[Sometime late that night, after Edward's death but before his resurrection, there is a dull thud against the front door of Edward's house. Only once, and then the rest of the night passes uneventfully.
Whenever someone opens the door the next morning, they'll find Edward's note to Schuldig pinned to the front door with a very large knife. Scrawled over Edward's text, in large black letters, are four words.]
[...well. That's not exactly something Edward's very happy to see. It's not the knife that bothers him, really, he's used to plenty of threats against his life, and he's always survived. No, what bothers him are the words.]
Why should he care?! Why should he---
[He almost wants to head back inside, get on the phones, and give Schuldig a piece of his mind. Though... for all intents and purposes, Schuldig already has a piece of his mind. In a manner of speaking. He hesitates before thinking to himself; this is worth a test.]
You say that as though I have a choice. [Schuldig's almost insolent drawl in his head makes it sound as though he's standing right next to Edward, even though he's nowhere near the man.] "Speak of the devil, and he shall appear"; isn't that how it goes? Thoughts about me always tend to get my attention.
You realize I'm not some caped vigilante intent on foiling your nefarious plans, right? I'm not going to walk into a trap just because you ask nicely.
[Hearing Schuldig's voice ringing through his head like this makes his skin crawl. It'll definitely take some getting used to. He tries to stifle all the negative thoughts about Schuldig, all the curses and names he could sling at him---though he knows that it's likely the telepath has heard them all by now.]
You're simple enough to get into contact with, I'll give you that. As for why you should care...
You're curious, aren't you? How did a seemingly ordinary man like Edward Nigma manage to plan this trap? Right under your nose? Without your knowledge? Don't you want to know how I was able to block you out?
[Suffice it to say, Edward doesn't exactly know how he managed to do it, either. He must have involved Luthor's shield in some way, but that doesn't explain the gap in his memories. And surely, Schuldig knows by now that Edward's thoughts and plans from last night are all just an incoherent blur in his head.]
How you did it without your own knowledge is far more interesting, really...but do you have any idea how bad you are at this? You just thought of Luthor and his shield, so you've handed me your bargaining chip free of charge. You haven't fully internalized what 'telepath' means, have you?
Now that I have the only thing I really wanted, I could just refuse you. [He lets Edward chew on that for a moment.] But I won't. Everyone's got a death wish, and you've gone to a hell of a lot of trouble with yours. Now that I know how you did it, I just want to see what you've cooked up that you honestly think could work against me.
It's not like I have anything to be scared of, is it~?
"Schuldig,
There’s no doubt that a man like you will be able to solve a riddle like this: “Why is six afraid of seven?”
But I’ve got plenty of other riddles for you.
“How does a genius defeat a telepath?” “How does he manage to outsmart him?” “How does he make him bleed?”
Well, tonight, you’re going to find out. I suppose if anyone’s to teach you not to underestimate a true genius, it’s got to be me.
Where are we meeting? And when? The answers are already here on the paper, waiting for you.
You’re a 'Mastermind,' though, aren’t you? You figure it out.
Be seeing you,
Edward Nigma"]
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Whenever someone opens the door the next morning, they'll find Edward's note to Schuldig pinned to the front door with a very large knife. Scrawled over Edward's text, in large black letters, are four words.]
WHY SHOULD I CARE?
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Why should he care?! Why should he---
[He almost wants to head back inside, get on the phones, and give Schuldig a piece of his mind. Though... for all intents and purposes, Schuldig already has a piece of his mind. In a manner of speaking. He hesitates before thinking to himself; this is worth a test.]
Schuldig. You're listening right now, aren't you?
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You realize I'm not some caped vigilante intent on foiling your nefarious plans, right? I'm not going to walk into a trap just because you ask nicely.
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You're simple enough to get into contact with, I'll give you that. As for why you should care...
You're curious, aren't you? How did a seemingly ordinary man like Edward Nigma manage to plan this trap? Right under your nose? Without your knowledge? Don't you want to know how I was able to block you out?
[Suffice it to say, Edward doesn't exactly know how he managed to do it, either. He must have involved Luthor's shield in some way, but that doesn't explain the gap in his memories. And surely, Schuldig knows by now that Edward's thoughts and plans from last night are all just an incoherent blur in his head.]
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Now that I have the only thing I really wanted, I could just refuse you. [He lets Edward chew on that for a moment.] But I won't. Everyone's got a death wish, and you've gone to a hell of a lot of trouble with yours. Now that I know how you did it, I just want to see what you've cooked up that you honestly think could work against me.
It's not like I have anything to be scared of, is it~?
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I'll be seeing you tonight, then. Don't keep me waiting.
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