Chapter 1: Prologue
AVADA KEDAVRA!
EXPELLIARMUS!
Harry and Voldemort watched as their spells collide. The Elder Wand will which is refusing to kill his owner is being overpowered by Voldemort's will. Slowly, the Killing Curse was pushing back but before it could fully break through, it split with the disarming curse reflecting back to the both of them halves of the Killing curse.
Harry and Voldemort only saw a flash of light and they were gone.
Harry woke up on a bench. He looked around and the scene reminded him of King's Cross. He looked down and saw himself wearing his school robes. Confused, he stood up and searched his pockets. Not finding anything, he merely shrugged and looked around again.
"Are you lost?" asked a man dressed in a blue conductor outfit.
"Yes."
"Name?"
"Harry Potter sir."
"Harry Potter." He folded his hands and a flat glass appeared on his hand. Touching is up before smiling. Looking back at him he mentioned. "Follow me."
Following the man, Harry wasn't as alert as he ought to be. He knew he was dead. All that mattered to him was that so long as Voldemort was dead with him, he could… live…that didn't sound right to him, deal with it is more likely. Stepping into an office of sorts, Harry was greeted to a sight of an a man with long black ponytail, also wearing a conductor outfit though colored black.
"Ah. To what pleasure do I owe this?" asked the man
"This sir is Harry Potter" said the other conductor
"You man leave" the black conductor instructed. Looking at Harry, he smiled warmly gesturing a seat. Harry took it. The man offered some chocolate but Harry declined respectfully.
"I have been incredibly rude of you. Let me introduce myself. I am Thanatos, Guard and Keeper of Death." He declared.
"My name is Harry Potter sir." Harry felt something off, from how his previous experience of death (which funny enough was just an hour ago) he would think that he'd appear in front of a train and simply move on.
"Quite right. In most cases, that's usually what we do." Thanatos said as if reading his thoughts.
"Who's we?" asked Harry.
"We as in the guardians of death. However, now is not the time for us discussing death …yet. It is Death's wish to grant you a choice where you to arrive here." Thanatos said.
"What choice?" Harry had grown curios wondering why Death would give him a choice in the first place.
"Would you like to continue your life? Relive your life anyway you want? Or to simply move to the next adventure" Thanatos said.
"I'm confused. Don't get me wrong… I like the fact that I can choose what to do but why me?" asked Harry
"Because a Master of Death is always given that choice. You are the only one who has completed the set however briefly since the Perevells… at least by ownership." Thanatos continued.
"Er… I never really had the Elder Wand." Harry commented.
"True… but as you perceived you are its master however, spells in nature that kill will kill regardless of the wand's master. Never the less, you have defeated in this timeline Voldemort and so the Elder Wand has no master; Ironic however, should you choose to live the Elder Wand will recognize you fully because you have not only earned it allegiance once but in living twice."
"Er… give me a moment" Harry thought about it. It sounded too good, on one hand, He would get to live but truthfully he wondered. While he knew Ron, Hermione, Ginny and the rest of his friends would grieve over him, he knew they would eventually move on. After all, time heals all wounds.
On the other hand, why the hell would he go back? Voldemort's gone. Why the hell would he bother to go back… wait. Harry paused.
"Did you mention I can relive my life ANY way I wanted?" Harry asked putting emphasis on ANY
"Yes. Whether it be a vampire or a male Veela or even a merman." Thanatos replied weirdly with eyes twinkling in amusement that reminded him of Dumbledore.
So… Now what? This is his biggest decision in his… afterlife? Or is it life?...Mentally shrugging before continuing his train of thoughts, he wondered if he could live a life without trouble and with a family. It should be less harder than becoming a male Veela wouldn't it?
"Can I ask if I have any particular restrictions?" asked Harry
"Only one. Death will see you as it's 'Master' at this time and therefore will grant you one gift. Be warned. Death is a whisper, a gentle caress, a soothing figure and an eternal embrace. Once this gift is given, you will not know it exists, you will not know what form it is, what importance it has or what it even does but rest assure, before Death claims you, Death will demand you use what gift he bestows because it is proper in accepting 'Death's gift'. It is nothing of inconvenience as you having to sacrifice something to obtain such a gift as Death cannot shorten what lifespan you have nor can he put a curse on you as we are bound by Ancient Laws. Only know that you have no say in this, and Death will only grant this to you because you are worthy because a Master of Death will never abuse any power given by Death." Thanatos finished.
"… I'd like to have a family. You know… like the one I saw in the Mirror of Erised. A peaceful one." Whispered Harry.
"If that is your wish… are you sure?" asked Thanatos quietly.
"Yes."
"By staying dead, you can also have a family may I remind you." Thanatos pointed out.
"I'm not too sure they're going to be thrilled knowing I ended up back here within an hour meeting their 'afterlives'" Harry said jokingly
"Yes. Though expect Sirius here to be laughing with your father the moment you come in as they are about to pull a welcoming prank for you should you choose death." Replied Thanatos smirking as he watched Harry gulp.
"Definitely life it is. So… uhm… how do we do this?" asked Harry hurriedly
"Simple really, here is a ticket for the train you have to board and it will lead you back." Said Thanatos.
"Thanks. Er…" Harry looked at the ticket, oddly there was no time written on it, only symbols.
"What time is it?" Harry asked sheepishly. Thanatos looked at him with a neutral expression before brightening up and shuffling through his drawers.
"The time in you world is 5:23 am. Time here on the other hand… well it's not really existent now is it." Said Thanatos jokingly.
"What time did I die? I mean I can't have been here for more than 20 minutes. Think people will freak out if I suddenly rise up again like some sort of zombie from a muggle movie."
"Still 5:23, time doesn't exist here. You are at what we call crossroads. This is the platform in which all souls lead to. To where, that is entirely up to the soul. Here time is stopped because, well it makes our jobs easier really" Thanatos smiled at him, his eyes twinkling.
Harry felt the conversation was over. He stood up and shook the man's hand and thanked him. He wondered what Death would give him but he figured for now he'd wait.
Elsewhere
Death smiled, her eyes flashing mischief. The boy says a family like the one he sees in his desires then so it shall be. Death felt it was funny. After all one must be careful of their wishes. Death chuckled before looking at her prize.
"So long you have evaded me Voldemort. I wonder. What would be fitting…" She amused herself looking at the pathetic baby like creature writhing in her office.
"And to think I had a date with Fate too…guess I can be a bit late" she sighed before waving her hand over Voldemort's body and pressing the tip of her fingers over his skull and pulling some white substances from it. Placing the substance into a bowl, she amused herself watching her target of interest namely one Harry James Potter.
Across her office lay a mirror that shows her the subject of her interest. The relationship between a master and their kind is not the ones humans amuse themselves in. The relationship is backwards. A master for them is not the person they serve but rather how they want to be represented in the mortal realm. The term itself is degrading. Death specifically remembered mortals being called champions before they were called masters. Foolish human pride.
"and to think… I could have been had a worse champion… Hmm… I wonder how long can Fate last later in bed" Death mused.
-In a palace somewhere in the afterlife-
-Sneeze-
Fate rubbed his nose and wonder if someone was talking about him... or maybe it was the steam from his shower.
Seeing Harry ready himself on the train, she smirked similar to a cat toying with her food. Oh yes, Harry Potter will get his wish granted alright. Just not how he expects it. Making sure she hurried, she quickly summoned the bowl and turned the white substance into a spherical shape and flung it towards the mirror where it passed through it and headed for Harry. Harry himself has yet to realize that something has entered him.
"and he will never realize it." She mused as she willed the energies around her to send a simple thank you note to Thanatos for sending Harry on his way. What Harry himself doesn't know is how badly immortal beings take you word per word.