ThanZag

"Khh! You have no concept of which impulses to act upon, and which to keep in check. You say you'll wait, well, let me ask you this: What are you waiting for? What are you waiting for, I'm here, already. Right...?"

- Thanatos to Zagreus

ThanZag is the slash ship between Thanatos and Zagreus from the Hades fandom.

Canon
Thanatos and Zagreus became friends at a young age, due to the fact that both were raised by Nyx, the Goddess of Night. Nyx is Thanatos' birth-mother, but not Zagreus'. Though Thanatos and Zagreus knew they were not related by blood, Zagreus did not know who his real mother was until some time later, when he grew to adulthood.

Upon discovering that his birth-mother is Persephone, who lives on the Surface, Zagreus decides to leave the Underworld in order to reunite with her. Upset by Zagreus' decision to do this, Thanatos appears before Zagreus after he leaves the House of Hades and says, "Thought you could just get away from me, did you? ...You left, without so much as saying goodbye." When Zagreus responds that finding his mother is something he must do, Thanatos coldly replies, "Well, if you won't say it, I'll say it. Goodbye, Zagreus."

Despite being angry with Zagreus, Thanatos continues to appear before him from time to time, as Zagreus attempts to leave the Underworld. Each time Zagreus encounters Thanatos outside the House of Hades, they engage in a contest to see who can kill the most Shades. If Zagreus wins or if they tie, Thanatos will award Zagreus with a Centaur Heart.

After encountering Thanatos a few more times, Zagreus comes to realize that Thanatos is not truly mad at him. Rather, Zagreus' actions have put Thanatos in a difficult place. On the one hand, Thanatos wants to help Zagreus escape out of his personal feelings for his closest friend. But on the other hand, helping Zagreus means directly disobeying Hades, who is both Thanatos' Master as well as Zagreus' father. By helping Zagreus, Thanatos risks his station and, in his own words, "everything I've worked for."Later, Lord Hades does discover that Thanatos has been abetting Zagreus in his attempts to escape. However, Thanatos continues to help Zagreus despite Hades' displeasure. Zagreus gradually improves his relationship with Thanatos by talking with him more, along with giving him bottles of Nectar and later, Ambrosia. Eventually, they grow close enough to hint at their feelings toward each other. When Thanatos' affinity is maximized, he appears in Zagreus' bedroom where Zagreus can either go to Thanatos or ease off. If the player chooses the former, the scene will fade out, suggesting that the two have become lovers. If the latter option is chosen, Thanatos and Zagreus will remain close friends.

Quotes
"He tirelessly serves his foreign Master, whose son at least he adores, despite their opposing manner and outlook. Thanatos would never speak of this, but it is clear, to me. Whence came the bond they share? My thought is that the Master's son must be the god of blood; of life. Thus, they are inexorably drawn."

- Achilles on Thanatos in the Codex

"Listen to me. I don't know how else to put this, but, I want you to come home. Voluntarily. It's not just you swept up in all this nonsense now. And, I know you didn't ask for me to get involved, but, what did you expect?"

- Thanatos to Zagreus after he leaves the House

"I just...don't mean to push you, Than. I know all this is kind of a lot. And I wanted you to know...this isn't some impulsive thing for me. I'll wait for you however long it takes."

- Zagreus to Thanatos, after improving their relationship

"Good to see you taking little Mort there on one of your strolls. Means I can better keep an eye on you out there."

- Thanatos when Zagreus has Companion Mort equipped

"Hey, I saw you and Thanatos recently, Prince! You two, if you don't mind me saying, you are quite the pair, I mean, you ought to see yourselves! You're, whew...! Makes me a little woozy just remembering it now! Well, up I go, then, bye!"

- Dusa to Zagreus on his relationship with Thanatos

"Little godling, would that I knew every last detail of how you and Thanatos are getting on of late! The notorious incarnate of death, and the newly discovered son of Hades, fraternizing? It's positively scandalous I think!"

- Aphrodite to Zagreus on his relationship with Thanatos

"Saw Thanatos again lately, here, boss, and want to tell you, almost looked as though he cracked a smile when he mentioned you, never seen anything like that with him!"

- Hermes to Zagreus on his relationship with Thanatos

"It is my understanding that you have grown rather close with Thanatos, my kin? A perfect choice of mate; though I confess I'd not expected Death to have affection for another save himself."

- Ares to Zagreus on his relationship with Thanatos

Fanon
ThanZag is the most popular ship in the Hades fandom. When the game was released, some players caught on to the potentially romantic nature of the relationship between Thanatos and Zagreus. Despite this, many were surprised when the player was actually given the option to romance Thanatos, as LGBTQ+ representation in video games has historically not been very strong, nor always well-received. However, in the case of Hades and ThanZag in particular, the pairing was received very well and became a linchpin of sorts to the overall fandom.

In the game, Zagreus is also given the option of romancing Megaera, giving rise to the MegZag pairing which is also quite popular. Despite this, ship wars are extremely rare due to the fact that the game gives the player the option of forming a polyamorous relationship with both Thanatos and Megaera, known as ThanMegZag.

On AO3, ThanZag is the most written pairing for the Hades fandom.

Fandom
FAN FICTION

TWITTER

Trivia

 * After giving Thanatos Nectar for the first time, he will give Zagreus his keepsake, the Pierced Butterfly, which increases Zagreus' damage each time he clears a room in the Underworld without taking damage.
 * After giving Thanatos Ambrosia for the first time, he will give Zagreus his Chthonic Companion, Mort, which can be used to summon Thanatos at will.
 * Under Thanatos' entry in Achilles' Codex, it states, "He tirelessly serves his foreign Master, whose son at least he adores, despite their opposing manner and outlook. Thanatos would never speak of this, but it is clear, to me. Whence came the bond they share? My thought is that the Master's son must be the god of blood; of life. Thus, they are inexorably drawn."
 * At max affinity, Thanatos' keepsake will read, "From Thanatos; you share an Undying Bond. With whom should Death belong, if not with Blood, with Life?" If the player romances Thanatos and examines Mort, it will refer to Thanatos as Zagreus' "cherished partner." Otherwise, it will refer to Thanatos as Zagreus' "closest colleague."

Variations

 * ThanMegZag refers to the ship between the two and Megaera