I am glad that everyone enjoyed the last chapter. I thank the people who submitted reviews, they were very incouraging since I was at first unsure of the story. I hope you like this next chapter. It focuses revolves around the ongoing battle between the two. Enjoy!

Chapter 2: In Ongoing Battles, Lines Are Crossed

Hermione and Draco walked silently up to the cabin. Draco walked in front of Hermione in an effort to remain superior. He hated asking her for help but he honestly had no idea how to go about preparing a meal. He just wanted her to teach him the basic so he wouldn't have to ask her ever again. For now he would be nice to her and then later on he could go back to taunting her. They walked in the back door to the kitchen. Hermione opened the fridge and staring taking out ingredients. She wasn't explaining what she was doing so Draco was completely lost. He needed her to teach him not just do it herself. If she made dinner every night then he would be helpless all summer. That just wouldn't do.

"What are you doing Granger? I thought you were going to teach me how." She looked up at him startled. She hadn't expected him to stick around and be taught. Although she had told him she wouldn't just make him dinner, she figured it would be easier then fighting with him over it.

"I was just going to… I'm sorry. I wasn't aware you actually wanted to learn. What would you like to learn to make?"

"Can't you just sum it all up in one lesson. I mean it can't be that difficult right?" She laughed at his naivety.

"No you can't just sum it up in one lesson." He shrugged his shoulders and allowed her to continue. "I'll teach you how to make spaghetti since that is fairly simply and we have all the ingredients." She walked over to the cupboard and he followed close behind. He didn't want to miss a single instruction. "First we need to boil water to cook the pasta. Are you capable of doing that?" He looked lost already and she realized how onerous her task was going to be.

"Alright, we will start at step one. We need a pot to put water in. This cupboard over here has pots in it." She took a pot off the shelf and handed it to him. "This is a good size to boil water in. Now go fill it three quarters of the way with water from the sink." He did as he was told in an attempt to get this experience over with quickly. He had never been a fan a housework of any kind; it was house elf work. He was no longer paying attention and the pot was overflowing with water. He shut the faucet and dumped some of the water down the drain. He looked up at Granger for further instruction.

"Place the pot on one of the burners on the stove. Then turn the corresponding knob to high." He placed down the pot but there were far too many knobs. How was he supposed to know which one would light the flame? Hermione noticed his indecision and reached past his to turn on the stove. When no flame ignited he questioned her.

"Where is the flame? It won't heat without fire." He had seen the elves use the stove once and he was positive there was fire beneath the pot.

"This isn't a gas stove; it doesn't need a flame. It runs on electricity instead. The coil that the pot is sitting on will get hot without catching fire. Well hopefully it won't catch fire." Electricity was something that Draco didn't understand but he left the question unanswered. He wouldn't give her the satisfaction of explaining another thing to him tonight. Maybe he would ask her more later, they had an entire month.

"Now we wait for the water to bubble. Once it does we will add the pasta and let it cook for 15 minutes. Right now we can begin warming the sauce. Will you get another pot from the cupboard Malfoy?" He strode to the other side of the kitchen and opened the same door as she had previously. There were two pots on the shelf one was larger then the one already in use and one was smaller. He decided to grab both and let her decide which to use. He stood in front of the girl holding out both pots, silently asking her to choose. She didn't mock him or say anything at all. She simply took the smaller of the two pots and set it down on another burner.

"It the fridge there should be a jar of tomato sauce. You can grab that and dump the sauce into the pot. After turn it on low so it can heat." He opened the door to the fridge and after a moment of searching he found the jar in question. He popped the top and poured the red substance into the pot. He remembered how Granger had known which knob to turn and found the corresponding knob for the burner containing the sauce. He put it on low like she had said. "Good job Malfoy." He hated being spoken to like an animal. "Our water is boiling so you can add the spaghetti to it. Take a fist full of the hard noodles from the box and drop it into the pot."

Draco picked up the box on the counter and removed more then half of its contents and then he literally dropped the fist full into the boiling water. Some of the hot liquid splashed onto his hand and he hissed in pain. Hermione was instantly at his side leading him to the sink. She grabbed the injured hand that he was nursing and ran it under cool water. Once she was finished she lifted the hand to her mouth and blew softly on the burn. The cooling sensation made most of the pain disperse but Draco was too concentrated on her actions to care. No one had ever done this kind of thing for him. If he was injured as a child a simple spell was cast and he was sent on his way. Being taken care of like this was strange to him to say the least.

She smiled at him and dropped his hand. Then she went about her business as if nothing had happened. Draco eyed her suspiciously but said nothing. He didn't thank her or taunt her. The silence was as much of a thank you as she would receive. After not much time the two were seated at the small table enjoying their dinner. Draco was impressed with himself for making dinner but it seemed to be… lacking.

He was used to several course meals that were brought to him in a dining room by servants. He wasn't accustomed to eating one dish that he had prepared at such a small table. Granger didn't seem to find anything amiss so he ate in silence. It wasn't until Hermione asked who was doing the dishes that Draco returned to his normal façade.

"Since I made dinner you can clean up after it." He turned and went to sit on the couches. She stomped her foot at his remark and yelled at him.

"You didn't make anything! I had guide you through every step. It wasn't like I could have relaxed while you made it so you will not relax while I do the dished. Get your sorry little behind back into that kitchen." She pointed at the sink and he begrudgingly rose from his position but apparently it was too slow for Hermione. She took hold of his sleeve and pulled him behind her. Once situated in front of the sink she turned on the water and plugged the drain. She gave Draco the job of washing and she would rinse and dry.

Draco looked at the water with distain but he wouldn't be out done by Granger so he rolled his sleeves and submerged his hands in the suds. He scrubbed every dish thoroughly before handing it off to the girl beside him. When the final dish had been washed Draco had an idea come into his head. He looked at the suds in front of him and then the mane of the girl standing to his right. He grabbed a handful and turned to face her. She looked over at him and began backing away slowly and cautiously.

"Oh no you don't Malfoy. Put the soap down or you will be so sorry." She turned and ran out the back door. He followed suit and caught up to her with ease. He rubbed the bubbles into her brown locks. The look of shock on her face was enough to make him keel over in laughter. He loved messing with her and this time since he was able to mess with her dreadful hair it was even better. While he laughed Hermione looked for a way to retaliate.

Draco never noticed her walking away from him nor did he see her pick of the hose that was lying near the cabin wall but he did feel the ice-cold water hit him in the back of the head. He snapped around to see a smug Granger standing with the hose still in her hand and leaking water.

"I told you that you would be sorry." She chuckled lightly at his look of outrage but when his expression changed to that of conniving she got worried.

"You are the one that shall be sorry Granger." He walked towards her slowly and she had nowhere to run to. The wall of the cabin was directly behind her and there were bushes to either side of her. Once he reached her, he grabbed hold of her waist and tossed her over his shoulder. Then he slowly made his way in the direction of the lake. She was kicking and screaming for him to unhand her but he ignored her protest. When he reached the end of the dock, he dumped her into the cool water below. He laughed at her splashing but what she said before she disappeared under the dark glass stopped him in his tracks.

"Help Malfoy. I can't swim." She went under and did not resurface. He didn't think twice before diving into the water after her. He appeared seconds later with the girl in his arms. Draco pulled her out of the water and safely onto the dock. She was shaking and her body was wracked with sobs. He lifted her into his arms once again but this time without malicious intent. She clung to his chest as he carried her the length of the yard to their small cabin. Once inside, Draco placed her on the bed. She was still wet and shaking both from the cold and from fear. He left the room momentarily to retrieve a towel from the bathroom.

When he returned he sat beside her on the bed and wrapped the towel around her shoulders. He took a second towel and wiped the water from her face. She was staring at the far wall almost not blinking. He placed the towel in her lap and looked away awkwardly. He felt compelled to say something but wasn't sure what to say.

"Thank-you for rescuing me… even if it was your fault in the first place." Broken out of her daze, Hermione was the first to speak.

"I didn't know you couldn't swim. I wouldn't have thrown you in if I had." He wouldn't meet her eye and she knew he felt bad about it.

"I guess that's as close to an apology as I am going to get." She stood and made her way to her trunk in the corner. Draco watched her as she withdrew a pair of silk pajama shorts and a tank top. She left the room to change and Draco decided just to change while she was gone. He threw his shirt onto a chair in the corner and looked in his trunk for his green sweats. Hermione entered the room just as Draco had stripped off his pants. He stood in only his boxers smirking at the furiously blushing girl.

"Merlin Malfoy put some clothing on." She covered her eyes and turned her back to him. He rolled his eyes and pulled on his pair of sweats.

"I'm decent Granger you can stop shielding your eyes now." She turned around to give a retort but squeaked when she caught sight of his bare chest. "Like what you see Granger?" She didn't blush like he had been expecting. Instead she fired back a retort.

"I'd hardly consider that decent in any sense of the world." She gave him the once over before continuing in her bedtime rituals. His pity for her from the lake had all but disappeared. He was livid and she found it amusing.

"Denial Granger… Well I am drained after saving your life and all… please leave so I can sleep." He made a shooing motion with his hand and she smacked it out of her face.

"I don't think so ferret. I am getting the bed." She dodged past him and leaped on to the mattress. She scurried under the covers before Malfoy could stop her.

"Get out Granger!" She refused to move and hugged the covers closer to her. "Fine, just don't rape me in my sleep. It will be tempting but I hope you can control yourself." He slid into the bed beside her and she eyed him cruelly.

"Oh no you don't." She sat up in the bed facing him. She pulled her knees up to her and Draco was suspicious of her actions. He was about to asking her just what she thought she was doing when her legs shot forward and catapulted him over the edge of the bed. He hit the wooden floor roughly but the kick in the side had hurt more.

"You wench! How dare you?" He pulled back his hand and went to slap her across the face. His hand stopped inches from her cheek when he saw the look of terror on her face. He looked at his hand in shock and dropped it to his side. She became livid at his actions.

"You are as horrid as your father. I wish you had hit your head when you fell and never would have woken." She was scared of what he had almost done and she fought back the only way she knew how, through argument. Hermione watched as Draco mumbled something to himself before exiting the room. She waited anxiously for him to return and finish what he had started, but he never did. That night neither of them slept well. Hermione woke often throughout the night with thoughts of being thrown in the lake and not resurfacing. Draco sat on the couch thinking about what he had almost done. She was right, he was turning into his father and it disgusted him. How could he have almost struck her for something so… ridiculous? He got little rest that night and vowed to apologize in the morning, a real apology.

'Stop right there. That's exactly where I lost it.

See that line. Well I never should have crossed it.

Stop right there. Well I never should have said

That it's the very moment that

I wish that I could take back.

I'm sorry for the person I became.

I'm sorry that it took so long for me to change.

I'm ready to be sure I never become that way again

'cause who I am hates who I've been.

Who I am hates who I've been.'

- Who I Am Hates Who I've Been by Reliant K

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I hope that everyone enjoyed. I have decided that beginning in this chapter I will place lyrics at the end that I find fit the plot well. They are just something I like to do since I feel music represents stories very well.

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