?" Kailan grinned faintly, a faraway look in his eyes. "Okay."