Waking up, Draco looked over at the sleeping brunette and smiled. He slid out of bed and walked to the ensuite before stepping into the shower. He was so lost in thought that he didn't hear Hermione enter the washroom or step into the glass shower.

When he felt her soft, warm hand touch his shoulder, he grinned and turned around, pulling her close, "Good morning, Love." He murmured.

"Good morning, my love." She replied as she pulled him down into a soft kiss.

The wizard smiled into the kiss, pulling her body closer to his as the warm water rained down on them.

As they separated, Draco reached over and grabbed the bottle of shampoo. Hermione watched as he poured some in the palm of his hand and asked her to turn around.

She smiled and did as he asked before she felt his large hands working their way through her hair and massaging her scalp.

"I love you." He murmured quietly.

She smiled, her eyes closed as she simply relished the sensation of his touch, "I love you too, Draco."

He pressed as kissed to her shoulder before saying, "So…are you ready to explore some Christmas Markets today?"

"Absolutely. Where are we going? Are we going some here in Berlin?" She replied.

"No. We're going to Munich."

"Ooh. That'll be interesting." She replied.

He grinned, "I'm going to have Clara help me make a Portkey to a specific location in Munich. I'm not sure where the best place to arrive would be." He told her as Hermione rinsed her hair.

"All right." she said, grabbing the conditioner.

They both continued to shower, feeling no need to rush.

Afterwards, as they got dressed, Hermione asked if she needed to exchange some of her currency to get more Euros.

Draco shook his head, "Don't worry about it." He replied, "I've got plenty. I know these Markets take a lot of money, but I exchanged a large chunk of currency before we left Britain."

She nodded, "I can pay you back when we return to…"

"Hermione, Love, I promise, you don't need to pay me back for anything. I thoroughly enjoy spending money on you."

She rolled her eyes, blushing, "You're sweet, Love."

He winked at her, watching as she pulled on a purple beanie with a white pom-pom on it, making him smile.

"You'll need some sort of hat as well." She pointed out, seeing his smile.

He nodded, pulling a dark grey beanie from his coat pocket. He pulled it on and looked over at her with a smirk. "How do I look?" He asked.

The brunette smiled, "Utterly dashing…as usual."

Chuckling, he grabbed the rucksack he had brought so they could buy souvenirs and slipped it onto his back.

"I placed an Extension Charm on the rucksack, but we need to be careful and aware of who is around when we put things in it or take things out of it." He told her.

Hermione nodded as he took her hand and together, they made their way out of the penthouse and down to the lobby of the hotel. As they walked over to the front desk, Clara looked up, spotting them and smiling.

"Hello Mister Malfoy, Miss Granger. What can I do for the two of you?"

"Well." Draco said, "We want to go to Munich today and explore some of the Christmas Markets there. Could you help me make a Portkey? I'm not sure where the best place to arrive there is."

Clara nodded, "Certainly!" She said before adding. "I've also got a pamphlet of all of the Munich Christmas Markets." She snapped her fingers where a brochure appeared.

"So, rather than making you two Portkeys." Clara said, "I'm just going to make you one to bring you back here whenever you're ready to return. As for getting there…there is a Pub in Munich for Magical folk called Pippin's Pub. You can Floo there and then begin your exploration of the Christmas Markets." She explained before adding, "You are welcome to return by Floo if you go back to the Pippin's Pub after the Christmas Markets, but if you'd rather not, then you can simply find a secure location and use the Portkey."

Draco and Hermione both nodded, before watching as the hotel owner made a Portkey out of a pamphlet for Berlin Christmas Markets.

Clara wrote down the Floo addresses for Pippin's Pub and the Eleganz Hotel Penthouse before handing that piece of parchment, as well as the Portkey, over to Draco.

"Thank you for your help, Clara." Hermione smiled at the hotel owner.

"It's my pleasure." Clara replied, smiling at the younger woman.

The couple went back up to the penthouse and opened a previously unnoticed box that was on the mantel.

"I'll meet you there." Draco said before kissing her cheek and Flooing to Pippin's Pub.

Hermione was only a few seconds behind him, arriving at the German pub that wasn't nearly as busy as she had expected it to be.

"Are you ready, Love?" Draco asked, looking down at her.

Beaming, the brunette nodded, "I am." She answered excitedly.

He grinned and held his hand out to her. She immediately took it and together, they walked out of the Pub.

As they stepped out, onto the street, he pulled out his map of the Munich Christmas Markets.

"Which would you like to go to first?"

Hermione looked over the map and pointed at two that were rather close together. "Let's go to these two."

He nodded, "All right."

They began to make their way to the first one, and when they arrived, Draco said, "This is the Medieval Christmas Market."

Each stall was a wooden hut with workers dressed in medieval garb.

"This is very unique." Hermione said, a smile on her face.

Grinning, Daco nodded before asking, "Would you loke to get some Glüwhein?"

"Absolutely!" Hermione replied immediately, making him chuckle.

They walked over to the Glüwhein stall and got two orders, which came in clay goblets.

"So, according to that man…" Hermione said, "We can keep the mugs the Glüwhein comes in or we can return them and get some of our money back." She explained.

Draco nodded, "Yes. It's that way at every market because every mug is different, and some people like to collect them."

She nodded, taking a sip of her drink before exhaling happily, "This is simply delicious."

He smiled.

As they sipped on their warm beverages, the couple wandered through the wooden huts, admiring everything.

Hermione laughed when they spotted a stall that was selling swords and dragon goblets and Draco sped over to immediately purchase a souvenir or two.

"A sword…really?" She asked, laughing.

He nodded eagerly, "I think it's bloody awesome."

She smiled, "You're adorable."

When they became hungry, Draco pulled Hermione toward a wooden hut that had a roaring fire. "There making Flammkuche over here. It's flat bread with crème fraiche, cheese, and bacon. I think you'll like it."

They stood at one of the several tall wooden tables and ate their food while still sipping their Glüwhein. When they finished, they decided to head to the next Christmas Market.

They arrived at the Christmas Village at the Residenz only a few minutes later as the sky turned dark, and the lights of the market lit up the area. It was a market in the courtyard of a palace.

"All right…this is a bit frightening." Draco murmured, looking at one of the several animatronics that were set up at the market.

Hermione laughed and nodded, "Yeah. I'd have to agree with you. It's rather disturbing, but something coming from that way smells delicious!"

He chuckled and let her pull him in the direction of the warm, welcoming scent.

"So, these are what exactly?" Draco asked, popping a few in his mouth.

"Well, they're candied almonds, but here they're called Gebrannte Mandein." She replied, taking a couple, and eating them. "And they're still warm which makes them all the more delicious."

He nodded eagerly agreeing.

"Look, Draco, they have small versions of the Weihnachtspyrmide." She said, "You know, the Christmas Pyramid over there…"

He nodded, "Several of the markets have Christmas Pyramids. Let's purchase a small one and some candles to go with it. That's how they turn, the heat from the candles makes the blades spin."

"I think they're beautiful."

He nodded and purchased a few of the small ones as well as a medium sized one, making her smile.

"Let's head to the last market of the day." Draco said. "I've been to that one and it's lovely."

Hermione nodded and together they walked about ten minutes until they arrived at the Münchner Christkindlmarkt.

"So, what would you like to do first, Love?" Draco asked as they wandered through the stalls.

"I would love some more Glüwhein." Hermione replied, shivering slightly as a breeze of icy air came through the area where they were standing.

Draco nodded and glanced around before wandlessly and discreetly placing a Warming Charm on her.

She looked over, feeling the warmth spread to the tips of her fingers and toes. She smiled, "Thank you, Love." She said quietly.

He winked at her as they stood in line for Glüwhein.

Hermione smiled when their drinks were placed in front of them.

"Can we keep these mugs?" she asked the wizard as they walked away from the stall, Glüwhein in hand.

"Of course." He replied, "They are rather unique mugs." he said, admiring the boot-shaped mugs that steaming from the heat of the Glüwhein.

Nodding, Hermione took a sip, humming in pleased approval of the flavor.

As they strolled through the stalls, they heard a choir beginning to sing. Hermione looked around, searching for the choir, before she spotted them up on a balcony, surrounded by Christmas lights.

They continued to walk, hand-in-hand, admiring the individuality of each stall.

"Oh, look at that!" Hermione remarked, seeing a selection of lovely blown-glass Christmas ornaments. Some were simply round, while others were more detailed.

She motioned to the one in the shape of a reindeer and smiled.

Draco grinned and nodded, "That's lovely. Let's purchase it."

She looked at him, "Are you sure?"'

He smirked and walked closer to the stall before purchasing that ornament, as well as several others.

When they walked away, Draco spotted something and grinned. He turned to the brunette, "Are you hungry at all?" He asked her.

She shrugged, "Perhaps a bit. Why?" She replied.

Smirking, the wizard said, "Wait right here for me, Love. I'll be back soon." He said before kissing her lips and walking off.

When he returned, Hermione's eyes widened in awe. "What is that?"

He chuckled, "It's a Dampfnudel." He answered. "A yeast pastry with vanilla custard."

"Merlin, that looks delicious." She breathed.

He nodded, grinning, "Come on, let's go over here and eat it."

That stood at a covered, standing table and Hermione grabbed a spoon from Draco's hand. She took a bite and her eyes rolled back, "That is so good!" She moaned.

He looked at her, "All right, so a pastry can make you react like that? We ought to get back to the hotel soon." He smirked.

Hermione rolled her eyes, laughing, "Hush you."

Chuckling, Draco nodded.

When they finished eating the pastry, the couple continued shopping as they explored the Market.

After a while, Draco suggested that they head to the Pub because it was rather close.

Hermione nodded, "Rather than use the portkey?" she asked quietly as they walked out of the Market.

He nodded, "I think it'd be best. It really is nearby."

"All right." She said, and the two of them walked along the streets.

When they arrived at the location, Draco read the instructions on the map to see which door to enter.

"According to this…" He said, "we go into the green door over there."

Hermione nodded and together, they entered Pippin's Pub.

The Pub was completely full, packed to the brim with all sorts of magical folk. They were able to weave their way through the chatting crowd and get to the large fireplace in the back of the room.

"You go first, Love." Draco muttered, looking over as a wizard appeared from the fireplace.

Hermione nodded and looked at Draco, "You're following right after me?"

He nodded, "I am." He smiled with a wink.

Nodding with a smile, the brunette grabbed a handful of Floopowder and disappeared into green flames.

She beamed excitedly upon arriving back at the penthouse. It was completely decorated for Christmas. A large Christmas tree stood by the fireplace and garland hung on the mantel.

Draco arrived and chuckled, "I hadn't realized they were going to do this." he said, pulling her close.

She smiled, "It's lovely."

The wizard nodded, "It is. If you're all right with it, I'm going to take the Portkey that we didn't use, back down to Clara. I'll only be gone a few minutes."

She nodded, "That's fine. I'm going to set up a warm bath."

"I think that's a brilliant idea." Draco said, before kissing her softly on the lips, "I'll be back soon." He whispered.

She nodded, and replied, "All right, Love."

Draco made his way down to the Lobby where Clara was working behind the desk.

"Oh, hello, Mister Malfoy!" She said happily. "How was your day exploring Christmas Markets?"

"It was lovely. Thank you for your help." He replied. "I was wondering what time Miss Granger's spa treatment begins and where she needs to go for that?"

Clara nodded and looked in the spa scheduling book before answering, "She needs to be down here in the lobby at 9 o'clock in the morning."

"Brilliant." Draco smiled, "Thank you!"

As he turned to walk away, Clara spoke, "Oh, and today, while you two were out, a letter arrived for Miss Granger." She said, handing over the letter in question that had clearly traveled quite a distance.

"All right. Thank you. I'll make sure that she gets it." He replied before asking if there was a magical place like Pippin's Pub in Cologne, Germany

"I believe so." She answered.

"Could you do me a favor and get some information on it, as well as information on the Cologne Christmas Markets?" He asked. "I believe that we may go there the day after tomorrow."

"Certainly." Clara replied.

"I'll come get the information sometime tomorrow."

"That is just fine." The hotel owner replied.

Draco headed back up to the penthouse. When he got there, he walked into the ensuite, finding Hermione soaking in a steaming bubble bath.

"Merlin, that is a glorious sight." He murmured.

She looked over and smiled, blushing slightly. "Care to join me?"

He nodded, pulling his jumper over his head.

As he slipped into the tub, sliding in behind her, he said, "By the way, Clara gave me a letter that came for you today."

Hermione furrowed her brow, "May I see it?"

He nodded, waving his hand to summon the letter wandlessly from the pocket of his trousers. He handed it to Hermione and she noticed immediately that it was from Ginny Potter.

"Hold on one moment, Love. I need to make sure that everything it all right." She said

He nodded and kissed her shoulder before laying his head back and closing his eyes to give her some privacy.

Mione,

I'm sorry to bother you while you're on your trip to Germany, but a parcel arrived at #12 for you. I haven't opened it, and I won't, but from the looks of it, it appears to be some sort of spirit, a wine perhaps. It's in a lovely, dark wooden box, but there are no markings on it to explain the contents.

Also, it came with a sealed, rather official-looking envelope and a photo. The envelope clearly states that it's from the German Ministry of Magic.

As for the photo…it is quite an image. It's a photo of you and Malfoy dancing rather closely in beautifully elegant clothes. The part that truly caught my eye, however, was the expression you two share in the photo. You are staring into each other's eyes, and I must say, Mione, you both appear to be quite…in love.

Are you in love with him? If so, I think it's bloody fantastic! I haven't seen you anywhere near this happy in an absurdly long time.

I love you, Mione, and would have thoroughly loved to be your sister-in-law, but my brother is an utter arse, and you deserve so much better. And I'm beginning to think that Draco Malfoy is just that. He may even be perfect for you.

You and I must chat when you return home.

Happy Christmas!

Love,

Gin

Hermione smiled and folded the letter back up before setting it on the small table beside the tub. She turned her head and pressed a kiss to Draco's chest, catching him by surprise.

He lifted his head, opening his eyes.

"I love you." She said.

He smiled, "I love you too, Hermione."

She smiled and leaned in, kissing his lips.

When they got out of the tub nearly half an hour later, Draco poured some Firewhisky into two glasses.

"I need to write a response to Ginny, and it'll only take a moment. Then I need to take it down to Clara." Hermione told him.

Draco nodded, "All right." He said, before kissing her lips, "I'll be in bed." He smirked.

She smirked and laughed, "All right. I'll rush."

He chuckled and walked away, leaving her alone in the lounge.

Hermione began to write a quick reply to Ginny.

Gin,

It's no bother. I'm not exactly sure why they've sent me anything but if you could please just set it aside and I'll get it when I return. I'm eager to see the photo.

As for Draco, yes, I am in love with him. I'll have to wait until we're together in person to explain everything to you, but you're correct, we must chat when I get back.

There's so much to talk about.

I love you, Gin!

Happy Christmas!

Love,

Mione

Hermione read through it, nodded, and sealed it in an envelope before grabbing a small piece of parchment. She wrote down a list of instructions before grabbing some Euros from her bag.

"Draco, I'll be back in a moment!" She shouted up to him before heading down to the lobby.

When she arrived, she found Clara and smiled, "Hi Clara!"

"Hello Miss Granger! What can I do for you?" She asked.

"I have a letter that I need sent to Britian."

Clara nodded, "I can do that."

"Also, I have a favor to ask of you." Hermione said.

Clara simply nodded and waited.

"I am unable to go shopping for Draco, so I was hoping that if I gave you the money and the information about what I wanted to get him, that perhaps, you could get it for me…"

Clara nodded, "Certainly!" She said, "What is it?"

Hermione handed her the letter, the money, and the small note with the instructions for the gift written on it.

Clara looked at the note and nodded, smiling, "I know just the place to find this."

"Thank you. Truly." Hermione said before walking back to the penthouse, a wide smile on her face.