Reincarnation

Characters live, die, and find each other again in another life — sometimes remembering, sometimes only feeling an inexplicable pull toward a stranger. Reincarnation fic spans single rebirths and centuries-long cycles of meeting and losing.

40,000 works

What is Reincarnation in fanfiction?

Characters live, die, and find each other again in another life — sometimes remembering, sometimes only feeling an inexplicable pull toward a stranger. Reincarnation fic spans single rebirths and centuries-long cycles of meeting and losing. With over 40,000 works on Archive of Our Own, Reincarnation is one of the most beloved tropes in fanfiction.

Why readers love Reincarnation

It is the promise that love outlasts death itself, and the moment of remembrance — recognition flooding a stranger's face — is among the most reliably devastating beats in fanfic.

Examples of Reincarnation

An immortal waiting centuries for a reborn king to return, or modern strangers dreaming in parallel of a war they both died in.

Best Reincarnation Fanfics

The highest-rated Reincarnation stories across all fandoms on AO3.

1

Full circle

by tetsurashian

(aka 'how to survive endless rebirth with your so-called soulmate')Harry and Tom’s souls are tied together. Which is why they’re in this endless loop of rebirth. At some point, they stopped caring and just started fucking with people.(cracky humor with a hint of seriousness and plot, my specialty)

51,422 kudos 73,621 words ~295 min read Not Rated
Alternate Universe A different kind of soulmate Master of Death Harry Potter
2

The Student Prince

Complete

by FayJay

A Modern day Merlin AU set at the University of St Andrews, featuring teetotal kickboxers, secret wizards, magnificent bodyguards of various genders, irate fairies, imprisoned dragons, crumbling gothic architecture, arrogant princes, adorable engineering students, stolen gold, magical doorways, atte

25,009 kudos 145,222 words ~581 min read Mature
Modern AU AU Slash
3

Too old to be this young

by Nadia_Castillo

He was smiling. At Tom Riddle. He was going to get murdered before the year ends, he just knows.Alternate universe/Post-Hogwarts. warnings: mature themes, drinking, swearing. An adult Harry Potter with all his knowledge and experience is transported to his 23yo body in a universe with no war.

21,865 kudos 157,306 words ~630 min read Mature
Alternate Universe Alternate Universe - Modern Setting Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies
4

The End Is The Beginning

Complete

by Nitraz

Death was not what Harry thought it would be. An empty train and a being proclaiming himself to be the Death, telling him that, “sorry, no afterlife for you” certainly wasn't anywhere near his expectations.And having his soul and magic crammed back into his four year old body, being told that he can

21,312 kudos 161,299 words ~646 min read Mature
Master of Death (Harry Potter) Harry Potter is Lord Peverell Necromancy
5

Road to Nowhere

by Aerugonian

Hitoshi knows there's something wrong with himself before he's even old enough to have a sense of self. He looks at his reflection and knows that the infant looking back at him isn't what he should be seeing. His dreams are a maelstrom of grief and fear, his mind overwhelmed with a lifetime of emoti

20,779 kudos 79,614 words ~319 min read Teen And Up Audiences
Crossover Rebirth Kakashi is reborn as Hitoshi
6

Edo Tensei

Complete

by Asteroid_Duck (JustThatOneGirl1815)

“The HPSC is doing what?” Present Mic asked Nedzu incredulously. Nedzu’s smile was tense. “The HPSC is concerned about the recent attack at the USJ and are choosing to intervene. A student of theirs will be transferring into Class 1-A in order to watch for a potential traitor in the school.”...Or, H

20,430 kudos 215,076 words ~861 min read Teen And Up Audiences
Reincarnation Crossover Edo Tensei
7

His Curse of Binding

Complete

by orphan_account

Tommy had lived and died as Theseus, Icarus, Orpheus and Sisyphus. But all he wanted to be was free. In which Tommy Soot, originally born in 1509, is cursed to be reborn, to never reach adulthood unless he figured out the Greek myth of his lifetime. He had one rule of not allowing himself to get att

20,265 kudos 144,446 words ~578 min read Teen And Up Audiences
Sleepy Bois Inc as Family Foster Care Hurt/Comfort
8

The Guiding of Death

Complete

by RayShippouUchiha

“Hades and Persephone reborn huh,” Fury states then more than asks, “no need to ask which is which.”Toni’s brows furrow even as dread begins to squirm to life inside of her.But before she can say anything, before she can open her mouth and set the record straight, she hears it.A murmur as loud as a

18,919 kudos 41,393 words ~166 min read Mature
Angst Emotional Hurt/Comfort Hurt/Comfort
9

Metamorphosis

by Nitraz

Sequel to The End Is The Beginning! After years of living and healing in his younger body, it is finally time for Harry to return to Hogwarts, the seat of Dumbledore's power. Like a caterpillar he has matured and is ready to break through his metaphorical cocoon and spread his wings. Plans are unfol

18,288 kudos 173,323 words ~694 min read Mature
Harry Potter is Lord Peverell Harry Potter is Lord Potter Smart Harry
10

May Death Never Stop You

Complete

by slex (slexenskee)

Gojo Satoru has spent a lifetime trying to do the right thing the right way.He decides to spend his second terrorizing the local yakuza, reliving his middle school glory days with a pop punk youth aesthetic and a regrettable affliction for black leather, uprooting the criminal underworld and hero in

17,495 kudos 274,528 words ~1099 min read Mature
Identity Porn Reincarnation Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
11

Monsters Are Made (Not Born)

Complete

by hatredwithpassion

“There is no freedom in being a shinobi!” The boy spat, his cerulean gaze enraged as he glared ahead. “I am no different than cattle, following orders, forced to serve, tethered to this village I despise. Tell me, how is this freedom?” -"The Child Who is Not Embraced by the Village Will Burn it Down

16,743 kudos 119,031 words ~477 min read General Audiences
Reincarnation Transmigration Eren Yeager is reborn as Uzumaki Naruto
12

as it turns out, i became the duke's wife! ٩(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)۶

Complete

by idlemurmurs

“You like it,” Yoo Joonghyuk repeated, his voice husky with lust, “whore.”-In which Kim Dokja gets isekai'd into a new world and works as Yoo Joonghyuk's aide.

16,464 kudos 9,570 words ~39 min read Explicit
Alternate Universe - Fantasy Alpha/Omega Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics
13

The Same, But Different

Complete

by SomewheresSword

Harry spends the whole summer before fourth year feeling restless. He chalks it up to the weird dreams he's been having, assuming Voldemort is responsible. And for some dreams, that's true - but what about the other ones? The ones that feel... familiar?Back at school, things change one morning in Se

15,974 kudos 90,582 words ~363 min read Mature
Reincarnated Hogwarts Founders Harry Potter is Salazar Slytherin Goblet of Fire AU
14

To Live Is The Rarest Thing

by Maeglin_Yedi

A disastrous trip to a waterpark (thanks, Dudley!) unleashes almost 200 lifetimes worth of memories, and now Harry is stuck as a ten-year-old while his soulmate is a wraith set on killing him.A very old and cynical Harry sets about correcting Tom’s poor life-choices while avoiding Dumbledore and his

14,708 kudos 135,245 words ~541 min read Explicit
Do-Over Master of Death Harry Potter Master of Death (Harry Potter)
15

Misunderstood

by Silver_Flame_2724

There is something called a memory ball that shows the memories of a chosen person.In order to further incriminate the already dead Yiling Patriarch, the cultivation world decides to use this memory ball at the next Discussion Conference to show how evil the demonic cultivator can truly be.What appe

14,644 kudos 250,702 words ~1003 min read Mature
Angst Fluff Eventual Smut
16

For Tomorrow's Sake

by Kikyo851

You never believed reincarnation was possible, least of all in the fictional world of Jujutsu Kaisen. However, from the moment you meet Gojo Satoru, it’s impossible to deny. Whether it’s a miracle or some kind of curse, you find yourself growing up alongside the strongest jujutsu sorcerer. Unfortuna

14,475 kudos 282,212 words ~1129 min read Teen And Up Audiences
Isekai and Transmigration Fluff Fluff and Angst
17

A Modern Manservant

Complete

by Mamalazzer

A modern magical comedy very loosely based on Ugly Betty. Publishing king Uther Pendragon has had enough of his playboy son seducing every female assistant he has ever had so he hires Merlin, a man he is sure Arthur will never sleep with. Merlin would be more insulted by this fact if he wasn’t so bu

14,460 kudos 112,645 words ~451 min read Explicit
Alternate Universe - Modern Setting Alternate Universe - Modern: Still Have Powers Alternate Universe - Reincarnation
18

The Girl of the Flaming Tower

by MoonWitch96

Her words are 'We Light the Way.' Her eyes are green like dreams, and she knows she will be nothing but a captive to her womb, her babes, and the blood they will hold at her father's behest. She was someone else once. In the future she has seen, in the world she has read in the pages of a book, se

14,427 kudos 56,575 words ~227 min read Explicit
Reincarnation Self-Insert oc-insert
19

Fire Rebirth

by Blackbird0

To Zuko's great relief, his new family were not part of a cult. Instead they seemed to be rather normal; they were well-mannered, cultured, fire-breathing people who were very assured of their own superiority, and had a family history of insanity.Zuko had never felt more at home.AU Zuko-is-Itachi.

14,166 kudos 26,917 words ~108 min read General Audiences
Uchiha Itachi-centric BAMF Uchiha Itachi Humor
20

Heavy is the Crown

Complete

by Luna_Monroe

But here and now, her infatuation and endless ire with the woman next to her would only widen, growing to swallow her whole. Her mother seals their fate with a stern, decided gaze. Her mother clears her throat, her cup of tea already half drank in front of her before she speaks.   “In light of yes

13,968 kudos 284,991 words ~1140 min read Explicit
Knight AU Alternate Universe - Fantasy princess!caitlyn

Frequently Asked Questions

How many Reincarnation fics are on AO3?

There are over 40,000 works tagged with Reincarnation on Archive of Our Own.

What fandoms have the most Reincarnation stories?

Popular fandoms for Reincarnation include Doctor Who, Merlin BBC, Yu-Gi-Oh.

How can I read Reincarnation fanfiction on my phone?

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