Lessons in Obedience

"Are…you…mental?" Ron said, watching as Gohan happily fastened a badge onto his robe. "What nutter would want to wear a pin that says spew?"

Hermione glowered. "It's S.P.E.W, Ron…for the last time."

Gohan shrugged. "Who cares what the name is! As long as we get to help…I still think we've narrowed the field too much…we should also help the goblins and the centaurs and the bowtruckles—"

Hermione sighed. "We will help them too, just—hang on, bowtruckles, Gohan?"

"Yeah, why not?"

She shook her head with a smirk. "And spiders, too, I suppose?"

Ron jumped. "I don't like spiders!"

Gohan grinned. "That's too bad, Ron, because Krillin really likes you. Look."

Ron bit his lip and whimpered as he followed Gohan's finger toward his own left shoulder. "AAAAAARRRRRRGGGGHHHHHH!" He jumped up and brushed the spider away with a swat. He ran from the common room.

Gohan extended his hand, and the spider obligingly crawled up his arm. "That wasn't really nice, Krillin. You shouldn't sneak up on people."

Hermione giggled. "Gohan, you really think that spider can understand you?"

"Heh heh."

They meandered over where Harry was still reading over the letter he had just received from Sirius. He sighed. "Maybe I should tell Sirius that I only imagined my scar hurting."

"But isn't that lying?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Yes, Gohan. That is the general idea."

Hermione frowned. "But Harry, you didn't imagine it. And one adult needs to know, at least."

Harry snorted. "Mph. Yeah. Poor wittle Harry can't take care of his own lightning-shaped boo boo. Let someone else kiss it for him."

Hermione, Gohan, and Harry reached Dumbledore's office early Saturday morning. They flooed to Diagon Alley and quickly stepped under the Invisibility Cloak. The three teens followed Dumbledore quietly through the streets towards Gringotts.

"Greetings, Headmaster of Hogwarts," a goblin at the front desk intoned. "Would you care to visit your vault today?"

"Thank you, Catchshackle, but I have other business. Might I secure a private conference room today? There are a few things I'd like to discuss."

The goblin nodded. Dumbledore and the invisible teens followed Catchshackle toward a series of doors, taking the second to the left. Dumbledore held the door open for a moment longer than necessary to allow the hidden teen's entry before closing the door and casting enchantments.

Catchshackle raised a brow. "You do not wish to be disturbed?"

"Unfortunately, we have business of a particularly secretive sort and must take precautions to ensure our privacy…and safety."

"We?"

"Yes, we. Children, it's safe now. Remove the Cloak."

Hermione, Harry, and Gohan came from beneath Harry's Cloak. The goblin blanched momentarily at their sudden appearance but didn't challenge their presence. "I see. You have kidnapped some wizarding children," he said slyly. "Do you intend on hiding them in a vault?"

Dumbledore chuckled. "No. I'm afraid the circumstances required the necessity of secrecy. Harry, you tell him. You're the secret keeper."

Harry inhaled. "You see, sir, Hermione is the daughter of Selena Subaru and Tom Riddle. Do you know who Tom Riddle is?"

The goblin's eyes widened for a moment as he looked at the girl. Then, he smiled rather shrewdly. "I see. It's quite a curiosity that you would befriend your enemy's daughter, Mister Potter."

Dumbledore chuckled again. "Well, you see, Miss Granger didn't discover her origin until recently. Mister Potter and Miss Grangers were friends before she knew of it. But like I said, we're here on business. Miss Granger, or Miss Subaru rather, would like to see if she can access her father's vault."

Hermione winced at Dumbledore's statement as the goblin looked at her. "Interesting. Well, if she could, it would be an incredible amount of money and items."

Hermione's eye twitched irritably. "Yes, well, I'm not exactly interested in the money."

The goblin smirked at her in obvious disbelief.

Dumbledore nodded. "Miss Subaru is correct. She has plenty of her own funds once she comes of age next year. Our goal here today is to deprive Voldemort of his."

The goblin nodded. A mischievous glint formed in his eye. "I see. Well, should she prove to be the daughter of Tom Riddle, she'll be more than capable of accessing the funds. In fact, if she so desires, we can move all of her funds to another vault, even to a different Gringotts branch."

"And the wards the Ministry cast on all of Voldemort's accounts?"

"Completely useless, since the purpose of them was to deprive Riddle or any Death Eater from benefiting from the monies. Anyone without the Dark Mark can enter the vault. Does Miss Subaru have the Dark Mark?"

"I should think not," Dumbledore said grimly.

"What do you need to prove that I am Riddle's heir?" Hermione asked.

"Just a little blood. Once your identity is established, you will have complete control over the entire vault's assets."

Hermione held out her hand as the goblin pulled a small silver knife. Dumbledore opened his mouth to warn her, but her flinch informed him that it was too late. The goblin had been a little too enthusiastic with the blade, and Hermione's blood dripped onto the table. The goblin collected the sample. Dumbledore knitted the wound with a rather song-like incantation and removed the wards he had cast to enable the goblin to leave.

After a quarter hour of silence, the goblin returned, handing Hermione a small box. "It seems that you were correct in your claims of being Riddle's heir. All you have to do is open the box and take the key into your hand. If the key accepts you, you should feel pleasant warmth. If it rejects you, the key will burn your hand."

Hermione bit her lip as she opened the box and took the key. "Nothing is happening—oh!" She cried as a tingling sensation met her fingers. The key's cool surface became warm.

The goblin grinned. "Congratulations, Miss Subaru. You can completely access his vaults. Here are the other keys." He handed her another box which contained a ring of four more keys. "What do you wish to do today?"

"Can I move the holdings to another vault?" She asked.

"Yes, but in order to keep his vaults open, you need to have the minimum deposit in each."

"Which is?"

The goblin grinned evilly. "One knut."

Gohan laughed. "That's really mean!"

Harry snorted. "That's the whole point, Gohan."

The Catchshackle returned his gaze to Hermione. "So, under what name would you like to access your vaults under, Miss Subaru?"

"Hermione Granger. If I place them under Lianna Subaru, I won't be able to access them for a year. I want to get started finding out who Voldemort stole from so I can return the money. Is that possible?"

The goblin nodded. "He made us keep the strictest records. I can retrieve a list if it is your desire."

Hermione nodded. "Also, I'd like an extra vault to separate any possible dark objects. Can you figure out a way to make it so the Ministry will see to those items?"

The goblin nodded. "We can name the vault something appropriate and tell the Ministry that we found it while going over our records. They will raid the vault, thinking that they are thwarting a dark wizard. We will ensure it is untraceable back to you. But there will be a fee for this service, as we will be deceiving the government."

Hermione frowned thoughtfully. "What is your price?"

The goblin nodded. "We will accept one hundred thousand galleons…or if your vaults happen to have some goblin-made items we could forget the fee for those items. No less than fifteen items."

"How many goblin-made items are there?"

The goblin's eyes twitched. "There are thirty-eight. Five of them have dark enchantments."

Hermione frowned thoughtfully. "And you will keep my secret?"

The goblin smirked. "To be honest, Lady Subaru, I'd much rather pretend I never saw you today. The knowledge of your existence alone is kill-worthy to the Dark Lord. Which is why Dumbledore chose me, I'm sure. Voldemort killed my family."

"How do you feel about me, being his…daughter?"

The goblin snorted impatiently. "You are a child! Coming of age or not! And you don't look or feel anything like him. Trust me; I know exactly what he's like. I narrowly escaped that night."

"I'm…sorry."

"Silly girl, what're you apologizing for? You didn't kill my family. He did! And I'd do anything to return the favor. I guess…this is the next best thing."

Hermione nodded. "Take the thirty-three items. I have little need of them."

The goblin's eyes snapped in surprise. "I…see. Well, Lady Subaru, I will see to these things immediately. Do you want to visit your vaults today?"

Hermione shook her head. Then, she jumped. "Wait! Is there anything in the vaults belonging to the Weasleys?"

The goblin perused the list. "I believe there was a relative of theirs that was murdered."

"The family is in on the secret. Can I trust you to give them the money? I will pay you."

A fire lit behind the creature's eyes. "You want to pay me? Destroying that monster would be payment enough! Promise me you'll ruin him!"

Hermione's face twisted with a furious resolve. "I promise." Her body glowed with the uttered oath. Dumbledore's eyes widened in shock.

On Wednesday after his classes, the tall Slytherin Head Boy with long white-blond hair approached Gohan. "Mister Son, I've been asked to take you to Professor Moody," he said softly. "Walk with me, please."

Gohan wrinkled his nose. He was still angry at Moody for trying to kill Krillin (the spider). "All right," he said with obvious reluctance. He kept even stride with the older boy. "Do you mind me asking? Are you a Malfoy?"

Legolas laughed quietly. "Only in name. My father disinherited me."

Gohan stared. "Really? That's not really nice. Why?"

"Hey, Son!" Draco Malfoy called as he approached from behind. He stopped dead as he spotted the other boy, his eyes narrowing bitterly. "What are you doing here?"

Legolas gave a small smile. "I go to school here, little brother."

Draco spluttered. "You…are not…my brother! Blood Traitor!"

Legolas shrugged. "Suit yourself, young one. You and Father usually do. I did, too, before I got tired of being selfish."

"I AM NOT SELFISH!" Draco bellowed.

"Be that as it may, Mister Son and I have an appointment. Excuse us, my dear brother." Legolas turned on his heel and strode away. Gohan followed.

"Why's Draco mad at you?"

He sighed. "Because Father is mad at me. Draco usually follows along with whatever Father says. So did I. But…" he trailed off as they reached Moody's office. "Here we are, Mister Son. I'm sorry to leave you at the door like this, but Head Boy duties—" he sighed. "I'll see you later. Nice spider…oh, and thanks for saving our lives!" He called over his shoulder as he sprinted away.

Gohan blinked stupidly as he watched the young man retreat. He glared at the door, sighing. He raised his knuckled finger to knock gently—

"Come in, Son," a familiar voice growled before his finger touched the door. Gohan turned the knob and entered. He approached the sitting wizard warily. Moody pushed a stool toward the half-Saiyan. "Sit."

Gohan tapped the stool with his wand before he sat.

Moody leaned forward, nodding as his electric blue eye took in the scuttling spider in Gohan's hair. "You did that in class, as well. Rather complex magic. Why do you feel the need to transfigure every chair you sit on…into some sort of metal?"

Gohan's eyes darted around the room as he answered. "Because a wooden chair would break if I sat in it. I'm wearing weighted clothes. Who's in there? I feel a person's ki." Gohan pointed at a nearby chest.

Moody flinched, his eyes widening for a moment. "Oh, just an evil creep I need to keep an eye on. Can't be too careful with the Dark Wizards lurking around. I don't trust Azkaban to hold this one, so I watch over him myself."

Gohan's eyes widened in wonder. "Is he really that powerful? Does Dumbledore know?"

"Definitely," he said quickly. "I wouldn't have brought him if the professor didn't know. It's supposed to be a secret though, so don't tell anyone else."

Gohan sighed resignedly. "Aww! Another secret? Why does it always have to be me?"

Moody stared at the boy. "Well, Son, the real reason I called you is because I wanted to apologize. I didn't expect anyone to get offended over the spiders. I become overzealous when it comes to Defense, particularly because I've had a hard time of it as an Auror. I've seen a lot of people get killed. That's why I wanted you to see what the curse can do, so you'll be prepared should you ever be in that situation."

Gohan nodded reluctantly. "I grew up in a home where we didn't kill anything, unless it was for food…or to protect someone. Dad would never harm an innocent! It's a Son's way of life, not to harm anything without a proper cause."

"Unfortunately, Son, there are people out there who won't care about your sentiments. If they knew your weakness, they'd use it against you."

Gohan frowned thoughtfully. He remembered the times Vegeta and Frieza had called his father weak for the same thing. "I'd rather die than betray my feelings," he said, quoting his admirable patriarch.

Moody stared intently. "You're an unusual boy, Gohan Son. I expect to see you in class tomorrow. You're excused."

The next day, the students sat in chairs toward the back and watched as Moody Imperiused each student. Dean Thomas hopped and pranced around the room, singing the national anthem. Lavender Brown imitated a squirrel. Neville did a series of gymnastics that impressed even Hermione. No one seemed able to fight it. Videl donned a cape and began 'saving' people from their evil shoes.

"All right. Potter, next," he growled. Harry strode to the clean area and looked at his fellow peers. Moody pointed his wand at Harry's back and said, "Imperio!"

Harry's face took on an indifferent, unconcerned appearance. He stepped toward a desk and made to jump when his eyes snapped. His body continued the action as he attempted to stop himself. Harry ended up crushing the desk beneath his knees. Moody jumped back in surprise. Then, he grinned.

"That's more like it! See that, you lot? Potter fought! He fought it and damn near beat it! We'll try that again, so pay attention. Watch his eyes! That's where you'll see it! Well done, Potter, very good!"

Moody put Harry through the cure four times, until Harry could throw it off completely. Harry rubbed his tender knees as he returned to his seat.

"Miss Granger, up here, if you would."

Hermione rose and slowly made her way to the front, giving herself time to think. Okay, I have practiced mind shields with Piccolo and Gohan, so I really don't know how this is going to turn out. I don't think I should let anyone else know should I prove impervious to the curse. I think I'll let enough of a connection that I can hear Moody's instruction. I'll do what he says so he thinks I'm truly Imperiused. I'll tell Harry and Gohan that I faked the effects later.

She faced the group with a grimace. Moody pointed his wand at her back and muttered, "Imperio," causing her to flinch as the mind energy struck her shield. Moody frowned as she quickly allowed the connection to take hold. She hitched a bored expression on her face.

You are Professor Snape. Go torment a student. Hermione's expression changed to a smirk as she chose her obvious target. This could be fun. "Potter!" she snarled. "Let me see your potions homework…now!"

Harry blinked in confusion. "I, er, haven't started on it yet."

She arranged her face into what she hoped was a convincing sneer. "Once again, you clearly demonstrate the laziness and arrogance of the Potter bloodline. Tell me, have you even glanced at the required chapter reading?"

Gohan laughed. "I know! You're Professor Snape!"

Hermione raised a sardonic brow, as if Gohan's assertion was too obvious to mention. She shook her head in mock pity. "Potter's mental laziness is beginning to rub off on you, Mister Son."

Now retreat from him like a ballerina. Well, I might as well do the thing properly, Hermione mused. She focused her ki into her toes so she could stand on the tips, raised her arms above her head and twirled gracefully away amid the laughter of her fellows.

Fly. Hermione trotted around the empty space in circles and flapped her arms, hopping every once in a while and using her ki to keep the stone beneath her from cracking. Now, this is ironic. Here I am, perfectly capable of flying, pretending like a person who can't fly trying to fly.

Harry, Gohan, and Ron shot confused glances at each other. Videl frowned thoughtfully. They all knew Hermione could fly. Gohan figured it out first. Hermione was faking. He exchanged a meaningful glance at Harry who silently agreed. Suddenly, Ron said, "Oh!" as he finally understood.

The exchanges didn't go unnoticed by Moody. His electric eye continued to stare at them as he commanded Hermione to—

Dance. Hermione began to make dance steps elegantly around the room, adding gymnastic and ice moves into her improvised choreography. Moody smirked as he flicked his wrist toward a record player, upon which a record labeled The Top Ten Most Horrifically and Emotionally Traumatizing Muggle Songs of the Twentieth Century began to spin. The music began:

"…Imma Barbie girl"

"In a Barbie Wooooor-rrr-rld…"

Hermione couldn't help it. She immediately stopped dancing, glaring at Moody as she placed her hands on her hips. The entire class burst into laughter as Hermione blushed furiously. She angrily flicked the record into silence as Moody cackled in an unusually high voice.

He cleared his throat, grinning. His eyes still filled with mirth, he smirked. "That was a pretty impressive stunt you pulled, Granger. You nearly had me fooled. In fact, you fooled nearly every single person in this class."

Everyone except Harry, Ron, Gohan, and Videl stared questioningly at Hermione.

"I would have never believed that a person could…and would, in fact, fake the effects of Imperius after the fact. I don't know what impresses me more: the fact that you were completely unaffected by the curse…or the fact that you decided to fake the effects to keep us from knowing that you were unaffected. Ten points to Gryffindor, although I must say…that was rather Slytherin of you."

Hermione winced before glaring at him again. I hate that song! The others, excluding her closest friends, stared at her in complete shock. To date, none of them knew about her growing abilities. She and Gohan had decided it best not to parade the idea that she was abnormally strong. She wanted to avoid people making the connection between herself and Selena Subaru as long as possible. She hoped they'd never figure out that she was Tom Riddle's daughter.

In fact, Harry, Ginny, and Videl were trying to hide their strengths from the public, as well. Even though they were nowhere near the level of Hermione or Gohan, for that matter, their power levels still incredibly dwarfed those of their classmates. They were trying to persuade Ron to do the same, but he was being rather difficult. Ron certainly would enjoy the attention his power would bring if he decided to show off. The only thing that restrained him was the fact that people would assume that Harry was more powerful than Ron, implicating Harry by association. Hermione was grateful that Malfoy hadn't been talking about her transformation around school. Hopefully, the Fidelius applied to him, too.

"So, Son, are you ready?" Moody said. Gohan nodded. What Hermione did seemed actually fun. He was going to give it a go."

"Imperio!" Gohan felt the energy approach his shield and allowed it, simply from curiosity.

You are now Cell. Give a speech—

Gohan tried to remember something about Cell, a rather unpleasant task. He tried his best at a smirk. His voice began with a low, haunting quality, slowly gathering strength and momentum as he quoted the vile monster.

"Ultimate perfection. Yes, I understand what Doctor Gero meant when he said the words. I now know my destiny! Once I'm finished destroying this planet, I'll use G-Goku's Instant Transmission Technique to travel to other planets. Yes! I know my purpose," Gohan stretched his hands out dramatically, "I…AM…THE UNIVERSE'S END!"

Suddenly, Gohan's sinister grin faltered. His facial muscles began working. Oh no, Hermione thought. He's losing it. Moody's going to know. Gohan began sniggering, increasing into giggles. Eventually, he laughed in earnest, wiping tears from his eyes.

"I…couldn't…help it! It's still…the stupidest thing I ever heard!" His friends grinned at him.

Moody removed the connection. "I had a feeling you might try the same stunt as Granger. Your attempt was stronger in the beginning. I felt no resistance in the connection as I did when I had first hit Granger. I almost put my suspicions aside, until you stuttered over that name. Whose name was it?"

Gohan's amused smile vanished. "My dad. Cell killed him." Anguish filled his face. How could I have been so stupid! Gohan felt defiled by his repetition of the beast. He had actually quoted Cell, his father's murderer! Gohan shook his head in disgust.

Moody's eyes met his. "I'm sorry, Son. I didn't know."

...

"You okay, Gohan?" Hermione asked as they walked through the corridor.

"Yeah. I should have just told him I wasn't Imperiused. I thought it would be fun to pretend."

Hermione squeezed his shoulder. "It should have been, but I guess you're still sensitive about your father, huh?"

"Yeah."

Gohan and Hermione paused as a familiar chestnut-haired large-boned girl raced toward them. "Hey, Granger…are you still tutoring me in potions this year?" The fourth year Slytherin tried not to appear anxious.

"If you want, Mill," Hermione said genially.

The girl's eyebrows rose. "Mill?"

"Oh…sorry, Millicent. If you want tutoring, we can set aside some time after class but before dinner."

The girl shrugged. "You can call me Mill." It's better than Horse. "How about on Tuesdays and Thursdays in one of the study rooms?"

Hermione smiled pleasantly. "Sure."

Gohan nodded. "I'll come, too."

The girl almost smiled. "I'll see you both then. Later, Granger, Son." The girl ran back down the corridor.

Hermione turned to Gohan. "Is it just me, or was Millicent Bulstrode polite just then?"

Gohan smiled at her as Krillin scampered around his waist.

"Wicked!" The girl exclaimed as the spider climbed the cubicle wall. "Where'd you get him?"

Gohan blushed as Hermione answered. "Gohan rescued him from Professor Moody's Killing curse."

Mill blinked stupidly. "How did he manage that?"

Hermione grinned proudly. "Gohan's really fast. Sometime after Moody uttered the curse, Gohan snatched the spider from the desk, right before the curse hit the desk. It was incredibly risky," she added sternly as she fixed a scowl at Gohan. "He's not going to do it again, is he?"

Gohan gulped and shook his head, strongly reminded of his mother.

Mill laughed.

"Hey, you guys, the Horse thinks something's funny!" Draco Malfoy stood in the doorway with his bodyguards. "She's nickering!" Malfoy's sycophants guffawed stupidly.

Mill flinched.

Hermione shook her head. "What are you going on about, Malfoy?"

Malfoy wiggled his eyebrows at her. "It sounds like the start of a joke to me, Granger. A Mudblood, a Monkey, and a Horse…of course."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about, Malfoy. And why do you keep saying my name like that?"

Malfoy grinned evilly. "Whatever do you mean, my Ladysh—" Malfoy suddenly became overcome with a coughing fit. He tried again, his eyes wide. "Ladysh—" He began coughing again.

Hermione's eyes widened fearfully. Malfoy's made the connection between me and the Subaru family. She smirked. "I'm sorry. What are you trying to say?"

Malfoy looked completely bewildered. "That you are a Su—" Cough. Cough. Cough. "What? You placed a Fidelius Charm! How?"

Hermione hitched a look of innocence. "Who, me? Now why would I do something like that?"

Gohan stared at Malfoy in horror.

Malfoy recomposed himself. "Oh, I see. If Gohan's the secret keeper, then I shan't have much difficulty." He grinned.

Hermione smiled sweetly. "We'll see."

As Malfoy left, Mill looked at the two. "What the bloody hell was that about?"

Hermione shrugged. "Malfoy's just weird that way."

Gohan's eyes lit up. "Now I remember! Hermione, you remember that Slytherin Head Boy that took us to Dumbledore the first night back?"

"Yes?"

"His name is Legolas…Malfoy."

Hermione stared. "He's a Malfoy? That's weird. I thought he was rather nice…for a Slytherin."

"Hey!"

"Sorry, Mill, but you do have to admit that many Slytherins are rather nasty."

Mill sighed. "Point taken. Especially Draco Malfoy."

Gohan nodded. "Draco and his Father are mad at Legolas. Draco called him a Blood Traitor."

Hermione's eyes widened. "Wow. I never would have expected that from a Malfoy. Legolas…where have I heard that name before?"

Gohan switched to Namekian in front of Mill. "((Your genealogy.))"

Hermione gasped as Mill blinked stupidly at the half Saiyan. "Do you think he knows?"

Gohan shrugged. "((Just because he has the same name? Actually, since his parents named him, they'd have a better chance of figuring you out. Wouldn't you agree?))"

Hermione sighed. "I guess that's true."

"You guys can speak a different language? That's so cool!" Mill said in awe.

Hermione and Gohan blushed.