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Looking out upon the the vast river Styx, Thanatos stands waiting for the prince to return from his journey to the surface. This is the longest he's been gone and Thanatos is torn apart by his emotions.
Half of him is proud of Zagreus, strong and determined battling his way through every chamber- letting nothing stop him from his goal. The other half feels nothing but utter heartbreak.
Zagreus being away this long may mean he has finally gotten out. He may truly be gone forever. Thanatos takes a deep breath to calm himself at the thought. Of course, he has never told the prince of his affection- he would never put that burden onto Zagreus. If Zag cared for him, truly cared for him, he would have said goodbye before starting his journey. He would have explained or at least just mentioned it, right?!
"Ahh, what's the point in anger now?" Thanatos thinks bitterly. "There's no point to any of this."
Death feels his grip on reality slowly wash away as he stares into the bloody abyss of a river. He knows where he is. He can hear the chatter of shades, taste the blood in the air. And yet his awareness shrinks. Just his thoughts are real. Just him and this bloody river are real.
A bit later (a day, an hour, who truly knows?) Thanatos finds himself staring past the mismatched eyes of his precious prince. Zagreus' mouth is moving but Thanatos can't make out the words. Must be another cruel trick of the fates- pretending his beloved had come back for him. Who was he kidding- Zagreus didn't even know he held the title of "only person Thanatos has ever been interested in. Like ever." It's not like Thanatos could blame him for not loving the cold, seemingly heartless character of death.
"Than? Than! You're not looking the best. Blood and darkness, Than do you even hear me?!" shouts Zagreus, concerned at his longtime friend and secret crush's behavior. It was in Thanatos' nature to be quiet, it was another thing for him to look as if he was staring into space.
As the moments pass, Thanatos' vacant gaze still glued to him, Zagreus decides a different approach. He reaches up to the floating figure and softly grabs his wrist.
Despite only touching his gauntlet, Thanatos snatched his had back as if he'd been burned. He seemed shaken to the core, finally startled out of his stupor.
His golden eyes finally locked onto the prince's gaze, understanding coloring his features.
"My apologies, your Highness. It seems my mind was elsewhere." Thanatos all but whispered to Zagreus.
Matching his tone, Zagreus asks, "Than, are you sure you're alright? I've been here for some time and you barely responded?"
"Yes, prince. I apologize for the burden of concern I've placed upon you. I must get back to my duties"
"No Than! Please wait-" Zagreus cries out desperately. He hasn't so much as seen Than in what feels like forever and had planned on gauging his interest in a deeper relationship the next conversation they had.
*Dong!*
Before the heir to the underworld could finish his thought Death had vanished, leaving nothing but longing in his wake. Guess that's answer enough.