Beyond the River

by Silver Flyer

Harry is betrayed by those he believed were his friends and family. Unsure of his remaining time, he's off to another place to train to defeat his enemies. Although, if this new school can inform him of the reason he keeps on blacking out only to experience another life, well, he's not going to complain. He's not stupid, thank you very much. Well...that's debatable sometimes.

1. Chapter 1

Hello there, welcome to the next story. Information on the story is at the bottom, so enjoy

Disclaiming: I am not J.K Rowling or any other author. I can wish, I suppose.

His first clear memory was that of meeting another's eyes when he was seven winters old. He was small for his age, but that was not surprising, considering what the Elders of the Tribe always told him. They had said that he shouldn't have survived, that he was cursed. He had killed his mother when he was born and they had cast him into the snow as traditions stated for a sevenday to determine if he would live within the Tribe or die. He had survived, somehow. Thus his grudging acceptance into the Tribe. He had been training with the Warriors of the Tribe for two winters now and still only had one friend, but that was alright. He kept his friend under control and he wasn't as ridiculed as he had been in the past. Then again, his friend was one of the grandchildren of the Elders. That might have helped. He could remember that day so clearly. The raspy voice of the Elder as he called out to him…

"Cailean! Attend to me…."

The young seven winter old male child jerked away from the work he had been doing at the orders of the Ceannard's ben and spun to face the Elder that was addressing him, after all, he was the only cailean currently out and about working. The others were all at their homes with their Màthair and, in some cases, Athair as well. Since he was alone in the tribe, he would work longer to avoid returning to the small space that had been set aside for him to use. He looked up just enough to figure out which Elder was addressing him before he kept himself from making eye contact. Eye contact was bad since he was of a lower status. The only ones he could make eye contact with were the other cailean and that status was revoked when the cailean reached their tenth winter and earned the right to a name. Even when he earned his name, he would not be permitted to make eye contact with any other than the cailean. The sound of the Elder speaking again jerked him out of his thoughts.

"My cailean is now five winters old and needs guidance around the village. You, diobarach or not, are the only one who knows the many different passages that reside within the area. You will be his guide or you will be dead before the tenth winter begins for you."

The seven winter year old nodded jerkily, feeling his heart speed up by just an increment at the veiled praise. Not many would see it that way, but it was the only thing he could hold onto within the village.

The Elder nodded curtly to himself and continued

"You will arrive at my home area no later than sunrise, diobarach."

With that last word, the Elder turned away and headed toward one of the more brightly lit area, leaving the young male alone in the darkening twilight.

The boy finally turned away from the direction the Elder had taken and headed for a small outcropping several meters away from the last well-lit area to get some sleep. He would need to be up earlier than usual to get all of his duties done and still get to the Elder's home area by sunrise.

-RAON-

The boy had risen well before the sun and had taken care of all of the animals as well as his other duties so that he could be on time. It was now three ticks before the sun would finish rising and he was sitting outside of the Elder's area as he waited to be acknowledged. He was careful to keep just out of the light of the family fire lest he be punished for trespassing into home area. He could tell that they knew he was there but they wouldn't give any sign of it until after they broke their fast. They had done that twenty ticks ago and they should be finishing within the next few ticks. The shuffling of movement brought the boy from his thoughts and he kept his head lowered as the Elder called out

"Diobarach. Meet my Cailean."

The boy raised his head just enough to see the five winter old cailean approach him. Since this was an Elder's cailean, he didn't dare meet his eyes, instead, he kept his eyes lowered to the cailean's chin. That was a safe area to look, usually. The small hand that demanded that he tilt his head enough to meet the child's eyes was quickly obeyed, as was required. Eyes of pure gold clashed with eyes of darkest obsidian as the child smiled at him and said

"Hello, neach-iùil."

-RAON-

"Neach-iùil!"

Twelve winters old now, and still not allowed a name until his charge was gifted one, the boy turned at the sound of the the title the Elder's child had called him from the beginning. The Elder's cailean, turning ten winters old within the next couple of weeks, raced toward him. Eyes bright and bearing a wide grin as was the norm, he shouted the title again, as if he hadn't already gained the other's attention. A soft smile appeared for an instant when the cailean managed to reach him.

"Hello, Isean."

The younger cailean pouted at the nickname that had been gifted to him after he had finally managed to break through the older boy's inner walls. His Athair had wanted an òglach, an obedient servant, for him whereas he had wanted a caraid, a friend. It had taken most of the first winter but he had succeeded in gaining his caraid. Not that the older one would ever call himself that. The first, and only, time his Athair had heard the older one respond to that as a summons, he had punished the older boy. Since then, the only words that would gain the other's attention as a summons were the words neach-iùil, cailean, diobarach, or òglach, to the younger's disgust. Still, the punishment had been to ensure that the older one knew his place, and it had been well taught. A slight brush of fingers on his arm brought the younger out of his thoughts as his caraid, his neach-iùil, looked at him with well-hidden concern.

"Are you well, Isean?"

The younger grinned cheerfully, his thoughts drawn back to the present, as he nodded rapidly

"Yup. Athair has chosen the fifth sun after my birthing for my naming ceremony."

The soft smile made its appearance again as the older quietly murmured

"Congratulations."

The younger one tugged lightly on the long strand of raven blue hair that fell to the older one's shoulders as he asked

"Will you get your name as well?"

The older one glanced over at the younger, the familiar obsidian gaze earnest as he waited for an answer, and shrugged slightly.

-RAON-

The naming ceremony was always an important day, a day of celebration as a cailean was gifted with something to call their own. A day that everyone in the Tribe had to attend, no matter what. It was led by the parents of the cailean getting named and ended with a feast around the family's home area.

A hidden smile tugged slightly at expressionless lips as the Elder pushed his cailean forward to the marked spot. The smile vanished away as the Elder aimed a well-hidden disdainful look toward the twelve winters old cailean before beckoning him over as well. He moved slowly over to where his Isean was standing to take his place beside him. Today, it would seem, would be the naming day of them both.

"Today, we gather for a naming day for my Cailean, and his… neach-iùil. Afterwards, we will gather around my home area to feast and welcome the new lives into the tribe."

The Elder beckoned his son forward and gripped both of his hands as he said

"I have watched you grow from a leanaban to now, and I am proud of who you have become. You, Cailean, shine with an inner brightness rivalled only by the sun. Therefore, Cailean, your name from henceforth until the day you leave this tribe or die will be Belenus, son of Aeron. May you live a full life and light the way for the Tribe."

Belenus stepped back to his place, a wide smile fixed upon his face as he mentally repeated his name to himself to ensure that he would respond to it. The Elder then turned toward the elder cailean and beckoned him forward with a discrete sneer. As soon as the cailean was in place, the Elder took his hands as well, but only just holding them, seeming more than eager to let them go as soon as allowed.

"You are a cailean of the Grian Tribe. This Tribe has watched you since you were a leanaban. The tribe welcomes you into the next step of life with a name. You have walked within shadows from when you were young. You have followed and obeyed as loyally as you could. Henceforth, you will bear the name Cunobelenus, son of none, until you die or leave the tribe. May you be as faithful and obedient as always."

Cunobelenus stepped back to Belenus's side, feeling a stirring of resentment as he registered his name. Even when named, he was given a name not fully his own. He pushed the resentment down as he allowed the joy of knowing that is Isean now had a name to call his own. The Tribe filed toward Elder Aeron's home area, the two newly named following after. Just before Cunobelenus entered the home area, Elder Aeron pulled him to the side and whispered harshly

"You may have been named, but that does not mean you may partake of the feast. You will attend to the animals while the other cailean and warriors are sating their hunger. If there is any left afterward, then you may take it back to your overhang and eat it there."

Elder Aeron turned and entered his home area, leaving Cunobelenus outside of the area, expressionless, as he turned toward where the animals of the tribe were kept.

-RAON-

Cunobelenus waited by Belenus's side as they waited for the Tribe draoidh to test them in the possibility of magic. Not everyone of the tribe had it but many did possess some form of magic. Elder Aeron possessed the ability to create barriers by blood ritual. His ben, Aileas, was blessed with the ability to always be able to voice an opinion, even if she was whispering from a great distance. Belenus was eager to see what kind of magic he had been gifted. Cunobelenus was allowed to be here for a testing simply because it was required after a naming. Many of the tribe would have been happy to pronounce him without magic and not allowed to learn what the others learned within any of the classes. Cunobelenus bore all of the dislike and anger of the tribe with an expressionless face, as he had always done. The draoidh clapped his hands, startling both of the boys out of their thoughts. Belenus grinned sheepishly at the draoidh as Cunobelenus stifled any emotion that had crossed his face during the shock. The draoidh shook his head and turned toward Belenus first

"It would seem, young Belenus, that you possess the ability to call upon the aid of the creatures. That will be very handy within the tribe. You also possess a minor ability in barrier building with the ancient script."

Belenus grinned happily. He loved animals. He hadn't known that he could call them though, plus, he had the ability of barrier building. Sure, it was small, but it was there.

The draoidh turned toward Cunobelenus and studied him for a moment before he said

"You, young Cunobelenus, possess the ability of the ancient script. Very rare gift, it is, and very helpful."

Cunobelenus frowned slightly and then nodded. He was curious as to what the ancient script was but knew better than to ask. As a diobarach, named or not, he was not welcome to request information that only he wanted to know.

The draoidh smiled at both of them and said

"The classes begin within the next week for you both. The other recently named will also be participating in the classes."

Both Belenus and Cunobelenus nodded in understanding.

-RAON-

Cunobelenus looked up from taking care of the lead stallion for the tribe to see Elder Aeron standing nearby, glaring at him. Soothingly stroking the side of the stallion's neck, Cunobelenus stepped around him and walked over to a couple of feet away from the Elder, eyes focused on the chin as normal. He knew there was a reason that the Elder would be here and the Elder wouldn't want him asking about it.

"Belenus has continuously been playing with the creatures of the tribe instead of focusing on his training. You will be informing him that he must focus more on the training than the useless creatures. Do you understand?"

Cunobelenus refrained from answering. He knew what this was. It was a roundabout way of weakening the ability that Belenus held. If he focused on something more than he practiced, then the magic would, theoretically, focus on that as well. Theoretical because only the Elders believed that. The first class with the draoidh had already taught Cunobelenus, and possibly Belenus, that doing that would not change anything. He noticed Elder Aeron beginning to turn away and he took a breath and said

"I will not force him to give up on training his gift. Even without the focus upon the gift he was born with, the magic will not focus in on a gift that you would prefer him to have."

Cunobelenus knew that speaking the truth to the Elder would earn him punishment, and he could see the promise of much pain in the Elder's eyes as he turned back toward him.

So be it.

-RAON-

Cunobelenus didn't appear for the next two lessons and by the third missed lesson, Belenus was worried. Cunobelenus would never willingly miss the lessons. He had been as excited as Belenus had been when they first found out about the lessons. What was worse, though, was that with so many missed lessons, the draoidh was beginning to obtain a bad impression of Cunobelenus. Belenus could see the look in the draoidh's eyes every time Cunobelenus ended up not making a lesson. Belenus decided that the best way to find out where Cunobelenus had gone off to was to ask his Athair. As an Elder, he would usually know where the tribe members were located at.

He knew that his Athair would be over at the home area at the moment, simply because of a routine that his Athair never seemed to change. Sure enough, he found him just completing the routine. Elder Aeron looked up as he heard Belenus approaching. He smiled and said

"Belenus, what a pleasant surprise. I was just about to go find you."

Belenus paused, bemused. His Athair rarely sought him out for anything. Belenus tilted his head to the left, signaling that he was listening.

"Your lessons in bladework will be beginning in the next couple of sunrises. That may cut into your time with the draoidh but I have already informed him of the arrangement and he has agreed."

Belenus blinked in surprise. Bladework? So soon? He had known that he would need to learn it as a child of an Elder but he had thought that it would be later on, not now. The topic did, however, give him an in on asking about Cunobelenus's whereabouts.

"Athair, that reminds me. The draoidh was wondering if you knew the whereabouts of Cunobelenus. He has not shown up for the last three lessons and he is unaware of where Cunobelenus resides at moonup."

If Belenus had been watching his Athair closer, he would have seen a slight twitch just under one of his eyes that lasted only for a couple of seconds before he answered.

"Cunobelenus has been sent out into the farther pastures to round up the stray animals that were left there when the bulk was brought back."

Belenus nodded slowly. That meant that Cunobelenus would be gone for at least another forenight. Which meant another lesson would pass before he returned. Not good.

Belenus didn't voice any of his thoughts, instead turning to his Athair and saying

"I will be sure to pass on his whereabouts."

Elder Aeron raised an eyebrow and said

"Very well. I will inform you when the first of your lessons begin."

Belenus nodded and left the home area, aiming for the area that the draoidh had claimed as home.

-RAON-

Belenus found the draoidh just getting ready to bridle up his mount for a routine exercise time. He turned as he sensed Belenus's still young Gift approaching. He tilted his head slightly, sending slightly greyed brown hair tilting over his eyes. Belenus halted a few feet away and said

"Muinear draoidh, I have information from the Elder Aeron on the current status of Cunobelenus."

The draoidh hid his slight frown. Cunobelenus was a bit of an enigma. The newly-named had seemed excited for the class and then had suddenly stopped appearing three forenights ago. He was beginning to believe that the newly-named was as bad as the rumors of the Tribe said that he was.

He shook himself mentally out of his thoughts and spoke

"Go on, oileanach."

Belenus breathed a silent sigh of relief and continued

"Elder Aeron has informed me that Cunobelenus was sent to the farther pastures for strays that were not retrieved before the bulk herds returned."

The draoidh almost frowned openly this time. If the teen had been sent out to the farther pastures around three forenights ago, then why was he only just now being informed? He knew better than to ask that question to the Elder though. Since the Ceannard was currently out of the Tribe territory, the Elders were the ones in charge. Perhaps when the Ceannard returned he'd be able to ask the question. The way it looked now, it was like he was being encouraged to dislike Cunobelenus. That didn't sit well with his ideals but in the Tribe, it was how it went for any diobarach.

Belenus was getting worried. The draoidh had not spoken for quite a bit of time and he was worried that it spoke ill of Cunobelenus's chances of continuing lessons when he returned. The draoidh's slightly gruff voice broke him out of his thoughts as he said

"I thank you for passing the information on, oileanach. I will take that into consideration for the punishment that awaits Cunobelenus when he returns for missing lessons. Go about the rest of the sun's rays as you normally would."

Belenus knew a dismissal when he heard it and he was not stupid enough to try to argue it. He just hoped that Cunobelenus didn't get kicked out of the lessons.

Okay, that's the beginning of this story. This is currently mostly memories that we are seeing so that's why it jumps about on who's thinking. Oh, and the language, mostly its ancient Celtic with hints of Greek. Yeah, I'm taking artistic license for that and when in time this happens because I don't feel like having to read about how many mistakes in this story I'm making in regards to timeline. Other mistakes, please feel free to point them out. This is a major AU type and I'm borrowing things from multiple stories later on. Most of the ideas, though, are from Miranda Flairgold's series, Amira Devant and her story Leaving it all behind, Toki Mirage's story Bloody skies, and…I think that's it when it comes to the major points. Anything that doesn't sound at all familiar means that it's either original or it's from a story you haven't read before, or it's an idea that you were having as well and I had no clue and used it and now you're probably paranoid that I can read minds, or something. Moving on, this story is using the Demon invasion idea from Miranda Flairgold, except this one has them looking different, different name, it's before Atlantis is destroyed, and they haven't been sealed yet, and also because the demons (deamhan while we're watching the memories, and then it goes to Daeamon –random, not entirely sure is even a word- in the chapters in the future. So, there will be translations, because I'm sure a few of you are confused on some of the words in the chapter. So, without further ado—

TRANSLATIONS:

NAMES:

Belenus: name of a sun god equated with Apollo, means bright or brilliant

Cunobelenus: Hound of Belenus

Aeron: Name of a masculine Welsh mythology deity that means Battle, slaughter

Aileas: traced back to it's root form, in German, it basically means 'Noble Kind'

OTHER:

Cailean: Whelp, all of the children are named such until their naming in their eleventh year of life.

Ceannard: Leader

Ben: wife

Màthair: mother

Athair: Father

Diobarach: outcast

Neach-iùil: guide

Isean: pup

Leanaban: young child, baby

Grian: Sun

Draoidh: mage

Muinear: Teacher, professor

Oileanach: student

Okay, I do believe that was all of them. I think. Anyway, if anyone can figure out what the draoidh said the gifts were in modern terming instead of the 'old way' that I did, then you get a cyber cookie. I hear that they are good. Until Next time.