A/N: Voldemort was defeated but only after a lot of innocent lives were lost. The balance between good and evil badly disturbed. Harry Potter is the master of death, what does that mean? Do the Hallows have a more important function? Time travel fiction, Harry and Hermione Pairing. Some of the phrases were directly borrowed from the final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and are depicted in bold characters.

Declaration: I write for my own pleasure and not for profit. I do not own Harry Potter Universe.

Harry Potter: Death Reincarnate

Chapter One: Master of death

It was coming close to lunch time as Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley were talking to Professor Dumbledore's portrait in the headmaster's office with Minerva McGonagall the incumbent headmistress of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for company. The day started out with an all-out duel between the forces of 'light' and 'dark' finally ending with the death of the most feared dark lord of recent times, Lord Voldemort at the hands of 'The Chosen One' Harry Potter. His two friends Hermione and Ron were with him all the way helping him to defeat the darkness even though Ron abandoned them for a short time; he joined them again to complete the hunt. They were explaining the events that brought an end to Voldemort including the time spent roaming around the country hunting for the horcruxes and ending his life.

"I commend you three for the bravery that you displayed to end Voldemort. I can only apologize for not doing more to help you out", Dumbledore spoke from his portrait after hearing the amazing tale.

"It's aright sir, a little more help would have been appreciated a lot but we managed to get the job done. There is no point in reminiscing about what could have been" Harry replied.

Hermione was not expecting such a remark from him, as he was usually liberal with his forgiveness even to those who did not deserve it, and she could see that both Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore were also caught unawares by his remark. She could guess why Harry was still peeved at the former headmaster; he 'died' for the second time in his short life that night after all, and that would put anyone in a bad mood.

"The stone that was in the snitch was very useful but still caused me great pain and so I dropped it in the forest where I met my parents and Sirius. The cloak as you said is my family heirloom and will remain in my family" he told them all but looking at Dumbledore in particular. Dumbledore in turn beamed at him and applauded his decision.

"And then there's this." Harry held up the Elder Wand, and Hermione looked at it with a reverence that, even in his befuddled and sleep-deprived state, Harry did not like to see. But what shocked him the most was the look of unbridled envy and jealousy on Ron's face. He saw that look before on Ron when his name came out of the 'Goblet of Fire' in their fourth year and he was not happy. He sincerely hoped that Ron grew up from that stage where jealousy controlled his actions, and hoped he did not see that look again, but Harry was wrong again.

Harry was not the only one who noticed that envious look from Ron; Hermione standing to the right and slightly behind Harry was shaking her head in disappointment at Ron. She had thoughts of having a meaningful relationship with a matured Ron, but looking at his attitude she feared that she may have to settle for a compromise again. Professor McGonagall, who was quite until now looked to chastise Ron for the disgusting display but deciding not to create a scene, kept her temper in control.

Harry took the mokeskin pouch from Hermione giving a rueful smile reserved only for her, communicating his displeasure at Ron. Rummaging in the pouch he pulled out the two halves of holly still just connected by the finest thread of phoenix feather. He laid the broken wand upon the headmaster's desk, touched it with the very tip of the Elder Wand, and said "Reparo."

As his wand resealed, red sparks flew out of its end. Harry knew that he had succeeded. He picked up the holly and phoenix wand and felt a sudden warmth in his fingers, as though wand and hand were rejoicing at their reunion.

"I don't want it." said Harry and before he could continue, "What?" said Ron Loudly. "Are you mental?"

Dumbledore interrupted the impending argument, "the wand has a history of blood being passed owing to the death of the previous owner often at the hands of the new owner. The power that it holds should not be in the hands of any wizard or witch. It has to be destroyed there is no other way to prevent it from getting into the wrong hands."

"That is where you are wrong headmaster; I agree with you that the Elder Wand is more powerful for any wizard or witch to handle safely. It was never meant to be used by ordinary humans; its existence has a much more profound meaning" countered Harry.

He could see that Ron was still oblivious to what was happening in the office, but the other three were intrigued by his comment. Before anyone can voice their questions, he bade a quite goodbye to Dumbledore and proceeded out of the office and began walking towards the great hall.

From the corner of the eye Harry could see that Ron was throwing furtive glances at the Elder wand clutched in his hand and he was saddened by the thought that Ron's feeling of envy about the wand was still very much alive.

Hermione was also shaking her head at Ron's obvious infatuation with the unbeatable wand and she secretly hoped that Ron would not do anything foolish to try and win the wand. Deciding to talk about it with either Ron or Harry when she got the chance, she left the topic alone for the moment. She still wanted to know about Harry's parting comment about the Deathly Hallows being more than what the legend says. She felt that Harry was implying that the Hallows should be preserved rather than destroyed. Before she could voice her question however, she saw Harry subtly shaking his head to ward off her questions with a meaningful nod of his head towards Ron. Having assured that Harry was going to answer her question, Hermione agreed to wait for an opportune moment and with a quiet gesture of acceptance, also acquiesced to the unmentioned need to keep their discussion discrete.

Reaching the great hall they were faced with the grieving Weasley family. Seeing them entering the hall, Mrs. Weasley immediately rushed towards them and still sobbing grabbed Ron in a bear hug. In between her sobs she managed to choke out, "Where did you go without telling me? I have already lost one son. I do not want you to go anywhere out of my sight." Without any concern for Ron's protests, she grabbed his arm and dragged him over to the family huddle totally ignoring Harry and Hermione.

Harry was sympathetic to the Weasley family; he knew very well the pains of losing someone dear but he could not help feeling lonely. Even at a time like this after death and destruction, he could see families getting together and sharing their love. He could not help thinking, 'What about me? I have lost everyone close to me that even remotely resembled a family. Now with Remus and Tonks gone, I have lost all pretenses at a childhood and became a father taking care of Teddy.'

Looking over at Hermione he could see the pain in her eyes probably thinking about her parents who do not know about their daughter. He could see that she wished to be with them right now to draw some semblance of comfort from them.

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Realizing that she was also reluctant to join the Weasleys, Harry took her hand and with a whispered "follow me" led her to the seventh floor corridor. The 'Room of Requirement' that was destroyed in a fire during the fight was now in pristine condition and wishing for a cozy sitting room for a chat entered the room with Hermione.

Once seated on the couch provided, they relaxed in the short silence before Hermione asked, "How are you feeling Harry?"

"Exhausted, broken, pity, sorrow, shame, elation, I do not know. One emotion is warring with the other for dominance; I have no idea what I will end up with. What about you?" In answer, Hermione only shrugged one dainty shoulder which was enough to tell him that she was in the same state as he was.

Harry called for Kreacher and asked for a simple lunch for the two of them. During lunch they kept the conversation light reminiscing about their adventures in Hogwarts.

When the plates were cleared away, he knew that he could not wait any longer and getting comfortable reclining into the back of the couch he put his feet up on the table. Hermione copied his actions and though she was desperate to talk about the Hallows, waited for Harry to start.

Harry knew that what he was going to say would be painful if not downright shocking and earnestly hoped that Hermione would agree with him. The course laid out for him by fate was unavoidable but he could wish for the one person he could not live without. Gathering his courage he asked the question on which he based all his hopes and dreams, "So, you and Ron huh?" It was phrased more as statement rather than a question, and even though he tried to keep the desperation out of his voice, Hermione still sensed it.

Hermione lowered her head refusing to meet Harry's eyes. She was almost certain that he was interested in resuming his relationship with Ginny Weasley and, if he could meet her eyes, he could see the hurt and sense of loss brimming over. Through the years she had known Harry, he grew to be the most important person of her life and the fear of losing something so precious kept her from seeking something more from their friendship. Now it seems that fate has given her an opening, she was at a pivotal moment in her life and maybe this was her last chance.

She wanted to see if she could gauge his feelings towards her, "What are you asking me Harry?"

Harry tried to 'read' her to understand what she was thinking. During their time at Hogwarts, they have gotten so close that they could sense what the other was thinking just by reading each other's body language. Most of the time they did not see the need for words to express their feelings. But for the first time Harry had no idea where their conversation was going, Hermione was giving nothing away and it was up to him to take the plunge and bare his soul.

"Are you dating Ron? On more than one occasion I saw that you were disappointed with him. Through the years of our friendship I was the one breaking up your disputes and on more than one occasion you came close to blows. Even I am not that thick to accept your behaviour as a good foundation for a permanent relationship. Are you truly happy with your choice?"

He paused but he saw that Hermione was still contemplating her answer and so he forged ahead, "I guess what I am saying is that you deserve the best Hermione. You should not give away your principles to satisfy anyone but if you are willing to degrade yourself I hope that it will be for me, I will do my best to keep you happy. Do I have a chance for something more with you?"

It was time to 'put her cards on the table' as the saying goes and hope that she did not draw a losing hand. Deciding to go for broke she answered, "I decided to settle for the second best because I thought that the best was not in love with me. Ron has his jealous moments but I know him and is better than most."

Harry was outwardly calm but was bursting with joy inside, "How do you know that this other guy does not love you?"

"He has also never shown me that he does"

With a disbelieving look Harry shot back, "like dancing in a tent to cheer you up?"

Hermione was not one to back down though, "What about calling her a sister?"

Harry Immediately deflated and letting out a long suffering sigh responded in a much mellow tone. The effort looked like he was trying to avoid whining, "Maybe it was desperation to keep Ron from abandoning us again, or maybe it was because I was convinced that you love Ron and I did not want to lose you from my life. If I could not be your boyfriend, being your brother was what I convinced myself to be, or maybe the stress of the hunt and the horcrux in my head addled my brain" the last was said only in partial jest.

Hermione also let out a sigh but this was more in relief than anything else, "What are we going to do with ourselves" she asked rhetorically.

They instinctively moved towards the center of the couch and ended up sitting close to the other. Hermione laid her head on Harry's shoulder while he put his arm around her and pulled her closer to him. There was no need for words now as they were happily basking in the realization that they were in love and more importantly the other reciprocated the love.

After a moment of blissful silence Harry began, "if we decide to do what I am going to tell you, then there is no need for any future planning."

Hermione looked into Harry's eyes and from the distance of a few inches she could see the uncertainty and also a little apprehension in them. Resisting the urge to kiss him, Hermione finally started the discussion that she so desperately wanted to have, "I wanted to ask you this. What did you mean by saying that the Hallows have a higher purpose? Do you mean to say that ordinary Witches or Wizards should not handle them?"

Harry let out a sigh and remained in silent contemplation before finally speaking, "Do you remember the story of the three brothers that got the Hallows from 'death'?" Harry queried and getting a nod from Hermione continued, "That part of the legend is true enough and what you have to understand is that the Hallows cannot, or rather, should not be separated from each other. Being together is what is needed to gain a semblance of control over them, though you can never actually control them."

"You mean to say that death being a man is really true?" Hermione asked incredulously.

Harry gave a grimace and shrugged, "Yeah, that is a fact and only someone like that could actually use the Hallows. Everyone, even Dumbledore, who used the Hallows before this, tried to gain power which was not the original use for the Hallows, especially the elder wand."

"How do you know all this Harry? Is it because you are the only one who has managed to gain all the three Hallows?" Hermione asked a little fearfully.

Harry nodded his head and with his hand outstretched, concentrated for a few seconds. The resurrection stone that he dropped in the forest materialized in his hand and the three 'Deathly Hallows' clutched in his hand began glowing with an eerie dark greenish aura which was nearly black in colour. Hermione was fascinated by the power radiating off not only the Hallows but also from Harry.

Putting the Hallows away on the table, Harry started telling her about what he knew from his 'meeting' in the morning and the chance offered to him to correct the mistakes and restore balance to the world.

"It all started after defeating Voldemort and I took charge of the Elder Wand."

Earlier in the morning

The battle with Voldemort has finally ended and the ecstatic crowd finally began to settle down but it may also be due to the fact that the castle elves began serving them breakfast. Though the noise was not deafening, Harry was unable to concentrate on anything as it appeared that everyone was talking in his ear. He was even unable to eat properly as he began receiving memories, facts, and tales he had no knowledge about. It felt as if the entire contents of numerous history texts were being dumped into his brain.

Finishing her breakfast, Hermione left to the girl's dorm to take a shower and then lie down for a much needed nap. Ron wanted to spend some time with his family who were grieving over the death of Fred. Harry and his friends decided to meet about an hour before lunch to talk to Professor Dumbledore's portrait.

Harry was left alone with his contemplation and this gave him some time to organize and understand the new information that he came to possess. Strolling out of the castle away from the crowd, he walked down the path to the black lake and taking off his shoes and socks, sat down on a rocky outcropping dangling his legs. The cold water of the lake was soothing to his aching feet and calmed his racing mind down.

He was so involved with trying to decipher the knowledge implanted into him that he almost missed the voice that was calling out, "How are you coping young Peverell?"

Jolted out of his musings, Harry jumped up and reached for the Elder Wand frantically looking for the source of the voice. He was even more shocked when he could not see anyone near him, but the voice sounded so close to him. Then he heard a chuckle in a musical voice, "You cannot see me dear Harry, I do not have a physical form to manifest."

Harry gulped nervously, "Are you talking to me in my mind, whoever you are?"

"Yes indeed young sir. I am in your mind but still not a figment of your imagination."

"You must realize that I have bad experiences with hearing and seeing things in my mind" Harry was now seriously getting worried. He was frantically searching for answers and feared that somehow the horcrux was not completely removed and Voldemort was still in his mind.

The voice chuckled again, "Look deep into yourself Peverell; you will understand my true form and yours too."

"You mean all the information that I have acquired is real, I am really the 'master of death' and control that power?"

"Yes Harry, you are going to fill a void that has been in existence for many centuries now. You are essential for ensuring the balance between good and evil in the world."

"Why do you call me Peverell, I am not related to them, am I?" Harry questioned, he was woefully unaware of his ancestry, something that he has to rectify sooner rather than later. He was worried about what else was still buried in his heritage.

This time the voice laughed outright in response to Harry's thoughts, "Potter, Peverell, or Gryffindor what's in a name but to know a face. There is nothing more in your ancestry that is bigger than this except that being the last of the Gryffindor family you may take control of the school if you wanted."

Harry was furiously searching in his mind what the power given to him truly meant. He understood what is expected of him now that he has reunited the Hallows and it was not pleasant. He never imagined that such a power existed let alone he would wield it. He had a sinking feeling about the origin of the voice, he could not believe it though, and "Who are you?" he asked with trepidation.

"I am the one who controls all that you see and know off, I encompass everything. I am not a physical being but everyone knows me as time or more commonly as fate."

His fears confirmed, Harry thought that he would faint with the shock, he was still coping with the defeat of Voldemort and now he has this enormous responsibility thrust upon him and by fate itself. "Great another destiny thrust upon me. Don't I have any choice in this?" he groused.

"You always have a choice young Gryffindor, but as someone you know once told you, it is important to do what is right and not what is easy."

Harry was troubled; he did not want to hold any more responsibilities. He was tired of not being able to do what he wanted and when he wanted, there was no spontaneity in his life any more.

Cutting into his thoughts the voice of fate continued with a tone that brooked no argument, "This is the power that has saved you in the forest when Voldemort cast the killing curse at you. The curse could very well have ended your life and not that of the horcrux in you. Consider this as your payment for surviving the killing curse when you were a toddler. More importantly there is no one else who is as pure in spirit as you or as kind hearted as you, who would still be the same even when given all that power."

The voice softened, but the next few words heartened him more, "Do not worry, you will not be alone. I know who you want beside you in your life. You are now given a chance to right all wrongs and gain the love of the one person that was true to you all along."

Harry knew that he loved only one girl in his short life and the thought of living his life with her by his side was what made him decide. It was not like he had much choice in this anyway, and if he was going to have the love of his life with him all the better for him. Maybe it was his chance to experience what all the other's he knew had, a family of his own.

With that 'fate' fell silent leaving Harry with his own musings. He saw that it was nearly the time that he was to meet Dumbledore with Ron and Hermione. Realizing that he was in a desperate need of a bath, he rushed off to the Gryffindor dorms to take a shower.

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"So you are now the master of death" Hermione concluded

"Yeah" he paused, "Actually the name 'master of death' is not accurate. The legend is very different from the truth, I am death reincarnate."

"What gives you the right to take someone's life" Hermione challenged him. He could see that it was a test for his intentions rather than any malice in her question.

"It is not a right but a responsibility Hermione. I am the instrument fate uses to restore balance between good and bad in the world. Too many good people have died in this unnecessary war."

"And you can bring people back to life?" she asked in a much softer tone.

"Yeah! Those who have been affected by the war and lost their lives much before their time can be brought back. The only limitation is that their deaths have to have occurred within my life time and willing to come back, but they should also not have crossed over yet. That is why it is not possible to restore all the innocent lives but mostly limited to people who have died recently like Remus, Tonks, Fred, Colin" he trailed off.

"What about all the muggle-borns who were persecuted by Umbridge Harry? They were also innocent victims of the war. What about Sirius, Cedric?"

He gave her a tight smile, "I knew that you will pick up on that."

"Now fate wants to correct the problem?" She then turned contemplative, "Is it, 'HE' wants or 'SHE' wants to correct the problem?"

Harry could not help it and burst out laughing; "Only you Hermione, only you can think about that at a time like this." Hermione swatted him on the back of his head with a cry of protest.

Harry raised his arms in surrender when she prepared to launch another attack, "What I understood was that fate and time are the same. Muggles call it as 'Mother Nature' but there is only one entity that oversees everything and there is no gender. The manifestation is based on whichever gender you are comfortable with. Most of them consider fate as a female alluding to the fickle mind of the female" he said the last with a grin.

Hermione launched herself at him again swatting him on the arm but Harry grabbed her in a hug to prevent that. He was already bruised and his body was still suffering after the fight and the lack of proper sleep. She finally joined him in the laughter as she allowed it mostly to be true.

They remained in each other's arms, silent for a few minutes broken finally by Hermione, "Will it be painful Harry? You know I am not so good with pain" she tried to joke. She understood what was needed to be done in order to save all the unnecessary deaths.

With a solemn tone Harry responded, "No Hermione it will not be painful. You will not know anything, one second you will be there and the next moment all this will cease to exist. No flashes, no warnings just like a snap of your fingers." He tightened the hug and kissed her tenderly on the lips.

Hermione moved to lean on him but Harry grabbed her by her waist and pulled Hermione into his lap where she immediately clutched at his shirt and began sobbing in earnest with her head on his shoulder. Harry began rocking her gently and ran his hand through her hair cooing softly into her ear letting Hermione slowly compose herself.

Wiping her tears and nose on the sleeve of his shirt, she begged, "Make love to me Harry."

Only Hermione being in his lap prevented him from jumping up in surprise. He could only squeak out "What?"

"I do not know if I am brave enough to die without knowing if I will see you again Harry, I always hoped that my first time will be with you. Being left to live my life alone was my deepest fear before I met you and then my deepest desire was to wake up by your side every night; maybe I saved myself for this moment."

"Hermione, I will find you again and this time I will make sure that we will be together right from the start."

"How do you know that I will even be there Harry? What if I do not meet you at all?"

Taking her hand in his, he pressed the flat of her palm onto his chest right above his heart "Hermione, I was given this chance so that I can live my life with my love. Only you have this, my heart, in your hand. I cannot live without you in my life. You are the one that keeps me safe and sane; you are the voice of my conscience. However many lives I have to live, you are the only one that can be able to claim to be the love of my life, my girlfriend or my wife."

She gave him a watery smile and kissed him deeply.

Harry continued, "I only hope that you accept my story as easily as you are doing now. If you do not it will be difficult to convince you and I am afraid that I may lose you."

"Oh! I will believe you, even when I met you, you always held some respect in my mind and my heart was wishing for you to notice me. If you explain everything to me in detail I will understand. If it will help you I will tell you some incidents from my childhood that will convince me."

She began narrating a few incidents that happened in her primary school in between sharing lingering passionate kisses with Harry. She was undeterred by his earlier protests and started to loosen the buttons on his shirt trying to get him to make love to her. Harry tried to protest but even he knew that his attempts at dissuading her were only half-hearted. They began undressing each other while kissing all the way. When they were fully undressed, the couch they were sitting on morphed to a very large and comfortable bed.

"It is the first time for me too Hermione, I am sorry if I disappoint you. Whatever may happen please do not laugh at me."

She kissed him softly this time assuring him, "We will learn together." Then with a sly smile she said, "We have the entire evening and the night too for a lot of practice."

With Hermione prone on the bed, Harry moved to position himself with his head between her legs and began working on her with his mouth and fingers as Hermione guided him. Hermione moved her legs wide to give him better access and began squirming and squealing in passion and succumbed to the intense sensation.

Harry was delighted that he was able to give pleasure to Hermione and make her orgasm and at Hermione's urging slowly entered her. His delight turned to concern after hearing a sharp hiss of pain from Hermione and that caused him to lose control and immediately empty into her.

Harry was embarrassed, but his embarrassment vanished seeing the pain etched on Hermione's face. He propped himself up on his fore arms taking his weight off Hermione and kissed her softy while apologizing profusely.

Even through the pain Hermione managed to softy chuckle at Harry's predicament. "You promised not to laugh" Harry muttered indignantly. That only increased Hermione's laughter. Harry could see the humor in the situation but that does not mean he was going to accept it.

Harry moved to lie on his back beside Hermione and dragged her to him. Hermione snuggled into his side with her head perched on his chest; they relaxed and began planning the steps they needed to take to ensure that the same mistakes will not be repeated again or made worse.

After about half an hour of planning, Harry used a pain numbing charm to lessen Hermione's pain. Even though Hermione was chuckling at his enthusiasm, she secretly admitted to herself that she was also eagerly looking forward to the experience. They did not bother with any contraception as Hermione knew that her current form will not survive for long and if that did not happen, carrying Harry's baby is certainly nothing to be concerned about. This time their love making was everything that they imagined and gave Hermione as much pleasure as to Harry. They made love multiple times that evening resting in between to get their strength back, satisfying their hunger and desire for each other, before finally falling asleep late into the night with bodies entwined.