Big giant "Yale" room. Lorelai says it's so big it makes her want to open a checking account. Richard says that this is the main administration building, where all of the deans' offices are located. He leads the women over to his trap: the admissions office. He's rigged an interview for Rory to start right at that moment with one of his old Poofs, who happens to be the dean of admissions. Emily, Lorelai, and Rory are immediately upset. Richard says he told the dean all about how great a student Rory is, and the dean can't wait to meet her. Rory says she didn't apply to Yale. Richard says he told the dean that she hadn't decided yet, and that she's being very picky. That made Yale want her even more. As Richard checks his watch and notes that the interview is to take place immediately, Lorelai shakes her head while Emily nods her head, both women wearing the same disgusted expression. Richard offers to walk Rory in. Lorelai steps up and tells Rory that she doesn't have to do this. "Well, of course she's going to go in there," Richard says. Lorelai -- first stressing that Rory's the only person she's speaking to -- repeats that Rory doesn't have to go in there. She says they can leave now if she wants. Rory says that it's okay, and that she'll go in. As Lorelai and Emily stand with the same crossed-arm look of fury, Richard tells Rory that the dean is a very nice man, and that they'll hit it off. He walks her into the dean's office.

Lorelai and Emily stand there for a few seconds, speechless with rage. Emily tries to change the subject, to talk about her skirt. She tries to talk to Lorelai, but Lorelai shakes her head. Richard walks back out, beaming, bragging that Rory walked right up and shook the dean's hand. "I swear, that girl!" he chuckles. Lorelai says she almost feels like a standing ovation is in order. Richard says that if Lorelai's going to get dramatic, they should step outside, since the "Yale" hall has an echo. Lorelai asks what he thought he was doing. Richard says he thought he was helping his granddaughter get into what he thought was the best Ivy League school in America. Lorelai reminds him that Rory doesn't want to go there. Richard says that Rory doesn't know what she wants -- that she wasn't informed enough to know what she wanted. Lorelai says that he tricked Rory by cornering her without Lorelai around. Richard says he knows that the last thing Lorelai would ever want is for Rory to go to Yale, since that's where Richard went. "Oh, that's right," Lorelai says. "The crazy reason." Richard says he just wanted Rory to know all of her options. Lorelai notes that he's supposed to slap her face with a glove before he does this. Richard takes a seat, saying he's not going to discuss this with her. "You lied to everybody, Dad," Lorelai says. Emily asks Lorelai to calm down. Richard says that this is for Rory's own good. Lorelai says that Rory's going to Harvard. She's doing it without his help and decided this without his input because this isn't his decision to make. Richard apologizes for the way he did it, but says he's not apologizing for giving Rory this opportunity. Lorelai says Richard has tried to control Lorelai all of her life, and when he couldn't control something, he just didn't deal with it: "When you couldn't control me, you didn't deal with me." Richard says this has nothing to do with Lorelai, and that is about Rory and Rory's education. "Which frankly, Lorelai, is something you know nothing about." "Excuse me?" Lorelai asks, indignantly. "You never went to college!" Richard shouts, standing up. "Let alone an Ivy League college. You don't know the first thing about the system, the way it works. I do. I went through it. You want Rory to go to Harvard that badly? Well, so do thousands of other mothers! Yale is an excellent school. Equal with Harvard in every way except one. I went here. I'm an alumnus. That makes it easier for Rory to get in. And if you had any idea about how the system works, you'd know this." Lorelai says she knew he was going to get to the "my daughter's a loser, poor me" part of the speech. Richard says he's not going to leave Rory's education to chance simply to avoid offending Lorelai: "Her future is more important than her pride. If you don't like that, then I'm sorry. If it makes you angry, well, what else is new? But that, my dear girl, is the way it is." Lorelai tells Emily she's calling a cab. "We're leaving."