On October 25th, Clinical psychologist, Dr. Malcolm Long, examines Rorschach, whose public identity is Walter Kovacs. Dr. Long hopes that he has the chance of helping Walter, as well finding out why he is so alienated and emotionally withdrawn.

Revealed through flashbacks and Dr. Long's notes, Walter was born in 1940 to Sylvia Kovacs. His father is unknown. His mother was a prostitute who resented his interference in her business, and abused him viciously. At age 10, Walter attacked two bullies that had cruelly abused him, partially blinding one with the bully's own lit cigarette. This incident lead the authorities to investigate Walter's home life and they removed him from his mother's custody. Walter became a ward of the state and his life improved with excellence in schoolwork, although he is an unusually quiet child.

On October 26th, Dr. Long continues his session with Walter and asks him to talk about his alter ego Rorschach. Walter suddenly tells Dr. Long that he doesn't like him, as he does not understand real "pain" but agrees to tell about the alter ego Rorschach. In 1956, Walter left the Children's home and became an unskilled laborer in the garment industry. While working in this capacity in 1962 he grew fascinated by a new fabric made possible through technologies developed by Doctor Manhattan. Two viscous liquids, one black and one white, between two layers of latex, continually shifted in response to heat and pressure, forming symmetrical patterns like a Rorschach inkblot test, while never mixing to produce a grey color. Walter learned of the fabric when a young woman chose not to buy a dress which she had ordered made from it; Subsequently, Walter took the dress home and experimented with the fabric. He learned to cut the fabric and maintain the seal using heated scissors. By March 1964, Walter learned about the murder of Kitty Genovese in which she was raped and killed in front of a building full of tenants who didn't bother to help her. The murder convinced Walter of finally being disgusted and ashamed of humanity.
On October 28th, Dr. Long tries some more blot tests with Walter, as Dr. Long knows that his patient has been holding back on what he actually sees. Walter looks at one and answers that he sees a dog's head split in half. Walter then reveals to Dr. Long about the 1975 kidnapping case of six-year-old Blaire Roche in which he investigated. Rorschach found the captor's vacant hideout and learned to his horror that the girl had been murdered, butchered, and fed to two German Shepherd dogs. He killed the dogs with a meat cleaver and waited for the kidnapper. Once the man arrived, Rorschach silently chained him to a pipe, ignoring his claims of innocence, then placed a hacksaw near him and set the house on fire. Finally telling the terrified murderer that he would not have time to cut through his restraints before the fire killed him (implying that he would have to sever his own arm to escape). Walter calmly watched the structure burn from across the street; the suspected kidnapper did not emerge. At this moment Rorschach ceased to be Walter Kovacs and became Rorschach. After finishing his story, Walter is taken back to his cell while Dr. Long is left shocked.

Dr. Long returns to his home with his previous optimistic outlook on life completely shattered. During a dinner party with guests invited by his wife Gloria, the guests start to tease Dr. Long about his interview with Walter. Unamused, Long tells them in detail about the murder of Claire Roche. The dinner soon ended with the guests quietly leaving in dismay. Gloria is furious and leaves the house. Dr. Long sits on his bed looking over a Rorschach blot and trying to pretend it looked like a spreading tree, but it didn't. Instead, it reminds him of a dead cat he once found.

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