It's the middle of the night in the mansion, Oswald is still reeling from his confrontation with Ed. His bottle of wine is nearly empty since he's been drinking himself to death trying to remedy his heartache. He can't help but question himself what just happened, how he could have lost not only the person he loves but the only friend he ever had. He wonders how he could have crossed the line and not have seen what could have happened. Looking back he should have known Ed would find out. His intellect was one of the things he loved about him. What was so heartbreaking was that the answer was staring right in front of Ed, but he didn't even think of Oswald as a culprit because he never suspected him. He actually trusted him. That's the part that hurts Oswald most, that Ed truly did trust him. But Oswald can't bear to feel bad for killing Isabella because he feels if only she had heeded his warning she wouldn't have had to die. It was her fault right? She underestimated him. She should have known right? He's holding back a sob as best he can but it slips a bit. He managed to escape before Ed could actually attack him and he couldn't even convince himself to actually confess his feelings. He couldn't take the rejection.

"You truly are a man of unpredictability" a voice says. Oswald gasps and looks around recognizing the voice. Ed appears and walks into the dining room where Oswald is sitting. He walks slowly and cautiously. When Oswald saw his face, he was even more hurt. Ed didn't look angry or insultingly happy waiting for the kill, he looked….sad, betrayed.

"You are a true enigma. Pardon the pun." He said with a sad smile. He had a gun in his hand and walked up till he was about a couple feet from him. Oswald sniffled and sighed as he slowly stood up to look his former friend in the eyes. He swallowed what little control he had and did what he did best, show no fear. He always knew how to look into the eyes of failure and spit in its face because he knew how to survive. In a snap he had the cold eyes he was known for, the eyes of intimidation.

"I truly did look up to you Oswald. Despite your many…MANY faults I saw the man you really were." Ed admits.

Oswald was getting sick of this round up to the final pitch of what he wanted to say so he decided to cut it right here. "Well let's be fair here Ed you don't exactly have clean hands yourself. An obsessive compulsive, arrogant, neurotic, frankly pathetic man." He spat out with venom in his mouth. He didn't want to waste time being nice.

Ed just looked at him in disbelief of what he said and shut his eyes grinding his teeth trying to maintain what little control he had.

"Ya see ED, that's a big difference between you and I. You like to dance around riddles and word play before you act. I on the other hand, choose to NOT waste my time with such nonsense and prefer to cut to the chase. So instead of patronizing me with your hero worship crap, which by the way I think you need to work on because I didn't buy any of that, and I should know because I frankly have perfected the art of sucking up, TELL ME what you REALLY want to tell me." Oswald let out.

Ed let out a deep sigh ready to speak and try to maintain his composure. "Very well then…." He looks up struggling to find the words to say. He lightly chuckles at the ridiculousness of the situation.

"It was so obvious." He said holding his hand without the gun to face holding his head in hand. "I can't believe I never put two and two together… although I suppose I should be flattered that you cared so much for me that…you…..in your own way… wanted to protect me from Isabella. And might I say you truly are quite the actor because I never once suspected you held any ill will towards her. That perhaps if I had never met her, what would have happened and…" He couldn't finish because he himself couldn't understand his own feelings.

"Don't you DARE mock me with that!" Oswald shouted.

"I'M NOT!" Ed yelled back.

"The hell you are!" Oswald shouts back. He takes a moment to breathe. "You know I know I have my own issues. Don't we all." He laughs. "But never have I once denied ANYTHING I have done. I never tried to live a lie." He said accusingly.

"And I suppose that is in contrast to me?" Ed said sarcastically.

"Well what do you call your instant obsession with Isabella who looked so much like your ex who YOU killed, YOU chopped up and BURIED in the woods and never mentioning your past to her." Oswald explained.

"Oh like you were honest with your father when you met him!" Ed responded angrily.

"I believe being tortured and brainwashed into being a shell of what I once was excuses me from that. Hugo Strange broke me apart in that hell hole at Arkham, and I was not in my right mind. I was convinced that good will always triumph and I can be forgiven for my mistakes. And just when I was buying that tall tale, my stepmother kills my father and forces me to be her slave in MY OWN HOUSE. I learned the hard way that people like you and I will NEVER obtain normalcy, whatever that is. I had something good in my life, but life took it away. I suppose in the long run I should thank my stepmother because she released me from whatever trance Hugo Strange had me under."

"And I suppose this story is your way of telling me I should THANK you for killing the woman I loved…" Ed is interrupted.

"FOR A WEEK ED! FOR A WEEK! AND DON'T DENY THAT HER RESEMBLANCE TO YOUR EX WAS THE REASON!" Oswald yelled.

"IT WAS LOVE! I LOVED HER!" Ed shouted.

"NO YOU LOVED THE IDEA OF HAVING KRISTEN BACK! You think that I didn't understand exactly WHY you were so attached to her, but I did. And I know why even if you don't know. I have to say, it's pretty sad." Oswald said condescendingly sad.

"I don't know what you're…" Ed is interrupted again.

"Oh no. Don't go trying to play dumb here Ed. I mean you have your moments where you are truly dense but YOU can't fool me. You actually believed that having this 'new' Kringle in your life meant that you could have a second chance at love, at your old life. Whatever that was which come to think of it, didn't you ALREADY commit murder even before you dated her? I mean of course you did because the man you murdered was you ex's ex and that was the thing that scared her and triggered you to tragically suffocate your dear miss Kringle." He shakes his head in fake pity.

"But then you realize you actually LIKED killing people. I know because well" He laughs "YOU TOLD ME, remember." He continues to laugh. "What did you call it….fate? And I must say when you said you killed only 3 people I was amused. I asked myself, who is this strange man who abducted me and what the hell is he talking about? Isn't it funny how much has changed in such little time. You who were reeling and were so happy to admit your dark secret to me and in comparison to the you NOW…it's a puzzle." Oswald said.

"You thought that having a second chance with Kristen that you could have that old life back. When before you liked your new self, which I also remember how you kicked me out of your apartment, and then this. What could have happened?" He makes an over exaggerated pose in thought. "OH RIGHT! THAT was when you were caught and sent to Arkham. Now I know how cruel that place was but YOU, YOU were so terrified by that nut house that it actually scared you from doing any sort of crime that could get you caught again and sent back." Oswald said giggling.

"That's not true!" Ed shouted.

"Of course it's true! See there lies the other big difference between us Ed. I am no saint I admit that! I have killed many and I have lied and cheated and stolen from the biggest and the most powerful in the city to get what I want. But I DON'T MAKE EXCUSES FOR IT! I recognize what I did. But you, you actually want to pretend that the past never happened but you CAN'T change the past! No woman can erase the blood that is on your hands, how little there is" He chuckles at the end.

"This twisted tirade of yours will NOT distract me from what you did! YOU KILLED ISABELLA OUT OF JEALOUSY! YOU KILLED THE ONCE CHANCE I HAD AT HAPPINESS! YOU WERE SUPPOSE TO BE MY FRIEND!" Ed shouted about to point his gun at Oswald when Oswald pulled his gun from out of his coat and shot a warning shot by Ed's head. Ed ducked and shot his gun in retaliation not seeing where he was shooting. As the shot went off, Oswald went down grabbing his leg in pain. Ed looks and sees his chance and walks over to Oswald.

"If this were anyone else I would have shot you dead already. But in light of our friendship, I want to give you a chance to apologize for your actions so that there is nothing left unsaid. And also in the name of our friendship, I will give you a quick painless death." Ed said. Oswald looks up at Ed in pain and sadness.

"Well then…as a friend…may I just say.." Oswald then pulls out his gun and shoots his left leg. "You are a lousy shot." He said with a stone face. Ed screams in pain and struggles to grab his gun that he dropped when he got shot. Oswald shoots his hand and Ed shouts in pain.

"GABE!" Oswald shouts. Immediately his henchman appears.

"Take him out of here! And spread the word that Edward Nygma is no longer welcome here!" Oswald shouts. Gabe picks Ed up and carries him over to the exit with Nygma kicking and screaming all the way.

"You think this is over! It's not! NOT BY A LONG SHOT!" Ed shouts.

"I'm counting on that! And while I see this is merely the beginning I think it's fair to say I've won round one." Oswald says with a cocky grin and mockingly waves good bye to Ed. Once Ed's shouts were out of earshot, Oswald lets go of a breath that he was holding and slowly turns to the table with the bottle of wine. He grabs the bottle and drinks straight from the bottle with what little was left. When he sees that it was all gone, he shakes it furiously and starts to grunt in frustration. When he sees that there is nothing left, he growls and screams in anguish as he throws the bottle against the wall and lets out a loud cry. He drops to the ground and starts to sob. He could only hold that tough front for so long until he had to let out his pain. Just like that, he unconsciously started a war with his only friend and nothing was ever gonna be the same again.