An Exception

by MadamBiscuit

Fu arrived with what looked like a monster on his shoulder and claimed he would become Hearts' most powerful ally. A god who would help him defeat the Omni King. He could simply dispose of the god after his usefulness had worn out, couldn't he? A mortal who hates the gods and a god who hates the mortals . . . who'd have thought they'd grow so close? (Hearts x Zamasu)

3. Chapter 3

That night, Zamasu dreamt of his previous life. He saw the world through the eyes of Zamasu. They were in their cabin, rambling on about their plan and their life that was about to unfold. They sounded like dreamers, completely carefree and so certain of themselves. They were so close to completing their plan! Everything was perfect! Nothing could go wrong!

It was painful to listen to now, knowing what he knew.

Even still, the way Black reached out to lightly caress his face felt so nice. His black eyes almost reassured him that it would all work out, that everything would turn out the way that it should. He was powerful and cunning, and handsome . . . and his voice was low and alluring. Zamasu had hung on every word, his own hands reaching up to rest on Black's shoulders.

They were perfect together. Who better to spend an eternity with than with oneself?

Black's thumb ran across his lower lip. Black's mouth was moving, but suddenly no words were coming out. What was he saying? He wanted to hear his voice again. Why was it silent now? No! Was it going to end already? It felt like it had just begun! Why couldn't he have more lovely dreams with them? He wanted to be part of that world again! That carefree and perfect world!

"Zamasu . . . Zamasu!" He couldn't even hear his own voice. He reached a hand out to try and touch his lover, but his hand went right through him, causing Black to vanish and the world around him to collapse just before he opened his eye . . . back to the real world.

Hearts loomed over him, his brows turned upward with apparent concern. The man's hands were on Zamasu's shoulders, "Are you awake now?" His voice was low, smooth . . . it was not the same as the voice of Black, but it was pretty nice in its own way. Why was he concerned, though? He should just mind his own business.

"I . . . I am." He didn't want to be awake. He'd give anything to go back to sleep and fall back into that dream. Would he see it again tonight? Perhaps he could see the world from Black's eyes next time. He wanted to see the beautiful face he used to have. "I'm awake."

"You were whining in your sleep and seemed distressed. I wasn't going to wake you, but. . ."

So Hearts was the bastard who woke him? "Then why did you? I wanted to see him . . ."

"See him?" Hearts tilted his head, "Were you dreaming of the two Zamasus again?" He was quite stuck on the past, wasn't he? Well, it wasn't so long ago that he had become a fusion, right? It must be strange to have the memories of two people within his one mind. "I didn't mean to wake you from that. I'm sorry." Why did he sound so upset, then? Wouldn't a dream like that be a happy dream? Well, whatever.

"Is it time for breakfast?" Zamasu was very tempted to simply roll over and try to go back to sleep. He wanted to feel that gentle hand against his skin again. He wanted someone to get as close as Black would get. He always forgot just how much he missed that intimacy until he remembered what Black and Zamasu had.

"No. I think it will be a while yet before it's ready. I think the twins are helping cook this time. They wanted Fu to teach them." Fu . . . he needed to have a talk with him about what exactly he was up to last night. Zamasu had been shaken by it last night, but he'd know for certain the extent of it once he saw the two of them interact today.

"So you woke me for nothing, then?" He didn't even bother to glare at the man. Instead, he simply stared up at him with a tired eye . . . though his gaze fell to the man's chest and the large scars that crossed it. What an interesting creature he was. Dual-toned skin, red eyes, large scars . . . what was his story? Not that it mattered. It did pique his curiosity a bit, though.

"I didn't wake you up for no-" Hearts smirked when he realized the god was no longer staring at his face. He sat there in silence for a moment, allowing Zamasu to eye him in awkward silence. "If you're that distracted by my chest, you should see the rest of me."

"Excuse me?" Scarlet quickly tinted the god's cheeks and ears as he snapped out of his daze and turned an angry eye back to the other man's face.

"You were staring, so I figured I'd offer up a little extra." Hearts leaned down over top of Zamasu, taking pleasure in the way the god's glare faltered and he looked more nervous than anything else. This was highly inappropriate, given last night's occurrences, but . . . he couldn't help himself. "Red looks good on you, Zamasu." There were so many vulgar things he could say and suggest, but he left it at that one comment as he moved a hand to caress the god's cheek.

Too close! Hearts was too close to him again! Who did he think he was? Leaning over him, making such a suggestive comment, touching his face like that! Touching his face . . . he had such large hands, much like Black. His hands were a little rough, too. The way he ran his thumb over his cheek bone . . . it was really similar, wasn't it? Was his skin still just as soft as Zamasu's skin had been? Did he find him just as beautiful?

Curiously, Zamasu didn't swat his hand away or yell anything at him at all. Instead, he reacted quite oppositely from what Hearts expected. Zamasu's eye went blank and the muscles in his face relaxed. His whole body seemed to relax, in fact. "Zamasu?"

"Am I still beautiful?"

"W-What?" What was with that question so suddenly? Why would he ask him something like that?

"Am I . . . still beautiful? Even though . . . even though . . ." Zamasu's eye narrowed a bit as his lips began to quiver.

"A-ah, wait . . . are you . . .?" As if to answer Hearts' unasked question, a tear escaped the Kai's eye and slipped down his cheek, onto Hearts' hand that still held onto him. "Hey . . ." Why did it pain him to see that? This proud and narcissistic god . . . why was he so self-conscious now? Was he really so worried about his appearance? No . . . perhaps it was more that his marred appearance reminded him of his immense failure to achieve his goal. "Don't cry, Zamasu. I'm not sure what to do . . ." What should he say? Should he just let him cry? Should he hold him? Should he leave?

Hearts pressed his forehead against Zamasu's, causing the god to widen his eye a bit. "I'm not sure who you're really asking. Are you asking me, or are you asking someone in your head? Who are you seeing right now?" The question had been so out of the blue. "Well, whether you want to hear these words from me or not. . ." Hearts wiped Zamasu's eye with his thumb, "Yes, you're still beautiful. I don't really know what you looked like before, but. . . right now you are beautiful. You are very beautiful."

". . ." Zamasu didn't say anything, but he continued to stare right into Hearts' eye as he slowly lifted a hand to rest it over Hearts' hand and hold tightly onto it.

Did he want to hear more? "Your skin is soft, your eye is like silver, your hair is like satin . . . your voice is smooth and sultry . . ." Why was he saying all of this? The words just rolled off his tongue by a will of their own. Zamasu was beautiful, so it was fine to tell him so, wasn't it? If this was what he wanted to hear, he could tell him all day long.

Zamasu lifted his other hand and hesitantly buried it in Hearts' hair on the back of his head. His heart was racing and his mind was a mess. He shouldn't accept such words from a mortal. He shouldn't allow a mortal to touch him and get as close as Hearts was right now. But his words were wonderful. His gentle touch was welcome. How could he push him away when it all felt so good?

He allowed his eye to slip closed. What was it that he wanted to happen now? He could feel Hearts' breath mingling with his own. Their faces were so close with the other man's forehead pressed against his. He could feel Hearts' other hand rest on his other cheek. What would he do now?

"You closed your eye, didn't tell me to stop touching you . . . generally that's a way to tell the other person to kiss you and to keep going."

No, he knew what he would do. Was it okay?

The moment Zamasu's eye closed, Hearts froze for a moment. Was that permission to keep going this time? It was surprising, but he couldn't take too long to think about it. How long would such an opportunity last? Not wanting Zamasu to suddenly change his mind, Hearts began to close the gap to kiss him. . .

. . . but was interrupted by a very loud and abrupt knocking on the bedroom door.

It took every ounce of willpower Hearts had to not send an energy blast through the door to kill whoever was on the other side. Even Zamasu's eye had snapped open and he turned his head to look at the door. Was the moment lost? Had he seriously missed his chance to go further with him?

"Who the fuck is it?" He could feel Zamasu's hand slip from the back of his head.

"Sheesh, someone is cranky this morning!" Fu was on the other side. Of course it was Fu. "Did you want breakfast?"

"I want to fucking kill you."

". . . is that a no, then?"

Hearts grit his teeth before taking a deep breath to calm himself, "We'll be out in a bit, just . . . go away."

"Did I interrupt something good?" Fu asked the question in a sing-song tone.

"Fu!"

"Alright, alright. I'm going. Take your time."

Once he was certain Fu had actually left, Hearts turned his head to look down at Zamasu again. He was still staring in the direction of the door. "Zamasu. Um. . . do you-"

"We should go get breakfast." He slowly turned his head to look up at Hearts again. He could tell the other man was disappointed, but this was for the best. "I don't know what had come over me. I'm not sure why I asked such a strange question. I trust that you won't mention this moment of weakness to anyone."

Moment of weakness? Is that what he wanted to call it? Hearts had poured a bit of his own heart out and Zamasu was ready to simply brush it aside? "I think it was far more than that. Zamasu. . . sleep with me again tonight." He held both of Zamasu's cheeks again, staring directly into his eye. "Stay with me again tonight and every other night. That's fine, isn't it? You trust me, right?" They'd just had a similar conversation last night, but he couldn't help but feel that Zamasu's response was a bit fake.

"I told you last night that I-"

"Tell me the truth. Do you trust me or not? You came to me last night when you were afraid of Fu. You could have gone to anyone, but you came to me. You slept in bed with me. So are you really going to continue saying you don't trust me?"

". . . get off me."

"Answer me!"

"Get off me, mortal!"

Hearts' eyes widened considerably before narrowing as he leaned away from Zamasu. "As you wish, god . . . god of what? God of nothing, I suppose. You really won't give up your damn pride, will you? You aren't one of them anymore; haven't you realized that yet?" Hearts left the bed to go into the bathroom and splash water on his face. How had they gone from nearly kissing to yelling at each other? Zamasu's personality was beyond frustrating. Why was he wasting his time? Zamasu was brought here to become a powerful ally for the sake of his goal. He could use him as a test to see just how powerful that Universe Seed was upon completion. Was it powerful enough to destroy an immortal being?

. . . but at this point, would he actually be able to do that? He was getting really damn attached to that bastard god.

Zamasu watched Hearts get up and leave. Did he really need to say something so hateful? God of nothing . . . he knew that already. He knew he no longer had a place among the gods. He didn't have a place among the mortals, either. He had nowhere and no one. No one but himself. He was only using this group to obtain the power of the Universe Seed they kept talking about. He wanted to kill the Omni King and continue his plan where he'd left off . . . though, this was a different timeline, so he'd have to start all over again. Alone, this time.

Alone . . .

The bed was getting cold now that Hearts had left. Not that it mattered. He needed to grow accustomed to sleeping alone, anyhow. Perhaps if he talked to Fu, he could have his room without fear of Fu doing something awful. Had he even been serious last night, or was it one of his ridiculous experiments? While the threat had seemed real enough, there was something about the whole situation that was off.

Zamasu sat up on the edge of the bed and finally remembered that he'd left his boots, coat, and sash all in that other room. No matter. With a flick of his wrist, his clothes formed on his body in the same state they had been in, tears and all. Did he really need to keep them in such a state? Did he not already have a constant reminder in the form of his memories? In the form of his deformations? "Bastard mortals . . . I'll destroy them for what they did . . ." He wanted that more than anything right now. More than killing the Omni King, he wanted to at least take his revenge on Son Goku, Vegeta, and Trunks.

"I'm going to breakfast now." He wasn't sure why he felt the need to tell Hearts where he was going. The words just kind of came out as he stood up and went to the door. Hearts did not respond, though. That was fine. He didn't need to hear anything more from him.

---

Against his better judgement, Zamasu once again followed Fu back to the lab to receive his daily shot of whatever it was Fu kept pumping into him. He insisted it was to help with the healing process and to keep his body in check, but he couldn't help but doubt that. "If you try anything strange, I will sever both of your hands."

"Ooooh, terrifying!" Fu grinned, despite his words. "Just have a seat while I get it ready, okay?"

Fu never seemed phased in the slightest by any threats sent his way. Zamasu couldn't sense how strong he was, either. Was he concealing his strength just as the Saiyans did? That had to be the case. He was a demon and he seemed quite confident in himself. He must be fairly powerful at least.

"Fu . . . last night . . . were you really trying to do something inappropriate?" Zamasu pursed his lips, not really keen on having this sort of conversation, but it needed to be done.

"If by inappropriate you mean have sex with you, then yeah. I was totally going to have my way with you if I caught you." He held up the syringe and something about that motion made the god flinch a bit, "Does that make it difficult to trust me now?" He chuckled as he approached the god and pricked the end of the needle into his exposed arm. "Yet you still sat perfectly still for this."

"Because I doubt you, not because I trust you."

"Huh? How does that make sense?" Fu maintained his focus on the medicine as he slowly administered it, but he furrowed his brows at the god's words.

"You did not seem serious last night. I didn't want to gamble on that hunch, but . . . you had other intentions, didn't you?"

Fu sighed uncharacteristically as he pulled the needle out and went back to his supply table, "Does it really matter what my intentions were? You didn't really want to sleep all alone in there, did you?" He glanced over at the Kai, peering at him from over the top of his glasses, "You lost your only ally in the cosmos. Is the only being you can trust really yourself?" He turned around and leaned against his table, folding his arms across his chest.

"Of course. Do you expect me to trust in a mortal or one of those ignorant gods?" Zamasu mimicked the demon, folding his own arms across his chest. Just what was Fu trying to get at?

"Yes, I do. Someone like myself doesn't need it, but someone like you does. Your body wasn't the only thing damaged; you've definitely got a lot going on up here as well." He tapped at the side of his head before leaning away from the table to approach the Kai. "You need stability. Don't you see what happened when you lost that? Two people who had each other. Two people who thought exactly alike. Two people with the same goal . . . but when they fused, that was lost. Now there is one person who failed. One person who cannot obtain what he wants. One person who lost his chance at his dream."

Fu stopped in front of Zamasu and buried a hand in his hair to gently tilt his head back so he could look him in the eye, "Your mind broke down. You had a total meltdown, both mentally and physically." He couldn't help but laugh at his ill-timed joke, earning him a sharp glare from the god. "Sorry, sorry . . . but in all seriousness . . . you need to find your ground again. You're useless to our team if you cannot stabilize yourself. What could you possibly hope to do on your own in the state you're in?"

Useless . . . unstable . . . ugly . . .

How had he, the most supreme and perfect god, come to be described as such things? He had been beautiful, flawless, all-powerful . . . he had been everything he could have ever wanted. So how? How had he fallen to the absolute bottom? "I . . . I'm not . . ."

"You are. But you'll get better. Get strong again and get revenge. Help Hearts with his goal and you will also find power." More likely than not, the whole team would get obliterated at some point. Still, it was fun and interesting to see how far they could take it. Right now, though, Zamasu would only hinder them. "Until then, though, I'll keep giving you medicine and we'll keep you here. If you want to go out, you have to get over your failure."

Fu saw the way Zamasu trembled, his eye wide and staring out at nothing. His reaction when he was reminded of his failure amused the demon. "Does it bother you when I talk about it?" His free hand now gently held Zamasu's chin as the hand in the god's hair now gripped the white locks tightly, "You, who was so mighty and powerful and full of himself . . . look what has become of you."

Why was it so difficult to breathe? It felt like some tremendous weight was pressing against his chest. Even swallowing took great effort. His vision . . . the edges were cloudy and his vision went in and out of focus. Fu's voice sounded as though he was standing far away even though he was right in front of his face.

Failure.

The mortals had ruined everything!

Look what has become of you.

He was beautiful, perfect, supreme! What had happened? Why had so much been stolen from him when all he wanted was to save the cosmos themselves? Were they not more important than the greedy, ungrateful mortals who dwelled within?

"I . . . I . . ." The words just wouldn't come out. What did he even want to say? That he wasn't a failure? That he was still perfect? Those were statements he knew were lies. They were not true, not anymore. He had failed. He had been made imperfect.

"Fu! Back off!" Hearts entered the lab when he felt it was taking entirely too long. He told himself that he shouldn't follow them, that he shouldn't worry about a god, but . . . he'd found himself waiting outside of the lab anyhow. It was too quiet and it was taking too long. A simple injection should have been only a few minutes at the most! Luckily he'd followed his instincts and gone inside, only to find that Fu was in Zamasu's face and Zamasu looked nothing short of traumatized. "What are you doing!?"

"Hm?" Fu clicked his tongue before releasing his hold on the Kai and standing up straight. "I was just talking with him is all. I told him he needs to get stro-" Fu's words were cut short as Hearts tried to punch him square in the face, but Fu caught the fist in his palm with apparent ease, sighing as he did so. "Hearts . . ." He closed his eyes for a moment, but once he reopened them, they were completely red, his iris now a yellow color, "This isn't a fight you can win. If I wanted to have my way with Zamasu, I would have done it by now. I'm not really interested in that at the moment . . ." He gave the fist a squeeze, eliciting a pained gasp from Hearts before he finally released it.

"Alright!" His eyes almost instantly went back to normal, his usual smile stretched across his face, "You can go run along and play now, Zamasu! Remember what we talked about, okay?" He gave the Kai a mocking pat on the head.

". . . come on, Zamasu." Hearts grabbed the god's wrist and practically yanked him out of the seat before leading him out into the hallway. Fu was powerful. He knew he was strong, but he had severely underestimated just how strong. Sure, he wasn't using his full strength behind that punch, but the way Fu effortlessly caught it and the way his eyes changed . . . he was thankful that Fu was currently on his side. It would be best not to fight him.

Hearts led Zamasu down the hall and back toward the lounge where he knew they could be alone for a bit.

"If I wanted to have my way with Zamasu, I would have done it by now."

Something about that statement had him a bit shaken. What a bold statement for Fu to make. Judging from what had happened last night, Fu was trying to force him and Zamasu together. Why, though? What reason did he have to do that? Fu was terrifying in his unpredictability.

"Are you okay?" Hearts closed the door behind them as they entered the lounge and then turned to face the god. Zamasu's eye was still opened wide, but he seemed to snap out of it when Hearts spoke to him.

"A-ah, yes. I am fine. It's fine." He wasn't fine at all and that bothered him even more. Why did something so small and insignificant make him feel so awful? The opinion of a demon was worth even less than the opinion of a mortal, yet here he was with a horrible tightness in his chest and a lump in his throat from Fu's words. The worst part was that he didn't disagree with any of it. Fu was not wrong in his accusations. He had been made imperfect. He had failed. He had lost his only companion. He was not at his peak strength anymore. All of these things were true and it was so damn painful . . . a pain he could feel even though he was immortal.

"No you're not." Hearts placed his hands on Zamasu's waist. His waist was really damn small, wasn't it? His figure was delicate, yet strong. It was beautiful. He hoped to someday see his body properly . . . without the clothes in the way. "Want to have a drink and chat? Maybe it will help calm your nerves." He could use a drink himself. He'd let himself get too carried away with looking after Zamasu even though he'd never intended to get so close to him. Something about him just drew Hearts to him like a moth to a flame.

"Why? So you can take advantage of me more easily?" Zamasu pulled the hands away from his waist and went to sit in the large armchair in the room.

"Why would I do that now when there have been so many opportunities before? Though if you want me to do something-"

"Just give me whatever you think I will enjoy."

". . ." Hearts' eyes widened considerably as he just stared at the god. What was he referring to? "Do you mean the drink or-"

"Of course I mean the drink." Zamasu bit off his words angrily. Why was this bastard mortal so vulgar with his thoughts? As irritating as those Saiyans had been, at least he hadn't had to deal with this! "I'm losing my patience with all of you, not that I had much to begin with."

Hearts rummaged through the small fridge that was in the lounge. It had mostly water, but there was a single bottle of wine in it. "Looks like we only have one option, so hopefully it's good." He brought the bottle to the small table that was in front of the couch and armchair, then retrieved two glasses from the wet bar in the room. "Why don't you sit on the couch with me?" He smirked as he poured the wine. Pushing Zamasu's buttons was just too fun to resist.

"I would rather sit on the floor than sit next to you." His words didn't sound angry, though. It was almost as though he was reciting a rehearsed response. "Aren't you pouring quite a lot in those glasses? It seems excessive." He eyed the glasses curiously. He had never consumed any sort of alcohol before. What kind of flavor did it have? This liquid was mostly clear, but with a light yellow tint to it.

"Don't worry – this one isn't very strong. I think even if you drank the entire bottle you'd be fine." Hearts looked thoughtful for a moment, "Well, no, you haven't had alcohol before, have you? It's best if you drink slowly, then." As fun and interesting as it would be to see Zamasu drunk, it would make it difficult to control his own urges. He did not know what kind of personality may come out of the god. If it was flirtatious in any way, he'd lose it.

"Tch. If a mortal like you has no problem with it, then surely a god can tolerate it even moreso." Zamasu lifted the glass and brought it to his face. It smelled like a mixture of fruits he could not quite make out. It did not smell bad, at least. Hopefully the flavor was similar. After a moment longer of consideration, he took a small sip. "Ah, it has a fruit flavor. It's nice . . ." He did feel a tingling in his throat, though. Was that due to the alcohol in it?

"You like it, then?" Hearts took a drink as well. It was pretty nice. A light fruit flavor. It wasn't really something he would normally drink, but if Zamasu enjoyed it, then it was fine. "If the flavor is good, you should take extra care not to get carried away and drink too much."

". . . so what was the real reason you dragged me in here?" Zamasu held his glass, swirling the contents a bit. He was tempted to drink it quickly since the flavor was nice, but perhaps it was best to heed Hearts' warning.

"To get away from Fu. It was the only place I knew no one else would be aside from outside, but . . . well, this was the first place that came to mind."

"Hm . . . I could have gone anywhere that wasn't the lab and it would have been away from Fu. He never really leaves that room other than to eat." Zamasu crossed his legs and leaned on one of the armrests to get more comfortable.

"That's true, I guess. Maybe I wanted to talk to you with no one else around." Zamasu really could have just gone wherever he wanted. Even now, Zamasu could get up and leave. Yet here he was, still sitting with him and talking with him. He acted as though he detested Hearts' very existence, yet he did seem to tolerate him far more than he tolerated the others.

"If you're just going to pry about what Fu was saying to me, forget it. It's not something I'd like to discuss. That bastard is simply trying to get under my skin." And it was working, too, but Hearts didn't need to know that. Hearts already knew more than he ought to.

"I already know more than I ought to?"

"Tch. . ."

"Ahhh, you forgot about that ability, didn't you? Even if you don't tell me anything, I'll know." He couldn't hear absolutely everything, but keeping a secret from him was practically impossible. He couldn't really read Fu at all, though. That man was an absolute mystery.

"It is an invasion of privacy. You have no right to listen to my thoughts." It was annoying that a mortal had such an ability anyhow. Why was he able to hear even the thoughts of a god? Shouldn't something like that be impossible? "Why should you know everything about me when I know nothing about you? Stay out of my head, mortal." He stared at the liquid in his glass. It was very tempting to drink a lot. He really hadn't learned much about alcohol, but consuming too much of it could make someone sick, right? They could also achieve a drunken state. What was that like? Though . . . it was best not to put himself in a vulnerable position around these perverts.

Hearts tapped his foot on the floor, "I only hear your heart when I'm listening. It's not all the time, you know." He pulled his glasses off and sat them on the table, "Are you curious about me, Zamasu?" He couldn't help but smirk as he took another drink, watching over the rim of his glass as the god got visibly irritated.

"Absolutely not. I don't have any need to know about any of you." He was curious, but he'd never admit it. Where was Hearts from? Why did he have so many scars? Had he also been brought back from the dead (or near death) by Fu?

"Ohhh, you have quite a lot of interesting questions!" Hearts' smirk became a grin as Zamasu shot him an intense glare, "Easy, easy . . . I'll stop for now. I just love to test your patience." Zamasu didn't have a poker face at all, did he? Always getting fired up in an instant. He was fun to play with.

"So you admit that you irritate me on purpose? What an awful mortal you are." The god pulled his legs up onto the chair to get a little more comfortable. It wasn't a proper way to sit, but there was no reason to be formal in front of mortals. They were beneath him no matter what.

"Implying that you don't think all mortals are awful?"

"All mortals are awful. Don't put words in my mouth."

"There are far better things to put in your mouth than words."

Zamasu nearly dropped his glass, a disgusted expression quickly distorting his features, "W-what!?" Even though he looked horribly bothered by the comment, a dark red blush quickly stretched across his cheeks and the tops of his ears.

"Ahhh, there it is! I like to make you angry, but making you blush is even better. You're easily embarrassed, aren't you?" Hearts leaned his elbow on the armrest and rested his chin in his palm while smiling at the Kaioshin. "I like it."

This bastard was the worst of them all! Saying something so absolutely filthy to a god! Who did he think he was!? And to think he had shared a bed with this man twice now! There was no telling what had gone on while he slept! "I am not! I was simply disturbed by your words! You're lucky I have a reason to keep you all alive, otherwise I would- stop looking at me like that!" That smile on Hearts' face was pissing him off and it only stretched wider when he told him to stop. "I should just leave you here by yourself."

"And go where?"

". . ." Zamasu huffed and suddenly downed the rest of his drink.

"Woah, woah! Didn't I tell you to take it easy?" Hearts sat up straight, furrowing his brows at the god's actions, "I don't think you'll like being drunk. It lowers your inhibitions, you know. You may end up doing something you don't intend to." He downed the rest of his own glass. Something this light wouldn't have any effect on him at all, but . . . Zamasu may feel something if he drank enough. "Shall I pour another?"

"Lowers my inhibitions? What exactly is it you think I would do?" Zamasu placed his glass on the table, giving Hearts silent permission to give him more, "Or rather, what is it you're hoping I will do, you disgusting mortal?"

"Heh . . . you say that, but you want more anyhow. Perhaps you're the one looking for an excuse to let loose a little bit." Hearts obliged, pouring even more than he did last time while only giving himself about half the amount. "I already told you I wouldn't do anything against your will. Even if a drunk god undresses himself and climbs onto my lap-"

"What kind of thoughts are going through your head right now!? Do not envision me in such a manner! How vulgar!" He reached for his glass, but paused upon realizing the difference in how much his glass had versus what Hearts had, "Why did you give me significantly more?"

"You'll enjoy it more than I would. And . . . be thankful you cannot hear what is in my heart if those words were enough to bother you." He chuckled and took his glass, "Go on, drink up. Like I said before, I won't do anything against your will, but . . . I am very interested to see what you will do when you're not worried about your reputation. You act so full of yourself and above me, but . . . I already heard your heart many times before. You are lonely and crave the attention you had in your romance as the two Zamasus before they fused."

"Stop bringing that up . . . even if I do desire that relationship, it is impossible to have it. There is only one of me." He did take the glass. Drinking too much could be problematic, but part of him was curious of the feeling. The other gods drank, didn't they? Gowasu only ever drank tea, though, so he hadn't been exposed to this. The flavor was nice and the sensation in his throat was interesting. He didn't dislike it. If he did get drunk . . . what would Hearts really do? Would he hold him like he did at night? What kinds of things would he say?

. . . why did he want to know?

Hearts faltered a bit as he took a drink. Even though he said he wouldn't, he did listen in to Zamasu's heart since he was so quiet and staring off into space. Was that what he wanted him to do? "Well if you ever decide to lower your standards, let me know." Just earlier Zamasu was going to let him kiss him, right? It was most definitely just his pride getting in the way. He still had so much pride left even though his self image had been dealt a powerful blow. How much of a narcissist had he been before now? Hearts couldn't even imagine it.

"I only want to work with you all to kill the King. We will kill him. We have to. I'll get my strength back and suppress those unnecessary thoughts and feelings so I am not useless." He took a large drink. It was so tempting to suck the whole glass down again. If he got drunk, could he escape these horrible thoughts for a little while? He could still hear Fu's words in his head and it was annoying how much it hurt. Useless, unstable . . . he didn't want to think about it.

"Useless?" Hearts leaned on the armrest again. "You're very powerful. If you feel weak, then perhaps you just haven't fully recovered yet. Your body was half decomposed . . . it shouldn't come as a surprise that your recovery time will be lengthy." That word . . . it also came from Fu, didn't it?

"Right, of course. I'm sure it is only that." Zamasu fanned at his face with his free hand. "Isn't it a bit warm in here?" He pulled at the neck of his shirt.

"No, it feels the same as usual. It's probably just the alcohol. I knew it was going to have a quick effect on you. You've never had it before. You should probably stop if it's already affecting you so much." But he wasn't going to stop, was he? He wanted to get drunk, didn't he? "Zamasu, if something Fu said is bothering you, ignore him. That guy is manipulative. He likely has some bigger picture he is working toward. Don't play into what he wants." But he was also using the Kai, wasn't he? That was the original intention, anyway. Though . . . Zamasu was also using him, according to what he'd said.

"You are all using me. I don't trust any of you, just as none of you trust me. Fu can only be so confident because he is either crazy or extremely powerful . . . or both." He set his glass down and unfastened his sash, neatly folding it and placing it on the table before doing the same with his overcoat. It was too warm. "Your fake concern is irritating. I won't fall for it."

"Fake . . . you don't really feel that way at all, right? I don't even need to listen to your heart to know that. You wear your emotions on your sleeve, god." His personality was so frustrating. "A god who is unlike the gods. I'm not even sure what you really are."

"A failure." Zamasu's eye widened at his own words as he lifted a hand to quickly cover his mouth. "A-ah, no . . . I don't know why I said that." The words were muffled under his fingers as he quickly reached for his glass again. Those were Fu's words, not his, right? No, they were his. He had most certainly failed. The Saiyans had destroyed his perfect plan. They'd ruined everything he had.

"Failure?" Hearts watched as the god quickly threw his head back and chugged the large amount of alcohol remaining in his glass. "My, my . . . you're going to be a handful in a short while." Hearts got up from his seat and handed Zamasu his own glass. "Here, you may as well just have the rest." Zamasu didn't hesitate to take it and finish it off as well. "If you're hoping that drink is going to make you feel better, you're in for a rude awakening. In fact, you'll probably just end up crying." He'd definitely be angry with himself once he sobered up after all of this, but . . . well, he'd at least stay with him until he eventually sobered up or fell asleep.

"I won't cry in front of you again if I can help it. You've seen enough." Hearts had seen so much weakness in him already, though, so what was the use in arguing? He definitely was beginning to feel a bit strange aside from the fact he was burning up. "If I could, I would sleep for a while. Perhaps I would sleep for a day or two straight. Really, I just want time alone. I want time to think. I want to mull over what happened and what I could have done to change the course to secure my victory."

"Why? Why put yourself through that? The fact is, you failed at your goal and now you are here. Just focus on the road ahead without looking back." Hearts removed his gloves and tossed them onto the table, then slid his coat off and placed it over the armrest on the chair where Zamasu currently sat.

"I have to analyze it so I can avoid such mistakes this time! . . . why are you undressing?" Zamasu eyed Hearts suspiciously as he set the second empty glass on the table.

"Things are different this time no matter what, right? You have us with you." Hearts offered him a smile as he gently grabbed Zamasu's wrist, "Come sit with me. Won't you feel better if you have someone to lean on?"

"Don't touch me, mortal! Put . . . put your clothes back on! Don't touch!" He tried to yank his hand away, but he was feeling a little dizzy for some reason. "Ahh . . . just. . ." The god stood up with every intention of just leaving the room to get away from the current topic and Hearts' awkward behavior, but the moment he stood up, he felt even more dizzy and instead stumbled forward directly into Hearts' chest.

"Oh, that works, too."

"As if I would do such a thing on purpose! I must have tripped on-"

"No, you're starting to feel the effects of the alcohol. Luckily there isn't any more in this room. If you got completely drunk, I don't know if I'd be able to behave myself." Ignoring the god's protests, he scooped him up with ease and set him down on the couch before taking a seat beside him. "Now that you've got a bit of liquid courage in you . . . why don't you talk to me about what Fu said."

"I told you I didn't want to sit . . . beside. . . you. . ." His anger visibly melted away as Hearts draped an arm across his shoulders and pulled him against his side. "Bastard mortal." He had felt hot, but somehow the warmth of Hearts' arm and body was still welcome. His arm felt heavy across his back and the hand that now held onto his arm was big . . . how long had it been since he'd experienced something like this?

"Are you sure about that?" He had to be careful with how far he took it, of course. Zamasu wasn't in a proper state of mind at the moment. He was most certainly taking advantage of his tipsy state, but he wouldn't do anything awful to him. "So are you going to tell me what he said?" Hearts lazily dragged his fingers up and down Zamasu's arm. He could feel the lean muscle beneath the thin fabric of his shirt.

"Useless. He said I am . . . useless right now."

"Useless?" Hearts furrowed his brows angrily. Damn that Fu. What was his goal in saying these things to Zamasu? Was he intentionally trying to break him down?

"He said that . . . I need to get past my failure, otherwise I am useless and unstable." Zamasu only stared ahead, not really looking at anything in particular as he recalled the conversation he'd only just had. It was difficult to really focus, though. Still . . . he did feel the hand on his arm lightly caressing him. It was nice. Would he keep doing that for a while?

"Just ignore him. Fu is just trying to-"

"No. He's right." Zamasu leaned into Hearts as he lifted a hand to drag it over the visible part of his face. "I failed. I was so close, my plan was so perfect . . . but I failed. What could I have done? I don't know. Was it ever even possible? I'm dwelling on it, but how can I not? I had everything I could have wanted and it was all taken from me in the blink of an eye . . . it's all gone. It was right in front of me and I couldn't do it. It's gone . . . they're gone . . ." He could feel his throat tightening up and tears threatening to fall. "Ah . . . not now . . . not now . . ."

So that was it. It was a culmination of things that had the god acting like a mess, but it all stemmed from his failure. It made sense, really, that a god who was so incredibly full of himself would fall so hard after such a devastating and decisive failure. "Zamasu . . ."

"What was it all for? My body is ruined and I will live forever . . . and for what? Only to be reminded for all of eternity." He grit his teeth as unwanted tears slipped down his cheeks, leaking out from underneath the eyepatch. "I'll kill them for what they've done. Those Saiyans . . . I hate them. I'll kill them!"

"Shhhhh, hey, calm down." He was definitely being more forthcoming with his thoughts and feelings, at least. "I will help you get your revenge on them, but you are not ruined. There is nothing wrong with your body."

"Your words will not sway my opinion of you, mortal. I'm not ignorant! My body has been deformed! It will likely never be beautiful like it once was." His body had been so perfect and magnificent and beautiful. He was the image of godhood and now he'd been reduced to this mess.

"You will become stronger than ever before and you are still very beautiful. You're worrying about something that really doesn't matter, aren't you?" Hearts slid his hand up Zamasu's arm and instead buried it in the Kai's hair.

"Doesn't matter? It is everything. I was perfect in every way . . . yet I still lost. Why? I should have won, but they had . . . the damned Omni King on their side! How could I fight against something like that? I didn't stand a chance . . . one thing after another. They were pulling off miracles as though the cosmos themselves had come to their aid. Why? I only wanted to save the universes from certain destruction by mortals . . . why was I treated as though I was the one who was in the wrong?"

What was Hearts supposed to say to that? He also saw Zamasu as a villainous god for his deeds. He went on a genocidal rampage, wiping out nearly every mortal and god in existence. How could anyone see that as a heroic action? Just how mentally unstable was he really? "I don't have any answers for all of that." It was definitely best not to question his sanity right now. "Fu is right that you need to overcome all of this, though. How do you expect to take revenge on the Omni King and those Saiyans if you can't even win the fight against your inner voice?" He ruffled Zamasu's hair a bit. It was really soft. Did he like when he played with his hair like this?

". . . Zamasu?" Hearts glanced down at the god, then pursed his lips. "Asleep? Seriously? You were just so riled up." He couldn't help but crack a smile, though. He looked so peaceful sleeping against him like that and he almost didn't want to move. "We only just had breakfast and you've already drank yourself back to sleep again." Hearts leaned his head back on the couch, his fingers still playing in the god's white locks. "I'll wake you when it's time for lunch, I guess. Maybe no more drinking for you until you're a bit more sure of yourself." It was nice to hear him finally speak his mind properly, though.

---

"He was asleep on you and you didn't do anything?" Fu looked at Hearts as though the man had suddenly grown a second head, "How many chances have you had now?"

The two were in the kitchen alone, washing dishes that had piled up from both breakfast and lunch. Zamasu had gone off to 'be alone for a while', or so he had said. Probably to continue wallowing in self-pity and anger for the past.

"I've had zero chances, Fu. I'm not going to force myself on him. Unlike you." He shot the demon a side-eye glare.

"Hey, hey, I only acted like I was going to do that to chase him back to you. I was doing you a favor." He used his forearm to push his glasses back up the bridge of his nose since both hands were covered in dish soap.

"Doing me a favor? More like you have some weird plan in mind or some experiment that you're trying to fulfill. I know how you tic." Hearts took a washed dish from Fu and dried it before setting it aside.

"Oh do you?" Fu chuckled and shook his head, "I doubt that, Hearts. In the end, it's fine as long as we all get what we want, right? All of the pieces are nearly in place. Hopefully Zamasu will be feeling better soon, otherwise he'll be usel-"

Fu was cut short as Hearts suddenly grabbed the front of his shirt and yanked him so close their noses nearly touched.

"Don't you ever call him that again." Hearts' eyes were narrowed dangerously as he stared into the demon's wide eyes. "You are part of the problem. Are you trying to break him? His ego is already full of cracks . . . too much more from you and he might just fall apart beyond repair. Is that what you want?"

Fu's eyes slowly narrowed into crescents as his shocked expression became an amused grin, "Maybe I want to see how he reacts to different things. All of life is an experiment, Hearts." He glanced down at the hand holding his shirt, "You should probably let go of me now." Fu reached up to pat Hearts lightly on the head, feigning kindness like he typically did.

". . . don't play around with him." Hearts released his hold on Fu's shirt and turned back to drying dishes. As much as Fu pissed him off, he'd already realized that wasn't a fight he wanted to pick.

"Listen to you . . . Mr. 'I'm going to wipe out the gods' sure sounds like he has fallen for a god. The worst of the whole bunch, too! Isn't that something?" Fu stood closer than the last time, smirking knowingly as he washed the last few of the dishes.

"I wouldn't go so far as to say I've fallen for him, but . . . he is different from the gods I hate. If I can just change his feelings about mortals, he will make a fantastic ally for the future. Zamasu is powerful and holds the same disdain as I do for the Omni King and the gods. I mean . . . there's an exception to every rule, right?"

"An exception?" Fu looked thoughtful for a moment, "Do you think you're his exception as well?" He got up in Hearts' face before drying his soapy hands off on the man's coat, "Well, I have to go do some more prep work for our upcoming debut! Why don't you check in on your precious exception."

"Wait . . . did you just- Fu!" By the time he'd realized the demon wiped his hands off on him, Fu was already high-stepping it out of the kitchen. "Tch, quirky bastard . . ." He rolled the sleeves of his coat back down to make it easier to remove it. "Zamasu's exception as well . . . I don't know about that. I probably should check on him, though. I wonder if he fell asleep in front of the mirror again."

---

How many times now had he made a fool of himself? He'd been horribly embarrassed when Hearts woke him for lunch. He'd apparently fallen asleep against him in the lounge. Hearts had insisted he did nothing else other than carry him to the room and put him in the bed, but how could he believe that? Hearts had made so many obscene comments, why would he not jump at an opportunity to act on those filthy desires? The very thought made the god's skin crawl . . .

. . . well, no. It actually didn't, and that bothered him.

He should have been disgusted by the thought of Hearts touching his skin, his hair, his lips . . . of Hearts kissing him, of Hearts fu-

"Dammit, stop! Stop, stop, stop!" He wanted to pull his hair out! He was trying to work on bringing his full power out, yet his mind kept wandering back to those kinds of scenarios! It was making his heart race like crazy and only made him feel more uncertain with himself. Perhaps Fu was right that his mind had also been damaged. Why else would he think about a mortal in such a way? He should be completely repulsed with the idea!

Even with these frequent distractions, Zamasu felt that he had accomplished a good amount during his alone time. He'd managed to produce his beautiful halo intentionally for the first time since he'd been there. Unlike his body, his halo remained pure and complete and just as beautiful as ever. He had also been able to focus and control his ki like before. "Until I am in a true battle, I will not know the extent of my shortcomings. I can feel my power, but it is true that it does not feel the same as before. Is it really that I am not at my full strength, or is it because I am missing a key factor?"

Much like the Saiyans, he also had gained quite a boost in strength from his anger. His anger with the gods, his anger with the mortals, his anger with Trunks and Son Goku . . . all of those things were where he found his strength. "Are these mental distractions and uncertainties preventing me from focusing? Is that what Fu was trying to tell me?" Somehow he didn't believe the demon was capable of coming to such a conclusion, but he was the one who had miraculously fixed the majority of his body. Fu was more intelligent than he looked.

A gentle knock on the door roused him from his thoughts, "Go away." He really wasn't interested in having company. The time he'd had alone was incredibly refreshing. He had time to think and reflect as well as mull over what all he wanted to do with his restored life. He had to be careful so as not to repeat the same mistakes.

"I could just take it right off the hinges, if you'd rather that." Hearts' muffled voice came through the door.

Sighing with irritation, Zamasu went to the door and opened it, glaring up at the man who had been consuming his thoughts. This bastard was killing his focus. "What do you want?" He did his best to sound annoyed, but his pulse was already racing again just from seeing his face. Why was he carrying his coat rather than wearing it? Where were his gloves? How obscene. "Where are your clothes?"

"Well hello to you, too." Hearts pushed past the god and hung his coat up on a hook on the wall. "I was helping Fu with dishes and that bastard dried his hands on my coat. There's a big wet spot, so I wanted to hang it up while it dried." He checked the pockets to make sure his gloves hadn't fallen out along the way. "Does it really matter? I never wear a shirt, so it's not really any different." He glanced back over his shoulder to find Zamasu staring at his back, his lips slightly parted as if in a daze, "You need to work on your staring habit before I get the wrong idea, god."

"I wasn't staring, I was just thinking and happened to be looking in your general direction." Zamasu turned his head, a light blush dusting his cheeks. It wasn't that he'd meant to stare. He had just gotten caught up in looking at his back for some reason. He wasn't sure why. It wasn't because it looked very powerful or anything. He'd seen that sort of thing before with . . . Black. Black wasn't so bulky, though. He slimmed down quickly after he'd stolen Goku's body.

"Right . . . what a coincidence." Hearts shook his head before slowly approaching the Kai, "You know, I said I'd get the wrong idea, but . . . maybe it's more like I'll take the hint." As he made it back to where Zamasu stood, he reached past him and closed the door so he could lightly shove Zamasu up against it.

"What are you-" Zamasu's eye widened as Hearts leaned down and pressed his forehead against his. It was too similar to what Fu had just done last night. Why could they not respect his space and stay away? Though . . . unlike with Fu, Zamasu did not feel even the slightest inkling of fear. Rather, he felt anxious for what might come next . . . and it upset him that he wasn't repulsed by any of the possibilities.

"Just this morning, you were going to let me kiss you, weren't you? We were this close on the bed and you closed your eyes. If it wasn't for Fu's interruption, would you have allowed me to kiss you?" Hearts kept one hand on the door by Zamasu's head, but gently grasped the god's chin with his other hand to keep him from turning away. "Look me in the eyes and tell me the truth."

"I . . ." This morning he was definitely welcoming it. He had told himself he wasn't in the right frame of mind, but he really knew exactly what was going on. His body still craved the attention and touch of another person. Why did his body want him so badly? Since when did a god have such carnal desires? Was it because he'd fused with the Saiyan body? Black had been the one to initiate the sex and intimate acts between himself and Zamasu, so that was the most likely culprit. Now he wanted it, but had no one to get it from. "I don't know."

"That's bullshit, Zamasu. Try again." Shifting the hand he had on the god's chin, he ran his thumb along his lower lip, earning a surprised gasp from him.

"Stop, Hearts. I have too much on my mind right now and I do not need you adding to it with your vulgar desires." The shaking in his voice pissed him off, but it was the best he could do right now. His heart felt like it would beat right out of his chest if he wasn't able to calm down soon.

"Too much on your mind? Then talk to me." Hearts reluctantly leaned away. He wanted to take it further, but that was a very stern 'stop' and he'd already promised not to go against his will.

"Why would I discuss these matters with a mortal." Zamasu instinctively gripped at the fabric over his heart as he tried to calm himself now that there was a bit of space between them.

"Because who else will you talk to?"

". . ." No one. There wasn't anyone. He had one person who he had connected with so deeply, but now the two of them had become one, had become him. There was no one in the cosmos who he could ever get close with like that. "My mind is distracted. I cannot focus while I constantly go over what had happened before I was erased. I think . . . I think perhaps that is what Fu was trying to get me to understand." Zamasu folded his arms, rubbing at one arm with a hand. "I keep thinking about how my body has been ruined, about how my future was ruined, about how my partnership was ended . . ." Just talking about all of it was making him anger quickly, "I have to find some way to control the emotions associated with all of that, otherwise I cannot focus on the mission ahead of us."

"That makes sense." Hearts nodded slowly. Was that really what Fu was trying to do, or was he just trying to push the Kai over the edge? It was difficult to tell with that guy. He'd never admit to one or the other, either, instead allowing everyone to just jump to their own conclusions. "So are you ready to take a step toward that, then?"

"A step toward it? What do you mean?" Zamasu furrowed his brows, but his eye widened as Hearts reached out to touch the patch covering his right eye. "A-ah . . . right. That is . . . something I have yet to overcome." He had to do it. He had to face whatever was beneath the cover. He was powerful, he was supreme, even if his body was no longer without flaw. "I'll take it off." He couldn't help but be nervous, though he didn't want Hearts to see that. What if the appearance overwhelmed him? Showing such weakness in front of anyone was the last thing he wanted. Hearts had never told anyone about anything that had happened before, but . . .

"I'll help you. Here, stand in front of the mirror." Hearts waited for Zamasu to move, then stood behind him. "I bet it isn't as bad as the monster you've envisioned in your head. That guy Fu is a crazy bastard with his own agenda, so you really shouldn't take his words to heart."

Zamasu stared as his reflection, his breathing a bit more labored as his anxiousness got the best of him. Hearts was right about one thing; he had a horrible, grotesque vision of what might be underneath. A purple, veiny, gooey, mess of skin surrounding a disfigured, blind eye. He wasn't sure if his ego and self-image could handle such a blow right now, but putting it off for any longer did him no good. "I know, but . . . my own imagination is far more cruel than Fu's words."

"I see." Hearts gently ruffled Zamasu's hair, surprised when the Kai only closed his eye in response. "Alright, I'm going to unfasten it now." Even though it sounded so superficial, he now understood exactly why it bothered Zamasu so much. It wasn't simply that he felt it ruined his beauty, but it would be a reminder for the rest of eternity that he had failed.

When Zamasu said nothing in response, Hearts slowly unfastened the band and pulled the cover away, carefully dropping it to the floor. The skin was definitely discolored on his eyelid and around his eye. It was the same shade of purple his right shoulder now was. Still, aside from the color, everything else appeared normal. "You can open your eyes. I think you'll find it is nowhere near anything you might have imagined." He rested his hands on the god's shoulders, watching as he slowly opened his eyes.

He first looked down at the floor, lifting a hand to look at it. His right eye was completely blind. There was no change in his vision than what he had with the patch over his eye. "It's blind." Would that eventually heal? He was terrified to look in the mirror, but somehow Hearts' reassuring words did make him feel even the slightest bit more confident . . .

. . . until he looked up.

The skin discoloration wasn't as awful as he'd thought – not even close. His eye itself, however . . . just as Fu said, it was yellow. The whole eye was yellow. No iris, no pupil, nothing other than a blank, yellow void where his beautiful silver eye had once been. Was this really the best it could get? Would it never change? Could something like this be repaired?

"See? It's-"

"-awful. It's awful, Hearts." He could hear his voice begin to quiver as a lump formed in his throat. "It's hideous."

"It isn't hideous, Zamasu. It's-"

"I can see it! I can see what it looks like! It is hideous!" He hated it. The color was so filthy compared to the rest of him. It was completely ruined. "Those Saiyans. . . those Saiyans! If only I had killed Trunks from the beginning!" He reached up and grabbed the skin just beneath the damaged eye, digging his nails in and ripping at the skin.

"Zamasu!" Gritting his teeth, Hearts grabbed both of the god's wrists from behind to stop him from attacking his own face. Thankfully he was immortal and the wound healed instantly after allowing only a small bit of blood to slide down his cheek. "Stop . . . don't do that to yourself."

"I'll tear it apart!"

"No!"

"Again and again and again! Until it heals as it should!" He tried to pull his arms free, but Hearts held tightly to them, "I am immortal! I cannot be injured! I cannot feel pain! I cannot be killed! I . . . I cannot . . ." He lowered his head as tears finally slipped from his eyes, mixing with the blood he'd shed just moments ago, "I cannot die . . . ever . . ."

What was he trying to say? Something about the tone of Zamasu's voice made it feel as though someone had gripped his heart and was squeezing it tightly. "Don't say something like that." Releasing his hold on one of Zamasu's wrists, he grabbed the god's jaw and forced his face to look forward at the mirror, "Where is the pride you had!? You are a god! You're supposed to be full of yourself! You're supposed to feel above the mortals! So why? Why do I feel pity for you?" He wasn't like the gods he thought he knew so much about. The gods he hated. The gods he wanted to exterminate. Regardless of how Zamasu had been in the past, the way he was now wasn't someone he could bring himself to hate.

"I am above the mortals . . . I will always be above them. I want to kill the mortals who caused this." He grit his teeth, disgusted by what he saw in the mirror. Discoloration, disfigurement, and now a sobbing mess to top it off. "I do not feel the power I once felt. What is a god if he is imperfect? I was so beautiful . . ."

"You're still beautiful!" Why did he want to help him? Why did he give a damn how this god felt? "What part of you is not beautiful? The purple color complements the green wonderfully. It's a lovely shade of purple and your skin still looks perfectly smooth. I bet it feels like fine satin, just as the rest of your skin does. And your eye . . . something about it makes you look even more powerful. One eye is silver and the other is gold."

"Yellow. . ."

"Gold."

"It's ye-"

"I said it's gold!" Hearts suddenly spun the Kai around, earning him a wide-eyed stare in response, "Work with me, Zamasu. Together, you and I can build a beautiful future for all of the universes. I want you by my side when we stand at the top of everything." He wiped away the tears that fell from his blind eye, smiling softly to try and ease his worries, "Just as I thought; your skin is the softest I've ever felt." Hearts pulled off his glasses and chucked them aside before burying his other hand in the hair on the back of Zamasu's head, bringing their foreheads together once more, "Zamasu . . . will you be my partner? Will you make this journey with me? It'll be you and I against the Omni King, the Angels, the gods . . . who else can we trust? I want someone I can put my trust in, don't you? Isn't that what you long for?"

"Partner?" His heart was still racing, but his tears had stopped falling. The way Hearts had touched him so gently, the way he incessantly complimented him, the way he held him close. Why did he do all of these things? Why was he so weak to it all? "I do want that. I thought I wanted to be alone on top of it all. My own utopia, but . . . the thought of being alone after what Zamasu and the Future Zamasu had together . . . I feel weak to admit that I don't know if I could do it."

"You don't have to. You don't have to be alone." Hearts' voice had dropped to a whisper as he slowly swayed from side to side, trying his best to console the distraught Kaioshin. "I will be here."

"Until you die. I am forever. You are only for a while."

"Am I incapable of wishing for immortality?" Hearts smirked at the startled expression that earned him, "You used the Super Dragon Balls, right? Fu told me a few things about your history." He pulled away just enough so he could nuzzle Zamasu's cheek. The god remained perfectly still, not even so much as a noise escaping him. He did nothing to protest Hearts' actions, much like this morning. "Tell me, Zamasu. Does that sound appealing to you?" He put his mouth right by the Kai's left ear, whispering the words softly to him, "You and I, both immortal, standing atop the bodies of the king and the gods. Wouldn't that be perfect?"

Zamasu had so many thoughts speeding through his mind that his legs nearly gave out. What was Hearts trying to say to him? Would he really wish for immortality? Killing the King and the gods together . . . but what of the mortals? Hearts didn't want to kill them, did he? Though . . . a partner forever. Someone immortal like himself. Someone powerful, charismatic, handsome . . . wouldn't that be wonderful?

"Hearts . . ." He didn't really know what to say to him. What answer could he give that would not make him sound pathetic and desperate? His hands were already hanging at his sides because he didn't know what to do. It was like his body had gone limp from the sensation of Hearts' voice in his ear. It felt wonderful and sent chills down his spine. He wanted him to say more.

"Hmm? What is it, Zamasu? Beautiful, perfect, Zamasu." The only god he'd ever praise. Could he even be considered a god at this point? He would surely be rejected by them all. "I hate the gods, Zamasu, but you . . . you're an exception." He snaked an arm around Zamasu's waist, "Can I show you? Can I show you how you make me feel?" Against his better judgement, Hearts nipped at the god's ear lobe and used his tongue to toy with the green potara. "I want to hold you, I want to kiss you, I want to-"

"Hearts." Zamasu cut off the man's words. He already knew Hearts could feel him shaking against his body. Why was he reacting like this? No, he already knew the answer. Not one to be weak, he reached a hesitant hand up and grabbed the back of Hearts' head, pulling himself up to mimic him and put his mouth right by Hearts' ear, "You keep talking . I'm right here. What are you waiting for?" Would he regret allowing this to happen? Oh well. He already had several regrets. Why not do something he might enjoy?

Hearts' eyes opened wide as he leaned back from Zamasu to get a good look at his face. His cheeks and ears were red, his brows furrowed in apparent embarrassment. His consent could not be more clear, though. "Well then . . ." Hearts crushed their lips together, kissing him hungrily after being denied the opportunity for quite some time. Zamasu's lips were softer than the rest of his skin, too.

Zamasu returned the kiss, both arms now over Hearts' shoulders so he could bury his hand in his hair and claw at his back with need. How long had it been since he'd felt this? He wanted more. No, he needed more. "More, Hearts. I need you." He had barely even registered the words that left his lips at a volume even more hushed than a whisper.

Those words sent chills over Hearts' skin. Was all of this some kind of dream? Had he really heard those words, or was it just what he wanted to hear? "Zamasu . . ." He continued the assault on the god's lips as he walked him back toward the bed. His hands moved from the back of his head to the front of him to tear away the sash and overcoat. Zamasu obliged, helping him remove the unnecessary fabric as the two of them expertly removed various articles of attire on their way to the bed. Boots, belt, sash, overcoat, braces . . . only the bare minimum remained as Hearts shoved the Kai down onto the mattress so he could get a good look at him.

"How beautiful. That red looks good on your skin, too. Is there any color that isn't great on you?" Hearts smirked down at the god. His hands were eager to get underneath his clothes. He'd finally get to see all of him and it was difficult to keep from moving too fast.

"Quit staring, you vulgar mortal." He did not feel beautiful, not with that imperfection on his face and the discoloration on his shoulder, but Hearts kept calling him beautiful anyhow. Whether he was lying or not, it was still nice to hear it.

"If I become immortal like you, will you still call me a mortal?" He leaned down and slipped a hand beneath Zamasu's shirt. "I've wanted to do this for a while. Your shirt doesn't leave much to the imagination, but I still want to see what's underneath." His stomach was firm and as he slid his hand up the skin, shoving his shirt up as he went, he could feel every dip and curve of the lean muscle of his abs and chest. "Let's get you on the bed properly." His hands were shaking as he helped Zamasu up so his head was on the pillow and the two of them were fully on top of the mattress. "That's more comfortable, right?" Hearts lightly kissed Zamasu's cheek.

"It's fine." He was extremely nervous, but did his best to remain as alert as possible. He'd only ever done something like this with himself, someone who knew his body and how to please him. What would it be like doing this kind of thing with someone else? "You don't have to go slow, you know . . . I'm not fragile or anything." He also would prefer things to be a bit more rough, but saying something like that would be entirely too embarrassing. He'd let Hearts figure that out on his own.

"Maybe I want to take it slow to enjoy you properly." Contrary to his words, Hearts grabbed Zamasu's shirt and pulled it up and over the god's head with his help, chucking it off the bed. "But if you are eager and want me to go faster, you just have to say so." He was a bit eager himself. He wanted to put his mouth and hands all over him and get him to moan. He'd heard plenty of women's moans in the past, but never that of a man. He'd never taken any interest in men whatsoever until now. Zamasu was special in so many ways.

With the shirt now out of the way, Hearts kneeled between Zamasu's legs and hunched over him, his hands sliding up and down the god's sides as he first dipped his tongue into his navel and trailed kisses up to his chest. It was strange. It was almost like his skin had a flavor to it. He was sweet. Was that just his imagination? Hearts glanced up at Zamasu's face, his heart skipping a beat as he did so. Zamasu was staring down at him, his mouth slightly agape and his cheeks and ears a deep red as he watched with half-lidded eyes. Even now, Hearts found his right eye beautiful. "You're so damn beautiful. It's great that Fu brought you here . . . to erase you would be a waste. The cosmos needs someone with your power, your beauty, your intelligence."

Zamasu shuddered a bit from the way those words made him feel. Hearts was playing him like a damn fiddle and he couldn't be happier about it. Yes. He was the embodiment of beauty, power, grace, intelligence, charisma. He was everything a glorious god ought to be! He was nothing like the gods of old who sat by ignorantly and allowed the mortals to run amok! "Even with these imperfections . . ."

"They are not imperfections." Hearts kissed the discolored right shoulder. "The skin is just as soft and flawless as the rest of you. Only the color is different."

"Having skin with two colors . . . it's strange."

Hearts pursed his lips as he looked Zamasu dead in the eyes, "Is it?"

"Ah . . . your skin is two colors." A lot of it was, even his face. Hearts had very strange skin with so many scars. What was he? Who was he? Where was he from? What race did he belong to?

"Does it make me ugly?" Hearts slid up Zamasu's body to press their chests together as he snuck a few fingers into the hem of the god's pants.

"No . . . you have a nice face." Zamasu ran his hand along Hearts' cheek, his thumb sliding over his lips just as Hearts had done to him. His eyes were so red . . . "You are handsome. Even with your scars, you are handsome." Was it okay to admit that to a mortal? He felt dirty just for feeling that way, but something about the way Hearts stared at him and touched him and worshipped his body and power . . . it felt too good to ignore. He wanted more of it. He wanted those arms wrapped around him, he wanted those lips against his skin again, he wanted that voice to whisper sweet nothings into his ear until he felt weak with lust.

"Handsome? Thank you, Lord Zamasu." Hearts chuckled as he leaned back to quickly slide Zamasu's pants down his legs and off of him, throwing them somewhere in the room. "Oh. . . nothing underneath?" He could feel his own face get hot now upon the realization that Zamasu didn't wear underclothes. Hearts trailed a hand up along the god's leg, marveling at how soft and smooth the skin was. "Flawless . . . and it looks like you are already incredibly aroused. I've only just begun." He grinned when he saw the embarrassed and irritated scowl the god was giving him. "Do you dislike being nude in front of me?" Hearts licked his lips as he ran his hands over both hips, his fingers dancing along his abdomen and all around the one place he knew Zamasu would want him to touch.

Without allowing Zamasu a chance to answer, he leaned over and stole his lips in a kiss once more, one hand burying itself in the god's hair. Zamasu only whimpered softly in response and Hearts could feel an unsteady hand rest against his chest. "You're shaking, Zamasu. Where is your bravado? Do I make you that nervous?" He whispered the words against Zamasu's lips, rubbing noses with the other man. "There are so many things I've wanted to do to you for a while now. I just don't know where to begin."

"You're talking too much . . ." Zamasu's fingers curled against Hearts' chest as he faced the conflict inside himself. The Zamasu part of him was used to being in the submissive position, but the Goku Black part of him was used to being dominant. He was fighting an urge to try and change their positions and take control of the situation. Would Hearts let him do that? Was Hearts powerful enough to stop him?

"I am most definitely powerful enough to stop you." Hearts stared directly into Zamasu's eyes, smirking, "There is no way I'm going to let you do that, Zamasu. Also, what is wrong with talking? Don't you like it when I admire you?" Hearts began to slowly grind against Zamasu's length, his own aching for attention in his pants.

"Ha-a-ah!" Zamasu snapped his mouth shut as he realized he'd allowed such a noise to escape him. "B-bastard . . ." It felt so good, though. His body had been craving this sort of attention horribly over the last few days and now he was finally receiving it. He could feel his pulse and breathing both become erratic with need and desperation as he reached both hands behind Hearts to grasp at his back.

"Am I a bastard? This is what you've been wanting, isn't it? Do you like it?" He kissed beneath Zamasu's blind eye, then kissed the eyelid once the god closed it. "I want to make you tremble with need." Just the thought of having a god shaking and begging him for more made his cock twitch with anticipation. "I want to see your body flushed from head to toe. I want to see you slick with sweat, panting with exertion, your eyes clouded with lust . . . I want you to give your all to me, Zamasu."

"Don't say something like tha-ahh!" Zamasu shuddered as Hearts dipped his tongue in his ear before nipping and sucking on the tip, all while still grinding slowly against him.

"Hmmm? Say something like what?" Hearts practically purred the question into his ear, his right hand playing with the potara on Zamasu's left ear. "Like how I want to taste every inch of your skin?" He ran his tongue from the lobe of his ear to the tip to emphasize his words. "Or perhaps how I want to bury myself deep inside of you? Or how I want to hear that beautiful voice cry out in ecstasy, knowing it was me who drove you to it?" He was getting more excited from his own damn words.

"Hearts. . ." Zamasu dug his nails into Hearts' skin, earning a soft hiss from him.

"Tell me what you need, god."

"You know what I need." The Kai did his best to maintain control of his voice, but he sounded desperate anyhow.

"Your heart is screaming the words, but I want to hear them from your lips." Hearts stopped grinding against him, "Tell me, Zamasu. What is it that you need?" He trailed his lips down along the god's jawline and then his neck, biting hard at the skin to draw a long moan from him. "You sound so good . . . better than I could have ever imagined."

Zamasu suddenly grabbed Hearts' face with both hands, pulling him within an inch of his own face as he glared at him angrily, "I need you to take off your damn pants and actually do all of the things you keep talking about. You're driving me absolutely crazy. You already know what I want." The words were delivered in a furious whisper, his chest heaving as he rolled his hips upward against Hearts' clothed groin to emphasize a few words. "I need you." It was difficult to admit, but if that was what Hearts needed to hear, then so be it!

Hearts stared at Zamasu with wide eyes. He hadn't expected him to get so aggressive, but it was nice to see. "See? Was that so difficult?" He grinned and gave Zamasu's lips a quick peck, "But not yet. I want to take a little more time. I think you'll enjoy it anyhow." He nuzzled the Kai's cheek before trailing kisses back down along his neck and chest, stopping to lick at one of his nipples. The little bud was firm from arousal. His body was quite ready for all of this, but was his mind ready?

"Do you feel everything I am doing to you, Zamasu? Make sure you let me know if it feels good. Don't hold back your voice." He bit down on the nipple, drawing a sharp gasp, followed by a whimper from Zamasu. "There you go. I love that." Hearts licked his own middle finger, then reached over to the neglected bud to rub circles on it with the moistened digit while he licked and sucked on the other. Zamasu arched his back and rolled his hips from the sensation. One of the hands on Hearts' back slid up to grasp at his hair, tugging on the locks as if to try and pull him away from what he was doing.

"What's wrong, Zamasu? Is it too much?" He smiled mischievously up at that beautiful face. He looked intoxicated with lust and desire. What a marvelous expression. "I could look at you all damn day." He continued moving down his body, though, drawing soft gasps every time he kissed or licked at the god's skin. He really did want to put his mouth on every bit of his body. If only he had the time for that. Right now, though, he was getting more and more eager by the second. He wasn't sure how long either of them could last at this point. Probably not very long.

"H-Hearts . . ." Zamasu's voice quivered as he now had both hands in the man's hair. His hair looked very good disheveled like this. The way he looked up at him as he moved down his body also made his heart beat faster. Those red eyes . . . "Hearts, I. . ."

"I hear you. Just let me take my time. I'll make sure you're satisfied, Zamasu." He finally made his way down to Zamasu's length. No one had touched this version of him like this before, had they? So he was essentially a virgin – how appetizing. "Look how aroused you are and all for me. I couldn't ask for a better dessert." Hearts wrapped a hand around the god's cock and pulled it upright so he could kiss the head, eliciting a surprised gasp from his lover. "I'll have to be careful playing with you; too much and you'll finish prematurely."

Hearts wrapped his lips around the head of Zamasu's length, his hands holding onto his lips to keep him from thrusting into his mouth as he went down on him about halfway and then pulled back, repeating the motion in a slow rhythm. He'd never thought he'd be giving someone a blowjob, but here he was anyhow. The sounds coming from Zamasu made it all worthwhile. He was trying so desperately to thrust further into that heat, but Hearts' hands prevented him from doing so. The god whined in frustration, the hands in Hearts' hair pulling hard on occasion as a silent plea to go further and do more.

The god's thighs suddenly went up around Hearts' head and he had to wrap his arms around them and pull them back down onto the bed in a hurry. "Are you trying to crush me?" Hearts head pulled back enough to speak, cocking a brow at the god as he now held the god's legs. Perhaps he ought to get on with it before Zamasu really began to lose himself. "I love seeing you let loose, Zamasu. The way you look right now is beyond even my wildest thoughts." He released his hold and sat up again, marveling at just how stunning he was.

"Taken them off."

"Hm?"

"Your pants. Come on . . ."

Hearts smiled down at the god, "If you want my pants off so badly, why don't you take them off yourse-ah!" He was taken by surprise as the Kai suddenly shoved him back onto the bed and made quick work of yanking his pants down his legs and tossing them to the floor with the others. He'd severely underestimated Zamasu's desire.

"You didn't think I actually would, did you?" Zamasu was the one to smirk this time as he leaned in to capture Hearts' lips in a chaste kiss. "I'm not some delicate flower that will bend to your every will, mortal. I am the most supreme being in existence. Do not forget that."

"Of course, of course, Lord Zamasu." Hearts smirked. This side of Zamasu was incredibly sexy, "Why don't you put that supreme mouth of yours to work then, hm? I don't have anything else to make the job easier and I doubt you want me going in dry. Pain or not, that wouldn't be very pleasant for either of us." He lifted a hand to touch the injured side of Zamasu's face, running his thumb beneath the blind eye. "You are beautiful."

". . . stop that." Zamasu's dominant personality waivered from Hearts' compliment, his eyes falling half-lidded. "Saying something so vulgar and then telling me that in the same moment . . . you're the worst."

"Am I?" Hearts propped himself up with his elbows, a confident grin stretched across his face, "Well? Let's see if that mouth can do more than spout insults and delusions of grandeur."

"Keep talking like that and I'll bite." Zamasu made a chomping motion with his mouth before he backed down Hearts' body, trailing feather-light kisses down over his scarred chest just as Black had done to Zamasu. It was a very strange feeling. He'd done all of these things before . . . and he'd had all of these things done to him. Yet . . . it was really his first time for all of it. This body had experienced everything and yet truly experienced nothing. Would he be any good?

Hearts watched Zamasu intently. He really seemed to know what he was doing and didn't hesitate at all to put his mouth on his skin. Didn't it bother him to do something like this with a mortal? It was best not to mention it. His lips felt like rose petals lightly dropping on his skin. The way the god's hands moved down his chest and sides made his breath hitch in his throat. Everything was soft, but deliberate. But as Zamasu hovered just above his groin, the god looked up at him, then immediately back down again before covering his right eye with his hand.

"Hm? What are you doing?"

"I should put the cover back on before I do this . . ."

"What? Why?" Hearts sat up quickly to grab Zamasu by the arms to stop him from leaving the bed. He looked so distraught. "You are beautiful just as you are right now. I don't want any part of you covered up. I want to see everything. I want to see all of you." Hearts moved his hands to hold Zamasu's face and pull him in for another hungry kiss. His heart was pounding and his cock was eager for attention, but it wouldn't be any good if Zamasu was distracted. He kissed him, both hands holding tightly to the god's face until he felt him relax. "Don't worry about your appearance. The only one to see you like this is me. Let me admire you properly." He nuzzled the god's neck, his hands finally releasing their hold on him once he felt certain Zamasu wouldn't try to leave the bed again. If he could just get him to forget about all of that for a while . . .

"Hearts . . ." He shouldn't accept such words from a mortal, but . . . something felt different about Hearts. A mortal who wanted to become immortal. Someone who wanted to stay forever at his side. Why did that make his chest feel so tight? He wasn't sure how to react at all. For now, though, he placed a few kisses on Hearts' cheek, trailing up to the man's ear where he ran his tongue up along the edge and over the cuffs. Dare he say there was something sexy about the cuffs on his ear?

Hearts gasped softly and jerked in response to the attention to his ear. That was a sensation he hadn't experienced before. "Hey now, aren't you paying attention to the wrong thing?"

"Hmmm? What? Can't take it?" Zamasu smirked as he leaned away, "Your red cheeks really stand out on your pale skin, Hearts." Two could play at the teasing game. He did give in to Hearts' desires, though, and backed up enough that he could lean down and run his tongue over the tip of Hearts' length.

"Hahh . . . there we go." Hearts leaned back again, propping himself up with his elbows so he could watch the god work. "Why the pause? Is it too much for you?"

With only an arch of the brow over his good eye, Zamasu ran his tongue from base to tip before wrapping his lips around the head and taking the full length in his mouth. All the while he maintained eye contact with Hearts, who released a few short gasps as the heat engulfed him.

"A-ah . . . I guess not . . . damn . . ."

It was beautiful to watch a god go down on him. This proud and mighty being was performing such an act on him. At least, those were the thoughts he would have had with any other god. This one, though . . . he could only focus on how Zamasu's hair moved as he moved his head. The way he'd broken eye contact and closed his eyes, a deep scarlet spreading like wildfire across his face and ears. He was embarrassed, but he was so good. Would it embarrass him more if he told him how good he was?

Hearts leaned his weight to one side so he could reach out and touch Zamasu's cheek. Zamasu faltered a bit in his movements, but resumed without looking up again. "It feels great." Hearts cracked a smile when the Kai furrowed his brows in embarrassment, looking up at him briefly. "Maybe use your tongue a little more."

Looking up again, Zamasu pulled his head back all the way until his mouth popped off the end. Without so much as a word, he stuck his tongue out and licked at the head of Hearts' length. A string of saliva lingered for a moment, an obscene connection between the two of them until the Kai licked his own lips to get rid of it. He smiled seductively at Hearts, who only stared back with wide, red eyes. He wasn't expecting that, was he? As Zamasu readied himself to go down again, he felt a hand grip his hair and stop him. "What are-"

"Shhh . . ." Hearts sat up now, bringing his other hand to Zamasu's chin so he could wipe at his lower lip with his thumb, "If I let this go on for too long, I won't be able to do what I want with you. How do you expect me to feel when you look at me like that? You're driving me absolutely crazy." With a low, predatory growl, Hearts shoved Zamasu back so his head landed on the pillow. He immediately lay on top of him, the hand in his hair yanking back to expose his throat while his free hand went back to his face to press his middle and ring fingers past his lips. "Your mouth knows what to do, doesn't it?" He whispered the words into Zamasu's ear, his cock twitching with need when that drew a soft moan from the god. "Get them nice and wet for me." Heart bit down on Zamasu's neck, causing the god to groan and jerk a bit. "Fucking perfect . . ."

Zamasu swirled his tongue around the digits in his mouth. He knew the purpose of those fingers, he knew what was coming next, and he had no desire to stop any of it. The voice in his ear, the mouth and teeth against the skin of his neck, the hand gripping his hair tightly . . . all of it was more welcome than he'd have ever thought. His body had been craving this horribly and he'd be damned if he denied it now. "Hnnn . . ." Zamasu thrust his hips upward to grind against the man on top of him, his own hands grabbing at Hearts' hair and arm as he let himself give in a little bit more. Wasn't it vulgar to be so noisy and so open? What if someone else heard?

They'd probably already heard them.

Hearts withdrew his fingers, crushing his lips against those of the god as he ran the slick digits against his entrance. He slid one inside, then the other, trying to wet him a bit to make entry more comfortable for him. Even if it didn't hurt, surely it must be uncomfortable to be stretched like that. He'd never been with another man before to know what this experience would entail. What would it feel like?

"Are you ready, Zamasu?" He nipped at the Kai's lower lip as he leaned back just enough to get a good look at his face, his hand still working at his entrance to prepare him quickly. The way Zamasu's mouth hung open as he tried to catch his breath was absolutely delicious. He looked like he was in somewhat of a daze. He wanted to peek into his heart and see how he was feeling, but he couldn't focus enough to do that right now. He would know how he felt by the volume of his moans momentarily.

"H-Hearts . . ." Was that his own voice? To think he'd call the name of a mortal like that. This mortal was different, though. He had good ambitions and the intelligence to pull them off. "You are . . . the only mortal that I'd . . . that I'd . . ."

"That you'd let fuck you?" Hearts murmured the words against the Kai's lips as he positioned his length and pressed inside of him, fully sheathing himself in that tight heat in one swift motion. The cry that tore from Zamasu's throat prompted him to remain still and wrap an arm around him while his free hand brushed his hair out of his face a bit, "Are you okay?"

"I don't feel pain, idiot." Zamasu shuddered as his body tried to acclimate to the intrusion.

"That isn't what I asked you." Hearts planted light kisses over Zamasu's discolored eye and his forehead, "I asked if you were okay. I know your conscience must be fighting you because I'm a mortal. Just as mine fought me for a while because you are a god." He slowly moved his hips back until just the head remained inside, then gently and slowly thrust forward to bury himself once more. This elicited a soft whimper from Zamasu, who gripped at Hearts' back with both hands. "You are my god. You are the only god allowed in the utopia I want to create." He gave him another thrust, working into a steady rhythm as he rocked against his divine lover. "You're an exception to a rule I swore by . . . a god that I don't hate. I never imagined it could be possible."

Why was he saying all of this right now, when he was already emotionally compromised? Something about his words, his raw emotion just pouring out of him like that . . . something about it made Zamasu's chest feel tight and his throat feel dry. "I hate mortals . . . I hate them, but . . . I guess I don't really hate you." Hearts had been kind all along, hadn't he? He came to see him before he could even speak. He carried him when he could not yet walk. Even when the others drove him crazy, Hearts' company was rarely exhausting.

. . . and he wanted to wish for immortality. He was promising him eternity, was he not?

"You don't hate me?" Hearts couldn't help but laugh before capturing Zamasu's lips again, picking up his thrusting pace a bit. "I'll accept that for now. But . . . I want you to actually like me eventually. Wouldn't that be something?" He brushed his lips against the side of Zamasu's face, making his way back to his ear since he knew those were sensitive, "Let me hear your voice, lord Zamasu. I know you can get loud. How else will I know if you feel good?" He ran his tongue along the bottom of his ear, just as Zamasu had done to him earlier. "Maybe I can get you cuffs like I have. I can't mark you with my mouth, so maybe I can decorate your body in other ways. Mark my territory. I don't want anyone else to touch you the way I touch you."

Zamasu shuddered, a strangled whine escaping him as he wrapped one leg around Hearts' waist to give him a better angle. "Shut up. I'm not . . . I'm not your territo-ahh!" The god's eyes widened from the noise that left his own lips, his body shaking as a large wave of pleasure coursed through him.

"Oh? What was that?" Hearts moved faster, trying to hit that same spot inside the Kai that made him cry out. Again a moan was torn from his lips . . . and again and again. . . until Zamasu try to pull his leg back down, "Ah ah ah, don't move your leg. This angle is perfect." He reached back to grab the leg, holding it in place before grabbing the other and bringing it forward so he was holding the ankle by Zamasu's head on the pillow. "My, you're quite flexible. Something to keep in mind." He growled in Zamasu's ear as the god was wracked with uncontrollable moans and whines.

"Too much . . . it's too much!" He could barely even focus enough to get the words out as he was overcome with wave after wave of overwhelming pleasure. His toes curled as his fingers clawed desperately at Hearts' back. "Please . . . it's too much!"

The way Zamasu's voice cracked as he pleaded for Hearts to ease up made the man shiver. "That's what I wanted to hear. Listen to that voice . . . how could I stop now when you sound so damn good?" He did oblige, though, opting to release his hold on Zamasu's legs so he could hold the back of his head with one hand and slip the other hand between the two of them to wrap around the god's neglected cock. "The way your body is trembling is driving me absolutely crazy. Let me hear more of your voice, Zamasu. Cry out to me, Zamasu. Say my name, Zamasu." This proud god telling him the pleasure was too much had his ego more inflated than ever.

Zamasu's legs fell back to the bed on either side, his knees bent upward and his toes curling against the bedsheets as he continued to move erratically with pleasure. He'd felt many of these things before, but not with this body and not with someone who seemed to know more about what he was doing. He wanted to tell Hearts to shut up, but he couldn't find the words anymore. Somehow that voice in his ear saying such vulgar and awful things turned him on even more. Was that normal? "Ha-ahhh Hearts. . ." He hadn't really intended to say the man's name, but it came out anyhow. Whatever. His mind was a jumbled mess right now, so he wasn't really certain what all he had said thus far.

"There you go." Hearts nuzzled the side of Zamasu's face, slowing his pace a bit so he could give him long, deep thrusts instead. He changed the movement of his hand to match this new rhythm as he planted kisses along the soft skin of the god's cheek, "Beautiful. Your body, your face, your voice . . . gods really are perfect, aren't they? Or maybe . . . only you are."

Why did he keep saying things like that? How could he still be so beautiful with his face as it was? It was a monster's face, not the fact of a beautiful god! But Hearts kept saying otherwise. Over and over he said it. And he always looked at him like he'd never seen anyone that looked better . . . why? "Hearts . . ." He looked into the man's eyes as he leaned back just enough to look at him and he was thankful that Hearts immediately kissed him, the hand in his hair holding them together as they exchanged a slew of desperate kisses. Tears stung at the backs of his eyes from the awful thoughts in his head and he'd be damned if he cried during sex.

There was a lack of words for a while, just a tangled mess of bodies and limbs moving in sync. There was the sound of skin against skin, lips on lips, grunts, groans, moans . . . their bodies were slick with sweat as they neared their limits.

"Hearts, I –"

"I know. . . me, too. Go ahead." Hearts watched Zamasu through half-lidded eyes. What was this feeling he had when he looked at Zamasu? He loved to tease and taunt him, but really he loved just being around him. "Only you, Zamasu. Only you make me feel like this."

Like this? Like what?

The Kai didn't have the focus to ask him, though. He arched his back, pressing his chest against that of the larger man as he finally came between them, his hips jerking as he thrust into Hearts' hand to milk himself of the last few drops before collapsing back onto the bed.

Hearts pulled out of him, the hand that was once around Zamasu's length now wrapped around his own as he trying to finish himself off. "Haa. . . ahhh . . ." He grit his teeth, his hips jerking instinctively as he, too, finally came onto Zamasu's stomach. "Heh. . . heheh . . . damn. Is it too much if I say cum looks great on your skin color?"

"W-what? Wait, did you- where did- on my stomach!?" His voice cracked a bit as he slowly came down from the high of his orgasm. Sure enough, he saw a disgusting mixture of cum sitting on his stomach. "So filthy . . . disgusting . . . awful . . ."

"Oh calm down." Hearts pulled the top sheet that had been shoved to the end of the bed and used it to quickly clean him up, chucking the sheet to the floor with their clothes. "We can just take a shower together after a bit."

"Why not shower right now?" He'd had that disgusting mortal seed on him! Simply wiping it away was nowhere near enough to rid his skin of that filth!

"Because I want to hold you for a little while. Didn't your two halves do this sort of thing after they had sex?" Hearts flopped down on the bed beside Zamasu, pulling the man into his chest and wrapping his arms around him.

". . . they did." Why did he bring them up so often? "They often lay together until they fell asleep afterward. They were perfect for each other." He sighed, burying his face in Hearts' chest without realizing what he was doing.

"Well now they're together forever." Hearts looked down at him as Zamasu slowly looked up from his chest. "It seems unlike you to have regrets. When you were first brought here, Fu described you as narcissistic. I see it sometimes, but it's not nearly as bad as I thought it'd be." He smiled, brushing a bit of Zamasu's hair out of his face, "Maybe you were a lot worse before you were defeated . . ."

"Why are we talking about something so irritating?" Zamasu moved his legs to intertwine them with Hearts' legs.

"Right, right. We shouldn't discuss things like that right now." Hearts looked thoughtful for a moment. "So, uh . . . was I better?"

"Better?" The god arched a brow at him, both hands now resting on Hearts' scarred chest. "Better than what?"

"Better than getting fucked by yourself." Hearts cackled loudly as Zamasu tried to pull away from him, but he held him tightly so he couldn't escape, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I couldn't waste the opportunity!"

"You're the worst! Let go of me!" Zamasu heaved a defeated sigh as those large arms only squeezed him tighter until he stopped fighting him. "You shouldn't make a hobby of trying to irritate me."

"It isn't my fault you're so fun to tease, Zamasu." Hearts nuzzled his forehead, then the discolored eye. "Will you put the patch back on after this, or will you leave it off now that you know it isn't so bad?"

"I'm going to put it back on. I don't want to see such a mess every time I pass a mirror or window. No one needs to see what has become of me." No matter how many times Hearts called him beautiful or said it wasn't so bad, it was crushing him inside to know that he was permanently ruined because of those Saiyans.

"When I first saw you, I was immediately drawn to your beauty. I hated that, since I knew you were a god and I despise gods. But I couldn't help but just want to be around you. I felt that I wanted you by my side. At first it was for devious purposes, but now . . . now I really do want you at my side as my equal." Hearts began to play with Zamasu's hair as he studied the god's face. Why did he hate it so much? He was too concerned with this failure. Would getting revenge against those Saiyans really heal the hole they'd made in his self-confidence?

"When I first saw you . . . I thought you were an idiot for saying you were going to defeat the Omni King. I also hated that you touched me too much." Now here he was, lying in his arms, completely nude in bed with him. What had happened in such a short time? "An equal with a mortal . . . I don't think I like that very much. Mortals are despicable and should be eliminated."

"All mortals?"

"All mor- ah, well . . . perhaps not you." Zamasu furrowed his brows. Why was he wavering on that now after he'd gone to such lengths to create his perfect utopia?

"Give me some time and perhaps I can show you the good side of mortal life. It seems you've only seen the ugly side. There is good and bad in all things, you know. Even nature itself has destructive forces in it. There is nothing in existence that is truly perfect. Everything has some flaw, some imperfection." He ran his thumb over the blind eye, "Remember that."

There is nothing in existence that is truly perfect . . .

Why did that statement feel so profound?

"Everything has some imperfection, huh . . ." Had he really had some flaw all along? He did, didn't he? Even if his face had been perfect, his mind had already long since been shattered. "You say a lot of really annoying things." He pressed his forehead against Hearts' chest, sighing contentedly as he draped an arm over the man's side.

For the first time in a long while, he felt at peace.

---

The rest of the day had progressed a bit awkwardly. Well, it had been awkward for Zamasu. His mind was an absolute mess from what had happened. He'd had sex with a mortal. Not himself in a mortal's body, but a real mortal. Someone who was so full of himself and who had such ridiculous ambitions. Someone . . . much like himself, but in mortal form.

Hearts, on the other hand, was grinning from ear to ear, practically glowing for the rest of the evening. He took every opportunity to be strange about it, too. He would throw an arm over Zamasu's shoulders or around his waist; he even went so far as to slap the god's ass as he walked by after dinner! It had taken every ounce of self control Zamasu had left to keep from turning Hearts to dust!

Even after all of that, though, the Kai still went to bed with him that night and slept up against him, those big, warm arms wrapped tightly around him while Hearts buried his face in his hair. The intimacy felt so nice after it had been missing for a while. Was it okay, though? He didn't want Hearts to see him as someone to be coddled. Did he view him as pitiful and pathetic? The thoughts kept him awake late into the night, but he eventually succumbed to sleep, lulled by the rhythmic beating of his new lover's Heart.

The next day, after they'd had lunch, Zamasu excused himself back to the room to be alone for a bit. "You need to get it together, Zamasu." He lectured his reflection in the floor-length mirror, silver eye glaring back at him as he stood close to it. "What is it that you want from that mortal?" He pursed his lips as if waiting for the reflection to actually answer him. "What do you want? Do you want that mortal? Do you like that mortal?" He swallowed hard, "Do you like Hearts? Do you . . . do you want to stay with Hearts, even after the Omni King is dead?" He clenched his hands tightly into fists, his nails making small crescents against his palms as he slowly lowered himself to sit on the floor.

"I've truly lost my mind, haven't I? Is this yet another thing that was broken when those Saiyans took everything from me?" His eyes threatened to shed tears, but he sighed deeply a few times to keep them at bay. "No, I am still the supreme god Zamasu. Even with this damage, my body remains immortal. I still have the seemingly infinite potential of the Saiyans. I can start over again."

"Give me some time and perhaps I can show you the good side of mortal life."

"The good side . . ." Zamasu rose to his feet, "No, I will show you how awful mortals are. Even if we currently seem equal, I will show you that I am superior. Even if I let you . . . let you dominate me during sex, it was only because I allowed it!" He glared at the deep scarlet blush spread across his face in his reflection. "I have to keep him in line! I must show him he only has as much control as I allow! If I continue to let him do as he pleases, he will have a false sense of superiority! I haven't fallen so far as to let that happen!"

Zamasu left the room and went down the hall. Knowing Hearts, he was probably in the lounge drinking. "Hearts!" He shoved he door open, revealing a bewildered Hearts with a half-full glass of whatever it was he usually drank.

"Yes?" Hearts watched in confusion as Zamasu approached him, sat on his lap with his legs straddling Hearts' thighs, and snatched the glass of whiskey from him, downing it all in a hurry. "Ah- you won't- okay, then."

The god gagged as he looked at the now-empty glass with absolute disdain, "Why would you drink such a foul beverage!? How awful! This is nothing like what we had yesterday." He set the glass on the small table by the armchair they were seated in.

"Well, they're two very different types of alcohol . . ." What had gotten into him so suddenly? Was he upset about something? He seemed upset, but if that was the case then why would he get on his lap like that? "Did you want something?"

"To put you in your place." Zamasu rested his hands on Hearts' shoulders, glaring into his eyes.

". . . huh?" Was he having another one of his inner conflicts? What a complicated individual.

"Yesterday, I only allowed you to have control of the situation. Understand that I could have taken control at any moment." Zamasu pressed their foreheads together, a bit annoyed by Hearts' glasses.

Hearts, on the other hand, just looked amused now, "Right, of course. The way you were clinging to me and begging me to take it easy on you was all just for show, huh?" He chuckled as he watched the god's face turn read, "Being submissive in bed isn't a sign of weakness, Zamasu. I'm not sure what has your feathers so ruffled."

"I am not submissive! I could dominate you easily, mortal!" Zamasu grabbed the glasses and pulled them off Hearts' head before setting them on the table with the glass. "Something like that is no problem for a god like me. I am the most powerful, the most charismatic, the-"

"-loudest moaner I've ever had sex with." Hearts rested his hands on the Kai's hips, grinning wider as he saw Zamasu grow visibly frustrated. "Well? Are you going to show me how dominant you are, lord Zamasu? Though I don't know if we should do that right here. . ."

"Why not? Are you afraid someone would see you look pathetic, Hearts?" Zamasu's angry expression quickly turned to a smirk as he leaned forward to press their chests together, his ass now resting over Hearts' groin.

"Not really, it's just that-"

"Shut up." Zamasu crushed their lips together, much like Hearts had done to him several times yesterday. It felt good to be the one to initiate it. Good and bad, really, but mostly good. He was in control of the situation. All of this was his own decision and no one else's. He was not being swayed or led around by a mortal. "Yeah, you don't like being interrupted, do you?" He muttered the words against the other man's lips, opening his eye just a bit to look into the half-lidded eye of Hearts.

"I don't particularly mind it." Hearts' voice was low as he shifted a bit in his seat. This wasn't a very good place for this, but if Zamasu wanted to go at it again, he certainly wasn't going to stop him.

"What's wrong, Hearts?" Zamasu sounded smug as he also began to move, rocking his hips back and forth to grind against Hearts' groin. "Are you a bit uncomfortable?" He smiled mischievously before licking up Hearts' chin and then over his lips, stopping to bite at his lower lip as he slipped his hands inside Hearts' coat.

A more confident Zamasu was incredibly sexy. Hearts' pulse was racing as he swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat. He already had a damn erection from the way Zamasu was grinding his ass against him, "It's like your body doesn't know if it wants to be dominant or submissive." Wasn't something like this called a 'power bottom'? "You look very good seated on my lap, Zamasu. Where did a god learn to move like this, hm? Isn't it a bit obscene?" He rested his hands over Zamasu's thighs, sliding them back to his hips to help him rock a bit faster, "We should really move this to the bedroom, though."

"I learned them from a god in a mortal's body. You mortals are obsessed with sex, it would seem." Zamasu grabbed a hand full of Hearts' hair to yank his head back, his other hand still groping at the man's muscular chest and abs, "Why do you want to go to the bedroom so desperately?"

Zamasu abruptly ceased all movement, his eye widening as arms suddenly wrapped around him from behind and he could feel breath against his left ear.

"Zamasuuu." Fu's voice was drawn out into a whine as he nuzzled against the god's ear and neck, "Can I play, too?"

"F-F-Fu!?" Zamasu turned his head to see the demon grinning at him like an idiot, "When did you come in?" How much had he seen? How much had he heard?

"I've been here the entire time. Hearts tried to tell you, but you told him to shut up." Fu bit down on the tip of the Kai's ear, but a green hand swiftly back-handed him, effectively making him back off.

"Disgusting! Do not touch me, filthy demon!" Embarrassed and pissed off, the god got up from Hearts' lap and folded his arms across his chest. He was thankful that his pants fit so loosely. It saved him the embarrassment of an obvious arousal.

"What? You'll have sex with a mortal, but not a demon? Are demons beneath mortals for you?" Fu pouted, flopping back down on the couch where he'd been seated before.

"Mortals are the worst, but . . . Hearts is . . . different . . . I suppose." Blushing now, the god turned his back to the two men and made for the door to leave.

"Hey, Zamasu. I'll meet you in our bedroom. Why don't you just get naked and make yourself comfortable on the bed, hm?" Hearts threw the god a wink when he looked back him over his shoulder.

"I'd rather die than do something so shameful!" Zamasu slung the door open and stormed out of the room.

"Yeah, well death isn't really an option! I'll see you in a bit!" Hearts called after him after getting up from the armchair. "Fu, we'll have to continue our conversation later. I have to go take care of a problem." Hearts smirked as he picked his glasses up from the table.

"Yeah, yeah. Lucky bastard. Maybe I can convince him to let me play sometime." Fu leaned on the armrest as Hearts hurried from the room to chase down the furious god. "A god who hates mortals and a mortal who hates gods . . . but they like each other? Isn't that something . . ." He leaned his head back on the couch cushion to stare up at the ceiling, "Not at all like I'd planned, but perhaps this will have an even better outcome. Tell me . . . will your story end in triumph . . . or tragedy?"