Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter series, characters, etc. Although I wish I did.

Chapter One: A Truce

"Miss Evans?"

I snap out of my trance as I hear Professor Slughorn call my name. My cheeks heat up as I blush, thinking of the reason I was in the trance in the first place.

"Er… yes, Professor?" I ask timidly, afraid of what I missed.

"Did you hear me? I asked you if you knew the properties of the Mandrake when it comes to potion-making," Professor Slughorn repeats, a little crestfallen that his favorite student isn't paying close attention.

"Oh, um, right. The Mandrake root is used in a draught that returns those who have been Petrified to their original state," I answer.

"Wonderful!" Slughorn booms, happy again.

I turn to my left and see that Marlene is giggling silently. I shoot her a look that plainly says, "I'll deal with you later." She stops giggling abruptly. Mary raises her eyebrows at the two of us, clueless. Of course she doesn't know what's going on. No one knows what's going on. Well, except for him. He might know what is happening in my head.

I glance back at James Potter and find that he is still staring at me unashamedly. My eyebrows pinch together by a tiny bit as he winks and raises one questioning eyebrow, smirking at me. I scowl and turn back to the lesson. James Potter can be so full of himself. How did I even find myself staring back into his hazel eyes to begin with?

The bell rings and we all rush to the Great Hall for dinner. I make sure to sit far away from Potter. Marlene and Mary sit across from me as Alice joins us.

"Hey, guys, how was Potions?" she asks, sliding into the seat beside me.

Marlene smirks and replies, "Oh, you know. Same ol' Sluggy. But I think Lily enjoyed the lesson."

My mouth drops as I register her suggestive tone. Marlene is actually suggesting that I enjoyed being trapped in Potter's stare! I shut my mouth and glare at her.

Alice and Mary seem confused. Mary starts, "Wha– " but I cut her off.

"It's nothing. I don't know what she's talking about. She's probably just hallucinating from all of the fumes down in the dungeons. Or maybe she's still disoriented from staring at Black the whole lesson." I smirk at her furious expression. We both silently decide to drop the subject.

After dinner, we head back to the dormitories. I groan as I remember I don't live in Gryffindor Tower anymore. I'm the Head Girl this year, which means I have to share the Heads' Dormitories with the Head Boy. I'll give you three guesses as to who he might be.

"Mimbulus mimbletonia," I mumble to the portrait before it swings forward. I step inside and look around. I groan again. Potter is already here.

He looks up at me when the portrait hole swings shut.

"Hey, Evans," he says in a slightly mocking tone.

"Potter," I spit back.

His smile widens as he processes my tone. "So I've been thinking –"

"There's a first," I mutter under my breath.

"—and I think we should stop this," Potter finishes.

"Stop what?" I am genuinely confused. He and I have nothing to stop. We aren't friends. What on earth does he mean?

"The fighting. It's been going on for, what? Six years? And all because you won't go out with me," Potter shakes his head, no doubt thinking of my 413 rejections, not that I've been counting.

James Potter has been asking me out constantly for years. It started at once a month, then proceeded to once a week, and now he asks me once a day. It can get a little annoying. I mean, can he not take a hint? I don't like him. He's an arrogant, bullying toerag, and I don't want anything to do with him.

I look up to see he's watching me expectantly, as if waiting for me to say something. Oh, right. He is.

"Well I guess that would be alright…?" I mumble, turning the end of my sentence up like a question.

"Excellent! But I have a few requests with this truce," Potter says. His signature smirk turns into a full-blown smile when I raise my eyebrows in disbelief. He has requests that I'm supposed to agree to?

"First, my name. It's James, not Potter. Second, could you please just be a little nicer? Would that be so difficult? And third, eat breakfast with me tomorrow, please?" He glances up hopefully. Calling him by his first name isn't going to be that hard, just unusual for me. Being nicer… that might take a little work, but I can do it. But why does he want me to have breakfast with him tomorrow? The thought of spending extra time with him makes me feel… nervous? That's weird. Usually, I try to avoid him at all costs.

"Alright, Potter… I mean, James," His face lights up when I say his name. "I guess that can work. But now, I have a few requests of my own."

The corners of his mouth turn up in a smile that looks so genuine I can't help but smile back. "First, tell Black to stop bothering me about you. Second, I don't want to be the victim of any more of your clever little pranks. Third, if you would stop asking me out on a daily basis, it might be a little easier to be around you," I raise my left eyebrow, certain he will not agree to my requests. I can practically read his mind. I can tell what he's thinking through his facial expressions. He's going to say no.

"Okay, Lily. That's easy."

What? Did he just agree? And did he just call me "Lily"? He hardly ever uses my first name! What's going on here?

"Er… okay, then. I guess I'll see you tomorrow," I back towards the staircase leading to my bedroom, watching him for any signs that he is bluffing. He just stares at me with that stupid smirk on his face until I shut my door.

I collapse onto my bed with my mind racing through what had just happened. I groan and roll over when I remember that I promised to have breakfast with him tomorrow. Ugh.

AN: Hope you like it! It's my first fanfic.. so I'm sorry if it's not as amazing as some of the others on here. I'll update whenever I can though! I'm going to try to get a chapter in every other day, if not every day. Reviews would be very much appreciated. :)

- Paris