Death (The Tale of the Three Brothers)

Death appears to the Peverell brothers

"And Death spoke to them"

— Death

It was Death who, according to Beedle the Bard in his tales, witnessed the three Peverell brothers defy him by successfully crossing a deadly river. He was upset because he could not take them for his own, so he offered to give each brother an artifact of great power. The Peverell brothers chose the Elder Wand, Resurrection Stone, and the Cloak of Invisibility. These items later became known as the Deathly Hallows.

The Tale of the Three Brothers

Death is a minor antagonist featured in the last of The Tales of Beedle the Bard, the Tale of the Three Brothers. In the story, the three Peverell brothers (Antioch, Cadmus, and Ignotus) are featured out traveling the world when at twilight they come to a treacherous river that has been known to claim many lives when attempting to cross it. The Peverells, being powerful wizards, merely whip out their wands and create a bridge out of thin air and casually began to cross the river when they were met by a hooded figure midway across, blocking their path. This figure is none other than Death himself, who is outraged that he has been cheated out of new victims due to their magical talents and that he cannot take them as his own. But Death is cunning and pretends to congratulate the brothers on being powerful enough to elude him before offering each of them a prize for their skill. Death proceeds to give the Elder Wand, the Resurrection Stone, and the Cloak of Invisibility to each of the brothers, a collection of items that would come to be known in time as the Deathly Hallows. Secretly each of these objects is part of an elaborate scheme devised by Death to reclaim each of the brothers as his own. Indeed, as the story progresses, each of the brothers in turn loses his life at the indirect hands of his own gift (Antioch being murdered due to the lust created by the Elder Wand and Cadmus having committed suicide upon seeing the Resurrection Stone's limitations), giving Death two of his victims back. However, the Cloak of Invisibility enables Ignotus to elude Death for a good many years, and finally when he has become an old man and has lived a happy long life, he takes off the Cloak, gives it to his son, and departs the living world with Death as an old friend, but on his own terms and not those of Death.

Personality

Death is portrayed as being a character who does not take to losing well. He is shown to be angered when anyone eludes him, denying him fresh victims, and he is described as having "grudgingly" giving Ignotus his own Cloak of Invisibility, knowing that he has probably been outsmarted by the most benevolent brother. In both instances, he is described as being agitated when he feels he has been cheated or beaten at his own game (in this case being outsmarted by Ignotus). He is also shown to be a very cunning character, plotting an elaborate scheme using the Deathly Hallows to reclaim each of the brothers for himself. However, he is not beyond being outwitted, as demonstrated when Ignotus sees through his facade and turns his scheme on its head by asking for something that would make it impossible for him to be followed by Death.

Speculation

"...I think it more likely that the Peverell brothers were simply gifted, dangerous wizards who succeeded in creating those powerful objects"

— Albus Dumbledore's speculation.

Albus Dumbledore, however, speculated that these artifacts weren't really given by Death, but were instead created by the very powerful Peverell brothers.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Mentioned only)
• The Tales of Beedle the Bard