Dione sat in the common room's far corner, directly beneath a lantern, facing off with an apple. It sat on the table in front of her, red skin polished and gleaming in the faint green light. Dione regarded it much as her mother regarded fine foods, peering down without lowering her head. As she reached for it, the familiar acacia wood of her wand buzzed with anticipation.

She tapped the apple with its tip once, twice, three times. On the fourth, its skin foamed into a translucent gel; what Professor Sandusky, dealing with the pumpkins last week, had called 'goo.' Dione twisted her wand into a small circle, scouring the mess away to reveal the apple, now carved into an intricate Chinese dragon identical to one of her mother's trinkets, if you ignored the juice.

After over a week of practice, Dione had mastered the silent Formo vegetabilis spell which, in spite of its name, also worked perfectly well on fruits. But it wasn't good enough, not for her. No matter who won the peer vote, the most impressive pumpkin of the class had been Alice Hunter's accidental portrait of the Lupin boy. It'd been so detailed that he could've switched it out for his own head in a metamorphic transformation and no one would've known the difference. Dione would be damned before she let a Hufflepuff traitor-spawn get the better of her.

Across the room, she caught sight of Blossom Rose. An excellent opportunity. Dione selected a second apple from the small bag at her side, set it on the table, and waved until she'd gotten the boy's attention. "Blossom. Come model for me, please."

Blossom turned at the sound of the now familiar artificial voice.  "As you wish," he replied with a small grin, his fingers making a valiant attempt to mimic the motions that gave Dione her voice.  It wasn't done out of malice, which was likely rare in the Slytherin common room.  He had actually shown an interest in learning.  Unfortunately he hadn't mastered them yet and the words his gestures produced were 'Is you wash'.

He nodded in appreciation at her efforts on the apple.  "Dusty would swallow his beard if he saw that.  The detail at that size is incredible.   I'd almost say that I was jealous."  He grinned again.  "Almost."  Truthfully, he was jealous but there was no way that he was going to admit it.  He just needed to practice more.  Perhaps the house elves would be able to provide him with fruit and vegetables that they had deemed too far past their prime to serve.  "So, what is it that you need me for?"

“I am not deaf. There is no need for you to sign while you speak.”

Dione suppressed a small sigh. She supposed that Blossom’s and Mercedes’s attempts to learn her way of speaking were kind. But while Mercedes had a skill for language and had taken to the signs quickly, Blossom’s attempts were clumsy enough to be distracting.

“You have mixed up your vowels,” she added helpfully as he approached, holding her hands up where he could more clearly see. “This is A. This is I. Please, sit.”

She motioned to the chair opposite her, on the other side of the table. At his compliments, she preened, not-so-secretly pleased with the praise. Honestly, she didn't feel that size mattered so much -- it wasn't like she was actually carving them, after all -- but flattery was always appreciated, particularly from her true peers. "Just hold still."

Dione rose from her seat and stepped around the table to reach Blossom's side. She'd never taken a close look at the boy before -- certainly not as close as an adoring crush -- and she needed to observe the details before she could properly match her yellow-cloaked, love-struck rival. With one hand, she touched Blossom's chin, gently directing his head to tilt up, and leaned in for a closer examination.

"I'll pick it up eventually,"  Blossom said, allowing himself to be posed.  "I'm getting faster.  I know you aren't deaf but think about it.  If all the Slytherins become proficient, we'll be able to talk to each other without the others knowing what we're saying."

He had to admire Dione's determination.  She had been sorted into the most exclusionary house possible and her disability made her an obvious target.  Still, she stood her ground like a proper Pureblood.  It was one of the more admirable traits of their kind.  It had won her his admiration and, if necessary, his support, even against the Slytherin upperclassmen.

Dione allowed a small smile. She could see the logic in Blossom's words, particularly for this house full of secrets, but there seemed a large flaw from her point of view. "Perhaps among friends. But it is well-known to Muggles and easy to research. For true secrets, I think, not so good."

Blossom, she decided, was not at all bad-looking. No doubt he would someday grow into quite the handsome young man, the sort that Mother would approve of attending her galas. And he still had pride in his family, despite its poor fortunes. Dione could appreciate that. Perhaps, in time, they'd be able to restore both their family names to their proper glory.

Satisfied in her examination, she picked up her wand once more and tapped the remaining apple. On the fourth rap, it too was consumed by transformative goo. A scouring charm later produced a tiny apple-sized replica of Blossom's head.

Dione levitated her newest apple-sculpture carefully, turning it 360 degrees before settling it in front of Blossom again. "What do you think." she signed, settling back into her chair. "Is it better than Hunter. It would not do to let that puff-head win."

 "Perhaps we can just use it here,"  he suggested.  "If it is known to the Muggles then there are few in this house that would be aware of it." 

Blossom examined the apple carefully.  Does my hair really look like that? "It's better than her second one by far," he said finally.  "That much is easy to see.  The apple is too small to get a really good comparison to the Hallowe'en Valentine she produced on her first attempt.  I know you want honest criticism, so I'm not going to say yes just to try and make you feel better.  Given the size you are working with, compared to what she was working with it's considerably better.  Whether it would be better at the same size?  I can't say without seeing a carved pumpkin with my head on it.  Of course you'd have to ask somebody else if it looks like me because I have a rather set idea as to what I look like."

Blossom could understand Dione's desire to be superior to anyone in the other houses.  She didn't want pity.  she wanted respect.  She didn't want to be 'good enough'.  She wanted to show them that her disability didn't stop her from being the best.

"That reminds me," he said suddenly.  "I've been thinking about something and you would be a perfect person to talk to about it.  Slytherin has a reputation for resting on it's laurels as Purebloods.  A lot of the upperclassmen seem to expect respect because of who they are, whether they have the ability or not.  What do you think about a bunch of us getting together and forcing people to recognize that Slytherin deserves respect because we're just that damned good?"

Dione took the criticism in stride, lowering her apple to the table with a thoughtful nod. Now that Halloween had passed, fresh pumpkins were less readily available, but perhaps she'd still manage to obtain one for practice on a larger, harder surface. It may be worth the extra effort.

Blossom's next proposal earned her full attention. As she contemplated the idea, she plucked another apple from her bag and offered it to Blossom, tossing it across the table before signing her reply. "Force, I think, is the wrong word. Better to be respected for skill than feared for power."

'One must learn from history,' Mother always said, and this was one lesson that Dione had rightfully internalized. All the great dark wizards of the past -- even Grindlewald and the Dark Lord -- had always relied on their magical might and physical prowess to earn their followers. Obviously, it worked, but not well enough to succeed in their goals. Her generation would be the one the change that.

"But, yes. I do agree. We first years will be stronger as a team. And." She glanced over her shoulder to make sure none of the older years was hovering nearby. None were. "We will show our seniors that we are not to be overlooked for our age."

They wouldn't be like the other generations of Slytherin first-years, groveling before their prefects and kissing up to the elders to work their way up the hierarchy. They couldn't be. Dione refused to be such a pathetic person, and if Blossom and the others had the wherewithal to rise with her, then all the better. She turn back to him. "What numbers, You, I, and...Say-D.  Rico." She quirked her head to indicate the question marks her signs could not add.

"By force I mean don't give them a choice in the matter.  If we're that good, they can't do anything but recognize it,"  Blossom said, idly spinning the apple against a napkin with a slow spiraling of his wand.  It was a Egremont Russet he noted.  "Good choice," he said, before taking a bite.   "Flesh is nice and firm and would hold detail well."  He chuckled.  "That is a good example of what I mean.  I will stake my knowledge in Herbology against anyone.  Rico is insanely talented as a spell caster.  If the four of us help each other, we can take the top spot in any class."

He took another bite of the apple and chewed thoughtfully.  There were  few wrinkles in his plan.  He needed to sort out the rather sticky situation between the Posadas and the Roses.  Surely they'd be able to straighten things out inside of seven years.  There was stiff competition from the other houses, houses far more used to co-operation than Slytherin.  It would take work.  I was an accolade that needed to be earned.

"I want people to come to us, if they have a question because we will be the ones with the answers." 

---

Dione contemplated the proposal again, thoughtfully turning her last apple over and over in her hand. There was no doubt that, when it came to Herbology, Blossom Rose was king -- his knowledge in that field was commendable, even if he did fawn over their blood-traitor of a professor. She'd yet to see Rico's skill for herself, at least outside a class setting, but she'd take Blossom's word for it, for now. Mercedes had her talent for languages and communication, plus her metamorphic abilities -- they could spin that into prowess at Transfiguration with just a bit of work.

And as for Dione herself? Well, she had an encyclopedic knowledge of all things wizarding history, but that wasn't likely to draw a crowd. Obviously, her skill at non-vocal magic was unparalleled, but that would only draw attention to her disability, which wouldn't do at all. She'd sooner be feared than pitied. So, it seemed, that left only the 'games' she'd played with her auntie in-between tutoring sessions...yes...

She balanced the apple on her knee and signed, "You are in dueling club. When do they meet next. I will join." She eyed Blossom carefully, trying to read his expression. "Hidden talents are uneffective. Showing will be as tricky as uniting. Do you agree."

Blossom nodded.    "Unless they see that we are superior, they won't exactly recognize the fact.  It will be nice to have another first year in the dueling club, although somehow I suspect that you're going to be giving me more than just a run for my money.  We need to make sure every subject is covered, which means we either double up or we recruit more first years.  I want to keep the number manageable, though.  Five or six at most."

He was curious as to what Dione had up her sleeve.  Nonverbal magic would through her opponent off but it would be slow unless she could do things he wasn't aware of.  That was likely just based on her being a Slytherin, let alone any other reason.